Here, there, and everywhere

I’m going to deglaze the pan with a little wine, and scrape all the yummy bits off of the bottom. In other words, a few odds and ends and pictures, all mixed up together. (Warning: this is pretty mundane stuff.)

It’s been an early spring here at Nutwood, and across much of the country. This isn’t necessarily a good thing for fruit crops (we might get a freeze this week), but human beings are sure enjoying it! It’s been great to have the windows open and see everything get lush and green. I was worried that our flowering trees would get zapped, but they blossomed and are so pretty. It makes me happy to see them, and I hope it brings a smile to your face, too. I’ve been able to catch some rays already, and when I had my doctor’s appointment last week, she said, “You’ve got tan lines already!” I said, “We’ve had some nice days!” (She asked if I wear sunscreen, and I said that I don’t stay out that long. If I do, then I wear sunscreen. She said, “You really aren’t giving me anything to yell at you about.” Have I mentioned that I love my doctor?)

I’m not sure what the tiny little flowers are in the picture on the far right, but they are throughout the grass. They’re only 2-3 mm, and they seem to be some sort of tiny violet. The flowering tree is my favorite tree we have, and I think it is a Japanese Weeping Cherry. The flowers look like pink carnations, and I think it’s just a beautiful tree.

Spring 2012 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

I’m still making good progress on my reading. I’m loving my current book club book, The Alexandria Quartet, and I’m on book three of the quartet. Things are heating up in Egypt and North Africa (the books are set during WWII), and there is much intrigue among members of the British Foreign Office and various characters in Alexandria. Personal and political! Books like these are the reasons I’m so glad I’m still doing this list. I would never have read it otherwise, and that would be a shame. I’m loving this one! I’ve got plenty of other books on queue, including Sean Faircloth’s Attack of the Theocrats and David Corn’s Showdown. (I’m happy to say that I am friends on Facebook with both gentlemen!)

I splurged and got myself a seriously good sauté pan. I tend to replace pans every few years, because I don’t buy really expensive ones, and the nonstick interior starts to fail and get all scratched up. A while back, I found a good Calphalon saucepan on clearance, and it is so awesome...so I wanted to get a Calphalon sauté pan that matched the saucepan. I haven’t tried it out yet, but this is the most I have ever spent on a pan, so this em-effer had better last for pretty much the rest of my life, and it had better be the best damn pan in the em-effin’ universe. Maybe I’ll try omelets in it this coming week, and I expect some seriously em-effin’ good omelets! For what I paid for this, the omelets should cook themselves and sit up and sing “Honky Tonk Women.” As you can see, I have mixed feelings about this pan. I want it to be awesome, but I have reservations about spending so much on a stupid pan. That being said, this thing is beautiful. A gleaming, smooth interior, a crystal clear lid, and a pristine grey outer surface. And the thing is huge and heavy. I promise to care for you properly and even pamper you, Calphalon, so be nice back to me, okay?