Moving is a funny business. Especially when you are moving far away and the likelihood that you’ll have the time to catch up with old friends/neighbors when you are back in town visiting your parents is highly unlikely. So, over the weekend I made a point of contacting my old neighbor Harriet to get together for “coffee.”
Which is kind of funny, because I have never gotten together with anyone for “coffee.” Not because I don’t drink coffee, but just because meeting up with someone to sit around a table somewhere in public to chat has never really appealed to me. Or maybe it’s that I’ve always thought that type of thing was for busybodies or people who don’t want to have other people over to their house, or, I don’t know, people who just want to light their money on fire instead of paying $0.12 to enjoy a cuppa with a friend in the privacy of their own home. I’m weird, I know.
Harriet and I lived two doors away from each other 3 houses ago and although we haven’t talked to each other in a couple of years, she is still on my list of 5 people who I could call at 2 am for any reason whatsoever. Having someone like that in your life, is priceless. Especially if you are in dire need of bail money or something. {Note: I have never been to jail, but it’s nice to know I have people I could rouse out of bed if needed.} 😉
Come to think of it, 3 out of the 5 of the people I could call at anytime for any reason are old neighbors {Harriet, The School Teacher and Mrs. HB}. The other two? My mother and Amberlina.
Yada yada yada…. I left a note on my old neighbor Harriet’s door {because I didn’t have her number or email}: Hey! It’s me Mavis. I am moving, want to meet at Watson’s on Saturday or Sunday? Call me.
Well, she did. And we decided to meet up at Watson’s Greenhouse for a hot cuppa and cake.
We looked around the nursery for a bit and then wandered over to the cafe and decided we didn’t want cake, we wanted pie. So we left and headed to a bakery in town. But when we got there, we discovered the bakery had closed and was no longer in business. So then I was like, hey, let’s go to the Berryland Cafe.… they have pie. But then halfway to the Berryland Cafe I remembered their was a tea shop in Sumner that served afternoon tea that I had been wanting to try. So we drove there instead.
But the tea place was totally booked and since we didn’t have a reservation…. we moved on.
What started out as a coffee date between old neighbors who hadn’t seen each other in years, quickly turned into a big observational therapy session for two women who see the world through the same pair of lenses.
Most interesting find of the day: FoodPod Silicone Food Boiling Bag for $19.95. Essentially a plastic bag to boil eggs or vegetables in. Now, maybe you own this bag, or something similar and totally love it, but when I look at a product like this {and honestly, about 75% of stuff in stores lately} I’m like… What would the Pilgrims have thought about this? Would they have traded wheat for it?
Where has our common sense gone? Are Harriet and I the only ones who think people are filling their homes with totally stupid stuff these days? Because seriously, would’t putting eggs in a saucepan be a lot easier? Clearly we are the weird ones because the reviews of this thing on Amazon are nearly 5 star.
I mean really, you already have the saucepan, right? Why would you spend $20 on a piece of plastic to set in a saucepan? Can’t you use a slotted spoon?
- Cooking food in plastic. No thanks.
- The cost of the product.
- The time it takes to get the product out of your cupboard, to load it up with eggs, and to snap everything together.
- Storing the item.
- How long is this going to last before the plastic breaks down?
- Can’t you think of something better to spend $20 on?
French toast and hot drinks in an unpretentious place with someone who totally gets you? Now that is something I could spend $20 on. True, we could have probably sat on a park bench for 2 hours and had the same conversations… But sometimes, it’s just nice to get out of the house.
Old neighbors, they’re the best. If you have one that you adored, and haven’t talked to in a long time… look them up and invite them out to lunch. You’ll be so glad you did. 😉
Have a wonderful Tuesday everyone,
~Mavis
James Young says
I was gifted one of those egg dangly things. It wound up in a goodwill donation pile pretty quickly, as I steam my eggs instead of boiling them (makes the best hard boiled eggs I’ve ever had, and incredibly easy to peel). That egg dangler is just a poor idea.
Teresa says
Hehehehe… egg dangly things
Peggy says
🙂 That is all. 🙂
Sue R. says
Did you buy that butter mold to start your collection??
Mavis Butterfield says
I wanted to but it had a big diagonal crack across the top of it so I passed. It would have been a good start to my collection though.
Christie says
So true!! Thank you for validating that I’m not the only one on this planet who thinks things like that are a ridiculous waste of money! My SIL is infamous for buying me stuff like this for Christmas every year so I re-gift it through our work White Elephant party where we try to outdo each other’s re-gifting items each year! 🙂 So really it does provide hours of entertainment but ultimately it probably ends up in the Goodwill bin.
Lauralli says
This is great! Thanks for sharing!
E in Upstate NY says
For many years we moved every four years to a new state, so I had the process down to a system, until the move from Maine to New York. It was at my oldest son’s end of season nursery school party that did me in. The party was at a friend’s lovely old Maine house that I had never been to due to it’s distance from Bangor. We had met and enjoyed each other’s company at other people’s homes. Had to leave before the end because I had to work. Called my son to get ready to leave, and it suddenly hit me: I’d NEVER see these people who had been so important in my life ever again. The tears started pouring down. I scuttled to the kitchen, with other moms following, wondering what happened. It was one of the hardest things I had to explain. I knew that I’d never see, talk or know anything else about these people.
Why I wasn’t prepared for this wave of emotion was that we weren’t moving for over a month, and I really hadn’t started to pack, let alone prepare to say my goodbyes.
So Mavis, I thoroughly understand the farewell coffee.
LaToya says
Hey, Miss Mavis, it’s me, LaToya.
Funny thing … I called my old neighbor … and her husband answered …. he said she wasn’t home, took my number down … she never called. Oh well. A few months later, HE called me. AT MY OFFICE. And asked me if I wanted to get together for “sex or whatever.” I was sure I hadn’t heard him clearly and said “I’m sorry, what?” And he said that he had always thought I was attractive and did I want to get together for sex. Seriously. He said that. Do I want to get together for sex. How lame is that? I mean completely wrong on all levels, but even the way he said it. Loser. Sorry, this is a family site. OK, bye.
Mama Cook says
I just can’t even…..
Angela D. says
Uh…..I was TOTALLY considering taking Mavis’ suggestion to reconnect with a previous neighbor (lady), but after reading about LaToya’s experience……!!!
I’m thinking back to several times, shortly after we moved, that I DID give my new number to the neighbor/husband, and I never heard back from my gal-pal. Hmmmm?
Emily E says
OH. MY. GOSH!
Lolly says
First of all, snorting outloud at poor LaToya! Bless you, honey! How horrible!
Secondly, while I laugh at wearing a coat indoors….but refusing to wear a scarf…..I love the quirkiness, and know we would be ok as friends. Esp when shopping and wondering what the actual heck people spend their money on?!
I remember cleaning out my cupboards several yrs ago and wondering how on earth I had FOUR veggie choppers of some sort. One came with the blender we bought…..one was a knock off of the pampered chef chopper (or maybe it was actually PC?), and maybe I got it as a gift? I don’t remember the other two. I just know I only used a knife and wooden cutting board and didn’t need to clutter a whole area of my cupboards with multiple cutting thingies! (Though now I have a large food processor and use it about half of the time….usually when I need to chop up more than just an onion or two!)
But why would you spend $20 on that weird plastic thingie to cook veggies or eggs in? I’m sooooo not understanding! Lol! And way too cheap to deal with buying it! And I need my space for pretty pottery bowls (ahem…I will NOT count those….the vast number COULD be used against me!), vs using that room for silly things that would never be used. (I use every and all of my pottery bowls….at some point. Lol!)
Karin says
I totally don’t understand the boiling bag. Eggs already come in their own convenient containers (called shells) what on earth would you need that for? And as far as putting veggies into a plastic holder and putting it all in boiling water, sounds like a convenient way to add extra chemicals from the plastic into your food…ick!
Tammy says
I wouldn’t ever buy the egg thing but it is silicone, not plastic. Not the same material. 😉
Gale says
I don’t like “one trick ponies”. If a gadget can’t do more than one thing, I don’t have it. I don’t have a garlic press because it takes me longer to clean it than it would have for me to just chop or crush the garlic.
AJ says
Same, although I have been proven wrong about some seemingly one trick ponies that I now totally love (and use for many things.) For example, I was gifted a rice cooker, and I use it probably multiple times a week. It can make rice (including timed, so you can have it start in a few hours), hard boil eggs, steam veggies/corn, and warm corn tortillas. And that’s just the ones I have tried. So yeah, some “one trick ponies” are actually quite talented, but others are just… silicone egg holders. 😉
Mavis Butterfield says
I’m a big fan of the rice cooker too! 🙂
Marlo says
Silicone and plastic are very different materials.
Mama Cook says
I just have to say…welcome back!!!! This is the second post I’ve read and thought, “There’s the old Mavis!” Like I can see the fog clearing and there you are! Looking forward to more!!!
And am I the only one humming “Old friends, old friends, sat on the park bench like bookends…”? (Maybe I just showed my age!)
Laurie says
Doesn’t matter if it is plastic or silicone, I’m not buying it. I went through my kitchen cabinets a year ago for a first declutter in many years. Going to do it again while spring cleaning next month. I totally understand “making light” of these things! My mother, bless her heart, would see something in a store and nearly always said, “Hunh, I can make the same thing for way cheaper than that!”
bobbi says
I don’t get it either. When I see things like that I think “why?”. I see commercials for the “eggies” things, that hard boil eggs in a container that you place in boiling water, hahahaha….hello? common sense has gone out the door, lol…
Ronda says
I have bought an egg boiler where you crack the egg and put it in a container (shaped liked an egg) and then boil because I couldn’t for the life of me peel an egg without losing half of it. So that one trick pony saved me money and frustration in the long run.
Teckla says
Ronda, here’s something to try. I drain my eggs and cover them with cold water, sometimes changing it when it warms if I’m in a hurry, but usually just letting it sit in the sink for a hour or three until cooled completely. Then, and here’s the important part. Smack the small end of the egg smartly against the sink, then the large end, then roll gently to crack the rest of the shell. Drop back into the water until you’ve done all of them. Then (usually), starting at the small end, start peeling. I usually dunk several times while peeling, both to allow more water under the shell and membrane and to rinse off any small pieces. About 95% of the time you’ll get excellent results. I read this many years ago, it’s something scientific, although I’ve forgotten the explanation. Anyway, I hope you try it and get as good results as I have
PSUVAL06 says
I feel dumb, and maybe I overlooked this … that beautiful old gray house with the 1st floor bowed/curved windows … is that a shop ? It is gorgeous!
Mavis Butterfield says
Yes, it is the tea house in Sumner.
PSU06VAL says
Thanks!