Okay, fine, it’s not really a vote. But the applicant who gets the most video views will get a groovy job with Maryland Tourism.

Lacey’s video is great. I happen to know her mother, who is a great friend of my sister-in-law. But I really do think it’s great and this girl is loaded with talent.

View the video. Please?!

Andrew went to Outdoor Ed with the 6th graders, so I had the bed to myself last night. It was a nice change of pace, but I missed him.

Fortunately, he was in my dream.

And a crazy dream it was.

We had picked up and moved to a small town. I got this job at the only large company around.

So there I was in a conference room with a bunch of suits and I spoke up about something. I don’t remember what, and I don’t think it’s important. But who knows? At any rate, this one woman started screaming at me. Oddly, she looked just like a woman I saw on a video blog the other day. (It was actually a very good video and the woman in it seemed pretty normal, albeit wildly stressed out.)

So I’m in this meeting and listened to everybody kind of ramble on and that woman got so angry because I didn’t know what a certain kind of doll was (evidently, they had been made since the 1920′s and have been making them ever since, according to her, and when she showed me one, I knew what it was because I have one just like it from my mom.)

So everybody in this company was demanding and crazy. Seriously. I had to go research something as a follow up to the meeting. I walked into a huge room – it was a 3-story library. Think A Series of Unfortunate Events. The library in that old house? Anyway, I got on this huge 3-story ladder to get some papers from way up high and couldn’t reach it and ended up swinging from a rope to another tiny ledge to try to reach it. Andrew was there. That woman was there. She was laughing. He was worried. It was odd.

But oddly enough, it got weirder.

Andrew and I were so appalled by the place, we decided to go out for lunch. We drove to the harbor. There were fishing boats all around and there was a concrete area by the water where people were diving in to play with the sea lions.

You heard me. Sea lions.

I sat down on the concrete and a sea lion jumped out of the water and snuggled next to me begging to be pet. So, I pet him for a long, long time. And he purred.

And then, I woke up.

I just sent in my application to be on Bang for Your Buck…. though I just went to the site and watched the promo and now I’m nervous! I think we did a great renovation, but….

Yikes!

I ask Andrew to make sambal pretty regularly. The recipe I love the most is Sambal in the Style of Java has cabbage, carrots, peanuts, sprouts, and lots of spicy yummy dressing. It’s crunchy and satisfying. I’m including the recipe here. Seriously good stuff.

Sambal in the Style of Java

2 C shredded green cabbage
1 C peeled, shredded carrots
½ C bean sprouts
½ C peanuts

1 T minced fresh ginger
1 T minced hot pepper (jalapeno, etc.)
1 t minced garlic
1 t shrimp paste or Asian fish sauce
2 T cracked coriander seeds
¼ C lime juice (about 2 limes)
¼ C sugar
¼ C soy sauce
¼ C molasses
½ C peanut or vegetable oil
Salt and black pepper to taste

Combine cabbage, carrots, sprouts, and peanuts in a large bowl.
In a separate bowl mix all other ingredients until well blended.
Pour dressing over vegetables and mix well.
Best eaten shortly after being made, will keep up to 2 days in refrigerator.

I had never really looked at the recipe before. I never much thought about it. But today, Andrew was making it for me and we all lost track of time and he had to leave for several hours. “Honey, can you make the dressing while I’m out?” Andrew asked.

“No problem.”

But you know what? It was a problem. Not doing it, mind you. But I am no cook. I don’t dice. I don’t mince. I don’t juice.

While I’m neurotically detail-oriented in my work, I am not patient with these sorts of tasks. Maybe I was a sous chef in a previous life and just got sick and tired of it. I don’t know. But what I do know is that it took extreme effort but I minced the jalapenos into perfectly even pieces. I juiced the limes.

I did everything that was expected of me.

But all that work and you know what? It’s just the dressing on a side dish for dinner.

I mean seriously folks. Is this rewarding to you?

I’m not feeling it.

I suppose this just reinforces how lucky I am to have married a great cook.

‘Cause I wouldn’t work this hard.