Passover Update

I cooked almost all the food for the family seder on Saturday (except for the turkey and dessert) so here's the final score for each item on a scale of 1 to 10:

Mocked Liver:
Made from mushrooms, onions, and walnuts this spread was huge success! Very yummy on top of matzah.
Score: 9

Charoset:
Traditonally a mixture of apples, walnuts, and wine, this spread is supposed to symbolize the mortar used by the Jewish slaves in Egypt. I made this two ways. The traditional mixture came out ok. I also made "tropical" charoset made from bananas, pears, apples, dates, almonds, and sweetened with fruit juice. This was, as my mom and I both agreed upon tasting, "damn good!"
Score: 5 for the traditional charoset, 10 for the tropical version.

Matzah ball soup (vegetarian version):
I made the veggie broth from scratch and it came out well. The matzah balls were pretty good but not my best. The first batch was just a tiny bit dense. The second batch came out nearly perfect. I didn't do anything differently so I'm not sure why. Everyone liked them and several guest took them home so they couldn't have been that bad anyway.
Score: 8

Beet salad:
I usually roast beets when I make them but this dish called for slicing them and baking them in lemon juice and butter. The end result was okay. My mom, who claims to have hated beets before, ate them and seemed to like them but if I made them again I would go back to cutting them up in chunks and roasting them.
Score: 5

Sweet potato kugle:
Made with sweet potato, apples, rasins, and matzah meal. In making this I realized that I much prefer savory kugel over sweet. Also, this low-fat recipe cut out all the eggs and butter - all the good stuff really. Edible but unless you really want a low-fat option, I'd say go with a recipe that's not quite so good for you!
Score: 4

Desserts:
I didn't make these but my friend Ginny brought a flourless chocolate cake and my sister made macaroons. Both were awesome.
Score:10

Thank you Apartment Therapy

for another awesome bookshelf. I want it! How awesome would that be in the middle of the children's section at the library?

Can I have a Wild Thing?

A great article about the genius that is Maurice Sendak from the Gaurdian.

What I'm looking forward to reading....

A review of City of Ashes: The Mortal Instruments, (sequel to City of Bones) by Cassandra Clare is up at Bookshelves of Doom. Yay! It looks pretty entertaining and I'll admit, I have no problem overlooking flaws if the book is good fun. Especially when I am feeling stressed out and just want a good escape.

I'm still waiting for The Luxe (I'm still way down at the bottom of the hold list) despite the iffy reviews I've read. What can I say I'm a sucker for pretty covers.

Overheard at work

A patron goes up to the circulation desk to ask if we can extend her time on the computer. It's late afternoon, our busiest computer time so the person at the desk tells her no, she'll have to wait and sign up again. The patron complains about how sad this makes her. Then she unsuccessfully tries to bribe not one, but TWO different library employees to extend her time. The offer: 5 bucks.

Um, here's the problem with that. For one, library employees are generally honest folks. We were the good kids in school. We are probably the least likely county employees to take a bribe. And second, people are watching us! The staff room is pretty open to the desk so it's not like everyone else can't see what's going on at the desk. So you better be offering more than 5 bucks if you want anyone to risk getting into major trouble! And, oh yeah, if you have the five bucks to throw around, why not try paying for as much time as you need at an internet cafe? The reason we have time restrictions on our computers is because it's free. We don't want your money!

You feel differently when...

I gotta complain about something here. I am getting rather peeved about being told that I'll feel differently about things when I'm a parent. A few well-meaning older women have said this to me the recently and it always leaves me grinding my teeth and grumbling. Now I understand that having a child changes your life and that there's no way to predict what the experience is like. But it seems to me that the people who are saying this are not talking about my feeling in regards to children or even certain life choices but rather in regards to my beliefs and ideals. And even if it's true. Even if it does all change when you have kids, it's just plain rude to say that to someone. You are basically saying nothing you think or feel now is valid because you are not a mother. Even if the person saying it is well meaning, it's still a power play. With that small phrase they have just told me that they know better than I do and I can't argue with anything they are saying.

Everyone has experiences that shape the way they think. But you can't go around telling people that their experience isn't valid because it's not the same as yours. I still don't know how to respond the next time someone says this to me though, other than ranting on my blog after the fact!