That’s right — today we’re celebrating 21 years of wedded bliss. We bought ourselves a Sleep Number bed to commemorate the occasion. It’s a California King, a sizable upgrade from the queen mattress we’ve been sharing for many years.

When my husband’s parents got married a great-grandmother heard they were going to have a king-sized bed and family legend has it, said that the newlyweds’ marriage would never last (presumably space in a bed leads to, well . . .  nothing, I guess.)

I think we finally figured it was time to get some sleep.

But before that, this marriage has some drinking to do.

What? We’re old enough. Come to think of it, when we got married we weren’t old enough to drink. We’ve got some catching up to do.

Happy anniversary to us! Feel free to raise a glass in our general direction, wherever you happen to be tonight.

Sadly, that’s not enough.

The police officer working on the case has taken all the right steps. Unfortunately, the person who was compensated for the stolen kayak at the used sporting goods store is not the person who brought it there (this, according to the store, and the person whose contact information was logged by the store when the kayak was brought to them.) Interestingly, the store recently remembered that the person who brought in the kayak “forgot” their ID and his friend produced his ID in his place. Since that person will NOT reveal who brought in the kayak, we’re upriver with no paddle.

The police don’t have anyone to charge.

Play it Again is upset because they’re out the money they bought the used kayak for (several hundred dollars) and are not yet allowed to resell it.

I’m sick over it because there my boat sits, three miles from my house, under “arrest” from the county police and no criminal to charge in the case.

I wish there were a way for this to work out. I wish the people involved would be moved to do the right thing, here. I wish the guy who presented his ID at the store would realize that his “friend” is a lying jerk thief and turn him in. I wish the guy (with the ID)’s parents would read him the riot act and make him ‘fess up.

I wish a lot of things. But mostly I just want my kayak back.

If anyone has ideas about how this might get resolved, or has any information in the case (or a burning desire to buy a used kayak) let me know.

Anyway. The girl has a boyfriend and said boyfriend has been far away at a camp for WEEKS. The camp has no internet. No cell phones. No phones. No fax machines (what’s that?) or other forms of communication that periodically require electricity.

She has been getting letters. Handwritten, in an envelope with an address and a stamp, arriving in the mailbox, letters.

It’s adorable.

Not only is she getting letters, she’s WRITING them. I honestly can’t think of any other scenario that would make this kid (or any other kid of this generation) hand write letters and mail them.

I hope that these letters and the memories of the anticipation and the summer of writing stay with her for a lifetime.

Because you asked really nicely, here is the recipe for Peaches and Cream Pie:

Crust:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups Crisco shortening
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp. white vinegar
3-4 tbsps. ice water

Work the shortening into the crust with a pastry blender until the mixture is crumbly — 4-5 minutes. Beat egg and add to mixture. Add vinegar and cold water. Mix until incorporated. Recipe makes three single crusts. Separate into thirds, make “snowballs” and place in Ziploc freezer bags. Freeze for 20 minutes or for up to a month.

When dough is ready to be handled, roll out and place in a 9″ pie plate. Form an upstanding crust. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

Filling:
3 cups yellow peaches
1 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup brown sugar

Blanch and peel about three cups of ripe yellow peaches. Slice peaches and fill the crust by layering the slices in a spiral until the crust is almost filled. In a chilled bowl, whisk cream and sugar together. Add vanilla. Pour mixture over the peaches. Bake at 400 for 30 minutes, reduce temperature to 350 and sprinkle brown sugar over the top of the pie. Bake another 20-25 minutes. Refrigerate pie when cooled.

Adapted from a recipe by Ken Haedrich in Pie

I like it!

How to Blanch and Peel a Peach

If you’re baking peach cobbler, peach pie or just want some lovely skinned, sliced peaches this summer, follow these simple steps for gorgeous results.

1. Make sure your peaches are ripe by letting them sit in brown paper bags for a couple of days after you buy them.

2. Boil a pot of water.

3. Dip peaches into the water and let them roll around in there for no more than 15 seconds. This is the process known as blanching.

4. Rinse the peach in cool water so it’s comfortable to touch.

5. Peel away the skin, using just your fingers like so . . .

It’s super easy and fast.

Just FYI, the peaches above are slightly more than needed for the infamous Peaches ‘n Cream Pie.

1. If you give yourself the gift of a year, you will inspire others to do the same. Think of it! A gift that keeps on giving! I’m so thrilled to know that the idea given to me by a friend has passed along to several other friends who have adopted it for themselves. How thrilling to have shared the concept with many other women who are taking back a piece of their lives. A client-turned-friend of mine told me recently that she’s decided to give herself the gift of a year and my heart just swelled with joy.

2. Saving your own life is harder than it looks! While my intentions have always been good, keeping the commitment every day has not always been easy. It’s a constant renewal to keep at it, and to honor the gift I’ve given myself. For those of you who like a challenge, this will be the best part for you.

3. Some people just don’t get it — pay no attention and stay on track. A few people have kind of looked at me like I’d lost it when I explained the Gift. Pffft to them, I say.

4. Once you start, you won’t want to stop. I keep thinking about what I’d like to focus on NEXT year, and how I can continue to feel as awesome as I do right now. I’d also like to figure out how we can improve health care in this country to the point where manicures, pedicures and massages are covered by health insurance. Who’s with me?

To the left: Marijean Jaggers, September 1975. I’m four.

For the first time since I’ve moved to Charlottesville my faith was shaken. I love where we live and have always felt safe, but this incident left me angry and feeling violated.

It took some effort for the thieves to remove the kayak — a tandem — it is long and heavy and would take two people to move and load it onto a vehicle to cart it away. You’d have to know us pretty well or have been hanging around our property to even know it was there. The forethought that went into the job unnerved me further.

Never one to keep information to myself, I tweeted to my network to let them know what was happening.

And then,  because I know what you like, I said this:

And within a couple of hours, one of the people who follow me on Twitter spotted it at Play it Again Sports, a used sporting goods store only three miles from my house. Unbelievably, it was definitely our kayak, complete with aftermarket updates we’d added.

In short, the story isn’t over — the police are involved, we don’t have our kayak back yet, but the store — and the police –  knows exactly who brought it to them and who was paid for the stolen merchandise.

I’m still plenty angry but grateful to my Twitter network for seeking justice on my behalf.

I hope to have another update for you in the next couple of days. In the meantime, I owe somebody a pie.

*Update

I have, indeed, baked a pie for Brenden Grace and his beautiful wife. It was an award-winning Peaches and Cream Pie. They ate it last night. Also? The perp has been apprehended. The kayak is in police custody. Paperwork is being filed and shuffled and . . . we’re planning a “Our Kayak’s Back” party upon its return.

We may just call it Kayak Pie from now on.

]]> http://www.stlworkingmom.com/2010/07/28/kayak-stolen-in-charlottesville-twitter-network-locates/feed/ 13 http://www.stlworkingmom.com/2010/07/20/happy-birthday-to-my-mom/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed http://www.stlworkingmom.com/2010/07/20/happy-birthday-to-my-mom/#comments Tue, 20 Jul 2010 13:00:32 +0000 marijean http://www.stlworkingmom.com/?p=1692

The secret to a prize-winning pie? Patience.

“I really took my time,” he said.

I am not a patient person but have learned during this Life of Pie, that if I don’t take my time, the pie will not be as good. Pie has taught me to slow down; to carefully consider, prepare and plan.  I take it step by step, cut no corners and the more I do so, the better the results.

2. Making something with your hands is good for your soul. If you’re angry or stressed about something, it’s almost impossible to hang on to that feeling when you’re working shortening into flour for a crust. It’s impossible to have skyrocketing blood pressure as you inhale the scent of a bubbling hot pie, fresh from the oven. Peeling apples, blanching peaches or pitting cherries offers time for reflection and provides satisfaction as prepared fruit emerges.

3. Giving bears riches. I give away a lot of pie. I’ve given pie to friends, clients, strangers, neighbors, client prospects and nonprofit organizations. Every time I give away a pie, and I swear this is true, I’m repaid tenfold. I never expect it but I either gain a loyal friend, a new client, a trusted partner, a fan . . . and I am wealthy with relationships.

4. If you’re going to do something, do it up right. I started out on a mission to teach myself to make good pie. That grew into an obsession to be the best . . .  and to have everyone associate me with good pie. I grew passionate about this hobby of mine and when you’re passionate about something, I think you should go for it with everything you’ve got. (Go ahead and Google “Marijean Jaggers Pie” and see what’s happened.)

5. Be not afraid. A friend of mine always tells me I’m brave when I show up for a party with a pie from a recipe I’ve never tried before. I like to try new recipes and as I put a recipe together, I can tell if it’s going to be good. If it’s not, we might get a laugh out of it. I am not afraid to flop; I just try again.

Have you had a hobby teach you something about life?