Things Worth Remembering The three habits that lead to success are: Patience, Application, and Vision.
It is always better to be underestimated.
There are three things that are better than riches: Health, Freedom, and Honor.
Think swiftly, speak softly, act wisely.
All from: The Book of Celtic Wisdom
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Obi-Wan: (quietly to Anakin) “This time we will do it together.”
Anakin: “I was about to say that.”
Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith
Time sure flies when you’re entire life is picked up, packed up, carted off, unloaded, unpacked and re-arranged over the course of a few weeks. This is a massively long post, so grab a cuppa because you’re going to be here a while reading this.
I don’t know where I left you all on this journey that has become my life – and I’m too lazy to go find out – so here’s what has transpired over the course of the last 6 weeks or so. We sold the house and are waiting to close this later this week. Huge sighs of relief are being held in check until we get a signed form telling us that, indeed, we are no longer home owners. The woman that is buying our house is using Bank of America for her mortgage, and they are taking for.ev.er to get the paperwork done. This must not be too uncommon because the woman at the title company gave a very audible groan several weeks back when she heard which lender the buyer was using. We were supposed to close today or earlier, but B of A didn’t get their paperwork in on time so we’ve been delayed a few days. Oh well. Did I mention we sold the house in Michigan? Because if not, we did, and selling a house in Michigan is no small feat. Let.Me.Tell.You.
 Four movers showed up on May 20th in a 24 ft truck to box up all our worldly belongings – that hadn’t been sold or given away, that is. After the initial walk-through (in which our nearly empty 1800 sq ft. house looked like it had been robbed), the driver said, “You hardly have anything to move! I’m glad we didn’t bring the semi that we were scheduled for!” As it was, everything filled just under half of the truck and they finished both the packing and loading in a little under six hours – a wee bit short of the two DAYS they had scheduled for the packing (day 1) and loading (day 2). I’m pretty sure they weren’t too impressed with the estimate given by the local subcontractor regarding amounts of goods to be moved.
My mom picked us up on the 22nd and drove us, our liquids, a few perishables, and our financial records out to our new place in Des Moines, Iowa. That’s right, we’re Iowans now. Having never even been to Iowa before Dad Windu’s marathon interview back in February, it seems a little weird to think that this is likely where I’ll spend the rest of my days, but we’re rather enjoying it here. The people have been uber-friendly, there’s no tourist industry to speak of so no fighting traffic on the weekends, Padawan Learner found a gym he’s happy to train at for competitive trampoline, we’ve linked up with an active homeschool teen group, the downtown is awesome and very, very walkable, there’s the most fantastic farmer’s market each Saturday that’s only a ten minute walk away from our apartment, and best of all – Dad Windu, Padawan Learner and I are all together again. Ten weeks felt like a hundred. I don’t know how other families do it long-term.
On the flip side, we’re missing friends and family, we have 79 apartments full of people who are – literally – only steps away, and there’s no giant lake (ok, really more of an inland sea) to flee to when the heat begins rolling up the thermometer.
Still, I do declare: Life is good.
Our worldly goods returned on Monday, the 24th, on a very full 14 ft truck. Two young men tugged, lugged, rolled and dragged all of our things into our 865 sq ft apartment for seven hours. This (different) pair of movers, after dropping off the last box and standing in the last two sq ft of available floor space, said, “You have an absolute TON of stuff!” It’s all about perspective. I tried to get a picture – but it took me all day just to find my purse under all that stuff!
On the 25th, PL, my mom and I headed back to GR for a final week of classes in Grand Rapids. PL’s last piano and Dutch lessons and homeschool and competitive trampoline classes took place over the course of three very busy days. We were even able to grab a little park time with Yoda and Red Leader and their respective boys: Lando Calrission, R2-D2, Wedge Antilles and Lobot, before having dinner with my sister-in-law, Queen Amidala, and nephew, Zebulba. On Thursday, my mother-in-law treated me to a mani-pedi at a little nail place near her and I treated her to lunch. Unexpectedly getting out of work early, Queen Amidala shot me a last-minute call and we ended up drinking eating dinner for three hours, laughing all the while.
Come Friday morning, we were back on an Amtrak train heading for home. Juuuust making our connection in Chicago, PL and I relaxed on the train and I had fun making train tips statements on my Twitter account based on the goings-on around me.
Saturday afternoon found us hanging out and surrounded by other Michiganders at the graduation party for, get this, Qui-Gon Jinn’s niece out in the suburbs of Des Moines! Knowing that we were brand-new to the area, Q-G J’s sister very generously invited us to crash the party and begin the holiday weekend in a social manner. It was fun to meet and put a face to the names of people that I’d been hearing about for the past several years. We even got to drag Qui-Gon Jinn, Endicott, and C-3PO out to our favorite restaurant downtown and show off our new apartment – I’m sure they were impressed by our large assortment of boxes, piles of stuff, and absolutely jam-packed furniture.
Memorial Day was parade-free, at least for us, because we didn’t know anything about where such things began, but that night we found out that they was a large going-on up at the Capital Building. Doh! We did go out to the mall – after we realized that we’d obviously missed all the Memorial Day programs – and saw the new Robin Hood movie. I finally got to go to Ulta and, I must say, it made my X-chromosomes sparkle. Angels sang, the clouds parted, and money absolutely flew out of my hands as I began the process of anti-humidity-fying my make-up supplies. For the record, Smashbox foundation is glorious – it simply does.not.melt.off when the air is hot and sticky. By the way, locals have a favorite past-time with northern newbies: talking about how hot and humid it’s GOING to get. I have been instructed to: wait until August gets here and go for a visit to Kansas/Missouri (preferably in August). From what I can gather, the weather here in August is just a few degrees short of Hell and much, much more humid. *yea*
Oops, out of time. More later.
Obi-Wan: “Sorry, Master, the water fried my weapon.”
Qui-Gon: “You forgot to turn your power off again, didn’t you?”
Obi-Wan nods sheepishly.
Qui-Gon: “It won’t take long to recharge, but this is a lesson I hope you’ve learned, my young Padawan.”
Obi-Wan : “Yes, Master.”
Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace
Still alive and still in the middle of the moving drama. Here’s the situation in a nutshell:
- House was put up on the market in mid-March
- Come to find out, the realtor’s assistant works for the devil, the Galactic Empire or some other evil monstrosity like Sprawl-Mart and did a major f*ck-up on the listing – 4 days late, crappy pictures, pathetic blurb, etc.
- Realtor’s assistant apparently does not know how to use voicemail as messages were never returned before 48 hours, if at all.
- Realtor did not check assistant’s “work” until after week two of the listing when we had not gotten a single showing.
- Realtor assistant has now been fired/’quit’.
- Price on house was dropped twice.
- House finally sold last Thursday – yeah – but we’re taking a major bath on the price – boo. I’m walking away getting less than I paid for the place 12 years ago – after spending 40K on home improvements these past couple of years. Double boo. I spent most of the 29th in tears.
- BUT it is sold and we’re finally going to be together again. Quadruple yeah!
- I’ve shed about 1/2 of our furniture and all of our yard/garden/garage items. House and garage look like they’ve been robbed. Apartment will still look like a furniture store exploded inside it. It’s all about perspective.
- We’re hoping to close by the end of the month.
- I told Padawan Learner tonight, as we had a Mom’s dinner out, that he has given me the best Mother’s Day present ever in the way he has been handling this topsy-turvy, split household, back and forth to see Dad Windu, emotional roller-coaster of a move.
If all goes well, I’ll be able to write again in complete sentences and whole paragraphs soon.
Princess Leia: “I love you.”
Han Solo: ”I know.”
Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
I’m going to apologize to each and every heart-shaped box full of waxy chocolate lover out there right now. I don’t like Valentine’s Day. There I said it; I admit it.
I think the whole entire thing is a waste of cocoa beans and card-stock. I should be an ardent admirer of the day, having a mother who still – even 40 years after first becoming a mother -makes Valentines a must-do event for all her kids and grandson. She gets her panties in a major twist if she can’t get those red boxes to each of us by the big day. It’s sweet that she does it, even though she knows I tend to forget that Valentine’s Day is even upon us again.
I was very relieved to find, early in our dating years, that Dad Windu is also a Valentine’s humbug. Padawan Learner, no doubt because of our ”yeah, whatever” response to the marketing buildup each February, is equally blase’ about the day. (My apologies to his future spouse.)
I love Dad Windu and Padawan Learner with every fiber of my being, every beat of my heart. I don’t want a heart-shaped diamond necklace or even an over-sized card in a red envelope each February 14th as proof of their love for me. The hand massage when my knuckles hurt showed me that. The hug and kiss before going to bed reminds me of that. Going vegan for a month because I asked you to, more than speaks to your devotion my beloved carnivores. The dishwasher unloaded without me having to ask, gives me proof of your affection.
Here’s to you, DW and PL. No red box. No sparkly bauble. No glitter. Just love forever more.
That said, if you’re an ardent Valentine’s Day fan, I say more power to you. Live the dream. Eat the chocolate. Tear up over the handmade or store bought card. I hope it’s all you ever imaged it to be. And I promise to understand if you’re not as crazy about Halloween as I.
“May the force be with us all.” – Mace Windu, Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith
Happy Christmas to you all. May your day be merry, your families at peace, and this brief moment outside of the normal bustle of day-to-day busyness bring you into tomorrow and the coming year refreshed and relaxed.
“For my ally is the Force, and a powerful ally it is. Life creates it, makes it grow. Its energy surrounds us and binds us. Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter. You must feel the Force around you; here, between you, me, the tree, the rock, everywhere, yes. Even between the land and the ship.” – Yoda, Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
Still trying up loose ends? Frantic to get it all done so you can create the perfect celebration? Yeah, me too.
This was my Facebook status this morning. Aren’t we feeling sorry for ourselves?
Hot water heater working on and off making cooking and doing dishes an adventure, kitchen has been torn to shreds from the painting, we’re walking a maze through the living room (a la, Hoarders) due to kitchen stuff being dumped there – in addition to the tree which is not yet decorated – 11 people coming to my house in 4 days for food, fun & presents. Yup, must be Christmas time at the [Jedi] house.
Then Eileen Cook posted this today and I remembered, like I did last year at this same time, that it’s friends and family that matter at the holidays. Thanks for the reminder, e. Best wishes and lots of love to my favorite techie. Oh, and remind him to do his Lamaze breathing to control the pain.
PS – My nephew’s response to my semi-joking, semi-whining status: “leave all the stuff! we can have an epic game of hide-and-seek.” He’s definitely a glass half-full kind of guy.
“Why do I get the feeling you’re going to be the death of me?” – Obi-Wan Kenobi, Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones
Banket.
Lovely, glorious Banket.
Almond paste-based filling in a flaky pastry shell.
Divine.
A compact, triangular area in central West Michigan (in case you aren’t aware) was a hotbed of Dutch immigration from the late 1800s through the post-WWII era. You’d be hard-pressed in these parts to go a day without finding a town, a couple of roads and more than a few companies with Dutch monikers. Moving in, people joke about having to add Van, Vander or De to their last name to find a job. And while it’s not really THAT bad, it is obvious that an historically Dutch lineage prevails in this region, from their hard-core religious fundamentalism (most moved here as religious dissidents, the Netherlands becoming much too liberal for their tastes) to a decided tendency toward being… um… well… ok, there’s not nice way to say it… hard-core cheap. On their behalf, however, I must admit that the decidedly day-to-day cheapness often translates into being remarkably generous to the charities and non-profit organizations of their choice.
A few of the Dutch culinary specialties are still in full-force in these parts (for better or worse), from the unfortunate Hutspot (or the kale version - Stamppot – if you want extra nasty) to the borrowed Nasi Goreng (colonial-era Indonesian) to the utterly divine Christmas delicacy, Banket. While I’m sure you could eat this year-round, I mean there’s not a LAW against it or anything, it’s really a Christmas only treat in my husband’s family’s book. The start of the Christmas season equals Banket, and Banket equals the start of the Christmas season.
This is my mother-in-law’s Banket recipe, which she got from her mother-in-law, who was born in The Netherlands. So there.
Banket
(makes 8 sticks)
Dough:
1 pound butter (yes, 1 pound of real, honest-to-goodness unsalted butter)
4 cups white flour (no, this is not the time to try to sneak any whole grain flour into your life)
1 cup milk (2% is ok if you can’t bring yourself to use whole, but use whole – trust me)
Blend all together. Form into ball. Wrap well in waxed paper. Refrigerate 24 hours.
Filling:
1 pound almond paste (usually found in tub or brick form in the refrigerated section)
3 eggs (no, Egg-Beaters won’t work – why are trying to ruin the Banket???)
2 cups sugar (yes, good old fashioned white sugar that will kill us all in the end)
Blend all together. Wrap up in plastic wrap. Refrigerate 24 hours.
Assembly
Have on hand:
1-2 egg whites, beaten
white sugar (yes, more sugar, get over it already)
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- Divide the dough and filling into 8 parts.
- Roll out dough into very thin rectangle (approximately 6 x12). Store extra dough & filling in freezer, until needed.
- Spread filling, in a long tube, across the center of the rectangle.
- Fold one long edge of the rectangle over the filling.
- Fold both short ends of the rectangle towards the center.
- Using both hands (to keep first piece of the long rectangle folded over the filling), tightly roll the covered filling until it is completely covered by the remaining side of the dough rectangle. (Yes, it makes sense when you do it.)
- Set on parchment paper-lined baking sheet, with the dough edge underneath the Banket stick.
- Repeat above for 2nd Banket stick, leaving 3 inches between each stick.
- With a pastry brush, lightly coat the top of the Banket sticks with egg whites.
- Sprinkle sticks with sugar.
- Grab a fork and poke a few holes in the sticks to release some air while baking.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown all over. Do not over cook.
- Let cool for 20-30 minutes before cutting into 2-3 in pieces.
Notes:
- Banket sticks can be frozen, unbaked, for up to 6 months if tightly wrapped in plastic wrap. Do not allow sticks to be smooshed, bent or twisted in the freezer, as the dough will crack into pieces and the filling will maintain a semi-gooey consistency. Thaw approx 10 minutes before baking.
- Cupcake tins are really useful for keeping the individual dough and filling parts separated in the freezer, during assembly.
Obi-Wan Kenobi: “Just relax, concentrate.”
Anakin Skywalker: ”What about Padme?”
Obi-Wan Kenobi: “She seems to be on top of things.”
Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones
Ah, recharged batteries. Not only are they a beautiful thing in a camera, they’re also a beautiful thing in life.
I spent the last week pretty much unplugged, save reading a few blogs, and I enjoyed it very much. Sometimes I forget I can do things other than type. With Padawan Learner’s birthday and our first week off of the summer’s morning lessons, it was a good time to step back and do a few things I had been putting off like laundry reading and crafting and petting cats for more than a moment and hanging out with my two favorite men – add a long holiday weekend into that and so much the better.
Yesterday, I finished my week of pure relaxation with a trip out to The Lake to see Qui-Gon Jinn, Endicott and C-3PO at their cottage. We had a great time trying out the kayaks (well, the guys did – the moms chatted), sitting on the beach, soaking up the sun, having a yummy dinner together and relaxing some more later.
At all times, Indy, Head of Cottage Security, was available to protect us and eat our red licorice. He was prepared, on-guard and in control of the situation at all times, even when it looked like he wasn’t.
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