So...whats for dinner?
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Back from my quick overnight jaunt to NY for my cousin's shiva. Had my breakfast yesterday in the Dellta lounge at O'Hare (the only stuff I could eat on my near-keto diet was kale, cottage cheese with sunflower seeds, and half a hard-boiled egg. Didn't eat at my cousin's house because there were platters and platters of cookies and pastry & candy (and it turns out the fruit bowl I sent on ahead was all the sweet kinds I can't have). So when I got back to the hotel there was a 24/7 Greek diner across the street; had a small salad and "scrod a la Grecque:" broiled scrod cod with a lemon-butter caper sauce with grape tomatoes & olives, and instead of potatoes I had broccoli. The hotel (Hampton Inn) had the usual breakfast buffet (had a mini Western omelet and a sausage patty). When I got to JFK and the Delta lounge, I allowed myself a cappuccino (the milk in it was my daily carb). I had to turn down a free Bellini, as peaches are a no-no. (But the champagne is ok). Had a little more cottage cheese. And when I got home, dinner was the last of my leftover porterhouse, kale salad, and a small heirloom tomato with basil. (The basil is homegrown--and my first homegrown tomato of the season will be ripe enough in a day or two).
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Big moment, Nance. I know you have enjoyed your home and property.
Today is our 50th anniversary! No big party for us. Not our style and I still don't feel like my grieving period for my mother is over. We are playing couples golf today and going to dinner with the group afterwards. So I made reservations for early dinner yesterday at Boulders Restaurant in Walker, the most "upscale" restaurant in this county. It's about a 50 minute drive.
Our arrival scene will amuse you. We parked a few minutes before 5 pm. There were already older folks waiting for the door to be unlocked. Cars were pulling into the parking lot, all occupants over 60 and well-dressed. From 5 to 5:30 Boulders offers a special menu and half-priced cocktails to the over 60 crowd. All the entrees are from the main menu but the big meat items are missing. Each entrée comes with soup or salad, daily veggie, and choice of potato or rice pilaf.
I had the crab crusted grouper in a lemony sauce and black rice pilaf. My salad was a wedge salad with blue cheese dressing and toasted pecans and tomato. My cocktail was Gray Goose on the rocks martini. Our shared dessert was carrot cake, which was beautifully plated. I enjoyed my meal but will go for the potato side next time. The pilaf was just ok. I should have known that since I ordered the pilaf when we went to Boulders last summer.
Dh had the jambalaya penne pasta. It came with sausage, shrimp and chicken and a spicy "Cajun" sauce. The sausage was very much to his liking, the chicken good but the shrimp (not surprisingly) didn't have much flavor. He enjoyed the dish. His salad was also the wedge. HIs cocktail was Beefeater over ice martini. Carrot cake is a big favorite of his.
All this good food, excellent service, and the bill was $61! Even with the tip, more than reasonable.
We will go back before the summer is over. The main dining room is a very lovely room with large windows overlooking the outdoors and there are dining porches on two sides of the building. The bar was busy turning out cocktails in stemmed glasses. The bar menu has a whole page of martinis.
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Carole, congratulations to you and Monty, 50 years is a BIG deal!
Tomorrow we are celebrating 50 years for my DSIL and DBIL. Their daughters have planned a surprise reception in the city followed by a Cardinals game. Looking forward to the reception, the game not so much. It will be 90+ degrees facing the sun for at least an hour in seats that seem to have been reduced to the size of airline seats and not as comfortable. (DH and I usually only attend ballgames during the week and in one of the several all inclusive areas that include food, air conditioning and private bathrooms.) But we committed to participating early on in the planning, so participate we will. We will spend the night in the city then DH's sister will host a brunch Sunday morning. It will prove to be an expensive weekend with weekend rates for hotel, parking and game tickets. Thankfully they've insisted on no gifts although we could have given a rather nice one with what we've spent lol.
So, we're eating out tonight at a new sports bar in town, for which I have no great expectations, but a friend told me the catfish is good, so no cooking for me until Monday.
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Congratulations on 50.
We are in Arco, Idaho...after stopping at EBR-1, the first nuclear reactor. Sharon, being a nuclear engineer, was like a kid in a candy store at Disneyland. :-). I, too, found it very interesting.
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carole - yay! Happy 50th!
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Carole, happy golden anniversary! When you feel like your mourning period is over (dunno if your faith tradition prescribes an actual length), you and Monty owe yourselves something spectacular!
Bob stayed over at the hotel near his hospital last night (brutal long work day, and early echo/EKG reading morning today), so it was just the kitties & me. Haven’t had much luck grilling fish, so I pan-seared a Chilean sea bass filet I defrosted and paired it with an insalata Caprese (red & yellow heirloom tomatoes, basil EVOO, grapefruit-infused white balsamic and burrata over arugula). The fish-stink lingered into the night but it was worth it
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We're stopped for the day at a place a few miles north of Salmon, Idaho.
Yesterday Sharon was like a kid in a candy store at the nuclear reactor site, EBR-1, and I enjoyed it too.
We probably won't eat dinner as we ate a huge lunch.
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Are you seeing much snow Eric? Nance - good luck tomorrow. Carole - congrats on 50. Hope your family in LA is OK.
Went to a fun wine tasting last night - Vive la France. We tasted 9 wines from around the country with histories of each region & those wines and interesting facts for each location. Accompanied by a lovely chacuterie platters. I liked some things I was prepared to pass and was disappointed in the Pouilly Fuisse, which I usually like. As a bonus we got to taste the French whiskey that is the only one allowed in the Elysee Palace - Bellevoye.
We had a water aerobics make up class this morning. Mid day meal was a large salad with everything in the fridge and the left-over bacon from my breakfast out at a country kitchen yesterday. Tonight will probably be just popcorn.
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Yesterday we set up a booth at the farmers market, our third Saturday to do so. After two hours we had sold a small bowl. Most of the shoppers looked like local folks rather than vacationers and they made a beeline to the vendors selling produce, which is just beginning to be harvested in gardens. Still no tomatoes, but some cucumbers, beets, cabbages and huge zucchini. What do people do with those monstrous zucchini? Zucchini bread?
Finally a woman came along and fell so in love with dh's bowls that she had problems making her selections. She bought two bowls and a bud vase and made our day worthwhile. She and her dh or significant other were on a motorcycle and had to figure out how to stow her purchases. I donated a soft shopping bag from our truck.
Dinner last night was hamburger patties and potato salad.
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That sounds nice. Sometimes I’m just craving a really big 🥗 salad, but I can’t eat too green a day or two after chemo. I get so I’ll sometime, tonight I made pork shoulder roast, rice and po
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...at Glacier National Park for the next few days....
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Oh Eric, it's on my bucket list to get there while there are still glaciers. I'm jealous.
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We visited Glacier National Park some years ago. What a beautiful part of the country.
Last night I panfried two small walleye fillets in olive oil and butter. They were delicious. Sides were left over potato salad and a romaine salad with cucumber, grape tomatoes, and Kalamata olives.
Any action on the house, Nance?
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Carole, a 26 year old couple looked at the house yesterday and were unimpressed. They thought it was too expensive and didn't find the updates to be to "their taste" (whatever that means.) I don't know any 26 year olds to know what their tastes are.
The weekend anniversary party/family reunion was big fun. Good food with people I don't see often enough. The ballgame was as brutal as I expected it to be. I got so hot I ended up watching the first three innings on a tv in the concession area until the sun went down. But the Cards won and there were fireworks, so it was good.
I haven't had to cook since last Thursday so now I have to get back into that frame of mind and it's not coming easily.
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Thank you your kind condolences and support regarding my brother's death.
It's been a few weeks since returning from CA and his mem service. DH and I are still decompressing from it...and enjoyed the fresh air and surf of Provincetown this past week to try to clear our minds.The trip to LA itself was not pleasant given the vacay season and full, expensive, flights, requiring us to be sandwiched in middle seats for the six hour flights, but that paled in comparison to the distress we experienced once there.
The partial saga...
Despite my many efforts to support my sister's ability to make the trip,(a 17 hour trip from her VT home) she ultimately declined, and I totally understood why, so refused to pressure her further. But then, I paid the price once there since that did not sit well with SIL who continually, publicly, insulted me and my family about my sister's decision not to attend. There was no stopping her. This went on for the three days we were there, and yet, during the actual service, there was no mention of my brother's family of origin at all, except for his love of my mother's cooking! And we were never asked to be with her in the “receiving line" after the service. I honestly was so numb through that event that I didn't even have an emotional reaction. But my typically low key DH was horrified that SIL arranged the service so that DB's family of origin was essentially obliterated. I mentally reframed it as the memorial service for the years he was with her....the last third of his life. And the way she thinks, he didn't exist before that. Another way they were “born again", perhaps? So why we even needed to be there was curious.
We were further distressed to learn that his brain was never donated for dementia research, and to get a definitive DX of his medical condition. Am guessing that since it was not relevant to his stepdaughter, our family's medical history info is not of a concern to SIL. She had told me of her plan to donate his brain, but I also knew that she really liked the doc that changed his diagnosis, so might not have wanted to risk learning the actual autopsy findings. Really too bad for my family and children. His cremated remains were also not buried according to her spoken plan, in a nearby VETs cemetery. He'd told our family he wanted to be buried in Arlington Nat'l, and we recently learned that that plan was not going to be honored. I do understand that it would be far for her. But beyond that, his ashes were not buried at all, rather are, by her choice, sitting on her mantel. During the ceremony, DB's ashes were in an urn that was in the shape of a candle with flag decor, sitting on the table with his pictures and awards. We only learned what it was much later. Not sure who else knew what that big “flag candle" was! Nothing had been spoken about it.
So, bottom line is that everything she had shared with me over the past six months was either inaccurate or discarded as an undesirable choice. The entire experience was just so surreal. So there was a shock at every turn, except for the insults to our family which became appallingly commonplace.
We were eager to get home and try to regain a sense of normalcy.
I did accomplish one hoped for mission while at the service. I wanted to meet the people DB worked with at the large LA hospital where he was director of security for 17 years (his post FBI retirement job) before being stricken with the brain disease. Mission accomplished! I sought them out at the memorial luncheon, and was so glad I had a chance to thank his very respected boss for noticing and confronting DB and DIL about his sudden marked decline in cognitive functioning, (upon his return to work after knee surgery). She also arranged for his neuro evaluation. I had some wonderful conversations with this lovely, caring boss, and some of colleagues. He always spoke so highly of them, and obviously the feeling was mutual. Since that was the last interaction that I had there, I left with a sense of peace. So enough of all that....
We returned home to the joy of babysitting our new little grand. She is darling, and pretty quiet, in my opinion, but every first baby knocks their parents' socks off, and that seems to be the case, so we want to support them as much as we can. I remember those demanding days well, and we had no family nearby, so we want to help out as much as they'd like us to.
Wow! Nance, you and DH are mightily task-oriented and how wonderful that the work on the house is complete and it is on the market. Am guessing that you being in St.L for the weekend made open house easier for the brokers...and you! Sadly, several of our friends have also had the experience of dealing with entitled millennials who left them feeling that their house was "unworthy" due to the buying couples' tastes (read...unrealistic expectations). Fortunately, there are many more buyers out there, so the right ones will come along. I think of your leaving to be bittersweet given how much you have enjoyed your home and surrounding nature sanctuary. Best of luck! And never be concerned about the ones who don't appreciate it.And Happy Anniversary, Carole! 50 years of marriage is quite an accomplishment! We're a few years behind you.... I can certainly understand how hard it is for you to feel celebratory this soon after your mother's passing. You were such a devoted daughter to her. You will celebrate in time... I loved reading about selling DH's bowls in the farmer's market. Years ago, I used to sell my pottery on the Boston Common, and loved sharing pieces I made with others who appreciated them. Hopefully, you can do it again when more tourists/visitors are there to appreciate (and buy!) his work.
Our trip to P-town this year was quite different from years past. We usually spend hours walking/strolling into and through town, and do beach combing by day. But DH seriously needs a new hip and is unable to walk far at all. So my fewer day walks were solo, and our dinners out did not include any post-dinner exercise! I felt the lbs piling on!
I'll post a few pix of our meals in another post since I've taken up so much space already.
But here's two of our little cutie....we so appreciated her joy upon returning home!
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Oh Lacey, I'm so sorry about your brother's memorial, how painful for your family. I admire your ability to rise above and am glad you got to meet and have a meaningful exchange with his co workers. But what a darling grand you have to bring you joy!
As I said before, I blame HGTV for this set of unrealistic house hunting youngsters/millennials.
Decided on grilled pork tenderloin, sauteed squash (from my SIL's garden) and peppers, local corn on the cob for dinner. I was afraid there wouldn't be corn this year due to the flooding and wet conditions here, but it's just come in. Don't know how long it will last so we're enjoying it as often as possible.
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Lacey, so sorry about not just losing your brother but the selfishness of his wife--so often people who have adopted a drastically different spiritual or lifestyle path isolate themselves, willingly or unknowingly, from those who love them. How you were treated was inexcusable. But your grandkid is adorable!
Last night, Bob came home early enough for me to grill in daylight, the weather held, and the pork chops defrosted. So I grilled them--using Penzey's Galena Street chicken & rib rub plus a little chipotle powder on both, and Whole Foods' Maple Bourbon sauce on his. Sauteed broccolini in EVOO, sliced garlic, salt & lemon juice. For his starch (which I eschew), I got Bob some pan-fried potato wedges with Parm. from WF's hot bar.
Tonight will be one or two tandoori chicken thighs I got at the hot bar, plus some of the Indian stewed okra from the freezer and maybe 1/2 c. of nuked palak paneer (Indian pureed spinach & greens with cheese cubes).
Tomorrow I have an early (ugh) dental appt. downtown to switch out my temp. acrylic lower molar crown for the permanent porcelain one; and to have one of my upper front teeth gently "ground" so it more closely matches its neighbor in length. My orthodontist is fully onboard--in fact, he suggested I have it done before I see him next week for my next set of scans for either some "refinement" Invisalign trays or (fingers crossed) my retainer.
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Lacey, what a nightmarish experience in CA. I'm glad you were able to leave with some positive emotions after speaking with your brother's boss and fellow workers. Your new granddaughter is adorable. Good pictures. Keep sharing.
Nance, according to HGTV the only acceptable houses have sterile white kitchens, open floor plan and dark wooden floors. And the houses are "staged." I imagine the moment when the van arrives and all the furniture and decorations disappear. Someone will come along and love your house and property.
Yesterday was hot and humid. I could have been home in Louisiana. Almost. It wasn't quite that bad but we ran the a/c all afternoon and through the night. It's 68 degrees this morning and the weather woman in Fargo promises there will be less humidity.
Last night was chicken breast fillets lightly breaded with Italian bread crumbs and browned in olive oil. Very much to my liking. One side was zucchini cooked in diced tomatoes and sprinkling of pepper flakes and topped with grated asiago. Salad was arranged on plate. Cucumber from the farmer's market, fresh beets (sliced) also from fm, avocado and onion for dh. Oil and vinegar.
My neighbor Mary made yeast rolls yesterday and gave us two. They were large enough to serve as sandwich buns. I made a ham and cheese sandwich with mine and the roll was yummy.
No inkling yet about dinner.
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Carole, I know about the staging. I saw one program where the house seeker husband plopped himself down on a bed (which I thought was boorish anyway) in one of the bedrooms and the bed collapsed because it was a staged fake bed. Funny scene!
I think tonight will be jambalaya. I'm craving brown rice.
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Lacey, I am so sorry to read about your brother. My sincerest condolences.
Auntienance, I completely agree about HGTV creating unrealistic expectations for young house hunters. It drives me nuts when I watch some of those shows and some young couple is looking at a beautiful home in a great neighborhood and they don't want it because they don't like a light fixture in the dining room or the paint color in a bedroom that can easily be changed.
Dinner tonight was leftovers from Sunday- veggie enchiladas on organic corn tortillas with a spicy pumpkin seed salsa, a fresh tomato salsa, a little crumbled queso fresco cheese, and toasted cumin spiced pumpkin seeds. I served them with a chili lime rice made with brown rice.
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Lacey, so sorry about your very stressful time in California and what a wonderful little one to come home to!
I agree about the ridiculous comments on HGTV that imply a house shouldn't be considered because something that is essentially an easy fix, such as paint color, is not to one's liking!
Actually felt like being creative tonight. We had baramundi seasoned with seafood rub and cooked on the stove; small potatoes oven roasted with onions and seasoned with butter, parsley and fennel pollen; steamed broccoli; and fresh tomatoes. The broccoli came packaged to steam it in the microwave, not happy with the results so will go back to my favorite method of oven roasting.
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Tonight was leftovers; 1/4 of a tandoori chicken breast, okra stew, palak paneer--preceded by two appetizers: some cioppino from Whole Foods (was going to have gazpacho till I saw they changed their recipe to add molasses & agave nectar!), and a small insalata Caprese of heirloom tomato, burrata, homegrown basil over arugula. Might have dessert later of some of my first ripe black raspberries of the season.
Got that pesky "horse-tooth" front incisor trimmed today--my smile is even!
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I, too, am sorry about your California experience, Lacey.
We are at Glacier National Park and dinner was a noodles, peanut sauce and various "need to finish" veges.
This typed on a phone, so it's short.
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Dinner was a grilled ribeye and baked potatoes with butter and sour cream.
I have two eggplants in the refrigerator and an overcast rainy day. Dinner may be a layered eggplant hot dish with tomato sauce and grated cheese.
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Today is the last eye doc visit and refraction after cataract removal followed by a Costco run which is conveniently across the street from the doc. I think I'll pick up a roast chicken and make chicken enchiladas. The remainder of the bird will go into chicken salad. We're having visitors Saturday so I thought I'd make a trio of salads for lunch, one of which involves chicken. Egg and tuna for the other two so surely there will be something for everyone.
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lacey - I’m so sorry about your experience at your brother’s memorial. It is hard to feel so excluded and disconnected from the planning and event - I share that experience with you in reference to my own brother’s service, virtually no reference to our side of the family except by me - I’m glad I spoke at the service - otherwise there would have been zero. It is hurtful, I feel ya.
auntie - I often make a trio of salads for dinner, especially at this time of year when hot food seems oppressive at the end of the day. We are having my DH’s cousin and his son over to dinner tomorrow and I am doing two salads and grilling. The cousin’s high school age son is attending an orchestra conference at the USF campus, which is only ten miles down the road. This is the cousin we saw when we went to PA in March, he owns the winery with our family name thatwe visited there, so it’s nice that he got in touch to tell us he was here!
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Gordy & his GF are headed to Montana this weekend for her sister's wedding, and plan to do a side trip to Glacier.
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About 3/4 the way through today's 6 mile walk, we got to see a stand of Pacific Yew trees...the first source of Taxol.
The park service even had a sign that talked about the Yew and paclitaxel.
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Tonight's dinner was Baked Salmon with Trader Joe's mustard sauce and a homemade Iranian style Tabouleh salad, made more interesting at the last minute when I realized I had no mint! Still pretty tasty as it had a honey based vinegar dressing.
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Tonight was Cellars' "France's South Side" wine pairing dinner (see "how about drinking" for the wines). It was a challenge for me not to completely carb out, but I did ok till dessert. First course was a crab cake topped with asparagus Hollandaise and a poached egg. (No getting around the bread crumbs in the crab cake, but too good to pass up). Second was a seared sea scallop atop spinach, with a relish of mango, watermelon, corn, tomatoes & peppers in vinaigrette. Ate my way around (most of) the fruit & corn. Next up was a cream of wild mushroom soup with a chêvre-topped crouton--you better believe I licked that crouton clean of all its goat cheese. (Bob was more than willing to consume my excess wines & csrbs). Entree was rack of lamb over a potato grstin galette, surrounded by lamb jus and English pea puree (surprisingly, peas are okay on my diet, as a "limited" veggie). I got through one double chop and the puree, and packed the rest (as well as the double chop Bob couldn't finish). Finally, dessert: strawberry-rhubarb creme brulee and a mini-eclair. So full after the creme brulee that I took a couple of bites of the eclair and left it at that. Bob was too full to finish it for me.
Walked the 1/4 mi. there in the pouring rain, and despite my umbrella my dress got drenched. It was clear by the time we walked home. For the next week it's nothing but water, black coffee, dead animals & leaves for me--and gotta get my creaky dehydrated de-conditioned arse moving. Odd how I was in better shape 20 lbs. heavier and 2 yrs ago--I was able to do strength training & cardio, but despite being lighter now, I can barely walk that quarter mile without my legs & shoulders aching and heart fluttering. (Bob looked at my Apple Watch EKG tracing and reassured me I don't have A-fib, I'm just in rotten shape after a year and a half away from the gym after those falls and arm surgery I ended up having in 2018).
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