Long Sundays

It's amazing when a sunny day can do for your mood, much as I think I love a rainy, stay-inside day. Yesterday I was edgy, and I dreaded today, a long day with no plans. But I woke up feeling energetic and happy. Did a mountain of work (well it seemed that way) in the morning--finished cleaning out that filthy shower stall and sorting all the papers (most need shredding so now I have to find out where you take whole bags of papers to be shredded). Then, overcome with ambition, I cleaned out the catbox and the cat's bathroom, all of which made me rush to the shower, feeling dirty. I ran the dishwasher, put away folded clothes I'd been staring at, and generally put the house in order. One of the contributors to the cookbook sent me her bibliographic essay and biographical sketch, so I put them in place and then began editing one of the last chapters. "The Regal Women of the Garden of Eden" opens with a history of the Garden of Eden, a historic black neighborhood where almost all residents are descendants of Major Cheney--there were once 54 houses and now are ten or twelve, though the original homestead is still occupied. Some of the recipes reminded me of my mom, particularly seven-minute icing, in which she took particular pride. I liked it when it was fresh and soft but I remember when it sat, it developed a brittle sugar crust.

It's been a food day, although I didn't eat elegantly--my standard meal of tuna salad, hearts of palm and grape tomatoes for lunch and smoked salmon, pea salad (the rest of Jacob's peas from last night), and a bit of hummus, followed by raspberries for supper--an eclectic mix but pretty low in Weight Watchers points (tomorrow is my day to weigh). I didn't tell Weight Watchers, but I ate chocolate twice today.

I've had one eye on the food channel all day--partly because it's had lots of trailers for Julie and Julia. I've read the book, and I'm not much of a moviegoer, but I really want to see that one. My neighbor, Sue, has assured me we're going. But I'm also interested in the winner of the cookoff tonight for the next Food Network Star--the two finalists are both vital and attractive, their dishes far beyond my skills, but the woman is from a suburb north of Fort Worth, so I'm rooting for her. She also has four children under four (including twins) so I am in awe that she has developed such cooking skills while caring for such a family. I also watched three consecutive Paula Deen shows (parts of two while riding my stationary bike)--her food always looks so scrumptious, but I am appalled by her free hand with butter, cream, sugar, cheese, and sour cream. I wonder about her cholestorol--she always eats the dishes with such relish! I know the shows are taped and shown over and over again, but I did think in the third one I saw her face looked much thinner--no idea what order they were filmed in. Maybe she just changed her hairdo. Anyway, with her kitzy overdone southern manners, I do find her fun and charming--and I long to eat that way once in a while.

With the other eye, I've been reading The Diva Takes the Cake and enjoying it, though the diva in this one is a bit extreme. Still it's not one of those mysteries where I can see the ending coming, so I'm hooked.

It's been a long Sunday simply because I've had no outside contact, and I don't much like days like that. But this week I have to go into the office three days (yikes!) and I have lunch plans three days, dinner plans two. Plenty of outside contact. I tried to sit on the porch again with my book but it's a bit too hot. Our blessed spell of rain and cooler weather seems to be over.