Breakfast for Breakfast: Fly on the Wall

  

Welcome to our monthly Fly on the Wall, a blog post written in snippets. Marcia, Diane, and I invite you to catch a glimpse of what you’d see if you were a fly on the wall in our homes, at our writing desks, and in our worlds. Come on in, buzz around, see what we've been up to. Bet you laugh! 

PurDude comes home for a few weeks each year right around now, from just before Thanksgiving to the beginning of December. I always serve his favorite meals, snacks, ad desserts. It's a lot, so I start stocking up on the groceries I'll need ahead of time.

Me: I was talking to PurDude, we haven't had bacon wrapped fillets in a really long time. I'm going to add them to the menu this year.

Hubs: Sounds good to me, I love them, and we haven't had them in a while.

Me: Well, they're super expensive. 

Hubs: All meat is expensive.

Me: Yeah, but the bacon wrapped fillets cost a fortune, so will the prime rib we always get when he's home. And those thick rib eyes aren't cheap either.

Hubs: You only live once.
Me: I'm pretty sure the next part of that quote isn't "so you may as well eat all the meats."

It's rare that I get the chance to see all of the sports teams I want to see. Often, streaming channels buy the rights to a specific game, a channel we may or may not have. And it's difficult, in the Midwest, to pretty much ever get to see a Patriots game. But one Thursday:

Me: This is going to be a fun weekend, on Friday, the Purdue basketball game is streaming on a channel we have, on Saturday, Purdue football is on a channel we get, and we actually get the Patriots game on Sunday.

Hubs: That'll be three great days.

Me: Yeah! I'll probably lose my voice by Monday.

Hubs: So four great days. 

Sometimes you just need to limerick. Am I right?

There once was a woman from Boston, 

her baking obsession, got lost in,

she made some mistakes,

like completely flat cakes,

but perhaps that fact best be forgotten.

There once was a moron named trump,

whose actual surname is Dumpf,

teamed up with some jerks,

immorality among their quirks,

who say "how high" when dumpf says to jump.

In the spirit of the old saying "glutton for punishment," we were watching a Purdue football game, and they were playing the #1 team. 

During the game, they showed the Big Ten rankings.

Hubs: Poor Purdue, they're in last place.

Me: Yeah, but there's good news.

Hubs: How do you get good news out of being in last place?
Me: They're not in last place, they're tied for last place.

Hubs: As good news goes, that's a stretch.

You know that saying "when life gives you lemons, make lemonade?"

Sure hope those Purdue players like lemonade. A whole lot.

I don't eat breakfast, I'm a coffee in the morning girl. My family does, but none of them cook, so I always have bread, bagels, English muffins, an assortment of cereals, and oatmeal packets on hand. They know to fend for themselves.

But I do love breakfast, so I make it for dinner now and then, which makes everyone happy, including me.

I had an idea for a new recipe, a Breakfast Club Sandwich, which I thought might be a good brunch idea for over the holidays when I'd have a full house. I decided to give it a try yesterday morning.

Hubs came into the kitchen, went to grab a bowl for cereal and noticed I was cooking.

Hubs: What are you making?
Me: Breakfast.

Hubs: In the morning? 

Breakfast Club Sandwich

I have to admit, I'm a little freaked out. OK, a lot. I know all of our electronics can and are being use to track us and to target us. There is no such thing as privacy or anonymity.

But what happened last night took targeting to a whole new level.

I was in my room, flipping through the channels when I noticed a message in the lower left corner of the screen. It jarred me. I moved on with my channel surfing and found a show to watch.

Later, flipping through the channels again, although a different show was on, the message was there again. Now I'm starting to get concerned.

I took a picture with my cell phone, then googled the channel and the message. Nothing.

So, this is meant for me? And this is no subliminal message. Far from it, it's downright overt.

Should I make a run for it? Pull my sim card out of my phone and crush it, dye my hair, start wearing a ball cap, grab some cash and head for the border?

'Cause I don't think the idea of playing sitting duck is going to turn out well for me.

 

I'm not a fan of AI. In fact, I've said that AI is the next step in the extinction of humanity. 

But further than that it has, many times been just plain wrong. And I've heard of friends tell me that AI has stolen from both their books and articles they've written without permission or attribution.

We were watching a Purdue basketball game and there were a lot of players who were new to us.

Hubs: Who is that on the floor, #17?

Me: I'm not sure, I don't know who that is either.

Luckily, through Google, a whole lot of information is right at our fingertips. So I googled "which Purdue basketball player is wearing #17 this season?"

Top response on the page is AI, telling me that no Purdue basketball player currently wears #17.

That's either wrong, or Hubs and I are sharing a hallucination.

Fortunately, the Purdue website was able to tell me who it is.

I need a little advice from my girls:

I was watching TV, and a commercial came on for a Viagra substitute. It claimed to be easier to take, faster acting, bla bla bla. They ended their pitch with the promise of earning you a round of applause.

And I gotta know, like, is that a thing? Am I supposed to jump up and start clapping . . . you know . . . after?

 

I went to use my laptop and it was purring. Loudly. Fortunately, I'd been texting with PurDude.

Me: I have a problem. I think a cat is hiding in my laptop.

PurDude: I'm going to need an explanation.

Me: It's purring.

PurDude: Does it sound like a fan?
Me: Well, yeah.

PurDude: Then it's the fan.

Me: I've never heard it on before, and I've had this laptop for a year. 

PurDude: The fan turns on when the computer does something intensive.

Me: I wasn't even using it. So now I have a bigger problem.

PurDude: What's that?
Me: What was it doing behind my back?

Funny, he never answered me.

I had tried out a new recipe, a dessert. It was so easy, had very few ingredients, was no bake, and was topped with a chocolate whipped cream.

I had finally set it up for pictures the way I wanted, took out a large serving spoon, scooped out a serving and put it onto a plate.

Once all the pictures were taken, I needed to taste it to be sure it came out as I'd hoped. Since there was some on the serving spoon, I just took a big mouthful off of the spoon.

The doorbell rang. Perfect timing, I hate when I'm distracted while taking pictures, but I was done.

I answered the door, the salesman gave his spiel, all the while giving me a strange look. Whatever.

I declined, shut the door, and as I was walking away, glanced in the mirror next to the door.

Those strange looks? They probably had something to do with the big blob of whipped chocolate on the end of my nose.

Good thing I'll never have to face him again.

 

Now click on the links below and see what my friends have to share:

Menopausal Mother 

On the Border

Breakfast Club Sandwich

                                                                       ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients (per sandwich):

3 slices bread

2 TBSP butter

1 TBSP green onions, chopped

1 TBSP red pepper, chopped

2 eggs

2 TBSP milk

2 slices sharp cheddar cheese

2 pieces bacon

Directions:
*Preheat oven to a warm temperature, 200 degrees.

*Toast the bread. Butter them all on one side. Place in the oven to keep warm.

*Melt the remaining butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the green onions and red pepper. Cook and stir until they soften, about a minute or 2. While the vegetables are in the pan, whisk 1 of the eggs with the milk. Add to the pan.

*Omelet style, cook the eggs, flipping once. Fold into quarters.

*Place one slice of toast, butter side up, onto an oven safe serving plate. Top with the omelet, then one slice of cheese, a second slice of toast, and the second slice of cheese. Return to the oven and keep warm.

*In the same skillet, cook the bacon. Drain, cut in half, place on top of the the second slice of cheese on the sandwich. Keep warm.

*In the same skillet again, fry the egg to your liking. Place it on the bacon, top with your final slice of toast (butter side down), cut into quarters (add long toothpicks if you want, to hold the sandwich together) and serve.

The Case for Stuffed: Poetry Monday

 

 

 

Poetry Monday's once a week.

I bet you know which day.

I don't participate every time,

But today I've come out to play.

My friends assign each week a theme,

Stuffed Animals, what they chose.

Now it's up to all of us,

to put our thoughts into prose.

 

 

 

 

 

The Case for Stuffed

Pets are known to bring us

neverending joy.

I know we like to play with them,

yet they think that we're the toy.

Whenever we're sad or upset,

they'll be by our side.

Lovingly lick our face,

till those tears have dried.

They're our loyal companions,

so alone we never feel,

(and I'm sure it's not just that

they're looking for their next meal).

But oh, how we spoil them, 

seems they're always in the mood,

to allow us share with them

all of our favorite food.

 

 

 

Maple Bacon Bread

 

 

 

But . . .

 

 

 

 

When it comes to stuffed animals,

here's the honest scoop:

there's no tripping over leashes,

wrapped around you in a loop. 

No danger of them fighting,

get along in any group,

and never will you find yourself

picking up . . . you know . . . their poop.

 

 

 

 

Wait!

Read more poetry, 

you're not through.

Some talented writers

are in this crew:

 

On the Border

Messymimi's Meanderings 

Mother Owl 

 

Maple Bacon Bread        

                                                                                 ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups flour plus 1 tsp

1 TBSP baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1 cup milk

1/2 cup oil

3/4 cup dark maple syrup

1 egg

3/4 cup cream cheese baking chips (can substitute cinnamon baking chips)

5 slices thick cut bacon, cooked and chopped

Directions:
*Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a loaf pan.

*Whisk 2 1/2 cups of the flour with the baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.

*Whisk in the milk, oil, maple syrup, and egg.

*Toss the baking chips with the remaining 1 tsp of flour. Mix into the dough, along with the chopped bacon.

*Pour evenly into the prepared pan. Bake for 45 - 55 minutes, until the center of the top springs back to the touch.

*Cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edges and remove from the loaf pan.

Resolve is the Resolution

 

 

 I don't make New Year's resolutions, I've mentioned that before. No reason to promise that on one specific day on the calendar that I'll suddenly do what I haven't done the day before.

 

But I still have resolve. Actually, that's not true, it would be more accurate to say that I'm determined to regain my resolve.

 

I have all but given up, I look around at our current state of division, derision, and I despair. I care about our freedoms, our environment, public health, safety in public places, future generations. I've been bruised and battered by the tone of our politics, the loss of respect, the blatant denials and dishonesty. And it's not getting better, it's getting worse.

 

So much worse that it's killing people. I never thought we could possibly sink this low, that in the United States of America, the sanctity of human life has become collateral damage. 

 

I wrote a post back in March about guns and about my quest to get vaccinated. I called it Just Shoot Me. Please. The day before it was to post, there was a mass shooting in a covid vaccine line in a grocery store in my son's home city, Boulder. I had to frantically change the title and replace the original graphic of my post. It became Vaccination Information Stagnation.

 

 

 

In the ongoing quest to protect society through vaccination, the focus has been on reason. Truth is, reason is not an option. Its foundation is truth and truth no longer exists. I've been railing against it, my poor logical brain cannot fathom the impotence of logic. But I have had to accept that relying on reason is unreasonable.

Perhaps, with the tenets of our religious beliefs still in the forefront of our thoughts, and a fresh new year just days ahead, we can put logic aside (ouch) and appeal to some core beliefs. Getting vaccinated is about compassion, it's about selflessness and respect, it's a tangible embodiment of ministering to others. 

Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.

 

 

Food prices are sky high. There are some foods I can't even find at all. And yet, we still find a way to eat. I've become a lot more creative with ingredients and substitutions, all for the greater good. To continue to nourish our bodies.

 

Spicy Grilled Peanut Butter and Bacon Sandwich

 

 

The focus now needs to be on nourishing our communities. We are obliged to see need, protect each other, replace sanctimoniousness with service, focus on the sustenance of humanity.

 

So this year, I resolve to keep trying, to look for other avenues of approach, to appeal to our better angels, to show restraint, to lead by example, to comport myself in a ways that strengthen our ability to recognize truth, restore reason, serve society. 

 

Join me?

Spicy Grilled Peanut Butter & Bacon Sandwich       

                                                       ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Printable Recipe

Ingredients (per sandwich): 

2 slices of an Italian loaf, cut 1" thick

1 TBSP creamy peanut butter

2 pieces bacon, cooked

1 TBSP butter

2 tsp pepper jelly

Directions:

*Spread the peanut butter onto on slice of the bread. Cut each piece of bacon in 2 - 3 pieces and place onto the peanut butter. 

*In a small skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Once it's hot, place the bread in the skillet with the peanut butter and bacon up.

*Spread the pepper jelly onto the other slice of bread and place it in the pan on top of the bacon, jelly side down. Press gently.

*Reduce heat just a little and allow the sandwich to cook until the bottom is well browned. Carefully turn the sandwich over and cook the other side. Serve warm.