6:00 a.m. is a magical time, for those who are awake. I decided to stay up all night. I have been in a poor sleeping pattern and decided to break it in an unusual way. It also helped to be caught up in a TV series on Hulu.

Now to keep myself awake I decided to do some laundry, put away some toys, and generally stay busy quietly lest I wake Lucia. The most wonderful part...no pants. I know, I know, but you should try it once. My sister Alex told me when no one was home she loved to walk around the house with no pants- she still wore a shirt and underwear, just no pants. I've done it a few times out of laziness like when the pants I want to wear are in the dryer and I don't want to put on pants only to take them off in less than twenty seconds.

Nothing amazing happened. It was simply silly, fun, and liberating. I do wear pants to breakfast though so now it's time to don those magical trousers.

I want a nap.

I was awakened at night. I was awakened by hope, hope that I could smell and taste. Yet as I rushed through the night I found I was betrayed. I returned defeated having found the hope was lying in ruins after being consumed by another. Farewell beloved corn bread pudding leftovers, until you return again, farewell.

Alton Brown's Sweet Corn Bread Pudding (of dreams)

Childhood myths are one of those things that sometimes follow you even into adulthood. Sometimes they are things you misunderstood or perhaps simple teasing that you fall for and never quite shake. The ones that stayed with me the longest are as follows.

Sizzler - I remember at least once driving past a Sizzler and asking my mom if we could go there to eat. She told me it was too expensive. So, I spent many years believing only rich people ate at Sizzler.

Oatmeal - I heard someone once say that oatmeal sticks to your ribs. I believed that when I swallowed oatmeal it lined the inside of my ribs. Obviously the mechanics of that improbability did not occur to me at the time.

I'm sure I'm creating new ones for my daughter.