"Eat the Cake, Please, People."

I have been wracking my brain this evening trying to think of something to say about travel. After all, this is Travel Tuesday, and since I didn't follow through on Movie Monday, I wanted to at least get Tuesday right. But here I am rather late in the evening, and I have no travel pointers to speak of. 

I am, however, about 26.5 hours away from 2009, and so I was also thinking about topics we could touch on to celebrate the end of 2008. Yeah. No clue on that one, either.

As luck would have it, though, I just flipped on the TV and "Ace of Cakes" is on the Food Network. I don't know if you watch the show, but it's a "reality" show which focuses on a cake decorating shop in Baltimore. I used to live in Baltimore, and I love watching the show for the glimpses of Baltimore and its surroundings as much as I enjoy watching the cakes get made. 

Well, just after I turned it on, I heard Mary Alice (the office ringmaster) commenting on some people who were unwilling to cut into their three-foot-tall cupola cake. Mary Alice's response was "It's a cake. Eat the cake, please, people. Just eat the cake."

So... Here are my thoughts on all of this:

1) Travel Tuesday: If you want a slightly-skewed (but fun) view of Baltimore, check out "Ace of Cakes." If you want a view of Charm City Cakes while on a trip to Baltimore, head for Remington Avenue in Hampden (it's a Baltimore neighborhood) and look for the building which is always featured on the show--but don't expect to drop in and hang out with anyone from the show, since this is their place of work. 

2) Reflections on 2008/2009: I've spent a lot of this year searching for a new job. But I've also spent time doing some fairly serious gardening. And taking the time to travel. And enjoying friends and family. And writing these blog posts. And trying to figure out what is really important to me (in life, in work, in a meal, and just in general). And, well, I'm kind of hoping that next year I not only make a resolution or two, but I also find some resolution to a few of my "situations."

No matter what, I hope to take Mary Alice's words to heart (even though she may not have meant them to be taken to heart). I hope to remember, above all, to "Eat the Cake" and not just ogle it from a distance. 

(And if it also happens to be a white cake with buttercream frosting, well, that would just be the... ummm... the icing on the... well... you know.)

A Milestone, Hurrah!

It has come to my attention that I have now passed the 100-posting point. In fact, the post you're currently reading is post number 102 which I have added to this blog. How cool is that?

Thanks to all of my "regular" readers, to any of you who just drop by from time-to-time, and--especially--to those who not only read these posts, but also take the time to let me know that you do. 

I only wish I were feeling better and could appropriately celebrate this century mark. Maybe post a bunch of pictures of the  Minnesota Zoo's sea otters from last week (they're coming, I promise!). Or a recipe or two from the Holiday baking I've done. Or at least find something intriguingly new to say about John Barrowman. Instead, I'm sitting here typing while watching a kaleidoscope of television programs as I reach the end of my energy for the day. 

Yes, Christopher and I continue to battle our "common" colds. Although, the further we go along, the more I realize how much of a misnomer that is. After all, the two of us have almost entirely different symptoms, yet if we walked into a doctor's office we'd both be told we simply have colds. My one foray outside the house today was for orange juice, apple cider (good either cold or hot) and bread. So we're stocked up on Vitamin C and cough drops and can make either sandwiches or toast. 

I'm really hoping that New Year's Eve holds more than OJ and toast, but for the current milepost, I'm going to raise a glass of the orange stuff, crunch a buttered crust, hum a chorus or two of "Auld Lang Syne" and head for bed. 

See you soon in posting 103!

Sunday Sickday

I'm frustrated to say that we seem to have caught colds, here in Minnesota. Christopher has been fighting off something for a while, and as of the beginning of last week I started a gradual downhill slide, too. Yesterday we both kind of looked at each other and shrugged, realizing the inevitable was due to arrive. 

Thus, it was no surprise to either of us that we spent all of today in our pajamas, leaving the couch only long enough to find some sustenance and do a little laundry. 

On a better note, we played host to my parents again last night. They were back in town after flying out to LA for Christmas, and since their flight didn't get in until after dark, yesterday, they stayed over and drove home today. Seeing them before and after their time in LA was a great way to kind of book-end the Christmas festivities with their visits. I hadn't expected it, but it was actually a little strange to look outside today and not see their car sitting on the street...

So now that Christmas is pretty much officially over, Christopher and I just have to figure out how to get up enough energy to stay up until midnight on Wednesday night. Oh. Heck. Who am I kidding? I'm just hoping to work my stamina up to being able to stay awake until 9:30 by then.

You "Otter" Try It

Having the day off, Christopher and I went to the Minnesota Zoo yesterday (avoiding the zoo-like shopping, for the most part), and watched the Sea Otters frolic in the 30-degree weather. It was great. One of those moments of zen that you really really really hope for this time of year, but seldom get to experience. 

We stood in front of the enclosure and watched the otters zoom through the water, leaving trails of bubbles. We watched one of them curl up in a ball (or... well... a donut shape), and spin vertically in the water. And--our favorite--we watched one go back and forth right up against the glass, on his back and kind of waving out at us. 

For a while we weren't cold, we weren't stressed out by work or family, and we didn't care that we've both eaten too many cookies in the past few weeks. Instead, we just watched them. And it made us happy. 

So you know what we did?

We waved back. 

The Calm Before the After...

We are currently spending a very nicely relaxed evening at home after the festivities of the past 36 hours. 

We also, I must say, have had a very nice past 36 hours--Christmas Eve and Christmas were both quite enjoyable. We had what I would consider was a just-right mix of family and alone time, complete with sitting at home last night in front of the Christmas tree and the (TV-broadcast) yule log. 

We're not looking forward to the possible freezing precip (drizzle or rain or snow or a combo) tomorrow, but we've had two great weather days--including glorious sunshine on the snow while driving around today. And we can run any necessary errands on Saturday.

So I leave you to yourselves for the evening. Christopher and I are going to have a few more cookies and head for bed. 

Ahhh... Merry Christmas!

An Entertaining Dilemma

Sorry. That's not meant as "funny," it's meant as a dilemma one has when entertaining guests.

Let's start with part one: You and a co-host decide to have a very small gathering of friends over for, say, Groundhog Day. You both sit down with your lists of friends and go through it and pare down whom to invite. This is either done as an "additive" process or a "subtractive" one, depending on how you think about it. For our case, let's say it was done in the "additive" sense. 

So the two of you start by inviting the people who first pop into your mind. You make your lists of those people, and see how many you end up with. Say you're hoping to have about 15 people in attendance, so you start with your initial list of 5 or 6 people and then begin adding in until you get to 15 or 20 (figuring that a few people will have to decline, since so many people have plans around Groundhog Day). You do your best to choose people who will mix well with the initial 5 or 6, and you keep adding in. Although you have to make some hard choices, eventually, the two of you get your combined list to around 18 people, after adding and moving people around. 

So you have your Groundhog Day party, and it's a very nice turnout. Of course, it's the beginning of February, so the weather may have kept some people away. Even so, you get between 15 and 20 people--just what you wanted. You all enjoy a nice evening of Groundhog Day favorites, and you don't even end up with a ton of dishes at the end of the night. All good, right?

Still with me? Okay, we've made it through part one... Now, on to part two:

A few days later, you find yourself at a friend's Groundhog Day party. Unfortunately, this friend wasn't on the list of people you invited to your party, because you seldom see her and although you like her and her boyfriend, you can't imagine that they would have wanted to come. After all you really only see each other at parties thrown by mutual friends. In other words, you're simply "friends-in-law"--and as with most in-laws, you just don't hang out together on your own.

So, there you are at your friend-in-law's party, and she's very happy to see you. She and her boyfriend have welcomed you with hugs and are making sure you're taken care of and comfortable. You've brought a hostess gift, and it was well-received. 

It's going very well, and you're having a nice time, when suddenly someone who WAS at your Groundhog Day party makes a comment about said party. Of course, this was an off-hand remark, so you hope against hope that possibly your host (who wasn't invited) didn't hear the question. But, alas, she perks up and says "When was that?" And your former guest turns and says "At the Groundhog Day party they threw last weekend." This, of course, is answered by silence... and a strangely palpable combo of feelings of querulousness and odd Groundhog Day guilt. Luckily, this is eventually followed by hostly offerings of more wine and cake. 

Ah... The dilemma of entertaining around Groundhog Day. Isn't it fun?

Movie Monday - "Australia"

Last week, while my folks were here, we took the opportunity to head out to a late-afternoon matinee of "Australia."

I'm sure you've heard of it. It's the epic movie starring Aussies Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman and directed by (Aussie) Baz Luhrmann. Even more Aussie than all of them is Brandon Walters, who steals the show as the Aboriginal "half-caste" child who narrates the film.

I had seen trailers for it way back when, in which Kidman was telling a small child the tale of "The Wizard of Oz" and it was being equated to the history of Australia. Since then, I've seen the trailers where the movie looks like a Western with a Romantic Comedy thrown in. Needless to say, I had no idea what to expect when the lights dimmed.

Oh. I should mention a few things: 1) We were the only three people in the theater; 2) The movie is 2h45m long; 3) We had purchased the "Pop and Popcorn" combos as our dinners for the night. Why is this all important? Because it's much easier to go into an almost-three-hour movie when you're comfortable. Since we figured we wouldn't annoy anyone if we got up to use the bathroom mid-movie (and then had to talk to the person next to us to get caught up), it was much easier to settle in.

And settle in we did. When the movie was over, we all admitted that it didn't seem like it had been three hours. But... I get ahead of myself.

The story revolves around an upper-crust Englishwoman (Kidman) who goes to straighten out her husband in Northern Australia. On her arrival, she is greeted by The Drover (Jackman), a working-class cattle driver. When they reach the ranch, she finds out that her husband has been found murdered, their ranch is without water, and the entire place is being run by the staff--all non-white and terrified by a local major land-owner.

The movie begins with the ranch and the murder mystery. Then it becomes a cattle drive western. Next it becomes a story of power struggles and land rustling. Finally it wraps around into a wartime adventure film. 

I know it sounds like it should be four separate movies. And it could easily have been choppy or... well... lumpy, at the least. But it's not. Somehow the movie seamlessly flows from one area to the next. Although I admit that I wasn't thrilled with the war movie at the end, I should fully disclose that I'm just not a war movie watcher. And, even with that extra component, I still found myself coming to the end of the film wanting to see it again so I could pick up the small points.

I feel like I'm leaving so much out. There are small characters throughout who make all the difference--the bartender in Darwin, the ranch staff, The Drover's team, the "bad guys"--all make this movie more interesting moment to moment. 

There is amazing music in the movie. There are great vistas and scenery which at once makes you want to go visit, and terrifies you. And, oh, yeah, there is Hugh Jackman looking absolutely amazing (I saw him say in an interview that he loved the role because it was the first time in ages that he got to use his own accent). 

I fully intend to drop "Australia" into my Netflix queue for when it comes out. I'm really looking forward to seeing it again and catching more of the nuances in the spectacle.

Does Nicole Kidman's forehead ever move? I don't think so. Is this a movie which is big enough for you to forget that Nicole Kidman's forehead doesn't move? Definitely. 

Go see it. Now. It's the perfect 3-hour break from all the Holiday family time.

Sunny Sunday Mini-Post

I am happy to say that I am NOT outside clearing off the sidewalks. Having done it twice, yesterday, to make sure that our guests were able to get in and out okay last night, I figure I deserve a bit of a break. 

Instead, I'm very much enjoying sitting in the house and looking out at the hyper-white of the snow-covered world now that the sun has come out. Granted, it's only about 2 degrees outside, but at least it's pretty. Currier and Ives would be proud of it.

Seems like the perfect day to curl up on the couch with a book and a cup of hot chocolate, doesn't it? (Now you know why this posting is so short.)

My Kind of Christmas Shopping

I don't know about you, but I can skip the malls this time of year. I'm not excited about going to the strips of big box stores. And even though I love the occasional shopping excursion to the "home goods and all things semi-kitschy" stores, December is not when I find myself excursing there. 

Where do I love to go this time of year? (Okay... my immediate family and my close friends have a leg up on the competition when answering that...) 

I love Grocery Stores. 

And today was a great pre-Holiday day for me. Officially, I was shopping for what we need for tomorrow night's small cocktail and dessert party. Unofficially, I was spending 3 hours getting my Holiday spirit in gear. 

I started out in the wine section of a World Market. While I was there, I had a nice conversation with another shopper about when, during a party, you should serve a $5 bottle of wine. (We both voted that later in the evening was the best answer.)

Then I moved to SuperTarget for the lion's share of the groceries and a few kitchen essentials. Amazingly enough, I had a nice conversation with the kid at checkout. He was obviously new to retail, and had a rather rehearsed repartee, but at least he was making the effort as he bagged my purchase. 

Next stop: Cub for some coupon items we needed. This started out as a questionable experience when I couldn't find a hand-basket, and the lines at the registers were hugely long. But as I was doing the self-service checkout a very nice woman helped me get the coupons to scan, and I actually got a smile out of an older woman standing in the door waiting for her car. 

On the way home, I hit Lund's for some specialty cheeses and white chocolate. Lund's almost always beats the competition in the service department. Today was no different. I had a nice chat with a sample-pusher who was straightening up after being attacked by cheese cascading out of the case behind her. And a manager-type did a stock check for me when I couldn't find the white chocolate that I wanted. At check out, the woman who was bagging my groceries even struck up a conversation about my Gemar's Market reusable bag from my hometown grocery store. 

As I was hauling my 7 bags of groceries in from the car, I couldn't do anything but smile. There's nothing like an afternoon in four different food stores to get my Christmas spirit in sparkling. 

I know. I'm a bit odd. But at least I'm happy. 

A "Wonder"-ful Movie

Yes. It's the Holidays. Yes. We all know which "Wonderful" movie comes to mind at the Holidays. No. That is not the movie I watched today.

I actually watched--with some trepidation--"Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium" this afternoon. It's about a magical toy shop owned by Dustin Hoffman (Magorium, an "avid wearer of shoes"), run by Natalie Portman ("composer of music"), and having its books done by Jason Bateman (Henry, "the Mutant"--don't worry--that's explained in the movie). There's also an amazing young kid named Eric Applebaum ("the hat collector") played by Zach Mills. And then there's the store, itself, which is one of the most important players in the movie.

But, as I said, I started watching the movie with trepidation. I had seen the previews and thought it could definitely go too far to the cheesey, too far to the schmaltzy, or simply too far. Happily, it doesn't.

Sure... There are moments which are way out there for adults, but I'm sure kids watching the movie would have enjoyed them. And there are moments where the background activity kind of gets in the way of what little story there is. And there is the whole question of where Magorium came from 243 years ago. Yet, somehow, the movie works. 

There are small moments which help you to see the humanity in the insanity. And small moments when you see just how insane day-to-day life can be. When young Eric asks Henry to play checkers with him--a conversation entirely conducted by writing on pads of paper and holding them up to a dividing window--you begin to see the need for the wistful and the imaginative in Henry's grown-up life. Watching Portman try to convince Hoffman not to leave by giving him "the greatest day ever" (including going into a mattress store to jump on the beds), well, that just shows how great life can be if you don't take yourself too seriously.

Surprisingly, Magorium spouts some pretty nifty platitudes in the movie, which I hadn't expected. And I found myself, as the movie ended, thinking how much I had enjoyed it and how glad I was to have put aside my laptop for the time it took to watch the movie. 

Okay. Full-blown honesty: Some of the CGI special effects were just a little off. I don't know what it was about them, but there were moments when you could tell the actors were simply acting, and didn't know what was going on around them. Sadly, in one of the pivotal scenes, it was very distracting. Luckily, for me, it was being able to identify with the human actors in the movie which made it fun for me. 

Greatest movie of all time? Sorry, no. See it anyway? Yes. If you've got time to get it, I'd highly recommend taking a break from the hustle and bustle of the Holidays with a shopping spree at the Wonder Emporium. 

Pre-Holiday Wrapping-Up

I have always held that the weeks preceding Christmas are much more fun than the day itself. I guess I thrive on the anticipation and the preparation, and have always been a little worried about having reality not live up to the expectations. And, yes, I fully admit that I feel that way in many areas of my life--not just at Christmas time.

With that in mind, I've got to say that the past few days have been really fun. We're still a week from Christmas, and my parents have been in town for about four days. We've gone out to dinner with some of Christopher's family. We've stayed in for full days reading and watching TV. We went to lunch at a cafe which is actually in a flower shop/greenhouse not far from home. We even did some last-minute shopping. And, yes, we've spent time in the kitchen while baking and talking.

Right now we're sitting in front of a 1950s movie musical from Netflix with the Christmas tree lighted, and then this evening we get to enjoy one more dinner before taking Mom and Dad to the airport. You see, Mom and Dad are heading for California tonight, off to spend Christmas with my sisters and their families. They'll be having a big Christmas with the grandkids, while Christopher and I spend the holiday with his family. 

Don't get me wrong. I'm definitely looking forward to the next week. We're hosting a very small Christmas party this weekend. I still have presents to wrap (yes. I consider that enjoyable). And Christmas with Christopher's family is always fun. But I have to admit that--in some ways--this past few days will be hard to beat.

Oh, The Weather Outside is Frightful...

(Sorry. No "but" after that.)

As I write this, at 4:30 in the afternoon--which, granted, is past peak solar heating time in mid-December--it is currently -3 degrees outside. No. That is NOT the windchill. It's just the temperature. 

I realize that many people are going to read that and say (either outloud or to themselves) "He lives in Minnesota, what does he expect?" But you have to know that this kind of temperature is normal in late January. And it's mainly when we're talking about overnight low temperatures. Today, -1 was the high. We're expected to spend about 36 hours below zero before getting up to a balmy 7 degrees tomorrow in the midafternoon.

Average high on this day? 24 degrees, according to The Weather Channel. That's a difference of 25 degrees! That is the equivalent of Vegas having a freeze overnight, instead of only a temp in the 50s. Or of Miami being in the upper 30s, instead of the low 60s. It's a big difference.

Of course, this being Minnesota, we're pretty much taking it all in stride. I made sure to cover myself from head to toe--with only my eyes showing--when I went out to clear off the sidewalks. (One problem: My glasses not only fogged up, but also froze over. So I had to clear the walks with them off. My apologies to our neighbors for the mediocre job...)

In the house, it's noticeable too, though. Because it was warm (almost 40) and rainy yesterday, before dropping about 50 degrees in 14 hours, we've developed a lot of condensation on the windows (some liquid, some frozen at this point). Strange the tricks that Mother Nature plays. 

Don't worry, though. Christopher and I are still going to go out to dinner tonight with all of our parents. 

We'll try to get home before it gets too cold.

The AMAZING Smell of Lasagna

Christopher has spent the past couple of hours in and out of the kitchen. He started around 2:30, making a massive pot of pasta sauce. Cans and cans of tomato sauce and tomato paste, red wine, oregano, garlic and a bunch of pepper and other spices went into one of the largest pots we own. By the time 4 rolled around the house was already smelling heavenly.

It's now just after 5 and he is back in the kitchen putting together the lasagna which will be for tonight's dinner. He's starting with some of that incredible sauce (really... it's amazing... just the right amount of spicy heat... SO good!), and layering in ricotta, parmesan, mozzarella, and pepperoni into it. I can hear him grating the cheese and I know it's going to be in the oven soon. Basically, the next 90 minutes are going to be excruciating as we sit around smelling it and salivating.

OH. Slightly different topic:

My folks are in town right now (which is part of why we're having the amazing dinner). They're flying out of MSP on Wednesday to celebrate Christmas in LA with the rest of the family. They had been planning to come into town today or tomorrow, but as the weather forecast kept getting worse, I pushed them to come yesterday (when it was in the 30s and sunny. 

So no one is driving through the rapidly-icing snowy weather outside. Instead we're all happily warm and cozy inside with a football game on the TV, lights on the Christmas tree, and lasagna in our not-immediate-enough future. 

Let the Holidays begin!

A Best Laid Thursday...

This has certainly been a day of things "oft going awry."

1) I was all set to make a batch of cookies today, and then realized that it had to chill for at least a couple of hours before shaping and baking. I set it aside, but by the time it was ready, I wasn't in the mood to be festive with the dough.

2) Since I wasn't feeling festive enough for decorated Christmas cookies, I decided to move on to the wrapping of some gifts. But as I reached into the box shipped from a certain online store (which shall remain nameless until at least after the 25th), I found that one of the items I had been shipped was completely and totally wrong. I mean, it was the right type of thing--for our secretive pre-holiday purposes, we'll say it was a sweater--but instead of being a naturally-colored nubbly fisherman's sweater in an Extra Large, it was a hot pink cashmere with a v-neck and three-quarter sleeves in a size zero. (Yes. I'm heading out into the December chill to look into an in-store exchange tomorrow. Wish me luck.)

3) Christopher and I were planning to meet up with an old friend of his for dinner tonight, and then go out to hear some friends of ours perform in their Country Western yodelling band Rope Trick this evening. But the after-dinner conversations just kept going, and the next thing we knew it was 11:30 and we were all yawning--definitely not in the right state of mind for heading out to a bar for a few drinks and some yodelling. 

Now it's almost midnight, and I'm only barely going to get this post in under the wire to say it was done on Thursday. Or at least I hope I am. The way the day has been going, it probably won't show up until Saturday...

The "Lesser" of Two Evils

On Monday night, on the way to bed, I noticed one of the small miracles of this time of year: The hyper-bright nights caused by snowy ground and light. Granted, on Monday, the light causing the snow to glow was from "light pollution" reflecting off of low-hanging clouds, so everything was kind of a freaky orange color. Even so, it was pretty amazing having all of that light pouring through the windows hours after the sun went down. 

Of course, all that snow on the ground late on Monday meant that I got to go out on Tuesday and clear snow. This time there was definitely too much to sweep away, and since I had gotten gas for the snow blower earlier in the week, I figured this was my chance to become acquainted with this gadget. I helped Christopher pick it up a couple years ago, but I'd never used it (I always opted for the shovel). 

So yesterday morning I filled the tank and spent the next 5 minutes or so working on starting it--manually, with the electric start, and, finally, with a few appropriately placed "coaxing" expletives. Suddenly I found myself standing in the middle of the driveway with a roaring snow blower and no idea what to do with it. For practice, I shoved it back and forth around the driveway. 

Here's what I learned during my first snow blowing session:

1) I found out that it's pretty near impossible to pull it backward through snow (snow simply builds up behind it). 

2) I frequently reminded myself that pulling it backward while the blade was still running was STUPID and dangerous. 

3) I discover why it shouldn't be pushed into the wind (and felt the wrath as the snow blew into my face). 

4) I learned that getting too close to grass (or flower beds) results in nasty dirt and mulch kick-ups.

5) (This one is interesting!) I found that the more snow you're going through, the higher/farther the snow will go. I'd have thought that small amounts would do just as well, but there you go.

And, unfortunately, I found out this morning that the snow blower comes with an unexpected side effect: really sore forearms. Yep. I woke up this morning with an amazing aching that starts around my elbows and goes all the way to my thumbs. For about half an hour I was kind of freaked out by that. Then I remembered what I had done, yesterday, and realized what had caused the achiness.

Which leads me to the titular dilemma:

Is it better to deal with a sore back and shoulders from shovelling? Or to deal with sore forearms and hands from the vibrations of the snow blower?

I mean, it's nice that it's not my back, but I'm not sure if aching forearms are really that much better. I guess I'll get to make that decision in a few days when we get more snow...

Oh. In the meantime, I'm looking forward to the full moon this weekend. I can't wait to see how that looks on the snow. 

The Tree is Up!

Christopher and I spent yesterday putting up our new Christmas tree. Hurrah! 

And, yes, we have a brand new artificial tree, for one or more of the following reasons (you decide):

1) More Eco-friendly (we didn't have to deforest anything to get it, plus it will be around year-t0-year).

2) More Eco-nomical (if we use it one more year, it will more than pay for itself, in comparison to "live" trees at the current prices).

3) Less mess (no watering... no loose needles... no complaints).

4) It's a "narrow" tree so it actually fits our space (6.5-feet tall, but only about 2 feet across at the base).

We spent a bunch of yesterday putting it up. I was having a blast fluffing the branches (it was my first time!), but Christopher has done it before so he was a little less enthused. I wrapped the lights on it (I figured we could wrap and unwrap the lights each year for less than the difference in price between a "pre-lit" and "un-lit" tree), and then we went to town. 

We started with a brand new "Lady and the Tramp" ornament, which took pride of place in the front and center of the tree. And then I let Christopher go first, so we have all of his Hallmark Grinch, Snoopy, Looney Tunes, Scooby-Doo, and Muppet ornaments up and nicely distributed around the tree. 

Then I started going through all of the boxes of ornaments I've been carrying around for years. There are crocheted snowflakes from a little old lady in my hometown. There is a blown glass "Campanile" from my alma mater of South Dakota State University. There's a whole bunch of Mickey Mouse-shaped silver "balls."

** sidenote ** Yes. We both hung a lot of memories on the tree, yesterday. But some things simply aren't made for blogging about. Take some time to look over your own ornaments and tell someone their stories, and you'll know what I mean. ** end sidenote **

Christopher walked through at one point while I was lying on the floor looking for the perfect place to put the next ornament, and just laughed. "Enjoying yourself?" was all he said. ("Yes, thank you!") 

In fact, as I continue to search for a job, I think I'm going to look around for a year-round Christmas tree decorator position. Or tree decorator AND baker of Christmas cookies. Hmmm... Where do you suppose you send an application to become an elf?

First Christmas Card!

I have my cards. I have my letter written and photocopied. I have my stamps. And, since I moved this year, I had every good intention of sending out my cards early to be sure that I had given out the correct new address to all of my friends. 

Unfortunately, as with my cookie baking, I'm also running behind on my card mailing. I was going to write some today, but after shovelling snow this morning, I just wasn't feeling up to it. I was hoping that a nap would get me into the spirit, but even after a nap and a shower I still didn't feel up to the task of being seasonally cheerful. 

Tomorrow we're planning to put up the Christmas tree, watch a Christmas movie or two, and maybe do some more baking. I'm hoping that by the time we're done with all of that I might have a little more energy which I can put toward the cards.

Of course, in the meantime, we got our first card in the mail today. It came from some great friends, and I think it will definitely spur me on tomorrow. At least it will if I don't have to shovel...

Christmas Baking - The Early Stages

For the first time in years I didn't start my Christmas baking the weekend after Thanksgiving. In fact, I didn't start until yesterday. And even then it was only a few dozen Spritz cookies which I whipped up because Christopher's grandmother was spending the night. And, really, how hard is it to crank out (literally--I have a crank-style cookie press) 5 dozen wreaths?

Okay. I'm sure I sound kind of obsessive to many people. After all, there have been years where I made over a hundred dozen Christmas cookies of various types (yes. more than 100 dozen. my top was 113 dozen, to be exact, which works out to 1,356 cookies, bars, and scones), but the past few years I've maxed out around 50 or 60 dozen. I know... I've become a slacker.

Well, this year I've been putting off starting because I haven't wanted to trash the house when Christopher is around. You see, I bake Christmas cookies with a certain amount of abandon. Although in some areas of them I'm pretty particular (just ask my friend Jen about sprinkling colored sugar on Spritz cookies...), I still tend to end up with flour on my shirt, powdered sugar on the floor, and chocolate-coated oatmeal stuck to the table. 

And although Christopher has some idea of all that has happened in my kitchen around Christmas the past few years, he's mainly been around to see the sweet goodness of the "aftermath." He hasn't been there when the pans were going in and out of the oven. Or when the table was covered with waxed paper for 4 hours to let chocolate "no-bake" cookies harden.

So I'm starting slow. I figure if I work it right I'll be able to do them all when he's not around, and he'll simply come home in the evenings to see more cookies magically appearing. I might even be able to carry it off, if I can keep the flour and powdered sugar explosions and chocolate-oatmeal shrapnel to a minimum. (Wish me luck!)

Commercial Perceptions

I've worked in and around Marketing for long enough to know that it's not the advertising you do that makes the difference. What makes the difference is how people perceive the advertising you do. 

You know how it is. You see a commercial and the jingle sticks in your head, but when someone asks you what the commercial was for, you have no idea. Or, worse yet, you watch a commercial for, say, an Audi, and when it's over you're thinking "Wow. I really want to travel to Italy, too." Some marketing exec just spent thousands and thousands of dollars on a car ad, and you've boiled it down to a travelogue. Oops.

As we come up to the Holidays, we get lots and lots of ads, and many of them don't always have a solid focus. They're trying so hard to catch customers, that they throw the net as wide as possible and hope for the best.

Of course, there are a few constants in Holiday commercials. You know you'll see lots of twinkling lights. You know you'll hear all sorts of Christmas carols. And you know that you'll be seeing more red and green than you can stand. 

Well, this season, I have found one commercial which combines many of the "constants", but--at least for me--falls way off the mark. 

I wish I could find a link online to the ad, but it's for a nationwide chain, so maybe you've seen it. The ad is a Wal-mart ad currently running on TV. 

** sidenote ** I'm not going to go into any opinions about Wal-mart, here. I wouldn't even mention their name if it couldn't possibly help you understand what commercial I'm talking about. ** end sidenote **

In the commercial, a squad of people walk toward the check-out lanes and proceed to switch their "open" lights off and on and we, the audience, watch them flash while listening to "Ring Christmas Bells." It's well choreographed and interesting enough, but the first time I watched it, all I could think of was "So which lane is open?"

Every time I've seen it since then, I get a little anxious, thinking "With my luck, I'd be in the store while they were doing that, and I'd NEVER find a lane that was open long enough to check me out!" By the time the commercial is over and the checkers are all smiling and proud of themselves, I'm frustrated and feeling like I want to run the other way.

Somehow, I don't think that's the perception they wanted me to get from that commercial.

When is a Trip Considered "Travel"?

I know that it's Travel Tuesday and, thus, this should probably be a post about... well... travel, but the only place I've been lately is out to Christopher's family's place in Stillwater for Thanksgiving. 

I guess that, for some people, the fact that it's a 45-minute drive makes it worthy of being called travel, but for those of us out here in the middle of the country that's not nearly far enough for the "T" word. For us, "travel" has to refer to drives of multiple hours--probably at least 2. So the trip I made for the birthday party a couple months ago was travel. The trip Christopher and I took Up North was travel. Driving to what equates to the other side of town is not travel. 

Of course, my sisters who live out in LA with their families drive hours per day just to commute, and that isn't really travel, either, since it's simply commuting. Hmmm... So I guess it's more a distance thing than a time elapsed thing. 

Whenever I've been in Europe (including, for this argument, Great Britain), I've been surprised that people find a 2-hour train ride to be a major excursion. And the idea of a 5-hour drive is way too excruciating to undertake more than once a year. So in that case, a trip is considered travel even when the destination is much closer than what we talk about here in the Midwest. For instance, that 45-minute drive out to Thanksgiving would have been "travel."

Where am I going with this discussion? I'm not sure, either, but I hope you enjoyed the trip...

"Home For Sweeney Todd's Holidays"

Yes. The title of today's posting is a bit odd, but if you're paying attention you should realize that today is Movie Monday. If you're both paying attention AND a movie trivia buff, you may have guessed that the two movies I've seen in the past week are "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" and "Home for the Holidays."

Oddly enough, they have the same general theme: Going back home to where it all started. Of course, they have completely different reasons and results, but I was struck by how that overall factor came into play in both movies. So, on with the reviews...

"Sweeney Todd" is a Tim Burton film. In case you don't know what having Tim Burton in the director's chair means for a movie, he also directed "Beetlejuice," "Edward Scissorhands," "Nightmare Before Christmas," and the most recent version of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." So, as if Sondheim's musical wasn't bizarre enough, now we've got a master of the macabre mixing things up. Burton's direction makes for some interesting (and not always winning) scenic choices--but that often happens when a show written for the stage ends up on screen. What bothered me most, though, was his casting of Helena Bonham Carter as Mrs. Lovett. Carter was odd enough to play the roll, but her voice just couldn't carry the role which has been played by theatrical greats like Angela Lansbury and Patti Lupone. On the other hand, although I was all set to not like Johnny Depp in the title role, I found myself... well... not really "liking" him... but enjoying his portrayal as we went along, as I was with the three supporting "kids" in the cast. Good movie to rent if you want to vent some spleen during the Holidays? Yes. Good movie to watch on a "dinner-and-a-movie" datenight? Not if you're having anything with a red sauce.

On the other hand, "Home for the Holidays" is Jodie Foster's bittersweet tale of a grown woman's trip home for Thanksgiving with her family in the mid-90s. I started to write "dysfunctional family"--and a few years ago I may left it in--but I think that, as we all grow up, we find that our families all function just a little dysfunctionally. In "Holidays," we have Holly Hunter flying home for Thanksgiving with her parents (Anne Bancroft and Charles Durning), her button-pushing brother (Robert Downey, Jr.) and her uptight--yet well-meaning--sister (marvellously multi-faceted as played by Cynthia Stevenson). Basically, yes, anything that can go wrong does. There are arguments during dinner. There are old wounds that surface even before the table is set. And as the movie ends we all know that the family will be together again for Christmas, God help them. So... Bring it home with you for the Holidays? Definitely. Watch it with your family around? Only if you promise not to tell your relatives which characters they remind you of.

One last thought about these movies--or, rather, about "Holidays": Each time I watch the movie, I find myself identifying with a different character just a little more. 

** sidenote ** See...? That's why I made sure to mention that the comment is about "Holidays" and not about "Sweeney Todd" because if I said I identified with anyone in "Sweeney Todd" people would never eat my casseroles again. Ever. ** end sidenote **

I'm sure that when I first saw Holly Hunter go home to her family I probably identified most with her. I was living in Baltimore at the time, and going home to South Dakota felt very strange. But I've watched "Holidays" multiple times and have found myself identifying with both of her siblings... and their spouses... over time. And this time I even found myself understanding more about where her parents were coming from. Yeah. That was kinda weird. 

Weird, but good. Seems like that would also sum up these movies.

Sunday Snow

Woke up this morning and noticed that it was much brighter outside than it has been, lately. And not in an "Oh. Look. The sun is out." way, but in a late-November "It's cloudy out, but it seems kind of strangely bright white." Yeah. You guessed it. We got snow last night.

Our last snow came down on a day when we were predicted to bounce back into the 40s, so we knew it wasn't going to last. But I saw a forecast last night that keeps us below freezing for the foreseeable future, which means this stuff isn't going away until sometime next spring. This is normal, of course, in the last few weeks of the year in Minneapolis. However, that does not make it any easier to deal with when the realization sets in. 

I'd suspect that getting dressed today will be followed by clearing the sidewalks of an inch or so of light snow. Then we'll dive into the next great adventure of the season: trying to pick up a few essentials at Target on a Sunday during the Holiday season. 

Or maybe I could stay indoors at home with a little more pie...

Pumpkin Pie Bliss

I admit it. I made the aforementioned pie yesterday in the late morning, and it's already almost half gone. This wouldn't be so bad if Christopher liked pumpkin pie, but I'm the only one in the house eating it.

It's such a great pumpkin pie recipe, though. I use the recipe out of "The Joy Of Cooking" -- although I'm not sure if it's the same recipe that's in it these days, since my cookbook is a good 20 years old. What amazes me most is that it's such a simple pie to make. There's no fussing with peeling and chopping or pitting and stem-pulling. There's no thousand-and-one ingredients. There's not even a top crust! It's just a non-nonsense pie.

I've made it for people who say they don't like pumpkin pie, and they've had to agree that this recipe is a good one. I think it's because, along with the pumpkin, evaporated milk, sugar (brown and white) and eggs, there is a whole blend of spices going on. There's a full teaspoon of cinnamon, and then a half of ginger, a quarter of nutmeg and an eighth of cloves. All of which yields a rich flavor which doesn't overpower, and yet makes itself known.

The house smelled amazing for most of the afternoon -- long after it was out of the oven. And I was in heaven this morning when piece number 3 became breakfast. (To Christopher's mild dismay.)

Oh... In case you're wondering, I did make enough piedough for a second crust, so Christopher and I decided to do a quiche for dinner. No ham in the fridge, though, so we started searching for a substitute. We ended up with a pepperoni and swiss quiche, which I sprinkled with oregano and red pepper. It was surprisingly good, actually.

Of course, there's still pie sitting in the kitchen. Is 3 o'clock too late for lunch? And if we don't have dinner until 7, is this early enough that it won't spoil my appetite? I may have to chance it...

The Morning After - Thankfully

I hope you all had a very nice Thanksgiving, yesterday. 

I must say that Christopher and I enjoyed a very pleasant afternoon at his parents' home out in Stillwater. The food was great. The dogs behaved. And we even had an incident-free game of "Apples to Apples" (it's not the most dangerously-competitive game, but can result in some eyebrow raising discussions of politics, ethics, and overall sanity). Yes, I'd have to say that it was a very nice afternoon.

The drive out to Stillwater was a little interesting--we got run halfway off the road by a black Audi Q7 (an SUV-ish thing) with a Minnesota license plate starting with SHG. Luckily my trusty Subaru has All-wheel drive and anti-lock brakes, so as the Audi came sailing from the on-ramp into the far left lane at about 80 miles per hour, I was able to keep control as I felt the left-hand side of the car drop off pavement into the median. It was loud enough (my laying on the car horn might have contributed to the noise) and rough enough to wake up Christopher (who was napping with his iPod on). When I finally got the chance to pull up alongside the Q7, I wasn't surprised to see that the driver was leaning on the middle console chatting away on his phone. I fully suspect that, had we gone completely off the road (or worse) he wouldn't have noticed. Bleh. But, by the time we got to Stillwater, my heartrate had had 15 minutes to return to normal, so we were good to go.

The only problem I'm finding is that I didn't steal away with enough leftovers to make a proper turkey-and-dressing sandwich for lunch. Luckily, I have my canned pumpkin at the ready and will have a whole pumpkin pie to dive into by around lunchtime. And THAT is something to be thankful for! ;-)

T (day) Minus One...

I must admit that for a short time this morning I thought I had written a self-fulfilling-prophecy-style jinx, yesterday. You see, the Thanksgiving dinner I am attending tomorrow does not have pumpkin pie on the menu. (I know... heathens, right!?) But since I'm not on the list for bringing dessert, and since I already know that there are going to be at least 3 pies offered, I couldn't exactly show up with a pumpkin pie of my own. 

Thus, I have decided that I am going to bake a pumpkin pie on Friday. Of course, since I always have canned pumpkin in the house, I didn't worry about that when I went grocery shopping yesterday. 

Yep... You know where this is going...

This morning, I checked the pantry shelves only to find that I did NOT have any canned pumpkin on hand. At all. None. Not even one of the smaller cans, which I could have worked with to make a smaller pie. Which made it seem that a grocery store trip was looming large on my horizon. 

Luckily, I also had an inspiration for a Christmas gift last night, which I figured I could go purchase at Target. Since Target (and all places retail) will be madhouses on Friday, I thought today would be a safe bet. And, since most of the Target stores in this area are SuperTargets, I figured I was good to go.

** sidenote ** For those of you who don't have SuperTargets in your area, these massive stores have a full-sized Target in 2/3 of their space, as well as a fairly good-sized Target-branded grocery store filling up the other 1/3 of the space. There's lots of Target's Archer Farms- and Market Pantry-branded food products, but also full dairy, meat and produce sections. I do a lot of shopping at SuperTarget because they're priced competitively and easy to get to, but for my "serious" groceries I still go to a regular grocery store. ** end sidenote **

I got to SuperTarget at about 1pm and sailed through the store. Of course there was a full display of "things you might need for Thanksgiving dinner" right near the door, so I was able to pick up my cans of pumpkin (yes, Libby--they're "Libby's") on my way in and completely dodged the rest of the grocery section. 

Much to my surprise (and delight), I was out the door within 15 minutes, and only bought what I needed. And, really, when is the last time that happened to you at Target!?

So I think that's going to be item number one on my "This year, I'm thankful for..." list if anyone asks tomorrow.

T (day) Minus Two

This being the Tuesday before Thanksgiving--and Christopher and I having agreed to take two or three dishes to dinner on Thursday--you'll understand why I'm a little tired this afternoon.

Oh. Not enough info? Well, you see, I got up early enough this morning to be semi awake and have a lucid conversation with Christopher about what ingredients we definitely need for what we're taking. Why so early? Because I needed to make sure we were both working from the same recipes before he left for work. 

Still not sure why all of this is going on today and not... say... tomorrow? After all, I do enjoy grocery stores. I enjoy going and looking around a grocery store when I need to do something to kill time.  I love going into grocery stores in other countries to see what isn't--and is--the same. I even like doing the weekly groceries--and often end up in one grocery store or another on multiple days each week. But... even with all of that grocery-store love behind me, I refuse to go to the grocery store on the day before Thanksgiving. 

Grocery stores the day before any major holiday are bad enough. The day before Easter? Good luck getting near the eggs or ham. The Third of July? Don't even go near the meat department... or the frozen foods... or the chips... or the sodas. And the day before Christmas? Well... It's just not wise to go to any shopping-related store the day before Christmas. But the day before Thanksgiving? That's just asking for trouble.

On the day before Thanksgiving, the stores are filled with three kinds of shoppers: The Pilgrims; The Old-Hats; and The Side-Bringers.

1) The Pilgrims could also be called the "Thanksgiving-cooking-virgins." These are the people who--for whatever reason--have agreed to cook dinner this year. Even though it's their first time, they've invited all 27 relatives, 9 co-workers, and 3 "homeless" friends--at least one of whom is vegan. These poor souls have never even seen a frozen turkey, but have a list in hand and you'll find them pushing a cart filled with four cans of cranberries, more stuffing than would be needed to stuff an ostrich, a pumpkin and a bag of flour (which they're sure will turn into a pie if they just follow the directions they found via Google). They know it will all work out--as long as they only sleep for 3 hours Wednesday night.

2) The Old-Hats are the ones you wish would invite you for dinner. They are in the store to pick up last-minute and pre-made items, only. In their carts, they have rotisserie chickens and tubs of mashed potatoes and gravy. They plan to go home to put together the green bean casserole and make sure the Jell-O salad has chilled. And on Thanksgiving they're going to watch the parade, snack on olives and relish trays, then toss everything into the oven to reheat just in time for their friends to show up with a bottle or two of wine and at least two pies.

3) The Side-Bringers are just that--people who have never seen an uncooked turkey and never plan to. They are in the store with a hand basket strolling up and down the aisles looking for that one special something that will be the perfect thing to take to their aunt's/mom's/friend's/co-worker's house sometime in the middle of the afternoon on Thanksgiving. They're not in any hurry (you can tell by the way they keep clogging up the aisle for the Pilgrims who are frantically pushing their carts), and on their way home they'll realize that the ice cream they picked up won't work as a salad, but maybe they can take the chips and salsa, instead.

Oh. But we can't forget the fourth group. This is the group I seem to always wind up in: The WhyAmIHere?s. We are the ones who did all of our Thanksgiving shopping in advance, but ran out of milk at breakfast on Wednesday morning. So once again we find ourselves in the store, trapped by the carts of the Pilgrims and Old-Hats, in the checkout line behind the Side-Bringer who leaves his basket on the counter to go back in search of a bag of carrots and a tub of dip. 

So far, this year I seem to be headed for avoiding all of those factions, though. And all it took was getting up an hour or two earlier than usual this morning. 

Of course, having said all that, I get the sneaking suspicion I'm going to somehow end up in the WhyAmIHere? line tomorrow. If not, I'm definitely putting it on my "I'm Thankful For..." list.

Movie Monday, November 24th

It's Movie Posting Day! And, this week, I've actually seen a few of them, so here we go:

Quantum of Solace. By now I'm sure you all know that that is the name of the newest James Bond flick. The name comes from an original Ian Fleming-written James Bond short story, and refers to a "small amount of consolation" which... I guess... comes in the movie. You may remember that, when last we saw Daniel Craig's Bond, he had just lost his love. When Quantum of Solace starts, he is in the midst of the same drive which ended the previous movie. Here's the thing--the movie is a serious action flick. Lots of chases and explosions and thrills. But aside from a few state-of-the-art tech toys, Bond has no "gadgets"--no rocket launcher in the car; no poison pen; not even a "Bond, James Bond" to toss about. Did I like the movie? Yes. Do I wish it had been more flirty and gadgety? Definitely.

Chaos Theory. I got it through Netflix. It's centered on a fairly-average guy (Ryan Reynolds) who is all about his schedule and lists and post-its, until one day when his wife throws him off track. With his timing off, suddenly his world spirals out of control--everything from missing a ferry to being caught up in a bar fight. I mostly enjoyed the movie, but I have to admit that I kind of glazed over for a little while in the middle. Liked it? Mostly. Glad I didn't I pay to see it in a theater? Definitely.

On Her Majesty's Secret Service. Last night, while eating pizza in front of a friend's crackling fireplace, we watched the James Bond movie with the "unknown" actor in the title role. Remember George Lazenby? He was the second person to play Bond (Sean Connery had played him in all 5 of the previous movies), and spent the movie off-and-on romancing the stunningly attractive Diana Rigg all over Europe. This is a Bond that gives you flirtation, a few gadgets, some great scenery, and even a few moments of actual plot. Do I recommend going back and watching it? Yes. Do I think knowing the names of the lead actors will help you win at Trivial Pursuit? Definitely.

And now I'm going to log off and try to catch Samantha Who? which, along with The Big Bang Theory, makes Monday night my current favorite place for TV comedy.

'Cuz It's Easy Like...

Ah... Sunday morning. 

Have I mentioned, lately, how much I love Sunday morning? It probably seems strange that I prefer any particular morning of the week, since, honestly, they're all pretty much the same these days, but I do love Sunday mornings.

We don't need to go to a psychiatrist to figure out why, either. It's simple enough to track it back to when I was a kid. You see, my dad worked Monday through Saturday at our family drugstore. So the only day we were all at home was Sunday. 

For those of you worrying about my eternal soul (oh. how nice of you, by the way), my mom would take us to Saturday night Mass, and when I was little we had our catechism classes on Wednesdays after school. So on Sunday morning Dad would go off to church, then come home around 10:30 and we would have the entire day at home as a family.

My parents did have one rule for Sundays: It was a family day, so you couldn't go out and do other things that day. If you wanted to see friends, they should come over to our house. As we got older that changed, some, but we still always had Sunday dinner as a family. But none of that is--technically--about Sunday morning. 

Some Sunday mornings we would actually get up and go to church with my dad. He goes to the UCC church, and while the Catholic church in town has never been known for its choir (and on many Saturday nights there was only an organist and no choir at all), the UCC church had great music. So it was always fun to go with Dad and sing along with the choir. The readings were almost always the same from Saturday night to Sunday, but the folks at the UCC were always better dressed than our ragtag bunch tended to be on Saturday nights. And it was always exciting to spend that hour "alone" with Dad. 

We'd come home from church with Dad and then spend the morning reading the newspaper, or--in the fall--going out for a little "road hunting" for pheasants, and frequently there would be some kind of brunch-y meal that Mom would put together in the late morning. 

And, if you haven't already figured it out, this feeling about Sundays still carries over into my life. When I go home to visit, I try to schedule myself to leave on Monday, instead of Sunday, so I can have that time. And in my "regular" life, most weeks I try not to schedule things for Sundays until at least noon. There's just something about being curled up on the couch with the Sunday paper that allows the world outside to stay outside. 

That all said, I need to get moving. Somehow or other we're meeting our friends for "brunch" at 9:15 this morning. But at least I've had an hour of this morning--paper at the ready, winter happily outside--to daydream about those easy Sunday mornings.

Friday Food

I started this post yesterday, but somehow it got saved instead of published. (Maybe I should pay more attention to which of the little buttons I push?) Sorry for the delay.

Christopher and I are having a food-filled latter portion of the week. Last night (Thursday) we went out with a couple of my cousins to a pizza place called Jakeeno's in Minneapolis. There was a joke in the midst of our emails about the place that it "sounded exotic" and we made sure to quash that right away so as to not get anyone's hopes up. That said, however, the place does really good pizza. We had the garlic cheese toast and then a large pepperoni pizza and life was good for the four of us. Of course, the four of us being the four of us we talked enough that that amount of food took us 2 hours to get through, which made the evening that much better.

Tonight (Friday) we played host to a couple of friends at our place. It took us a while to figure out what to make, since we've never had them over to dinner before. Finally Christopher offered to make his spicy lemon chicken with rice as the main course. To carry through on the very generalized Asian food theme, I picked up one of the new Distinctively Dole Asian Island Crunch salads. Dessert, unfortunately, broke the theme to smithereens as we did homemade brownies (from the 1950 Betty Crocker cookbook--they have more sugar than flour!) and vanilla ice cream. The evening was really good. We sat around the table for probably 3 hours over dinner and dessert just talking and enjoying the company. 

** sidenote ** I looked on the Betty Crocker website for the brownie recipe I use so that I could link to it, but out of literally hundreds of brownie recipes, they only have 9 which are homemade (instead of simply doctoring a box mix), and the one I used isn't there. If you'd like the recipe, let me know and I can post it later. ** end sidenote **

As I mentioned, the whole end of the week is going to be food-filled. Tomorrow night (Saturday) we're heading out to Stillwater to celebrate Christopher's mom's birthday at a Mexican restaurant called Acapulco. Sunday we have breakfast plans with friends out at a place called The Bad Waitress. And Sunday night we're going to a friend's house to sit in front of her fire, watch a movie and order in food (probably pizza, again, which is perfectly fine by me!).

Oh. And I should also say that Christopher is planning to make not one, but two, Red Velvet Cakes tomorrow morning/afternoon. Yes, it's officially so that he can take a birthday cake out to Stillwater for his mom, but he's also comparing a couple of different recipes and trying to find out which one works better. 

** sidenote ** If you've never had Red Velvet Cake, you should know a few things: 1) it's basically a chocolate cake with food coloring; 2) it takes TWO FULL BOTTLES of red food coloring to color a single cake; 3) yes, in "Steel Magnolias" the armadillo groom's cake was red velvet. ** end sidenote **

Like I said... It's going to be a week/end of food!

Catch-Up

I wanted to let you know that I have added photos to the main two postings from last weekend's trip Up Nort. 

Be sure to check out "Travel Tuesday... Friday, November 14th" and "Of Waterfalls, Maple Syrup, and One Superior Lake" to see what the amazing sites were that I was trying to tell you about. 

I hope you enjoy them!

Travel Tuesday... Delayed

Okay. I admit it. I went to bed last night without even thinking about posting. Oops. 

But, you see, it's because I want to sort the pictures I just got back from last weekend and get some of them inserted into the past few posts. 

I promise to get caught up ASAP. 

"Summertime" (The Movie)

I don't think I've talked about the movie "Summertime" before, and even if I have, I'm going to talk about it again, because it's "Movie Monday" and it's the movie I watched the most recently. 

I first saw "Summertime" last summer. It's an incredible movie starring a fairly young Katharine Hepburn as an American tourist in Venice in the mid-1950s. The movie starts when she arrives and ends when she leaves, even though we know that she's been doing other travelling in Europe and is planning to do more after we say good-bye. Because of its setting, I first watched the movie when Christopher was in Venice last summer and I was home in Minneapolis. (Don't worry--he was on a family trip, so I wasn't simply left behind or anything.)

I was drawn into the movie by the long loving scenes of Venice. The architecture and the art, the people and the culture, the canals and the fireworks--everything is included in the movie. I watched Katharine as she was romanced by the city, and fell for Rossano Brazzi right along with her. When her gardenia was lost in the canal I felt the tug at my heart, too. (And... wow... was it great to hear from Christopher the next time he called from overseas!)

This weekend, Christopher brought "Summertime" with us on our trip to Tofte. I had loved the movie so much that I bought it for him, but he hadn't yet had a chance to watch it. It was strange to watch it again--this time with him, instead of simply imagining him there. This time Christopher could fill me in with stories of "We walked down that alleyway" and "You actually can't see that view from there." He explained the reason for the different colored chairs in the Piazza San Marco. And, somehow, the story was both more engrossing and less so with Christopher on the couch next to me. 

You see... "Summertime" is filled with incongruities. Beautiful flaws which make the movie--and the fantasy of a summer fling--more powerful. Jane Hudson (Katharine's character in the movie) is warned of this at the outset, too, when, while marvelling at the canals, she watches someone empty trash from an upper window directly into the water in front of her. I don't know if she recognizes that foreshadowing, though. And I don't think I noticed that the first time I watched the movie, either. On Saturday while we were watching it, though, I think what I saw was the beauty in spite of--and even enhanced by--the flaws. 

And, yet, that said, I'm now back to dreaming about two things: 1) The warmth of Summer; and 2) taking a marvellously romantic trip to Venice. After all, as winter begins to set in, we all need a fantasy to hold on to, right?

Packing Up

It's weird, you know, the feeling of packing up before you leave from a vacation. 

We had another great day, yesterday, walking trails to more waterfalls and even a lighthouse. We spent the evening watching movies and reading in front of the fire. We even got to see a ship's lights out in the distance on the Lake last night. We've done all we had planned to do while we were up here. 

This morning, as the sunrise was mostly obscured by clouds, we're moving pretty slowly. The fire actually started on the first(-ish) try. The waves are making just a little noise on the shore. 

But we've watched most of our movies. Christopher has finished reading one of the books he brought--as well as killing off the last of his Diet Coke. I've run out of postcards to write. And the Maple caramels we have left are supposed to be a gift, so we can't simply tuck into them. We'll be leaving in an hour or so, hopping back in the car for the long drive back to reality. 

I'm not sure what it is I'm feeling this morning. A sense of peace. A sense of loss. A sense of perspective. A sense of wondering what's ahead. A sense of deja vu. 

It's weird, you know, the feeling of packing up at the end of a vacation.

Of Waterfalls, Maple Syrup, and One Superior Lake

Yeah. I really need to get myself a digital camera if I'm going to keep trying to blog while travelling, aren't I?

**Update on 11/20--Photos are here! Check them out below!**

You see... It would be so much easier for you to understand what I'm talking about if I could just upload the pictures as I go along, instead of waiting until after the film gets developed. But I get ahead of myself...

Yesterday (once we got moving--even after getting out of bed to witness the 7am sunrise, it's still hard to be out the door before 10) we headed even farther north (yes. such a place exists!). 

We drove along ever-smaller backroads to buy Wild Country maple syrup at it's place of origin (out of an unmanned shack in the middle of the woods), 

and picked up some Maple Sugar Caramels as well. We stopped in Grand Marais to hike around on Artist's Point 

(and to buy some optical orange vests--having been reminded that it is deer season around here). We drove all the way up to the Grand Portage State Park (the entrance to which is--literally--a stone's throw from the Canadian border crossing) to see an amazing waterfall,

 

walking on the icy boardwalk to the point where we could see Canada just about 20 yards away (if you ignore the massive ravine in between). We hiked along the gloriously rugged Cascade River 

(which is "root beer" colored because of the minerals it picks up along the way to Lake Superior). And we had dinner at the hotel's restaurant (the Bluefin Grille) where we got to watch the full moon come out from behind clouds and shower the lake with sparkling blue light. 

And, yes, we got to spend the rest of the evening reading in front of the fire. The Lake has been remarkably calm, which is a mixed blessing, since it means it's not as cold and damp as it could be, but it also means that we don't get to see--or hear--the waves breaking along the shore. But this morning the sun came up over a distant cloudbank and the whole apartment is flooded with brilliant clear light. 

Christopher has been making our plans for the day. I can't wait to see where we end up this time!

Travel Tuesday... Friday, November 14th

I don't remember if I mentioned earlier that Christopher and I were heading "Up Nort" this weekend. If you're not from Minnesota, you should know that "Up Nort" is simply Minnesotan for "Up North"--meaning somewhere in the upper third of the state. In fact, after 4 or so hours of driving, yesterday, we landed in Tofte--a very small town right on the North Shore of Lake Superior.

We stopped in Duluth along the way to get lunch at Grandma's restaurant (an institution in Minnesota--and host of an annual marathon, although I can't imagine running a marathon after eating off their menu!), then walked over to watch a 730-foot-long ship come through into the port under the lift bridge. (Okay... that was a lot cooler than it sounds.)

After we checked in, we stopped at a local grocery store for a few provisions (including a frozen pizza) so that we could settle into our home for the weekend. We're basically in a one-bedroom apartment, so we've got a full kitchen, a fireplace, and a small deck which faces east. Lake Superior is about 30 feet from our deck, so we could hear the waves crashing even after it got too dark to see them.

We also partook of one of the bizarre pleasures of this part of the world around 7:30 last night: Sitting in a whirlpool tub--outdoors--when it was only about 40 degrees out. The full moon had just come out, and the sheltered (there are glass walls around the pool area) tub was giving off clouds of steam. I usually get overheated in hot tubs, but whenever I'd start to feel that way, I'd just put my arms out on the sides and cool down right away. It was amazing. 

We came back to our apartment and stoked up the fire and listened to the waves...

This morning we actually set an alarm so that we could be up in time to watch the sunrise. Christopher has stayed here before and has told me about doing this. Personally, I thought he was insane to get up at 6:30 when on vacation, but this morning as the sun broke through the clouds I completely understood.

Today we're headed even farther north. We're not planning to go as far as Thunder Bay, Ontario, but we both have our passports, just in case. 

I'll let you know how it turns out when I get a chance to write my next Travel Tuesday report... possibly a Saturday one.

At a Loss for Words

As hard as it may be to believe it, I'm kind of at a loss for words today. 

I'm sitting here at home with all of the currently-normal things going on: It's cold and grey out; I found out that I didn't get another job; and I have a list of errands to run (mostly the ones I didn't do yesterday). But the day itself is different from most.

A great friend of my parents--and of our whole family--passed away last weekend after fighting a long and drawn-out battle with cancer. In fact, with the help of modern medicine and old-fashioned hard work and prayer, she had been beating it for a while. But then the side effects of the chemotherapy started to take their toll and finally tipped the battle. 

MaryAnn was an amazing woman. She and her husband lived on a farm in rural South Dakota, raising 5 incredible kids along with the livestock, crops and chickens. When we would visit them back when I was a kid, I remember being thrilled because we'd get to hang out in the basement, or go swing on a rope in the hayloft (just don't tell our parents!), or even go out to pick eggs from under the chickens. 

It's strange. I don't so much know anything about her, but I know what being near her was like. She gave hugs, but it was the look in her eye that let you know life was okay. She cooked incredible barbecued pork. She was kind and gracious, but also a mom with rules. And even up until a few months ago, she and her husband Gerald have been globetrotting around to see their kids and grandkids. 

So today I sit at home, hoping that the weather was good in South Dakota for the funeral. Hoping that their family is doing okay. Hoping that... well... I guess just...

 

Hoping... 

Travel Tuesday... or not...

I'm sitting at home this evening on the couch, typing away on my laptop. (Please don't tell my Physical Therapist that I'm doing this--she'd really prefer that I sit at a desk with good posture.)

I had every intention of going out today to run some errands. I have some close-by errands to run and some on-the-other-side-of-town errands to run. But each time I looked outside I noticed that it was grey and, in turns, drizzly, rainy, snowy and sleety. Not the names of 4 dwarfs I want to meet on any given day.

So I thought about my errands... The one that was farthest away was for something that I hadn't ever heard back on, so it may or not have been ready. The one that was an evening event was supposed to be kind of long and I didn't want to deal with glazed-over roads. And the errand with the stack of stuff involved was supposed to be a trip to the Post Office which, just before I left home, I realized was closed today for Veteran's Day.

And, yes, you know where this is going. Aside from crossing the world online, I haven't gone farther from the couch than out to pull the empty trash bin back inside. 

I plan to tell anyone who asks that it was a good day of research. Yeah... Ummm... Research. 

And if anyone asks what kind of research, I'll make that up, too.

Movie Monday

What with the election and all, I've missed the chance to write about a few movies that I've seen in the past couple of weeks. But there are some really great movies in the mix, so I want to be sure to mention them. So here they are, in the order in which I think of them:

1) Rachel Getting Married. I loved this movie. It's an "uncomfortable" movie, with Anne Hathaway (from "Princess Diaries" and "Get Smart") playing Kim, the heading-home-from-rehab sister of the eponymous Rachel. The discomfort of the movie comes from the fact that we--the audience--know just a little more about the family than most of the wedding's other guests do. So while they're all partying with the Brazilian samba dancers, or eating amazing food, or cheering during the dishwasher-loading race, we're sitting on the sidelines, keeping one hand on the fire extinguisher in case something explodes. 

2) Donnie Darko. Wow. Talk about uncomfortable. This one was from Netflix. It stars Jake Gyllenhall (in 2001--years before "Brokeback Mountain") as a troubled teenager who has nightmares and hears voices. Add in a book about the philosophy of time travel, an unidentifiable plane engine which falls from the sky into the house, and a six-foot-tall demonic rabbit named Frank, and you've got the feel of the movie. It's weird. Really good, but weird.

3) Goodbye Mr. Cool. This one is from Hong Kong, and also from 2001. It's an odd movie, about a guy who used to be a major gang leader, who has served time in prison and is now trying to start a new life--complete with a son he didn't know he had. Here's the thing--it's mainly set in a Cafe, and the food looks great. Okay, that's not the main thing. Even with the language barriers and the requisite martial arts action, it was still a movie I'd recommend. Just know that, when you get to the end of the disk you need to flip it over (and don't forget to re-set the Captions when you do that).

4) August Rush. I'm sure you saw the ads for this last year. It's got Keri Russell (TV's Felicity) and Jonathan Rhys Meyers (you'll know him when you see him) as the musically-inclined parents of a young prodigy (played by Freddie Highmore--you'll recognize him as Charlie from the Tim Burton "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory"). The problem with all of the musical folks? The parents only spent one night together and--due to some plot twists--neither one knows they have a son living in an orphanage. The music (yes, there's a lot of music in the movie) ranges from Irish Pub Rock to classical cello to solo guitar, and by the time you're coming to the end you can't help but hope it all turns out for everyone. 

Speaking of turning out alright for everyone... I also admit that last week I spent the money to go see...

5) High School Musical 3 - Senior Year. You've probably figured out by now that I'm a sucker for an old-fashioned musical. And if you've seen any of this franchise, you know that's exactly what you get. Lots of singing, lots of dancing, great clothes and sets, even a little plot. Since this is the first outing in theaters for the HSM crowd, everything was a little bigger, glitzier and more teen-angst ridden. We see the kids we've come to know work their way through their senior year--blending "real life" with life on-stage, using production numbers and songs to move the story along. Honestly, it's really cool--way cooler than high school--even without all of the smoking, drinking and sex of "Grease."

** sidenote ** One of my favorite things about the High School Musical franchise is how they allowed the characters to blend. In #1, the story focused on breaking your own preconceived boundaries and going out on your own limbs. My favorite--and apparently a big fan favorite, considering she goes from bit part in #1 to part of the primary cast in #3--is a big (ie, not stick thin) girl named Martha, played by KayCee Stroh, who is a brain who likes to dance hip hop. Although she didn't even have a memorable name in #1, she practically bookends #3, having now become a cheerleader. She's still bigger than most of the girls in the cast. She's still got big curly hair. And she's great. I love that. ** end sidenote **

Trying to wrap up all five movies in one thought seemed like it would be impossible when I started writing this, but I realized that they all have one thing in common: trying to belong. August Rush is trying to find the music his parents left him. We all want to be a part of the celebration while Rachel gets married. Mr. Cool wants to start a new life with his son. And everyone--including Donnie Darko--wants to fit in in High School. 

Sunday Chores

My favorite thing about Sundays is that they are about as close as you can get to Comfort Food. They're not always easy, they're not always pretty, but a well-spent Sunday will leave you warm and happy in the end. Unfortunately, as much as I love quiet and relaxing Sundays, sometimes we all have to bite the bullet and take care of tasks along the way.

So this morning Christopher and I spent a little time simply enjoying the morning, and then after a surprise pancake breakfast from Christopher (I thought he was cleaning in the kitchen, and then he showed up with pancakes!), I took the bull by the horns and headed for the yard. (Leaving Christopher to tackle the inside chores.)

We've been putting off raking for a while. You see, we really don't have many trees on our property, and the ones we do have didn't decide to lose their leaves until just this past week. In fact, the major leaf-dropper we had to wait for is a huge maple in our neighbor's backyard, which was an almost electric yellow until about 4 days ago. And, really, why rake anything until that one was done? But regardless of how late our trees are, the city of Minneapolis has a time limit on "yard waste," and our final chance to send off big black bags of leaves comes up this Tuesday morning. Procrastination was no longer an option.

When I headed outside it was grey and pretty chilly, but as I warmed up, so did the air. In fact, the more green that showed through in the yard, the more the sun came through the clouds. By the time I was finishing up my fifth bag of leaves, the day had turned out to be pretty nice. Now I'm not going to say that it was a "glorious fall day"--it was a little too chilly out for that, considering we barely made it to 30 degrees--but once the light flurries stopped it certainly turned into a nice crisp day. 

** sidenote ** While I was finishing up bag number 5 in our yard, I heard the huge- yellow-maple-owning neighbor comment that he was on bag 11, and expected to fill 10 more. As much as I would love the summer shade they get, I'm really glad I only had to fill a quarter of the bags. ** end sidenote **

By the time I was back inside, Christopher had pretty much tackled the entire interior of the house, and we were able to focus on the finer points of our Sunday afternoon. Some laundry... some errands... some ironing (that'd be Christopher, not me)... some cooking... 

It may not have been a perfect day, but comfort food isn't perfect... it's just comfortable. 

A "Wicked"-ly Good Day

Christopher and I had the pleasure of getting to see the touring company of "Wicked" this afternoon at the Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis. (Sorry... It's pretty much sold out for the entire run. If you want to go you'll need to either try the ticket lottery, or try contacting one of the so-called "Resellers.")

I was lucky enough to see it on Broadway a few years ago, but Christopher was completely new to it. He hadn't heard more than a song or two, and he hadn't even read the book. (He's much more of a reader than a musical-goer.) Of course, as with most adaptations, this is a show where reading the book is more of a detriment than a plus, so that was probably a good thing. We had great seats on the center aisle toward the front, and it was a fairly overpowering show. 

The three main characters--Elphaba, the green witch; Glinda, the witch who travels via bubble; and Fiyero, the leading man (who were played by Donna Vivino, Melissa Bohon and Cliffton Hall, respectively)--really held the show together. Vivino was undoubtedly the strongest all-around player, covering all of the nuances of the "wicked" witch's character, while also belting out some amazing songs. Cliffton Hall, playing the "brainless" love interest of both witches, was appropriately pretty for the role, while dancing up a storm and somehow also pulling off Fiyero's few more complex levels. Our Glinda was one of the understudies, and was the one person whom Christopher and I debated--I found Melissa Bohon's ability to play the humor in the role made up for a few missteps in her singing, but Christopher wasn't quite so sure--either way, without the notice in the program I never would have guessed that it wasn't "her" role.

** sidenote ** Neither Cliffton Hall nor Melissa Bohon seem to have their own websites, which is why there are no links in the above paragraph for them. But if you want to see how pretty Fiyero is, Google him... ** end sidenote **

The set was only mildly scaled down from what I remember of the Broadway set (one of the hazards of having to be able to pack it up and move it every few performances), but the show itself didn't lose anything in transit. In fact, this was the first Saturday matinee performance I have been to in a while where there was an almost immediate standing ovation as the curtain call started. 

After the standing ovation, we made our way out into the street and into just-barely-flurrying snow. We walked around downtown Minneapolis to do a little shopping, then went to see this year's Christmas display in the 8th Floor Auditorium at Dayton's... err... Marshall Field's... I mean... Macy's. I have to admit that I'm usually someone who doesn't like dealing with Christmas until after Thanksgiving, but there was something about having just left the show and walking through the chilly streets that made it all seem right. 

That probably ought to be the end of this post, but just before I started writing I came across the movie "What's Up Doc?" on TV. 

** sidenote ** If you haven't seen "What's Up Doc?" well, I may not be able to be friends with you any more--or at least we may have to scale back a little until you've had a chance to catch it on Netflix. ** end sidenote **

So I'm sitting here writing while watching this amazing slapstick-y movie starring Ryan O'Neal and Barbra Streisand, with a brand new (in 1972) starlet named Madeline Kahn. By the time the movie is done running its course, it will once again involve musical rocks, 4 matching suitcases, a San Francisco car chase and--my favorite--a Chinese dragon float and a delivery bicycle cart. All wrapped up with O'Neal, Streisand and Kahn at their somehow-understated comic best. 

"Wicked" was amazing. 

Downtown Minneapolis was almost magical. 

"What's Up Doc?" is wonderful. And, yes, just a little bit wicked. 

Sounds like a perfect way to wrap up the day. 

We Knew It Was Coming...

...but after the 70-degree days at the beginning of the week (remember how glorious it was on Election Day?), waking up this morning to snow was a bit of a jolt.

Oh, I know what you're all saying: "It's November and you live in Minnesota, what do you expect?" and "Robert, we know you spend hours each week watching the Weather Channel, you must have seen it coming?" and even "Dude, the states immediately to your west had blizzards, yesterday, where did you think it was going next?" 

My answers: Yes, I know. Yes, I know. Really, I know. 

And I'm not saying that I wanted it to stay in the 70s until next spring or anything. But one of my favorite things about fall is the middle temperatures. The cool crisp days when it's in the 50s. The hinting days with temperatures in the 40s. The mornings with frost on the ground where everything kind of glistens when the sun comes up. And we're really ready for those glistening mornings--we spent a couple of hours last Sunday washing windows for the best views.

But, instead, here I am looking out our crystal clear (with no streaks we've found so far!) windows and watching everything get covered with the first wet sticky snow of the season. I'm sure this will melt away on the next sunny day--we're only expecting an inch or two, and it probably won't even stick on the pavement. Even so, I fear this means that we're going to be skipping the middle temperature days and heading straight for winter. 

Maybe it's time to start planning a January getaway to somewhere warm. Of course, in January, "somewhere warm" will be anywhere with temperatures above freezing. sigh

Trying to Standardize the Blog

I've been contemplating this for a while: the idea of having a semi-specific and relatively-focused topic for my blog. If you've checked out any of the blogs I have listed in the lefthand column, you'll see that they all very nicely focus on one thing. And aside from focusing on my life, mine really doesn't have a focus. 

Now there really isn't anything I can think of which I want to write about every single day. Although I like to cook and bake, I don't do it on a daily basis in such a manner that I could write a unique post each time. While I enjoy the Arts, I don't have the money to attend enough events to review something each day. And I'm way too much of a Gemini to be able to stay focused on any one thing for far too--Whoa. Wait. What's that shiny thing over there? What was I saying? Oh, yeah. All of which are reasons why I named this blog what I did when I started. 

But I've kind of come up with an idea: Breaking my posts out by day, writing on focused topics depending on the day of the week. This is in the speculative phase right now, but I'm considering the following topics:

Food (ie Cooking and Baking)

The Lively Arts (ie Art-related events for which I need to leave the house)

Restaurants

Travel (local or long distance--from a trip to Montreal to a trip to the grocery store)

Television

Potpourri (ie whatever comes to mind. I don't plan to write regular posts on the smelly stuff people put around their homes in open bowls. Well... Unless it needs to be written about.)

I figure I'll assign one topic to each day, and then write (at least obliquely) on that topic once each week. Yes. I know that there are only 6 topics listed, and there are 7 days in a week, but I figure this will give me one day to either relax or simply write... well... the kind of stuff I've been writing so far. 

What do you think? Good idea? Bad idea? I'll try to roll this out in the next few days, but I'd love your input in the meantime (and as we go along, of course).