So, week three in
2020 is over. It’s been an "okay" week. It was very nice having a three-day
work week, down one from my usual four.
The previous week was stressful for me, but things seem to be settling
and I can see my way through to a brighter tomorrow.
MHN has a meeting
at Smilow tomorrow; please send a prayer for him. No more bad news, please!
I used to make
pizza every week but haven’t in quite some time, until yesterday. I don’t make my own dough but buy the basil
infused dough from Big Y. I let it rest
for several hours in an olive oil drizzled bowl and punch it down once. There is enough olive oil in the bowl that I
do not have to add more when I stretch the dough in the pan. I have done many combinations of vegetables and
yesterday's was garlic, slightly sizzled, and then added a package of chopped spinach, about a
half cup of riced cauliflower and about a half cup of leftover mushrooms, chopped
up, and sautéed together. When the mushrooms
started to shrink down and the mixture was fragrant, I removed it from the
burner. Stretched the dough onto a
baking pan (I have a stone but prefer a large cooking sheet.) and I flipped it over
to be sure the pan was greased. Then, I thinly
sliced tomatoes, covered them with the veggie mixture; sprinkled half with shredded
mozzarella and left half “plain” for MHN.
Drizzled the leftover olive oil from the bowl on top of the pizza and
then baked at 375 degrees until crust and mozzarella was brown. In my oven that’s about 20-25 minutes. It such a forgiving and embracing recipe…there
is no wrong way to do this.
SJT is back from
Mexico. She was touched by the natural beauty, but she did get sick, even though
she avoided drinking the water. I guess the
fruits & vegetables are washed in same, so it’s difficult to avoid. Glad she is back in the US. Wonder where her next adventure will take
her!
I am so GRATEFUL
that she is not like me. I have said
this so many times. I did travel with
her father back in the day but after a bad flight coming back from Orlando, I vowed
to never get on a plane again. Truth be
told (as always), I am a fearful person.
Not just a fear of flying, but doing things solo like driving to a new
destination any time, driving at night, being too far from home, etc. are a few
of my fears. I think fear was ingrained in me from my first generation parents.
This of course was based on their upbringing, so it’s not a blaming
thing. It was what it was.
So, I don’t have
much else to share at this point, so we’ll get right to it -
Status of Resolutions, Week 3:
Lose 15 pounds…. Status quo.
Start
doing some form of the e-word. Does stretching count?
Sell this
home and find a new one. And then, decorate new place with
some new furnishings and be in love with it. Prayers
Continue packing up the house. Yes!
Have big tag sale in the Spring. Yes!
Read a
minimum of 100 books, about two per week. (Not going to count cookbooks.)
1. City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert… 3* predictable but
enjoyable
2. Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi
Waxman… 3* easy
reading but junior high-ish; read for on-line book club.
3. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison… 4* found this to be very
sad
4. Too Many Men by Lily Brett * Still in process
5. Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows by Balli
Kaur Jaswal. 4* (Those Punjabi Widows sure love erotic!)
This was a Reese book club choice; Never knew she had a club.
6. Eat Joy - Stories & Comfort Food edited
by Natalie Garrett Essays by literary writers with their story and comfort foods,
each with a recipe. 5* Recipes didn’t interest me much, but the
essays did.
- Now and Again by Julia Turshen Cookbook with menus,
recipes and then ideas of what to do with the leftovers. 3* Garnered
a couple of recipes from here.
- Smitten Kitchen Every Day: triumphant &
Unfussy new Favorites by Deb Perelman 3* Copied a few recipes
from this one, too.
Try 50
new recipes. (i.e. pickled eggplant, jams, jellies, challah, pasta)
1. Stir fry with stuff on hand...voila!
2. Vanilla Bean Scones
3. Eggplant Risotto
4. Strawberry muffins
Weed out
my recipe stash. Cleaned
out recipe box & small accordion folder. More to go...
Blog once
a week, even if I have nothing to say. Wednesdays! I will change this to
Sundays
Participate
in one holiday craft fair, probably November 2020. Thinking about it…
Go
through each craft and art magazine (There are lots!!) and save the projects
that I want to try. Went through 4 magazines (out of around #100);
Ripped the pages out clipped them for a new folder!
In line
with the previous goal, go through my craft stash and list each project I have
started that has fallen by the wayside and finish them:
To date: Sew angel felt ornaments; Sew up ugly sweater
& cactus ornaments; Finish rose needlepoint; Crochet market tote; color in
coloring books; tons of yarn – finish block afghan and come up with other
ideas. Maybe learn to knit cozy
socks? Have lots of fabric – skirts & jumpers, curtains, what else can
I think of?? Candlewick pillow kit; Do
something with wool roving; more resin projects; I have tons of scrapbook
papers – do something! Finish braided
basket; Bought special needle to make braided rugs; Bought paint pens for use
on rocks & shells; bought a pin vise to use on shells; Scrapbook for Sarah;
finish making beach themed ornaments; Have tons of beads & old jewelry –
what to do with them? Yada, yada
Make
Christmas cards for 2020. Decided on idea and working on them.
Have 50
mini dates with MHN – nope ☹
Take a
long weekend getaway with my daughter. Thinking about this...
Until next week, my friends, sending peace, love & rock 'n roll. xo
