what did you do today? (2008-2015) (closed)

[Hermit]

Just got back from nice's wedding. Wedding was at Bishop's Castle in Rye, CO. It is a very interesting and unique place!

Bishop Castle :: Official Site

At a picnic the day before, the groom had mentioned how much he liked Audi cars, so I let him and his bride drive my TT (its a roadster) from the wedding back to the reception in Pueblo. It is about a 50 mile drive with over half of the drive on winding mountain roads. Don't know if it was the ride back or getting married, but they both had big grins on their faces when they got to the reception!

My DD set up the reception hall with her normal flair for decorating and unique lighting - lots of oohs and aahs. A very nice wedding on a shoe string. A good time was had by all, and I must say I drank way too much beer and wine this weekend.

[Sarah in SC]

Hermit, that's such a cool place! Definitely now on my must see list next time we go out there!

[Theseus]

Cooked supper on the grill; bacon wrapped pork loin, grilled seasoned asparagus (picked fresh from the garden today), and "smashed" baby red 'taters in the oven. Oh, and a dash of merlot

[springnr]

NW, I have come to view sous vide as slow motion cooking, allowing precise control. We are used to the meat texture changes from the muscle fibers contracting during cooking, cooking at a steady 131 can leave a tender steak feeling mushy. I have been starting at 153.6 and letting the water coast down to 133 until finish. Many ways to experiment.

[NW-Bound]

My guests just left. I think my 3rd sous vide attempt has improved a lot from the first 2, although how much of that was due to the Costco Prime cut was debatable. That Prime sirloin steak was as lean and tender as the tenderloin that I did last time, but I seasoned it better this time. Everybody thought it was really good, as we talked about it over some shots of Calvados afterwards. As Audrey said in a recent thread "OMG! Who needs to go out to eat.".

I am full and sleepy now, so won't stay awake much longer.

[EastWest Gal]

In the last two weekends I have performed music 7 times:
6/6: orchestra concert in the park
6/7: band concert at a historical site (annual), orchestra concert in the park
6/13: band concert on the park, then played 2.5 hrs at a wedding reception with DH, my only paid gig and a total blast!!
6/14: church wind ensemble, then band concert in the park.
These are different bands, different parks.
At the end my chin below my lower lip developed a mild folliculitis from the moisture.

Finally a break. So yesterday afternoon I went back to cooking exploration--this time it's Ethiopian cuisine, and tending the garden. I need to transplant my artichoke plant out of it's rabbit protected area since it is getting big, and pull weeds big time.

Who has time to work?


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[rodi]

Everyone woke up way to early this morning for the last day of school today. Younger son is with friends at Dave and Busters after his school day. Older son (and us) had to report to the San Diego zoo at 6:45am for promotion from middle school to high school. They gave us free tickets that included bus rides, tram rides, etc. (Better deal than the free ticket that was entry only for the field trip younger son went on last week.)

After seeing older son promote, we spent a few hours on the bus, then celebrated with Mexican food (older son's request).

Now I'm slowly but surely checking off items on my "to do" list since we leave on our big trip in just 3 days. Fortunately, the only scheduled things in the next 2 days is an orthodontist appt and dinner with my sister.... so I should be able to finish trip prep.

[freebird5825]

I made stuffed peppers for lunch today...I fried up some ground medium hot sausage, chopping it into very small pieces with the spatula. I chopped up some fresh tomato. I filled each pepper half with the sausage first, followed by a layer of fresh tomato pieces on top. I doused each liberally with olive oil and put them in to bake at 350F for 45 minutes. Pulled them out, let them cool down a little, and then covered them with a thick layer of mozzarella cheese. Back into the oven at 300 for 15 minutes. Wow !

I finally motivated myself to get the lawn mowed. Rain is expected at the end of the week, so I got out there today before it got to billy goat length.
I mow my lawn minimally. I like to let it go to seed and mow it strategically so the bare spots from winter kill get covered with seed and mulch naturally. Spreading grass seed and straw is not on my retirement to-do list. Spreading straw makes my sinuses go haywire.

Just killing time until I have to surrender my laptop to watch the Red Sox game via the subscription service. I'll half watch it, reading my Kindle until the last few innings when it really counts.

[MBAustin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tailgate Smoking 5 briskets (ti-tips) using Aaron Franklin's technique. He just won a James Beard award for his brisket at his hole in the wall joint in Austin. His new book..Franklin Barbecue- A meat-smoking manifesto, is best I've read on Texas style bbq.

Thanks for the book review - I was considering getting this for BIL in PA who loves to grill - so he can learn to do it right!

Have you ever been to Franklin's? We went a couple of years ago when you only had to stand in line about 2 hours - I hear it's much longer now. It was really good BBQ, but standing in line that long is crazy.

[Hermit]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rodi Everyone woke up way to early this morning for the last day of school today. Younger son is with friends at Dave and Busters after his school day. Older son (and us) had to report to the San Diego zoo at 6:45am for promotion from middle school to high school. They gave us free tickets that included bus rides, tram rides, etc. (Better deal than the free ticket that was entry only for the field trip younger son went on last week.) After seeing older son promote, we spent a few hours on the bus, then celebrated with Mexican food (older son's request). Now I'm slowly but surely checking off items on my "to do" list since we leave on our big trip in just 3 days. Fortunately, the only scheduled things in the next 2 days is an orthodontist appt and dinner with my sister.... so I should be able to finish trip prep.

Mexican food in San Diego makes me think of El Indio! DW and I thought that was the best Mexican food when we lived there in 1985.

[Ronstar]

Got caught in a 1.5" rainstorm while out for a hike. Came home, took a nap, and watched the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup.


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[daylatedollarshort]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ElizabethT Husband is backpacking with our daughter as his Father's Day gift - she made all the arrangements, got the permits, food, etc. - so I'm here feeling a bit sorry for myself because I love backpacking. But, have stayed very busy putting the yard back together after getting the house painted, baking and freezing cookies, washing the car, and reading an excellent book that is on par with what Ernie Zelinsky puts out for retirement, called 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think by Laura Vanderkam. The book challenges readers to track exactly how they spend their time over the course of a 168 hour week, then compare the list to see how much time is really spent pursuing satisfying activities vs time wasted on things that don't deliver similar satisfaction. It's been very eye opening! Chapter Two's exercise was to come up with a list of 100 Dreams. I came up with 150 in about an hour, and can't wait to share them with my husband when he returns home. Some great stuff on that list I'd forgotten had once been things we wanted to do, like bike the Oregon coastline, run the Vancouver BC Half Marathon, and backpack Mt. Rainier's Wonderland Trail. Time well spent, I must say!

I love books like that. I'm putting it on my to do read list.

[daylatedollarshort]

Quote:

Originally Posted by imoldernu What did you do today? Ycch!... You don't wanna know. On Memorial Day after a jewel four day visit with our whole family at the lake, all downhill from there. Last day, DW broken arm after after a bad fall... emergency room visit... now, cast for 6 weeks. Five days later, moi... emergency room visit having to do with BPH... You can guess what that means. No clue, no forewarning and fortunately not serious. After that quick brush with death, two weeks of staying home until the health appliance is no longer necessary.

I'm just catching up on this thread - I hope you are are feeling better imoldernu.

[daylatedollarshort]

Today we had a nice lunch out, a pleasant phone chat with one of the kids, walked the dog and worked on decluttering and fixing up the guest bedroom. And I won $5 in a contest. It feels good getting the whole house organized this year but it is not a small project. But we are getting there - closet by closet. Over the weekend I was able to recycle all the old CFLs at Home Depot, so that was another box of clutter out the door.

I'm also spending some time learning to play the credit card reward, sign up and stacking games for miles / points. I am finishing up the minimum spending on a card for one of the kids and now started on a new card for us.

[davemartin88]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ronstar Got caught in a 1.5" rainstorm while out for a hike. Came home, took a nap, and watched the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup.

Well, I guess I don't need to watch my recording of the game from last night, lol. Just kidding, I was kind of hoping the Blackhawks would win in 7 games but will finish the game this afternoon. Since I don't have strong feelings about the outcome and wasn't emotionally invested in the series, I record most of the games and watch them when I have time. If I had a strong interest in the outcome, would watch them live to stay away from spoilers. My years in the past of being a Washington Capitols fan with no joy led me to just become a fan of the game and good hockey, regardless of the teams. I like it much better now!

We watched a movie last night instead of the live game (Black or White) and then some music before watching the first period of the game on the DVR. Very hot and humid here so was pretty tired after putting in 3 stairs at the river camp made from cinder blocks- only 12 blocks but digging out the ground, carrying the blocks and cement to the river bank was enough for me.

[jabbahop]

Family celebration for my uncle's 80th in the mountains of North Carolina. Everyone is insisting that 90's every day is unusual but fits my perception of the south since it is my first time here.

Had a great day doing some inflatable whitewater kayaking on the Nantahala river yesterday. Seemed odd to wear wetsuit bottoms in 90 degree weather but it was worth it when I wiped out in the falls at the end in the 55 degree water

Will have to come back to this area again


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[MRG]

Went back and had lunch with a couple of Megacorp buddies. There were a few other folks I knew at lunch and said hi to, but no conversation. A couple of guys were leaving I knew one, the other guy was a mystery to me. Of course he started talking to me, said hello and an awkward nice to see you. After they left I asked who was that guy? Well that's X person. No way this guy was very slender, the guy I knew was obese. He lost over 100 lbs. using diet and exercise. He's apparently kept the weight off for a year now.

[Philliefan33]

While cutting the grass today, I came across a wallet and a bunch of credit cards strewn about under one of our trees. I recognized the name on the cards as my neighbor on the corner so I delivered the lot to his house. I don't know the story but I bet someone stole the wallet and rifled through it looking for cash, then dumped it in my yard.

Upon finishing the yard work I went in to shower and clean up, and realized that I didn't have my Discover credit card. I had used it at Wegman's this morning. I called Wegman's and they had it at the service desk-- someone found it in the parking lot and turned it in. Thank you very much!

[ls99]

Took DW to the airport yesterday, only 70 miles one way. She and her sisters are attending one of their nieces wedding in... Las Cruces NM. She called that the trip went well including a change of flights in Dallas, landing in ElPaso, renting a van and driving to LasCruces.

Anyhooo. She said the temp was 101F, but it is OK 'cause it is DRY HEAT!
Before she left I suggested a big hat and a parasol. I don't care for anything above above 78F.

[Spudd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Philliefan33 While cutting the grass today, I came across a wallet and a bunch of credit cards strewn about under one of our trees. I recognized the name on the cards as my neighbor on the corner so I delivered the lot to his house. I don't know the story but I bet someone stole the wallet and rifled through it looking for cash, then dumped it in my yard. Upon finishing the yard work I went in to shower and clean up, and realized that I didn't have my Discover credit card. I had used it at Wegman's this morning. I called Wegman's and they had it at the service desk-- someone found it in the parking lot and turned it in. Thank you very much!

That's karma for you!