Spools

 

Socks really can disappear in the wash. Tiny socks – no-shows, toddler socks, baby booties – can be sucked into the wastewater hose or blown past the dryer filter, where they either cause a blockage or float away. Socks can be ripped from clotheslines (remember those?) and lost forever. But it’s more likely your missing socks are simply misplaced. They can become parted from mates while you separate lights from darks. They might cling to the drum and join a subsequent load. Static may attach them to bedsheets, and you’ll find them next time you remake beds. Or they never made it into the wash in the first place. They’re hiding behind a dresser or radiator, waiting for you to deep clean. How can you avoid sock loss? There’s strength in numbers: buy and use sock clips or do loads with nothing but socks. Better yet, buy matching socks in bulk! You’ll still lose socks, but you won’t care.

Four Album Blocks

 

The Seven Rules of a Happy Life

One: Let it go. Try not to let a bad yesterday ruin a good day today.

Two: Ignore the critics and live your own life.

Three: Give it time. You’d be surprise at how many things are healed by time alone.

Four: Never compare yourself to anyone else. Make it your goal to top the person you were yesterday.

Five: Remain calm. Everything happens in its own season. Wishing for things to come sooner or go faster only leads to frustration.

Six: It's all on you. You define your own happiness, and you’re responsible for bringing it on.

Seven: Remember to smile. Life is short; yours and everyone else’s. Enjoy it while you can.

Starlight

 

“What great things does the Lord want you to accomplish? In His Church and kingdom, there are many opportunities to serve and minister to others as the Savior did. He wants you to be part of His great work. Never will the plan of happiness become more real to you than when you are helping others to live it. In building my own faith, these words of Alma were life-changing: ‘Blessed are they who humble themselves without being compelled to be humble.’ Let us humbly put ourselves in a position where Jesus can lift us, lead us, and make the most of our abilities. I testify that the plan of happiness works. It was created by your Heavenly Father, who loves you. It works because Jesus Christ overcame sin and death through His Atonement. Come unto Him, follow Him, and 'immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you.'" – Elder Adrián Ochoa

Blue Nine-Patch

 

I’d been whining for weeks that nobody does potlucks anymore. And then I was actually invited to one. It was a cast party picnic in the park before closing night of The Drowsy Chaperone, but the orchestra and stage hands were also invited. (That never, ever happens.) I thought long and hard about what to share. I knew no one would bring anything hot, or homemade. (I was right. At least eight people brought bags of chips.) So, I made this:

 

Slow Cooker BBQ Baked Beans

 

3 pounds ground beef

1 pound bacon, chopped

1 cup onion, chopped

3 16-ounce cans baked beans

16-ounce can dark kidney beans, drained

16-ounce can lima beans, drained

1 cup ketchup

1/2 cup brown sugar

3 teaspoons liquid smoke

3 tablespoons vinegar

 

Brown and drain beef and bacon. Dump into slow cooker with remaining ingredients. Cover and cook on low 5 hours. Great as a side dish or main course.

Twenty Log Cabins

 

I don’t know why, during a record-breaking heatwave in the UK, York city council bans shorts on their binmen. There was mention of health and safety concerns, and the fact that shorts might subject waste collection crews to scratches and cuts on their unprotected legs. But that hardly seems a legitimate reason to force men working hard outdoors in temperatures as high as 40C (104F) to wear long, heavy trousers. Humans can be clever, creative creatures; even the ones who empty rubbish bins for a living. Lee Moran and his fellow York binmen complained about the policy, but they got nowhere. Lee decided he was more at risk of heat stroke than he was of seriously skinning his shins, so he started showing up for work in a kilt. If you happen to be in York, he’s hard to miss. His gloves, knee-high socks, shirt and kilt are all bright orange. With reflective safety strips.

Card Trick

 

I usually double this recipe to bring to a potluck picnic, but potlucks seem to be another casualty of COVID. Last week I cut the recipe in half for the three of us. I used cheddar we’d brought home from The Creamery in Beaver – so sharp it crumbled when I tried to cut it in cubes. It looked a little odd, but still tasted wonderful.

 

Classic Pea Salad

 

1/2 cup sour cream

1/4 cup mayo

1 tablespoon sugar

2 teaspoons cider vinegar

Salt and pepper to taste

4 cups frozen peas, thawed (Fresh peas, cooked and chilled, are even better!)

1/3 cup diced red onion

3/4 cup cubed sharp cheddar (roughly the size of peas)

8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

 

Whisk together sour cream, mayo, sugar, vinegar and seasonings in a large bowl. Add remaining ingredients; gently stir to coat. Refrigerate at least an hour before serving.

Strawberry Ice Cream Cone

 

In 1925, Howard Deering Johnson borrowed $2000 to open a pharmacy in Quincy, Massachusetts. He repaid the loan quickly, primarily because of the popularity of the soda fountain he’d installed in the drugstore. The ice cream he sold there was higher in butterfat, and people noticed. When Howard opened his first restaurant, 28 flavors of his ice cream were included on the menu. By World War II, there were 200 Howard Johnson’s restaurants in the US, identifiable by their orange roofs, cupolas, and weather vanes. HoJo’s provoked an international incident in 1957, when the restaurant in Dover, Delaware refused to serve Ghana’s minister of finance. President Eisenhower had to issue a public apology. The last standing Howard Johnson’s closed this spring in Lake George, New York. Today is Iconic American Restaurants Day. You can’t celebrate with a dish of Howard Johnson’s ice cream, but there are still plenty of other iconic American eateries out there.