PIES!! PIES!! PIES!!
I just had to say that, because I will be baking myself into oblivion today. Mom has taken over the reins for Thanksgiving this year, because the Salt-Encrusted Ham of Doom convinced her that the Flaky Sister just... should not cook for Thanksgiving. I mean, it wasn't just the ham, it was many, many other things, mostly... it's because after cooking since she was old enough to stand at the stove and stir a pot for our mom... the Flaky Sister just... can't cook. Mom and I were chatting about it a few weeks ago, and reliving last Thanksgiving, and then went on to talking about other meals we've had at the Flaky Sister's, and... *shakes head*
Her biscuits are like bricks. No, seriously, you could put somebody's eye out with one of those things, or use them to prop open the door! Chicken turns out either very oily (???) or dry, and either no flavor, or much too salty. And then she discovered Paula Deen, so now what she cooks is still mushy, too salty, or too greasy... with a stick of butter!!
Can you blame Mom for taking Thanksgiving back? Plus, she just got tired of the Annual Sisterly Pie Competition. Well, it was only a competition to the Flaky Sister. I was actually relieved to not have to bake pies and transport them three hours to Houston, hoping they wouldn't get crushed or something. And I got a little tired of the Flaky Sister asking me to bake specific pies, like pumpkin and apple, and telling me she'd bake pecan and chocolate... and I'd get there and find she had decided as long as she was baking pies, she might as well bake an apple and pumpkin pie, too! And then would get all offended and snippy because my pies disappeared... and hers didn't. But, thinking back over it, I think what really pissed her off was the Thanksgiving our Dad was poking around the pies and asked which pumpkin pie I had baked, and then proceeded to take two very generous slices of it, come back for a third, and then insisted a piece be saved for him to take home... without ever even looking at her pie!
She was Daddy's Girl, in case you didn't know.
Oh, yeah, BAD ju-ju!!
So, anyhow, Mom has decided to take over, though she is allowing the Flaky Sister to "help" her, meaning mostly the food prep, since Mom has no problem tackling the actual cooking, and getting her help to lift and tote, though I think mostly second oldest niece, M, is helping with that, too. I'm baking pies, and maybe some cookies, and the Blonde Sister is doing some of the veggies (which the Flaky Sister would not let her do becase, again, everyone would fill up on the Blonde Sister's food, and leave the Flaky Sister's alone). And I think everyone is very, very relieved.
In other news, your friendly neighborhood Auntie went on a field trip with the Impertinent Son's third grade class to our local Places of Importance, so to speak. I think I have gone up (and down) the stairs of every public building in our little town now... all in one day!! The kids were bussed to the town square, and we did everything on foot!! We went to the locally owned and controlled bank, which was fun because we got to go into the money vaults, the safe deposit vaults, etc, and see some really cool stuff! And then we walked to the courthouse, which is really, really beautiful, and were supposed to go up to the courtroom, but they'd had to schedule a court session that morning and thus, we only got to see the county record clerk's office, but we saw some cool stuff there, too! Like big, huge, THICK books of brand records.
Um... cattle brands? The marks they used to burn into cattle, though I think they use cryo to freeze it on now (looks inquiringly at anoneknewmoose). Like this...
Anyhow, It was really cool, because they've got books going back to the 1840's, and you know, I'm thinking about making a trip there just to look at them out of sheer curiosity now!
Anyhow, we got to see the big, huge, thick county records going back to the time our town was founded, and look at registration forms, some of which are still as ornate as they had been some 130 years ago... It was awesome!
Then we went to the Dr. Eugene Clark Library, which is the oldest continuously operating library in Texas, and were allowed to go up the rickety circular stairs to the second floor, and I am telling y'all, Auntie is not a big person. I'm 5 foot 3 in bare feet, and I have small feet. And I felt way too big and like I was wearing clown shoes going up and down those teeny circular stairs!! And this was in jeans and sneakers! When I tried to envision going down those stairs in full skirts and petticoats, with the type of ladies' shoes worn back when the library was founded, I felt dizzy!!! I mean, it was bad enough trying to navigate those things when I could see my feet, but with skirts hiding my feet... *boggles*
INSANE!!
We took the kids to the regular part of the library so they could look at books and apply for library cards (the Impossible Son is thrilled to have his own card!). Though we have a membership at the San Marcos library, I may go ahead and update my card and the Impertinent One's, because even though the library here sucks, despite its venerable history, I can foresee times when it would be nice to just go to the library here.
Moving along, we had lunch on the courthouse grounds, then trooped down to City Hall and met the mayor. Now, at this point, something happpened that is still making me giggle! You know, I have met a lot of people through soccer (even before I got on the board) and from my kids' schools. And, I can go all week without seeing any of them, you know? But yesterday, I kept running into people who'd look up and say, "Oh!! Hi, Mrs. J!" or "Oh, Auntie, you're doing the field trip with your kids?" Since I was the only parent from my son's class along to help, his teacher, Mrs. G., couldn't help but keep noticing this.
THO and I used to have an account at the bank we visited today, so, of course, there were two people there who said, "Hello, Mrs. J! How are you?" And at the courthouse, one of the clerks has a son who was on one of my daughter's soccer teams, so she said hello, too! Then we ran into a gentleman in the hall when we were leaving who asked me, "How's that yaller cat o' yers?" because he'd helped me corral Calcifer during one of his brief forays out into the front yard. I have no idea who he is, but I recognized him so I said cheerfully, "He's fine, getting in trouble, and plotting his next escape!"
Didn't think anything of it, you know?
Mrs. G kept eyeing me as the day progressed, but it wasn't until we got to City Hall that it became unbearable for her, because the Mayor, being one of those cheerful times, boomed out hello to every kid and shook their hand, then saw me standing outside and shouted, "Oh, hello there!! Did you talk to Eileen about the sign? There should be no problem when y'all need to put up your registration signs!"
And I nodded and said, "Yes, she passed the word on to the rest of us, thank you!"
And as we turned to go down the stairs, Mrs. G could resist it no longer and said, "Mrs. J? Who are you really? Are you... somebody?"
*brief mental image of self wrapped in a trench-coat with a fetching little fedora on head and saying, "if I told you, I'd have to kill you."*
I laughed after a flabbergasted moment and said, "The Mayor has no idea who I am, he just knows my face because I'm always scheduling time for the soccer board to meet in the council room, and have to come here to pick up the key!"
She said, "But... all those other people who know you, at the bank, and the man at the court house..."
"Um... soccer and school," I said, laughing again. "I'm just a mom."
I don't think she was convinced, but she kindly let it go. Though when we went to the fire station, and one of the firemen greeted me because he's the owner of the one-legged beagle that had slipped into our backyard, well, she eyed me for the rest of the field trip as if trying to figure out where she'd really seen me before!!
That's okay, one of the helpers at the school thought I was a district judge. Hellify I know why, but... she did!
Took a while to straighten that one out!!
You know the truly sad thing about most of that? I am absolutely terrible with names! I really, really am! I remember faces with no problem, but names? Takes 'em a while to stick. I couldn't tell you the name of most of the people I know, that I see every day only long enough to say "Hi, how are ya?" before we hurry on to our disparate destinations. Most of the time they don't know mine, either. That's just the way things are. So... I don't really worry about "knowing" or being acquainted with people unless they're happen to be someone who is in my life, if you know what I mean.
And on my last note, a little sketch I did yesterday. It's a "re-do" of a note I slipped into my daughter's lunch yesterday morning. Thing was, I was having trouble coming up with a sketch. She was on the computer, updating her DeviantArt account, and thus I could not use my usual references. And the news was on, it was depressing, and I suddenly realized I could not think of one funny or cheerful thing to sketch for my note!! So, I did a variation on this one. When I asked her about it last night, she said she didn't get it, so I had to re-draw it as I explained it to her.
So true, so very, very true!!
And now, back to your regularly scheduled nonsense...
Her biscuits are like bricks. No, seriously, you could put somebody's eye out with one of those things, or use them to prop open the door! Chicken turns out either very oily (???) or dry, and either no flavor, or much too salty. And then she discovered Paula Deen, so now what she cooks is still mushy, too salty, or too greasy... with a stick of butter!!
Can you blame Mom for taking Thanksgiving back? Plus, she just got tired of the Annual Sisterly Pie Competition. Well, it was only a competition to the Flaky Sister. I was actually relieved to not have to bake pies and transport them three hours to Houston, hoping they wouldn't get crushed or something. And I got a little tired of the Flaky Sister asking me to bake specific pies, like pumpkin and apple, and telling me she'd bake pecan and chocolate... and I'd get there and find she had decided as long as she was baking pies, she might as well bake an apple and pumpkin pie, too! And then would get all offended and snippy because my pies disappeared... and hers didn't. But, thinking back over it, I think what really pissed her off was the Thanksgiving our Dad was poking around the pies and asked which pumpkin pie I had baked, and then proceeded to take two very generous slices of it, come back for a third, and then insisted a piece be saved for him to take home... without ever even looking at her pie!
She was Daddy's Girl, in case you didn't know.
Oh, yeah, BAD ju-ju!!
So, anyhow, Mom has decided to take over, though she is allowing the Flaky Sister to "help" her, meaning mostly the food prep, since Mom has no problem tackling the actual cooking, and getting her help to lift and tote, though I think mostly second oldest niece, M, is helping with that, too. I'm baking pies, and maybe some cookies, and the Blonde Sister is doing some of the veggies (which the Flaky Sister would not let her do becase, again, everyone would fill up on the Blonde Sister's food, and leave the Flaky Sister's alone). And I think everyone is very, very relieved.
In other news, your friendly neighborhood Auntie went on a field trip with the Impertinent Son's third grade class to our local Places of Importance, so to speak. I think I have gone up (and down) the stairs of every public building in our little town now... all in one day!! The kids were bussed to the town square, and we did everything on foot!! We went to the locally owned and controlled bank, which was fun because we got to go into the money vaults, the safe deposit vaults, etc, and see some really cool stuff! And then we walked to the courthouse, which is really, really beautiful, and were supposed to go up to the courtroom, but they'd had to schedule a court session that morning and thus, we only got to see the county record clerk's office, but we saw some cool stuff there, too! Like big, huge, THICK books of brand records.
Um... cattle brands? The marks they used to burn into cattle, though I think they use cryo to freeze it on now (looks inquiringly at anoneknewmoose). Like this...
Anyhow, It was really cool, because they've got books going back to the 1840's, and you know, I'm thinking about making a trip there just to look at them out of sheer curiosity now!
Anyhow, we got to see the big, huge, thick county records going back to the time our town was founded, and look at registration forms, some of which are still as ornate as they had been some 130 years ago... It was awesome!
Then we went to the Dr. Eugene Clark Library, which is the oldest continuously operating library in Texas, and were allowed to go up the rickety circular stairs to the second floor, and I am telling y'all, Auntie is not a big person. I'm 5 foot 3 in bare feet, and I have small feet. And I felt way too big and like I was wearing clown shoes going up and down those teeny circular stairs!! And this was in jeans and sneakers! When I tried to envision going down those stairs in full skirts and petticoats, with the type of ladies' shoes worn back when the library was founded, I felt dizzy!!! I mean, it was bad enough trying to navigate those things when I could see my feet, but with skirts hiding my feet... *boggles*
INSANE!!
We took the kids to the regular part of the library so they could look at books and apply for library cards (the Impossible Son is thrilled to have his own card!). Though we have a membership at the San Marcos library, I may go ahead and update my card and the Impertinent One's, because even though the library here sucks, despite its venerable history, I can foresee times when it would be nice to just go to the library here.
Moving along, we had lunch on the courthouse grounds, then trooped down to City Hall and met the mayor. Now, at this point, something happpened that is still making me giggle! You know, I have met a lot of people through soccer (even before I got on the board) and from my kids' schools. And, I can go all week without seeing any of them, you know? But yesterday, I kept running into people who'd look up and say, "Oh!! Hi, Mrs. J!" or "Oh, Auntie, you're doing the field trip with your kids?" Since I was the only parent from my son's class along to help, his teacher, Mrs. G., couldn't help but keep noticing this.
THO and I used to have an account at the bank we visited today, so, of course, there were two people there who said, "Hello, Mrs. J! How are you?" And at the courthouse, one of the clerks has a son who was on one of my daughter's soccer teams, so she said hello, too! Then we ran into a gentleman in the hall when we were leaving who asked me, "How's that yaller cat o' yers?" because he'd helped me corral Calcifer during one of his brief forays out into the front yard. I have no idea who he is, but I recognized him so I said cheerfully, "He's fine, getting in trouble, and plotting his next escape!"
Didn't think anything of it, you know?
Mrs. G kept eyeing me as the day progressed, but it wasn't until we got to City Hall that it became unbearable for her, because the Mayor, being one of those cheerful times, boomed out hello to every kid and shook their hand, then saw me standing outside and shouted, "Oh, hello there!! Did you talk to Eileen about the sign? There should be no problem when y'all need to put up your registration signs!"
And I nodded and said, "Yes, she passed the word on to the rest of us, thank you!"
And as we turned to go down the stairs, Mrs. G could resist it no longer and said, "Mrs. J? Who are you really? Are you... somebody?"
*brief mental image of self wrapped in a trench-coat with a fetching little fedora on head and saying, "if I told you, I'd have to kill you."*
I laughed after a flabbergasted moment and said, "The Mayor has no idea who I am, he just knows my face because I'm always scheduling time for the soccer board to meet in the council room, and have to come here to pick up the key!"
She said, "But... all those other people who know you, at the bank, and the man at the court house..."
"Um... soccer and school," I said, laughing again. "I'm just a mom."
I don't think she was convinced, but she kindly let it go. Though when we went to the fire station, and one of the firemen greeted me because he's the owner of the one-legged beagle that had slipped into our backyard, well, she eyed me for the rest of the field trip as if trying to figure out where she'd really seen me before!!
That's okay, one of the helpers at the school thought I was a district judge. Hellify I know why, but... she did!
Took a while to straighten that one out!!
You know the truly sad thing about most of that? I am absolutely terrible with names! I really, really am! I remember faces with no problem, but names? Takes 'em a while to stick. I couldn't tell you the name of most of the people I know, that I see every day only long enough to say "Hi, how are ya?" before we hurry on to our disparate destinations. Most of the time they don't know mine, either. That's just the way things are. So... I don't really worry about "knowing" or being acquainted with people unless they're happen to be someone who is in my life, if you know what I mean.
And on my last note, a little sketch I did yesterday. It's a "re-do" of a note I slipped into my daughter's lunch yesterday morning. Thing was, I was having trouble coming up with a sketch. She was on the computer, updating her DeviantArt account, and thus I could not use my usual references. And the news was on, it was depressing, and I suddenly realized I could not think of one funny or cheerful thing to sketch for my note!! So, I did a variation on this one. When I asked her about it last night, she said she didn't get it, so I had to re-draw it as I explained it to her.
So true, so very, very true!!
And now, back to your regularly scheduled nonsense...