12 favorite comfort foods

Comfort food is a favorite sustenance that feels soothing when we eat it. This is the food we crave when nothing else sounds good. It’s what we reach for when we have reached our own limits. And it’s whatever we can stomach, when we are too queasy, sick, or tired to tolerate any other repast.

Here are my top 12 favorite comfort foods (listed alphabetically):

1. chicken pot pie
2. chicken rice soup
3. chocolate chip cookies
4. cornbread
5. cream of tomato soup
6. English breakfast tea
7. grilled cheese sandwich
8. ice cream
9. macaroni and cheese
10. oatmeal and brown sugar
11. peanut butter and jelly sandwich
12. soft pretzel

Most of these aren’t exactly home remedies for all that ails ya (so to speak), but they generally count on those days when eating gently is appealing or prudent. And this list of favorite comfort foods doesn't exactly include a lot of low-calorie, low-carb, low-fat options. But those considerations tend to evaporate during the most queasy, overtired, stressed, or otherwise compromised moments.

Certainly, during the sickest spells, as with a bout of flu, the only possible comfort foods I may be able to handle are applesauce, plain salted crackers, or light toast. (Skip Grandma’s old-fashioned milk-toast, though. That sends me right back to the … um … drawing board, so to speak.)

Remember the BRAT diet of bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast? Well, you can keep the bananas till the queasiness wears off.

What great grub do you count as your favorite comfort food?

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Adapted from public domain artwork

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Pajamas are sexist. Aren’t they?

Pajamas are sexist. Nope, I didn’t say sexy. I said sexist. And it’s totally true.

It’s not an issue of provocative fashions, either. I’m talking about comfy jam pants – those baggy elastic- or drawstring-waist pantaloons, made of soft cotton, flannel, or fleece. These are the wonderfully cozy and uber-casual pants that most people pull on for private leisure time at home.

OK, I know plenty of sensible freelancers who wear jammy pants to the office (at home). And, don’t look now, but lots of photobombers wear them to do their grocery shopping.

Forgive me. I digress. (Sometimes those rabbit trails can be hard to resist. That’s why I like the jammies pictured here.) Let’s talk about why pajamas are sexist.

The issue is quite simple. Men’s and boys’ pajama pants have pockets. Women’s and girls’ pajama pants almost never do.

OK, maybe I misspoke. Maybe pajamas aren’t the sexist ones.

Let's not blame pajamas. Maybe it's the pajama makers that are sexist ... or the pajama designers.

What’s the story here, fashion industry?  Get with it, pajama-makers!

I like to sew, and I have whipped up more pairs of pajama pants (for myself, my family members, and even friends) than I could ever count. You don’t wanna know how many pairs of pajama pants I have – from summer cottons to warm winter flannels. Although I usually prefer to pair a favorite tee shirt with my PJ pants, I have made plenty of pajama tops and even bathrobes to match.

C’mon, now. I’ve tailored most of these myself, so please don’t get any of my family members’ undies in a bundle over my PJ collection.

Pajama pants are simple to sew. But here’s the thing: When I use a pajama sewing pattern for women, I have to design and add pockets.

This is pocket prejudice!

We gotta wonder. Did it never occur to PJ makers that women might want to carry cell phones or other stuff around, even after we put on our pajamas? Or do they think women will feel less fashionistically flattered by the added bulk a side-seam pocket or two might add around their middles?

And what would be wrong with adding a patch pocket or two to a pair of pajama pants for a woman?

Oh, and don’t get me started about the flimsy and wimpy elastic they use in women’s pajama pants or (worse) the dainty drawstrings? Men’s PJ pants have sturdy row-stitched, non-roll elastic in the waistbands, which is not only more comfortable, but actually more flattering.

Seriously sexist.

Don’t tell anyone, but this lady frequently purchases pajama pants in the boys’ or men’s department, just for the pockets. Hey, plaids are plaids. Stripes are stripes. Besides, guys PJs are almost always constructed of sturdier fabrics. What’s up with that?

Hey, ladies: Raise your hands, if you want pockets in your pajamas.

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Photos by LAN for Practically at Home

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