Autumn is Almost Over – Coat Weather

 

Nice weather break today, but now the temp is dropping. Heat went off, fixed. Internet, fixed.  Laptop gone crazy, not fixed. Have a chauffeur. Christmas shopping almost complete. Cards mailed. Desk cleaned, not. Making progress. Don’t foreget Kwanzaa.  Support NPR  and PBS.   1,239  more days.   

Wild Cooking Woman  12/17/25

 

 

 

Did you know…

These countries are under a full or partial travel ban (their citizens can’t come to the USA):

  • Afghanistan
  • Burkina Faso
  • Burundi 
  • Chad
  • Equatorial Guinea
  • Eritrea
  • Haiti
  • Iran
  • Laos 
  • Libya
  • Mali
  • Myanmar
  • Niger
  • North Korea 
  • Somalia
  • South Sudan
  • Sudan
  • Syria
  • Yemen

 

The following countries face partial restrictions, 

which mainly affect visitor, student, and exchange visas:

  • Angola
  • Antigua and Barbuda
  • Benin
  • Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast)
  • Dominica
  • Gabon
  • Gambia
  • Malawi
  • Mauritania
  • Nigeria
  • Senegal
  • Tanzania
  • Tonga
  • Zambia
  • Zimbabwe

 

 

Unemployment rose to 4.6% in November, up from 4.4% in September, the highest rate since the fall of 2021.

 

 

White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles stunned Washington with a very candid interview about the president, saying he “has an alcoholic’s personality.” (My understanding is that he doesn’t drink alcohol.) She should know, as her father was Pat Summerall, who, I understand, may have had some alcohol problems.

 

 

The ideal sleep temperature is 65°F – 70°F,  with higher temperatures for the warmer months. Kate Colarulli, chief strategy officer at CleanChoice Energy says, “During winter, a cooler temperature in the home of around 60° to 67°F can help keep your energy bills down while also supporting better sleep as your body temperature lowers.” And during the day. keeping the temps at 68°—and dressing accordingly—is the best idea. (more)

 

 

 

Are you sleeping with someone who has OSA? Do you know what that is? Here’s more critical information.  (more)

 

 

The difference between cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting might surprise you. (more)

 

 

I’m diabetic. Sometimes the earliest signs of blood-sugar problems appear on your skin first. Here’s what to watch for.  (more)  

 

 

Here is the exhausting reality of being a black lawyer (even in 2025!)

 

 

Several major food recalls were issued this month, affecting a variety of dairy products, snacks, and condiments. They include:

  • fat-free milk
  • shredded cheese
  • salad dressing
  • nuts
  • coffee
  • ice cream
  • protein powder
  • (more)

 

Kwanzaa is a Pan-African and African-American holiday created in 1966 by activist and academic Maulana Karenga. Karenga designed the holiday as a way to reaffirm African Americans‘ roots in African culture, to have a regular time for Black people to bond, and to introduce the nguzo saba. Read more about this fun celebration here.

 

 

 

The Academy Awards will be available to stream for free worldwide on YouTube, starting with the 101st ceremony in 2029. Will you care?  (more)

 

 

 

Ah, but next year…

 

 

 

Tunnel of Fudge Cake (my version)

This is like a huge lava cake, sort of, but with nuts.

Cake

  • 1 3/4  cups white granulated sugar
  • 1 3/4 cups butter, softened
  • 6 large eggs
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa (natural or Dutch processed)
  • 2 cups chopped toasted pecans (or walnuts if you are from the North)

Glaze

  • 3/4 cup Confectioner’s sugar
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
  • 4 to 6 teaspoons milk

 

Instructions

Heat oven to 350°F. Spray a  12-cup fluted tube cake pan or 10-inch tube pan with baker’s cooking spray (flour and oil type). In a stand mixer or large bowl, combine sugar and butter and beat until light and fluffy. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually add 2 cups of powdered sugar and blend well. Stir in flour, cocoa, and nuts until well blended. Spoon batter into prepared pan and spread evenly.

Bake at 350°F. for 45 to 60 minutes or until top is set and edges start to pull away from sides of pan. You know your oven. Do not overbake. Cool upright in pan on wire rack 1 1/2 hours. Invert onto serving plate; cool at least 2 hours.
 
In a small bowl, combine all glaze ingredients, adding enough milk for the desired drizzling consistency. Spoon over the top of the cake, allowing some to run down sides. Store tightly covered.

NOTE: This is a 1966 recipe, revised and modernized. The original recipe used boxed frosting mix.  My first exposure to it was from The Helen Corbitt Collection cookbook by (of course) Helen Corbitt. When the recipe was first developed, the cocoa commonly found in American kitchens was natural cocoa, which is a lighter color than Dutch-processed cocoa. For more information about types of cocoa, go HERE. 

 

 

 

 

This is a stressful day. None of us are at our physical best. We are all struggling, except Maggie, who is worried about everyone else. Poetry writing is good for the soul, but not easy. I finished my grief trilogy.  I’m cleaning my desk since running around is out of the question. Maybe I’ll get to my Christmas tree. Have not done any shopping and may not this year.  Are you feeling a bit removed from your significant other? Overwhelmed by the holidays? Worried about things that are not within your control, like the health of a family member or the price of ground beef? Do some self-care. Instead of focusing on Christmas gifts for children, how about focusing on providing food, shelter and medical care for children all year long? Re-did the math out of desperation- 1,136 days until January 20, 2029.

Wild Cooking Woman  12/11/25

 

 

Self-care Ideas

  • pet an animal
  • take deep breaths
  • take a short nap
  • do yoga or meditate
  • make an online playlist of music you really enjoy
  • call a friend
  • sing a favorite song out loud, to yourself
  • get or give yourself a manicure or pedicure
  • enjoy a bubble bath
  • take a walk
  • listen to music without lyrics (jazz or classical come to mind)
  • draw, paint or collage – anything artistic and stress-free
  • watch a favorite movie (Moonstruck is my go-to)
  • make a list of things you are grateful for

 

 

 

 

The 36 Questions That Lead to Love

You can now hear the essay “To Fall in Love With Anyone, Do This” read by the actress Gillian Jacobs in Modern Love: The Podcast. Subscribe on iTunes or Google Play Music. In Mandy Len Catron’s Modern Love essay, “To Fall in Love With Anyone, Do This,” she refers to a study by the psychologist Arthur Aron (and others) that explores whether intimacy between two strangers can be accelerated by having them ask each other a specific series of personal questions. 

  1. Given a choice of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a dinner guest?
  2. Would you like to be famous? In what way?

Read all of the questions here.

 

 

 

Check out NPR’s complete list of the 125 Best Songs of 2025.  Here are my favorites.

 

 

 

 

 

 

She’s the first player, in WNBA or NBA history, to win a championship and be named Finals MVP, league MVP, and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season. She’s also one of just four players in either league to win four MVP trophies before the age of 30. A’ja Wilson is TIME’s 2025 Athlete of the Year.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do you have someone in your life who lives alone and is not near you? Are you going on vacation? Here are some free ways to help check on them while you’re away:

  • https://buddyhelp.org/     Offers free emotional support through volunteer listeners and also provides access to professional online therapy.
  • https://www.snugsafe.com/    A free app that sends daily check-in reminders. If you don’t respond, your emergency contacts are notified.
  • https://checkinbee.com/     Sends daily text messages asking for a simple reply. If no response, designated contacts are notified.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are some of the best picture books of 2025:

 

 

 100 Notable Books of 2025  Here is the standout fiction and nonfiction of the year, selected by the staff of The New York Times Book Review. Need the perfect holiday gift? Try one of these recent releases.

 

 

According to Dotsie Bausch, Olympic silver medalist in cycling and executive director at Switch4Good, there are two great reasons why chair exercises are a fan-favorite workout for many. They’re convenient to do wherever you happen to be—and they deliver real results. “When you pair these exercises with a dairy-free, anti-inflammatory diet, you create the perfect environment for belly fat loss: lower bloating, more efficient digestion, improved hormone balance, and better metabolic function,” Bausch adds. Watch the videos HERE.

 

 

 

Books make the best gifts!

Here are some of my favorites for kids of all ages:

  • Sulwe by Lupita Nyong’o
  • Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
  • But Not the Hippopotamus by Sandra Boynton
  • The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
    Last Stop on Market Street by  Matt de la Peña  
  • Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White
  • Story Boat by Kyo Maclear
  • Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst
  • The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales by Virginia Hamilton
  • Henry and Mudge: The First Book by Cynthia Rylant
  • Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J. K. Rowling
  • The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
  • Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold
  • Good Dog, Carl by Alexandra Day
  • Harlem by Walter Dean Myers
  • From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks
  • Bread and Jam for Frances by Russell Hoban
  • The House At Pooh Corner by A. A. Milne

 

 

 

 

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