Well, it's not going to kill you

How many men does it take to barbeque chicken?

Last night it took 3, sometimes 4.  It was hysterical to watch them, a bunch of little boys playing with fire and barbeque tools.  As Bev said, we should get this on video.  We told them Bobby Flay would be proud.

Last night we hosted FWF.  It a fit a genius I mentioned bbq chicken as a main dish the other night.  Chase volunteered to bbq as he had not bbq'd for 2 entire weeks!  Chase and his bbq are as one.  Turns out Rob and his bbq are one as well.  Larry has decided he may become one with our bbq.

We have a virtually unused bbq as we bought it the year before I was diagnosed because I like, ok love barbequed food, and decided it was time to learn the finer points of grilling.  However when the next bbq season rolled around I was busy having surgery and chemo.  Food of any type was not top most on my mind.

So yesterday Larry moved the que from the spot where it had been, um, abandoned 3 years ago.  Opened it up, cleaned the grills, got a new propane tank and voila it lit on the first try!

Last night we had lovely chicken marinated in soy and beer, grilled to perfection.  We ate outside because the weather has been miserably hot but as luck would have it yesterday was breathtakingly beautiful, well mostly beautiful because the temps were only in the 80's as opposed to the 100's it's been running but we still have lots of smoke from the fires farther north.

We ate, drank and were merry long after darkness fell.  It was one of those beautiful nights that make you realize how much you treasure life and your friends.

Yes I understand that I've been ranting alot lately ...

but I'm an angry breast cancer survivor, bleeding heart liberal and a news junkie.  I'm allowed.

I won't promise not to rant in the future because we all know that a lie and besides if you didn't like the ranting you wouldn't keep coming back.

So I'll keep blogging, maybe you'll like it, maybe you won't, maybe you'll tell your friends, maybe you won't.

It makes me happy and gets stuff out of my head.  Just gear yourselves up because POLITICS, OBAMA, MCCAIN, SHRUB, CARL ROVE, IRAQ, IRAN, GAS PRICES, etc., etc., etc. are not going away any time soon.  And then there's the rest of the world when I get bored with the US.

ZIMBABWE, DARFUR, THE SUDAN, THE MIDDLE EAST, THE RAIN FOREST.   See there's a lot more out there.

And I will be talking about breast cancer again

just not for a few days.  My mind and stress level needs a break.  It's not good to have cancer on the mind 24/7 it makes you a warped human being so I'm staying away from Dr. Google for a time.  Don't worry it's not as if I woke up this morning saying "oh I'll never worry about my breast cancer returning again"  It's more like I woke up this morning after such a lovely evening last night and my mind did not immediately look at my breasts and say "you really CAN tell a difference"

So I'll regale you with our dinner at The Farmhouse Inn.   Oh my goodness!  The menu changes daily.  And the wine list - wow, just wow - 20 pages of wonderful wine selections.  We (well actually me) decided on a lovely Neil Ellis Sauvignon Blanc from South Africa.  I chose it for 2 reasons 1) it was realitively inexpensive at $38 a bottle and 2) I've heard that South Africa is an up and coming wine making country. 

 And when I say relatively I mean they had another Sauvignon Blanc for $100.  Their most expensive bottle was $550.  Yes $550 a a 750ml bottle of wine.  French naturally.  Pomerol, Chateau Lafleur, Bordeaux, France 1998.  A merlot no less, the world's most whimpy wine.

LR and I both had cold spring pea soup, yum while Gary had a radichhio salad.  I opted for the pork tenderloin, LR halibut and Gary lamb.  I wish I had thought to bring the menu home as these "descriptions" do not BEGIN to do the meal justice.  For dessert we shared a cheese plate and I had a glass of Niepoort tawny port. Then back we went to Gary's house for decaf, biscotti and more talk.  We covered the family, news, politics, the envirnoment AND religion.  Also books, many, many books because all 3 of us are big readers.  Gary used to be the Director of  the Summer Sessions program at UCB (the dean of summer sessions as it were) so he always has finds to tell us about.  We also planned out next big dinner outing with friend Judah (the ULTIMATE FOODIE) to Chez Panisse in Berkeley.  We're doing it in September as a reward for us having lived through a month with a 16 year old and Gary living through 3 weeks of his grandchildren (13, 12 & & 7) 2 of those weeks without their mother.

So here in stands

My new blog page.  I'm aiming for a wine-ish theme but I'm not completely sure I've got it.  I'd like to thank my friend Erin who was gracious enough to design the banner for me with input from Eliza.

I'm going to leave it up in this style of a couple of days while I gaze upon it and decide if I need more changes.

Comments appreciated  and any of you web designers out there I'm looking for a color that represents white wine.  The not quite yellow, not quite green but definitely NOT white.  If you have a color code I'd love to have it.  Also notice the uncentered banner.  If someone can help with that I would be eternally grateful.

Speaking of bumper stickers

I just found these new driver bumper stickers. I ordered them because my niece Marissa is a new driver and will be spending some time with us next month.  We live on a lane and 1/2 wide road and many people believe it to be their own personal race track.  Marissa has grown up in the San Jose area so she's used to freeways but not rural roads.  I grew up driving these types of roads.  It was not unusual to come around a curve to find a tourist standing in the middle of the "old" road as we called in trying to take a picture of a redwood tree.

The "old" road was the original 2 lane Highway 101, it was replaced with the "new" road which was crap.  It was built on blue shale so it was buckled, always sliding and just not a fun road to drive.  It also took longer to get many places using the "new" road.

But I digress.  I bought the new driver rather than the rookie driver sticker.  Marissa is a dancer not a speed freak like her Auntie Cathy.  I think they are a brilliant idea.  I first saw them in Canada where something similar is required to be placed on the cars of all new drivers.  I don't remember the decal itself but I do remember every time I saw one thinking "give that kid a break she/he is just learning to drive".

My next campaign is to get them on cars in California.  I think I'll take a 2 prong approach, the local supervisor and my state rep.  If you know any new drivers think about getting these decals.

That is your public service message for today.

The week that was

It finally finished yesterday with a Father's Day party that was thankfully just down the road.  From that party I received the following assignments - call the Healdsburg Fire Department to get our water tender repaired.  The tax assessment for what was to be Dry Creek Volunteer Fire Department goes to Healdsburg.  So the question is what are they doing with that money?  And remind neighbor Roberta to contact her neighbors to see if they're interested in forming a group to apply for the Sudden Oak Death fire protection grant.

Thursday was a busy, messy day and Friday was equally so and hot besides.  A trip to Target, Costco, Trader Joe's.  Then home to make a salad for FWF.  A wonderful Asian Pear and Avocado Salad with Garam Masala Syrup.  OUTSTANDING.

Saturday was up early, out of the house sort of early so we could get some papers notarized.  The papers we tried to get notarized earlier in the week.  We couldn't again.  Then heading down to Gilroy for Eric's party.  I must remember to write about Eric in the next couple of days, he was 18 on June 8 and didn't get his birthday tribute.  Then back home Saturday night because we had a party to go to yesterday.

Then up today, laundry for a couple of hours until it got to hot to run the dryer.  Some slash and burn cooking and a semi cleaning of the kitchen because the new dishwasher is being installed this afternoon.  The slash and burn cooking because Chase is helping Larry install the dishwasher and as thanks I'm cooking dinner.  So Bev, Chase, Larry and I will have a cozy dinner with a cheese course first.  Bacco Shrimp (recipe from Bacco Restaurant in New Orleans) and coleslaw.  Then Vanilla Ice Cream with spiced rum butterscotch sauce.

I think I might actually get to do one of my favorite things tomorrow which is lay in bed and read for a couple of hours after I wake up.  Joy!

Then I will resume my rant about politics, healthcare, stupid people, you know the usual.

Bye.

Fine Wine Friday and fridaysfeast

fridaysfeast.com is on vacation for a couple of weeks so I won't be doing that.  But FWF is on track for tonight. Yea.

Tonight it's a special FWF as we're celebrating 2 birthdays as well.  My assignment is appetizers.  As I type blue cheese puffs are baking in the oven.  They smell SO good.  A little later I'll be working on garlic sausage mushrooms.  I love to cook but better yet I love that Larry cleans up.

Oh, this is going to stir things up! Update 1

The California Supreme Court has spoken.  California ban on same sex marriage is struck down.  Much to everyone's amazement because the majority of the justices are Republican appointees.

Here in the SF Bay Area, ok so Sonoma Co is the outer edge of the Bay Area, there is dancing in the streets and fear.  Count me in, it's about time.  There is no reason my gay and lesbian friends should not have the same right and responibilies of marriage that LR and I have.

You can understand the dancing in the streets, the fear is a bit more nebulous.  Many people are worried that the Repubs will now use this as an issue to get votes for McCain.  Because. omg, judges are legislating from the bench again!  I don't understand the whole legislating from the bench concept myself.  It seems like a pretty straight up interpretation of the law but then I'm not a lawyer or a conservative pundit.

I actually heard someone on KGO radio today say that because same sex marriage will be legal in 30 days people will start waking up in the morning and deciding that they are gay/lesbian and leave their marriage and children.  Oh and now the law requires gay marriage.  Um, WHAT?  How do you get there from here?  We also have the obligatory slippery slope guy.  If 2 gay men can marry why can't 3, what about marrying your dog, etc.?  And the this will threaten heterosexual marriage!  Frankly if my, or any heterosexual marriage, is threatened by gay marriage we've got big troubles to begin with.

I'll stop here because I'm listening and reading.  I may update, I may not.

TTFA

(ta ta for now, thank you Winnie the Pooh)

Update 1 - the radio speaker was Randy Thomasson, founder and president of theCampaign for Children and Families; they are the group responsible for the ballot push against gay marriage 

Oh my aching face

Why my face you ask?

Well it happened like this.  Our friend Deb and her friend John came from Roseville yesterday because we are buying her old car.  A lovely little Mercedes SUV that has better gas mileage than the truck AND can hold 4 people.  Novel concept isn't it?  It's always a pain when we go somewhere in groups as the truck is our only good vehicle but only holds 2 people.  But I digress.

We did a little winetasting then hit Barndiva for drinks and appetizers.  There were blood orange margahritas,

On the Beach with Fidels, bellinis, lemon drops and specially concocted martinis.  There was also grilled shrimp and braised duck spring rolls to die for.

Then we strolled a few blocks to have dinner at Willi's Seafood Bar.  Of course there were more drinks, wine, manhattans, more lemon drops and cucumber martini's (GREAT).  There were french fries, tuna tartare, steamed clams, calamari, garlic bread and one more thing I don't remember.

After we came home we decided we needed to drink still more, do not ask my why I think we were all possessed yesterday, so we had some wine and some more.  The reason my face aches is the wine was red.  

I'm so allergic but I love red wine so sometimes I just have to drink it.  We will not speak about how the rest of my body feels.  Suffice it to say none of us were in great shape this morning.  We all remarked that 1) we're not as young as we used to be and 2) we were totally insane.

I'm glad I'm not the only one

That feels as if she's totally changed because of cancer.  Thanks Nikki.

I was trying to explain to a friend last night that I was angry all the time about having breast cancer.  She asked why and I really couldn't offer a good explanation - just that I am.  I think part of it is I was too frightened at the time to be angry and it's now caught up with me.  I know part of it is the anger about having chemo.  Putting all those horrible chemicals in my body so I could make it better, how ironic!

So here I sit with my anger, not seething today, and a slight headache because I partied too, too much last night.  But oh it was fun.  Fine Wine Friday Saturday night.  We hosted so we even have a clean house.  I did have to re-vacuum where my beloved had vacuumed because my idea of clean is actually removing the visible dog hair from the rug while his is to apparently wave the wand over the rug and declare the dog hair immovable.  I can laugh at that today, yesterday I was ready to kill him.