My Cinnamon Bun Fiasco

The day was gorgeous as I drove home. I had had an amazing time with two really amazing girl friends, the sun was shining and I was super excited for the potluck I was going to attend in the evening. Better yet I just knew I would impress everyone with the greatest cinnamon buns in the universe. My mom's recipe could not be beat; the ooey, gooey mouth-wateringly delicious delight that they are was simply a pleasure. I eagerly wanted to observe my friends enjoy that treat. Little did I know how a simple Saturday baking time could go so terribly, terribly wrong. 

You see, I had only ever made them twice myself. Both times the masters of cinnamon bun creating were within yelling distance. Generally, I pick up on baking pretty fast, but there is an art to cinnamon buns. You have to just know how much of each ingredient to use.  The first time my spiral creations were drowning (I had added too much butter) the second they were fine, a bit too dry. I was confident that this day would be better... after all, practice makes perfect, right? 

I found out that I would be alone in the endeavor of baking. No problem, I can do this... this will be epic. Then I saw we had two bread machines to make the dough. Okaayy... um... hmm... do I use this one? But I've only ever used that old one.. This one looks newer, I'll go for this one. After a bit of time bringing the machine up the stairs, trying to find the little pieces that needed to go inside, getting the ingredients inside it then realizing that it smelled like burning when plugged in, I resorted to using the other machine. Ahh, time was running out. I rushed about getting everything in the new one (which was consequently the old one), turned on the settings in a flash and heard the machine start. A feeling of triumph and satisfaction swelled within me at how well I was doing on my own, despite my few difficulties. 

I went to my room where my younger brother was watching "The Big Bang Theory" on my computer. I joined him. We laughed. 

Then the unthinkable happened. 

I hear my older brother yell, "Hey Linds, I hope you know that you're dough is baking!"


"What?!" I Jumped off my bed and ran, "That's impossible!" I said, hoping that this was some elaborate prank.

But no. There was no prank. The machine hadn't even bothered mixing. Instead of the "dough" setting, it was on "BAKE". A dark brown line of heated mush was on the machine and I could see there was no way to salvage that batch. 

What to do??

I remembered my mom saying that making them in the kitchen Aid was faster. I rushed against the clock to try and get it in. Milk, shortening, salt, flour, yeast, sugar... It was all in there. It did not take long to realize that it looked kind of funky. I took it out. It looked like dough... but it didn't feel right. 

I rolled it out, put on the butter, the brown sugar and the cinnamon. Even when cut up and put into the container to rise, they looked like weak, sad little spiral buns. Dangnabbit. I covered them and let them sit, hoping that time would let the rise to become real cinnamon buns. 

In the end, to my surprise, my friends really liked them. They weren't nearly up to the ooey-gooey yummy standard that cinnamon buns should be, but I was satisfied of the response.


Lesson learned: only feed friends who are either really polite or don't know what good cinnamon buns taste like.

Empathy: a poem by myself.

 How lovely t'would be to go where you go
to walk where you walk
to know what you know
to see the sweet sadness or joy in your soul
see all the details that make you your whole

How precious a minute to see what you see
Amidst all life's confusions
that help you to be
the complex little speck on your own in the sea
here for a minute but hope eternally

Precious little vapour, a sinner, a man
pulled from the wreckage but the wreckage still stands
I see the weight you hold in your hands
yes I understand
do I understand?

All work and no tv makes me...

Once upon a time...

there was a girl that watched a rediculous amount of TV every week. Seriously ridiculous. The amount that if any guy found out how much tv she was watching she'd be single for the rest of her life and have to settle in some sort of bachelorette pad with her stuffed animals as company the rest of her life. She might also end up weighing as much as a whale and need a fork lift to get around, but that was a different issue. It was a slow progression. At first she'd watch just a show or two over a meal, and then a couple more and the the next thing she knew the whole day would be gone and all she was left with was the strange lethargy that comes from inactivity and a head full of plot lines that would surely go this way, or perhaps that. She'd get addicted to a series and watch copious numbers of episodes because, let's face it, those screen writers know how to hook you in good.

Once upon a Time, House, Bones, Chuck, Prime Suspect, A Gifted Man, Kitchen Nightmares,The Mentalist... *big breath*... The Big Bang Theory, The Office, 16 and Pregnant, say yes to the dress and youtube videos...

These were her usual picks. If she had completely caught up in a season she would search to find a new one. "This one already has 4 seasons! I'd better get on it". Only when the important things in life started to be pushed aside did the addiction's true nature rears it's head. Perhaps watching tv is a way to get away from the monotony of school and the everyday. Perhaps it is a way to give hope that true love is really out there...

Whatever the case, tv was a huge problem and the girl decided that she needed to give it a break.

She tried a number of times to just limit the shows she watched, but to no avail. She would find herself falling into the same traps as before.

It was not until she decided to lose tv all together that any progress could be made.


She knew that she was wasting her time and that time cannot be taken back once it is lost. She didn't want to go before God and have to say, "Well, you see, I didn't do all that I could have done in the world but I did manage to watch from start to finish all the episodes of my favorite tv shows and then some... doesn't that count for something? Research?" In the big picture, watching tv, playing computer games, spending all your time shopping or what have you... what does it accomplish? Is it a waste of your time or is it going to bring about some real, authentic, good in the world?

Day 4 or 5 of no tv... tough but hopefully just the beginning.