"Saline" Inquiry

Describe the taste of salt. Use as many words as you like to describe what it does to your taste buds without repeating the word or variations of it. Just try.

I was thinking about this the other day at the dinner table. (Obviously the salt shaker was the spark of my curiosity on the subject). What does salt taste like? This question deeply perplexed me and stole my thoughts from reality for a few brief seconds. Eventually the scent of my meal tugged me back, but I pondered salt later that night, as I laid in bed.

To my disappointment, that night brought me no epiphanies or brilliant revelations in regard to the crystal-like seasoning. I thus stored this query in the back of my cerebral's filing cabinet for later thought.

The following afternoon, however, I asked my father life's new most profound question: How would you describe the taste of salt? He looked to the ceiling for an answer, and finding none, replied to me that he didn't know.

Frustrated, I decided now was the time to consult the internet. This I hesitated to do. I had hoped to find the answer myself, but alas, my brilliance had limitations. It was time I faced that fact and turn to technology.

As it happens, the fantastic web supplied little on the subject. Dictionary.com and the Thesaurus had nothing better than "salty, saline, flavorful," and "bitter." Yahoo Answers had responses such as "salt is just salt" or "it's just one of the 4 basic flavors you can taste." A couple other, more technical articles, seemed to substantiate those statements.

So there it was. Salt taste like salt because it is just one of those tastes. Nothing more, nothing less. A very boring answer to what I thought would be an interesting topic. Maybe next time I'll consider something of more consequence, like world hunger or the fact that atoms are mostly empty space...

Rainy days

It's raining! Or at least it was. That's the unpredictable weather for you in Nevada. You can look out your window in the morning and hope for a sunshiny day. Mid-afternoon rolls around and suddenly the temperature has dropped 10 degrees, but it feels like more with the biting winds. You grab your jacket, scarf, and gloves, but buy the time you've prepared yourself, the clouds have cleared and all is well again.

Sometimes it gets depressing. I love a good rainstorm more than all the sunny days combined, and Nevada's bipolar weather constantly teases me. Sun, clouds, sun, clouds.......sun.

But when it does rain, time stands still. The very world becomes as clear as crystal as your nose picks up scents that city pollutants normally mask. Drop after drop lands on the asphalt. Soon the entire road is darkened by sheet after sheet of tears from the clouds.The plants and the soil inhale deeply, soaking in this rich nourishment God has given. The desert has thirsted long enough, and now it drinks in great gulps.

During a rain storm, it's impossible not to stare out the window because rain is perfect for sparking the imagination. It's the tranquility that comes from the knowledge that everything is allowed to stop for a few moments. This peace provides a moment for the mind to wander those thoughts of suppressed creativity as rain spatters the window. Everything that has been tucked away for a less busy time can make its reappearance, whether they are truly important, or simply daydreams.

Rain storms can be beautiful anywhere, I'm sure. But Nevada has a certain charm unlike anywhere else. The musical drops, the peaceful ambiance, the crispness of the air, and the smell of wet soil all contribute to this charm. Yet there is more to these storms: something indistinguishable in their nature, something only God could precisely describe.



By the way, it's raining again.

A little, homemaker preparation

Ahh, the joy of being home schooled. On a normal day, I would have to work on English, Algebra 2, Chemistry, U.S. & World History, Spanish, and Driver's Ed; but not today. My mom bestowed enough grace on me (and in turn my brother) to let us off the hook. We did however work yesterday, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, so that sort of makes up for it.


There was a reason for this gracious exemption: cookies. Yes, today was a cookie day, both the baking and the eating of. My cousin desperately needed my help in braking in her new mixer and was an event that had been mentioned months earlier. Now there were no conflicting schedules to prevent it from happening. 


Her husband had suggested we make Monster Cookies. The recipe called for peanut butter, rolled oats, chocolate chips, and M&M's. Just the mention of such a combination set my mouth to watering. Chocolate, peanut butter, and oats in a delicious ball of chewy goodness. We would definitely consider his proposal. She also wanted to try Florentine's. 


The Monster Cookies turned out amazingly! The melted chocolate and moist texture was everything we imagined them to be. It was no wonder my cousin's husband recommended them. We moaned with contentment at our first bite, savoring each flavor together and individually. Put these in the "Just About Perfect" category of life.


If only the same were true of the Florentine's. Cookie dough isn't usually so liquidy, but to each cookie recipe his own, right? The final product proved otherwise. The pan was coated with a thin layer of what were supposed to be round delicacies. Getting them off was a pain too, because as we tried to remove it, the Florentine's wrinkled up. They weren't coming off without a fight. They ended up being flat, hard, and caramel tasting. On the bright side, the dough tasted great.


Mother was rewarded for her kindness at the end of the day with a plate of Monsters and a sampling of the Florentine mishaps. How she could accept such a meager offering, I'll never know, but handled it with the utmost civility.