It’s that time of year! We are right in the thick of it! Caroles playing everywhere: elevators, offices, department stores, grocery stores, dentist offices ( Owww! ).
Yes. In spite of the merriment playing all around us, some of us have to have a tooth pulled while listening to Frosty the Snowman. Not Fun! Some of us are buried up to our necks in snow…which can be fun if the electricity did NOT go out at the same time the snow fell! Puts me in mind of the years we spent in Atlanta and the ice storms. Bob and Susan Rulli and Rick and I and the kids would play in the ice and snow then retire to the Rulli’s and make beignets. Yumm! Best thing ever with hot coco or coffee! Let’s see… as I recall it’s the same recipe for cream-puffs:
1 C water, 1/2 t. salt, 2t sugar, 6 tables. unsalted butter, cut into small chunks, 1 C. flour, 4 lg. eggs–
- heat water, salt, sugar & butter in small saucepan till butter is mellted.
- remove from heat and dump all the flour in at once!
- put the pan back on the heat and stir rapidly till mixture is smooth and pulls away from the sides of the pan.
- allow dough to cool for 2 minutes.
- beat in the eggs…one at a time…till smooth and shiny.
- heat vegetable oil in large cast-iron pan to 400 degrees
- gently place a large spoonfull of batter in hot oil. add several more without crowding them.
- When they brown and crisp, take them out and place on large brown grocery bag to soak up excess fat.
- Fill a bag with powdered sugar, drop them in the bag, one at a time , and “voila”…they are begnets. Fill the bag with cinnamon sugar and “voila” you’ve got Churros . Either way they are delicious! And they warm your heart as you serve them while they are warm!
Oh the memories float around in my head this time of the year. Atlanta, San Francisco, Boston, Cupertino, New York, Oklahoma then here, to Las Vegas. We moved quite a bit and made good friends everywhere we lived. It seems like we made the best friends when the boys were young and the neighbors helped raise all the children. It was great fun and wonderful memories!
- Memories of a lovely man who went by the name of Bob Rulli, who could make anyone happy with his laugh and his cooking skills. Jean and Ted Little and their precious Jennie, Leslie, Jill and Alan. And the Whites. Fun-ny! That was Atlanta… great friends..great fun. In Oklahoma it was Zelda and she taught me how to talk about sex to teenagers at Planned Parenthood. In San Francisco it was my beautiful friend Jan who taught me to sing black gospel with a choir in Oakland. And Vera who is the mother of a most amazing California Beauty Queen. Our wonderful next-door neighbors on Eagle Drive in Marin, John and Barbara Gay and oh the wonderful ski jaunts to Heavenly. Barb and I would pack a lunch and we’d head out in the dark hours of morning with Wendy and Greg and Kimmy and Brooks packed in the back with all their gear. And we’d have the most glorious time skiing down that mountain, with the sun on our faces with the crisp, fresh, cold air. It was fabulous fun! In New York I got to know my sister in law, Dawn. I loved her so much. If she were still alive, I’d ask her to remember the time we put the top down on the convertible and put her extremely tall lamp in the back seat and slowly drove from the Bowery to East 64th St. trying to avoid the red lights just to save the delivery fee! We laughed so hard we cried. I loved her so. In Boston, I got locked on the roof of our condo on an especially cold morning in my pj’s and robe! I had climbed the stairs to show the roof repair man how to get to the roof and the wind caught the door behind us and automatically locked. It was freezing! We threw pebbles at people trying to get their attention. About 45 minutes later we began to scream at the people coming into the building and finally got someone to come let us off the roof. It was funny later, but not at the time. The roof guy thought I was crazy. It was in Boston I got my M.Ed, from Boston University and began my journey working with mental health. So many memories. Tears and laughter to fill my lifetime. And lots of love!
I think when we enter our 70’s we should all receive a chrystal ball and can return to those wonderful times for a few hours. It would be so much fun to see all of those lovely friends once again.
In the meantime, I wish peace and courage for all of you for 2019. I think we are going to need it. I also wish you kindness and joy and love. Peace out people.