Fast Clocks

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On Saturday night I went room to room changing our clocks. But I was doing slightly more than just forwarding them an hour for Daylight Savings. In somewhat of a sneaky way, I would also quickly tap the minute button a couple times before going to the next room.

Those who know me usually despise a certain quirk of mine. I keep fast clocks! Whether it be the analogue clock in our living room, the clock on our stove, the clock in the car, or the clock on our microwave, I make sure they are all at least a few minutes fast. At least.

I always keep the clock in our living room fast.

I feel better with fast clocks. They keep you on time and also provide comfort. I always look at the clocks in our house as if they are accurate and then complete tasks according to what they say. However, if I ever feel myself falling behind or if something is taking longer than I intended it to, I will remind myself that I still have a few minutes to spare. That sense of relief is awesome.

Speaking of that sense of relief, I also keep our bedroom clock fast too. When I wake up in the middle of the night I look to it. In a somewhat disoriented state I will look at the clock and decipher how much longer I have to sleep. I will calculate the time left to snooze and then realize I can tack on several more minutes to that. Best. Feeling. Ever.

Keeping my clocks fast is indeed a psychological game I play with myself because I feel it gives me an edge. However, not everyone likes to play the game. Family members have outright questioned my sanity for doing such a thing. My wife thinks it is absurd. Others aren’t as ecstatic as I am once they discover they have extra time to spare.

I will admit that in the past I let my little habit get a little out of control—we are talking clocks that aren’t 7 minutes fast but 70 minutes fast. With that said, I have kept it more manageable over the past several years. I like to keep my clocks about 10 minutes fast.

Am I crazy? Or do I have readers who also appreciate a fast clock too? Regardless, I think we can rejoice that the time change we all made this past weekend is a good one. Enjoy the extra daylight, everyone! Don’t Blink.

Stressful and Special Thursday Rundown

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Good evening, friends! Let me be one of the first ones to remind you that Daylight Saving Time will begin this Sunday (March 14) so remember to move your clocks ahead an hour. Another welcome reminder of spring! Let’s get started with the Thursday Rundown…

A Stressful Day – Overwhelmed. A year ago on this date, that was how I felt. A large moving truck pulled up to our house and emptied everything. It was a reality check that we really were moving and that my days in Myrtle Beach were numbered. Navigating a move is extremely stressful and working with the moving company was one of my least favorite parts. Now 12 months removed from that day, I can confidently say all that stress and anxiety was worth it!

On March 11, 2021, this moving truck pulled up at our house in Myrtle Beach and packed up all our belongings.

Heat Warmers – These bags are awesome to warm the hands of any Coug fan on cold winter nights but the story behind them is even better. My mom recently gave me these heat warmers. She is a paraeducator in one of the Developmental Learning Center (DLC) classrooms at Mead High School. Her students not only make these heat warmers but they are the ones marketing and selling them too! It is all part of the Business Opportunity School for Success (BOSS) program. The students make bags of varying sizes and prints. Let me know if you are interested in purchasing some of your own!

The DLC students at Mead High School are making and selling heat warmers. My mom bought this pair for me.

Sloan’s Special Day – Last Saturday, Uncle Glen and Aunt Carrie treated Sloan to a day that was all about her. They arrived at our house and presented Sloan with a rose. Aunt Carrie then took her to the salon where Sloan got her first pedicure. Next was dinner at Red Robin. They then took her back to their house for ice cream. Needless to say, Sloan loved having all the attention focused on her. So thankful to have family members who go out of their way to make our kids feel special!

Aunt Carrie and Uncle Glen treated Sloan to a special day.

Frutopia – I came across this meme the other day and found myself resonating with pretty much everything depicted (except for the Pizzarias…what the heck are those?). But what especially struck a chord with me were the bottles of Frutopia in the bottom right hand corner. Seeing the drink brought me right back to middle school and the Frutopia vending machine right outside of the gym. These were the cool things to drink and forget the fact that they were all sugar because if the first three letters were “fru” they had to have been healthy! Good times.

All this stuff brought a smile to my face…especially the Frutopia.

Pete the Cat – Sloan’s favorite children’s book series is Pete the Cat. She loves that adventurous feline! Naturally, when we went to the library we checked out several of Pete’s books. Do you or your children like Pete the Cat? If so, please let me know your favorite book in the series. I would love to get it for Sloan.

Sloan loves “Pete the Cat.” Do you have a favorite book in the series?

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I believe that is it for tonight. Hope you get the chance to watch some college basketball this weekend. Don’t Blink.

My Top 5 Mac and Cheese Toppings

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I love macaroni and cheese. When it comes to my obsession with this dish, my reputation precedes me. I mean come on, not everyone is called upon to judge a mac and cheese cookoff. Nor does everyone write about their “favorite macaroni and cheese spinoffs.” Most people who are neutral about noodles and cheese wouldn’t dream up a hand soap based off it.

Tonight I wanted to offer my top five macaroni and cheese toppings. Of course a topping is never imperative for a dish that has no trouble standing alone but for those who want to sprinkle a little fun on their mac and cheese, I can help you out. In no particular order, here is my list…

Tonight we are talking mac and cheese toppings but chicken isn’t one of them.

Ritz Crackers – This suggestion is a true Brent Reser original. In my head it just occurred to me that the texture and taste of Ritz crackers would really complement macaroni and cheese. My brain was not mistaken. Take four crackers and crush them into pieces but be careful not to turn them to dust. Now sprinkle them on top of your mac and cheese. You will now have a dish with a very agreeable consistency and perfect crunch. Try it…trust me.

My inspiration for this blog post came when Sid and Sloan made mac and cheese last Friday. Yes, I topped it with Ritz crackers.

Parmesan cheese – Nothing better than adding more cheese to a dish with “cheese” in its name, right? That is what I am encouraging you to do here. Although most people will sprinkle parmesan cheese on their pasta, they will usually not equate mac and cheese as a pasta (which it is) and thus not even think about it. Amateurs. Grated parmesan on macaroni and cheese adds a little more flavor and a bit of beauty, but don’t take my word for it.

Parmesan cheese goes great on mac and cheese!

Rice –In college it was always a big deal when it was macaroni and cheese day in the dining hall. The stuff was AWESOME but the cheese sauce they used was very gooey. It could get pretty messy and had the tendency to stick on the roof of your mouth. My way of breaking up this stickiness was to put a scoop of white rice on the golden crack and then stir. It did the trick and tasted delicious at the same time.

Hot Dogs – I don’t think Sidney will ever let me live down the day when she came over to my apartment and I served her microwavable mac and cheese topped with chopped hot dogs. I guess it wasn’t gourmet enough for her. Hey, how can you go wrong with macaroni and cheese and hot dogs? Although I still think the combination is dynamite, I won’t be making it for any future anniversary dinners.

This is the actual dish that I cooked up for Sid.

Hot Sauce – I have managed to stay away from hot sauce more and more over the years but I still think it goes great with macaroni and cheese. There will be times when I don’t want to add a bold flavor to my bowl but if I am in a sweating mood I won’t hesitate to add some. But if you want to do it, make sure you do it right—add Sriracha.

If you are looking for a little kick with your mac and cheese, Sriracha is the best way to go.

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If you are looking for a good dinner idea on Fridays this Lenten season, consider macaroni and cheese. When you do, feel free to take a page out of my playbook and “spice it up” by using one of my recommended toppings…just as long as it is not hot dogs. Don’t Blink.

Returning to Our Happy Place

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Life is all about small victories and I feel like we notched one yesterday. Sid, Sloan, Beau, and I walked into the Spokane Valley Public Library for the first time since we moved to Washington. Our delay strolling through those doors wasn’t due to a reading aversion but, as you can probably guess, COVID-19. With our state graduating to Phase 2 in its re-opening plan, the Spokane County Library District found it appropriate enough to welcome back all the book worms.

We finally had the opportunity to go inside the Spokane Valley Library on Monday night.

Although we appreciated the curbside service offered for the past several months, there is nothing like pulling the books from the shelf yourself. I am not kidding you, Sloan and I were counting down the days until the library opened with the same anticipation that she is counting down the days until her birthday (minus the big countdown board). You see, the library is a special place for the two of us. We spent a lot of time playing and checking out books at our local Myrtle Beach library. With the shuttering of the libraries here in Spokane, it did feel like there was somewhat of a void. Call us crazy, but we would have taken the library before Chuck E. Cheese and the trampoline park opened (both of which swung open their doors before the library).

Sloan strolling the empty Spokane Valley Library on its opening day after being closed because of COVID-19.

Yesterday our family pulled up to the library for “opening day” at 5:35 p.m. Although it would close at 6 p.m., we made the most of our short time. Sid got her first ever non-South Carolina library card, Sloan found a “Corduroy” story, Beau pulled books from the bottom shelves, and I basked in the welcoming environment of a public library.

Beau grabbing books from the shelves at the Spokane Valley Library.

We had the whole place to ourselves. It was as if the red carpet was pulled out for our triumphant return to the library…up until the point that one of the librarians told us we had five minutes left before they had to kick us out.

The stack I started making of the books we were going to check out.

Like I said, we made good use of the short time we were inside those walls. We checked out 15 items, including a book just for Sid that allowed her to use her card for the first time. We raced home and after getting the kids ready for bed we read two of our new library books.

We ready “Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse” and “Corduroy Lost and Found” last night.

Thank goodness the library is back open. There will surely be numerous trips, most of them taking place on the weekend well before closing time, in the near future. Don’t Blink.

Homage to Cereal

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The Calendar of Gimmicks told us yesterday that it was National Cereal Day. I marked this “day” by reflecting on the current non-fiction series that Sidney and I are watching called “The Food That Built America.” One of the entrepreneurs featured in this program is John Kellogg, the father of cereal. Did you know what cereal was eventually made for? Well, you might need to Google the question for a more in-depth answer but Kellogg originally invented it as a digestive aid and as a brain food that would straighten a person’s moral compass.

But these days cereal is known as a breakfast food—perhaps the most popular morning staple there is. Although I count cereal as a pretty decent froyo topping, I also primarily recognize it as a breakfast mainstay. I have written a lot about cereal over the years, even going as far as to devote entire blog posts to my top three unhealthy cereals and my top three healthy(ish) cereals. What can I say? I enjoy a bowl of oats in the morning.

Just a few brief peroneal cereal notes…

– I eat a bowl of Rice Krispies-esque cereal pretty much every morning. I say “esque” because I usually consume a generic version. This type of cereal is easy to eat while working at the computer and doesn’t alter the taste of milk so it isn’t weird to drink after the Krispies are gone.

A couple of the Rice Krispies-esque cereals we have at the house right now.

– Probably one of the best wedding gifts we received was a set of cereal bowls. These things are meant specifically for your favorite Cap’n Crunch cereal. Pour as much cereal in the bottom as you want and top generously with milk because you won’t have to worry about anything overflowing.

I love these cereal bowls!

– My dad recently told a story about eating cereal growing up. He said his parents would only provide bland, healthy cereals. Along with his brothers and sisters, they would pour copious amounts of sugar on these cereals. One day they went to their grandmother’s house and she had those mini boxes of breakfast delights such as Trix and Fruit Loops. They couldn’t hold back their excitement and dug into these special treats. But they were disappointed. You see, they had poured so much sugar on the healthy cereals at home that the colorful, artificial, and fun cereals didn’t hold a candle in terms of sweetness.

One day my dad went over to his grandma’s and she had a pack of mini cereals. However, they turned out tasting a little disappointing.

Do you have a cereal that is especially meaningful and/or tasty to you? If you do, hopefully you celebrated with a bowl yesterday. Don’t Blink.

Fruity Pebbles Thursday Rundown

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Greetings, friends! I hope your March is off to a wonderful start. Speaking of “starts,” let’s begin this Thursday Rundown…

Online Checkout – A lot of people get their kicks from buying stuff online. Now there isn’t anything wrong with that, but I prefer not to spend the money. Instead, I have a different method of feeling the satisfaction of ordering something online but without the cost. I enjoy checking out library books online. You can literally browse thousands of titles and simply tap the box next to whatever you desire. The next day you just go to your local library for “curbside service” and they bring your books out to you. This has allowed us to feed Sloan’s hunger for new books but to be honest, despite the pleasant feeling of ordering online, I am excited that Spokane County Libraries will open their buildings next Monday!

Some of the recent books we checked out from our local library via the online system.

Fruity Pebbles Chocolate – Add cereal-infused chocolate as another candy option for your sweet tooth. This Fruity Pebbles white chocolate bunny I saw at Walgreens actually appeals to me. Perhaps later down the road I will try it but it made me think about other cereal chocolate bunnies I would like to try. What about a Reese’s Puffs bunny? Or a Cinnamon Toast Crunch one? Cookie Crisp? As long as it is not a Raisin Bran bunny, I think I would pretty much be up for anything.

This sounds good to me. But what about other cereal flavors?

Dollar Store Buy – Here is another Dollar Tree hack for those of us with small children. If you want an activity that will keep your toddler occupied for a half hour and is not messy, go to the toy aisle and pick up a Pom-Pom Stick-On Activity. Sloan loves “Trolls” so she chose the Poppy version. The board itself is sticky and all you have to do is place the colored “pom-poms” in their appropriate spots on the design. Both engaging and cheap, your child will be proud of their board after it is finished.

Sloan loved doing this pom-pom stick-on activity.

Nomadland – This week I watched the film that won the Golden Globe for best drama film—“Nomadland.” After I finished the movie I looked up some of the reaction on social media and one person tweeted along the lines of “A simple movie about simple people doing simple things.” In my opinion, that pretty much sums it up. The film follows a lady living in a van who travels around the west working various jobs and living in various communities. It is a slow, no-nonsense production. Do I think it is the best movie of the year? Um, perhaps during a pandemic when fewer movies were produced. What stood out to me were some of the images from the film. Fern, the main character of the film played by Frances McDormand, did a lot of mundane things but it came across as art. Whether she was preparing food, cleaning a bathroom, or driving silently in her van it was all captured in a certain way. If you have Hulu, give it a shot.

“Nomadland” is being called the film of the year.

Marilyn Advice – Every now and then, I share the advice of Parade columnist Marilyn vos Savant. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, she has the world’s highest recorded IQ. This past Sunday someone asked her if freezing food items is actually a viable solution for extending their best-by date. She responded by saying absolutely. Essentially, according to Marilyn, freezing an item will “freeze” its natural process of going stale. Read below for her exact response but this is welcome news to someone like me who swears by freezing food.

It is not a myth, freezing your food will delay it from going bad.

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I appreciate you spending a few minutes on my blog this evening. Enjoy your weekend and please continue to pray for the complete eradication of the pandemic. Don’t Blink.

A Tangible Birthday Countdown

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Last week I came down the stairs to my lunch break and Beau was walking. Yesterday, I came down the stairs to my lunch break and Sid was almost finished with an elaborate birthday countdown sign. Dang, I really do enjoy working from home!

When I came downstairs yesterday, Sid was putting the finishing touches on this.

As I have mentioned in multiple previous posts, Sloan is, for better or worse, obsessed with her birthday. Since early this summer when we celebrated her cousin’s birthday, she has probably asked us every day thereafter whether it was her special day or not.

This longing for March 17 has forced many premature happy birthday songs in her honor, fits of jealousy at family members’ birthday gatherings, and countless questions about who could be on her guest list in this pandemic era. Quite simply, her birthday is always on her soon-to-be-4-year-old mind.

After brushing off a lot of Sloan’s incessant birthday chatter over the past several months, a page was torn off the calendar yesterday and it was March. I could finally tell Sloan, we will celebrate your birthday this month.

But leave it to my wife for going above and beyond just telling her. Sid took a couple hours yesterday morning to complete a Pinterest-inspired project. Titled Sloan’s Birthday Countdown, it will let our daughter inch closer to her birthday one day at a time over the next 2.5 weeks.

Sloan standing with her birthday countdown.

The board’s centerpiece is a three-layer cake covered in 17 “sprinkles.” Each sprinkle has a number written on it that represents one of the days until her birthday. Since yesterday was March 1, she crossed off the sprinkle with the number 1 on it. Today she crossed off sprinkle 2. And you know how it goes. I guess we are counting up instead of counting down…

Sloan marking off the “1” on her birthday countdown.

Great job to Sid for harnessing Sloan’s enthusiasm for her birthday in an educational and visually appealing way. Tomorrow we will just be two weeks until the big day! Don’t Blink.

Here Comes March 2021

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The start of March 2021 is unique because it begins the same way that February 2021 did: On a Monday. If you remember, I used the opportune timing of February 1 to write a pre-dawn blog post about the month ahead. With March being ushered in under similar circumstances, why not do the same?

March 2021 is here.

In my humble opinion, the fact that March has arrived is good news in and of itself. I often refer to January and February as “the gloomy months” so to be out of those woods is welcome by many. March is a sign of new life, warmer weather, and longer days. This particular March will hopefully also see COVID cases go down and vaccinations go up. I think we can all sense that the pandemic is finally starting to trend in a favorable direction and I am intrigued to see where we will be after these 31 days are over.

This month we will celebrate my daughter’s fourth birthday, a day she has been counting down to since the summer. I will also mark my one-year anniversary working for Washington State University. For sports fans, March brings the best tournament on the planet. This year will be especially memorable after the cancellation of March Madness in 2020.

At the same time, March 2021 isn’t entirely about basking in the longer daylight or celebrating the success of your NCAA Tournament bracket. Rather, a lot of it should be about sacrifice. Lent will extend throughout the entire month so if nothing else we should be focusing on the next 4.5 weeks to grow closer to God and prepare for Easter. When the month concludes on Wednesday, March 31, it will neatly lead us into the Holy Triduum that will begin with Holy Thursday on April 1.

No matter which way you look at it, I think we can all view March as an opportunity. I think it is entirely feasible to enjoy the month itself while still using it as a period of preparation for the major days that will come in early April. Have a productive Monday and get this month off on the right foot—I wish you nothing but the best. Don’t Blink.

Beau’s First Steps Thursday Rundown

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The days are noticeably getting longer and March is just around the corner! I hope you have the same optimistic outlook that I do. Speaking of optimism, I have plenty of it in tonight’s Thursday Rundown so let’s begin…

His First Steps – During the lunch hour yesterday, Beau took his first steps! While Sid and I watched “This Is Us,” our son decided to draw our attention away from the screen and put on a show. Sid and I could sense he was getting ready to walk so I had my phone out. Beau took 5 ½ steps before stumbling to the ground and crawling off with the biggest smile on his face. His first steps came 10 days prior to turning 13 months—his sister took her first steps a single day prior to turning 14 months. To watch Beau walk for the first time, tap here.

Here is a screenshot from the video I took of Beau walking for the first time.

Special Beyond Words – When our family visited Myrtle Beach for the holidays, we had the opportunity to see our spiritual mentors, Tim and Kathy McCormick. They showered us with gifts and one particular item had more value than I can express. Tim and Kathy presented us with a mass intention card for Feb. 27. In simple terms, this means that the Eucharistic sacrifice at that mass will be offered for our family. Why Feb. 27? That was the day that Beau was baptized (the McCormicks are his godparents) and Sidney was welcomed into the Catholic Church. We love you, Tim and Kathy!

What a precious and valuable gift.

#PalouseUnity – Last fall we launched #PalouseUnity, a joint public health campaign that included WSU, University of Idaho, the City of Pullman, and the City of Moscow. The goal was to combat the spread of #COVID19. Because the campaign was so successful and visible, we brought it back in 2021 but on a grander scale. When we launched yesterday, our community coalition had grown to TEN organizations. Healthcare providers, city chambers, and even an electrical equipment company were all on board. Holli Sampson from the University of Idaho and I have had the pleasure of running point on both the organic and paid social media coordination of this digital-heavy campaign. Working with the social media managers of these various organizations has been fun and allocating the increased resources we have for this phase has also been a noteworthy experience. I will keep you posted on how it continues to go!

The creative for this portion of the campaign are images of community members from the partner organizations.

John Harvey Kellogg – Sidney and I are in the middle of a great series on Hulu called “The Food That Built America.” It traces the origins of food brand giants like Coca-Cola and Heinz. Another brand that is featured is Kellogg as well as the man behind the name, John Harvey Kellogg. Let me tell you what, this guy did a lot more than make cereal. He was a famous doctor and by all counts brilliant. In some ways his ideas were genius and in other ways they were misguided. He followed a very strict health regimen and lived to be 95 which was quite old back in 1943. If you have a moment, read his Wikipedia page.

John Harvey Kellogg was a pretty interesting guy.

Meme – I had a high school math teacher who always had a “joke of the day.” He would put a comic book strip transparency on the overhead projector at the beginning of class. They were usually pretty corny. I feel I do the same thing, only mine is a “meme of the week” and it comes at the end of my rundown instead of the beginning. I digress. If you are a parent, I am sure you will be able to relate to this. I sure do, but most of the time it is my daughter giving me the wrong foot for the shoe I have out in front of her.

I can relate!

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Close out your February on a good note this weekend. Wish you all nothing but the best and look forward to catching up next week.

What Makes a Mexican Restaurant Truly Stand Out

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I am notorious for saying that all food at family Mexican restaurants tastes the same. I am very predictable in my ordering habits as I usually order two enchiladas—one beef, one chicken—whenever we eat at a sit-down Mexican restaurant. I have scarfed down hundreds of enchilada/rice/bean platters in my day and, to be honest, whether I am eating at Azteca in Spokane, Fiesta En Jalisco in Missoula, El Sombrero in Walla Walla, or El Cerro in Myrtle Beach, my main course doesn’t taste that much different to me. Credit it to a taste bud deficiency on my part.

However, although I usually don’t detect a lot of taste variation with my enchiladas, there is a part of the Mexican restaurant dining experience that does stand out to me: the chips.

Chips are very important at a Mexican restaurant.

A Mexican restaurant can have an immediate impact on me based on the quality of the item that is brought out the moment you sit down. You better believe that in my eyes, not all chips are created equal. The perfect basket of tortilla chips can make me your customer for life.

So what makes that “perfect basket” of chips? Well, let’s start with temperature. If not piping hot, they better be at least warm. The illusion must be given that they just came out of the fryer, even if someone just popped them in the microwave for 20 seconds before bringing them to your table.

Second, thick chips win the day. I know many people prefer light and delicate but I want something that will allow me to dip it in salsa with minimum breakage. Third, let’s not forget about what should matter the most—the taste! A chip that is perfectly salted and very slightly seasoned with that fresh fried taste is the way to my heart.

Fourth, any basket of chips must be accompanied with a decent salsa. For me, I prefer a smooth and flavorful salsa over a chunky and tangy one. I enjoy anything that is spicy so if the salsa at the restaurant is going to make me sweat I won’t take any offense. Extra points to all restaurants that offer a red salsa and a green salsa.

Finally, I am a stickler for chips that are bottomless. I need to eat a basket right when I sit down followed by one while I wait for my food followed by one with my dinner. Servers who bring my table more chips before our current baskets are empty receive public recognition, a 5% increase in their tip, and the honor of knowing that we will likely be coming back to the restaurant.

Happy National Tortilla Chip Day, my friends. Is there a Mexican restaurant that you feel has the absolute best chips? Please tell me about it! Don’t Blink.