So...whats for dinner?

It was that kind for us too Carole, tamales and Spanish rice.

Today was all about the condo. There was no hot water this morning. The girl child came to our house to get clean while her Dad headed to the condo to figure this out. The Great Sergio was there and the two of them got the pilot light relit. And then Mr. 02143 stayed for hours to do his "stuff." He fixed the back door bench so the legs don't bump into the baseboard. And he spent hours recalibrating the temperature of the water so it was not above 128º. That is the magic number. Today's inspection was delayed. We can only hope that it happens tomorrow. Tuesday is Taco Tuesday... $1.00 tacos! And Mr. 02143 really wanted a taco. Long story, we had tacos, but evidently we didn't order the $1.00 tacos. Even more annoying, the wait person was horrid. We will not return on Tuesday since she confirmed she always works on Tuesday. When I asked for a napkin, she ROLLED HER EYES!!! She was nicer after the owner/chef greeted us like a regular. After our tacos, we headed back to the condo to tweak the water temperatures. Damn..... took over an hour but the temperature is finally good.

*susan*

Whoah--by the time I saw this thread it had certainly gotten away from me! Had some wonderful meals (nothing fancy this time, though) in Paris and again in San Antonio at the resort & spa. Wed. night in the casual dining restaurant a rather ordinary steak smothered in too-sweet veggies and a fried egg, and a bizarre Benedict (chorizo burgers instead of Canadian bacon, biscuits instead of English muffins, jalapeno Hollandaise) for room service breakfast. But second & third nights we ate at Antlers Lodge (so named because of this chandelier):

Thursday night’s dinner was chicken-fried oysters and a bison ribeye with spinach & brussels sprouts, and bourbon-pecan gelato for dessert. (Brunch Fri. was the leftovers). Friday night was salad, salmon carpaccio and spice-dusted elk with grilled asparagus. (No dessert--we were stuffed). Leftover elk for breakfast SAt., crudites at the spa after my massage & facial for midmorning snack. Went to the RIverwalk but the closest we could park was in La Villita, so lunch was at Guadalajara Grill: nopale salad, carnitas fajitas. We were so stuffed we walked the complete downtown Riverwalk loop, ending up at Rio de Gelato across from the parking lot. We had a bizarre-sounding but wonderful-tasting artisanal gelato, whimsically named Cielo: Madagascar vanilla base blended with 25-yr-old Balsamico, dates and cinnamon. Finally, about 11 pm back at the resort we ordered a room-service “Margherita” pizza that was spectacularly awful. (Basically spongy crust with mozzarella and a few swirls of pesto & tomato puree). On the way back to the airport Sun. we had fantastic brisket & greens at Big Bib BBQ in Alamo Heights. Once we got through TSA, we hung out in Vino Volo, sampling bubblies & Pinot Noir for over 3 hrs, keeping a nice lady from Guadalajara from getting bored while waiting for her indefinitely delayed flight back home (she did drink us under the table). Bob & I shared a blueberry salad and minted lamb meatballs. Home too late for dinner. Last night I ordered out from Jimmy’s for NY pizza--ironically the best pizza I’ve encountered in Chicago. And tonight I grilled some asparagus (orange-lemon-balsamic vinaigrette) and pan-seared some halibut fillets (tarragon-oregano marinade). Fruit-infused water instead of wine. (Done enough drinking for awhile).

All I know is that the temperature must, by code, be lower than 128º. Massachusetts has a lot of consumer protection and safety laws, which is actually a good thing. At 128º, a child will not burn themselves badly washing their hands and an elder won't slip into an overheated tub of water. This water heater doesn't have a thermostat, so the setting of temperatures is very manual and time-consuming.

*susan*

Dinner here was broiled cod with an herbed bread crumb topping and some weird combination of a tomato, thyme and onion sauce over fast sautéed spiraled zucchini and yellow squash. A bit of bread on the side. Not bad. Not great.

I have been craving avocados. Need to get to the market!

*susan*

An exhausting day with dad ended in carryout pizza. It was good enough.

Good news, the Berkshire Pig has gone to the butcher. I placed my cut order today, yay!

Susan--when the salad is made, do I put it in the fridge--make it in advance?

Or should it be served at room temp once made?

Bob brought home leftovers late last night--four sriracha wings, fries and Greek salad. So dinner tonight was the wings & salad. Blew off my support group meeting (having no issues and didn't feel like driving up to Evanston) as well as picking up wine Bob ordered a couple of weeks at a Tuscan winemaker dinner ago--there's a tasting and buffet there tomorrow night, so I will drive the four blocks so I can ferry the half-case home in the car. (Too heavy to schlep with a luggage cart, especially if the weather doesn't cooperate). Might have a little gelato for dessert, or cut up some strawberries. Maybe both.

Speaking of berries, I put some in the bottom chamber of a fruit-infusing water bottle (“Define,” the one designed by a teenager and shown on Shark Tank). then added water to the top chamber. I'm very disappointed, as I can't keep it from leaking around either the bottom cap or the joint between the chambers. Anyone have experience with these? Just ordered some spare O-rings in case the ones in the bottle were defective.

SpecialK, this is the dual-chamber bottle: fruit goes in the bottom chamber, then the top chamber (with a strainer at the bottom) screws atop it, and finally the lid screws on. The bottom cap of the bottom chamber is removable too. I have the sinking feeling that when I discarded the box to make room in my suitcase, I might have discarded the O-rings too (at least the spare one). I used to have an interior-infuser bottle, but it was next to impossible to take it apart and the top broke off after the second fill.

I ordered a packet of 4 replacement O-rings--$1.50 including shipping. But I emptied the bottle and checked all the pieces--all O-rings are intact and properly seated. I screwed the bottle back together, making sure the threads were properly aligned and tightened. I put a paper towel down beneath it. I will go back in a few minutes, but I expect that towel to be saturated. It’s not condensation, as I can feel the water seeping from all the joints. I think it’s a design defect endemic to this type of bottle. Maybe the “Sharks” were enamored of it because they didn’t have to use production models of it for any length of time.

Yup, it's the “Define." Methinks it needs to go back to the drawing board for more precise “definition.” I Googled “Leaking Define Bottle” and got a page of Amazon reviews--half of which are one-star, some mentioning mold and all mentioning leaks. Same complaints appear on the product’s Facebook page. This may be a problem with no solution. I will look for other types of infuser bottles and hope they work.

Blood work is done! I was not all that polite given they had me wait 25 minutes past my appointment time, and people who arrived long after me were taken in first. [Turns out, they prioritize those with doctor appointments.] As I was making lunch, not more than an hour after the draw, Dr. Christina called. Those markers are down another 19%!!!! in the past four months, they are down 43%. I am almost at the same level that I enjoyed for four years on Faslodex. I feel like crap today, but so much easier to feel like crap if the stuff is working!!!!

Dinner tonight is designed to be easy since I will have to head to the airport to pick up my mother. She arrives tonight after over 3 weeks in the UK. We are grilling a rib eye, baking some potatoes and then I will make a salad. I have also started some bagels which I will serve for our breakfast in the AM. I have some smoked salmon and cream cheese. I will offer her an egg as well. This will be my breakfast for a few days as well. Then we head to the condo, have a coffee with my other sister who will drive in after rush hour, and then they will both head home. We should have our inspection [maybe] tomorrow. I can only hope!

*susan*

p.s. I once again have a HelloFresh gift code which is good for $35 your first order from them. If anyone wants it, PM me.

Susan - GREAT news. WOW numbers down again. And that 43% number is fantastic. Hope your short visit with your Mother is fun. The dinner & the breakfast sound good.

Such heartfelt good news about the marker drop.