The birthday goes on

 

This birthday bouquet sitting on my desk
bring me great happiness. 

Today I woke up to an email birthday letter from a treasured old friend—I am the godmother of her daughter. She is dear but not a good communicator, so it was special to hear from her. And birthday cards, from everyone from old friends to my insurance agent. This birthday business, even if you do get older, has its definite upside.

Another day of sticking my nose to the computer (is that a strange image—like put your shoulder to the wheel and your nose to the grindstone and now try working in that position?). I figured out my schedule: I work from about 8:00-8:30 in the morning, straight through to about 2:00 p.m., eating lunch, usually leftovers, at my desk. And then, it’s nap time, and serious work for the day is done.

In the late afternoon, I cook and do other household chores, read Facebook which I have learned to studiously ignore when I’m really working, and catch up on emails and other odds and ends. It’s a pretty good schedule for me. Today, two days late, I finally put away the clean laundry that had been sitting on my dresser. It’s so easy to put things like that off.

So this morning, I sent off the neighborhood newsletter and the Lone Star Literary Life column. For tomorrow: my weekly Gourmet on a Hot Plate cooking column. Teaser: it will be about summer sandwiches and salads. We had an old favorite, oft neglected salad tonight, and I’ll include that.

Tonight was fun because for the first time in at least two or three weeks, Jordan and I cooked dinner together. She was my sous chef and made me realize again how wonderful it would have been to have a sous chef all those years ago when I cooked for a large family. We had quiche Lorraine and a salad, so while I was frying bacon, she was grating cheese. While I was putting the quiche together, she was frying more bacon for the salad (oops, spoiler!). It all came together to make a wonderful, light summer supper. Jacob missed it because guess where he was—on a golf course, obviously!

Our family dinners are getting fewer and farther between—the next will be Sunday evening when Christian is going to cook sushi and stir fry. I’m trying to suggest new veggies, so I gave him a recipe tonight that includes bok choy, bean sprouts (which he loves), and bamboo shoots. I already have water chestnuts and chow mein noodles, which I remember from my childhood. Back to Christian and his vegetables—who won’t eat squash or broccoli but loves sprouts? There’s no telling.

But as schedules get busy and family dinners rarer, I’m thinking of things to fix for myself—a tuna noodle dish or creamed tuna on toast (don’t laugh—I really like it!), shakshuka for one, a zucchini stuffed with cheese and bread crumbs. I’ve got a whole wonderful list, which is fun.

I’m almost laughing tonight at Republicans—if you are one, please forgive me. But Steve Scalise of Mississippi, that ardent, outspoken trump follower who learned nothing from a come-to-Jesus moment in which he was shot and came close to dying, has just now had his first covid vaccine shot. You suppose he suddenly saw some light? Like his voters dying?

And then there’s that California genius Kevin McCarthy: he proposed Jim Jordan and Banks, another trumper, for the House select committee and feigned astonishment when Nancy Pelosi rejected them. Said he would withdraw the other nominations and Republicans would have their own investigation. That’s sort of the fox investigating others fox. Translation: Play by my rules and let me win, or I won’t play.

That’s it, folks. My take for the day. Want to know more about today’s politics? Read the daily column by historian Heather Cox Richardson. She never fails to be enlightening. It’s online.