Focused at Fifty

John hikin' on the trail. Growing up, Thanksgiving in my home as in many, has always been a family affair. I have years of memories of my Mom and Dad working together to make a large Thanksgiving feast for my brother, sister, and I. Each of us would vie for the sacred wishbone. Most years, Dad would dry it out and then pick which two would break it over a wish. Of course we took turns with him carefully remembering who did it the year before! One year, ever the artist, he spray painted it gold, and still another he soaked it in vinegar which made it rubbery!   Dad was constantly keeping us kids enthralled with amusement!  Good memories! As we got older, some of us kids did not make it to Thanksgiving for one reason or another. Adam was in the Marines, Sheryl had moved into Philly, and I was away at school at Rutgers. Mom and Dad also divorced with Mom moving south to Florida. What can ya do but go with the flow as they say? She met my stepdad Barry a...

Last night, John and I attended the viewing of our good friend Ed's father in Minersville, PA.  Ed has a large family and it was comforting to see all of his 6 brothers and sisters in attendance.  Ed's father, Butch, passed away the weekend prior surrounded by his children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. It was just how my Mom passed away back in 2009, surrounded by our family and it really brought back memories. Ed and I hugged, got choked up, and I offered my condolences. I met Ed's mom, offered my condolences and said, "I'm Marc, I'm friends with Ed and Kim in the Lake I am so sorry for your family's loss." I said the same with his sisters. As I moved down the line, I met one of his brothers and we talked about him being back in the "old neighborhood."   He said it was bittersweet having everyone back at the family home a couple blocks away. I completely understood. When my Mom passed and we had the memorial service in...

Mom's Shrimp Creole Earlier in November, my sister Sheryl came out for the weekend and I decided to make one of my Mom's special dishes, Shrimp Creole, for her and John. This is a very basic recipe, like many of Mom's, which can be spiced up or added to. This was one of her fancy dishes that she made for guests when she entertained back in the 80's. She didn't make it that often for shrimp were considered pricey depending on how big they were. Hence, it was only a recipe for special occasions. I like this recipe as it needs only a handful of ingredients: shrimp, tomato sauce or marinara, onions, peppers, celery, and whatever spices you would like to add. John and I went shopping that weekend for the ingredients at our local supermarket. I had a stalk of celery at home, but it had wilted and become as limp as a bad pickle so celery was the first item I was looking for. I came across stalks of celery and just didn't want to buy an entire stalk for th...

It was John's birthday the beginning of November and I presented him with a cake at the Lake Wynonah Lodge while he was bartending. Everyone sang "Happy Birthday" for the self-proclaimed angry bartender – at least he is when the Philadelphia Eagles are losing. I put on these garish candles which were supposed to be sparklers but they just sputtered out. I think they were from 1970 or something. Before you say how wonderful it was that I baked a cake, I will retort, "Are you crazy?" I got the next best thing, a Pepperidge Farms 3-Layer Cake!   The funny thing was that John was with me when I picked up the cake. I couldn't get away from him in the supermarket so I faked a received text from my friend Sue. I told John it stated that she needed a cake for her grandchild's birthday. I couldn't even get out a real name for the kid, just instead referring to it as "one of her grandkids, I dunno which one."  Unknowingly, Sue ...

After a month off, I am finally getting back to this blog, my labor of love. At the end of September, John and I went off on vacation for a week staying in cabins at various states parks of Northwestern PA. We encountered bugling elk, mischievous young deer following us, and an angry beaver which chased us out of his swamp. Luckily, we survived and had a wonderful week getting back to nature. I was back to work for 4 crazy days and then went out on surgery leave for a hernia operation on October 11 th . It was successful. As you can guess I milked my pain for everything it was worth. J   John, my sister Sheryl, and good friend Sue took good care of me. The first week was a struggle as I found every movement involves your abdominal muscles which were now sporting three small incisions. Well I recovered and am now back on track with normal life. I did write a lot during the 3 weeks off, just not material that I am ready to put out yet. I will begin though, with the ...

This is a easy recipe that my Mom gave to me in October of 2008, exactly 5 years ago. What makes it so poignant is that Mom was diagnosed with cancer just two months later and then suffered her car accident in January of 2009, eventually succumbing to her injuries that following April. Pretty sad huh? In addition, Mom's writing on the recipe card is rather shaky. Her writing used to be so flowing, with loops and scrolls. Her writing shows the effects of fibromyalgia which she was suffering from at that point. With this being officially the "last" recipe she had given me as simple as it is, it now has special meaning. I had never made this recipe but with the advent of the chillier Fall weather, I thought it would be a perfect time to try it.  I did make some minor changes to suit my own needs but her original recipe appears below.  Cabbage and Sausage Stew   CABBAGE AND SAUSAGE STEW 1 head of cabbage 1 can "RO*TEL" brand tomatoes and green chil...

 Campin' with John. When I was a kid, the only food that mattered while camping was toasted marshmallows over a campfire. We weren’t a ‘smores family. Marshmallows suited us just fine. My family “camped” at Parvin State Park in southern New Jersey for years over long weekends in the Fall. We stayed at one of the CCC -built rustic wooden cabins. Cabin #13 was our favorite for whatever reason. The cabins surrounded a small lake named Thundergust Lake. We would spend the weekend going on family hikes or trying our hand at fishing in the lake. Year after year the fish at Parvin evaded my brother and me but we were persistent, always trying the next year. Anyway, these days John and I spend a week every Fall camping either in a tent or cabin in some State Park or wilderness area we haven’t been before. Our trip this year was to three Pennsylvania State Parks: Parker Dam , Clear Creek , and Cook Forest . It was an incredible trip with some great hikes accomplis...