Thank-you for sharing about your beloved aunt. The cartoon is lovely.

I too am grateful for my circumstances. But, yes, things are upside down. I've been going by that what’s nutritious (esp. is there enough protein and veg), and what needs using, more than feeding cravings, but the other day with plenty of nice things to eat to choose from, I made sloppy joes and a variant of mac and cheese as a kick out.

yah, I know exactly what you mean.

I've been cooking 2-3 meals a week with lots of leftovers. Some leftovers get frozen and others I eat until I am sick of them or they are gone.

I have been getting take out about once a week but the choices are few in my rural area. Mexican, Chinese, and Subway are within 10 minutes but there is a great BBQ joint a few miles further that I went to on Sunday and bought a $50 platter of ribs, various smoked meats and sides that I am still eating on.

My ice cream stash is nearly depleted so I'm going to make a run to the grocery this weekend. I need to do some thinking about things I can cook to mix it up a bit.

I'm a soup and carbs gal now, much more than before. Before I used to have the willpower to ration my carb servings. i don't eat candy and pure junk, but way more carby stuff than usual. Part of it is end of summer fresh veggies and we have to watch our pennies. So it's squash and apples and kale and cabbage now . . . and lots of tomatoes that I'm still ripening bit by bit. I gave up my kitchen to canning right now, so no more bread making but i went crazy at a bread sale two weeks ago . . .

So sorry about your Aunt. I lost a couple of long time mentors/family friends this past six months too. It's hard to lose a touchstone! Sounds like you were lucky to have her in your life though!

agmss, I'm also sorry to hear that you have lost your "aunt". I read her poem, it was hard and sad.

I lost Dad's last remaining sibling on Election Day, and although I'll miss her, I smile thinking of her. Aunt Ellen was a force of nature, one to be reckoned with. She died in the afternoon on Election Day, but not before she cast her last vote. She was 82 and had heart surgery a couple of years ago, she told me she never felt good after that. I swear it was sheer force of will that took her out of her house, into her car and the 1/2 mile to the Townhall to cast her vote, LOL.

Being the Township Clerk and running the election has definitely put my meals out of whack. Elery has cooked beans four times this week, LOL, he likes beans. I need to start planning some meals and I'll have time to cook again, just on time for the holidays.

My condolences again about your "aunt". It's hard to lose those people in our lives, especially as we are quickly becoming the oldest generation in our families.

Annie

So the but I don't eat those things chugs on. I had a patio, order in lunch with my alternasister and I just wasn't turned on by all the lovely things I like. The solution was cheddar bacon biscuits! I've never eaten any such thing, but it sounded appealing. And it was. And it came with apricot preserves and raspberry jam which were lovely. And it made the lovely, nutrious, my usual favorite warm and cool salads plate appealing as well, after all. ;j

So many of us who have never been anxious in our lives before, are finding that underlying unsteadiness faced with the uncertain future in front of us all.

I really find that counting my blessings is keeping me sane.

Yes, covid is all around us and rates are rising fast here, but FORTUNATELY all my loved ones are safe. My job has gone to the dogs as so many have but FORTUNATELY I have some savings in the bank and my husband has a small pension. We're only allowed 1 km from our home but FORTUNATELY the beach is less than 1km from my house so I can get in the sea.

I find this really helps me.

We were stoic and energized mid March. Epic survival mode fortunate we have the means to garden, make the best of our pantry staples, well stocked just as usual. Not hoarders, just easier to have a good supply...just a good idea to have storm prep. Well ahead of covid we have had a local meat share, and veg, and egg/chickens locally.

But this is global. Storms, fires, floods, are tragic. 9-11 was felt globally but not as much as those of us in NYC. Guatemala is in such distress now. California and the fires, the south in great loss, floods and storms. We suffered storm Igor and the world had no idea. I still have nightmares. (called dad when we had contact after 10+ days and he could only talk about his new hearing aid and his squirrels aggressive on his bird feeders)..."dad, we just suffered through the worst storm in Canadian history"...no one cared. Suffering is often personal and private.

We share covid globally unlike any other tragic event in our history. We all share this tragic event as a human pandemic like no other.

So many of us have not had closure for those we have lost. We are broken but have a bit of hope after the past weekend.

Fortunately food prep and creating is my 'jones' and a challenge. A few days of dysfunctional cooking here and there but back on my game as it is needed with DH back at work and stressed. An emotional roller coaster like no other in my years...

Chili and cornbread on the stove and in the oven for tonight's dinner. And if all else fails, chicken soup will be good for what ails you . . . My next soup is going to be white bean, fake sausage and spinach with ditalini pasta.

There's no doubt people are worn out from Covid (self included); add the stresses of the recent election and then the "normal" stresses of everyday life, its a wonder we're not all fat alcoholics! I gave up drinking 2 years ago and realize that the time I want to drink most is when I'm stressed. I still haven't. However, if it takes me some Ben & Jerry's to comfort me, even in those few bites, I don't worry about it. Yes, my eating habits are WAAAAYYY out of whack. I think more than anything, people need something to look forward to. So if baking & giving away those cookies helps with the stress, do it. If getting Christmas decorations out a month and a half early do it. Better to figure out a creative outlet / escape.

I’m almost glad to read that others are stressed and anxious too.

I’ve been having digestive issues, I guess is the delicate way to say it, for the past week or more. For a few days I had other symptoms of stress and panic, I’d lay in bed at 3 am and think about going to the doctor. I feel better now, just back to mild tummy issues.

Arguably everything is going fine for me personally, so I wish I could just turn off any interest or concern I have for the world around me. Just find peace in meditation, backpacking, model trains, a boat, etc and let everyone else battle and rage. That’s not really possible, now. Maybe when I’m older and retired I will just let it go.

I never really lose my appetite in periods like this, but I lose interest in cooking. Well, the local eateries are trying to survive so I should help them with takeout orders.

DD and I have also been getting bulk sashimi at the local Asian store, and experimenting with the cute, cuute and cuuuter mini bottles of sake.

Yep, it will be interesting to look back at 2020/21.

All this stress is a perfect time for us to look back on our roots and discover some of the comfort foods our grandparents and great grandparents enjoyed. I seem to spend an inordinate time channeling my grandmothers, down to trying to recreate those times. Luckily I have a lot of artifacts still in my house from those days. Neither one of my grandmothers were great cooks, one grandmother couldn't read or write, and my cousin has my other grandmother's recipe box. I think I can pretty much recreate the kind of foods they cooked anyway. It was more of a style than a particularly notable dish. Other than grandma's molasses cookies which I do have the recipe for. They were very spicy! Served for afternoon tea, which is a great stress reliever, particularly when shared with loved ones. A world wide tradition really, in one form or another. Afternoon pause . . .

Getting back to my roots... kinda. My grandmother had several caregivers at the end of her life. Much to her dismay. One of our favorites was a sweet scarlet haired ballroom dancer from Lithuania. She would get my unwilling grandmother waltzing back into better humor. She also made a lovely borscht with tiny meatballs and a variety of vegetables. While it wasn’t a family recipe and she certainly wasn’t the same ethnicity she did come from the same city as my grandfather. So I kind of feel like it is part of my roots. I am making a batch tonight for myself and my mom’s household.

I am relieved about the election but still concerned about the divisiveness in the country. Maine’s Covid rates are growing the fastest in the country right now. Trying to figure out low key Holidays.