Jam

Have you ever made Jam? Have you ever eaten homemade Jam? Where I live Berry season is starting early this year, which means it will end early too. My family loves Jam, but they are not fond of the jam from the local Supermarket.

This is my fault, and my curse. A few years ago, in an effort to decrease the number of chemicals going into my children’s tiny little bodies, I decided to make my own jam. The kids loved peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and I was shocked to find out how many jams use red dye to make their jams look redder (?). Yes, because strawberries are such a wonderful…blue color by nature??

Being a wonderful parent and living in a produce rich area, I headed out on a mission to learn JAM MAKING! Yes, I meant to put it all in caps. I read all the online information, dug out old cookbooks, and preceded down the path to infamy. It really was infamy. The first couple batches were inedible. My dog who loves sweets actually put her nose in the air and walked off.

At this point I called my mom; she was a professional jam maker when I was growing up. Now if I had known I was going to be making jam when I was older, I may have actually paid attention when she was doing it. But I was too cool; I was only going to get the good stuff from the store.  She talked me through my mistakes, and off I went again. Now, I can can, or is it I can can jam, lol. The problem with jam making is my children now expect it. From the ones who have moved out, to the ones who are at home, the only store bought jam/jelly they will eat is grape, and they are more than willing to share my jam with their friends, their friend’s friends.

Last year, I missed the strawberries, and I have not heard the end of it. This year I am on top of it.  I am planning my attack. I have started gathering my jars, my rings, and my water bath. And I went out and bought some berries. I was actually excited, right up until I came home with my new lids, and found the berries gone.

My children looked at me in shock and awe as I raced through the house swearing to kill the one who had eaten my berries. No one who lives in my house would cop to it. The red stains around their mouths were anything but berries. They all promised, and took vows to help me catch this horrible person who was eating their berries.  Later this week, I will return to the little stand out along the road, in the middle of the nowhere, and I shall not leave my kitchen until the jam is done.

If you don’t hear from me for a year, please check the jam jars...

Pictures

     Today we live in a society where there is camera in every phone, every tablet, and computer. Everyone thinks they are a photographer. They all want to take a million pictures and post them online for the whole world to see.  They don't use cameras they use their phones, ipod, ipads, but it doesn't make them a photographer.
      The other day I was at a sporting event ,the lights were low, and there was a gentleman with a big camera and a big lens, and he was taking pictures. But he only took pictures he could use his flash on, which puts the athletes in stark relief. Then at the end of tournament he got pissy with the athletes because they moved off the podium to fast. He actually yelled at them and within the hearing of the parents, announcing he was getting paid $1000 for this weekend, and they needed to respect that.  Really parents and teenagers need to hear how much you made from the schools who have no money to support the athletes.
   I am astounded at how many people take go out and spend thousands on cameras they do not understand, and they won't spend a couple of hundred on a class to teach them how to use the camera they just spent all that money on.  I get so tired of the number of people who are taking pictures with their cameras and calling them good.
  Cameras are used to take pictures, you wouldn't want a painter to use food coloring to paint your picture, neither would you want your wedding pictures taken with a phone....

Cooking and Costs

I love to bake. I like the feeling of dough between my fingers, the sound of cookies hitting the sheet, the smell of fresh baked treats.
My dad was a baker, and I try to be a baker. The problems though are simple, the cost. Have you tried to go out and buy a good cookie sheet? I did the other day. The cheap one, looked like it might last 2 days at my house, and the ones I wanted were almost the same price as the new cell phone my daughter wanted.
 So how do you buy good quality and still be able to afford to cook. I have learned in recent years, when I stopped working and started cooking, there are a million people out there who don't cook and who regularly clean their houses.
  The WOK on my stove, my second, this one has a flat bottom, is almost identical to my second one, only I only paid $4.99. New in the box, at a garage sale. The set of Cutlery I got from the local thrift store, I paid $19.99. It came with the block, the accesory set, and the ice cream scoop. It is a Cutco. I have a beautiful Tiffanys bowl, for serving $7.99 at a resale shop. They had never heard of Tiffanys selling bowls, but they took in on consignment anyway.
    I have learned, but I have learned there are things you should never scrimp on, and they are the pans I cook in, I have a really nice set, and I cook without water. I know it almost sounds like I am selling them to you, but you can't have my set.
   But at the end of the day, you need a good set, and sometimes you can find one in the paper, at the estate sale, or even at a resale shop.  Here is to good hunting, may all the treasures of cooking rise to meet you.

The Dark Knight

The Dark knight has truly brought a dark night. It is hard to understand how it happens, but it does. Someone, I can't tell you why, and wouldn't want to guess walked into a room full of happiness and proceeded to spray his insanity through the crowd. And 12 died.
  My daughter went to the movie tonight. Not the Dark Knight, but Spiderman 3, and I worried her home. I have to now. I can't just take her to the movies, and let her and her 3 little friends out of the car, watching them walk towards the door in all their immortality, laughing, and deciding on which drink to get. Moms and Dads live in separate houses, and they can't protect them from the darkest of nights. I would wonder, will the victims ever be able to go to the movies and not remember that moment of absolute terror, when one of the "safe" places we had left was torn from our society.  I wonder if my children now know they are no longer immortal.
  I remember thinking I would never die. I could do anything, and everything would just be ok. I don't think our children live in the same world, as the one I grew up in. Someone took all the innocence and hid it away from children. They see on television, about death, anguish, and they watch friends die.
What happened to you, what was in your troubled mind as you mowed people down, watching as children fell, mothers & fathers ran, spouses & family tried to protect those you had hurt, willing to die, before allowing you to do more damage. There are so many angry people, but anger doesn't save those who died, it doesn't do them justice. It was an angry and violent moment cutting their lives short, what did you fear? I am not angry, I am hurt, hurt you felt you had the right to take from someone something which was not yours, you are a thief. Hurt the safety of going to the movies has now been destroyed, you are a terrorist. But I will not give you my anger, you don't deserve any emotion of mine which is so close to fear, love, and hate.  I give you hurt and pity, for they are all you deserve, for in the end. You will be forgotten, but they will not.

New Babies, Old babies, and living with your own babies

I am watching my grandchildren, for a few days. I know I love them, but somehow, I forgot how much time it takes. I guess as your children get older and you are running here, for dance, there for wrestling, robotics, school events, proms, and parent teacher conferences, you forget how much running you were doing when you had babies, and then they come back and you are out of your mind.
The toys babies like, seem to be your camera, your laptop, cookware, beads and lord help you, your office materials. Not the hundreds of toys you spent your time and money picking out, so they wouldn't play with your camera, laptop and office materials.
Its funny how all those moments you ran your legs off and fell into bed exhausted, fade from memory as you are watching them grow, and they way keep you running changes.
Now I keep busy chasing the childrens busy appointments, who seem to believe my time is all full of openings just for anything they volunteer for.
My husband found out he has a new granddaughter. Its funny, she named it after his mother. But it is also one he won't get to spend much time with. It is a sad, but wonderful situation, when your babies have babies.

Maybe if we are lucky, we will refind our sanity.

Realality Television and the Snap of the American Brain

We did the whole world become so fascinated it the mundane. The real of housewives of I don't give a shit, The I can't find a wife/husband without tv. Or How about those wonderful chefs who cant have a decent word come out of their mouths. I am your target addiunece and I can't stand all the crap on your television show. I have taken my dogs walking,,I don't care who sings the best, or who did whom, and I certainly don't care if she/he crys when the answer is no.

Sorry housewives, I have a husband, kinda like him and he helps out, and you are right I don't drive a porsche, and hang out at bars, I did that once. I was a trashy biker then.
What happened to televisions, now you bore me wtih deaths i figure out before you, and I sleep way too much.

The band needs to slip off and smack the crap outta someone cause we need to be woke up...

Now were cooking with Power

My mom never cooked, or rather she never cooked well. She tried, but living in a house with a professional baker made it hard. Living with a perfectionist who drank to much made it harder. I love my dad, he taught me how to bake, how to knead bread, to put all you had into cooking.
He also told me I was a girl, and should only want to be a nurse. I was a good nurse, lousy wife. I spent half my life wishing I was a boy, and the other half, acting like I had Ba..s of steel. I didn't by the way, but what i have learned of late, is I have no will power. I may still think I have those steel objects but I don't have the ability to do anything about them. Its hard a trip down self-reflection, but everyone has to make it at some point, I choose now. I choose to not keep things I will never fix, never finish, or just aint gonna do.
I love to cook, but if you tell me you hate something, I don't change it, I quit. I love smoothies. I do, I love them, and want to drink them. All the time.
My sweetie tolerates them, and me most days. But I quit making them, because he did not like them. I don't do new years resolutions, I break them all of them, I never lost that 20 pounds, said no to that last donut, or took back my life, but I think I am going to. I think I am going to do it one baby step at a time. I am getting back the steel items, and I am going to learn to use them

I think stuffed mushrooms, and rice green peppers just went back on the menu... baby steps, next it will be the 20 pounds and no..:)