The Frittata Mystique

Hot take: The internet is full of opportunities for you to compare yourself to others and come up short. Especially if you are a woman. If you’re a mom, your Facebook feed is probably full of quotes from your friends’ angel-faced children like, “I love mommy so much! When I grow up, I want to be a doctor/lawyer/social media influencer just like her!” Meanwhile, your little angle interrupts your scrolling to tell you: “I wish I had no mommy like Princess Elsa and when I grow up, I want to be a transformer!” If you’re single, your Instagram is probably clogged with pictures of slender ring-fingers adorned with diamonds the size of Lima beans. The captions read, “I’m so lucky to be engaged to this wonderful man! Boy, I thought I was doing OK when I was single, but that was before he made me realize what a shriveled husk of a person I was! Love fixes everything!” Meanwhile, you’ve just given up on constructing your OK Cupid profile (for the third time) so that you could check Tumblr for the next chapter in a fanfic about if Pride and Prejudice was about Mulder and Scully. (Theoretically. I have heard some grown, single women do this.)

But there is another way the internet is making a lot of women feel insecure that no one is talking about. Except me. Today, I’m going to admit to something that many of us have been afraid to say out loud for too long: I’m stressed about brunch.

Read More

The Blackberry Strain

Opening scene:  4 pm Saturday, The Lab*

Every surface, including my face, is covered in flour. I look at the oven clock. It’s 4:00 pm, then suddenly 4:01. Only 44 minutes before I have to depart for the church picnic. I wipe my brow, smudging it with purple goo. I’m trying to seal the edges of the circular hand pie on the counter, but cream cheese filling keeps oozing out around the edges.

I shout, “Damn it, I’m running out of time!”

Then, more softly but with even more desperation: “Oh God. There’s no time. What am I supposed to do?”

The audience** wonders: How did she end up like this?

*A.K.A. my kitchen

** A.K.A. my cat

Read More

The Friday Night Cake Log

Disclaimer: I did not have the foresight to take pictures during the events described below. Instead, visual interest has been added in the form of poorly drawn crayon images. Apologies in advance!

You guys know how, on Fridays, you just want to crank some tunes, pour yourself a drink and undertake a long, tedious baking project? Or, wait…is that not how the rest of you guys kick off the weekend?

Read More