prep and planning

Planning has never been my forte but planning is so much a part of life that one does have to make an attempt.I have decided to take a break from house work and routine to take a drive down to a sea side place with a friend of mine.Unfortunately this means a lot of planning,first of all the food,no not for the trip but for the family left behind at home.Ever since the mothers fractured hand,i haven't been able to leave the cooking to her so there i was this morning all charged up to do some serious cooking and freezing and I discovered there were not enough vegetables.The planning went something like this,two days and four people at home so five meals with two vegetable dishes each and the maths got me,as did the empty fridge.So I made a sambar which looks in danger of finishing tomorrow,beans porial which i put in the freezer,some beef cutlets that have been frozen and then i gave up.So much for planning.Dinner is still looming large and no idea hit me as yet.For years i wanted to be a professional chef,because i love food and its preparation but with planning letting me down its seems a pipe dream at the best of times.The mother made all the right noises of helping out and probably will so I have decided not to fret and to take things one day at a time.The thought of getting away from all responsibilities if so inviting that I just hope the car holds up and we have a good time

Agression and present society

I grew up in a generation of writing letters that later went on to the odd phone call or a visit.In fact my childhood was exactly that....childhood,reading Enid blyton,camping out with friends and eating home food or reading all the books i could possibly get.Which is why I find it so difficult to understand children of this generation.For them there is no childhood.At 12 or 13 and sometimes even younger,they are exposed to the adult world.Tv being the biggest culprit,followed by the Internet and the sheer social circles that children move in nowadays.Its not surprising to find children serving at home parties,children accompanying parents to pubs(not allowed but there is nothing that some influence cant buy).The conversations at home most often than not are peppered with fs and bs and that is almost accepted so don't be surprised if a youngster thinks its hip to use such language.In my days bad language meant that the mouth was washed out with soap if at all we used such language which frankly speaking not even the so called bad children did.Then i fail to understand the sheer anger and aggression that children today exhibit.The parents are largely to blame for this which is why we have so many bad teachers,(too scared to enfore the rules thanks to being sure of inviting the parents wrath)so much lack of discipline and the scant respect for people and authority.Parents today teach their children to be aggressive,to believe that the world is against them and to always bite before they bark.I have seen too many children and parents behave in this appalling manner which is why when I see parents and kids who don't,I know that they are the exceptions and we must give them a big hand.The west suffers today due to this scant regard for basic goodness and we seem to be going that way.Do we really care,i don't think so because its all coming down to I,Me and myself....scary but true and if someone doesn't act fast this will all end in tears.Unfortunately the very parents who so protect their children by fighting their battles,are in reality crippling the kids they love so much.Perhaps its time to go back to teaching self reliance,standing up for oneself and learning to respect another opinion.Any parents listening?