Ooh, I used to love occasionally making a rice pilaf dish, involved bits of bacon, bell pepper, tomato, and some bacon grease. In those days we used to cook field peas and butterbeans with a dollop of bacon grease for seasoning. Whenever I would cook bacon, I would let the grease cool and 'set up' then set out wax paper, drop tablespoonsful on it, fold it up so they would stay separate, and freeze til needed for some dish or other. It could even help out with stir-frys. I know most people avoid this sort of oil/fat like the plague, but the more we learn about the evils of modern oil production, the less harmful a spoonful of animal fat in a whole pot of food, now and then, seems.

I am focused on shaping up at present. Recuping from shingles took a while. But now, I've gone from being winded after a walk, to getting in 5 long swim workouts in a week. Today I am on my way to a full-service park in AZ, and will focus on repairing and improving the body (and otherwise 'getting my act together') for a few weeks.

Good to hear people making progress and coping with setbacks. May you all have a new year full of very good things!