Scales & Mirrors (Part 10) ©
Today’s Steve’s birthday and I’m going to eat more than usual, because I’m preparing more than usual – or at least I’m going to try with the food I have on hand. This is one of those times when you have to weigh the price you’re willing to pay fat-wise against the enjoyment value of the occasion, because tomorrow and the next day the scale won’t lie for you.
So if you don’t eat all day the day before and the day after it might work for you. People move their food consumption around like they move money around – for the greatest benefit and convenience. Due to tough times we have no extra money so I get creative with the gift too. I already made him a cuff link container out of a cigar box, stained it and lined it with a scrap of burgundy colored velvety upholstery material that I made my valances out of. I recall the woman at the fabric shop telling me I couldn’t make valances out of upholstery material, but that’s the fabric I liked so, ha! Now, what else?
Oh, I know…I’ll iron all his shirts. He’ll like that. The ribbons are already hanging – for a couple of days now. I like to draw a celebration out, even when I’m broke – Steve too. So, I’m going to do an entire birthday meal with what’s on hand – and we haven’t grocery shopped for a while – trying to conserve, since he unexpectedly lost his job and had to scramble to get another one and we lost two paychecks in the meanwhile.
Not to worry. We’ll work something out. That’s the confidence that comes with living a long time. You gain a history of working things out, so when something catastrophic occurs, you know through past experiences that you’ll find your way around it. Circumventing is what I like to call it.
Since I can’t cook, iron and write at the same time, I’ll get back to you tomorrow and let you know how it all turned out. I think I’ll clean the apartment too and have everything sparkling when he walks through the door. Make it look like he’s walking into a hotel suite with a full-service kitchen and his personal animal-free chef.
My plan is to say ‘no’ to second helpings of anything, while keeping the portions small (for me; Steve can do what he wants; it’s his day). I’ll want to savor the occasion however. A party isn’t a party unless one can indulge somewhat. The mild exercise is working to tone my entire body, so I’m looking trimmer than the scale reads. That’s okay.
I’ve never cried over my weight. Don’t you. It’s fixable.
***
Whew…I’m done with about a half hour till birthday boy gets home. I cooked the meal, vacuumed, picked up, sanitized what needed it, did the dishes, set the table, walked Rose, set the lighting, and set up the scrabble board for a birthday tournament. The hors d’oeuvres are by the board along with a small jug of cheap Chianti wine. We three will be our own music tonight.
THE MENU
Hors d’Oeuvre
Roasted pepper, tomato and sweet onion antipasto with fresh basil vinaigrette, served with fresh-baked rolls
SOUP
Creamy sweet pea with garlic, freshly ground black pepper and tarragon
ENTREE
Linguini marinara with fresh basil, garlic and extra virgin olive oil
DESSERT
Giant apple and ginger peach preserve turnover smudged with grapefruit, ginger icing with a hint of maple
Beverages
Lemonade iced tea, Chianti wine, fresh brewed Columbian coffee
Simple but elegant. I tried not to go overboard with fat. The day after his birthday dinner he ended up in the emergency room. On the day after 9-11. Everybody jokingly blamed it on the meal.
He thinks he’s having a heart attack, we get in the car to go to the hospital and he decides he wants to drive. Insists on it. He probably thought he would speed and I wouldn’t. He starts feeling worse and when he sees a police cruiser pass him he tries to get his attention. the cruiser pulls over and Steve runs out of the car toward them and they used a loud voice enhancer and tell him “GET BACK IN YOUR CAR” repeatedly as Steve’s trying to yell to them to call an ambulance.
When the ambulance came and took him away I tried to follow in my car, but the cruiser pulls me over to say it’s against the law to follow an ambulance. I get to the hospital and it was at least an hour before I got any information on his status. I didn’t know if he was dead or alive. It was the most stressful hour of my life. Later he told me that when the guy in the ambulance tried to give him a shot to shock his heart, he refused it. I was wondering why the ambulance was staying put so long. I’m thinking, get him to the hospital, what are you waiting for?
So here he flags down a cruiser to call an ambulance because he’s having a heart attack, then when in the ambulance he refuses the shot that could save his life – he has a needle phobia. His father who was a doctor had to give him his shots when he was sleeping when he was a kid, that’s how afraid of needles he was. My sister had the same needle phobia.
The entire incident reminded me of that God and the helicopter joke. Steve prays to God to help him, so God sends him a cruiser out of the blue, the cop calls him an ambulance and the EMT was ready with a shot to save his life and Steve was still praying for God to help him.
FAT-FREE CHEF™ 