Wednesday, July 16, 2014

busy days!

I'm taking off for Texas again tomorrow.  During the last few days I've been scrambling to get my sewing finished while we're getting our plans finalized for the construction/renovation of the back yard -- WHEW.  Talking to the last contender for landscaping this afternoon, but I think i'll put the sauerbraten (I've been marinating for the last couple of days) on to cook before we leave....

My sewing machine started to misbehave yesterday afternoon -- AAAAARGH!  It's gonna have to go back to the repairman, because unlike the antiques, you can't reach the problem that needs solving in a modern machine ... just like automobiles!  The last half-hour before I gave up last night, I disinterred a middle-aged machine I inherited, just to see if it was in any condition to make buttonholes -- [moan of frustration] buttonholing is one of the most magical things my Bernina DOES!  Making them using an outmoded technique on a machine i'm unfamiliar with won't be fun!  And making them by hand is something I avoid as much as possible.

Unlike the old days, I won't be cooking anything special to take along.  I won't bring car snacks;  being well adapted to VLC, I no longer need them.  I'll probably let my husband take me to breakfast, then not eat for 6 or 8 hours, and pick up an early supper on the road.  I'll take a couple of cans of fish (tuna, salmon, sardines and kippers), a few nuts, a couple of bottles of champagne and lots of mineral water to see me through the weekend.  ;-)  Meg suggested that British tropical classic, the gin'n'tonic because of the possible heat, so I have some New Amsterdam decanted into an appropriate bottle and a period-reproduction label ready to paste on....

It'll be a quick trip this time, because I need to be back home NEXT Thursday, but i'll try to fit in as much fun and socializing as possible.  Talk to you all later!

15 comments:

  1. Yep, have nuts, will travel. That's me. :)

    Sorry about the sewing machine!

    Have a great trip!

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  2. Hi Tess

    "a couple of bottles of champagne and lots of mineral water to see me through the weekend"

    That's why you're my sort of Gal, priorities in the right place. Have a safe trip.

    Kind regards Eddie

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    1. i'll do my best! :-D i've got lots of different spirits there already, for the 19th-century cocktails i like to make, but the bubbly stuff has to be carted down every time. Corpse-Reviver, anyone?

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    2. Have a safe and enjoyable trip Tess. Catch up next week.

      All the best Jan

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    3. thanks, Jan! have a good weekend, yourselves! :-)

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  4. TEXAS, you say??!!??
    We just got home ourselves... Gotta work up my "Quince" post - geez, 6 wks already since my last update; time is accelerating!
    All the best!

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    1. six weeks -- yep, hop to it! ;-)

      the long weekend, not far from Fort Worth could hardly have had better weather -- July in that part of the world can be pretty hot and steamy, but we lucked out. today was hotter, and now i'm at my daughter's house in the Houston area for a couple of days before I need to be back home.

      she's been having trouble with her mayo-making technique, but we just now made a perfect batch -- I suspect she was using a too-large vessel....

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  5. Eggs temperature could be the reason for mayo troubles, it is better to keep eggs under running hot water for a minute before starting the process, or at least take it from a refrigerator in advance.

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    1. she tried that, and her batches still didn't emulsify. last night's, we took it straight from the fridge and it worked -- kitchen mysteries! :-)

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  6. Gosh I can only dream about Texas and hunky cowboys..... here is some good news to take with you......http://www.examiner.com/article/low-carb-diet-reduces-colon-cancer-risk-bolsters-ketogenic-diet-claims

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    1. most of our "cowboys" are old and overweight ... and i try very hard NOT to tell them how they can fix that! ;-)

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    2. ...terrific article! i just posted it on facebook for my lowcarb-skeptical friends.

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