Believe It Or Not

I know, I've already posted this picture of my mom last year when I told the internet that she accidentally brushed her teeth with hemorrhoid cream, but I love looking at old pictures. I like to imagine what life was like for her back then with 3 brothers, and later, only 2. I also wonder how they fit a family of 6 in that car AND in that house--which is now used for storage.

And since her 61st birthday this year falls on Poetry Friday, I've promised not to tell any embarrassing stories this time. Instead, here's a lovely poem by J. Lorraine Brown called Tintype on the Pond ,1925. Happy Birthday Momma!

Honey Chicken Stir-Fry

The Year of the Ox is upon us (January 26) so I decided to share the only Asian inspired dish I know how to make. It's sweet, savory, spicy, nutty, satisfying, and super easy.

Did you know I'm an Ox? Yep. I am. If you were born in 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, or 1997 you are an Ox too. We are patient, speak little, and inspire confidence in others. We also bring great sorrow and ruin to those who cross us. So you might want to think twice about cutting me off in traffic. Just sayin'.


Honey Chicken Stir-Fry


2-3 chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
1 bunch broccoli
2 TBS honey
1/4 cup stir-fry sauce
1/4 cup water
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 cup cashews, divided use
1 box (13.25 oz) whole wheat angel hair pasta


Cut up broccoli--just the florets--and put in a microwave safe bowl. Add 1/4 cup water, cover, and nuke for 6 minutes; drain.
Cook chicken in a skillet over medium heat until done. Add stir-fry sauce, water, honey, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil then add broccoli and 1/4 cup cashews. Stir together then serve over cooked pasta. Top with remaining cashews. Enjoy!


Oh, wait! Make this the second Asian inspired dish I know how to make--I forgot about my Peanut Sauce!

Wordless Wednesday: Christmas 2008

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

My Favorite Grotesque

This is Gary. He's a grotesque. I'm always tempted to call him Gary the Gargoyle, and in fact, I do most of the time. But he's not a gargoyle at all. A gargoyle is a grotesque that has a spout that redirects water away from a building. That's too much work for Gary. He spends his days and nights underneath the crepe myrtle warding off evil spirits. It would be nice if he could keep tarantulas off my porch too but apparently that's not in his job description either. Is it Gary?

I found Gary at a New Age shop in Oklahoma while visiting my brother. That was probably 15 years ago. I brought him back to my apartment and one morning my sister woke up with an unexplained wound on her leg. Gary was found lying on her bed, so of course, we had no other choice but to believe that he had something to do with it. From then on, he was no longer allowed on the furniture. And when WD and I bought our first house, he was relegated to the outside. Time and the elements have taken their toll on him but he will always be my favorite grotesque.

In The Blue Corner...

The temperature is in the lower 30's today but Saturday we had beautiful, sunny, 70 degree weather. Yep. Love and happiness was in the air, folks. I followed WD around like a puppy. First, I hopped on the back of his motorcycle for a 3 hour ride, which resulted in extreme soreness--somebody remind me never to do that again. And second, WD is a boxing coach so I tagged along to watch some Saturday Night Fights. Thirteen matches, to be exact. And I learned something very important that night. Something that probably many of you already know. Something so eye-opening and surprising to me that I just have to share...

The phrase "throw in the towel"? It comes from boxing. And I saw it happen. A boxer limped to his corner, clearly unable to continue the fight, his coach threw a towel into the middle of the ring, the growing excitement fizzled away and the match was over. I didn't get it. Not at first. But then, I suddenly realized HE THREW IN THE TOWEL!!! A classic idiom played out before my eyes. Now that's excitement!

The Christmas List

We have been working on this Christmas list since early November. Every time the Playskool Police Helmet commercial came on, Big pup would say "I want that! I want that!" Every time Little pup saw the commercial for the Bath Blizzard, he would say the same thing. And when the commercial for Pixos came on? I had to cover my ears. They both desperately wanted Pixos like it was the last toy on earth.

And I'm happy to say, they got almost everything they wanted along with a few surprises.

December 26 by Kenn Nesbitt

They Ate It Anyway

Look at what my poor boys had to eat yesterday. Those are supposed to be grilled cheese sandwiches.

Since Starbucks will be doing away with their peppermint mochas soon, I wanted to surf the net for copycat recipes. I already had the ingredients for a mocha, plus I had found some peppermint extract in the cabinet. I just needed to quickly check on how to make a peppermint syrup. Unfortunately, the words "quickly" and "surf the net" don't really go together.