chauceriangirl

Yes, friends, it’s time for virtual vacation planning once more.  I just planned a lovely tour for Jehara, who will be visiting New England in a few months.

Gypsygrrrl was unable to take her planned vacation in Baltimore, but I’m not without hopes that she will be able to in the future.

And Janet should be taking hers pretty soon, and I’ll link to her post(s) when she does.

And if anyone else wants a vacation planned with all the things I’d like to see and do, just let me know where you’re going, when you’ll be there, and how long you have.

How does one twist one’s ankle without being aware of it?  This is not a rhetorical question. At some point between 4:15 and 5:00 yesterday afternoon, I twisted my ankle and didn’t notice it. All I noticed was that it suddenly really hurt to put any weight on that foot, and the ankle was starting to swell and throb painfully.

Beside the annoyance of the pain, it was frustrating because I had plans to get some things done around the house. Instead I sat on the sofa with my foot propped on a chair and an ice bag propped on top of my ankle.

I know, I know, best-laid plans and all that. It’s just that it’s a very inconvenient time for them to go a-gleying.

This one is just too hilarious not to pass on. 

The next 13 movies in my Netflix queue The Ten Commandments Affectionately Yours, Screwtape The Exodus Decoded King Tut’s Final Secrets The Crusades: Crescent and the Cross Ancient Egyptians Evita: The Woman Behind the Myth The Beauty Academy of Kabul Lost Treasures of the World: Carthage Beowulf and the Ango-Saxons Columbine: Understanding Why 2005 Academy Awards Short Films Collection Hiding and Seeking

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During my lunch break, I went to the library, as I frequently do. But having planned ahead and made my list of the books I wanted, along with their call numbers, I was in and out in about 10 minutes, which I think is a personal record.

Then I went to a store whose name rhymes with Pig Plots to buy a 3-ring binder and a packet of notebook paper (total with tax: $2.04). When I got to the front to pay, there were two open lanes. One had a miffed-looking customer using the phone, and a harried-looking employee slowly checking people out. There was another line with just two people in it. I got in the latter line. The guy who was at the check stand in front of me (the kid with the 2 bags of snack chips left) bought 3 things for a total after tax of $3.64. He swiped his credit card through the little machine, and the cashier saw a message on her monitor to call for authorization.

She asked the other checker what to do (it was just her 3rd day there). That checker came over, looked at the screen, agreed that she had to call for authorization, but the phone was being used by miffed-looking customer at the other checkstand. So my checker used her cell phone and called for authorization. She hollered to the other worker asking what their merchant ID was, and punched it in. Then she punched in the guy’s credit card number. There was an error. She had to call again. Now there are 2 people behind me, and there is a line of 3-4 people with lots of stuff at the other check stand.

The harried-looking checker called a managerial sort to come over. He came over, looked at the screen, and agreed that he had to call for authorization. There was a phone over by the furniture section, so he went to use that. By this time, the people in line behind me had gone over to the other checkstand, but I was confident the problem was about to be solved. I saw him hang that phone up, and walk over to the harried checker. He had to use that phone, he said.

At that point, I decided to go get in the other line, which by then only had one person in it. As I was standing there waiting for my turn to pay for my items, managerial type turned to the miffed-looking customer on the phone. “I have to call from this phone.”

She stared at him, steely-eyed. “Well I’m not hanging up.”

He tried explaining the situation, and she still refused to hang up. So he hung up for her. As he was then calling for credit card authorization on the guy’s card, miffed woman demanded the number for their corporate office and his name, because he was treating her like cr*p and they owed her money.

I paid my $2.04 and left the store. As I walked to my car, I found myself wondering who was right: the managerial sort who hung up the phone for the miffed customer so that he could take care of another–by then–miffed customer and keep more customers from getting miffed, or the miffed customer, who had been on the phone with her bank trying to get a problem resolved that was allegedly the fault of Pig Plots.

I can’t decide. I don’t really think either of them handled it right, but I don’t know what right would have been. I sympathize with miffed customer, obviously, but as one of the other customers who was held up for a ridiculously long amount of time, I also sympathize with managerial sort.

What would you do?

Oh, and I got a tuna sub from S*ubway afterward. Their tuna is tastilicious. It helped make up for the annoyance at Pig Plots. And fish is supposed to be brain food, so I was hoping it would help me decide which person was right. It didn’t. I still can’t decide.

Not for the soul, though. Just for the tummy.

• olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• a couple of cloves garlic, pressed or minced
• chopped celery if you have it, leaves included
• some frozen boneless, skinless chicken breast
• sliced carrots
• chopped unpeeled potatoes
• chicken broth or water + chicken bouillon cubes
• a teaspoon or two of Vegeta seasoning
• fresh ground salt & pepper to taste

1. Heat up some olive oil in a pot the appropriate size for how much soup you want to make. When it’s hot, toss in the onions and garlic, and cook until the onions are translucent, stirring frequently.
2. Add the celery, chicken, carrots, potatoes, broth, Vegeta, and pepper (don’t salt it until it’s at the table). Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover, and simmer at medium heat until the chicken is done.
3. Remove the chicken from the pot and shred it with 2 forks, then return to the pot.
4. Reduce heat to med-low, cover, and simmer until the vegetables are done. If you want rice or noodles with it, cook them separately, place the desired amount of cooked rice/noodles in the individual serving bowls, and pour the soup on top.
5. Salt & pepper to taste.

This is really good with the cornbread recipe I posted the other day. And it’s comparatively fast and easy.

I know I’ve not really been “all here” lately. Please bear with me, because it’s likely to continue for a little while.

A few weeks ago I had to step back and take a good hard look at where I was in my life, the path I was on, and what I was doing. And honestly, I was very unhappy with what I saw. I spent a lot of time talking with my husband (he was, fortunately, in town that weekend) about things. I’ve also spent a lot of time in prayer and reflection. It’s been a good thing. And I’m feeling a lot happier now. But it’s a process, you know? My energy has to be focused on a few very specific things right now and other things are of necessity having to take a back seat.

I’ve actually thought of deleting this blog, but this is how I keep in touch with some of the more important people in my life. And it’s fun, most of the time. So I won’t delete it.

Feel free to e-mail me if you’re feeling neglected. Know that I’m not intentionally neglecting anyone. Love to you all!!

This is the kind of cornbread my husband refuses to even taste. Hey–it’s his loss, and just leaves all the more for me.

• 1 egg
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup + 2 TB milk
• 1 cup coarsely ground cornmeal
• 2 TB sugar (Note–I didn’t feel like putting in any sugar, so I poured in a little agave nectar, maybe a tablespoon)
• 3 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons oil

1. Thoroughly grease a cast iron skillet or a round or square cake pan. Turn on the oven to 450o F, and put the pan in the oven to heat.
2. Beat the egg thoroughly, then beat in the remaining ingredients.
3. Pour the batter into the hot pan. Bake about 25 minutes, or until it smells so good you can’t stand it and a straw poked into the cake comes out clean. It should be nice and golden brown on top and a little brown around the edges.

Eat it while it’s hot with butter and, if you’re so inclined, crumbled in a bowl with cold milk. Mmmmm. Okay, so we had it with steak, mashed potatoes, and mixed veggies, so I just ate it with butter. But still good. Very good. Mmmm.

I also had a good Mother’s Day, believe it or not. I went to church–sat in the foyer during sacrament meeting so that I could weep in private when I needed to weep–and went to Sunday School & Relief Society. One of my kids was home from college for the weekend, so she sat with me in Sunday School. (And, by the way, she’s about to graduate college. She was 12 when I met her!! Where did the time go?) And I was asked to play piano for Relief Society. That was a little unnerving, as I honestly can’t remember the last time I had my hands on a piano keyboard. But all the virtual piano playing I do at work must have kept me at least nominally in practice, because I didn’t hit too many sour notes.  I told Joe we need to move our piano back into the living room so I can start playing again. I realized yesterday how much I’ve missed it.