Julia child was 37 when she decided to go to the Le Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris, France. She had always wanted to find a career. I on the other hand never wanted one. That comes only with the thought it meant working a 9-5 job behind a desk, slaving away working for someone else for peanuts, when I really liked Almonds:)

So…I tried my hand at Mary Kay, Herbalife, Amway, Nuskin, Gift Baskets, Flower arranging, Cake Decorating, Making wreaths, dating specialist, teller & health insurance…

Then there was the time I bought a trailer so I could start my own espresso cart. Only to sell it 6 months later for $200 less than I paid for it.

I thought I’d like sales so off I went…Door to door sales, phone sales, retail sales & no sales at all!!!

I enrolled in Cosmetology school…only to drop out, because I HATED doing hair but LOVED doing makeup…so off I went again to Miami, Florida to be a Freelance Make-up artist….obviously one more thing not for me…even though I was extremely good at it. So I kept going….Real Estate Investor, Loan officer, loan assistant, appraisal assistant, photography assistant, assistant manager….anything assistant I could get my hands on actually.

My favorite job though was when I decided to be a psychic reader…yeah lol don’t ask…I was really good!!!

Hostess, busser, bartender, waitress at like 15 different restaurants, & office manager of a restaurant.

OH Yeah I can’t forget…kiosk worker extraordinaire….WOW!!! I was young, Oh and pretty Hot since I had just returned from the Army and was in phenomenal shape so, I decided to be an Exotic Dancer….When I told my mother she burst into tears while walking into the grocery store and said, “I have to go buy tomatoes“, needless to say she didn’t talk to me for like 3 months…Sorry MoM!!!

Acting, singing, dancing, theater, more sales….what a rip off that company was…yeah right…girls DON’T believe anything in life is FREE, especially a hair cut in Beverly Hills.

More sales, no sales as usual, and OH unemployed.

Wow…I know I left something out!

Who cares the point is, just like many of you I could never make a commitment. Every time I started something I would get restless, bored and leave it flying in the dust along with a room full of products, or a hefty debt.

My poor husband. If I would have only had that house with all those rooms I dreamed of. A Sewing room, A craft room, A gift basket room, A flower room, A wrapping room, my much needed stationary desk…the list goes on. Who needs it? I did. I needed more and more and I kept searching, traveling, leaving my husband behind to FIND MYSELF. Most of the time, secretly thinking, WOW now that I’m on my own I’ll really make it. It wasn’t him I wanted to run from after all It was Me.

Yes, I’ve beat the odds…we are still together. Bless his soul. Statistics say 90% of most people with bipolar disorder get divorced. That is 2-3 times higher than the national average. Having bipolar disorder is a challenge and a blessing. I am learning to love me for who I am for the first time and it’s nice.
I bring you BIPOLAR KITCHEN as my way of sharing myself with this world. So, stick around ‘cause I’m gonna teach you everything I know and learn about cooking, life, love and the pursuit of healthiness.
Not sure what’s for dinner, but….I will let you know.

Chow for now, L

Cheeseburger Soup

1/2 lb. of hamburger rolled into small meatball size
1/4 yellow onion chopped
1 large carrot grated
1 celery stock chopped
2 tsp. dried parsley
2-3 potatoes cubed
1 can 14.5 ounces of chicken broth
2 Tablespoons of flour
2 cans 10 3/4 ounces campbell’s cheddar cheese soup
1/2 cup to 1 cup of cheddar cheese grated
1/2 cup sour cream or plain greek yogurt
milk, half and half, or evaporated milk to thin to desired consistency
salt and pepper and garlic salt to taste
1/2 cup Chopped green onions

In a large pan over medium heat, cook your meatballs (salt, garlic salt and pepper them) till golden brown. Set aside.

In the same skillet cook your potatoes (salt, garlic salt and pepper them) till golden. Add onion, celery, carrots and parsley and continue to cook for an additional 5 minutes or until soft.

Add your meatballs back to the mixture along with the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Let simmer for about 5 minutes. REDUCE heat….Pour into a soup pot.

Add both cans of Cheddar cheese soup and sour cream. Bring to a simmer and let cook for 5 minutes.

In a glass or bowl make a flour water….Use the 2 Tablespoons of flour and add about 1/2 cup of COLD water to the glass and stir until completely dissolved.

Pour the flour water into your pot and stir continuously until completely mixed. Your soup will start to thicken. Let cook for about 10 minutes.

Add milk until you reach your desired consistency.

Add chopped green onions.

Add cheddar cheese. I like mine really cheesy so I add a whole cup of cheese 😉

Enjoy

Chow for now, L

7 years ago my sister and I were homeless in LA. We slept in our car, shacked up at a friends who had bed bugs and cockroaches, stayed on the street in an rv in the ghetto of EAST LA and Kessa even had to shower on skid row.

We lived in our car and out of a storage unit that was 45 minutes away from were we were. We didn’t have jobs or any schooling.

What we did have were DREAMS! We had each other! and We had HOPE and we BELIEVED in ourselves.

Today, I am a here building my dream and my sister owns a farm. We both have homes and full lives.

It is not easy, it never was and it never will be but, achieving your dreams is worth every hard time you come across.

Never give up on yourself. Your dreams are inside you for a reason.

Wake up, get up and get going….

THERE IS NO FREE LUNCH!!!!!

Chow for now, L

Hello World,

Today… April 12th, 2017 I am officially launching Bipolar Kitchen into the Internet Universe. Something about this date makes it special too, it’s my best friend Jill’s birthday. We’ve been friends since we were 5. Happy birthday Jillie 🙂

It’s been a long time coming for this website to launch. I have so much work to do to get us to where we’d like to be but, hang on tight cause I’m gonna take us for a ride.

Here at Bipolar Kitchen I want to pass on my knowledge of cooking. I also want to share what it’s like to be bipolar. Which leads us to….The highs and lows of cooking and life. Culinary Therapy. Food is more than just, “What’s for Dinner?”  It nourishes us and feeds our bodies and our spirit.

Cooking is something we all have to do at some point…might as well be good at it 🙂

Chow for now, L