My Cabinet Overfloweth

So those of you who go to Mesa...do you remember when we had the Palm Sunday pancake party, oh, about two years ago? We got the DELICIOUS pancake batter pre-made from the good folks at Kerby Lane (who also gave us a great deal--Kerby Lane ROCKS!). Because Kerby Lane pancakes are generally regarded as the most delectable breakfast treat in all of Austin, it made sense at the time to take home some of the leftover batter and freeze it.

Yeah. Except that I have an established track record of letting leftovers go to waste. And that's if they're lucky enough to make into the fridge. The freezer? Forget about it. My freezer is the place where things go to never be seen again and subsequently die from frostbite. So this weekend when I decided that it was time to get rid of a casserole that my mom made for me almost three years ago after a surgery (I ate the other three--don't tell her I let one go to waste!), it seemed reasonable that I should also face the fact that I never made pancakes and toss the TWO containers of frozen batter.

So I decide to fill one side of the sink with warm water and drop in the containers to the let them defrost so I could pour it down the disposal. This was an excellent plan. Worked like a charm. But as I as eventually washed the remnants of batter down the drain I suddenly noticed that my foot was getting wet. I looked down and there was an emerging puddle of watery batter forming at my feet. I opened the cabinet under the sink and water GUSHED out. Everything in there was soaked through. Sigh. This is just not what you want to see at 11:00 on a Saturday night (yes, I was home cleaning out my freezer on a Saturday night...that's a whole 'nother issue.)

In case you're wondering...watery pancake batter? It quickly dries to form a thick, sticky PASTE. (Think Ross and the leather pants). And I'm not going to lie...that kind of incident is exactly what drives me over the edge to have one of those, uh, frank, discussion with God about why my own pancake-loving-home-mishap-fixing prince charming has not yet arrived on his white horse with flowers and and allen wrench (or whatever tool would be helpful in a situation such as this).

So my kitchen is somewhat out of order today. Because THAT's the reason I'm not cooking a delicious gourmet dinner to enjoy with the Desperate Housewives. Tomorrow I will coerce my handyman (also known as my boss and neighbor) to come over with his eight-year old and take a look and it will, one way or another, get fixed.

I'm sure there's a lesson here--beyond the virtues of EATING the leftovers--but I'm not yet sure what it is. Life is messy. Things get sticky. And this is why it's good to have a freezer full of Lean Cuisine's that you can eat in a pinch.