Whatever you choose, I hope you will find some way to break the rules and make a little trouble out there. -- Nora Ephron

The summer has gotten away from me. I've been busy writing a manuscript for a full request from an editor and I haven’t thought about my blog — shame on me. I do believe life has a way of knowing where one’s time should be devoted and we simply can’t do every little thing we desire all at once. Women are good at multi-tasking. Yet, just because we can do multiple things at the same time doesn’t mean we have the capability or the power to work non-stop.

This can mean many different things. Seems like many of my friends like to garden for relaxation, I hate it. I wonder why they are willing to spend so much time pulling weeds — makes no sense to me. I mean, why get all sweaty and dirty taking care of the yard when you could be supporting your local economy by hiring a landscaper.

Of course, they may not enjoy tinkering with a recipe as I do. Last Friday at work, we did a potluck lunch. It’s based on my friend Carolyn’s idea of doing Dip Day, i.e. chips/crackers and an assortment of dips. We’ve termed ours OMG (day of the week). Clever, don’t you think?

It’s a chance for everyone in the office to bring whatever they want, no rules and no set menu. Part of the fun is discovering the great ideas your co-workers come up with. Yeah, yeah, there’s always one or two who hit the local grocery store and the deli counter. But that’s okay . . . not everyone enjoys cooking like moi.

Usually I bring an appetizer or a side dish, but this time, I decided to make a dessert. I received a blue ribbon at the county fair when I was in sixth grade using a similar recipe — fiddled with it a bit for my OMG Friday dish:

Apple Crisp

4 medium tart cooking apples, sliced (4 cups)

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats

1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Vanilla Ice cream

1) Heat oven to 375ºF. Grease bottom and sides of 8-inch square pan with shortening.

2) Spread apples in pan, sprinkle with lemon juice. In medium bowl, stir remaining ingredients except ice cream until well mixed; sprinkle over apples.

3) Bake about 30 minutes or until topping is golden brown and apples are tender when pierced with a fork. Serve warm with ice cream.