things happened in the past month: mussels

Back and forth I go with this blog. Hot and cold. Name your opposites.

I've had a couple of worthwhile conversations recently with friends. Should I blog, should I not. The blog will always be here, whether or not I blog. It's a durable record. Yes yes, "always" is an exaggeration. But the point is, I can return to this so long as Google lets me. And I think it will for a while to come.

The other point that was mentioned to me was that it's a good thing to get down my personal thoughts on how various experiences were. The recent Aruba trip (to be blogged) is a case in point: I have photos on Flickr and I've sent a note to my colleagues (it was a work trip), but I haven't spoken about how the trip was for me personally.

In other words, stay tuned.

So let me blog a bit this week while Conrad is out of town. Things I've done since mid-March. And there have been a few things. Starting small, then...

March was unseasonably (and to many, delightfully) warm. Temperatures hit the upper 70s and low 80s on several days. And restaurants set up outdoor seating. For all that I'm not actually tickled by the relative absence of winter, I do enjoy sitting outside for a nice meal. That in mind, Jeff (our neighbour) and I headed over to Hearty for all-you-can-eat mussels night.

First off: great price.

Second: tasty beer.

Third: Jeff kicked my butt, something like 6 servings to 4.

Fourth: good fries. And mussels.

Fifth: the dessert overpromised and underdelivered. Really tough and dry monkey bread and in bad need of that sauce. Good sauce, though!

So yes, I (we) have been dining out quite nicely in the past month. My waistline bears testimony to that. Thank goodness for running!

1000

I started this blog a little over five years ago, so on average, I've done 200 posts a year. Give or take. My audience is not large, I know. When Dad died in 2009, it got that little bit smaller. Since then, my interest in blogging has waned.

But I can't quite give it up. I'm not sure why. Vanity? Documentary? The pleasure of connecting however distantly and even anonymously? I thought I might get to 1000 entries then call it a day. I shan't do that. I like being able to lob my dining adventures out there, or my self-deprecating comments on my own self-obsession, or photos of lovely scenery I've enjoyed (usually with Conrad).

You, my few readers, are stuck with me a little while longer.

I promised an entry filling in the month+ gap during which I was too lazy to blog, so here we go.

After my birthday entry back in July, I flew out to join Conrad for a weekend in Los Angeles. A highlight of that weekend was getting to watch, for the first time, an ATP event. We saw Mardy Fish and Ryan Harrison play in a semi-final at the Farmers Classic at UCLA. Gorgeous weather, a match that had some compelling moments, and a great afternoon overall. Bonus points for shopping at the Penguin by Munsingwear store on the way back from the tennis.




Back in Chicago, I enjoyed a rare visit by Terraceites: Arjunna and Sonya.



There were meals at Yoshi's. Of course.


My sister came to town for the first time in years, and we were able to get her to a very good and indulgent dinner at one of our favourite places in Chicago, Topolobampo. I cannot speak in praise of sommelier Jill Gubesch often enough. Oh, and the food was pretty darn good.





Marie and I picked up my best friend, Todd, from Milwaukee, and once Allison joined us at Yoshi's that night, the four of us had a terrific bachelor party weekend that featured ComiCon and a Tiffany and Debbie Gibson concert. Yes, you read that right. Be jealous of me. That whole Saturday kicked serious ass.







Conrad and I joined teammates in Madison for an open water swim. He cheered, I swam (and came in second in my age group).



We continued to get to know our neighbour Jeff better. Good guy - a runner, but more importantly, someone who dines. We totally respect and appreciate that. We took him for a maiden voyage to Yoshi's. Of course.


I don't talk work on here, but oh heck. I will note that Val and I co-presented a well-received poster session at the Society of American Archivists conference in Chicago.



And then August came to a close, and Conrad and I made it to our second home, happily.

I won't resolve to do better with blogging, to be more regular. I will beg your indulgence. 1000 posts is a good milestone. But no, I'm not stopping. Care to join me as I press onward in my own particular way?

does this now count as a rut?

I don't know, am I in a rut? Or can I blame it on the heat for making me keep the stove and oven off and further ascribe it to wanting to enjoy the purity of seasonal produce? Or am I lazy?

(likely this last one)

Two more balcony salad dinners. Monday night, after swim practice. A bit of smoked mackerel this time for our protein, and a quick, thin and light gazpacho left chilling while we were at the pool. The soup made a return on Tuesday, enlivened with some diced cucumber, pepper, and onion, and some chopped parsley to boot. Our neighbour Jeff (I have a preponderance of Jeffs and Jephs these days, it seems) came up for dinner with us, sitting through the soup and on to a tuna salad nicoise (I'd had one at Yoshi's on Tuesday, and decided I wanted to do one at home). The yellowfin was a splurge, but a tasty one. I was pleased with the platter. Better still, Jeff baked dessert for us. His oven switched on, not mine! And it was a tasty dessert, too - cobblers made with blueberries and raspberries he'd picked the day before. Yum!

Dinner out tonight (it's my birthday, I am home alone, and I am not cooking). Tomorrow? Oh, salad sounds good, I think...