I'm sure that we all can agree that we have skewed memories of childhood. We all remember things larger, better, worse, and forever when compared to the reality of the situation. This is just for perspective.

This morning, we have enjoyed an idyllic provincial and perfect weekend beginning. I remember 2 things that have long been favorite family rituals from my youngest days. Some of my favorite Saturday mornings included my old man making waffles. Other favorite moments include quiet moments sponsored by my mother and our old turntable playing J.S. Strauss waltzes. I had put a playlist on the Winamp which started with some accapella, and ended with der Koenigswalzer, Tales from the Vienna Woods, and the Beautiful Blue Danube. The Blue Danube ended just minutes after we had finished breakfast.

I had timed it out approximately, but it had worked better than I had hoped. What a beautiful way to properly begin the weekend. Now we're off to visit a friend or two. We hope that you enjoy your weekend too!

So, here I am: Poking around the net while I'm on leave. I look at the headlines on my yahoo title pages and I see this "Keys to Happiness" production, think "advertisement" and pass it off as more net poop.
Then I see that it's a 60 Minutes bit so I take a look.

I don't usually get to watch 60 minutes, and I usually enjoy it. Even by the standards that they usually set, this is a well done piece. It has references to several studies that should probably be looked at by myself and anyone else who really has an interest. Most importantly, it seems to be a really good jumping off point for some excellent discussion on what makes each of us individually happy.

The Truth is Out There

and this seems to me, to be some of it!

http://60minutes.yahoo.com/segment/140/happiness

take the few minutes to look at this whole bit. Post a thought here if you care to.

Peace!

Greetings one and all!

I would like to thank anybody for their patience of waiting for the return to posting. I hope that you are not disappointed by what you find here today:

This evening, I had a hankering for the flavor of stuffed shells. I did a little web crawling and found the backbone of the recipe that I needed and this is what it turned into. Please bear in mind that the measurements are approximate, and you should play with them to your taste. I eyeballed the volumes that went in to be about what I've put down here.

STUFFED SHELLS MARINARA a la SPEC2RE

1pkg shells, Boiled, then cooled for handling

The Marinara
16 oz. Tomato Sauce
16 oz. Diced Tomatoes (1 can)
2 oz. Sliced mushrooms (1/4 of a large jar)
4 cloves of garlic
1/4 white onion
1 Tbl. Basil (moist from jar)
1/2 cup finely chopped Kale
Other Spices:
Oregano
Thyme

Simmered in a small saucepan for about 1/2 hour while I prepared the cheese mixture, and boiled the Pasta which I then cooled in cold water.

The Cheese mixture:
1/2 package Ricotta
1/2 lb. Mozzarella, shredded
1/3 cup Romano
1/3 cup Parmesan
1/4 cup confectioner's sugar
2-4 Tbl yellow label syrup (if you're not in Dixie, then try light corn syrup)
2-4 Tbl Garlic Powder

Mix these in a bowl and stuff the shells with them, placing them into a casserole dish which you put half of the Marinara in the bottom of. Once the dish is full, cover with the rest of the Marinara, and dot the shells with any remaining Cheese Mixture.

Bake in preheated oven @ 375 for about 30-35 minutes depending on if you're using glass or other insulating dish.

Serve and enjoy! This looks like it should feed about 4-6 hungry people... or 8 birds like my sister.

I hope that anybody who tries this would please let me know what they have to say on the subject. I like the results, and find that this particular sweet/garlic in the cheese was rather nice, although I will be trying it without the syrup in the future.

Thank you for reading! Happy cooking!

So there I am... strike that.

So, there we are: car payment, regular rent check out, couple of credit cards.

Check, Check, Check. I'm just a-pluggin' along, singing my song.

It strikes me as I notice that my son has lodged a suction cup dart from his dart gun on the globe for the light in the entryway. It strikes me: We are a middle america household! Dog: Check. Cat: Check. Pets get along although dog chases squirrels and other cats out of backyard with glee: Also Check.

life is good

my life is wierd. I like it.

Soon may be pugilism in my back yard a la SCA Heavy Combat.

That would be nice.

Catharsis is what I've been missing in my down time... what little I have.

full time soldier, father, husband, college student, and then some.

Life is good.

My life is wierd.

I like it.