In African-American culture when the weather is warm and a celebration is at hand, you can be sure that someone is pulling out their grill. That's right, it's COOKOUT TIME. Just like any bbq, cookouts are a time when we get together with our families for fun, food, and fellowship. This weekend my sister-in-law is having a huge cookout to celebrate her two sons graduating. Her oldest, just graduated from Bridgewater State College and her youngest is graduating next week from Randolph High School. (Yay boys!) I for one, am ecstatic about tomorrow. Not just because I get to hang-out with my new family, but also because of the food that will be adorning every table. Now, I don't know how other cultures bbq, but us...we get down. It's like Christmas and Thanksgiving combined and held outdoors. There's usually a combination of barrel grills and standard size charcoal grills cooking every type of meat imaginable...some people even roast an entire pig. For dessert I'm sure you would find some of these family favorites: banana pudding, peach cobbler, apple pie, german chocolate cake, sweet potato pie, and red velvet cake.
In my previous blog I discussed my love for sweets, so you probably would think that the desserts would be my food highlight. EHH...wrong answer. The one thing that I absolutely love at a cookout is a hot dog. It's something about the smokey flavor of the charcoal cooked through the hot dog that drives me wild. A gas grilled hot dog doesn't have the same effect, so I don't eat them as much. Give me a hot dog with a side of baked beans and a little mac and cheese, and I'm golden. I don't even have to eat them with a bun, in fact I prefer them without a bun (only at a cookout).
Well, there you have it...my weekend plans - fun, food, and fellowship. And while I'm enjoying myself spending time with family, I won't forget that thousands of other men and women won't have that privilege. So, to every man and woman serving in the military or whoever served in the military - God Bless you and Happy Memorial Day.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Wait for the Cake
So, how many of us love sweets? I don't think there's a soul out there who can say that they're not a sweet lover. I mean even if you don't live and breathe for cakes, and cookies, and donuts, and brownies, and pies (OH MY!), some sort of sugar-infested treat sends you over the moon. When I was a little girl my grandmother always baked cakes. It didn't have to be a special reason, okay maybe...the sun was out and she felt the need to whip up some batter in a mixing bowl and bless us all. Chocolate cakes, vanilla cakes, butter cakes, yellow cakes, rum cakes, fruit cakes, pound cakes...the list can go on. And I'm not talking Duncan Heinz or Betty Crocker people. Ogreathea Daisy (my grandmama) used to make these babies from scratch. Now, occasionally she would use a boxed cake mix if she didn't feel like "really getting down and dirty", but even when she did she would put her own spin on it.
There was one cake in particular that I went gaga googoo for. It was her strawberry surprise cake with vanilla frosting. There were hints of strawberry pieces embodied in the cake and the frosting...like manna from heaven. And don't let her decide to make some homemade vanilla ice cream to accompany the cake. My God, my God, I can't even type this post I'm shaking so much. Memmmorrrrieeessss (sung in my Barbara Streisand voice). You won't be able to understand my emotions right now unless you had "THE CAKE" and "THE ICE CREAM".
Whew...let me calm down. Okay, so one day my grandmother was making "THE CAKE" and I was overjoyed. She always cautioned me to never run around the house when she was baking her cakes or open the oven door because the cake would fall. I usually obeyed her, but this day was different. I was unusually impatient for "THE CAKE", so I kept cracking open the oven door to see if it was ready. Well, my last peek was the cake's last chance. When my grandmother pulled her strawberry surprise out of the oven, it had deflated just like a helium balloon a couple of days after a party. She was livid and I was scared. I knew that although I wasn't going to get strawberry surprise...I was going to get a SURPRISE.
10 minutes later...
I walked to my room sniffling and wondering why was I so anxious this time around. Why couldn't I just wait until the cake was done? I couldn't figure it out then, but I know what it was now. It was the anticipation of knowing that I had something good coming my way.
How many times have you allowed your impatience to get the best of you? You've gotten wind that something great was coming your way and you just can't help but to peek at your cake to see if it's done. Please take it from me...wait for your cake. If we rush things before they're ready to be revealed or are complete, we affect the outcome. Our cake becomes flat and we become disappointed.
Now, maybe my grandmother could have salvaged "THE CAKE", but it was so unpleasant to look at and was hardly recognizable. It may have still smelled like strawberry surprise, but it looked more like a strawberry demise. No one would have eaten it. And although, you may be able to salvage your long anticipated cake, it won't be the same. So, again I say: Wait for the cake.
Be blessed
TAE
There was one cake in particular that I went gaga googoo for. It was her strawberry surprise cake with vanilla frosting. There were hints of strawberry pieces embodied in the cake and the frosting...like manna from heaven. And don't let her decide to make some homemade vanilla ice cream to accompany the cake. My God, my God, I can't even type this post I'm shaking so much. Memmmorrrrieeessss (sung in my Barbara Streisand voice). You won't be able to understand my emotions right now unless you had "THE CAKE" and "THE ICE CREAM".
Whew...let me calm down. Okay, so one day my grandmother was making "THE CAKE" and I was overjoyed. She always cautioned me to never run around the house when she was baking her cakes or open the oven door because the cake would fall. I usually obeyed her, but this day was different. I was unusually impatient for "THE CAKE", so I kept cracking open the oven door to see if it was ready. Well, my last peek was the cake's last chance. When my grandmother pulled her strawberry surprise out of the oven, it had deflated just like a helium balloon a couple of days after a party. She was livid and I was scared. I knew that although I wasn't going to get strawberry surprise...I was going to get a SURPRISE.
10 minutes later...
I walked to my room sniffling and wondering why was I so anxious this time around. Why couldn't I just wait until the cake was done? I couldn't figure it out then, but I know what it was now. It was the anticipation of knowing that I had something good coming my way.
How many times have you allowed your impatience to get the best of you? You've gotten wind that something great was coming your way and you just can't help but to peek at your cake to see if it's done. Please take it from me...wait for your cake. If we rush things before they're ready to be revealed or are complete, we affect the outcome. Our cake becomes flat and we become disappointed.
Now, maybe my grandmother could have salvaged "THE CAKE", but it was so unpleasant to look at and was hardly recognizable. It may have still smelled like strawberry surprise, but it looked more like a strawberry demise. No one would have eaten it. And although, you may be able to salvage your long anticipated cake, it won't be the same. So, again I say: Wait for the cake.
Be blessed
TAE
Monday, May 24, 2010
Humble Pie
Okay, so yesterday in church my pastor taught about humility and its importance. Now, if I'm honest with myself and you, I can recall a few times where I needed to eat not just a slice of humble pie, but the whole thing.
There was one time in particular where I was getting accolades for a play that I just performed in. Pride (and his subtle self) was just resting on my shoulders encouraging me to take all the glory. After the person walked away, I heard a voice inside me ask "Were you the only person in the play or did other people contribute to its success?" I dropped the smile from my face, went off to be by myself, and asked God to forgive me for being so prideful.
You see, I made the mistake that so many us make very often. I allowed myself to believe that it was all about me. I forgot that I wasn't the sole reason the play was a success. EVERYONE played a significant role in making the production a hit, which included the people on stage and off. In the bible there's two scriptures that I try to keep in the forefront of my mind whenever I do anything that may get positive feedback. The first is, "The Lord detests all the proud of heart. Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished (Proverbs 16:5) and "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall (Proverbs 16:18). Simply put, if you're not careful pride can bring you down.
I'm not saying that we shouldn't take pride in anything. There are many things that we should take pride in like appearance, good work ethics, manners, etc. These things are almost expected, but we must remember that's its not always about us.
Life is about being a blessing to others as we get blessed. If we hold all the success to ourselves how can someone else become successful? Not doing anything out of your own selfish ambition or vain conceit - that's what we learned yesterday in church, and that's what humility is.
So, the next time you feel pride creeping up alongside you, walk away and go grab a slice of pie...Humble that is.
Be blessed
TAE
There was one time in particular where I was getting accolades for a play that I just performed in. Pride (and his subtle self) was just resting on my shoulders encouraging me to take all the glory. After the person walked away, I heard a voice inside me ask "Were you the only person in the play or did other people contribute to its success?" I dropped the smile from my face, went off to be by myself, and asked God to forgive me for being so prideful.
You see, I made the mistake that so many us make very often. I allowed myself to believe that it was all about me. I forgot that I wasn't the sole reason the play was a success. EVERYONE played a significant role in making the production a hit, which included the people on stage and off. In the bible there's two scriptures that I try to keep in the forefront of my mind whenever I do anything that may get positive feedback. The first is, "The Lord detests all the proud of heart. Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished (Proverbs 16:5) and "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall (Proverbs 16:18). Simply put, if you're not careful pride can bring you down.
I'm not saying that we shouldn't take pride in anything. There are many things that we should take pride in like appearance, good work ethics, manners, etc. These things are almost expected, but we must remember that's its not always about us.
Life is about being a blessing to others as we get blessed. If we hold all the success to ourselves how can someone else become successful? Not doing anything out of your own selfish ambition or vain conceit - that's what we learned yesterday in church, and that's what humility is.
So, the next time you feel pride creeping up alongside you, walk away and go grab a slice of pie...Humble that is.
Be blessed
TAE
Who Am I
Hello everyone out there in blogger land. So, I was driving in my car on the way to work today and I realized that when I started this lovely venture of blogging that I didn't post an introductory blog, letting you know who I am. My apologies. My grandmama raised me way better than that. So, here goes:
I'm brown skin with dark brown hair and brown eyes. I'm shaped like coca-cola bottle. Some people say I look like Janet Jackson. I enjoy long walks on the beach...LOL. No sa. Just kidding, just kidding. I just couldn't resist doing that. If you look at my picture you can tell that I'm shaped more like a large figure eight than a coca-cola bottle. And Janet Jackson...I've never looked like and never will. I actually borrowed that line from one of my favorite movies, "Friday". That's one interest of mine, watching movies and television. My husband and I are HUGE movie buffs. Alone I'm sure I've watched well over 1,000 movies.
My other interests are cooking (hence the correlations in my blogs with food stories), shopping, fashion, writing (duh), music, and reading. I'm very creative and artsy. I'm also a visionary so, I like to do everything big. But lately, God has shown me that less is sometimes more. Oh, that's another thing. I'm a born again Christian. I boldly profess Jesus Christ to be my Lord and savior and I have no shame in my game.
Let's see...what else...oh, I love children. I've been working with youth of all ages for the past 15 years in a capacity of ways. (That kinda sounded like a line from a job cover page. Sorry). I'm currently work at a suburban middle school, so I get to hang out with kids all day. A little nerve racking at times because kids are kids, but always rewarding. One of the things I love about my job is I get to be me (crazy and goofy) while building relationships with the very people who are going to one day change and save lives.
Ummmmmm...I love, love, love to sing and listen to all types of music. I'm really big on lyrics so, I like it when the artist includes the words to their songs. Gospel, classic R&B, classic soul, old school rap, and country music are my favorites. I love country because the songs always have such a great story or message. (In my best Carrie Underwood voice..."And I don't even know his last name. My momma would be so ashamed)" Carrie, girl you is da bomb. I just love that song. I also like some pop and some rock too (mostly 80s rock). Aerosmith is genius!
Now, I know I'm going to sound like most middle-aged adults but...they just don't make music like they used to. Yeah, there are some exceptions, but man oh man these youngsters haven't got a clue. A lot of the music they put out today is garbage. The lyrics are shallow, predictable, and emotionless.
Moving right along...ummm...oh, I LOVE to laugh. One of my husband's best qualities is his sense of humor. My son is also extremely funny. When the both of them are together, I have to make sure I'm near a bathroom just in case things get a little wet downstairs - if you know what I mean.
Sooooo...that's a little bit about me. There's a whole lot more I can say about myself. Trust me, I can go on and on and on and on (see what I mean). But, I'm gonna stop right here. I hope you've enjoyed reading this as I certainly had fun writing it. Be sure to stop by later. I'll be posting something new.
Smooches
TAE
(BTW - TAE stands for Triumphing Above Expectations. It's a nickname I obtained in high school. I decided to make it an acronym because a lot of people thought that I was never going to amount to anything. But, Still I Rise.)
Oh - I love the word "love"
I'm brown skin with dark brown hair and brown eyes. I'm shaped like coca-cola bottle. Some people say I look like Janet Jackson. I enjoy long walks on the beach...LOL. No sa. Just kidding, just kidding. I just couldn't resist doing that. If you look at my picture you can tell that I'm shaped more like a large figure eight than a coca-cola bottle. And Janet Jackson...I've never looked like and never will. I actually borrowed that line from one of my favorite movies, "Friday". That's one interest of mine, watching movies and television. My husband and I are HUGE movie buffs. Alone I'm sure I've watched well over 1,000 movies.
My other interests are cooking (hence the correlations in my blogs with food stories), shopping, fashion, writing (duh), music, and reading. I'm very creative and artsy. I'm also a visionary so, I like to do everything big. But lately, God has shown me that less is sometimes more. Oh, that's another thing. I'm a born again Christian. I boldly profess Jesus Christ to be my Lord and savior and I have no shame in my game.
Let's see...what else...oh, I love children. I've been working with youth of all ages for the past 15 years in a capacity of ways. (That kinda sounded like a line from a job cover page. Sorry). I'm currently work at a suburban middle school, so I get to hang out with kids all day. A little nerve racking at times because kids are kids, but always rewarding. One of the things I love about my job is I get to be me (crazy and goofy) while building relationships with the very people who are going to one day change and save lives.
Ummmmmm...I love, love, love to sing and listen to all types of music. I'm really big on lyrics so, I like it when the artist includes the words to their songs. Gospel, classic R&B, classic soul, old school rap, and country music are my favorites. I love country because the songs always have such a great story or message. (In my best Carrie Underwood voice..."And I don't even know his last name. My momma would be so ashamed)" Carrie, girl you is da bomb. I just love that song. I also like some pop and some rock too (mostly 80s rock). Aerosmith is genius!
Now, I know I'm going to sound like most middle-aged adults but...they just don't make music like they used to. Yeah, there are some exceptions, but man oh man these youngsters haven't got a clue. A lot of the music they put out today is garbage. The lyrics are shallow, predictable, and emotionless.
Moving right along...ummm...oh, I LOVE to laugh. One of my husband's best qualities is his sense of humor. My son is also extremely funny. When the both of them are together, I have to make sure I'm near a bathroom just in case things get a little wet downstairs - if you know what I mean.
Sooooo...that's a little bit about me. There's a whole lot more I can say about myself. Trust me, I can go on and on and on and on (see what I mean). But, I'm gonna stop right here. I hope you've enjoyed reading this as I certainly had fun writing it. Be sure to stop by later. I'll be posting something new.
Smooches
TAE
(BTW - TAE stands for Triumphing Above Expectations. It's a nickname I obtained in high school. I decided to make it an acronym because a lot of people thought that I was never going to amount to anything. But, Still I Rise.)
Oh - I love the word "love"
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Unique Spices
What is about spices that bring that extra something, something to our food? Whether it's black pepper, garlic powder, paprika, or salt, spices just make our food taste better. Well, each of us have a little spice in us also. When God created us he didn't make us bland. He took his time to prepare us with just the right ingredients to make us who we are. Just like no two spices are the same, no two people are the same. Yeah, we may have similar characteristics, but we're still unique. We all bring something different to the pot. When God made each of us he broke the mold. Once I'm gone there's never gonna be another me, and once you're gone there's never gonna be another you. Therefore, no matter how hard someone tries, they'll never be able to duplicate our spice.
So, if you find yourself wrestling with yourself and desiring to be like Mary, Beth, Sue or Tom, Dick, and Harry...STOP! The world needs your unique spice to give it some flavor.
Be blessed
TAE
So, if you find yourself wrestling with yourself and desiring to be like Mary, Beth, Sue or Tom, Dick, and Harry...STOP! The world needs your unique spice to give it some flavor.
Be blessed
TAE
Reflection
Upon cooking my first Thanksgiving dinner in my own apartment I remember feeling a sense of excitement and nervousness. Being 19 and on my own with two children was challenging enough, but now I was adding cooking Thanksgiving dinner for a house full of family and friends to my equation. I wasn't too sure that my results would be favorable so I began to think about some of the Thanksgiving turkey horror stories that I had either heard or read about. I wanted to remind myself of what to do and what not to do.
Now, I'm sure that many of you have heard of some of these stories : The story of the person who didn't know the importance of basting so, their turkey turned out being as dry as the Sahara Desert, or the story of the person who left their turkey in the oven too long and ended up with a "cajun-style" bird. Or one of my favorites, the person who didn't know that the butcher leaves a little "surprise" in the abdominal cavity of the turkey. They carve their bird and...SURPRISE! There's a pouch of guts inside.
One story in particular really stayed with me for some reason. It's the story of the person who enticed their family all day with heavenly aromas from the kitchen. They finally emerged from the kitchen with their main attraction gorgeously presented on a white ceramic platter. They set the bird down on the dining room table and a chorus of oh's and aw's begin to fill the room. With carving knife and fork in hand, they begin to slice into this mouth-watering fowl only to find that it's rock solid.
Huh? What happened? you asked. Well, apparently the person was a new cook and was unfamiliar with helpful cooking devices such as an instant read thermometer that would have aided them in cooking a well-done bird. Instead they relied on what they saw, a beautiful brown bird, that led them to believe it was allll good.
Just like that turkey, we can also give the appearance that we're fully cooked. We walk around with rose colored glasses on, gazing in mirrors and believing that we have it going on. But the truth of the matter is that the reflection looking back at us is distorted. Our rose colored glasses keeps us from truly seeing who we really are, therefore change is never made.
Now, let me be the first to say that holding a mirror in front of yourself is not an easy task. When we do this we're subject to see a bunch of flaws. For some of us our reflection may reveal anger and bitterness, while in others it may reveal jealousy or pain. Seeing features like these can be quite alarming and disheartening, which is why some of us choose to keep our glasses on. But, if we're ever going to become the people that God intended for us to be, then we have to remove our glasses and embrace the person looking back at us.
To me, the most important step to becoming a better person is acknowledging that you need to change. And while you're changing be encouraged. As the saying goes Rome wasn't built in a day. It's going to take time and effort, but I'm confident that in the end you'll emerge like a well cooked turkey - juicy and tender with every bite.
Be blessed
TAE
Now, I'm sure that many of you have heard of some of these stories : The story of the person who didn't know the importance of basting so, their turkey turned out being as dry as the Sahara Desert, or the story of the person who left their turkey in the oven too long and ended up with a "cajun-style" bird. Or one of my favorites, the person who didn't know that the butcher leaves a little "surprise" in the abdominal cavity of the turkey. They carve their bird and...SURPRISE! There's a pouch of guts inside.
One story in particular really stayed with me for some reason. It's the story of the person who enticed their family all day with heavenly aromas from the kitchen. They finally emerged from the kitchen with their main attraction gorgeously presented on a white ceramic platter. They set the bird down on the dining room table and a chorus of oh's and aw's begin to fill the room. With carving knife and fork in hand, they begin to slice into this mouth-watering fowl only to find that it's rock solid.
Huh? What happened? you asked. Well, apparently the person was a new cook and was unfamiliar with helpful cooking devices such as an instant read thermometer that would have aided them in cooking a well-done bird. Instead they relied on what they saw, a beautiful brown bird, that led them to believe it was allll good.
Just like that turkey, we can also give the appearance that we're fully cooked. We walk around with rose colored glasses on, gazing in mirrors and believing that we have it going on. But the truth of the matter is that the reflection looking back at us is distorted. Our rose colored glasses keeps us from truly seeing who we really are, therefore change is never made.
Now, let me be the first to say that holding a mirror in front of yourself is not an easy task. When we do this we're subject to see a bunch of flaws. For some of us our reflection may reveal anger and bitterness, while in others it may reveal jealousy or pain. Seeing features like these can be quite alarming and disheartening, which is why some of us choose to keep our glasses on. But, if we're ever going to become the people that God intended for us to be, then we have to remove our glasses and embrace the person looking back at us.
To me, the most important step to becoming a better person is acknowledging that you need to change. And while you're changing be encouraged. As the saying goes Rome wasn't built in a day. It's going to take time and effort, but I'm confident that in the end you'll emerge like a well cooked turkey - juicy and tender with every bite.
Be blessed
TAE
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