Like a Good Neighbor Jeff Is There

Sometime within the past few months, I lost a casserole dish. It wasn't a fancy one or anything, just one of those 9x13 Pyrex glass casserole dishes and the blue cover that accompanied it. I have absolutely no idea what happened to it. One day it was there, one day it wasn't. I used it often and I am sure that I probably left it somewhere - the question is where? Was it at church? My parents' house (I'm pretty sure no because I've looked)? Or somewhere else? It is a mystery that has baffled me since I first discovered it was missing, which was around July 4 when I went to make a tasty treat and the dish was MIA.

It is just so bizarre that I cannot find this dish because I am overly protective of all my dishes and usually hover over them like a mother hawk when I take them to the church socials or what have you; so, how this one escaped my watchful eye is something that I will probably ponder the rest of my days here on earth. I have other baking/casserole dishes mind you so the cooking hasn't stopped, but now I don't have any 9x13 dishes with a top, which I happen to like. Occasionally when I think about it, I will look at the prices of these 9x13 Pyrex dishes and think about getting one but I always decide to pass because I am not in desperate need of a baking dish and I can put it off for another time.

Fast forward to this Tuesday afternoon. I got home from the gym around 6:40 and on the porch was this past Sunday's edition of The New York Times. You see, my awesome neighbor Jeff subscribes to the Sunday edition of the New York Times and when he is finished reading, he brings it over for me to read. Monday or Tuesday or occasionally on a Wednesday, the newspaper is all wrapped up and placed on my front porch for me. It just so happened that Tuesday was the day this week. When I got up to the porch, I noticed there was a yellow post-it note stapled to the bag which holds the newspaper. I figured Jeff wanted to make sure I kept a certain section of the newspaper before depositing in the recycle bin - sometimes he likes to hold on to a certain section or send it to his mom. I picked up the paper and the note said, "Do you need a 9x12 Pyrex dish?" (He meant 9x13 - he's a man let's cut him some slack). Y'all, I'm pretty sure a tear formed in the corner of my eye I was so overcome with joy. It was all I could do to not drop everything and run right over to his house, but I was kind and let The Tide outside first.

I then walked on over to Jeff's house and sure enough, he gave me a Pyrex dish just like the one I am missing. It doesn't have a top, granted, but I found one online that can ship to be for around $10. So, when I feel like coming off $10, then I'll probably go ahead and buy it. I was so excited to get this baking dish! Jeff said he prefers to cook in a metal pan and wasn't using the glass one. Clearly he isn't making large dinners for his family like I sometimes do. He probably only needs one pan at a time. Whereas I - well, I sometimes need more than I have.

Jeff also hooked me up with about six pads of sticky notes while I was at his house. Apparently he bought a large lot of them at Staples and needed to pass some along. I heard on the radio this week that 72% of Americans don't even know their neighbors names. I am really blessed to have such a good neighbor and I certainly hope you have a good neighbor too!