Sunday Singalong: Holidays, Foods, Songs

 Another week has passed and I have discovered that holiday music has been playing on public address and "muzak" players all over! It seems all have gotten into the holiday season with full immersion. I'm actually ready for it this year (that is, the music, not necessarily all the Christmas and related events . . . and I may not fully embrace it all before the first of January, so I am enjoying the lights and feel of the season - TV movies, foods, blog posts, etc. - vicariously . . . less cleanup? Sorry, my cynical side slipped out).

Well, I mentioned food. There was a time when I did baking and prepared holiday potluck dishes, etc. But as I have gotten older, I've learned a few things (about the actual food prep and my own behaviors):

1)    I tire rapidly when baking or doing any extensive cooking . . . so I don't any more.

2)    I will sample as I prepare and consume the product of my efforts afterwards . . . this is evident in short order once I pack the holiday implements away and attempt to wear clothing that had fit just fine prior to December (most of my holiday attire has been purchased a size or 2 higher than I might normally wear, to accommodate the holiday fare).

3)    If I don't bake, but still answer the door to visitors, goodies come into my home with little to no effort (see #2 for the drawback).

4)    I can actually enjoy the season without seasoning (e.g., sugar, salt, cinnamon, anise, cloves, etc.) . . . but do I really want to?

5)    Cleanup is a breeze when I am not the chef or baker!

6)    Amazing, pre-prepared foods of all types are readily available, and many stores deliver! Some items even involve a little, optional, personal touch (e.g., a quick warm-up in my oven, the addition of some powdered sugar, etc.), allowing me to look like the woman with the white thumb (especially if I put the items on my own good serving dishes).

So, here is the Sunday Singalong challenge:

So many holiday songs involve the mention of food or drink or actually are ABOUT consumables. Whether the song comes from the Christmas holiday, Kwanzaa celebration, Jewish tradition, New Year welcoming, or any others that might connect with your culture(s) or life, share the title, lyrics, link to a YouTube video, etc. Share the reason the song is remembered by or important to you. Here is my offering:

"The Candy Cane Tree" - written & sung by my friend, Tom Paxton. I'm not sure why this is one of my favorites on his Christmas CD (A Child's Christmas, 1992). Maybe because it is a non-controversial song (unless one has some issues with candy-cane-eating elves). It's also a song that screams, "everyone join in!" When I sing it at a music gathering, the chorus is picked up quickly and soon everyone is singing "The candy, the candy cane tree, I'll pick some for you if you pick some for me, For Christmas is coming, come hurry with me to the candy, the candy cane tree." (Now, I'm not sure why I can't pick my own and, instead, ask you to pick some for me, for which I'll reciprocate . . . maybe it is possible for me to look a little less greedy if the candy that overflows my basket is picked for someone else instead of for me . . . well, there goes my issue with the post-Christmas poundage.)

Want to hear it? check out "The Candy Cane Tree" by Tom Paxton on YouTube          

Want to get the CD? Yup, it's still available, 30 years later. Used copies are available online, but I usually end up with my "Fail Safe" resource: Amazon.com, A Child's Christmas (when I checked it out it shows I've ordered it twice in the last 4 years, probably as gifts . . . it's a great choice!).

And now, what foods are sung about during these months, extolling the wonders and benefits (or maybe cautions) of the edible treats in your life?

Wordless Wednesday - 23 December 2009

Card my grandma gave me, many, many years ago.

Beware of Dangerous Vegetables

I make a mean turkey soup, and proceeded to do so on Sat. Actually, I fixed our holiday turkey on Friday & froze the meat (this way all the mess of the turkey is out of the way & I don't have to deal with it on Christmas ... besides, I'll need the space and cooking equipment to do the ham!). I then fixed turkey soup on Sat. for a music gathering we had. Everything was going along great until I got to the zucchinis. One of them cut my thumb. No, I don't mean I cut my thumb with a knife while cutting the zucchini; the zucchini cut my thumb (I was washing it with a vegetable brush and my thumb was too close to the surface of the vegetable and peeled some of the skin ... right underneath my thumbnail ... ouch!). Well, I was able to complete the soup making (it was delicious ... and will be for some time as we are freezing about 8 quarts of the stuff), able to play my instruments throughout the evening (it was my right, or picking, thumb), and able to do all the cleanup of everything before going to bed. Then it hit! The pain was incredible and the thumb was officially infected. I'm treating it effectively, but I am still somewhat incapacitated (as far as dexterity in the kitchen and other areas are concerned), so Butch is helping with a lot of that. Hmm, interesting way to get out of doing cooking and baking during the holiday: claim a vegetable attacked me and now I am helpless!

So daughter Sandi and family will arrive tomorrow (Tues) and I have almost everything ready (well, as ready as it's going to be now). When I was a kid, my mother used to bake about 12 different kinds of Christmas cookies (double and triple batches of each) and my grandmother baked stollen. Me? I went to the store and tried to find stollen (good luck! I settled for a streusel cake) and looked at the cookies, but decided that the pies Sandi is bringing and the cheesecake we bought, plus all the leftovers from Sat. night's party, should be enough to satisfy the sweet teeth of everyone! Nevertheless, I do remember a time when I did a lot of holiday baking and really enjoyed it. I just don't have that energy any more. I am grateful for the baked goods that friends, neighbors, and family give us. But after my zucchini incident, I think I will just steer clear of the kitchen as much as possible over the next few days. Sure glad the turkey is done!

Happy holidays!

Winter Solstice

Today is 21 December, the Winter Solstice. It is also the anniversary of the day my parents married, back in 1940 ("the longest night of the year," my father was always quick to add ... though they selected that date because it was convenient for all family members and at the semester break for my father, who was a math professor at Illinois Institute of Technology - the wedding took place in my mother's home town of Milwaukee, Wisconsin). Both my parents are gone now, but I decided to look back in Mom's diaries to read what they did on their anniversary 40, 50, and 60 years ago. It was essentially the same each year: they were preparing for Christmas and the arrival of one or more of their parents. Mom baked, cleaned, and shopped. Nothing overly memorable for an anniversary. There were no notations of anniversary gifts, given or received, by either parent (though in 1968 there was a mention of my giving them salt and pepper shakers ... well, I was 17 and it was a needed item). I do remember, very distinctly, that on their 25th anniversary (1965) we went to the Kungsholm restaurant/miniature opera theater in Chicago and were treated to a puppet show of gigantic proportions! (Information on the operation can be found on the Web and looking at the results of my Google search for "Kungsholm, Chicago" brought back memories.) Mom & I enjoyed it but my brother and father would have been much happier staying at home and playing cards or Scrabble. That was also the occasion of my first taste of caviar (I didn't like it).

When my parents married they didn't have to spend any money on flowers to decorate the church: it was completely decked out in holly and poinsettia plants. One advantage of marrying close to Christmas, I guess. They looked very happy in those old wedding photos and I still have their guest book (though it suffered a great deal from a fire in their storage facility a few years later) and left over invitations. They kept everything.

So, happy anniversary, Mom and Dad ... I remembered!

of Christmas, puppies, and other warm fuzzies

Well, Christmas is almost upon us and we have a new puppy at our house. Actually, he's 6 months old and has become as much a part of our lives as our older, more sophisticated dog, Buddy. The new baby is "Klondike," to recognize his unique breed: an Alaskan Klee Kai (miniature Husky). He's only 10 pounds and promises not to get much larger (we are holding him to that). To see photos and even video, go to and click on the "Dogs" tab. Anyway, I can't help but remember another time in my life when I had a puppy. I was about 11 and Lucky (a Beagle-Cocker) joined our household for all of about 6 months. He was around 5 months old when Christmas arrived. Lucky was confined to the kitchen most of the time because of his poor toilet habits. No matter what we did, he simply refused to become house-trained (or even paper-trained, for that matter). So I would play with him in the kitchen, Mom would try to prepare meals with a puppy underfoot, and all of us would try to ignore his whines to be allowed a little freedom. Well, once the Christmas tree was up we decided to give Lucky a shot at visiting the rest of the house. We took him outside first, just in case. He was obviously thrilled to be granted an evening pass and showed his excitement by (can you guess?) squatting in front of the tree before any of us could stop him. Back to the kitchen he went. About a month later we all gave up. I regret that, but I think Mom was on the verge of killing either the puppy or me and none of us were loving him at that point. Of course, this was in the days before crate training and effective methods of housebreaking dogs. I like to think that, after being dropped off at the shelter, a more patient family adopted Lucky.

Buddy (now 9 years old) came to us housebroken (we have no idea where he learned it as he was a stray, about 6 weeks old, when he walked onto our property and simply stayed). We are still working with Klondike, and he is learning (as are we ... that "squeek" he gives actually means something important!). And he loves the Christmas tree and its lights. He also seems to enjoy Christmas music. We think that this is a good addition to our home and look forward to taking him to see snow over New Years (after all, he is a miniature "snow dog"). Klondike also came with a full pedigree, which we plan to frame next to our family pedigree chart. Unfortunately, Buddy cannot claim such a recognized past, but he's just as much a part of the family. After all, isn't love the key ingredient?