Monthly Archives: November 2025

Cancer Craziness

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My phone’s recent calls list Cancer Center, the Cancer Coordinator, the Surgeon’s Office, my primary care doc, and even the Genetics Department. It’s been quite a  roller coaster ride.

Two weeks ago, I had my annual mammogram. I get one annually rather than every two years because of my family history. This mammogram showed a new growth on the right.

One week ago, I had a biopsy of the right breast.

By the list of calls, you can infer that the biopsy showed the new growth is, indeed, cancerous. Invasive ductile carcinoma, to be specific. Go ahead and do an Internet search on it. I’m not planning on it. That’s a bit too much at this point in the game.

Timing is either great or awful – not that I had a choice in the matter. December is a big month for the barbershop chorus. They have three shows: the Barbershop Bistro dinner, the main Christmas show, and a show at a local senior living home. I have no idea how my surgeries and appointments will interfere with getting Amigo to his shows and seeing the shows myself. That’s the bad side.

On the good side, it’s not prime canning and preserving season. I have a pantry and freezer full of foodstuffs for the family. If money gets tight during treatment, grocery shopping won’t be too much worse than usual.

Also on the positive side, I’m one of Those People: I shop early for holiday gifts. With a number of birthdays in November, December, and January, I plan ahead. I could stop shopping right now and everyone would have gifts. Nothing is wrapped, but I can cope with that. I don’t buy wrapping paper; haven’t in years, but that’s another post altogether.

At this point, I’m impatient and nervous. I meet with the surgeon on Monday to make a plan for treatment. Readers, I’ll keep you up to date as to what’s happening and how I’m feeling about it. Cancer, basically, sucks.

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Eating the Opponent: Minnesota

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In the beginning, I found Minnesota difficult in Eating the Opponent. Minnesota is so much like Wisconsin, it was hard to find something that was uniquely Minnesota that wasn’t also generally Midwest or Wisconsin type, too. Eventually, we found this.

Classic Tater Tot Hotdish

Easy to cook, delicious comfort food, and very Minnesot’n.

We’ve also made elk meat chili (anything wild game is good), wild rice (often says Minnesota on the package), and good old SPAM. In fact, today we’re planning brunch of pancakes with leftover caramel apple chunks and SPAM on the side. Take that, Vikings!

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Crock Pots and Me

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I remember a day when I asked Chuck to bring up the two biggest crock pots from the basement so I could begin processing tomato sauce. My sister-in-law asked, “Daisy, how many crock pots do you have?”

I couldn’t answer immediately. I had to think about it. Back in the heyday of the Mom Blogs there was a blog called Crock Pot 365; her goal was to use a slow cooker of some type or size every day for a year. I loved her recipes. Me? I don’t use them every day, but I do use them often.

On the left: butternut squash, simmering until suppertime. I’ll serve it mashed with butter and brown sugar.

On the right: the Little Dipper, with a chopped apple and caramel. A side dish with lunch.

How many do I own? Let’s see: three large (6 quart), two medium (3 or 4 quart size), the Little Dipper, and a Medium Dipper (2 quart). That’s seven – and that’s not counting the old one in the garage that we don’t use for food. It’s handy for a number of tasks.

Could I use a slow cooker every day for a year? Maybe. I’m more likely to pull out the big ones for canning projects like broth or tomato sauces. The 3 and 4 quart sizes are the ones I use the most. Chili, soups, fall basics. Today, butternut squash. During apple season, the Little Dipper is handy. Today it holds one large Honey Crisp apple, chopped, and a spoonful of caramel for a topping. Not only can this apple treat be a side dish, but I’ve added caramel apples like these to oatmeal or Dutch baby pancakes. Yum!

Eating the Opponent: New York Giants still remains. Since the Giants actually play in New Jersey, we’re going to start with Jersey Bagels. New York style pizza is an option, but we’ve had a lot of pizza lately. We might want to go a different route. Stay tuned, readers. Our Packers seem to need all the help they can get.

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Oh, Those Eagles

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My Packers didn’t play well last weekend. They just weren’t quite on the ball (no pun intended). And here they go, coming up on a Monday Night Game against the defending Super Bowl champions. Oh, my.

I’m sure Coach LeFleur is preparing the team as he does best. The receiving corps will work on filling the hole left by Tucker Kraft’s injury (sob), and Jordan Love will be perfecting his pass precision.

The ordinary fans at my house ate the opponent with a classic: Philly cheese steak on a sub bun. Here’s a look at it:

Yum!

We stopped at the deli to pick up thin sliced beef and cheese. The white cheddar was out, so we chose provolone. It worked. Onions and green peppers we already had in our pantry, and the neighborhood sub shop sells their day old bread for next to nothing. Pile them all together (well, it’s not quite that simple, but almost) and Chuck presented the family with his version of a Philly cheese steak sandwich. And yes, it was delicious.

He served it with a side dish of roasted potatoes from the air fryer and my homemade applesauce with peach added. A great combination! We’re ready for Monday night. Are the Packers ready? We can only hope.

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