Notes
Thoughts & Goings-Ons
Best easy onion dip that actually tastes like onions
The old classic of stirring a packet of Lipton Onion Soup mix into sour cream to make a quick dip is a standby in our house. “Dinner” is often a huge platter of chopped veggies, Kettle jalapeño chips, and onion dip.
I say dinner in quotes like I’m mocking it, but actually it’s one of my favorite “dinners.”
So, I’m feeling smug to announce that I’ve improved the original with very minimal additional effort. Spending just 2 extra minutes will give you a satisfyingly chunky dip that’s more flavorful, more balanced, and more visually pleasing than the basic version.
What You Need
sour cream, 16oz
Lipton onion soup mix, 1 packet
red onion, 1/2 (more if you’re feeling bold, less if you’re delicate)
everything bagel seasoning, I use this one, but I don’t think it really matters
a bowl of some kind, we just mix ours directly in the food-storage container we’ll put in the fridge later and save a bowl.
What You Do
Stir your Lipton soup mix into the sour cream until well mixed
Chop or dice 1/2 a red onion. Pretty small, but not minced. Don’t overthink it. Stir the diced onion into the sour cream mixture.
Add several aggressive shakes of everything bagel seasoning. I don’t measure, and you shouldn’t either. Trust your heart.
Serve with veggies, crackers, chips, or as I just did, scooped onto Triscuits with a glass of rosé while standing over the kitchen sink like a god damn lady.
Some Thoughts
You can eat it right away, but if you’re serving it to guests, give it 30 or so minutes in the fridge first. This will give the dry bits in the Lipton soup mix a chance to rehydrate so nobody gets any “gritty” bites. That said, we never wait that long when it’s just the two of us, and regret nothing.
Yes, 1/2 a red onion is going to seem like a lot, but listen, onion dip should taste like onion. Adding real onion adds flavor, texture, and the bite of raw onion helps cut the richness of the sour cream in a good way for a more balanced dip.
But you can do less onion if you want. Or more! Be crazy.
You can also soak the onion in ice water for a bit to chill it out, literally and figuratively.
Bonus: onion has nutrients and antioxidants that are good for you.
Could you do an onion varietal other than red onion? I don’t see why not.
Can you even taste the Everything Bagel Seasoning? I honesty couldn’t say, but I’m not also not willing to omit it next time either. At the very least it makes the dip look like it’s more complex than it actually is and poppy seeds add a touch of elite snobbery that is most welcome in a dip made from a powder found in the soup aisle.
gezellig
gezellig (adjective)
noun form: gezelligheid
A Dutch word without a perfect English translation. It’s more of a vibe—a sense of warm contentment.
Think: groups of of friends laughing in a bustling bar on a rainy night. Curled up the couch beside your favorite person with a good book and a flickering candle. A thick piece of toast and a cup of tea.
It’s about a place, a moment, a feeling that makes you want to linger.
Further reading: https://dutchwafflecompany.us/blogs/blog/what-does-gezellig-mean
Eat The Frog
Eat the Frog is a productivity approach created by author Brian Tracey, author of Eat That Frog.
[ Eat That Frog has always felt a strange word choice to my mind, so I always refer to it as Eat the Frog, but the concepts are identical ]
It involves choosing the most crucial, challenging item on your to do list, and doing that first.
This ensures that you don’t procrastinate by doing the easier/more fun tasks and risk “the frog” getting pushed to tomorrow. It means that your day will feel like “smooth sailing” after the frog’s out of the way, no looming sense of dread.
In practice: Simply write your to do list for the day, then circle the task that you’re dreading the most (because it feels hard or unpleasant), and do that first.
A personal note: If anyone were to ask me how I published 40+ books within a 10 year span, I’d attribute it to Eat The Frog. When I’m on deadline, my daily wordcount always comes first (well, after my dog’s needs, and if I had kids, after theirs). But I don’t check email, or social media, or the news, or even my text messages until the writing is done. I don’t do laundry, unload the dishwasher, I don’t even shower until the daily wordcount is done.
Writing is hard, or at least it is for me, therefore writing must come first.
Why years seem to pass faster as we get older
Proportionality
One year is a much larger fraction of a kid’s life than an adult’s. At age 10, a year is 10% of our entire life. At 50, a single year is only 2% of our life. The older we get, each year takes up “less space” in our overall lived experience. It feels less big, because proportionately, it is.
Memory Density
Our brains encode new and novel experiences with more richness than they do routine experiences. Childhood is filled with first-time events, while adulthood tends toward routine. Because we tend to have fewer “first experiences” as adults, our brain doesn’t have as many “memory markers” to flag.
Attention and Processing Speed
As we age, we process information more slowly and release less dopamine (a neurotransmitter tied to time perception). This means we may have less sensitivity to short intervals, making time feel as though it is passing more quickly.
Mathematical Modeling
Studies suggest our brains measure time on a sliding scale: as we get older, we become less sensitive to small chunks of time, so days and years feel shorter.
Réfléchisseur
réfléchisseur
An old/archaic French word that translates to “one who reflects/ponders.”
Some thoughts
I first came across the word while reading Montaigne, and it’s lingered ever since. I’m not sure why exactly other than I love the idea that there’s an actual term for someone who thinks instead of consumes/scrolls. Someone who will read a book and sits with it for months before writing a thoughtful discourse rather than rushing to TikTok to give a 90 second “hot take.”