Brownie Brittle

My cousin F sent me a birthday package last week, and I waited till "the day" to open up the gifts. One of them was a new product called "Brownie Brittle."  I'd never heard of it, but looked it up on the Internet, and there it was, ready for ordering and shipping.

The package of brittle didn't ship quite well.... the chocolate squares were bits and pieces by the time they got from NY to TX, but that didn't detract from the great chocolate taste.  I got to thinking that the Brownie Brittle couldn't be that hard to bake, so that's what I did this afternoon.

I took my usual recipe for brownies (I add vanilla yogurt instead of oil to cut down on calories), and I used a nut grinder to get the pecans into teeny-tiny pieces.  After all the ingredients were thoroughly mixed, instead of using the standard square brownie pan, I spread the brownie mixture into a big cookie pan (the kind with the ridges going around all four sides).

The brownies cooked in their usual way, just at a slightly higher temperature and for a bit less time. Then I cut them into two-inch squares, put them on those wire baking racks on top of another cookie pan and put them back into the oven for ten minutes.... so they baked twice, like you would do with biscotti.  And the results..... Brownie Brittle.  Crunchy and crispy... my husband loves them, and I don't think this first pan of chocolate brownie brittle will be the last.

How old are you now?

That's what my cousin T out in Arizona asked when he called me tonight.... "How old are you now?"  I told him that I'm still younger than he is, but neither one of us are as old as our 100-yr-old Aunt Dolly.  And, of course, we should all pray that we get to be as old as Aunt Dolly.

62 years old. Ouch. Big ouch.  How can this possibly be?  But I said that same thing last year, and I've been saying more or less the same words since my 50th birthday.  I don't feel 62, nor do I look 62. I hope the inside of me looks as young as I think the outside of me looks.

I had a birthday lunch with my three friends up the road.... we went to a little cafe in town that's been open for less than a year but already has a reputation for menu offerings that are deliciously different than all of the other cafes here.  And homemade desserts.... you must have dessert on your birthday--- it's the rule. Calories do count on your birthday, but that's easy to overcome when you're celebrating with good friends.

After lunch, the four of us went to see "August: Osage County."  Another ouch.  Great roles for both Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts, mainly because their characters were so intense (not to mention dysfunctional). However... I love Meryl Streep (especially in "Out of Africa") and Julia Roberts is always adorable..... but gracious, the language in this movie was way over-the-top.  (I've stopped reading books when faced with four-letter words being used like punctuation marks.)

And yes, the language could have been toned down a bit for the characters in this film, in my opinion.  Still, the story of this family was compelling... the acting was extraordinary (no wonder Meryl and Julia were nominated for awards).... and I'm glad we all got to see it.  (This is not a film that the husbands wanted to see.)

We walked out of the theater into bright sunlight, in direct contrast to the dark and dreary setting of that movie.... and we all agreed that nothing, positively nothing, and positively no one in our respective families even comes close to the dysfunctional family dynamics of the characters in that movie. And for that alone, all of us were most grateful.

The weather gods have gone crazy...

Up and down, and down and up... from 70 degrees one day to 29 degrees the next.  The weather gods are messing with Texas, along with some of the other southwestern states as well.  Ice on the roads this morning prompted local network news shows to send crews up here to the Hill Country.  They spent the night up in the counties here, then drove into Houston early this morning, reporting the road conditions along the way.

We had these same freezing conditions last week, with much more rain and even some snow, which resulted in hundreds of car accidents.  So this week, when the same weather patterns appeared again, I guess the networks didn't want to miss out on any of the traffic issues.  One of the networks had a reporter right in our town, where the main highway meets one of the secondary highways.... the reporter was showing the television audience the ice that was built up on the street dividers. That ice measured less than one-eighth of an inch in thickness. Not exactly North Pole-ish conditions.... but all the schools were closed, and they asked everyone who could stay home to just  stay home.  I guess most people listened to those cautious warnings, because the roads between here and the city of Houston didn't have much traffic at all.

I'm patiently waiting for the temperatures to get back up near 70 degrees again, which is due to happen before this weekend. I'm hoping the weather gods have been listening to the local weather reports.

"Downton Abbey"

I've been hooked on this PBS series.... I didn't start watching it from the very beginning, and I didn't know what all the fuss was about until I did see the first show of the first season, courtesy of our friend across the road here.  She happened to get that first season from NetFlix and asked if I'd want to see it when she was through with it.

It wasn't long before I had ordered all three seasons from eBay, and then got a second set for my British-loving cousin F up in NY...... we both watched all three seasons, and then discussed the characters and the plots.  I've decided that every household needs both a Carson and a Mrs. Hughes.... and a Mrs. Patmore would be a good addition to anyone's kitchen.

The 4th season of Downton started a couple of weeks ago... I've been watching it across the road at S's house, along with friends J and J..... four ladies watching life unfolding upstairs and downstairs at Downton Abbey.  We've been taking turns making desserts for our Downton-watching....... apple cake, chocolate/pecan pie, fruit salad, chocolate mousse..... with hot tea or iced tea, hot cider, and there's always Dr Pepper waiting in S's fridge if anyone wants to indulge.

I've pre-ordered the DVDs of the 4th season, and they will be delivered at the end of this month.... one set for me, one for cousin F.  The ladies here will have their choice, of watching it week by week on PBS, as we've been doing so far, or watching it marathon-style when I get the complete set of this season's episodes.

As with the first three seasons, we're all hoping to find Carson waiting to take our wraps by the door, but that hasn't happened yet.  And because none of us has a Mrs. Patmore in our kitchens, we're inspired to look through cookbooks so we have something delicious to eat while we watch each episode.

We should all be taking notes when Violet, the Dowager Countess, is speaking..... she has some of the best lines in the show... cutting, but charming.... somewhat disrespectful at times, but with a sparkle in her eye and a smile on her face.  We've decided that when one gets to be Violet's age, one can get away with quite a lot.

"I Have a Dream...."

I remember exactly where I was when I found out that Martin Luther King Jr. had been shot.... in a high school English class. Our teacher was up in the front of the room writing book suggestions on the blackboard, and there was a knock on the door. One of the other teachers was going to each classroom, telling the teachers about the shooting.

Before the door to our classroom was closed again, our teacher had tears streaming down her face. She walked from the door to the other side of the room, and looked out of the window. Turning back towards the class, she told us what had happened. A very audible gasp came from all of us.

The 1960s was such an upside-down decade. All those shootings.... J.F.K., Bobby Kennedy, Martin Luther King.  We were surrounded by death statistics with the Vietnam war going on... students who had graduated from our high school went into the military and then we were reading their names on lists of MIAs and POWs. And the "Rest In Peace" list seemed to get longer every week.

Maybe we were all living in a peaceful bubble in the 1950s.... mostly everyone seemed to be content and happy. The next decade changed all of that.  We came face to face with social mistakes and disrespect, and after Dr. King and the Kennedys were killed, it was hoped that everyone in this country would come to realize that all of us, all of us, have just this one planet to share.

In some ways, with some people, Dr. King's dream has been taken to heart. In other places, with other people, it's as if those assassinations weren't wake-up calls at all.

We're all in this life together, people, on just this one planet.... and the Earth is not as big as you think. Whatever you do, whether it be kindness or cruelty, becomes a thread that wraps itself around and around each and every one of us.

And think of this:  where would you rather spend all the days of your life?  Under a bright and colorful rainbow filled with love?  Or in a deep dark hole filled with hate?

Pikolinos Shoes.

I am doing a happy dance right now.... the mailman brought two pairs of Pikolinos shoes that I bought on the Internet last week.  If you're not familiar with this brand of shoes, they're real leather, made in Spain, and you'll be doing a happy dance of your own when you realize just how comfortable they are.

We traveled to Germany in 2008, and I had brought with me a comfortable pair of walking shoes..... comfortable for walking around Texas, but those shoes just didn't cut it with all the walking we did in Germany. Not to be out-done by cobblestone streets, I went shoe shopping in one of the German towns, and that's where I found my first pair of Pikolinos.  'Heaven on your feet' is the only way to describe them.  I wore those shoes till they were too embarrassing to wear anymore.... and they would have lasted a whole lot longer had I not used that first pair for daily walks in the park, plus walking our dog two and three times every day. I reluctantly had to part with those shoes, and I've been looking for the same style ever since.

Never did find the same exact style, but last week, I found two styles very similar to the ones I bought in Germany.  Never let it be said that I'm not a smart shopper--- I ordered both pairs, if only to save time trying to decide which pair to buy. Besides that, shoes are like books--- always room for one more.

Both pairs of the Pikolinos fit perfectly... the leather is so soft... you can see all the hand-stitching, the insides are just as soft as can be, and the soles are just like clouds. Perfect for walking anywhere at all, but I will make it a point not to wear the Pikolinos around the property. These Pikolinos are going-out shoes, or all day in the house shoes..... not to be confused with or replaced by my favorite high heels, but when you want a really good comfortable walking shoe, Pikolinos cannot be beat.

"Saving Mr. Banks"

We went to the movies earlier today, to see "Saving Mr. Banks," with Tom Hanks playing Walt Disney. What a great movie.... and there wasn't a dry eye in the house during the movie, and then again at the end. We had talked about going to see this around Christmas time, but then we both got sick......... but I did order the P.L. Travers' books because I had never read the original "Mary Poppins" stories when I was a kid.  It's never too late in life to read children's books, especially when it comes to long-lasting classic stories that span (and unite) generations.

Now that we've seen the movie, I will have to read the "Mary Poppins" books when I'm finished with the book I'm reading now.  Such a good, good movie..... and they really emphasized the differences between the American customs (Mr. Disney and his associates) and the British customs of Mrs. Travers.  Wonderful, wonderful movie.... and three cheers to Tom Hanks for pulling off the role of portraying an American icon.

My dad took me to see "Mary Poppins" at Radio City Music Hall, in the 1960s when it was being shown for the first time.  In those days at Radio City, you got to see a first-run movie, plus the stage show with the Rockettes.  Daddy loved all of Walt Disney's movies, and this one, because of the combination of real actors and animation, was one of his favorites. During the scene with the dancing penguins and Dick Van Dyke, I remember my dad saying "Will you look at that... how did Walt Disney do that?!"

(The answer, of course---- Pixie Dust.. and a little bit of magic.)

Christmas has left the building....

It's the 10th of January, and the Christmas tree is outside in the yard, and I finally have a coat of nail polish on my fingernails.  Behind schedule on both counts, especially the nail polish.

We're into our third day of rain here, so the fields are too soggy for my husband to bring the Christmas tree to one of the brush piles. I'm hoping that the birds don't start building nests in the Christmas tree while it's laying on the side lawn.  The tree still looks pretty fresh, and it didn't drop millions of needles as my husband carried it through the dining room, the living room, the foyer, and then out the front door.

The Christmas tree went outside yesterday afternoon, and the boxes of Valentine decorations came out of the storage closet this morning.  Two boxes of hearts and Cupids and two small trees filled with red and pink hearts and little Cupids.  I was determined to whittle down the Valentine stuff... from two boxes to just one.  I kept all the vintage Valentine decorations, and the prettiest... and then I priced some of the decorations for my space at the antique shop, and I have a bag of decorations to donate to the local thrift store.

I told my husband that our annual Valentine party is now history... there aren't enough romantics up here to celebrate Valentine's Day the way we used to, with a house filled with friends and neighbors who would rather enjoy the evening at our house than go out to dinner at a crowded restaurant.  From now on, we'll either have a small dinner party with just enough friends to fill the dining room table, or we'll have a neighborhood get-together at the very beginning of February, or at the very end of the month, with not a mention of Valentine or Cupid on the invitations.  Or maybe we'll do nothing at all but have a nice dinner, just the two of us, and enjoy the decorations by ourselves.

So very cloudy and drippy and dreary outside today..... but the temperatures have warmed up to nearly 70 degrees, so at least that's something to smile about.

What are you reading......

That's the question my husband asks me just about every day... "What book are you reading now?"

I always tell him the title, but sometimes I wonder if he's really listening.  I do read a lot, and I always have. I can still remember the day I got my first library card, which opened up an entire world of books to a little girl who couldn't afford to buy every book she wanted to read.  But the library.... free books, just choose the ones you want to read, bring them back, and pick out more books.

After working at secretarial jobs after school ended, I found myself applying for a job at a library.  When I started, it was just a part-time job behind the circulation desk, but with access to every book that came across that desk.  I never left that library without at least half a dozen books every night.  That part-time job became a full-time position, and that full-time clerical job turned into a supervisor's position.  I worked at that library for nearly 16 years, and loved all the books, all the patrons.... I just loved that job.  It wasn't even a 'job' in that sense... it was a privilege to work there.

I keep a leather-bound notebook on the desk in the third-floor library of our home.... into that book, I write down the titles of the books I'm reading.  I don't rate them.... I just keep a running month-by-month list of the books I've read, along with the authors' names.  I read everything, drawing the line at trashy fiction. I love sappy Christmas stories during the month of December, biographies, all of Edith Wharton's books, the mysteries of Lawrence Sanders, the memoirs of Helene Hanff, the gardening memoirs of Beverley Nichols, the original stories of Sherlock Holmes,  histories of the Royal Family, dozens and dozens of memoirs (love those memoirs!), historical fiction of the Old South, thought-provoking fiction, and I've got a collection of original Nancy Drew stories, vintage Golden Books, as well as the most beautiful set of all the works of Charles Dickens.  I am an eclectic reader, to say the least.

With that in mind, and because of my husband's question to me every time he sees me with a book, I've started yet another blog, titled "What Book Are You Reading Now?"   As always, you can access the link to the new blog by clicking on the "view complete profile" line on any of my blog pages.

The entries will be fairly short.... the title of the book I'm currently reading, along with the author's name, and a short description of the story that won't give away the entire story, but will give you a sense of the book itself.

The first entry is a wonderfully written, beautiful book..... and when I read the last word on the last page, I looked up and was very surprised to see that the world was indeed spinning along on its axis.... and I had to wonder if anyone else on the planet had been reading the same book at the same time.

Totally stupid weather....

.... and it's cold right across the country, not just here in Texas.  The colder it gets, the crankier I get, for the simple reason that I just can't stay warm.  I know we're not as cold as up north, but honestly, when you move to the state of Texas, you don't plan on wearing layers of heavy clothing during the months of December and January.  Oh well... it is what it is..... and thankfully, there's no snow on the ground... but the water in the birdbath and in the outside fountain was frozen solid this morning. Frozen solid, as in ice.  Give me a blessed break.

Finally getting back into the swing of things here, after the attack of the Christmas flu.  It feels like we barely celebrated Christmas in this house, except for having Christmas dinner with my husband's friend from Clear Lake.  All of that is such a blur.... half of the dinner was cooked on Christmas Eve, the other half cooked on Christmas morning.... and I did my best to get all dressed up for dinner even though I would have been perfectly content to be hiding under the covers with a good book. Oh well, my husband's friend thoroughly enjoyed the day and the dinner, and that's what counts.  As for myself and my husband, we've had many more festive Christmas dinners in the past and we'll certainly have many more in the future.... hopefully not shared with the Christmas flu. (Should that be the Grinch flu, or the Scrooge flu?)

Yesterday began the new season of Downton Abbey.......... we all kept wondering how on earth they could continue on without Matthew, but the new season is already hinting at a wide range of new possibilities for Lady Mary.  I don't usually get into this type of television, but the story is so well done, they're following British history so you get those lessons along the way... the cast is just perfect in all ways.... plus the costumes and the jewelry and the distinct way of British life is just so fascinating to watch. And, of course, the dialogue from the Dowager Countess Violet is just priceless and absolutely memorable.

And.... to celebrate the New Year...... two new stray cats have appeared on the back porch.  To add to the orange/white stray that had been coming round now and then, there is now an all-black cat, and a beige/brown cat.... the black and the beige are both small in size, and most likely from the same litter because where one goes, so goes the other.  It's been freezing out there.... so my promise not to feed stray cats has gone by the wayside....... I'm leaving food out there for the strays, and they're taking advantage of the Meow Mix buffet by the back door.  I don't know where those poor cats go during the coldest part of the day... they may be hiding in the barn.  As long as it's so cold out there, I will continue to feed them.  I will not, however, give them names, nor invite them to join the family.  The cat inn is full.... we don't need any more cats, thank you, but nor can I leave them to starve out there in the cold weather.

Is it Spring yet?!

Dead woman typing....

Happy New Year.  And you will pardon me if that's not written with enough enthusiasm, but I'm still sick.  Most of the coughing seems to have disappeared, replaced with random sneezing. However, on the bright side, I did wash my hair today, and put on make-up, and I'm wearing earrings, so at least all of that must count for something.

I know for certain that friends and family alike are going to be 'tsk-tsking' me for not getting a flu shot, especially the ones who asked me back in October if I did indeed "take the shot."   My answer then was no, and even now, after being sick for a week, I don't think this will change my mind about getting the flu shot next year.  A friend and her husband, both of whom got flu shots, have also been sick through Christmas as well.  Not with the flu, exactly, but sick enough to cancel travel plans and toss their carefully prepared and planned holiday meals right down the garage disposal.

Friends "across the pond" in England have also been sick over the Christmas holidays, proof positive that no matter where you live and no matter where you go, if germs are going to seek you out and take root, a measly little flu shot isn't going to stop them.

I do feel much better today.... as compared to a few days ago when I felt like I'd been hit with a truck.  I do not, however, feel like my good old self that can run up and down the stairs of this house like the Energizer Bunny.  I have started un-decorating the house, putting little table-top trees back into the storage closet, collecting Santas and angels and reindeer... and if my flu-swollen eyes haven't deceived me, I would swear that the porcelain Christmas mice have multiplied since the day before Christmas Eve.  Which would serve me right, considering that I bought that cute little plaque that says "Not a creature was stirring...."

The big tree is still standing in the dining room.  My husband asked me just this morning if that tree was still taking water.  As if, in my flu-ridden state, I had even remembered that real trees need real water in order to keep their branches from drooping towards the floor?  To keep peace and harmony, I poured an entire plastic jug of water into the tree stand, and resisted the urge to ask my husband why he had not thought of watering the tree while I was bed-ridden with the flu.

The silver aluminum tree is still up in the living room.  That tree is usually the last of the table-top trees to go up, and the last one to come down.  Considering that the rest of the living room trees have been put away, and the Christmas mice have been rounded up, and even the Nativity Set is back in its box, the silver tree is sparkling on one side of the living room and making that part of the room still look Christmas-y.  The rest of the living room looks quite dull, which is what always happens as soon as you de-Christmas a house.  Especially a house that has been so immersed in Christmas for the past two months that hardly a corner went un-embellished.

Oh well, that post-Christmas dullness will soon pass..... just like the flu.