Pippi and New Guitar
Remember the old story of the guy who got into a cab in NYC and asked how to get to Carnegie Hall? The cabbie said “Practice.”
I’m already thinking of what to make tomorrow and especially planning for when my brother-in-law comes in for a few days later this month as I want it to be an easy trip for him so have all home meals planned.
These days I answer questions from all kinds of people, family and friends, new brides etc. about cooking. I know that most people won’t do what I did, quit work and go to a prestigious cooking school, so offer alternatives.
Two months ago I took up acoustic guitar. I’m a novice. I look to people who know more than me to teach me how to make this chord happen and how to strum it. How to sing while playing the guitar. How to hit the right chord while singing the right note and strumming correctly.
In cooking, as long as it doesn’t involve complicated recipes or sauces or, heaven forbid, a complicated dessert, I’m OK. I’m in my comfort zone.
What is the link? OK, a dedication to doing what is best for you and your family. But the biggest one is “PRACTICE,” Know what you want to make tastes like or sounds like and try to achieve that. The sauce or song may not be fully “cooked.”
I have perhaps 12 versions of Mac and Cheese and several for every stew I make. Potato salad is different every time. Once I know the rules I can break them and make even better food.
A novice, newbie, it would be great to get to that point in music. It may even be the reason I chose music at this time in my life, not that I’m an expert cook but it would be nice to expand my horizons.
I know, you fellow gals call it menopause. Hope your hormones are sending you into directions that help you define yourself in other ways as well. Oh, we loved Ice Age! We saw it today but not in 3-D. We saw “UP” in 3-D. Yes, we go to kid movies and don’t have kids. We don’t even have kids to borrow here, but have fun together.
p.s. some of the dearest people knit, and find their way to complicated hat patterns like pdxknitterati’s Pippi Longstocking cap, which she kindly sent me to battle the Utah snows. Aunt Lorna alternates between knitting shawls for the local nursing home or the preemie ward at the children’s hospital an hour away. God bless the knitters. While my fingers may cook up a storm or play an old gospel song, you warm peoples’ souls in a way I cannot.
Cooking with Dee 