Cookie Cannabalism

Have you ever eaten a gingerbread man (or woman) cookie? I don't know about you, but I always feel a little cannibalistic when I do. As I hold it in my hand, I look directly into Gilbert's eyes, let out a low growl to let him know the fate that's about to be his. Yes, I name my gingerbread cookies as it makes the deed of eating it even more tortuous, and as long as I'm going to commit dough murder, I might as well make it worth the trouble. I snear and grit my teeth at him and let him know that I'm in charge! Then it's time... the horrendous deed begins as I bite down, hard and direct on the gingerbread jugular vein and tear off it's little head! Next, it's arm... and because of my OCD tendencies, the other arm has to be next. The rest is easy as there's no fight left in the cookie body as it lies there doughless!
Mwahhh ha ha... goodbye little man (or woman) of ginger, molasses and flour!

According to Theresa Brunner at examiner.com, There's a definite psychology of eating a gingerbread man (or woman) cookie. Dunkin Donuts did a fun gingerbread man (or woman) personality test and hit the streets to find out what people had to say about it, and this is what they found.

"Apparently, 64% of all people tested ate the head first, while 20% went for the legs, and a mere 16% ate the arms first. So what does this all mean, you ask. Well, psychologists state that if you eat the head first then you have more of an aggressive personality. Start with a right arm and your more skeptical and pessimistic, left arm means that you are creative and an extrovert. Choose the legs first and that is indicative of a sensitive, empathetic personality.

Now of course, this isn’t an exact science, but those people on the streets busy munching on their gingerbread man cookie were mostly in agreement with the personality type given based on how they 'attacked' their cookie."

So there you have it! How do YOU eat your gingerbread man (or woman) and what does it say about you? I'm beginning to wonder if I might have a few issues that I need to work out! Gingerbread fingers anyone?
 
If you need to determine your own cookie murderous issues, here's a gingerbread cookie recipe, compliments of allrecipes.com. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 (3.5 ounce) package cook and serve butterscotch pudding mix
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions: 

1. In a medium bowl, cream together the dry butterscotch pudding mix, butter, and brown sugar until smooth. Stir in the egg. Combine the flour, baking soda, ginger, and cinnamon; stir into the pudding mixture. Cover, and chill dough until firm, about 1 hour.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease baking sheets. On a floured board, roll dough out to about 1/8 inch thickness, and cut into man shapes using a cookie cutter. Place cookies 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
3. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, until cookies are golden at the edges. Cool on wire racks.

Yields 2 1/2 dozen.

Push, Pull and Slide

My family and I spent the past weekend Christmas shopping in Bangor. It's a three hour ride from our house which in itself is nothing as we are all pretty used to being in the car eleven or twelve hours a few times a year traveling each way to and from New Jersey to visit my family. But as a driver, one encounters the same things on the highway regardless of how long the road traveled is. As I was driving this past weekend, I decided that I would splurge on my next vehicle and get three options that will certainly make any drive I make on the highway easier.

1. The first extra that I am going to order is the trillion candlepower high beam option. As I get older, I'm starting to have a harder time driving at night. With less light, the lines on the road and other hazards are harder to see. With the trillion candle power high beam option, the road will be lit up like the sun was half the distance from earth. The lever on the dashboard would carry a warning that the special glasses that came with the vehicle need to be worn and the high beams won't engage until they are. Upon flipping the lever, a loud "FWUMMMMMMP" signals the artificial daylight. I'll no longer have to worry about driving at night and hopefully the fire in the brush on the side of the road caused by my headlights will burn quickly.

2. Another option I will definitely be ordering on my next vehicle is the vaporizer. There are too many times when I'm cruising up the highway only to encounter a slow moving vehicle in the right lane. Now that in itself isn't a problem unless there happens to be another slow moving vehicle in the left lane. I am a firm believer that you keep right and pass left, but obviously, not all drivers adhere to the unwritten rule of the road... although is most states in the United States, there are written rules about driving in the right and left lanes. Anyway, as I pull up behind a vehicle moving slowly, or moving at any speed less than I am moving, I can use the vaporizer to clear the way so I can resume the speed at which I was previously going. The vaporizer is activated by turning a knob on the dashboard. Next to the knob is a label warning that the vaporized vehicle will reappear at a later time. The time in which the vaporized vehicle reappears is determined by me and would depend on how bad the other driver is... by my standards of course.

3. The last option that I will be putting on my next vehicle is a transporting device.Ever notice how the trip going is always so much easier than the trip returning? At the start of every return trip, I always wish that I could just be home. The vacation has ended... the concert is over... the family visit is done... the fun part is over and I never want to make the return trip. A button on the dashboard next to a warning label of course, will start the transport mode of the vehicle and dematerialize the vehicle and its occupants and beam us home. Of course trip length will vary... the transportation from my friend's house will take 2 seconds... the trip from Bangor 38 seconds and the trip home from my mom's in New Jersey will take 2 minutes and 46 seconds... which is a long time in transporter terms. I know this concept was well used in the Star Trek Television series and movies, but I understand that Acura has changed the matter reconverger and it works much better.

These vehicle options will cost a little extra, but I think they'll be worth the cost. I think my trips on the highway will be so much better. I can't wait to push that button on the dashboard for the first time and light up the highway... or is it pull the lever to light up the highway?. I better read those warning labels again.

What am I... chopped liver?

For the past three years, we've be going to a Christmas Tree farm here in Fredericton to buy our Christmas tree. We don't cut it ourselves, but we do walk out into the field and pick one that the owner cuts for us. The first year, we went at night but last year, we went on our lunch hours together. We decided today that we'd make it a tradition. It's a great place and we love getting our tree there.

While that was fun and we got a great tree, it's not the point of today's blog. We've had our puppy four months tomorrow and she's become such a part of our family. We all love her very much and since having her, I've really come to appreciate dogs very much. They all have such distinct personalities. They all want the same thing... to be loved, to play and to eat.

Now back to the Christmas Tree Farm... when we first got there, the owner came out the back door of his house and with him came a fairly big dog named Jade. Jade greeted us with the usual tail wagging and nuzzle up for a scratch that all friendly dogs do. She especially took to me and stayed pretty close to me. Debbie and I headed into the field to pick out a tree, found one pretty quickly and went back to the house. Jade was sitting there waiting for us and again started hanging around me. I thought that she must have really liked me or could sense my new love and appreciation for canines. We were playing and having a great time. I put my hands in my pockets and after feeling the small baggie in my left jacket pocket, I realized why Jade had taken such a strong liking to me. I've been taking ZuZu to puppy classes on Thursday nights and I take treats with me... we all do... to use as rewards when we teach our dogs. Jade had smelled them in my pocket and wanted one. I took the treats out of my pocket and gave some to her... she was happy. I on the other hand was a little crushed that it really wasn't ME she was captivated with... it was my freeze dried liver snacks.