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Down time......
Sep. 3rd, 2007 09:55 pmThe week was so bloody stressful, I needed a weekend of pure sloth and that's precisely what I've had.
Saturday morning we slept in and after awakening, my husband and I spent the late morning rolling around in bed, being, well marital. I needed passionate lovemaking and mercifully it was a mutual need. 26 years together and we still manage to leave each other breathless. We know where the buttons are, how firmly to press them and in what order. By noon, I was a quivering puddle of guava jelly. Once I was finally out of bed, all I did was putter and post to live journal. I still needed to vent after the week past.
Yesterday, I got some paperwork done. I set out to get to Friends Meeting, but my timing sucked big time. (I need to figure out some more sex positive ways to vent. I'm a queer man. Something that sucks should me a good thing, right?) Anyway, I set out to go to Meeting, but between traffic, stopping for coffee, and getting fuel for the car (the latter two stops, not optional. No caffeine, no gasoline, I'm going no where!) I realized as I pulled into Sebastopol it was already 10:30 and Meeting was 1/2 over. I realized it was Harrison this weekend - the Hairison Street Fair. Bears as far as the eye can see. I figured why not. I headed south and midway thru Marin, traffic got horrendous. The Bay Bridge was closed for the weekend, for major road work. Apparently a large number of folks were crossing the Bay on 580 and heading into the city over the golden Gate. No matter how many pretty bears there are to see, I despise bumper to bumper. When I smoked, once upon a time, so very many years ago, it was my #1 trigger to light up. So much for Hairison. I headed back north. I did get some shopping done for dinner tonight, and decided to invite Jan and Adrienne for supper, and perhaps Country Dan as well as the queer couple, a couple of doors down.
A musician and a psychologist purchased the house two doors down last spring. Its their weekend place and their first purchase. In order to afford it, the gave up purchasing in the city - the prices down there are often too high for 1st time buyers. Ironically, Cole, the musician, partnered with Matt the psychologist, who's last name is, (drum roll please) PORTER. So I actually do live just up the street from a musician named Cole Porter. We were there for their housewarming early in the summer, and have been trying to have them over for supper, but our schedules have not meshed yet. Even tonight, they had to head down to the city for work in the morning. Matt, took off part of the week to go to Burning Man, so heading into work late was not an option for them. Pity. They're nice guys, we'd like to get to know better. And dinner tonight was good.
Thursday a patient brought in some organic fruit and veggies, including a baseball bat that thought it was a zucchini. Literally, it was half the side of a Louisville Slugger. What to do with it? I decided to turn it into a zucchini parmesan. I had a pork tenderloin in the fridge than needed baking and there was a gorgeous array of heirloom tomatoes in the kitchen. I thought of an Insalata Caprese, glazing the pork with some of the Peach Napalm I made a few weeks back, and with the zucchini and a nice bottle wine or two? Sounds like the makings of a great meal to me.
Late this afternoon I foraged in the fridge, and found somethings that really needed using. There was a cauliflower, still edible, though not for much longer that would steam and then mash well. Sweet corn beckoned. I sliced up the mega squash, pulled out the seeds from the thick rings and decided to stuff them. The freezer yielded up some ground turkey, which got flash defrosted in the microwave, and blended with finely chopped onion and garlic, some celery seed, sea salt, white pepper, oregano and egg. Not binding well enough for my taste, I checked the bread box and found a stale croissant, which buzzed up into crumbs in the food processor. That did the trick. The rings got stuffed, dredged though beaten egg and into seasoned cornmeal. Then onto a hot griddle and then over the counter to cool. It got layered into a casserole with mozzarella, provolone, and a good tomato sauce and into a 325 degree oven. The pork got rubbed with the Napalm, covered and into the same oven.
While that cooked, it was off to the deck to pick basil, out of the riot growing in a wine barrel just outside our bedroom. Slice up the heirlooms, layer it with the basilica, some provolone and mozzarella, toss over some heirloom cherry tomatoes and dress it all with some thai basil vinaigrette. Guests arrived with wine and feasting began. I had planned to make some Fire Brownies (Will's recipe for mexican chocolate brownies with chili), but I had not planned out my time well enough and never got them made. They weren't missed, at least not too badly. Besides, neither Dan nor Jan care for food that bites back.
Good food enjoyed with good friends. It doesn't get better than this.
Saturday morning we slept in and after awakening, my husband and I spent the late morning rolling around in bed, being, well marital. I needed passionate lovemaking and mercifully it was a mutual need. 26 years together and we still manage to leave each other breathless. We know where the buttons are, how firmly to press them and in what order. By noon, I was a quivering puddle of guava jelly. Once I was finally out of bed, all I did was putter and post to live journal. I still needed to vent after the week past.
Yesterday, I got some paperwork done. I set out to get to Friends Meeting, but my timing sucked big time. (I need to figure out some more sex positive ways to vent. I'm a queer man. Something that sucks should me a good thing, right?) Anyway, I set out to go to Meeting, but between traffic, stopping for coffee, and getting fuel for the car (the latter two stops, not optional. No caffeine, no gasoline, I'm going no where!) I realized as I pulled into Sebastopol it was already 10:30 and Meeting was 1/2 over. I realized it was Harrison this weekend - the Hairison Street Fair. Bears as far as the eye can see. I figured why not. I headed south and midway thru Marin, traffic got horrendous. The Bay Bridge was closed for the weekend, for major road work. Apparently a large number of folks were crossing the Bay on 580 and heading into the city over the golden Gate. No matter how many pretty bears there are to see, I despise bumper to bumper. When I smoked, once upon a time, so very many years ago, it was my #1 trigger to light up. So much for Hairison. I headed back north. I did get some shopping done for dinner tonight, and decided to invite Jan and Adrienne for supper, and perhaps Country Dan as well as the queer couple, a couple of doors down.
A musician and a psychologist purchased the house two doors down last spring. Its their weekend place and their first purchase. In order to afford it, the gave up purchasing in the city - the prices down there are often too high for 1st time buyers. Ironically, Cole, the musician, partnered with Matt the psychologist, who's last name is, (drum roll please) PORTER. So I actually do live just up the street from a musician named Cole Porter. We were there for their housewarming early in the summer, and have been trying to have them over for supper, but our schedules have not meshed yet. Even tonight, they had to head down to the city for work in the morning. Matt, took off part of the week to go to Burning Man, so heading into work late was not an option for them. Pity. They're nice guys, we'd like to get to know better. And dinner tonight was good.
Thursday a patient brought in some organic fruit and veggies, including a baseball bat that thought it was a zucchini. Literally, it was half the side of a Louisville Slugger. What to do with it? I decided to turn it into a zucchini parmesan. I had a pork tenderloin in the fridge than needed baking and there was a gorgeous array of heirloom tomatoes in the kitchen. I thought of an Insalata Caprese, glazing the pork with some of the Peach Napalm I made a few weeks back, and with the zucchini and a nice bottle wine or two? Sounds like the makings of a great meal to me.
Late this afternoon I foraged in the fridge, and found somethings that really needed using. There was a cauliflower, still edible, though not for much longer that would steam and then mash well. Sweet corn beckoned. I sliced up the mega squash, pulled out the seeds from the thick rings and decided to stuff them. The freezer yielded up some ground turkey, which got flash defrosted in the microwave, and blended with finely chopped onion and garlic, some celery seed, sea salt, white pepper, oregano and egg. Not binding well enough for my taste, I checked the bread box and found a stale croissant, which buzzed up into crumbs in the food processor. That did the trick. The rings got stuffed, dredged though beaten egg and into seasoned cornmeal. Then onto a hot griddle and then over the counter to cool. It got layered into a casserole with mozzarella, provolone, and a good tomato sauce and into a 325 degree oven. The pork got rubbed with the Napalm, covered and into the same oven.
While that cooked, it was off to the deck to pick basil, out of the riot growing in a wine barrel just outside our bedroom. Slice up the heirlooms, layer it with the basilica, some provolone and mozzarella, toss over some heirloom cherry tomatoes and dress it all with some thai basil vinaigrette. Guests arrived with wine and feasting began. I had planned to make some Fire Brownies (Will's recipe for mexican chocolate brownies with chili), but I had not planned out my time well enough and never got them made. They weren't missed, at least not too badly. Besides, neither Dan nor Jan care for food that bites back.
Good food enjoyed with good friends. It doesn't get better than this.
