Pan Biscuits, Farts, Belches, Tantrums and Chats
Or as I like to call it, my weekend review. ;-)
Yes, my friends, it's that time of week again where I bore you with the infinite tedious details of my weekend. Sit back, relax and load up on some caffeine. hehe
I have a crap car. It's a '91 so it isn't exactly ancient but, well, it isn't new either. I've had it for nearly 6 years and have had to put some kind of work in it each year. This year it was the starter, a fan and a sensor that I had to have replaced. Last year it was the breaks, two tires and an alignment. Well, the first time I ever drove the hour or more to Sis2's new home was when the fan and the sensor bit the dust leaving me at a truck stop some 7 miles or so from my sister's home. Despite the fact that the guy who worked on it for me was a total and complete hottie, I'm still a bit traumatized by this experience. There is nothing more frightening to youngish single woman who hates to drive anyway than to be forced to pull over in strange uncharted territory when her car overheats...and to pull up to a truck stop/repair shop.
Though I survived that particular ordeal safely and have made one other trip since then, I am still nervous about driving my car that long a distance. When my sister invited me to spend the weekend with her, I didn't hesitate about saying yes. You've all discovered, I'm sure, just how deeply I've missed her since her marriage in June and just how little time I ever get to see her or talk to her for any amount of quality time. It didn't sink in until about Thursday of last week just what my going to visit her meant. It meant that I'd be driving my car some 70 or more miles. Immediate worry, sleeplessness and nerves set in making me a wreck by the time Saturday morning came. But, saying a fervent, heartfelt prayer, I turned myself over to the hands of God and he didn't disappoint. I made it to my sister's home at 8:30 Saturday morning without any car problems. Gas had even come down 10 cents when I filled up! ;-)
I have a running joke with Sis2 that I bring mass destruction wherever I go. Although it's a joke, there seems to be a grain of truth to it as it never fails that whenever I visit her, something dramatic or inconvenient happens. As I mentioned, the first trip brought car troubles for me. The second time I went to visit her their hot water heater went out. This time it was the circuit breaker.
Sis2 had promised me that she would make me breakfast when I got there since I was coming so early. In the proud way newlyweds do, she had dragged out one of her wedding presents, a Presto electric griddle, and was going to cook me pancakes and bacon. Pancakes poured and bacon laid out on the griddle, we stood at the counter talking up a storm, chattering like magpies for nearly 10 minutes before we realized that "hey, shouldn't that bacon be sizzling by now and those pancakes...shouldn't they be bubbling up at least?" Sis touched the pan and it was just barely warm. Checked the temp. and it was set at 400. This thing should be blazing hot and breakfast should be mostly cooked by now. So we fiddled with it. Sis got mad calling the griddle a cheap piece of crap as she had only used it once before and eventually moved the bacon to the microwave and the pancakes to a skillet on the stove.
Here's where the pan biscuits part comes in. Sis2 used to make beautiful golden delicious pancakes. For years when we both lived at home and then when she lived in her apartment she always made wonderful pancakes. These, well, they looked like pancakes on steroids and tasted more like biscuits. Not bad but not what we wanted either. LOL
After breakfast, we were cleaning up the kitchen and Sis went to empty the dishwasher. When I first got there an hour before, she had been running a load through already. Well, an hour later, the dial was still on the "dry" cycle. It had stopped! So now, she can't figure out what the heck is wrong. BIL is laying on the couch watching football like he has been since I got there and she has to make him get up. Now, I've been around a lot of men in my life and I've learned that they generally don't listen to a word that women say when it comes to "fixing" house problems and such. Most men, if given a suggestion by a woman, would snort, scoff and then muck around until finally coming to the same conclusion that the woman initially gave. Well, BIL I could tell, was tempted to do just that but apparently thought better of it because when I suggested that it could be the circuit breaker tripped he only hesitated briefly and scoffed mildly before going to get a little tool thingy he got at his "bachelor" party and checked the outlet to see if it was hot. It wasn't. Sure enough, a trip to the breaker box proved that a circuit had, indeed, tripped. *smirk* It was almost painless, I'm certain.
From there, the rest of the day went rather smoothly. Sis2 spent a long while sitting at the kitchen table talking while BIL laid on the couch farting, belching and watching sports on TV. I guess I should be flattered that he feels comfortable enough around me to let it all hang out, right? lol
It was really great to be able to sit and talk for hours with Sis2 and not have worry about rushing home or anything. We eventually moved from the kitchen to the living room and then back to the kitchen. The only snag came was when BIL answered the phone. Now, why anyone with caller ID would answer the phone to someone who they know are going to upset them is beyond me. It's called screening, people. Duh! But okay, so it was his mom. Generally folks should answer the phone when their moms call. But, so far, he's only had bad experience with it. The phone call lead to him agreeing to stop by her house for ice cream after the movie we were going to go see. This, in turn, led to Sis2 being more than a little pissed off. I'm guessing you've guessed by now that Sis2 doesn't have a warm and fuzzy relationship with her MIL. At best, her MIL is a buttinski. At worst she's Satan. Seriously.
So, BIL was in the deep freeze for the rest of the night. He got the cold shoulder, big time. I felt kind of bad for him because, well, it's his mom. Sure, he could have said no since he knew Sis would be mad but men are just little boys when it comes to their moms, you know? And it wasn't like his mom had demanded that they give her their first born child. (Tho I'm sure that she will once they have it. lol) I tried to ease some of the tension but I'm not sure if I helped things or just made them worse. All through supper he had this kicked puppy look on his face and she would only talk to me. I never know how to handle these situations. I don't deal well with tense situations anyway and I felt torn. My first loyalty is always to my sister over a BIL and I'm not the BIL's greatest fan anyway. But I did feel bad for him.
But, we did go to the movie and ended up not having to go to his mom's for ice cream because she decided that 9:00 was too late for ice cream. Duh, lady. I coulda told you that when you asked. *rolls eyes*
Don't really want to know what happened between 9:30 Saturday night and 7:30 Sunday morning but apparently BIL was out of the deep freeze and all was well by the time we left for church Sunday morning. They held hands in the truck and he put his arm around her during the sermon. It was generally a gagfest. lol
Now, their church. I must admit to having experienced a little bit of anxiety about going to their church. It is, for all intents and purposes, a society church if you know what I mean. It's not only a huge church, but all the influential people in their town go there. His mom is a hoity toity something or other there as well. I'm a little hillbilly redneck from the boonies who occasionally slipps and reverts back to speaking redneck phrases like "I ain't got no--" I am not a socially inept person. I lack social graces of any sort and don't have the $$$ to dress as well either. But, a church is, after all, just a church. It isn't a ballroom gala or a palace that will have you evicted if you aren't registered on the social totem pole. Though I was largely ignored, I wasn't ousted out and no one stared at me with indignation or judgment. Like I said, I was largely ignored which suited me fine.
Sunday school...well, I'm not a Sunday school kind of gal. Anything that requires participation or group interactions you can hang it up. Not only am I social inept, I'm also embarrassingly shy. I stutter if directly addressed, I blush to the roots of my hair as I stutter and I generally come off looking like the village idiot. I did warn Sis and BIL that I don't do Sunday school but they insisted. Sure enough I did my village idiot routine and I'm certain I saw at least two people looking at me with pity and one looking at me like I'd dropped out of outter space. Whether or not it embarrassed Sis or BIL I don't know. They were kind enough not to say.
After Sunday school we trooped back to BIL's mom's house where we then set out to lunch at her favorite restaurant. Now, Sis2 regaled me endlessly with stories about this Sunday routine. One specific place, one specific table and one specific waitress. Unfortunately, her favorite waitress was out and we had to settle for another poor soul who was forced to endure the degradation of waiting on a woman who apparently thinks she owns the place...if not the whole world. I swear, if I'd been that poor waitress I'd have done a lot of spitting on food.
But, egos aside, the food was great. It's this little "homecooking" type restaurant that serves good old fashioned food with homecooked flavor. I had broiled shrimp, mac and cheese, asparagus casserole, a yummy yeast roll and a slice of butter pecan pie. Unfortunately, since we were eating on "the queen's" schedule, I didn't get to finish my mac and cheese or casserole. I did manage to swipe the last bite of roll off my plate before it was whisked from me.
After lunch, we went back to "the queen's" house and sat for a while. Sis2 and BIL cuddled on the couch giggling like teenagers leaving me to converse with his mom. She isn't so horrid when she really puts her mind to it. I had gotten over her unfortunate restaurant behavior by the time we left.
The rest of the afternoon was spent with me and Sis2 sprawled out on the bed squeezing the very last ounce of conversation before I had to leave and BIL once again farting belching and watching sports on the couch. My mom called around 4:30 wanting to know if I'd left yet. She was worried that I wouldn't have the good sense to leave before dark. A valid concern seeing as how the previous trips have seen me driving home in the dark. But hey, it's open highway, mostly four lane all the way. What's the big deal? LOL
But I did make it home safe and sound and in plenty of time to watch Desperate Housewives. I place the obligatory phone calls to Sis2 and my folks to let them know I made it and sacked out.
This morning my break light came on on the way to work. *sigh*
Yes, my friends, it's that time of week again where I bore you with the infinite tedious details of my weekend. Sit back, relax and load up on some caffeine. hehe
I have a crap car. It's a '91 so it isn't exactly ancient but, well, it isn't new either. I've had it for nearly 6 years and have had to put some kind of work in it each year. This year it was the starter, a fan and a sensor that I had to have replaced. Last year it was the breaks, two tires and an alignment. Well, the first time I ever drove the hour or more to Sis2's new home was when the fan and the sensor bit the dust leaving me at a truck stop some 7 miles or so from my sister's home. Despite the fact that the guy who worked on it for me was a total and complete hottie, I'm still a bit traumatized by this experience. There is nothing more frightening to youngish single woman who hates to drive anyway than to be forced to pull over in strange uncharted territory when her car overheats...and to pull up to a truck stop/repair shop.
Though I survived that particular ordeal safely and have made one other trip since then, I am still nervous about driving my car that long a distance. When my sister invited me to spend the weekend with her, I didn't hesitate about saying yes. You've all discovered, I'm sure, just how deeply I've missed her since her marriage in June and just how little time I ever get to see her or talk to her for any amount of quality time. It didn't sink in until about Thursday of last week just what my going to visit her meant. It meant that I'd be driving my car some 70 or more miles. Immediate worry, sleeplessness and nerves set in making me a wreck by the time Saturday morning came. But, saying a fervent, heartfelt prayer, I turned myself over to the hands of God and he didn't disappoint. I made it to my sister's home at 8:30 Saturday morning without any car problems. Gas had even come down 10 cents when I filled up! ;-)
I have a running joke with Sis2 that I bring mass destruction wherever I go. Although it's a joke, there seems to be a grain of truth to it as it never fails that whenever I visit her, something dramatic or inconvenient happens. As I mentioned, the first trip brought car troubles for me. The second time I went to visit her their hot water heater went out. This time it was the circuit breaker.
Sis2 had promised me that she would make me breakfast when I got there since I was coming so early. In the proud way newlyweds do, she had dragged out one of her wedding presents, a Presto electric griddle, and was going to cook me pancakes and bacon. Pancakes poured and bacon laid out on the griddle, we stood at the counter talking up a storm, chattering like magpies for nearly 10 minutes before we realized that "hey, shouldn't that bacon be sizzling by now and those pancakes...shouldn't they be bubbling up at least?" Sis touched the pan and it was just barely warm. Checked the temp. and it was set at 400. This thing should be blazing hot and breakfast should be mostly cooked by now. So we fiddled with it. Sis got mad calling the griddle a cheap piece of crap as she had only used it once before and eventually moved the bacon to the microwave and the pancakes to a skillet on the stove.
Here's where the pan biscuits part comes in. Sis2 used to make beautiful golden delicious pancakes. For years when we both lived at home and then when she lived in her apartment she always made wonderful pancakes. These, well, they looked like pancakes on steroids and tasted more like biscuits. Not bad but not what we wanted either. LOL
After breakfast, we were cleaning up the kitchen and Sis went to empty the dishwasher. When I first got there an hour before, she had been running a load through already. Well, an hour later, the dial was still on the "dry" cycle. It had stopped! So now, she can't figure out what the heck is wrong. BIL is laying on the couch watching football like he has been since I got there and she has to make him get up. Now, I've been around a lot of men in my life and I've learned that they generally don't listen to a word that women say when it comes to "fixing" house problems and such. Most men, if given a suggestion by a woman, would snort, scoff and then muck around until finally coming to the same conclusion that the woman initially gave. Well, BIL I could tell, was tempted to do just that but apparently thought better of it because when I suggested that it could be the circuit breaker tripped he only hesitated briefly and scoffed mildly before going to get a little tool thingy he got at his "bachelor" party and checked the outlet to see if it was hot. It wasn't. Sure enough, a trip to the breaker box proved that a circuit had, indeed, tripped. *smirk* It was almost painless, I'm certain.
From there, the rest of the day went rather smoothly. Sis2 spent a long while sitting at the kitchen table talking while BIL laid on the couch farting, belching and watching sports on TV. I guess I should be flattered that he feels comfortable enough around me to let it all hang out, right? lol
It was really great to be able to sit and talk for hours with Sis2 and not have worry about rushing home or anything. We eventually moved from the kitchen to the living room and then back to the kitchen. The only snag came was when BIL answered the phone. Now, why anyone with caller ID would answer the phone to someone who they know are going to upset them is beyond me. It's called screening, people. Duh! But okay, so it was his mom. Generally folks should answer the phone when their moms call. But, so far, he's only had bad experience with it. The phone call lead to him agreeing to stop by her house for ice cream after the movie we were going to go see. This, in turn, led to Sis2 being more than a little pissed off. I'm guessing you've guessed by now that Sis2 doesn't have a warm and fuzzy relationship with her MIL. At best, her MIL is a buttinski. At worst she's Satan. Seriously.
So, BIL was in the deep freeze for the rest of the night. He got the cold shoulder, big time. I felt kind of bad for him because, well, it's his mom. Sure, he could have said no since he knew Sis would be mad but men are just little boys when it comes to their moms, you know? And it wasn't like his mom had demanded that they give her their first born child. (Tho I'm sure that she will once they have it. lol) I tried to ease some of the tension but I'm not sure if I helped things or just made them worse. All through supper he had this kicked puppy look on his face and she would only talk to me. I never know how to handle these situations. I don't deal well with tense situations anyway and I felt torn. My first loyalty is always to my sister over a BIL and I'm not the BIL's greatest fan anyway. But I did feel bad for him.
But, we did go to the movie and ended up not having to go to his mom's for ice cream because she decided that 9:00 was too late for ice cream. Duh, lady. I coulda told you that when you asked. *rolls eyes*
Don't really want to know what happened between 9:30 Saturday night and 7:30 Sunday morning but apparently BIL was out of the deep freeze and all was well by the time we left for church Sunday morning. They held hands in the truck and he put his arm around her during the sermon. It was generally a gagfest. lol
Now, their church. I must admit to having experienced a little bit of anxiety about going to their church. It is, for all intents and purposes, a society church if you know what I mean. It's not only a huge church, but all the influential people in their town go there. His mom is a hoity toity something or other there as well. I'm a little hillbilly redneck from the boonies who occasionally slipps and reverts back to speaking redneck phrases like "I ain't got no--" I am not a socially inept person. I lack social graces of any sort and don't have the $$$ to dress as well either. But, a church is, after all, just a church. It isn't a ballroom gala or a palace that will have you evicted if you aren't registered on the social totem pole. Though I was largely ignored, I wasn't ousted out and no one stared at me with indignation or judgment. Like I said, I was largely ignored which suited me fine.
Sunday school...well, I'm not a Sunday school kind of gal. Anything that requires participation or group interactions you can hang it up. Not only am I social inept, I'm also embarrassingly shy. I stutter if directly addressed, I blush to the roots of my hair as I stutter and I generally come off looking like the village idiot. I did warn Sis and BIL that I don't do Sunday school but they insisted. Sure enough I did my village idiot routine and I'm certain I saw at least two people looking at me with pity and one looking at me like I'd dropped out of outter space. Whether or not it embarrassed Sis or BIL I don't know. They were kind enough not to say.
After Sunday school we trooped back to BIL's mom's house where we then set out to lunch at her favorite restaurant. Now, Sis2 regaled me endlessly with stories about this Sunday routine. One specific place, one specific table and one specific waitress. Unfortunately, her favorite waitress was out and we had to settle for another poor soul who was forced to endure the degradation of waiting on a woman who apparently thinks she owns the place...if not the whole world. I swear, if I'd been that poor waitress I'd have done a lot of spitting on food.
But, egos aside, the food was great. It's this little "homecooking" type restaurant that serves good old fashioned food with homecooked flavor. I had broiled shrimp, mac and cheese, asparagus casserole, a yummy yeast roll and a slice of butter pecan pie. Unfortunately, since we were eating on "the queen's" schedule, I didn't get to finish my mac and cheese or casserole. I did manage to swipe the last bite of roll off my plate before it was whisked from me.
After lunch, we went back to "the queen's" house and sat for a while. Sis2 and BIL cuddled on the couch giggling like teenagers leaving me to converse with his mom. She isn't so horrid when she really puts her mind to it. I had gotten over her unfortunate restaurant behavior by the time we left.
The rest of the afternoon was spent with me and Sis2 sprawled out on the bed squeezing the very last ounce of conversation before I had to leave and BIL once again farting belching and watching sports on the couch. My mom called around 4:30 wanting to know if I'd left yet. She was worried that I wouldn't have the good sense to leave before dark. A valid concern seeing as how the previous trips have seen me driving home in the dark. But hey, it's open highway, mostly four lane all the way. What's the big deal? LOL
But I did make it home safe and sound and in plenty of time to watch Desperate Housewives. I place the obligatory phone calls to Sis2 and my folks to let them know I made it and sacked out.
This morning my break light came on on the way to work. *sigh*
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