Weekend accomplishments: Easter edition
Friday I didn't do anything special with my day off, except I got kolaches for breakfast. The place I go to has a drive-through window, so all I have to do is throw on some leggings under my nightshirt and a sweatshirt over them to get breakfast. I had thought I might go out looking for a couple geocaches, but it rained pretty hard until mid-afternoon. I went to CVS and picked up the Honeybaked ham in Lafayette. Mom was so happy when they opened up there; the first few years after they moved back to Louisiana there wasn't one closer than Baton Rouge, and she used to complain every Easter and Christmas about the Smithfield hams we were forced to consume instead. "They're too salty!" In the afternoon I put a new belt and needle on my record player. My platter has been wobbling and making the records sound awful, and while I was replacing the belt to fix that I figured I might as well put in a new needle.
Saturday I made breakfast and went to the grocery store early, my aunt Lori was coming through on her way to NOLA and I wanted to be back in time to visit with her. She and her husband moved to Seattle from Orange County right before the holidays, but the winter has been really hard on her--this is the aunt with lupus--and a friend of theirs that has a 2nd house in the Garden District invited her to come out and stay in it for a while. Jeremy can mostly work from anywhere, so he's flying out next week to stay there, too. We got stuffed crabs from Shuck's and visited for a while, and when she left she said I have an open invitation to stay with them as long as they're there, the house is 5 bedrooms. Must be nice to be some people, or at least those people's friend. I will probably take her up on it after my vacation at the start of May, if only for a weekend.
I took a gummy after she left, then after I heated up some leftovers for supper I tried that new Delta 11 vape. I didn't think it was possible to get too high from THC analogues, but I was wrong. Luckily I am a very practical-minded person and part of my brain always remains sober enough to tell the rest of it "Eh, this will pass soon". I put some Nick Drake on the turntable and eventually fell asleep without moving for about 9 hours.
Sunday I wanted to use the ricotta left over from last week's khachupuri, so for breakfast I made some waffles with sweetened ricotta and fresh strawberries. I changed/washed the bed sheets, watched Dateline, made a cake and did some dinner prep. I had some wine, finished Arcadia and started reading The Moving Target. Ross Macdonald is okay, but he's definitely trying. You can see the seams in his prose, whereas with Raymond Chandler it was like a bolt of silk unreeling.
Easter supper was very traditional: Honeybaked ham, potatoes au gratin, green beans with garlic and honey, hot rolls, and deviled eggs.
Mom said, more than once, "Your grandmother would have loved this", which is the highest praise she gives for other people's cooking. The eggs were no frills: Mayo and mustard, salt and pepper, a little hot sauce and splash of pickle brine, and some smoked paprika on top.
For dessert I made a bee sting cake, which wasn't as fancy as my Easter cakes usually are, but it's one I've been wanting to make. It's a German yeasted cake, sweetened mostly with honey, then split and filled with vanilla custard. So it's a bit more complex than it looks.
Saturday I made breakfast and went to the grocery store early, my aunt Lori was coming through on her way to NOLA and I wanted to be back in time to visit with her. She and her husband moved to Seattle from Orange County right before the holidays, but the winter has been really hard on her--this is the aunt with lupus--and a friend of theirs that has a 2nd house in the Garden District invited her to come out and stay in it for a while. Jeremy can mostly work from anywhere, so he's flying out next week to stay there, too. We got stuffed crabs from Shuck's and visited for a while, and when she left she said I have an open invitation to stay with them as long as they're there, the house is 5 bedrooms. Must be nice to be some people, or at least those people's friend. I will probably take her up on it after my vacation at the start of May, if only for a weekend.
I took a gummy after she left, then after I heated up some leftovers for supper I tried that new Delta 11 vape. I didn't think it was possible to get too high from THC analogues, but I was wrong. Luckily I am a very practical-minded person and part of my brain always remains sober enough to tell the rest of it "Eh, this will pass soon". I put some Nick Drake on the turntable and eventually fell asleep without moving for about 9 hours.
Sunday I wanted to use the ricotta left over from last week's khachupuri, so for breakfast I made some waffles with sweetened ricotta and fresh strawberries. I changed/washed the bed sheets, watched Dateline, made a cake and did some dinner prep. I had some wine, finished Arcadia and started reading The Moving Target. Ross Macdonald is okay, but he's definitely trying. You can see the seams in his prose, whereas with Raymond Chandler it was like a bolt of silk unreeling.
Easter supper was very traditional: Honeybaked ham, potatoes au gratin, green beans with garlic and honey, hot rolls, and deviled eggs.
Mom said, more than once, "Your grandmother would have loved this", which is the highest praise she gives for other people's cooking. The eggs were no frills: Mayo and mustard, salt and pepper, a little hot sauce and splash of pickle brine, and some smoked paprika on top.
For dessert I made a bee sting cake, which wasn't as fancy as my Easter cakes usually are, but it's one I've been wanting to make. It's a German yeasted cake, sweetened mostly with honey, then split and filled with vanilla custard. So it's a bit more complex than it looks.