steam

Shortly after I'd painted my gallery "mellow yellow", a few years ago, a friend dropped by.  She'd not seen the house in some time and when she entered my barely redecorated gallery, she commented, "Well, you can always repaint this room."  I was sick. I said, "I just painted it this color."  She said, "Oh?  Really?"  as though I was sorely mistaken. It was an awkward moment.  I really value this friend's "decorating sense" and could have been crushed by her comment.   For one short moment, I thought, "Oh no!"  I had debated for almost a year over whether to go sage green or  "Mellow Yellow".  When I finally felt confident and went to all the effort of getting it done, the last thing that I wanted to hear was that I'd made the wrong choice.   I had to tell myself, "different strokes for different folks" and let it go.  I do love my room today.  It's happy.  But, I admit, I still hear that friend's comment in the back of my mind on occasion.

 

Last night for dinner, I prepared this recipe from close friend, Susan, who made it for us when I was expecting Kelly in 1980.  Every family has one of these "staple" type meals.  This is one of ours.  I believe Susan called it "Poor Man Dinner". It's not exactly a "poor man" meal because we use Nathan's hotdogs at $5 a package, but it's definitely not steak and lobster.   It's either a love it or hate it dinner too.  If you're not a cabbage fan, don't bother. We all happen to love it.   Once, a friend dropped by as I was just about to serve this for dinner.  I invited him to stay and he said, "No thanks."  I insisted that he stay and he said, "Seriously, that looks just nasty.  But, thanks anyway."  I could have taken it personally, but why?

 
Here's how to try it yourself...You will need:

    1 large onion, sliced (I use purple onions.)
1 medium head of cabbage, chopped largely
1 package of kielbasa sausage or hotdogs (We only use Nathan's.)
half a bag of egg noodles

Saute one sliced onion and one medium head of chopped cabbage with a little olive oil in your largest frying pan.  Slice the hotdogs or sausage links and toss into the veggies as they cook.  Add lots of salt and pepper to taste.  Meanwhile, boil the noodles until done.  Drain and just before serving, mix them into the skillet. Serve immediately. 

It's really yummy with fresh hot bread!  I've made it before with lots of other meats, but this is our favorite.  Some people would look at this meal and say, "I'll pass."  We love it.

 
 
Denise brought lunch over yesterday since I wasn't feeling up to going out for our normal Tuesday lunch date. We watched Eclipse (her first time), played a few rounds of Hand and Foot, and I just took it easy.  While here, Denise commented on my May Tablescape, "This is probably my favorite of all the tables you've created, even though it's the most simple."  It's definitely not myfavorite.    Partly because I don't have the square black dinner plates that I wanted to go with the beautiful damask plates.  (They were out of stock.)  The damask scrapbook paper, used as a placemat, helped.  But, the plates (they're Liza's ) are very contemporary.  It will have to do but, the whole table is just too plain and just doesn't work for me. Denise loved it.

A friend of mine was called to serve as Relief Society President in her ward.  She is a very "minimalist" type person.  For her, less is better... always.  We are great friends but would have been really challenged to work well together.  I'd have made her crazy with my over the top ideas and her simplicity would have felt like chains around my neck.  However, she was a great president and served the women in her ward well.  That, I could never fault.  (For the record, I hope to never have to be in her shoes regardless of our style of doing things!!)  We talked several times during her tenure as president about activities and programs she was implementing at the time.  I constantly saw grandiose ways to make things "bigger". Whenever I'd make a suggestion, she'd kindly say, "That would work for you, but I'll keep it this way, thanks."

Bottom line is that we are all so different. Each of us has our own "flavor" to add to life.  Sometimes, someone gets in our way and tries to reinvent our wheel.   We do this to each other.  Sometimes, as a way of trying to help.  Others may be just plain clueless or thoughtless.  Anyway around it, the important thing is, and we need to remind ourselves often, not to let the negative seeds that are planted in our minds stop us short of what we can do or become.  Things like, "Don't count on it."  or "That's never going to work."  or "I'd do it this way instead."  Remember...Different strokes.  If we were all the same, imagine how boring life would be.  We're here, as different as can be, and that's what makes life interesting.  Plain and simple.  Foot -loose or Fancy.   Enough said.

A successful person is one who takes the cold water dumped on his or her plans, heats it with enthusiasm and manufactures the steam that helps him push ahead.

Comments

[Nicole]

I have to agree with Denise, this is one of your best tablescape. Very elegant. When we moved in ours house, the previous owner had all the walls newly painted but the living room was dark beige (or should I say a coffee color, way too dark), we repainted it mellow yellow same as the dining area and the kitchen (it's open concept)and it looks much more cheerful than this coffee color. My scrapbooking room is a bright yellow, as it's in the basement, it makes me feel like it's a bright sunny day, even in the winter!

[Missy P]

Thank you for this post. It really is what I needed to hear this week. I appreciate and value your "wisdom" on so many topics. This will be a good for me to remember when I am working with our presidency. Once again, I appreciate you! Oh, and I love both the mellow yellow and the tablescape!

[Kami McKinnon]

Sophia your "different strokes" was just what I needed to here I wish I would have logged on yesterday. I let someone I love hurt me by expressing how different her wheel would be in my life. I hope I can remember this in the future! Thanks for your inspired thoughts!

[Cindi]

Yum, Sophia! Your dish is very similiar to what us Pittsburghers call "Haluski." It's an old Polish recipe and if you live any where around Pittsburgh, you were sure to have grown up on the stuff. It's at every church festival, craft show, etc. and considered our comfort food. Guy Fieri discovered it at Kelly O's when she was a feature on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. We use bacon in ours, butter instead of olive oil and brown it a bit more. Here's her video on youtube she made after she received many requests once the episode aired: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-eL8u7SrlM

[susan]

funny woman...I am rather certain you changed the recipe if I am the Susan mentioned. But when I thought about it, I doubt you even eat bacon so why would you have bacon 'grease' stored up to cook your cabbage in (and then onions). But hey, I didn't take offense. And btw...I love yellow. The young woman who bought our old house told me last week she wished I didn't like BLUE so much. I thought she was talking about this house...but then I remembered the blue bathroom and the siding. I had that moment you did with the yellow. If she was criticizing my house, she had no right. But she's removed all the yellow from the old house, as well as most of the blue...and that's her right. But there's nothing better than sleeping and waking up in an egg. I always felt so safe. OhOh...I have been trying to decide what color to paint the master bedroom...I think I just hit upon it....again....yellow.

[JaYne]

I needed to hear this today about different strokes. Thanks!
btw, that cabbage meal is a fav at our house too!

[audra]

I have to say I really like the table scape. You are always so creative. I love black and white as well...My husband doesn't know this, but I'm trying to slowly convert any thing new that we get into a black and white scheme. at the rate I'm going though, I'll be old and gray. We never get anything new.
I often use black river rocks to decorate with. do you have a bird cage? that might be kinda cool. My scrapbook room is black and white, allthough right now it looks more like a junk room. We have stuff piled in there for a garage sale this weekend. I can't wait to get it out of there so I can work in there again.
geez I wish I won the lottery so I could repaint my house...ha ha i guess that won't happen since I don't play.

have you ever glazed anything?