Author Archives: Kat Myrman

December 30, 2016

Senectitude – Friday’s Word of the Day Haiku – 30 December 2016

Happy Friday! Today’s dictionary.com word of the day is another one that I had never heard of…Senectitude. It is decidedly old world as revealed in its etymology summary:

Senectitude comes from the Medieval Latin noun senectitūdō meaning “old age,” which in turn comes from Classical Latin senectūs, a derivative of the noun senex meaning “old man.” Senectitude entered English in the late 1700’s, more precisely, in 1796 in Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels.

A search on the internet for more information does not return much in the way of its modern use, but, here’s a fun fact…if you spend too much time in Google looking for the word “senectitude” you will begin to see an assortment of senior-focused advertisements: insurance, nursing homes, Alzheimer’s medications, erectile dysfunction and urinary incontinence remedies and “adult” vacation destinations. Who knew approaching senectitude could be so perilous and so fun!

But it is rather creepy isn’t it? The truth is that there is nothing secret or private anymore, especially if you have an online footprint. Your computer’s Network ID precedes you. If you tell your deepest secrets to Siri, Cortana, Alexa or any one of a growing number of intelligent bots, you may be lulled by their friendly, soothing voices, but do not be deceived. They will betray you in a heartbeat somewhere in the matix.

So I suppose I am branded now. Greedy businesses will begin clamoring for my attention and my dollar, with promises of an array of products offering to make me feel young again, or at least make my impending senectitude comfortable. Hopefully, this latest trend on my computer’s feed will phase out quickly and on to the next product du jour. I’m a baby-boomer. I know I’m headed toward senectitude. I just don’t need to be reminded.

Here’s a bit of haiku to lighten the mood. 😉

It’s an advantage
to bare one’s senectitude
for senior discounts!

Sixty as forty
delays one’s senectitude
and retirement.

kat ~ 30 December 2016

4 Comments | tags: Haiku, Poetry, senectitude, word of the day | posted in Essays, Haiku, Poetry, Random Thoughts and Musings, Social Issues, Word of the Day Haiku

December 29, 2016

god

By Kat Myrman

Photo by Zara Walker

For a brief moment, as she had done for thousands of years, god revealed herself to humanity, placing another star in the moonless night sky.

She is not at all what one might expect; a child bundled in an overcoat wearing golashes, but it is the expression on her face, her all-knowing eyes and her warm understanding smile that convinces some people to believe.

God knows we are a stubborn lot, as evidenced by the twinkling, diamond-bedazzled firmament, but she continues to show us how loved we are by leaving a trail of stardust to guide us home.

kat – 29 December 2016

For Sonya’s Three Line Tale Challenge, inspired by the photo above by Zara Walker.

17 Comments | tags: Challenge, Flash Fiction, God, threelinetales | posted in 3 Line Tales, Flash Fiction, Spirituality

December 28, 2016

Kat’s Portobello Reuben’s

By Kat Myrman

I love Reuben’s. It has always been my go-to blue plate lunch special order. Since I stopped eating meat, this is one of the dishes I missed…that is, until I heard about portobello reubens.

So I decided to look for a recipe online. The thing is, most of the recipes I found were lacking in my opinion, in the corned beef flavor department. So I got this crazy idea. What if I used the pickling spice that is used to make corned beef and made a marinade out of it?

I like experimenting in the kitchen. And believe me I would not be sharing this recipe with you if it was a dud. The fact is it came out fantastic!

It takes a bit of prep, but so worth the effort!

Here’s what you’ll need for part one (do this a few hours before mealtime).

Ingredients

4-5 large portobello mushrooms

1/2 cup olive oil

1 TBS minced garlic

2 TBS pickling spice (McCormick brand)

1/2 tsp pepper

1 tsp salt

Remove the stems from the mushrooms, rinse and pat dry. In a small bowl whisk the remaining ingredients together and drizzle over the mushroom caps, bottom side up, in a shallow container.

Cover with aluminum foil and refrigerate for two to three hours. (Update: Added after I cooked the leftover mushrooms a few days later…if you can marinate for at least 24 hours, you won’t regret it.)

When it’s time to put your sandwiches together assemble the following ingredients:

Thousand Island Dressing

Sauerkraut

Rye Bread (I like a rye/pumpernickel swirl)

Swiss Cheese

Butter for Grilling

Preheat the oven to 450 Degrees F. Remove the marinated mushrooms from the fridge and recycle the foil by placing it on a cookie sheet. Place mushrooms on the foil bottoms up and bake for about 20 minutes.

Move to a plate layered with paper towels and blot the mushrooms (remove the large pickling seeds as well) before transferring them to a cutting board to slice. (Part 2 leftover update: to give your slices a nicer texture, pan seer the slices before putting your sandwiches together. A little “crisping” around the edges make a big difference!)

Butter the outer side of the rye bread and place butter side down in a frying pan (think grilled cheese sandwich style). Now it’s time to assemble your Reuben. Layer two slices if Swiss cheese, portabella mushroom slices (make sure to pat dry if needed), add Sauerkraut and a layer of thousand island dressing. Top with the second slice of rye bread, butter side up.