mercury is in retrograde

I’ve been saying this for years and yet, I have no idea what it means. I actually have no idea where I even ever heard this term

And yet I use it often. What does it mean you ask? This is what I refer to when everything seems to be going well (or at least ok) and the BAM! out of the blue.. everything goes wrong at once. EVERYTHING.

I know you know what I mean.

Like when a certain cutie pie pup decides to eat the butter that you are about to bake cookies with…or when you spend an insane amount on material to make Halloween costumes for your daughter and her friends then spend 4 days crying as you work with it because the material is so dang slippery?

Clearly that was a long visit of Ms. Mercury to her beloved Retrograde..

(which reminds me.. Halloween is in like less that 2 months… eeik!!!)

must. get. thinking.

Truth be told, I don’t even know where I had even heard this term… perhaps from one of those many awesome *outdated-to-everyone-but-me* 80’s or 90’s sitcom?

Perhaps. Either way. It happens.

Yesterday, it rained. Like ALOT.

I really like rain. LIke more than sun (go ahead, gasp.. everybody does)

When it rains you can do this with your favorite girl in the world.

When it rains, I can spend the day in the kitchen (or curled up with a book or my fav blankie ) yes, at my tender young age I still drag my blankie from room to room with me.

don’t judge.

So it is more than obvious to me that as I entered the kitchen to play yesterday afternoon at that EXACT moment..

Mercury went into Retrograde.

It started by hearing a peeing sound coming from the living room.

nope. she was innocent.

it was my fireplace. I did the girly thing first & called mr. barefoot.

no answer. Darn ( I said something much more colorful than this.)

I put a bucket in the fireplace listened to it drip

and drip and drip.

I went upstairs to grab old towels to wipe up what had already puddled on the floor to realize that the windows were open in one of the bedrooms and the carpets were soaked.

duh? it never did occur to me to check windows as this beautiful N’oreaster ripped through my yard. nope.

Next was the call from Scott that he would be on the later train. again. C’la vie.

I cleaned up the multiple messes, cried to my friends on Facebook, poured myself a glass of wine and planted my patootiee on the couch with trashy TV.

Today is a new day and so for breakfast this morning I am making what should have been for dessert last night. I’ve been hearing about this combination for awhile, but it took me finding avocados at a wicked cool sale (I’m from Mass, I can say wicked) At the Whole Paycheck Store for me to be brave enough to try it.

adapted from Whole Living Magazine

Chocolate-mint pudding

3 avocadoes

6 Tbsp cocoa powder

1/4 cup raw honey

3/4 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/8 tsp mint extract

fresh mint leaves

sea salt

1) place avocado, cocoa, honey, vanilla, mint and a dash of salt in a food processor and puree until smooth.

Sprinkle with sea salt and garnish with fresh mint leaves. (those aren’t sprinkles, I used a new Himalayan pink sea salt.)

seriously.. I made pudding from avocado! The only thing that I will say is that because all the ingredients are room temp, the pudding was too warm. I fear that refrigerating the avocado or the honey prior to blending would change the texture in a not so good way, so this is a definite make-ahead recipe. Mine’s chilling as I type 🙂

The pudding itself has a wonderfully smooth texture. It is very chocolatey. I think next time I will add just a bit more cocoa powder. And perhaps stir in some dark chocolate chips? Or toasted almonds? or shredded coconut?

hmmm……

happy Tuesday!