As promised, here are recipes for Shepherd’s Pie and baked apples. Enjoy!
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Month: November 2010
God save the queen.
I’m a little behind on the news, due to events beyond my control. But in my sickly haze I’ve been keeping up with all the news on Prince William’s engagement to Kate Middleton. Hooray! I love a royal wedding.
Well, you know I actually love anything about royalty. And that’s apparently not a well-kept secret, since Heather called me last week for the lowdown on what all of this means. I’m informed on the royal goings-on, traditions and monarchical implications to a level that even surprises me. Let’s just say that I have trouble remembering the DuPont Identity formula, but I can give you a history of England’s royal succession during the past few hundred years on a moment’s notice.
I don’t know why I’m so enamored by royalty — maybe it’s the fairy tale and the glamour, the pomp and circumstance, the observance and appreciation for history, social etiquette and tradition, or just the dynamics of a large, extended, dysfunctional family. One of my earliest memories is of getting up early to watch Princess Diana’s wedding with my mom — pretty amazing, since I was 4. Keep reading »
Sick of being sick.
Hello, readers. I’ve unexpectedly been away for a long, eventful couple of weeks. Mostly I’ve been knocked down by the worst cold known to man that won’t respond to antibiotics, Mucinex, antihistamine, Sudafed, Robitussin, cough drops, lemon tea (see below) or even my old friend Nyquil. I’ve spent much of the last two weeks laying around in my bed or on the couch partially buried in a mound of used tissues. (You’re welcome for that lovely mental image.) When I was little, my family went to these Saturday library sales, and I found an old book called “The Sick of Being Sick Book.” Inside were dozens of games you can play while bedridden, like shooting a basket from across the room with your balls of Kleenex or cough drop wrappers. I sure could have used that self-entertainment recently, and I wonder where that book could be …
In the midst of all of that, my mom had unexpected, emergency surgery the week before Thanksgiving. I ran down there in time to check her out of the hospital and wait on her for a couple of days while she regained her strength. (Well, until I became the patient.) I was completely amazed at the generosity of family and friends, a whole community that came out of the woodwork to help us. They cooked meals and even organized a food delivery schedule to get us through Thanksgiving. They’ll pick up again with more deliveries on Monday. Keep reading »
And so it begins.
Thanksgiving is a mere two weeks away, and the Black Friday planning is already kicking into gear.
My father is sending me www.blackfriday.info emails to update me on who has pre-released their Black Friday deals. By the time the day arrives, we should have a well-organized and choreographed plan ready to set in action.
Black Friday shopping with my dad is a recent, yet firmly entrenched tradition, and we approach it with the stealth of The Italian Job. Before stores started publishing their ads in advance, we would gather all the newspaper inserts on Thursday night, circle our target items, prioritize the importance of obtaining that product before it sold out and map our stores in the order of attack. Keep reading »
The end of Daylight Savings, and Shepherd's Pie.
Hello, faithful readers. I appear to be falling behind in my updating, since it’s nearly Thursday and I’m going to tell you about my weekend. As in last, not this. But I’ve just crossed a big school hurdle, so I hope to have a bit more time now (until the next one comes along).
Over the weekend, another finance exam was looming, and that always means stress cooking. Luckily, the exam is now behind me, so I hope we can avoid discussing the WACC, NPV or dividend policy if at all possible. I know that will be an inconvenience for you. This weekend was also our switch back from daylight savings, which afforded me a much needed extra hour of sleep. I hope you also used your hour wisely! From here on out our days will be shorter, we’ll leave work in the dark and the weather only gets colder. Soooo, I’m ready for April already.
There’s something about this time of year that makes me crave a certain meal — Shepherd’s Pie and Baked Apples. Keep reading »
I ♥ NYC.
When I was 7, my mom won a trip to New York City over Thanksgiving. We stayed at the Waldorf-Astoria (in the smallest room known to man), saw some Broadway shows and ventured out to watch the parade. My parents let me walk in front of them because they said I was good at parting the crowds. I just held my hands out in front of me, clapsed together like a rudder, and weaved through the sea of people. (Hey, I was 7.)
In middle school, my mom, grandmother and I flew up for one-day shopping trips during Christmas season. (My mom scared an elderly Asian lady in Macy’s when she put her arm around her from behind, thinking she was my grandmother. Oh, how we’ve laughed about that over the years.)
When I was in college, my dad and I spent fall break in New York, just walking around the streets and hitting all the tourist sites. We climbed the Statue of Liberty, where I had a heights-related panic attack on the spiral stairs, and took a photo at the top of the World Trade Center (freezing, since it was October). I remember feeling so let down coming back to my dorm room that night after I’d spent the morning walking in Central Park. Keep reading »
South & Sundry 