things to do on a saturday other than address the pile of papers that need to be graded.

once upon a time, i told a friend at church that when saturday rolls around, i feel all domestic. i get the kitchen clean, i do the laundry that's piled up all week, i bake something (usually), and i clean up the living room so that it doesn't look like university life threw up under our coffee table. 

when i was telling her this, i said "i should probably make food ahead of time. it might be really nice to be able to have things already made during the week when i just sometimes cry when i think about cooking." she agreed, most strongly, and said that i would feel so productive.

then i read this blog and was at once inspired and totally intimidated.  spend the whole day cooking? have things completely made and then FREEZE them? how does one go about doing that? what, like, equipment does one need for that?

but when i started this day, i felt totally overwhelmed by my life. too much, too often, too little break.  so, of course, i began getting things done.

and, surprisingly (or not), i began to figure out things that i wanted to cook ahead.  something i call mexicubanacos (actually, musicboy coined that term), which is just chicken, black beans, and rice in a homemade cuban/mexican sauce. it lasts me AGES for lunches and it works for easy heatupability as well.  pumpkin bread.  HOMEMADE JAM.  next up is chicken burgers and then preparing the mini-meatloaf for tomorrow and taco meat for later this week. 

i like this idea, that i am preparing ahead. it makes me feel like perhaps life will be a little bit easier, a little bit more manageable.  at the very least, when i feel like my dinner will be cheese fries, musicboy will have something to eat when he gets back from work/school/practice.  that is my most pressing stress at night, to figure out what to eat (or to make sure there's something to eat), and i am happy to have options already figured out.

when i finally get to go to the store tonight, i will also make broccoli salad and wash fruit for the week.  i am just so excited to have FOOD.  food already prepared. food already made.  CHOICES.  no stress of creativity. i've ALREADY been creative!

huzzah!

we'll see how well it works, since i really should be grading. perhaps i can take the time i save doing all of this and use it to catch up.  at the very least, i'll end this day feeling like i have accomplished a great deal, and that's enormously important to my psychological well-being.

because, really, if you know anything about teaching, you know that you are actually never caught up. 

ever.