I went to my part-time job this morning grateful that my friend and confidant was there to greet me with a smiling face. I have to admit that I really just needed to vent. It was as if I opened a main artery and the poison just ran out.

So really what is it with me? Fear? My friend Marnine always said to me, “Kimberly, fear is silly. It’s ‘false evidence appearing real.’”

So what is my biggest fear? Well actually I’ve spent most of my life wasting my quality time. Like for instance I’ve always worked a plethora of useless and pointless part-time jobs for money because I’m used to thinking that if it was up to my writing alone, I’d be living in a house that the first little pig built. Except that my house would have the vapors of an apple pie so strong billowing out of it, it would have summoned the wolf and his entire pack.

When I worked at the gummy bear factory, I was fired because I was working the octopus, which separates the bears into 16 bins. If a bin gets too full, it clogs the pipe that seals the worms into their pail.

When a bin got too full a siren went off, then a person down below would tell you what number to unclog. Well I started to unclog the gummy bears all right. After 11 minutes into the harassment I started to throw candy like a rotten child. I started to throw it at all the people down below who were laughing at me.

It was clearly explained to me on my first day of work that if you were caught even throwing one piece of candy you would be escorted promptly out the front door with a pink slip in hand. I believe I was fired for a few other reasons as well, such as my co-workers’ concentration was thrown off by my loud laughter.

I have recently applied for a full-time position as to leave my little jobs behind. But writing is something where I find peace and balance. Have a good week in the kitchen.

Three-Cheese Baked Ziti

2 1/2 cups uncooked ziti noodles

Cooking spray

2 (4 ounce) links sweet Italian hot sausages

4 leaves fresh basil, chopped

4 sprigs fresh parsley

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/8 teaspoon crushed black pepper

10 grape or cherry tomatoes, halved

1 clove garlic, minced

Salt

1 8-ounce can tomato sauce

3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese (I use 1/4 cup)

1/4 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook pasta, and make sure to cook the ziti noodles al dente so the pasta retains its texture after baking. Drain and keep warm.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray or add a little olive oil. Remove casings from sausage. Add sausage to pan; cook two to three minutes stirring into bite size pieces. Add in all spices including salt and saute about six minutes or so. Stir in tomato sauce. Reduce heat, and simmer five minutes.

Add pasta to pan, tossing gently to coat. Spoon pasta mixture into an 8-inch square baking dish coated with oil or cooking spray. Stir in mozzarella and goat cheese; sprinkle with Parmesan.

Bake at 350 degrees for seven to 10 minutes or until bubbly and the top is brown. I sometimes sprinkle a few Italian bread crumbs on top for a little added flavor.