Author Archives: Brenda

Lizzie the Pooh

I’m a grandmother, now—one of my daughters had a baby three weeks ago (no, I’m not feeling old—thanks for asking). I must admit, I’ve been enjoying all the firsts. Like the first time the baby lifted her head and turned into a bobblehead doll, and the first time she smacked herself in the face and made herself cry. It’s a lot more fun when you’re not the parent so you know you’re not going to be blamed if they turn out terribly. Continue reading

The Boobonic Plague

Today, we celebrate the anniversary of the bubonic plague outbreak that decimated Europe between 1347 to 1750. Well, technically, I’m celebrating the plague outbreak that decimated me last Wednesday and Thursday—it was a long two days, and I’m fishing for sympathy, here. Continue reading

The Chia Challenge

“Would you like to try some chia seeds?” my mom asked me last week. Little did I know this was a trap. The next day, a 2.2 pound bag of chia seeds was staring at me—mocking me—every time I opened the fridge. Was this going to be another teff flour incident? Was this going to be yet another bag of something I’d never figure out how to use? No! I was going to conquer those chia seeds. Unlike the teff flour (and the dried lime leaves, yellow soybean paste and instant corn flour…all of which have languished in my kitchen for years) I was going to use those damned seeds. The Chia Challenge had begun. Continue reading

The Five Stages of Cat Ownership

You’ve probably heard about the Five Stages of Grief—denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance—a roadmap, of sorts, to the emotional turmoil people go through during serious illness or loss. Well, I’m here to tell you that the Five Stages of Grief apply to way more situations than their creator—psychiatrist Elisabeth Kubler-Ross—ever imagined. Just for starters, I think the Five Stages explains perfectly what happens—and, here, I speak from personal experience—when someone adopts cats… Continue reading