Pentecost

When I was a kid, I didn’t understand what Memorial Day was.  I just thought everyone took Monday off so we could have a cookout for my father’s birthday.  We didn’t cook out all that often in my family, so this was always a big deal.  We’d clean the house, and Mom would bring her old-fashioned coffee maker up from the basement – the kind that percolated the coffee in what looked like a stainless steel jug.  We would cut up veggies for what Mom called a “relish tray,” complete with olives and pickles carefully arranged on special serving platters.  Aunt B would make her special German potato salad, the forerunner of my own German potato salad, and there would be an endless stream of hot dogs and hamburgers from the grill.  It was pretty cool.

Last year, instead of having a cookout, we had a wedding.  It was a lovely wedding, but it sortof overwhelmed dad’s birthday.  This year, Dad, who is usually very laid back about birthdays & Father’s Day and things, let it be known that he would like to have his own birthday celebration this year.  So today everyone in town gathered at the Family Homestead.  Where a certain little lady stole the show.

She’s a whole pound bigger than she was at birth, though she’s still all long, skinny arms and legs, and funny facial expressions.

Including smiles.  And coos, She’s awfully good at them.  It’s pretty awesome.

It seems that once her parents figured out how to burp her properly, she became a much more cheerful baby!  And now her aunts and uncles are learning how too.

Seriously, kids are the best entertainment there is.

The Epiphany

I can’t believe I have the windows open in January.  It’s just wrong.  But then, so is sweltering to death because of all the afternoon sun flooding into the room.  And, yeah, I know, my life is sooo hard.  The very idea, working in a place with actual windows through which actual sunlight (not to mention fresh air) can travel, windows that are even visible from my work station.  Amazing.  I mean, the last time I could actuall see out of the windows of any place I worked without having to get up and walk somewhere was… maybe three years ago?  Four?  I used to be able to see out a small slice of window at Ex-Job1, but then we got new office furniture, and Boss2 (the annoying one) made them put up just enough of a wall so that 1) she was no longer visible from the main office door (God forbid people might actually see her there and, like, ask her to do things), and 2) I could no longer see out of any windows at all.  Ex-Job2 had amazing windows, but they were all far on the other side of the bullpen from my little cubicle, so it didn’t actually help me any.  The people who were by the windows, of course, had one of the best views in Dayton (including the small herd of deer that would occasionally graze its way across the front lawn), but it didn’t do much for the rest of us.  Anyway, I digress.  The point of this is that first, I am working in a place with windows (note the “s”), there is sunshine coming through these windows, and since the day is ridiculously warm, particularly given that it is currently January and not, say, April, these windows are open.

This place where I’m working, which has this miraculous multiplicity of windows, also happens to be a trailer, but we don’t press that point.  We overlook it.

As you may have gathered, I have now transitioned from multiple jobs into only one job.  I have cleared out my various desks, taken my things down off all of the bulletin boards, including the drawing of a buff young Jedi Indy drew for me on the back of a Panera paper bag during a somewhat boring CL meeting years ago, intended to illustrate my future young Padawan learner, the postcard from the NE Girl Jam I went to years ago (still the best design for a swing dancing event postcard I’ve ever seen), the prayer card from Sae & Mr. T’s wedding, and lots of other little things I’ve pinned up over the years.  I pulled my boxes of tea, the ziplock bag of powdered milk, and my bottle of Tabasco sauce from the bottom desk drawer, washed my coffee cups and the big plastic tumbler I use to make blackteawithmilk, and packed everything into a spare grocery bag.  I transferred all my files onto my external hard drive, deleted everything personal off of the office computer, and turned my work ID, office keys, and official letter of resignation in to Boss J.  By the time I was done it was well past quitting time, so I shut the computer down for the last time, and gathered up my stuff.  Big Boss walked me out to my car and gave me one last hug, and then I was done, driving away into the dusk.

There was more to it than that, of course.  Job2 gave me good-bye bagels and a gift certificate to KnitPicks.  Job1 threw me a good-bye luncheon down at Jimmy’s Ladder 11.  There were a lot of people there, which was nice to see, and they all said lovely things about me.  For my going away present, they gave me a Coach bag, which was awesome.  I’ve been needing a new purse since my beloved black and silver bucket bag irretrievably bit the dust.  I’ve found a few temporary things since then, but nothing was just right.  Either it wasn’t big enough to hold all my stuff plus my knitting (one of the most crucial factors for a bag), or it was so open that stuff fell out at the slightest provocation, or it was made from cheap material, or something.  I knew exactly what I wanted, and for the last couple of months I’ve been periodically stalking it on e-bay, but I still hadn’t found quite what I wanted at a price I was willing to pay.  Apparently I told one of my co-workers more about my search than I realized when we were hanging out after the Christmas luncheon, and she decided that she was going to find me the perfect bag as my going-away present.  And I think she just might have succeeded.  It’s big enough to hold all the stuff that I carry, made of black leather (which means it will last), with a top that closes securely, and in the classic, unfussy style I prefer.  Time will tell whether it’s really as perfect as I think it is, but so far it’s just right!

I think the reality of me switching jobs hasn’t totally sunk in yet.  I’ve gotten used to working at so many different places over the last few months that this feels rather like just another temporary change in venue.  It was very hard to say good-bye.  Many of my now ex-coworkers were very melancholy about it.  The sad thing is that, while I like most of them very much, I’m not so close to them that the relationship will continue once we’re not in the same building every day.  There are a few that I hope to stay close to – Boss J in particular – but I know that I’m not good at staying in contact with people.  I have good intentions, but my life is busy and it’s easy for me to get distracted.  Next thing I know, it’s months since I last talked to a person, and then years.  I’ll even write letters, and then forget to send them.  It distresses me because I do genuinely care about the people I’ve lost contact with, still think about them fondly and want to see them.  I’m just horrible at actually picking up the phone.  But hopefully I’ll be able to overcome my tendencies enough to stay in contact with at least a few of my old co-workers.

And now we’re heading into a busy weekend.  Tomorrow morning I have the First Saturday Women’s Group, then tomorrow afternoon is the wedding of one of my ex-coworkers, and then tomorrow evening is the CL Epiphany Party.  On Sunday we have both a Roommate Cleaning Day and Extended Family presents in the late afternoon.  I’m supposed to bring an appetizer, and I’m torn between Jalapeno Popper Dip, Cream Cheese Sausage Meatballs, or maybe a Stuffed Baguette.  Opinions? 

Sts. Cosmas & Damian

My dears, the cold lingers on, but I think we’re slowly but surely showing it the door.  On Saturday I felt better enough to be overconfident, and in a burst of energy, did a mammoth grocery shopping trip, and then came home and cooked up a storm.  I’d been craving chicken soup, and I remembered reading a recipe for roasted chicken soup where your roasted the chicken first for extra flavor before making your chicken broth with the bones.  So I put a chicken in the oven to roast on a bed of baby potatoes from the farmers market, and then started a big pot of vegetable soup.  I had a huge cabbage I’d brought home from Columbus the weekend before (it’s a long story), so I started that cooking with carrots, onions and celery, plus some ground venison for flavor.  And then, I have all these soup bones stashed in the freezer, and lately Rosie’s been making noises about how she’d really like to have more room for her stuff in there.  So I pulled a ham bone out and started a big batch of pinto beans in the slow cooker, adding a few jalapenos and some garlic.

Right about when everything was in ready to simmer for a while/safely in the oven/in the slow cooker, I completely ran out of steam.  I spent the rest of the evening curled up on the couch watching movies (Nacho Libre and Easy A), getting up every once in a while to stir my various pots.  By the time the chicken and soup were done, I realized that I had seriously overextended myself.  I had just enough energy to put the cooked food away in the fridge, and then collapse into bed.

Sunday I woke up just barely in time to get over to Mom & Dad’s for Sae’s birthday brunch.  I was all wobbly and weak again, and though my cough wasn’t as violent as it had been Friday, it was still pretty bad.  I spent most of the party curled up on the couch, working on the first of a pair of baby socks for Baby Schmoo.

Speaking of whom, Sae had many pictures from her most recent ultrasound to share with us.  Baby Schmoo is growing by leaps and bounds, though we still don’t know whether it’s a He-Schmoo or a She-Schmoo.  Both Sae and Mr. T are much happier now that Sae’s near-constant morning sickness is starting to ease.  Sae has a little color in her face again, and Mr. T has relaxed a lot now that his wife isn’t always on the verge of casting up her accounts.

There was a lot of family news to pass around.  Boy-O is making plans to move out of The Family Homestead in just a few weeks.  He and a few friends have gotten an apartment out by Wright State, and are planning to set up their bachelor pad together.  It’s a big change, to have the youngest in the family setting out on his own.  I think it’s a little sad for Mom & Dad, but Indy seems rather excited about it.  She’s already making plans to lay claim to Boy-O’s room as soon as he’s vacated it and turn it into an artist’s studio.

We also did a little Bridal Shower planning.  The Duchess’s big Weekend of Bridal Showers is fast approaching.  We’re going to have two, one for the younger ladies hosted by one of our old CL friends (I know she must have a nickname, but for the life of me I can’t remember what it was) on Saturday, and another hosted by Mariah (she’s The Duchess’s Maid of Honor) for the family and older female friends on Sunday.  It’s going to be quite the weekend, especially since it’s the same weekend as the Yellow Springs Street Fair, and Mariah is trying to scheme a way to work that in there too.  We’ll see how that goes.

One of the cool things about the weekend was having AnniPotts with us.  It’s been so great having her so close – only an hour away in Cincinnati instead of multiple days away in South Dakota or Texas.  It’s actually been hard for her to choose to spend time down in Cincinnati with her roommates, whom she’s supposed to be living in community with, because her family is so relatively close and easily accessible.  And of course, we keep doing cool things and inviting her along (we’re just like that).  It’s such a delight having her around that it’s hard to remember that she has any obligations  besides us!

Now it’s Monday evening, and I’m home again after teaching swing dancing for the UD Swing Club.  Tonight we split the club into Swing I (which I teach with Mr. Zoot) and Swing II (taught by Bounce and Red) for the first time.  Mr. Zoot and I had a good time coaxing our Swing I students through the fundamentals of their first ever swingouts.  They were all pulling off actual recognizable Lindy basics by the end of the class, which is no small feat, and a lot of them stayed to dance for a while afterwards.  Sometimes I forget how deeply satisfying it is to coax new dancers through this first phase, when everything seems so impossible and intimidating.  I love watching them gain confidence, start smiling and enjoying themselves.  It reminds me of why I keep teaching.

It’s been a busy day, and despite my sickness, it was a busy weekend!  As soon as I hit publish, I’m going to turn the computer off and head off for some well-deserved rest.  Tomorrow’s going to be another full day.

Good night!

Sts. Zachary & Elizabeth

Back in the day, when I was a Culinary Arts student at the local community college, one of my favorite classes was Garde Manger.  A small part of the class was learning some of the classical techniques for making highly decorated food that are now only used at the stuffiest and most old-fashioned establishments.  While we never got beyond carving birds from apples or pears, there were illustrations in our textbook of the true heights of food carving to which we could aspire.  My favorite was always the picture of a whole watermelon carved into a gigantic, breathtakingly beautiful rose.  This video, however, puts even that to shame.

I am in awe.  Also, now I want to go buy a watermelon and see what I can do!

St. Aloysius Gonzaga

From far off in Philadelphia, Indy heard our cry for Midsummers pictures and posted them to facebook last night.  And now I share them with you!

First, the stars of our show: The Boys.  From left to right, Boy-O in his mu-mu, MDoS, Captain Amazing’s brother (who really needs his own nickname), Abel, and 007.  Not pictured: 007′s boots, which he was still wearing.

AnniPotts had a rather impressive, judicially-inspired costume this year.  Here she is posing with Odd, Indy’s friend from Philadelphia.

A better look at AnniPott’s inspired wig styling!

The Girl Next Door, looking lovely in her black lace draped purple negligee.  Flo sports a pearl-trimmed silver gown, accented with a skirt repurposed as a cape, and a tulle-trimmed hat.

And this year’s wearer of The Prawn Necklace!  You may recall that Sae wore this last year to great effect!

Not everyone is comfortable dressing up, with is just fine.  Here is Flo standing next to her brother, who graciously consented to wear exactly one costume piece: our Russian fur hat.  Next to him is Sugar Ray, who seemed just fine with putting on ridiculous things.

And in case you wanted a better look at that costume, here he is again in his purple velvet pimp hat, red faux snakeskin jacket, and Western riding chaps.  Nicely done!

And the cutest member of our ensemble, Little D, pictured here with her parents.

And more baby cuteness, just because I can.

In case you were wondering, this is what I wore.  You may recognize the Cursed Bridesmaids Dress, accented with two hip wraps and a ribbon belt, black fishnet mitts, a necklace worn backwards, bottle cap earrings, and hat ornamented with St. Patrick’s day headpiece.  I also had the skirt pinned up with a rhinestone brooch to show the crinoline underneath.  I think this may be my favorite of my Midsummers costumes so far!

And a Midsummers picture post wouldn’t be complete without showing you the food.  Every year Mariah goes all out to give her guests something not only tasty, but different enough to fit the occasion.  Here we have vases of cherries, blueberry and raspberry tarts, smoked turkey breast with grilled vegetables, hard-boiled quail eggs with a dipping salt, caprese salad, and various exotic fruits including lychee, longans, dragon fruit and cactus fruit.  There was also baked brie with rhubarb chutney, but that hadn’t come out of the oven yet.

I kinda love this picture – it looks like something out of a home decorating magazine.  These is the drinks table, with ice water, sangria, fizzy lemonade and iced tea.  There were also zinc tubs under the tables with beer and cider.

And more of the baby!  :D