This is why I don’t cook… September 27, 2007
Posted by mike in rambling.trackback
It’s 7:45, and dinner is still on the stove. Now granted, I only got back from the store at about 7, but still, this is taking forever. To top it off, the potatoes are still boiling, and I haven’t even started making the soup yet (Cheddar and Ale soup). The risk is that I’ll fill up on bread and butter before the soup is done. It better turn out well.
According to WordPress, it’s been 2 months since I last posted… almost a new record for me! I guess it’s about time to get back on this.
(It’s 8:45 now)
Well, dinner’s finally ready. Took forever. The kitchen is a mess, and our dishwasher is dumping water on the floor, so I’ve got at least half an hour of cleanup to do. It’s not nearly as thick as I expected, but it’s pretty good. I think next time I’ll add more cheese, and maybe more corn starch to thicken it up some. I substituted potatoes for the broccoli or cauliflower the recipe called for, which I think might have added some extra water to the mix (though I did drain them first). But, it’s definitely edible, which is good, because there’s still a decent size pot of it on the stove that I’ll have to eat this week. It’s not as good as the Cheddar and Ale soup I used to get at British Isles (restaurant in Lansing that went out of business years ago), but it’ll do. The grocery store didn’t have any more bread bowls, so I had to get some shepherds’ bread instead. I’ll have to remember to actually eat it this time… last time it went from good to green in about a day. When I say green, I mean totally covered, full-on green. It was actually kind of impressive. I guess that’s what you get with bread that’s fresh baked and not loaded with preservatives.
As usual, the reason for my lack of blogging isn’t because i’ve been too busy. No, my lack of blogging was caused once again by sheer laziness. I doubt anyone is surprised. Kayte and Kelsey used to be my blogging conscience, and since they both blog more often than I do, they could usually guilt me into posting. Lately they’ve been nagging me a lot less, probably because they both decided it was hopeless. It might be.
I’d love to regale you with stories about all of the exciting stuff that’s been going on… but not a lot’s been going on. Don’t get me wrong, things are going well. Work is good, consistently oscillating between crazy and, well, a little boring, but I’ve been working on some things lately that are more interesting. Things are going well with church; I’m still heading up our ushering team and helping out with our tear-down crew (we meet in the gym of one of our local middle schools, so every Sunday we have to set up and tear down all of our equipment and furnishings). We just finished doing our men’s summer bible study and started up our small groups at the end of August, which I’m pretty excited about.
Jen came to visit in August (I guess there was something exciting that happened these past couple months), which was a lot of fun. She was only able to stay for 4 days (flew in Friday morning, flew home Monday night), but we had a good time. We spent some time at the beach, saw some of Carlsbad, were lazy, had a great dinner at Chart House (she gets a 50% discount through her work), and had a good time just hanging out. It was too short, and she needs to come back sometime, but we’ll work on that.
Mom’s coming to visit for a week in October, which should be fun. I’m not planning on taking any time off work, so she’ll have to fend for herself for a few of those days. I think the plan is that she’ll drop me off at work and take my car for the day (since I only have one car), which I’m not super excited about, but that’s pretty much only because I never wait for a ride anymore and I’m not used to it. But that should be fine, and we should have a good time. I’m looking forward to seeing her. Unfortunately Dad won’t be able to make it because of work, but I understand that he’s really busy right now. I’ll get to see him at Christmas when I go home, so it’s all good.
Well, I have a kitchen to clean. Ugh. Later kids.
You know, I’ve gotten so used to glossing over your blog’s feed on my google homepage that I almost missed the fact that you posted.
You say “this is why I don’t cook” but of course it’s going to take a while and make a mess when it’s something complicated like Cheddar and Ale soup (well, I don’t actually know how complicated that is because I’ve never made it, but it sounds more complicated than the stuff I make). The key to cooking, is to find the easy quick foods that taste good but don’t take long.
Potatoes always take forever.
Very cool to hear your mom will be able to come out an visit in October. I’d like to travel somewhere warmer in Oct… unfortunately with my lack of vacation days, it looks like the farthest I’ll get is Chicago to visit my ex-roomie. Did I tell you I get to start a 9-80 schedule in Nov, though? I’m excited!
Anyway, I guess I’ll have to start getting on your case again about posting more often — sounds like I’ve been slacking. Good job on this post, keep it up.
Another food tip is if you ARE making something complicated, to do as much prep the night before as possible. You could easily boil the potatoes while noshing on takeout and watching TV the night before, and then the day you make the soup, you don’t have to wait!
I love cooking, but it does feel all-consuming after a long day of work, a trip to the grocery store, the actual cooking and the cleanup
Still, I think it’s worthwhile – especially for leftovers! I only wish I had people to cook for – THAT’S much more fulfilling.
Glad to hear that things are going well. If it would help, I can nag you more if it will motivate you to blog more
Take care!
It wasn’t that complicated, there was just some prep work that I could have done to make my life easier. I also wasn’t very smart about my time usage when I was making it; I should have been chopping onions and garlic, and shredding cheese while the potatoes boiled. It’s really the stupid potatoes, plus the onions took some time to sauté. Repeatedly having to bring the whole mess to a boil took time too. Oh well. I agree with Kelsey, maybe I do just need to find some more simple recipes.
That’s cool about the 9-80 shift; I think I’m jealous. Then again, there are some days where it’s hard enough to be at work for 8 hours, let alone 9.
Hey, you blogged! How excited am I? Very. I was thinking I should give you a call (maybe even tonight), because it’s been WAAAY to long since we’ve talked. I also didn’t realize that I could nag you into blogging, which I may have to employ in the future (although if you’re only guilted into it by the nagger blogging, I could be in trouble). I miss you a ton, bro!
By the way, if you like your soup thicker, next time mash some of the potatoes before adding them, or blend some of them with the soup before adding the rest as chunks, and it’ll thicken it a bit. I love you!!!
man, you blog too much. please slow up the pace as to be able to keep me in the loop! simma down naow! ps. the soup sounds delish–i’d recommend add toothpaste to make it thicker. anything else would be nonesensical! toodles!