Happy Monday ~ It's National Croissant Day ~ !

My Monday , ( which has not been a bad one per se since my back has decided not to cause me further anguish ) , has gotten a whole lot better since it's " National Croissant Day".

As usual, Janet over at " Dying for Chocolate hit it on the head so go slap Mr. Linky.

http://dyingforchocolate.blogspot.com/

There used to be the best place over in the Galleria here in town that was the BEST PLACE EVER to get Chocolate Croissants, with the GOOD chocolate. It was over by the Magic Pan ( OMG..the crepes..but that's another story ) and even though it's been closed for over 20 years..both establishments come to think of it......my mind is wandering...to this day, I remember those Croissants.

It's like SU remembering the Chicken Fried Steak at Dirty's on Shepard ( the original ) . It is his benchmark for chicken fried steak..and he misses it to this day.

Have a great week.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

'Welcome Back, Kotter' star Robert Hegyes dies at 60

`'Welcome Back, Kotter' star Robert Hegyes dies at 60

Awwwww...man..!

I loved Epstein!

Rest in peace Mr. Hegyes.

Aunty Pol

Mama Wants This !

http://www.tweakboutiqueonline.net/
Must possess.
Mama wants this.
Now, I know how that sounds , but since I am paying for someones 1099 issue that is NOT mine and the clothes washer and half the A/C - Heat unit..
Don't ask honey.
Trust me.
Let's just say it's less than 1 month's car note.


Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Whats Your Blues Name ?

This is hilarious !

Enjoy .

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Easy Molasses Sticky Buns From Taste Of Home

Easy Molasses Sticky Buns Recipe

Prep: 20 min. + rising Bake: 25 min.

Yield: 12 Servings

Ingredients

2 loaves (16 ounces each) frozen bread dough, thawed
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

MOLASSES SAUCE:

1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, cubed
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup molasses

Directions

Roll out each loaf of bread dough into a 10-in. square. Spread with butter to within 1/2 in. of edges. Combine sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over butter. Roll up jelly-roll style; pinch seams to seal. Cut each loaf into six slices.
For sauce, in a small saucepan, bring the brown sugar, butter, water and molasses to a boil. Pour into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Place rolls, cut side down, in molasses sauce.
Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 30 minutes. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Cool in dish for 5 minutes; invert onto a serving platter. Serve warm. Yield: 1 dozen.

Yeah..I need find some Brer Rabbit.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Erin's Food Files » Chewy Oatmeal Fudge Bars

Erin's Food Files » Chewy Oatmeal Fudge Bars

Okay..it's lunch time more or less but I don't get to get away from my desk until about 1:30.

I actually prefer this because the courtyard and or tunnel is not crowded and I can have an hour or so to read and blessed peace and quiet.

Tunnel ?

Yes, one of the more unique things about the area of downtown Houston where I work is the network of below grown tunnels that connect a lot of the buildings. They do host a variety of shops and eateries and because they are downtown can be a bit on the pricey side but then hells bells..what isn't nowadays .

So here I am hungry.

So of course , I have to check out the blogs that I follow and one blog mentioned Erin's Food Files...so off I went.

I have been craving the oatmeal and date bars that my late mother used to make, sort of like a softer sort of Fig Newtons but with more dates . And have you seen the price of dates..actual dates lately ??? !!!! ?????

Now, this is not the sort of thing that SU would be likely to go for in the same way I adore gingerbread and him...not so much.

And there it was...Chewy Oatmeal Fudge Bars.

The perfect compromise.

Go check out the newest addition to the blogs that I follow...

Oh crap..Taste of Home just sent me an e mail alert for easy molasses sticky buns.

Damn you Kroger..you better start restocking Brer Rabbit..Grandmas brand is just not the same..I mean..I'm sure she was a sweet old gal and all that , but in my house it's Brer Rabbit or nothing.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Chocolate Bundles

http://twomaidsamilking.blogspot.com/

Do you remember when I posted the recipe for chicken kisses with gravy ? I bet Miss Lisa does.

I've always had a love/hate relationship with puff pastry.

I love it eat it, it hates me when I try to work with it.

Yes, I will cheat as in the case of the chicken kisses and use packaged crescent rolls , I mean really..isn't that why they are there in the first place ?

Anyway, I was browsing the blogs that I follow and I saw this from 2 Maids a Milking.

They had me at chocolate.

I read the recipe, drooled, had to lay my head down and then thought ..ok....what candy to use because YOU KNOW I am gonna have to try this.

Eureka!

Dark Milky Way Mini's !!!!

Damn , I'm good.

Slap Mr. Linky for the recipe and site.

Now admit it..wouldn't this be better than some lame ass Hallmark card for Valentines Day ?

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Happy Friday ~ Bruce Of The Day ~ !

Happy Friday sweeties, and Happy National Cheese Day..don't ask how I know these things but I do .

There hasn't been a lot going on at Casa de Swamp, for which I am profoundly grateful, there was just too damn much of that going on last year as it was.

I'm in that restless yet bored mood again that hits every January..which means that what I really am is just worn out, tired with no candle left to burn. Luckily for me, I know myself and can take it easy for a couple of weekends after tomorrow , because if I don't , I have learned the hard way that the feeling of being overwhelmed is not far away , followed by a moderate bout of depression.

Yes, it bugs the crap out of me that I can't keep the house clean for more than 12 hours it seems and that " some kitty" has to urp on a daily basis. I know , I know , they are cats after all ..but really..the shoes in my closet ????? Some kitty is just friggan lucky they hit an old pair.

I actually used to make it worse when I would fight this situation , trying to control it all..and we ALL know how that goes..yeah.

It will all be fine...I just need to really adjust my schedule ( control freak much ? ) so that I can get a nap on Sundays that won't have me wide awake when I try to go to bed at 10 pm.

The rational answer is " Saturday , you idiot.." but that rarely works out.

Have a great weekend and a nap if you can..

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

An Oldie But A Goodie !

This is hard to read from the picture so I am going to put the text here .
A self-important college freshman walking along the beach took it upon himself to explain to a senior citizen resting on the steps why it was impossible for the older generation to understand his generation.
" You grew up in a different world , actually an almost primitive one" the student said loud enough for others to hear.
" The young people of today grew up with television , jet planes , space travel , man walking on the moon. We have nuclear energy, ships and cell phones , computers with light speed any many more."
After a brief silence, the senior citizen responded as follows.
" You're right son, we didn't have those things when we were young .....so we invented them."
" Now , you arrogant little sh*t, what are you doing for the next generation ?"
The applause was amazing.
My best friend sends the best stuff !!!!
ROCK ON !
Ciao,
Aunty Pol

National Cheese Lovers Day

http://bites.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/20/10190015-for-cheese-lovers-day-make-worlds-best-mac-cheese

It suddenly struck me that I could have very well called this blog Cheese , Chocolate , and Cats

because it seems that over the last year or so , these have been the main topics.

Well..that and me bitching and ranting about some such crap that has pissed me off.

I am focused after all.

And....I AM STILL PISSED that the house ate our favorite multi cheese mac and cheese recipe.

Bad House !

Bad , Bad House !!!

Enjoy.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

When In Doubt...Chocolate !

http://dyingforchocolate.blogspot.com/2012/01/happy-anniversary-3-year-blogaversary.html

WHen in doubt, when the winter blah's take a hold of me..yeah..go find someething to bake with chocolate .

I saw this over at dying for chocolate and love the picture, but you need to go to the link because it's just too hard to read the ad here.

Enjoy !

Aunty Pol

It's Not Thursday, It's FRIDAY Eve !

It's been a weird day and the weather is weird too.

One day it's warm, the next cold and the overall theme is gray and dreary.

This may be the reason that I basically can do without January.

Remind me of that...will you..when it's spring, what little we have and I am up to my ass in not enough hours in the day much less weekend to get all of the shit done that I promise myself will happen.

Really.

Remind .

Me .

This is basically the lull before rodeo, mardi Gras, spring break ( oh good idea bringing your crotch spawn ~ shout out to PG for that phrase ! ~ to the office where they run AMOK..and news flash...Aunty Pol is not your babysitter .

You have been warned.

I want some decent weather for the first part of April.

I want Mr. Trejo to clean out and mulch the beds.

I want to replace the terra cotta graveyard on the patio and have some geraniums and such growing for just a little bit please before we have another summer like we did last year with the drought and everything frying because I refuse to own a MUD district.

Sigh.

I want to be sure that Sistah and Double Oh are okay up in the Paloose where they are getting slammed with all of the snow and crap.

I want to know that Pyro and Baby Mama to be are okay.

I want a beer and I need a nap.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

It's On Bitches !

http://tv.msn.com/tv/article.aspx?news=695356

I am a huge fan girl of both of the gentlemen shown above.

I am also so sick to death of the election coverage and participants that the only coverage that I will in fact watch is "The Daily Show With John Stewart " or " The Colbert Report."

I watched both shows last night and they were brilliant !

Slap Mr. Linky to check them out..trust me...just do it !

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Shameless Shakedown Alert !

http://coveredincathair.com/content/emergency-fundraiser-dood

Yep, I'm doing it again.

If Andy's condition was treatable , and I had posted something here , all ya'll would have either contributed or reposted or both.

As it was , the condolence notes still make me cry, I love all y'all !

As always, this is completely voluntary..just spread the word !

I can do no less for Dood .

Slap Mr. Linky for all the details .

All together now :

" LETS ROCK THIS THING FOR DOOD ! "

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Bravo ~ !

http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/12/10141114-mans-marimba-iphone-ring-stops-mahler-symphony-dead

This made my day and quite possibly my week.

Gently tap Mr. Linky for the full story .

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

See Honey...If You Believe...It Will Happen !

BECAUSE in our house, there is nothing that cannot be improved by bacon, chocolate or beer.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

This One Actually Made My Jaw Drop.

I had the oddest experience yesterday.

I mean really, jaw dropping stunned deer in the headlights, WTF ??

A young man who works for the courier service we use came by to pick up a filing with a file stamp return..this being the easiest of all jobs to do that there is.

My cats could do it.

Ayhoo..

As he is making the return ( and I am hoping he gets THIS right because he gets defensive when I call him out on some stuff and you have to be blunt with this dude..worse than Carl the Wonder Poodle even) ..he asks me...sincerely....

" How do you pronounce your first name ?"

WHUT ?

Lather , rinse, repeat.

Um..Dude..Dude...Dude....

My first name is JANE.

How hard is that ?

Not Jah Ne, J'Ane, Jan E

JANE.

My late father wanted to name me after his father but was shot down...I'm not really a Paula type.

Now, personally I blame celebutards like Bouncy and Goop who name their spawn Blue Ivy and Apple and what not. I fully remember years ago when Frank Zappa named his kid Moon Unit. Even friggan Ozzy's kids have normal names.

What is wrong with you people ?

Do you think that giving your spawn a unique name will fill them with the self esteem they lack because they are being raised by nannies and staff ? Regardless of whether they go to public or private schools , do you think that your cache will armor them from the guaranteed beat downs and bullying they are going to get because you laid that shit on them ?

Really ?

I have endured all of the Tarzan jokes ever told, ditto Jane Doe and plain Jane remarks and guess what..big whoop.

At least I know how to pronounce it .

Ciao,

Aunty Pol aka JANE

Another Chocolate Site

http://thechocoaholic.blogspot.com/

Prepare to swoon.

Big surprise, I love chocolate.

And cats.

And bloggers who reply to posts...I love the surprise of that . That should not however be taken as me ranting about people not posting replies.

As Lady Lisa ( miss ya babe) says.." Blogging is without obligation."

S.V. replied to the previous post and so I bopped over to hers.

As is my habit, I look at the list of blogs that bloggers I like and or follow , do themselves follow..confusing I know.

And I found the little gem regarding chocolate.

So I went there.

And almost had to lick the screen.

Slap Mr. Linky and check it out.

Also check out S.V.'s blog: http://sweetlilpiggy.blogspot.com/

Now, lets all go buy that $95.00 krep for our coffee and go grab some chocolate while we are at it.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

What Did P.T. Barnum Say Again ?

http://www.joulies.com/

Someone has way too much time on their hands.
At first, I admit I thought that this was a rather clever, cool idea.
Then I went to the website.

First..NINETY FIVE DOLLARS ??????????
What the fuck ?

Now , I like my Duncan Donuts coffee as much as the next psycho bitch , but really ?
For $95.00 , I can go and get a fresh , hot cup of coffee.

For $95.00, I can buy 5 of the Jethro Beaudine size bags and think long and hard about managing my time better thus to avoid the need to blow $95.00 on something to keep a CUP OF COFFEE drinkable.

I was particularly amused by the idea that " You could walk away from your cup of coffee and return 3 hours later to find it still yummy and drinkable. "

I'm more surprised that I would be expected to remember where I left the damn cup after 3 hours.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Geaux Saints !

I borrowed this from Jacqueline over at her blog, " Jaqueline's Cat House "...no..she has Meezers you pervs..just kidding.

It's a lovely day here at the Casa so of course, I am spending far too much time over at DOA ( Dragons of Atlantis ) on facebook...

What can I say,..like I don't know that there is a ton at Mt. Maytag and I need to move my ass and get to housework ?

Nope..enemies to vanquish ..

Have a great weekend.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Happy Friday ~ Bruce Of The Day ! ~

Wow, the first official " Bruce Of The Day " for 2012 !

HUZZAH !

The weather has been freakishly nice today for January, upper 60's/low 70's and I am forced to remind myself that I will not go out into the yard and kill myself weeding the gardens this weekend with this faux spring. That only results in my doing significant damage to my back and it's just not worth it. I may shape up some and so on but I will leave the major clean up to Mr. Trejo, and it's supposed to rain buckets Monday....please Gaia, we need the rain so badly. The forecast for this year is the same as last...severe drought.

Big news dept..the crazy cajuns are grandparents again..bebe Ava was born last Friday and all is well despite my not having any real details. Now with Mrs . Baby Mama Pyro being due this spring, I can see my eyes glazing over in the baby aisle at Tar Jay...Help me Rhonda !

Merlin is back on SciFi tonight which makes me happy, even if the story has progressed to the death of King Giles..sniff sniff...it's a cute show and I have seen all of the Criminal Minds at this point as it is...

Damn , I need a life !

Kidding !

Nothing else new, taxes ( prop and HOA ) all paid..life is good .

Have a great weekend !

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

The New Sherlock Holmes Series

http://screenrant.com/sherlock-season-2-trailers-sandy-144970/

Okay, it's not really new if it is the second season and the man playing John Watson is the same actor who stared in the really not bad adaptation of Douglass Adams classic " A Hitchhikers Guide..." and the answer is still 42 by the way .

I had my reservations about the whole thing much like the reservations I had about Grenada resurrecting any Sherlock Holmes series, even with Jeremy Brett ( may he rest in peace the lovely dear man)...which we loved.

I had reservations about the premise of the first Laurie King book, " The Beekeepers Apprentice " in which after Holmes retires to take up beekeeping he encounters a young apprentice, female no less by the name of Mary Russell , whom he eventually marries...and I have all of the books thus far, hoping for more to come.

I have to my joy found that one of my favorite authors books are available in e book format which is a pure joy to be since I have long given up on locating any of Fred Saberhagens " Holmes Dracula series..who knew they were cousins..lol.

So..as you can tell, I have been an avid Holmes fan since my first Roy William Neil directed Basil Rathbone movie...I will read with out fail any Holmes inspired work as long as it is done in a respectful manner....

And the above series was far and above my expectation.

This is not easily given, especially since I went through junior high school and high school with a rather unique nickname.

Yes , I still will answer to it all these years later..

" Oh Watson ?"

Slap Mr. Linky and do yourself a favor..check out the series.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Mwahahahaha.~ Who Am I Gonna Mock Now ?

http://social.entertainment.msn.com/tv/blogs/tv-buzz-blog.aspx?blog=2080&feat=db277e63-b03a-485c-a6d2-cf5cef11b9af

Why am I hearing Queen singing " Another One Bites The Dust ." in my head right now ??

BECAUSE I AM EBIL !

Mwahahahahahahah !

Snerk !

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Lisa , Elise and Me.

I have followed Miss Lisa at Homesick Texan since the start of her blog . I replied on any number of her posts and we traded e mails When her announcement of the book came, I let her know when the Chronicle had an article about her and the book....ala " Call your Mom and tell her to grab every copy of the Chronicle she can..it's below the fold, half page front of teh food section !!!!!!!!! I meant to get the book, but something always distracted me..ya know life and such..but I could read her blog every day, print out and talk about recipes here and so it went.

I also read Miss Elise every day at Simply Recipes and last month when I saw her post about the book , I thought .." That's it, must possess...hello Amazon."

I brought the book home and SU has not put it down.

My late mother would appreciate this.

He appreciates a recipe for chow-chow which we can only find at Randalls.

Anyone planning on growing maters this year..let me know.

SU has that look in his eye..

" Chow Chow ."

Slap Mr. Linky below to go to " Simply Recipes "...I snagged the picture from Miss Elise..thank you ma'm.

http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/lisa_fain_-_the_homesick_texan_cookbook/

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Sweet and Tangy Lemon Curd

Sweet and Tangy Lemon Curd

Slap Mr. Linky to go over to the original post..she rocks by the way .

I saw this over at coupon clipping cook and realized that it was probably the easiest and clearest direction I've seen yet to making lemon curd. I am sure the same process could apply to orange curd, and me being me was thinking as I read..." Save the rinds to throw down the disposal to freshen it up..! "

Every once and a while , I see a recipe calling for lemon curd, usually as a filling layer for cakes or as a part/substitute for icing on cupcakes....yum.

Or I see it in the KA ( King Arthur ) catalog.

And I think, because I am sorta insane.." What a neat Christmas gift " idea.

Because we've just gotten through the holidays ya know .

You have to understand, every few years and this appears to be one of them , I get these scathingly brilliant ( name that movie) ideas to get a jump on it all, to be creative, to channel Martha Friggan Stewart , Betty Crocker or Dudley DoRight .

I suspect that this is the year that I will be able to think of the holidays again and not associate them with the passing of my father ...and now Andy ...

I want to get one of those clear Sterlite jobbes and put the gift bags and crap, the holiday cards and stuff that is on sale now it in so it is organized.

I'd also like to be able to keep my purse (s) cleaned out , tidy and organized.

And I want a pony ...and sprinkles.....

Stranger things have happened.

I'll let you know over the course of 2012 ( still sounds weird...hell 2000 was freaky enough) ..how things progress..

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Doing The Happy Dance !

Happy Happy , Joy Joy !
I would rather wait any number of years for what appears to be a fresh, original album ( yes , I know but that is what I still call them...I'm old..carry on) from her than a mediocre bunch of crap that is out there every few weeks.

Now..I guess I need to save my solaris ( read Dune..it helps) to see if there is gonna be a tour. SU and I don't go out to a lot of concerts..hell..any concerts in the last few years because the price is just stupid. We've seen Bonnie downtown at what used to be Verizon and I seem to recall that Keb'Mo was just starting out and opening for her..yes..that long ago .

Since then we have a House of Blues downtown because we're special like that ..perfect venue.

I will be stalking...err....following this like mad ..stalk..me...? ...No....never...nuh uh.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

Florentines ~ Oranges , Almonds and Chocolate ~ Oh My ~

http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/easy-florentines-recipe

I had to look at the picture of this and the recipe for a few minutes because at first glance, I thought , " Man....those are some eff'd up pralines..what in the world ?"

Sometimes a name or a method will just sound too chi chi for me..the part of the brain that asserts control most of the time goes " Whoa girl , who in the what do you think you are or doing.."..and I run like hell.

Except for King Arthur recipes.

They hold your hand with all of the pictures, much as Miss Ree does and lets you know that it's gonna be okay.

The above recipe looks stupid easy...

Yup..have to try this one..and yes , I am willing to buy the sticky bun sugar and candied orange peel from them because some things just cannot be substituted .

Just ask Aaron Carter about Ranch Dressing.

Heh..first one booted off " Rachael vs Guy " Celebrity Cooking show Sunday nite on the food channel.

Don't laugh..Cheech Marin is on this.

" Dave".

" Daves not here man."

I digress...Cheech and Chong has that effect on me...la la la .

Ciao ,

Aunty Pol

Still Fabulous

Yes darlings, they are back...sort of.

I had a wonderful New Years weekend watching a marathon of Ab Fab.

It's been 20 years since it was on..jeebus h !

And yet, I still laughed my self silly over the episodes, though sadly they didn't run or I missed the season 4 episode where Serge actually shows up.

Hands up if you suspected Serge was just one of Eddy's more creative acid trips.

Yup..thought so..me too.

Funny thing though, my reaction to the show is different now than it was .

It is still funny , make no mistake, but watching it now I get the sense of sadness that was never apparent the first time.

All of the characters seem completely unable or unwilling to connect to each other and be happy in their inflated notions of where they fit in society.

The main characters are so desperate to stay hip that they are more often than not mocked by those whose acceptance they crave the most.

Poor Saffy, the almost cliche uber nerd just wants to know that she is loved and wanted for herself..and maybe just a little pretty truth be told. And judging from the photo, when did Saffy start looking like a thinner middle aged Patty Duke?

The mother and Bubble more often than not are just reactors to what ever Patsy and Eddy scheme up, with an occasional reality check thrown in for good measure.

Is it still funny ?

Oh hell yes.

Will I watch it ?

Oh hell yes, but with different eyes I suspect.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol

A Great Start To 2012

http://www.dunenovels.com/blog

Hot diggity damn, I can't wait to download this to kindle!

Sorry Gene, I had to go the kindle route because the bookcases are full.

Have a great week.

Ciao,

Aunty Pol