BNGIowa

Traditions Connect Us

There is a lot of technology to connect us. But the best connections, I think, are traditions. This is the time of year when traditions are hauled out. Good ones, bad ones, silly ones...

There is just nothing techy about hanging a favorite ornament on the Christmas tree and telling the story behind it. Or eating a family favorite dish and remembering the past dinners together. The connections created are human and cannot be duplicated by technology.

When I married into my husband's family, I was assigned a dish to bring to Christmas dinner. I later expanded the responsibility to Thanksgiving. This year, our group for Thanksgiving dinner was small. I didn't make my specialty. Dinner, and more importantly leftovers, just wasn't the same. 

It wasn't only a food item. It was a tradition. I won't make the same mistake for Christmas. 

Don't skip the traditions. And if you don't have traditions, start some. Do it for your family or for your business. The connections from traditions can't be duplicated by a computer.

Here is the recipe for my specialty. Enjoy!

Strawberry Pretzel Salad

2 cups crushed pretzels (put them in a plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin)
3/4 cup melted margarine
3 Tbsp sugar
8-oz brick of cream cheese
1 cup sugar
2 cup whipped topping (the kind in a tub in the freezer section)
2 boxes of strawberry jello (3-oz size)
2 cup boiling water
Frozen strawberries (a 16oz bag or two 10oz packs, whatever you can find). Thaw the package a little.

Press crushed pretzels mixed with margarine and 3 Tbsp sugar into 9x13 pan. I like to use my metal cake pan because it has a lid. It makes it easy to take to the pot luck. Bake 9 minutes at 350-degrees or 325 for glass pan. Cool. I like to do this step an hour or so before the next step. If you don't plan ahead, then put the pan outside to cool faster. That is if you live someplace with cold weather. It is usually very cold outside when I make this dish. Next, dissolve the jello in boiling water and add the strawberries. Let this mixture congeal in the frig to thicken. Next make the cream cheese layer: Using a mixer, cream the sugar and cream cheese then fold in the whipped topping. To layer it up: Spread the cream cheese layer over the pretzel layer. Make sure to "seal" the edges by spreading all the way around the pan. Spread the jello on top. Refrigerate.

This is a bit fussy to make, but the combination of flavors is really good. I serve it as a fruit salad with dinner but it works as a dessert too.

Do They Have a Better Sense of Humor?

I was on vacation for a good part of a week. I like to read a book on vacation. I like to read on the airplane or in the airport. There is a lot of time spent waiting in airports these days. A good book is the perfect way to pass the time.

The book for this trip was In a Sunburned Country, by Bill Bryson. Bryson comments often in the book about the uniqueness of Australians.

Here is a link to an ad that is running down under. Since my son lives near Melbourne, he shared this with me. You gotta see it. https://secure.promoplace.com.au/SaladPlate/

Absolutely Magical!

The year was 1992.  I was a gangly 11 year old girl determined to become a marine mammal biologist and about to embark on quite an adventure.  See, at that age I wanted nothing more than to see a real, live whale or dolphin.  For a girl who grew up in the heart of the U.S., this is not an easy task.  So for Christmas of 1991 my parents broke the news to me that I would be joining them for a trip to Hawaii the following month.  I was ecstatic!  That month may have been the longest of my life, but I knew the experiences that were in store would be worth the wait. 

Hawaii was amazing, even for an 11 year old, but one experience sticks in my mind more than any other.  It was the day I got to see a real humpback whale.  We had been on a drive around the Big Island since early morning and were in the last leg of our journey.  We were headed to South Point; the southernmost tip in the United States.  When we reached the end of the path we got out of our rental car to watch the sun setting over the western horizon. It glimmered off of the water like thousands of tiny diamonds.  I can still see all of the magnificent colors, rich beyond belief.  The waves crashed on the sheer rock cliffs that lay below where we stood.  And then I saw it.  At first my head did not believe what my eyes were observing.  It was a beautiful humpback whale breaching not far of the coast.  The arch of its back as it jumped out of the water contrasted against a backdrop of dreamlike proportions.  It was just as I had gazed upon in innumerable paintings, my many picture books, and even in my own drawings of this magnificent animal.  The whole thing was surreal and absolutely magical.  Every detail came together to create an astonishing experience for those of us that were blessed enough to witness it. 

Details.  These are what separated this and every other experience from “ho-hum” to unforgettable.  Make this year’s Holiday Party unforgettable by holding it at the Holiday Inn Downtown Des Moines at Mercy Campus.  Every detail will be in place to ensure that your experience is absolutely magical.

Photo courtesy of Flickr.com

Balance with Energy

During my high school years, I had a part time job. I was a straight-A student. I was a student athlete too. OK, I was on the golf team. Anyway, I was busy. I think I was able to juggle all my responsibilities because I had energy and motivation. The energy was easy, I was young and healthy. The motivation was easy too, my parents were very convincing.

My part time job was in a truck stop cafe. It was in a little town called Ankeny. Ankeny isn't so little now and the cafe has been replaced with a huge hotel. I was a waitress. This required me to move quickly, remember orders and make coffee. I made lots of coffee.

I noticed that "older" people drank lots of coffee. I guess they liked the taste and the energy boost. I never acquired a taste for coffee, but as I have gotten older, I understand the need for an energy boost. I don't care much for soda (or pop) so I was very happy when Arbonne introduced the NRGGO3! Fizzing Beverage. The key ingredients are chromium, green tea and guarana.

Besides the energy boost, I like
1. the convenience
2. the value
3. the healthy alternative

This beverage comes as a tablet that I put in a glass or bottle of water, no more cases of cans. The cost is as low as $1 per drink, much less than the popular canned energy drinks. It isn't full of chemicals either, so I can add this to my healthy diet. If you would like to try this new drink, contact me.

Whose right is it?

My birthday was on New Year's Eve. My family offered to take me out to lunch to celebrate. I chose a restaurant nearby.

It turned out that the restaurant section wasn't open for lunch so we settled into a spacious booth in the lounge. There were only a few other diners at the place. We weren't there very long when another diner lit up a cigar. A stinky, smelly, smoky cigar. It was awful. We decided to move to a smaller booth that was closer to the door in order to minimize the discomfort from the smoke.

I was taught in my social studies class in 5th grade that "my rights end where your rights begin." I wonder sometimes what that means. Did we have the right to eat lunch without gagging on cigar smoke or did that man have the right to light up?

In the future, I will call ahead when dining out and only patronize establishments that are smoke-free. It is too bad. That restaurant had great food, I would like to go back, but won't until it goes smoke-free.

I know that many countries and cities have laws prohibiting smoking indoors. I would like that law in Iowa. Especially since too many people don't practice common courtesy.