30-minute meal #2

Tuna Casserole

It's not top choice cuisine, but it's simple, cheap, and will keep you from starving to death.  And it tastes pretty good too.

You need:
2 cans of tuna (drained)
1/2 bag of wide noodles (I use the wheat ones)
1/2 family-sized bag of frozen mixed veggies
1 can cream of chicken soup (mushroom or celery work well also)
milk (enough to fill the soup can)
8-10 crackers, crumbled
seasoned salt
black pepper
paprika
garlic powder

Boil a large pot of water and add frozen veggies and noodles.  Bring to a boil again and let cook on high until the noodles are done.  Turn off the heat and drain the noodle/veggie mix.  Add in tuna, soup, and milk.  Combine and season to taste.  Pour the mixture into a microwave safe dish with a lid.  Spread evenly in dish and spread cracker crumbs on top.  Sprinkle paprika on the casserole and cook in microwave on high for 5 minutes.  Let rest for 5 minutes, then serve and enjoy.

Got Gas?

I was putting some petro in the tank when I witnessed a common occurrence at the pump. A guy was doing the double drive up maneuver - you know the one where you forget which side of the car the tank is on so you have to back up and try again. Well my aunt taught me a trick to avoid the double drive and check. There's an arrow next to or under the gas gauge which points to the side the tank is on. So instead of hanging your head out the window to search for it, you can simply look at the dashboard. But beware: not all cars have an arrow. And I'm not quite sure how the system works if the tank is accessed below the trunk. I guess it's not a foolproof system, but it can keep at least some of us from looking like fools.

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30-minute meal #1

Yesterday I posted a list of meals that could me made in 30 minutes or less.  Here is recipe #1.

1. Spaghetti
You will need:
1/2 pack spaghetti noodles
1 lb ground beef, turkey, or chicken
1 jar spaghetti sauce, flavor of your choice
Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp garlic (powder or chopped)
1-2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp parsley

Bring a large pot of water to boil and add spaghetti noodles.  Let boil for 8-10 minutes until cooked.  Set aside.
In a medium sized pot, brown ground beef (or turkey, chicken) until completely done.  If using ground beef, rinse and drain before continuing onto the next step.  Once meat is finished, add spaghetti sauce.  Add seasonings, sugar, garlic, and parsley.  Mix well and heat thoroughly.  Drain spaghetti noodles and add sauce to large pot.  Serve with garlic bread (which cooks in less than 10 minutes in the oven) and a tossed salad (bagged varieties take no time at all).  Meal #1 done.

Taste of Cincinnati

Maybe I'm becoming an old curmudgeon, but I'm not feeling these mass events anymore. The family and I went to the Taste of Cincinnati, an annual food festival which consists of booths along a few blocked off streets downtown. I used to love it; I'd stay for hours and sample just about everything Cincinnati had to offer. Today it was more of a chore than anything - elbowing and pushing our way through the throng of people to get to a booth, only to see the line for the vendor wrapped around the corner. Last year was a packed house too, but for some reason the crowd didn't bother me like today. I suppose I just wasn't in the mood for it. Maybe I'll try again before it's over on Monday. Or perhaps I'll just make a trip to Kroger and save myself the trouble and the gas.

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30-minute meals

I had a discussion with my friend yesterday and she was lamenting about how much she eats out weekly. She mentioned she's often too tired to cook when she comes home from a long day at school. I asked her what she makes for dinner, she said something crazy like duck a l'orange. I pointed out her first problem is she's doing too much. Her second was she didn't have any go-to recipes she can make quickly. So here are ten 30-minute or less (includes prep time) meals anyone can make. I'll post individual recipes on the blog in the coming days.
1. Spaghetti. A staple in my household, spaghetti takes about as long to cook as it does to boil the noodles.
2. Tuna casserole. Another go-to meal...usually made when I'm low on time or food in the fridge.
3. Grilled chicken salad. It's as easy as throwing seasoned breasts on the George Foreman, cutting up lettuce (or using bagged), and adding croutons.
4. Jambalaya. The recipe is already on the Stew, but I'll repost later.
5. Tacos. Brown ground chicken or turkey, add seasonings, scoop into a shell, add toppings. Done.
6. Chili. Simple and spicy.
7. Hamburgers and fries. Make this meal healthier by using lean meat on the grill and serving with baked sweet potato fries.
8. Oven fried chicken tenders. These cook relatively quickly and go great with a side of fries.
9. Baked salmon with rice and vegetables. Bake the salmon, boil the rice, heat the veggies.
10. Sausage and potatoes. This is a budget friendly meal and pretty filling as leftovers until next payday.

I'll post recipes for each dish in the upcoming week. Enjoy!

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Stormy Weather

this song suits the atmosphere for the past month or two.  enjoy

Back to the Bull

I'm back in town...I've got a stack of bills, cable that doesn't work, and a list of tasks a mile long waiting to greet us when we walked in the door. Sigh. This is what makes vacationing so hard...coming back home. I'm going to try to hang on to my relaxed mood at least through the night. Wish me luck.

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A Movie Worth Seeing

It began as a simple suggestion to see a movie. Interestingly enough it came from my husband, who can never stay awake long enough for the opening credits to roll. But I guess since we were on vacay he decided to do something out of the ordinary. The challenge came when we had to pick a flick. He'd already seen Fast and Furious Five (another shocker), and was lobbying to see it again. I wasn't interested in Thor or seeing the movie he just saw, so I bought two tickets to Bridesmaids. He fought me tooth and nail, but reluctantly agreed to sit through the chick flick. Lemme tell you, he laughed harder than I did. This movie was great. Think of The Hangover, but with a raunchier female twist. They pulled some stunts I'm still giggling about today. The end was classic romantic comedy, but the ride there was an unexpected trip. So if you have a few hours to spare, check out Bridesmaids. You can even bring your spouse.

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Dub car show

Today's trip was the Dub Car Show at the Reliant Center. I put some pics above of the cars I liked. I guess I have expensive taste...

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Galveston!

So I finally made it to the beach, and this time not specifically to buy fish. Here are some shots of the gulf. Hopefully the world will go on after today because I'd like a chance to enjoy this again.

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I Won The Lottery...And Gave It Back

Can you imagine buying a house and finding $45,000 in the attic, then giving it back?  I read this article on Yahoo! about a family who did just that.  It's nice to know there are still some honest people in the world.  Now if you ask me if I would've done it...let's just say I'm glad it wasn't me making the decision. :)

Margaritaville

Today's activities consisted of a trip to the gym, some shopping, and testing out the margarita machine. Cheers!

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Wayward visitor

So I said I wanted to capture my trip in photography...here's a few images of a turtle that ventured into the yard. Interesting, enough...we saw a rabbit on the other side of the lawn not far from where the turtle was spotted. We checked again and noted the turtle had made it all the way to the other side of the street, where coincidentally, the rabbit was again. I think we inadvertently broke up a tortoise/hare showdown. I wonder who won?

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Ahhh!

It feels great to be on vacation!  I'm loving the sun and the sand and the sea.  A perfect triumvirate of relaxation for my weary soul.  I wanted to do a pictorial capture of our trip here, but I had the phone/camera on the charger so I missed out on today's opportunity.  We visited the fish market at Kemah, distributor of fresh red snapper, salmon, shrimp, blue crab, crawfish, and other gulf swimmers fresh caught in their backyard.  I sat and watched the calming waves roll in, then headed off to explore another part of the city.  I'm still debating coming back home...

Mighty Mississippi

I flew over the Mississippi today and was astonished at the crazy amount of water spilling over the banks. It's a completely different vantage point to see it on TV and to have a bird's eye view of the liquid destruction. It's hard to imagine the same river that has been a longstanding national landmark is drowning fields, homes, and livelihoods. My thoughts and prayers go out to the families dealing with the floods. Above is a pic I took from the plane.

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On the Road Again

I love to travel. The thrill of taking off, the equal excitement of feeling the wheels lock for landing, then venturing off to explore. What I dislike is the prep. It seems like every trip, no matter how far it's planned in advance, always comes with a heap of stress. Did you wash clothes? Where are the TSA approved carry on bottles? Did you remember to ________ (insert task here). And if we're driving, whoo! Along with the stress comes the fights, about everything from pairs of socks to who is driving first. But once the doors close and the wheels roll, it's off to a new place preferably far from any chaos at the cerebralstew household. And that makes it all worth it. Happy travels!

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First in 2011

Apparently, black folks are still making notable "firsts" in 2011.  Mr. Bill Lester is now the only black man to have won a Grand-Am Road Racing event.  His achievement is eclipsed only by Wendell Scott, the only black man to win a NASCAR Sprint Cup race.  The first thing that came to mind when I saw the article was really?  Black people are still racking up 'firsts' in 2011?  I guess the mere 148 years after the official end of slavery hasn't been enough time to change everyone's mind about the capabilities of black people.  What else haven't African Americans done yet?  I suppose we'll find out the next time a barrier is broken.  Hopefully it'll be sooner than later.

Less ain't always more

It seems like the weather and fashion trends have an inverse relationship; the hotter it gets, the less clothes people wear. Yes, 'tis the season for leaving nothing to the imagination. If you're in a Victoria Secret runway show, feel free to walk around damn near naked. But if you're like 99% of the population, less isn't necessarily more. I went to a program at my son's school and was...amazed (?) by the sheer amount of clothes missing. Booties and boobies and body parts hanging out all over the place. And some of them had on skirts that were wider than they were long. One woman's skirt was so short she would've turned a G-rated parent conference into a XXX peep show if she'd bent over. It was a complete mess. So for the sake of the innocence of my virgin eyes and everyone else who doesn't want to see what your clothes should be hiding, I'll say these three things:
1) just because they make it in your size doesn't mean you should wear it
2) refer to #1
3) less isn't necessarily more. Now go put some daggone clothes on!

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Apples and Trees

As they say, "the apple don't fall far from the tree." My friend sent me this article about children of hoarders she saw in the NY Times. As someone who didn't live in the cleanest home growing up, I could identify with some of the issues these kids have. I can only recall 2 or 3 times my friends spent the night because our house was always a mess. Even as an adult, I don't like to have people over unless the house is clean, which it never is, so I never have company. It's not very fair to my kids, who I'm sure would love to have a sleepover. That's my goal...to have a sleepover friendly house. I'm not far away, so hopefully by the end of June I can start to break the house embarrassment cycle with my kids. It's going to take some serious work, but breaking bad habits always does, right?

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/12/garden/children-of-hoarders-on-leaving-the-cluttered-nest.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

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i-n-d-e-p-e-n-d-e-n-t...

Do you know what that means?  It's not just lyrics for several songs, but a state of mind.  I was thinking about a former coworker and decided to write this post.  She was in school (she worked with me as a paid intern), had her own apartment, and a decent car.  She was also pushing 40, had her tuition paid by her brother, her rent and bills paid by her sister, and had a serious passion for shoes her paychecks helped to support.  But she would always talk about how independent she felt and how proud she was that she lived on her own with nobody taking care of her.  She completely glossed over the fact she didn't pay her own bills or even know how much tutition was, let alone write the check.  Part of me is hating - hey, who wouldn't want a benefactor to take care of everything so all I have to worry about is the occasional shopping spree - but a bigger part of me is screaming WTH?  How do you get to be 40 years old and still be "remotely dependent"?  My definition of a "remote dependent" is anyone who is over 25, lives in a residence apart from whoever is paying the bills, but still comes to mommy/daddy/rich uncle Lou and gets money for everything from rent and car payments to $20 for beer and pizza.  A remote dependent may have a job, but the majority of their income must be spent on items other than the essentials (food, shelter, transportation).  In case you're wondering, cell phones, cable, internet, eating out, etc. do not count as essentials.  And worst of all, whoever is taking care of the remote dependent can't write them off on their taxes.  Unfortunately, people fall on hard times and need assistance every now and then.  But I'm not talking about the rare hardship loan.  You know if you can be classified as "independent" or "remote dependent".  And if you don't, read this post again and tell me...are you i-n-d-e-p-e-n-d-e-n-t?

Beer Bread

A friend and I were taking earlier and I mentioned I wanted some beer bread. She'd never heard of it, so I told her I'd give her the recipe. I figured if I post it on my blog others could enjoy it, too. It's my mom's recipe, but it isn't considered "classified" so here it is.

12 oz can of beer
1/3 c sugar
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3 c flour

Mix all dry ingredients together. Add beer. Let the batter rise 30 minutes. Put into a bread pan and bake at 350° for 50-60 minutes or until golden brown.

Simple and tastes great!

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Do you Google Talk?

When compared to Yahoo Messenger, Google Talk is way behind. While Yahoo is based on being intuitive, you have to do a bit of digging to customize Google Talk. I've been using both for awhile now and I still don't know all the nifty tricks it can do. But, being that it's a Google product, I decided to look it up. Ironically, it was the Bing search engine that came up with the answers. So I'll pass them along to you.

Open up Google Talk and try this in a chat window:

For bold type, use asterisks * around the words you want bold. Place them directly before and after the words, no spaces

For italics, use underscore _ around the type. Again, place directly next to the words with no spaces

For a strikethrough, use hyphens - next to the words. Place the same as with bold and italics.

You can combine them, but do it in sets. For example, to bold and italic a word, you would put it like this: *_word_* or _*word*_
If you mix them together like this: *_word*_
It won't work.

To reduce or enlarge the screen: ctrl - or ctrl +

There's also an add on, which I'm not sure is still valid. I'll post the link when I confirm it.

It's important to note these tricks don't show up on the mobile version.

Happy chatting!

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Ghettonation

I read a book by Cora Daniels a few years ago that explored the concept of "ghetto" in American culture. I thought about it yesterday as I was watching a PBS special on Jewish concentration camps, the original ghettos. There was nothing fun, or cute, or good about the ghetto. They couldn't afford the exorbitant prices for food - people were essentially zombies, wandering in a half-dead stupor until they starved to death. And when they died, all the families could do was set the deceased on the street. Conditions were terrible, disease and starvation were as common as breathing, and if you didn't starve, you froze from a combination of threadbare clothes, no coat, and no heat. These were the images the word "ghetto" conjured up in the minds of our ancestors.

Fast forward to today, where "ghetto" is used to describe anything from an inappropriate outfit to loud car music. In the book, Ms. Daniels makes the point "ghetto" is a state of mind, a mental destitution we embraced and use as am excuse to not be better. In fact, the biggest difference between yesterday's Jewish ghettos and today's "ghetto" is theirs was forced upon them while ours is self inflicted. I'm not saying everyone who lives in the ghetto loves it and stays there of their own accord. My point is often we abandon the drive to do better because we are comfortable being ghetto. Think of something you would deem "ghetto." Now ask yourself if it could have been said or done better but wasn't because ghetto was good enough. That mentality is what the book is about. If you haven't read it, check out Ghettonation by Cora Daniels. Hopefully if we change the mentality, we change our outcomes.

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Every Mother Counts

It's Mother's Day and a Sunday, which means I'm watching my favorite show, CBS Sunday Morning. Today features several interesting stories, but one stood out in particular. This one highlights former supermodel Christy Turlington Burns' fight to stop delivery room deaths of new mothers across the globe. The numbers are staggering. A woman dies every 90 seconds due to complications in childbirth. And 90% are preventable. It took Christy's personal experience to jump start her advocacy, as she too could've been part of the statistics. Luckily, excellent medical care saved her life; now she is dedicating it to saving others. She traveled the world, created a film, and developed an organization dedicated to mothers everywhere. The organization and film, simply called Every Mother Counts, recently debuted on OWN. Excellent timing, as Mother's Day is a great time to show every mother indeed, does count. If you want to learn more about the cause and find out more information about the film, check out the link below. Happy Mother's Day!

http://www.everymothercounts.org/

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Last Minute Mom's Day?

It's 5 o'clock, most stores are closing soon, and you still have no clue what you're getting your wife/mom/significant other for Mother's Day. Here are some ideas that may spare you the unnecessary stress of coming up empty handed.

1. When in doubt, feel her out. There's no shame in bluntly asking what the mom in your life wants for a gift. You probably shouldn't have waited until the day before, but most likely if she knows you, she expected nothing less.

2. Jewelry. My aunt has a saying that goes something like "an apology is fleeting; a diamond lasts a lifetime." If you can't afford expensive pieces, consider a tasteful charm bracelet or earrings.

3. Get crafty. A quick trip to a craft or hobby store is a great way to find a simple project for mom. One idea is customizing and painting a wood picture frame, which can be done for less than $10. Pop a picture in of her favorite kids and you're done.

4. Say it with a card. A gift card that is. Often misinterpreted as impersonal, gift cards can be the best way to give mom exactly what she wants. Find out her favorite store and give her the gift that keeps on giving.

5. Make the effort. If you don't have money for anything fancy, offer to give her a break. Watch the kids while she enjoys a girls day (on you, of course); cook her dinner; make coupons for the items on the chore or honey-do list.

Remember to keep her in mind and I'm sure she'll love whatever you come up with. It's the thought that counts. You just don't want her to ask, "what were you thinking?!"

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Design Diva

Maybe I missed my calling. I've been enamored with staging/diy/home improvement shows and every time I watch I wonder if I could've done that. Not the work, but the design. I have my BS in interior design; perhaps I should be transforming homes into dazzling dwellings instead of being stuck behind a desk for 9 hours a day. I don't know how well I would mesh with hardheaded homeowners or camera crews following me around, but I'm sure it's nothing a little creative editing couldn't fix. In the meantime, I'll see if I can whip my own house into shape. Maybe I'll post some pics when I'm done.

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Free Android Apps

We all know Angry Birds is a must have, but what about the other excellent apps floating around in the Android market? If you're not sure what to get, here are a few completely free apps I have that you may like:

Spades by bytesequencing - good game play, lots of options, AI partner could be better

Gas Buddy - saw this one on tv; enter in your zip and it loads gas prices close to your location. No need to sign up, search as a guest

Words with Friends by zynga - the smartphone version of Scrabble, play virtually
with a friend, a stranger, or pass n play with someone in your house.

Our Groceries and Kroger apps - Our Groceries lets you enter your own items & stores, add multiple items at once, and choose how you sort your list. You can also email and sync your lists so everything stays updated.
The Kroger app is useful if you shop at Kroger and have a Plus card. I can load coupons onto the card while I'm in the store and they'll show up in my discounts before I check out. Very convenient.

Uninstaller - a quick and simple way to uninstall an app. Just open the installer, scroll to the unwanted app, and hit ok. Done.

And lastly, one of the apps I use the most, Blogger. I can update, view, add video, images, and links right in my phone. And after I post, I can share with a variety of different platforms from one location.

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Half an Egg

Today I got a crazy hankering for a German chocolate cupcake.  A super moist, melts in your mouth chocolate treat accented with a healthy smattering of coconut pecan icing.  The more I thought about it, the more I felt like going to buy the ingredients to make it happen.  So I went and got the mix (you didn't think I'd make it from scratch did you?), but I don't feel like cooking an entire batch of cupcakes.  Since the box calls for an odd number of eggs, I will have to halve an egg.  If you don't know how, here's a nifty trick I saw on a cooking segment.  Take a small container with a lid, like a large baby food jar or a mini-sized plastic container.  Crack the egg inside of the container and put on the lid.  Shake the container really well so the egg is all combined.  Then, just pour out half into your recipe and save the rest until you need it.  Voila!  Half an egg.  And if you'll excuse me...I've got cupcakes to make!

This is why...

I love Clean House! This is the craziest show ever. The sheer amount of crap people pack in their homes is astonishing. And the families' ability to irrationally justify why they haven't cleaned anything never ceases to amaze me. The family on this episode didn't clean their floors so they put another piece of carpet down on top of it!! Are you serious? Who does that? In their defense, it would've been difficult to vacuum around the mountains of stuff in their living room. Sometimes episodes are so disgusting, my husband asks me how I can stand to watch. The answer is simple. For motivation. I tune in, see the results, then get up and start going through all the stuff threatening to take over my house. So today's episode served its purpose. Play time over, time to make things happen.

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Ahhhh Youtube!

I wonder if the inventors of Youtube knew they'd revolutionize the world with their website. Maybe they did - everyone wants their fifteen minutes of fame. And there are uploads for everyone: conspiracy theories for the suspicious, clips of old school movies for the newbs, comedy routines, television shows, kittens sleeping, how to make/do/fix just about anything, drag races, babies dancing, poetry, etc. etc. etc. It's addictive. Electronic crack fed through wireless veins. And just like any addict, sometimes you need to go to rehab. So if you ever happen to notice everything you reference in life is based on something you saw on Youtube, it's time to unplug. You CAN have too much of a good thing!

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