Resigned, he asked, "Coffee?"

A smile. "Don't you just hate rain?"

The puddles dried. They were still there.

1. Put the ground beef in the microwave and start defrosting it in

the large container you'll use for the sauce.

2. While the beef is defrosting, use the water heater and a saucepan

to boil water for the lasagna.

3. While the water heats, peel and chop the onion.

4. By the time you finish chopping the onion, the meat should be done

defrosting. Throw the onions in and set the timer for 3 minutes.

5. The water should be boiling at this point. Pour a little salt and

(butter? oil?) into the water. Break the lasagna noodles in half and dump them into the water. You can reduce the heat to medium.

6. Give the meat a quick stir.

7. While the meat is browning and the lasagna is boiling, open the can

of sliced mushrooms. Cut open the foil packs of spaghetti sauce. Every so often, check if the lasagna is done.

8. Drain the lasagna. Dump it onto a plate.

9. Drain the meat. Put it back into the container with the sliced

mushrooms and spaghetti sauce. Add lots of Italian seasoning and a bit of salt. Microwave for 5 minutes.

10. Separate the lasagna into individual pieces. If the pieces stick

together, you can use water to ease them apart. If you can't, put the pretty sheets aside for the top layer.

11. While the sauce is being microwaved, prepare the cheese mix by

dumping everything into a large bowl and mixing it with a spatula or spoon. Make sure the serving dishes are handy. You should be done with the cheese at about the same time the sauce finishes.

12. Prepare one dish. Pop it into the microwave. While that's

cooking, prepare the next, etc. Pipelining!

The sauce was just the right volume, too. Using 400g spaghetti sauce instead of 200g gave me more flexibility. I have a little extra sauce, but that's okay.