I Love Sunday; That's My Funday

The moment calendar days can be seen on next month's page, I impatiently fast-forward to that page.

I'm inking in all the things I've planned for April. 

Yes, I have an online calendar - but I still put everything on my kitchen calendar.  It's on the small sliver of wall space next to the counter that holds the coffee pot.  I like seeing my month at a glance as, I pour my first cup of dark brew.  Mom says my coffee is more espresso-esque. 

Last year's calendar was doors as incentive to open new ones. This year I chose butterflies which symbolize metamorphosis as incentive to...

Bacon is in the oven, as I'm too lazy to nurse it on the stovetop. Jazzmine is purring loudly in the chair across from me as the aroma fills the kitchen.  She's hoping for a taste or two. I'm sipping my third cup of coffee, just poured my first glass of champagne and watching CBS Sunday Morning on the tiny TV in the corner of the

kitchen.

I love Sundays. Cheers y'all 

No Aroma says Sunday Like Soup simmering

My mother did it and I do, too.  I toss leftover vegetables into a container in the freezer. When dinner is over there's always a smidge of peas, 2 spoons of carrots, a scoop of mashed potatoes, half cup of cauliflower or a cup of beans.  I could toss them, but it seems wasteful.

My Mom used Tupperware; I use a large yogurt container and various Ziploc bags. Mom's was called 'Soup Surprise'; mine is called 'Mystery Soup'. Note: Save meats separately.

When the vegetable container is full it’s time for soup or a hearty pasta with vegetable sauce.  Bear in mind that a hearty soup needs more substance than just broth and vegetables: a can of diced tomatoes, potatoes or sweet potatoes.

Sassy Sweet Potato Soup
Ingredients:

1-2       Tbs extra virgin olive oil, butter or oil of choice

1          Small onion chopped

1          Clove garlic smashed

1          Tsp cumin

1          Tsp coriander

1/2       Tsp ginger

3          Cups chicken or vegetable stock or water with 2 dissolved Knorr bouillon cubes.

3-4       sweet potatoes, peeled and diced

1          Lb bag of carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

1          Container of ‘Mystery Soup’ vegetables.

Directions:

1. Sauté onion 1 minute; add garlic and spices and stir 1 minute more.
2. Deglaze pan with a splash of vermouth, or any item in step 3.
3. Add stock or water and bouillon cubes. Stir well to deglaze pan completely.
4. Add chopped sweet potatoes and carrots and simmer till al dente. (Note: you can substitute all carrots or all sweet potatoes if you prefer)
5. Puree potatoes/carrots using immersion blender or in batches in regular blender
6. Add ‘Mystery Soup’ vegetables whole or cut into small pieces.
7. When soup comes back to boil, turn down to simmer for 10 more minutes stirring frequently to avoid sticking.
8. Salt and Pepper to taste.
9. Garnish with dollop of yogurt or sour cream or chives.
10. Serve with garlic or pesto toast.

Servings 4-6. Prep/cook time: 35 minutes

RIP Sunday Paper

I love print.  As long as I can remember, the Sunday paper has been synonymous with Sunday.  It's is a ritual.  When I lived in Arlington, Texas, I was in Sunday paper heaven: The Dallas Morning News and the Fort Worth Star Telegram. 

I've never subscribed to the Birmingham News, but rain or shine, I pick it up on my Sunday morning walk if I stop in at Western or the Texaco.  When I don't walk, I cross the street to the vending machine in front of Dreamland BBQ by Phelan Park.

My coffee close at hand, I separate the pieces in the order I intend to read them:

1. Ads and coupons on top, 
2. Comics next after tearing off that annoying advertising appendage and discarding it along with the sports and real estate sections that I never read.
3. Parade, then Lifestyle
4. Play which contains the tv guide, and which I hate.  We once had a separate tv-guide until some bright person improved it (note: it is not an improvement).  Now, I have to cut away the extraneous never-to-be read again stuff and staple the then loose TV-guide pages for future reference during the week.  
5. Local, then Money
6. Front page section is usually just various bad news,except in fall and winter when it is always Alabama football, and then I ignore it all together.  You'd think the sports section is big enough for this non-news of a game watched by everyone who cared and they all know who won.
7. Jobs classified is now tucked in behind a page covered in car ads, but at least I'm forewarned - in Bold solid caps on top I am told "EMPLOYMENT SECTION INSIDE"..

In the twenty years I've lived in Birmingham, I've read the paper every Sunday.  I even buy it on major holidays in spite of the fact they jack up the price to Sunday rates.  They say it's to pay for the ads.  Excuse me, but didn't the advertisers pay for those ads.  Why should I have to pay more to be advertised to.

Slowly but surely, the Birmingham News has devolved.  Perhaps it's the economic times, but I would think they would give instead of take to keep us and garner new readers.  Such is not the case.

This Sunday, as I sipped my coffee and began disassembling and reassembling my paper, I thought it was defective. There was a page missing from my comics.  There were four pages instead of six.  I thought, well mistakes happen.  I'll borrow my neighbors later - vending machines don't do exchanges.

Then I read Tom Scarritt on page 1F, and here I found out that I didn't have a defective comic section.  The section had been reduced to four pages from six, but I still had to trim off the ubiquitous ad.

That was the last straw. The Birmingham Sunday paper is not what it used to be, and this past Sunday's may well be the last I ever buy. Two Dollars is too much to spend on so little. I might buy the NYTimes, or the Atlanta Constitution for an occasional Sunday fix, get my TV-Guide on-line, my comics from Chicago Times.com.

Curling up with a laptop (eventually, an ipad) on the couch isn't quite the same, but the content is more satisfying. I'll miss print, but such is life.

(c) Perle Champion