Monday Moanin’

I woke up to the alarm on Monday morning. I was bummed. Now, at my age, waking up in the morning is a good thing. But, the damn weekend went by way too fast and I didn’t get half the things I wanted to do done!

It was freakishly warm for the middle of December (42 degrees at 6:00 a.m.) so I went to work without a jacket.

I went home at lunch for a change. I had called in a prescription refill over the weekend and had to pick it up. Plus, my ex-coworker Michelle threatened to come over after work to get the $20.00 I’d pledged for the Tupperware Toys for Tots and I had no time during the weekend to clean the house.

So, I went to the Chinese takeout next to CVS. When the lady saw me, she said, “Chicken fried rice?” I just nodded and left to get my prescription.

Hmmm… that was odd. The same medicine I got three months ago for $10.00 co-pay cost me $30.00 today. I hate health insurance!!!

I grabbed my take-out (the price went up on that as well. It used to be $7.10. Today it was $7.35) and headed home. I treated Caley and then treated myself to lunch. I had to smile. Not only did they remember my order (and I haven’t stopped in there since I-96 closed down), but they remembered to leave out the soy sauce packets, spoon, and napkins. I explained to them once they could keep all that as I just throw it away.

After eating, I vacuumed the living room and then swept the wood floors. I cleaned the main bath and then headed back to work.

After work, I raced home (but I always do, LOL!), treated Caley and did not change clothes. I have no problem wearing shorts and a tee shirt amongst family and close friends but I am a little self-conscious about my scars.

I figured she couldn’t get here before 6:00 p.m., so I got out some 0000 steel wool and rubbed the computer desk smooth. Then I moved onto the other project and filled in all the nail holes with sand-able, stain-able wood putty.

Michelle called (but I missed it – the phone was already on the charger), so I called her back. She said she might not make it. I asked what the latest I might expect her and she said 7:00 p.m. So, I took a damp old tee shirt and wiped off the computer desk. Then I started on my main focus tonight: chicken tortilla soup for tomorrow’s department Christmas party.

Sidebar: Why chicken tortilla soup instead of that damn mac & cheese? Well, this year, the theme is Mexican food. Why? I dunno… I guess nothing says “Christmas” like Mexican food!

And, I admit, I’m a bit nervous about this choice. Everybody at work (including me) insists that Buddy’s Pizza makes the best damn chicken tortilla soup in the known universe. So, I’m gonna challenge that?

Damn straight!!!

As you already know, I baked the chicken Sunday night. So, I started by prepping the rest of it. I diced up a red and a green bell pepper. I put 1/4 cup of each in my bowl and the rest went into the freezer for something else, some other day. Then I diced up a cup of a yellow onion. That went into the bowl as well. Finally, I minced up three cloves of garlic (bowl).

Finally, I cut the three chicken breasts into cubes and set that aside.

I heated a tablespoon of olive oil in the Dutch oven over medium-high heat. I threw in the onions, green and red bell peppers and garlic. I threw in a tablespoon of the spice mixture used to season the chicken.  I added in a little extra chili powder (about 1/4 teaspoon) for heat. I stirred to cook the vegetables until they begin to turn golden brown, about 5 minutes (but trust me, with the dark red spices, it was hard to tell). I added the cubed chicken and a can of Rotel diced tomatoes and green chilies, juice and all.

I added four cups of chicken broth, four cups of hot water and three tablespoons of tomato paste. I stirred to combine and brought the mixture to a boil. Then I reduced the heat to low. I added in two cans of drained black beans.

I mixed together three tablespoons of yellow cornmeal with 1/2 cup water. I added the mixture to the pot, and then simmered the soup for 10 to 15 minutes. I gave it a taste. It was a little spicy but good. So, I didn’t add any more salt or seasonings. Note: the recipe cautioned “Be sure to not under-salt it!”

So, it’s not Buddy’s but it’s not bad! I turned off the heat to let it cool.

Then I prepped the toppings: I fine-diced a red onion, chopped up a bunch of cilantro, got a fresh tub of sour cream and some sharp cheddar cheese. I’ll bring in the avocados and some limes tomorrow.

Lastly, I cut up some corn tortillas into one inch strips. They went into a baggie as well. You need to add them to your bowl at the time of serving. That’s why it’s called chicken “tortilla” soup, you see.

I finished up at 9:00 p.m. I heated up some turkey and rice soup (or goulash) Courtney had brought me in today and ate that for dinner. It was excellent!

I debated about giving the computer table another coat of poly, but my back was already hurting from the steel wool workout. So, I grabbed my book and went to bed, to read until bedtime.