December 29, 2023 Lunch - Chicken and goat cheese Salad  Dinner - Fried Oyster Salad

Today I tried to eat lightly.  For breakfast I sliced and toasted three slices of a piece of baguette and spread butter and garnish each with a different cheese; raddano, a cheddar, and goat.

I also diced a leek, 1/2 onion, several stalks of celery, and 1 1/2 carrots to flavor the chicken stock. Suzette had filled a pot with water and put a whole chicken.

I returned a Christmas gift to UPS and tried to go to the post office for a money order but the main post office was too crowded and 

Old Town did not have any money orders, so I went home and watched the. Fourth quarter of the best game of the day, Clemson v. Kentucky in which there wee 42 points scored and five lead changes.

Suzette went shopping at Smith’s and found lots of great groceries, such as fresh oysters, lots of marked done cheeses, plus arugula.

Then at 1:30 I made a salad for lunch with a piece of the thigh of the whole chicken we were boiling to make stock for cooking the Fabada beans later in the day.

When Suzette returned from work she brought five bagels and several bottles of red Lustau vermouth.

I dozed from 2:00 until 3:30 when Suzette returned and awakened me.

I decided to walk to the bank and purchase a cashier’s check for the mineral deed filing fee.

When I returned around 4;30 Suzette had started the Fabada beans,   I

also cut a large slab of pork into 1 1/2 inch slices and put them on a cookie sheet that Suzette put in the fridge to dry out overnight.

Dinner -

It was 6:30 and began dinner which was very simple, fried oysters on a bed of arugula dressed with a tartare sauce dressing.

We made a dipping coating of egg and milk and Suzette crushed a packet of saltine crackers for the coating. Unfortunately the crackers were not crushed small enough and there was not a uniform coating, but the oysters fried in canola oil were really delicious, especially with the fresh baby arugula.

I opened a bottle of 2017 De Ponte Melon de Bourgogne white wine that was a strong wine but perfect with the fried oysters.

We watched a charming English movie titled “Bank of Dave” on Netflix and then went to bed at 9:30.

Bon Appetit

December 28, 2023 Late Lunch - Costco Hot Dog. Dinner - Cream of Carrot Soup with Cheese bread

December 28, 2023 Late Lunch - Costco Hot Dog. Dinner - Cream of Carrot Soup with Cheese bread

I ate a bowl of granola with tropical fruit, yogurt, and milk around 8:00 and then worked to get the deeds ready to send from 8:30 to 2:00. 

I checked my portfolio and it had a very small gain of .2% today as the Santa Claus rally is ending and the high tech shares appear to have been pushed to overbought prices.

I then drove to Costco, which was incredibly crowded but was lucky to find a spot next to the handicapped parking area.

I ate a hot dog with 1/2 cup of Pepsi instead of 1 1/2 cups.

I then shopped for the items on our list, Saran, aluminum, clothes washing detergent, eggs, pork belly, plus sandwich and gallon freezer bags, lamb chops, collagen tablets and acetaminophen tablets, baguettes, and Manchego cheese.

I then drove home arriving at 4:35 to await the delivery of our new coffee maker, which did not arrive until approximately 7:30.

Around 6:30 Suzette made croutons from the Pastian dinner rolls and heated the cream of carrot soup she made with the carrots from our garden and toasted three pieces of baguette garnished with slices of beef master cheddar and garnished the soup with warm croutons. Suzette opened a bottle of 2018 Olarra Rioja Reserva that we drank with dinner.

After dinner we watched some news and several bowl games.  The best one was the Alamo Bowl that matched Arizona against Oklahoma. Oklahoma fumbled several times and threw three interceptions and lost 24 to 38.

The best news was that the Maine Secretary of State removed Trump from the primary ballot because Section 3 of the 14th Amendment disqualifies a person who has sworn an oath to uphold the Constitution and later commits insurrection or gives aid or comfort to our enemies from serving in any public office.

The Maine Secretary of State after holding a hearing and taking evidence found that Donald Trump’s inciting the riot on January 6, 2021 to stop the peaceful turnover of power was an insurrection and thus disqualifying.

The other little gem of news was the discovery of tapes by Cheeseboro implicating Trump attorneys and Senator Ron Johnson to get the fraudulent elector certifications to VP. Pence in the Capitol on Jan. 6.

Cheeseboro has agreed to testify and apparently disclosing the activities of the fake elector plot.

We went to bed at 11:00 when the game ended. I to blog and Suzette to sleep.

I also drank two cups of tea and a sniffer of Kelt cognac and two cookies after dinner.

Bon Appetit

December 27, 2023 Brunch - Enchiladas and Eggs and Tamale Snack Popcorn. Dinner - Ham, Baked Sweet Potato, steamed Broccoli, and cheese sau

December 27, 2023 Brunch - Enchiladas and Eggs and Tamale Snack Popcorn. Dinner - Ham, Baked Sweet Potato, steamed Broccoli, and cheese sauce

Two great meals today. 

Billy and I went to the bank to sign the deeds we prepared yesterday a bit after 9:00 and we were back home by 10:00.

Suzette heated up four of the pork and beef tamales we had been given by Amy and Jody and Loyda and the enchiladas Amy gave us on Christmas Day and suzette sautéed slices of a baked potato and then we fried four eggs to create a wonderful filling brunch. Billy also ate some enchiladas left from his meal at the Pantry yesterday.

After brunch I walked around the block with Billy and Elaine and reached about a mile of steps today.

We then took Billy and Elaine to the airport for their flight home.

When we returned home I sat and watched football and a PL match between Man City and Everton that Man City won 3 to 1.

It’s the bowl football season and I watched four or five until after 10:00.

Suzette went shopping for tile and paint for the bathroom while I watched football and soccer. We liked several of the tile patterns she selected for our bathroom.

At 4:00 I snacked on a bag of popcorn and Suzette made a snack of slices of banana garnished with peanut butter.

We came up with a unique menu for dinner from PPIs, a baked sweet potato with slices of ham on a bed of steamed broccoli garnished with a cheddar cheese sauce.

Such a unique dish deserved a unique wine and I found the perfect wine; a 2001 Robert Mondavi Woodbridge White Zinfandel. I have been wanting to drink this wine for some time. I included it among the wines offered at Suzette’s birthday party in August but no one opened this relic of the past.

The wine was still in good shape even though the cork was dry and shattered when I tried to pull it and it had a slight sherry flavor, but the sweetness of the wine had protected its integrity and we thought it was perfect for the sweet, creamy, and salty meal.

We also loved the PPI and gifted aspect of the meal, using sweet potatoes oven roasted a week ago and ham given to us by Amy on Christmas p.  We steamed the fresh broccoli and Suzette made a cheese sauce with a smoked cheddar cheese her brother, Jeff, and his wife, , gave us by making a cream sauce with butter, flour, and milk and then melting slices of cheese into the sauce.

I loved dinner and it was not heavy.

We had a few bites of the cheese cake that one of Suzette’s employees made for her for dessert.

I drank a couple of cups of tea later and a sip of Calvados.

Bon Appetit

December 26, 2023 Breakfast - Granola Lunch - Tabouli Salad Dinner - Tabouli Salad and French Onion Soup

December 26, 2023 Breakfast - Granola  Lunch - Tabouli Salad  Dinner - Tabouli Salad and French Onion Soup

I gained weight this Christmas so I started to reduce my intake today.

I ate granola with tropical fruit salad and yogurt for breakfast. Elaine sent me her recipe, so now I can make my own granola, 

I watched most of four matches of Boxing Say soccer until 2:30.

At 1:00 I made a big salad of romaine lettuce, pickles, radishes, red onion, and black olives. I toasted two halves of a pita and filled each with salad and slices of creamy feta to make two sandwiches and then ate the rest of the salad with water.

The major project was doing deeds to transfer oil and gas royalties from Mother’s Trust to Billy and me.

I worked on two during the day and then Billy helped me finish the other seven or eight between 7:30 p.m. and 11:00 p.m.

At 6:00 after Suzette returned from work, she made small Tabouli salads by laying a couple of spoonfuls of tabouli in an upturned romaine lettuce leaf and heated the French onion soup she made Sunday in Mother’s brown French onion soup bowls hopped with a croutons of ciabatta bread and slices of aged Gouda we received from her brother Jeff and his wife Kathy for Christmas.  The French onion soup was among the best I have ever tasted because Suzette added the mushrooms sautéed in sherry and chunks of grilled steak to the broth.

A rather busy day of work and a rather spartan but delicious diet.

I hope to lose some of the excess weight i gained this holiday by the time of my surgery, which is the other big news.  I received approval from my doctor for the surgery to replace my left hip today.

Bon Appetit

December 25, 2023 Christmas Dinner at Amy and Vahl’s

 December 25, 2023 Christmas Dinner at Amy and Vahl’s

It was a wonderful day.

Elaine and Suzette started with tropical fruit salad yogurt and then a Christmas cookie. I started with Christmas cookies and tea.

Then at 10:00 we all sat in the living room and exchanged gifts. Willy gave Suzette and me Ugh slippers. Suzette gave me a new robe in Royal Blue. 

Billy and Elaine gave Willy and me a book titled  You will die of Heat First by Cordell.  I gave Billy a bottle of Kelt cognac both of them wine shampoo and  conditioner and Willy and Luke gave Suzette an Opal ring, to name a few. 

Then we got ready for Christmas Dinner in Santa Fe.  Willy gathered up the luminarias to recycle next year. 

We left for Santa Fe at 12:15 after we spoke to Luke and wished him happy holidays. 

When we arrived all the members of Vahl and Craig’s and Vahl’s family were there, except for Vahl’s son Josh who lives in Alaska and Luke in New York. 

Amy had put out a great spread. Ham, beef tenderloin, a lovely apple salad, lots of desserts , including brownies, Christmas cookies, key lime pie, and a Chocolate Maven peach pie, plus red and green chili enchiladas, beans, pork tamales, and red chili.

I took red enchiladas, a tamale, beans, apple salad, and tenderloin with a glass of Lemulson’s Theo’s Vineyard Pinot Noir.

I enjoyed talking to Craig Sr. about his deals and corporate clients. Then I spoke to Leo about Hispanic history and water rights.

We then gave out gifts.  Suzette had a big bag of gifts and gave almost everyone a gift. 

I had given Deanne a bottle of Pinot Gris, Vahl a bottle of De Ponte 2017 Dundee Hills Pinot Noir, and Amy a bottle of Herman Weimar rose. 

We took a group picture and then I ate a slice of peach pie and we left at around 5:30 after a pleasant afternoon.

Willy drove us home.  When I got home I watched a monster mMonday Night Football match between two 11-3 teams, the Baltimore Ravens v. San Francisco 49’ers.

I made a ham, red onion, and Gouda quesadilla with pickles and washed them down with a bottle of beer and then a few Christmas cookies.

It’s the season to eat and drink a lot.

Bon Appetit