Time for a new post, I suppose.....

Well it's been really the "same ol' same ol'" around here lately. Busy, not not really anything new going on. DD had non-stop hockey last week it seemed. Tonight she has practice at the U. at 5:30 again, but then there's no hockey again till Sunday.

Tomorrow is her appointment with her Dr. to discuss her asthma. And not a moment too soon as it seems her ear infection may be returning. She finished her antibiotics on Saturday morning, and was complaining again last night that her ear felt kinda sore. *sigh* It's not the first time it's taken multiple rounds of antibiotics to clear up an ear infection, but I was hoping that because we caught it before there was any real fluid build-up, maybe one treatment would kill off the infection. If it's infected again, we'll have to use stronger antibiotics this next round. The last time she had an ear infection that wouldn't go away, she was 5. And at that point ear-tubes were discussed as an option. Fortunately the infection finally cleared up and no ear-tubes were needed. Not sure if they'd put ear-tubes in a 10 year old. I hope it doesn't need to be discussed, though her ENT (who's also the ENT for half of her team) is fabulous. I just don't want it to be a necessity. But, tomorrow's appointment should be a very easy one. Literally the purpose is just to assess her asthma condition. She hasn't had an attack since spring, and even that wasn't a full-blown attack. None of the colds she's had in the last 9 or so months have triggered any attacks. DH and I are hoping that she may be outgrowing her asthma. At the very least we're hoping we can take her permanently off her Singulair. We've still got her Pulmocort respules if needed (to prevent, when it becomes apparent she needs the help) and her Albuterol inhalers & nebulizer to treat any attacks as they happen. But, again, she hasn't needed them in so long. Maybe, maybe she's actually outgrowing this. Oooooh, we hope so!

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This week's menu looks something like this:

Sunday: Fried Cabbage & Kielbasa (I like it, DH and DD aren't quite so fond.)
Monday: BLT's (hubby's night to cook)
Tuesday: Pork Steaks & Madam Woo's Spicy Szechuan Noodles
Wednesday: Simple Mexican Chicken (new recipe, will post further down)
Thursday: (don't have anything planned, unfortunately)
Friday: Chicken Celery stir-fry (made grilled cheese & tomato soup last friday, instead of this stir-fry because DD & DH were gone that night)
Saturday: Grandma's Chicken Noodle soup (literally, DH's grandma's recipe)

Here's are a couple of recipes I made last week that we enjoyed, and the Simple Mexican Chicken that I'll try for the first time on Wednesay.

Chicken Paprika-Dijon

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp pepper
2 Tbsp dijon mustard
4 Tbsp paprika (I didn't use nearly this much, probably 2 Tbsp at most)
2 cans cream o' celery soup (or cream of mushroom)
1-1/2 cup water
Cooked rice as side-dish

Place chicken in skillet with olive oil & sautee till turning golden on each side and cooked through. Remove to seperate plate. In same skillet combine soup, water, mustard, paprika, and pepper; heat to boiling then reduce heat to medium. Return chicken to skillet and turn to coat. Cook 5 to 10 minutes at medium heat or till warmed through & sauce thickens. Serve over rice with plenty of the sauce.

Fake Steak (Taste of Home recipe, first time we've made it, geared toward feeding a crowd, so quantities must be reduced for a single family)

2 c milk, divided
1-3/4 c dry bread crumbs
2 medium onions, finely chopped
4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp pepper
5 pounds ground beef (I used a pound & a half.)
2 cans (26 oz each) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted

In a bowl, combine 1-3/4 c milk, bread crumbs, onions, salt & pepper. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well. Shape into 24 oval patties, about 4 inches x 2-1/2 inches. Place in 2 greased 15"x10"x1" baking pans. Cover and refridgerate for 8 hours or overnight.

(I didn't read the recipe far enough ahead to know that this was supposed to be done in advance, so I simply made the patties & browned them in a skillet before putting them into a 13x9x2" pan & covering with the sauce & continuing to bake.)

Bake, uncovered, at 350 deg. F. for 15 minutes; drain grease & juices. Combine soup & remaining milk; pour over patties. Cover and bake 20 to 30 minutes longer or until a meat thermometer reads 160 deg. F (the patties will remain slightly pink inside). Yield: 24 servings.

(I served this with buttered egg noodles. We all 3 really enjoyed it.)

Simple Mexican Chicken

2 cups chicken, cooked & diced
1 can Campbell's Tomato Soup (or Cream of Chicken Soup, though I'll be using a can of Campbell's Creamy Chicken Verde soup)
1 can evaporated milk
1 (4 oz) can chopped green chilies
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp chopped onions (I'll probably increase this to half an onion.)
1 bag corn chips
2 c grated cheese

Line dish with corn chips. Pour first 5 ingredients (I'm assuming you mix them first) over the chips. Top with grated cheese & bake at 350 deg. F. for 20 minutes.

I'm not really sure what a good side for this dish would be. Maybe it doesn't need one as it's got corn-chips in there???? Anyway. We'll see how it goes. I think it'll be pretty yummy.

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On the work front, I got into work yesterday and found a note on the work-room table from my boss's boss saying that we're not doing a good enough job with our end-of-the-night pick-ups and that she's finding books still out of place on the shelves when she inspects in the morning. Can we say MICRO-MANAGMENT?!?!?! What she wrote up is that our first pick up (because, remember, we're supposed to do 3 in an hour's time) should take us only 15 minutes (never mind the 10 to 15 minutes it takes to UNLOAD our cart-full of books). Our second pick-up should take no more than a half-hour. ***WTF?*** Like hell it does. And she stressed that NOT ONLY are we supposed to be pulling out-of-place books off the shelves, we also should be straightening the shelves & "facing them out" as we go. This takes WELL OVER a half-hour! Esp. to the level of precision she wants it done. Then, AFTER that middle pick-up round, we're supposed to go back out and do a third pick up that should ALSO include going up & down each aisle to pick up any books that may have been missed in the first 2 go-rounds. *shaking head* The woman doesn't have a freaking clue, evidently!

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. I start my pick-up at 15 to 20 minutes BEFORE 8 pm. I don't even take an evening break, I only pause long enough to use the restroom & get a drink of water. I combine my first & second pick-ups because I know I don't move as fast as some & I find it reduces my time greatly to combine them. When that first pick-up rakes in anywhere from 70 to 120 books (and from 10 to 40 magazines), it takes a good long while to get the books all put on their respective shelves back in the work-room. My LAST pick-up often doesn't start until around 2 minutes before 9, and there's NO FREAKING WAY I'm going to spend another half-hour going up & down each shelf picking up any books that may have been mis-placed by patrons browsing until the last possible minute. I KNOW I'm on the clock till 9:15. I often don't get done until then. I recognise that. But I'm NOT going to stay until 9:30 just so I can make sure every freaking shelf has been checked & double checked for ANY book that may have slipped by my radar.

She also said that somebody has been shelving the books so that they're hanging over the shelf by an inch, instead of pushed in an inch. I'm going to mention to her that this seems to be happening primarily in the sections that LG is shifting. Let's see what the Big Boss Lady makes of that. LG is "practically perfect in every way" according to Boss Lady and BIG Boss Lady. Let's see what happens when I mention that this is happening in the same areas that LG is doing her shifting project in.

Anyway, I'm going to go talk to Big Boss Lady today and tell her that I too have problems doing the pick-up in the allotted time, and that I'm not the only one. One of my coworkers already talked to BBL about it. I figure that if we all go to BBL and tell her that we have a hard time with it, she's BOUND to realize it isn't just one or two of us. My coworker CM, who's one of the fastest AND most thorough has commented on how hard it is to accomplish. My former coworker ME said the same thing before she quit. My former co-page (she's now in the mailroom) PW used to comment on how it was nearly impossible to accomplish this extended pick-up in the time allotted. And PW, and CM, and ME were (are) all liked by Boss Lady and BBL. So again, it's NOT just me!

*sigh* Even knowing that this note wasn't aimed only at me yesterday, I was out in the stacks shelving, humming Johnny Paycheck's song "Take this job & SHOVE IT". Not that I'm going to. But I felt like it yesterday. It just grates how we're being pushed to accomplish more & more in a very set amount of time, and when we don't accomplish it, we get berrated.

And, I might mention that these same two bosses don't go around expressing their happiness with a job done properly OR exceedingly well. They only say when they're displeased. And I'm aware and understand that our job should be done properly without any Kudos. That's what our paychecks are, the kudos for doing our job. BUT, when a person goes out of their way???? Shouldn't we be hearing something from our bosses on that????? I know for a fact that the patrons appreciate when I'm helpful & pleasant & even when I gently handle a child who's misbehaving. I've been complimented by the patrons myself. (Which DOES help, knowing that SOMEBODY sees the effort it takes to smile, some days. Or to not yell at the kids, like some of my coworkers do. Or stopping for a moment to express an interest or concern in the patron's well-being.) But, the fact that my bosses never acknowledge the GOOD things we do, but focus solely on the poorly-done things. *sigh* It's very frustrating. As I said, I don't want to be patted & coddled for doing just my job. But even a smile & a "I liked the way you handled that" when I do well with something that ISN'T part of my job description...... It would go SOOOOO far to evening out the disgruntlement I'm feeling lately at work.

*sigh* Anyway. So I'm NOT quitting my job, but man...... I'm very glad that neither Boss Lady nor Big Boss Lady were in yesterday.

And I'm so glad I've got tomorrow off. It'll make for a nice short week.

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I think that's it for now.

Have a Blessed Day!