A resurrection story

So here’s a fun and wacky story:

Quite a while back my laptop computer died, and the computer fix-it shop said something like “Sorry, it’s dead forever” or “Sorry, it’ll cost $4,826 to fix.” I don’t remember exactly what the diagnosis was, but it was costly enough that I shelved the laptop and called it a day and eventually bought a new, pretty terrible laptop that was then stolen out of my car by brigands in Kentucky.

So anyway, last week we were doing some decluttering and there was the old, dead laptop. A new computer fix-it shop had opened near our house since the original laptop death, and I thought “Hey, maybe they’ll give me a different fix-it price.” So I took it over there and dropped it off, and a few days ago they called and said, “Uh, yeah, it just needs a new battery and some memory. It’ll be way less than $4,826. Should we fix it?

“Uh, yeah,” I said. “Please do.”

And so now I’m typing this to you from the blogger’s natural habitat: The couch. (From which I’m also watching the best episode of “Gravity Falls,” the Dungeons & Dragons episode titled “Dungeons, Dungeons and More Dungeons” with Poppy. #GiggleTimeBouncyBoots)

Welcome back, slow old laptop. You’re still old, but you’re functional and a little less slow.

A timeline of culinary misadventures

1989. The time when I didn’t know how to cook but my little brother was hungry so I made him Every Spice In The Cabinet Soup. It was terrible, but he ate it and pretended it was good.

1997. The time when I didn’t know how to cook but I wanted to make dinner for Rockford and my little brother so I made a chicken-broccoli casserole recipe that I found on the back of a can. It was terrible, but they ate it and pretended it was good.

2001. The time when I didn’t know how to cook but I needed to make dinner for Rockford and myself and all we had in the house were potatoes. I tried to make potato soup, but I only used potatoes, water and pepper. It was terrible, and we did not eat it.

2002. The time when I tried to make stuffed shells with goat cheese. They were terrible, and we ordered pizza.

2009. The time when I tried to make a vegan meal and it used every pot and pan in the house. It was terrible, and we ordered pizza.

2017. The time when I nearly cooked a spider in the rice. That was tonight, and I fished it out in the nick of time.

What’s your most memorable kitchen disaster?

I probably should’ve planned to eat kale and quinoa all week

We had a really lovely Thanksgiving break, and I’m not ready for it to be over. We made the most of our last day of freedom yesterday by doing some Christmas shopping, putting up the last of our Christmas decorations, eating far too much stuffing and playing several rounds of Hogwarts Battle (which should definitely be on your wish list if you enjoy Harry Potter and board games, which we do). The turkey and stuffing are gone — for those keeping score, the bonus turkey was much smaller than anticipated and I sent the leftovers to my sister-in-law’s house — but we’re planning to head back to Hogwarts again this evening after a crushing defeat last night in Year Four.

Here’s what will be on our dining room table this week.

Monday: Sloppy Joes
I found myself thinking about Sloppy Joes over the weekend,[1]I don’t know, man. and I wondered if I could make them in the CrockPot. So I’m going to try it tonight.

Tuesday: Sweet Potato Burrito Bowls
After all of the holiday indulgence, I figured it would be good to eat something that was all nutrition. This seems like it’ll fit the bill. The green rice it’s supposed to be made with sounds delicious, but the kids won’t eat it so I’m just going to make plain rice.

Wednesday: Breakfast for Dinner
I’m not going to try to make waffles this time.

Thursday: Honey-Garlic Chicken
This is a tasty, dependable CrockPot dish.

Friday: Pizza
I’m trying the Vegan Harvest pizza from American Flatbread this week. I’ll let you know if it’s worth eating.

Hungry for more? Check out the Menu Plan Monday linkup at OrgJunkie.

Footnotes

Footnotes
1 I don’t know, man.