NEXT WEEK'S MENUS

I know you all have been waiting....here's the supper menu for next week....

Monday: Pasta Alfredo with Green Onions, Italian Bread, Salad
Tuesday: Ham, Broccoli & Cheese Quiche
Wednesday: Beef Stew & Cornbread
Thursday: Baked Haddock, Baked Potato, Creamed Peas
Friday: Tomato Soup, Grilled Cheese Sandwich, Banana Pudding

Now I bet your life is complete. (Mine is!)

MI-5 TREASURE HUNT

1) Go to ebay.com. Type your first name in the search box. What's the first thing that comes up?

A mystery book called "Hide" by Lisa Gardner. Never heard of the book. Never heard of the author. (It was from a non-smoking home, though, so that was nice.)

2) Go to flowers.com. What's the second image that catches your eye? Why?

A huge bouquet of red roses. Buy 12, get 6 free. Hint. Hint.

3) Go to amazon.com. Type in the name of that special pet you had as a kid. What was the third item that showed up in the search?

A mega-tube of M&M Mini's. $0.75. I typed in the name "Candy".

4) Go to google.com. Type in your name. What's the fourth result say? And, if you care to share, what was the name you typed in?

I typed in my first and last name, and this is what I got:

Lisa Harris: ZoomInfo Business People Information

5) Go to your favorite news site, local or national. What's the 5th headline in? Comment on the story.

I went to today.msnbc.com. They only had 3 featured articles at the top, so I had to look a little further down the page. This is the 5th one from the weekly headlines, instead of the daily headlines.

"Teen on Surviving Choking Game".

I had heard about this game on some talk shows--Oprah was one, I think. Eben and I have had a discussion or two about this, especially about the "Chubby Bunny" game, which is a game to see how many large marshmallows you can put in your mouth at one time. The marshmallows expand, and then cut off the airway.

THIS WEEK'S MENUS

Here are my menus for this week. And of course, these are all subject to change because of Dwane's work schedule. (These are real. Did you like my last food journal?) A friend gave that to me---I thought it was hilarious, and laughed until I cried. :)

Monday: Chicken Pesto (cubed chicken breast with pesto sauce over angel hair pasta); honey glazed crarrots, cucumber & tomato salad (garlic, tomatoes, cucumbers, red pepper, red onion, basil, oregano, tarragon, parsley, pepper and a little lemon juice--all minced together).

Tuesday: Mandarin Topped Pork Chops, Frozen Brussel Sprouts in Butter Sauce, Wild Rice.

Wednesday: Lemon Pepper Chicken, Broccoli Casserole (broccoli, onion, salt, pepper, dry mustard, marjoram, mixed in a milk sauce, topped with parmesan cheese), Salad

Thursday: Beef & Pasta (like a baked ziti), Fruit Salad

Friday: Pizza, Leftover Fruit Salad, S'mores

JIM'S SITUATIONAL MI-5

1. You are at a busy clothing store and you take something into the changing room. You notice far under the seat in there a 5 dollar bill. Someone was just in the room before you and they are just outside. What are your thoughts of this situation and what do you do?

For me, the key here was that it was "far under" the seat. This would leave me to believe that it was not left by the person who just left the changing room. Therefore, I would keep it. If, however, it was out in the open, so to speak, I would ask if someone had lost it. I probably wouldn't think to ask them to identify it--I would just hold it out and ask "Is this yours?"

2. You and a close friend try this new restaurant. It is very popular and filled with people. The service ends up being slow, the order is wrong and the food is not cooked right and has to be sent back. Even when they bring it back it is not really right. There is no apology or effort made to adjust the bill. When they bring it (the check) you notice they have made a huge error in your favor. How do you handle this?

I would probably assume that they had made an adjustment for the poor service, and I would pay the discounted price. If, however, the service and food were really, really bad, I would ask Dwane to ask for us to get it for free. In all actuality, though, Dwane would probably do that anyway, without my asking him to. (Help! My young child is sick, and I need to get home IMMEDIATELY!)

3. You are somewhere in public when you see a lady you used to work with a year ago. You recall that this lady was having children when you worked with her and it appears as though she is pregnant again. You say hi and then say "oh I didn't know you were pregnant again..." and her response is "I am not". What do you say now?

I did this once. I asked someone when she was due, and she said the baby was born 4 months ago. I could've died! I don't remember how I got out of that one, but I'll never forget the embarassment. I KNEW that she was expecting a baby, but had lost contact with her and didn't realize the baby had been born. She was seated at the table, so my comment really wasn't about her size--just a curiosity question. But I how could she not have been offended? She was very gracious, though. And I won't ever, ever, do that again.

4. You are parking in a tight spot and accidentally tunk someones car. You can't see any damage. Do you leave a note or anything?

If I see no damage, I do not leave a note.

5. A person you used to be good friends with shows up in your life again after having gone through a huge personal crisis over the past few years. They invite you and your friends to come hear their new band. You recall this person always played in great bands and you agree to this and talk up this person to all your friends. The night of the show the new band is terrible and your friend seems to have lost their ability to play. You are embarrassed and your friends are all having a horrible time and want to leave early. The band is just terrible and they play music you all hate. The band takes a break and your friend comes down to see you obviously looking for some support and your thoughts on the band and music. You can see your friends are going to leave. What do you do now?

Honestly, I've read a couple of other responses, and I like those answers. I think that I am most in tune with what Aunt Ginny said (hopeful that I was in a separate vehicle).

WEEKLY FOOD JOURNAL

MONDAY: It's fun to cook for Dwane. Today I made angel food cake. The recipe said beat 12 eggs separately. The neighbors were nice enough to loan me some extra bowls.

TUESDAY : Dwane wanted fruit salad for supper. The recipe said serve without dressing. So I didn't dress. What a surprise when Dwane brought a friend home for supper.

WEDNESDAY : A good day for rice. The recipe said wash thoroughly before steaming the rice. It seemed kind of silly but I took a bath anyway. I can't say it improved the rice any.

THURSDAY : Today Dwane asked for salad again. I tried a new recipe. It said prepare ingredients, lay on a bed of lettuce one hour before serving. Dwane asked me why I was rolling around in the garden.

FRIDAY : I found an easy recipe for cookies. It said put the ingredients in a bowl and beat it. There must havebeen something wrong with this recipe. When I got back, everything was the same as when I left.

SATURDAY : Dwane did the shopping today and brought home a chicken. He asked me to dress it for Sunday (oh boy).For some reason Dwane keeps counting to ten.

SUNDAY : Dwane's folks came to dinner. I wanted to serve roast but all I had was hamburger. Suddenly I had a flash of genius. I put the hamburger in the oven and set the controls for roast. It still came out hamburger, much to my disappointment.

GOOD NIGHT DEAR DIARY . This has been a very exciting week. I am eager for tomorrow to come so I can try out a new recipe on Dwane. If I can talk Dwane into buying a bigger oven, I would like to surprise him with chocolate moose.

THE "TALENTED" MI-5

1. What do you feel is your greatest talent? Tell us about it. (Yes—I want you to brag a little bit.)

Honestly, I almost think of myself as a "jack of all trades, and master of none." I think I play the piano well, but I'm certainly not a master. I think I can organize church events fairly well (I think administration is my spiritual gift), but my house is a disaster area. I think I would say that probably piano playing is my greatest talent, simply because I have never really had a lesson, but can still play well enough to hold my own in church. I sometimes wonder what my piano playing might have been had I taken lessons for years. Someday, I'd still like to take lessons.

2. What one talent do you not have, but really wish you possessed? Why?

Oh--that one is easy. I would SOOO love to be able to sing. I would love to sing with Dwane. I would give my eye teeth to be able to sing with Unk. (Although I'm not really sure I could do it without crying.) I would love to be able to sing the melody, and also be able to sing the harmony.

3. Of all the celebrities out there, living or dead, who do you consider to be the most talented? Why?

This is a hard one for me. I think that someone that is a triple threat (sing, dance, act) is very talented. For example, Britney Spears does all three, but I don't think she does any of them exceptionally well, so I wouldn't pick her. But it would be someone that does do all three of them. I am most moved in my life by music, so I would maybe pick a singer/songwriter, instead of an artist. (I don't know how to really appreciate good art.) Hmmmm. I can't think of someone off the top of my head. I'll probably read some of the other responses today and think "duh!". I will update tihs if I think of someone....

4. Tell us about the most talented individual that you know personally. They don’t necessarily have to be talented in the creative talents. Intellectual talent will work too.

This one is easy! My brother, Bill. I have always been in awe of his talent. I believe he could literally pick up ANY instrument, and be able to play at least something with it. And, of course, the fact that he is the best drummer on the face of the planet is obvious. The other thing I really
admire about Bill is his ability to know at least SOMETHING about ANY topic you put out there. Art. Music. History. Wine. Anything.

5. If you watch American Idol, which of those talented kids do you think will win? Why? If you don’t watch that show, tell us anything else about talent that comes to your mind.

I love American Idol. Dwane and Eben like it too. My favorites this year are Jordin Sparks, Lakeisha, and Melinda Doolittle. I also like the beatbox guy, but I think he is more talented with the beatbox stuff than the actual singing. I think that perhaps Melinda is the most gifted vocally, but she is a professional singer (albeit backup) already. So, I guess I'm going to cheer for Lakeisha. If Sanjaya wins, I will be very sad. I fear, however, that the young girls really love him and that he will go much further than his vocal talent deserves.

Caleb's Heart

It's 11:00 at night. I walk into my bedroom to go to sleep. There is Caleb. Wide awake. Clutching his jammies by his chest. I asked him what was wrong, "My heart. I need to go to the doctors". My first thought is panic. He is so serious. He said he needs the doctor to listen to his heart with the stethoscope. I told him that if he laid down on the bed, I would listen to it. He laid down, pulled up his shirt, and I laid my ear on his chest. Sounds like a nice, strong, steady heartbeat to me.

Then he says "I need the doctor and the stethoscope. I heart is leaking." I'm still a little scared. "Your heart is leaking?" I asked? "Yes," he answers. "My heart is leaking because I don't have any friends."

That's pretty deep for a 4 year old.

A Bunch of Almost Nothingness

I know. I know.

I haven't posted in forever.

Seems like I've been outstraight busy lately, and yet, I have nothing to tell you about at the same time.

Mom had one of her rib attacks last night, and I went to be with her around 11:30 PM or so. While I am not happy that she had a rib attack, I am so happy that she called me. I felt like Dad's ambassador. It made me feel very close to her, as well as being very close to Dad. I felt Dad with me, talking to me, on my drive to her house. Shoot. I'm crying again. (Thanks for calling me, Mom!)

Eben was sick on Saturday, and missed the Pine Wood Derby. I also needed to cancel a scrapbooking workshop at Mandy's house, but Mandy still went ahead and did it in my absence. Good job, Mandy! (I've "trained" my girls well, I guess.)

Dwane was in Washington, DC over the weekend, and details of his trip can be found over at Billy Rhythm's blog.

As far as my "diet" goes, I have lost about 8 pounds since Dwane's Colorado trip. Maybe I was nervous about him being gone or something. I don't know. I just didn't have the desire to eat as much, and to a certain extent, that's still the case. The other difference is that I have stopped exercising. It's been really busy with work, and the exercising was the first thing to go.

Dwane will be working a lot of weird hours during the next several weeks, so my supper menus will probably be all over the place. More than likely, I will be planning lots of prepared foods. I know that they are not healthy, but I hate to prepare a pot roast, or take out a steak for the grill, and then find out he won't be home for supper. So I tend to plan things that can be fixed very, very quickly. Just in case, though, I have planned a supper menu next week anyway. The meals may not actually go as planned, but I can always save them for another time:

Day 1: Homemade Fried Rice and Egg Drop Soup
Day 2: Waffles, Grits with Pepper Jack Cheese, Bacon
Day 3: Lasagna, Garlic Toast
Day 4: Oven Fried Chicken and Pasta Salad

It's amazing that I have been so busy, and yet there is so little to talk about....