Saturday, April 25, 2009
Posted at 5:23:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.
Soooooo warm. Too warm, in the sun, on the bike trail! It's like we jumped right over spring into summer (but the trees haven't had a chance to catch up). We flew to Northampton, MA and hounded on the Norwottuck Rail Trail, including the cool former train bridge over the Connecticut River. (We went on this trail a couple of times back in 2007, but not last year.) Right at the beginning of the trail is Webster's, and we each had a soft-serve ice cream at the ice cream stand part (I had lemon! weird, but it was good... light and refreshing), then went back again at the end of the trail, after my investigation revealed that they serve lobster rolls. (We pedalled to the spot where the trail runs behind the Whole Foods mall, then turned around, after getting a soup for Dean at Panera. My shoulders were starting to hurt and I didn't want them to be all messed up afterward.) Webster's was really cute; it reminded me of some of those lobster roll joints I went to with my Gs last year down along the Connecticut shoreline. Top-notch!
Here's my Webster's Fish Hook lobster roll report (I almost forgot how to do this, but it all came back to me...!):
Very very well prepared New England style bun (longer than normal!), well-buttered and evenly grilled to a golden crisp, served still hot. Cold lobster salad inside, atop a green leaf lettuce liner with green parsley flakes on top. No other silly bonus ingredients. No celery. Lobster not left in whole pieces; more of a true lobster salad texture with mayo to hold it together. I'd prefer a little less mayo but it wasn't overdone. Good taste, nothing objectionable. The exceptionally well prepared bun made the lobster roll.
Cat Stats: Trip distance = 10.59 miles; Average speed = 9.2 mph; Max speed = 17.3 mph; Trip time = 1:08'52.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Posted at 5:26:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.
Insanely beautiful day. I drove over to Colchester to visit Susie and Alex, and meet Charlie. Sun, sun, sun. It was a really nice visit, as always. We even had frozen custard at Scotty's. Susie gave me a terrible piece of news, though! Kathy John's has closed down. Kathy John's!
So many memories, with Jan and June and Dean (peppermint stick ice cream, kiddie clowns, green lime soma, Dean's supposed order of a Tummy Buster [J&J claim it happened, but we don't remember it...]). Dean and I used to meet for dates there when we were in college and he had a night class and I was working late in the lab; I'd always get the roast beef and blue cheese rollup. And we'd sometimes visit Kathy John's on the way back from our land, for ice cream with rhubarb sauce.
I introduced Kathy John's to Susie when we first knew each other (I remember she got a black raspberry milk shake, which was a really bizarre mauve color) and even took A.G.D. when he visited. I've bought people cool gifts from the crammy little side shop (Nerdity Glasses!) and the metallic twisty stuff I use to fasten the star on our Christmas Tree comes from there. Whenever Dean would go on a business trip, back when we lived in Manchester, I'd make a drive to Kathy John's and have a solo meal of a perfect grilled cheese sandwich accompanied by a cup of coffee and a dish of peppermint stick ice cream with coffee mallow. When I first moved to Connecticut at 11 years old, my dad's old school chum Barbara Larson took me out to Kathy John's for the very first time, to be nice to a shy little girl with no friends. I really appreciated that. Kathy John's, you will be missed. I know Jan and June are going to be upset when they read this!
Hee hee. Dean keeps saying, "Let's hear it for the skinny little arm! Three cheers for the skinny little arm!" He dropped a plastic thing down the humidifier air return furnace tube and I was able to snake in and rescue it, no problem. :-)
Posted at 1:39:00 AM by Laura W. Petix.
Weird! We live about a quarter mile from the exact center of the state.
Posted at 12:11:00 AM by Laura W. Petix.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
!!!!!!!! Oh my GOD, that scene was so great!!! Aaaah! Hahahahah. I'm so glad I wasn't spoilered. I'm going to cry if Chuck gets cancelled!
Posted at 8:33:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.
I wasn't even sure if I'd like Chuck at first, but now... I haven't been this fond of a show in a long time.
Yummmmm. I'm steaming the artichokes. I don't know why, but they smell like hard pretzels! They were SO huge that I had to put each one in a separate pot. (!!!)
Posted at 4:32:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Wow. Just, wow. Rachel's right. Now is the time for magnolias. That huge one across from Klekolo World Coffee is breathtaking. Mauve. Full of blossoms. Overmuch inexpressible. I got my U.G. umbrella out of my trunk just so I could stand in the rain and stare at it. I've got to go back again in the sunlight.
Posted at 3:10:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.
(Meanwhile, still loathe the new ION Market. It's been open for almost a year, but it's still always a disaster, with stuff in the aisles and boxes everywhere, stockers blocking displays every time I go. It's almost impossible to navigate with a cart. And their food is way overpriced. I hate that it's the only place that sells Metromint Chocolatemint water!)
Had to post from my Palma while stopped at a traffic light: "It's happening now. In the pouring rain." It is. It's happening, all around.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Wowowow. I got my first response to the 50th anniversary post cards already! Good ol' J.A. Aaaaaand, I picked up my secret item this afternoon. It looks great! I tried it on and all the ladies at the alterations place said it looked beautiful on me and oooohed and awwwwed when I told them its history and intended use.
Posted at 5:49:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.
I also got ramps at Whole Foods! I have never had ramps before, except a few times as an indistinguishable ingredient at a restaurant. They're one of those quintessential spring foods, like fiddleheads and asparagus. (Which reminds me, I need to update my Weird Foods List.) They're really cute, tiny tiny delicate wild leeks. Grown in New York. I have no idea what to do with them, though. And, I got a pair of the most gorgeous globe artichokes ever, with GIGANTIC stems! An artichoke feast is in our future. Thursday. Fake or real Thursday. It's misty-dark and raining hard nonstop today. Very spring.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Wow, I just talked on the phone with Uncle John for about half an hour (!!!!!!!!!!!!!). He called because he wants us to come visit them in Tango! :-) I did a good job talking on the phone, too. Ha!
Posted at 8:35:00 PM by Laura W. Petix.
My iPod is back to playing Dylan instead of my Wake Up playlist again. Why??? Until now, I never would have guessed that it has a mind of its own. It's not that hearing Bob in the morning is so bad, it's mostly that the Bob songs are much lower volume than the ones on my Wake Up playlist, so I don't wake up. I just have bizarre dreams about Bob instead. No, not really. I wish.
Posted at 11:19:00 AM by Laura W. Petix.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
My G called me on the phone to plot while my mom was in the shower. hee hee.
Posted at 3:29:00 AM by Laura W. Petix.
Almost forgot to post these! (If you can, watch in High Quality mode.)
Posted at 2:56:00 AM by Laura W. Petix.
Now I'm all caught up, except for my two Puako underwater entries (which I haven't written yet).
