I shall tip-off this column with a few tips. This is not an advice column and I am careful not to tip my hand too soon, but let me warn you not to use felt-tip pens, willy-nilly. The old-fashioned ball-point pen will do.
I have a practical kitchen tip for you. You might say, “who does she think she is to offer me a tip.” Well, I am no expert, but not only do I know how to boil water, I’ve learned after all these years how to boil an egg, too.
That might seem random to you, but if nothing else, my thoughts go all random, all the time. And I’m kind of tickled that I can now boil eggs so that my deviled eggs, or “Jesus eggs” to some of my relatives of relatives, don’t look like they’re pre-chewed or pock-marked like the aftermath of cystic acne.
Just for your information, I have tried all of the other tips offered by the experts on YouTube and the cooking websites about how to boil eggs so as to remove the shells without incident. I thought baking them would solve all of those problems, but not so much. They scorched EVERY time, even when I used silicone liners; and they still didn’t peel smoothly.
Also, the big deal about fresh eggs versus “old” eggs, is in my opinion, whoo-hoo, if that’s a sufficient word, or even a word at all. You may try my tip or ignore it; it’s offered free of charge, as I am no tipster.
The tip that I have for you about boiling eggs is, add a tablespoon or more of baking soda to the water, bring to boil, and boil for 12 minutes. Rinse with cool water and let the eggs sit in the warm water until you can handle them to peel. The peel comes off easily with smooth, shiny, boiled eggs.
And my tip for unusually good deviled eggs, is capers and sour pickles, plus all the usual stuff. Also, the baking soda helps clean the pan in which you boiled the eggs.
Okay, that’s it. No more tips of that sort.
I have no gambling tip for you, or insider trading tip. And if you believe there is anything real about cow-tipping, then let’s go snipe-hunting.
Please tip your server, every server, every time you go out to eat a meal in a restaurant. Twenty percent is standard. If you receive exceptional service, tip more. If you received excessively poor service, reduce it a bit, but remember you never know what another person is going through, and if you can afford to eat out, you can afford to tip the server.
Speaking about what we don’t know about people, I believe it’s true that what we see is just the tip of the iceberg, below. “What you see is what you get,” is a myth. Some people may be transparent, but in my experience, those folks are “far and few between.”
If you find yourself in tip-top shape, I tip my hat to you. That is if I had a hat to tip to you. Random fact, hat-tipping began as a demonstration of vulnerability and trust, as in removing one’s helmet when no danger was present; and only later as a gesture of respect and politeness.
Shorter people get the concept of tippy-toes. We have to utilize this ballet-skill frequently. My pantry and kitchen cabinets all require this particular dance of me, on a daily basis. I guess it improves the calf muscles, or contributes to leg cramps depending on which side of the glass you inhabit, the half-full one or the half-empty one.
One last tip. This one is geographical. The world-famous Leaning Tower of Pisa, is no more unsteady on its foundation, than I am tipsy, when writing these tip-words, for your entertainment. Cheers.