My Family Tree Must Have Knotts

This was the year we weren't going to jam.  Last year - we couldn't possibly duplicate that effort.  Over 40 flavors and more than 420 jars ... *whew*.  Sure, we raised something like $2,300 for the Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders Center - I'm VERY proud of that - but still, 2013 was gonna be our year off.  We even booked two weeks of travel that involved the weekends we traditionally jam.  2013 - Travel.  NOT Jam.

I blame the visit to the open air market.  And the plums that were there.  They were ... perfect.  Deep color, no soft spots, amazingly fragrant.  I can't speak for the Amazing Husband but that's when I started to crumble.  My own mother was of no help.  "The Blackberry Vanilla.  Definitely my favorite.  Looking forward to more of that next year."  Terrific ... THANKS Mom.

We returned home (after astonishingly good AND not-so-good meals, overwhelming kindnesses by total strangers and a renewed friendship ... I'll write more about those experiences in due time) and unpacked.  The plums weren't foremost on my mind, as there was plenty to be done that DIDN'T involve jamming.  Like - sending jams to old dear friends.  The packing, wrapping, labeling .... all second nature really.  And heck, we HAD jars still from last year.  We had flavorings.  We had everything but fruit.

"Ok well", I started, "we can make Blackberry Vanilla and ... and ... maybe Strawberry something.  Nothing overly detailed or messy.  Strawberry Pomegranate, maybe."

And then there was the purchase of more jars.  "I picked up 7 more packs", said the Awesome Husband.  I was just as bad, managing to buy 6lbs of cherries when I went to the store (forgetting the lemons I had intended to buy in the first place).

Soooooo this last Saturday, in the year we WEREN'T gonna jam at all, we made 5 flavors packed away in 52 jars.  And today?  Today when I was gonna lay low and try to let my body adjust to new medications and crappy sleep cycles and boring days at work?  Today I purchased 12 more packs of jars (plus 2 packs of quart-sized ones ... ya' know, just in case).  And I noticed my local farm has announced the arrival of peaches.

I think I should research my family tree ... see if there are any "Knotts" or "Smuckers" in it.

A Low "Ha!"

I haven't written much - or, really, at all - about the incredible two week vacation that the Awesome Fiance and I took this summer.  We've been back for over a month now so it's probably time to revisit it.

I could write about the travel experience itself but the airline (I'll call it "Untied") would probably put me on the "no-fly" list after reading my tirade.  I'd have to create new, more descriptive words beyond "dunder-headed ass clown" and "inept corporate maggot" ... and I'm just not feeling all that creative today.

I could write about this being the ONLY time in my life I've actually taken two whole weeks from work for vacation.  Yes, I had a sabbatical, which was 6 weeks, but in all the 29 years I've been employed, I've never taken two solid weeks of vacation.

I could write about the food ... OH.  MY.  LORD.  THE.  FOOD. ... but that'll probably just make me hungry and I probably wouldn't be able to describe some of the dishes to the level of deliciousness they deserve.

I think I'll write about my overall take-away from the first portion of our two weeks.  The "Family" portion.

Ya' know that family you see on occasion when traveling?  Grandparents, grown children, grandkids ... dining together, smiling and laughing, posing for goofy photos, etc?  The clan that piles out from the minivan and walks into the mall, maybe wearing similar teeshirts ... or the multi-generational gathering on the beach - a few are reading, some are splashing about in the water, the youngest members are creating elaborate piles of sand?  Well, I was part of that family as a child.  My best friend really did have the perfect family and I spent countless hours as an extended, adopted family member.  Oh, they were SO much better than my real family.

Dad was a teacher, an avid weekend golfer, and liked to take rides on his motorcycle.  Mom, also a teacher, liked to go on walks, spend time with her family, and be outdoors.  Son - the youngest member of the family - was into all things bicycle.  Daughter - my best friend - was everything I wasn't ... graceful, very pretty, delicate.  They'd include me on short weekend getaways and I'd see a family who REALLY enjoyed being together.  Parents who had conversations about news and politics and things that didn't involve work or animals or relatives.  Children who played nicely together and went to the movies together - not because they were told to but because they wanted to.  For me, it was surreal.

It was also fake.

I know now that my seemingly perfect adopted family ... was not.  Dad, it seemed, waited until the children were grown and on their own, and then got on his motorcycle and rode away.  Mom developed an eating disorder and handled her divorce as 'tho everything was fine when, clearly, it was not.  Little brother got married *WAY* too young but to a wonderful woman who nursed him back to health for a year after a very nearly deadly motocross accident.  And best friend, who had aspirations on being a psychologist, instead became a grumpy, gloomy, unhappy stay-at home mom who shielded her own small children from their "awful" Grandfather ... even as she herself continued the cycle of cheating on - and eventually leaving - her own spouse.  I stopped being a part of her life after her second child.  We just didn't have anything in common anymore and I got tired of trying to set up the lunch date that clearly was never to be.  We had a mutual friend who kept me updated on her activities and, last I heard, her two oldest children asked to move in with their father because they were tired of being told how awful both he AND their own Grandfather was.

*******************
So while, as a child, I had my seemingly perfect family and my real one, as an adult I knew that my real one was so much better than "perfect".  It was flawed, but flawed in a way I understood.  The members (myself most assuredly included) were maddening, but in a comfortable way.  We have family logic for the things we do - twisted as it is but it is, at least, logic of some sort.  And, as the airplane drifted towards our family getaway home for the week, I thought that I was ready for the quirks and actions and whatnot that were likely to come ... flaws and maddening members and twisted logic and all.

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh I was mistaken.

It's an exaggeration, to be sure, that I spent the WHOLE week closing screens, sliding glass doors, turning off lights, turning on ceiling fans, drawing drapes, turning on the air conditioner, and locking front doors.  It's an exaggeration, certainly, that the week was spent washing the same dishes, clearing the same table, drying the same glasses, closing the same freezer doors, and wiping the same counter-top surface.  It's an exaggeration, yes, that my island time was filled with folding towels and doing laundry and explaining how air conditioning works and sharing that, while I was sorry the upstairs was 76 degrees (aka "super cold") in the mornings, our bedroom was still at 87 degrees at 11pm the night before because no one could be bothered to close a door or shut a window to keep the air temperature at a reasonable number - say, somewhere slightly lower than 80.

It did FEEL like the whole week was like that, but I know it wasn't.

"But remember", you say calmly.  "Remember that you were sharing the house with young children and you're not used to young children."

"And that's very true", I reply just as calmly.  "But what makes you think I was talking about the young children?"

*******************
Ahhhhhhhhhhh but they are my people.  They are my family.  Are they perfect?  Ha!  No.  Thank heavens no, they are not perfect.

I Am Jam. Jam I Am.

I've gone through a *L*O*T* of changes in the past few years.  In fact, it would be accurate to say that changes - both big (my job, home, relationship status) and small (radio-listening habits, wardrobe, beverage go-to) - have been a constant for me.

I forget, though, that quite a few of these changes go largely unnoticed, especially by my friends who are based within my previous hometown.  Many are surprised at my living on the East Coast, or my not working in the sales technology sector.  And most have had NO idea that I have Parkinson's Disease.  As I've written here before, it's not the kind of thing one can just mention as an "oh by the way" sort of conversation topic.  If I knew someone who was diagnosed with PD (or something similar) and they shared the news with me, I'd have follow-up questions and I guess I presume that's true of others, too.  I could be wrong.

I was reminded not of what's changed but what hasn't changed in my life just last night, in a very wonderful way.  We sent a box of FMD jams to Shari, an ex-colleague of mine.  Shari and I worked in the same company on the same floor of the same building - and in the same department - for 3 years or so.  I eventually transferred into another division based in another city and, due to our different locations and job demands, I hadn't been able to keep in contact with Shari as much as I would have liked.  And then I moved and ... well ... we lost touch.  She sees Tim on occasion and, I guess, gets brief updates on me via him.

So it seems Shari's box arrived yesterday, and the receptionist alerted her to the delivery via email.  Shari forwarded me the entire email train, copied below.

*****************

From: Christina B/Reception
Sent: Monday, September 17, 2012 3:14 PM
To: Shari; Richard; Amber; Lindsay; Jeremy; Jack
Subject: Package in the lobby for you

Hello.

You have a package in the lobby.  Please come to pick up at your earliest convenience.

Thank you,

Christina B

*****************

From: Shari
Sent: Monday, September 17, 2012 3:15 PM
To: Christina B
Subject: RE: Package in the lobby for you

Hi Christina,

I am leaving for Korea and be back on Monday.  Can you hold it for me until Monday?

Thanks

Shari

*****************

From: Christina B
Sent: Monday, September 17, 2012 3:16 PM
To: Shari
Subject: RE: Package in the lobby for you

Hello,

Yes of course. We will hold it in our locked closet till then.

Have a safe trip!

Christina

*****************

From: Shari
Sent: Monday, September 17, 2012 3:20 PM
To: Christina B
Subject: RE: Package in the lobby for you

Thanks.  Do you know what it is?

*****************

From: Christina B
Sent: Monday, September 17, 2012 3:22 PM
To: Shari
Subject: RE: Package in the lobby for you

Not really - there's a sticker that says “homemade jam”.

*****************

From: Shari
Sent: Monday, September 17, 2012 3:27 PM
To: Julie
Subject: FW: Package in the lobby for you

Hi Julie,

You are the best!  Did you send me jam?  I am not in the office and asked the receptionist to hold it for me.

Thank you so much!  I am sorry that I didn’t get to see you when you came by.  I always ask Tim about you.  I hear that you are engaged!  Congrats!  I am very happy for you.

I really appreciate you always thinking of us.  Hopefully we’ll connect next time.

Take care,

Shari                                                                                                                                                                               

*****************

Yes, much has changed.  But, comfortingly, I still = "homemade jam".

FMD ... Arriving NOW Across The Country!

Whelp, it's that time of year again.

Over the past couple of days week, we've shipped out 14 22 boxes, each with 6 flavors of FMD goodness.

We have at least a dozen more boxes to assemble and/or ship - some we're waiting on to confirm addresses, others are being held while late-Summer vacations come to an end.

While we've managed to ship out 86 132 jars, we still have more jars in inventory than we even created in all of 2011 ... which is a little crazy to think about.

Just think ... FMD will be arriving to homes in over 20% 27% of the 50 states in this week alone.  That's also kinda crazy to consider, since I'm 50% of the FMD employee base.

I mean - did you even figure there WERE 41 flavors of jams?  And heck - there's still a few fruits we haven't tried yet ('tho, honestly, there aren't too many ... but there's a few).

 Thanks to the other 50% of FMD's employee base, recipes have been diligently kept, so if there are any "out-of-the-ballpark-homerun" flavors, we'll be able to recreate them in the future.

But, for now anyway, we'll keep shipping out the 2012 creations.  Since taste is a subjective thing, I know a few of our creations may better received than others but, overall, I'm a fan of the work we did this year.

 

For now, all we can do is just wait and see what the rest of the country says.

{Updated on Friday 09/07/2012}

More FMD 2012 Fruit Pics

I've already posted a few pics of the fruit we're using for jam (link).  Well, as is often the case, I should have ended that post with "... but wait - there's more!"

Those are yellow cherries.  No, not Rainiers, which always have some blush on them but these are straight-up yellow.  I've seen them referred to as "Stone Harvest Gold" cherries, but who knows.  They're a nice balance between tart and sweet and they made GREAT jam.  I hope we find them again next year.

These are, of course, blueberries.  See how some of them have stems?  Yeah, well before we jammed them, we picked through each berry to remove those stems.  There were over 20 pounds of berries, by the way.  Ponder that when you're enjoying this on toast, ok?  We didn't just slap these guys together - each berry gets inspected.  THAT's why I don't "sell" FMD jam.  I'd have to charge way too much.  (Note "sell" is in quote marks there.  This year, there will be a way to donate anything you'd like to contribute to a worthy, fully tax-deductible cause very close to my heart.  More on that later ...)

Raspberries.  I just love 'em - maybe even more than strawberries.  The ONLY drawback are the seeds.  So these are also inspected piece by piece to make sure that there are no leaves or cores and then I split the quantity in half and remove the seeds of one pile by pushing them through a sieve.  Or, at least, that's what I *used* to do.  This year, thanks to The Awesome Fiance, we used the Kitchen Aid mixer with a strainer attachment and geez - it did the task in just under an hour (and yes, that's a huge improvement).

Unfortunately there is no such shortcut for blackberries.  See how those raspberries above are hollow?  And see how these lovely blackberries aren't?  Well, while there's no reason to de-seed a blackberry, I do take the time to remove those cores.  It's just for looks, mostly.  If ya' don't remove the core, they can look like little white worms and ... well ... yeah, that's just not cool.  So we purchased close to 19 pounds of blackberries and once again, each one was inspected and cores were removed.  It's ok, really.  I don't mind.  I don't like creating something half-way great so if it means a few extra hours, so be it.

There will be more fruit pictures soon ... but that should cover things for now.

Good Enough Isn't

Out of all the different ingredients that can be added to a batch of jam (and there are a TON of available options if you're willing to get creative), the one that makes the biggest difference to the end result is the fruit being used.

If you can talk to the individual who planted or watered or weeded or picked the fruit you're planning to use for jam, it's the closest thing to getting a guarantee that your end result will be pretty great stuff.

No matter what experts say, I don't believe that there's a substitute that tastes as good as "field fresh" fruit.

It's true that you CAN make jam from frozen stuff where you don't have to remove stems or seeds or pits, it's also true that it's that frozen taste you're gonna be preserving - and since there will always be more bags of frozen berries available, why would you need to "preserve" that??

For me, it's the difference between a garden tomato and a supermarket tomato.  They're the same thing, but they taste like they're barely related to each other.  So for everyone who says "Well heck - I can BUY jam at the supermarket" - yes, yes you can.  But it's never gonna taste like this.

FMD 2012

Healthy pets (and humans).
Sunny mornings.
Sharing something I think is tasty ... and having others say so, too.

It's June (at last!) and the weather is encouraging the ripening of fruit as you read this.  "FMD" HQ, which is to say our home, has been stocking up on jam jars, tasty ideas, new methods of incorporating flavors, and contacting local farms to warn them we'll be placing fairly decently-sized orders of various fruits as they become available.  (What's a fairly decently-sized order?  How about "Hello Ryan?  Yeah - any chance we'll get those 20 pounds of cherries this week?  Great!  See ya' then.")

Having recently completed creating 7 different strawberry-based flavor combinations (resulting in 75 filled jars), we're planning on moving on to cherry-based jams this weekend.  I'll post pictures of the fruit we're using (because I think the first pic I took looked great - I just need to upload it so I can add it here) and, as the batches are done and stored, will share some of the 2012 new flavors.

I WILL say now that the two taster-jars I brought into work today were overwhelmingly approved.  I don't let anyone just say "nice job" or "mmmm" as I would much rather know what is working - or not - for each flavor (and each taster).  As much as "mmmm" is nifty to hear, it doesn't really inform me much and I'd almost rather hear "uh - yeah - that ... that's too bitter" than just get "mmmm" as a review.

It's nice to create good-tasting things.  It's pretty damn cool to hear others say things like "I know you won't officially SELL these but *oops* this $10 just fell onto your desk."

In short, making jam that folks enjoy makes me smile.  Lucky for them, I like to smile A LOT.

FMD 2012.  Coming soon, to a mailbox near you.

The Lucky One

Oh I am the Lucky One.

You understand my weakness for all-things animal (especially feline). You silently provide support when my strength has withered and you share your confidence with me when mine has fled. You nourish me with your creativity, both in the kitchen and in your point-of-view. You share with me your concerns, worries, and troubles while encouraging me to move beyond my concerns, worries and troubles. You laugh with me and cry with me. When I am at my "Polly Anna" worst, you are the realistic voice I need to hear. You help me stay grounded when I'm about to float away and you help me to fly again when it's appropriate to do so. You remind me to continue forward, no matter the barriers, and reassure me that you will be right beside me.

And you always ... always are.

Which makes me the Lucky One.

For This, I Am Very Thankful.

The warm blanket we snuggle under.
The kitty who meows us awake.
The neighbor who looks after us (and who we look after).
The kitty who appreciates our attention.
The coffee shop employees who know my order.
The job that gives me goals and motivation (and health care and a paycheck).
The kitty who finally trusts us.
The family for being who they are.
The meals we share.
The quiet times in the evening hours when it's enough to just sit beside you.
The last words we exchange before we sleep.

For this, and for so much more, I have much to be thankful for.

Weight A Second

For me, it all started with the microwave.

I remember the box sitting on the counter, the classes my mother took, the "recipes" (and I use that word that very hesitantly) in the instruction manual, the warnings about not standing too close or immediately open the door when the unit shut down ... and I remember the wonder of being able to cook - or, more accurately, heat - items in less than half the the time of traditional methods.

Instant rice.  Instant oatmeal.  Fax machines.  Copier machines.  Instant messaging.  Text messaging.  Flying across the entire country in a matter of hours.  We are a people who enjoy a longer lifespan than our great-great relatives could have ever considered and yet we feel compelled to bitch about how long the red light takes to change or roll our eyes at how much time we waste waiting for our iced, short, triple breve shots, extra whip, half-caf, almond soy mocha ... with sprinkles.  And fudge-drizzle sauce.

And - to me, at least - the second-worst offenders of this "gimme now" demand are the companies who sell instant fixes to non-instant problems ... the diet-pill/diet-shake manufacturers.   The worst offenders?  The ones at the top of that list?  The people who buy their crap.

If you are overweight - and I am, for what I'd PREFER to look like - did your body change in a week?  In three weeks?  In six?  No - of course not.  Barring extreme circumstances and/or pregnancy, you slowly added a few ounces here and a few ounces there until you had to change the size of the pants you were buying.  It took lots of months.  Hell, it probably took years.

So why do people feel that they can buy a pill or a shake or - and this may be my favorite snake-oil ever - a fat-eliminating creme (*snork*) and, in less than a month, ta-dah there's your 24-year old body once again?!

Why?  Because of instant rice, instant oatmeal, fax and copier machines, instant and text messaging, and the microwave.  We want it all and we wanted it 4 minutes ago.  It's what THIS generation has always had.  It's not instant gratification ... it's more like instant expectation.  I mean - who actually waits for the elevator doors to close on their own anymore?  Why would you do that, since there's a button that will close the doors for you faster than the sensor would do so?

Well, to everyone who is starving themselves, putting themselves through surgeries, slurping down nasty-tasting crap and slathering on cellulite-reducing lotions, my advice is to slow down, take a deep breath, throw out your scales and calorie-counters and measuring cups, toss your secret cookie stash (yeah - you thought no one knew about that, didn't ya'?) and just give yourself a break.  Yes, if you've decided to get your weight in check, you should do so but - just like you took the time to add pounds, give yourself permission to take time to loose them.
And whatever else you decide to do - for cryin' out loud - stop trying to find the instant fix to a non-instant problem.  Close your mouth AND your wallet and just open your brain.  Even if all you ever do is develop a morning routine of stretches or leave a table without clearing your plate or stop asking for dessert after every meal or take the stairs instead of the elevator ... it will be a step in the right direction.  And from there, you can add another step and another.  Because that's how it all started.

The solution really does need to come from YOU - not a pill, or creme or any of that oh-so-tempting crap that folks are so eager to have you believe.  If the easy-solution that you may be considering worked forever for everyone who tried it, the entire weight loss market would have just that one option, right?  Clearly there is no "one-size-fits-all" solution to this issue.  This will just be one of those things where you'll need patience and persistence, strength and conviction, determination and forgiveness, and if you set reachable goals for yourself ... well, just weight and see.

The Happy Medium

Feast or famine.  Joyful or Sad.  Open or closed.  Busy or peaceful.  Quiet or crazy.

I wonder how much energy the average human adult (if  there IS such a thing) spends trying to create balance in their lives.  We toil away at our jobs so as to afford vacations.  We drive like demons to get further into traffic to get home so we can rest.  We create projects or start on tasks that we hope will make our homes, or our systems, or our accounts, run more efficiently and never really notice when they are in place because we're working on the next task or project.

And, ironically, by the time we're REALLY ready to enjoy the fruits of our labors (no matter if it is a the end of a day, week, year or retirement age), we're too damn tired to look around and say "wow - this is nice".

I had a mini-experience like that recently.  I've had an off-and-on migraine for a couple o' days and, each time the "fog" lifted, I did as much as I could because I knew I was on borrowed time.  And boy, did I have things to celebrate, thanks to The Awesome Boyfriend.  Incredible reservations at an amazing place in a favorite city on what promises to be an unimaginably fun weekend ... and it was all I could do to say "wow that's great, Sweetheart.  Can you bring me an icepack?"

So today, before my day started to get moving, I got us great seats on the right flights at a darn nice fare.  It feels GREAT to be part of this process ... to participate in the planning more than just saying "what day is that again?  Where is this place?  What kinda dress code?"

And the bonus in this all ... the cherry on the sundae ... is that we'll likely have time to stop into a few favorite places of mine, visit a few new soon-to-be favorite places of ours, meet with old/new friends and share new/old stories ...

Memorial Day/Weekend never seemed so far away.  I'm gonna work like hell so I can hurry up and enjoy it.

Pics And Links And Recommended by Travel + Leisure, Oh My!

Equation for a fantastic weekend

Start here ...

Old Ebbitt Grill

Sit at the bar order the chowder and the oysters.

Recover, maybe enjoy a museum or two, and then get ready for

America's Most Romantic Restaurants

where you WILL overeat

and may not be able to get through the "Pork Bomb"

The next morning, when you're still not hungry, head to

Jaleo

and order one of these for yourself.

Do.  Not.  Share.  This.  No matter WHAT the server recommends.

The next day, exchange the same Valetine's Day card with each other.

Giggle at the perfectness of that.

Be wonderfully surprised by how thoughtful The Awesome Boyfriend is

and be overwhelmed by his generousity. 

A Meal To Be Thankful For

Thanksgiving 2010 is more than a week past (geez, can that be right???  In so many ways, it feels like yesterday) and so it is time that I document what we did right, what we did not-so-right, what needs to return next year and what we can retire.

We had a total of 13 at the table, most of whom knew what to expect from The Awesome Boyfriend's kitchen work.  The newbies were funny to watch and listen to ... lots of "wait, so this ISN'T what you do for a living?" and quite a few offers of hiring us out to cater (not gonna happen), etc.  We also noticed that this year seemed calmer for both of us.  I guess just knowing what we were capable of and doing dishes that we'd mostly already created once before really helped.

Oh - and whenever I say "we" here, I really mean "he".  I know my limitations in the kitchen and if I can just keep up with the dishes in the sink and do a few basic tasks, it makes it easier for The Awesome Boyfriend to do what he does best ... which, in this situation, is pretty much everything else.

So now, here we go:

Rosemary Roasted Cashews.  Very much a hit, very much appreciated, kept folks out of the way while we finished with a few of the first courses and took all of about 8 minutes to make.  So yes, they'll be made again next year.

Toasted Cornbread Coins with Pear Preserves, Cracked Black Pepper, Bleu Cheese and Candied Bacon.  A hit.  These went so fast that I never got to try one.  In fact, they went before I could even tell everyone what it was.  Like the cashews, we made just the right amount, too.  They should appear at the table next year.

Oysters Bingo.  A huge, tasty hit.  I don't think anyone passed on these and we even had folks ask for more (which we had).  We purchased the right amount of oysters, had just enough left over for lunch the next day ... yes, another success.  As the only "fish" on the table, they should reappear next year.

Creme of Artichoke Soup with Truffle Oil.  I was surprised by how well this was received, actually.  The Awesome Boyfriend traditionally makes a different soup that I thought folks would expect but, once again, we had requests for recipes, etc.  We over-bought on the amount of artichokes and I think wound up using just half but, other than that, this was another hit (and easier than what he traditionally makes).  It'd be fine for a repeat next year.

Duck Fat Biscuits. A hit - and great to grab the last bits of soup with, too.  We should have maybe put one on each plate next to the soup, just to ensure everyone got each last drop but folks figured it out pretty easily.  We made enough for leftovers, too, but not too many.

Cranberry Champagne and Spiced Apple Cider Sorbets.  A nice way to make a clean break between the pre-meal and the main event.  Not sure how we could have better garnished this 'cause getting the apple slice to behave was damn near impossible, but the flavors were bright and clear, not overly sweet and gave everyone a chance to "take 5" while we got the main dishes on the table.  We may have made too much of the apple sorbet but I liked that flavor the best and will go have some when I am done writing about this.  :-)

Cornbread Stuffing with Sausage, Bacon, Apple, Dried Cranberries, and Toasted Pecans.  I refuse to just call this "stuffing" as it has so much more than just bread cubes in it.  For me, the apple is the star of this dish ('tho I've a fondness for apples) but it wouldn't be as successful if you removed anything from it.  We bake it in muffin tins, so that it's easier for folks to take a serving.  As usual, we made waaaay too much and had too many leftovers.  I've noted this on our recipe file and hope we get it right next year.  Flavor and texture wise, 'tho, this is a terrific stuffing.

Golden Corn Pull-Apart Rolls. Ok seriously - it was ridiculous how many of these we made.  And I got carried away on the size, too so not only do we need to cut the recipe down, but I need to be more judicious on how I factor these.  (And yes, on this dish, when I write "I", I mean "I" - these were my babies this year.)  They're delicious and tasty but we coulda fed 3 times the number of folks we had with them.

Green Bean Casserole and Creamy Parmesan Corn Casserole. If there was a way to make half recipes of these, we'd have the perfect amount. The flavors are terrific, the dishes are expected, and they reheat nicely so they work great for meals like this. We just had quite a bit to send away at the end of the meal. (And yes, for those with sharp eyes, that IS a can of cranberry you see on the table. Last year we tried various other ideas and what we learned is that there are somethings you just can't improve upon. Besides, the ridges tell you where to slice off your portion.)

Truffled Mashed Potatoes.  Creamy, earthy, not pasty or overly thick ... just right.  Not that many portions leftover either.  These potatoes stand up very nicely when you pour ...

Turkey Stock Gravy over them.  We added fresh thyme just before serving this up and it added a nice herbal note to it (and made everything a little less brown).  Next year, I'll make this a day ahead to deal with any thickness issues but, other than that, this worked very well.

Sweet Potato Streusel. I'm not a huge sweet potato fan and, honestly, I didn't have any of this - there wasn't room on my plate. This was easier to make than the sweet potato dish from 2009, 'tho, so at least we aren't locked into a difficult dish.  Folks seemed to enjoy this and we have our one sweet potato fan who volunteered to take the leftovers so I'd call this a hit.

Dry Brined Roast Turkey.  Everyone has THEIR way of doing a turkey.  Everyone swears by THEIR method  And that's fine, of course.  We're a dry-brined turkey family.  We serve a dry-brined turkey because we've served turkey cooked via other methods and we see and taste a difference.  If you try to dry brine a bird and you say your way of prep is easier or or produces a tastier bird ... well you're just wrong is all.  When we served our dry brined bird last year, we converted everyone at the table to this method.  It happened again this year.  No one left without their selection of leftover turkey and I know their meals the next day were awesome.

Kahula Chocolate Trifle.  We count on one of our guests to bring this each year.  It's chocolatey and kahula-y and is topped with crushed Heath bars (or crushed Skor bars).  This also is a dish where the leftovers are claimed as soon as the meal is over.

Chocolate Goldschlager Truffles.  Come on - it's cinnamon.  It's chocolate.  Of course they're good.  These were a last-moment add to the meal and probably not "required" but damn tasty anyway.

Pecan Pie with Bourbon Ice Cream and Brown Butter Caramel Sauce.  I'm not a big fan of pecan pie but I still enjoy a small slice from this recipe.  The Bourbon Ice Cream boosts the flavor nicely and the Brown Butter Caramel Sauce added a good richness and balanced the sugar well.

So, aside from making LESS of some things, we didn't have a clunker on the table.  Of course, what made it a great meal wasn't the food ... but it did give us all one more thing to be thankful for.

Fabulousness Made Deliciously

While I typically make jam alone, in July, and in a few basic flavors, it's safe to say that this has - in so many wonderful, tragic, stretching, learning, loving ways - NOT been a typical year. So it makes sense that I made jam in August, with The Awesome Boyfriend, in 12 mostly new and vastly different flavors.

I had no intentions of making jam this year. For one thing, I didn't need another distraction to take away from the things I really SHOULD be doing. Also, it's never clean or neat. And ... finally ... it's ALWAAAAYS expensive. It's true ... next time you're in a grocery store and you find yourself rolling your eyes at the price tag associated with that "high-end" jam concoction, stop and consider: the cost of sugar, the cost - and time limitations - of large quantities of good fruit, the cost of containers, and my word the cost of the TIME it takes to go from "nice strawberries ... we should do something with them" to "good heavens, would you just look at the deep red color inside that jar of tastiness?" Honestly, I don't think anyone who has never made jam ... seriously made jam (as in "more than three batches in a day") ... has a clue as to how expensive a project it can be.

And then there's the distribution aspect of it. After all, now you have a large quantity of awesome flavors that you wanna share with friends and family, right? So you go to the office supply store and buy two ginormous rolls of bubble wrap, packing tape, some boxes (when using the USPS boxes aren't the cheapest option), and you spend time picking out which flavors go to which person, and you wrap and label and tape and ship and pretty soon, you're easily into this fun little hobby for (no fooling here, folks) about $500. Easily.

I've never charged for my jam. Ever. I've accepted just ONE order ... from a co-worker who was making boutique-style baskets for her Christmas list ... and it honestly took all the fun out of it for me. This is a hobby. A fun little tradition. For it to be a money-maker, I'd have to charge about $12 per half-pint and I just can't bring myself to do that.

So what do I ... and now we ... get outta this deal? Well, there's knowing that we can make different flavors next year and bring back the ones we really liked making this year. There's randomly surprising our friends and family with occasional jars of yumminess. There's the satisfaction of shelving 107 jars of jam that was made over a four-day period and using it throughout the coming year in various delicious ways. And there's also the kinda cool feeling of knowing that the jams we made have been shared with - and hopefully enjoyed in -16 homes (thus far) in 9 states throughout the US.

And you know something? That "knowing we done good and shared with other people" part? Well, while making jam may be costly, that last part is just priceless.

Bwoof? Broowf? Brollwof??

I can't seem to be able to just narrow down the clip below to the relevant area, so instead I'll have to leave it as is and say that the action that occurs between 2:11 and 2:23 illustrates pretty accurately how I feel currently.

(I'll also share that if you aren't familiar with this clip, it comes from a show from the late 1980s. This short story was so popular that they spun an entire series with it which ... well, it was a poor substitute from the original. I highly recommend watching parts 1 and 3, so you get the full effect - but yeah, sitting in one position from feeling soooo full ..... I can relate to that.)

... And Other Goofy Questions

"What if I added some almonds and cranberries to this and made bark? Would you eat that?"

(The Awesome Boyfriend made a version of an Easter candy treat that I thought I'd have to do without, due to availability on this side of the country. I was mistaken, as he was able to duplicate it. Perfectly. And there was "leftover" chocolate - if that's even a term anyone would ever know - so he made chocolate/cranberry/almond/smoked salted bark that I am snorking down as fast as I can chew.)

"I wanna bring over some artwork to decorate. Is that alright?"

(I can't explain how happy this makes me ... that this place is becoming more and more OUR home. Each change we make together helps me feel more settled and it's just ... it makes it easier to breathe somehow. As I said, I can't explain it - but I sure do love it.)

And, my personal favorite ...

"Waddya' mean "did I remember to feed the cat?'"



Please note: No ACTUAL cats were harmed in the taking of this photo. I swear on all I hold dear the feline actually enjoys to sleep on her back with her feet in the air. It makes me laugh every time she does it.