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| Loaf of Mystery Bread |
I had an appointment with the ophthalmologist, today (Thursday), for my annual eye exam. Since I was going to have my eyes dilated, I had been advised to have someone drive me back from the appointment. One of my cousins had said she could drive me, but she wasn't feeling well and couldn't drive me. My other cousins weren't available to drive me, either. Finally, I called the temple and one of the monks at the temple said he could drive me, but he wasn't free on the date of the appointment. However, I was able to reschedule the appointment for today. Such a blessing to be given a ride by the monk.
When he came to pick me up, he brought me a gift of a loaf of bread (he said that sometimes, the nearby grocery store gives them free loaves of bread). I probably should have photographed it without the bag. There was no label on the bread bag and I didn't ask the monk what kind of bread it was (that would have been similar to looking a gift horse in the mouth!); but it was one loaf with a line down the middle, making it look like two thinner loaves. There was a slightly sticky, cinnamon sugar type glaze on the top, so I thought it might be a type of cinnamon bread.
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| Slices of Mystery Bread |
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| Close Up of one of the Red Flecks |
Tomato, maybe? I tried it with some butter and it tasted very good. I cut the bread in half, lengthwise and sliced it. I froze most of it in smaller packages, with a quarter of the loaf in each package. I kept one package out for me to eat during the week.
The eye appointment went well, too. Doctor said everything seemed fine, my eyes were good, no glaucoma or retinal damage due to diabetes; I do have cataracts, but they are small and haven't grown since my last visit. I was told to come back, next year, for another check up.
After I came home, I had a tuna salad sandwich for lunch and took a long nap. I think I slept for about two hours and woke up only when daughter called to say she was home from work. I had a cup of tea and responded to blog comments, etc. Then, watered the back garden.
My aunt called to check on me and my cousin spoke, too, saying she was sorry she couldn't take me to the doctor's today. I told her not to worry about it.
My sister called, too. I had called her a few days ago, on Friday, September 15, actually, to ask her if she knew what the plans were for our brother's memorial service. I left a message as she wasn't there. Apparently, the reason why she wasn't home when I called was because she was attending the memorial service! Yes, it was held on the same day I called her, Friday, September 15, in the afternoon.
She said she assumed I had been told. Nope. Nobody told me. I hadn't decided if I would attend the memorial service or not, but, daughter had offered to go with me if I was going, and it would have been nice to have had the option to do so. Oh, well. I told my sister that I was glad she was able to represent brother's side of the family at the memorial service.
We spoke for awhile as sister seemed to need to talk. She said something about how positive I am about things and I told her about my daily gratitude lists, that I count at least five things for which I am thankful, every day, and that I look for the positive in everything. Just before she rang off, she told me that she was thankful for me. LOL.
Today, I am grateful for:
- I was able to get a ride to my doctor's appointment
- My eyes are apparently in good condition
- The gift of a loaf of mystery bread
- Afternoon naps
- My sister was able to represent brother's side of the family at his memorial service
How was your day? Have you any guesses as to what my mystery bread might be?
A fruit that's red, not sweet, makes a pink colour and goes with cinammon? Sounds like dried cranberry to me. Over here it's becoming an alternative to raisins. Maybe someone was experimenting with a low sugar alternative to cinnamon-raisin bread.
ReplyDeleteJazz
Hm, that's a good possibility! But I don't know; Nathalie thinks it might be cheese & pimento and I did get a cheesy taste when I took a first bite, although I dismissed that because I didn't see any pieces of cheese. But, whatever it was, it was good bread! I liked it.
DeleteI'm so glad your eye doctor appointment went well and that you were able to obtain a ride! I would have guessed that the bread was some kind of cheese bread, based on the appearance in the bag, and maybe the red flakes were diced pimentos.
ReplyDeleteI think it's kind of rotten, however, that you weren't told about your brother's memorial! Your SIL didn't think to let you know? How did your sister hear about it? I don't mean to stir bad blood, I'm sorry but I'm upset for you. (((HUGS))
You know what? I did get a slight cheese taste when I first ate it! I wondered about that, but I didn't see any flecks of cheese and so thought it was my imagination! And pimentos! I did wonder if that was some kind of pepper! That makes a lot of sense, now! :)
DeleteAs for the other matter, I guess someone notified sister; she is, after all, the full sister, while I am only the half-sister. :) Growing up, I was always referred to as the step-sister, as we were unfamiliar with the term of "half-sister" and even now, I am reminded of it in subtle or not so subtle ways (sister will refer to her father, even though he was my father, too, and so forth). SIL's daughter had contacted me on facebook to ask about some pictures, but I didn't see her message until later (I am not much on FB). I had asked sister to let me know and she had said she would. So I didn't call SIL to ask, because I didn't want to bother her. But maybe I should have. Sister said she thought she left me a message; maybe she did. I have a weird answering machine/phone system, with messages going to a phantom answering machine, at times. Anyway, I will call SIL, tonight, and make my excuses for not being there and leave it at that.
Thank you for being upset on my behalf, though. I appreciate that. I would have liked to have known about it, but, since I didn't, I'm looking at the bright side - I didn't have the stress of traveling and I was able to save all the money I would have had to pay on plane tickets, a hotel room, and car rental, etc. :) I will donate some of it to the temple in his name, however.
What a lovely thing for your sister to say. Just out of interest who did she think would have told you about your brother's memorial service? Is there someone she considers closer to you than herself or was it just an assumption on her part (quite understandable), that your brother's family would have been in touch. I agree, even if you weren't sure about going, it would have been nice to have the option.
ReplyDeleteWhatever the bread is it looks lovely. I'd go for tomato, pepper or chili although I'm sure you'd definitely be able to tell if it was the latter :) xx
Suzanne, I honestly don't know who she thought would let me know. I had asked her to let me know and she said she left me a message. Probably she did; unfortunately, I didn't receive that message. It's not the first time I've been left out of the loop and it won't be the last. I generally don't ask questions because I don't want to pry; I just assume people will tell me if they want me to know. As a result, I am often the last to know about a lot of things and, usually, I find out after the fact! One of my nieces had called me and asked if I was going to the memorial service and I had told her I didn't know when it was and I hadn't decided. If she knew the date, then, she could have said, "Aunty, I think it is being held on such and such a date", but she didn't tell me anything. *shrug* It's OK. As I mentioned in my reply to Nathalie, I didn't have to deal with all the stress and expenses of travel.
DeleteNathalie suggested cheese and pimento bread and I think that's what it is, because I did get a cheese taste, at first. I am thinking it would be very good, toasted, with some soup, or a cream cheese spread.
How lovely to be given surprise bread! It certainly looks like tiny bits of tomato. I suppose it could be red pepper but that's usually slightly darker. I always enjoy reading your list of things to be grateful for - it is a perfect example of remembering that it's the little things that make life joyous on a daily basis. Today is my grandson's first birthday - he's not a little thing at all but I'm very grateful for him and my other grandchildren.
ReplyDeleteHappy birthday to your grandson! First birthdays are special! I hope you will be celebrating his birthday with him. We're thinking that the bread might be cheese and pimento! Whatever it is, it is quite tasty and now I have some bread in the freezer to pull out and toast, as needed. :)
DeleteIt's lovely that the monk gave you a lift to your appointment. How good it was of him. Also nice to bring you the bread - glad it was tasty. I'm glad your appointment went well. It's sad that you couldn't go to your brother's memorial but I'm happy you were able to talk to your sister. You seem like such an upbeat person - I'm sure your lists help. They certainly give me inspiration. Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteI am blessed to have the help of these monks. My mother and I have known them since they first came to this country back in the mid 1980s and my mother helped them learn English. They always refer to her as their teacher and they've always been ready to help us at any time.
DeleteThere's a lot to be glad about, when you think about it, isn't there? :) My natural tendency is to feel sad and sorry for myself when things don't go the way I'd like them to. I recognize that and make a conscious effort to not give in to that (my mother would always admonish me against self-pity). So, I count my blessings and look for the positives: in this particular instance, I was spared the stress of attending the event and the associated expenses. Yes, it would have been nice if I could have attended the memorial, but, since I didn't, I will let it go. No use crying over spilt milk, as my mother would have said. :)
Your mystery bread sounds very nice. Glad to hear the good eye report and how kind of your temple to arrange giving you a ride. This is a benefit of being a part of a religious community.
ReplyDeleteI did go grocery shopping early this morning. This time two checkers open, one on the express lane. No good being in a hurry. I have also got my flower bed ready for the pansies.
We're thinking the bread might be cheese and maybe pimento! Whatever it is, it tasted pretty good. I think it will be lovely toasted, with perhaps some kind of cream cheese spread! Or, with soup.
DeleteGlad you got your grocery shopping done before it got too hot. I finished the last of my milk, this morning, so I will have to go grocery shopping tomorrow (I had my evening cup of tea with condensed milk!)
Your bed of pansies will look so pretty! I have planned to make a trip to the garden center, one of these days; I'll have to see what they have and get a few flowering plants for the garden, as well as a potted plant or two for the house.
No guess on the bread but I love the title Mystery Bread. It sounds like an adventure waiting to happen. I am sorry you did not get notified about the memorial, but I have to believe your brother knows he was in your heart.
ReplyDeleteGrowing up, there was only one kind of bread and it was a loaf of white bread (although the whiteness varied with how processed the flour was!) that we bought from the bakery (one could order from the main bakery, in which case, it would be delivered fresh, every morning) or from the corner store. It was crusty, not too fluffy, occasionally a bit weevily (but that was just a fact of life and we just picked out the offending bits and ate our bread!), unsliced when bought and, usually, unwrapped. I first encountered my pre-sliced bread in a plastic bag when I went to Malaysia. I remember finding that bread to be sweeter tasting than the bread back home, and softer, too. When I first came to this country and saw the selection of bread available in the supermarket, I didn't know how anyone could choose which one to buy!
DeleteI am at peace with how things turned out with the memorial. I was spared the stress and expense of attending. I called my SIL today and made my apologies for not attending and explained the reason why. She was very apologetic in her turn. We had a good chat.
Bread looks good.. Nice gift for sure. I bet it would be good with soup ..
ReplyDeletePositive attitudes are so nice.. And I love your gratitude list. SO helpful and encouraging.
Judy, that's just what I was thinking - it would be good with soup! Thank you, Judy; I try to be positive. :)
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