7 Quick Takes (vol 30)

Good grief Charlie Brown! Where does the time go these days. Here it is the middle of July and another Quick Takes Friday has hove into view. Goodness!

-1-

Oh, look at that lovely and luscious picture. Can you identify it? Ummmmmm, it is chicken skin. One of the things that I love most in the world to eat, lovely, krispy, just out of the oven chicken skin. When I was growing up my mother would make chicken legs in the oven. The chicken skin would be just wonderful. It was the thing that I anticipated the most. I ate it first and if anyone had offered me more I would certainly have taken it in a heart beat. So, this week I had to back some chicken breasts for another recipe and there just happened to be chicken skin involved and ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh, I ate them all. Every single one of the SEVEN pieces of chicken skin. I.ATE.EVERY.ONE. And I don't regret a single one.

-2-

After seeing "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" this week I think I am going to have to indule in a read through the entire series again. Like I really have the time to do that but sometimes you just have to do what you have to do. Someone asked me recently how I, as a Christian, can read or see anything about Harry Potter. My reply was: Yes, Harry Potter does deal with witches, wizards and magic. If my children were under the age of 8 I would not let them read the books because before a certain age children have a hard time distinguishing between reality and fantasy. But, these books have some themes that I think are important for all of us to think about. Life isn't always fair. If it was fair Harry wouldn't be living with the Dursleys that is for darn sure. There is love, the agonizing decisions to do what is right in the face of doing what is easy, the death of loved ones, justice and injustice. And it is also an avenue to talk about these things with your children, even if they are adults (which mine are).

-3-

Who needs Derek Jeter when I have my own studly baseball player. Yes, here he is. There will be a longer post soon but I just thought I would throw out the teaser picture.

Oh yeah, there he is. The power hitter.

-4-

Do you ever think about the pictures of your kids that you wish that you had taken? I do now, since I take so many pictures. Oh how I wish that I had been more "camera at the ready" so that I could have immortalized such incidents as Progeny #2's experimentation with cutting her own bangs. She went down for her nap with bangs that were the correct length but when she came out of her room her bangs were almost at her hair line and crooked to boot! Her explanation was that she didn't know WHAT had happened and she didn't know how those scissors had gotten into her bed. Yeah right. But, I don't have a picture of that and I sure wish I did. Oh well.

-5-

What do you do when you have a persistent song running through your head? I have had "There is Nothing Like a Dame", from South Pacific, running through my head and I can't seem to dislodge it. Arghhhhhhhhhhh. Now don't get me wrong, this is one of my favorite showtunes but REALLY I need something else in the old noggin. I tried listening to my favorites playlist on my ipod but after I was done, that song was still there. It was still there this morning. Song, please go away. Go out of my head and bother someone else.

-6-

Have you seen the "5 Minute Microwave Cake" recipe that is going around. You know the one where you mix all the ingredients in a coffee mug, put it in the microwave for 3 minutes and Ta Da you have cake. I finally gave in and tried it and..........it needs some work I can tell you. You should remember the old adage, "If it sounds too good to be true it probably is" when thinking about this particular thing. If I was totally hard up for something chocolate, couldn't find any other substitute in the house, then I might make this again but it was disappointing. I think it was the texture that was what I didn't like. You can always beef up the "chocolateness" of the batter but the consistence of the cake went from OK to rubbery almost immediately. I may be able to manipulate the consistence by not cooking the cake quite as long. The cool thing about the whole process was watching the cake rise, rapidly, above the edge of the cup and then start to lean to the side. I was having visions of a cakey, chocolatey mess in my already less that spotless microwave. But, it leaned to the side like the leaning tower of Pisa and then just hovered there as I watched. Yes Alberto (step-FIL), I did stand in front of the microwave this time. I lived through the experience but I will remember not to do it again like you told me.

-7-

The time is fast approaching when we will send Shoe Queen off to college and then.....there will be no more children living at home full time. I am starting to contemplate what that will mean. There will be a longer post on this later, closer to the time or right after, but it is already there in the back of my mind. We will see how I do.

Have a great week everyone!!