Saturday, February 21, 2009

All Caught Up

I had big plans for today. Clean the house thoroughly, take stuff to the recycling place, go grocery shopping. However, none of that got accomplished. Here's what did get done:
1) An hourlong phone conversation with my best friend during which I attempted to get her to meet me in California in July for the Feast of Lanterns. This invitation goes out to all my other friends too.
2) Other long phone conversations with friends.
3) Knitting! Finished a washcloth and a baby sock which is the cutest little thing!
4) Watched TV. An hour of Heroes, 4 hours of Lost, Gone Country, Suze Orman, and some show that's like Extreme Home Makeover except it's a mobile home in a trailer park.
5) Took a nap.
So as you can see, I may not have gotten done what I wanted to get done, but I definitely got what I needed to get done, done.
OK I'm done.

Monday, February 16, 2009

Steak - The Next Generation

This post is about steak. My dad used to grill up awesome steaks. So did my brother. Here is a steak picture from about 45 years ago:



This picture was taken in our backyard. We had a huge brick barbecue pit and it got used a lot. My dad and my brother loved a good steak, and they loved making them as much as eating them. I remember once at my sister's house, my dad and brother were barbecuing on a Weber grill. My brother kept shooting water through the air vent holes in the lid, creating so much smoke that I thought for sure the fire department was going to show up. Everyone was coughing and through all the smoke I see my brother turn to my dad and say "Good Smoke", and my dad replied back, "Good Smoke". It was hilarious! Those steaks were really good too. Anyway, all this to say that steak and barbecue have been part of the family as long as I can remember.

So you would think that I would know how to cook a steak, right? Wrong. Dead wrong. I have a reputation in my family as a non-cooker. And you'd think that as much as I love food, that I would have taken the time to learn how to make it. Sadly, this has not been the case. This is not to say that I don't cook at all, but I rarely take the time and effort to make a really good meal.

I do get bursts of inspiration from time to time. They usually come after long periods of watching Food Network. The last burst came right before Christmas, when I had the presence of mind to ask for a cast iron grill/griddle as a present from the boys. And they bought me one! So far I have used it about three times. And I saw where Rachel Ray made steaks on one. So I went to one of my favorite blogs, The Pioneer Woman, and found this. I followed her basic rules and threw some top sirloin steaks on my grill. And guess what? They turned out fantastic! The best steak I EVER made BY FAR!!! My kids could not believe it, as they have been eating my cooking their whole lives and know what happens when I go into the kitchen. We were all so excited that Max took a pioture with his cell phone:



My dad and brother would be so proud of me! I am so proud of me!! Thank you Pioneer Woman for showing me the light!

Sunday, February 08, 2009

Random Crap

I almost wrote Random Carp but that would not have made any sense, so Random Crap it is.

1) There is this show on XM called blog radio where they play all this obscure stuff and they played this song and it has stuck with me, I love it for really deep reasons that I cannot put my finger on.

2) February Supper Club was last night and the theme was Chocolate and Wine. There was lots of both. Andrea made a delicious chicken mole and I don't even like mole. And Jen C. made the best cake I have ever eaten. Chocolate sour cream cake with peanut butter cream cheese frosting topped with chocolate ganache. Seriously. The Best Cake Ever. It was a lot of work, so I'll never make it which is probably a good thing.

3) This sock I am knitting, the yarn was given to me and I like it because it is self patterning, but the colors are not my faves, too much red and not enough blue.

4) I am undefeated in Wii boxing. This has pissed Max off to the point where he won't play with me anymore. He keeps reminding me that if we were actually boxing that he would put me in the hospital. Nobody is disputing that. But I think Max should let his mother have her fun. It's just a game, right?

5) I have an appointment tomorrow morning for a complete physical. Let's just say that I have been dancing for a long time, and now it's time to pay the piper. Oh boy.

6) Enjoy your Sunday.