This week has been a roller coaster. I do not want to bore you with all the details, but it has been one of those sort of weeks where I just keep saying to myself “Just do the next thing. Don’t think about all the other things that have to be done. Just do the next one.”
That coping mechanism was working well until yesterday afternoon when I had to relieve a little steam from pressure cooker (also known as crying and talking very outloudly to God in my car.)
Once that was over, I decided to treat myself to a little at-home dinner and a movie of my choosing (isn’t it lovely how when you are having a date for one you can choose everything yourself?)
So last night I found myself all alone, no boys, no Sweet Man, and a stack of Pinterest type projects to complete for a friends wedding on Friday with a great movie and a yummy semi-made from scratch dinner for one.
I chose The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel for my movie. I was not disappointed. A beautiful story of love, friendship, marriage, honesty and not giving up and even starting over. The colors and scenery were amazing, and I wish that I could go stay at the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel myself.
For dinner I made an enhanced version of a frozen pasta meal. Creamy pasta is always my comfort go-to girlie food, and while I am capable of making a homemade cream sauce, last night I was tired and emotional so I chose to cheat a little (man I seem to be doing that a lot lately! I feel like I should buy stock in apologies to Julia Child.)
I started by cooking down some portobello mushrooms in a mixture of butter and olive oil.
Once they were well on their way to perfection I dump the frozen pasta & sauce on top of the mushrooms and cooked it all together ( covered) for about 5 minutes over medium heat.
Next I added a whole bunch of roasted red peppers packed in a jar. Sun dried tomatoes would have done nicely here as well. I may have in fact thought I was buying sun dried tomatoes or that roasted red peppers and sun dried tomatoes were the same thing. I may also have been bone tired an incapable of finishing a coherent sentence at the time I purchased the peppers, so please don’t hold this mistake against me.
Luckily they were a yummy addition to the pasta dish despite not being sun dried tomatoes.
I let it all cook together another 5-7 minutes, until the pasta was done and everything was good and hot. I then poured my semi-from scratch semi-from a bag dinner it all into my favorite bowl. I topped it with fresh grated Parmesan and some fresh herbs and poured myself a nice large glass of Pinot Noir and settled in to watch my movie.
Between the movie and the wine and the pasta and some snuggling with my favorite fur ball, I felt much better. I was ready to tackle the “next thing.”
Why is it that sometimes the most simple solutions are the best? A little time putting my own oxygen mask on has such huge rewards? That seeing the another bit of the world through someone elses eyes can help you see your bit of the world so much more clearly?
Whatever the reason for all these things I am grateful for my evening for one.
Afterall…
“Everything will be okay in the end
Because if it’s not okay
Then it’s not the end”
– The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
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I LOVED this movie! And I'll eat with you any time.
Good For You. Take good care of yourself. I'm going to watch rhat movie today, just for me.
I agree, it's so nice to take care of yourself you wonder why you don't do it more often. I've been looking forward to a “me time” evening to watch that movie.
MP and I saw this movie on the airplane. So fun.
I loved that quote too! So true.
And I SO love an evening all to myself. A rare treat!