A Monday Warm Over

7:04

7:05

7:38

It's another Monday at the frozen (so far) lake.  It's 36º, may get up to the high 40's, melting the remaining snow, thawing the lake again.  The sky is cloudy with a streak of orange just above the Ellery farm, the only light this morning.

Progress Of The Chautauqua Amp

A frigid Sunday did not stop us from enjoying our morning at the Chautauqua Institution.  We did wait until 11:00, so that by the time we left, it was in the 20's.  Fortunately, it was a sunny morning, making our perambulating much more enjoyable.  We first dropped some books off at the Smith Library, then took our usual loop, warm enough with our layers and even mittens for me.  We were the only ones walking and we had to stay off the lake road because the wind was so strong and bitter. After our walk, we did a quick stop at the Lighthouse Grocery to pick up some of their homemade breakfast sausage and a quart of milk.  We then hurried home because we were hungry and Evie could not wait to start frying up the sausage which she formed into patties.  With organic eggs from Ryder's Cup, moka espresso from our Bialetti coffee pot and a bagel, we were happy with our morning, a rigorous walk and a good breakfast.  CBS Sunday morning was our breakfast accompaniment, always worth watching, a respite usually from the absurdity of the Trump Daze.

A Sunny Afternoon

We were house bound the rest of the day, with nothing really different from other Sundays.  We hung out, watching some of the depressing news programs, took sanity breaks, to read or get something done.  And eventually Evie put together our dinner, a Turkish specialty called Tas Kebab, basically a simple stew of meat, tomato paste, Turkish dried pepper (Urfa and Aleppo) and grated allspice.  It sounds too simple but it's one of our favorites, especially in my case, when it's served over mashed potatoes, with a salad and broiled brussel sprouts.  Before dinner, we had our wine time, a glass of two of  La Vieille Ferme, an inexpensive French wine which my buddy, Trout, introduced us to four or five years ago.  Since then, when we visit them in Maine, we always pick up a case or two on our way home, at the New Hampshire Duty Free Shop.  We then hoard it all winter, doling it out in small doses, or saving it for company.

Tulips For Evie

We watched Real Time with Bill Maher, one of his better brazen, egregious but hilarious episodes.  He was thrown off TV after 9/11 and I fear for him again with our present Gang.  We then watched Homeland and I am getting fed up with its side stories, like Carrie's problems with her daughter, or Quinn's recovery.  Get to the story, the espionage, the action and forget about the rest.  I don't watch this thriller to see Carrie agonize over being a good mother.