So...whats for dinner?

quinnofmn

In your pocket Susan.

Lacey12

Squeezing into your pocket too, Susan! Also loved the cupcake tale.

Hsant, your dad is very fortunate to have you as his life alert bracelet.

Some of you devoted caretakers could use some wonderful meals delivered to your kitchens right about now.

My sister sent me some farm pix from VT and I thought of your freezer immediately, Carole, when I saw this little chunker. Couldn't resist posting it.

Last night I made a Mediterranean topped haddock dish served over a kale sauté (which I would have enjoyed more if DH had had the skin removed from the fillets). Tonight we had store roasted chicken, brussells sprouts, roasted radishes and a big red lettuce salad. 'Twas good.

I am in the mood to try some bread baking, so we'll see...maybe tomorrow, especially if the weather is still rainy

Lacey12

And for those who might prefer the sky to the barnyard, DS shared this view from her neighborhood:

She said it was a total gorgeous arc. Pretty cool

MinusTwo

Susan - rooting for low numbers. Lacey - cute porker. I'm waiting in anticipation for the bread. Hsant - my Dad preferred fish too in his later years - mostly salmon. He said it was easier since many of his teeth were weak or gone & he could sort of mash it in his mouth. Carrie - love the mystery bulb story. Special - how neat that your DD is taking her DH as her date. Luv - great to read your novel and hear about all your doings.

carolehalston

Also squeezing into the crowded pocket.

Lacey12

Pretty pic, Joyce.....perfect retirement style house! I bet the snow will almost be gone. Yesterday's warm driving rain took care of ours. Enjoy your remaining week in warm weather

Lacey12

Minus, I forgot to mention how impressed I am with your one-armed food prep! Careful with knife wielding, tho. Love your son's empathic sense of humor!

I'm getting very little done today. Feels like I am fighting off a bug. I did sleep longer than usual so that should aid in the battle. I will skip the gym today, but will do some bicycling in our basement "gym" to test out (and maybe support) my fussing left knee.

After that, if I'm a bit more energetic, I might get to using some of the whole wheat flour that I recently purchased....bread, or muffins....maybe morning glory ones?

I just heard good news from my friend who learned last September that her uterine cancer (from seven years ago) had metastasized. She's had heavy chemo since then...and due to an allergic reaction to it, needed to be in hospital overnight for her weekly infusions. She just finished her last one this week. Yay!

carberry

Susan I am a little claustrophobic, so I got out of your pocket and sat in the chair next to you...just keeping an eye on those health care professionals. Hope you had an easy day and all the numbers are good.

Lacey12

Carrie, you are too cute....and thoughtful!

Also hoping for good numbers for you, Susan...and a great lunch you were able toenjoy!

MinusTwo

One thing about living alone - you can eat whatever/whenever. Couldn't sleep at all last night so at 6am I had a big helping of Salsa Chicken w/black beans, green chili & sour cream with sourdough toast for a "pusher" (as my Mother used to say). Lunch was chocolate cake. Looks like dinner will be the last 3 pieces of sushi - a leftover California Roll with extra Lemon Wasabi sauce. Maybe also an extra avocado. Or maybe I'll save that for my midnight snack.

Positive thoughts for Susan's tests. Fingers crossed.

susan_02143

What a strange day! There must have been about 100 people waiting for a blood draw, so I waited 25 minutes past my appointment time before being called back. My blood guy had done a great job two months ago, but today he must have been distracted. He jabbed hard and may have collapsed my one good vein. Up to the ninth floor where I was called in EARLY to see my doctor. As we settled in together, her pager went off. She called the number and was told that Mr. Phelbotimist had not taken enough blood. He just forgot to take the second vial of blood! No tumor markers! No magnesium! Dr. C is pleased with the tolerance level I have with Xeloda. I will see her again after two more cycles, and just before that appointment, I will have a PET scan. It is time.

My final stop of the hospital tour was the Xgeva shot. I spoke with my nurse about the blood screw up, and she offered to get the blood right then saving me from the 2nd floor chaos. Yup. Vein was gone. She tried five times, but that vein was having no part of a draw. So, I have to GO BACK next week! Pay for another blood draw, and waste time and parking money. I am wildly irritated. The worst part is, I had checked the order before he started the draw and it was right.

Then had lunch with a woman I had met on the Faslodex thread at the new Pret a Manager. It was not bad at all for a chain! The soup was good and the sandwich was equally satisfying. Very European approach, unlike SouperSalad across the street which is just not that special. Came home and slept for two hours.

Dinner was a swordfish steak prepared in a Japanese manner with sticky rice, and salad with a ginger-garlic-citrus dressing. I always find Japanese food subtle, and this was no exception. Since I had to make some dashi for the fish, I also made some miso soup.

The Xgeva is making me feel "off" and I expect I will crawl into bed early tonight.

*susan*

Lacey12

Minus, I can totally imagine following your menu/timing. If I were living alone, I would definitely have a unique dining schedule and menu!

Susan, damn!! I am so very annoyed for you. How dare someone collapse your good vein!! But glad that the lunch was pretty good. I hope you can rest up this weekend.

I (maybe foolishly) feel that phlebotomists have a lot of power. I usually size them up before they start the stick...and I once was grossly in error. Many years ago, when pregnant with my second son, I was having a series of blood gasses done since the OB partner of my OB thought that my chest pain was possibly a pulmonary embolism. That blood gas stick was really tricky with my small arteries and very painful, so I was immediately suspicious of a serious delivery of pain every time I entered the clutches of a phlebotomist...three different times. During one visit, I was horrified to meet a phelobotomist with the most nicotine stained hands I'd ever seen. Well, he ended up delivering the only painless blood gas I ever had. So, I guess one should never judge a nicotaine hands stained phlebotomist book by his/her cover! . A memory and lessonthat stuck with me!

So I never made whole wheat bread today but did make two dozen morning glory muffins with half whole wheat flour. My neighbors will be happy!

MinusTwo

Susan - i agree with Lacey. And the word "bummer" is way too mild. The darn veins and the often indifferent phlebotomists are two reasons I've kept my port so long. Not only a ruined vein & the inconvenience of another trip, but another week of waiting on tenterhooks. I too love the subtleties of Japanese food. I'd be happy to switch my diet if I weren't too lazy.

OK - I've blithely written a word that I've used as long as I can remember with no knowledge of how it came into common usage. Maybe you all already know, but I had to look it up. Just for fun - here's WIKI below.

Tenterhooks are hooks in a device called a tenter. Tenters were originally large wooden frames which were used as far back as the 14th century in the process of making woollen cloth. After a piece of cloth was woven, it still contained oil from the fleece and some dirt. A craftsperson called a fuller (also called a tucker or wa[u]lker) cleaned the woollen cloth in a fulling mill, and then had to dry it carefully or the woollen fabric would shrink. To prevent this shrinkage, the fuller would place the wet cloth on a tenter, and leave it to dry outdoors. The lengths of wet cloth were stretched on the tenter (from Latin tendere, meaning "to stretch") using tenterhooks (hooked nails driven through the wood) all around the perimeter of the frame to which the cloth's edges (selvedges) were fixed, so that as it dried the cloth would retain its shape and size.^[1] In some manufacturing areas, entire tenter-fields, larger open spaces full of tenters, were once common.

By the mid-18th century, the phrase "on tenterhooks" came to mean being in a state of tension, uneasiness, anxiety, or suspense, i.e. figuratively stretched like the cloth on the tenter.^[2]

SpecialK

minus - do you think this is also where the word "tent" came from? It kind of sounds like the same concept.

susan - ugh - hate that your good vein is blown, and that the Xgeva is bleh, but good that your MO is pleased with how you are doing overall.

Last night was our neighborhood party at my house for our friend turning 50. It was a fun and relaxed gathering, but always a bit of a skirmish to get the surprisee into the house under some false pretense. Everyone walked over (yay - could have a glass of wine and not drive!) and she was out walking her dog before leaving (thinking she was going out to a restaurant for dinner) so everyone had to dodge her as my house is on the corner! For apps we had a baked Brie, artichoke spread and I made some deviled eggs with a filling that had bacon, sour cream and chives - kind of a twice baked stuffed egg. I made a bunch of salads - my usual suspects (red potato with dill, sesame noodles, a green salad with chicken breast and a brown sugar dressing and cranberries/spiced pecans, another green salad with strawberries and yellow tomatoes and a poppy seed dressing, Greek orzo salad) and a variety of desserts - I made lemon cupcakes and my neighbor brought a sampler with mini eclairs, white chocolate and dark chocolate petit fours with raspberry jam, and frosted brownie bites, and a butter cake. We had a LOT of food - the neighbor between us brought Indian food - vegetable fried rice, some chicken, stuffed eggplant and a yogurt dish with vegetables. DH and DD are gone at the wedding so we hung out and ate by the pool with music and candles - it was fun!

Lacey12

And that was fun to read, Minus. Thank you

Lacey12

Special we were obviously posting at the same time....

What a tasty fun feast of a party you all had for your neighbor! Enjoy your reflections on it today....:)

SpecialK

lacey - I will also enjoy the leftovers, but wish the fam was here to eat some too! I am by myself - although just facetimed with DD and DH picking out lipstick (she doesn't usually wear it) to go with her Derby outfit, a hoot!

MinusTwo

Special - I wish I could come help you with the leftovers.

SpecialK

Me too - then you wouldn't be trying to one-arm it, I would have company and we would both have full tummies!

carberry

special in my dreams I am sitting by your pool with all that great food! Just dreaming of the day we can sit outside...forecast for the wind: cold, wind and more snow! Bought some steaks today and chicken quarters but will save them until I can grill. Tomorrow I will make lasagna. Not my favorite but the hubby will be happy and using the oven will help warm us up.

Minus. Liked the tenterhook story. Never heard that word

SpecialK

carberry - how awesome if all of this thread could gather around my pool in the evening light and enjoy some yummy food? That would be so fun!

Lacey12

Special, that is a wonderful image....and it's making my stomach growl! I wrote my last post quickly and realized later that you would also be enjoying great leftovers. Wouldn't it be nice if we could invent a "food sharing" service that would be as efficient as Amazon delivery! I'd love to share my morning glory muffins with all of you. In fact, three sets of neighbors are enjoying them. I never consider freezing a moist muffin like that (was surprised that even with half whole wheat flour they came out super moist and delish), and we certainly cannot afford to down 18 large muffins in this house!

I'm marinating chicken breasts in a Peruvian marinade which DH will grill for tonight. I'm also making chicken broth from our leftover store bought chick, which will probably be base for a kale and lentil soup...to have for quick dinners this week. Yes, Carrie, Spring has left us for a while too....so the urge for hardy soup remains.

I will make a big salad and not sure which veggie to go with our grilled chicken tonight. Our fridge is loaded with greens.

Tomorrow we are taking DH's college student niece out to brunch...to the Cottage Restaurant in Wellesley, basic American food. I will probably go light for dinner since I find that brunch stays with me for a long time.....

DH has been starting the shredding and throwing process in "one" of his home offices. He keeps coming across really interesting, touching things that our sons have written to and or about him. Very sweet.

But right now he is watching golf (which I just cannot do!) so I've been thinking of you Carole, since you might have also just screamed at the "almost" hole in one that someone just got! Pardon that pathetic English usage.

Hoping that Bedo is healing well, and wondering how ChiSandy is doing.....

susan_02143

okay. This has been an interesting few days for words! Take a look at this: http://grammarist.com/usage/hardy-hearty/ I think we eat hearty soups, or that is what I was taught. And I always thought that it was tenderhooks, and now it turns out to be tenterhooks. Fascinating stuff.

Tonight we are going simple. Grilled burgers on English muffins [since I was too lazy to make rolls,] and Carolina slaw. That is all.

I think we Northerners should ALL head to Tampa, eat deviled eggs and sit by SpecialK's pool. In fact, she didn't make a darn thing that I wouldn't enjoy eating with all of you.

*susan*

Lacey12

Susan, that is really funny since I changed hearty to hardy, why I do not know, (overthinking incorrectly perhaps!) since I'm sure that I have used hearty to describe food before, but it didn't seem to fit today!

Love tenterhooks! And the idea to head to Tampa now even tho I resist being a snowbird all winter

SpecialK

The door is open...

SpecialK

Also, here are DH and DD at the Derby themed wedding. Funny story - the wedding was outside under a big oak with Spanish moss hanging down and half way through the ceremony a spider fell out of the tree and went down the front of DD's dress!!

quinnofmn

Beautiful, Special!!

SpecialK

Thanks! It's a daughter and dad date

Lacey12

Adorable pic, Special! They both look like they should be high rollers at the Derby themed party...very striking! Love DD's dress and hat!

Now.... Have to ask.....what is the woman at the table on the left doing....hiding from the camera? Or just dumping out her purse? It is a funny scene.....to be cropped out of the beautiful picture!

SpecialK

lacey - I think that is actually her hat and when the pic was snapped she was in the process of putting it back on. It was super windy and I think people were making adjustments right after they came in. The hat was on sale for $15 and matched the dress, which has been hanging in the closet for several years - purchased it for another wedding, but she wore a different one. Still had the tags on, from Macy's and was clearanced and with a coupon was also $15! Seemed perfect for this event and DD made the $30 investment look good