Empty Nest

The downside of having a stuff to cook list (even when that list means a happy return to not being way too fucking busy at work) and an almost empty nest, is where do you get the eaters from? I know I've complained about this before, but I am especially feeling it these last few days - while I've been enjoying having time to cook, but wondering who'll be around to eat.

This morning I was thinking about my mom - considered calling this post "mother is always right" - I was remembering how, when she was an empty nester, she'd always lay in our favorite foods when we were coming to visit, and when my kids were little, she'd usually spend some time making something that she thought they'd like - big pot of red sauce with fun pasta shapes, for example - and she was always right.

It was an optimistic reminiscence - if you cook it, they will come - my kids are only going to be 77 miles away, and could easily appear to eat at anytime. And, I think the other thing that made me optimistic was the approach to leftovers I took this morning with the spicey tofu & coconut rice: there was too much for me to eat for my lunch, but once I took enough for lunch, there was little enough to throw away.