Friday, May 20, 2005

Best day-before-birthday ever! I'm in a great mood, and not experiencing fear and loathing at all.

Posted at 9:46:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.

Finished my deadline project! Yes, I am very, very bad. The deadline is about a half an hour from now. But at least I didn't pull an all-nighter. I went to sleep by six. It reminded me of being in high school/college and waiting until the last minute to write a big paper, except that it was really, really fun. Now I just have to mail it and get ready for New York. My fake birthday is tomorrow!

Posted at 4:14:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.

There's nothing insane about buying a dress for dinner at The Modern a few days before the trip (for $2, at the consignment shop!), then two days before we leave, cutting it up and re-tailoring it, is there? I mean, sure, it was absolutely fine to begin with, but I can't leave that alone when it can be custom-ly perfect! Even if there is a huge possibility of disaster. (Easy come, easy go, I told Dean.) And at least I didn't do it the night before. Anyway, no disaster, and it turned out great! I made it a tiny bit longer and made the skirt a tiny bit more fitted. It's much more modernist now. Of course, I should have been working on my deadline project that I need to finish by tomorrow morning, but there's plenty of time for that... it's only 1 AM, right?

Posted at 1:04:00 AM by Laura W. Petix.

Wednesday, May 18, 2005

The milt feast was a great success! It's easy to make milt!

Photos: 1) The fiddleheads (young ferns), 2) raw milt (when I first took it out, all folded over, sort of heart-shaped), 3) raw milt (after I spread it out to show the two lobes) (it's very soft and slippery!), 4) salting the milt, 5) just finished lightly flouring it, 6) the milt cooking on the stove in butter and olive oil. It was delicious. Dean asked me what it tasted like, and the closest thing I could think of was eggs florentine, minus the spinach.

Posted at 7:22:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.

Just got back from Hale's! Made some voice memos while driving:

[1:44] On my way to get the milt! Listening to Weeping Willow, natch. Very excited. Rounding the corner where all my willow trees are. It's a beautiful day. ["Any Way You Want Me" is blaring in the background.]

[1:53] "Who you been lovin' since I've been gone?" [= MILT, asking me!]

[2:25] Blasting the air conditioning in feet mode, freezing my ankles off. I have a cooler with milt, and one big shad stickin' out the top. And I have my Shad Bag with... my shad book. Weeping Willow on the seat, photocopy from Hale... ["Standing in the Doorway" in the background, "I've been riding the midnight train / Got ice water in my veins..."].

Click on the photo to enlarge! (More to come.)

[Edit: This is what the seat of my car really looked like while I was driving along. (The shad stayed in the cooler on the floor most of the time; I only put it in my Shad Bag for a minute to take the photo above.) And here's Hale's. It's right down on the Connecticut River, in Rocky Hill, at the same place where we launch our scooter. This is what it looks like inside, on the half where you go in to buy the shad. (Right hand side of the building.) There's also a whole bunch of shad photos and framed newspaper articles on the wall, fisherman stuff, and a table with tons of photocopies of shad recipes. The rectangular things on the ledge in the photo are copies of the shad fishing videotape. On the whiteboard, it says "Cash Only. We like cash. If you must write check, payable to Dan Russell. Thanks." Then it has prices and stuff; I think that part is legible. I gave a copy of the milt-eating description and recipe to the guy I talked to, and showed him the book. He was cool. (It wasn't Hale; Hale [aka Dan] wasn't there.) I told him I hoped he'd try milt and he said he would! He said Dan wanted to try to get people interested in it. I hope that article doesn't scare him!

Oh--he actually only had one pair of milt sacs for me (again!); I guess he didn't find any more in today's catch. They were in a cooler with a whole ton of roe sacs, all loose and sliming around together. He fished around in there to check and make sure there wasn't any more milt buried underneath. It was all bloody and slippery and cool!]

Posted at 2:42:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.

Wow!!! Dean volunteered to call Hale for me this morning, and when I got up just now, there was a note all about it! They were still processing today's catch, and Hale said he had some milt ready for me NOW! He said they just cut out one pair and they'd cut out another; I can pick it up this afternoon! And, he asked multiple times if I can bring my recipe for how I cook/prepare it/what I serve it with. He kept asking Dean over and over, and of course Dean didn't know. He also asked Dean what it tastes like! (Of course he didn't know that, either!) He wants to know how I make it because he wants to get other people interested! (!!!!)

Posted at 12:12:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.

Tuesday, May 17, 2005

I got a really nice hide jacket today at the consignment shop. The tag said $16 (already insanely cheap for such a nice coat) but they only charged me $12.50. I have no idea why. I just showed Dean and he said it looks like a "Bob jacket"! Not really sure what he means by that. Maybe the colour/material? It's actually rather tailored and feminine looking. [Edit: I asked him, and he qualified that he meant old Bob. Current Bob. (I figured he meant Greenwich Village-era Bob.) He thinks it looks like a "cowboy" coat. Pretty cool! I feel like I need a lariat (or whatever that little rope-and-rock thing Jett Rink uses is called) to go with it, now. I hope it's cold and rainy soon, so I can wear it!]

Posted at 8:12:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.

Woo hoo! I'm a Valued Customer! I'm invited to the Grand Opening of Nick's Village Deli! It's across the street from the East Berlin post office. I.e., right around the corner from me. I.e., in the most out of the way spot in the universe, that no one ever drives by (unless they happen to be going to the post office) (which I happen to do quite often, getting things hand cancelled). I can get a free drink if I buy a Wish Sandwich! They proudly serve Green Mountain coffee. Too bad it's not Blue Mountain coffee. Or Kona coffee, for that matter! I wonder if the Berlin Convenience & Deli (right around corner in other direction) is scared of the competition. They shouldn't be.

Posted at 5:23:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.

Just tried calling Hale's, and a young guy answered. He said he never heard of anyone getting milt! Heh. (He didn't even know what I was talking about at first. "Shad milk?" "No, milt... from the male shad.") But I told him I get it every year (and am probably the only person who does), so he said to call back first thing in the morning (8 or 9 o'clock) and talk to Dan (aka Hale). How on earth am I going to get up at 8 or 9 in the morning? I guess I'll have to. I go through this shad phone call nightmare every year, don't I? All right, I vow to do it tomorrow. I am going to set an event with an alarm on Zi. Milt on Thursday, if there's milt to be had. Cross your fingers.

(Note: According to my calendar, May 17th is "Shad Day"! Happy Shad Day.)

Posted at 1:37:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.

My Cake = best food in the world. (Almost as good as matcha almonds from Ito En.) Raze the rhubarb! The only problem is, it's impossible to avoid devouring it all.

Speaking of matcha almonds, I have one left. It's been exactly two months since the package arrived in my mailbox. My heart's desire. Since they are so precious, I have been drawing them out and keeping a tally of how many were in the package. I always do this. Yes, I am weird. According to ALB, my last package had 22 almonds. This time there are 27! Could I have counted the tally marks wrong last time??

[Edit: Check it out! All About Shad.]

Posted at 12:11:00 AM by Laura W. Petix.

Monday, May 16, 2005

Wow, man. I'm writing this from my mitt. In Dean's lounge. Very very cool. Also very comfortable. Went to Oats today and did not have a cow. (Did not see my cow complaint form posted on the bulletin board, either.) Instead, I fawned over fiddleheads. Bought a big pile. Must call Hale immediately to request some milt to go with them. Didn't get any spargle from the Gs yesterday because they'd eaten it all and there wasn't any more ready to pick yet. Tragic. But, fiddleheads will do! I hope it's not too late for milt.

Posted at 10:03:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.

Sunday, May 15, 2005

"Even though I have no idea what the skins and hides even was, I am sorry it didn't work out." That is just the nicest thing to read in an e-mail. I keep thinking about it.

Laura: "Next time someone asks me what I 'do,' I think I'll say I'm a Reverse Engineer."
Dean: "I thought you told them you were retired."
Laura: "True."

It's really unpleasant being in close proximity to a group of people who are talking so loudly that not only can you not help but eavesdrop, you also can't even hear yourself think, let alone attempt to carry on a conversation of your own. Just, drowned out. The only thing to do is move.

I just realised, if I use the Most Gorgeous Fabric Ever to make a skirt, I won't be able to wash it. But that's probably okay. I doubt I'll need to. Dry Clean Only homemade skirt. The Most Gorgeous Fabric Ever is definitely more suited to a larger object, I think. You wouldn't really get the full effect of the pattern on something small like a bag.

Posted at 4:16:00 AM by Laura W. Petix.

Reverse Engineering is the way to go, man.

Posted at 3:17:00 AM by Laura W. Petix.