No Birds, No Flowers

 Just food and a hat.

For some reason I was kind of in a funk today.  It was a beautiful day and I just couldn't muster up much gumption to make the most of it.  I took a walk around the block but that was about it.

Today's recipe was the last one in this rotation.  That means I have 36 servings of supper plus the 10-serving batch of 3-Bean Chili in the freezer.  Today's entry is Sheet Pan Sausage & Veggies.  I've made this a few times and was nearly going to skip it this time but I'd bought all the ingredients so I figured, what the heck.  I use Never Any Chicken Italian sausage that I get from ALDI.  I highly recommend them, they're very tasty.  Instead of two of each color mini peppers, I use the whole bag.  Other than that I follow the recipe, which is from The Pound Dropper's website.  She develops WW recipes that she posts.  She's pretty creative.  This one is a good one, very flavorful with lots of veggies.  I cooked up a batch of brown rice too for inclusion with the sausage & veggies and to have single servings on hand for emergencies.

Once the food was cooked, cooled, and portioned out, I settled down on the couch with an audiobook and knitted on the Warm Beanie.  I realized that if I have the TV on I tend to watch and not knit so listening to a book works better these days.  I was certain that I'd run out of yarn and have to dip into the second skein but as you can see I finished with a few yards remaining.  Whew.  I thought the hat looked small as I was knitting it but it fits my big melon just fine and, man, is it warm.  This yarn is baby alpaca and is so soft there are no words.  I have other colors of this yarn in my stash and I'm sorely tempted to get out a skein of each color, wind it up, and knit more of this hat just so I can have a whole wardrobe of soft hats to choose from.  Maybe I could make mittens too but I wonder if they'd be durable enough.

20 September-- Barbara Malcolm,  Better Than Mom's. 

She turned to Marcus, who had also followed the couple to the door.  “Now, no crowds of boys in here while I am gone.  James only if he stops over when you two get off work.  Do not eat everything in the fridge either.  That cake is for the fellowship after church tomorrow.” 

“Okay, Mom, you told me twenty times already.” 

“Well, telling you twenty-one times will not hurt.  You seem to have a very convenient memory where cake is concerned.”  She leaned over and kissed her son on the cheek.  “Have a nice evening.  I should not be too late.”  She turned to look at Brady.  “Right?” 

He shrugged.  “It is up to you.  We can play it by ear once we are done eating.”  

Naomi opened the door and Brady held it for her.  “Good night, Marcus,” Brady said.  “I will see you at the diner in a day or two.”  He winked at the young man as he gently closed the door. 

Brady and Naomi walked in silence to his old blue Ford pickup.  He opened the passenger door for her and gently closed it when she was settled in the seat.  He pretended not to notice her fumble to buckle her seat belt until she asked him to help. 

“I do not have any trouble buckling these darned things when I am in the driver’s seat, but they are forever getting the best of me in the passenger seat,” she said. “Will you help me?” 

“I would be happy to,” he said and reached over to take the buckle from her. 

For the second time their hands met and both of them felt the jolt of electricity.  Naomi moved her hand away as from a shock and Brady fumbled the buckle a bit too, taking a while to get the end of the seat belt in the buckle straight so it slid into place.  “There you are.” 

“Thanks.” 

Both of them were glad that there was good music on in the truck, after agreeing that it was indeed good music, neither of them spoke until they arrived at the restaurant.  It took a few minutes of searching to find a parking place. 

“Popular spot,” Naomi said. 

“Well, it is down here where all those national chain motels are and this end of town is much closer to the interstate than we are at Better Than Mom’s,” said Brady as he opened her door for her and helped her out. 

The place was packed when they walked in.  The hostess took their name and invited them to “enjoy a cocktail in our lounge” while they waited.  She said that their wait should be about forty-five minutes. 

“Which means at least an hour,” Naomi murmured in Brady’s ear as he helped her off with her jacket and they walked into the lounge, which looked to both of them a lot like a plain old bar.

Today's toss was the last case of Durwood's favorite shampoo.  I looked up the homeless shelter's website and found out when they're open for donations so I'll be tootling down there one day soon.  The reason that I have so much shampoo is because that's what Durwood sold for The Gillette Co. so he stockpiled his and my favorites.  I don't think I'll have to buy shampoo anytime soon--or ever.  Happily it doesn't go bad like deodorants do.

I thought about mowing the lawn today but that seemed like too much effort.  I did go to the gas station for lawn mower gas but will save mowing for tomorrow since tomorrow is shower day anyway.  Might as well get all nice and sweaty before my shower, right?

--Barbara