Laborious Weekend

My weekends of late have been full of activities, especially involving family.  This weekend was no exception, though the family was not always my own.

On Saturday, I went with Leah to her mom’s place where I met Leah’s older sister Briana and her four kids.  After a bite to eat (including cookies I brought), we all went to a boardwalk at Havre de Grace.  It was a beautiful day and it was great being so close to the water.  After our walk, we spent some time at the local park and the kids had a good time running around and playing (as did Leah’s mom, Debbie).

Since Leah worked in the evening at her part-time job, we parted ways and I headed home.  After running a few errands, I went to Ian’s place to visit with him, Sherlin, and their kids.  They had just gotten back from the Philadelphia Temple open house and the kids were getting their wiggles out.  I worked in the kitchen with Sherlin, helping her bake a cake for the next day—we ended up having a problem with getting the first layer out, but I knew of a technique to help with that, so the next three layers came out without any problem.  I hung around until much later than I planned, but it worked out because I got to see Margot, Bryan, and their kids as soon as they arrived (which was later than they planned).

The next day, after church, Leah came with me to the big birthday bash at Ian’s, which had as guests Margot’s clan and a friend of Sherlin who brought her children as well.  It was actually Ian’s birthday, but we also celebrated Aeva’s and Phoebe’s birthdays.  In fact, the cake that I helped with the day before was designed to be for all three of them: the flavor was Black Forest (for Ian) and the decorations were a combination of princess (for Phoebe) and superheroes (for Avea) themes.  As crazy as that sounds, the craziest part was the fact that we crammed eight adults and a dozen kids into the kitchen for dinner, though it took three tables of various sizes.  Sherlin made dinner, which was fantastic, as always.

My presents to both Aeva and Phoebe were action figures of girl superheroes: Batgirl for Aeva and Supergirl for Phoebe (which went well with Clara’s Wonder Woman figure that I bought her previously).  For Ian, I gave him the unthinkable, at least for him: a book.  I got him The Last Girlfriend on Earth: And Other Love Stories by Simon Rich.  It’s a collection of farcical short stories that I think he’ll enjoy, if he ever actually reads it.

All of this fun over two short days wore me out and I ended up just staying for Labor Day.  I’m happy that I have people in my life for whom I’m willing to exhaust myself.

Thirty-third Year

My birthday was on Wednesday.  Birthdays aren't a big deal for me, so I wasn't expecting much and I was not disappointed this year.

When I got to work, I found a gift bag on my desk.  Inside was a rather nice looking cookbook focused on baking.  What was really clever was that each person in my department had placed a post-it note on the page of the treat they wanted me to bake for them.  I thought it pretty funny: my gift was a book, while their gifts will come later when I use my present.

That evening, I met with the Bishop and the Ward Clerk to discuss one of my responsibilities in my new calling.  The meeting lasted longer than I expected, but I was happy to be available to serve.

While it might not seem like much, the celebrating isn't over.  When I visit the Larsens over the weekend for General Conference, we'll share the cake that Ian baked for me, the first one he's made from scratch.

If birthdays are decent, I consider it a win.  With this year's being better than that, I'm more than happy.

Investigative Baking

On Thursday, my boss, Magda, dropped a hint to one of my coworkers that her birthday was coming up, but she didn't say when it would be exactly.  When I heard about it, I walked down to the HR department to see if they were allowed to tell me.  Since I've built a reputation for myself of being a skilled and generous baker, they knew exactly why I wanted to know, so they looked up the date.  As it happened, Magda's birthday was the very next day.  With the little warning we had, my department members and I each took an assignment, with me handling the cake.  I asked for suggestions on flavors and someone said that I should just make a cake that I liked.  I quickly jumped at the chance to make another Angel Food cake.

The next day, I came in and sat the cake (in a carrier) on my desk.  I didn't announce what it was, but I didn't hide it, either.  After everyone had had a chance to sign her birthday card, we presented it to Magda, who was visibly touched by the thoughtful act.  She asked that she be able to take us to lunch, to which we agreed.  When we had decided on a place, I called ahead and asked for permission to bring in the cake, which I was granted.

I'm guessing that Magda hadn't had Angel Food cake before because she kept commenting on how light and fluffy it was.  I encouraged her to take the leftover cake home to share with her family, but she instead decided to share it with the rest of the office, including the HR department.

While I bring baked goods to the office fairly regularly, this was the first time that I brought a birthday cake, though I doubt it will be the last.

The Best Gift

On Saturday, I visited with the Larsens to celebrate Clara's seventh birthday (it wasn't her actual birthday, but it was when we could all get together).  Last year, my birthday present to Clara (and later, Henry) was to make her whatever birthday cake she wanted -- which was chocolate with mint frosting last year.  This year, I was ready to offer the same gift, but Clara requested one before I could ask.  I was touched: apparently she now associates custom baked goods with her Uncle Jordan.

Clara asked for a strawberry shortcake, but I suggested something that I thought would be a fun twist on that idea: a trifle.  As soon as she saw a picture of one she quickly agreed to the change.  I made the pound cake and custard the night before so that I would only need to assemble everything the day of.  After buying fresh bananas, strawberries, and blue berries, I washed the berries, hulled and sliced the strawberries, cubed the cake and layered everything in a trifle bowl (cake, bananas, strawberries, blueberries, custard, repeat).

When I arrived, everyone said how yummy the dessert looked.

(Ian and I shared this exchange:
Ian: Wow, that's impressive.
Me: 'Tis but a trifle.)

We did a few activities before digging in, though I added fresh whipped cream to the top of each serving.  I don't think it's unreasonable to estimate that if you were to buy a similar dish from a bakery, with everything made from scratch and the out-of-season fruit included, it would cost about 60-70 dollars.  Everyone agreed that it was lovely birthday treat.

I'm happy to be able to provide a gourmet dessert experience to my family and I'm glad that Clara wanted me to be a part of her birthday celebration.

Laborious Weekend

I hope all of my readers have had an enjoyable Labor Day Weekend.  Mine was pretty much packed to the brim with activities.

Saturday
Ian and the kids came up to visit and we all went swimming at my apartment complex's pool.  Clara was happy to jump right in, but Henry took some time to warm up to the idea of getting in the water.  I've gone swimming with Ian and the kids before (Ian likes to have a 1:1 ratio of kids to adults when swimming) and Henry has a strong fear of water.  I'm not sure what caused it, but the last time we went to a pool, Henry was freaking out the whole time, even while wearing a life vest.  One big difference between the last time and this time was that this pool's shallow end was three feet deep rather than four.  That meant that once Henry worked up the nerve to get in the water, he could stand up with his feet flat on the floor and keep his head above water.  Simply doing that was a big improvement for him.  So while Clara started practicing basic swimming components like kicking and floating on her back, Henry being able to walk from one side of the shallow end of the pool to the other was still a big victory for him.

After the pool, we went to one of the dozens of Italian restaurants in my area and had pizza, which was really good.  The kids were a bit impatient while we waited for food to arrive, but I have yet to meet a kid that pizza won't improve their mood significantly.

After swimming and pizza, we went back to my apartment to relax a bit.  I got some pillows for the kids to lay on and Ian set up Up to play on his iPad.  As the kids watched the movie in the living room, Ian and I hung out in the dining room, about a dozen feet away.  Once the movie finished, I served some birthday cake that I had made (chocolate fudge cake with candied strawberries and whipped cream), in celebration of Ian's birthday -- which was the day before, but with a Saturday literally the next day, it made sense to wait to celebrate.

With all of the fun activities finished, Ian and the kids piled into their car went back home.

Sunday
After Church, I came home and did some laundry before packing an overnight bag (and the leftover cake) and driving down to the Larsen's.  Ian had had some trouble with a cat marking her territory in the living room, so he needed to replace the carpet.  I came to handle the kids the next day while he was busing with the installation crew.

When I got there, it was scripture-reading time.  It was great to see how excited Clara got for her time to read.  Henry's reading skills aren't to the same level as Clara's, but he still was happy to get to a chance to stumble through a few verses.

Monday
After a quick breakfast of eggs and frozen waffles (fun fact: I eat three raw eggs every morning and, yes, it grosses out everyone who hears about it), I took the kids in my car to a local shopping center.  I had a plan and a schedule to follow, but I had decided to keep the big activity a surprise, in case the installers finished early and we needed to go home sooner than expected.

Our first stop was at the local pet store to look at the animals on sale.  I wasn't sure about this as an activity, but Ian was the one that suggested it, so I decided just roll with it.  After the kids got bored with the animals, we walked down to a dollar store (really a five dollar store, so, you know, a fancy dollar store) because I knew the kids like temporary tattoos and figured that would be an easy win.  The girl running the register sent me to the opposite side of the store when I asked where I could find them, but based on her age I'm pretty sure this is her first job, so I probably shouldn't have expected much.  With the temporary tats in hand (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for Henry and Disney Princesses and their pets for Clara), we walked to the first big activity, frozen yogurt, only to find that the place still hadn't opened for the day.  We were due for a bathroom break, so we walked down to the Target.  After everyone had gone, we walked over to the in-store cafe to see if an ice cream-like treat could be obtained.  While no ice cream was to be had, I did get each kid a slushy.  They were both excited because this was an even rarer treat than frozen yogurt.  With the frozen treats consumed, we walked down to the main event: watching a movie in the theater.

Ian had looked up the theater's showtimes the night before and found that there were only two PG-rated movies playing and only one that the kids hadn't seen.  We decided that I should take the kids to see Inside Out, the latest offering from Pixar.  With a large popcorn and custom drink (half-fruit punch, half-Sprite) for the kids to share, we all enjoyed the movie.  About an hour into the movie, I got a text that later turned out to be Ian telling us that the carpet installation was complete.  After the movie finished, we went home.

And while that could have been it, the kids asked that I stay a little longer.  Ian said that they needed to go grocery shopping, but Clara asked that I stay and play with her and Henry while their dad when to the store by himself.  We both thought that was fine, so Clara, Henry, and I headed outside to play Hide-and-Seek.  After a few rounds, it was decided it was a bit too hot and the kids asked if we could play a board game instead.  Since I was getting attacked by mosquitoes again, I was happy to change activities.  The kids chose Monopoly Junior, which Clara won.

Once the game was put away, Clara and Henry were sent off for some quiet time while Ian and I talked about some detail regarding a video for Danfoss.  With that completed, I said my goodbyes and came home.

It was nice to not only get to celebrate Ian's birthday with him and his kids but to also help him out and spend some time with just my niece and nephew -- and it was great to hear that they enjoyed it just as much.

Birthday 2015

Today is my birthday, but if you're reading this blog, you probably already knew that.

On Saturday, I celebrated by taking Ian to lunch.  That's right, I asked to buy lunch for my brother.  I've been living close to the edge of my ability to cover my expenses for so long that now that I have the means to pay for someone else's meal, I wanted to give it a try.  It wasn't bad; I'll have to do it again some time.

After lunch, we picked up Clara and Henry from their playdate and, after some running around outside with the dog, we went bowling.  I have to admit that it was kind of funny that, even with the bumpers up, Henry and Clara beat both Ian and I (for the record, I got last place).  It was a nice reminder that games, while competitive, are fun because of the people you're with, not because of your final score.

Finally, we had dinner back at their place followed by birthday cake.  Ian had asked me to make my own cake since I'm the baker, but that seemed a bit wrong; instead, I asked my good friend Lori Simcik to bake it for me and she enthusiastically agreed.  It was a delicious German Chocolate cake with old fashioned icing that's much better than the stuff you get from stores or restaurants these days.

Thank you to everyone that has, and surely will, send well wishes my way.  This birthday is during a transitionary time for me, which makes it all the more appropriate: after all, what is a birthday if not a transition from one year to the next?

The Tale of the Hubristic Baker

For Ian's birthday celebration on Saturday, he asked that I bake him a birthday cake.  I was happy to oblige, especially since he baked my birthday cake earlier this year.  He asked for a Black Forest cake, which I eagerly agreed to.

I found a recipe that I liked and gathered my ingredients.  On Saturday, I got started.  The cake recipe looked pretty straight forward, so I figured that I wouldn't have any trouble with it.  Well, my first problem was that I skipped a step, deeming it unnecessary: line the cake pans with wax paper.  Even though I had never used this recipe before, I decided that by greasing and flouring my already non-stick pans that everything would be fine.  You can probably guess what happened next: I couldn't remove the cake from the pans.  I decided to cut my losses and I ran to the store for a chocolate cake mix.  I actually followed the direction to line the pans with wax paper and, what do you know?, they came right out.

Next I made the cherry compote, but I didn't give it enough time to cool.  I've made fruit compote before, but usually it's meant to be used while still a bit warm.  Unfortunately, when combining warm compote with fresh whipped cream, it all becomes kind of a mess.  I pilled everything together the best that I could, loaded it in my cake carrier, and drove south to the Larsens.

I apologized profusely for messing up my present to Ian, but he was just happy that I was able to deliver, even if I was aided by Duncan Hines.  And even though the cake was far from pretty, it did taste pretty good - Ian went back for a second piece, which is the best compliment that a chef can receive (Clara said that she didn't like the fruit, but had no problem with the cake and whipped cream).

Even though I have done plenty of baking over the years and I have succeeded in many of my attempts, I am still learning and I should not ignore steps in recipes, especially when I've never made that treat before.

Shorties 6

Real Understanding
As a technical writer, I'm not expected to be an expert in the subject that I'm writing on but an expert writer and researcher.  I seek out the information I need and use it in such a way that the reader thinks I'm an expert.  I still have to have a basic understanding of the subject but that usually develops as I do the research. Yesterday at work, I finally started to "get" what I'm writing about, which is good since it's an instructional guide.  Up to this point, I've just been copying information from another document.  It's still early for me on this project but I'm really pleased that I've started to internalize the material.

Stress Reducer
When I wrote about my trials in getting a Maryland driver's license, my dad left a comment asking me what I can do to prevent something like that happening again.  I thought about his question a lot and realized that I was neglecting one of the four things that I need to do regularly to manage my anxiety.  I've been eating healthy, studying my scriptures daily, and (mostly) getting plenty of sleep, but I haven't been exercising like I should.  A lot of that is due to the bad weather we've had which would throw my entire routine off.  So, to better combat Mother Nature, I've decided to join a gym.  I've done a lot of research and found a decent gym for $10 a month, which is super reasonable even for me and my lean budget.  I even pass it coming home from work.  Since I haven't gotten paid yet, I probably won't start until next week, but I'm excited to be able to hit the gym again.

Roommate's Milestone
After Church on Sunday, Samuel went to visit a member of the ward who is unable to attend church and blessed the sacrament for the first time.  I didn't go, but Samuel came back beaming.  He told me how excited he was to have finally blessed the sacramental water and that he is eager to do it again.  (In case I haven't mentioned it, Samuel is a convert and is still very new to the gospel).

Vegetarian No More
Monday was the last day of my cleanse, which means I'm eating meat on a regular basis again.  I've certainly dropped the weight that I gained while unemployed and, I suspect, a little bit extra that I didn't need to lose.  I guess that means that I'll have to pack on the pounds by pumping iron.

"Now run!"
While I was visiting the Larsen's to celebrate my birthday, Henry and Clara showed me a new game that they've discovered.  It's the classic activity where a kid grabs an adult's leg and is dragged along while the adult walks.  However, walking got old and they started asking that I run.  Not that I would actually run, I did try to move a bit faster for them, though with little success.  As with countless uncles before me, I tired before they did.  Still, they were both super excited that we got to play together, which never gets old.

Another Year Older

For those of you playing at home, yesterday was my 31st birthday.

Birthdays are weird things.  For many people, having a birthday means that they are now a year older.  That's completely false, of course.  Time moves at a constant pace on our planet, so you age one day everyday.  Having a birthday doesn't make you older.  I don't think this is news to anyone, but because of the way that we track our age, it often feels like we've suddenly aged a year.  This perception can lead to having a bit of an existential crisis.  If you don't believe me, think about this: have you ever met someone who doesn't want to admit that they're older on their birthday?  If you haven't yet, you will.

Part of the problem is that even though time moves forward at the same, constant rate, we don't perceive it that way.  Time flies when you're enjoying yourself but drags at a snail's pace when we're doing something tedious or boring.  Add to that the fact that we measure our ages by whole years, it can often feel like an entire year has dropped itself on you.

To prevent having weird feelings of getting older on the anniversary of my birth, I start thinking of myself as being older a few months before my birthday.  Around New Year's, I upgrade my age in my head.  When my birthday finally rolls around, my new age is old news.  I realize that this approach isn't for everyone, but it works for me.

I do want to mention that while I don't use my birthday as a marker for my age, I do still enjoy celebrating it.  As with last year, I went to the Larsen's to celebrate my birthday, though it was more convenient to party the day before.  We ate burgers, had cake, and played board games.  It was fun and easy going, which is how I prefer things.

As a marker of time, birthdays aren't important to me, but as an excuse to have fun, they're great.

Two Years

Today is weird day for me.  It is both Allison's birthday and the two year anniversary of our separation.

I've avoided the subjects of Allison and our separation on this blog because it's so complicated.  While I have written about serious things like my depression, that only involves me.  I don't have to worry about what I should or should not share when I'm only writing about myself, but once we bring someone else into it, I have to think about if I'm crossing a line that I shouldn't.  Even when I wrote about Ian's fondness for Coke over Pepsi, I got his permission.  Not being in regular contact with my estranged wife makes it difficult to feel comfortable writing about us because I would have to also write about her.  However, today is different, so I will address our separation, if only briefly.

Allison made a lot of sacrifices for me when we got married.  I picked the University that I wanted to attend and she went along with it, despite the fact that for her degree in Sociology, she could have studied practically anywhere.  We were also really poor, especially that last year together, living on food stamps, trips to the Bishop's Storehouse, and my meager wages from IHOP.  All of that put a lot of stress on our marriage.  When we first got married, we talked about how foolish it was that most people got divorced due to financial reasons, but after over two years of struggling to pay our bills, the stress was just too much.  Money troubles don't ruin marriages, they cause stress-levels to skyrocket which ruins marriages.  Think of it this way: constant stress puts an extreme strain on any relationship and money woes cause more stress than just about anything else.  I always had a good attitude and would say that once we graduated, things would improve.  Then I failed 20th Century British Literature due a single missed assignment and couldn't graduate on time.  All of the stress and money woes of the past year came to a head and something had to give.  Unfortunately, that something was us living together.

I prayed hard about if we should get separated and the Spirit confirmed that we should, but I felt comforted that that was not the end of our marriage.  It was still very difficult to drive Allison to the airport so that she could to go back to stay with her folks, but I was comforted that the Lord knew what He was doing.  Since that time, I have asked for further instruction and been told to simply wait.  I have been ready to move on, but Heavenly Father has made it clear that things are not over.  Please don't think that I am being naive in hanging onto a failed marriage.  I am simply following directions that I have received from the Lord.

Today is still a weird day, but I am happy that I wrote about this difficult and complicated subject.  It was oddly cathartic.

Happy Birthday to Me

As promised, dear reader, I will reveal what was done in celebration of my birthday this weekend.  First of all, we had to postpone the trip to DC to visit a museum (I had decided on the Smithsonian American History Museum) due to a necessary trip to the doctor because Henry had an ear ache.  Totally necessary and totally fine.

Instead I went here:

Ian and I went to the DC Temple in the morning and it was what I really needed.  The DC Temple was very beautiful and it was great to go with my brother again.

That was great, but there was more:

Amanda went to Sprinkles and bought me some birthday cupcakes.  That was the first one that we all split.  Yes, that cupcake was split five ways and it was not disappointing.  It was super rich, so only a fifth of it was actually totally satisfying.

After the kids were put to bed, the grown ups had Chinese food and watched a movie (it was entertaining enough).  All in all, not a bad birthday.