Insignificant Significance: A Life Story in Miniscule Installments

Sometimes I just feel like writing. There isn’t anything exciting going on, no drama to record, nothing at all to write about except the joy of being alive and feeling my fingers bring my thoughts and feelings into plain view. A small miracle at my fingertips.

The sun is just struggling to come out. It is just after 11:00 a.m. Predawn this morning freezing rain was falling from a dark and apparently overcast sky. Everything is slippery out there. The temperature has risen above freezing now, and the snow and ice are melting. There will be more cold weather to come, more snow, more grey and dreary skies, but I doubt we will see more of the extreme cold that the polar vortex brought deep into the continent.

I’ve been working on cleaning out the refrigerator freezer. There are some mystery items in there, and some surprises. One of the mystery items was a container of applesauce, which had no label. Judging by the plastic container it was in, it has probably been in the freezer for about ten years. It went into the compost bin. A happier discovery was a container of whole cranberries, and they are in very good condition. I am having fun researching the ways in which I can turn them into something delicious.

Tonight’s dinner has been planned, and the diced leftover turkey is thawing in the refrigerator, it will be transformed into Mongolian Turkey with Rice and Mixed Vegetables by dinner time. A lot of our meals are cooked with rice and mixed vegetables. Rice is inexpensive and easy to cook. The mixed vegetables consist of frozen diced carrots, corn, and green beans, and we eat about 1 1/2 cups each most nights for dinner. Most of the dishes I prepare are in the Instant Pot, and consist of mostly vegetables, some rice, and a small bit of meat, usually chicken, occasionally ground beef. The flavourings are what makes each meal unique, and delicious. Attila is very, very fond of the roast pork I prepare in the instant pot, so I try to serve that once a week.

This past weekend Attila craved pizza. There is no pizza available at grocery stores, or at restaurants, that does not contain preservatives, so we have to make it ourselves. No problem! My pizza crusts have not been to my liking for the last few years, because I use a lot less salt, and also mostly whole wheat flour. I tried a new recipe this time around, and it was a great success, light, and delicious. The trick, a tip from an organic farmer friend, was to add an egg as part of the liquid ingredients, and a tablespoon of gluten flour. I have always added the gluten flour, so I think the egg is what made the real difference to the dough. I use the bread machine, dough setting, because kneading dough now hurts my bad arm and shoulder, and the machine does a perfectly respectable job.

Our pizza is relatively low-sodium, low-fat, low-cholesterol, and low-sugar, it hits all the buttons. The sauce is where I really score points for keeping it healthy. We use my canned spaghetti sauce, which is sodium-free. Commercial sauces are shockingly high in sodium. I do indulge in a little cheese, and some pepperoni as well, but I keep the amount reasonable, so that I stay within my dietary quotas.

Well there, I managed to fill this page with the unimportant doings at Mist Cottage. My how I love the unimportant doings of life!

Worldly

Weather

2°C
Date: 11:32 AM EST Monday 4 February 2019
Condition: Mist
Pressure: 101.4 kPa
Tendency: Rising
Temperature: 2.1°C
Dew point: 2.1°C
Humidity: 100%
Wind: N 2 km/h
Visibility: 2 km

Quote

“There are two types of people–those who come into a room and say, ‘Well, here I am!’ and those who come in and say, ‘Ah, there you are.'””
Frederick L Collins
1882 – 1950

Who would you rather have walk into the room?


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WendyNC

And I wouldn’t mind having your pizza crust recipe, if you’re willing to share. Sounds yummy.

(Written in the sunny south, where the current temperature is 69F.)

Sandra

Ah, yes, the details and routines of everyday are where life is lived for the most part. As my favourite author, Jane Austen, says “…the little matters on which the daily happiness of private life depends.”

Stubblejumpers Cafe

Exactly, it’s the most personal acts with which we live!
I recently read some entries in an acquaintance’s extensive world-travel blog. She provided many details of the places she went and what she saw, what she ate and what things cost, and these were well written and included photos, but I found myself dozing and skimming. It was when she’d recount an interaction with someone, even just a few words exchanged, that I’d perk up and take interest again.
Maybe that’s why the thought of travel to distant lands doesn’t captivate me right now. People can be found right here!
I too get the same urge to write when I don’t think I have anything to write about. I do wonder what that’s all about, sometimes.
Kate

Teri

It was a balmy 11C/51F here, today. Our 5 or so inches of snow has melted completely and now it’s raining out. I do hope this is our last bout with the polar vortex.

Next month I apply for retirement, not that I’ll stop the small amount of graphics work I do but it’ll be good to see that pension coming in.

WendyNC

Maggie, thanks so much for that recipe. I’m going to do a little copy/paste to save it locally (okay, I saved it in the cloud, but you know what I mean).

I don’t have a bread machine, but this one sounds as if it won’t be hard to adapt for use with my KitchenAid mixer and my two hands.