Becoming the Old Man

Funny thing happened the other day and I thought I'd share...

Tahera and I were backing out of the garage with me at the wheel, when some punk kid buzzes by the back of the car on his bmx. After dislodging the brake pedal from the floorboard and triple checking that there weren't any of his hoodlum friends coming down the pipeline, I backed out the rest of the way and started past our house.
It's at this point that I notice the little bastard cruising down my damn lawn! He slowed to a near standstill at the steepest dropoff, planning out his sweet jump.
So I stop the car, roll down the window and instantly become a 90 year old man.

"Yo!" I yell, incredulous and at a loss for anything more coherent.
The punk stops and looks back up the hill in confusion...
"Offa da lawwn" I signal with an annoyed hand gesture.
At this point, the little shit has the nerve, after trampling what little green lawn I have, to give me attitude! "Sorry.." he says, in a nasal tone that means he's anything but...
"yeah, Thanks." I reply, mirroring his message, and eyeing him till he's on the sidewalk..

Whatever you weasel. You're not sorry and I'm not grateful. Just stay offa my damn lawn or next time I'll beat you with my walker.

Now that some time has passed, the absurdity of what transpired has sunk in. If I were that kid (and hell, I was that kid once..), I would've said the exact same thing, in exactly that tone. I guess there's something about having a house. Your own castle. That last bastion of privacy, that turns you into a raving lunatic control-freak.
Which reminds me... I've gotta mow that lawn. Don't wanna be a slovenly raving lunatic control-freak...

Fatty Cakes

For our Saturday wedding anniversary I made Pika some yummy scones for b-fast. The recipe from Martha is below. The key is to mix the dough as little as possible to ensure that the scones come out moist and light. Enjoy!
Makes 8

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar, plus more for sprinkling tops
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries, picked over and rinsed
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1/3 cup heavy cream, plus more for brushing tops
2 large eggs, lightly beaten


Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees, with rack in center. Place a baking mat on a baking sheet, and set aside.
In a large bowl, sift together flour, 3 tablespoons sugar, baking powder, and salt. Using a pastry cutter or two knives, cut in butter until the largest pieces are the size of peas. Stir in blueberries and zest.
Using a fork, whisk together cream and egg in a liquid measuring cup. Make a well in the center of dry ingredients, and pour in cream mixture. Stir lightly with fork just until dough comes together. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead a few times to mix well.
Pat dough into a 6-inch square about 1 1/4 inches thick. Using a floured knife, cut into four 3-inch squares. Cut squares in half on the diagonal to form eight triangles. Transfer to prepared baking sheet. Brush tops with cream, and sprinkle with sugar. Bake until golden brown, 20 to 22 minutes. Transfer scones to wire racks to cool.

Anniversary Marathon

Today is day 1 in a series of wedding anniversaries; all mine. On July 19, 2003 Riz and I were married in front of 200+guests. On July 21st we held an intimate celebration with 50 of our closest family and friends. The next morning, nearly delirious from exhaustion, we were officially married with our two witnesses looking on. The JP insisted on making the occasion memorable with a speech. Having heard the "for life" speech twice already, we just wanted the signature. Riz was sporting his tuxedo pants from the night before and a fisherman's hat. I hadn't brushed my hair. She probably thought we were wasted, but she married us anyway.A lot of couples think that their wedding day was the most perfect. On paper, ours wasn’t. Wedding Day 1 was clear and sunny.

Then came the storm

which wrinkled the dress

and upset the hair

and put us in a state of emergency.

But after the storm, there was sun again.
The hair had been reconstructed. The dress had been steamed.

We laughed

and cried equally.

We ate cake

and ice cream

.....lots of ice cream.

We were entertained by the finest of performers.

And surrounded by the people we love the most.

We became Mr. and Mrs.
Perfect it wasn't and I wouldn't change a thing. It was the most memorable beginning of the perfect marriage.
Happy Anniversary, Pika.

The Big Comfy Couch

The family room couch arrived today and it was painless.
The ordeal surrounding our living room furniture still haunts me. It's beautiful. Riz and I took great care (after missing our flight to Barbados) picking out the perfect fabric combinations for the perfect frames. It's sophisticated without seeming uptight. It's both masculine and feminine. It's timeless. Most importantly, it doesn't look like a furniture show room. I hate that. After lots of money, several shipment goof-ups (two right sides) and seven months, the couches were delivered. They were damaged. By the time everything was resolved it was the end of month 8.
The couch buying experience for the family room was nothing like that. We ordered it on a Tuesday. It was in our house exactly 3 weeks later. The color and fabric is just what we requested; a velvety chocolate. It's a big, comfy, everything a family room couch should be, couch and it makes me giddy. I've been inspired by this picture I saw at Restoration Hardware and can't wait to get started on the rest of the room. Saving money stinks. Talk about champagne taste on a peanut butter budget.