Priceless

I learned from my daughter that her Serbian dorm mate receives regular mailed packages of spices from her mother to keep homesickness at bay. What a swell idea!  So I thought I’d do the same by mailing out an item that was uniquely from home. 

After much thought on what exactly could that item be, keeping in mind postal regulations, my daughter asked if I could mail her some tablea (local unsweetened chocolate tablets).   

slightly bigger and thicker than a P5 coin

The Other Way Around

One morning, I decided to hitch a ride with my daughter. She had called for a cab to take her to work and by joining her, I would be spared the effort of having to walk to a nearby house of a friend.

In the short ride, my daughter exclaimed out of the blue, “Come to work with me mommy.”

I laughed at the request and told her that her boss would surely be alarmed if he saw a grey-haired lady sitting at the back of her desk busy making cut-out dolls.

In the short ride, we both recalled the many times she went with me to the office and the activities she did to keep from being bored: taking one document from me and bringing it to my staff at a near by room; punching holes and collecting the punched out dots; using the dater and pretend to be busy stamping away a stack of newspaper; and, best of all going to the canteen for some snacks. On top of that, she had to make herself as invisible to the boss as possible— a tough challenge not to call out loudly, “Mommy, come here.” Or “Mommy, I need to go.”



Soon I was at my friend’s house. I bid my daughter good-bye as I got out of the cab. As her cab sped away, I wondered if there will indeed come a time when daughters or sons will be allowed to bring their parent/s to work. The most compelling reason for doing so: the parent’s caretaker was sick or had not returned and there was no one who could spend time with the parent. It’s the same major reason why parents bring their kids to work.

Several companies now provide daycare centers for the children of their employees. Would companies in the future provide elderly daycare centers for the parents of their employees?

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What do both kids and the elderly have in common? They are usually served oatmeal. And rightly so. It's healthy, it's rich in fiber and can be mixed with a variety of fruits and nuts. Its preparation is only limited by ones imagination.

Now here's a recipe that will not only delight both the young and the old but everyone else in between.

Mookies

recipe found in Sunset's 1997 Recipe Annual Edition
It says that Pam Afpinall, a coffee shop owner, was experimenting, trying to make the best oatmeal cookie around. Her customers picked the cookie made using this recipe. It resembled a muffin, so they called it a "mookie."

* Ingredients:
1 cup butter or margarine, room temperature
1 1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups regular rolled oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup sweetened shredded dried coconut
1/2 cup raisins
* Instructions:
Mix butter and brown sugar until thoroughly blended.



Add eggs and vanilla, beat well.



In another bowl, combine oats, flour, salt and baking powder.



Blend oat mixture with butter mixture.



Stir in walnuts, coconut and raisins.



Pack cookie dough into an ice cream scoop (4-ounce size) or 1/2-cup measuring cup. Scrape dough level with rim and empty onto lightly oiled baking sheets, spacing dough about 3 inches apart.



Bake at 350 degrees until cookie edges are golden brown, about 20 minutes. If using one oven, switch pans halfway through baking.



Cool cookies on a rack, serve or store airtight up to 2 days.

Hey There Little Firefly!

The day has come to an end. Bone weary from clipping grass and cleaning up my garden, I sat by my bedroom window watching night take its reign. I glanced at the familiar landscape that was now shrouded in darkness. The rain had stopped falling for the time being and the breeze carried a sweet note of freshness.

As I continued to stare at the darkness, my attention was called by a tiny spark that went on and off among the tall grass in a vacant lot across the street. Then I spotted another tiny flicker of light. Soon several tiny lights danced and flashed and raced over the grassy area. Was I seeing aliens or some supernatural beings? Yes, in a way, they were supernatural. For how else could I describe the tiny sparks of light coming from fireflies? My tiredness forgotten, I was once more transported to the many times in the past that these little bugs have enthralled me--- up in the farm of my grandmother, at a lonely stretch of beach, with a friend on our commute home from work, and during early evening walks with my then young children.

I also fondly remember how my then 18 year old son decided to drive me around our subdivision pointing out dark sections of vacant lots he knew held similar "magic shows". My son, who like all boys, is an expert with bugs and all crawly things, explained that fireflies normally live close by water sources-- creeks, ponds, canals and the like. It also helps that there are trees and tall grasses in the area for them to rest during the day.

And so, Mother Nature has waved her magic wand and the resulting light beams filled me once again with wide-eyed wonder. With a happy sigh, I called on my two young house helpers to hurry up to my room. Magic shows like these were meant to be shared.

I know that I am blessed to live in a community that still hold many of Nature's treasures. For through these natural treasures we find the child that is in us. The child that hopes and dreams of all that is wonderful and good.

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Living in the city may have made many of us lose touch with the child that is within us. We have grown cynical with the world and with those around us. Well, here's a recipe that will surely bring out the child in you and will make you look at life with hope. Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Cookies (recipe from "Joy of Cooking"-- this recipe is a JOY classic, and the book states that the recipe had appeared in the book since the 1943 wartime edition-- how's that for popularity?!?!)



Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease or line 2 cookie sheets.
Whisk together:
1 cup plus 2 Tablesppons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Beat in a large bowl until well blended:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

Add and beat until well combined:
1 large egg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Stir in the flour mixture until well blended and smooth.

Stir in :
1 cup chocolate chips
3/4 cups chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

Drop the dough by heaping teaspoonfuls about 2 inches apart onto the cookie sheets. Bake, 1 sheet at a time, until the cookies are just slightly colored on top and the edges are brown, 8 to 10 minutes.



Let stand briefly, then remove to a rack to cool.

You Got to Have a Dream

"You got to have a dream
'cause if you don't have a dream
How you gonna have a dream come true...."

Once upon a time there was a girl. After being blessed with a relatively happy childhood, the girl suddenly found herself faced with the prospect of going to college. Like most young girls, the girl did not really know what she wanted to be. All the girl knew was that she wanted to be happy. So the girl thought and thought: What makes me happy? At last an answer ( ! ): Colors, crafts, and bits and pieces of the "flower people". Young that the girl was, she went and told her mother that she would like to enroll in the Arts.

Her mother replied, "I'm sorry my dear girl, but the Arts, although a fine pursuit, won't put food on the table. You'll have to be practical. There will always be time for art when you have established yourself."

The girl accepted that Mother's words made sense (-tavos) and so the girl took up a Bu$ine$$ course. And the rest is history (work , marriage , children, more work).

Now the girl is all grown up and her mother's words have come to pass. The girl had time to think once more and so she asked herself: "What makes me happy ?" Then came an answer ( ! ): Colors, crafts, and bits and pieces of the "flower people".

With that in mind, the girl took the plunge.

~The End~



Do you spend time wondering what you would want to be or have one year or 10 years down the road? If you do have some notion what you envision yourself to be, are you actively doing something about it? You must remember that before you can have a plan, you must have a goal, a dream. And if you have a goal, remember that nothing will come out of it if you just continue to think about it.....

So go ahead, take that first step and ask yourself: "What makes me happy?"

One thing is for sure, the following recipe below will put anyone in a dreamy mood. Bake a batch and make someone happy-- YOU!


Sweet Dream Cookies (a recipe found a long time ago on the net. Sorry, can't remember exact source)

Ingredients
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1-1/2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
1 egg, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup semisweet choco chips
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/2- 1 cup powdered sugar

Cream butter. Beat in brown sugar, egg, and vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Blend into butter mixture. Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts. Refrigerate until firm. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead.)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease baking sheets. Break off small pieces of dough; roll between palms into 1 inch rounds. Dredge rounds in powdered sugar. Arrange rounds on prepared sheets, spacing at least 2 inches apart. Bake 10 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes on sheets. Transfer to racks and cool. Store in airtight container.