Trial and Error

After Christmas, we bought a bread machine. Sometime in the fall, our KitchenAid mixer started having trouble handling dough. We took it in for service, and it needed several gears replaced. I checked forums and reviews online, and the consensus was that older KitchenAid mixers did a better job handling dough but that for the past 10 years or so they have not been so good. Apparently once they break, they just keep breaking. I decided at that point that we needed something else for making bread and pizza dough. So with the after Christmas sales combined with an unpopular color (white as opposed to the more desirable stainless steel), I was able to get a good deal on a good bread machine. However it apparently takes some learning to get a good loaf of bread.

The first loaf I made turned out solid as a brick, likely because I didn't follow the recipe (I made up my own) and didn't measure the ingredients very carefully. I followed all the instructions on the second loaf, doing everything you're supposed to do to get it to rise better. Apparently I did too much, because it rose so well it ended up baking to the top of the lid of the bread machine. When we opened it up to try to get the loaf out, the top crust came with it.

 

 I have since successfully made dough for whole-wheat rolls baked in the oven, and tonight we had a yeast-dough cornbread baked fully in the bread machine that turned out great. It just took a little trial and error.

I feel like I am constantly engaging in trial and error these days. With my physical recovery, trying out new things here in Regina, and getting back into academia, I never quite feel like I know what I'm doing. And just when I think I figure it out, the target changes.

I'm typing this blog post using Dragon, the dictation software I gave up on back in August or September. I had an appointment with an occupational therapist in December, and she pointed out to me that although I am able to type, I am very slow compared with what I used to be able to do. Right now I only type of about 10 words per minute, and now that I am back into teaching and more engaged in my job, I need to be able to type more quickly. Dragon is working much better for me this time around, partly because I have some support from my occupational therapist, and partly because my voice is more consistent. There is still a lot to learn, but I think once I get used to it it will really help me go more quickly with my work.

Today I also tried walking with forearm crutches for the first time in about a month. Last time I tried it was very difficult and effortful, but today it was actually much easier. The forearm crutches are not very functional for daily use, because I can't carry anything when I'm using them and they are hard to stand up against things so they fall to the floor a lot. However, they are much better than using the walker for approximating normal walking, so it is good to practice with them and encouraging that I'm getting better at it. Jeff took a video of today's walk:

So much trial and error can be frustrating and exhausting, but it does feel good when things start to go right!