Category: Uncategorized

Today, I spent some time relocating my “sewing station” since it’s old location was preventing Sweet Thing from working on at least one of his current projects.

Yesterday, I had thought about relocating it to the building formerly “sans light” OR to the trailer that is destined to become my “writing retreat”. However, I started changing my mind about using either of those two locations for several reasons:

• Each of those locations would make it rather inconvenient to get any sewing done being so far from the house;
• Getting packed up and ready to go to my weekly “quilt-along” sessions would be inconvenient as well; and
• It’s been too hot (often into triple-digit temperatures) AND/OR too muddy (thanks to LOTS of pop-up showers and “angry skies”) to be traipsing back and forth between the house and either of the afore-mentioned potential locations.

So… I ended up relocating my “sewing station” from the office to the pantry across the hall, where I’ll be using our big chest freezer as both an ironing board and a cutting table. I’m not sure whether this new location will work out or not, but at least Sweet Thing now has room to spread out as he works.

Only time will tell…

After having been diagnosed with “pre-diabetes” (and, eventually, diabetes), I have been doing my darndest to keep my glucose under control, so I won’t have to deal with insulin injections — and other methods of giving one’s body the insulin it needs.

I figured that the best way to deal with “pre-diabetes” is to do what is recommended as a course of action for dealing with many — if not, most — of the chronic diseases:

• change one’s diet; and
• get more exercise.

I’m happy to report that I’ve been having a fair amount of success at keeping my glucose under control by doing both of these things. However, a package of “Zero-Sugar Vanilla Wafer Cookies” that have been hanging out in the pantry — untouched — for quite some time threw me for a loop — AND sent my glucose readings skyrocketing!

One recent day, I decided to get rid of those cookies — the temptation that was staring me in the face every time I went into the pantry — especially since Sweet Thing wasn’t eating them. (Guess that should’ve been my first clue that something wasn’t quite right with them. Hindsight…) So, yeah… I decided to start eating them — in moderation… only a serving at a time with each meal — until they were finally all gone.

When I first started on this plan to eliminate the temptation those cookies were causing, my glucose readings were staying relatively steady — in the high 110s and the low 120s. Not within the normal range, but not high enough to send me to the ER. After the first couple of servings, my glucose went from 118 to 139, which caused a bit of concern, but I’d seen it spike that high after eating other sources of carbs.

The next day, I forgot to have some of the “Zero-Sugar” cookies, so I had a serving just before I exercised, thinking that I’d be able to “exercise away” the effect of eating them. Well… That decision proved to be disastrous because my glucose reading went up by 10 “points” (or whatever measurement is used) to 149.

Well… That should have been a warning to stop eating those cookies, but I was determined to get rid of those darned cookies — by eating ’em all since I don’t like “wasting food” by throwing it away. So, yeah… I ate one serving of those “Zero-Sugar” cookies with each meal that day, and I bet you can probably guess what happened to my glucose readings the next day.

If you guessed that my glucose reading went up, you’d be correct — except that it didn’t just go up by 10 like it had just done! No! It SKYROCKETED! It went from 149 one day to a whoppin’ 187 the next day! Wow! I was in shock! I think that had to have been my highest fasting glucose reading EVER — or, at least, very close to the highest!

When I got that reading, I shared it with Sweet Thing, and he said that it was because of “sugar alcohols” — AND that he hadn’t been eating them since they really mess with his glucose readings, too. At that point, I took a closer look at the list of ingredients (just before I hid them out of sight), but I don’t really know which ingredient was the cause of my glucose spike.

All I do know is that the current trend for labeling beverages and foods as “zero-sugar” are VERY misleading! I suspect that people tend to think that “zero-sugar” beverages and foods are a healthier alternative. However, this recent “Zero-Sugar” experience of mine has changed my way of thinking, AND it has made me more aware of the problems with labeling.

Follow-up: After my glucose skyrocketed to the whoppin’ 187, I refused to eat any more of those “Zero-Sugar” cookies AND vowed to stay away from highly-processed food as much as possible. Since that change in my eating habits, I’m happy to report that my glucose readings for the next six days were in the low 100s to the mid 110s. Still not quite within the “new” normal range, but closer than I’ve been in quite some time.

Now that you’ve heard my “Zero-Sugar” story, I’d love to hear about any similar dietary experiences you might have had. Hope you’ll take the time to leave a (related) comment.

Today was Dad’s birthday, so I thought of him often throughout the day, especially when I was in the kitchen cooking. Even though Mom did much of the cooking when I was growing up, Dad certainly wasn’t a stranger in the kitchen. I remember his spaghetti sauce, which, I swear, would simmer in a skillet on the back burner of the stove for hours. He would check on it every now and then by dipping a spoon into it and tasting it, adding more seasoning if he thought it needed that “something else”. If I happened to be nearby during one of those tastings, he’d reach into the silverware drawer, grab a spoon, and then offer me a taste. To me, everything Dad made was delicious, so I couldn’t figure out how he knew it needed “a bit of this” or a “pinch of that”.

Anyway… There was something else that I remember Dad making: Saratoga Chips. When he’d stand at the stove on which sat a familiar two-piece pot,(which I think I still have) I knew we were in for a special dinner that night — of broiled steak, Saratoga Chips, and corn. At the thought of Saratoga Chips, I felt an intense desire to make myself a batch of them to enjoy on Dad’s birthday, but… Alas!, I didn’t have any potatoes to do the making of Saratoga Chips justice, so I just did a quick online search for “Saratoga Chips”, which, I must say, do have an interesting history. So, in honor of Dad’s birthday, I thought I’d share a bit of that history (from: originalsaratogachips.com) with you today:

“As a local legend goes, in 1853, when gentlemen wore tight collars and too many layers of clothing, one wealthy patron (perhaps a little disgruntled from the summer weather) entered Moons Lake House, a restaurant on the shores of Saratoga Lake in Saratoga Springs, NY, where George Crum worked as a cook.

The grumpy patron ordered Moon’s Fried Potatoes, their well-known house specialty. At that time, fried potatoes (French fried potatoes) were commonly served in thick-cut slices in the French tradition. This particular patron found the slices to be too thick and soggy. Dissatisfied, he sent them back to the kitchen and requested that they be sliced thinner. He was duly served a second portion, and still not satisfied; he returned them yet again, insisting that they be cut thinner still. Not particularly receptive to criticism of his cooking, the spirited Mr. Crum obliged by slicing them as paper-thin as he could manage and salting them heavily in an attempt to make them inedible! Deep-fried, they became quite crispy, they became impossible to eat with a fork. Intending to teach the wealthy patron a lesson, the reaction from the diner instead was one of enthusiastic appreciation and a request for a second serving of chips! Soon other diners requested Crum’s Saratoga Chips. And so begins the illustrious history of “Saratoga Chips”, a Moon’s Lake House specialty.”

After reading this history, I realized that Dad might have heard about — and learned how to cook — Saratoga Chips while he was stationed at Griffiss Air Force Base near Rome, New York. I don’t know if this is true, but all I DO know is that I LOVED the Saratoga Chips that Dad made! So… Every now and then, I’ll get in the mood for making a batch of Saratoga Chips for myself — though mine never taste as good as Dad’s!

Miss you AND your Saratoga Chips, Dad!

Another one of Chuck Lorre’s “vanity cards” captured my attention, so I just had to feature it in one of MY “vanity posts”.

In the vanity card of his that was at the end of S3:Ep13 of “Mom” (an episode entitled “Sticky Hands and a Walk on the Wild Side”), Chuck shared the following limerick with his viewers:

“There was a man named Benedict Lincoln,

who had untamed negative thinkin’.

The world came and went,

but he was absent,

distracted by thoughts that were stinkin’.

After reading his limerick, I thought, “I can write something like that! Thus inspired, I did a bit of research into “how to write a limerick”, and after giving some thought to the advice I’d read, I started thinking about one of my own.

Here’s what I came up with — after much thought and a long, hot shower:

There once was a building sans light,

which left me a terrible plight:

How can I sort in that

when I’m blind as a bat?

Then Sweet Thing said, “Now you’ve got light!

Grrr……. Everything needed to be charged tonight!

I’ve discovered that, every now and then, EVERY electronic thing I own runs out of “juice” (that invisible form of energy that “hides” in electrical outlets and power strips) AT THE SAME TIME! Tonight was one of those times!!

Thankfully, I’ve got a new “flat plug power strip” that I just “installed” (read: plugged into an extension cord, which is plugged into one of those afore-mentioned electrical outlets) next to where I do most of my work.

Now, I’ve just got to give it (the new power strip) a more permanent home before its temporary location becomes permanent — as most “temporary” solutions tend to do.

First of all, the milestone to which I refer in the title of this post is my son’s 35th birthday! So, here’s my wish to him on this special occasion:

“May your birthday be the beginning of a year filled with good health, happiness, and prosperity.”

Happy birthday, Philipp!

And now for the “goal” part of the title.. I’m happy to report that the extended hiatus I’ve been on when it comes to the publication of my “vanity posts” is now over! Therefore, my goal is to write — and publish — one “vanity post” everyday for the next month — even if it’s only to say something as short as “Gone fisihin'” and accompanied by a photo (something Chuck Lorre once “published” at the end of one of his sitcoms years ago.

(P.S. I REALLY must learn how to add photos to these “vanity posts” of mine since it’s been said that “pictures are worth a thousand words”. Wish me luck in this endeavor — OR feel free to leave directions for doing so in the comments below.)

I fell in love with Chinese almond cookies the moment I tasted one with a “Chinese take-out” order. In addition to the usual fortune cookies, this particular Chinese restaurant also served Chinese almond cookies with their meals. One bite, and I was hooked, so I always made sure I got at least one package of these delicious treats.

Years ago during one trip to my local grocery store, I was overjoyed to discover pink boxes of Chinese almond cookies in the “Asian” section. So… Whenever I went grocery shopping, I’d pick up a couple of those pink boxes to tide me over until the next “Chinese take-out” order OR to accompany any Chinese entrees that I made at home.

Sadly, though, I can no longer get those pink boxes of Chinese almond cookies. After relocating to “my holler in Kentucky”, I was VERY disappointed when I couldn’t find ’em in the “Asian” section of any local grocery stores. Consequently, I was VERY happy when an unintentional online search led me to the recipe I’m going to share with you in today’s vanity post. It’s from redhousespice.com, a Web site that was founded by a woman who “was born and raised in China”, so ya know it’s got to be authentic! Without further ado, here’s the recipe for…

Chinese Almond Cookies

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/3 cups almond flour (see note 1)

1/2 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup neutral cooking oil (see notes 2 & 3)

40 almonds, toasted

1 egg yolk (skip for the vegan version)

Instructions

Make the dough:

1. Add all-purpose flour, almond flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to a large bowl. Use a fork to mix them well.
2. Pour in the oil and mix with the fork until no dry flour remains.
3. Combine and press all the lumps together (to form a big ball). It’s okay if the dough falls apart easily, as long as it has a uniform texture (see note 2).

Shape the cookies:

1. With the aid of a kitchen scale, divide the dough into 40 portions, with each weighing about 1/2 ounce (15 g).
2. With gentle pressure, shape a piece of dough into a (small) ball. Place it on the palm of your hand. Press one almond halfway into the dough.
3. Repeat to make all the cookies, then put them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, leaving a little space in between.
4. Optional step: Mix egg yolk with 1/2 teaspoon of water. Brush it over the cookies.

Bake the cookies:

1. Put the baking sheet on the middle rack of an oven preheated to 350 degrees F.
2. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes until the cookies brown nicely. Cool them completely on a wire rack before storing them in air-tight containers.

Notes

1. Almond flour can be replaced with almond meal, which includes almond skin and usually has a coarser texture. In this case, the dough tends to be more crumbly, thus requiring gentler handling.
2. Since the brand and accuracy of the measurement affect how the flour absorbs moisture, you may need to slightly adjust the amount of cooking oil. If the dough appears overly dry, add a little more oil.
3. Unsalted butter (melted) can be used as a substitute for cooking oil, but you will need to use 2 additional tablespoons beyond the suggested amount.

So, there you have it: A recipe for Chinese almond cookies that you can make at home if, like me, your local grocery doesn’t have those pink boxes OR (I suppose) you can just get ’em with your next “Chinese take-out” order. Your choice, but I know which choice I’ll be making!

Today, I started yet another major project around “my holler in Kentucky” — getting my travel trailer cleared out and ready to relocate to the “back 40”, where I’m going to turn it into my “writer’s retreat”. While going through some of the “stuff” that has been stashed in it through the years, I found a wooden plaque that featured what appears to be an island sunset and some “words of wisdom” in the form of a poem called “Don’t Quit”. Because of the timeliness of this poem, I’m going to transcribe it here, so I’ll have easy access to it on the days when I find myself in need of encouragement. Without further ado, here are the “words of wisdom” that I found on a plaque in my travel trailer:

DON’T QUIT

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,

When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill,

When the funds are low, and the debts are high,

And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,

When care is pressing you down a bit,

Rest if you must, but don’t you quit.

*******

Life is strange with its twists and turns,

As everyone of us sometimes learns,

And many a failure turns about,

When he might have won had he stuck it out;

Don’t give up though the pace seems slow.

You may succeed with another blow.

*******

Success is failure turned inside out.

The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,

And you can never tell how close you are,

It may be near when it seems so far;

So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit.

It’s when things seem worst

That you must not quit.”

Unfortunately, I’m not able to give proper credit to the author of this poem because there was no name beneath it.

However, I hope this poem — and its “words of wisdom” — gives each of us the encouragement we need to keep going with whatever major project we happen to be dealing with at the time, which, for me, is going through boxes and boxes of “stuff” that as accumulated through the years! Wish me luck in this endeavor. I’m certainly going to need it as I navigate my way uphill through the mountain of boxes in my travel trailer now!

As I’m sure you’ve noticed, I took a break… a hiatus… from the publication of my vanity posts. This was primarily because of an extremely busy schedule during the last week or so of June, but I’m happy to report that I’m slowly getting back to these vanity posts. So… I hope you’ve found your way back and will continue to join me during the coming days in my ongoing “vanity post experiment.

Anyway… I’ve long thought that “hiatus” was a strange word, and, to be honest, I wasn’t even sure whether I’d used the word properly above, so I figured I’d better look into the word to satisfy my curiosity AND make sure I was using it as it was intended to be used. Went to my favorite online resource (dictionary.com) since my good ol’ Webster’s dictionary wasn’t at hand, and I discovered that I had, indeed, used the word properly — according to the first definition listed for “hiatus”:

“a break or interruption in the continuity of a work, series, action, etc.”

Yay! That made me feel good, but I was still curious about the history of the word, so I continued scrolling down through the other four definitions until I came to what I was looking for: the “etymology” or origin of the word “hiatus”. This is what I found:

“Origin of hiatus

First recorded in 1555-65; from Latin hiatus “opening, gap,” equivalent to hia(re) “to gape, open” + tus, noun suffix”

Here’s dictionary.com’s explanation for the word “hiatus”:

“A temporary gap, pause, or absence can be called a hiatus. When your favorite TV show is on hiatus, that means there are no new episodes — not forever, just for a little while.

Even things that go on for a long time take a break once in a while: one kind of a break is a hiatus. If someone has to leave her job for a time, she’s going on hiatus. A touring band will need to take a hiatus if the lead singer gets in an accident. The key thing about a hiatus is that it’s an interruption of something that was happening, but it’s not a permanent break.”

Even writers need to take a hiatus, especially if they get so busy that they don’t know whether they’re coming or going. So, yeah… I did NOT take a permanent break from the publication of my vanity posts… just a hiatus. It’s good to be back!