It’s time to play catch-up…

You Guuuuuuuuyyyyysssss….

I can’t believe I haven’t posted since Aretha totally stole Obama’s thunder at the inauguration, although her beautiful mug (and that glorious piece of madhattery) isn’t the worst thing that has stalled at the top of this humble blog in its history. Indeed, this particular hiatus was entirely unintentional. Well… maybe it was a teensy bit intentional, but only because I’m a damn sloth. It used to be I had hours upon hours everyday to plan, meditate and write for this blog, but you see… times have changed.

My new job is fantastic. For the first time since I’ve worked for my company, I’m actually busy. Like, balls to the wall from clock in to clock out. I have even found myself, and dare I say it?, totally STRESSED OUT! I come home at night completely wiped, with just enough energy to cook dinner and check my email. After that, it’s only a matter of time before I lose consciousness, and I usually fill that little bit of time with mindless television or listening to a new playlist on my iPod. Oh, I’ve tried to write some things, but after a couple of sentences, my prose descends into madness, and if that’s the kind of stuff you like, you might as well just read something like this.

What a terrible time to be braindead! So much has happened in the culture of pop…

1. The Feasts of Fug that are the Grammies and the Golden Globes came and went…

2. Speaking of the Grammies, Jennifer Hudson totally makes me cry… like, every time I see her, I’m reduced to a quivering, slobbering mess…

3. Christian Bale went off on some poor lighting techie and got parodied more than the Single Ladies video…

4. I still haven’t seen any of the big contenders for this year’s Academy Awards (except for Dark Knight), but I still plan on watching the ceremony because of HUGH JACKMAN…

5. I did, however, see New in Town, which was kind of horrible (better luck next time, Harry Connick, Jr.) …

6. Kelly Clarkson’s new single came out and I, predictably, couldn’t love it more if it was wrapped in bacon and served on a Krispy Kreme…

7. In other music news, there is no news. We’re in the dead time between the holiday blitz and summer singles, and the only bright spot is, yep, Kelly Clarkson (album releases March 10 [write that down])…

8. We're ankle-deep into the best season of Supernatural EVER!! Are you watching? Well, why the hell not!?

9. American Idol has finally slogged through the audition rounds and the Top 36 duke it out for spots in the Top 12, starting this week. Personally, I’m on Team Anoop…

10. The new cast of Dancing with the Stars has been announced and I think I actually miss Cloris Leachman (and I can’t believe I just said that)…

11. The Amazing Race 14 and Survivor 18: Tocantins (toe-can-sheens) (alt. token-cheese) (alt. toucan-jeans) are up and running, the former looking mighty entertaining and the latter looking zzzzzzz…

12. And Chris Brown totally beat the crap out of Rihanna and the rumors are flying -- kind of like his fists! Was it a STD? A love triangle? Was Chris passing bad checks? Did Rihanna forget the safeword?

In personal news…

1. I just shelled out a nice wad of cash to join a gym, which is great news for my health and well-being, but very bad news for this blog…

2. I, along with some friends at work, have started a bookclub, which is something I’ve always wanted to do. We picked The Memory of Running as our first selection…

3. Happy Belated Birthday to Li’l Sis, who turned 22 (red velvet cupcakes, mmmm…) and Happy Belated Birthday to Niecikins, who turned 0.5. I heard she celebrated by attempting to crawl for the first time, although she only managed to scoot backwards a little bit. THEY GROW UP SO FAST!! I guess this means I should probably get cracking on that baby blanket I promised to have done by the time she turns 1.

4. The weather is turning warmer and that always brightens me up. I’m even more pleased that I managed to get through most of the winter without getting sick. Big hugs to all of you suffering out there; I’ve heard this year’s flu strains are particular menacing. Here’s a virtual bowl of chicken soup.

I’m crossing my fingers that I feel inspired to start posting again consistently, even if it’s just to comment on the reality T.V. shenanigans. But if I don’t, you can always yell at me by email… reevadubois@gmail.com

Mama's Famous Banana Cake

Ya’ll, I’m serious about this domestic stuff.

For the first time ever on this blog… a recipe…



And it’s Rachel Ray approved.

Actually, I don’t know if Rachel would approve, but I’ve had that picture forever, and I’ve been DYING to use it. She’s so crazy. I love her.

Mama’s Famous Banana Cake

First, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease up your favorite large cake pan – we used a 12x8.

Grab a bowl… any old bowl will do. Combine:
2 cups of flour
1 tsp (pronounced ‘tisp’) baking powder
1 tisp baking soda
¼ tisp of salt, which is the same thing as saying a dash of salt, but seeing words like dash and pinch in a recipe INFURIATES me so I won’t do that to you…
1 and ½ cups of sugar
½ cup of veggie shortening

Grab a measuring cup… any old measuring cup will do. Combine:
½ cup of milk and 1 tisp of white vinegar. We’re making sour milk, which is kind of gross, but it makes it taste nice, so just go with it. You’re going to let that concoction sit for about 2 minutes so it can ferment and curdle and what not… and then add 1 tisp of vanilla extract. Pour it on top of all that other junk in the bowl.

Now the fun part. Take 3 over ripe bananas. Overripe means black… like seriously almost rotten. My mom swears it doesn’t work if the bananas are the least bit fresh. She likes to use bananas that are about one day shy of going in the trash. Anyway, peel the bananas, mash them up in your fingers and add it to the junk in the bowl.

Finish it up with 2 eggs

Mix well with a mixer until it’s a nice, smooth, creamy batter. It’s OK if there are some bits of banana, but nothing too big. Pour the banana-ey goodness into the cake pan and bake for 25 minutes. At the 20 minute mark, depending on your oven, you may need to do the old broom/toothpick test. It should rise in the middle and pull away from the sides.

Let it cool, ya’ll.

YAY FROSTING! Grab a bowl, and throw in about a tbsp (pronounced ‘tablespoon’) of softened butter. Then add a nice handful of powdered sugar. Pour in a little bit of milk and start stirring. The gist here, and I have to explain it because it isn’t an exact science, apparently, is you want to slowly add milk to the powdered sugar until the frosting is the consistency you want. I like it pretty thick and gooey, but you could also go with something closer to a glaze… it’s kind of your business. Once you get the consistency you want, add a drop (I know… let’s say ¼ of a tisp again) of vanilla extract, and you’re done. After all that, if you need more frosting, just add more powdered sugar and more milk and more vanilla until you have enough.

Glop it onto your cake and ENJOY!!