As a 'guest of the state'.....

Once again, I'm a guest of the state of NJ.  Filed for unemployment yesterday.  This time, though...it's for all good reasons.  Hopefully, won't have to suckle on the tit of the state for all that long, though.  Plan is to find gainful employment in New Orleans, close enough to not have to drive the car!

Things are getting out of control here at the house in NJ.  Boxes everywhere, dust and Max hair abounds.  This is the last weekend my bedroom will remain unscathed.  Tuesday it comes down.  All the doodads hanging from the ceiling, all the glow in the dark stars, all the purple cloths from over the bed, and the ornament tree...all coming down and shoved into boxes.  It's a beautiful weekend here, but sad as well.

Had buttered crumb buns from B&W bakery in bed this morning.  That's the last time I get to do that.  I believe the next time I have pastries in bed it will be in a bed situated in New Orleans and the pastry will be from that french pastisserie around the corner from the house.   Not that I need pastry in bed, mind you..but what better way to start a weekend morning that coffee and pastry in bed???

Going down to Belmar tomorrow.  It may be the last time for that, too....and yes officer, I always drink cranberry juice on the beach.  No, you cannot have a sip, else you'll discover it's really wine.

Somehow, I'm planning to make soft shell crabs tonight....I have one pot and one saute pan.  This oughta be interesting, especially since all I have is paper plates.   Oh, how degrading for the soft shell crab is that..to be unceremoniously plopped onto Dixie???

It really is too hot in the kitchen!!

I've got one full day of work left here in NJ and a few hours on Friday just to help my replacement close the books.  12 catered events planned for tomorrow so the day is going to be busy enough without adding the fact that my head is spinning reminiscent of Linda Blair. 

3 huge wardrobe boxes were just dropped off today.  I'm going to need a bigger boat.

It's 92 degrees here today.  May as well get used to this now, eh??  Changed the address with the mailman.  Nothing left hanging on any walls except in my bedroom.  I'm rather loathe to destroy my bedroom until the last minute.  The rest of the house looks like Ringling Bros. came for a short visit, but the bedroom is still a sanctuary.  I'd like to keep it that way a few more days.

I made a mango mascarpone profiterole today for the graduation VIP dinner tomorrow.  Cooked the mango with a bit of coconut milk and basil.  Blended it with mascarpone, then folded in whipped cream.  It tasted like summer....all it was missing was an icy proseco.

Can't even begin to tell you how much I wish it was June 30 already.  Oh yeah...Max and I are flying First Class to New Orleans.   First time for me, pretty sure it's the first time for Max, too..hahaha

Laissez le bon temps roulle!!!!

This is home n three weeks!!!!  Outside is being painted this week.  Inside has a beautiful sunroom/foyer, perfect for my coffin!  Living room and dining room have lovely ornamental fireplaces, 12ft. ceilings.  Two huge bedrooms, two full bathrooms and the biggest kitchen I've ever had...large enough for a table and 4 chairs.  Yard, covered patio, covered car port, washer and dryer in a utility room.

In my best Rosemary's Baby voice I say ''....this is no dream, this is really happening...."

Now, to get to work on getting settled in.  Once that is done, I'll look for work and look harder for a place to put my shoppe!!

Eh Le Bah!

Sure, it's been about a hundred years since I posted here.  Give a girl a break and I'll fill you in to the happenings and shakings at 1313 Mockingbird Lane.

February, Mardi Gras.....and another year stuck in New Jersey.  Knew it was time to sell the house.  Knew it was one of the 'now or never' moments staring me in the face.  All I really wanted to do was hide under the covers and wait for the moment to pass me by.  I'm not really like that, ya know??  Pow wowed with Ivan and put the place on the market.  4 offers within 4 weeks!!  Don't know if I can really count the offer made by the lady who then suffered a debilitating allergy to Max-i, though.  It's not like she comes with the house, or anything like that..but, she took her almost offer and hit the CVS for an antidote.

Which brings me to the business of actually letting strangers enter your home and poke about your shit.  I'm not the world's best housekeeper and it was painfully evident when you daily are 'on the market'.  Don't leave a fork in the sink.  Don't leave the toilet lid up.  Don't leave your panties on the top of the laundry pile.  Hope to god that Max doesn't yak up a hair ball in the middle of the living room carpet half an hour before the realtor comes.  It was downright exhausting.  You get to a point where you have to wonder if the house really won't sell because you neglected to empty the dishwasher, or if a potential buyer sees my toothbrush.

So, we accepted an offer from a nice young couple with a 4 year old son.  I believe they'll be happy here.  This house has wonderful karma from 18 years of good living.  I have magnificent memories of life in this house.  I did a lifetime of getting to know myself here.  It's hard to walk away from that.

But, I've always dreamed to having a business of my own.  I hate working for other people.  I don't care to have people who can tell you how to get from point A to point B without really getting what is happening around you at the moment.  All I ever wanted to do was feed people, and make them happy.  I'm a pisces.  It's what we do. 

And so, this Thursday, Lou and I are flying down to New Orleans to find a place to live.  We've been there every year in the past 8 years.  We both believe we've lived there before.  Even if that's nothing but a bunch of hooey, we do feel the ghosts of that city in our lives.  It's uncanny, actually....you have to feel it, smell it, hear it, to know what I mean.  We love it there.

The moving van is coming June 8th or 9th.  My life will be deposited somewhere in New Orleans on June 14th.  Eh Le Bah means 'hey, over there!".  It's a cajun greeting.    Laissez le bon temps roulle means 'let the good times roll'.  How can I possibly do anything else???   This is me we're talking about, after all.

I'll land on my feet, I always do.  

Too much snow to be putting out fires!

Hey, you thought I forgot you, didn't you??  Not true.  I've spent the past 5 weeks or so simply putting out fires.  My shiny fire truck arrives next week as a reward for my ability to douse flames that try to engulf my life and ignite my accomplishments.
Christmas was wonderful.  Food was fantastic and the company was better.  Those fires I mentioned started burning first week of January.   They begin as little smoldering mounds and then next thing you know, you're battling a full blown conflagration of epic proportions with nothing but an eye dropper of water.  All reminds me of that David Bowie song...putting out fires with gasoline.  We at work all spent a nice quiet winter break, slowly preparing for our reopening at the beginning of the Spring semester (hard to believe there is actually a spring coming, what with 14 inches of snow out there).  Days before our scheduled reopening one key production member notifies they will be out for an extended period of time.  Another staff member notifies me the day before we open that they will be taking classes down the jersey shore, so they are no longer available.  Another position where the staff member actually gave proper and appropriate notification of vacating the job was filled; but then the new member decided the job was too much pressure (seems to be a bit of that going around).  Moved one person into that spot, refilling the newly vacated spot....and the owners of Craig's List have me on speed dial at this point.  Hard to believe that in this tanked economy that people are more willing to stay on or put themselves on unemployment rather than challenge themselves.   Ah, well....and so, the dust finally settled by the end of the month.  The entire house is staffed with some kick ass players and once again, laughter and good cheer abound in our hallowed kitchen.   Loathe as I am to quote a cliche, if it doesn't knock you on your ass and kill you, it brings you together and makes you stronger.  I invented that saying , you know.  Royalties coming in day after day for that diddy.   Work is fine and it's almost Mardi Gras.

Speaking of Mardi Gras, I'd like to pose the question.....'who dat?'    Lou took me to New Orleans for the first time when I was 40.  We've gone back each and every year since then.  Two trips before Katrina and another 5 after, one just 3 months after.  My spirit was born and still lives in that city.  I've taken to sitting and watching FQ cams just to get glimpses.  I watch movies that are filmed there for the same reason.  The Saints winning is icing on the King Cake.  Who Dat? indeed.   Naturally, the chef and I are working on a fitting tribute menu to celebrate Mardi Gras this tuesday.  While I'd much rather be in the Quarter singing "I Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans" I'll settle for making a couple of king cakes and some magnificent etouffe and po boys.   Lassize le bon temps rouller!!   Throw me something, Mister!

It's also almost my birthday...get ready to throw money, too!

Merry Christmas!!!!!!!!!!!!

I woke up this morning like a 5 year old on a sugar cookie high!   All my life, christmas eve is a much bigger deal than christmas day.  Following the traditional sicilian meal of the feast of the seven fishes, it's an all on production line in the kitchen today.
First course is Ivan's shrimp cocktail (he's an accomplished cocktailer these days, superb sauce coupled with perfectly prepared shrimp).  I know he's also bringing sausage, which is not traditionally part of the feast of the seven fishes, but how can I, or anyone, for that matter, possibly turn down succulent sausage???
Second course is crab and roasted corn bisque prepared by Miss Coco Dolly.  She's another one getting fairly comfortable in the kitchen lately.  Glad to see something other than my curly hair rubbed off on her.  I picture the future with Coco eventually taking over the brunt of the holiday cooking at the point when her kitchen is bigger than mine. 
Third course is angel hair fra diavlo with clams, mussels and anchovy, served with fried calamari and sweet pomodoro sauce.
Trying to recall the wines Lou and I paired with these courses .....a viognier and petit chablis.....I think.
Fourth course is seared sea scallops with pea puree and sauteed bronzino ( a mediterrean sea fish) with roasted butternut squash.   We have a pinot noir for this course.  So what it's a red....it's very low in tannin so it's just fine to pair with fish, so there!
Dessert is strufoli, christmas cookies and croquembouche, served with spiked eggnog, port, cognac and laced coffee.

I hope anyone who takes the time to read this knows that I appreciate the time you spend here.  Thanks so much for permitting me the opportunity to entertain you.  Merry christmas, be well, travel safely, eat heartily and laugh often.!!!
xxoxxoxo

Christmas Cookies Are A Food Group

9 Inches of snow on the ground and it really looks like christmas now!!  Gotta admit, shelling out a hundred bucks on Monday to the snow blower fix it faiery sucked on Monday.  On Sunday, however, it's a whole other story!   Primed and started in about 15 seconds, it was a piece of snowy cake out there this morning.  It was helpful having Lou around as well.  I don't think I could manage the snow blower on the steps, ya know..?

Three days of work this week and then off off off till January 4th.  It's breaks like that  that make the entire work venture worth while.  So, you suffer a few weeks out of the year, then you get nice breaks in the scenery so often that it makes up for it.   As it appears, however, these three days will be a colossal waste of time.  With the expectation of approximately $400 in sales, it's hardly worth the effort.  I'd just assume stay home and lounge about in flannel sipping coffee with eggnog and rum, nibbling on christmas cookies.

Big Feast of the Seven Fishes for christmas eve.  You can take the religion out of the girl (or, as in my case, the girl can run as fast from it as possible) but you can never take the italian out of her.  So, a big day of dining on the fruiti de mare and then a week of trying to get the house to stop smelling like a fish monger's cunny.  Wish me luck.   I do love this holiday, though.  I always remember my kids' anticipation of things like the cookies, the tree and their special christmas plates, bowls and cups.  I should probably give them those keepsakes now that they are older and have homes of their own...but I cannot bear to part with them.  No, I think I'll keep them a bit longer, and display them with love.   I'll even make them oatmeal and serve it in their bowls if only they'll put those bowls on the window sill later in the day -- in the hopes that santa will do a little recon work and notice they ate all their breakfast.

Thinking of going to Washington Crossing State Park on Christmas day to see a reenactment of Washington crossing the Deleware on christmas eve. prior to his march towards Trenton and those drunken Hessians.  Weather permitting, and flask in hand, that's the plan.