My mom was a born competitor, and proof is in this cornbread story. (The other corroborating evidence is in my Six Simple Words That Can End Your Life post, where I narrowly escaped death by paring knife.)…
I love getting to know my kids friends and realizing there are no pesky serial killers or violent offenders to worry about. They’re good kids who I enjoy hanging out with too. I love them all, especially Reef, my daughter’s boyfriend, who entered sainthood the day he served as spotter — helping me pinpoint where my intestinally challenged dog had left lovely gifts on my living room rug.…
Alex is getting married. I find this hard to believe because, according to my calculations, she is still twelve and helping me bathe my daughter in the kitchen sink. I was never good at math.…
My father served as a medic in the Army in World War II. He never talked about it until he was in his 90s, except to let us know that war is hell and he was not a fan of anything in France, especially the French. So when I went to Paris with two friends for my 40th birthday, and came back with stories of how nice the…
A good neighbor is someone who, years after you’ve moved, still calls when the blackberries are ripe in his yard so you can come pick some. That’s what my former neighbor, Brian, did a few days ago. We had great neighbors in my old neighborhood. One let me pick apricots in his yard. You’d bite into them and the apricot juice would run down your chin. That’s what…
There wasn’t a lot of excitement at New Brighton Junior High, except when Carolyn Riley arrived breathless after some catastrophe. Usually one of her horses got loose and she had to run, her long thin legs slipping and sliding, to retrieve it. Or the snow-plow had blocked off their driveway with snow, so they had to shovel themselves out, or Margie and Nancy, their lambs (and eventual dinner)…
Baking• Desserts• Italian Mom Stories• Pies
Italian Bonding with Trader Pies and Easter Bread
April 4, 2015
Italian women bound into a flurry of baking activity before big holidays like Easter and Christmas. Then they rush their baked goods to friends and family, as though the holiday will not happen unless every last baked good is delivered.…
When I attended Clarion University of Pennsylvania, I studied Elementary Education. I use the term, “study,” loosely because I don’t remember a damned thing about education, but I do remember the Seven Layer Cookies my roommate, Margaret brought back with her.…
Desserts• Main Courses• One Pot Meals• Pork
A Pat on the Back, Porkchops and Poached Pears
January 31, 2015
Remember, almost a year ago when my friends, my kids, and their friends helped move me into an apartment that needed a lot of work? Well, it still needs a lot of work and since I’m almost over the embarrassment of living in a place that desperately needs a paint job, I figured it was time to pay back my friends Mandy and Bjorn. (Sadly, the landlord has…
Baking• Bread• Thoughts on Life• Vegetarian
A Zucchini Funk May Be Just What You Need
January 11, 2015
I was in a funk most of November and December. I got my freelance work done, but didn’t have the drive to do anything except sit on the couch and watch every episode of The Gilmore Girls, while shoving food in my mouth. I didn’t want to decorate for Christmas or even bake Christmas cookies, which is like Mother Theresa not wanting to help the poor. I just had…