Well, Hello there?

  The gift shop in the Portland Jetport is in the gate area. It smells of a pleasant pine potpourri and is festooned with products from Maine. I’ve lived in Maine for over forty years, but still can be tempted to buy pine cone decorated candle holders or moose refrigerator magnets. It’s the same feeling that comes over me when I’m at a Disneyworld gift shop. That oven glove that looks like Mickey Mouse’s hand seems like a necessity and the Goofy clocks are to die for. Both of those items are totally out of place once they are in a home. 

   Because of the Philadelphia airport incident of August 2010, I am scrutinizing emergency items necessary to survive a night in a freezing cold airport, such as socks, sweatshirts and multiple candy bars and making sure I know the exact time the gift shop closes, when I notice someone unfamiliar that appears to be approaching me out of the corner of my eye. I veer to the right toward the paperback books and pretend to read the titles. I notice the same shadowy tall figure nearing me on my right and I turn left toward the Maine sweatshirts and t-shirts. Finally I turn on my heels and head toward the exit when a man about my age stops himself directly in front of me. I look up and see a huge smile on his face, and he was looking directly into my eyes. 

Do I know this person? My mind is racing, mentally taking inventory of every man I’ve ever met. He looks vaguely familiar and he finally asks of me.....

“Do I know you?”

I say, “ I don’t know.” 

He says, “You look very, very familiar.”

I said, “You look kinda familiar.” (I figured this was a wise thing to say just in case I actually did know this person. I didn’t want to seem like I forgot all about him or that he was so insignificant in my life that I didn’t remember him.) 

“Are you a teacher?” , I ask. (Teachers are just about the only people I know. Tons of them)

“No”

“Where are you from?”, he inquires.

“Orginally?”, I ask.

“Yeah”

“New Jersey”, I say, thinking maybe I went to high school with him!! I’ve always wanted to run into someone from high school that I’ve haven’t seen in like, forever, and then realize we know each other.

New Jersey did not put a knowing look on his face.

“You’re a teacher?”, he aks.

“Yes.”

“Where?” (Now at this point I’m surveying him for terrorist accessories, or hidden box cutters.)

Suddenly, probably sensing my razor sharp eyes scanning him, he tells me he’s a surgeon in Camden, Maine.

“Hmmm”,I tell him, “I’ve been to Camden several times before.”

That didn’t impress him at all, so he very politely said, “ It was nice to meet you, but I’m guessing I don’t know you”.

He left the gift shop and entered the bar next door. He probably needed a stiff drink to help him recover from the  disappointment of not being able to reminisce with me about our spontaneous romantic trip to the Isles of Greece when we were in our twenties.....or something like that. 

Ah, those were the days.

Update: I just want to wish a sweet lady, Annie's Mom, a very happy, happy birthday! Love ya!

 

And we all just let it be???

I was driving into school today and, once again, noticed the price of gas. 

It’s bad enough, the price that is, but can someone explain to me why ANYTHING costs a ‘dollar’ amount, a ‘cent’ amount and then a fraction of a cent????

Hello. I’m paying $3.67 and 9/10 for a gallon of gas?  Nine tenths of a cent???

So when I’m all finished filling the tank by myself, why does it never total 'whatever', 'whatever' and a fraction of a cent? How can it always end up on a whole cent?  I’m no math wiz, but even I know something isn’t kosher.

I fear I am being taken for a ride.

Just a new painting......

I finished this one a few weeks ago, but was reminded of the snowy image because..... WE HAD ANOTHER SNOW DAY ON FRIDAY!!!! $^*))*&^%$#       It was not April Fools......

Happy Birthday MOM!!!!!!!

Today is my Mom's 90th Birthday! (She's the one on the left.)

Yeah, that's me in the middle on my first birthday. That's about the look I have on my face whenever  I count the candles on my birthday cake. Actually, these days, it's an even more perplexed look. 

Where does the time go?

So, today, Mom, you are 90 years old.  You have no idea how thrilled I am to be able to celebrate this milestone with you, even though it's over the miles. The love I feel for you I could never express. The thankfulness I feel, for everything you've ever done for me, is equally difficult to put into words. 

All I can say is that I love you beyond words and thank you from the bottom of my heart......for everything. 

So, have a great day, Mommy. This family loves you and wishes you much health and happiness.

AND, I will see you in 3 weeks!!!!!!!!

Všetko najlepšie k narodeninám, mamička!!!!

(Yeah, there I am again, thrilled to be out in the freezing Pennsylvania air.....That's still my puss when I'm cold.)

Happy, Happy Birthday to the best Mom in the world!

Not much doing......

Not much happening around here, so in order to come up with a new post, I had to do some scrounging. I don't want my 3 fans to think I've succumbed to an untimely end.

1st scrounge: 

Baby Downeastdoingstuff and I met on Fort Hill to see the Super Moon come up. I read that some predicted doom and gloom as a result of this celestial event, but all was well.

It was supposed to be 30 percent brighter and 14 percent larger. I think it was only 13 percent larger.

Yesterday morning I drove to work behind this truck for about 10 miles. I tried to avert my eyes from.....well.....you know, but I couldn't. Pervert.

Finally, this was the view THIS MORNING. Hey, it's spring!!! What the heck?
That's it. Pathetic, huh? I need more material......

Happy Valentine's Day.....

 Valentine's Day was one month ago, give or take a day.

 

Mr. Downeastdoingstuff and I celebrated last night!!

 

Now I know that in your warped minds a number of scenarios might be racing through your brains and before you start hyperventilating........we just went out to dinner. 

(We've been married almost 36 years....celebrating Valentine's Day takes on many forms. ie. 'Don't buy me a card, and I won't buy you a card.', was something I vaguely think I uttered. [I'm not paying $6 for a card and neither is he! Being a math wiz I know that adds up to $12 bucks. Ridiculous.])

So we decided to go out to dinner to a nice place. Only took a month to figure out where to go.

OK, so we're a bit slow, but we don't need to impress each other any more. Well, no, I take that back.....Mr. DEDS needs to continually impress me. (He reads this blog, so I don't want him to think he can slack off.)

So off we went to Walter's, an upscale, contemporary (for Portland, Maine) restaurant that has received excellent reviews. It was really balmy out, about 40 degrees, so it was a nice night to go out on the town.

I took some photos, but it was so dang dark in there they are not very good, but here they are...

View from our table toward the front door.

(Notice how it's still light outside!!! Yippee....good bye winter.)

I had the Salmon dish. At the top was smoked salmon and at the bottom were two hunks of roasted salmon, each in a different sauce. It was all artfully placed on top of a bed of sauteed spinach and pine nuts. As a finishing touch, it was all impaled with three pieces of wood. (?)

Mr. DEDS had the Mixed Grill. A Petite Filet Mignon, Shrimp and Scallops. Garlic mashed potatoes and some other stuff we couldn't identify.

And in honor of our Valentine's Day celebration, a huge painting of a heart was hung up, I'm sure, just for our enjoyment. What a place.

Note: Yesterday was the last day of Restaurant Week in Portland, Maine. For one week you could go to many, many participating restaurants and pay one price (it varies from $20, $30 or $40) and get a three course meal. If you do the math, which you all know that I am good at, you actually save quite a bit of money that way. 

BTW...NOT buying two Valentine's Day cards bought us a glass of wine and another alcoholic concoction called Coco-mo. Good deal if you ask me.

Love you, Birdman.

Sixty years......

Someone near and dear to us turned 60 years old on Saturday. 

60.

 All of us (yes, including me) in his generation look at each other, once it dawns on us how old we are and say,

 "Say what?"

It can't be! How can it be. Our parents and grandparents are 60, aren't they?

Age is a strange thing. It happens to you when you aren't looking. And there ain't no stopping it. 

But we celebrate it anyway. (how perverted is that?) 

And celebrate we did!!

Friday night a family dinner party with great surprises.

Saturday a huge affair.

Sunday an intimate brunch.

A whirlwind of a weekend. Great fun all around.

So sixty must mean other things, too.......so let's see what Google comes up with...

From Answers.com....

Q:What do you call someone that is sixty years old?

A: Well, I guess they're old, but you don't want to call them that so probably call them sixty year old or something like that.  (a genius at work)

King James Bible:
And if [it be] from sixty years old and above; if [it be] a male, then thy estimation shall be fifteen shekels, and for the female ten shekels.  

 

(WHAT??) (The Bible should be like Wikipedia. I would change that verse immediately!) 

(Notice they are called 'she'kels and not 'he'kels, btw.)

Now, this one, I agree with. I love Cary Grant. (An Affair to Remember)(Remember?)(sigh)

photo credit

A recent headline: 

Sixty-Year-Old Japanese Woman Gives Birth    (ouch) (ouch) ( double ouch)

OK, OK, actually he's 61, but sitting next to Jennifer Lopez on American Idol makes him look a lot more like.....well, I don't know what it makes him look like. 

Some pretty good company here....(love how Liza Minelli is trying to keep Dolly Parton's boobs in.)

photo credit

huh? This is a 60 year old accupuncturist doing self-accupuncture. Wonder what's wrong with him? Probably has no health insurance, thus the do-it-yourself kit. (Maybe he's just trying to remember his pin number. This way, all he has to do is count the pins when at an ATM. The long one is a decoy, in case anyone is watching him.)

So Happy Birthday, our dear Marchin. It was great fun, wasn't it? 

New painting.....

Another painting in my 'road series'. Tempera paint. 16" x 20"

Happy Birthday to my sister (in-law)........

Today is the birthday of a sweet lady. I don't know anyone else that is like her....she's the best.

So, IF I had her here for supper tonight, this is what I would serve. I tried these a couple of months ago and they were yummy.

(These are recipes from DOWNEAST Magazine. Downeast got these recipes from local restaurants.)

Ready? Here we go.....recipes and all.

First, we'll have Spicy Creole Haddock and Corn Cakes

Old Port Sea Grill, Portland Maine

Spicy Creole Haddock and Corn Cakes with Roasted Garlic and Tomato Remoulade

Ingredients:

1 ear of corn, shucked

5 tbsp olive oil

1/4 C large red onion, finely diced

1/4 C red peppers, finely dice

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely diced

3/4 lb fresh haddock, cut into 1" cubes

2 bay leaves

1 Tbsp salt

1 Tbsp white black peppercorns  (HUH?) (Oxymoron?)

1 Tbsp Old Bay seasoning

2 lemons, halfed

1 egg

1/2 C mayonnaise

1 tbsp Cajun seasoning

2 C Panko (japanese bread crumbs)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. (I CANNOT figure out how to type the 'degree' symbol, evah!!!)

Cut the corn off the cob, toss in 1 tbsp olive oil and roast in a small pan in the preheated oven for  30 minutes until nicely browned. (YES, I DID THIS, ALTHO I THINK IT'S STUPID)

Let the corn cool. Set aside.

Saute onion, pepper, and jalapeno in a pan with 2 tbsp of the olive oil over medium heat until tender but not browned, about 10 minutes. Set aside and let cool. (I used less jalapeno, due to the fact that Mr. Downeastdoingstuff can't hack anything spicier than water.)

In a stock pot, combine the bay leaves, salt, peppercorns, Old Bay, and lemons and fill pot 3/4 full of water. Bring the mixture to a boil. Put the diced haddock pieces into a metal stainer and lower strainer into the boiling liquid. Cook for about 5 minutes. Set haddock aside to let cool.

Combine the corn, onions, peppers, jalapeno, and haddock with one egg, mayonnaise, and Cajun seasoning in a large bowl. Add 1/2 C of the panko crumbs to the mixture and combine. If mixture does not hold when pressed together, mix in more panko crumbs 2 tbsp at a time until mixture can hold. (ha....mixture never holds....well, barely....very stressful ordeal) To dredge the cakes, place the remaining panko crumbs in a large bowl. Tightly pack a 1/4 C measure with the haddock mixture and roll into a ball in your hands. press down to form a round cake about 3/4 inch tick Dredge in panko crumbs on all sides.

Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a heavy, large skillet over medium-high heatl Add haddock cakes and saute until golden brown, about 4 minutes per side, careful not to overcrowd the pan (you will have to do them in batches). Transfer to plates. (Put the pieces back together like a puzzle so no one will be the wiser that these cakes broke apart when turning over.) Drizzle  remoulade sauce over and serve.

Remoulade sauce? Remoulade sauce?  What's that?????

Glad you asked.....

Roasted Garlic and Tomato Remoulade

4 Roma tomatoes

8 garlic cloves

2 tbsp olive oil

3/4 C mayo

1/4 C capers

1 C parsley leaves

juice of 1/2 lemon

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven the 450 degrees. Halve the tomatoes and using a spoon or melon balller, remove seeds and discard. Peel and halve the garlic cloves, put on inside each tomato half, and drizzle with the olive oil. Roast for 30 minutes or until the tomatoes and garlic are slightly charred. Add the remaining ingredients to a food processor or blender along with the tomatoes and garlic mixture. Pulse until everything is incorporated. Finish with salt and pepper to taste.

Makes about 1 1/2 C. Can be made a day ahead and refrigerated. 

Delish.

NEXT ....

Cabernet Pouched Pears Stuffed with Cranberry Blue Cheese

Mache Bistro, Bar Harbor

Pears...

2 Bosc Pears

1/2 C Cabernet Sauvignon

1/4 C balsamic vinegar

2 tbsp brown sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp honey

3 C baby arugula

2 tbsp olive oil

Blue cheese filling.....

1/4 C chopped pecans plus 1 tbsp for garnish

1/4 C dried cranberries plus 1 tbsp for garnish

3 ounces cream cheese (room temperature)

1 tbsp mayo

1 tbsp olive oil

2 ounces blue cheese-plus 1 ounce for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Halve pears and place in a baking dish flesh side down together with wine, vinegar, brown sugar, salt and honey. Cover with foil, and bake for 1 hour. Allow pears to cool in liquid. Scoop out and discard pear cores and seeds to create a space for the filling. Reserve cooking liquid.

(this turns the pears into such a red color it's a bit alarming!)

While pears cook, in a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, blend cream cheese, mayo, olive oil, 2 ounces blue cheese, 1/4 C pecans, and 1/4 C dried cranberries until well incorporated.

Divide filling into four parts and fill each pear half. Toss arugula (Can't stand the taste of arugula, so I used s spring mix of greens) with olive oil and divide among four plates. Place stuffed pear on top of arugula  and garnish with reserved pecans, cranberries, and blue cheese. Drizzle reserved cooking liquid over pear and greens.

And finally........

Roasted Pepper Shrimp Saute

Joshua's Restaurant, Wells

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 pound shrimp (21-25 count), peeled and de-veined (If deveining isn't the most disagreeable job there is, then I don't know what is, short of murdering and preparing your own meat/seafood from scratch...)

1 1/2 C chopped tomato, in 1 " dice

1 large roasted red pepper, thinly sliced

1/2 roasted jalapeno pepper, thinnly sliced (Less....remember Mr. Downeastdoingstuff's wimpy-ness)

2 tbsp  chopped garlic

1 C dry white wine

4 tbsp unsalted butter

2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

salt to taste

Preheat 12" saute pan. Put oil in pan, and when it is almost smoking, add shrimp, tomato, peppers, and garlic. Let cook for about 1 minute, then toss thoroughly  just once to create a caramelized flavor. After 1 more minute, when the shrimp should be about half cooked, add the wine and salt to taste. Reduce the wine by half, cooking off the alcohol, then add the butter and parsley to finish. Serve immediately. We garnish this with a few pieces of grilled baguette, perfect for soaking up the sauce.

That's it, my sweet sis. Hope you enjoy it.

Add D's Mud Pie and some alcoholic beverages and it will be a birthday to remember.

Love Ya!!!!! 

Happy Valentine's Day.....

Happy Valentines Day to the sweetest man on earth. I love you.

Birdman Bakes Bread

       The finished loaf of bread. A miracle.

I’m going to make some bread this weekend.” says Birdman, aka Mr. Downeastdoingstuff.

[pause]”........um, okay.” I said.

“What kind of bread are you making?” I inquire.

“ You know, regular bread.”

So, a million scenarios go through my head from enjoying a wonderful piece of warm bread and butter, to scrapping dough off of the ceiling.

“Hey,” I say, “why don’t you peruse that little bread book I have in the den for a recipe.”

[blink   blink   silence]

“OK then,” I say, “ when you buy the yeast, buy a strip of it that has a recipe on the back for ‘regular’ bread.” “Make sure it has a recipe, because some don’t.”

“K”

So off he goes, to Hannaford, to pick up some yeast and a couple other things on this warm(ish), sunny February morning. 

It’s now near 3:00 PM.....do I smell bread in the air? 

No.

So I say, “Aren’t you going to make bread?”

(grumble.....grumble....) I hear from his direction. I leave well enough alone.

About 20 minutes later he announces, “OK, I’m going to start the bread.”

Out comes the kitchenaid mixer and the yeast packet.

“How do I do this?” he asks.

“Read the recipe.” I instruct. 

“Where is it?”

“On the back of the yeast packet.”

“What? Oh...... [pause].......[pause]......[sigh].....[cough].....there’s no recipe on here!?”

“Didn’t you look before you bought it?”

“Yeah, I did” he replies, “but I didn’t have my glasses on.”

So he figured that if he saw a bunch of blurry lines and colors on the yeast packet, he was good to go. 

Wrong.

So I start looking up recipes for ‘regular’ bread. I went to the Fleishman’s site and found a perfectly good recipe for beginners. But now he announces he wants to make raisin bread. I tell him that’s fine, but it will be a little more complicated and slightly different.

“Why can’t I just throw raisins into the ‘regular’ dough?” he asks.

“Well” I say, “the dough might be a different dough, maybe a sweeter one.”

So we look up raisin bread on my laptop and grab the first one we get to because, frankly, I’ve got other things to do. 

Anytime there’s a cooking expedition that involves Birdman, for some reason I get involved. 

So I’m eyeballing the closest exit that I could slither into without being detected.

Fat chance.

“Where’s the flour?”

“Over there” I say pointing to the cabinet where the flour has been for 30 years. (Not the same bag....)

“What are all these things for?” (holding up the kitchenaid paddles and whips)

(they are used to paddle, whip and beat life’s small irritations, I’m thinking....)

deep breath.....

So he gets everything out, he gets everything explained (in my opinion) and he’s on his way....

....except for these questions:

1. How do I open the yeast?

2. Where’s the brown sugar?

3. How much is a tablespoon of butter?

4. Can I heat up the milk in this pan?

5. Can you scroll the computer? I have dough on my fingers.

6. And the Piece de Resistance.....”What’s a yolk?” (That one I could.not.believe. I KNOW he knows what a yolk is.....!!!!@#$%&*) 

6 1/2. How do you get the yolk out?

I did manage to escape the room and I did hear some mild cursing now and then, but the result was we had one dang, wonderful loaf of raisin bread in the end.

As they say, all’s well that ends well.

And it ended well.

As I’ve said many times before, it’s a darn good thing I like him!

Thanks, Birdman.

Further photographic evidence of bread making in Maine....

Reading directions on the laptop.

Supplying sustenance for the job...a Patriots cup of iced tea with Powers Whiskey sloshed in for good measure.

OOOPS.....Add all DRY ingredients together. Add all WET ingredients together.

So why is the DRY yeast in the WET milk concoction???

Stirring the pot.....

Iced Tea/Whiskey break.....

Rolling out to a 12"X 8" rectangle and putting on the cinnamon sugar/raisin mixture.

Put into a loaf pan. (I took it out and put it back in so that it didn't look like an old man's butt.)

And, Voila!!!!! Delicious raisin bread.

And in the spirit of Super Bowl Sunday.....1 . 2 . 3 . HIKE!

'Til the next episode of Hell's kitchen.....

Squirrel proof bird feeder.......

Look real close.....or biggify the photo. 

Yep, the squirrel proof birdfeeder I got Birdman is doing a great job. Yes, indeed.

Dam it........

I get emails from the Kim Komando Radio Show, a show about computers and web sites and stuff like that.
You can sign up for free 'Cool Sites' and you will get all kind of interesting and not so interesting web sites sent to you. You get one a day.
Today was a riot.
It's a translation site where if you type in a few sentences, it will translate what you type back and forth into other languages and then back into English.
As they say, a lot is lost in translation.

I typed in the chorus line from Don MacLean's 'American Pie' song.

Here's what I got....

Original text:

"So, bye-bye, Miss American Pie Drove my chevy to the levee But the levee was dry And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye Singin' this'll be the day that I die This'll be the day that I die "

...10 translations later we get:

"So, goodbye, and ordered the United States Chevrolet gave me a beautiful dam, but the dams are dry and good whiskey and rye singing students, to be drunk one day, it will be the day I die"

I think it has something to do with the day I retire from teaching. The students will be drunk, and I will have ordered my first Chevy, dam it. And since it will be the day I die, I will rethink my decision and never leave my singing students, even if the beautiful dam is dry. Dam it all.

Try it yourself......here.