Thanks, Buffistas! Good ideas there. Feeding me is less hard than feeding me + the two kids, between pickiness and appetite and needs of growing humans, etc., so any ideas for things that aren't take-out and aren't frozen pizza are helpful.

WTF with this explosion in Manchester at the Ariana Grande concert?

I've been into tuna melts lately, not sure where that falls on various scales.

Just saw the news about the concert bombing. I don't know if I can handle thinking too much about that right now.

So I won't, and will instead recommend my favorite easy/cheap meal, which is ramen noodles with frozen veggies (broccoli, peas, carrots, corn, whatever) and a can of chickpeas. You'll want some extra water to cover the chickpeas, which means possibly throwing in a bouillon cube too, otherwise the flavor is a little thin. Easy, tasty, inexpensive, and relatively healthy too!

Between the concert bombing and the news about Trump's budget, I want to get in bed and stay there for about a month.

WRT to meals, S. got the kids accustomed to very meat-and-potatoes meals. It's been hard to retrain them. The ramen is a great idea, though -- I bet shrimp ramen with tiny frozen cocktail shrimp and snow peas would be a hit. It would with me, anyway.

Ariana Grande concert

Awful. And a really bizarre choice for a target.

My cheap and easy go to is eggs. Often scrambled with spinach and some hot sauce.

My quick and easy is any pasta with a sauce that can be made in the time it takes for the pasta to cook. To make it a bit healthier, you can use whole wheat pasta and pesto just about any vegetable you have. I use frozen broccoli or the salad mixes with kale or spinach. If using frozen veg, defrost in microwave and puree in a blender of food processor with garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper, and any nuts you have on hand. Also having some marinara in the freezer with some spinach and other veg mixed in which can be quickly defrosted.

Cheap and easy: Chicken parts in the slow cooker with a container of salsa until the chicken is falling apart. Serve over rice or strain it a bit and serve as tacos etc. I added a squeeze of lime and some cotija.

Also this awesome cabbage salad I discovered in Oceanside: shredded green and red cabbage, diced red onion, 1 can each of black beans and corn. Add avocado and cotija. Dress with lime, olive oil, garlic dressing.

I suspect the kids will be less happy with the cabbage salad, but it's really great and has vegetables and protein.

Today I hung out with my niece, bought new hiking shoes at REI, and tried to hook my computer up for working from home but discovered that I need a card reader to do that. Ordered. Oy.

I cannot even with the news.

::googles cotija::

Oh, that sounds good! I'll look for that.

My favourite slow cooker meal: sliced onions, then chicken breast, then cream of chicken soup straight from the can. Mix up a box of stuffing according to the directions, and once it has soaked up the water, smear that on top. Yum!

For an easy meal that doesn't require cooking, I like to get some triscuits, cheese, an avocado, a tomato, olives, and either smoked salmon, sardines, or anchovy paste. It's mostly healthy, hits the 4 major food groups, and fills you up.