Perspective, Perjury and the Purvis Burger

It's a saying that's been discussed and debated ad nauseum: the perjury trap. There are those who say that, since perjury is simply lying (under oath), it's impossible to be trapped, just tell the truth. There are those who say that there are facts and then there are alternative facts. I call bull-terds on that one. There are facts and there are lies, and if you look at lies through the subjective lens of what's in your personal best interest, that's delusion. News flash: they are still lies to everyone else.

But (you knew there was a "but" coming, right?). There is such a thing as interpretation. It is possible to have done something that, especially without the entire background, can seem to be one thing yet really be another. When asked about it, unless you can clarify, your answer can be misinterpreted. It's not a lie, but it's not the whole truth either. Context matters. 

You could go to a Purdue favorite, Triple XXX Drive-In and order their famous Purvis Burger. There are those who say they are delicious. Others (those like me who've actually never tasted one) might turn their nose and describe them as "unappetizing". No one is lying. The context is, simply, whether or not you like peanut butter on your burger. 

Try their root beer, btw. Well, if you like root beer, that is.

In a more complex example, let me say that I always tried to be fair with the boys, made sure everything was even. I had thought that it was difficult to do when they were little, when one got a little more or the bigger piece or to go first, the other would feel dejected. That it would be their turn next time would often not be received well. That they had the last turn would not be remembered. It was exhausting. 

But the older they got, the harder it was. They got past the pettiness, but the stakes were much higher. At this point "even" and "fair" diverged. I stayed fair, but that often precluded being even. If you were to ask me, at that point, about specific circumstance, I would answer that I had been fair. If you asked one of the boys about the same situation, he might have said uncategorically that I'd been patently unfair. And yet, neither one of us would have been lying, he could say I was unfair because he did not get what his brother got. I could say I was being fair because he refused to earn what his brother earned. 

So yes, without context a truth can be subjective.

Of course, there are those undisputed truths. Somehow, coincidentally, they all tend to involve chocolate.

Me: Are these Nutella Nutter Butter Bars delicious or what?
Family (all of them, with their mouths full): Absolutely! 

See, I know where peanut butter does and doesn't belong.

Nutella Nutter Butter Bars

Life in general but marriage specifically requires honesty. Honesty is a foundation to trust. And yet, even in marriage, without context, there can be perjury traps. In that light, there are certain questions that I will no longer be answering:

* Is that purse new?

* Do you know what happened to that old t-shirt I wear for all of the football games?

* Are there mushrooms in this casserole?

* I wanted your help with the (insert chore here). Didn't you hear me calling from the (insert location here)?

* Where did that bottle of wine that was in the fridge go?

* The game isn't over yet. You just changed the channel while I was in the bathroom, didn't you?

* Where's the rest of those Nutella Nutter Butter Bars? You didn't sent them home with PurDude did you?

* I'm craving a Purvis Burger, do we have any peanut butter?

I know a trap when I see one so nope, not answering any of those. Unless, of course, I'm guaranteed a pardon. 

Nutella Nutter Butter Bars        
                                    ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 stick butter or margarine, melted
1/3 cup + 1/4 cup Nutella, divided
1/4 cup peanut butter
1 cup chocolate chips
15 Nutter Butter (or similar) cookies
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup toffee bits

Directions:
*Grease a 9 X 13 baking pan. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
*Chop the cookies. You want small chunks, not crumbs. Set aside.
*Whisk together the sweetened condensed milk and 1/4 cup of the Nutella. Set aside.
*Mix the graham cracker crumbs with the butter or margarine and press into the bottom of the baking pan.
*Whisk together the remaining 1/3 cup of Nutella and the peanut butter. Heat in the microwave for 10 seconds. Whisk again and drizzle over the graham cracker crust.
*Next, sprinkle evenly with the chocolate chips followed by the cookie chunks. Drizzle the sweetened condensed milk mixture over the top, followed by the toffee bits.
*Bake for about 30 minutes or until the top is bubbling. *Remove from oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes. Gently run a knife around the edges, then cool completely before cutting.

Super Supper: Use Your Words

Today’s post is a monthly writing challenge. If you’re new here, this is how it works: participating bloggers picked 4 – 6 words or short phrases for someone else to craft into a post. All words must be used at least once. All of the posts will be unique as each writer has received their own set of words. That’s the challenge, here’s a fun twist; no one who’s participating knows who got their words and in what direction the recipient will take them. Until now.

At the end of this post you’ll find links to the other blogs featuring this challenge. Check them all out, see what words they got and how they used them.
I'm using: friend ~ super ~ supper ~ sweet ~ savoury
They were submitted by Diane of On the Border.
                         
Imagine the friend I'd be to moms everywhere if I came up with a super supper recipe that was both sweet and savoury.

~ The end ~

Thank you, thank you very much (read that in an Elvis voice, OK?)  Not only nailed those words, but in one sentence. And in order. Am I good or what? Don't answer that.

Truth is, as most of you know, I no longer have little ones. My boys are grown and aren't even here for dinner a majority of the time. I was under the impression that at this stage in my life I'd mostly be cooking just for two. Surprisingly, not so much.

My boys don't cook. At all. When it comes to sweets, baking, I would have loved it if the boys had some interest. When they were little they would help me mix ingredients. Yeah, I know, it wasn't about the baking it was about the results. Well, it was about licking the beaters and then enjoying the results. Anyway, I guess I'm not terribly surprised that they don't have an interest, and as hopes and dreams for my boys go, enjoying baking is pretty far down the list.

When it comes to savoury, however, it's less about what you want and more about what you need. 

Barbecue Thick Cut Chops

PurDude lived in a house with a couple of friends last year and he ate fast food pretty much every day for dinner. I was shocked, really, because he spends so much time in the gym I would have thought that eating right would be a priority. Not so much. Convenience apparently supersedes all.

With College Boy living within 45 minutes of home, cooking was more a skill I wanted him to have but less a need. He would frequently pop in to join us at the supper table. Or raid the fridge for leftovers. Either way I knew he wasn't eating a ton of crap. Not every day, anyway.

But for PurDude, learning to cook a few things was more of a need. Well, in my mind anyway. He was living far away so he couldn't stop by for meals. He needed to be as healthy as possible since missing classes his senior year could cause all kinds of problems and he obviously wanted to graduate on time. Ultimately once he did graduated and started his career, he could end up living pretty much anywhere and I'm pretty sure would still be needing to eat on a regular basis.

So every time he came home from school (that's pretty much 4 times a year for 4 years, in case you're keeping track), I'd talk to him about coming into the kitchen and just learning a simple recipe or two. But this kid had his priorities. And sleep was it.

Now he's off working his first job and living in his own apartment. Against his protests I outfitted his kitchen with a set of dishes, glasses, pots, pans, utensils . . . not a lot, mind you, just a few basics. All of which I know will remain exactly where I put them. Seems while we were shopping for apartment essentials, he bought out all of the paper plates and plastic utensils. It's all he used in college so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. And what will he eat on those paper plates? I'm guessing most nights it'll be takeout, sprinkled in a few nights a week with leftovers from Mom's house {{sigh}}.

Although it's clear that I've failed to teach the boys to cook, or even to make them understand that they need to learn how, I'm going to end this post on a positive note. I'm happy to report that I've actually seen an iota of progress on this front. Yesterday I walked into the kitchen and actually witnessed College Boy preparing food. He had a knife in his hand and was miraculously even using the cutting board too, chopping and mixing like he'd done it before. 

And a mighty nice looking salad it turned out to be, too.

Here are links to all the other Use Your Words posts:

On the Border
 The Bergham Chronicles
The Blogging 911
Cognitive Script  
Climaxed 
Part-Time Working Hockey Mom

Barbecue Thick Cut Chops

                                               ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

4 thick cut boneless pork loin chops
1 TBSP garlic powder
2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp apple pie spice
1 cup barbecue sauce, divided

Directions:
*Mix together the garlic powder, cumin and apple pie spice. Rinse the chops and pat dry. Place them each on a piece of plastic wrap, sprinkle both sides with the spice mixture, wrap securely and place in the fridge for 4 hours. 
*Unwrap the pork chops and place in a sealable plastic bag. Add 3/4 cup barbecue sauce, be sure all sides of all the chops are covered. Seal and refrigerate for 24 hours.
*Heat your grill to medium high. Place the chops onto the grill and reduce the heat to medium low. 
*Cook 5 minutes, turn each chop 180 degrees. Cook for 5 more minutes. Flip the chops over and, using a pastry brush, sauce them with the remaining barbecue sauce. 
*Cook for 5 minutes, turn each chop 180 degrees and cook 5 more minutes. Be sure they are cooked through (not pink) before removing. Allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

September Twelfth: Anniversaries Poetry

For September, the monthly poetry group chose the theme Anniversaries. 

I had intended, as I so often do, to write a poem that would be a humorous look at anniversaries. You know, the marriage kind. I bet all of us can tell a few jokes about that. No? Just me? 

But anniversaries are about a lot of things, not all of them happy, many of them not a celebration. In the end I decided to write about one of those, a day I will always remember but never celebrate. This anniversary is an acknowledgement. A painful one, but one we can never escape, never forget. One that changed our reality forever.

September Twelfth

Seventeen years ago today, 
reality changed in every way.
The day before, evil went astray,
our whole world was held at bay.

September eleventh will always be,
a date that lives on in infamy.
For this I'm actually glad, you see.
Not to repeat, remembrance is key. 

But . . .

September twelfth it all sunk in.
Planned to give blood. No need, a sin.
It's the day we knew evil'd gained a win.
And healing could not yet begin.

Anniversaries we often celebrate,
but this one carries a heavy weight.
The eleventh was a day of hate.
And the twelfth saw horror penetrate.

Witnessed our country and hate collide,
the day our collective naivete died,
Soon we'd act on our outrage and pride,
But on the 12th it registered, and we cried. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~   

 
I deliberately didn't tie today's recipe into this piece, it just wasn't the time or the place given my topic. But I'm sharing one, as I always do, here at the end of my post.

Chocolate Strawberry Krispie Treats

Before you go, click on these links to more poetry from some of my friends: 
Dawn of Cognitive Script shares Another Year has Passed. 
Diane of On the Border shares Times Twenty. 
Sarah of My Brand of Crazy shares Ten Years of a Lifetime.
Lydia of Cluttered Genius shares Unwanted Anniversary.

 

Chocolate Strawberry Krispie Treats

                                                                          ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
about 14 chocolate cookies of your choice
2 TBSP butter
1 package (8 oz) Strawberry marshmallows
1/2 cup seedless strawberry jam
6 cups crisped rice cereal
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Directions:
*Spray an 8 X 11 pan and a spatula with non-stick spray. Line the bottom with cookies. You will not cover the entire bottom, there will be spaces between cookies, this is fine.
*Whisk the strawberry jam.
*In a large bowl, melt the butter an marshmallows for 2 minutes. Mix, and if not all melted, microwave at 10 second intervals until they are.
*Immediately mix in the jam, then quickly add and mix in the cereal. Pour into prepared pan. Pat down to equalize the thickness. Set aside.
*In a small bowl, melt the chocolate chips until completely smooth. Drizzle over the top of the cereal mixture.
*Allow to set completely before slicing.