It’s Friday! It’s time for 5 Random thoughts from my little corner of the world:
1. Recently I dreamed I was pregnant. I woke up in the dream-conversation with Hubbs as we talked about raising a kid into our 7os. GAH – no thanks! Thankfully I learned later that dreams about pregnancy represent a new beginning or new creation in life – it’s generally very positive and indicates growth – yay! For details on analyzing your dreams check out “The Dream Book” by Betty Bethards.
image from http://www.innerlight.org
2. Speaking of growth, I know where this is coming from: I’ve just come through several of years of learning how to say no to what’s not good for me. Saying no has made room for more yes’s – and, consequently, I’ve pushed myself to accept speaking engagements and assignments that challenge me. And it’s really getting fun. 🙂
Yes! Google.images.com
3. Talking with one of our boys the other day I offered the following advice/life lesson which was: “Learn how to manage your manager.” I.E. if your boss is unorganized it helps greatly if you are. Or if your boss has high anxiety about the progress of projects, you’re well served to proactively give updates on a regular basis. It’s not 100% perfect as some managers are unmanageable – but in just talking about it, I realized I’ve been doing this for years and with some pretty good results.
4. Another pot-luck at work this week. My colleagues are happy to eat anything – especially items that contain the 4 essential pot-luck ingredients: a) cheese, 2) chocolate, 3) BBQ sauce and 4) cool-whip. On a whim, I signed up to bring “Sloppy Joe’s.” Then I realized I didn’t have a recipe because the last time I made them was in Home Ec while sporting wedge heels and Fonzie tee-shirt. Digging through my cookbooks, I found the recipe below.
Easy Home-made Sloppy Joe’s
Ingredients
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- ¼ cup chopped onion
- ¼ cup chopped green pepper
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp yellow mustard (like French’s)
- ¾ cup Ketchup
- 3 tsp brown sugar
- salt & pepper to taste
- Note I made this recipe x 4
Directions:
- Brown the beef, onion & peppers, drain off liquids
- Stir in seasonings: garlic powder, salt & pepper (I added Mrs. Dash regular, too)
- In a separate bowl mix together ketchup, mustard & brown sugar then stir that into the meat mixture.
- Reduce heat and simmer for 30 min.
- Made the day ahead this easily warmed up in the Crock Pot on low ~ by Noon it was mostly gone.
Stock photo: There’s no evidence we ever had Sloppy Joe’s in our office!
5. Heading home from meetings, a three-hour drive turned into four because of the weather BUT one positive was the various radio stations I had to pick from as I left one market and entered another. Example – this new-to-me Bob Dylan song. “Things have changed” – and it was just the kind of acoustic-guitar groove sound I love to drive to … have a listen … I used to care .. but things have changed. 🙂
So how was your week? Had any weird dreams lately? What have you said yes to? Were “Sloppy Joe’s” something you made in the 70s, like Chef-Boyardi-Pizza? Does the phrase, “I used to care but things have changed” resonate with you?
Do tell!
“Speaking engagements”…..just the phrase sends a chill up my spine, but I’m glad you’re enjoying it!
Used to eat sloppy joes all the time, but have never made them from scratch. I’ll have to try your recipe.
I’m always scared to research what my dreams mean!
And to paraphrase the Bob Dylan song, one of my favorite expressions that I use whenever possible: “It’s not my problem”.
Have a good weekend!
🙂 If you were asked to speak about something you enjoy/love like beach-combing – you could do it. That’s the key!
Sloppy Joe’s are not something Mom made but I’ve had them over the years; I don’t like the Manwich type, too tomato-ey for my tastes. This recipe is just right.
Dreams are very telling and worth looking into, in my opinion 🙂 Love your quote “it’s not my problem” – true true! MJ
I bet you’re a fun, down to earth speaker, one people listen to because you make it real. I don’t mind speaking in front of a class because we get to be like family, but put me in front of a one “gig” group…oh my! So glad you’re enjoying it.
It sounds like you have a good handle on team development and office dynamics. It’s good to be able to step back and analyze the big picture. Is it me or them? What can I do to make this work better for me and everyone else?
Love listening to Bob Dylan…edgy wise guy and wise man.
I like to think so – I really love what I do but I have to challenge myself to slow down. Sometimes I am not nervous at all and other times my hands are shaking – but I do it anyway. I think the shaking hands = growth and it’s important to do that.
Yep – managing our managers has served me well – and I’m happy to report the boys are both listening to me when I least expect it = whoop!
Groovy song, hey? MJ
Pregnancy at our age dreams would be a nightmare for me! LOL
It would be Divine intervention at this point! 🙂 MJ
You hit the key to being successful in your career — manage your boss in a style that suits THEM. I have counseled so many people who don’t get that. They focus on their own style rather than their boss’s. I was thinking of making sloppy joe’s this week. Haven’t made them in at least 2 decades. Don’t know why. They are easy and tasty.
Yep – sometimes it can be as simple as that. The boys are listening to me, which is good, but they’re also putting our advice into play, which is better 🙂
MJ
Great post MJ. Ahhhh, Sloppy Joes. Not long ago we used to have them about once a month. Bout time for a comeback I think!
Have a good weekend.
~d.
The sun is out here 🙂 MJ
I dreamed last night that we were having a potluck at work, that I made homemade cream puffs (would never happen in reality) and a coworker stole the whole tray of cream puffs! I was SO mad! And I’m not even sure why I would dream this particular coworker did such a mean thing. He’s really a pretty nice guy!
In real life, I actually make sloppy joes quite often. A neighbor shared her delicious recipe years ago and my family requests them on a regular basis.
I think that dream means that you are more than capable of delivering something you didn’t plan to AND that you should pay attention to wolves in sheep’s clothing 🙂
Sloppy Joe’s are great for gatherings, that’s for sure 🙂 MJ
My week rocked. Home the next 2 months building harvest tables, etc. This is the second winter that I have intentionally scheduled my work load like this, and am enjoying the new groove. One weird dream..thankfully I”m not pregnant 😉 We did have sloppy joes in the 70’s…just typing those words made my mouth start to water. I have a similar mantra that I use..kind of irritates my wife when I use it, but it goes like this…”I care but I don’t” = yes, there are things I care deeply about, but because I can do nothing about them, I choose with an act of my will to let it go and not care. I’m telling you it works. You sound good, like that 2 week break gave you some fresh mojo. DM
Glad to hear you had a great week and that part of it being great was at the result of intentions=- love that!
“I care but I don’t” – I get it. It’s very freeing …
That 2 weeks definitely refilled my mojo jar 🙂 MJ
I haven’t made Sloppy Joes in a long time. We used to by something similar to Manwich, but it is no longer on the market. I tried homemade, but hubby was spoiled to the previous ones. I recently found a new one, using ground turkey. I’ll let you know how it turns out.
SJ’s are not something I’ll probably make often but this recipe is easy and tasty — enjoy!! MJ
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