Food Snob

If you have ever eaten out with me, you may think that I hate tomatoes. I always order "without tomato." Salad, sandwich, taco, whatever. If that tomato isn't cooked? I don't want it. (Salsa, ketchup, marinara and canned tomatoes? I am fine with them. They are what they say they are. NOT A TOMATO.)

But really? It would be hard for me to name a food that I love more than tomatoes. The problem is that the mealy, tasteless goo that calls itself a "tomato" does NOT taste like the "tomatoes" that I love.

A tomato grows in my yard or someone else's yard. It can grow on a farm, but it better not be refrigerated AT ANY POINT or it becomes a Not-Tomato.

Cheese, wine, really everything that food snobs generally rail on is generally accepted in our society. We call Velveeta "cheese" (and I will admit here that I always go for the Velveeta dip at a pot luck - just need a bit of that Velveeta goo and I am good), but everyone knows that it's Not Cheese. I just want the same respect for the humble tomato. It's not so hard to just give them a season, is it? Should I eat a piece of mealy nastiness on my club sandwich in February? No. And I am ok with that. Wait for July. Sheesh. Learn some patience and some TASTE.

I want a beautiful, firm and juicy WARM tomato. I want people to refuse to refrigerate tomatoes. It is a crime against nature to refrigerate them. I am serious.

All right. The lecture is over. I have tomatoes to eat.

One(?) Small (?) Step

None of my kids want to be astronauts (I asked each of them today - Mary actually rolled her eyes.). That fits the national statistics these days.

Bill is the only person in my house of eight people that remembers man landing on the moon. He was a little boy. His grandpa took pictures of the black and white tv screen as the astronauts landed on the moon. (My parents told me about watching the moon landing, but I wasn't even born yet.)

We had lentils and cake to celebrate the anniversary. How about you? What did you think about today and what did you think about then?

Me? I am thinking that I want those black and white snapshots of a tv screen. And? I am thinking that the cake was yummy and Mary did a good job with the craters.

Glimpses of the Future

It has been a rough year for me parenting Anna. Academics, social, family, really everything, has caused me concern and even panic. We argue and she resists even the simplest of directions from me. I cajole her out of bed and remind her about homework to hand in and she gives me permission slips for various things as I am trying to drop her off at the school...that kind of thing. I literally lay in bed unable to sleep and wonder how this child will function as an adult without me? How will she make it in college? How will she remember to hand in assignments to her boss? Who will pick up after her? I really can't imagine her showering without a reminder or feeding herself without someone cooking for her. And as a mom, I feel like I have somehow failed by not instilling these skills and traits.

But buried beneath the teenager that I butt heads with, is the adult that she will someday be. And sometimes I see the future adult and it takes my breath away. Anna walking confidently to the microphone at the Thespian Initiation and giving a monologue in a loud, clear voice. Anna holding her own in a conversation about world religion or politics. And this morning, the growly teen got up without argument and went to work. On the way there she chatted with me about how the owner is so happy with her dog washing skills and receptionist abilities that they are going to start teaching her other jobs at the dog salon. I dropped her off at the dog grooming salon and as she walked to the front door, a woman was walking in with a little dog. Anna smiled and held the door and talked to the woman and the dog with confidence and genuine pleasure. I sat in the car observing my daughter interact with a customer of hers and felt a burst of love and pride for this woman-child who has social skills that transcend my own. I saw her future and suddenly knew that she is her own person and will be ok. I was struck by that thought, Anna is going to be ok.

If you ask me, though, she still needs to pick up her room.

Family Traditions

Frank joined me in the backyard this morning while I drank my coffee.

I love this holiday. It's one of my favorites. Food, good weather and the day off. And blowing the birdbath up with waterproof firecrackers. Good times, man.

Famous beans are in the crock pot, surprise jello sits in its mold in the frig, the ribs are marinating, and the strawberry tart with marscapone cheese is chilling.

Meanwhile we need more punks, because we have another box of fireproof crackers and a whole bag of other stuff that needs to get blown up. The bird bath is sitting on the ground waiting to be filled with water. I'll wait until tomorrow to reattach it to the base.