Dear Reader, I'll let you decide the better title for this post!
I know what I'm celebrating and it includes some of my favorites:
Standing Rib Roast
Steamed carrots
Mashed potatoes
and that's just dinner for tomorrow!!
and then there will be A NEW YORK STYLE CHEESECAKE!!
I'll be back, there will be more later today.
xoxox
UPDATE: 19h23 the cheesecake is in the oven!
I spared you all the details of the making of said cheesecake because it really wasn't all that exciting or complicated! Tomorrow there will be pictures.
Also, a box from Amazon arrived with 5 books FOR ME from supernana, Mr Matrix, and BGM! Pictures tomorrow.
I have become totally upset with that other social media site and also, all things related to news as we know here in the US of A. Based on that, I have spent the day (it's 15:07 here) perusing all things unrelated to current events! So, based on that, I'm sharing the bits of info I've gleaned with all y'all! (all part of my own personal mind palace of solitude)
Do you know about messy nessy an online collection of all things interesting?
How about atlas obscura another collection of things you might not EVER know about.
Hyperallergic yet another source of information you could possibly live without!
How about Arsty which is not as pretensious as it sounds?
Then there's a site that if you're interested in just because of the name, you should check out! It's called The Mysterious Package Company. If nothing else, join for the email information.
For a collection of interesting stories that will arrive in your inbox: Medium for humor (or humour), serious reads, and stuff.
Here's one I just found that I check every day (ok, almost every day): Earth Sky! Really great tips on star gazing or just enjoying the night sky.
(update) HOW COULD I HAVE FORGOTTEN TO SHARE Curbed with all y'all?
I hope these will help when you need a moment of personal down time during the holiday rush that so many are experiencing right now!
Have a great holiday weekend!
Happy Christmas!
xoxo
p.s. if you have any sites to share, leave them in the comments! bisous
It's been rather hectic around the Plantation because the MITM has been waiting for an answer regarding a project. Maybe hectic isn't the best word to describe THE ABSOLUTE TENSION AND ANXIETY that has wrapped itself around this place.
Of course, TODAY everything changed, good news came via a well timed phone call! He's visibly relieved and relaxed, so everyone here (me) is breathing easier. So, now we can focus on the really important event that is rapidly approaching!!
MY BIRTHDAY!!
Yes, yes, I know I said I wasn't going to have a countdown or make a big deal about it since it isn't a significant number/decade yet, but like the (once) spoiled only child (I use that word metaphorically, of course) that I am, I am planning my own party and celebrating ME! (cue cheers)
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We received a call yesterday from friends who were departing for Paris to celebrate his birthday today and to spend Christmas there. The MITM wasn't in, but I was happy to wish them a lovely time and a great birthday. This is her first time visiting the city. He'd gone with us a couple of times before they were married, so he knows a bit more than she about great places to see. (Yes, I am really jealous, can you tell?) I'll always cherish memories of my first visit, but the one that stands out the most is coming up from the Metro to a gentle snow falling and just being awestruck by the beauty and quiet of the moment. *sigh* Now I want a cup of hot chocolate from Angelina! (Quick aside, looking for the website, I just found out I can order the hot chocolate mix online from a couple of American purveyors!)
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If you aren't on that other social media site you will not have seen my latest experiment in domesticity! Yes, my darlings, instead of the MITM baking pies, I BAKED BREAD! Not only did I bake bread, I made 2 loaves of 6 strand braided challah bread! That's right, for the very first time in more years that I can remember, I baked bread. AND, I used a recipe and a technique I've never tried before!!
this was the second attempt at braiding
the loaf on the right was the first attempt
We had warm slices with butter and jam immediately, and then the next day I made French toast. We had the last slices this morning with our coffee. The second loaf is in the freezer! I plan to bake a brioche next! Or maybe, I'll bake my birthday cake next and save the brioche loaves (recipe makes 2) for next year!
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And because it's Christmas (or almost) here's a movie because someone went to Disneyland and stayed overnight! And also, for your enjoyment, a random pirate, who also happened to visit the most magical place on Earth!
She's singing "Bare Necessities" from the Jungle Book ride, in case you couldn't figure that out!
And now, as Captain Chaos said, a random pirate sighting...
He called himself "Captain Tiny Chinese Pirate"
There will be more soon! I have to decide on a menu for this year's celebrations. Oh yes, there will be more than one! xoxo
I read this today and even though it was published in the NYT in April of this year (and I probably read it then) TODAY it hit home. It hit that spot in my heart that instantly brought tears to my eyes. Maybe it's because it's December or because yesterday super nana took Big Girl Matrix to see The Nutcracker and BGM showed me (in a video) how the mice danced or seeing Captain Chaos and Big Boy Chaos at the skate park and remembering how I used to hold my breath when the Captain was on his board, but right now I really miss my mama. Even thought I know she'd be in her 90's, I just wish she could see how far her family has come.
Fingers Crossed Across Generations
Dear Diary:
Every Christmas I travel from Philadelphia to New York to spend a couple of days on the Upper West Side with my sister, who is 82. I am 90.
On Christmas Eve, we walked up Broadway to a little, hole-in-the-wall shop, Beard Papa’s, for coffee and cream puffs. I sat at a small table while my sister stood on line.
I watched a much younger woman at an adjacent table struggling with an overladen shopping bag, from which a bouquet of long-stemmed roses threatened to fall out. The bag kept toppling but finally things were in order, and the roses were safe.
I smiled at the younger woman and showed her my crossed fingers, and she crossed hers in return. A few seconds later, she put a beautiful rose on my table.
I thanked her and then said, “But why are you doing this?”
“Because I don’t have a mother anymore,” she said.
Just so you know, I'm OK now. Just sharing this and yes, shedding a few tears in the process, has sent the December blues on their way!
Oh, by the by, check out The Nutcracker on Eroswings blog! The music is heavenly!
I love all y'all more than you know! xoxo UPDATE: Blogger and friend on that other social media site, Ponita, posted this today and I thought I'd share it here, too!
The MITM has been doing genealogical research into his family and mine. This research has been all online via a site that I am not going to name because they aren't paying me to endorse them, so this ain't a sponsored post.
He's been tiptoeing on the razor's edge waiting for other things to fall into place, so to keep from baking pies (which is what he does during times of stress) he started researching his family and mine. A lot of this "time filler" as he calls it was initiated by watching Finding Your Roots a show on public television (PBS) here in the USA. The MITM's family was part of the southern migration to California back in the day. He found MASSIVE amounts of information regarding both his paternal and maternal lines stretching back to the 1600s.
My family, on the other hand, had not been as rigorous when it came to record keeping, so he's only gone as far back as the early 1800s on my mother's side. She was born in Manhattan and her side is American. My Daddy was an immigrant, so in order to get all of HIS records, we have to buy the PREMIUM package that searches international records. At this point, I know enough through the historical documentation to know exactly where my Daddy was born and when he became a naturalized citizen.
What I've come to realize with his research is that when we were young we didn't ask enough questions about where we came from or pay real attention to the stories that were shared. Family myths often have basis in reality I've come to find out, but you have to have some facts! I think I'll start putting as much info on old photos as I find them now. (YIKES, what about all of those thousands of digital photos that haven't been printed and are just sitting on external drives?!)
There will be more to this story, I'm sure, but for now the MITM is going to talk to a new cousin about what they've both found out!
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During this "wait and see" time around here, I've been listening to a lot of music (to drown out skype/facetime/phone conversations), catching up on Netflix, housework (I know, right? WTF am I thinking?), and reading. Reading has been a tad more difficult than I had anticipated (even after all these years of marital bliss, I haven't learned how to tune out his voice, etc.) because I still seem to hear everything and feel the shift in the force when things aren't going well. So, my pile of books is growing and not diminishing. BUT, super nana did send me a copy of Obama: An Intimate Portrait by Pete Souza which was the post pleasant and much desired surprise present! I mean, who can forget this exchange:
The photo is in the book, too! Along with so many others, sad and joyful, that are part of our history and collective consciousness.
I have to finish reading Breakfast at Cannibal Joe's by our friend and blogger, Jay Spenser Green, before I can start or even buy another book! But that's a story for another time. ;)
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Today as I was perusing that other social media site, I came across a post by another pal about how she misses blogging and now is mainly on Instagram and that other social media site. I posted that I was still blogging and figured I should post today!
Speaking of bloggers, take a moment and check out Hope's Christmas Wish. I'm also thinking about attempting a knockoff painting for Mr. Exile when the muse strikes!
Now I'm off to read some of our other blogging pals while the MITM is chatting with his newly found cousin!
And because you asked (OK, because I love sharing them) here are some recent pictures from the krewe:
Christmas tree at the Matrix house!
Big Girl Matrix and the Christmas village
Big Boy Chaos at the skatepark this morning
The video is BGM and her dog, Tommy Lasorda! (They're all BIG DODGER fans!)
