Posted by: cheeriant on: November 19, 2011
I took a break, as you can read. A year, in fact. A little because inspiration flew out the window, a lot because I was working a full time job that allowed me to post on another blog, and so the creative juices were flowing elsewhere.
But I’m back!
I’ve been thinking an awful lot lately about the question, “If you could do anything, professionally, what would it be?”
No one has specifically asked me that question lately. They’ve asked me what kind of job I’m looking for, but not about The Dream.
So I find I ask myself, what is The Dream? I seem to have lost it somewhere on the self-searching journey.
When I was a kid, The Dream was to be a teacher. Then I started babysitting and helping out in the kindergarten classes and that dream turned into The Nightmare.
As a teenager I decided I wanted to work in publishing. Went to school for journalism, worked in the industry a little, enjoyed it, but can’t see a prolonged future in it without moving to a big city – which is not part of The Dream.
Currently the answer to that first question is To Be Happy.
Oh I know, booooooooring! But I started to feel that if I had no expectations, all life could do was exceed them.
Niggling throughout these Dreams was the idea of writing, creatively. Having experience in publishing I know – first hand as I’ve done a little bookkeeping in the industry – that creative writing does not pay well. If at all.
So I started to ask myself whether The Dream had to make me money and whether it had to be realistic.
A friend and I have been half-joking for the past few years about creating children’s books – I’ll write, she’ll illustrate. The idea is based on the fact that we’ve been reading lots of kiddie books lately and a lot of them are terrible.
And I’m starting to think we might actually be able to pull it off.
I’m not thinking too far ahead. Publishing work is exasperating and expensive. We could, however, self publish. Also expensive, however, we would keep 100% of any profits.
Mostly, I think it would be fun and satisfying.
I think I’ll start brainstorming!
Is it The Dream? I don’t know! But it’s A Dream. Gotta start somewhere.
And hey! It got me back on the blog!
Posted by: cheeriant on: September 6, 2010
Have you heard about these red velvet cupcakes? They are all the rage – or at least, in Hollywood and with the elite (or those who think they’re in the cool clique).
I first heard about them from Oprah. It was the usual with her and me, just chillin’ in my living room while she was going on about some of her favourite things a few years ago. Anyway, I think Gayle piped in about some red velvet cupcakes she’d had and went on and on about them.
Then it was Ellen proclaiming their goodness. So it must be good if Ellen says so! Even though I had no idea what red velvet tasted like. Strawberries? Cherry? Twizzlers? Then every magazine I read was talking about the delectable and fancy treat. So about a year ago I was given the opportunity to try one. Someone had picked one up from Starbucks, and with their baked good track record I was expecting awesome.
What I got was a spongy, albeit somewhat dry, tasteless confectionery concoction that I think pretended to have chocolate in it. Um, this is what the fuss is all about? Celebrities; they don’t have good taste.
And so went my thought on the subject. Since the Starbucks incident, I have seen red velvet showcased as a delicacy on many a cake baking TV show, but I have not had the chance to try another bite of red velvet cake (not that I’d want to). And then an article in The Toronto Star popped up singing the praises of red velvet, yet again endorsed by a celebrity. This time, Katie Holmes.
Now, before you start ripping into Katie and her choice in men (I mean really? She can’t wear heels?), just know that it was the recipe that drew me in. Here’s the recipe link.
For whatever reason, I was itching to try this recipe. It seemed so easy! And one of my life’s goals is to gather a collection of from-scratch cake recipes. The ones I had tried lately failed miserably.
I gathered my ingredients, made a mess of the kitchen and popped these babies out of the oven. I put one in the freezer for five minutes. If they tasted good, I would go ahead and make the icing.
They not only tasted good, but were light and fluffy and yummy! Not overpowering, a delicate chocolate taste, and an overall YUM appeal. Parents agreed!
And, um, I totally meant to take some pictures, but we ate them all before I could!
Posted by: cheeriant on: June 3, 2010
Sh*t my dad does:
You’ve probably heard of the guy who posts about the stuff his dad says, or as he calls it “Sh*t my Dad says”. He’s pretty damn funny. Well, I’ve decided to keep track of sh*t my dad does. They will undoubtedly include things he says, but what he does is just funnier than what he says.
Serve Yourself
In my house, dinner is a serve-yourself deal. There are, after all, only three of us. Dinner edibles are placed on the stove and all necessary utensils are close at hand. Some people go back for seconds. On this particular evening, Mum started to clean up the stove and picked up a pair of pincers, (you might call them tongs). They aren’t solid though, they are little more than thick pieces of wire shaped into squares at the ends. We use them for things like yellow beans so you don’t take the water they’re sitting in onto your plate. You definitely cannot pick up anything like mashed potatoes up with them, it won’t work because there are huge holes on the part you use to pick stuff up.
Mum said, “Why are there mashed potatoes on the pincers?”
I looked at Dad.
Dad looked at the table and said “They are really good mashed potatoes.”
The Case of the Ringing Phone
I called home from work one afternoon to ask Dad a question, and the phone rang and rang and rang and rang and…well you get the picture. Our answering machine picks up after 5 rings and we don’t have call waiting, so it was strange that the phone rang so many times. I hung up and called back, thinking perhaps I had misdialed. Nope, same deal, ring, ring,ring,ring….
When I got home I said to my Dad “Were you home around 2pm?” He said “Yes.” I said “Did the phone ring?” He said, “Yes, it was so strange. The phone in the computer room was ringing and the phone downstairs was ringing, but the phone in the kitchen wasn’t ringing!” I said “Did you think to, I don’t know, answer the phone?” He said “Why? You never call at 2 o’clock in the afternoon.”
A Tale of Cat Vomit
I walked barefoot into the kitchen one night to fill the foot tub with hot water to soak my feet. I stepped in cat puke on the floor. I also noticed it was on the kitchen counter. I said to my dad, who was sitting about 4metres away in the living room watching TV, “Unbelievable. For once, the cat didn’t throw up on the carpet!” Dad answered, “Oh yeah, I meant to clean that up.”
Take Note
Dad came home from running errands and said, “Did Fred call?” I said, “Yes. Did you see the note I taped to the phone?” He said, “Yes. Is there a message on the answering machine?” I said, “No Dad, that’s why I taped a note to the phone.”
Just A Foot
I walk from the living room on my way to the computer room holding my Easter chocolate rabbit. Dad says, “Can I have a piece?” I stop, give him the You-ARE-Crazy stare and say, “You have your own.” He says, “Well I just want a little piece, like a foot or something.” I take a few deep breaths, still glaring. I break off a piece the size of my thumbnail (even that was too big), and give it to him. Glaring. “Thanks,” he says “that’s all I wanted.” I’ve never been so close to telling my Dad to f*ck off before.
I hope you’ve enjoyed these tidbits. Honestly, I probably could have written them better, but I figure at this point I need to put something up here or else I’ll lose ambition! More to come. Every day there are ample possibilities in this category!
Posted by: cheeriant on: April 5, 2010
*I wrote this around Christmas, but I wasn’t satisfied with it and so kept it back and tweaked it until now. Hence the cold weather and festive remarks.
In keeping with the title of my blog, I have tried twice to write a post about the latest Nora Roberts group of books about 4 sisters who run a wedding planning business. They’re great, great books, the first two are currently available, but I just can’t find it in me to write more about them than that. Just know that they are in my reread pile. Hopefully someday I will find the right way to write about them.
However, I did just finish rereading the Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer, and I have found the passion to write about that experience! I don’t understand my will to write, it’s got a mind of it’s own and I let it run amok; mostly just so that I can write the work “amok”.
I first read the Twilight saga last year, just before Christmas. I’m pretty sure I’ve mentioned it before.
Ok, we all know what the saga is about. Sparkly vampires and trans-species love. But, did you know that it’s AWESOME? Because it is.
I won’t go into the plot, that’s overdone. Instead, I’m going to explain how I read the books. And you can look at the word “read” as past or present. I’ll probably jump tenses a bit where I feel necessary. Hey j-skool, suck on THAT lemon! This is MY blog!
Starting with Twilight, I crack the book open to the first chapter, (I’d say that’s a duh, but I know some people who just jump to their favourite parts), and the visuals start. I see the overcast skies of Forks, with it’s wet sidewalks and soggy lawns. I don’t see the words I’m reading, I see the story I’m experiencing. Reading for me has little to do with words and everything to do with watching the TV version. My casts are never real actors though, actually not even real people. Yeah, my imagination is that damn good.
While it’s rough for me at the start of Twilight, as it is with most books because I just want to get into the story already, it doesn’t take me long to feel like I’m in Forks, that damp air around me and the smell of wet woods. Now the blankets come out, the slippers go on and if I’m in the la-z-boy I’ll probably make some tea. I really get into the story.
When reading in bed, since it’s winter and I don’t turn the heat on in my room, (we have electric, it’s just not worth it), I’ve got a pile of blankets on me and I’m in a cocoon, gripping the book as hard as I can without distracting me from the story, trying to turn the pages without dropping the large tome and disrupting my fantasy. Or rather, Ms. Meyer’s fantasy.
This time, before I knew it, it was 2am and Twilight was over. It took me about a week to read it this time, as I had to force myself to put it down several times to do things like socialize, go to work and prepare for Christmas. As soon as Twilight hit the floor beside my bed, New Moon was in my hands. 2am? Who cares?! I didn’t have to work in the morning. I started New Moon even though I was tired because my brain was too active, too excited about the next part of the saga. In order to quiet my mind, I just had to read some more. I think I lasted another 15 minutes. All that romance can be exhausting.
New Moon went a little faster than Twilight. I started to become a hermit and read, but I ended up taking multiple breaks because I’d promised Mum that we’d watch season 4 and what had aired so far of season 5 of Criminal Minds. That’s about 38 episodes in less than 2 weeks in case you’re wondering. Fabulous show! But back to the topic at hand.
New Moon ended, and on a pleasant note because the first time I read it I was full of anger and sheer frustration at several characters, but this time I knew where it we were going so I was just excited to be reminded of what happened next because do you think I could remember what happened in Eclipse? No. Well, barely. Wow, that one sentence is really long! And suck THAT lemon too j-skool! *starts to sing Queen’s I Want to Break Free*
Eclipse started the night before I took a day trip with my parents that involved me having about 6 hours to read. Eclipse finished the next day, because when I get on a roll like that, I often can’t put the book down. It turns out I remembered a lot of Eclipse, I just hadn’t realized it happened in Eclipse. Nice to know that while I’m kind of crazy, I’m not actually losing my mind.
Then I picked up Breaking Dawn. Again, it was late at night and right after I had finished Eclipse. But I stopped for a brief moment because this was it; the last book in the saga. A lot of adventure to look forward to, but also the end. I get sad sometimes when I come to the end of an exciting book series, because I feel like I have to say good bye to my friends! And then I kicked myself in gear and started reading. And man, was I sucked in again.
Reading Breaking Dawn is different than reading the previous books. I don’t know exactly if it’s because it’s the last book so I know that things are coming to an end, the subject matter or just the sheer delight of re-experiencing one of my favourite books again. I just get completely lost in the book. I read it every chance I had. During commercials, (dangerous because I often forgot I was even watching TV), while waiting for dinner (which was a hard battle when dinner was ready. To end hunger or continue the story?), late at night, as soon as I woke up. Last time I read these books I was completely sucked in to them and did little else but read, however, this time I wanted to take it a little more slowly, to prolong the glowing feeling of story telling greatness.
And last night it was all over. Around 1am. But I wasn’t sad this time, I just reveled in the story, felt happy and mentally satisfied with the whole thing.
That’s what reading the Twilight series is like if you’re me. This also applies to Harry Potter and a few others. But I have to say, having Twilight on the brain so much in the last 2 weeks and Criminal Minds, I had one hell of a nightmare last night!
Posted by: cheeriant on: April 1, 2010
I love a great banana muffin; they are the perfect snack, breakfast mate and dessert. I found this recipe on the Kraft Canada website, and I’ve used it for a few years now. It has never failed me, which is saying something because even my prized chocolate chip cookie recipe has failed me. My version is slightly tweaked, which is why I didn’t link to it. Here we go!
2 1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
3-4 mashed bananas*
1/2 c. milk
1/3 c. melted butter or margarine
1 tsp vanilla extract
Mix flour, brown sugar, baking powder and salt together in a bowl. Whatever size, use your judgement.
Whisk together egg, bananas, milk, butter and vanilla. This works best if the ingredients are about the same temperature. If the melted butter is freshly melted and the milk fresh from the fridge, you may find yourself whisking butter chunks in the milk.
Combine the 2 mixtures (dry to wet, wet to dry, whatever it really won’t make much difference), until just moist. Lumps are ok! You just don’t want huge pockets of dry ingredients.
Drop into muffin cups in muffin tins or straight into greased muffin tins. I make about 12 muffins because I like large, springy muffins.
Bake at 400F for 20 minutes.
This recipe is also delicious with strawberries, and strawberries and bananas together! Another variation suggested chocolate chips.
*I find it easiest to use bananas, or fruit in general, for muffins when they are thawed from frozen. So easy to mush! So next time you have brown bananas, peel and put in a plastic bag in your freezer. I also use at least 4 bananas, because I like the banana punch, but that’s personal preference.
Posted by: cheeriant on: March 30, 2010
My Aunt Joyce was my Grammie’s best friend from the time they were children, and my Uncle Clarence was my Grammie’s first cousin, so they were very dear people to her, and thus, to me.
And man could they cook!
5lb oven baking dish
1 1/2 c. uncooked rice
4 to 6 pork chops
2 tins beef consume
4 thin slices each of onion, green pepper, tomato
Put the rice in the bottom of the baking dish. Pour in the consume. Lay pork chops on top of rice. Put one slice of each veggie on each pork chop, so it’s a neat little veggie pile.
Cover and bake at 325F for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
The pork chop is so tender and I love the flavourful rice! One of my favourite dishes.
Posted by: cheeriant on: March 13, 2010
This one came from a friend of my mum’s when I was a little kid. It’s all the tasty of cabbage rolls and far less work! It was written down in the early 80s and so to preserve how recipes were written, I’m typing this one out exactly.
Sear 1 pound hamburg in large frying pan
Add 1 cup chopped onion pepper
1 tsp salt 4 Tbsp long grain rice
Mix well and cook 2-3 minutes until brown
Add 1 (28oz) can spagetti sauce
Shred 3 cups cabbage into large baking dish
Pour meat mixture over cabbage. Do not stir.
Bake covered for 1 1/2 hours at 350F.
Note there is no measurement for pepper, so that’s all on you! I’m sure if you have a favourite cabbage roll recipe you can use that too and throw it all in there. We haven’t had this one in a while, I think I know what I’ll be volunteering to make next week.
Posted by: cheeriant on: March 12, 2010
This morning I was digging through the recipe box and I came across two recipes that I would like to share, but I warn you now they have nothing to do with each other. They could both be enjoyed at the same meal, but they won’t share a plate.
First up is Chocolate Sauce. It can be used to make chocolate milk, on desserts, straight up off the spoon, whatever your chocolate-loving heart desires. This recipe came from my Grammie. I have no idea where she got it or how old it is. Maybe she got it from her mom, maybe she found it in Reader’s Digest in 1979, I can’t ask her so we’ll just pretend it’s an uber old recipe to make it seem cooler.
1/4 c cocoa powder
3/4 c granulated (white) sugar
Blend in a small sauce pan.
Add 3/4 c hot water and stir
Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring all the time. Cook for 5 minutes, still stirring! Sing along with the radio or something, the time will pass pretty quickly. It will bubble up quite a bit, you may want to turn the heat back some.
When the 5 minutes are up, take the pan off the heat. If your jar is good to go, put some wood under it (like a cutting board) and pour immediately. None of my jars have broken, and that’s the way Mum taught me to do it. Otherwise, I suggest letting it cool a little, then pour. Makes about a cup and a bit of sauce. Store in the fridge. I’d say use it in a month or two, but let’s be honest, it’s not going to last that long!
Recipe number 2 is The Best-Ever Scalloped Potatoes. My Aunt Beth gave it to us, no idea where she got it from, but it’s amazing!
Ingredients:
3 extra large potatoes or 6 small ones
1/3 c finely chopped onion
Sauce:
3 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 1/2 c milk
In saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Gradually stir in milk; cook, stirring constantly for about 5 minutes or until boiling and thickened. Set aside.
Peel and thinly slice potatoes; arrange 1/3 in greased casserole dish. Pour 1/3 of the sauce over potatoes. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the onions. Repeat layering twice. Cover and bake at 350F for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake for 30 minutes longer or until potatoes are tender and top is lightly browned. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving. Makes 8 servings.
So drink some chocolate milk with your next scalloped potato meal!
Posted by: cheeriant on: March 11, 2010
So I’ve decided I need another challenge to get myself writing here. I’ve decided that this month, or what’s left of it, I will post my favourite recipes from Mum’s recipe box. Yum? I think so!
Today’s choice is my very favourite, Tuna Chow Mein Casserole. I have no idea where Mum got this recipe, but she’s made it all my life. It’s so much my favourite that this is what I request for my birthday every year!
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
1 cup milk
1 cup chopped celery
2 (7oz) cans tuna
1/2 c chopped onion
1/2 c chopped green pepper (optional)
4 oz cashew nuts
1 pkg chow mein noodles
1/2 c grated cheese (we use marble cheddar)
Directions:
Blend soup, milk, tuna, celery, onion, green pepper, cashews and all but 1/2 the noodles in a large bowl. Spray casserole dish with non-stick substance of your choice (PAM, olive oil, whatever). Put the good stuff in the dish and top with remaining noodles and grated cheese. Bake at 350F for 45 minutes. Let stand for about 5 once it’s done.
I’d post a picture, but we ate it all!
Posted by: cheeriant on: March 1, 2010
I challenged myself to post every day for the entire month of February. The count shows that I managed 15 posts in 28 days.
I think that’s pretty good for my first self-challenge! In the end, I accomplished what I wanted to; I wrote more, I took more time to reflect on what makes me smile and helped myself focus on the good things in life.
Yay for me!
Now I’ll have to come up with a new challenge. Any suggestions?
