Greg exists!

Wow, busy week. Lots of enjoyable evenings (topics for blogging ahead) and busy days at work (which is, after all, work, so I don't spend time there writing blog posts). And now we're at O'Hare, booked on a flight four hours from now and hoping to sneak aboard an earlier flight on standby. Time, then, to blog a bit and bring all four of you back up to speed on the super glamourous life of Peter as HE SPINS OUT THE LAST FEW DAYS BEFORE HE TURNS 40 AND LIFE CHANGES IRREVOCABLY.

(that was a hint for cards, gifts, meals out, beers after work)

I'm all over the place with these posts - the only thing not progressing chronologically it seems - so heck, I'll just jump back into blogging with this one. The topic? Greg.



I am, it should be noted, a frequent and deeply involved user of Facebook. Funnily enough, I resisted for a long time, up until about 2.5 years ago. And then? Blammo! Off and running! Conrad shakes his head and says he should get his own profile, but I tell him, why bother? I keep up with enough people on Facebook that he doesn't need to.

Facebook is, however, a great way to make connections to new people. In some cases I have used it to get to know better some of the people I see only at conferences - the best example of this is how it was a great tool for TK and me as we built up our close friendship we now enjoy. It's also a way to meet people, though. Friends of friends, common interests. Greg falls into this latter group, then. Someone I met online and just found easy to get along with. Months and months later and there I am, in his neighbourhood, more or less, and an opportunity to meet.

Greg has more hair than I thought he would.

He's a sweetheart. Conrad and I were down staying in Carmel near Indianapolis for a swim event, and Greg drove on over to meet us at our hotel. From there, a good dinner of seafood not far away, at Mitchell's Fish Market. A bit of wine (yes, Ruth, a bit of wine the night before my 10 km race - you must be utterly scandalized at all the things I did wrong!) and even some deep fried food (kung pao calamari, shared) before my steamed cod with rice and spinach. All of it tasty. And truly, good company.

We lingered nearby outside for photos on the fine evening.




If it's only every 15 months or so that I see Greg in person, then adequate documentation is needed!

But yes, Greg exists. If you see his name, "liking" things I post, you now know that he really is out there, he really is a very charming (Conrad enjoyed meeting him very much) and handsome guy. Which is my way of trying to fix him up with my single gay friends, I suppose - any takers?

;-)

IN swim: quick post

In among the leisurely evening Conrad and I are having out on the balcony (sushi is done, bottle of Huia Sauvignon Blanc is done, chocolate sits enticing us, laptops are running as we look at things for Hawaii next month), a quick post to say

I kicked some butt today.

Having said that, I should add that 21 people kicked my butt.

:-)

I'll update more tomorrow and next week (and do I really have a 10-mile run on the heels of today's 10 km swim????), but for now, your favourite #21 is pretty darn happy with his effort, pretty darn proud of Ruth's effort, and - above all - so grateful for the immediate support from Conrad along with the remote support from TK and Greg!

Kopp's

Wisconsinians (Wisconsinites?) agree: Kopp's rocks.

Take one warm summer day. Add flavour of the day: cherry amaretto cheesecake frozen custard. Feed to Peter.

Happy!

Lake Michigan

We spent some time on the recent long weekend driving to nearby parts of the UP I'd not seen before. A holiday Sunday, and fine weather. Out on the Garden Peninsula near Conrad's hometown we stopped to have a simple picnic-ish lunch we'd packed, admire the little cove where a few families had gathered to lunch and even to swim, and then drove on to a beach near Manistique. That was as far as we got, but gosh, was it lovely. A long narrow sandy beach and a mighty wind that the seagulls coasted on and struggled against.











Sometimes, amid the flat urban landscape of Chicago, it's very easy to forget just how remarkable it is to have such a huge lake within eyesight.

meals with friends in DC

Oh gosh, I am behind, aren't I? Shame on me! Ah well - a quiet evening here. Sipping some Torrontes, blogging while awaiting Conrad's return from his latest Honolulu work trip. Let's catch up.

My first night in DC for conference I barely had time to say hello to Martin in the room before he was out the door and I soon followed. Non-conference folk. Swimmers, in fact. Dinner with a few former teammates and spouses. How did so many Smelts end up in DC?

We ate at Againn. Interesting place: a seafood/British pub theme going. I wanted to like it a lot, especially given all the promising items on the menu. Some small problems:

• the ammonia stink of the raw bar near the entry. I was glad we got a table far from it.
• the waiter or the bartender or both didn't understand drinks. David wanted a SWEET cocktail. Both attempts weren't. I asked for a fairly common British beverage on a warm summer night, lager and lime. They didn't know how to handle that one either even with my explanation when the waiter came back to the table.

Not bad food, though, if not really great. I liked but didn't LOVE my pork belly, and the radishes, while fine, were not a $7 dish. Ah well.

It's all about the company, though, and it was great to see Geoff
again after our terrific spring visit, see Cheryl and Dave not long after their visit to Chicago, and see David (and meet his partner Scott) after a number of years. I'll be glad to visit DC again (not Againn), swim with the team, and get caught up with these friends over food and beverage.

The next night it was Ethiopian food in Adams-Morgan with CG and her colleague Terry, and with TK in tow and meeting them for the first time. Wow, filling dinner. Meskerem was where we ate, and judging by how packed it got, it's a popular choice. CG and Terry opted for red meat while TK and I shared the vegetarian sampler for two, all of it with copious bread. He and I came home and moaned on to Martin about having injera belly. Well worth it, though. And the walk back to the hotel? Not short, but certainly a smart idea, especially given that we stopped for ice cream, too!

magic foods

I was having a conversation with TK about this: the foodstuffs that just make me sit up and say, "YES!"

Conrad is easy: Pinot Noir, raspberries, chocolate (dark, please), salmon, plus cheeses of various sorts. I can build a special date night meal around those frequently. Come to think of it, I do.

;-)

Me? I have to be tricky. Seasonal items (asparagus, pomegranates). Pricier, specialty items (morels). Crap (Old Dutch dill pickle chips - I have them almost EVERY time we go to the UP).
The other problem with me is that I go through phases. For a season, a year, I'll be so into a particular thing. The list of past infatuations includes walnuts, radishes, and a French feta I was getting from Whole Foods. You know, just the things we all shop for, right?

I've figured out the two things for this year. For starters, I've been working through a bottle of white truffle oil and have totally reveled in its fragrance and flavour. Mmmmmm. The other thing? Strawberries.

That's kinda weird.

Usually the strawberries in the store - even Whole Foods - are gorgeous and smell heavenly and have no flavour or are sour as anything and get moldy all too fast. Strawberries are like the online hook up of the food world - they never are as good as their picture suggests. Bastards.

Somehow, though, we've had a good run of berries this season, and I've taken real delight in their perfume in the kitchen, especially when I've got them macerating in a bowl with some sugar and fresh lavender leaves. It's a play on an idea I stole from CG, and I've wheeled it out a few time this spring and summer.

When we were up in the UP for the long weekend, we caught the tail end of the strawberry season at the farmers market in town. A pint came home to Conrad's mother's place with us, and we snacked on them with breakfast while we were there. Sweet with an edge of tang, fragrant, a beautiful deep red. Lustful thoughts were mine: mixing them into a crisp with some rhubarb or turning them into an ice cream concoction. But really, they were best washed and popped into our mouths with no adornment. Just the flavour of real fruit.

I'll miss them now that the season is pretty much over. Happily for me, the cherries have been good lately, and the plum season is almost upon us. Upside down cake! Mmmmm....

delivery!

Conrad's favourite form of "cooking": get out a menu, get out the phone, and about a half hour later food shows up. Simplicity!

In fact, at the end of a busy week, it's nice to have a bit of a no-brainer meal. We don't even quibble over what to order. He knows what I don't like (fake crab, cream cheese in maki rolls), and he takes it from there with minimal input from me. Come 7:15, we had a good order from our regular sushi joint.


Plus, Luke came by to catch us up on hos his move went and to share in the sushi. He brought a bottle of a Chardonnay, we also opened a bottle of a Pinot Noir, and the night on the balcony could not have been easier, more relaxing, or more enjoyable.

In short: good job on dinner, Conrad!

restaurant standby: torta rustica

This is one of those rare times when I really am delighted with what I have cooked.

I have a number of recipes in my repertoire that come to me thanks to my years of cooking at a restaurant in my hometown. Oh, people scoffed some back then, wondered why I was wasting my life there. Nope, I grew up at Don Diego's, and the skills I took from it are immensely helpful in life. Show me groceries and I will make you dinner.

TK was visiting on Saturday night. I can't rave enough about how incredible the man is and how much Conrad and I enjoyed hosting him for an all-too-short period of time. Part of me, though, was caught up in menu planning and cooking. Not a surprise. Summer time, good to sit outside (well, we did for pre-dinner snacks before rain drove us in),

something that can be eaten at room temperature if needed. Torta rustica.



I love this pie so much. I love it more the next day and the day after when it has really set up nicely. A layered pie of a spinach/bread crumb/onion/cheese mixture, roasted peppers, chicken breast, and more cheese. So good. Welcome slivers on Sunday, and again for lunch on Monday (and dinner!). I'll eat it a bit further into the week yet, and because I have it so rarely, it will be welcome.

I tossed together a very simple salad - TK was on the phone with Michael while I puttered in the kitchen, and as he wandered near I invited him to breathe in the scent of the white truffle oil. Just those two things on our plates, then, and a leisurely hour-long stroll after dinner for the three of us.


The bunny? Don't ask.

Readers of this blog will know I'm a harsh critic of my own food. Actually, you may not know: I tend not to say too much negative on here, but it's seldom that I wax on effusively about my love for what I cooked. Saturday dinner, though? YUM!

quick Monday evening post

Monday evenings are usually not productive - I get home, print up practice, go coach my swim team, come home, eat dinner, get ready for Tuesday, and that's pretty much it.

Leftovers being reheated (gently) in the toaster oven have bought me some time tonight to at least post a quick note, however. More to come in the week ahead while Conrad is out of town and I play the grass-widower. So then:

DC is not done - the conference/dining recapping has a bit more work ahead.

The delightful UP weekend needs some further mention.

The dinner on the way up in Kohler needs attention.

A visit to Broadway Cellars with friends/teammates - one of those places I really wanted to like, but...

Sushi with Luke!

And, best of all, a visit from TK this past weekend.

Things ahead, and not in that order. Check back through the week!