📍Picks of the Week № 20

I’m just here to share some current favorites. One electric kettle, one means of tracking the Jupiter House across the Pacific, the reason why I’m buying a ton of romaine, a domestic example of “absence makes the heart grow fonder,” and my new preferred method of getting stuff out of the house.

No product links in this post because I’m just sharing; I’m not trying to sell you anything!

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Jettle

Jettle is an electric kettle. And for no apparent reason, I am really fond of electric kettles. I almost bought a collapsing kettle, but Jettle’s plain design won the spot on my online wishlist, and I received it for Mother’s Day – yay!

Heating water for coffee and tea is an obvious application, but I wanted to see what else I could make with it. After a few weeks I have two big favorites to share with you. 

Eggs. Just regular ol’ boiled eggs…I love them. I carefully place one or two cold eggs in the Jettle, cover with tap-cold water, and I apply the lid. Press the boil icon (which brings the water to 100 degrees Celcius, then beeps before automatic shut off). Leave alone for eight minutes. Pour out hot water, and carefully transfer hot eggs to an ice bath – I use a 25oz Huel mixing cup for the ice bath. Keep on ice for another eight minutes. Remove eggs, crack the shells with a spoon, and peel. The eggs should still be a little warm, and the yolks will be firm and moist. Yum.

Shrimp Soup. This creation takes a while to cook, but I love it because it’s simple, and mostly hands off. Place a teaspoon of bacon fat in the Jettle, top with one or two tablespoons of diced onions, leave uncovered, then press boil. If you use more onion or prefer softer onions, add water to Jettle to cover the onions and boil again. Place several frozen, peeled, deveined shrimp on top of the onions. Add water or broth to cover, no need to stir (I use Better Than Bullion broth paste). Add spices as you like -recommend a pinch of fermented black garlic, salt and pepper. Screw the lid on your Jettle, press boil, and fold some laundry. When you’re back in the kitchen, boil the Jettle again – keep it covered. Use that time to put away some folded things, and pour yourself a drink. When the second boil is finished, your shrimp soup is ready to pour into a bowl and enjoy. Cleanup is easy – you just need to clean one Jettle.

Instant ramen is surely an easily Jettled meal, but I’m trying to cut back. At the time of writing, we are in camping in our house, and the ramen that was in my pantry is now in a shipping container. I’ll work on instant ramen timings later; no rush.

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AirTags

People have been moving with AirTags since they’ve been available, and now we are joining their ranks.

I only bought two, but I should have bought three. I tagged one of my leather jackets (don’t worry, my two top favorites are staying with me), and we tagged the cremains of our whiskey-lovin’ wolf. I should have AirTagged our Parts Box – I’m sure it’s fine. I’ll track the Parts Box next time. 

We are OCONUS-bound for the first time, and I am casually tracking those two tags. We occupied seven crates, and the two AirTags are in different crates, so I can only assume that the remaining five crates are in the same proximity of one of the tags. If they’re not…I have no way of knowing, so that’s nice.

I am only checking on our AirTags once each morning. I know that their journey will be long, which is exactly why we chose to get packed up ASAP and give our HHGs a head start. When the location is different I take a screenshot, note the date, and close the Find My App for the day. 

☞ Related: PCSing with AirTags
☞ Related: Attempting the Perfect PCS, Take Five

I want to AirTag everything now. And maybe I will when we’re getting ready for our next PCS. Remember to buy your AirTags at your AAFES Exchange (BX, PX, NEX) to save yourself sales tax. The Apple Store does offer a military discount, but it’s not in-store…meaning that if you want to get the military discount in an Apple Store you’ll need to verify your military ID with ID.me, then buy online for in-person pickup. It’s not impossible, but it’s inconvenient if your Apple Store isn’t nearby. I miss flashing my ID to get 10% off, it was surely faster, but hey – I don’t make the rules.

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Chopped Salad

I have Salad Phases; parts of the year or my life where I cannot get enough green leaves.
One such time is right now.

I crave salads, so I make salads. This works well with my often-traveling husband who struggles to eat healthy food on the road. I get it. Luckily I can make big chopped salads for us when he’s home between trips, so I can make sure that he’s getting some leaves too. Here’s my current favorite salad.

I’ll start with a romaine heart, preferably organic, washed and chopped into 1” pieces. Place the chopped romaine into a big mixing bowl, drizzle with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and add a pinch of salt and pepper. Add the juice of one large lemon (I hand-juice into a cup, then pick out any seeds. Pour the seedless juice into the salad), one or two ounces is my goal. Then I add jarred condiments like sliced olives, riesling-marinated garlic cloves, and capers. Mix it all up. Add a chopped boiled egg or two (freshly Jettled of course), and top with Everything But the Bagel seasoning. Serve and enjoy immediately!

It’s so good!

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Consigning on Base

This is one that I wish I started doing sooner! I’ve always known what consignment was, but I just never actually did it…until a few months ago.

By the time that I finally made my initial consignment appointment, I already donated all of the things that I was okay parting with for zero dollars. But I still had stuff that I wasn’t going to use…but I just couldn’t let go of it for free. Enter consignment.

There are limits, there are rules, but they’re pretty manageable. I don’t know how standardized Air Force Base Consignments are, but I can tell you that Little Rock Air Force Base’s consignments need to be a minimum price of $3 per item, each item will be tagged by the consignor and the Thrift Shop, the consignor sets their own prices, and checks are cut at the end of each month. There’s more to it, but I’m not here to explain the operational details.

So all of the silly objects that I couldn’t part with easily are getting consigned. The things get out of the house, I don’t have to fuss around with trying to sell anything in person, and I can pick up a check each month. It’s so convenient.

I definitely stress out a little bit when I am prepping (making sure that the things are clean, unwrinkled, de-furred, tagged as required, and easy for me to move in one trip). But as soon as Kid Jupiter and I walk into the Thrift Shop’s office, I start relaxing as I grab hangars and begin sorting. 

Since we’re moving to a different country, I elected to donate any unsold items to the Thrift Shop. I know that somebody will get some good deals when my $7 shirts change ownership and get marked down to $0.50 – but that’s okay I guess. Recovering costs from clothing is just about impossible, so I am happy to just give them stuff and get one check each month until all of my items expire. 

But our next base? I will definitely get into their Thrift Shop’s consignment roster as soon as I can schedule it. No need to wait until the end of our assignment! Hell, if Kid Jupiter is in school I might even be able to volunteer some hours. Thrift shops need technical writers, right?!

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And that’s it for Picks of the Week, week number 20. Thanks for joining me!

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Want more Picks? Here ya go ☞ Picks of the Week, ALL POSTS!

   

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