DeLurker

I hope that works out @Vixenstud. It would be important for you, but expanding the group of people who your Mom interacts with might help keep her engaged.

I’m going to go to a Vietnamese restaurant to try it soI hope they do it old school. After reading about it, I’d be super disappointed if it came out pre-stirred!

I tried the wavy Pringles in the regular flavor. Seemed less salty than regular Pringles (which I quite liked) and not oily like most regular wavy chips. The texture seemed wrong though. I’d eat them if they were around, but wouldn’t choose them over the original style.

I picked up some Vietnamese coffee - Trung Nguyen Gourmet Blend - at the Asian market this weekend. I had tripped across an article that mentioned it and it intrigued me. I liked the flavor, but the grind is very fine and does not work that well with my pour over set-up. I'll try it with my AeroPress after I get a new gasket for it. So I went poking around the internet and found they have something called a Vietnamese Coffee Filter that is a pour over (but a different style than what I have). More intriguing was how to make a proper Vietnamese coffee which involves the maker sitting on top of a glass cup that has some sweetened condensed milk already in it. Apparently, if done right, you end up with a distinct layer of the milk at the bottom with coffee on top which you then stir. Fun Fact: Coffee is the second most traded commodity in the world (oil is first) and Vietnam is the second largest producer (Brazil is first). Things I did not know until yesterday.

I’m so happy for you! I know the chemo is no cake walk, but still that was good news for all of you.

I think that your absence will be missed, or at least I will miss it. You've gone through rough patches in your personal life and are now in a place where things seem pretty good. It is nice to hear from someone who has evolved their perspective on relationships over time and who recognize their priorities of 10 years ago may not have served them that well or no longer line up with their outlook today.

@hero - good thoughts coming your way for both of you. I admire your ability to respect that this is his decision to make, as hard as it is. I would think there has to be resources within your community that can help him talk through his concerns & fears so he is at least making it from an informed position. I would contact his doctor's office to see if they can refer you to someone who is able to help him, and all of you, through this decision. Please take advantage of the board when you need to let things out.

Catty Face has the zoomies tonight - just kicked in 10 minutes ago.

I’m so sorry. I can’t imagine how difficult it would be to handle normal day-to-day interaction at work when you are still trying to process all of this. From what I’ve read, your Dad’s view is not uncommon - parents who would give an organ without hesitation to their child, are often adamant about not accepting one from the same child. I don’t know how much time is a concern right now, but maybe get tested to see if it is even a realistic issue to discuss further. Be kind to yourself right now - this is a big thing. If you find yourself easily distracted, call a cab, Uber, friend...

The first interview must have gone well! @AgentRXS - NS sounds like a joy. So sorry to hear that story. @Mindthinkr - it appears our posts from yesterday were migratory!

Not in my experience. I’ve concluded that time bends around my cooking.

I have a Chasseur enamel cast-iron dutch oven that my Mom gave me a few years ago. I used it earlier to brown some meat, saute some onions et al and now things have to simmer for a couple of hours. I moved the pot to a smaller burner since even on the lowest setting the pot is at more than a simmer on the largest burner (it is a big pot), but even on the smaller burner and the lowest setting the heat retention is still so good that it is almost to high of a simmer. I have a couple of knock off enamel pots and they do a good job, but not as good as the Chasseur.

I had never heard of Scottish steak pie so immediately went to look it up. I'm getting my attempt at it started as I type, although I may end up using some of the beef in some other capacity tonight and put together the pie tomorrow.

Which was suggested she do. Took Kook on an errand with me earlier just so he doesn't always associate getting in the car with a long trip or a visit to the vet or groomers for a bath (in colder weather washing my very reluctant dog in the tub is less than rewarding for either of us). He was so excited when we got home, he ran to find the cat and give him a good chase. Silly Kook.

When I went to college and lived in the dorms, I just cooked for myself since I knew I wouldn't eat cafeteria style food much. I shocked my dorm mates when I would stop eating when I was full - most had been raised that you eat everything on your plate. If it were meat or something that I would eat as leftovers, I would save it. If it was something I wasn't going to eat as leftovers, I would toss it. I was shocked by how much it reflexively bothered them - especially throwing stuff away. If I have a part of a 1/4 baked potato skin and 4 bites of corn I am not going to eat, why would I save it? Hungry or not, a lot of them would eat what I was going to toss just so it didn't get "wasted". It lead to interesting discussions about our attitudes towards food and how they are shaped.

Went to my brother's for dinner last night - he grilled some steak and ribs. The star of the night for me was the roasted cabbage with a mustard sauce my SIL made. I'm reluctant to try any cabbage that has been cooked other than in a stir fry where it retains some crispness, but this was lovely and the mustard sauce she made so good! She said it was just some Dijon mustard, butter, garlic and minced onions.

In the last 5+ years, new (to me) apple varieties keep showing up in my grocery stores and I feel obligated to give each of them a try. Yesterday I found Autumn Glory and Evercrisps. Evercrisps seemed very similar to Honey Crisp apples (very popular in casa DeLurker) so that one will be bought again. Autumn Glory was the most unapple like apple I've ever tasted, although I did like it very much. The packing box said stuff about notes of cinnamon and a caramel like taste. It was nice and firm, although not necessarily crisp. I wonder how it would hold up in baking?

We ate that every once in awhile (the Chef Boyardee pizza kit) and it was such a big treat! I tried it as an adult and thought "Yikes! What were we thinking?". I still kind of like the sauce though... I just didn't have a taste for a lot of foods growing up so was what everyone else called a picky eater. Mom understood though and didn't give me a hard time. At some point around 24 I started to develop a taste for a broader range of foods.

@Brookside - same with me. I was seriously underwhelmed by the ridge cuts which tend to be my preferred chip style (holds up better in dip). I like their thin sliced chips - think they are called classic. Normally, I find myself too aware of oil/grease on thin chips, but not their's. As an added bonus, they hold up to dip pretty well.

I was in Kroger today, minding my own business, and I happened to come across some Planters Cheese Balls in the snack aisle. I remember reading here they were being brought back, but I thought it was on a limited basis. I don't remember having them before so I bought some to see if they are worth all the fuss and clamor.

Thanks @smeds - perhaps something got lost in the translation of the story to me and hopefully they just meant giving the dog a prescription like you've described.

My daughter’s friend’s dog needs his nails trimmed, but he gets so stressed the groomers have said they can’t do it. The vet’s office has tried but due to the dog’s extreme anxiety, they said they could do it on a future visit but they would need to put him under anesthesia first. Does this sound normal? My dog’s have always worn down their nails by walks, although the vet tech’s take care of Kook’s dew claws since they are pretty substantial. Anesthesia seems extreme.

@KnoxForPres - putting aside any relationship definition stuff right now, maybe just tell him that you could use his support that weekend because this is a bfd and your nerves are going to be raw by then. He might be thinking his presence would be intrusive at such a personal time too. A lot of guys don’t get hints - some just aren’t wired that way. Having 4 older brothers, I’ve heard them fuss repeatedly over the years saying “WHY can’t she just say what she means?”

I've tended to keep quiet and mostly listen, although I do occasionally kid him he is trying to one-up me on the relationship dysfunction scale (and that is seriously saying something), but having lived through the relentless badgering on fill-in-the-blank I know why it is done - to wear you down until you give in to just get some peace. But someone who is willing to do this will never be satisfied once they get fill-in-the-blank. After that, it will be on to the next thing, then the next thing, then the next thing... It is abusive behavior.

I'm sure I've said this before, but in the younger days of DeLurker, Mom would occasionally ask in a kidding-not kidding way when I was going to get married so she could have more grandchildren. She stopped asking when I responded "I don't need to get married for you to have a grandchild - I'll get right on that!". My ex's family had a tradition of using maiden or family names as middle names, so my daughter's middle name is my last name. Indeed it is. It did freak him out since he's always been very able to handle himself in a fight and he has always been super alert to what is going on around him - he's got a lifetime of self-confidence (and deservedly so) that he can handle himself. So to be totally caught off guard and in such intimate quarters is a huge blow to the ego. Granted, he's getting older (mid 50s), he's physically/mentally/emotionally exhausted because she's been pushing for probably a year on the marriage and other head games (granted, he has been clear they aren't getting married but unclear on how fractured they are: See fighting constantly, packed bags and then getting a dog together). He's asked his son to come over and change the code so hopefully it is done now.