Finding the Positives in 2020

I don't think anyone would argue with the statement that 2020 was a rough year for just about all of us. But I could certainly argue that if we look hard enough, all of us can also find some positives. Here are some of my "Yay for 2020" moments and events.

1. My husband and I were both able to keep our jobs and work from home without too many transition issues.

2. We managed to find - and buy - our dream house.

3. We were able to sell our old house with a minimum of refurbishment, and in a very short time period.

4. Because we were working from home, the moving process - including the usual fixes and updates that needed to be done after we moved - was actually easier than it might have otherwise been.

5. Despite a few unexpected hiccups and issues, the majority of contractors we worked with followed COVID rules without complaint and did their work properly, quickly, and within budget.

6. Our kids were able to meet some new friends prior to the start of school, despite being isolated. 

7. Our kids are both blossoming in their new school system.

8. Our new school system has done an amazing job of planning ahead and communicating those plans, and of responding quickly and effectively so that changes are as easy to manage as is reasonably possible.

9. Very few family members and friends have been infected with COVID, and the majority of those have had minor and manageable cases. 

10. We live right across the street from a big public park that has allowed us to ride bikes, go for walks, fly our drone, and launch model rockets in a socially-distanced and safe place. 

11. We found ourselves in a place where we were ready to get a "real" pet (as opposed to our previous fish and hamster). We adopted a pair of kittens who have turned out to be affectionate, sweet, funny, and altogether delightful. 

12. Both my husband and I have enjoyed the opportunity to do more creative cooking than we often had time for pre-pandemic. 

13. Homemade bread is THE BEST and we've been able to enjoy a LOT of it.

14. As difficult as it is to get to know new neighbors in the middle of a pandemic, we've been fortunate to meet many of them, and they have all been lovely and welcoming. 

15. Because the kids go to school virtually part of the week, my husband and I have had the unique opportunity to see them in "school" mode. It is delightful to see my son happily sharing his knowledge with others, and especially seeing him as a "Reading Buddy" to a younger student. It is a special delight to me to clearly see my own read-aloud influence. It is also delightful to see my daughter sharing her sunshiney outlook with other students who are having struggles. 

16. We have all been able to get all the medical care that we have needed in organized, safe, well-managed facilities.

17. We live one block away from a wonderful gym that offers small, COVID-safe classes that both our kids LOVE.

18. All four of us have gotten involved with the local Cub Scout pack, and kids and adults alike have found kindred spirits and enjoyed many of the new people that we've met. Plus, we've all learned new skills!

19.  Since we're not able to be involved in our usual theatrical and musical performances, we've had the opportunity to be in the audience of virtual performances at all levels, from high school to professionals. I'd forgotten how fun it is to be the audience instead of the performer. 

20. Although all the holidays we've celebrated have felt different this year, there has been a wonderful lack of pressure. No need to plan huge parties or elaborate meals or to make sure the house is immaculate for company. Everything is a little simpler, so we can focus on enjoying it instead of preparing for it.

21. We've been able to spend much more time in our beautiful new home than we would have if we'd been at work and school for most of each day. We're truly able to settle in, personalize, and enjoy the house that we love so much.

22. I have thoroughly enjoyed being able to spend a lot of time working near a window with a birdfeeder (or two, or three), listening to and watching my little feathered friends.

23. I can be surrounded by music all day long.

24. I've been able to read more books in the past 9 months than I have in the two years prior.

25. For the most part, the people that I've interacted with have been incredibly helpful, supportive, and kind to each other. 

What silver linings can YOU find in this crazy year?

Happy New Year to all, and may 2021 bring refreshment and renewal to each one of us!

Red Carpet in the Time of COVID

Without the usual red carpet awards shows, like the Oscars and the Tonys, I've been missing writing up red carpet reviews during this pandemic. But never fear! I have discovered a red carpet event that I have somehow missed over the years: The Sydney Royal Easter Show. Doesn't sound like much, does it - until you see the models. 

They're ducks. 

Yes, ducks. Very fashionable ducks.

Since I have never covered this event, there are a number of years of photographs that I can draw from. So put on your seat belts, because we're in for a bumpy night!

As I frequently do with human celebrities, I shall break down the fashions by category. 

Florals

 

This lovely Wedgewood blue frock with its lace trim is delicate and feminine, but the "shirtfront" style and double collar brings in just enough masculinity to stop it from being frilly. The double buttons are a lovely detail, and the extra pop of bright blue tulle around the hat brim draws the eyes to the wearer's face. This is a look that is likely to be copied by fashionable ducks everywhere. 

The sunflower print on this trio of casual sundresses brings a welcome note of cheeriness to the proceedings. The saucy black ruffs at the neck tone down the yellow nicely while adding just a hint of formality. It's a bit of a risk to wear such an informal style amidst the more formal satins worn by other celebriducks, but these three pull it off with aplomb.   

This mixed florals-and-solid ensemble uses a stylish cape and figure-flattering pleats to separate itself from the more traditional looks in this category. The green piping across the bust squares the shoulders nicely while also emphasizing the gracefully long neck of the wearer. The daring waist-high slit of the skirt adds a sexy element to an otherwise conservative look. Nicely done. 

Ethnic-Inspired

At the risk of being accused of cultural appropriation, this pair of elegant ladies sports matching purple and red kimonos spangled with gold flecks throughout. The slight flare from the waist breaks up the silhouette, creating a flattering line. The only addition I might make to these lovely outfits might be a coordinating paper parasol. 

Interesting textures and a scandalously short skirt call attention to this unusual middle Eastern inspired look. The hint of masculinity of the fez-style hat offsets the show of leg, and the floor-length train falling from the natural waist creates a graceful silhouette. An interesting juxtaposition of angles and softness that shouldn't work, but that somehow does.  

Satins

This lime-green look stands out for more than just its color; the ruched front, the double rows of gold braid up the bodice, the gold inset at the front of the skirt, and the capelets from each shoulder all add wonderful, eye-catching details that set it apart from the parade of other satin gowns. 

Red is always a popular color on the red carpet, but this look goes above and beyond with its flared, pantaloon-style skirt and long narrow collar with asymmetrical zig-zag trim and square-shouldered capelet. Its unique silhouette sets it apart without being too avant garde. 

Wearing a full-on wedding gown complete with veil could not be pulled off by just any duck, but this lovely lady does it well. Opting for an ivory satin bodice with softly draped neckline, but adding accents of pure white ruffles at the neck and white lace trim at the edges of the long train and overlapping peplum emphasizes her lily-white complexion, and sets off her naturally golden feet and beak beautifully. An excellent example of coordinating the gown and the wearer.

Pinks 

Pepto Bismol pink is a daring choice for anyone who's not a Barbie doll, but these ladies chose to set off their dark complexions with vivid pink accented with charmingly retro black-and-white checked trim at the collar, across the bust, along the edge of the train, and in pert little pocket flaps. The three tiny buttons down the neck provide just the right contemporary note. 

Embarrassingly similar to the wedding gown shown previously, this traditional style pale-pink dress leans too heavily on pleats and ruffles for visual interest. A simpler silhouette might have been more dramatic and more flattering, but instead this look reminds one of a partly-melted wedding cake. The maribou trim on the hat, however, is beyond perfection. 

The Men

I would be remiss if I did not include these fashionable drakes along with the ladies. Their hats are simply perfect, and the combination of sleeveless, short-fronted vests with long split tailcoats gives traditional formalwear a refreshing update. Well done, gents!

All in all, I'd say that this red carpet event rivals any human event I've ever seen. With only one fashion fail in the bunch, the ducks come out ahead in the human vs. duck fashion competition. I look forward to the next animal-human couture matchup!

The Ugly Cookie Theory

With only a few more days before Christmas, I am getting into full cookie baking mode. Despite the fact that I am not able to share my usual array of cookie plates with friends and family, I am still baking multiple batches of cookies. Last night my husband kept me company while I baked, which meant that he got to be the recipient of the Ugly Cookie.

What is the Ugly Cookie, you ask? Well, if you've ever made rolled cookies - the type where you roll out the dough with a rolling pin and then cut it into shapes with cookie cutters - you know that there is always a little bit of leftover dough that's not quite enough to roll out again. In my family, this dough is used to make an Ugly Cookie.

An Ugly Cookie is often shaped with fingers rather than a rolling pin, flattened out to a thickness similar to the previous cookies in the batch, but in no particular shape. In some cases, it may be rolled with a rolling pin but then cut with a knife into vaguely 4- (or sometimes 3-) sided shapes with at least one "unfinished" side. If it is decorated with sugar or icing, there is rarely any artistic thought put into that cookie. It gets a random sprinkle of sugar or an unformed blob of icing. It lives up to its name.

And what is the fate of the Ugly Cookie? It is certainly not worthy of being added to a cookie plate, meant to be a special gift to others. Cookie Plate Cookies are artistic, carefully and thoughtfully shaped, and beautifully decorated. They are a symbol of the giver's relationship to the receiver: lovely, prized, pleasing. An Ugly Cookie has no place on a cookie plate. Instead, the Ugly Cookie is given to a member of the family, especially one who has helped with the baking process or, as in the case last night, kept the baker company during the whole production process. 

Now, you might think that since the Cookie Plate Cookie is a symbol of the receiver's esteem in the eyes of the giver, that the contrary is true and the Ugly Cookie is a sign of the giver's disdain for the receiver. But in fact, it represents something much greater. It represents the giver's discarding all pretense. It represents the giver's complete trust in his or her relationship with the receiver. It represents the giver's willingness to be vulnerable and to present his or her own imperfections. 

When you receive an Ugly Cookie, the giver is saying, "This is not my best. But I can trust you with less than my best, because I can trust your love for me even when I am imperfect, even when I fail." 

So when I give you these, it means I love you.

But when I give you this, it means I trust that you love me. 

Greater love hath no man than this: that a man lay down his Ugly Cookie for his friend. 

Things to Do with Your Kids During a Snowstorm

We're expecting our first doozy of a snowstorm this year starting in the middle of the night tonight. My kids are in hybrid school and were scheduled for asynchronous online learning tomorrow, which means that their schedule is unaffected by the storm. Fortunately, other than a 30-minute check-in with their assistant teacher at a specific time, they can get their work done on their own time. Which means we can go outside and play in the snow almost whenever we want. Given the pandemic, I feel like this may even be an opportunity to get together with friends for a sledding date. Masks will be appreciated in the snow and cold, and single-person sleds are perfect for social distancing. Since we live directly across the street from a park with a fabulous sledding hill, I can even sponsor a hot cocoa party in the parking lot afterwards. 

If you are in a similar situation and may be looking to take a work break and hang with your kids tomorrow (inside or out), here is a list of great things to do with your kids on a snowy day.

• Go sledding. (Duh.)
• Make snow angels. (Double duh.)
• Blow bubbles and watch them freeze.
• Collect fresh snow and make sno-cones.
• Have a snowball fight.
• Fill small balloons with water and a few drops of food coloring and leave them outside to freeze, then peel off the balloons and line your walkway with multicolored "crystal" balls.
• Have a hot cocoa tasting. Experiment with using water, milk, and half and half; whipped cream vs. marshmallows; dip the rim with a little hot cocoa and roll it in colored sugar; try adding a squirt of caramel or coffee syrup.
• Bake cookies.
• Bake bread.
• Make soup.
• Go ice skating.
• Have a board game marathon.
• Make s'mores over the fireplace. Or over the stove top if you don't have a fireplace.
• Pull out the toasting forks and toast bread or cook hotdogs over the fire.
• Read one of your favorite childhood books out loud. 
• Go shovel a neighbor's driveway together.
• Shovel out all the fire hydrants on your street together.
• Pop a bunch of popcorn and make a garland to add to your Christmas tree.
• Go through some old family albums and tell them stories about when you were their age.
• Watch a holiday movie together.
• Teach your kids a new skill: how to sew on a button, how to change a tire (best if you have a garage), how to do laundry, how to fry an egg, how to change a lightbulb.
• Do a home improvement project together: hang a picture, level a table, repaint a wall, caulk a window.
• Plan a vacation. Either a real one that could actually happen after the pandemic, or a dream one. Show them how to research online. Set a budget. Make choices based on that budget. 
• If you have a bird feeder, teach them to identify some of the common birds. If you don't, sprinkle some birdseed on top of the snow and see how long it takes the birds to find it. Spread a pine cone with peanut butter and roll it in birdseed, then hang it from a tree for the birds. 
• Make a snowman. Don't forget to give it a hat, a scarf, and a carrot nose.
• Go for a walk in the snow. 
• Catch snowflakes on your tongue. 
• Do karaoke. Let the kids teach you one of their favorite songs. Teach them one of yours.
• Have a dance party in the living room. 
• Try on all the clothes in each of your wardrobes. Put everything that doesn't fit in a bag and donate it. 
• Have the kids go through all their old toys and donate ones they've outgrown. Throw away anything that's broken or has missing pieces. 
• Collect all your loose change and put them into coin rolls. 
• Teach them how to polish silver and have a tea party with your fancy silver and china.
• Have breakfast for dinner.
• Eat dinner in reverse, starting with dessert. 
• Wear your pajamas all day. Stuffed animals optional.
• Bring your sleeping bags into the living room and watch a movie that ends past their bedtimes.

Whatever you love to do with your family, do that. Whatever your kids love to do, do it with them. Let them spirit move. Don't be afraid to be silly. Don't feel you need to follow any kind of rules. Let yourself have fun. 

Happy snow day!

A Legacy of Love and Laughter

This lovely lady is my grandmother, Lucille Metcalf, who passed away suddenly last week at the age of 90. Yes, 90. And this photo is from only one year ago. Needless to say, she was a remarkable woman.

Even aside from the "grandmother stuff," she was remarkable. Born in 1930, she was part of a generation where women were expected to get married young, have a bunch of children, and not work unless they were a nurse, secretary, or teacher prior to marrying and having children. Lucille was having none of that. She earned not only a bachelor's degree but a masters degree in Religious Education. She served as the Director of Christian Education for a church in Augusta, Maine. She was a City Missionary with the Baptist City Mission Society in Boston, Massachusetts. She was the Executive Director of the Greater Lynn Council of Churches. 

She did eventually marry, at the unusually advanced age of 36 (I say that VERY tongue in cheek, as I was married at the even more advanced age of 39), to my grandfather, a widower who was  significantly older than she and who had a grown son and a grandchild. 

Marriage certainly did not change her independent and stubborn streak, either. She had a heart attack at a relatively young age, and immediately took up walking to get her health back. Her walking club stopped recording mileage when she hit 11,000 miles, but considering that she continued walking several times a week for 18 more years, it's safe to say she probably hit 20,000 miles or more. And when her cholesterol levels didn't drop the way she wanted even with all that exercise, she became a vegetarian, but in her typical gracious fashion, she continued to cook for carnivorous guests and insisted on bringing her own main dish whenever she was a guest, so as not to make extra work for her hosts.  

Although she never had children of her own, she embraced the role of grandmother to my older sister and myself with great enthusiasm. I think I was about 10 before it even occurred to me that she was not, in fact, my father's biological mother. She had, after all, been married to my grandfather by the time I was born, so she was the only grandmother on that side that I had ever known. Of course, I had seen photographs of my biological grandmother, and I'd certainly heard stories, but somehow my brain never made the logical inference that someone else had been there first. Some people call their grandmothers "Grandma," some call them "Bubbe" or "Nana" or "Bammy;" I called mine "Auntie Lu." She was just my grandmother, full stop. 

When I think of memories of Auntie Lu, I think not of long stories or major events, but of little moments. The time I stayed overnight at her house and she baked popovers for breakfast. Going to the trailer at my grandparents' campsite and her showing me how to use the hand pump to make the water flow in the bathroom sink. The way she carefully set aside portions of a main dish she was making for my dad and me before adding mushrooms. The Christmas she knit me dozens of tiny and exquisite Barbie clothes. Her beautiful, graceful handwriting on dozens of birthday cards. How proud she was when she set up her computer and taught herself to use email and the internet. My grandparents' pet parakeet, Parker, who spoke in Lu's voice but who never quite mastered "Merry Christmas," instead cheerfully wishing all holiday visitors a "Merry Chris!" Her Siamese cats, Charlie with the crooked tail and Molly who had an inordinate fondness for ice cream and a surprisingly possessive attitude toward the clothes dryer. Lu's elegant Brahmin pronunciation of the name "Met-cahf."

Auntie Lu was very proper, very much a lady, but she was never stuffy. She had a witty and occasionally rather wicked sense of humor. My husband looked forward to exchanging witty barbs with her at every visit, with good-natured teasing and bantering going both ways. One of her favorite possessions in her later years was a Teddy Ruxpin doll that would respond to vocal commands with yawns, laughs, and funny comments that always resulted in guffaws from Lu. When my children were born, she delighted in making Teddy do his tricks for them.

She reveled in being a great-grandmother just as much as she reveled in being a grandmother. She was always a tiny, petite little thing, and the first time she held my unusually large firstborn (affectionately referred to in the family as a "bag of sand"), I was afraid he would crush her. But she adored him, and he adored her right back. 

And when my daughter joined the clan, it was just as much of a mutual admiration society.

And as they grew older, that admiration never waned. 

Visits with or to Auntie Lu were always something to look forward to. The kids loved telling her about what was going on in their lives, and she loved hearing about it. She loved her family, and we loved her right back.

 

But beyond family, Lu loved all those around her. Her neighbors. Her knitters. Her walkers. Her church family. All who met her were touched by her grace, her humor, her zest for life. She touched so many lives. She left the world a better place than she found it. May we all leave such a blessed legacy of love and laughter on this earth. 

A Beginner's Guide to Making a Traditional Thanksgiving Dinner

My husband and I both love to cook, so every holiday meal is a discussion of who's cooking this time, with two exceptions: My husband always gets Easter (he's the master of every kind of lamb dish), and I get Thanksgiving. There's something about those predictable, traditional, comfort foods and the process of organizing the cooking for a beautifully coordinated Thanksgiving meal that really appeals to me. 

After many years of coordinating Thanksgiving dinners, I've developed a pretty foolproof system and a bunch of never-fail recipes. So if you are slightly intimidated by making your first (or your twenty-seventh) Thanksgiving meal, here is a walk-through of my preparations that you may find helpful!

1. The first thing to do is to put together your menu. Do you want sweet potatoes or squash? Green bean casserole or mashed turnips? Parker House rolls or croissants? Pumpkin pie, apple pie, or both? (Hint: The answer is always both.) Once you've decided what dishes you want to make, gather all your recipes. If you're willing to be flexible, you may want to start thumbing through recipes before you choose your menu. Here's what on my menu this year:

• Spatchcocked, dry brined turkey
• Mashed potatoes
• Gravy
• Crispy rosemary sweet potatoes
• Green peas
• Bread dressing
• Creamed onions
• Jellied cranberry sauce
• Crescent rolls
• Pumpkin pie
• Apple crisp

2. The next step for me is to write down a schedule for everything I need to prep and cook. Since I make a similar menu every year, it's usually just an issue of taking last year's schedule and tweaking it, based mainly on turkey size, what appetizers I'm making, what dishes guests are bringing, what time we'd like to sit down for dinner, and whether I'm making the potatoes in the crock pot, the Instant Pot, or on the stove top. Writing out a schedule will allow you to know ahead of time if you've got two dishes that need to be in the oven at the same time but at different temperatures, and give you a chance to figure out ahead of time how to make it work. Here's what my schedule looks like this year (I've eliminated the appetizers for the sake of simplicity):

The night before: Cut up stuffing bread, onions, celery; make pumpkin pie; make creamed onions; bake rolls; spatchcock and dry brine turkey

On Thanksgiving Day:

9:00am: Peel and slice potatoes & place in salted water in Instant Pot; prep sweet potatoes; make stuffing

11am: Preheat oven to 400

11:15am: Sweet potatoes in oven, covered

12:15pm: Sweet potatoes out; turn oven up to 450, sprinkle turkey with pepper and rub with oil & paprika

12:40pm: Turkey in oven

1:00pm: Make stuffing, slice cranberry sauce; start potatoes in Instant Pot

1:40pm: Make gravy; drain & mash potatoes, leave on keep warm

2:00pm: GUESTS ARRIVE; serve appetizers

2:10pm: Turkey out and rest under foil, heat peas, heat onions

2:20pm: Sweet potatoes, rolls & dressing in oven

2:30pm: Rolls & dressing out, check sweet potatoes; carve turkey

2:35pm: Check sweet potatoes if not done 

2:40pm: Sit down to dinner

3. Using your recipes as a guide, make a shopping list. Never assume you have an ingredient on hand without checking! More than once I've said to myself, "I have molasses in the cupboard" and then realized when I went to make the pie that I only had a tablespoon left. Make your life easier by grouping all the produce, refrigerated items, canned goods, etc. on your list. Don't forget to include beverages and beverage-related items, like cream for coffee or a type of soda preferred by your guests. This was my shopping list this year:

Turkey, 12-14 lbs

Yukon Gold potatoes, 5-lb bag

Sweet potatoes, 3 medium

Shallots, 2

White onion

Celery

Fresh rosemary

Jellied cranberry sauce, 2 cans

Canned pumpkin, 1 can

Evaporated milk (12-oz can)

Pearl onions, 2 jars

Turkey gravy mix, 2 packets

Frozen peas

Frozen pie crust

Vanilla ice cream

Crescent rolls grands, 2 cans

Cider

Stuffing bread, 2 loaves

4. Do any cooking and preparation ahead of time that you can. Chop vegetables for stuffing the night before; make pumpkin pie, creamed onions, or rolls a few days ahead; lay out your serving dishes and utensils with labels (I put post-its on everything; my husband laughs but it works!); set the table including the centerpiece. Run your dishwasher or hand-wash anything that's dirty the night before.

Now it's time to cook! There are lots of fancier and more complicated recipes for all these dishes, but if you're already nervous about cooking or coordination, it's best to start out simple. I've also suggested a few simpler options if you want to focus on your turkey this year, as well as some fancier choices if you're feeling more confident.

Spatchcocked Turkey

I used to get up at the crack of dawn to start my turkey. But then I discovered the joy of spatchcocking, which is simply cutting out the bird's backbone and spread-eagling it, much like butterflying a fat pork chop. (It sounds complicated, but it's really not.) This allows the heat from the oven to reach all around the bird and HUGELY reduces your cook time. It's hard to do if you have a bird that's much bigger than about 12 pounds, but I do it regularly with a 12-14 pound bird and it's always come out perfectly cooked, juicy, and delicious. Here's my method:

1.     Spatchcock your turkey. You can ask your butcher to do it, but it's not overly difficult to do it yourself, especially with a smaller bird. Here's a good video to walk you through the process. 

    Pro tips:

• A heavy pair of shears is more important than a sharp pair. Contrary to this video, I find that plain, straight-bladed kitchen shears work just fine. I just use an old pair so my good shears stay sharp.
• Standing on a stepstool so you can put your weight into it is a big help.
• It takes a surprising amount of force to break the breast bone, so really listen for that crack. If you're a small person, feel free to recruit a larger person to give you a hand with this step.

2. The night before you cook the turkey, pat it dry with paper towels and salt it generously with kosher salt. Place it on a wire rack inside a rimmed baking sheet or roasting pan and place in the refrigerator uncovered overnight. (You can leave it for as long as three days if you prefer.)

3. Position the oven rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Remove the turkey from the refrigerator and sprinkle it all over with freshly ground black pepper. In a small bowl, mix together 3 tablespoons olive oil and 1 tablespoon paprika (smoked paprika is especially delicious), and rub the turkey evenly with the mixture, all over. Place skin side up in the pan and roast until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers at 165 degrees and the breast registers at 150 degrees. (A 14 lb. turkey takes only about 1.5 hrs; expect less time for a smaller bird.)

4. Remove from oven and allow to rest, loosely covered with foil, for about 20-30 minutes before carving. If you carve too soon, the juices won't have redistributed and they'll run all over the cutting board leaving you with a dry bird.

Pro tips:

• If you buy a frozen turkey, be sure to move it into the refrigerator 4-5 days before you cook it. Don't worry if there are still a few ice crystals in the center; once you spatchcock it and leave it in the fridge overnight it will thaw faster and be ready for cooking in the morning. 
• Tuck the tips of the bird's wings under the thighs, and check periodically while cooking to make sure they don't burn. You can cover them with little caps made out of foil if they start to get too dark. 
• Don't rely on those pop-up indicators that come with the turkey; it's worth investing in a quick-read thermometer and checking the actual temperature. 

Mashed Potatoes

There are as many ways to make mashed potatoes as there are people who eat mashed potatoes, but for Thanksgiving, I prefer simple, unadulterated potatoes, adding only milk (or half and half), butter, and salt and pepper, but you can add sour cream, garlic, cream cheese, parmesan, bacon, or anything else you like to fancy them up. Here's the basic recipe for 6 guests, easily doubled or tripled for additional guests (or generous leftovers):

6 or 7 Yukon gold potatoes

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup milk or half and half (use more or less to get desired consistency)

2-3 tablespoons butter

Salt and pepper to taste

1.     Peel the potatoes and cut into ~1" chunks. Place in a large pot and cover with water, then add 1/2 teaspoon salt.
2.     Bring the water to a boil and simmer potatoes for 15-20 minutes, until fork tender. The smaller the chunks, the faster they will cook. 
3.     Drain the water, add milk and butter, and mash until creamy. Add more milk if needed for desired consistency. (Potatoes will thicken as they stand.) Add salt and pepper to taste. 

Pro tips:

• The size of the chunks of potato is less important than all the chunks being the same size.
• The potato chunks can soak in the salted water for several hours or even overnight if you prefer to prepare them ahead of time.
• To keep warm until ready to serve, initially add a scant amount of milk, tightly cover the pot you cook and mash them in, then heat some additional milk and add it to the potatoes right before serving. You can also keep them warm in a crock pot or Instant Pot. (You can also cook the potatoes in either one.)  
• For a vegetarian/vegan/non-dairy version, substitute margarine for butter and vegetable stock for milk. Adding a bit of poultry seasoning helps the flavor as well. 
• If you accidentally add too much liquid, add a spoonful of instant potato flakes and mix well. If potatoes seem too dry when you're ready to serve, heat a small amount of milk and stir in.

Turkey Gravy

You can get all fancy and make your gravy from scratch using giblets and homemade stock and the whole nine yards, but honestly, I don't find it all that much better than making it from a mix and adding in a little of the drippings. So I make it easy for myself and use the little packets. Use a baster to suck up the juices from the pan under the turkey and substitute it for some of the water. And always make extra. You can never have too much gravy on Thanksgiving.

Crispy Rosemary Sweet Potatoes

If you want to simplify your menu, this is a great dish to replace with frozen squash, heated and blended with butter, salt, pepper, and a little dollop of molasses or a spoonful of brown sugar. But if you're willing to do one fancy-looking, slightly more labor-intensive (but still relatively easy) side dish, this is a good one to try. Even my non-vegetable-eating kids like this one. 

3 Tablespoons butter, melted

3 Tablespoons olive oil

1/4 teaspoon crushed dried rosemary, or 1/2 tsp. fresh

3 lbs. (3-4 medium) sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced thinly

1 shallot, peeled and sliced thinly

Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Combine melted butter, oil, and crushed rosemary in a small bowl. Pour 2 tablespoons of butter-oil mixture in the bottom of a 2-quart baking dish or deep pie pan. Arrange potato slices vertically in the dish. Add a sliver of shallot between every few slices of potato. Brush or drizzle top with remaining butter-oil mixture. Season generously with salt and pepper.

Cover dish with foil and roast for 1 hour, covered, until potatoes are tender. (If your potato slices are thick, you may need to increase cooking time). Increase oven heat to 450 degrees. Remove foil and roast another 10-15 minutes, until tops of potatoes are browned and crisp.

Pro tips:

• When selecting your sweet potatoes, look for potatoes that are long and cylindrical and about the same diameter. When you arrange the slices, use the slices that are most similar in size for the outside circle in the dish, then make a "coil" in the center going from largest to smallest of the remaining slices. 
• You can use a kitchen mandolin to slice the sweet potatoes extra thinly, just be careful not to let them burn during the final browning step. If slicing by hand, be sure to cut slices of a uniform thickness. The thinner the slices, the crispier the result. 
• If using fresh rosemary, save a few sprigs as a garnish when serving.
• You can cook the dish for the first hour the night before and refrigerate overnight, then allow to come to room temperature before cooking for the final 10-15 minutes at 450. You can also cook for the first hour before the turkey goes in and allow to set at room temperature for the 1-1/2 hours while the turkey cooks, then finish cooking at 450.

Green Peas

Another super-easy dish that can easily be substituted for a fancier green vegetable (green bean casserole?). But I like the simplicity of plain, sweet, green peas. Dump a bag of frozen peas into a microwave-safe dish, add a few tablespoons of water and a generous dash of salt, then microwave for 2-3 minutes and stir. Right before it's time to serve, microwave for 30-60 seconds until hot, transfer to serving dish, and top with a dollop of butter.

Bread Dressing

With a spatchcocked turkey, there's no cavity to stuff, so make dressing instead of stuffing. What's the difference? You bake it in a casserole dish instead of in the bird. That's the only difference! You can even add in some drippings to get that "cooked-in-the-bird flavor" without worrying that it'll increase the cooking time of your turkey. Plus, if you bake it outside the bird, it gets nice and crispy on the top. 

Like mashed potatoes, there are literally thousands of different recipes for dressing and stuffing, but start with a basic bread dressing, then make it your own by adding fresh herbs, crumbled sausage, cornbread, oysters, chestnuts, whatever you like. This is my family's recipe, which I love because you cook it on the stove top and if you don't have room in the oven, you can serve it as is without baking it further. We like lots of stuffing, so this is a double recipe, but it can be halved if you have a smaller crowd or non-stuffing fans. 

1 c butter

½ c. chopped onion (can use frozen, no need to thaw first)

1-1/2 c. celery, chopped

8 c bread cubes (~1 loaf of stuffing bread)

2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 tsp poultry seasoning (can substitute thyme, marjoram, sage, savory, or any combination)

2/3 c milk

Melt butter in a large, deep skillet. Saute onion (~5 min). Add celery, bread, salt and pepper, and poultry seasoning. Mix and brown thoroughly. Add milk and mix until well-blended and warmed through.

May be served as is, stuffed and baked in the bird, or baked in a casserole dish for extra crispiness (I throw it in a 450 oven for 10-15 minutes). 

Pro tips:

• If you prefer a firmer stuffing, let the bread air dry for a few hours after you cube it.
• If you have fresh herbs on hand, toss some in with the dressing and garnish the serving dish with a few sprigs.
• For a vegetarian/vegan version, substitute margarine for butter and vegetable broth for milk.
• This dressing keeps well in the fridge and reheats very nicely, so it's a good dish to make the night (or even a few days) before to lighten your workload on Thanksgiving Day.

Creamed Onions

I love the simplest type of creamed onions, in a white sauce seasoned only with salt and pepper, but peas, bacon, paprika, herbs, and mustard are all popular additions. Start with the base below and then experiment to see what you like best. You can also cut this recipe in half if there aren't a lot of onion eaters on your guest list. 

2 jars pearl onions

3 tbsp butter

4 tbsp flour

1 cup water

1-1/2 cups milk

Salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. When completely melted, gradually whisk in the flour to make a thick paste (roux). Cook and stir until golden. Mix together water and milk. Add milk mixture slowly to the saucepan, stirring constantly, and cook until thickened. Add salt and pepper to taste. Drain onions, add to sauce, and heat until warmed through.  

Pro tips:

• Make sure to cook the roux until it begins to turn golden. This gives a richer flavor, instead of tasting like uncooked flour. 
• You can use the liquid from the onions instead of water to mix with the milk. You can also substitute half and half or heavy cream if you like a richer sauce.
• The longer you cook the sauce, the thicker it will get. If you decide it's too thick, simply add a bit more water and/or milk.
• This dish is a good one to make ahead of time and simply reheat before serving. It reheats well in the microwave if you're short on burners, just stir it a few times while heating. 

Jellied Cranberry Sauce

From a can. With the lines still on it. If you want to make some fancy cranberry relish from scratch, or if a guest wants to bring their fancy family recipe, go for it. But there had better also be a dish of canned jellied cranberry sauce on the table or I'm not coming. 

Crescent Rolls

I'm a pretty good baker, and many years I've made Parker House rolls, sourdough knots, or other fancy dinner rolls. But as much as they enjoy them, my family still requests Pillsbury crescent rolls from the blue can. So I save myself some work and bake these up the night before and just rewarm them right before we sit down at the table. Everyone wins.

Pumpkin Pie

I've tried a number of different pumpkin pie recipes, but I keep coming back to Old Faithful, the recipe on the back of the One-Pie pumpkin can. Fuss with the spices if you must, but this is a classic for a reason.

1 cup sugar

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon each ground ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon

scant 1/2 teaspoon salt

1 15-oz  can pumpkin or squash 

1-1/2 tablespoons butter, melted

2 eggs, beaten

1 12-oz can evaporated milk (or 1-1/2 cups milk)

2 tablespoons molasses

Prepared pie crust (homemade or frozen)

If using frozen pie crust, allow to thaw for 15 minutes while preheating oven to 450. Pierce bottom of crust (either thawed or fresh) with fork in several places and bake for 12 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool.

Sift together sugar, cornstarch, spices, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Stir in pumpkin. On low speed with a hand mixer, beat in melted butter, eggs, milk, and molasses. Pour into prepared pie crust. Bake at 450 for 15 minutes, then reduce temperature to 350 and bake for 50 additional minutes. Pie should "wobble" slightly in the center when done.

Serve pie warm or chilled, topped with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. 

Pro tips:

• To avoid the bottom of the crust bubbling up while pre-baking, be sure to pierce all the way down to the pan. You can also cover the pastry with foil and fill the pan with oven-safe marbles or pie weights. Check the crust partway through baking and poke down any areas that have bubbled up.
• This recipe makes too much filling for all but a VERY deep "deep crust" pan. I pour the excess into ramekins, set them in a square baking dish and fill the dish with hot water to a little below the level of the filling. Bake alongside the pie (baking time should be similar to the pie but check them in case it varies for you). Remove from the hot water bath immediately (a metal spatula works well) and allow to cool on a wire rack. My crust-hating daughter much prefers "pumpkin custard" to actual pumpkin pie.
• If using a lightweight or disposable pie plate, put the pie on a cookie sheet while baking to help support it.
• For a nice variation, use a graham cracker or gingersnap crust. 

Apple Crisp

I've made many different varieties of apple pie, apple crumble, and apple crisp, but which one does my husband love the best and request every Thanksgiving? The one from the red box. I use nice, firm, not too sweet apples and then just follow the directions on the box. I could spend hours baking a gorgeous apple pie, but if this is what my husband loves, this is what he gets. 

So I hope this helps some of my readers get brave and try their hand at making a turkey dinner this year! Don't be afraid to simplify, use convenience foods, or cut out dishes altogether. Do what works for you and your family. And if you gain some confidence and want to try something more complicated next time, go for it! As long as there's gravy, everyone will be happy.

Happy Thanksgiving from my family to yours!!

Little Pleasures in the Time of Pandemic

As we approach our 8th month of the pandemic, along with its accompanying isolation, masking, remote learning, testing, quarantine, etc., I find myself needing to consciously make an effort to find positives. Not necessarily "this is better than when we're not quarantined," but merely, "this is a good thing that we can still enjoy."

Today, I have challenged myself to come up with 100 things that I - and many of us - can enjoy, be satisfied by, and look forward to, even under quarantine. How many more can you think of?

1. A beautiful sunrise.

2. A beautiful sunset.

3. Birdsong in the trees.

4. Listening to a favorite song.

5. The laughter of children.

6. Eating a delicious meal prepared by a loved one.

7. Snuggling with a sleepy child.

8. The sound of rain on the rooftop.

9. The smell of wood smoke from a neighbor's chimney.

10. The excitement of learning a new skill.

11. Hearing from an old friend.

12. Making a new friend.

13. Going for a walk in the woods.

14. The acrobatic grace of a squirrel walking on a wire.

15. Overhearing your child helping a friend with their schoolwork.

16. The smell of a fresh cup of coffee in the morning.

17. A hot bath.

18. Watching a movie and being surprised by the twist you didn't see coming.

19. A mug of tea and a good book.

20. Kneading bread dough.

21. Waking up in the morning with a cold nose but warm feet.

22. Rummaging through a drawer and finding that thing you thought had been lost forever.

23. Successfully repairing something around your house.

24. A really good hair day.

25. That fresh feeling you get right after you brush your teeth.

26. Finding a penny on the ground.

27. The smell after it rains. (It's called "petrichor," in case you were wondering.)

28. An owl hooting in the darkness.

29. A funny Facebook post that made you literally LOL.

30. A good cry.

31. Dancing while cooking dinner.

32. A phone call from a friend.

33. A vase of flowers on the kitchen table.

34. Peeling an apple in a single, long peel.

35. The squeaky sound that the nuthatches make when they land on the bird feeder.

36. The patterns of frost on the window pane.

37. Helping your child with their homework, and suddenly they "get it."

38. Someone playing an instrument.

39. Going for a walk with someone you love.

40. The smell of freshly-baked cookies.

41. Finding an open parking space close by when you're running late.

42. Warm socks.

43. A friendly dog.

44. Watching the squirrels chase each other through the trees.

45. Folding laundry that's still warm from the dryer.

46. Singing along to your favorite song from high school.

47. A hawk making lazy circles in the sky.

48. When what you needed to buy anyway is on sale.

49. Getting in the shortest checkout line.

50. Catching an old favorite movie on TV.

51. Reaching your next freebie on your frequent buyer card.

52. The excitement of a package arriving with something you forgot you'd ordered.

53. Playing board games with your kid and not letting them beat you but they beat you anyway.

54. Catching a glimpse of a wild animal in your yard.

55. Those few quiet moments when you're the only one home.

56. A video call with family far away.

57. Wearing your pajamas all day.

58. Discovering a new kind of shampoo that smells AMAZING.

59. The soothing sound of a grandfather clock announcing the hour.

60. Getting kudos from your boss.

61. That second cup of coffee in the morning.

62. When you stretch just right and your back magically unkinks.

63. Paying for the person behind you at the drive-through.

64. Pizza delivery.

65. Sunshine through the red leaves of an autumn tree.

66. When you know the answer to that really hard crossword clue AND how to spell it.

67. Finding a new favorite TV series to binge-watch.

68. Finding an old favorite TV series to binge-watch.

69. When your favorite author releases a new book.

70. Watching your kids watch one of your favorite movies for the first time.

71. Jumping in a pile of leaves.

72. How light you feel right after a haircut.

73. Chapstick.

74. Making pancakes in fun shapes.

75. Bacon.

76. Flannel pajamas.

77. Being tagged in someone's Facebook post because they were thinking of you.

78. A poem that says just what you needed to hear.

79. A raccoon lumbering through your yard (but not rummaging through your trash).

80. Automatic garage door openers.

81. A really good glass of wine.

82. A smell that suddenly brings you back to your childhood.

83. Looking through old photo albums.

84. Sitting outside and being cold but not TOO cold.

85. Tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich.

86. Guessing whodunnit and being right.

87. When you plug in the charging cord and it goes in right the first time.

88. Car seat warmers.

89. Sitting and noodling at the piano, even if you're not very good.

90. Wearing your favorite outfit.

91. When the sun peeks under the shades but you know you don't have to get up yet.

92. Eating Captain Crunch for breakfast and drinking the rest of the milk directly from the bowl, like when you were a kid.

93. When a lot of people "like" your Facebook post.

94. A mockingbird going through his whole repertoire when it's not 4am.

95. Milk and cookies.

96. Watching it snow.

97. Finishing a project that's been half-done forever.

98. The sound of autumn leaves crunching underfoot.

99. Trying a new restaurant that turns out to be FABULOUS.

100. When you can tell someone's smiling at you, even under their mask.

They're all little things, but if you think about how many you experience in a day, they add up. But you need to look for them, or they'll slip by unnoticed. So if you're feeling down lately, as I am, try looking for the little things. Write them down, even. It's not going to fix everything that's going wrong at the moment in this world, but it just might help make things a little more manageable. 

We CAN get through this. We WILL get through this. Let's all keep looking for the positives to help us keep our heads up. Let's all work to help each other. No matter what your situation, no matter who you are, you have struggles, and you have blessings. Look for those blessings, and I'm sure you'll find some!

Now Watch This

I was something of a late adopter of streaming television, but last summer when I had foot surgery and was laid up for six weeks or so, my husband set up a TV in the living room across from the couch, and equipped it with a Fire Stick that let me stream both Netflix and Amazon Prime series. I binge-watched my way through the entire summer. And then when the pandemic hit and I was working from home, he set up another TV in my workshop and the binge-watching recommenced. So between last summer and this fall, I've binge-watched more series than I can count. Which means that in addition to popular, well-known series like The Crown and Call the Midwife, I've also dug into whoever-heard-of-that series like The Sniffer and The Bletchley Circle.

So if you've run out of things to watch and are looking for some series that are a little more off-beat or unfamiliar, here are a few that I've watched and enjoyed.

Police Procedurals & Detective Series

The Show: The Sniffer 
Available On: Amazon Prime
You'll Like It If You Like: House, CSI
The Face(s) You'll Recognize: Probably none, although star Kirill Karo bears a striking resemblance to Tim Roth, so much so that the series included a joke about it in one episode.
The Premise: This Ukrainian series is in Russian with English subtitles, which takes a little getting used to, but it's worth it. The main character has an incredibly acute sense of smell, which he uses to assist the police in finding evidence and solving crimes. It's a fascinating if slightly preposterous premise which could fall short if not for the deliciously anti-social and snarky main character (imagine if House were a detective instead of a doctor) and his interplay with his frustrated playboy of a best friend and handler at the Russian equivalent of the FBI. It's also an interesting look at how other countries' police procedures differ from American ones.
Similar Shows to Check Out: Marcella, Cadfael

The Show: Unforgotten
Available On: Amazon Prime
You'll Like It If You Like: Cold Case, The Missing, Prime Suspect
The Face(s) You'll Recognize: If you watch a lot of British TV, you may recognize star Nicola Walker from Last Tango in Halifax, Touching Evil, River, Collateral, or any of a number of other series.
The Premise: Each of the three 6-episode "seasons" covers a single case. In the first, the body of a young man is discovered during a building demolition and the detective assigned to the case is determined to find the murderer, despite the fact that the murder occurred 35 years ago.
Similar Shows to Check Out: Shetland, Broadchurch, The Dr. Blake Mysteries, River

The Show: New Tricks
Available On: Amazon Prime
You'll Like It If You Like: Grumpy Old Men, Prime Suspect, Spenser for Hire
The Face(s) You'll Recognize: Alun Armstrong is a perennial character actor (a.k.a. "Hey, it's that guy") who's been in everything from Downton Abbey to Prime Suspect to Van Helsing, or you might recognize him as Monsieur Thenardier in the 25th anniversary concert production of Les Miserables.
The Premise: A female senior police detective leads a cold case squad of retired policemen. The squad looks like a bunch of misfits, with each member fighting their own personal demons (alcoholism, mental illness, bad relationships, grief over a murdered wife, etc.), but use unconventional (and occasionally unlawful) methods to solve the case in the end. It manages to be both very funny and very moving at times.
Similar Shows to Check Out: Unforgotten, River, Hustle

The Show: Hustle
Available On: Amazon Prime
You'll Like It If You Like: Mission Impossible, The A-Team, White Collar
The Face(s) You'll Recognize: Robert Vaughn (The Man from U.N.C.L.E. plus about a hundred other movies and series)
The Premise: A group of con artists, along with their mentor, set out to scam those that deserve it by appealing to their greed. Their motto: You can't con an honest man. Clever setups, unexpected plot twists, and intriguing replays of previous scenes to show you exactly how they pulled off the con keep the show from being too formulaic. They even manage several significant cast changes over the course of several seasons but continue to make the ensemble work.
Similar Shows to Check Out: Leverage, Burn Notice, The Mentalist

The Show: Broadchurch
Available On: Netflix
You'll Like It If You Like: Doctor Who, NYPD Blue, Prime Suspect
The Face(s) You'll Recognize: David Tennant (Doctor Who), Jodie Whittaker (Doctor Who), Olivia Colman (The Crown, Fleabag, The Favourite)
The Premise: A heart-wrenching drama about police detectives investigating the tragic death of a young boy. Do I really need to say anything other than that it features David Tennant and Olivia Colman? It's worth watching if only to hear Tennant's Scottish brogue kicking into high gear when he addresses Colman as "Ellllllie Milllllllerrrr." Lots of tragedy but some nicely balanced hints of comedy as well.
Similar Shows to Check Out: Shetland, Wallender, The Inspector Lynley Mysteries

The Show: Father Brown
Available On: Netflix
You'll Like It If You Like: Murder She Wrote, Columbo, Monk 
The Face(s) You'll Recognize: Mark Williams (The Harry Potter movies)
The Premise: A Catholic priest lends his (usually unwanted and always unappreciated) assistance to the local police in solving cases. He's more interested in obtaining justice than in actually getting legal punishments, which leads to some clashes with the police. Father Brown is a very Columbo-like figure, whose rumpled appearance and seemingly bumbling investigations cover up a quick and insightful mind. 
Similar Shows to Check Out: Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries, The Bletchley Circle, New Tricks, Chuck

Period Pieces

The Show: The Bletchley Circle
Available On: Amazon Prime
You'll Like It If You Like: The Imitation Game, Call the Midwife, Hidden Figures
The Face(s) You'll Recognize: Probably none, unless you watch a lot of British TV, in which case half the cast will look vaguely familiar. (Also, Sophie Rundle is a dead ringer for a female Dominic Monaghan from Lord of the Rings and Lost.)
The Premise: A group of young women who worked as codebreakers during World War 2 reunite a number of years after the war ends when one of them recognizes a pattern in a series of local murders. The police refuse to listen to her so the women attempt to find the killer on their own.

Similar Shows to Check Out: Land Girls, Cable Girls, Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries

The Show: Land Girls
Available On: Amazon Prime
You'll Like It If You Like: Downton Abbey, Call the Midwife, All Creatures Great and Small
The Face(s) You'll Recognize:  Nathaniel Parker (The Inspector Lynley Mysteries)
The Premise: A group of young women come to work on a farm during World War 2, each with her own motivation (one to escape a bad marriage and another an abusive father, one to serve her country while her husband is serving as a pilot in the war and another because she was conscripted). It's a very different perspective from most series set during the war.

Similar Shows to Check Out: The Bletchley Circle, Bomb Girls, Home Fires

Dramas

The Show: Last Tango in Halifax
Available On: Netflix
You'll Like It If You Like: As Time Goes By, Coronation Street, Upstairs Downstairs
The Face(s) You'll Recognize:  Derek Jacobi (Cadfael, I Claudius, Gosford Park, and about a million other stage and screen roles), Nicola Walker (see Unforgotten, above)
The Premise: An older couple who were once sweet on each other reunites many years later, after they both lose their spouses. As they plan to get married, their very different families clash. Throw in subplots of a possible murder carried out by one daughter and a messy divorce followed by a complicated and tumultuous coming-out romance for another and the new relationship is sorely tested. 
Similar Shows to Check Out: Doctor Foster, Unforgotten, Thicker Than Water

The Show: The Blacklist
Available On: Netflix
You'll Like It If You Like: How to Get Away with Murder, White Collar, Criminal Minds
The Face(s) You'll Recognize:  James Spader (Boston Legal, The Practice, Pretty in Pink)
The Premise: The FBI reluctantly agrees to grant clemency to a notorious criminal in exchange for him passing them information on other criminals. The twist: One of the agents on the team is his daughter. Or is she? Is she even who she thinks she is? And is HE even who she thinks he is? Spader plays the gray-hatted Reddington to the hilt without quite crossing the line into camp. 
Similar Shows to Check Out: Person of Interest, Gotham, Chuck


SciFi & Fantasy

The Show: Gotham
Available On: Netflix
You'll Like It If You Like: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., The Dark Knight, Jessica Jones
The Face(s) You'll Recognize:  Ben McKenzie (The O.C., Southland), Jada Pinkett Smith (The Matrix sequels, Ali, being married to Will Smith)
The Premise: I'm not a big superhero fan, but but this series provides an interesting backstory following the parallel stories of a young detective named Jim Gordon who later becomes the Police Commissioner, and a young boy named Bruce Wayne who later becomes Batman. The quality of the show varies significantly over the course of its five seasons, but it's still worth a watch. Robin Lord Taylor's performance as Oswald Cobblepot (a.k.a. The Penguin) is masterful.
Similar Shows to Check Out: Arrow, Titans, Lucifer

The Show: The 100
Available On: Netflix & Amazon Prime
You'll Like It If You Like: The Hunger Games, Battlestar Galactica, The Walking Dead
The Face(s) You'll Recognize:  Paige Turco (The Agency, Rescue Me, NYPD Blue), Henry Ian Cusick (Lost, Scandal), Isaiah Washington (Grey's Anatomy)
The Premise: A group of earth's inhabitants escape to a huge space station before a nuclear apocalypse. Nearly a century later, the station can no longer sustain itself, and they send 100 teenage delinquents back to earth to test if it is survivable. It is, but the teens must fight off some survivors still on the planet.
Similar Shows to Check Out: Travelers, Terra Nova, Manifest

The Show: Merlin
Available On: Netflix & Amazon Prime
You'll Like It If You Like: Once Upon a Time, Supernatural, Charmed
The Face(s) You'll Recognize:  Anthony Head (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), John Hurt (The Elephant Man, Alien, 1984) as the voice of the Dragon, Richard Wilson (another British hey it's that guy)
The Premise: The Arthurian legend, but retold from the wizard's perspective during the time period when he was only a young man just becoming aware of his magical powers.
Similar Shows to Check Out: Grimm, Robin Hood, Locke and Key

Comedies

The Show: The Goes Wrong Show
Available On:  Amazon Prime
You'll Like It If You Like: Waiting for Guffman, Mr. Bean, Fawlty Towers, Noises Off
The Face(s) You'll Recognize:  Probably none
The Premise: Each show is an episode of a fictional television show where a group of actors puts on a weekly televised short play, in real time and with a live audience. Misbehaving sets, props, and costumes (not to mention actors and crew members) are only the beginning of the disasters and hilarity that ensues. Anyone who's ever been on stage will appreciate the actors' clever (and not-so-clever) attempts to make sure that the show does, in fact, go on, come hell or (sometimes literal) high water. 
Similar Shows to Check Out: There really isn't anything like it out there, but if Broadway ever gets going again, go see The Play That Goes Wrong. Or catch a local production of The Actor's Nightmare or Noises Off.

The Show: Miranda
Available On:  Netflix
You'll Like It If You Like: Fawlty Towers, Girls, Will and Grace
The Face(s) You'll Recognize:  Miranda Hart (Call the Midwife)
The Premise: Tall, plain, socially awkward (but hilarious and quite charming in her own nerdy way) Miranda attempts to manage her joke shop while also managing her relationships with her overbearing mother, her roommate and best friend, and her handsome crush.
Similar Shows to Check Out: Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Gavin and Stacey, The Vicar of Dibley

The Show: Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Available On:  Netflix
You'll Like It If You Like: Will and Grace, Gilmore Girls, The Office
The Face(s) You'll Recognize:  Jane Krakowski (Allie McBeal, 30 Rock), Carol Kane (Taxi, Princess Bride), Jon Hamm (Mad Men)
The Premise: A broad comedy with a very dark premise, Kimmy is a young woman who moves to the city after having been kidnapped by a crazed cult leader as a child and raised in a bunker before being freed. But the charming Ellie Kemper is so sunny that you can't help but cheer her on, and Jane Krakowski as her wealthy trophy wife turned impoverished divorcee boss, Carol Kane as her wacky but endearing landlord, and Titus Burgess as her flamingly gay starving actor roommate work surprisingly well together to navigate the perils of modern city life.
Similar Shows to Check Out: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Younger, Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist

Just for Fun

The Show: The Big Family Cooking Showdown
Available On:  Netflix
You'll Like It If You Like: The Great British Baking Show, Master Chef, Top Chef
The Face(s) You'll Recognize:  Nadiya Hussain (season 1 winner of The Great British Baking Show)
The Premise: A typical amateur cooking competition, except that the contestants compete in teams of 3 family members. In round 1, teams must cook a two-course meal for four people with a budget of only £10; in round 2, they make an entree and a dessert for the judges in the team's own home; and in round 3, they cook a showy appetizer and main course with no budget constraints. Winners of each episode then face off in the semifinals, where they make a main course from limited ingredients, a "family favourite" dish, and their own take on a classic British dish. At the end of the season, the top two teams each plan and cook a large, multi-course dinner.
Similar Shows to Check Out: Nailed It, MasterChef Junior

The Show: Upload
Available On:  Amazon Prime
You'll Like It If You Like: The Good Place, Quantum Leap, Pushing Daisies
The Face(s) You'll Recognize:  Probably none
The Premise: In a future world, a young man is in a tragic accident and his new girlfriend uploads his personality into a computer before he dies so he can live forever in a virtual world where she controls his finances and much of his "life". But he's more interested in the living woman serving as his "guardian angel" than in his controlling, self-centered girlfriend. 
Similar Shows to Check Out:  Dead Like Me, Russian Doll, Good Omens

The Show: Cutthroat Kitchen
Available On:  Amazon Prime
You'll Like It If You Like: Good Eats, Chopped, Iron Chef
The Face(s) You'll Recognize:  Alton Brown (Good Eats, Iron Chef America)
The Premise: Yet another Food Network cooking competition, this one adds periodic twists to the menu, including sabotaging one, two, or all three contestants with restrictions like cooking with oven mitts on, only using a single pot or utensil, or giving away or adding an ingredient mid-cook. Host Alton Brown somehow manages to make the show hilarious instead of contrived.  
Similar Shows to Check Out:  Nailed It, Worth It, My Kitchen Rules

Happy bingeing!

Peace on the Porch

I am not a morning person by natural inclination. But as someone who deals with insomnia on a regular basis, I have learned the benefits of early morning rising. This summer my family moved into a new house which features a glorious wraparound porch facing east toward a driveway island planted with a pyramid of trees: a tall, graceful red cedar at the center, with various smaller pine trees, flowering dogwoods, hydrangeas, and other bushes sloping down towards either side. The land slopes downhill, away from the house, with a large park and pond just past it, which means I have a beautifully uninterrupted, silhouetted view of the sunrise through the trees on the island. Over the past few months of living here, I have discovered the joys of getting up early to sit on the porch with a cup of coffee, watching the sun rise.

When I first developed the habit, the sun was already fairly bright by 6am, and the birds were busy at the feeder by the time I brought my coffee out to join them. It was often quite warm even at that hour, and I padded out to the porch in bare feet and my nightclothes. But as the months have slipped by, my 6am rising has brought me out to a nearly-completely dark world, tinged with frostiness, and I toss on socks and a jacket before braving the dark. 

This morning, I felt my way over to a porch chair by the subtle glow of a crescent moon peering hazily through the clouds over the island. The world around was nearly silent, with only a distant, background hum from the highway far across the pond. A large, brief crashing sound from the woods nearby broke the silence: was that a neighbor, or a deer? In the darkness, I had no way of knowing. 

Half an hour and a full cup of coffee later, the skies have lightened and a bright rosy glow at the horizon shows me exactly where "east" is. The birds are still silent, except for the forlorn peep of some kind of shore bird whose call I don't recognize. A single car has driven past. No people, no dogs, no voices. Just peaceful quiet, as I watch the world coming into focus with the almost imperceptibly-brightening sky.

I listen for other sounds of the world coming to life. I hear the birds before I see them; a quiet shuffling in the branches, the click-click of tiny claws landing gracefully on the feeder or the shuffling of small feet in the mulch, a slight whoosh of wings as they dart back to their homes. As the sky continues to lighten, I see the occasional silhouette of a bird darting across the sky. 

The sounds grow more slowly than the light. The rumbling drone of a truck, the blue jays scolding each other awake, the pad-pad of a jogger's measured strides, the voice of a few birds quickly joined by many, my children's footsteps inside the house.

The world awakens slowly, and so do I. By the time the light and the sounds have reached their peak, I am ready to face them. Reluctantly, I leave the peace of the porch and go inside to face the day ahead with a smile on my face. 

Life is good. Even when it's hard, it's good. Even when my mind is tossing with worries and plans and life, I know I can find peace on the porch. 

Backyard Beasts

Since I recently posted a blog about the birds I see in my yard, I thought it was only fair to also post a blog about the beasts I see in my yard! Again, I'm in New England, so if you live elsewhere, you may have a different lineup. These are all animals that I've actually seen in my yard over the past three months since I've lived here. Most of these photos are of the actual animals in my yard. 

Chipmunk

Chipmunks are adorable, but troublesome. They are legion in the spring, making their homes in the stone walls all over our property, and they love to climb into the bird feeders and take more than their share. Fortunately, they are easily discouraged with low-tech solutions, such as a disposable plastic plate taped over and under each feeder:

Eastern Gray Squirrel

Squirrels are cute but can be very destructive. We haven't had much problem with them chewing on anything, but they have clearly dedicated their lives to hoovering out the bird feeders as soon as our backs are turned. They are completely unfazed by my chipmunk baffles. I have waged war by using squirrel spray to deter them (I can't stand the smell but clearly it doesn't bother them one bit), tossing cups of water at them, spraying them with the garden hose, shooting at them with a Nerf gun (we never actually hit them, but the loud POP startles them into running off), and simply yelling and running towards them. They still go at it whenever they think we're not watching, but at least now all I have to do is yell, "HEY!" from inside the house, or open the screen door, and they hightail it back into the woods. 

Fowler's Toad

These beautifully-patterned toads like to loiter near our pool and in our garden. There's even one who likes to hang out on our basement stairs. They're nocturnal, so we generally see them in the early morning or at night. They have a weird-sounding call, but fortunately, we rarely hear them. 

New England Cottontail

If we had more of a vegetable garden, we might find the bunnies less adorable. But they're happy nibbling on the grass and have thus far avoided eating any of the plants that we like (even the hostas!). They come out to graze at dusk and dawn, and as long as we stay still, they'll come quite close to us. But one fast move and they disappear with a flash of their white tail (called a "scut"). Occasionally two males will get territorial and chase each other around, hopping and "pronking" quite athletically.  But most of the time, they eat peacefully, making us feel relaxed and peaceful as well. 

Striped Skunk

As cute as they are, having a skunk in the yard is a mixed blessing. Although their smell is very mild unless they actually spray, they have a bad habit of getting into trash cans and spreading trash all over the yard, and if you have grubs, they will happily dig up your entire yard. But as long as their only appearance is a security camera video of a fat skunk trundling across the driveway or lurking at the edge of the woods, they're not bad to have around. Their fur looks thick and soft, and despite always being black with two white stripes down their back and a narrow white stripe on their face, they have a remarkable variety of patterns, with some having thicker stripes, some stripes more widely spaced, and tails can be anything from nearly all black to nearly all white. 

Virginia Opossum

My husband and I disagree about how cute opossums are (I say very much, he says not at all), but we do agree that they're good to have around the yard. They eat ticks and are not diggers or burrowers or trash predators. (Although if you have a cat, I understand they're inordinately fond of cat food and will eat cat food left outdoors and even climb through cat flaps to get at inside food.)  

Groundhog

As cute as groundhogs (AKA woodchucks and whistle pigs) may be, they're not good neighbors. Like bunnies, they'll eat everything in your vegetable, herb, and flower gardens if you don't stop them, and they dig burrows that ruin your lawn or (in our case) destabilize your stone walls. We work hard to discourage our local groundhogs using techniques including the garden hose and a Nerf gun. Both are probably more amusing than they are effective.

Wood Frog

We hear these guys more often than we see them, but we do find them swimming happily in our pool on a regular basis. 

Gray Tree Frog

We hear these guys even more often than the wood frogs although we see them less often. Their call sounds like some kind of bird, but it's a soothing call to fall asleep to throughout the summer. 

Raccoon

Knock wood, we've only had a single sighting of a "trash panda" around our yard. Our trash cans are heavy-gauge and close tightly, so there's little to attract them. I don't mind raccoons, but they lost a lot of their attraction for me a few years back when one killed a rabbit and dragged it onto my porch to eat it. 

Red Fox

We've only had one sighting of this magnificent animal, as it trotted boldly through the backyard one afternoon. The only unpleasant aspect of having foxes nearby is the occasional midnight screaming of a vixen in heat, which I was unfortunate to experience once in our old house (which was one time too many). But if he keeps the mouse and mole population in check, I won't complain too much.