Damn, She's The One

Yesterday I was scrolling through Twitter, as I normally do nine-million times a day, and I came across a tweet  that led me to this Instagram post by Tracee Ellis Ross (Diana Ross's daughter):

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Tracee Ellis Ross (@traceeellisross) on Apr 22, 2019 at 3:54pm PDT

The song is by an artist named Lizzo.  Who is this Lizzo?  I've never heard of her.  Not surprising, since I don't really keep up on music as much as I should - I listen to more podcasts than music when I'm driving - so I started to do some Googling.

And I'm now a fan.

The song in the Tracee Ellis Ross clip is this one, called "Soulmate".....I'mma marry me one day.  Here's the video, with the lyrics. Sing along!:

Now I'm going to save you some time and post all the videos of the songs I listened to so you can binge-listen like I did.  You don't have to YouTube 'em yourself.  You're welcome.

Let's start with "Good As Hell".  I heard this song in the movie I watched the other night and it was very catchy.  "Hair toss...check my nails...baby how you feelin'?..feeling good as hell..."

In this song, "Cuz I Love You", her voice is astounding.  If you don't get chills listening to this QUEEN belt out this song, you better check yo damn pulse.  "AHM CRYIN' (huge inhale) cuz ah looooooooOOOOooooOOOOOOOOVE UuuuuuuuUUUUUuuuuuuUuuuuuuuU"  Mother Jones magazine compared her to Beyonce. 

Then we come to "Juice".  So snappy.  So joyful.  So fun!  "Ya-ya-ee, ya-ya-ee, ya-ya-ee, ya-ya-ee"

This next video is called "My Skin".  Lizzo sings, "I woke up in this.  I woke up in this.  My skin."  Wow.  Fantastic lyric.  

This is what Lizzo said about this song:  "This is a summoning of bodies: all shapes, sizes and shades to unite in their pride, and wear their skin like the gift it is. 

My Skin literally matters. It matters because it’s the largest organ on my body. Because it’s my exterior. It’s been stretched, sunburnt and covered in glitter. It’s the first thing you notice about me. My skin is dark brown, but if you asked someone they would say it’s black. My blackness is my largest assumed ‘accessory.’ Not my gender, religion or wealth. Because of it, I’ve experienced countless misconceptions from people— neck rolls and gratuitous gestures, overt southern dialects superimposed onto my own voice, perceived “ghetto-ness.” I laugh it off because it’s seemingly harmless, but when we think about where this originates it’s actually poisonous. 

Being black in America is a unique experience. All people have a unique American experience, but I can’t speak for all people. I can only speak from my unique experience as a black woman. The “African-American” myths that cloud non-black people's judgment are taken from the worst part of our struggle and paraded as fact. I could write this essay trying to debunk “black-on-black crime” and fill it with pleading persuasive prose, but I’d rather just tell you what I know."

I'll leave you with one last one I like, called "Scuse Me".  You can YouTube the rest. 

She's so talented.

She even plays the flute.

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2018: Bathroom Essentials
2017: The Red Planet
2016: The Calm Before And After
2015: Cheese On Horseback
2014:  A Life That's Good

2013: The Big Weekend Event

2012: Bringing The Sea To The Sleeper Bunk

2011: The Lonely Road

2010: Boys’ Town, Old Digs And A Non-Working Number

2009: She Needs To Wear A Bell

2008: Budding

2007: I Hate When He Does That

2006: The Toes Of Summer Are Peeking Out

2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005!

Green And Gold

This tile covered arch decorated a passageway of a shopping district in Amsterdam.



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2018: Single File Crossing
2017: One Of These Things Is Unlike The Other
2016: Girl Catcher
2015: Oklahoma Tin
2014: She's There Already
2013: Still Waters Run Deep
2012: The Princess Of Fruits Welcomes You
2011: I Love This Lookout
2010: There Ain’t No Rodeo On This Rodeo
2009: Covering All The Bases
2008: Ed Fantasizes Out Loud
2007: Better Late Than Never
2006: The Last Best Chance
2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005!

Time Does Not Matter

My great-grandfather's clock.

Knowing what o'clock it is, gives ye the illusion that
ye have some control over your circumstances.  

~ Diana Gabaldon, 

author of the Outlander series of novels.

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2018: You Break, You Buy
2017: Tutti A Tavola A Mangiare!
2016: Do Your Brain A Solid And Read A Book
2015: Massive Collision In Wyoming
2014: Even His Feet Are Handsome

2013: Not Evolved Enough To Clap Just Yet
2012: A Cat’s Life
2011: Not So Lucky
2010: A Capitol Idea
2009: Blooming Where The Sun Don’t Shine
2008: Eddie Wakes Up Smiling Friday
2007: Gnocchi From The Gods
2006: Blurry Super Hero
2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005!

So Many Hours Of The Day To Fill

Today I had a little fun taking pictures with the FaceApp on my iPhone.  I cartooned myself and my surroundings.

Here's the (very messy) end table in my living room.

And here's my husband, sitting on the couch at the other end of the living room, working very diligently on his computer.

Clearly, I have a little extra time on my hands.  

What time-wasting activity is next, I wonder?

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2018: Catfish On The Bluff
2017: If Only Gas Were That Cheap Again
2016: Friends Don't Let Friends Exercise Alone
2015: I Would Never Mute This Commerical
2014: State Line
2013: No Pity
2012: Stop Grackling!
2011: Chicks And Kids
2010: Ultima Lavada 9:00 PM
2009: Eddie Touches Up The Old Girl Friday
2008: The Morning Sun Greets Guadalupe
2007: Starting Soon. No, Really.
2006: This Mary Doesn’t Go To Pre-School
2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005!

Three Years Later...

I'm not sure what this purple groundcover is - I think it might be lantana - but I am shocked to see it in my front yard.  We've never had flowers like this is the yard.

Granted, my front yard looks like it belongs to an abandoned home, but at least there's finally some color in it.  I am convinced it's from the seeds we planted a few years ago.

I like the color.  I don't like the randomness of the plants, but at least it's not completely brown out there.  

It's almost worth the three years I had to wait for them to show up.



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2018: A Spring Moment
2017: In The Heart Of Amish Country
2016: A Spark Of Male Bonding
2015: A-MAZ-ING
2014: Ghosts Of Retail
2013: Orange Is The Devil
2012: Sixteen Hundred Miles Makes All The Difference
2011: In Need Of Some Color
2010: 122 Years And Counting
2009: Sixteen Days Old
2008: Racism Comes With A Convenient Handle
2007: Evening Tide
2006: Glittering Pasties And Swinging Tassles
2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005! 

Motoring With A Saint

St. Christopher is the patron saint of travelers and motorists in the Catholic faith.  

When I was growing up, my grandfather had this St. Christopher double medallion in his Cadillac.  It's made of heavy metal, stamped "Italy" near the bottom of the cross, and was with him and my grandmother everywhere they drove.

I'm in possession of this medal now.  I just came across it as I was organizing my office cabinets.  I'm not any more religious today than I was 40 years ago, but I am sentimental so this St. Christopher medal will be traveling with us in the new truck.

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2018: The Three Rs In Strawberry
2017: My America
2016: Addictive Retro Fun
2015: Boldface
2014: Ciudad Juárez En La Noche
2013: Live It Up!
2012: The Last Supper
2011: New York Always Stands Out
2010: Visitor Number 933 To Room 525
2009: Makes A Nice Desktop
2008: Leaning Tower Of Texas
2007: It Should Be Called “Thimble Shot”
2006: Southern Hideaway
2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005!

Like Rabbits

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2018: Lodged In The Mountains
2017: Getting Your Ducks In A Row
2016: Rise Up
2015: Slide
2014: Sitting In The Sun Of The Southwest
2013: The Sunniest Black Hole
2012: A Visit From Woodland Creatures
2011: The Man I’m Spending My Nights With
2010: Let’s Hope This Industrious City Can Get Our Truck Fixed
2009: Free Range Horns And Humps
2008: The Earth Is Sending The Paper To The Folder
2007: Some People Are SAD; I Am Not One Of Them
2006: An Eye For Fashion…And Other Things
2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005!

Hard Labor

Today I set aside my day to make marinara sauce, fry eggplant, and then assemble the fried eggplant with sauce and mozzarella cheese for the eggplant parmigiana that' going to be my contribution to Easter dinner tomorrow at my brother's house. My brother's mother-in-law is making stuffed shells and baked ziti with sausage, my sister-in-law is picking up fresh baguettes and cheesecake (our favorite from Costco!), and my mother is making the famous salad my nephews love so much.

I used Bon Appétit's recipe for both the marinara sauce and the eggplant parmigiana.  I've never used a recipe for this dish but I've been saving this particular recipe for some time now and since the eggplant parmigiana was a special request, I figured I'd give it a go.

I decided to use my Le Creuset Dutch Oven.  I needed the room since I was tripling the recipe (this pot is 15.5 quarts) and I was going to be putting it in the oven for 3 hours, and this dutch oven is made for just that.  You can see the darkening around the inside where it bubbled up, then burnt off.  

While the marinara cooked in the oven, I peeled, sliced, and salted my eggplant.  I've made eggplant parmigiana countless times in my life and have never salted the eggplant, but the recipe called for it, so I did.  

I had over eight pounds of eggplant.  The recipe calls for the slices to be 1/2" to 3/4" but I don't like it that thick, so I sliced them about 1/4" thick.  I laid the slices on a cookie sheet, salted them with kosher salt, and covered them with paper towels.  I continued that process until I had ten stacked layers.  I put another cookie sheet on top and had Ed weigh the entire pile down with an extremely heavy toolbox.  The process squeezes the excess water out of the eggplant.  I left them like that for an hour.  

Once they were done, I started my breading process.  Flour, egg, breadcrumbs.  Flour, egg, breadcrumbs.  Flour, egg, breadcrumbs.  You get the idea.  I did that about 100 times.

While I was doing that mind-numbing task, the marinara finishes cooking.  I took it out of the oven and set it aside to cool.  

Look at this gorgeous sauce.  It tasted fantastic.  I think I'm going to use this recipe for the rest of my life.  It's the best marinara I've ever made.  I didn't use the anchovies (I know it adds umami, but I still think they taste fishy) but the red pepper flakes and dry white wine is not something I've ever added to a marinara and I think it made all the difference.  I can't get over the flavor of this sauce!

Once I was done breading a decent amount of eggplant, I started frying.  I didn't want to be there all night and this was already taking too long.  

I had three frying pans going.  I had so much eggplant to bread that rather than waiting for it all to be done before frying, I did both at once.  The pile of eggplant didn't seem to be getting any smaller and I'd already been at it for three hours.

I decided to do a taste test - it was also time for lunch - so I took a few warm, crispy eggplant cutlets, cut a few slices of fresh mozzarella, and then spooned the still hot sauce over it.  It was sort of a deconstructed eggplant parm and it was amazing.

After I finished my quick taste test/lunch, I got back to frying.  I fried and stacked until I was done.  Once everything was fried up, I assembled my eggplant parmigiana pans. Eggplant, sauce, grated cheese, shredded mozzarella, and repeat.  I filled three 13" x 9" pans and one 8" x 8" pan.  

The entire process from beginning to end, which included washing dishes and cleaning up the kitchen, took more than seven hours.  SEVEN HOURS.  

SEVEN HOURS.

I only took two short breaks - one to eat, and one to sit because I thought I was going to die from the non-stop standing and cooking.

I love eggplant.  A LOT.  And eggplant parmigiana is one of my favorites.  But like chicken cutlets, the work involved is insane.  I think it's worth it.  Especially when I'm eating it.  But at that moment, and any other moment I'm craving this dish, I don't remember how much work is involved.

Like gnocchi, I think this is going to have to be one of those dishes I have to eat in a restaurant.



~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 
2018: Heading To The Tall Pines
2017: They Nestled The Produce On Beds Of Kale
2016: Take It To Ramon
2015: California Field
2014: Happy Easter!
2013: A Tree Grows In A Truck Stop
2012: The Herb Whisperer
2011: Turning Tables With Adele
2010: A Different Kind Of Dumpster Diving
2009: Federal Glow
2008: My Mother Is An Oxymoron
2007: The Restroom Shell Game
2006: The Pressure
2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005!

Mise En Place

I'm all set with ingredients for my Easter eggplant parmigiana.  I plan on making it tomorrow.  

Eight pounds of eggplant.  

Not really looking forward to all the work but I know the end result will be worth it.



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2018: Keeping Time In The County Seat
2017: On Your Mark
2016: Always Be A Moose
2015: Where The Good Girls Run Into Trouble
2014: Feed The Children Of The World
2013: Burst Of Power
2012: If This Worked, I’d Become A Cannibal
2011: How I While Away The Hours
2010: Incredibly Average, Yet Heroic If Necessary
2009: May I Take A Message?
2008: Doing The Speed Limit In Your Sleep
2007: Now I Can Go Back To Watching The Show
2006: Ten Of Life’s Simplest Pleasures
2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005!

Working With Wind

Windmills at Zaanse Schans in the Netherlands include several working mills, that actually produce products.  



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2018: You Really WON'T Believe What's Inside
2017: Blue Girl
2016: Vintage Beauty
2015: Truck Yeah
2014: Break Time Selfie
2013: The Glories Of Our Journey
2012: The Herb Whisperer
2011: The Switch Between Morning Glory And Country Strong
2010: Name That Tree
2009: Getting Plowed
2008: Eddie Friday In Squares
2007: The Color Of Elizabeth’s Eyes
2006: The Result Of A Little Flax In Your Diet
2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005!

One Last Grasp At The Sky

We have another century plant on our property coming to the end of its life after being on our property for almost 40 years. 

Just like the last one a few years ago in our front yard, the center stalk sprouted up suddenly.  I know it's not possible for it to grow twenty feet overnight, but that's what it seemed like.  Magically, this big asparagus-like spear was just there.

Once the stalk flowers, the entire plant will die.  And this plant, which has been on our property for decades, will be gone.   

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2018: Diner For One
2017: An Actual Manic Monday
2016: Sunday Reading
2015: Do You Give Good Internet? I'll Be Right There.
2014: Where Are We?
2013: Where You'd Go For Camel Repair
2012: The Color Of Happy
2011: Taking Possession Of The Sound
2010: The Bridge People
2009: Knocking Us Off One Candy Bar At A Time
2008: How To Entertain Yourself When Hanging Out With Sight Impaired Adults
2007: Is It REALLY Such A Mystery??
2006: Heading South And Going Country
2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005!

Soup In A Golden Bowl

While going organizing some of our Europe photos, I came across these pictures reminding me of our first ever business class flight.  This was the "chef" on our flight - maybe he was also a flight attendant, maybe he was also a co-pilot, I don't know, I didn't look very close at everyone as I was too busy reading the menu and then enjoying the food - who came around and actually took our order for our meal.  

Once they got our orders, they brought out bread with accompaniments - a little bottle of olive oil, soft spreadable butter, salt & pepper (in the little onion-domed shakers - I love the one with the gold top!), and an herb mixture that I added my olive oil to.  The bread kept coming, too.  They'd make rounds with the bread basket, waving tongs in front of you pointing to delicious rolls - seeded, multi-grain, sourdough.  Clearly, they knew my weak spot. 

I'll tell you right now, you won't go hungry in business class.  Turkish Airlines did not stop feeding us.  From the minute we stepped foot in the Star Alliance Lounge at LAX airport, to the moment we got on the plane, there was food.  

When we were handed the menu for dinner, we groaned.  More food??  But we had to choose dinner, which would be served once we got in the air, and then breakfast for the next morning.

Here you can take a look at the dinner menu.  It was printed in Turkish and English, and you were allowed to have anything we wanted - four appetizers, two entrees, three desserts, whatever.   

Dinner choices here on the right side of the three-fold menu.

Breakfast choices here on the left.

In this photo taken by MacG, who was sitting behind us, I'm being served soup in a gold-rimmed bowl.  To the right of Ed is the trolley with the assorted canapés.  You just point at what you want, and they put it on a plate for you.  

Here are some of the appetizers - soup in that beautiful gold-rimmed bowl, cherry tomatoes with chunks of cheese, a coconut battered prawn, and a little bit of salad.

When we go to Europe again - and I hope it's 2020 - I honestly don't think I'll be able to fly any other class of service.  It's going to have to be a business class or first class flight.  I'll use every point, every perk, every trick I can pull to get that ticket.  Not only is the travel for the long distance more comfortable, but the food is fantastic.

They even have snacks for when you get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom.  That's a pretty good perk. 

Of course, it's a little different than standing in front of an open refrigerator in your underwear, like you do at home, but I'll take a midnight Snickers bar any day of the week on an airplane.

Time to start making future travel plans!

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2018: Where The Elks Of Globe Went To Gather
2017: For All The Real Easter Lovers Out There
2016: Round Trip
2015: A Delicious Bridge And Tunnel
2014: More Important Than Taxes
2013: Stadium Seating
2012: Where Ed Was Found Roaming The Aisles
2011: If You Happen To Have A Few Hundred Million Lying Around, Have I Got A Deal For You
2010: Another Day At The Port
2009: Buggin’ Out
2008: Hangin’ Out With Ray Stoker Jr.
2007: Sunset On The Move
2006: Happy Easter
2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005!

Our Lady Of Paris

Today we learned there was a fire at the Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, France.  The structure, built in the 12th century, draws 13 million visitors each year.

When we were in Paris, we passed by the cathedral on our open bus tour but didn't go in since there were other things I wanted to see in our short time there.  Now I kinda regret missing it.

President Emmanuel Macron said they'll rebuild.  Paris will be watching the repair of their lady.



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2018: Hand In Hand
2017: Grain Grinder
2016: My Number One Man Next To Our Number One Tree
2015: The Eggplant Link Is The Tastiest
2014: Compliance By Guilt
2013: The Difference A Zero Makes
2012: Pre-Digital
2011: The Sun Sets On The Roughrider State
2010: Diamond Studded Proof
2009: How A Book Defies Its Cover
2008: How To Up Your Chances For A Sweet Monkey Lovin’ Romp
2007: Activities Director
2006: Ah, But It Is SO Worth It
2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005!