Happy New Year

I sincerely hope everyone has a really great new year. Except George W. Bush. And Senator Clinton.

Not likely they read this, however, so I suppose I'm safe.

Well, it was a New Years to remember. I don't think I've had a year that ended on such a sour note as this one in ages, and I'm not going to go into it, so phlllhhbbbhhhttt to those who are morbidly fascinated with emotional traumas and the stamping-out of burning ducks. Suffice it to say that "Learning has occurred".

One of the things I learned was not to buy a roast beast from Butera Market. I love the Butera. Nobody goes there. There is always plenty of breathing oxygen, the food is good and fresh - but their meat department is wretched. The meat LOOKS great - but I've had 2 instances of late where standard preparation of ordinary meats has resulted in extraordinary failures. Meat from Caputos from now on.

This was a bit of an issue, as I had planned a nice dinner for two for Jan. 1 - Roast Beast, veg, orange AND white potatoes, and onion soup.

Fortunately, I had a couple of pork chops in the fridge, and had made extra on the soup, so the meal was adequate regardless the roast-from-hell.

I've never had a roast do this to me before. It got all hard and uncuttable on the outside, and was farking RAW on the inside. So I cut off the hard part, and tried again to cook it and it grew a hard shell again with THAT inside being raw. (and no - the meat was NOT previously frozen)

Enough is, in fact, enough, so I gave up and thawed out the chops and did a quick broil up on them. With a bit of bruschetta on top they were excellent.

S came over for lunch on the 29th (30th?) and we went to Applebees. (Yes, I realize I have just skipped around chronologically - deal with it) They have drastically changed the menu at Applebees since the last time I was there. This can only mean 1 of 2 things - either Applebees is being quite daring and innovative..... or it has been an awfully long time since I was at an Applebees. I suspect the latter.


381 days

(P.S. - Congratulations, Senator Obama!)