Reboot: September Monthly Poetry Group

 

 

 

 

Last Friday of the month is for

Monthly Poetry Group to rhyme.

Diane, Mimi, and I take turns,

"Reboot" is the theme this time.

 

As usual, today I'll try,

a poem to write . . . or fudge.

Whether I'm successful or not,

you get to be the judge.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reboot

The elderly man was worried,

forgetting things all the time.

Keeping track of belongings,

was a daily mountain to climb.

 

The more he thought about it,

felt his brain needed a reboot.

He'd always had a great memory,

now he felt like an old coot.

 

He'd play his daily word games,

Phrazle, Wordle, more than one.

Keeping his brain exercised,

could actually be quite fun.

 

And since his wife had passed away,

there was more for him to do.

But it kept his mind occupied,

there's value in that too.

On this particular morning,

memory really getting him down,

"I'll do errands, pick up muffins,

might be good to go into town."

 

Bananas Foster Muffins

 

 

 

Went into a few different stores,

glad to put his troubles aside.

One last store he entered, 

the selection kept him occupied. 

When from behind he heard it,

"Reboot?" someone had asked.

His memory? How could they know?

Wanted to get out of there . . . and fast.

"Reboot?" This time he turned around,

the questioner's eyes to meet.

Realized the salesman was looking,

not at his head, but his feet.

 

Before you go, stop by these blogs for more Collections poetry:

 

On the Border

Messymimi's Meanderings

 

 

Bananas Foster Muffins        

                                                                                      ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 TBSP butter

1 banana

1 TBSP cookie butter (speculoos)

1 TBSP spiced rum

6 TBSP oil

2 TBSP cookie butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 egg

3/4 cup buttermilk

1/3 cup banana yogurt

2 cups flour

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

 

3 TBSP caramel sauce

Directions:
*Grease the top of a 12 well muffin tin and either grease or add liners to the wells. Preheat oven to 400 degrees

*Slice the banana into about 1/2 inch slices. Cut each slice in quarters.

*Heat the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the banana. Cook, stirring now and then, for 2 minutes. Mix in 1 TBSP cookie butter and the rum. Stir for one more minute, remove from heat, and set aside.

*Whisk together the oil, remaining cookie butter, and brown sugar. Once incorporated, whisk in the egg, buttermilk, and yogurt.

*Separately, mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

*Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and gently whisk together. Fill the muffin cups with the batter.

*Bake for 10 minutes. Remove the muffin tin from the oven, but leave the oven on. Quickly spoon the banana mixture onto the tops of the muffins. Return to the oven and bake for another 8 minutes.

*Leave in the muffin tin for 5 minutes, remove, drizzle with the caramel sauce and allow to cool.

Meme Me

 Meme Me. 

 

Actually, on second thought, how about I meme you?

 

I've said "good bye" to summer {{sob}}. You know, those lazy, less to do, go on vacation, throw dinner on the grill, wonder at firefly months I look forward to every year. More so, of course, when I lived on the coast and spent many days at the beach, or even when the boys were little and we belonged to a private pool here. But even without the ability to cool off in my favorite way, there's just something about summer, maybe from all the way back in my childhood, that deserves celebrating. 

Heading into those cooler days requires a little cheering up (for summer lovers, anyway). So today I've decided to share some memes. All I've created myself and shared here and there over the years. I chose to do this today not only because I'm hoping to amuse you, but because, due to both what's been going on in this country, and in the world, I (we) need a bit of levity, a respite, a cooling off of sorts. And what better way than through humor.

So I'm editing out my political memes, there's a time for those, but not today. Happy July, everyone. I hope I can start your month with a laugh.

On the subject of kids:

 

And maybe they have a thought or two about me:

 

 

But I've learned (the hard way) about listening to your mom:

 

 

A food related meme (had to have at least one of those):

 

 

Not a meme, btw, but a simple, delicious option for an appetizer or afternoon snack:

 

 Onion Dip Crudite Bruschetta

 

 

Lack of sleep (related to the whole having kids thing, of course):

 

 

 

 

 

Getting old (exacerbated by . . . you guessed it, having kids):

 

 

 

Speaking of stress, and frustration, here's one for the neighbors:

 

 

 

A message for all men, a serious but funny meme I created for a post I wrote that was requested by Tommy John, in support of the Testicular Cancer Foundation:

 

 

Is it just me?
 

 

 

 

 

And a vice . . . or two. 

 

 

 

Hope you had a laugh (or 17). If you have a favorite, let me know. Or if there's a meme you've seen somewhere else that makes you smile, go to my Baking In A Tornado FB page (you've already "liked" it, right?), find the post pinned to the top of the page, drop that meme in the comments, and Meme Me!

 

 

Onion Dip Crudite Bruschetta

                                                                       ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 packet dry onion soup mix

6 oz cream cheese, room temperature

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 tsp minced garlic

1 (about 14 oz) baguette

sliced fresh vegetables of your choice: carrots, cucumbers, radishes, snap peas, broccoli, red pepper, grape tomatoes, spinach

Directions:
*Beat together the onion soup mix and the cream cheese. Beat in the sour cream, cover, and refrigerate for an hour.

*Cut the baguette, on the bias, to about 3/4 inch slices.

*Mix together the olive oil and minced garlic and brush onto both sides of the bread.

*Toast the bread. You can do this on the grill (my choice), in the toaster, or in the oven at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes.

*Once toasted, cool the bread to room temperature. You may want to cut any larger slices in half.

*Spread about 1 - 2 TBSP of the dip onto most of the bread slices, saving a few slices without any topping to use for dipping. Top with the sliced vegetables of your choice, serve with the remaining dip.

Humorless Humerus: Fly on the Wall

 

Welcome to a monthly Fly on the Wall group post. Today 4 bloggers are inviting you to catch a glimpse of what you’d see if you were a fly on the wall in our homes. Come on in and buzz around my house. At the end of my post you’ll find links to this month’s other participants’ posts.

Me: Can you take a look of the pics I took for my blog?

Hubs: Sure. But I'm surprised, you're so picky, you never want anyone else's opinion.

Me: Well, I think they're great, but . . .

Hubs: But?
Me: They're pictures of a new cocktail.

Hubs: And?
Me: I kinda did a taste test or two (or twenty), so I think I should get a second opinion, in case they don't look quite as good as I think they do.

Hubs: OK, but it'll cost you.

Me: Cost me?
Hubs: Got any of that cocktail left?

Me: Ummmm . . . how about a cookie?
Hubs: Sold.

 

 

 

Do not tell my family this.

 

I went to the bathroom, which is between the laundry room and the garage door. I was going to throw my underwear into the washing machine, then head upstairs to shower.

 

I threw my underwear into the recycle bin.

Good thing I caught it. Immediately.

Also good thing no one in my family saw it. Or caught me in the garage, sans underwear, with the top half of my body down in the recycle bin reclaiming my bloomers.

 

College Boy comes up from the basement, stands at the top of the stairs for a few minutes, then I hear him talking to his dad, who's in our home office:

College Boy: Is Mom OK?
Hubs: I think so, why?

College Boy: She's just standing in the middle of the kitchen with a funny look on her face.

Hubs peeks around the corner into the kitchen, then turns to College Boy:

Hubs: Yeah, she's fine. That's her "I'm trying to remember what I came in here for" face. You'll get used to it.

A friend and I were talking about . . . well, hot flashes.

 

Me: I hate when I'm trying to sleep and I can't cool down, I have to throw off the covers.

Friend: I know, and I have an even harder time cooling down because my husband likes to hold me when we sleep.

Me: Awww, that's sweet.

Friend: And your husband?
Me: My husband likes to snore when we sleep.

 

Hubs comes into the kitchen as I'm wrapping cod fillets and putting them back in the fridge: 

Hubs: Oh good, we have fish. 

Me: Yeah, but I can't make it.

Hubs: Why not?
Me: I have a new recipe idea for it, but I can't hold onto the ingredients.

Hubs: What do you mean?
Me: I want to crust it with chips, which I bought.

Hubs: And.

Me: And ate. And bought again. And ate again.

Hubs: So buy them again and I'll hide them.

Me: Now that's just mean.

 

Chip Crusted Cod (oven or air fryer)

We were watching the Red Sox and every now and then, MLB will put a little info box below a player. I don't have my glasses on, so when an info box comes up under our pitcher, I tried to read it.

Me (squinting and reading): Brasier has thrown his sister 

Hubs (interrupting me): Sinker.

Me: Huh?

Hubs: Sinker ball. The pitcher's throwing his sinker, not his sister.

Watching the Sox again the next night, and the batter came close to getting hit by the ball.

The announcer thought the batter had been hit, so they replayed the pitch, and the announcer said that it just missed his . . . and then he stopped talking, I'm guessing trying to figure out where on the batter's anatomy the ball just barely missed.

Me (helping him out from my couch): Humerus.

Hubs: No, that's not funny at all, that 100 mph ball can really hurt.

Oy.

 

I love when the cleaners come to clean my house. I also really love my dishwasher, it fits more than any dishwasher I've ever had.

But when they leave I have to go to the kitchen and check the dishwasher, when they clean it, they often accidentally press the buttons and turn it on.

Last week, when they left, I went to check the dishwasher, but it wasn't on.

As I turned to leave the kitchen, though, I noticed a red light on my ovens. I walked up and saw a little lock icon, and it said "controls locked." Tried to turn the top oven on. Nothing. Tried to turn the bottom oven on. Nothing. Not good.

I immediately texted Hubs:

Me: What do you think about take-out?
Hubs: Tonight?
Me: I was thinking more like forever.

I wrote recently about my reaction to PurDude's phone calls. In the post, I mention the recent accident he had.

The day he was supposed to get his car back was also, coincidentally, the day I was posting the recipe for a cocktail, my Blackberry Lemonade Fizz.

As always, PurDude texted me that morning, just checking in. He works in the office a few days a week, and he was there so our texts were short.

PurDude: How are you today, Ma?

Me: I'm fine, looking forward to some of the Sox returning to the team from the injured list. How are you? Where are you today?

PurDude: I'm good. At work, really busy.

Me: Have a good day. Oh, are you getting your cat back today?
PurDude: I think you better lay off those cocktails, I don't have a cat. 

Car. I swear I typed "car."

 

College Boy needed a ride to work, so Hubs grabbed his keys and drove him. It's about a 10 minute ride both ways, and close to an hour later, I was starting to worry. Hubs was just wearing sweat pants (and bed head), it's not like he went shopping at 8am. I was about to call him when he walked in.

Me: I was starting to think you ran away from home.

Hubs: I wouldn't do that.

Me: Awww, cause you love your family?

Hubs: Well that, and you've got the coffee on . . .

 

 

 

Now click on the links below for a peek into some other homes:

Menopausal Mother 

The Diary of an Alzheimer's Caregiver

What TF Sarah

Chip Crusted Cod (oven or air fryer)

                                                                       ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 Cod fillets, about 1/2# each

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp paprika

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup milk

3/4 cup crushed sour cream and onion potato chips

olive oil spray

OPT: remoulade sauce, tarter sauce, or lemon for serving

Directions:

*Rinse the fish and pat dry. 

*Place the flour on a dish. Mix in the pepper and paprika.

*Pour the milk into a bowl.

*Coat the fish with the flour mixture. Dip into the milk, just to lightly coat, then press gently into the chips until both sides are completely coated. Refrigerate for one hour.

*NOTE: cooking times will depend on the thickness of your fish. Always be sure that your fish is cooked through, that it is white, not translucent, and flakes with a fork.

*AIR FRYER: Preheat the air fryer to 400 degress for 5 minutes. Place the fish in the air fryer and spray with olive oil. Cook at 400 degrees for 5 minutes. Carefully flip the fish over, spray with olie oil again, and cook for another 5 minutes. Test for doneness, continue to cook at 1 minute intervals, if needed, until the fish is cooked completely.

*OVEN: Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Grease a small baking sheet, place the fish on the sheet and cook for 5 minutes. Carefully flip the fish over and allow to cook for another 5 minutes. Carefully flip the fish over and allow to cook for another 5 minutes. Test for doneness. If needed, continue to cook, checking at 2 minute intervals.