I fixed it!

My glove box latch was all messed up, and it meant my glove box was permanently open.  so I went online, did some research, and got the new part/installed it all by myself, saving about $40 on the part and labor.  Here it is:

New Latch

First, removed all the screws holding the interior panel of the glove box on.  There were four of them.

This is the broken latch.  The hook part had completely busted off.

Put on the new unit and screwed everything back together.  Now all I need to do is clean my damn car!

Using toothpaste to clean headlights

My headlights were all dull and oxidized so I gave them a quick spiffing up. Tools: old washcloth, cheap toothpaste (I used Colgate cavity control, just the travel size).

I think it worked just as well as one of those kits, and it cost me $.99 for the toothpaste and about five minutes of work. Sweet.

Results:

I refuse to buy a new car.

I have a 99 Chevy Cavalier.  Her name is THUNDERCOCK.  Yes, you have to spell it with all capital letters.  She was my first car, and I bought her for cash in 2007 for $5000.  She gets 28 MPG. She is very old, with 148,000 miles (most of which comes from a yearly or twice-yearly trip to Montana, 1000 miles one way).  Now, I absolutely refuse to buy a new car right now, mostly because I don't ever want a car payment.  I am of the opinion that even a hefty bill at the repair shop for a new A/C (which I got in 2010 for $900) or a new transmission is still cheaper than even an inexpensive car payment.  If I get a used $8000 car, with 6% APR and put down $1000, my payments will be about $200 per month.  That's $2400 that I'm obliged to pay for three years or more.  However, even if I have to pay $2000 for car repairs, it still i cheaper than having a car payment.


THUNDERCOCK is pretty sick, and I figure a few simple repairs will be able to extend her life a little longer.  I am slowly bringing the old girl back to life with some fixes.  Here is my list: 

1.) Sun visor:  a new visor is close to $130 new.  I found some on eBay for about $50, but it's still pricey for me at the moment for something purely cosmetic.  In the meantime, I got a cover/CD holder for $8.  It covers the parts that are shredded, and has a place to store my CDs and even has a slot for a pen.

2.) Glove box latch:  The glove box latch was always crappy, and would sometimes pop open if I would go over a big bump.  One day it just completely crapped out and broke, leaving the glove box permanently open and flinging my stuff out into my car.  I got a replacement latch on eBay for $15, which I will be able to install pretty easily.

3.) Tune-up:  The car likes to stall out at stop lights, and chug and thunk whenever I'm idling anywhere.  I did a bunch of research trying to figure out what's wrong with it.  I'm pretty cheap so I didn't want to pay for a repair that I didn't really need.  Luckily, I found that a lot of my problems can be solved with a general tune-up, which I had an estimate at around $150 for my car.  It's expensive, but hopefully it will take care of the engine problems.

That's all there is for right now.  I'm waiting to see if the tune up works in case I need to look into a fuel system cleaning or see what else they find.  I REFUSE TO BUY A NEW CAR!

Perfected Mac & Cheese Recipe

It's been a while. I've just been lazy maybe.

I thought I'd put my signature dish on here, because I've finally perfected the recipe. Here it is:

1 package short pasta (macaroni, shells, whatever you prefer).
3c shredded cheddar, Monterey or Colby cheese + 1/2 cup for top
1tbsp cornstarch
1/2 c milk
3-4 slices Swiss or Munster cheese
1 tbsp butter
1tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp brown or yellow mustard
Pepper to taste
1/2 tube ritz crackers

1) cook pasta according to package directions, drain (don't rinse). Preheat oven to 350.

2) In a heavy saucepan, melt butter on very low heat. Add Worcestershire sauce and mustard and spices,
stir until totally mixed. Add milk.

3) Coat all but 1/2 c of the shredded cheese lightly in corn starch (it keeps the cheese from getting all gloppy).

4) add cheese 1/2 cup at a time, letting it melt completely before adding more.

5) turn off the heat and add pasta back into the pan. Add a bit at a time, so you know the pasta is evenly coated. Sometimes it will take all the pasta, sometimes not.

6) pour half the pasta into a dutch oven or casserole. Place cheese slices evenly on top, then add the remaining pasta (you don't have to do this, but I think it makes it better.).

7) fill the casserole evenly, then top with remaining cheese. Crunch up the ritz crackers roughly and sprinkle on top.

8) cover and bake 30 minutes. It is ll cooked, you just need to make sure the cheese is all melted. Take the lid off for the last five minutes to get the top nice and crunchy.

Let the whole thing rest for 10 minutes or so before serving for the best consistency.

I like to serve it with sliced ham on Sundays, or chicken strips during the week. It makes absolutely amazing leftovers too. Enjoy!

Watching the Oscars

It's boring but it gives me an excuse not to clean.

Got a New Job!!

I get to quit my crappy job at PetsMart.  That's the main point.  I hated working there for the following reasons:

1. Humiliating uniform: men's polo shirt, khaki pants that made my butt look like the size of Texas and were dirty within ten minutes of getting to work, and uncomfortable shoes 
2. Idiots: I worked in the fish department and had to explain to people why they couldn't put a fish which gets 24" into a gallon bowl, or why not feeding their hamster caused it to die.  
3. Jackass boss: I had a good relationship with my immediate supervisor, but the store manager was a jerk who liked to hover and get in my space.  I finally told him off and he cut my hours in retribution.  If I wasn't leaving I would probably sue.  
4. I CONSTANTLY smelled of fish tanks
5. My coworkers didn't do their jobs, and when you don't do certain things like clean the filters on the fish tanks it makes it a really really gross mess for the next person. 

I had applied for a desk job a few weeks ago, but I didn't get it, and I was pretty devastated.  I couldn't bear staying at PetsMart any longer.  However, I had also sent out applications for nanny jobs and one person replied almost immediately, and I got the job!  Here's why it's awesome: 

1. He is super smart, not even two and knows colors and animals and all sorts of things
2. His family is from India, which means they're Hindu, which means they're vegetarian, and he doesn't have those awful poops that kids get when they start to eat meat.  You know what I mean.  
3. He doesn't like staying indoors watching TV all day so we get to go to Explora (the kids museum) and the zoo and aquarium and whatnot all the time
4. I get to play all day and get PAID for it.  
5. Good mommy practice, plus when the time comes that we start having kids I won't need to make such a big job-or-family sacrifice, cause I'll be able to do both!

Woo! 

Pressure Cooker Beef Stew

I love this recipe, because it's insanely cheap and is even better at leftovers.  There are two ways to do this: weeknight version and weekend version.  The weeknight version is done in a pressure cooker and takes about an hour from start to finish, whereas the weekend version is cooked in a crock pot all day.  This is the weeknight version, because I'm impatient.

For the meat, you can use whatever cheap stew meat you like.  I like the pre-cut stew meat that they have ready-packaged in the store, but if you like to buy your meat in bulk you can use some long-cooking meat like brisket or ribs.  Believe me, you want a lot of collagen in there because that's what makes meat all tender and delicious when you cook it all day.

Ingredients
1 lb beef brisket, rib or plate, cut into 1" chunks
2-3 tbsp vegetable oil
12 oz beer (I like to use a wheat beer like Blue Moon.  Just don't use any lite beer!)
2 c. water or beef stock/broth
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 c. carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2" pieces
1 1/2 c. RED potatoes, cut into 1" pieces (if you use the baking potatoes, they'll fall apart.  Use waxy!)
1/4 tsp of each: thyme, sage, parsley (no rosemary, Garfunkel fans... it tastes a little woody)
salt and pepper

Directions

• Get out your pressure cooker (make sure to check the seals before you use it) and pour vegetable oil in the bottom, heating on medium until oil spits a little when you drop water on it. 
• Sprinkle some salt on the meat and add to the pan, stirring until there's a nice brown sear on all or most of the meat.  You can skip this if you're in a real hurry, but it's absolutely worth the extra flavor and deliciousness.  The meat doesn't have to be fully cooked, just a little brown. 
• Evacuate meat into a separate dish for a moment; you should have some nice crispy bits on the bottom after cooking. We'll use this, but first let's cook the onions. 
• Add a little extra oil if you need to, and throw in the onions and garlic.  You may want to turn the heat down a little; you want to caramelize the onions and garlic without having them burn.  
• When the onions are a little brown and the garlic is soft, carefully pour in the beer and stir to get all the crispy bits off the bottom.  Return beef to the pot, and add the herbs. 
• Add beef stock or water.  Pressure cookers can stew meat with only a little water, but we want to have a good amount of liquid for the other ingredients, which we'll add later.  
• We're just cooking the beef for now, otherwise the veggies would get too soggy.  
• According to your pressure cooker's instructions, close the cooker and bring up to pressure.  Mine has two settings, high and low pressure.  I like to use the low pressure setting, which will take about 45 minutes to finish cooking. You may have to just check your individual cooking times in your manual or online.  Bring up to desired pressure and turn heat down just to keep a thin whistle coming out of the pot.  
• Set a timer for 45 minutes, and check periodically to make sure that your pressure cooker is still letting a little steam out.  
• After 45 minutes, turn off the heat and let the pressure release according to your instructions.  When the pot unlocks, open and make sure the beef is super tender.  After this much time it should fall apart pretty easily and the onions should be translucent and very soft.  
• Take a taste of the broth and add salt/pepper if you like.  
• Add carrots and potatoes and return lid to pressure cooker.  Bring to low pressure and simmer for only five minutes, using the quick-release method to release the pressure.  You really don't want these to overcook, I'm telling you.  
• Check potatoes and carrots to make sure they're soft to your liking.  If they're still a little crunchy, just cook the pot uncovered for another few minutes to soften them up.  It's much better to undercook than overcook.  
• Add a little fresh parsley just before serving to add some freshness to the dish, and serve with biscuits, cornbread, or over rice.  

For the crockpot version, brown the meat and onions/garlic in a skillet until brown, add beer to deglaze and move the entire thing to your crock pot.  Add liquid and cook on low for about six hours (or until the meat is nice and soft.)  Add potatoes and carrots and cook for another two hours until those are soft, and enjoy! 

OMNOMNOMNOM!!