Monday, June 04, 2007

the sound of one hand clapping

Life with a new one involves a lot of holding. Little people need touching and love like fish need water. It's a basic requirement that ends up tasking the parents with cradling them when doing just about anything. Walking from here to there, you have to relearn where your periphery is, lest you stub a toe trying to negotiate toys while carrying a squirmy eight pound weight. You end up having one arm immobilized with the itty-bitty monkey, while the other arm does everything else. You become quite proficient in living your life one handed, while your kid lives their own life with your other.

Sometimes, when you are eating dinner, with what you think is a sleeping baby, a tiny foot juts up and obscures the view. And by now you were thinking how easy it was getting, living one handed. I mean, you can still sit down and eat a meal. You just might not be able to see it.

Then it dawns on you, in one of those moments of clarity. For some unknown reason the solution presents itself out of the ether. Maybe this happens in the shower, or while sitting on the toilet, the point being it generally occurs during a task that involves doing something that is so automatic, it gives your brain a chance to wander the dials and see what is coming in on the other stations. For me, this last frequency check I heard something say "sammich'."

There it was. I need to eat more sandwiches. So I started with breakfast.

With everyone home, and all of us adjusting to new schedules, we often wake up cranky and hungry. The monkey is adjusting in her new role of sharing the spotlight, so I've been trying to ease the rough spots by getting us off to a good start. Toasted english muffins with laid yesterday egg scramble and high-fat Jersey cow melty cheese. This one felt good to hold in one hand and chomp into while the butter ran down my chin. It was a nice start indeed.


The monkey and her momma were heading out and spotted a plate on our doorstep. I quick call to Aunty revealed it to be homemade gravlax, slices of sourdough olive loaf, and a generous portion of creamy cheesey. As the little tyke and I chilled at home, what else to do? I turned the gift into a sandwich! With the wee one konked out asleep, I had two hands, I relished in the ability and ate it open face style.

Wow! Holy salted salmonoidae sis', this was really good! Like, killer good. But next time, please cure an entire salmon as one serving was simply not enough.

Pancakes aren't a sandwich, I know. But at breakfast the monkey had so politely asked for them, that come lunch time we were willing to cave in. To keep the sandwich day theme feast, I stacked them and put a layer of butter and powdered sugar in the middle. If I had done up some bacon and jammed it between, maybe I could call it a real sandwich. But I'm still giving it marks for resembling one as having two pieces of bread with a discrete middle, and if it comes right down to it the ability of being eaten one handed.

They call black cod "butterfish" for a reason. Dredged in a hot rub and flour mix (giving it an Ethiopian berbere quality) and fried, it lent this pita a nice spicey note to compliment the two rounds of heirloom tomato, avocado slices and tomato basil hummus. Although a bit tough to grasp with one hand and keep together, this middle eastern/african inspired sandwich continued the theme for the day nicely. Now, just how to end it all on a high note after the buttery goodness of the fish. Hmmmmm, there must be a way............?

.........with more, prodigious amounts of butterfat, how else? The cookies are a chocochip and oatmeal base with coconut and walnuts, surrounding a fresh mint and choco-chip ice cream. The mint was a mixture of the four kinds around our house, with an emphasis on the spearamint end of things. It was refreshing and crunchy where needed, anchored in the sweet cream and bitter chocolate. Now that, that there is definately easy eatin' with one hand.

Afterwards, when one hand was free, I realized I had survived my day o' sammich', I gave myself an applaud. Applaud like singular; just one. Having practice now at this too, I enjoy the sound of one hand clapping.

12 comments:

Stacie said...

congrats on the new monkey!!! sooooooooo cute and cuddly! awwwww... and the food, DUDE! I am hungry hungry hungry now... and homemade ice cream to boot... wow, impressive for one with (presumably) little sleep!

Vivian Mahoney said...

Oh my goodness. You guys eat well. I am drooling over your delicious meals. I loved the picture of your cute little guy's foot. That was funny.

Kevin said...

{chuckle}

cookiecrumb said...

Hi five!!
{{::CLAP::}}

shuna fish lydon said...

this is so delicous and loverly!

maybe we'll connect with the ice cream soon, eh?

Monkey Wrangler said...

Stacie: Thank you! I am a bit behind on the sleep, yes. But somehow the second time around it ain't as bad. Maybe not as shocking or disruptive that is, being a pattern that has happenned before. Now if only this one will be a sleeper like the first.......

Hip: Thanks! Yeah, them little feet find their way up into just about anything. No wait, I mean pee. Yeah that's getting everywhere.

Kevin: Huh, huh.......yeah.

Cookie: (Can I take a low five? my back hurts)

Shuna: Thankya'! And yes, I'm pining for that sweet cream. I'll call you later.

meathenge said...

Um, uh, okay fine. But where's the bacon? Or at least pork.

Oh, pork PASTE. Are babies like astronauts?

Rev. Biggles

Schweitz said...

Congrats on the new monkey!

And I love the idea of a sandwich only day - even if there needs to be some definition stretching. I must say I'm impressed at the culinary display in a household that just got one size larger.

Next thing you'll be figuring out how to use goat and homemade beer to make some kind of funky souffle!

K and S said...

Congratulations! love all the different sandwiches.

Leena said...

Clever post...I would happily eat any of those one handed sandwiches. Your pancake sandwich reminded me of these breakfast sausages on a stick covered in pancake batter my mom used to order from the school's Market Day...any chance those would count as a sandwich? Or better yet, have you considered doing a food on a stick day?
Food tastes so much better on a stick.

Monkey Wrangler said...

Irreverend Biggles: The pork remained in the freezer because the lack of sleep kept me from thinking clearly. Thanks for the pork paste suggestion, when little monkey can start eating such things I'll give it a try. And yes, they are like astronauts, having spent the majority of their little lives living in water it seems like everyday for them is a new experience and exploration of the dry climate they now inhabit.

Schweitz: Thanks!
I'll get to work on that goat and beer soufflé. But what kind of beer? Preliminarily, I'd think a porter might go nice......

K&S: Thank you. Glad you enjoyed, especially since I've seen a post or two about your love of them.

Leena: Hell yeah I'd call that sandwich worthy, and it sounds right nice. I like the food on a stick day thing. My daughter would LOVE it. Maybe I could work up on the stick size through the day and do appetizers with toothpicks, doggy things on sticks, and finally some bbq on skewers.......then go back to sticks for popsicle dessert. Yeah, I like that idea. A lot.

Elise said...

What a cutie! And how lucky to be born into a household where there will be such yummy food.