Sunday, December 06, 2015

December in Georgia is wonderful

The mornings start off cold, with frost sometimes but the days warm up to a manageable 50s and 60s. The annual Comer Christmas Parade happens the first Saturday of December. Yesterday lined up along the parade route were people in short sleeves. The 5K Reindeer Run also featured people running in short sleeves. It was a mild day, made good by a warming sun. A good time was had by all, according to the photos I looked at on Facebook. That's as close as I want to get to a crowd, noise, parades, and community.

Today I am not cooking too much, though I should. I have veggies I should roast and sandwich stuff I should prepare, but it's a lazy Sunday and I just can't bring myself to. I did make corn chowder and cut up a bowling ball sized cantaloupe. That will get me through the first part of the week. If I wasn't lazy I would make Slaw for sandwiches (cabbage, roasted broccoli, dried cranberries, and Asian mayo put in a wrap). I'd also roast carrots, the broccoli, potatoes, and toast some pita chips. But no, I am still in my pajamas at 2:20 pm and it looks like it's going to stay that way.

Though I had a great week at school and Friday afternoon ended very sweetly with a group of boys I help in writing, I came home with severe sensory overload. For the life of me I can't figure out why some weeks are good but I get overloaded and other weeks that are not so good I sail through the weekend. Friday nights are the Waterloo. I can hang on till 3:30 but then if I am overloaded, all heck breaks loose.

I got home Friday night with my body throbbing and aching, my stomach nauseous, and my head aching to beat the band. I headed straight for the bedroom, put on my comfy clothes, and pitched into bed at 3:30. I stayed there till 6:00.

Which was sad because I was going to go to a Christmas party at 6:00. I was having a bit of trouble getting myself worked up to go, I'm not usually a fan of small apartments with lots of people and loud laughing. I do like fun, just not the kind of fun that most people like. But I wanted to stretch myself and try some social things. However the physical troubles trumped the mental obstacle and my overload meant I couldn't even try to stretch myself and go to a social gathering.

On my weekly grocery shopping I scored a huge bag of baby spinach for 99 cents. It was still all good but the expiration date was the next day. I brought it home and sauteed it up with onion, lemon-pepper seasoning, and fresh lemon juice, thus putting a halt to any temporary spoilage. The next day I made a dip or a spread, depending on how you look at it. I- combined a can of salmon and some mayo with sour cream with the spinach-onion saute. Plopped atop a crisped bagel and it made a nice open face sandwich. It lasted three days for three more meals. Yummy.

In addition to my Christian non-fiction I'm in the middle of, I started Will Thomas' latest book, "Anatomy of Evil." There is a jack-the-ripper type slasher out and about in 1898 London and the enquiry agents Barker and Llewelyn are out to catch him. I really like Will Thomas. He writes well and atmospherically. Saturday night I cuddled up on the sofa with a blanket and three cats in front of my living room gas heat hissing quietly away. Mmm, see, to me that is fun!

My good old car had a breakdown last week but I cannot complain, it rarely breaks down. I have had it for 8 years and that's saying something since it is a 1993 model with 235,000 miles on it. It needed a new radiator, and once it was installed the cold snap came, so yay for me, I have heat in the car again! Just in time. What a relief to find a reputable and cordial and honest garage. I am soooo thrilled. I remember that Seinfeld episode from the 1990s when the mechanic got mad at Jerry and banned him and Jerry was let adrift and at the mercy of an unknown mechanic. As George said to Jerry in sympathy, they could be telling you that you need a new Johnson Rod and you would never know the difference.

Well, just 9 1/2 more days of school then I am out for a 2-week Christmas break. I can't wait!





10 comments:

Grace to You said...

The spinach dip sounds so yummy - I'm going to try that!

What a huge blessing to have a mechanic you can trust! When I was a very poor single parent the LORD blessed me with an honest mechanic who worked for the state during the day and had his shop open at night, which meant I didn't have to take off work to take the car in and it wasn't the mechanic's main source of income, which I'm sure is why he took pity on me...I'm positive he didn't charge me what others would have. Every time I left his shop I rejoiced in the LORD's provision and mercy on me. What a huge praise! So happy for you to have that.

Hope the week ahead will be a peaceful one for you.

Elizabeth Prata said...

Wow,that IS a good provision! Our Lord is so creative in the ways He provides for us.

The Spinach concoction is similar to the artichoke dips you see at Olive Garden or places like that. You can use sour cream as I did, or cream cheese. The recipe called for baking it in a ramekin but I just spread it atop hard-toasted bagel and called it good

Anonymous said...

I am the same way regarding over stimulus. It seems random and unpredictable. I wish I could figure it out. I know some of my triggers to avoid, but other times its a surprise. I kind of wonder if mine could be hormone related at times. I see pics of peoples Christmas parties on facebook and they are so pleased about it but to me it looks like sheer misery! Good for you for stretching yourself though.

I find this blog relaxing. :)

Jennifer

Grace to You said...

I made the spinach concoction and am loving it atop toasted onion bagels! Being from the South, I fry salmon patties pretty regularly and occasionally make a salmon souffle (sounds much fancier than it really is) but this is the first time in my life I've eaten salmon straight from the can. I was a little nervous about it. :) My family won't touch it and turn their noses up at the smell but that's ok because it just leaves more for me. haha

Elizabeth Prata said...

I'm so glad you liked it! how does the souffle recipe go?

Elizabeth Prata said...

Jennifer, thanks for reading! Christmas parties are torture for me. I never did make it to the party. When I got home from work, I was so overstimulated I slept for two hours and missed it

Grace to You said...

The salmon souffle recipe I use is very similar to this one...http://www.food.com/recipe/salmon-souffle-65362

Grace to You said...

I don't think I have the sensitivity to overstimulation that you have, but I find most Christmas gatherings to be difficult because people always seem to me to be trying too hard to be jolly, bordering on hilarity, and for some perverse reason that makes me sad.

Grace to You said...

I am officially addicted to the spinach concoction on onion bagels...I'm having them for breakfast now because I don't want to wait till lunch! I ran out of bagels yesterday but we got 8" of snow and I couldn't get out of my garage to get to the grocery store...I was actually almost a little weepy this morning because I had to use toast instead. haha

Elizabeth Prata said...

I'm so glad you like it! I can't wait to make it again, myself!