Wednesday, December 7, 2011

A Winter's Day

Quaid and Jentzen were playing outside in the snow this afternoon for well over an hour. Ahh the silence. Ava was seated right next to me stirring Tapioca pudding over the stove for about 45 minutes. Why they even sell Tapioca I'm not sure. Who would ever do this if they didn't have to?

Why did I do it, you ask? I am in an all out effort to empty my pantry and freezer before I buy any more food other than perishables. Nathan's mom was kind enough to buy a package of Tapioca, make something creamy with Tapioca when she was here nearly two years ago...and proceed to leave half the package. It's been sitting in my pantry ever since. Tapioca is disgusting.

But it's been bothering me, sitting there way back in the dark recesses of my pantry. I have this thing about throwing food away. To me it's like taking a perfectly crisp $1 or $5 bill and just tossing it in the garbage. It's exactly the same thing, and I can't stand doing it. I get it from my dad. He was one of those that would eat whatever was left at the end of dinner just for the sake of not throwing it away. His actual need or hunger didn't have anything to do with it. I now do the same thing. Thanks dad.

The Tapioca is done, I think.....I'm not really sure. I know for a fact it's going to be disgusting no matter what. Nathan on the other hand, has a 50/50 chance of actually liking it. It better be the right side of the 50...or I just wasted 45 minutes of my life that I'll never get back all for him to say, "Yuck." And if that's the case, maybe I'll throw it at his face...1.)It would be hilarious and 2.) Then I would feel like it wasn't really wasted.

I wasn't going to go here but I just had to. This story needs to be documented so my grand kid's grand kids lives will be complete....

We were in Australia, circa December 2003. Anthony had just come home from receiving a speeding ticket, I think maybe it came in the mail. In Australia they have speed cams, so one day you just get a ticket in the mail with your beautiful mug shot. Anyways we were just sitting around the table eating pastries, (not me, I feel the same way about them as I do Tapioca) Melanie was doing what any good wife would do. Kindly instruct her husband that he knew there were speed cameras along that particular road, if he loses any more points on his license he won't actually have a license anymore, that she doesn't want to take the blame for his "oversight" of his knowledge of those speed cameras...and was just about to start on something else he "needed" to hear...when from across the table.....SPLAT! Right on Melanie's face went a vanilla slice.

For you Americans who have no idea what a vanilla slice is...it's a layered cream filled pastry thing that is highly coveted and adored by nearly every Australia I've ever met...and my sister Laura :)

Melanie had cream and bits of pastry flakes all over her face, in her hair and over the front of her shirt. Evidently Anthony had heard enough. I won't say the word "nag", but Anthony might have mentioned it prior to slice slinging. We all stopped, stunned at what just actually happened. Did he really just throw that at her....did it really hit her square in the face? Yes. Yes it did. And we were laughing hysterically at her. She....ummm....was not laughing quite so much.

We still tell the story...neither of them will ever live that one down.

Well that wasn't exactly where this was going, but I think it turned out okay. What I meant to go with was the fact that my boys were playing in the snow all day together. They came in wanting hot chocolate. After my hour stirring creamy yuckiness, I was in no shape to be whipping up some Hot Milo. They did it themselves, promising to clean it all up.

I was sitting in another room listening to them work together, listening to them count out their marshmallows, listening to the squirt of whip cream in a can. And listening to them laugh and enjoy it together. I love that they get to spend their days together.

An afterthought...does Tapioca expire?? I hope not!

1 comments:

Melanie B said...

Um yeah thanks for sharing that story!!!
bahahahaha we will never live it down. He was a bit cranky that day & I definately didn't want ANOTHER ticket to my name!!! hahahaha

M xxx

PS a vanilla slice has never been thrown again.

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