wash day woes: part one

okay, that title implies that i have but one wash day a week. as in, "this is the way we wash our clothes so early monday morning." maybe in some parallel universe, that would be so, but this is not the case. i do laundry most days in a given week. and, as my washer and dryer are ancient and get so much use, they have seen better days. heck, they've seen 'em, but they're so old, they can't remember them!

this is never so obvious as when i put in a load of wash, and a few minutes later, i am alerted to the tell-tale galloping sound of an unbalanced load. i race out to the laundry room and tripping over all the debris, reach for the knob to stop the spinning cycle. i lean against the machine to catch my breath and notice that "old faithful" has traveled an inch or so.

the above scenario happens pretty often, no matter what i do to place the clothes evenly around the drum. it also doesn't help that elle comes over with her months worth of laundry and totally overloads the washer! i had to explain to her how a washing machine works and that the agitator has to be able to move to actually clean the clothes!

so, one day recently, i had put in a load of bilbo's work clothes and was busy in the other room. i became aware that i was hearing something but i didn't know what it was. i perked my ears and listened for a few seconds and then realized it was the washer again. i went tearing through the house, dashed out to the laundry room and caught sight of "old faithful", moving wildly across the floor and the top part that holds the lid had broken away and was flapping open and closed, kinda chomping at me!!!!! i got to the machine and pushed the knob in. as the spinning and thumping stopped, i saw that this time, it had moved a full 2 1/2 inches forward and about an inch and a half away from the side of the dryer! clearly, a record breaking trip for my trusty ole washer. and yet, it runs...takes a lickin and keeps on tickin!

i wish i didn't have to tax my poor washer so badly, but as long as convention requires mankind to wear clothing, i will be doing laundry...a LOT!

grateful:
1. for the maytag repair man
2. that i can fit a little "exercise" into my day
3. that t.willie enjoys helping with the laundry, even if it's just to use the basket for a stage!

home cookin' 101

i consider myself to be a pretty good cook-NOW. when i got married, 27 years ago, i had very little experience beyond baking and microwaving. i remember calling my mom from our studio apartment in california to ask how to cook meat! oh, i could have gone without cooking or eating meat, but not bilbo!

there was some trial and error involved in those earlier days, let me tell ya! i don't remember details about my own mistakes but i do remember one time bilbo wanted to surprise me by making a pudding pie for dessert. he used chocolate pudding, my favorite! i was psyched, i piled a big bunch of whipped cream on top and dug in. the pudding was great, but as i chewed a bit more, i realized something was not right with the crust. then i figured out what it was. he had used a frozen pie crust and had not baked the crust first! i wanted to stop eating but i didn't want to hurt his feelings, so i took another bite. he must have figured it out at about the same time, 'cause he had a sheepish look on his face and said, "oh man!" we had a good laugh about it and eventually ate all the pudding out of the pie shell!

now, after many years of cooking, i still have some mishaps of my own. they are usually the result of a) being harried b) being distracted or c) all of the above and less a result of ignorance. more than once, or even more than twice, i have made a dish and forgotten an ingredient. and sometimes, it was the main ingredient- like the time i made tuna casserole and forgot the tuna! and another time, we sat down to a seasoned rice dish and we were wondering why it was so bland. well, wouldn't ya know, i forgot the seasoning mix! and another time, i used a jar of salsa in the spaghetti instead of sauce...zingy!!

then there are the times when the microwave is to blame. i have many a time pulled something out of the micro only to dump it on the floor! oh, and let's not forget ALL the times i have gotten up in the morning and found something in the microwave that i failed to serve at dinner the night before!

my most memorable kitchen mishap occurred years ago but it taught me an important lesson. i was baking something in a glass casserole dish. i looked in the oven to check on it, and thinking it looked dry, i decided to add some liquid. i filled a measuring cup with some water and poured it into the pan. the pan was sitting up on the stove and when the cold water hit the hot glass dish, it exploded!! tiny, sharp shards of glass went EVERYWHERE! after the scream and the heart attack, i realized that i had a small cut on my cheek and one on my shin. then it struck me that i could have been covered with shattered glass; hurt badly. i had to sit down, take a big breath and thank my guardian angel. well, that and re-plan dinner!

my hubby especially likes to remember the time i made chicken flambe'. it was the result of chicken fat hitting the heating element of the electric oven and bursting into flames! yeah, i had to re-plan dinner that night too!

my most recent cooking "fo pa" happened a couple weeks ago when i cooked a turkey. i have cooked turkey several times and i know to take the goodies out before i cook it. and i did this time too. i removed a big bag of "i don't wanna know" and also a turkey neck. i proceeded to stuff and roast the bird and then it was time for bilbo to do the carving. after he removed the stuffing and was well into the cutting, he said "oh man, you did it again!" and i turned to see him pulling another bag of goodies out of the turkey! i was really surprised, i mean, what was in there? turkey lips? elbows? knees? and apparently, i had done that before. oh well, we laughed and feasted anyway!

so, i guess it's a good thing i cook simple, basic food and don't try anything fancy or gourmet! although, i guess i could still learn a thing or two........

grateful that:
1. my family will eat anything
2. february only comes once a year
3. t.willie loves books