Saturday Slight

I think I put the fear of God into those pumpkin bread loaves yesterday morning.  All but one nearly launched out of their respective pans within seconds my starting the removal process.  

And, the residual left in the one pan submitted and jumped right into place the second on its loaf bottom that bread knife scraped it from the pan.

Still, with this surprising success, I must share my friend Florine's suggestions.  

First one, get nonstick pans.  Well, if you don't want to spring for nonstick pans just yet, she says, " . . . fold aluminum foil into 3 layers that are exactly the inside width of the bottom of you pan and 3 times the length of your pan.  

Butter the foil and then place it into the pan with the extra length sticking out over the top of the end edges.  Then when your bread is done, you have 2 "handles" to lift out the loaf.  

The foil is easier to remove since you can see what you're doing once the loaf is out of the pan.  Works for me!

Florine's suggestion makes good sense to me.  

Since our reconnection in Cyberspace, Florine has become somewhat of a consultant to me.  She never signed on officially, and I don't send her a fee, but when it comes to food and good cooking, I figure anything Florine sends my way is gonna be a good idea.

I have other consultants too----some I'll divulge from time to time.  Others will remain anonymous simply because to reveal their identity would blow their cover and lessen their effectiveness in providing me with information I need to know.

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Speaking of information purveyors, I heard on the radio this morning that they let that Julian Assange loose before Christmas so he could get his WikiLeaks up and running again in time to spread the word before Santa makes his worldwide tour what's gonna be under everyone's Christmas tree.

Talk about a security problem.  I guess the plus side is that recipients will have time to plan their reactions and proper thank you's for each gift this year. 

I can remember those days of having to feign surprise.  

Most specifically, an information purveyor in our family told me a few days before Christmas that one of my gifts was an instamatic camera.   Remember those?  Mine was tan and turquoise, and, you can bet I uttered an enthusiastic "thank you" to my parents when I opened it.

If I recall correctly, the purveyor told me about the camera, and I didn't believe him.  So, when parents were gone, of course, he summoned me to the tree, carefully untaped the wrapping and showed me the camera. 

I still couldn't believe it, but, at least,  I had time to plot my appreciative behavior when we opened our presents on Christmas Eve. 

When that particular gift came my way, I was careful to take my time opening it and to conjure up the proper reaction to please my parents, who, of course, were pleased with their gift selection. 

I guess back in those days, we didn't need any high-tech wizard to get the word out.  I had brothers. 

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Well, today I don't think I'll be using any aluminum foil to pull bread loaves from pans.  I might frost some cookies, but we've got a big sports day ahead.

The ZAGS play No. 9 Baylor at 1:30 this afternoon.  Then, we'll rush down to "The Pit" at Sandpoint Middle School (formerly the high school) and watch Willie's JV basketball team play.  My sisters are joining us so the cheering section will be a bit noiser.

Speaking of noisy, I read that the ZAGS have a fight song this year for the first time their 120-year history http://www.kxly.com/news/26175144/detail.html

And, speaking of songs, Bill and Debbie were disappointed last night when they learned that Eastern Washington University's band for their semi-final football match-up was made up of mostly community volunteers.  

The group, consisting of high school musicians to senior citizens and numbering around 150 got together yesterday afternoon at 3 p.m. for its first and only practice.  They learned three songs for the game and did okay.

Had they known about the opportunity earlier, Bill and Debbie both said they would have found a tuba and clarinet, respectively, and joined them.   Both loved their days of band performances. 

So, I guess if EWU reaches the same point next year and needs some musicians, Bill and Debbie are available. 

Congratulations to the Eagles.  Let's hope they can bring the national championship for their division to Spokane/Cheney. 

Guess that's it for this Saturday.  Have a great day and remember WikiLeaks is back in full swing---try to keep those Christmas presents a secret.