Stephanie says

Recipe from Food 52 I came across this recipe yesterday and it sounded so good.  It is! I had a big bag of mixed greens on hand so I used those for the kale ingredient.    Serves 4 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus some to serve 1 large onion, chopped 2 carrots, peeled and chopped 2 celery stalks, chopped 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoons dried red pepper flakes, depending on how spicy you like it Salt and pepper, to taste 1 tablespoon tomato paste 1 bunch (about 10...

To quote Don Draper, (because, as you'll remember, at long last I'm viewing my way through the entire "Mad Men" series): "People tell you who they are, but we ignore it because we want them to be who we want them to be." To quote Maya Angelou in a very similar sentiment, "When a man tells you who he is... believe him." Okay.  So give me some great quotes for those of us who are self absorbed, lazily indulgent, and persistently non-analytical individuals.  Something spot on, thank you.    Oh wait.  I just got it. 

I’m viewing my way through the entire Mad Men series.   Right now I’m where Sally, 10 years old, is sent to the shrink.   For masturbating, for heavens sakes.   It brought up old wounds; memories of sending my daughter to the shrink when she was 12.   Because her dear friend, Larry, went out to his garage one day, plugged in a chop saw and severed his carotid artery.   He bled out on the concrete floor.   12 years old.   Police cars and ambulances flashing lights and sirens blaring at his house as I passed by on my way to work at the newspaper - so I checked it out when I got to work.    I had such fear of suicide.   In my husband’s family (notice how I’m distancing my family…) there were five attempts; two were successful.   None of them were teenagers but the very possibility of such an attempt during those tempestuous, raging hormonal years weighed heavily on my mind.   Ty’s friend killing himself struck terror ...

Nippy at the mill pond this morning And very still  Except for when Rosie flushed four Canadian Geese Shaggy Mane mushrooms

In the original Japanese.      I’d like to say that.   I'd really like to say that.  Unfortunately I am a lazy linguist without knowledge of written Japanese, let alone any other foreign language, believing my inherent right of being an English-speaking American ensures me that every other culture will learn my language and spare me the effort.   It’s worked so far.    My book cover actually looks like this.  In English.  This wasn't always my attitude.  I took the obligatory French in high school with disturbingly poor results.  Why?  Because I could envision myself as a translator.  I'd have been good if only I could learn the language.  Years later I took Conversational Italian with workmates from the Statesman Journal:  Michael Agnese, camera department; John DiMaggio, pressman.  I had a trip to Italia booked and these two were making vacation plans - to the "h...

I mowed my lawn today, the second time this year.  Quince and violets are blooming.  Evergreen clematis have acclimated to the fence and promise a dazzling display of blooms and sweet scent. Two peonies have produced shoots.  I received a gift of five varieties that were planted last fall.  I can hardly wait for them to bloom! I planted some seeds today.  Leeks.  In eggshells. 

The bait du jour:  the common house fly.  The hatch is on, apparently mostly in my bathroom.  I discovered maybe 20 flies there a buzzin this morning.  They were a little slow - to their peril - cause I utilized the crevice tool on the trusty vacuum cleaner wand and sucked them up. A short burst of centrifugal force in a dust and dog hair whirlpool killed them off. Appears they're living in the attic and gaining access to my house through the bathroom fan as not 30 minutes later, there were another 20.  I'm not exaggerating.  My co-existing spiders are falling short of their duties.   Maybe my catch and release program has weakened the colony.  Anyway I made sure to latch the bathroom door when I went to work and when I got home there were approximately 40 half dead flies on the floor.   Not for long.  I have a feeling the vacuum has a temporary home in the hallway.

When I first got my old phone, I had to be wearing my reading glasses so I could see what buttons to push to answer it.  I was congratulating myself for my ability to answer the new phone sans glasses just this morning.  Then it rang and I hung up on the caller.  This is a cool phone!  I've had an IPad Touch so am somewhat familiar with the operating system.  And while I haven't gone to the app store yet, I did go to the phone store and bought a hot pink case.  I'm all set now!

It seems like everything I've been cooking lately looks quite similar.  I'm tracking my calorie intake and focusing on getting 21 grams of fiber daily - which means lots of vegetables.  Fortunately I like a lot of them. There are few restaurants in this area and none serve (what I'd consider) a particularly healthy meal, so it's nice to have a big pot of something to dip into for my lunch.  I freeze a few containers for future meals.  It's nice to have a variety on hand. Taco Soup 4.00 tbsp Grape Seed Oil 1.00 large Onions - diced 3.00 clove(s) Garlic - diced 2.00 stalk 7-8 inches long, Celery Stalk 1.00 medium (approx 2-3/4" long, 2-1/2" dia), Peppers - Sweet, red, raw 4.00 cup(s), Soup - Stock, chicken, home-prepared 30.00 g(s), Bacon, cooked and crumbled 415.00 g(s), Chicken ...

This is tasty!  I didn't have any ham so used up a partial block of tofu and crumbled in two slices of cooked bacon.  I'll venture a guess that as good as this version was, one with ham would be exponentially so much better.  I didn't have cilantro either - that would be a nice touch but avocado works.  Can't cite my recipe source - forgot where...  Chipolte chili powder is excellent for a smoky taste with a hint of hot. RED BEANS AND RICE Start to finish: 45 minutes Servings: 8 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 yellow onion, finely chopped 1 large celery stalk, chopped 1 small red pepper, cored and chopped 6 ounces cooked ham, cubed (about 1 cup) 3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme 1/4 cup dry white wine 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth Two 15-ounce cans red kidney beans, drained and rinsed 3 cups water 2 cups long-grain white rice Kosher...