Gibson's Sweater

I decided to do a complete overhaul on the sweater for Gibson. Soon as I saw him, the other just didn’t seem right at all.

However, I’m 90% sure that the neck won’t fit over his noggin. I told my sweetie to bring it back if it doesn’t so I can fix it. I already know how I can modify it with nominal work and have it perfect…but, somehow I get a feeling the sweater won’t come back home. **chuckles**

It seems that Loki has managed to get a bit of foxtail into his paw.  He’s on antibiotics and painkillers as well as a salt bath twice a day and an alcohol pack every night. The vet says there’s a strong chance it will work its way out.  I hope so because the alternative is an $1100 vet bill…

So, of course, I do what I do when I get stressed out, or have people around, or have the ingredients, or …you get the idea…I’m baking  I’m making some bread.  MMMMMMMMmmmmm can’t wait for it to be done so I can have that first, piping hot slice slathered in butter. The real thing…Creamery butter.  Absolutely sinful.

Too precious for words

Well, I decided to put the kibosh on the layette set I was making. Instead, I’m working up a sweater of my own design. It will be a little large so it should fit the tyke come fall/winter time, with room under for a comfy t-shirt or whatever for extra layers. Making it like a little Guernsey. It will be a natural cotton – I’m contemplating using light blue for the cabled areas and then the cuff and neck in the natural like the base of the body. We’ll see. Now to make sure I get the proportions correct on this little sweater so it doesn’t come out all wonky.

We moved last weekend into an RV park in the middle of the Cleveland National Forest. I love it. No, I’m not living in an RV. I’m living in a ‘model’ home. It’s got two rooms, a living room, bathroom, kitchen, patio and fire ring. The view is just excellent, and the park pays for all utilities except propane and TV. It’s a bit more space than what we had before – at nearly a $400/mo savings after everything is considered. Seemed like the smart move. We have satellite television and internet – yes, we are that remote. No phone service. We drive about five miles down the road and call from the lookout…absolutely amazing signal there. **laughs**

Porch view

Friday night, we started up a fire in the fire ring and within five minutes of the smoke hitting the air, one of our neighbors showed up, beer in hand. We visited for several hours, cooked some turkey dogs on the fire and just really enjoyed the evening. The following night, several of the neighbors got together and visited for several hours by a large fire. It was very enjoyable. A little more company than my introverted soul enjoys at one time – but, even so, it was great to discover that we have so many wonderful neighbours. The Grove’s community is just special. Each and everyone we’ve met, so far, has been a pure joy. It has been a very long time since I lived in a place where people not only were curious about their neighbors, but made the effort to get to know them all – and to make it a true community. That is a priceless thing.

Saturday, we went on a major shopping spree to fill the larder. I got three full roasting chickens and popped them in the oven to cook while I put the rest of the groceries away. Then just relaxed on the couch while I came up with the plan and design for Gibson’s sweater. After the chickens finished (3 chickens cooked at 375 for ~2 hours), I pulled them out of the oven and separated the breasts, legs, thighs off of two of the birds and froze them. The third one, I pulled all the meat off, shredded it and put it in a Tupperware container in the fridge – now I’m ready for my recipes that call for chicken in the upcoming week.

The drive

I took the juices from the roasted chickens and dumped it into a stock pot. I added an equal amount of water and then as I was separating and shredding the chickens, I put all the fat, bones, necks, hearts, skins, etc into the stock pot. I added two bay leaves, some oregano and basil, onion (we had a witherd up bi that really needed to get used ASAP), the leaves off the celery and the itty bitty celery hearts, two carrots and a couple mushrooms and left it to boil for two hours. I strained it out and froze the resulting stock – three containers in the freezer prepared for chicken ‘n’ dumplin’s or whatever else I may wish to make that requires chicken stock.

I have planned out a tentative menu for the next few weeks. Nothing for any particular day; but, we went shopping with specific recipes in mind. That being the case, it was really so much more cost effective to purchase several whole chickens and just prepare them at home and make my own stock rather than buying it all in separate bits. We figured it out and we saved approximately $25 doing it this way. A whole chicken cost us $4.11. The breasts (four in the package) were freaking $12. The thighs were $7 for a rather goodly portion. M prefers the dark and I prefer the white, so I tend to cook with a mix of both – it just made buying the whole chicken a lot more cost efficient. And, really, it wasn’t that difficult to do. Sure, it was a touch time consuming to debone and skin them…but, I didn’t have anything pressing to do other than work on Gibson’s sweater. And, an hour to debone and skin three chickens is really not that big a bother – esp when it saves me $25 off my grocery bill!!

The house

Last night, I made a homemade pizza – prepackaged pizza crust (I was feeling lazy), marinara sauce, chicken (from the chickens I roasted on Saturday), chopped asparagus, mushrooms, diced broccoli, diced zucchini, feta and mozzarella. Considering the grumbling from M about some of the ingredients, I was happily surprised when he devoured it. Yay for another successful meal. So, in my moment of happiness, I decided to bake up some brownies. I availed myself of our neighbour Kurt and borrowed some vanilla (yes, people actually do still borrow ingredients from each other – amazing!). I gave him one of the brownies this morning as he headed off to work. **chuckles** These were brownies from scratch, not prepackaged. I had everything except vanilla. I used cacao nibs and cacao powder, sugar, butter (yes, the real deal), flour, vanilla and baking powder. I was informed that the only thing missing was pecans. Since I can’t stand nuts in my food, I disagreed…however, next time I’ll put pecans on his side…and, I think I will try adding cherries to my side. Sounds pretty tasty to me.

1 whole chicken (precooked to save time)
2 cups frozen, mixed vegetables (peas, green beans, carrots, corn and lima beans)
2 cans cream of chicken and mushroom condensed soup
1 small potatoe
½ white onion
1 bay leaf
½ teaspoon dried thyme
Black pepper
2 nine inch pre-made pie crust

Directions:

1. Preaheat the oven to 395° F.
2. I used large muffin tins (six muffin, deep)…use one of the pie crusts to line each of the cups with pie crust, so the crust hits just the top of the tin.
3. Dice the onion and potato.  Put a dab of butter or a bit of oil in a medium sauce pan and cook until the onion is translucent.  I find butter gives a better flavor, for me; but, it’s up to individual taste.
4. Once the onions have reached their translucent stage, toss the mixed vegetables into the pan with the onions and heat them through – stirring occasionally to ensure they do not burn.
5.  While heating the vegetables, pull the chicken off the bone and rip into chunks and toss into the pan with the vegetables.
6.  Pour the two cans of soup over the mixture in the pan and add the thyme, bay leaf and black pepper.
7.  Heat for 20 minutes on med-low heat.  Pull the bay leaf out.
8.  Using a ladle, put the mixture into the muffin forms.
9.  Put the pie crusts on the top of each mini-pot pie and pinch the edges down.
10.  Cut a few holes into the top of the mini-pies to allow the steam to escape while cooking.
11.  Place into the oven and cook for 30 minutes.
12.  Remove when golden brown and allow to sit for 5 minutes.
13.  Serve.

If you work it, you can get six mini-pot pies out of the pie crusts.  I only got five, but I was being lazy.

There will be filling left over – it would taste great over biscuits the following day.

Six years ago, an abused, hurting and scared dog came into my life.  Long haired, snaggle toothed, the little guy we consistently called the “king of pitiful” made his entrance and my life has never been the same since.  There were many times at first that I wasn’t sure it would work out.  He had so many wounds.  At any loud noise he would cower away.  He never did become one to bark.  I can count the number of times he’s barked in the six years I’ve had him on one hand.  It took forever to get him house trained because the people who had him before me had kept him caged up so long and so often that he learned to do his business wherever he was instead of anything else.  His jaw had been broken.  His teeth rotted out and we had to pull all but his canines.  He growled and tried to hide if anyone (including me or Loki) would come near him.

And, yet, as time went on, he blossomed.  Oh, he never became a dog that would do tricks or anything.  But, he had his moments where he would bounce through the house.  And, because it was so out of character for him, when he did it you couldn’t help but laugh.  He would tear through the house to come find me and then drop his front end down with his butt in the air and tail just wagging.  Then pounce forward a little bit and just – play.  Bart’s version of play has always been milder than Loki’s or Valkyrie’s.  But to see that come out in a pup that had been so beaten down for so long – it was wonderful.

He was never one that people would necessarily be drawn to for his antics – but, he had a quiet charm that suckered you in.  He loved to lay beside you and watch movies while you brushed him.  And, as long as he was near me, as long as he could see me – he was happy.  He was one of the most undemanding and most loving dogs I’ve every known.

And, I have to say goodbye to him today.

He’s given up and decided it’s time to to walk around somewhere else where he won’t hurt when he walks, where he can eat with all his teeth and he can bounce and play like he hasn’t really been able to, here.  I’m going to miss him.  He stopped eating two weeks ago, and I tried everything I could think of to interest him.  Twice he formed some interest and would eat the tiniest bit from my hand; but, not enough.  As hard as it is to do, it’s what he wants.  Dogs know these things.  They know when it’s time to go – and, Bart’s decided it is his time.  I can’t keep him here when he’s starving and ready to go.  But, the selfish part of myself…the little girl who still sits there deep inside…wants to grab him up and hold on and never let go.

My dogs have been my constants in life.  My jobs, my boyfriends, my homes, my furniture, my cars, my computers – they all change.  My friends come and go.  My son and my family – as much as I absolutely adore and love them (and not a one of them doubts on that score) – are all constants…but, they are distant constants.  Constants that I have to pick up the phone and call or sit at a computer and write.  It’s my dogs that have been there when my world has fallen apart.  My dogs that curl up around me and make me feel loved when I feel unlovable.  My dogs that have helped me make it through nights I wasn’t at all sure I wanted to make it through.

And, now it’s time to say goodbye to one of them.  I’ve been blessed to have had him for five years more than they figured I would.  He was in such bad shape when he came to me.  I wouldn’t change a thing in all those years where he’s concerned.  I just wish I could turn off the waterworks.  I keep getting hit randomly by tears and I know it’s driving Mike nuts.  I know they are ‘just dogs’ and logically they die long before us.  I know Bart’s had a great life with me and has been loved and experienced the kind of life he should have had those nine years before he came to me.  I know he never wanted for anything; and, I know it’s time for him to go.  The logical part of my mind is completely on board with the decision, as hard as it is.  It’s the emotional part of my mind – the little girl hidden down there that I don’t let come out to play too often – who is rising up and throwing a fit.  It isn’t that I don’t want to let go – I know it’s time.  It’s just that I’m going to miss him.  The beds that I kept scattered around in the office and bedroom because he always followed me from one room to the other won’t have his quiet self curled up in them anymore.  There won’t be any moments of spastic darting through the house to try and beat me to the room he thinks I’m going to so he can be there waiting for me (a common occurrence).  I’ll miss that.

I know he’s going to a better place and will be healthy and happy and have the ability to have the kind of life he should have had here.  And, I’m happy about that.  But, the selfish part of me needs to indulge a little while in grieving and letting go.  I love this dog…some say you can only “cathect” where dogs are concerned.  I disagree.  They are my family and I adore each one of them.  And, it hurts and makes me sad to have to say goodbye.

When I moved to California and left all my furniture behind in Austin, my bed became my defacto couch, chair and sleeping surface…and, interestingly, my knitting has suffered because of it.

However!!  Thanks to mi novio’s wonderful talent, I now have a knitting bag extrodinare.  It’s based off of his Mamacita design – a diaper bag.  Strange, I know – but…Mamacita is not your typical diaper bag.  It’s a glorified hobo bag.  What he did for me was turned the bottle sleeves into drawstring pockets on one side (the front of my bag) and removed them all together from the other side.  This way, my knitting is easily available.  The drawstring pockets are slightly larger than the bottle sleeves, allowing me to comfortably carry two skeins of yarn and a project.  With all the additional pockets and room, I can carry my project book/magazine and all my notions in the ‘knitting’ area – and still have the central section of the bag to be my ‘real’ purse and the back section to give me easy access to my cell, sunglasses, keys, badge for work, etc.

It is perfect because it eliminates the need to carry my tote (my old knitting bag) and my purse.  It’s all in one.  And, on those occassions when my knitting bag is just more than I want to haul around, he made me what I’ve been calling a “bambina” – he’s calling a “chiquita” – it’s an adorable, little bag that’s just big enough to carry my wallet, comb, lip gloss, keys and cell phone.  And, best of all – it matches my knitting bag. **grins**  How great is that?

So, with such a wonderful gift – I’ve been back to knitting while standing in queue and otherwise finding five minutes here or there with nothing to do with my hands.  It’s getting me back on the knitting track so I can do this to my poor Loki.

I suppose my priority list should be Megan’s jacket and bonnet and booties (won’t take long) and Paco’s kiddo’s blanket. Then I can split my time between Mike’s socks and Mica’s shawl. Given how fine Mica’s shawl is, I’ll need the break. I’m making here the “Cobweb Crepe Shawl Project 5″ from Heirloom Knitting by Sharon Miller.  I don’t have any photos; but, when Mike gets back from Mazatlán, I’ll ask him to take some photos of the projects.

Or, I’ll see if I can get my camera in working order.  It’s being really weird, lately, and burning out batteries within minute – literally.

I really haven’t been up to a whole lot with Mike gone.  On Wednesday, I got hit with a migraine for the first time since December.  I’m 90% sure it was stress and depression combined that kicked it off.  Though I’m not sure depression is the right word.  Maybe “the mopes” would be better.

I had oral surgery on the 19th and the stitches got caught in my toothbrush on Thursday and ripped out.  It has hurt like crazy ever since.  I’m just hoping nothing gets infected.

Anyway – back to my knitting…and, I’ll work on getting those photos up!

Tasty Empanadas

1lb ground meat (I used bison… but beef, turkey, ostrich – even a quality ground tofu will work)
10oz can mild Rotel Tomato & Green Chilies
1 small onion
1 small potato
2 cups shredded cheese
Tabasco sauce
Mrs. Dash Original
1 tin premade flaky biscuits (or tortilla – see note below)
½ cup flour (not needed if going with the “fried burrito” option)
Vegetable oil (not needed if going with the empanada option)

 Additional items:

Cookie sheet (not needed for “fried burrito” option)
Rolling pin (not needed for “fried burrito” option)
Medium skillet

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375° F.
2. Place the meat in the skillet over medium heat.  No oil if you are using meat.  If you are using ground tofu, a very, very tiny amount to keep it from sticking is useful.  But be stingy with it.
3. Add three dashes of tobacco and two dashes of Mrs. Dash.  Literally, yes, dashes.  Take the bottle and shake that many times.
4. While the meat is browning, skin and dice the onion.  Add it to the skillet with the meat.
5. Stir occasionally while skinning and finely chopping the potato.  Add this to the skillet as well.  Cover the skillet.
6. Open and drain the Rotel and add to the mixture in the skillet.  Stir and cover.  Let simmer while you prepare the biscuits.
7. Put a handful of flour on your working surface and over the rolling pin.  Pop the tin of biscuits and roll them out very flat.  Sometimes it helps to pick them up and let gravity assist you in the stretching.  You want to get them as thin as possible without them getting holes.
8. Place the rolled out biscuits on the cookie sheet to await the filling.
9. When the potatoes have cooked through and the meat is thoroughly brown, drain the mixture that is in the skillet and turn off the heat.
10. Using a large spoon, place a small amount of the filling in the middle of one of the rolled out biscuits.  Put a bit of shredded cheese on top of the filling. 
11. Fold the biscuit over and using the prongs of a fork, press the edges of the dough together to seal it shut.  If you want to, bend the sealed dough into a crescent shape.
12. You can have these very close to each other, so don’t worry about space on your cookie sheet.  Repeat the stuffing and sealing for all the biscuits.
13. Once they are all filled and sealed, put the cookie sheet in the oven and let bake until the dough turns golden brown.
14. Remove from the oven and serve hot.

 This recipe should serve four comfortably.

Fried Burrito

Note: There is an alternative to baking with the biscuit dough.  Take large tortillas and put the filling and cheese inside them like you would for the empanada.  Fold them closed and fry them in a pan of hot oil.  The oil should only come up halfway on the folded tortilla.  When the side in the oil is brown, turn to fry the other side.   Remove, pat dry and serve with salsa of choice.  Mike actually prefers it this way as opposed to the empanada way.

2 lb pork tenderloin
½ cup honey
1 orange
2 cups chopped pecans
2 tbsp crushed black pepper

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325° F
2. Cut the orange in half and squeeze the juice of half the orange into a small bowl or glass.  Add in the honey and mix until the honey is  fully diluted.
3. Place the tenderloin on a foil lined pan (makes for easier clean up) and crush fresh black pepper liberally across the tenderloin.  Drizzle the honey-orange mix over the top of the tenderloin and place into the oven.
4. Chop the pecans into fairly small pieces.  You want them large enough to keep a slight crunch, but not too large.
5. Slice off small sections of the outer rind of the orange – do not get so deep as to get the white pulp.  You want only the coloured rind.  Slice the sections of rind into very thin strips and then turn.  Cut the strips down to very, very small bits and mix in with the pecans.
6. Remove the tenderloin from the oven and turn over.  Drizzle the honey-orange mixture over the tenderloin and then liberally cover with the pecan-zest mix.  About 1 cup.
7. Place the tenderloin back in the oven and let cook for another 5 minutes.
8. Remove the tenderloin from the oven and turn over.  Drizzle the honey-orange mixture over the tenderloin and then liberally cover with the remaining pecan-zest mix.
9. Place back in the oven and about every 2 minutes, drizzle with the honey-orange mixture.
10. Allow the pork loin to cook like this for another 10 to 20 minutes or until it is cooked through.
11. If so desired, at the last 2 minutes or so, turn on the broiler and broil to brown/crunch the pecans on top.

This will comfortably serve 4 people.  I served it with black-eyed peas and Yorkshire pudding.  The juices in the baking pan thicken nicely with a cornstarch-water mixture to make an excellent gravy.

The pecans add a slight crunch and the orange fully infuses the pork to bring a unique sweet-tart-crunch to this meal.

We ate it too fast for me to get a photo.  I’ll try to remember to snap one the next time I make this.

When I was talking to my son on the way back from LA, on Saturday, a similar conversation came up.  I asked him what he’d like for dinner and you could just see his mind go blank.  He said he’d always had problems about that question.  Apparently, at one point when he was visiting his father, he’d been asked to write up a menu – and, he just flat out couldn’t do it.

I told him, “Well, kiddo, that’s because you are thinking of the entire meal at one go.  Don’t worry about the whole meal.  First things first…When you think of eating tonight, what makes your mouth water?  If you think of chicken?  Fish?  Roast beef?  Something else?”  He responded with what sounded good.

I then came back and asked what kind of things he generally thinks of going with that particular item – and, the next thing you know, we had a full menu for dinner.  I told him, “When you get the first step done, then you take the second step.  But, if you look at it all at once and try to come up with the perfect meal in one go, it is this chaotic and overwhelming thing.  Just one item at a time gets the job done.”

As I was saying this, I couldn’t help but laugh at how very similar the life lesson was between what mi novio’s father had imparted to him and the one I’d just given my son.  I wonder if it will stick?  Regardless, it hit me – particularly given some of the personal issues I’ve been having to face and overcome recently.

Needless to say, when my sister posted on her Facebook status, “Thinking….if you could give one piece of advice to this year’s graduating class….what would you say?”  Well, I had to respond with this bit of wisdom that has been playing such a central theme in my life, right now.

My response was not like most others.  Theirs have been mostly two veins.  Vein one, “Get your secondary education.” Vein two, “Make Christ the center of your life.”  Both very respectable answers.

But…

Here’s the thing – think back (for some of you it’s a bit of a stretch, I know **grins**).  When you stepped out into the world on your own for the first time…wasn’t it a bit overwhelming?  Wondering how your parents ever managed to do it all?  Peers pushing you to not be responsible; but, needing to make sure the bills get paid, the schoolwork gets done, the car gets filled, the cat gets fed, etc…All the things you were able to ignore as a kid is no longer someone else’s problem.  It’s yours.

And, yes, having faith to hold on to is a great and wonderful thing…but, reality is that Christ isn’t going to sit down at your dinner table and make sure the bills get paid on time, that your homework gets done or that your laundry was sorted right so you don’t have grey-ish pink t-shirts to wear until you can afford to buy new ones.

It can be horribly overwhelming – even for those who have been on their own for decades.  How much more so for someone just entering the real world?  Especially a world in such fiscal, emotional and political upheaval?

The key to making it through times like that – times that it just seems like no matter what there is always so much more that needs to be done…times where it looks completely and totally insurmountable – the absolute key is to realize that the only part that matters is what is right here, right now.  The one item right in front of you. The next one will be dealt with when you get to it.  And, the next one and the next one…But, it all winds up being the one that is right in front of you.

This moment in time.  This one moment.  It’s all you can immediately influence. Handle it well.  Influence it to the best of your ability. Let the next moment be what it is when it comes – and, let go of the previous moment when it’s done.  This one moment deserves the very best you can give it.

If you do that, you find that the crazy quilt of your life comes together – one stitch at a time.  One piece at a time.  One block at a time.

Please wait for a Verizon Wireless sales representative to assist you with your order. Thank you for your patience!

A Verizon Wireless online pre-sales specialist has joined the chat. You are now chatting with Cassandra

Cassandra: Hello. Thank you for visiting our chat service.  May I help you with your order today?

Cassandra: I haven’t heard from you in a while.  Would you like to continue chatting?

You: yes

You: I’m not at all happy with having a $9.99 forced onto my account. Please explain why something I do not want is being forced on me?

Cassandra: It is not being forced it is required for all 3G phones.

You: thus forced

You: I do no want to use this feature

You: I want only to txt

Cassandra: Did you just opt to change the plan?

You: yes

You: and it forced the $9.99 fee

Cassandra: No, you could have kept the plan as it was where you were not ” forced” but you opted to continue, correct?

You: no

You: it popped up

You: with only an “ok” – no option to decline was offered

You: and it won’t let me “deselect” the data package

You: hold on – the screen just refreshed with a remove option

You: Add Features Data Package Unlimited with Mobile Email $29.99/month This is a minimum required feature for your device. Remove Features Data Package 25MB with Mobile Email $9.99/month Total change in monthly recurring charges: $20.00/month

You: and then I try to remove it and get forced to either keep the $9.99 or be shoved into a $29.99 feature

You: this is very not cool

You: I have no desire to check email on this phone – ever. I wanted it for the keypad for my amount of txting. Period.

Cassandra: But with the plan you already had you do not have to have the data plan, correct?

You: ….

You: yes I was forced into it with the plan I had

You: and I went ahead and used it. But I’m trying to get down to the minimum possible with unlimited texting ONLY

You: it’s all I care about

You: I hardly use my phone for anything but texting

Cassandra: I am sorry about that.

You: how do I get this removed

You: I do not want this “feature”

Cassandra: You can not it is required. You will have to select a basic phone that does not require it.

You: I see. So because I bought a phone that does what I need it to do

You: you force me into a service i do not want

Cassandra: Not forced.

You: yes dear

You: it is forced

You: you just told me I have to have this service

You: period

You: because I need a phone with a keyboar

You: keyboard

You: you are forcing me to take a service I do not want

Cassandra: We have the Motorola Rival and Samsung intensity that do not require a data plan.

You: please point me to where on the phone features it points out that the data package is required

You: yes

You: for which you will force me to pay $200+ to change

Cassandra: On the phones page when you select the phone it is listed under that. [this was not on the page when I purchased the phone a while back]

You: to drop a feature I do not want

Cassandra: You can not. Sorry.

You: which

You: really

You: means

You: I’d be just as well served

You: to pay the termination fee

Cassandra: Okay.

You: since it’s actually less than the phone you require me to get

You: so

You: y’all really would rather lose a customer than drop a feature that customer does not want to utilize. This is blindingly spectacular business sense

You: how does this make sense?

Cassandra: We have not really lost business since the change has place. [notice this nice little insertion?]

You: thank you for this enlightening conversation. Please be advised that the entire conversation will be posted to my blog for public ellucidation.

You: Thank you

Well, I can unequivocally say they lost a customer today.  It’s either keep paying the $10/mo fee that I don’t want to pay – or pay the FULL price (even though they are forcing me to change phones) for a new phone that I do not want.  The default on the contract is less than the cost of one of those phones and only a couple bucks more than the cost of the other.  That makes a ton of sense.

Instead, it appears I will be switching to MetroPCS or Cricket or something.  Those who were texting me on my cell phone, be aware that the number will soon no longer be valid as I transition.