filed in Foodstuff
Contest: Keep a Lid On
I’m all for being direct, but there are situations when silence is golden. Recently, after a quarrel, I wrote a heated email to a neighbor, but had the good sense not to press send. A few hours later, the situation got resolved. I was so glad to have held back. To enter today’s contest, name a time when it was wise for you to keep a lid on. The prize is my new favorite kitchen gadget,
TOP THIS from Rachael Ray. I don’t have a large kitchen, so each tool has to serve a good purpose. This set of 3 silicone lids fits a variety of containers and creates an airtight seal for storing items in the refrigerator or freezer. They’re flexible, yet sturdy, safe in the microwave and dishwasher and have minimized my use of aluminum foil and plastic wrap. Even if you don’t cook, they’re great for stowing and heating up takeout. I reach for them every day.
Submit your entry using the Comments section. Include your first name. If you win, we’ll email for your U.S. shipping address and phone number. By submitting you’ll become an FPS subscriber (if you’re not already). Please submit only one idea per entry, though feel free to enter as often as you like. Deadline is August 10, 2014.
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20 comments for “Contest: Keep a Lid On”
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well I guess that I will pop the contest cherry – the lids look awesome. The experience that came immediately to mind was a few months back where I made a custom order for someone in my etsy shop, then she never came back to buy it. I was on the verge of sending her a snarky e-mail along the lines of ‘that’s-no-way-to-treat-an-artisan’ but after some deep breaths, decided instead to send her much more conciliatory message, and then discovered that she was (sort of) comically inept at navigating her way around etsy, and simply didn’t understand how to put the item in her cart, etc. Anyway, huge sigh of relief on my part that I didn’t blow my top.
Great way to start us off. Thanks, Meghan!
Anytime I graciously smile at some well-meaning person who offers a back-handed compliment along the lines of “I can’t believe you don’t have a boyfriend/husband,” that’s a victory for keeping the lid on. It’s a frequent challenge during family get-togethers (big one coming in October) and I’m sure it has built my character more than I know.
I admire your ability to be gracious in that situation, Kate.
Definitely didn’t happen overnight but I got better at keeping a lid on it the more I practiced!
The degree to which my buttons get pushed can depend on my frame of mind, and how generous I feel the universe is treating me.
sometimes in situations like this I can’t tell whether or not to speak up or smile and be gracious. For example, about a year ago a woman who I was volunteering with at at crisis pregnancy center applauded me for volunteering after she discovered that I wasn’t married and I didn’t have any children of my own. I kind of smiled and said ‘thanks’ but looking back wish I had said something more along the lines of ‘you seriously think that only married women are invested in their communities?’
In my opinion, that woman needs some schooling.
Keeping a lid on is vital for my job, because I sometimes have to clean up some pretty awful problems that people create in their computers. There are some who simply cannot follow instructions, and continue to do things that require my intervention and time to repair.
I often use humor as a deflection in these situations. One repeat offender, who was a proud country boy, called his notebook and pen his ‘country blackberry’. But he kept breaking his computer, and I finally gave him an Etch-a-Sketch as a ‘replacement’ while I fixed his broken computer. It had a sticker on it that read ‘Country Laptop’. That cracked him up, but he stopped breaking his computer.
Very sly. I’m curious, how did country boy keep breaking his computer?
This may not qualify but here goes…
Some years ago I went to a wedding in which there were a number of former friends that I had not seen in 20 years or more!
As you can imagine, some looked the same but others looked positively much older than you might expect after 20 years. One in particular looked very old and tired, and I almost said this to a friend I was chatting with. Turns out this friend was a relative of the ‘old’ looking friend, and he told me she had been very sick and was just starting her road to recovery. Boy, was I happy I had held back from saying how bad she looked.
Excellent example and a good instinct to hold back at that moment.
The SO’s teenage daughter is real charmer, especially to her father. I keep a lid on it when she’s around instead of telling her to stuff a sock in it because I’m not her parent. Then when she goes home to her mother’s house and swimming pool, the SO vents. I like that we are on the same team and can about anything. Thankfully, she doesn’t come around that often.
That’s so wise. You need to be on the same team. I’m impressed that you can keep it together, especially with a teenager.
My 22 yo niece went to an expensive private university. Despite my best advice, pleas for thoughts of her future and not-insignificant financial support, she studied sociology, “Because I like it.”
She graduated in May and started her career, you guessed it, working part-time at TGIFs. I’ve been biting my tongue so hard blood spurts out of my mouth.
Very vivid description, Beth. I don’t think anyone could’ve talked me out of what I wanted to study in college, even though at times now, I wish they had.
A few years ago, while going through a divorce, I received an upsetting email from my soon to be ex. I sat down and wrote an angry, detailed retort to my attorney, Frank. At the last minute, I deleted the email, and just wrote “Please call my ex to discuss the issues.” Shortly after sending the email. I received a reply back – from my boss Fred, instead of my lawyer, Frank. So glad I listened to the little voice in my head, and deleted my rant before it was sent! So glad I kept a lid on it! I’d love to keep one of these lids on the food in my microwave!!
Thanks,
Beth
That’s a useful cautionary tale, Beth. Thanks.
I am a person who hates confrontations, and disagreements. I avoid it as much as I could. But as I take on more leadership roles at work, I have been actively trying to be more assertive at work and open to disagreements and discussions. I was coordinating/organising a photoshoot for my dance company and we had a foreign photographer who had stayed in Singapore for a long time to help us create this photo.
The foreign photographer however had a very different concept of a local persona that he wanted to create for the shoot. It totally didn’t fit our idea of what the persona should be wearing. During our facebook chat, I felt I should be assertive and correct his misconception. I drafted this long and assertive message and wanted to click ‘send’. But in a moment of ‘wait-don’t-send-this-when-you-are-fuming’, I saved the message and went to sleep. When i woke up and realised, in the morning light, that I was the one being narrow minded. I could have risked making some of my close friends upset or lose the photographer totally.
Well I guess, I learnt another lesson when is the right time to be assertive.
You showed a lot of wisdom. How did the photos turn out?