Comfort Food

I've been sick this week with the same virus Sawyer started out with. And when I'm sick, I want comfort food.

I started thinking about some of the comfort foods Mama used to cook, when I was a child. During the week, meals were quick and easy. There were 6 of us kids and Mama was usually very busy taking care of us, making sure we got our homework done, getting baths, mounds of laundry, etc. But the meals I remember most were made on the weekend.

Breakfast was usually grits, scrambled eggs and toast. My brother used to put ketchup on his eggs. Have you ever tried that?

Lunch was usually toasted Ruth's pimento cheese or chicken salad sandwiches and chips. And sometimes, we would have soup with the sandwiches, especially if it was cold outside. Some of Mama's soups were home-made potato, Campbell's Chicken Noodle, or chili.

And Sunday dinner might be roast beef with carrots and potatoes over rice and biscuits or fried chicken with rice and gravy, some kind of vegetable and biscuits or fried pork chops, rice and tomatoes and biscuits. Yum! That was comfort food at it's best. We eat much healthier now, but sometimes, especially when I'm sick, I want some of Mama's comfort food. And today, I wanted chili!

I created a great chili recipe, but since I didn't feel like cooking, I went to Wendy's for some of their chili, instead. It's very similar to mine. I'm not entirely sure if they add chili powder to their recipe or not. But, my recipe doesn't call for chili powder because Cliff doesn't like it, so I improvise with the Rotel. If you are interested in trying it, see below.

Laurie's Home-Made Chili 

Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients:

1 to 1.5 lbs. lean hamburger meat

I can Kidney beans

1 can Black beans 

1 tbs. olive oil

2 stalks celery

1/2 onion

1 - 28 oz. can petite diced tomatoes

1 can Rotel chili fixins

1 - 15 oz. can tomato sauce

 salt and pepper

In a large pot, saute chopped celery and onion in olive oil. Remove from pan until later. Brown hamburger meat. Add back the sauteed celery and onions, Rotel, tomato sauce, beans, diced tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil. Cover pot and lower heat to simmer for about 40 minutes. 

Let me know if you try it,

Laurie

Ambushed by a Foreign Invader

You will understand shortly!

My fantastically wonderful and handsome son-in-law was ambushed by a foreign invader……at least that’s how he felt. That’s the only thing that can describe what took place after my trip to Denver. I secretly believe he missed me and my egg sandwiches, but I’m not sure that would make you hurl.

Anyway, I had only been home just a few days when Whitney sent me a text about what took place at her house over the course of a couple of days.  

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Warning: This conversation is raw and undiluted. It may not be for the queasy.

Disclaimer: I can not be held accountable for the C-word used on a few occasions. And the word Gross may have been used quite a few times, also.

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On Sunday morning, Whitney sent me a text saying that Jason had some kind of nasty stomach virus. Apparently, he had been throwing up and had diarrhea all night…..along with a fever. She said he was feeling somewhat better, but was wondering how likely it was that she could catch it by just being in the same apartment. She asked, “Should I go get a surgical mask”?

Oh, wait! OMG! Flashback!

That question took me back a couple of years ago to when the Swine Flu was going around really bad here. My sister and her whole family came down with it. So, being the awesome sister that I am and concerned about their eating habits (disregard the restaurant of choice), decided to take them some lunch. Just like Whitney, I feared of being infected with the swine flue….so I took matters a little seriously.

This is me......Swine Flu protected!

Ok, back to the present.

As the texting continued, Whitney was still dwelling on catching the virus. She said to me, “Mama, I think you need to come back and take care of Jason. I’m very afraid of stomach viruses. I’ve been Lysoling the crap out of everything and walking around the house wearing a surgical mask. I don't do viruses”. 

Well, that's not likely. I just about had enough of planes for awhile. Next trip, I might have to make a batch of brownies or an egg sandwich or something and bribe the pilot...to see if he will let me sit up there with him for awhile. I could offer to let him wear my compression socks. I heard they work wonders on pilots who have to sit for hours. It could be entertaining. I'm just saying..... 

Later that night, Whitney texted that Jason was feeling better. She said his fever never came back and that his stomach was fine. But, she still wanted to know how long he would be contagious…..so she Googled it. And Google told her that if it was the Norovirus, it could be up to three days.

But never fear! “I disinfected the crap out of my apartment”. She said, “I even washed the shower curtain and Lysoled the shampoo bottle”.

I thought that might be uber extreme, but not Whitney. She told me that the shower curtain is right next to the toilet and that particles float around in the air!! 

“Eeeewwww! Gross, Whitney”!

“Well”, she says, “It’s true! Anyway, I better go make Jason some food so he doesn’t infect the kitchen”.

So a couple of days go by and Cliff, my husband, comes home from work with a stomachache. Uh oh! Just a couple of days after leaving Whitney and Jason and now a couple of days after being home and now he’s getting sick. I’m starting to wonder if I’m a carrier. I mean, was there a rhesus monkey on the plane or something? Maybe that’s what was wrong with the dude who drank the Jack Daniels and his head wouldn’t quit shaking. It’s enough to make you wonder. I should have called the flight attendant and have her check under the seat. Oh well, hind sight. Not sure that would have done any good, anyway.  Cliff was lucky, though. His only lasted a few hours. Probably something he ate. He’s notorious for eating sandwiches and such that has been sitting out all day at work.

The texting picks back up Wednesday when Whitney asks, “Mama, Guess who’s barfing now and it’s not me”?

Bless it!

Well, it could only be one other…..Kitter. Kitter?

“Yes! Kitter just puked in the bathtub! I think she’s got the virus!”

Well that is just gross. I told my mother, aka Granny Pat, and she wanted to know if Kitter was pregnant. Not likely, according to Whitney. She’s been fixed and she has never left the apartment.  But if Kitter doesn’t quit barfing in Whitney’s tub, she’ll probably wish she was. At least the Kitter would have a good excuse. Ha!

Whitney also texted the following, “Uggg, I haven’t worked out since last Friday because I’ve had a headache since Saturday and I’m afraid if  I go breathing all heavy and rolling around on the floor, I’ll get a stomach virus. Send me on a vacation.”

I just told her to come home. I plug that every chance I get. Ha! So far, it hasn’t worked. Gah, I don’t know what’s wrong with children these days! You raise them, give them the best years of your life and they grow up on you and move across country. And if you tell them that you’re moving in with them, they tell you "fine….but I’m putting you in the basement".

Again Whitney texts, “It appears to be an eating too fast incident that ended in cat vomit in my tub. I had Kitter quarantined all day in case she caught the stomach virus from Jason….phew.”

Whitney had quarantined Kitter in the spare bedroom. I asked if she had checked under the bed for vomit and she said no, but that she had gone in with a mask and gloves….checked around the bed and litter box for diarrhea. She made Jason check under the bed because she refused to get on the floor due to the disease.

The only thing I could say was, “I’m going to use this in my blog! Can you take a picture of Jason checking under the bed for vomit?”

And, there you have it! He's looking for the product of foreign invaders.

The End.

Have a nice day!

Laurie

I Left on a Jet Plane

The red tail lights were headed for.....no not Spain. Denver. What's wrong with you? Yes, I took a little trip. I was Colorado bound! And although many of my adventures are stories in their own right, I think this one just says....keep it simple, LaLa.

First leg....Charleston to Charlotte:

The flight out was unremarkable. I usually like the window seat, but since this trip was a spur of the moment kind of deal, I was unable to purchase one. I had the middle seat all the way. And if you are the least bit claustrophobic, this seating arrangement will definitely rub you the wrong way. I twisted and turned, crossed and uncrossed my legs, fidgeted with my bag and boarding pass. That's when he saw it.... The guy next to me was paying attention to MY boarding pass. He asked, "So, what you gonna do in Denver"? Have mercy, that was creepy! But, I replied that I was visiting my daughter and that just opened the door. His foot was in and there was no stopping him. He talked my ears off for the duration of the flight. Turns out that he was an employee of  US Air. He was the manager for the group that loaded the luggage onto the planes. Oh wait, I had an exclusive.....Yep, I was the first to know that American Airline was merging with US Air.

Second Leg......Charlotte to Denver:

Soon enough we were on to Denver. Stuck in the middle seat again. This time...a sweet little lady had the window seat, but the light was too much for her. She kept the little blind closed the whole time. Uhhgg! The not so little man on the aisle seat decided he needed a little libations. He ordered one cup of coke and added two mini bottles of Jack Daniels to it. I was paying attention! And, I was waiting for that to kick in. Ha! And when it did.....he started talking to himself. And every once in a while, he would shake his head vigorously back and forth. I scouted out the flight attendant's call button, just in case.

First night in Denver:

My daughter has a cat. Her name is Kitter and apparently she is a stealthy little thing. Sketchy at best. She lays claim to the guest bedroom except when I'm there. Then, she gets shut out, as in....close the door and keep it closed. Well, I had to get up in the middle of the night for a.....umm, you know.....a visit to the loo. I kept the lights off because I didn't want to wake Whitney and Jason. I'm good at creeping around in the dark anyway. But upon returning to bed, I spotted something dark on the floor out of my periphery. OMG! It was moving! Yikes, I pulled up the covers kind of tight. It looked like a black ghost......like a black ghost Kitter. "Jeez, Kitter, you are creeping me out. How did you get in here"? I later discovered that the bedroom door wasn't closed all the way and Kitter is good at pushing it open just enough. Lesson learned.

Normal Kitter

Ghost Kitter


Second night in Denver:

I slept with the window cracked open, y'all. It felt great to have that very cool mile-high air enveloping the room as you're bundled under the warm covers. Only.....my thoughts went back to the night before. I hope Ghost Kitter can't sneak in through the window. It was pure chilling. But with that fresh mile-high air and all, sleep came so easily.

Third day in Denver:

Shopping for some new hiking shoes. Score! And, you know that when mama comes a calling....that she comes a cooking. I made egg sandwiches for breakfast and home made chicken noodle soup for dinner. My child and her husband loved me! Later, we saw the movie "Identity Thief". What a hoot!

Home-made chicken noodle soup.

Forth day in Denver:

We had a full day Saturday. Whitney and I started by going to the gym. I've been running and despite a little knee problem, I felt like I was physically in good shape....at least enough to do 30 minutes on the elliptical. Well, HELLO!  I did the 30 minutes and then had to call 911.... The 911 conversation in it's entirety: "Hello 911, send oxygen! Fast!! 30 minutes on the elliptical and I'm pretty sure I've developed mile-high lung syndrome, rubber leg syndrome and I've gone blind." They were slow to respond so I gathered my belongings and heaved all the way back to Whitney's. After getting cleaned up and my breathing returned to normal, we went to a painting class. That was a lot of fun! It started snowing while we were there, but was finished by the time we were. Later, we took the light rail downtown to have dinner at The Old Spaghetti Factory. Oh my, Yum!

Whitney

That's me.

And these are our finished paintings. That's Norman......2nd bird from the left. Kitter made friends with Norman. She was a little intimidated, 4 to 1 odds that if she didn't, she was going to get a nasty pecking.

Fifth day in Denver:

I wanted to play in the snow and after a disappointing lack of snow in Denver (they only got a dusting), we had to look elsewhere....so we headed towards the mountains. We were trying to make it up to Mt. Evans, but the closer we got the more ice and snow were on the roads. We decided it was a little too scary to try to go all the way. So we turned around and found a small camping area in the Arapaho National Forest just outside Idaho Springs. I got my snow fix. Then I got my Starbucks fix. And, since we had a pretty big lunch, we decided that I would just make some "Hissy Fit" dip and chips for dinner and finish up the chicken noodle soup. If you read my post "I'm still cracking up" then you know I'm vegetarian. And you'll understand when I say....I picked around the chicken. Ha! Ha!

It's me, again.

Whitney and me.

Whitney and Jason, aka ski bums.

The pretty snowy woods.

Sixth day in Denver:

The kids had to go back to work, so I relaxed with the Kitter and read pretty much all day. Kitter and I had come to an understanding. She could lay on my lap and sleep, but my bed and luggage were off limits. She came to terms with that. And we meshed just fine. For dinner I made Buddha Bowls. Yum! You start with rice, add black beans, chopped tomato, chopped cucumbers, celery and avocado, corn and cilantro. Top it off with a little lime juice. Crazy good! Uber healthy!

Seventh day.....back to South Carolina:

This was a very long travel day. It began at 5 a.m. I left Denver and had a layover in Newark, NJ for 3 hours. I took a few pictures of what looked like the Empire State Building. I was pretty sure New York was just over the river. Maybe one of you guys can confirm this for me. I've included a picture of what I saw below. After leaving Newark, my next stop was Charlotte. This ride got a little bumpy. I didn't need any Dramamine which was a good thing considering I left it at home. But from Charlotte to Charleston, it was so bumpy that the flight attendants never came around with the drink carts. A few more minutes on there and I would have paid $5,000 for a Dramamine. Alas, by 9 p.m., we made it to Charleston. And there waiting was my wonderful hubby ready to take me for home.

View from Newark, NJ airport. Is that the Empire State Building? Someone, anyone?

It was a lovely trip, but I was happy to get home.

And then, just today, Whitney calls.... "Mama, I think you need to come back. Jason has a nasty virus and needs you to take care of him. I'm Lysoling the crap out of everything and walking around the house wearing a surgical mask. I don't do viruses".

So, I say....."Mama doesn't either. You'll be alright".

The End.

Laurie