The Glass Castle and Cream Sauce
Hurricane was stirring a pot last night, helping make basil cream sauce for his class holiday party (the kibosh was put on our pesto because of nut allergies in the classroom). I was simultaneously helping Shark with his science homework—a project on the digestive system. I looked over and saw him teetering on a stool, stirring with a long wooden spoon and holding the handle of the wide stainless steel pot with a tea towel that was at risk of catching fire on the gas burner. I was reminded of the opening scene from “The Glass Castle” by Jeannette Walls where the narrator is severely burned making hotdogs for herself at three years old.
Because the space between what I think and what I say is so very, very small (even more so in the company of my children), I said, “If you hurt yourself, I’m totally going to jail.”
He looked up at me. “How will the police know?”
“If you really burn yourself I’ll have to call an ambulance.”
“But we won’t tell them how it happened.”
This immediate willingness to lie to the police should concern me, right? But I was kind of like, yeah, baby! let’s stick together! But instead I said, “Um, we’ll have to tell them the truth. And don’t worry, I won’t really go to jail. They’ll just be like, you’re a really stupid mom.”
This seemed to quell his worries. He already knew that.
Recently, to assuage my feelings of incompetence after my NaNoWriMo Fail, I had been thinking that we, and by we I mean I, don’t necessarily remember the beginnings of books. Which made me feel like writing an entire novel really well might be a waste (seriously, I thought this, confessing it to you here makes you my priest). When I compare my original annotation of this book just after finishing it a few months ago, to my current impressions, I see that in fact, once a book is digested, it is the really amazing scenes that are absorbed and stick in the memory. Immediately after reading a novel I am so wrapped up in how the character and plot developed–what happened. Weeks later, there are these beautiful images and scenes that keep rising up and reminding me of the characters in the book.
No other point to this.
It’s a blog. You’re reading it for free. Quit complaining–note how I tied “the digestive system” to “digesting a book?” that was incredible writing.
Actually it was an accident. I just love digestion.
Oh, and the basil cream sauce? Amazing and lo-fi….
Prepare your pasta of choice al dente.
Melt a stick of butter, with a couple of those frozen cubes of garlic. You know about those right? You should know about those.
Add a couple of tablespoons of flour (we did this little shaking thing with the bag of flour and I believe it amounted to 3 tablespoons)
Add milk. Lots of milk. I’d say 2 cups, but whatever. If you add more, your kid stirs longer. No skin off your back. Also add three frozen cubes of basil. Seriously, learn about the frozen cubes.
Have a child stir it continually, until it thickens. Add a cup of grated parmesan cheese. Get fancy or…gasp…use the stuff in the green can.
Throw the pasta back in and toss with some sun-dried tomatoes (the kind in a bag that are already strips and partially hydrated).
It has a holiday color situation going on (Who’s festive? You are!) AND it’s delicious AND it is super easy. AND there are no nuts in it (but those lactose and gluten free kids are screwed). Eat the hell out of it.
