Hubs went off at about 9:45 on a Saturday morning. By the time he got back, two things had occurred. First, I spent a very quiet day alone (yay). And second? Well, it's possible I gained a sister wife (ummm . . . boo?).
So, here's the deal: Hubs had recently decided to change our cell phone carrier. Big whoop, you're thinking, lots of people change their cell phone carriers. Well, we're old, so let's just say we tend to make things a lot more difficult than they need to be. Or one of us does, anyway.
First, Hubs spent 2 days researching carriers, prices, and coverage. Yes, with a pen and a notebook. Then he went into the store, met with a salesperson, and came home with 4 more pages of that notebook covered. Notebook in hand, he gave me a doctorate level dissertation on his findings.
The company he'd chosen, if we were to come to the party, offered quite an impressive swag bag: they'd pay off all of our phones, we could get one line free, 20% off, free AAA, free Apple TV, free Netflix. It would save us thousands of dollars.
In retrospect, I specifically remember that there was no offer of a sister wife in that swag bag. Just sayin'.
So, we ran it by College Boy, who was concerned. He uses his phone to purchase items that sometimes have a sale window of literally seconds. If it's at a time when he's on wifi, that's not a problem, but if the new hot spot is slower than our current service, he could lose out on drops.
Then we talked to PurDude, who didn't really care. But PurDude lives in another state so once we changed carriers, his sim card wouldn't work and he'd have to go to a local store to get his sim card switched. So, we'd have to coordinate the day and time with him, as he works part time at home and needs to be accessible to his team by phone throughout the day. This whole production was starting to feel very Mission Impossible-ish.
But we're not done making it more difficult than it needs to be yet.
My phone is about 28 years old. Well, in dog years, anyway. Apparently there have been so many subsequent generations since I got it, that it could fill up a tree on ancestry(.)com. Hubs was hunting around online and found that with a new account, they were offering a new Razr flip phone. For free. Might make sense to replace mine.
So, off Hubs went on a Saturday morning. Since, on weekends, PurDude doesn't get up until the sun goes down, he'd just leave to get his new sim card whenever he woke. That works.
What didn't really work is that, with replacing my phone, Hubs had to take it with him. Leaving me in a silent house.
And although I admit, I enjoyed the lack of ringing and dinging, even finished a book, I also have to admit that without any phone at my fingertips, I felt like I'd washed up on a deserted island. If I wanted to talk to anyone, I'd need to brush up on smoke signals.
Overly dramatic, you think? Not so much.
One hour plus and he wasn't home. Over two hours and he wasn't home. At the three hour mark, I was starting to wonder if he'd make it home for dinner.
Skillet Chicken & Rice Dinner
After about 3 1/2 hours he finally walked in. With my old phone, not a new one (it had to be ordered).
Me: Where have you been?
Hubs: You know where I've been, getting our cell service switched.
Me: For how long? I think I had 2 birthdays while you were gone.
Hubs (putting down his handy dandy notebook): There was a lot to go over.
Me: You just spent more than 3 hours with a salesperson?
Hubs: Yes.
Me: You know, in some countries that would be considered a common law marriage.
So, to recap: new provider, same old phone, researching my new responsibilities as a sister wife.
Guess I should set another place at the dinner table.
Skillet Chicken & Rice Dinner
©www.BakingInATornado.com
1 egg
1/2 cup flour
1 tsp salt, divided
1/2 tsp pepper, divided
3 TBSP canola oil
4 TBSP butter
1/2 onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
2 TBSP cooking sherry
6 oz frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and patted as dry as possible
4 oz mushrooms, sliced
1 1/4 cups cooked rice
Directions:
*Cut the chicken into bite sized chunks. Whisk the egg. Place the chicken and the egg into a gallon sized plastic bag. Manipulate so all the chicken is covered. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
*Cut the chicken into bite sized chunks. Whisk the egg. Place the chicken and the egg into a gallon sized plastic bag. Manipulate so all the chicken is covered. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
*Whisk together the flour, 1/2 tsp of salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Remove the chicken from the bag and coat with the flour mixture.
*Add the canola oil to a skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the chicken with as little overlap as possible. Cook until the bottoms brown, about 4 minutes. Using tongs, flip the chicken pieces over. If the pan is getting too hot, lower the heat a little.
*Cook the chicken, stirring now and then, for about another 3 minutes. Move the chicken to a plate and keep warm.
*Add the butter, onion, and garlic to the pan. Cook, scraping the flour bits up from the bottom of the pan until the onion starts to soften. Add the chicken broth, sherry, remaining salt and pepper, spinach, and mushrooms to the pan. Bring to a boil.
*Add the rice to the pan, mix, then add the chicken to the top. Cover, turn the heat down to low, and allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Take off the cover and mix. Make sure the chicken is completely cooked. If not, turn the stove off, return the cover to the pan and cook until the chicken is done.
