Do you know what this is?
Hint: It used to be my job when my mom baked.**
**P.S. It’s a nut grinder! Did you guess correctly?
Throwback Thursday: What The Heck IS This Thing?
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The Boy Who Is My Heart. So Much Depends On A Yellow Steamroller
- An homage to William Carlos Williams
- The Yellow Steamroller
So much depends
upon
a yellow
steamroller
- buried
in the dirt - behind the shed
- On a bitterly cold afternoon, my tugboat man and I embarked on our annual yard cleanup project. I raked all the pine needles shaken loose during the fury of Alaska-borne winds that roared down the coast to Southern California while he trimmed the eucalyptus and mulberry trees.
- Metal rake clanged against metal.
- I saw bright yellow igniting the dirt and pine needles suffused it with a gleaming radiance through the brown.
- I threw down the rake, crouched on all fours, and with bare fingers dug through the wet fecund soil to uncover an abandoned yellow Matchbox toy from the spot where there once was a sandbox that my son’s dad built for him when we first moved to this house in 1985.
- I discover in situ a three-inch wide artifact imbued with all the wonder of my perfect child.
- I gently brushed away twenty-five years of encrusted soil and sand.
I was engulfed in a wave of memory. I was there. I saw him–my four-year-old son in this beautiful huge sandbox filled with fresh, clean sand. I saw him as I often watched him from the bay window in the kitchen overlooking the backyard where I would wash dishes and keep an eye on him, keeping him safe–always keeping him safe–as he played in the sand with his dump trucks and cherry pickers and this steam roller and his buckets and plastic cups and forks and sticks with his cats and dog always near, and the loveliness of the memory set me on my heels and I cried.- Happy tears for the exquisite soft rosy glow of healthy well-fed cheeks, the deep Imperial jade green eyes, the curls that were my curls, my boy, my angel love.
- The boy whose every breath contains a whisper of the intangible all encompassing LOVE I possess for this being who was a part of me before he was a part of the earth and sun and sky and sand.
- The boy who is my heart.
- I shut my eyes tight to keep the pictures from disappearing, but the ephemeral/evanescent impressions floated away with the tears that spilled out for the remembering of the beauty of a luminous child playing in a sandbox, singing to himself and constructing sand sculptures of the future, or, in his case, building words and spinning thoughts and erratica.
- Those grains of sand that between his fingers mashed and smashed into forts and tunnels were the detritus of the granite from whence his brain reformed them grain by grain into skyscrapers of words and sentences that flow like a path from the back door to the sandbox.
- The Red Wheelbarrow
William Carlos Williams - so much depends
upon
- a red wheel
barrow
- glazed with rain
water
- beside the white
chickens.
UK SPK™- Part Two
Since my son met and married a girl from London, his language has become peppered with UK SPK™, which I define as words and phrases he’s appropriated from his wife, her family, and friends. Because I like to be as trendy and hip as he is, if only to annoy him, I have incorporated quite a few into my daily life.
When everyone was here for Thanksgiving, my DIL (daughter-in-law) and her sister left behind quite a few gems to share.
I really love this one. You need to use rinse if you listen to a song over and over again. “I love Christina Perri‘s song, ‘Jar of Hearts‘ and I’ve been rinsing it.” Or…to use something a lot; “I’ve given my credit card a rinse this holiday season.” …or to play Candyland with your kids until it wears out, or to read the same bedtime book over and over.
Spunk is a very interesting word. For us who speak American English, it means courage or spirit or full of energy, as in “She’s full of spunk” or “She’s a spunky girl. However, for Brits–spunk takes on a WHOLE different meaning! it’s a slang term for semen. Imagine the shock on DIL’s face when a man at a business meeting told her she had a lot of spunk and she thought he was sexually harassing her!
Cheers–not as a prelude to lifting a glass or a toast, but as a way to say thank you. It’s spoken in monotone with no inflection. Let’s say someone passed you a bowl of mashed potatoes at Thanksgiving. You would say “cheers”. It’s low-key.
To DIL and her sister, swish means cool–to us, swish is a disparaging term for a gay man and denotes an effeminate personality.
Reem = sexy, great, fantastic. Be reem, see reem, look reem. “Johnny Depp is so reem!”
Error or to drop an error, which means to make a mistake. “I dropped an error and left something in the car”. The family is sitting around the dinner table and somebody makes a mistake in etiquette and one would say, “Error” and then everyone laughs.
To cotch is to relax, chill, take a rest. Describing something as a cotch means it was relaxed and chilled out. A really great cotch is cotchtastic.
Amazeballs is the same on both sides of the pond. Amazing, obvs.
The last and best one comes with its own hand gesture.
This is an example. This is how you do it!
The word is cringe–but it’s not pronounced the same way –/krinj/–as if we meant to bend one’s head and body in a servile manner.
This is how to pronounce it the UK SPK™ way.
/kr-AWW-nJ/ drawing out the w and j sound. This is the perfect word to use when someone says something really unfunny and then everything goes silent, or when someone goes on and on about something which is really boring, or when someone makes an unwanted comment.
“OMG, gurrrl, I can’t believe that Phoebe got wasted and fell down the stairs naked in front of her brother-in-law. That was cringe. Totally cringe.”
What makes cringe totes amazeballs is that, to be accurate, it needs to be accompanied by a hand gesture that is very similar to the Wendy Williams‘s “how you doin”, but with one hand.
So to review, when you find yourself in a perfect situation to use cringe, you’d lift your right hand, (or the hand that’s not holding a vodka marty), and make that WW or “claw” gesture. Got it? Practice makes perfect!
When DIL/sister were here, we all rinsed “Jar of Hearts”.
Related articles
- Christina Perri Dedicates ‘Jar Of Hearts’ To Alice Radio Onstage In Berkeley (radioalice.cbslocal.com)
A Kugel-icous Recipe for Passover, too!
I posted this for Hannukah but we make it for Passover, too. I hope you try it and enjoy! Since my stupid oven broke for the 4th time yesterday as I was making my son’s birthday cake, I’m not sure I’ll be able to make Kugel since we couldn’t get a repair appointment until Thursday and the stupid part will take a week to arrive, so we are out of luck! Stupid Sears! Stupid Kenmore! Stupid planned obsolescence!
A pic of kugel (not mine) from http://www.jpost.com/ArtsAndCulture/FoodAndWine/Article.aspx?id=290152
What IS Kugel?
Kugel is a savory or sweet pudding of potatoes or noodles usually served as a side dish. It’s of German/Jewish origin. Our family’s traditional Kugel is the sweet noodle kind and my mom’s version is to die for. Really. It’s spectacular hot or cold. It’s one of those recipes you can make a day in advance and it gets better and better. If you have any leftovers–which we never do- it freezes pretty good. I limit myself to making it only a couple times a year and I eat as much as I want and just work out a bit harder and a bit longer to burn off the calories.
Angel Boy’s Grandma’s Kugel
Ingredients
One large package wide egg noodles
One large can fruit cocktail in juice
One small can pineapple pieces in juice
One large can canned peaches and pears in heavy syrup, yes, you read that right.
At least 3 Granny Smith apples, sliced with about 1/3 cup sugar and 1-2 TBS cinnamon.
3 Eggs
2 tsp vanilla
One lemon, juiced and zested.
This is a good dish to make in advance especially if you’re also planning to make apple pie (which I am) ‘cos you can just prepare all the apples for both dishes. The secret to this dish is a LOT of cinnamon. If you think you have enough, add a little bit more! Cook a whole package of wide egg noodles and drain. Add 3 beaten eggs with vanilla; it will be super slippery. Add the lemon juice and zest to the apple slices. Drain all the canned fruit but keep the juices; you will need them. Mix together all the canned fruits. Butter one large and one medium deep baking dish. Add a layer of noodles, then a layer of canned fruit, a layer of apples, then another layer of noodles, a layer of the canned fruit, sliced apples, more noodles, more canned fruit and apples, ending with a final layer of noodles. Pour over any remaining egg mixture, and a cup or so of the fruit juices. Be very liberal with the juice. It will all get soaked up as the kugel bakes. Jason’s grandma would dot the whole thing with a bunch of Crisco, like ¼ cup, which sounds gross, but I still follow her recipe. Some people use butter, but we don’t. Other recipes add cottage cheese and raisins, but I’ve only made it my mom’s way, although I’m sure it would be delicious. Bake covered at 300 degrees for about an hour or so depending on the pan size. Take cover off for final 15 minutes. Excellent reheated and/or cold.
Black Bean Brownies and Lentil Cookies
Black Bean Brownies
- 1 can or 3/4 cup cooked black beans
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil, or olive oil (I always use a bit less)
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2/3 cup sugar ( I’ve tried brown sugar and I’ve tried agave, not sure what’s better, kind of a personal taste thing)
- 1 teaspoon instant coffee or espresso
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips, divided
- 1/3 cup flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 by 9-inch square baking pan. In a blender, puree the beans with the oil. Add the eggs, cocoa, sugar, coffee, and vanilla. Melt half the chocolate chips and add to the blender. Blend on medium-high until smooth. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to the blender and pulse until just incorporated. Stir in the remaining chocolate. Pour into the prepared pan. Bake until the surface looks somewhat matte around the edges and still a bit shiny in the middle, about 20 minutes. Let cool at least 15 minutes before cutting and removing from the pan. My family thinks they taste better the longer you let them sit, so the beany texture dissipates.
Lentil Cookies (Alton Brown‘s version)
- 9 1/2 ounces whole-wheat pastry flour, approximately 2 cups*
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 8 ounces sugar, approximately 1 cup (1/2 white, 1/2 brown)
- 4 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature, approximately 1/2 cup***Sometimes I use half oil, half butter, or all oil. Depends on my mood and my pantry.
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups lentil puree, recipe follows
- 3 1/2 ounces rolled oats, approximately 1 cup
- 4 ounces dried fruit, approximately 1 cup
- 2 1/4 ounces unsweetened dried shredded coconut, approximately 1 cup
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and allspice. In the bowl of a stand-mixer with a whisk attachment, cream together the sugar and butter on medium speed. Add the egg and mix until just incorporated. Add the vanilla and lentil puree and mix until combined. Add the flour mixture and blend on low speed until just combined. Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the oats, dried fruit and coconut. Form the dough into balls about 2 teaspoons in size and place on a baking sheet with parchment paper, leaving about 1-inch of room in between. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes.
Lentil Puree:
- 4 ounces lentils, approximately 2/3 cup, picked over and rinsed
- 2 cups water
In a small pot over medium heat, combine the lentils and the water. Bring to a simmer, cover, and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes, or until lentils are tender. Remove from the heat and puree. If using immediately, let cool. The puree may be stored in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days or in the freezer for 2 to 3 months. Yield: 1 1/2 cups lentil puree.
Starfish
Beautiful starfish surrounded by shells against our turquoise walls. Happy November!
UK SPK™
Since my son met and married a girl from London, his language has become peppered with UK SPK™, which I define as words and phrases he’s appropriated from his wife, her family, and friends. Because I like to be as trendy and hip as he is, if only to annoy him, I have incorporated quite a few into my daily life.
The first day he said jumper instead of sweater, I had to remind him that he holds an American passport and he was born and raised on the beach in SoCal. And the day he told me he’d ring me on his mobile I was gobsmacked (amazed). My DIL says things all the time that I need her to translate for me. When we go shopping, she’ll look at an outfit or whatever, and say it’s naff which means tacky and def something I shouldn’t be caught dead in. Mutton dressed like lamb is a veiled way to communicate to me that the hoochie momma spandex-covered-in-rhinestones dress I picked out for myself is too young looking for my advanced years. I always say totes adorbs because Stacy from What Not To Wear says it, but it was born in the UK. Of course, that’s totally adorable, right? Everyone knows they say boot and mean trunk, and flatmate is roommate, but did you know that knackered means tired? Pissed isn’t angry, it’s drinking too much alcohol, and to whinge is to whine. The one that really confused me for the longest time was biscuit, which to me is flour and shortening, baked in the oven and slathered in butter, but to Brits it’s a cookie, of all things! Oh, and DIL says, “I reckon” a lot, which I thought was funny ‘cos it’s kind of a Southern thang, but apparently it’s a well-used phrase they’ve appropriated from us and are now giving back!
The day my child picks up a British accent, I don’t know what I’m gonna do. Prob wave an American flag back and forth in front of him until he once again sounds like the California boy he is!
Here’s a few more I hear on a regular basis:
bin=trash can
ginger= red hair
gobsmacked= amazed, gob is mouth
sorted=figured out
splash out=spend a lot
suss it out= figure it out
I know there are many more -isms, but I’m saving some for Part 2 one day. Unless everyone stops speaking to me.
Related articles
- 30 of your Britishisms used by Americans (bbc.co.uk)
- Cool or naff? (quieterelephant.wordpress.com)
Good Morning, Morning Glory!
This morning glory is the most exquisite shade of purply-blue, winding around a eucalyptus tree near our little pond and waterfall. 
I actually dug the holes and poured the concrete myself, one of my projects undertaken when my Merchant Marine captain was away. He installed the pond motor, but I did 90% of everything else. It is a very positive feeling, like I can do just about anything if I try. That’s probably my personal credo; always try or you’ll never know if you could do it or not!
Related articles
- The Glory of Morning Glories (karenjspivey.wordpress.com)
- Cottage and Gardens: Morning Glories (heartseasecottage.typepad.com)
Crazy pearly swirly watermelon
It’s too hot to go outside so I’m feverishly snapping pix and posting them wherever I can. El Capitan is somewhere in hurricane-infested waters, my son is at a conference in New York, and DIL has joined him. I’m holding up the entire west coast by myself–everyone else has populated the other side!
Check out this swirly yellow watermelon; when I took the photo, it appeared to me that the little white seeds looked like pearls embedded in the flesh. If I’m mistaken, we can attribute it to the extreme heat and cold turkey alone-ness, a powerful combination…
- Am I the only one who sees pearls here?
Related articles
- Swirly Pumpkin Brownies (sweetheatchefs.com)
Enchanted Seashells by Princess Rosebud 