Category: Ten on Tuesday

This week's list is Ten Things in Your Refrigerator Right Now.

1.  Leftover birthday cake.  I made carrot cake with cream cheese frosting.  The birthday boy plans to have a slice a day until it is either gone or no longer good.  I'm trying to refrain from eating any more than the sliver I had yesterday.

2.  Homemade catsup/ketchup (I need to investigate the differences/usages of the word).  I remember having homemade ketchup at my grandmother's house when I was a kid, but when I asked (on FB) if any of my cousins had her recipe, I was told she, in fact, did not make it.  A different grandmother not related to me did.  My father feels this is false information.  Anyway, one cousin sent me a packet of starch/spices mix, and yesterday I made it.  Pretty tasty.

3.  Two pints of canned tomatoes.  I canned pints of raw tomatoes in their own juice on Sunday, but the two in the fridge didn't seal properly.  I may use the whole batch in lentil soup this week just in case.

4.  Brita water pitcher.  It sure takes up a lot of room, and one of these days we'll get to putting a filter on the faucet.  One of these days.

5.  Half gallon of Farmer's Cow skim milk. Neal toured some of the farms that contribute milk as part of a work seminar.  He's not easily impressed, but he came home impressed at the excellence of the farm.  I buy only their eggs, too, although I'm still hoping to get my own chickens to have REALLY local eggs!

6. Leftover pizza.  Requested birthday dinner last night was pizza, so pizza it was!

7.  Two sweet potatoes.  Fall makes me want baked potatoes, and the sweet ones are even tastier!

8.  Kalamata olives.  I love to toss a few of these on salads.

10.  Tube of tomato paste.  Hoping to make my favorite tomato soup recipe this week, which needs only a few tablespoons of tomato paste.  Tubes of paste last a lot longer than the cans.

 How about you?  Anything tasty in your fridge today?

Oh, boy!  This is a challenging list for me.  Until I lived with Neal, I never lived with a serious sports fan.  When we were dating, I'd drive to CT from NY for a weekend, but I would leave pretty early in the day on Sunday. Until I moved in just before we got engaged, I had NO IDEA that Sunday afternoons and evenings, along with most Monday nights, would be taken over by what must be my least favorite sport: football.  I think I could persuade Neal to return me to my formerly-television-free state if it were not for his love of sports, especially football.  

I've had friends suggest that I join in on some fantasy football fun, but, really, I just want it all to go away.  

However, in the interest of Ten on Tuesday, here's my very best "Reasons to Watch Football" list.  Okay, I'll be honest.  It's my "Reasons Not to Scream when Football is On" list.

1.  Chili.  Football season means the weather is cooling down.  Cooler weather means Neal likes to fiddle in the kitchen on a Sunday morning.  Yesterday's resulting vegetarian (for me) chili was delicious.

2.  Grading.  I can sit in the same room as Neal, headphones on (man, I hate the noise of televised football), and read and grade papers. 

3.  Fires.  Since Neal is likely to be fiddling about between the kitchen and living room most of the day, we can get a nice roaring fire going once the weather is cold enough to warrant it. I know he'll be home long enough to wait for it to go out!

4.  Cars.  I can guilt-free drive to a cafe to grade, drive to meet up with friends to knit, drive to a cafe to write, drive to a movie.  I won't feel like I'm taking away from weekend time together.

5.  Night Games. I like to go to one or two home night games at my University.  Since I think I missed the only one on this season's schedule, I'm hoping our town's new high school football team will play at night.

6. *cricket*

I'm done.  I really tried to think of more reasons, but football is even less my thing than bacon is, I guess!  I enjoy watching some sports–college basketball, for instance–but I can't wrap my head around football.  Even when I go to the occasional night game, it's about snuggling and hot chocolate and laughing more than the game.

How about you?  Do you have a sport you just can't get into?  Are you a football widow like I am?  What do you do to keep from tearing the television from the wall and smashing it on the ground?

Today's list is Ten Things to do Before the End of Summer.  Like most educators, the end of summer means the first day of the fall semester, but technically, we have until September 21.

1.  Preserve the bounty.  I can until early October since I still get some decent tomatoes until then. The next few weeks will be busy for me in the kitchen.

2.  Enjoy the evening light.  All too soon it will be dark before 6:00, then even earlier.  When the weather is cool and clear with a breeze to chase away the mosquitoes, we like to eat dinner on the deck.

3.  Watch a baseball game.  I'm not a baseball fan, but Neal has introduced me to the pleasures of going to a ball park.  We took in a Rockies game and two Cardinals games, and before the end of summer we're going to see that team I despise in Boston.

4.  Cut some flowers before they fade.  We've got some lingering lovelies, and tomorrow I'll be making an arrangement for the dining room table.

5.  Make a list of what to grow in next year's garden.  My pal Cae is one of the best gardeners I know, and she does this.  What did I use the most?  What worked where?  What didn't work?  Nothing like some notes to help create a better garden next year.

6.  Get the car tuned up for winter.  I just got home after spending seven hours at the garage for my tuneup.  I'm tired and cranky now, but at least I read a lot of my book and have a winter-ready car.

7.  Play your favorite guilty pleasure song at full volume with the windows down and the moon roof back and sing along as you drive.

8.  Clean out your summer wardrobe.  My closet is small.  I change out my clothes in the spring and fall.  I'm trying to be tough about the clothes that never came off the hanger all season.  If they don't fit or I didn't wear them at all (except for a few sentimental party dress exceptions…maybe next summer there will be reason to wear them), out they go.

9.  Play in the water.  Take one more trip to the beach, lake, or river while the water is still warm enough to enjoy.

10. Soak in the sun.  Wear sunscreen, of course, but get as much Vitamin D as possible.

How about you?  What's on your list?

If you'd like to get weekly emails from Carole with the Ten on Tuesday topic, sign up here.

"Whenever humanity seems condemned to heaviness, I think I should fly like Perseus into a different space. I don’t mean escaping into dreams or into the irrational. I mean that I have to change my approach, look at the world from a different perspective, with a different logic and with fresh methods of cognition and verification. " —Italo Calvino

This week's list is Ten Things to Lighten your Mood.

1.  Play with the dogs. Of course, you may end up with rope burns from little Coco's leash/tie up contraption, but playing with animals (domestic, of course) is sure to bring at least a little smile.

2.  Read a favorite book.  I return to Jane Austen when I need cheering.

3.  Plan a dinner party.  The planning is a big part of the fun for me.  Invite the best conversationalists you know, dress the table in your prettiest linens and dishes, and make a delightful meal.

4.  Blow bubbles.  If you have the dogs from item #1, they will probably chase the bubbles.  It can get hilarious.

5.  Go for a long bike ride or run or whatever your favorite exercise is.

6.  Help someone else.  Volunteering in an organized way, or simply helping someone carry a baby carriage down the steps can go a long way to lightening my mood.

7.  Write.  Sometimes I can write my way to lightness.  Sometimes I write all the darkness out of my head and can then live in lightness.

8.  Go to Vespers.  No matter what your religious or spiritual beliefs may be, Vespers make for excellent meditation.  If you attend in a beautiful church or chapel, you may have the added pleasure of soaring architecture, meant to lift the spirit closer to God or lightness, whatever a lifting of the spirit may mean to you.

9.  Write a long letter in which you describe to the person you are missing just how the light looks and the air smells and the coffee tastes.  Describe everything you love about that person.  Describe your loneliness for them.  Describe your joy in them.  Make your descriptions over the moon.  If the person is alive, mail the letter.  If not, give it to another friend, sealed in an envelope addressed to you and ask her to mail it to you in a few months.

10. Watch the Marx Brothers.  There have been many times in my life when my spirit has needed lifting.  From the frightening days just after September 11, 2001, to days waiting for news about all sorts of worrisome things, we all have sad, heart heavy days.  When my ex-father-in-law approached me after the funeral of a young woman who had died far too young and said, "C'mon, let's go home and laugh," I knew he was right.  For me, the sad days cry for Harpo and Groucho.  Even the mildly sad days are improved by their antics.

What do you do to lighten your mood?

Today's Ten on Tuesday is an easy one for me:  10 Things You Would Tell a College Freshman.

1.  Visit your professors during their office hours.  It makes a difference.  Office hours are a great time for you to review assignments, ask for extra help, or learn more about a career.  Last fall I had two young men who came once a week, every week, for the entire semester to visit with me for half an hour. I sure missed their visits in the spring! Professors want to get to know our students.  Also, I keep tea, instant coffee, and snacks in my office, so in moments of hunger, I can help you out!

2.  Ask questions.  You might feel stupid in class when you ask a question, but chances are someone else has the same question.  Your professors will appreciate your being engaged in class, too.

3.  Set up "house" rules right away.  Be open with your roommate about how you want to keep your space, what you are willing to share, and ask her to share her ideas about your room, too.

4.  Join.  You don't have to join every club, but find at least one or two, along with an intramural if you're not already on an athletic team.  You'll make friends, you'll learn, you'll stay in shape.

5.  Mind what you eat.  Don't get suckered in by the food.  Be healthy.  Buy fruit and granola bars if you must.  

6.  Go to bed at a reasonable hour.  This might be hard when there is so much to talk about, so much to do, so many papers to write, but if you're not well rested, you run the risk of getting exhausted, beating down your immune system, and frying your brain.

7.  Don't go to class drunk, buzzed, stoned, or in any other way high.  

8.  Be a good consumer.  Whether you, your parents, or a scholarship pays for your college education, there is a cost for every class hour.  It might stink to have an 8:15 class.  It might be so hard to go to class on that really warm October day when your new boyfriend wants to go make out in the park with you.  It might be tempting to leave campus early on a Friday afternoon to party at your high school best friend's college.  Resist and go to class.  Get your money's worth.

9.  Don't let yourself get overwhelmed.  There are points in every semester when the work load seems to be too much to bear.  Think about your professors.  Are there any who have indicated that they are willing to offer extensions?  What about the professor you've been visiting every few weeks during her office hours?  Ask for an extension before a deadline, and offer a date when you will be able to turn in the work.  But know that the professor has the right to deny your request.  You're better off asking, though, then skipping class and turning something in late without prior agreement.

10.  Don't text in class. Professors can see you do it.  It is rude.

11.  (Because 10 isn't enough) Have fun.  Explore.  Ignore everything any adult tells you if you have a chance to do something wonderful.  Go overseas for a semester. Learn to network.  Be serious.  Hold back your girlfriend's hair when she's puking.  Don't judge.  Introduce yourself to people you don't know. Get as many internships as you can.  Watch at least one sunrise a semester. Laugh.

Most of all: be present.  College can be amazing if you make it.

Today's topic from our fearless leader: Ten Things to Do instead of Watching TV:

1.  Read. I'd put money on that this will be on every post.

2.  Sit on the deck and laugh at the dogs' antics.

3.  Take the kayaks out for a paddle.

4.  Go for a bike ride.

5.  Collect flowers to identify and press.

6.  Try a new recipe or make a familiar one.

7.  Meet up with friends to knit.

8.  Write.

9.  Paint.

10.  Clean out a closet.

Okay, maybe #10 isn't much fun, but I finally cleaned our linen closet last week.  It was a dee-zas-ter!  I sorted and tossed and refolded and organized, and now this thing that made me anxious every time I opened the door makes me happy.  

From 1992 until 2006, I didn't have television.  The apartment in which I lived from '92-'00 had terrible reception, and my budget was too tight to pay for cable.  It was an easy thing to do without.  I still watched movies on the vcr, but I missed a lot of shows that became cultural references.  When I bought my tiny co-op in 2000, there simply wasn't room for the tv anymore, so I no longer even watched movies. I read a LOT.  I was in school for my bachelor's and two and a half master's degrees during the no tv years.  I once had a peer ask how I could always be up on the reading.  My answer? "I don't have a tv."  She was shocked, stunned, completely unprepared to give up hers.  Look, I wanted to say. I don't judge.  I don't care if you would rather watch tv than read Homer.  To each her own.

Everything changed when I moved in with Neal.  He loves to watch sports.  He's into a lot of History channel shows that don't seem too historically based to me.  I hang out with him when he's watching these things (knitting!), but usually if I'm in the room, unless his dearest darling Cards are playing, we watch something on dvd.

I would ditch the tv again in a second.  There is just too much wonderful (and sometimes practical) stuff to feed my mind and occupy my time with to want a serious relationship with tv. Now and again, though, it's fun to flirt with!

Today's Ten on Tuesday topic is about camping.  I have never been camping. Well, there was that backyard sleepover in sixth grade.  Oh, and I did sleep in a tent for those times I walked the 3-Day to raise money for breast cancer research (Avon sponsored it back when I walked).  Anywho, I wouldn't really use my list if you're a new camper.  I'd probably laugh and click away.

10 Things to Bring on a Camping Trip

1.  Someone who has actually been camping before.

2.  Air mattress (I learned that on the 3-Day).

3.  Toilet paper (hey, be prepared!)

4.  A flashlight.

5.  Shelter.  Unless by camping you mean staying at the Holiday Inn Express.

6.  Bathing suit.  Seems like a beach would be a nice place to camp.

7.  Fire.  Not like on a torch or anything, but unless camping means going to a restaurant, you've gotta have something on which to cook, right?

8.  A book.  Just in case the air mattress doesn't do the trick and you're too uncomfortable to sleep.

9.  Someone with a guitar.  Singing around the campfire might be the biggest lure into camping I can imagine.

10.  Ghost stories.  Good, scary ones.  Don't worry if you get so scared you can't sleep.  You've got a flashlight and a book.  You'll be fine!