Cheesy Green Chile and Potato Chowder AKA Tonight's dinner

Tonight's dinner was a success! WOOOOT! I found an interesting recipe on pinterest.com this morning while waiting for mom to get through her testing for Carpal Tunnel (BTW,  hospital waiting rooms are boring as alllllll get out. UGH!)
Now, the original recipe calls for the use of bacon and bacon grease- disgusting! However, since 5 out of 6 members of this family are carnivorous eaters, I cooked off bacon and chopped it up, and then used it as a topping for their soup. I also utilized the wonderful addition of sour cream as a topping- delicious! Just to make it all come together, I put it all together in bread bowls from Panera. 

Here's the link to the original recipe; I followed the directions as they are written with the exception of the bacon and grease. I used a bit of olive oil to saute the veggies.
I also pan roasted the poblano peppers with olive oil in an iron skillet.

http://www.eatliverun.com/cheesy-green-chile-and-potato-chowder/

Hope you enjoy!!!!

Cheesy Green Chile and Potato Chowder

serves 4-6

Ingredients:

3 poblano peppers

Olive Oil

1 large yellow onion, small diced

1 Red bell pepper, small diced

3 russet potatoes, peeled and cubed

2 stalks celery, small diced

6 Carrot sticks, sliced

12-15 bacon slices, chopped 

2 tsp minced garlic

32 oz Vegetable Broth

several dashes of salt

3 cups milk

1/4 cup flour

2  cup (1 bag)  Mexican blend cheese {plus additional for serving}

thinly sliced green onions (full bunch)

Listen, you despicable old man

I've tried to deal with what you've done. I thought I was over it. Well- I'm not. The fact that you continue to wake up everyday, the fact that you are still capable of crawling of the festering ooze that has become your most recent resting place revolts me to my very core.

 I wish nothing for you other than disease and destruction. As you have become a rash in my life, so too do I wish such an abrasion in yours. I'm surprised you haven't gotten scars from all the bridges you set ablaze.

I am infuriated to tears when I think of how many good and wonderful people are in the world, dying every day of fatal diseases, and yet you are able to walk the earth as you please.

You have created quite a name for yourself, haven't you? Several, in fact. You hide behind every one of them, you deceitful cur. And yet, we all know who you are, every time. Each of your faces follows you, much like the path of brokenness and misery you leave in your wake. 

I look forward to watching your sandcastles dissolve. I long for the day when you are ruined and broken, when the world casts you out and rejects you- having finally realized how disgusting you really are- and you are forced into the darkness to die alone. 

Will somebody please think of the children('s theatre): A challenge

      It's time for theatres to start owning their surroundings. Whether you're a community theatre or a member of the theatre community, we all need to adopt our communities, installing ourselves further into the minds of those around us, starting with the minds of the children. I have written (and ranted) before of the importance of theatre in the lives of adolescents, but lately I've been hit with a revelation that saddens me. I noticed that more and more young people are being stripped of artistic education in their school systems. The opportunities to learn theatre, to sing in a choir, or play in the band- all of these- are vanishing. And this is unacceptable to me, honestly.
    Now, I understand that the schools are lacking in funding and they must make cuts. It's happened in the past. Theatre members should then be more pro-active in combating this issue. We should be in our communities, sharing our passions. We should be filling in the gap these cuts have made in their lives. Many of our groups use "education" in their mission statements, but how far are we really education? And who is truly growing as a result of our events/shows? This is all a thought process with which I'm still battling, but the concept is simple- we have to get out there and allow our young people the opportunity to see why theatre is still relevant to us and to them.
    Every year I work with local Headstart/preschool groups in bringing kids into RTP, talking about costumes, acting, lights, and make up. The kids get to parade on the stage, trying on dresses, hats, and an over sized turtle shell. We then perform a short skit for them to tie it all together. It isn't a huge deal; it takes place over the course of a couple of days. And yet, it matters. The children talk about it for weeks afterwards. And they come back for the children shows we stage. The parents and teachers are grateful for the experience each year, and I really love it. I guess it is a big deal, to me anyways.
I mention this because it's an example of something so simple but something that can make such an impact. Another activity I love is bringing Girl/Boy Scout groups in for dress rehearsals for the kids' shows. They get to see a show for free and earn their theatre badge,  and the cast gets a "test audience." A few times, after the show, I've taken the groups around the theatre, onstage and off, giving them a full view.
I wish I had more time and money (along with a doppelganger) to carry out the ideas I have for our great state... but I don't. So I feel compelled to challenge all of my theatre friends.
 My challenge is two-pronged:
1.) We need to identify where in our area young folks are lacking in education geared towards the performing arts.
2.) We then need to work towards sharing what keeps us going- our craft, our passions.

What's the saying? "If you build it, they will come?" If you build up an fun and educational program, whether it's classes, workshops, or a children's production, and share it, you'll find children craving this education.
(Can you tell this is a passion of mine?)

So. Who's up for the challenge?

    

There is no sanctity in American marriage

           ***I have yet to tie the knot. The main reason for this is because I am not so stable in my emotional maturity to guarantee that I can settle down and be faithful to one person for the rest of my life. I can’t do that- right now. Maybe some day. Maybe never. I don’t know. However, I do have eyes. And a brain. And I use all three. It’s like a magical power that is seldom used anymore. And because I use my brain, I am able to make the observations necessary to know that I am not fully prepared to get married, unlike some people.***

                      I am not a politically minded person. Until the past year or two, I didn’t really care about politics. Actually, it was not until people started utilizing the subjects of sexual orientation and female reproductive organs as platforms for candidacy that I really started to sit up straighter and pay closer attention.

            In this day and age, I am truly amazed anyone actually still has the gall to use the “sanctity of marriage” as a standing point for their arguments. Really? I mean, do we as Americans in this day and age actually give a flying flip about marriage and who is marrying whom? My original viewpoint had been this: If one person feels that they can suffer through another person’s idiosyncrasies and bad habits for the rest of their lives, living with them under one roof, and, at times, attempting to raise younger carbon copies of themselves, why would we fight it?

            Nowadays, however, this situation has found me to be more cynical and grossly fed up. We find ourselves in a society where common law marriage, premarital sex, and adultery are king. We laugh at them during our midday sitcoms. We know several people within our lives who deal with these situations as their everyday lifestyles. Heck, Maury would be out of a job if it weren’t for these lifestyles. Still, not even these people with these situations are what really tick me off. What really grinds my gears are the people who view marriage to have equal sanctity with that of a dying goldfish in a toilet bowl- Those dreadful people who find marriage to be so expendable that they are celebrating their 6^th marriage within a year of their 5^th divorce. THESE are the people that are ruining marriage in America. You cannot tell me that these are stable people. I know several individuals who have chosen to play this marriage game well into their older years, and have yet to stop. I imagine they will die at the altar or in court. Some people, I feel, cheat on their spouses just to get out of the marriage. And then, sometimes, they actually marry the person with whom they did the adulterous act. Talk about trust on both accounts! It goes back to that questionable stability I mentioned.

           

            Here’s another thought for you- if we are going to limit who can marry whom, we should also put a limit on how many times people get married. I thought maybe three times, and then their locked in for life, spending the rest of their time trying to figure out how to kill the other person and making it look like an accident. I’m serious. To say that homosexuals are the reason behind the corruption of marriage in the world today is an absolute joke. Period. I find it hilarious that the people who are taking this idea and making giant campaigns for their causes haven’t actually caught on yet. Maybe we should fix what is already broken before we attempt to sever bonds that have yet to be formed. 

            Oh, and for those of you who make fun of those Sister Wives people? Yeah, screw you. Those dudes can stay married to multiple women for X amount of years and yet we’ve got people who can’t stay married to ONE person for more than 10? You won’t catch me making another Mormon marriage joke. 

Insomniac poem

My heart is heavy with the pains that my insomnia brings. 
And one thing I can't help but wonder is what I would be doing in my dreams. 
And if I were to dream, I wonder if it would involve you and me.
And if I dreamed of you and me, would that me sad or happy?
See, lately, I've been thinking of the things you've never said to me.
These things you may not ever say, or never think to say or sing.
And so I sit and think, for I fear to dream...
Because I fear I'd dream of you and me.

.fly, songbird, fly.

Appealing to your arrogance 
is the only way you'll ever see me.
Your songbird style never stops
causing my heart to bleed.
And yet
I let you keep on singing your song,
I let it plant its seeds in my brain,
in my heart.
And I let you smile on your way,
causing me to tear apart.


And I just want to scream
Fly, songbird, fly
by and by.
Don't take my heart 
when you leave.


But all I want is for you to
sing, songbird sing.
Dream, songbird, dream.
And take my heart
and never leave.


I keep holding onto you, 
praying you're grasping 
for me too. 
I keep bringing up the past
hoping the memories will make
these precious moments last.
Shading me in your wings, 
I never know what you will sing.


Which is why I just want you to
fly, songbird, fly
by and by.
Don't take my heart
when you leave.


But all I want is for you to
sing, songbird, sing, 
Dream, songbird, dream.
And take my heart and never leave.

.The diva is doomed.

The diva surrounds herself
with friends and emotion,
always fearing time spent alone,
for there the truth finds her.
The diva smiles for the crowd
But below the act,
Below the diva's stage,
her foundation is crumbling.
The diva covers her pain and troubles
with makeup and band-aids.
The diva's unrelenting ability to destroy
is her downfall.
The diva is tortured by the demons
she has created.
The diva has no room for clothes
in her closet, full of skeletons.
The diva has compromised her life,
her emotions,
her relationships.
The diva is now haunted by her mistakes,
yet continues to fail her loved ones.
One day the diva will discover true loneliness.
She will discover the bottom of the empty bottle.
No script will save her speech
when all charisma is sucked away from her eyes.
No role will spare her from real emotion.
No revival will save the diva's soul.