Back to Back to basics

Yes, this is a second meal in two nights. Similar in colour pallette but quite different in taste. This evening we were regaled with haru-maki, stir fried cabbage and rice. I used a little bit of sweet chilli sauce on the haru-maki and it was perfect. Feeling a little beat tonight and the rest of the family is too. Except for the middle boy who had a three hour nap this afternoon and is now running around the house like a mad man. The daughter had a tough time getting through her home reading after a long day at school and a skating practice. However, with some food in her she is slowly coming back to life. Just in time for bed, one might notice.

I had an interesting chat with my mom last night. I was talking about my kid getting a lead role in the school's christmas pageant and how that feels like it kind of flies right in the face of my whole socialist tendancy. It was a pretty good conversation and really forced me to look deeper into my own beliefs. Is there room for excellence and striving to reach the top in a system which is trying to create greater equality for all? I think possibly my competitive tendancies been beaten down by the system I work in where everyone has to be special and no one should be the best. Just to clarify, I am not throwing over all of my values here but I am definitely having a bit of a rethink. If I find any answers you may hear about it.

Part two

Well it turns out I was motivated enough to get out there today and finish off the garden. I realise that the battle with the weeds is an ongoing unwinnable war, however, I really needed an all out, scorched earth beginning to get me back in the game. Now hopefully I can get a hearts and minds campaign going and keep them at bay.
(Please check out the before picture from yesterday's Post. Honestly, it looks way different)

I also managed to get the last two tomato plants planted. Then I went and popped the scapes off of the garlic. This is a very good sign and means that we are getting close to the end. Speaking of which it is time to do a second wave of planting. I am thinking some swiss chard, tonnes of carrots, some basil and pretty much anything else I can get my hands on. Cilantro, yes I have to get that in for the mid summer salsa season. Usually it has already come up by now and has gone to seed by the time the tomatoes have ripened. Speaking of which I have my first tomato flowers starting to blossom. Giddy with excitement I am. Well that and the incredible crop of raspberries that are budding. You have to know that some plague of locusts or itinerant bear will take them out but my fingers are crossed.

As for dinner the wife made some spring rolls. She also whipped up a nice green salad and some dark miso soup. I was already pretty full from all the water I have had today (32 degrees for the second day in a row) but I managed to put back five of these bad boys. We also made home made slurpees again. I sort of used this recipe here. We had it after dinner so there is no pic. However, the kids like it and the cost margin can't be beat. We will not be going to the shell for slurpees this summer if I can help it.

April Fool

Well that was me this morning. On the walk to school I discussed with the daughter the various things that can occur on April 1st. However, I clearly stated that most of them are not good and she should hold off on trying any April Fools today. The temptation was too great. She tried an April fool on some of her classmates and got in trouble. Then she got the double whammy of getting it again from her parents over dinner. Tough day. I would appreciate if no one ever brought this up with her as it is done now and I have said we don't need to think about it anymore. I think this was the first really heavy conversation we have had to have with one of our kids. They sure do grow up fast.So that was eventful. Fortunately, the dinner was also really eventful. We had a wicked combination dinner. The wife wrapped up the leftover curry in some spring roll wrappers and then pan fried them. Totally totally awesome. I fried up some pork chops with salt pepper and garlic powder. Delish. The kids just ripped through the meat. I was definitely thinking leftovers. Fat chance. There was also rice and some broccoli, corn and peas. I have to get it through my head that I am the only one loving the heated up peas and corn. The broccoli was well received.

Well that was the first day of April. Lets hope the rest of the month isn't as "lesson filled" as today.

She's Back.

Well the wife vetoed my curry plans for this evening. Instead she made ginger shrimp spring rolls. Two thumbs way up. She started by sauteing some onions, then added in carrots and celery cut in the style of Juliane (i think that is long and thin strips). Then she added the already cooked then frozen then thawed shrimp and finally added in her sauce. Its a secret what went in the sauce but it was great. The salad was the last bits of last weeks lettuce chopped and seasoned. The rice was more leftover white delicious rice. The soup was leftover yesterdays turkey and turnip soup. Yes the wife has made a glorious comeback and we are all so much the better for it.

Late Dinner

Well it was a pretty busy day. Ups and down, twists and turns and now I am here. Ready to spill.

Lets start with dinner. It doesn't work chronologically but it will keep my occupied while I organize my thoughts. I arrived late for dinner. Everyone else was reading a book in bed. The haru-maki (literal translation "spring (the season) roll") were home made and quite scrumptious. Ground beef and assorted veggies seasoned nicely. When I went into the kids room and asked if they had had rice with dinner I was given a resounding yes. Followed by, "but they ate it all." So I had left over banana curry as my side dish. The curry was even better because it had aged for a day. And the banana is really misleading. It is curry with a hint of banana. Just a hint. You cannot see the bowl of miso soup that is burbling away in the microwave while I scarfed down this plate of food. What you can see is the rest of the bottle of white wine we opened on the weekend for a guest. It was nice.
So the rest of the day was pretty hectic. I had to referee two basketball games after school and the first was sort of a nightmare. A super aggressive team that expected to win but didn't. Some coaches who wanted to question every call we made. I didn't feel on top of my game because I don't ref enough if there is even the slightest crack in a ref's confidence then, at least to me, the whole thing collapses like a house of cards and you spend the rest of the game being second guessed, and second guessing yourself, on every call. "They need refs. I am doing a good thing. It is a service to the community". Everyone needs a mantra. Really I just need to prepare a little more myself and then it all works out.

After the stressful afternoon which turned into evening, and following the awesome meal, I sat down to watch a movie with the wife. We watched a definite chick flick. The Jane Austen Book Club. I really enjoyed it. Had a great conversation afterwards about life and us. Sometimes I just over think things. But its kind of endearing. I hope.

Saying no can be good.

Someone should have told Sarah Palin this. I have been very much out of the media loop for the last 3 years so the fact that I didn't realise Sarah Palin was insane until yesterday isn't as bad as it seems. Okay, how the SNL crew talked her into that wickedly funny parody is beyond me. Does Palin really believe that any press is good press. Then I watched all those Katie Couric interviews. Brutal, brutal, brutal. I can see where Matt Damon would get steamed up enough to circulate that lambasting he gives her. In the womans defense she must have something going on up there but it sure doesn't show. I have to think that McCain was searching and searching and no one wanted the job and he called her up and she didn't think, "why is this guy calling me?" She had a big enough ego to think she was the best choice for Vice President, even though she seems to know nothing about foreign policy, economics, or how to answer a question posed by the press. She should have said No. I mean really. I hate to say this but she makes Dan Quayle look like a political genius. The scariest thing is that Damon is right. Should the Republicans win she has a 50/50 shot at running the country some time in the next four years. Strange days indeed, most peculiar mama.

Things back here at the ranch are still moving along well. The kidlets went to a birthday party today. Dad and kids made the cards and shopped the presents yesterday so I let mom go for the ride along today. Everyone seemed to have a good time. I mean who doesn't have a good time when you score a loot bag.
The wife made up some spring rolls for dinner. These are the heavy duty spring rolls. You eat one and you are fullish. You eat two and you are stuffed. I held myself up at one, seeing as I had had a pre-dinner snack. Not a good habit if you were wondering. The rolls were accompanied by a cucumber and bok choy salad and some miso soup. Now that fall is here the miso soup really hits the spot. After some late afternoon trampolining I was feeling a little chilled. The miso put it all to rights.

And once again we back around at Monday. Will this roller coaster never stop. I think we need like a 20 day week with a 7 day weekend. Think about it.