Dramamama's Blog

When I took a suit to the dry cleaners, the owner greeted me with 'how was your Christmas?' I told her it was 'very good'. She replied, 'yes, but this year has been rough'.I replied, 'Oh, economically, it was horrible, but Christmas is always good if you look at the true meaning'. 
How about you? How was your holiday season different this year? Yes, we were very low on money, gifts, etc, and gift giving was very humble and minimal, but I still felt we had a great Christmas. 

This recipe is SO easy and great for gifts.
CHOCOLATE BRITTLE

Saltine Crackers1 stick butter1 c. brown sugar1 bag chocolate chipsslivered almonds 
Preheat over to 400. Grease 9x13 cookie sheet with sides. Line the bottom of the pan with saltines. Melt butter and sugar in pan and boil. Pour over crackers. Spread out evenly. Put in over for 5 minutes. Turn OFF oven and remove pan. Sprinkle chocolate chips over cracker mixture and put back in over for 5 minutes. Pull out and spread melted chocolate evenly over 'brittle'. Sprinkle w/nuts. Cool in refrigerator. When hard, break up the hardened sheet into pieces. 
(my mailman gets a box of this every year) 

This is a very easy lasagna, where you don't cook the noodles. You can add meat, but most of the time, I dont'.
One Step Lasagna
1/1/2 c. waterLg jar, (32 oz or more) spaghetti sauce*1 box lasagne noodles1 15 oz container Ricotta cheese8 os, or more, shredded mozzarella cheeseParmesan cheese, grated
Combine water and sauce in a large bowl. Cover bottom of 13/9/2 baking dish w/ 1 1/2 c sauce. Arrange layer of UNCOOKED noodles, slightly overlapping, on top of sauce.  Sprad half the Ricotta and half the Mozzarella over noodles. Sprinkle w/ parmesan cheese. Add another layer of sauce. Repeat until you fill up the pan. Finish up with layer of noodles on top, then pour rest of the sauce over, spreading evenly to cover edges of noodles. Sprinkly with 1/4 c parmesan. Cover tightly with foil and set on a jelly roll pan. (pan with edges) Bake in preheated 350 oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until knife goes in easily through all layers. Let sit for about 10 minutes. 
*if using  thicker sauce, ie Prego, use more water. I tend to use more sauce. The important thing is to have the noodles covered when you are ready to bake. I also use more cheese. You can also make this to taste.  

Have you heard of the Movie, and book craze, called Twilight? Well, I did read the first book to see what all the fuss was about, and it really gagged me, but I decided to read the 2nd book, (out of 4) and it super gagged me. I mailed the 1st book to my sister, to give to my Twilight obsessed niece. She disappeared into her room for days to read the book. 
I won't even go into the fact that I think that the heroine, Bella, needs serious therapy, due to her obsession with the vampire Edward, but anyway...
The movie came out. My niece went and was raptured by it. The audience screamed through out the movie. I decided I MUST witness this spectacule for my own entertainment. I used to be one of these star stuck girls MANY moons ago, sighing at on screen heros. Well, my friend and I went with her two girls who had already seen the movie once, and LOVED it.  (clutch chest and sigh)To make a long story short, I've never stiffled laughing so much in my life, as the teenager audience sighed, giggled, at the screen, and my friend, seemed to delight in stirring the pot, by yelling out 'I love you Edward', and setting off a tizzy of squeals. Bottom line, was the movie really wasn't all that bad. Kind of like a made for TV movie. I've never laughed so hard in my life, or had 2 young teenager girls hiss at me, to 'get OUT! if you are going to laugh at Edward!" Twilight wasn't written for MY generation. It was written for obsessed teenage girls who think that the world revolves around a boyfriend. But if you DO go, make sure you see it in a theater packed with teenage girls. It is SO much more fun to listen to the squeals of delight. And as my teenage niece says, 'are on team Edward? or Team Jacob?' 

I saw Sleeping Beauty as a child and remembered being terrified of the green light that beckoned Aurora up the stairs to prick her finger on the needle.  Because my sisters and I had trouble sleeping, my mom, not knowing why we were scared, bought us a night light. But she bought that square flat glowing green night light and we would lay awake, in horror, watching it and waiting for the wall to open up to expose an evil staircase, and calling 'Aurora'!  I think we told mom in our adult years why we hated that green light. She had no idea. As an adult I'm scared that my youngest son is now able to vote and has decided to vote opposite of mom and dad, and vote all the idiots in! 
So what scared you as a child? 

My school sends out a memo that NO political signs, buttons, fliers allowed on school grounds. Wonderful, I say, as I do NOT like it when they tell us how to vote. 
Well, not 24 hours later, the school system remembers that applies to THEM too, and tells us that anything and everything is now allowed, and within hours, huge signs are in our teachers lounge, fliers, posters, buttons, TELLING us ALL that the teachers union is voting Obama, and WE should to, and what to vote on the question One....etc....  Excuuuse me? Do I have a brain that runs separately from "The Union'? Can I vote who I want? Are you watching me when I'm behind the booth? Will my pay be docked if you find out I'm doing my own thinking? And this is why I keep my mouth shut during election years, because I don't believe on being 'told' how to vote, and I want to keep my professional and social life separate from my political beliefs. .(..and a lot of really nice people don't vote the same as I do, and I don't want to argue.....!)

I just got back from seeing the new musical, "Tale of Two Cites" on Broadway. It was unbelievably good! This is the next 'Les Miserables', folks. This is a must see.  The talented James Brodour leads the cast and his voice is amazing. I am waiting for the cast to record the soundtrack, then I will be first in line to buy it, just to hear his voice again. Keep this show in mind, if it ever comes to Boston. An amazing story, an amazing show! Fenway, make the trip to NYC! You can get discount tickets on the www.playbill.com.

Ok, is it just me, or is this allergy season the worst ever! I have been taking Zytec, and it feels like I've had a fist full of pollen shoved down my throat, in my eyes and up my nose! I'm dying here! Is this rain causing this allergy season? Help! What will help? 

So the Principal resigns because girls got pregnant?  And how is this HIS fault?? HE didn't get the girls pregnant! The fault lies with the girls, or their families, NOT with him. To blame him is crazy. Once again, people refusing to place responsibility where it lies--the girls themselves.  The world is upside down.

My sister called me yesterday to tell me she was 'ok', but LA had an earthquake and she was afraid I'd worry if I saw it on the news. It triggered memories. Growing up as a teenager in LA, I'd  experienced my share of earthquakes. Don't like them at all! In an earthquake there is no place to run. My first experience with a major earthquake was as a teenager in 1970. It was very early morning, I felt the earth shaking and thought, 'I don't want to be swallowed up in my pajamas!', pulled on clothes FAST, and ran outside, heart pounding and shaking. I think I was more concerned about what I looked like, if found 'dead', then actually being dead.  Another time I was in a movie theater, the place started shaking, and my friend and I debated about running outside, in case the roof caved in. I told myself I was DONE with S. California. Another time, I heard what sounded like a train coming, and jumped up, to hear my parents in the next room, saying, 'earthquake--get up!'  Even though we were 'used' to having earthquakes, every time, we would be seized with fear for a moment, wondering if this was 'the big one', that we'd been preparing for. Our family had a 3 day emergency supplies, in a 'go bag' always in the closet. We were taught that it takes 3 days for help to arrive, and to be prepared. We went to many Earthquake Preparedness Seminars at church. Earthquakes are scary stuff. That is one reason I like living in New England. (But don't get me started on the subject, during the winters.....)

I've noticed that the only TV show people on Fox seem to discuss is American Idol. (This year I barely watched it) At work everybody watches Lost, CSI, and nothing I seem to watch. I'll sit at lunch and want to saw, 'so..how about Dwight and Angela??" but crickets would chirp. 
So.... any Office Fans out there?? I love that show! It just cracks me up. My husband won't watch it, so I am left to laugh out loud alone with nobody to share my fun. Does anyone else look forward to Thursday nights after a hard days work? 

I know nobody wants to have one, but everyone over 50 should have one. I made an appointment for my husband and I to have one, as he has it in his family, and I felt if I had one and he saw how it went, then he would be more willing. Well, I had one, and everything was fine. He went in a few weeks later and a large polyp was found, that couldn't be removed. Surgery was hastily scheduled as he has colon cancer in his family. The polyp was found on Weds, our son graduated from Boston University on Sunday and he went into the hospital this past Friday and is still there. Everything went ok, but it will be a long recovery before he can work again.  I know you don't want to hear it, but you MUST get a colonsopy, if over 50. IF it is in your family tree, you must have one at 40. It will save your life. It is painless and done in under 30 minutes. His screening saved his life. 

Ok Folks, if you want to see a hilarious, and clean,  play, go to the Opera House and see the musical The Drowsy Chaperone. I went last night with my husband. I'd bought my tickets last year as I'd seen this play in NYC, and wanted my husband to see it. It is here for about 2 weeks, I think. The lead part is played by Jonathon Crombie, or "Gilbert" from the Anne of Green Gables mini series. I didn't know he was that funny. I dragged my husband to see it and he loved it also. It is only 90 minutes which is another plus. It is well worth seeing. I'd seen it a few times in NYC w/friends, and hoped it would still be as good as I remembered it. It was better. Don't let this one pass you by. 

I walked into the lunch room today to do my lunch duty. A few hands flew in the air, as they saw me. I thought, 'oh what now!', and walked over to the boys and said, 'No, you CAN"T go to the bathroom!', to which they replied, 'it's not that!', so I then said, "I'm not listening to tattles!'. "No, it's not that. Ok, then WHAT is it?" Mrs. X, are aliens real??" 

I paused. Ok, do I give the "scientific" answer?, " my opinion" answer, or ''don't give children nightmares', answer. The latter. No, kids, they are NOT real!  To which a roar rose up from the table, "Yes, they are! I saw it on TV last night!!" And 'See, I told you!"  Ahh, I've soothed some fears, and quieted some dreams, but caused a ruckus. Oh well. 

I was working at school and it was time for the 1st grade lunch. The First Graders were getting ready by putting on their coats and getting their lunch baskets. One boy named Brandon was first in line. As often happens, all the kids coats, backpacks, lunches smell like their homes--strong tobacco smells. Brandon had his coat on, and was standing in line. Another boy, was coming back from the bathroom, and as he passed Brandon, through the crowded doorway, he paused and looked at him and said, 'You know, Brandon, you really shouldn't smoke'. 
I laughed out loud.