Archive for the ‘Nonclassified Nonsense’ Category

The other day Diane Carr asked me what my earliest memory was.

I remember my 2nd birthday party. My mom made an intricate cake in the shape of a ladybug, with licorice strings for antennae and gumdrops for dots. A lot of people were invited, and we were going to have it outside, but a downpour forced us into the carport. I remember my mother placing the cake down on the coffee table, looking quite incongruous on the concrete floor. My bestest friend Cara Catlett was there beside me (her birthday was two days later than mine, and we usually celebrated together…I think she had a cake there too), and a highchair was set up with a baby in it (I’m pretty sure it was Rebecca Traylor).

This was what I considered my earliest memory. Until I realized another memory I had must have predated it.

This one also involved the coffee table (good toddler height). On it Mom had a plastic loaf of bread with scripture verse “fortunes” sticking out of it. I think it’s called a Daily Bread thing. It looked very much like a toy, and the papers sticking out of it intrigued me. So one day I pulled myself up and reached for it. But my mom rushed in at that moment with a very worried look on her face, yelling, “No no no!” The Daily Bread got moved to a taller location.

So I must have been younger than two, since that was the first time I had been able to reach the Daily Bread. And because I was unable to tell my mom what I wanted to: “You don’t understand. I’m not trying to destroy the plastic loaf of bread. I just wanted to get a better look at it. I wanted to examine the slips of paper and see what was written on them. There’s no call for alarm.”

The UPS man brought a long skinny package today. Wondering what the heck could possibly be in such a package, I looked at the return address. A company called “Into The Wind”. And then I put the pieces together: Nathan had told us that a present was on the way, and he knows we love kite flying… A kite!

Since most everything else we got as presents were things we asked for and thus things we needed, this is by far the most fun.

I don’t think I realized how much we needed a kite. We even have a place within walking distance to fly it! Oklahoma is actually a great place for kites, being full of flat windy places.

It’s a great little two string kite. Very lightweight and willing to please. I worry Oklahoma may be a little too windy for it, delta kites being better suited to moderate wind, instead of the 35mph Oklahoma breeze.

There are photos of it in the gallery.

Here’s a little video of it. Posting it will probably kill the server, but oh well.

Today is our anniversary.

I’m not going to waste time posting much else here. We have… other things to do.

Well, another Christmas has come and gone. Berck’s dad joined us for the weekend, buying us a ton of stuff and enduring being cooped up in a tiny apartment with two excited crazy people. Blockbuster was one of the few things open yesterday, so we ended up watching four DVDs.

Berck’s mom had come the weekend before and bought us another ton of stuff. And my mom sent a big box of packages tied up with string to be opened on Christmas morning. So we racked up quite well. (And I hear there’s more stuff in the post!)

Berck cooked a mess of the best chili ever for Christmas Eve (a Brenner tradition he apparently didn’t know about). Unfortunately, Jim got the habenaro planted in there for flavor. Berck also tried his hand at pate, which after several incarnations ended up tasting just like chopped liver. We had French toast on Christmas morn made from the bread I baked to accompany the ill-fated pate. And Christmas dinner? We ordered out from Happy Garden Chinese Restaurant!

Tonight Berck made the most amazing Tex-Mex I’ve ever had.

When we were in school, ever couple of weeks or so he’d start whining, “Jooooooonah, make us pizza.” But then I taught him how, and he makes pizza better than I ever have.

Now he’s taken away quesadillas from me.

Of course, I’m sure it has something to do with the ingredients. Start with some grated Tillamook Special Reserve Cheddar. Saute some sweet onions, yellow bell peppers, pickled jalepeneos, and roasted chicken. Yes, roasted chicken. Then toss it all on a flour tortilla happily coated in olive oil. Serve with sour cream and D.L. Jardine’s medium salsa. Oh, my goodness. It was so good, it almost made me cry.