I am not a patient one – no, no and no. Wish I were… but no. For that, I have Tom. I’m the one who has to cross the street when there is no traffic coming while red; why the he…ck would I wait; other than to miss the diminishing sound waves from the father standing on the corner with his young daughter, informing her that “the woman crossing the street is a law-breaker” (oops, well, something to consider in this town, perhaps).

I am the one who has her foot on the gas pedal the second the light turns green. I am the one that looks from line, to line, to line at the grocery store and quickly changes lanes if there is a person down the way that might have one item less than the person ahead of me… and I am definitely the one that wishes she could wiggle her nose to make “the problem” (insert one from long list of problems) go quickly, very quickly, away.

At home, most “problems” can be fixed by trying it for myself first (yet failing). Trying it again, with more urgency and frustration (yet again, failing), then quickly, very quickly, calling for Tom to help. Problem solved. Tom always has the magic touch and almost always makes the problem go away… find my black long sleeve cotton shirt; the one that I got at Istina’s, not Betty Blue. Put the drawer back in the track (which is now slightly broken from my effort). [Tom here – Whaaaaat is this?] Untangle the necklace that will surely never untangle again. I can’t get this d*mn drawstring back through the waist of my pajama pants (problem solved), well, you get the idea.

Lately, I have been having a battle with the computer modem wifi thingy. Oh, how it likes Tom, but so does not like me. I wake up earlier than him on a weekend morning (Ginger makes sure of that). I shuffle (err… drag myself) out to get coffee and my mobile devices, plus take care of Ginger and Buddy’s needs, I climb back into bed, ready to tuck in and get some work done. Problem. No connection. Now I have to get back out of bed, go deal with the connection and hope for the best. Well, I can hope, but hope is never a reliable solution. Unplug… 1… 2… 3… re-plug. Should be good, right? Wrong. Again. Nope. Once more (for Tom), damn, T o o m m m m m, h e l p? He has the Midas touch.

Uh, oh. I forgot to factor in the what-happens-when-Tom’s-gone, solution. He has been traveling and it didn’t cross my mind, until it did. I came home from work, ready to get back to work. Problem. No connection and Tom’s Midas touch is in Boston, not Seattle. I muster up a good deal of positive thinking and go in for the fix. Nothing. I go back, slowly, breathing calmly and trying to channel Tom. I unplug the thingy Tom said to unplug (not the yellow one, which I couldn’t figure how to make release anyway) and count to four (1-2-3). Then plug it back in. Nothing. I continue this scenario, changing the count times, the position of the device, and the time between tries. Nothing. I contemplate, again, about the yellow thingy and should I give that a try? No, it still will not budge from it’s slot. I give up several times, going back to my iPhone (which always has a cell connection at least) but quickly cave and go back in for more.

Uncountable tries later, I began wondering if unplugging it and running around the room with it in my hands a few times would in fact help. I picture this in my mind and begin feeling a bit silly. Back to giving up. Okay, seriously, what is it I have to do? If I started jumping up and down begging for cooperation, would that work? It didn’t. Tom was not responding to my emails or my texts (pesky 3-hour time difference). Not sure what it was I thought he could do from Boston (I don’t think there’s an app for that, yet).

I was in my final round of coddling the device when I realized not even a single white dot of light was shining (there are three dots). Did I break it even further? Panicking (just a little), I started pulling at all the cords and moving it around in every direction it would allow while it still hung on by the yellow cord. The furthest left connection (as opposed to the middle connection with which I had misunderstood needed the unplugging) was slightly ajar and as I flitted about, I inadvertently shoved it back into place. All three lights lit up and (sky opening up, singing hallelujah) sent me skipping back to my seat to give my devices a try.

Ironically, as I sat down and picked up my phone, I saw a text message waiting. It was from Tom and said this, “Unplug far left grey round cord of white Airport for the count of 4 (1-2-3-4) (NOT I,000) and plug back in. Give it about 3-4 min to reset after to see signal.”

So it turned out, I had been unplugging the wrong cord all along. This time though, I figured it out all by myself (sort of).

So, as for dinner, calamari (fried this time) to start… since he’s not here.

It’s blurry cuz I was inpatient and worked up (or hungry?).

And a quick finish because I used up my patience.

Ahhh… Peace at last (and buttery smooth scallops over lentils, arugula and balsamic).

So, here it is Friday again and rather than jump up and down, I decided to whack, whack a shell, put the lime in the coconut and fill it up with shrimp. Heading over to Fiesta Friday with a little Island delight.

Coconut prawns with mango mustard

I think it is essential to treat yourself to a big swig of coconut water, fresh from the shell, as you cook these. Ginger and Buddy enjoyed a bowl of it too while I sipped on my coconut infused gin + tonic.

This is a personal favorite of Tom’s (to do with his love of Hawaii and all things tropical island) so to let him know I care, this one’s for him but we hope you enjoy. Happy Friday to all. Head over to Angie’s for more good food, friends and fun.

INGREDIENTS (for prawns)

1 lb fresh prawns
1 cup white whole wheat flour (or all purpose flour)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
A few shakes of cayenne pepper
3/4 cup soda water
1 cup Shredded coconut (unsweetened)

Canola or peanut oil for frying

PREPARE (prawns)

Peel, devein and clean the prawns. Pat dry, well.

Combine the flour, baking soda and powder, salt and cayenne in a medium bowl. Add the soda water and whisk until smooth. Let sit for 10-15 minutes, or up to several hours before proceeding. The batter will be enough for at least 1 lb of prawns and possibly a little more. Discard any unused portion.

Lightly dust the shrimp with flour, then dip into the batter. Start with 1/2 cup coconut on a plate and press each prawn onto the coconut shreds, each side. Add more coconut shreds as needed.

They can be prepped to this point several hours in advance.

Fill a heavy pot with enough oil to cover the prawns. I use my deep cast iron skillet and fill it a few inches deep (you can cook in batches if you need).

When the oil Is quite hot, add the prawns and let cook until golden and cooked through (approximately 3-5 minutes), be careful not to let them burn or overcook. Remove with a slotted spoon or metal tongs. These are best served right away.

INGREDIENTS (for mustard)

1/2 cup course chopped, peeled champagne mango (sweeter than a regular mango)
1 TB Dijon mustard
1TB lemon juice

PREPARE (mustard)

Put all ingredients in a food processor and blend. If it is too thick, add a little water and continue to process.

TO SERVE

Divide the mustard into little sauce cups. Cut off the diamond tips of a Thai coconut, poke a hole in the top and drain the water into a cup (to drink later). Crack open the coconut and tear it in half. You can clean it of it’s meat now or wait until you have finished your appetizer (in which case you might want to line it with a wax paper square, folded).

Fill each coconut half with prawns, a lime and tuck in the small sauce bowl.

So, “put the lime in the Coconut” and have yourself some fun,