Baking!
One of the things I love about the holidays is that I get to bake! It's something I started doing whenever things with my brothers got to be too irritating, or they pissed me off, or we had screaming matches across the house over little, inconsequential things -- as siblings are apt to do -- and I discovered that the act of collecting ingredients, measuring them out and mixing them together calms me down. It eventually evolved into something that is fun, and for several birthdays in a row we'd bake cookies or brownies just because. So now, whenever winter rolls around, you can usually smell something baking in my kitchen. When I've got the materials, that is. And this year, for several reasons, I get to bake quite a bit more than usual.
For this Christmas/New Year's, we might be down in Connecticut. I'm not sure when yet, because everyone involved in the planning is being depressingly vague, but sometime this December we're driving the four and a half hours south to CT to celebrate with family. Well, almost-family. Family-in-law? Dave (older brother) is planning to propose to Kristen, his girlfriend of almost four years soon, and we've been spending holidays with her extended family for a few years now. Nothing as big as Christmas, but most often Thanksgiving and Easter -- among other, smaller, holidays -- are spent with them. This year, though, we're thinking of a joint celebration in CT, as that's where Dave, Kris, her twin sister and her boyfriend are renting a house, as three of the four of them have jobs in the NY/CT area. Dave's having issues transferring down there, but he visits every weekend.
The holidays with them are kind of… stressful, for me. I'm not religious, in any sense of the word, and this family IS, in a big way. It's very different to the way I grew up, and it's a little intimidating. Dave's started scolding me for my language, "taking the Lord's name in vain", which I do… a lot. It just doesn't mean anything to me, you know? When I use phrases like, "I swear to God," prefacing some threat or complaint or whatever, it's just that to me -- a PHRASE. I don't take any special meaning out of it, and they're just words to me. But this family is very religious, intoning descriptive prayers before every meal, attending Church every Sunday (and yes, capitals included), Bible sayings on wall-hangings, in frames, a Bible in just about every room of the house. And I just… don't know what to do? I don't know what to say, or how to say anything. I always feel like I might say something offensive on accident, and I really don't want to! I do like them, they're wonderful people, but we just have different religious viewpoints and I KNOW that's a huge point against me with this family. If they knew I was agnostic they would try to "help" me, to "guide" me to a "better future". I don't need "better", I'm fine as I am. I just don't wanna open that can of worms, so I've kept my mouth shut. But, having a little brother who's an aggressive atheist is gonna bite me in the ass in the future, I just know it. That boy has no tact.
BUT, I DIGRESS. BAKING. COOKIES. THAT WAS THE POINT OF THIS ENTRY. Having so many holiday get-togethers has allowed me to experiment with my recipes and try out new ones, whether recc'd to me or something I found online. I get to make pumpkin chocolate chip cookies next week for the swap -- OMG THEY'RE SO GOOD, UGH -- as well as another cookie, one mom is still figuring out whether or not she wants me to bake. She's having a cookie-swap next Thursday, and I get to make a few different kinds of cookies for it. So excited! :D Now, the part I'm not so excited for is making little goodie bags for it; patience is not a virtue I possess.
PS: WE'RE EATING LITTLE CAESAR'S TONIGHT!! HAHAHA. Love their pizza, omg. Haven't had it in ages.
For this Christmas/New Year's, we might be down in Connecticut. I'm not sure when yet, because everyone involved in the planning is being depressingly vague, but sometime this December we're driving the four and a half hours south to CT to celebrate with family. Well, almost-family. Family-in-law? Dave (older brother) is planning to propose to Kristen, his girlfriend of almost four years soon, and we've been spending holidays with her extended family for a few years now. Nothing as big as Christmas, but most often Thanksgiving and Easter -- among other, smaller, holidays -- are spent with them. This year, though, we're thinking of a joint celebration in CT, as that's where Dave, Kris, her twin sister and her boyfriend are renting a house, as three of the four of them have jobs in the NY/CT area. Dave's having issues transferring down there, but he visits every weekend.
The holidays with them are kind of… stressful, for me. I'm not religious, in any sense of the word, and this family IS, in a big way. It's very different to the way I grew up, and it's a little intimidating. Dave's started scolding me for my language, "taking the Lord's name in vain", which I do… a lot. It just doesn't mean anything to me, you know? When I use phrases like, "I swear to God," prefacing some threat or complaint or whatever, it's just that to me -- a PHRASE. I don't take any special meaning out of it, and they're just words to me. But this family is very religious, intoning descriptive prayers before every meal, attending Church every Sunday (and yes, capitals included), Bible sayings on wall-hangings, in frames, a Bible in just about every room of the house. And I just… don't know what to do? I don't know what to say, or how to say anything. I always feel like I might say something offensive on accident, and I really don't want to! I do like them, they're wonderful people, but we just have different religious viewpoints and I KNOW that's a huge point against me with this family. If they knew I was agnostic they would try to "help" me, to "guide" me to a "better future". I don't need "better", I'm fine as I am. I just don't wanna open that can of worms, so I've kept my mouth shut. But, having a little brother who's an aggressive atheist is gonna bite me in the ass in the future, I just know it. That boy has no tact.
BUT, I DIGRESS. BAKING. COOKIES. THAT WAS THE POINT OF THIS ENTRY. Having so many holiday get-togethers has allowed me to experiment with my recipes and try out new ones, whether recc'd to me or something I found online. I get to make pumpkin chocolate chip cookies next week for the swap -- OMG THEY'RE SO GOOD, UGH -- as well as another cookie, one mom is still figuring out whether or not she wants me to bake. She's having a cookie-swap next Thursday, and I get to make a few different kinds of cookies for it. So excited! :D Now, the part I'm not so excited for is making little goodie bags for it; patience is not a virtue I possess.
PS: WE'RE EATING LITTLE CAESAR'S TONIGHT!! HAHAHA. Love their pizza, omg. Haven't had it in ages.