Laura stepped off the bus and headed towards home. If you could call it that. An illegally converted garage wasn’t much of a home. She shared the single bathroom with three others and had to keep her food in a cooler so it wouldn’t be stolen from the community kitchen. It was all she could afford but was far better than the house she used to live in with her alcoholic husband.
“The life in front of you is greater than the life behind you.”
Nothing says “Hanukkah” more than latkes! But they are actually a delicious addition to any meal, year round. (And you don’t have to be Jewish to enjoy them.) This Bubbe is fairly new to the latke game and I’m not adept at the use of electric appliances, so these are handmade with lots of love (and oil). They are a bit on the time intense side … turn on some music, pour a glass of wine or eggnog and put on an apron.
The five basic ingredients are simple and available year-round at our Grocery Outlet and the cost is about 50 cents per serving. I find the best way to mix and form the patties is with my hands; a bit messy but the results speak for themselves.
These past few weeks have been a whirlwind of activity and I haven’t taken any quality time for myself. I haven’t spent any time on my blog or writing short stories or recipes, haven’t decorated our salon for Hanukkah (and it’s almost over!) and I have a few gifts still to finish before our family celebration tomorrow evening. My home and husband are both in need of my attention. Half day of work today with the other half committed to paperwork for the sale of Nana’s house and errands. And a busy, busy weekend ahead with the kids. The last time I felt rested and not rushing was Thanksgiving weekend.
So I stood on the end of the finger and closed my eyes. I listened to the sea birds calling to each other and the water lapping gently against the neighboring hulls, felt the bite of cold air on my skin and breathed deeply. I let my thoughts drift from my “To Do” list to the miracle of a new day unfolding and opened my eyes to watch the world awaken.
As the orange hues of the sunrise deepened, my thoughts turned to Nana as they always do. Orange was her favorite color and is also the color of Northern Ireland, my father’s birthplace. Tears pricked my eyes as my heart squeezed with the pain of missing them. They both loved the holidays and, most of all, the joy of being with family. In my mind, I imagined Nana holding Ellie, exclaiming over her plump cheeks and that glorious smile; Daddy on the floor with Cody and Matthew, playing with cars or building a new toy set. And both of them so proud of the lives Meghan and Harley are making for themselves and what wonderful people they have grown to be.
I sighed and and went back to my warm salon, made my cuppa and opened Facebook to read today’s “Memories.” And there was this post from one year ago today:
I was in deep grief over Nana’s passing and having a hard time finding joy without her in my life. It took many, many months for me to not cry every time I thought of her, which was more often than not.
In reading this post from last year, I realized how blessed I am in the here and now. It’s a busy time for sure, but it won’t always be this way. Harley will go back to Oregon and I won’t see him for many months. Brian will come home from deployment and they will have plans with other family and friends. And life will go back to everyday routine. I’ll take every moment I can to create memories that will live in my heart when my loves are far away.
For now, I’ll allow myself the simple pleasure of a few minutes to write and sip and reflect before starting the whirlwind of a weekend ahead. And, as Daddy used to say when life got busy, “I’ll sleep when I’m dead.”
I’ve been crazy busy with the holidays and babysitting my grandchildren and missed my weekly GO To Tuesday post … so we’ll do a GO To Thursday instead! Our local Alameda Grocery Outlet is a great one-stop go-to for holiday menu ingredients. I’m creating a Hanukkah menu of brisket, latkes and roasted asparagus this weekend that I’ll feature next week.
Amy saw the poster tacked to the phone pole at the bus stop.
LOST: Female Dog.
Beloved Family Pet.
Sat., Oct. 6
near Grand and Otis.
Answers to Cookie.
The picture below the text showed two adorable little boys with their arms around an even more adorable little brown dog. Her heart sank. It looked exactly like the dog she had found just after midnight two days ago.
Both sweet and savory … these delicious noodles take minutes to prepare and make a great side to an Asian-inspired meal or, as we did, serve with fresh Dungeness crab and garlic bread. (One can never have enough garlic in my opinion!) Grocery Outlet doesn’t sell fresh crab, but they do feature an amazing ocean caught salmon that would be terrific with a miso-soy glaze. Hubby says he could easily eat just a big bowl of the noodles all by themselves … they are THAT good!
Not only is this super easy, but it is delicious and inexpensive and takes about 10 minutes to prepare. I served this as a side to a cold pasta lunch salad with cheese and crackers. (The only downside for us boat-dwellers is the use of a food processor to get the right consistency. I’ll have to experiment with hand-mashing.)
Turkey is the hands-down favorite for Thanksgiving but when you are cooking for just a few (or have a tiny oven as I do), Cornish Game Hens are a great alternative and also make a festive meal during the winter holidays. Who doesn’t like having their own drumstick? Grocery Outlet has a wonderful frozen food section and these little birds are inexpensive and thaw in a few hours or overnight in the refrigerator. You’ll also find a good selection of fresh produce in bulk, packaged and organic varieties to chose from.
Every weekday morning Mama would walk us to school and chat on the schoolyard with the other mothers, discussing their supper menus and any juicy news they had heard since the day before. We lived in a small town where walls were thin and lips were loose. Today’s hot topic was the recent sale of the old Dorst home to a couple from out of town.
Martha, who lived across the street from the house, couldn’t wait to share her latest insight, “This morning the wife drug the trash bin to the curb and then drove off in the convertible. I haven’t seen hide nor hair of the husband yet.”
When you don’t have time for prep or a long cook time but want to feed your family a healthy meal, pop into Grocery Outlet for a nice assortment of veggies ready for a quick sautee and organic, free range chicken to throw on the barbecue. This took all of 20 minutes from package to table and cost a total of $14 which fed hubby and me dinner and leftovers for lunch the next day.
