Monday, May 13, 2013

Celebrate!!!




Monday, May 13.

Mark this day down.

Because today - TODAY - for the first time since Wednesday, April 17th - an astonishing four weeks - I FINALLY felt like my "old" self....

Full of energy.

No headaches.

Clear-headed.

Ready to take on the world.

And - BONUS - I could actually smell my perfume and taste my food.

YAY!

Looks like I'm finally - FINALLY - getting over my sinus surgery!

Oh...and I can breathe. DOUBLE BONUS!!!

That is all.

Peace.

Signature

Thursday, May 9, 2013

My Life As A Super Model


I AM alive.

Barely.

Okay. That's exaggerating. A bit.

Okay. A lot.

But really - recovering from sinus surgery has been a tad bit more difficult than I had anticipated. I think one of the biggest obstacles has been 'brain fatigue' - where I just don't feel like being creative or smart or funny...hence, my lack of writing.

Seriously - even posting a simple Facebook status has been a huge undertaking, and that's just not like me.

I then had a bit of a setback on Tuesday when some other medical issues cropped up, which landed me in the emergency room for several hours...hooked up to an IV full of pain meds, fluids, and anti-nausea medicine. Fun times. Not. (And let me just insert here that Hubby is a saint and has earned his angel wings. That's all we say about that.)

Anyhoo, I'm here now, and doing a little bit better. Not SUPER better, but I'm back on my feet today, which is better than before.

And really...another reason I haven't been blogging, is because - who really wants to read nothing but medical rants and complaints from someone? I want to be funny...I want to be inspirational...I want to be entertaining...and yet...I feel like crap. Literally.

Okay - enough of that. Let me ATTEMPT to be funny and inspirational and entertaining...by bringing you a quick review of my one day last week when I got to live the life of a super model...complete with hair, make-up, booze, and hanging with celebrities. Yup - everything but the drugs, unless you count Tylenol as a drug.

Yes. I was a super model.

Okay. Not "super" perhaps, but still...I was a model.

My Day as a SuperModel began on Thursday morning, when I reported to our local clubhouse for hair and make-up...as I had been asked to model in a Ladies Fashion Show for our neighborhood. I was a bit nervous, as I had not yet seen the clothes I would be modeling, let alone tried them on, and the fashion show would be that same afternoon. What if the clothes were too tight? Or too big? What if they made my butt look big? (Hey - it's a common thought.)

The hairdresser decided that my normal straight hair was too boring, so she went with a bunch of waves and curls...I'm not sure if I liked it, as evidenced by this photo:


Disregard the five chins...not a good angle for a picture, obviously!


The good news is that all of the outfits fit - amazingly well. Whew. And my butt didn't look too big. The bad news is that NO ONE took a picture of me walking the runway. Yes, my friends at the fashion show didn't think to snap a photo until it was too late. Oh well. It was fun. And I didn't fall. Or stumble. Yay, me!

So that evening, Hubby and I decided to attend a dinner here in town...what with my super-cute curly hair and all.

Let me preface this by saying that Hubby and I are HUGE fans of the Food Network...and especially the show, "Chopped." This is the show where four chefs are presented with mystery baskets - and they have to create amazing gastronomical delights using the weird ingredients in a very short period of time. In the process, they are judged - and then "chopped" if they don't measure up. One of the judges on the show is Aaron Sanchez, who just happens to have a restaurant close to our home.

His restaurant, Mestizo, was offering a "private" tequila dinner with Aaron Sanchez last week...and I say 'private', because it was open for 50 people. Yowza. However, I will say that I was impressed with the layout when we arrived - they had set us up in five tables of 10 people - so it didn't seem TOO overwhelming.

What came next? A five course meal...each paired with a delicious cocktail...and it was divine.

We started off with a trio of tostadas - grilled ramps with Guajillo Chile Romesco, Crispy Fiddlehead Ferns with Chipotle Aioli, and Fava Bean Puree with Mint and Queso Fresco:


Absolutely delicious!!!


The cocktail paired with this was a "Mestizo Margarita" - and I have to honestly say, it was the BEST margarita I've ever had in my life. Unfortunately, I had ordered a glass of Sangria before dinner ever started, so I now had TWO cocktails to finish...but perhaps that isn't such a bad thing, right?



The second course was called "Rabbit Terrine" - which was served with Chicharones and Fig-Pasilla Jam:



This was probably my least favorite course, as I had never eaten rabbit before - and I will probably never eat it again. I kept thinking of Bugs Bunny - honestly - so I had a hard time with the rabbit. I DID like the jam, though...as well as the cocktail pairing, which was officially "Corzo Reposado," but should just be called "Fire Water":


Oh my God, it burned as it went down...!


The third course was the fish course, "Chorizo-Stuffed Spot Prawns" - with chayote and jicama salad. Oh sweet Heavens, this was fantastic...


Just pull of the heads and take a bite...SO flavorful!

The cocktail for this was "Fire Water 2", or officially, "Herradura Anejo" - another shot of tequila that burned...but was so, so good.

Our main course consisted of "Bisteak Tampicana" - butterflied filet mignon with short rib and beef marrow enchiladas, served with shaved mushroom salad:



I thought the filet was perfectly cooked and seasoned; however, I didn't care much for the enchiladas. Not completely having my sense of taste back, they were a bit bland for me, but everyone else at the table seemed to love them. Our cocktail pairing was a tequila called "Delirio Mezcal" - which had a bit of a smoky flavor - but still tasted like fire water, of course.

Dessert was a trio of ice creams: mango-chile, avocado-lime and dulce de leche-banana. Unfortunately, NONE of my sweet taste buds are working yet, so I could taste nothing of any of these:



Our final cocktail was a shot of Agavero Dessert Tequila - which tasted like Fire Water yet again. Notice a pattern here?

By now, I've had one margarita, one HUGE glass of Sangria, and four shots of tequila in the course of 90 minutes...and I am feeling no pain. I don't think I made TOO big of a fool of myself when I posed with a picture of Aaron Sanchez himself:


He's so cute. Even more so in "real" life. Hee.

Of course, it would have been too much to ask to have Hubby use the flash when he took the picture. Sigh.

Anyway - a VERY delightful and fun dinner...the food was delicious, the company was a lot of fun, and the snowy evening just added to the atmosphere.

I had needed something to break me out of my post-surgery funk, and this was a great start. Needless to say, after all that food and drink, I pretty much CRASHED when I got home. Just like a real Super Model. Hee.

Peace.

Signature

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

May Day Baskets




Today is May Day...but does anyone really care? I'm sorta' sad...as it seems that May Day is becoming another tradition/holiday that is slowly, slowly disappearing....

I remember as a little girl, carefully making a May Day "basket" - which usually just consisted of construction paper formed into a cone with a paper handle stapled to it. I would then carefully fill the basket with hand-picked "flowers" - which usually just consisted of bright yellow dandelions I found growing in the yard. After filling my basket with the beautiful flowers, I'd sneak up to our front porch, hang the basket on the doorknob, ring the doorbell - and then run like crazy.

By the time my Mom came to the door, I'd be carefully hidden behind a tree, close enough that I could spy on her reaction to the gift at the front door....I'd delight in seeing her surprise at the basket of flowers, and I'd chuckle, thinking I'd really pulled one over on her, as surely she would NEVER guess as to who had left it for her.

Later, I'd saunter back to the house, and after seeing the basket of flowers in the kitchen, I'd casually inquire, "Oh - flowers! Where'd you get them?" And Mom, bless her heart, would play along, and say, "There were on the front door...I have NO idea who would have left them for me! But they're beautiful, aren't they?"

Every year...we'd play our little May Day game...but time passes and eventually, I was too old to make pink May Day paper baskets and fill them with yellow dandelions and run and hide behind trees...and the tradition died.

Time marches forward...but sometimes, it's the memories of the past that bring a smile to one's face.

Happy May Day, everyone...I'm leaving all of you a "virtual" May Day basket on your front porch this morning...may your day be filled with peace and love.

Peace.

Signature

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Tuesday Morning Thoughts




Random observations on a Tuesday morning:

*It really IS a long drive between Fort Myers, Florida and Kansas City...TOO long. I hope to never repeat that.

*I still have to say that Tennessee is by far one of the prettiest states in the country...and Florida? Not so much. Florida DOES get my vote for the craziest drivers, though...and Georgia has the worst road construction projects that never seem to get finished and that go on for miles and miles and miles. Gah.

*What did we do on long road trips before GPS? And before those highway road signs that tell you what services are offered at the next exit? Both of those things sure make life easier....

*Prednisone is some scary stuff, as I've found out the last ten days. I am off of it now, but whew...the side effects are chilling. If I had done my research, I would have known what to expect - but coming out of a surgery fog, I was out of it....all I can say is, NEVER again on the Prednisone.

*Imagine my surprise when I walked into my house Sunday night and discovered that I still had Christmas decorations everywhere....

*Besides the Christmas decor, there were piles of laundry, dust bunnies, mail to be opened, bills to pay, and organizing to be done...I guess I really AM needed here at home, and the evidence was plain to see....

*My furry children have not left my side since my return...at first, it was cute...now it's just annoying to constantly trip over a cat or a dog when I try to take a step. I guess they're just needing reassurance that I'm not going to disappear again....

*This week, I have lots of "make-up" appointments - dentist, dermatologist, hair dresser, etc - for both me and the kids. It's a good feeling to start feeling like I'm in control again.

*Today will reach 85 degrees...the high on Thursday won't be out of the 40's...welcome back to Kansas City, Drama Queen.

Peace.

Signature

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Priorities




I'm going home.

FINALLY.

Now...why do I have the strange feeling that my family is frantically scrambling to clean the house as fast as humanly possible?

Which is rather amusing...because after not being home since early February...frankly, the last thing I could care about is how clean the house is....

All I want...are hugs.

Peace.

Signature