Week 3, January 10, 2016

Goals certainly make the time fly.  I'm happy with my results, but I sure didn't get much "deep couch sitting".

Thinning and Trimming:
I did Sit and Be Fit 3 times and Classical Stretch 2 times.  Sit and Be Fit is not always sitting.  You have the option, but if I'm physically able to stand and be fit, I'll feel like I'm cheating if I sit instead.  Much of the program really is sitting, but not all.  

As for the Classical Stretch - ha!  She wants me to lie on my back on the floor, lift my leg up in the air, grab my ankle with both hands and lift my foot up over my head.  Dream on!  I couldn't do that when I was a child - I sure as heck can't do it now.

Taking Care of my Health:
I had no trouble eating my apples and greens.  My greens were usually a tossed salad, so I must get more creative with salads next week.  Below are a couple of suggestions for apples, in case you're getting bored with them.

Oatmeal, apples, walnuts, brown sugar, cinnamon

Waldorf Salad

Time for Others: 
Katie Sue and I made twenty 2016 Christmas cards for her nursing/retirement homes. We'll have the 150 she needs before long.

Tea Book:
I tried a new scone recipe for a Winter tea.  Still working on this.  It's going to be yummy.  

Thread:
I finished my black shawl and now what do I do with leftover black cotton thread?  The pattern requires you to work with three strands at once, so I had to buy three balls, even though I probably used less than half of each one.  Hmmmm!  Have to think about this.

Tidying:
I finished washing my doors and realized I actually have eighteen.  I forgot about the door to the furnace/water heater/closet room.  I didn't do the outsides of the exterior doors. Too cold.  We had our first snowfall on the 9th, snowing off and on all day, but by evening it stopped and nothing lasted. 

Trying New Gadgets:
I tried my Von Shef egg boiler and I believe it will be a keeper.  The instructions lost a lot in translation from Chinese to English, but since I bought it from Amazon, I got the information I needed from the reviews and the question and answer section.  And while we're on that subject, give a round of applause to the people who take time to write reviews and answer questions.  A true example of neighbors helping neighbors, even though we're only connected by computers.

The eggs don't actually boil - they steam.  You can only do seven at a time, but it takes only minutes, and they're so easy to peel without all those little clingy pieces of shell which tear off part of the egg white.  By the time you peel seven, you could have more cooked. So no problem - it can work for making deviled eggs, egg salad or potato salad for a group.

First Attempt

The best part is that it also makes poached (steamed) eggs, and they slide right out in a perfect circle and look very pretty.  No bits of egg white swirling around in boiling water. The clean up is a snap.  The cooking time is determined by the amount of water you use. A little marked measuring cup comes with the cooker, but there are variables, such as how big the egg, the egg temperature when you start, how many eggs.  I'm still working on my timing, but the feral cats are grateful for my errors, so there you go. 

I like this goal system.  I've been meaning to make that shawl for several years.

Some other T's this week:

Tasting: 
I cooked a tri-tip from the freezer, intending to buy another while they were on sale. I missed the sale, but there will be others.  I'd only heard of tri-tips in California when my cousin bought them to cut up for shish kabob.  Our local Harter House market chain sells them all the time and will season them free with white Santa Maria seasoning which is garlic and herb, or Pappy's which is a red sort of barbecue seasoning.  They even give out instruction sheets on how to cook them.  See below.

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Roasted Tri-Tip

1 2-1/2 lb tri-tip, with fat on one side

Santa Maria seasoning (available at Harter House)

Oven Roasted

Heat oven to 350

Place tri-tip on a rack in a shallow roasting pan, fat side up, no water, and no cover, do not turn

Roast 1 hour and 15 minutes

Barbecue

Bring charcoal to high heat

Sear tri-tip 15 minutes with fat side down

Push coals to one side, cook tri-tip with fat side up away from the coals, for 1 hour

Can also be cooked on gas barbecue

Adjust cooking time according to weight

Let tri-tip rest five minutes before cutting

Starting at point end, cut across the grain into thin strips

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I'd also like to share a new soup recipe.  When I was setting tables in the library community room for the tea, Dana from the Children's Department came in and asked if it would be okay to eat in the small adjoining kitchen, as the employee lunch room was full.  I told her that would be no problem, as we were only working in the community room.  After a bit, a wonderful aroma came from the kitchen, and I went to the door and told her that whatever she was eating, I wanted the recipe.  She wrote it out for me, said that she didn't know the name of the recipe, so I christened it Library Soup.  I already made it and loved it.  Here's the recipe:

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 LIBRARY SOUP

(Dana from the Children’s Section)

1 can each:

Whole kernel corn, drained

Kidney beans, drained

Seasoned black beans, drained

Rotel with lime and cilantro

Chicken broth

2 chicken breasts, cubed

Mix together in Crockpot and cook on low for 6-7 hours or high/regular for 4-5 hours.

Serve with tortilla chips and grated Monterey Jack cheese.

Note:  I used 2 cans of broth for more liquid, and used pinto beans instead of kidney beans.  I love this soup and will make it often.

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Things that Grow:

Here's the beautiful amaryllis which Carol gave me for Christmas.  Watching it unfold was lots of fun, and now it's getting new leaves.  

And an additional T.  Another Thank You.

When my brother, Sonny, read in last week's posting about how I missed New Year in Vienna, he went online and bought me this DVD:

The bad news is that it's the prior year's program, which I already recorded and saved.

My recorded programs are on U-verse, and if I ever change to another service, they'll go away.  Having lived in Southern California for most of my life, I was well acquainted with Zubin Mehta as he was the conductor for the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra for many years.  So the good news is that if I had chosen a DVD to purchase, this is the one I'd have chosen.  The 2016 DVD won't be out until February, according to the PBS website.

How sweet was that?!  And to think I hated all my little brothers when we were growing up. Now they're my best friends.  

Okay.  Ready for next week's goals?

Tasting:

My blood brothers, Sonny and Bill, and our chosen brother, Peter, have decided to eat our way up one side of Glenstone in Springfield and down the other.  We're starting at the north end and on the east side.  First up is Neighborhood Pizza.  We'll be doing this twice a month, so I'll be boring you with photos as I'm a dedicated Foodie.

I'm having lunch with my neighbor, Martha, at F-D Grill (F-D stands for Fish Daddy, so I guess the owner is a big time fisherman).  The food is wonderful and addictive. Sorry, there will be more photos.

And there's the birthday lunch for my chosen niece, Terri, with Terri's mother, Joey, and her blood aunt, Kathy.  Photos?  Of course!

With all that Tasting, I feel compelled to continue with my Thinning and Trimming exercises next week.  My goal will be five times, and maybe I'll try some of the other programs.

Togs:

Time to put together another outfit of some sort from my closets.

Things that Grow:

Nixa, Missouri, is in Zone 6.  Time to start pansies, dusty miller, snapdragons and delphiniums (and some other things I've never heard of) from seed, indoors and under lights.

This is a definite maybe.  Where can I get the seeds right away?  Where do I put the container?  I don't have grow lights.  What happens when the plants start to grow, and my kitty, Tiki, takes time to smell (and eat) them? 

I see that I can also start onions, leeks, broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower indoors by month end, so should I order the seeds?  Same problems as above.  

Tidying:

I'll start working on washing door frames, but no guarantees.  I have a busy week.

Tea Book: 

This will be my main goal next week.  I want to finish the first Winter tea for my book. Stay tuned. 

Tidbits:

Joey has the most beautiful Christmas tree in the world, and her entire room is decorated to match the tree.  It's more of a Winter theme than a Christmas theme, and she agreed to leave everything up until I can get photos to share.  

If you don't like my goals, try some of your own and tell me your results in the comments. Nothing like a published goal to get you moving.  Start with eating an apple a day.  Easy-peasy.

Tips: 
If you haven't changed the batteries in your smoke alarms, now is a good time.  Then just remember to do it for the New Year and the 4th of July.

 Drink tea, eat apples, and green leafy vegetables.