Lydia Likes It

Zooming around the kitchen table

At the start of the pandemic, when in-person classes and meetings and work were cancelled, everything moved to something called Zoom. As I had retired a few years earlier, I didn't know what Zoom was, or how to use it, or why I should care, but it didn't take long for me to figure out that this was how we were all going to stay connected until the universe calmed down, and then everything would go back to the way it had been. Or, that's what I thought at the time. Zoom, an interactive online platform, allows for two-way participation between two people, or 50 people. You can attend a lecture, organize a neighborhood action group, meet with your entire family at the same time, or even take a class. One of my friends does Zoom art groups, where everyone is working on a fiber or art project together. My adult English students love Zoom, because they can work from home, take care of their children, and save time and money on commuting to school for classes. And I've come to love it, too. Do you Zoom?

Sticky screen cleaners

If you have a six-year-old granddaughter who thinks your phone is her personal Game Boy, you'll love these screen cleaners. One side is sticky and adheres to the back of your phone or case; the other side is a microfiber "cloth" that wipes the fingerprints right off your screen. You can buy them in many different shapes and patterns, including glitter dots and zebra prints, and in medium (tablet) and large (laptop) sizes, too. The sticky screen cleaner I keep on my phone is just over one inch square, and the first one I tried lasted almost three months. 

The volunteering life {over my head}

In the past, my volunteer activities, mostly in the area of hunger relief, centered on my professional skills as a writer and editor and, to a lesser degree, as a cooking teacher and recipe developer. I always felt on fairly firm ground, confident about what I had to offer. On the first day of drop-in computer lab at the International Institute of New England, I walked into the room and came face-to-face with six long tables of PC laptops. Good grief. As a lifelong Mac user, I felt utterly lost. Where was the power switch? Why was the trackpad in three pieces? I didn't know anything about what the students might expect in computer lab, I speak only English, and I didn't even know my way around a PC. Who could possibly have thought I'd be any good at this?

The two younger volunteers who would work at the lab with me were, thank goodness, super smart, with mad language skills (Arabic, Korean, French, a smattering of Haitian Creole), and comfortable with PCs. We met with our contact before the lab opened, and reviewed the ground rules for how students (all adult learners) could use the computers: reading and sending email, doing homework, watching and listening to videos, working on their resumes, checking job listings. We also reviewed policies relating to privacy and our own roles as lab facilitators and monitors. We shared some resources provided by the teachers, sites that students might want to visit. When the doors opened, seven students arrived. They had come to Boston from Haiti, Somalia, Ethiopia, Nepal and Morocco, and their English literacy ranged from very good to not much beyond "hello". With a deep breath, a smile, and a silent prayer that I wouldn't let everyone down, I opened Google Translate on my phone, and plunged in.

Instant Pot

I am one of the hundreds of thousands of people who, on Cyber Monday, bought an Instant Pot, a multifunction electric pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, yogurt maker, and all around miracle gizmo. I'd been using an electric pressure cooker for a couple of years, and a slow cooker for several years before that, and a rice cooker forever, and I don't even like yogurt, but I had to have this season's "it" appliance. I fell in love immediately. Made in Canada, the IP gets pressed into service at least twice a week in my kitchen. It's great for cooking dried beans, brown rice, stews and soups, even corned beef. The Instant Pot has turned risotto into a fast food in my kitchen; six minutes under high pressure, and no stirring. The pot is easy to use, not at all scary like old-fashioned pressure cookers, and there are tons of videos and recipes online (including a few on my food blog). It's perfect for cooking during a snowstorm, like the one we're having today. Don't be afraid to fall in love; if you see the IP on sale, as it often is, treat yourself.

Power

In my next kitchen, I want several of these Kitchen Power Grommets. So great if you don't have a lot of wall space.