maybe a cocktail will cure my hypochondria

I have nothing to do right now. I'm pretty excited about that. I spent the morning cleaning, which means that I finally feel like I'm really home from our trip; then I went to Trader Joe's for book club snacks: pina coladas and fried plantains, because this month's book has a Caribbean theme.

Except TJ's didn't have pineapple juice, so they're going to be mango-passion fruit coladas. They also didn't have plantains, so I just fried up some bananas. The bananas lacked the necessary firmness, but it's still a dish made of fruit, oil and brown sugar, so it can't really taste bad, right? Right?

Yes, I'm aware that this is another Adventure In Substitutions, which have a tendency to go bad. Also, the mango-passion fruit juice is called "Heart of Darkness," which seemed appropriate for our colonial/pirate book, but perhaps it doesn't bode well for my forthcoming bar tending attempt.

I also made some bread, because what's better than a clean house that smells like bread?

But sometimes when I'm all go-go-go for a while and then things slow down for a second, I don't quite know what to do with myself. So in the midst of my morning chores, I also started to worry about maybe having a serious disease. I don't have any reason to believe I do, but I made some up. Or at least, I hope I made them up.

My sister has always been the family hypochondriac. Pretty much every time she has a lot of papers to grade, she becomes convinced she has cancer. I've always prided myself on managing stress in other ways (grouchiness, crying, obsessive-compulsive disorder), but the older we get, the more our coping mechanisms start to look alike. Thanks a lot, Cathy. At least with OCD, you get a clean house out of it.

Comments

Claire said…
A house that smells like fresh-baked cookies or cake, assuming I was in the mood for something sweet; otherwise, bread.

Also, OCD doesn't always lead to clean living spaces. Mine certainly doesn't manifest that way... which is kind of too bad really. Don't clean as a reaction to stress either. Often a little envious of those whose flaws lead to productive activities. More power to ya.
Claire- "Assuming I was in the mood for something sweet"? I'm ALWAYS in the mood for something sweet. I put syrup on pork chops.

Cheryl- Those bananas sound delicious. I'm sure the book club will love them. If they don't, just keep feeding them pina coladas and they'll forget.
Peter Varvel said…
Cheryl- don't worry needlessly about a nonexistent disease. Just order a jerk chicken pizza from California Pizza Kitchen (my friend thought CPK was Cabbage Patch Kids) to add to the faux/substitution Caribbean theme.

Michael- pour syrup on me. I'm ALWAYS in the mood, too.
Don Cummings said…
I like to say that if I did not fill my time with procrastinating, I would never get anything done! Paying bills, cleaning, getting everything IN ORDER so I can finally SIT and WRITE! Sometimes, that takes months.
Cheryl said…
C: It's true, cookies trump bread in most instances. But until they invent a cookie machine a la my bread machine, I'm sticking with bread.

MD: I would put syrup on pork chops too, except I'm a vegetarian, so I'd leave out the pork chops. Just a glass o' syrup for me, thanks.

PV: Pizza cures many ailments.

DC: Yeah, it's good to clear out the clutter, mental and physical. Sometimes tackling the latter helps me exorcise the former. Sometimes not so much.
Sizzle said…
Trader Joe's always comes SO close to having everything but then I have to stop at some mainstream store for one item. Totally annoying.

I'm completely a hypochondriac. I admit it. Actually, I feel a fever coming on as I type this.
Cheryl said…
Take two pina coladas and call me in the morning.
Jesi said…
dude just be happy you aren't me. it's been infection city in my world. first staph, then ear and then eyelid. what's going on with my body? maybe i have cancer or something and my body can't protect itself as well anymore. aaaahhhhhhhh! *i go screaming out of the room*

but cancer would be a welcome relief. then i wouldn't have to analyze why i'm so unhappy and feel like i'm not really living. but i would be pissed also cuz that means i won't be able to do all the reading i need/want to.
Cheryl said…
I've actually had the thought, I don't want to get cancer because then I couldn't devote so much time to caring about stupid bullshit. Caring about stupid bullshit is one of the great joys in life. That and reading.

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