Casserole en el Piso

Today I had a wonderful brunch with Tomi and Dave at Essalon in Hadley. The best thing was the conversation. It was so nice to talk with sentient adults with no agenda other than fun conversation. (Of course, no politics to speak of. We all know where we stand and we wanted it to be happy talk.)

After that, it was my Aldi's stop. I still love that store! Eggs were $0.55/dozen!!

Once I got laundry going, and much of the groceries stowed away, I loaded up the oven with: stuffed jalapenos, chicken thighs "breaded" in pork rind dust, chicken thighs in buffalo hot sauce, a crustless quiche, and roasted radishes. I divided hard salami rounds into serving sizes and put them into individual packages. Having determined that I need better portion control, I will be measuring out mixed nuts into single portion sizes so I don't overeat. My morning snack will be quiche and salami. My afternoon snack will be nuts. Sometimes I forget my morning snack and either eat it at lunch or in the afternoon. 

At that point, I figured I had better eat lunch because it was 2 p.m. and I didn't want to eat my evening meal too late. I "created" a nice casserole with pre-cooked cauliflower on the bottom, pre-cooked ground beef, some fresh mushrooms, and some leftover Alfredo sauce from a jar. I zapped it in the microwave, added fresh ground pepper and salt. I reached for my coffee and my elbow hit my dish of casserole which did a two and a half gainer off the counter before it hit the floor. (Yes, "en el piso" means "on the floor" in Spanish.) Oh, but wait -- there's more. At least half of the casserole fell into my open purse which was on the floor.  Yep, on my phone, my sunglasses, my diabetes test kit ... well, you get the idea. I not only have to wash the floor, I have to clean my (huge) purse! Darn.

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Cyndi hosted an art show with student art from Kanegasaki, Japan. Most of the students were ages 14 and 15 years old. I helped her set up. There were 26 water color paintings based on Emily Dickinson's poetry; I've only given you a couple of pictures here. You can see more at the FaceBook group called Kanegasaki Sister City and Friends.

Cyndi before guests arrived

Roses in Emily's Garden

"I like a look of agony ..."

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Got a load of clothes washed and hung up. Am drying the second load, washing the third load. Emptied the dehumidifier, once again proving that water is heavy. It no longer drains through the hose that empties into the sump pump. And I have to kick it to restart it. Really. The dishwasher is chugging away washing dishes.

The asparagus is cooked and looks very festive next to the radishes in my lunches. I'm pretty sure I bought some broccoli, but that can wait a bit. I have to do some serious re-arranging in the fridge. I'm thinking that will entail making salad or at least cutting up the lettuce.

Since we have Memorial Day off, I don't have to put the trash and recycling at the curb tonight because the pick up is delayed until Tuesday. That's a good thing because it will give me more time to get the recycling together. We alternate weeks and this week is paper and cardboard. I haven't put most of it outside (in the open bucket) because it has been raining off and on for two weeks. Ever since I bought a silver sun screen for my car, it has been raining.

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I have found a new show on Netflix: The Ranch. It's a comedy with a laugh track which I hate, a slow start with only mildly amusing jokes, which I don't like. They use the F word liberally, which is o.k. with me (but not Mom). There are two words that are the whole reason that I watch the show. Sam Elliott. Need I say more? Ashton Kutchner and Deborah Winger are also in it and the jokes (and writing) do get better after the first couple of episodes. Bo Bennett (the father, Sam E.) is a rancher in Colorado with two sons and an estranged wife. 

I have to tell you one joke -- Bo (the father) is telling the sons that times are tight and they have to economize and only buy what they really need. And he looks at a carton and says, "What the F... is almond milk?? I never saw a teat on an almond!"  Those ranchers. So earthy.

I'm liking it because the third season of Bloodline was such a downer, I needed relief. Yes, I did binge watch Bloodline, and I should know better. But what can I say? It keeps me out of bars and taverns.
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By the way, the temperature has gone from rainy in the 50s to rainy and 74 F. It's HUMID. As we say, 'You can cut the air with a knife.' Combined with seasonal allergies, I'm huffing and puffing. I finally broke down last week and take an Allegra in the morning before work. (My face is so puffy in the a.m., I look like a drunk.) And then, as if a gong goes off, at Noon the Allegra gives up the ghost and I'm all snarfly again. I haven't been taking another pill in the afternoon, but I might have to give in: two sides of my office are covered with lilac blossoms. A woman stopped in on Friday and wanted to know the variety because these are still blooming when all other lilacs have stopped. I wanted to say, "Really Smelly Lilaculus!" but I didn't think that would be appropriate. I did say that Reference could probably help her ... (Anyone else would have broken off a bit and brought it to the Hadley Garden Center for identification, but ... )

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I "met" a really lovely pup at Aldi's. I thought it might be a mastiff but it's a really big (grey) pit bull. They said he's still young but his father weighed 110 pounds. This was a snuggle bunny and he wanted/allowed me to pat him. I'm glad I don't have to feed that dog! I'm guessing he goes through a fair amount of kibble.