My Super Power! Not! And Paella!

I am disorganised, no really*, it's the opposite of having a Super Power. I see and buy lovely cards thinking that next time I need a b'day card, I will have one handy! Except for some reason when b'days come round, the only cards I have handy are all Get Well or New Home cards*. So, today, in further proof (if I needed it) of my dreadful disorganisation, I got an email from a dear friend to whom I had sent some books (via Book Depository) as a thank you . . . asking why she'd received the books! Because, of course, I hadn't told her they were on their way. *facepalm*

And on the same subject, Mr Mc and I love paella. (How is that relevant, I hear you cry! But hey, bear with me, I'll get there!) So some years ago (let's say between 12 and 15 as I'm really not sure) after a lovely holiday during which we ate a lot of paella, and drunk a lot of sangria, I bought one of these . . .

Now this pan was an 18 inch diameter beauty of polished steel (hey, I buy big! That's what a freezer is for!) and came wrapped in special paper to protect it from damp and stop it rusting. This pan also spent a lot of time* wrapped in its special paper in cupboards and on top of cupboards and on top of fridges and freezers. It moved house three times. It was carefully looked after during two major renovations*. And yep, I never used it!

Then a couple of weeks ago-- I finished writing my book!! Yay!

Things other than writing happen when I finish books *g*

So we were watching the fabulous Rick Stein rock around somewhere hot and sunny, with lots of lovely seafood and markets full of brightly coloured veggies, and saw him do his cheffy bit on cooking paella! And as we were drooling over the TV, the idea fairy whispered in my ear-- Ah, ha! I thought, I have a paella pan! I too, could make paella!

So all the ingredients (not the saffron; strangely enough, I already had that in the cupboard, unused and only slightly out of date, from the last time I might have had this very same idea . . .) were sourced from the local supermarket, along with a handy recipe on the packet of paella rice, and I set out to make a fabulouso paella . . .

Except . . .

Yep, you've guessed it-- The paella pan was nowhere to be found. Not in the kitchen, the garage, the shed, the loft, nowhere. This pan was not small. It should be here. Neither Mr Mc nor I can remember doing anything other than take care of this pan, and believe me, the 'unused' paella pan has been a subject of many 'discussions' between us (as has the unused fish kettle, which is not missing . . .). But sadly the paella pan has utterly vanished. It is a mystery, due, no doubt, in some form to my dis-organisational abilities, possibly. A mystery I suspect we will never solve. *sad face*

In other news I did cook paella (in a large casserole) and it was scrummy! Next time I'll remember and take pictures :-D

So, have any of you 'lost' something huge, oh say, like an 18 inch diameter paella pan?


*This actually won't come as news to those who know me ;p
*Seriously, I have five New Home cards. People I know don't move that often. I suspect house-hopping rabbits are involved.
*I have mad DIY skillz!
*All its time!