Fragmented Thoughts

Tossing turning Woke earlier than usual stumbled out of bed. Dressed, Went outside to think. sky so dark not even stars. Memories race, thoughts struggle, frustrations. fears air so crisp it crackles - Life changing moments crowd my thoughts. Heaviness hangs in my heart I think about  friends who lost husbands, The pickup semi truck wreck - why does this stick in my mind? (Later learned it was a friend. My niece has her mother's courage It scares me when I learn about the crazies. Staring through the knarled branches Dawn timidly peaks into the darkness. light glimmers through the mourning.

Where's Sammi

Sammi is a mouser.  She sits and waits, sometimes for hours. Then she pounces.  Sometimes she will hear and see the mouse run behind the boxes and cans in the pantry.  She shoves her head between the cans.  Other times she takes her paw and moves the cans.  They often find their way to the floor.

I often find her laying at the pantry door eyes focused, waiting, waiting, waiting.  Then there's a flash and the race is on.  The grey missile makes a break for freedom.  Sometimes its his last run.

My pantry is smaller than most walk in closets.  Recently it looks like a war zone.  Cans and boxes litter the floor where Sammi has knocked them over trying to catch her mouse.  You see Sammi is our Great Dane - Lab cross.  She is a very small Great Dane standing 26 inches tall from her toes to her shoulder.

I've often told Dan, "That dog is a cat."

I Have A Secret

My cupboards runneth over with cookbooks.  A neighbor recently asked Dan if I did a lot of cooking. He said, only if she has to.  I know you are asking, "Why so many cook books then?"

That is a very good question.  I once met a lady in the back of a fabric store; they had a selection of Gooseberry Patch Cookbooks.  I was reading one of the books, this delightful lady said "Oh you read cook books like novels, then laughed looked around and in a conspiratorial whisper revealed a dark secret. "So do I!"

I think secretly I would like to be able to cook like my mother.  She was a fabulous cook.  The only thing preventing me is 1.  I don't have her passion for cooking 2.  I hate cleaning up my messes  3.  It takes time to do it right.  When I was young and Mom tried to teach me to cook she became exasperated and said, "Child you had better marry a man who can cook otherwise you will either starve or have to eat out of cans."

Most of the men I dated were great cooks.  The microwave was invented and a host of food that can be quickly prepared in it. The down side - "Its not home cooking." They also invented the "Slow cooker".  Food prepared in it has lots more flavor. So I didn't starve.

I know you are wondering if Dan cooks. He doesn't!

Getting back to my cook books.  My all time favorites are the Gooseberry Patch books and Taste of Home books.  I like easy and flavorful.  Easy is the operative word.  I also like these books for the short memories the writer shares.  Its like getting a peek into the cook's life.  I have often been touched from the memories they share and sometimes have been inspired to try the recipe.

In 1983 I bought a Keepsake cookbook from Current Catalog.  Each page had a place to write the recipe where it was from and a memory connected to it.  Most of the pages are now full of wonderful recipes.  It is one of my most cherished possessions.  And you thought all I did was read them.