StephanieL

What she said.

Damn. Pearson's was great back in the day, and having to search for it in the back of a bar was kind of fun..

On a '70s kick: making my way through Disco: Soundtrack of a Revolution that recently aired on PBS and watching the 1977 documentary Gay USA on TCM.

One of my exes plays fantasy cycling (akin to fantasy football/baseball), so she's truly invested in the Tour de France.

Have to admit, that is kind of a hefty meal to have after you've been semi-fasting.

Another icon of my younger days. She'd been fighting cancer for many years. https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/tv/2024/07/14/shannen-doherty-dead/74399542007/

Dark rye toast topped with more of that ricotta, homegrown small tomatoes, and a little truffle salt.

For N's birthday, I made the Buttermilk Tres Leches cake published in the Times Magazine a few weeks ago: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1025464-buttermilk-tres-leches-cake. Quite a lot of work, and found out 2 things: Bob's Red Mill coarse cornmeal is maybe a little too coarse for the recipe, and the cake definitely needs longer feeding and soaking times. It does taste good, especially with the recommended side of roasted stone fruit (nectarines, peaches, and one pluot, roasted with just a little unsalted butter).

Our garden got fried, between all of the intense heat and no water for over a week while we were on vacation. We were getting a lot of berries before then, and several other crops have given up the ghost for the year. At least the (small) tomatoes seem to be OK.

What's the shellfish at the bottom?

He's really good!

You've had 2 strokes?? Oy. Please look out for yourself--we don't want to lose you this soon!

N combined ricotta, Meyer lemon peel and juice, a little sugar, and some blueberries for a nice, light hot-weather dessert.

I have a colleague who lives in Palm Springs, where it hit 123 a few days ago. The water temperature in his pool was 103 yesterday--the same as a hot tub.

Cold dinner for a hot day: --Salad with mixed lettuces, radishes, Persian cucumber, and tinned blue mussels I got in Copenhagen --The last of the Nordic rye bread with Portuguese smoked trout spread (bought in Oakland) and fresh dill --Ice cream

Slices of the rye bread I bought in Copenhagen, topped with salted butter and a couple of small tomatoes from our garden.

Lots of debris and a couple of abandoned crates down the block from me. Another annoyance: after landing back in SFO after our European adventure, we stayed overnight in an airport hotel. Next day, I found a broken taillight cover on my car. I've no idea where or when it actually happened--it could very well have gotten broken in the offsite long-term parking lot. So I spent some time yesterday on the phone with my insurance company and the local PD.

From my new copy of Imbibe, the Last Spritz: combine equal parts green Chartreuse, maraschino liqueur, and lime juice in an ice-filled highball or Collins glass and top with soda water.

Tagliatelle with homegrown peas & favas, ricotta, and Meyer lemon zest.

I spoke too soon. As soon as twilight hit, the artillery barrage commenced and went on for hours. Kitties were not amused, though they seem to be taking the noise better each year.

So far, the neighborhood has been (relatively) quiet. Usually they start going by early afternoon. Maybe the combination of very high temps and dry grass everywhere has knocked some sense into people.

Good Scandinavian breakfasts at my hotel in Copenhagen: fruit, muesli & yogurt, rugged bread, cheese and cold meats, and other niceties. Pastries were just eh, but the pastry itch was satisfied at various bakeries.

Uh, no. I believe that she told me something to the effect that the Sun City track didn't have the kind of impact in SA that we think it might have.

I remember the Sun City single and music video. N has a slightly more jaundiced take on its effect in SA. 😉