How I Took Home a Chef

Well, as y’all may recall, this past Saturday I went to see Chef Curtis Stone, the original Take Home Chef, cook and be all dreamy. Hubby, our friend Flower Girl and I headed out early to get a good parking spot. I had no hopes of getting good seating, but the stars, they were aligning. As usual, I’m getting ahead of myself.

We get to the outlet mall, and find a close parking space to the enormous tent. There is no line to purchase the book, so Flower Girl and I make our purchases, and proceed to enter the tent. People are milling about, and there is a KitchenAid™ demonstration going on, as well as several local restaurants and wineries showcasing their wares and providing samples. Between bites of Caprese salad in a wonderful vinaigrette and a few swigs of Riesling, we encountered a photo booth. AWESOME!! My friend and I hurry over to have our photos taken, and because we are the first to try out the Photo Toaster® (yes, that’s the name of it), the videographer asks if he can also take our photos for the event. Sure!! I wore makeup in case I would ever get the chance to get close to Curtis Stone. I can dream.

By this time people are starting to be seated, so we go back in the tent and get seats middle right. After what seemed like forever but in reality was about fifteen minutes, Curtis Stone came onstage.

It’s Water, Not Kryptonite

This morning greeted us with an overcast sky. For this area, it is unusual to get rain, but when we do, it causes a rift in the space-time continuum, or in the minds of drivers. Mostly the latter.

As I was taking the kids to school, a young man pulled out in front of me, apparently not seeing my big red SUV with all its lights on. Then at the big intersection, one woman was driving fast enough that she locked her brakes when confronted with the red traffic light. She narrowly missed the van in front of me. Driving towards Little One’s school, several drivers fishtailed and skidded. One car was in a ditch.

I forgot to mention, it was a light drizzle, not a raging downpour. My windshield wipers were on their lowest setting.

So I shall stay home, choosing to live over taking chances with the “ZOMG!! I’M GOING TO DIE!!” drivers out there. At least until such time as one kid asks me to get something for some school project.

It’s part of the Murphy’s Mom Law

Reflections on a Friend

Yesterday, I received some really bad news. A friend of mine passed away. We were members of the same blog, and had chatted weekly about all and sundry. I had the great fortune of meeting him a few years back. At the time, he was 29 years old, looked 18, and had the vocabulary of a drunken sailor in Singapore. He was hilarious. And unusual, because he was a person who took living very seriously.

For him, “living” meant “squeezing out every bit of enjoyment”. He didn’t put off going some place or seeing someone for another day. He felt like doing something, he would do it. Once, he decided to go find feral hogs, because he was bored. While he was at DFW on a layover, he ordered three different Mexican meals at the restaurant, because he had the opportunity right then. Ate them all, too! When I told him about the passing of my friend, who wanted PJs at her funeral, he said, “You need to wear them for her. But you need to wear lingerie for the rest of us.”

Uh, no

He was rough when people were looking, and a complete gentleman when they weren’t. He loved his life, he lived it fully, and did more with it than most people do in three lifetimes. In short, he was an everyday hero.

I miss you, my friend. I weep for the loss to this world, and rejoice for the gain in Heaven. And when I see you in the future, I’ll have my comfy PJs and my llama, just so you can laugh at me again.

Fancy Schmancy

I was at an antique store last week, scouring the place for cheap unmatched tea cups, and was amazed at the lovely china available. That made me think of all the lovely china I own. I have a Jones about china, and crystal. I love that stuff. It doesn’t have to match anything, either. Heck, not even my Le Creuset™ matches. My grandmother had different cups and saucer sets for all of the members in her family, and she used them every day for afternoon coffee. Mine was a beautiful Spode™ green cup with a cameo of a couple dancing. But I am always hesitant about using it. What if it chips? What if it gets scratched? What if it breaks?

Courtesy of Tea For Two

What if it stays unused on the shelf until the day I die? Why save the special stuff for special occasions? Every day is a gift, and we should make the effort to enjoy them in that manner.

So today, make sure y’all use the pretty dishes, and the best sheets, and the expensive candles, because every day is a special occasion

Perspectives

First, I do apologize for the briefness of my last post. When you think about it, there really isn’t much more to add to it, except to give thanks to God for watching out for everyone.

Some things with which I had to come to terms:

Young Frankenstein is Mel Brook’s finest work. Honestly, it’s a toss-up with Blazing Saddles, but the ending of Blazing Saddles was weak.

Yellow is definitely not my color.

It’s smart to put those treating you for trauma at ease. It isn’t smart to make them laugh while they are trying to stick you with an I.V.

I found the perfect chandelier for moi. And it’s just this side of redneck.

It’s perfect, and I want it, and if I learned anything this past weekend, it’s that Life is too short to wait for the right time for anything, or to waste time pretending to be something you’re not. Which is why this is just this side of redneck!

But the best thing to come out of this? The huge blessing that is the support and caring I received from my family, and from my friends, here and in cyberspace. Y’all are wonderful and I ♥ you all

Little Blessing

Yesterday, I finished one more rotation around Sol. I received hugs and kisses and my day was good, but sometimes I forget the little blessings I have around me. My Little One reminded me of one.

She made me a card, and reminded me that her gift is still full of love.

Forgive the crappy picture, since I took it while I was bawling my eyes out. Also, my phone camera is crappy, as well.

Sometimes, even at my lowest points, I need to make the effort to remember my blessings, no matter how small. We all do.

And she has achieved Preferred Child Status™, at least for this week. Have a great Friday!!

I Hate My Calendar

I really don’t know where the time goes.

Around here, November is Birthday Month. Three of the five kidlets in my family have birthdays, as do several nieces and nephews, plus many friends. Count back nine months and you’ll understand why!

Anyway, I was looking up who had birthdays this week, when I noticed the Ides were almost upon me. And my first thought was, “Uh, almost halfway through the month??” followed by my second thought, “CRUD!!!” It always happens: I never have enough time to properly celebrate every birthday while fitting Thanksgiving plans and getting ready for Christmas. But I try, and keep reminding myself that SOMEONE has a birthday today.

So, I really hope I don’t forget anyone. I can tell you from experience that being forgotten isn’t conducive to having a great birthday. So to my November Babies, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! Here are flowers for y’all!!

*MUAH*!!!

On Being Lonely

November is the beginning of National Blog Posting Month at WordPress. Basically it entails writing a blog entry a day, which I pretty much do anyway. lately though, I have been running low on inspiration, so I thought I would look up some suggestions at the Daily Prompt. Some of them were quite fun and others were not really for me, but one of them caught my eye:

When was the last time you felt really, truly lonely?

I read that yesterday afternoon, and have been quietly pondering it since. My first thought was, how can I possibly be lonely?? The second? WHEN DO I HAVE THE TIME TO BE LONELY??? But the thing is, one can be lonely surrounded by loving people, while being busy as a parent, and even in the midst of joy.

I can’t think of many times I have been lonely. There are plenty where I am alone, though. The most recent memory of loneliness was a bad one for me. The walls seemed to close around me and all I could do was escape to the closet and cry for hours, where no one could find or hear me. My faith was strained that day, a very dark, bleak day. But somehow I managed to pull myself back from that darkness and embrace my faith again, because it was the one thing that had stayed with me. There are days when I feel the need to close myself off from everyone, and just shut down every feeling and every care. But I can’t. Not “won’t”, mind you. I can’t help but care and feel, even towards those who have shut me out of their lives.

Loneliness is only a small phase in the course of Life. When handled well, we can learn much about ourselves. The trick is to make sure it is a small phase, and not one that takes over your soul. That is the path I choose to take

Taking the Wheel

I don’t know who is more nervous: Eldest, or me.

I’m not a great teacher, no matter how patient I am. I don’t have the confidence, I suppose. But now Eldest is learning to drive, and that means she needs practice.

She gets behind the wheel, and you know what? It’s fun!! She starts off a bit nervous, and then begins to drive comfortably and explain everything that she will be doing. All I do is sit back, and not distract her. At least for now. Her father has a bad habit of pointing out things while she is driving, and that *ahem* drives her nuts. Of course, he is teaching her to drive like a man, which means I have to put myself in his shoes and adhere to his style. But not to worry. I shall refrain from describing the driving cones as little elf hats and telling her that parking between the lines is like making a car sandwich

Lush-ious

There was a good reason as to why I didn’t write a post yesterday. A very good reason.

This was my first trip to attend, and it was awesome! The Gruene Music and Wine Fest is considered a stepping stone for performers, and attracts people from all over the USA. Several well-known country music stars got the start at the Fest, including Garth Brooks. Gruene Hall is still a popular venue as well as a tourist attraction. But I wasn’t there for the music, as good as it sounded coming from the Hall. Nope, I had missed out on Clint Black, so I set my eyes on the prize.

WHOOP!! Your very own tasting glass. For a fee of $20 (which in retrospect, is pretty steep) you get a cheap tasting glass and five tickets for five tastings. Now, there were dozens of wineries featured. DOZENS!!!! Five tickets were just not going to cut it, right? Luckily for the gals, Hubby had volunteered to be our designated driver in exchange for videotaping our drunken conversations, and he divvied up his tickets between the rest of us. And by a strange quirk of fate, we got extra tickets, so we didn’t have to buy any more! I ♥ Fate. Anyway, we managed to sample some wines from several small wineries, finding some to be hidden gems in the rough, so to speak. Others….not so much. I do have to give a shout out to the best winery name we saw: Three Dudes Winery. I ask you: how can you go wrong with that?? And yes, their wine was very good. All in all, a great time was had by all, and I’m sure I will be making a return trip next year.

Next up on the fest roster: WURSTFEST!!

Because you can’t go wrong with German food and beer