Burn this mother down!

I am pretty easy going. But for some reason, the only thing that can really get me in a tizzy is when I mess up in the kitchen.

I can sit calmly through a fifteen minute subway ride that turns into an hour long trip. But if my scones don't rise properly, all hell breaks loose. Why does this happen?

My fiancee could care less if I mess it up. He always just encourages me to try again. I'm not selling these confections to anyone or giving them as gifts. So why do I care?

I wish I knew! So I told myself I was going to try a new recipe and NOT get upset if it went awry. And boy did it go awry! And I was using a bread machine! Its pretty much a no-brainer. As I sat waiting for the smell of fresh bread to waft through the house, Richard chimed in with "Do you smell smoke?"

DAMN!

I went to the kitchen and sure enough, smoke was billowing out of the back of the machine. I scrambled for the instruction manual. It was pretty close to an episode of I Love Lucy. Richard was trying to unplug the machine, I was telling him not to because we should consult the book. After I confirmed that the book said we should in fact unplug the machine, Richard pretended he hadn't already unplugged it.

Turns out I used a teaspoon too much yeast and the dough had overflowed onto the heating element. The bread looked like one of those volcanoes you make in elementary school. And I didn't freak out. I simply allowed the bread to cool, cleaned out the machine and started over.

But, crap! Had I missed my epiphany? How did I do that? What happened in my brain to keep me from freaking out?

Then I realized, I just understand that its a dumb thing to freak out about. Hmm. EPIPHANY! I am growing up! Its not some deep-seeded issue. Its just bread. And it is no big deal.