Making up for Tasteless Memories

We are entering a danger zone here (and I don’t mean all the tornadoes touching down in Brooklyn).

I’m dangerously close to writer’s block – although the words haven’t left me exactly. There are about six of them making the rounds in my head and I have no idea what order they go in (it’s a joke, a reference to an old anecdote about James Joyce).

The funds are running dangerously low now, but I am still grateful that I am still able to use up my freelance winnings to take care of little things, such as the gas bill. The royalties are not huge, but I am seeing European sales start to pop.

Perhaps because I am a little distracted, my biggest joy right now is putting together my Twitter feed for weekend chefs and brown bagging ideas.

There has been a minimum of cooking as the summer has been a roller coaster ride of hot and humid; but I’ve collected a great list of delicious recipe links and I look forward to autumn and cooking.

I am particularly thrilled that I was able to gather a hefty list of links for the brown-bagging crowd because it can be a challenge not to fall into the boring cycle of sandwiches and wraps that perpetuates itself.

It’s an even bigger challenge for parents trying to put together relatively easy and healthy food choices for their school kids – especially the ones with dietary restrictions. I’ve managed to get vegan, gluten free, and all sorts of goodies from side dishes to beverages to snacks.

My own lunchbox existence was one I’d rather forget.

For one thing, I wanted a Batman lunchbox. I would have settled for a Spider-Man lunchbox. My grandmother picked it out for me. This is what she picked:

That’s right! The woman picked up a Flying Nun lunchbox for her heathen grandchild (and trust me, I was already a lapsed Catholic in kindergarten). Here’s my beef: I’ve never even watched that damned movie. I DON’T like nuns.

I think she was thinking that because I was a girl, the only appropriate choice would have to be one with a female in the image. I suppose Catwoman was out of the question.

What went into that lunchbox was equally tasteless to me. Thankfully it didn’t last long and soon that stupid lunchbox became storage for my crayons and colored pencils, and lived in the high shelf in my closet (in the dark, where it belonged and rusted for years).

She could have picked an astronaut lunchbox, The Archies, Star Trek, or even The Beatles’ Yellow Submarine. I would have accepted a Wizard of Oz lunchbox, even with that annoyingly bubbly witch (you know she wouldn't have bought one with flying monkeys--that would have been cool).

I hated that lunchbox but I can make other children’s lunchbox experiences better, happier, more delicious! My Twitter feed transcends my tacky past.