Archive for August, 2011

In which Peter forgets that he is a parent, or Date Night

Posted in Dining, Family, H. sapiens var. Peter on August 31st, 2011 by rmd – 3 Comments

Joanna and Gabe offered to Simon-sit last night while Peter and I went to LQ@SK for dinner. Jo called after about an hour… The conversation went something like this:

Peter: Hello?

Joanna: Hey Peter. Sorry to bother you guys. Can you tell me where the bottles are? I can’t find them.

Peter: Bottles?

Joanna: Yeah, the bottles.

Peter: I’m sorry. What did you say?

Joanna: Bottles! I can’t find them.

Peter: What do you need a bottle for?

Joanna: To feed the baby? He’s hungry.

Peter: Oh! Right. The baby. I didn’t know what you were talking about… Bottles are in the dishwasher.

Any trip in which we completely forget that we have an infant at home is a successful outing. Peter claims he thought Jo was trying to make flavored vinegar or something…

The meal was really interesting. Laurent Quenioux of Bistro LQ and Nguyen Tran of the Starry Kitchen put on an amazing show on the plate. That pea triptych was truly memorable. The oenophile sitting next to us was chatty and poured us a taste of his 2002 Burgundy. While Peter is my favorite dining companion, it’s always a pleasure to discuss such a unique meal with neighboring tables.

After the Jo’s gentle reminder of our status as parents on a rare night out, we kept thinking about Simon and how he would’ve enjoyed the meal. Any time we take him out to a loud restaurant, he snoozes straight through dessert in his car seat. So far, it’s the best way to get him to sleep. To me, Starry Kitchen’s generic dance music soundtrack didn’t fit LQ’s unique and fabulous food, but Simon would’ve loved it!

Much like his parents, Simon would eat out every night if he could. But he always orders the same thing: momma’s milk.

Today at the Market

Posted in Cuisine, Market, Vegetables on August 31st, 2011 by Peter – 2 Comments
  • Oysters
  • Limes
  • Figs
  • Peaches
  • Grapes
  • Shallots
  • Frisee
  • Salad Greens

 

 

A sad passing

Posted in G. gallus domesticus on August 28th, 2011 by rmd – 1 Comment

While the East Coast got soaked, we’ve been in a beastly heatwave that was lethal to the poultry population at the Dilwedel compound.

Wyandotte the chicken succumbed to the 103 degree heat yesterday. After only five chickens emerged this morning, I found her under the roost.

I feel terrible and neglectful. We’ve had a lot going on and didn’t check on them during the midday heat yesterday. It was crazy though. Sally and John departed in the evening. Joanna arrived unexpectedly — a hurricane-related detour after her trip to NorCal.

Maybe if we had checked on them we would’ve spotted Wyandotte’s symptoms and been able to rehydrate her and or take her inside to cool her off. The rest of the flock is fine and they had plenty of water. Chickens are delicate but she seemed too young and healthy to be done in by the heat. I never thought that we’d lose a chicken in her prime. It seems so random and wasteful. As I told Peter tearfully this morning, “I didn’t want her to die! I wanted to kill her and eat her!” Though given how much I cry when our flock is culled naturally, we’ll have to see if I can actually pull that off.

We will remember Wyandotte fondly. She was a beautiful hen and a good layer. I loved the dark green sheen on her black neck feathers. She was the first to give us eggs. I remember how happy we were when Peter picked her up and found that first light brown egg in a little grass nest that she scratched behind the compost bins. When she was just a chick, we couldn’t tell her apart from Barred Rock. They both looked like balls of black fluff with yellow bellies. She liked to boss around the rest of the girls but she will be missed by her friends, Australorp and Barbara the Barred Rock.

A brief memorial service was held this evening and attended by Jo, Gabe, Raquel, Peter and Simon, who screamed the whole time. She was buried under the fig tree in the front yard.

 

Simon smiles

Posted in H. sapiens var. Simon on August 27th, 2011 by rmd – 1 Comment

We haven’t been able to catch him in the act for a photo yet, but he’s been doing it for about a week now. He grins at me, laughs at Peter and smirks at the ceiling fan. He’s especially smiley in the wee hours of the morning after nursing when I’m bleary-eyed and exhausted and in the morning before breakfast when no one can resist playtime.

The best was when he was hanging out on a blanket on the floor next to my desk. When I glanced down to check on him, he looked up, caught my eye and beamed. I almost forgave him for all the late nights…

 

Simon, top to bottom

Posted in H. sapiens var. Simon on August 27th, 2011 by rmd – 1 Comment

Hair: Red, as previously noted. Spikey on top, widow’s peak in the front. Fluffy after a bath, greasy after a couple of days.

Eyebrows: Invisible blond.

Eyes: Lively. Blue at the moment. Left eye is currently red, puss-y and infected with bacterial conjunctivitis. He’s barely 6 weeks old and already we’re dealing with pinkeye. Adorable little disease vector.

Ears: Perfect.

Nose: Typical baby chata nariz de gata.

Mouth: “His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow.”

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More Visitors

Posted in Family, H. sapiens var. Simon, Vegetables on August 26th, 2011 by Peter – 1 Comment

Simon met his Grandparents last Saturday.  We’ll post a photo retrospective after they leave us to visit more northerly grandchildren this weekend but here’s a taste:

Clockwise from bottom-left: grandson, grandmother, grandfather, grandsquash

Breaking News: Winner of the Simon Due Date Pool

Posted in H. sapiens var. Simon on August 26th, 2011 by Peter – Be the first to comment

Congratulations to our jar of Fleischmann’s rapid-rise yeast for correctly identifying gender (M) and birthday (Jul 13 2011).  Now if I can only figure out what E1 means.  Best guess in the comments wins the jar of this magical oracle-yeast.

Look What Came Out of the Garden

Posted in Vegetables on August 26th, 2011 by Peter – Be the first to comment

It’s purlple.  We got okra.

okra, padrons, basil, tomatoes

Entourage

Posted in Family, H. sapiens var. Simon on August 19th, 2011 by rmd – 1 Comment

Or, the Adoration of the BBQ Guests… Take your pick.

last Friday

My County Fair Entries

Posted in H. sapiens var. Simon, Vegetables on August 19th, 2011 by Peter – 3 Comments

The L.A. County Fair doesn’t begin for another couple of weeks but here are my entries.

 

Tomato - var. Peppermint 1 lb 11.4 oz

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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