The Senate is clearly broken

You may be getting down on the Senate because they couldn't manage to hold a vote Thursday on that jobs bill that Republicans are filibustering. But they did manage to double the penalty for marijuana brownies.
--TPM

I wish somebody could fix it.

--the BB

Planning Sunday dinner

There is no question that I am on a roll when it comes to my new pasta attachment for the Kitchen Aid. Two weeks ago I made noodles for myself and dined on them for days. Last Sunday dinner had thicker egg noodles (the kind I remember Grandma Iva making) with my first ever roasted chicken. I've been shopping after work yesterday and today for Sunday dinner this weekend.

Yep, pasta again. Lasagne from scratch to be made tomorrow, along with the sauce. Sunday morning before church I will bake a peach pie (I have not made pie in something like 40 years). Of course the crust will be from scratch and the peaches from my tree! The harvest begins. Sunday afternoon I will bake the lasagne.

There will be antipasto: olives, salami, giardiniera mix, grissini (breadsticks).

Then lasagne with garlic bread and salad.

Then peach pie a la mode (OK, I bought the Häagen-Dazs).

Sparkling fruit juices from Italy and what I hope will be a nice Italian wine are at the ready.

After all, why spend seven weeks studying Italian if you're not going to have some Italian food? I will probably put Puccini on the CD player too, and some Vivaldi.

Those who read this blog may get the impression that I cook a lot. Lately that has been more true but I have really cooked very little since my ex and I separated. Just can't be bothered cooking for myself. You don't want to know what dinner is most evenings but cheese and crackers is one favorite. Rarely more elaborate than that, though I occasionally microwave taquitos. This shift toward entertaining and cooking more is HUGE. And a good thing as I do love to cook. Inviting folks provides motivation (and once downstairs is uncluttered I entertain several times before I devolve into chaos again).

Yeah, there are chores to be done as well but I am stoked over the weekend. And so glad it is here at last.

Shabbat shalom, y'all!

--the BB

Arrivederci, scuola

Cross-posted from Facebook:

Last Italian class this evening. Sad to see it end. But we did have a party: mini-crostini with salmon pâté, grissini, delicious cannoli from an Italian bakery, Italian sparkling fruit juices, etc.

--the BB

Small stuff

No big news on my end. I cooked Sunday dinner, roasting a chicken for the first time in my life. I have always left that to others. It came out cooked but juicy. Put the dinner guest to work cranking the homemade egg noodles. Three sides of vegetables. A mushroom and cream sauce over the noodles and chicken. Blueberry crisp and ice cream for desert. Not a virtuous meal but a full-on Sunday dinner.

Friday night we plowed through the rain to catch Madama Butterfly at the Santa Fe Opera. Good singing, good acting, good production. It was lovely and very moving. Nice twist at the end. (No change in plot but a wordless twist that I shan't reveal. Very powerful.)

I put on excerpts of Butterfly last night while studying Italian grammar. Tonight we have another quiz and get to see the second half of an Italian film (with Italian subtitles to help us).

Lots of thundershowers lately so the earth is getting rain here in the desert / high grasslands.

This was just so y'all didn't think I'd dropped off the edge of the earth.

Please read Margaret's post this morning. Let us keep the prayers for her and Joel and Juan Manuel going.

Joel was grumpy, grumpy grumpy last night. He also suffered a small panic attack --and he still cannot breathe or speak very well nor swallow at all.... he continues in ICU --although they FINALLY got him out of respiratory ICU and in to neuro ICU which is where he needed to be because myasthenia gravis is a disease that prevents the brain from speaking to the nerves.... and without the nerves the muscles don't work.... and without the nerves and the muscles one does not breathe or swallow or speak....

So, I am hoping that grumpy means improvement.... because,

in truth, as far as speaking and swallowing go --I'm not seeing any improvement at all...

--the BB