The Ugly $500 Chair

At my menopause lunch today, I was telling the girls this story and they thought it would be good for the blog.

Hubby owns 3 hair salons. One of the salons is over the basement of a very nice furniture store. Last year, one of our salon employees decided to clean. We don't know quite how this happened, but she started to run the water and forgot to turn it off. The water must've been flowing for a very long time, cause someone from the furniture store called and said their ceiling was leaking from our water flowing. And the water got on some of their furniture. Well, they were able to clean up the tables the water leaked on, but there was an upholstered chair that had water damage, and we would have to pay for it.

Hubby went to check out the chair, and yes, there was water damage, but what was really bad was that it was the ugliest chair he had ever seen. So he called and told me we had to buy, for $350 (the furniture store's cost) the ugliest chair he had ever seen. About a week later we set out in his vehicle, which normally can hold a lot, to go pick up the ugly chair. We got to the furniture store, and they brought up what I agreed was the ugliest chair I had ever seen. And it wouldn't fit in hubby's car. So we said we'd figure something out, and we left. We debated having the store deliver it, but of course there would be a charge, and the only thing worse than buying the ugliest chair on earth is paying a charge to have it delivered!

Well not long after that, someone at the furniture store realized this chair had an ottoman, and there was no way they were going to sell the ottoman without the chair. So they called to inform us that we also had to buy the $150 ottoman. They did agree, however, to have the chair and ottoman delivered at no charge (we think they felt sorry for us).

So the chair and ottoman were delivered, and put promptly in the basement. Hubby had cleaned out the basement a year ago so that my son and his friends would have a place to play video games and hang out. Of course the chair didn't match (this chair matches nothing in the world), but it was fine down there. It's actually a very comfortable (albeit hideous) chair.

Last week I was thumbing through my Beautiful Homes and Gardens magazine, and there, in the "after' picture, to my great shock, was the UGLY CHAIR! So we can now call the ugly chair a designer chair. And, well, it gave us a good story to tell.

In Search of the Perfect Cabbage Roll

I am in search of the perfect cabbage roll. I may have found it yesterday.

As background, let me say I have made cabbage rolls before, but they lack that certain "ethnic" taste. I can't describe what that taste is, but I know it when I taste it.

Yesterday hubby and I went to the North Union Market at Shaker Square. Along with selling produce and bakery products, they sell ready-to-eat food. One guy was selling cabbage rolls. And they looked like what I was seeking. I bought them and had them for lunch - and they were IT. The wonderful blend of tastes was there, and they cut like butter and melted in my mouth. I just need to figure out what he used.

I googled "ethnic cabbage rolls" yesterday and you would not believe how many nationalities came up. I don't like sauerkraut, so I had to rule those out, but I read about Polish, Croatian...and many more. I printed one recipe for Ukranian cabbage rolls that looked good and realized that this recipe had no meat inside - only a rice and onion mixture. But then one guy wrote in his comment that he made the recipe and added ground pork, and they were delicious.

Later in the day, I went to get my hair cut and I told my stylist about my search for the perfect cabbage roll. She told me she used her mother's recipe and her mother steamed them in a pot instead of baking them. That sounded interesting.

Then I came home and read the Cleveland Jewish News, and it was a serendipity type of moment - there was a recipe for cabbage rolls in that issue. These were also steamed in a pot, and in this recipe, you cut up the extra cabbage and line the pot with it.

So I'm about to go to the grocery store and try this recipe. Next I will try the Ukranian recipe.

I would appreciate input from anyone who has mastered the art of making cabbage rolls.

P.S. I made the Jewish News recipe. I learned that you can cook the rolls by steaming them. But I added too much water. AND I learned that hubby does not like cabbage rolls. This will make it very hard for my quest to find the perfect cabbage roll since I'll be the only one eating them....

TREATS!

I felt like eating rather than writing! I admit, I stole this from someone at work. You just take mini pretzels, put a chocolate kiss on top (I used dark chocolate), put it in the oven at 175 degrees for about 8 minutes. Remove from oven, and put an m&m on top. You can try variations. Someone tried the chocolate kisses with caramel in them and said they were great. I was tempted to buy the kisses with peanut butter in them but decided to start with the basics. Refrigerate after they come out of the oven so that the chocolate will set.

Weekly Tabloid Roundup

Just got back from the grocery store to buy ingredients for noodle kugel. I made myself lunch - some linguini noodles with leftover chili that hubby made, and he makes the best chili in the world (he won a chili cook-off about 20 years ago). After that filling lunch, I ate a piece of Giant Eagle's freshly baked multi-grain walnut raisin bread. Mmmmm. And I sat down at the computer to read while I enjoyed this wonderful dessert.

Clicked on AOL news, and there's a picture of a skinny Kelly Ripa. Way too skinny. I can't relate, as I am about to consume my second dessert - a "fun size" baby ruth bar (I couldn't resist - they were on display at Giant Eagle). I smile whenever I think of fun size candy, cause as my large son says "why do they call it fun size? Fun size should mean it's a giant candy bar!" And he's absolutely right.

So the Kelly R title brings you to a Weekly Tabloid Roundup. Let's see - Angie is "forced into therapy." Well that makes sense, given the volume of kids she has. "Suri's Lonely Life" is spent with nannies. But you know, she is always smiling in pictures and just seems like a happy kid. "Have They Split" (referring to Angelina and Brad) - they would have to be saints to still want to have anything to do with each other with all those kids running around. "Sarah Palin's Other Man Revealed." Makes you wonder. I mean, her hubby seems like a nice guy, but he just seems out of place in their new world of campaigning.

Just came back with another fun size baby ruth. I'm trying to have some fun here, not that reading this stuff isn't fun.

"How I Stay Thin" about Kim Kardashian. Did you ever notice that it's very hard to look thin when you have big boobs? And finally, "I'll Destroy You" about Oprah and Dr. Phil. I think given a choice between the two, I'd side with Oprah on whatever it is they're fighting about.

I bought a National Enquirer once in my life, cause we were on vacation. The other ones I've read (which I have to admit, I greatly enjoy) I inherited from my friend Sharon, who inherited them from her hubby's grandma, and they are about 3 years old by the time we get them, but that's ok.

OK, it's Saturday, which means laundry, water plants, clean up the house, etc. It's a perfect crisp day, the sun is shining, and now I gotta go try to work off these fun size baby ruths.

New Dog at daughter Heather's house

A NEW REASON TO PARTY!

We just had a 50th birthday party for a co-worker this week. She used to work at fairs, so we had a fair theme. Sausage and meatball sandwiches, elephant ears, cotton candy, fries....we are REALLY good at this kind of stuff at work.

Well this morning I came in and moved my calendar page to October and realized HEY - this is it - one year since my last menstrual period! I am OFFICIALLY IN MENOPAUSE! So I sent an email to my co-workers suggesting that they throw a party in my honor to honor this sacred time in my life! And they took me seriously and are now planning my party!

Since I pride myself on being a good investigator, I googled "symptoms of menopause" to see just how far I have come. I found a website that lists 35 symptoms of menopause. I shouldn't have googled this. But I found that I can blame a lot on menopause, and for this I am somewhat grateful...

I knew about the old hot flashes. A sympathetic co-worker gave me a small battery operated fan last year. The battery died within 2 weeks. I was overjoyed to find a 6 inch electric fan that fits perfectly on my desk - I got it at Marcs for $6. This is honestly the best purchase I have EVER made.

I can now blame these disturbing feelings on menopause: irritability, mood swings, trouble sleeping, "crashing fatigue", anxiety, and feelings of doom. And I thought I was losing my mind.

I knew about the memory lapses. I no longer use names or words to describe things. Instead, I just describe them because the words escape me. So instead of stove, I'll say "the thing you cook food in." It takes me much longer to get my point across. And it has happened more than once that I'll be sitting across from a friend having a nice lunch, and as she's talking, I'm not listening, cause I'm frantically thinking "what's your name again?"

And the physical symptoms - yeah, I recognized most. Hair loss, irregular heart beat, trouble sleeping, gastrointestinal distress, aching joints, and weight gain.

I had recently diagnosed myself as having attention deficit disorder, but now I see that listed as a symptom. I have to take continuing education classes, and while co-workers are so happy to find an 8 hour class so they can get it over with sooner, I'm declining their invitation to attend, saying sorry, 2 hours is my limit. And 2 hours is pushing it.

I think there are 5 symptoms that I have not experienced. Some are too personal for me to include on a blog, but the non-personal ones include gum problems, burning tongue and tinnitis. By this time next year, I'll probably have added them to my list.

So October 13th is the tentative date of my party. I'll let ya'll know how it goes.

(P.S. We had our party today. Lori made pasta with chicken and broccoli, Marsha made a salad, and Donna brought a wonderful Mama Jo's strawberry pie with cream cheese. A nice break for someone who eats lunch at her desk everyday.0

RECIPE FOR THREE CHEESE SPAGHETTI BAKE

NOW THAT COLD WEATHER IS APPROACHING - THIS IS A GREAT RECIPE!
NOTE - DUE TO A COMMENT ON THE BLOG, I MADE A CORRECTION AND ADDED THE ROMANO CHEESE! - Mama K 10/5/08

1 16 oz pkg spaghetti
2 C shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
3/4 C grated parmesan cheese
1/2 C grated romano cheese
3 eggs, beaten
1 T olive or veg oil
2 t garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
1 28 oz jar spaghetti sauce

Cook spaghetti per package instructions. Drain. Add 1 C mozzarella cheese, parmesan and romano cheese, eggs, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Press into a greased 13 X 9 inch baking dish. Top with spaghetti sauce. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella cheese and bake 10 minutes longer or until heated through and cheese is melted.