Learning how to cook, take one!

Since Tom's going back to school, my days of living life large off of his cooking (no pun intended) are numbered. We unfortunately were so busy last week and this weekend, that a few of the vegetables from last week's CSA went unused. Thank goodness we split them with one of Tom's coworkers who kindly picked them up while we were at DMB.

Over the weekend, I searched around Cooking Light's recipe index for some good, easy recipes to use up the beets and dill, neither one of which Tom particularly likes. Well, it's ridiculously hot in our house and the A.C. is broken upstairs, but I thought it was a great time to make soup!

The dill was turned into a lovely (and thankfully cold!) Cucumber-Dill soup. Came out pretty well -- I think it needs a little more dill (ours was looking a little worse for wear, so I tossed more than I used).

The second was a hot Beet Soup, which came out awesome, but a little thinner than I had expected. I've learned how to sautée onions and use the blender on liquefy and puree (as opposed to the usual crush needed for margaritas!). Tom is still laughing at my joke "so this is what a dutch oven really is." I know...poor taste, especially around food!

I still have garlic scapes that look like they're in good shape, as well as some rhubarb. I was going to make a pie with the rhubarb, but every recipe seems to call for more than I have. I'll have to take a good look at it again tomorrow and get Tom to estimate how many cups we can get out of it.

Meanwhile the Iron Chef (aka Tom) was not to be outdone and is marinating chicken wings and legs with the intent to make fried chicken tomorrow. Did you know that Kellogg's corn flakes come in boxes of crumbs? Seriously, I knew you could get graham crackers that way, but if you take a good look at the Shake & Bake section, you'll find Kellogg's horning in on their act!

DMB, take two

We went to the second DMB show last night. Tom had researched the parking a bit and thought we could park in the pay lots early, but alas, no parking anywhere now until 4pm. Not to fear, we drove aimlessly in downtown Mansfield to kill an hour or so, then quickly called his friend Hubie, a Mansfield guy, to see if perhaps we had missed something interesting to do in town. His solution: hang out in his backyard, stick our feet in the pool, and raid a beer or two from the fridge in The Barn (what in our house is affectionately referred to as the Man Cave, seeing as how we don't have an actual separate building!). Needless to say, we asked him to call his very good-natured wife, Meg, to make sure it was okay -- she was feeding a friend's dog with the kids and on her way home, but true to self, said "see you in a few." So for an hour, we hung out with his dog, a longtime friend re-doing his roof, and a motley crew of rabbits, hens, a rooster and a few goats. I stuck the requisite toes in the pool, while Tom fished in the beer fridge. What, did we have a concert to attend?

Long story short -- we left Hubie's to pay $30 to park in a private lot. Had a few beers, weren't terrorized by the cops. Walked a bit further to Great Woods, but well worth the state of mind. Were horrified when GW security harassed a husband and wife -- at least ten years older than I -- when the husband offered a sip of his beer to his wife. She must have had a duplicate license -- an absolute no-no -- and the acne scarred pip-squeak tossed the $8 beer in the trash. Oh, did we have a concert?

Yes, the show was great, although we were disappointed to not hear some of our favorites. The encore was bordering on the bizarre -- he played a very low-key, nearly solo song that neither of us knew, then the whole band returned to cover an old 60s song along the lines of "thank you for letting me be who I am" (or something to that effect). Very disappointed until he ripped off his headset and started dancing around the stage. Dancing was an understatement -- he really tore it up! At some point, Tom and I went from disappointed to amused to laughing it up. Still wish he closed with one of his classics, but it was different!

DMB, take one

Last night we went to the first of two Dave Matthews Band shows at Great Woods....er, the Tweeter Center....er, the Comcast Center. The show itself was fantastic -- hearing the crowd jam to Everyday was awesome! Tim Reynolds guest performed on electric guitar, which Tom and I had never heard before. A little strange not having piano (although Dave did play for one song), but it did give some of the songs an interesting sound.

The venue, however, was a bit of a nightmare. If you haven't been to Great Woods recently, you now have to show your tickets when you pull into line to park. No tickets, you get sent to Will Call, a temporary parking area in which you have 20 minutes to produce a set of tickets or you are asked to leave. We had three cars and were immediately split up based on tickets (will call, VIP and our regular issue).

The town of Mansfield is cracking down heavily on public drinking, even those of age. In the past, if you've used plastic Solo cups and were of age, they looked the other way. No more -- the police force and event security must be triple what it has been in the past. Granted, you see a lot of kids running around that look extra young, but they weren't messing around. Coolers taken, cars raided. We eventually closed up our car and headed over to meet our friends in the VIP area where not only was the average age closer to ours, there was less fuss.

We complain every year about how stressful it is to see concerts at Great Woods -- maybe this will be the last of the shows we attend.

Another sad passing: George Carlin

I was sad to hear this morning that comedian George Carlin passed away Sunday night. When I was in middle school, my father would let me watch Carlin on HBO with him -- providing I didn't tell my mother! I loved his candid, sometimes obscenely so, humor, and the famous seven words you can't say on TV was one of our favorites. For several years now I've been saying to Tom that we ought to get tickets to see one of his shows; alas, now it's too late.

It's only appropriate to tag this with "rants".......

Sweet 17!

I'll fully admit to being a bandwagon fan (I prefer hockey, baseball and football), but congrats to the Celtics for their 17th championship!

Support your local CSA

Tom has signed us up for two CSAs this spring and summer, one for vegetables at Stone Soup Farm in Belchertown, MA and a second for meat at Chestnut Farms in Hardwick, MA.

What is a CSA, you ask? Community Sustained Agriculture. Basically we have bought shares in the farm and get regular (weekly for the veggies, monthly for the meat) local deliveries of a somewhat random assortment of food. Our veggie CSA started today, and Tom came home with kale, summer squash, garlic scapes, a mixed bag of arugula, scallions and a small basil plant. Awesome selection and quality!

Father's Day

Happy Father's Day, Dad!

To the man who taught me enough electronics to build my own doorbell, how to use a level to hang my pictures properly, how to hook-up computers, TVs and other appliances on my own, and other tricks of the trade that a father would typically teach a son, not a daughter, yet still comes to my rescue when a household project has gone terribly wrong. To the man who taught me how to drive, but made me get AAA for fear I would stubbornly change my tire on the highway. To the man who told me to get into the best school I could and that he'd find a way to send me there, even at a difficult time for our family financially. To the man who would listen to a problem, give me food for thought, but never quite tell me what to do-- yet I always felt he'd stop me if I was going over the cliff! Thank you always!

More on Tim Russert. I've been catching up on news online and watching some of the videos from the coverage the past two days. One has really struck me: a voice-over that Russert did a few years ago for Father's Day, talking about the birth of his son, Luke, how it changed his life, and how he hopes his son will live by his grandfather's ideals: "to live a good and decent and honorable life."

On this Father's Day, I think of my own grandfather, Ralph, who died my senior year in college. He was the second-most important man in my life growing up, and had he lived, I would have asked him to join my father in walking me down the aisle. One of my great disappointments is that Tom never got a chance to meet him. He was a simple man, self-made, of many principles. I always think of a plaque he had in his house which quoted Abraham Lincoln:

“I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him.”

Happy father's day.....live well and be proud of all that you have taught the rest of us!

Remembering Tim Russert

Tom is known for his phone calls, text messages or emails when someone famous passes away, always beginning with "Put the eggs and bacon away, so-and-so isn't coming down to breakfast." I got down to Plymouth yesterday and he calls. "Put the eggs and bacon away, you're not going to believe me." Tim Russert at age 58? Unbelievable.

While I wouldn't describe myself as a faithful "Meet the Press" watcher (sleeping in on Sunday mornings IS a favorite pastime), when I was jolted to reality by Tom or the dog, we usually ended up putting it on and watching Russert poke holes in the latest presidential candidate's platform. What we both enjoyed was that A) he kept it clean and B) he was remarkably bipartisan in his approach, unlike other political shows which demonstrated clear biases. You could also count on Russert for his average-working-man's take on Washington, a refreshing change.

His book about growing up with "Big Russ" is actually one that I've heard wonderful things about, but haven't yet read. Devoted family man who never forgets his roots. There's a great video at BC that Russert did with his son that shows how much he enjoyed life.

A big hole in the world of journalism and politics - he will be greatly missed.

Packing, packing and more packing

Our tenants move in this weekend, so Tom and I are frantically trying to get the house in order. Our space in Somerville is less than half of that in Plymouth, and storage even less so. So furniture needs to be sorted, books need to be boxed, concessions need to be made about what we need versus what we'd like to have our hands on. Although we both grew up in homes in which we were the third or fourth generation in the family to live there, I've moved nearly a dozen times since college and have far more patience than Tom in the what stays-what goes debate. But we're both feeling good about the decision to rent the house, rather than sell at a loss, and become first-time landlords. Wish us well!

Happy 40th anniversary, Mom and Dad!

Today marks my parents' 40th anniversary. They met in elementary school in Dover, MA, then stayed in touch throughout middle and high school when my father left Dover public schools for Phillips Academy. They married one week and one day respectively after their college graduations on the auspicious date of 6-8-68 (always made it an easy one for my sister and me to remember!). In an age where the divorce rate is quoted at nearly 50%, I'm proud to share that childhood sweethearts can indeed go all the way!

Congratulations, Mom and Dad!

Presenting Chris and Kristine Shatas

My cousin, Kristine, married her boyfriend, Chris, yesterday down at White Cliffs in Plymouth, just down the road from our house. I was able to get the one photo that escaped me at my own wedding five years ago -- the whole family photo. So, without further ado, may I present my grandmother, Lorraine Morse, her three daughters and their families (Kispert, Chandler and Delano), her son and his family (more Morse lineage), Tom and I as the Hagerty's, and our newest additions, the Shatas'.