Mixed Media

Gainesville

Thanks for the great Oscar update, Sandy! I always used to watch them, but about five years ago I decided I'd had enough-- they took too long and were way too cringe-worthy. And now it's easy to get the info immediately on the Net. Don't watch any awards things anymore.

I love to see the dresses they wear, though. Just judging from still pictures, I was knocked out by how perfect Helen Mirren looked. I want that dress! I also thought Jody Foster, Reese Witherspoon, and Nicole Kidman looked fabulous.

I have not seen either Babel or The Departed. I knew the latter was a gore-fest, and since everyone agrees it was not one of Marty's best, why put myself through it. The former, well-- I love Cate Blanchett, but I can do without Brad Pitt. If you think it's worth a look I'll try to catch it. I'm trying to break the habit of buying every movie I want to see. I can't be bothered renting, but am considering joining NetFlix for things I'm not sure I'll like and/or ever want to watch again. I have way too many movies that have never come out of the shrink wrap. A very bad addiction, and extension of the bibliomania.

I've always loved Meryl Streep, ever since seeing her in some TV mini-series about the Holocaust while in La Crosse. She's a truly neat person as well as an amazing actress. Of course, she didn't have a chance to win this year-- it usually goes to a beautiful woman who makes herself ugly to play a role-- and Streep was just too glacially gorgeous in Prada to qualify.

Well. Bill figured out what went wrong with my car insurance: when I retired, he suggested I drop the UF payroll deduction I'd had and transfer to his policy. Fine, except while he got Blue insured, he neglected to insure ME. He called his company and got it taken care of-- supposedly-- they faxed the info to DMV. However, when I tried to call them to confirm that it had been resolved, I got nothing but busy signals all afternoon. Sigh. I guess it's safe to drive again, but very. Carefully.

I finished Jimmy Corrigan today. I'm still reeling from it. I tried to tell Bill what it was/was about, and found it impossible. I wish I had the emotional fortitude to read it again to get a better grip on it, but... not now. Not just yet.

I'm back to reading Will in the World. When I get done here, I'll read a chapter or two of the Jane Austen mystery. Before I read another one, though, I really should take up the two originals I still haven't read: Mansfield Park and Northanger Abbey. Something in me does not want to live in a world where there is no more new Austen to be read, so I keep putting them off.

Got a crock pot thing started before noon: Chicken and Sausage Stew. It was surprisingly good. The cat, in particular, was ecstatic about it. She grunted and squeeked her pleasure with each and every bite. That kind of feedback is very gratifying.

It's good you are getting some snow tonight, Mom, so you feel okay about postponing the surgery. Hope it's a beautiful as well as useful snow. Good luck with the taxes. Ours will be more complicated this year, thanks to my retirement.

The Bar is still open, so the Barmaid is still on duty. However, if it goes much later, the Barmaid will be pouring drinks in her sleep.

I lost it at the movies

Brief checkin.

As ever, I watched the Oscars Sunday night, just to keep in touch. And I had a mound of dry beans that needed shelling, so while Charlie slept, I shelled beans (some of which were turned into magnificent chili) and checked out what I'd missed in the last year. Of course I always know from the newspapers and New Yorker what the movies are, but who can go to them any more (though I miss the magic of the Altos theater). I had to stay up for the whole thing to see if Scorcese won, and I need to see the necrology and weep. I like Ellen DeG a lot, thought she looked exceedingly cute (reminds me of Marty McCurdy), but as usual the whole host-joke business was pretty lame. Why try to make it funny? Just get on with it. Love Jack N's diabolical presence. The film olios were stunning, especially the composite of foreign films (what was the first one you ever saw? for me -- The Ladykillers, recommended by John Hinkson -- when H. Meritt and I went, he was there again, unbeknownst to us, but we could hear him cackling a few rows in front of us) and the one about how Hollywood has shown writers in movies.

So, inspired by this movie madness, yesterday I went to the movie machine at the gas station. I really wanted to rent "The Devil Wears Prada," inspired not only by how great Meryl Streep (whom, strangely, I have come to like a lot, after having hated her for years -- her commentary on the DVD of "Out of Africa" won me over) looked at the Oscars, but also by a review of The Devil that just turned up in a New Yorker in the upstairs bathroom. But anyway, what I ended up getting was "The Demented" oh gee, I mean "The Departed," about which I was curious, not believing that it could actually be the best picture of the year, from what I'd heard of it. Unfortunately, I'd not really paid enough attention. Gosh, what a mind-blowing (as in guns to the head and blood on the wall behind) movie. I love Jack, and we are fans of Matt Damon (our personal cult film is "The Bourne Identity"), and Leo DeCaprio is growing up nicely, but, really, guys, it was too much for me. I've finished all the Jane Austen mysteries and was heavy into Ian Rankin, but this morning put the Rankin down and picked up a fat (alas very small print) complete works of Jane herself, and I plan to have several weeks free of all murder, thank you very much.

The other movie I rented yesterday was "Babel," and I put in a certain amount of effort today trying to find out if it was something that would be as painful for me to watch (Charlie is sturdier than I am in this respect) as "The Departed." I never got any answers (though I appreciate your efforts, Julia), so we put the disc in and went for it. Well, we loved it. Highly recommended. The music knocked us out, particularly toward the end (and that's the Oscar it got), but all of it was wonderful. Fascinating international stuff. One thing that attracted me to it was what the director said during the cut presented at the Oscars: "I'd meant when I made this movie to show how different we all were, and while making it discovered how much we're all alike."

Anyway, just a little Movietone news, rare from this sector, where the printed word normally rules.

Stumblin' In

Gainesville

I'm so bummed out. In the pile of mail today from the PO Box was a notice my drivers licence was suspended as of Feb 14-- that insurance update I tried to do last month didn't work. It's on Bill's policy, so he will have to look into it tomorrow. Meanwhile, I can't drive. This is one of my major fears in life-- getting caught in the machinery of big bureaucracies.

I didn't get out to pick up Sixty Days today. As soon as I saw the D.L. notice, I ran to Amazon to order it. Earliest I can get it is Thursday, so I just did 2nd day air-- will be here Friday. By then I should have finished Jimmy Corrigan-- I'm 2/3 through it now.

Did a couple loads of my clothes, but not much else. Went ahead with the stir fry I'd passed on last night, using canned mushrooms and substituting some sliced zucchini for snow peas. Over cauli-rice. It was okay, but the electric wok (the red one of yours you gave me in Baltimore, Mom) has probably come to end of the road. I've used it a million times and the teflon is very scratched up; stuff now routinely sticks to the bottom. I think I'll just junk it. I still have the regular one you gave me at the same time, though I've never used it. Think I'll try it, and if it's too hard for me to deal with, I'll just get a new electric one.

I'm sure you're not overly disappointed to postpone that round two. Sometimes bad weather is your friend. This is good, because it will give you time to get completely recovered and rested up before going at it again.

Enjoying Sandy's letter. But surely it's April '85 she's looking ahead to, not '95, in the first paragraph!

Weather has been so warm here, Bill is back to ordering Tanq & Tonic from the Barmaid. I've been making them in the larger of the Bodum glasses, and they seem to work well. The ice lasts a lot longer, and while the glasses get damp on the outside, they don't actually get wet to the point of dripping down the sides. A Very Good Thing.

I did some "Stumble!" today, and as I suspected, it's a huge time-sink. It was fun, though. I'm into an explore- different- music phase, and found a good site to do that. Also have been checking out different channels on XM Radio via the DirecTV satellite. New and different earworms are always good.

Pre-Con Angst

Gainesville

It was warm today, and the air was not nice. When I went out to go to the P.O., I smelled smoke. Somewhere nearby there's a wildfire. This does not bode well.

I got she towels done, but not much else. There was a huge load of Bill's big whites in the washer. I finished that off and got it folded.

Realized when I got ready to start dinner that I didn't have all the ingredients for the stir fry I was planning. D'oh! If I'd have checked earlier, I could have stopped by Publix on the way back from the P.O. I went with tomorrow's menu, cajun pork chops, which I did not get done enough-- hard to check that when the cajun spice colors everything reddish. Steamed spinach, tomato/ avocado salad.

Understand what a relief it is to finally banish the last of Christmas, Mom. I haven't quite managed it, myself. Still in evidence is a bag of snow-like cotton, and a very late "gift" from Barbara of a 10" Father Christmas figurine. I put "gift" in quotes, because I know she is disbanding a huge collection of Santas of all kinds. I now need to find a box to house the snow and the figurine.

Got the Jane Austin Mystery (the first) today. Am using reading bits of it as a reward for doing other things that need doing now-- like getting through Jimmy Corrigan before the UF Comics Conference this weekend. (Their website is working again, at least at the moment.) This will become even more of a challenge after tomorrow, when the long-awaited Sixty Days and Counting, a POTN (plain old text novel) comes out. Of course, B&N will probably be late getting it in, and I will have wasted the trip to go get it.

I also should re-read Alan Moore's Promethea, Neil's 1602, and a couple of others. Ain't gonna happen.

I presume the conference will have the usual table of temptations from Goerings. I try to limit my spending at these things to merely outrageous levels, but it's hard seeing all those obscure goodies all in one place. And I have loved each an every treasure I've acquired in this way. Sandy, you know what I mean! Wish you were here-- that was fun last year. Next year.

Also in the box from Amazon were new CD's from Patty Griffin, Lucinda Williams and John Mellencamp. Haven't loaded/listened to any of them yet. So much to absorb. How come it feels like I have less time?

Hey-- maybe that Amazon box will work for Santa and the leftover snow?

Finally

Gainesville

Hope all you Wisconsinners are enjoying the s-n-o-w. A four-letter word to some, but I know you are all at least secret snow-lovers, if not overt ones.

Just took a break there to check on the Oscarama results. I never watch them anymore, but am interested in the results. Glad Marty FINALLY got recognized. Mean Streets and Raging Bull are two of my all time favorites. Not many other surprises, though.

Lessee. Got the sheets changed. Got the fridge cleaned out, and gave Bill a chance to eat the edible ones before they got pitched. He is so enthusiastic about the leftovers! He says very little when I serve the stuff first run, so I was surprised to learn that the mushroom/ dried tomato/ bacon dish is "If I ever climb Everest, this is what I want with me to eat." Say what?! He requested that it go into heavy rotation-- and I'm happy to oblige. It's very easy.

Got the week's menus planned, and out to shop at 4:00 PM. Fixed a brainlessly simple swordfish dish ("Vera Cruz") that was outrageously good. Along with edamame and a peaches/ cottage cheese salad, the latter to use up canned peaches from the recent desperation fruit salad. Good meal, ready in about 40 minutes.

Warm but unsettled weather as a cold front blows through. No rain, alas. After the hard freeze, we're having wildfires now. Oh joy.

Watched another excruciating but wonderful new ep of Battlestar Galactica. I can say no more.

Except to say that I'm about half way through Jimmy Corrigan. Also excruciating and wonderful. Now I really WILL say no more.

And so to bed.

Status Back

Gainesville

Slowly recovering from DPT (dinner party trauma). The post mortem continues. Many mysteries. One thought I had today: I had the lowest status of anyone there... not only a mere spouse, but a spouse of a lowly Library mini-dir. (The other three mini-dirs are not married.) Everyone else outranked us on campus. It's been decades since I gave a thought to things like status, but this event was rife with it.

Couldn't face going out to shop yet again today. I'd done a quick supplementary Publix run-through on my way home yesterday, so had some basics. Did one of what Peg Bracken calls "Old Faithful" -- Seriously Spicy Chicken. Had Sandy's Carrots and a salad as sides. Got the carrots a little too sweet (in my haste to fix both at once, I got everything, including sugar, into the wrong pan, so had to transfer, and added a bit more in the confusion) but everything was still good. Used the McElroy olive oil -- very nice.

I'm now reading both The Songlines, about the Australian Outback, and Will in the World, a recent biography of Shakespeare. One in the bedroom, the other in the... family room, I guess we call it now, since we never watch TV anymore. Both are wonderful. I'm also plowing through Jimmy Corrigan-- beautiful, but very depressing graphic novel. Can't remember if I mentioned that this year's UF Comics Conference is next weekend (Saturday and Sunday) and there is a paper on it. Just found out about it a few days ago. I am so out of the loop!

Heh. And THEY are so lame. Not only can't they get the info out to interested people (me), but their site is down now, and only a week before the event. I was going to put the link in this post. Pathetic. I'll post it when it comes back online.

And now it's time to StumbleUpon bed. :-) Hope you Northerners get all the snow you can handle!

Party Dress

Gainesville

Well, the dinner party is over with, which is a relief. It was nice, a large beautiful house. It was cold, though, and the bar (wine only) was outside on the deck. I froze. I was also the only one there in anything like a cocktail dress. Bill thought I looked nice, so that's what counts. I knew only a few people there, the other library dirs. Mostly it was people Dale knew from elsewhere on campus. The Provost presented Dale with a Presidential Medal. Turned out to be a buffet dinner, everything very salady. Catered of course.

I will try to post the picture Bill took so you can see the dress. It was taken after the party, so it, and I, are a little the worse for wear.

Learned at 3:00 this afternoon that Scott McCloud was lecturing on campus at 6:00 tonight. Damn! I might have actually begged off to go see him if I'd known about it earlier.

I went out shopping hoping to find a better pair of shoes-- no luck. I did pick up a little purse-let thing suitable for evening. And realized I had a rewards coupon from Best Buy, so stopped there and picked up The Devil Wears Prada and Little Miss Sunshine. Watched the former tonight and enjoyed it. Meryl Streep is amazing.

Hope you get a significant snow at an appropriate time, Mom, and that you continue to convalesce well. Enjoy your gin!

Sorta Spring-Like

Gainesville

Glad to hear you survived your ordeal, Mom-- an ordeal indeed. Hope the recovery is quick and relatively painless.

The dress shape is not empire (aka, Jane Austen). It is fitted underneath the black band, and doesn't flare until the hip line, and then not much. Dunno what to call it. I'll try to get Bill to take a picture.

Didn't get out to shop today-- but I did putter a bit in the yard. Got rid of the tomato cages that had been protecting last year's calladiums from the lawn guys and pulled the weeds they were protecting (and got covered in stick-tights, of course). Walked around our property and the lot in back. Beautiful day for a stroll in the woods. I think I'm ready for warmer weather. There was a single tree frog on the glass window tonight, and I found one in the hall-- I gently evicted him with our handy-dandy kit: a peanut can and a manila envelope.

The non-shopping left me in a bind for dinner. I'd found a piece of flank steak in the freezer last week, and had any number of easy things to do with it... but each one turned out to lack a critical thing I usually have on hand, but which was missing, dead or hopelessly expired. Process of elimination took way too much time. I ended up with a very nice basalmic thing. Had left over kraut and a desperation fruit salad (fresh orange, canned pineapple, canned peaches and some marichino cherries). The latter was amazingly good. Once again, a miracle occurred, and we were fed. More or less.

The major purchase from Sur le Table (ie, Amazon) arrived today: a library-style kick-stool. It's red! I wasn't strong/heavy enough to get the two parts to snap together, but Bill did the trick for me when he got home. Already tonight it came in handy: I could find the basalmic vinegar I knew I had in a lower cabinet. Instead of bending over or sitting on the cold floor, I was able to sit on the stool, and found it almost immediately. Hurrah!

I finished Arthur & George today. I did not go back and read the part I skipped. It's a great book, but how can I recommend it when I found a key part of it unreadable? The facts of the story are all true, which makes it all the more upsetting.

Okay, bedtime.

O.K.

Well, that worked. But I was unable to post a comment. Here's the comment (very quick, since I have to head off to RF momentarily to pick up Mom):

Curses! The dreaded Guy Mitchell earworm! At least you threw out so many that maybe none will stick. How about "I stand in a quandary in front of the laundry . . . ."

Take a photo of the dress (with you in it). Sounds nice. I think it's an Empire waist, no? Think that princess style is fitted between the bust. Think Jane Austen, and you'll have Empire (as in Napoleonic).

More anon.

just checking

This is to see if I can still post. I think since I've switched to the New Blogger, I have become, as it were, a virtual stranger.

Remembering The Guy

Gainesville

The Dress has been acquired. I went into seven stores. It is very hard to find something in my size that isn't either too young, too long, and/or too frumpy. I finally found something in the back corner of the Petite section of Dillard's. By that time I was desperate and pissed at the thought of having to do this all over again. I don't know the words used to describe clothes anymore, but it's a black and white print, deep v-neck front and back, a black gathered band below the bust (did we used to call this style "princess"?) then falling from there to just below the knee, flaring slightly at the hem. Out of some wispy, stretchy fabric. Will look for some shoes tomorrow; if all else fails, I have some I could wear.

Bill is feeling better about work. He figured out the logic, however misguided, behind what's going on. The worst part was the seeming irrationality.

I managed to delay a very simple dinner tonight by slicing open a finger with one of those serrated knives. It would not stop bleeding, and I finally had to stop the cooking and ask Bill to bandage me up. I was trying to supplement a dogs 'n' kraut dish with a rather nice bacon, mushroom and sun-dried tomato thing. Chopping the bacon was what did me in. Really, I should just put the bandage on that finger (left index) before I touch a knife.

Good luck tomorrow, Mom. Unpleasant to be sure, but after what you've been through, nothing much to be concerned about. The Prohibition would be the worst of it, at least as far as I'm concerned.

I keep forgetting to broach the subject of Guy Mitchell. I've long had the song "My Heart Cries for You" pop up unexpectedly in my brain, and just dismissed it. Lately I've been haunted by the lyrics "She had a dark and a roving eye..." and finally had to track them down-- rediscovering the perpetrator of both tunes. I was surprised to see how many hits he'd had in the early '50's and what a long career he had singing banal but catchy drivel. Now my tune buffer is newly loaded with such classics as "Sparrow in the Treetop," although I admit this one has surfaced on and off before now, " (I Never Felt More Like) Singing the Blues," "My Truly, Truly Fair," and who could forget, "(There's a Pawn Shop on the Corner of) Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania." Ah, those were the days! :-) And thanks to the miracle of the web, his stuff will live forever, clear evidence of why Rock & Roll HAD to be born.

Highway Fever

Gainesville

Well, no wonder you're downhearted, Mom-- no gin until Friday--!! That's ridiculous. I think I'd ask for a second opinion. Clearly you have a doctor who does not understand his/her patient. My inclination would be to rebel. In any event: Courage.

Had to get up early to be ready for a Florida Pest Control guy to make a 3-month visit at 9:00. He didn't show up until after 11:00. He did knock down all the old wasp nests in the carport, and all the spider webs under the eaves, so I'll forgive him. This is a new person who has now replaced Clifford, the guy who'd been coming for the last ten years. Used to come once a month, so needless to say, I got to know Clifford quite well. He was always interested in all the flying magazines Bill has around, as he was once a pilot himself.

Listened to the new Tom Petty album (Highway Companion) on my iPod while Blessing the house-- and enjoyed it so much I kept going and did the big three in one stint. What a great record! Probably his best since Full Moon Fever. I can't believe how confident he's become, how completely comfortable with taking his influences and bending them to his own vision. Played it again after dinner while we had espresso. It makes me really sorry I did not try harder to get tickets to his concert here last fall. I know the show has been broadcast and is probably available somewhere.

Made broiled shrimp with a garlic/ lemon/ butter sauce-- picked that recipe from an old Pierre Franey book because it called for two tablespoons of chives, and I had some beautiful ones I got at Fresh Market last week. Came out pretty darn good. Had with leftovers (Blue Slaw and green beans sauteed w/mushrooms, which were better as a reruns than in original presentation).

Things are going badly at the library; Bill comes home angry and frustrated. Since this is a public forum (in theory, anyway) and there is a high level of campus involvement, I'll say no more. It's a good thing he has Azaroth to keep him from brooding about it.

Will it ever be warm here? Will there be a second spring?

The Quest Begins

Gainesville

Got my food shopping done today, not including a planned trip back to The Fresh Market either tomorrow or Tuesday. The real reason for the second trip is to begin shopping for that damnable Cocktail Dress I need for the Friday dinner party with the Provost. Of course said Dress will also need its own shoes and a little evening bag. I have half a dozen faux pashima wraps from a cruise-- surely one of them will be a good enough match to keep me from freezing if it's cold.

It was worth waiting a day to drive Moonbeam for the heated seat alone. VERY cold here. Last night was a record low for the date: 23. And very cold all day today too. Supposed to get down to 25 tonight. Surprisingly, my neglected potted plants, up against the house, all seem to have survived.

Watched last week's and this week's Battlestar. I'm missing at least one, maybe two eps because of the Cali trip-- TiVo is still messing up on the difference between the Cable feed and the Satellite. It favors Cable, but something is wrong with that hook-up, so only snow gets recorded. The only way to make it do Satellite is to do channel/time recording, like the primitive VCR days. This is SO not what TiVo is about. Very annoying.

Dinner was a kind of interesting take on cube steaks-- seasoned with paprika and Worcester sauce and broiled, topped with onions, green peppers and mushrooms in a wine sauce. One of Leanne's better ones.

Had to skim over about 50 pages of Arthur & George-- just too disturbing. If it becomes apparent it's critical to the story, I'll go back and plow through it. I don't usually do this with a book-- if it gets too heavy, I just stop reading. This this one has two stories going, and I am fairly engaged with the other one.We'll see. What I think I'd like to read next is a Jane Austen mystery, recommended by Sandy. Need to get my fingers walking over to Amazon and see what I can see. Always a dangerous prospect.

Winter

Gainesville

Our spectacular azalea season is history-- last night's low temps zapped every one of the blooms in our yard, just before they were about to hit their peak. Boo, hiss! I asked Bill to take some pictures in the yard when he and the cat were out on patrol, but they didn't get around to it. Too bad.

This morning another package from the Ferry Building-- one of the original stove-top espresso makers. Bill had never seen one (didn't know they existed) so I got one for him for educational purposes, and also as a backup for when we lose power. It makes about the same quality brew as the machine, but more of it and much hotter (both a plus for me). However, Bill sez it's a bitch to clean, so it will probably remain a museum piece.

Finally got around to mixing myself a see-through in one of the new thermal glasses-- very impressive! The same four pieces of ice lasted through two drinks (two hours), and not a drop of condensation. Yes, it's cold tonight, but I and my drink are sitting in front of heaters. Sweet!

Didn't get out to shop today. Bill did some errands using Moonbeam, and I decided it would be more fun to go tomorrow. I've gotten addicted to driving the new car at least once a week.

I did finish 50 Degrees last night. One more week until the next one comes out. Meanwhile, I've gone back to Arthur & George, which is good, but painful reading. I shall persist.

It's precipping (is that a word?) outside-- if this were last night, it would be snow. Tonight, just cold rain. What fun. Or maybe not... was that thunder I just heard?

Mountain Climbing

Gainesville

Very cold here once again-- down into the 20's tonight. The heat pump is pretty worthless at times like this, and though it runs constantly, we huddle around the gas and electric heaters. And of course tank up on warming spirits.

My virtual Ferry Building purchases continue to arrive. Yesterday it was the stuff from McEvoy Ranch. The hand lotion is wonderful! I love the way it feels and smells. I haven't tried the actual olive oil yet, as this is the part of the week I don't cook, but it has a very full-bodied fragrance. Still haven't test-driven the Bodum glasses either.

Mom, I got your card. Beautiful as always. Thanks for the article about the Dark Tower comic. I knew it was coming out last week, but our local comic outlook did not take part in the midnight madness. I forgot to stop there when I was out Wednesday, but I'm sure they're already out of it. I will try to buy it on Amazon. If I can't, I know it will be out in Graphic Novel format eventually. It looks beautiful.

And you know, you really didn't need to itemize and pay back that stuff. I'd forgotten all about it. Thanks for the pictures-- I assume the blue dot and the black dot are Sandy and I from The Beach House balcony. And good to have a picture of that magnificent print of Half Moon Bay.

Thanks too for transcribing Sandy's letter. Nice snapshot of that point in time, plus her reply to your letter is an interesting mirror of what you were doing then in your travels.

Congrats on climbing Mt. Washmore. (It can never really be conquered, you know-- only climbed. Then climbed again. And again...) I did towels yesterday-- part of the twice-weekly routine. I do 4-5 loads a week. Bill does his own clothes, but I fold them. Laundry is a part of daily life here, and never becomes a peak to be scaled anymore.

I spent way too much time yesterday and today struggling with my work email account. After being locked out of it for about a month, I finally called work and had them reset the password-- sometime the only thing that works. Then the fun of dealing with over 2,000 new messages! It's complicated by the IMAP client I'm using, which is not cool with such large numbers. It's going to take me days (she says, hopefully) to get the mess cleaned up. What I need to do is get the comics lists changed to my atlantic address and then just shut down the work account. Once I get everything off it, of course. Sigh. Talk about a mountain that just gets higher and higher.

I am about 20 pages away from finishing 50 Degrees Below, so that is the agenda for the rest of the evening.

The Power of Cheese

Gainesville

Happy Heart Day, fellow flies.

Another late start, but I was driven to get moving by the need to get across town and score some of Bill's favorite chocolates from our very excellent local chocolatiere, Thornbrook. I usually get a heart-shaped box made from dark chocolate, filled with an assortment of dark chocolate thingys, but had to settle for a paper box instead. The tiny store was cheek by jowl, and they'd sold out of the dark boxes.

While over there I got some banking done (depositing Christmas checks at last) and made a visit to Fresh Market. Picked up three more bottles of the Magic Olives (what a joy to find them still on the shelves, and with such distant expiration dates, too) and a few other things. It was quite crowded also.

I scouted out their cheese section. Sandy helped talk me out of spending outrageous money to mail-order Cowgirl Creamery cheese, encouraging me to try a local high end shop. I found a triple creme called Cathedrale de Meaux (at $10/pound, quite a bargain compared with $50 for 10 oz!) and also their house brand of Humboldt Fog -- I'd thought this was a brand name. Both were quite nice with some sesame crackers I picked up. I even sliced into the salami I brought back.

This late afternoon feed was a mistake. We went to our traditional valentine's day dinner at the Japanese steak house, and I could hardly eat any of it. What a waste.

The first of my Ferry Building purchases, the Bodum glasses, arrived today. I'm very curious to see how they do with keeping drinks cold and reducing condensation. Tonight's not the night for it, though. It's turned quite chilly again after a mild day or two.

Oh and that "dangerous weather" the paper forcast yesterday? It was a fake! The local emergency services are doing weather DRILLS of all the crazy things. As if we don't have enough stuff to worry about without false alarms! Don't they realize this will just desensitize people to real emergencies?

Book Lust

Gainesville

Sorry you're feeling sub-par, Mom. I bet a good night's sleep or two will fix you right up. Great stuff, sleep.

I got enough of it last night, but had to sleep most of the morning to make up for staying up past 3:00 AM ... reading, of course. In this case, I dropped everything to re-read your childhood copy of Dear Enemy that Sandy sent me. It arrived in the mail yesterday along with two t-shirts from The Beach House. What a great care package! It definitely brightened my day, and, as it turned out, shortened my night. I've read that book numerous times (most recently, online about 3-4 years ago) and it's always newly wonderful. An overlooked classic-- as far as I'm concerned, Daddy Longlegs is just a pale prequel.

Not sure what I did with the shortened day that followed. Nothing worth mentioning. We were supposed to have killer storms this afternoon, according to the paper, but nothing of the sort developed-- just a slightly warm and partly cloudy day.

Made a really good thing with chicken breasts tonight-- baked (brushed with olive oil) and topped at the end with a mixture of sauteed green onions, garlic and pecan chips, mixed with blue cheese. Quite wonderful.

We have been invited to a dinner in honor of Dale (former Director, now retired) by the Provost. Yet another gig as Mrs. Mini-Dir (what Bill calls his position). This one should be very interesting. It's a week from Friday. I will probably need a new cocktail dress-- my newest such thing is over 10 years old, most of them over 20. Time for a major closet purge. Christ, just when I thought I was through with having to play dress-up!

Think I'll make a stab at getting to bed before 1:00. Whoa, radical-- maybe I'd better do just a tiny bit of reading first...

Wish my scanner was operational-- I'd include one of the wonderful Illustrated Librarian temporary tattoos I had in my Xmas stocking -- like, "Born To Read," or "Read or Die," or, my personal favorite, "Book Lust." C'est Moi.

Brief

Gainesville

Hey! I was right about the Sandhill Cranes yesterday morning. Here's a story about them from the Gainesville Sun.

It's very late, and I got up (relatively) early. Got the house about half blessed, got sheets and towels changed and laundered, got out to shop for vitamins, gas, and Tanq 10.

Made a minestrone from Leanne that looked very unpromising while I was making it, but turned out great. Ya just never know. The pasta part of it was a quarter cup of tiny stars. A low carb count, yet a nice thickening. Sweet.

Warmer today, finally, but cold in the house. I call it the domestic lag, thanks to the terrazzo.

Thanks for the letter from Chris, Mom. Amazingly, I could follow all of his techie-talk, and it made me nostalgic for those simpler times. And the advent of the amazing cordless phone! Who would have imagined phones would be so ubiquitous 20 years down the road.

And remember: "Mount Washmore" is something to be avoided. The FL way is ONE LOAD PER DAY, not a marathon. Just do one load tomorrow.

Needa gota bed.

Bio-Alarm

Gainesville

No, Mom, YOU didn't exaggerate anything-- it was me! After reading Sandy's letter written about the time I moved from Baltimore, I reminisced about that birthday party-- and after so many years, the party had ballooned in my imagination to 25 friends. Then the very next day, you transcribed my letter from that time, and I described the same party with only 14 people. Sorry I was so vague. I just thought it was funny that I remembered it as twice as large as it actually was.

Today's installment of my letter from that time was fun for me to read, although it makes me weep to think of all those herbs I grew. That was such a wonderful garden.

Having trouble getting back into FL groove myself. All I want to do is read. And that was pretty much all I did today, except cook dinner and clean up after. (And be bar maid, of course.) I fixed a broiled skirt steak thing, peppered, sliced thin, served on fresh spinach and topped with a very nice milk-based mushroom-dijon sauce which thickened up beautifully. Faux-tatoes and blanched asparagus on the side. Alas, this made for a crazy last minute tango trying to get it all on the table at once.

I have run out of several of the vitamins I take, so need to go out tomorrow. A couple of other errands need doing, so I probably won't get back to Blessing the house until Tuesday.

This morning I woke up to the sounds of thousands of Sand Hill cranes-- at least it sounded like that many. No sign of them, either, so they were probably on the Prairie, making the musical racket all the more impressive. The cat was freaked, but I thought they made a great alarm clock.

Time Shifts

Gainesville

Mom, those items under "links" are just pointers I made to other blogs that are of interest to us-- they don't necessarily know anything about this blog, nor could they post to it-- it's a one way link. Anyone could read this thing, but they would have to know the URL, or stumble upon it through some unlikely search. Don't worry about it, unless you think somewhere down the line you think you'd like to run for political office!

I had to laugh reading my letter you transcribed tonight-- the kindly, soft-focus memory had made my '83 birthday gathering into 25, when according to my own record, it was 14! Hee hee!

My attempt to shop at Sur le Table ended in failure-- today it simply returned me a page full of Java code. Very bad user interface. Rather than fight it, I just went to Amazon and ordered the same stuff there for slightly less.

Shopping at Publix was kind of a shock after Bay Area stores. (There's an understatement.) I made a rather forgettable fish in white wine sauce, with edamame and fruit salad as sides. Tomorrow I will try the Chipotle pork roast.

Finished rereading 40 Signs of Rain. Started rereading 50 Degrees Below. Should be all set to start 60 Days and Counting when it comes out the end of this month.

It's 2:00 AM here. What am I still doing up? Oh, right-- it's only 11:00 PST, a reasonable hour. Last night I was up til 3:00. At least I'm headed in the right direction tonight.

Remote Sensing

Gainesville

Happy Birthday, Charlie. Welcome to True Geezerhood, with the rest of us.

Finally the jet lag is easing up today. It's always hard going this direction. I'm sure this is made worse by the fact that my inner clock was set to Pacific time in infancy and the first 20 years or so. It just feels so right out there. No doubt Mom feels the "rightness" of living in Central time too.

Finished my book last night and now am back to reading the first two volumes of Robinson's global warming trilogy. The third one comes out Feb 26, and I want to be caught up by then to fully enjoy it. I love the way he writes about science. And he has this wonderful passage that sums up the way I felt while Out There this past week:

"... back in San [Francisco]-- his childhood home, and still the place where he felt most comfortable on this earth.

He actually noticed that feeling as he left the airport terminal's glassed-in walkway over the street, and hopped down the outdoor escalator to the rental car shuttles. The comfort of a primate on home ground, no doubt-- a familiarity in the slant of the light and the shape of the hills, but above all in the air itself, the way it felt on his skin, that combination of temperature, humidity, and salinity that together marked it as particularly San [Franciscan]. It was like putting on familiar old clothes after spending a year in a tux; he was home, and his cells knew it."

--Kim Stanley Robinson, Forty Signs of Rain.

He was talking about San Diego, but the feeling is the same.

Easing back into routines-- got the bills caught up yesterday, the fridge cleaned out and menus for next week planned today. Nothing very exciting.

I spent some time today shopping at the Ferry Building-- online, of course. I love that McEvoy Ranch Verde stuff so much I ordered a bottle of it for myself, along with a bottle of their olive oil.

Also spent a long time going through the Sur Le Table site. Finally had an order all ready to go, but when I went to check out, the form wouldn't accept my input-- kept giving me an error as if I hadn't filled out any of the fields. After 4 attempts, I gave up. Will try again in the morning, and if it is still broken, I'll call the order in.

As for the Cowgirl Creamery-- much as I adored that Mt Tam cheese, I finally decided that $50 was a bit much to pay for 10 oz of the stuff! That included postage, but still.

Tomorrow I will begin to cook again. Sometime this week I plan to do the Chipotle pork roast Sandy spotted in the Chronicle.

Glad you're getting your fair share of Wisconsin winter weather, Ma. Who knows, maybe you'll get a bunch of snow before it's over. It's still cold here too, on our scale. The azeleas are spectacular this year, at least in our yard. I haven't been anywhere else in town during daylight. Will see what's what elsewhere when I go out shopping tomorrow.

A fine letter from Sandy. How nice she got to spend that time with Chris. He gave me my kick-start on personal computers too, of course. Invaluable. When I saw the date, I knew exactly what was going on in my life-- we left Baltimore the day after my birthday (and wonderful surprise party at a favorite Greek restaurant-- I'd thought I was meeting two friends there, and about 25 people showed up) and I started work in Gainesville on November 1. I lived in Oak Forest, right on Biven's Arm, for three years before buying the little house on NW 11th St.

Wish now I'd gotten something at the Beach House shop when you did, Mom. That was a swell place I'd like to remember very well.

Shine, Shine, Shine

Gainesville

Yep, I was determined to take advantage of the first class perks this time, so ordered a Bloody Mary, forgetting that they are vodka by default. Like yours, Mom, mine was a glass of ice, a full can of Mr & Mrs T, and two bottles of Finlandia. I only used one of the bottles. What I'll ever do with 1.5 oz of vodka I brought home I have no idea.

Our breakfast was outstanding-- similar to yours, a mushroom omelet topped with salsa, a great sausage patty, roasted potatoes, bowl of fresh fruit, a small croissant w/butter. I ate all of it.

The flight was perfectly smooth, with some lovely views of the snow-covered Rockies and plains. Sat next to a very nice looking woman in her 30's, and we never exchanged a word (other than the usual "excuse me" sort of stuff) until we landed, and suddenly we talked up a storm. She was from SF, attending a business meeting in Charlotte. She told me that we'd left just before the rain hit.

Bill was about 10 minutes late to the airport-- he can never believe that planes arrive on time, let alone a few minutes early. My bag was one of the first out of the chute. We decided to eat downtown. He suggested Harry's, which is, of course, a seafood place. I deliberately picked out the ATLANTIC salmon, which they do very well indeed. The cat and I had the rest of it for lunch today.

And speaking of Carrot, she was very miffed at me at first: ignored me pointedly. After an hour or so she hopped up on my lap, but turned her back on me and just sat there, then hopped down. Eventually she relented, curled up, and all was forgiven. A very cold night here, so she slept with us, not her usual routine.

I spent all day stumbling around in a jet-lagged fog, trying to restore order. Got completely unpacked, all the clothes washed and put away plus the sheets and towels changed and laundered. Tomorrow I will go after the science projects in the fridge and start Blessing the house.

Bill had been out to lunch today and was not interested in dinner. There was only Dogs 'n' Kraut or Pasta a la Newman on the menu anyway, until I get out to shop.

In the mail today I got an official notification of the 50th MVUHS reunion October 5-6. I'm actually thinking about doing it! Carolyn Burke and I still keep in close touch, and of course Mike Peak. They sent a list of MIA classmates-- there were 6-7 I was sad to see on the list, but also happy to see many who were NOT on the list-- their whereabouts are still known, and they might be there. (Of course, they may be known to be dead-- a two edged sword, that list.)

Before I forget, thanks for the garlic slicer and the spreader-- a reminder of the heavenly Cowgirl Creamery. What a splendid day that was, the ferry from Alameda to The City. One of many high points. And as a bit of clarification: it was The Beach House to which I was converted, not the walker! :-)

Thanks for posting Marty's amazing letter from boot camp! That makes the experience so vivid I can picture what it must have been like. I am in awe of how well she did in that situation. And at the same time, I'm glad she didn't become the career soldier she easily could have been, and gave us Ben and Julia instead.

What a wonderful "Pickles" today! We ALL know what this is about...

new post

O.K., I'm in, but yesterday (I'll admit I was a new kid) I couldn't get here.

Greetings to those down the hall. For you others, you'll have to come to SFO to understand.