tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52043852011-04-21T18:58:16.933-04:00A Slacker in DCMatthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.comBlogger1081100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-47406593404110763082008-10-19T14:58:00.012-04:002008-10-19T15:46:52.769-04:00

I really admire bloggers who can post daily. My problem is that if I have plenty of time to post something in the evening, then my life must not be that interesting/busy. If my life is interesting enough, I am worn out and don't feel like posting at the end of the day. Oh well. I have recently been chided into an update, since S and I have several things going on now, the most overwhelming of

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-32741920508058471972008-07-01T11:28:00.008-04:002008-07-01T11:53:22.863-04:00

The Lovely S and I are taking a "staycation" this year. We really wanted a week to do nothing in particular. We are just sleeping late, going to long, late lunches at a few favorite restaurants, reading magazines on the balcony, and relaxing in general. This is turning out to be a much more refreshing vacation than rounding up cat sitters and fighting airlines or traffic. It reminds me of summer

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-90180436123913197382008-06-29T20:10:00.014-04:002008-06-29T20:58:31.393-04:00

Last weekend S and I traveled to Illinois to visit my parents as we always do in summer. I purposefully moved away to start my career after college because there aren't many professional or cultural opportunities there. But compared to a large city like Washington, DC, there are many advantages. It is a welcome change of pace for a short time.On our first day there, we visited one of my favorite

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-47076522415836888232008-06-18T21:29:00.003-04:002008-06-18T21:51:44.771-04:00

Another pizza triumph this week! I usually try not to be hyperdialated to the toppings on a pizza. They should be tasty and high quality, of course, but anyone can come up with ideas for toppings. The difficult part is the crust technique. I finally found a dough recipe that I'm happy with in terms of both ease of preparation and quality of finished product. Today S and I put that basic crust to

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-5320868608637915482008-06-07T14:28:00.003-04:002008-06-07T15:19:43.589-04:00

Wow, four months! A new record. Since then, travel to Cincinnati, Detroit, Cincinnati again, Austin, American Airlines flight cancellations, back home courtesy of Frontier, five weeks of grand jury duty, tusslin', stickin', leakin', bein' hot, goin' ice-cream, leavin' out, play cousins, baby mamas, ADWs, PFCOVs, UFs, AUs, PWID cocaine, OJ, and even M-I w/A!In the mean time, the lady senator has

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-24546620672537229792008-02-07T17:39:00.001-05:002008-02-07T17:42:19.170-05:00

I have been making my own pizza dough for several years now and had a very good recipe in the sense that the final product tasted very good. It was time consuming and somewhat difficult, though. I heard a recipe on a recent podcast of The Spledid Table and decided to try it. Works wonderfully! This is nice because there is no kneeding. It is a very wet dough that requires a really long rise. The

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-9648209602002463482008-02-01T18:09:00.001-05:002008-02-07T17:45:23.253-05:00

This has been a thorn in my side for some time. My problem was a simple failure to balance tastes on this one. Cointreau is often described as sweet, but it really has a bitter overtone and needs lots of sour acid to balance it. I was not using enough lemon juice. Equal parts good Congac, Cointreau or Grand Marnier, and fresh lemon juice. Best if you strain the juice for a clear drink. Cheers!Now

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-59648758979192470172008-01-29T19:52:00.000-05:002008-01-30T14:59:52.938-05:00

Oh look. I remembered the password to my blog! Yes, I'm still here and am out of hibernation to post some more of my obviously insightfull campaign comments. If you don't remember, I predicted Rudy as the big winner. Not just of the Republican primary but of the whole enchilada. My bad!I am watching the Florida primary now, where Rudy wanted to make his big stand, and it will not go well for him

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-78460797751469551872007-12-31T19:00:00.000-05:002007-12-31T19:20:13.352-05:00

Since I last posted, I have been off work for two weeks of training and traveling home to visit my family for the Holidays. S and I had a wonderful Christmas visiting with the family, eating deliciously unhealthy food, and exchanging gifts. I gave S an itouch and she gave me a package of personal training sessions. So, she's trying to kill me :)In cocktail news, the sidecar has continued to

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-50362283195443626042007-12-05T18:30:00.000-05:002007-12-05T18:33:27.863-05:00

Today is 5 December. Do you recognize the significance? On this day in 1933, the 21st amendment to the U.S. constitution was passed, repealing the absurdly unsuccessful experiment of enforced temperance. Since this blog has morphed from general to cat to food to drink, I think I would be remiss if I did not commemorated the day. Please join me in raising a glass, wherever you are tonight, to

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-69742354636495759832007-12-03T20:08:00.001-05:002007-12-03T20:20:11.557-05:00

No, I haven't gone totally Col. Kurtz, but I have been on the road a lot lately. During the Thanksgiving holiday, S and I vacationed in Puerto Rico with her family and had a wonderful time on the beach and eating Lechon- Puerto Rican roast pork- in the back yard.From there, I went to San Diego for business. It is a beautiful town and looks like it could be a lot of fun. Unfortunately, it was all

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-36755833029966893892007-11-14T22:34:00.000-05:002007-11-14T22:56:10.854-05:00

I have been working on perfecting my recipe for a Sidecar this week, but I am not quite there yet. The Sidecar is an old classic that contains Brandy, Cointreau, and lemon juice. I have tried a few recipes but everything has been a bit harsh. It needs to be smoothed out a bit and I'm thinking of trying Cognac, upgrading to Grand Marnier, adjusting the proportions a bit, and perhaps adding a touch

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-70659820184834010522007-11-04T17:19:00.000-05:002007-11-14T22:34:35.545-05:00

S and I just returned home from a quick trip to NYC to meet her brother's new fiance. It was for the most part a nice trip full of good food, socializing, and the sort of environment that DC just doesn't provide: things are open past 11pm. There was, however, one traumatizing, soul crushing event. I was taking S on a lttle walking tour of Greenwich Village. We started around Sheridan Square and

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-49704055103945523842007-10-28T19:33:00.000-04:002007-10-28T20:24:25.324-04:00

After last week's excellent dinner at Palena, I have been reconsidering my cocktail philosphy. The Manhattan and Sidecar there were so good I resolved to improve my game a bit. I was always a firm believer in the old standbys like Jack Daniels, Jim Beam, Gordon's, etc. S gently pointed out at Palena that there was a certain quality to their drinks that gave them a much smoother finish than mine

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-6272802022404234502007-10-24T19:43:00.000-04:002007-10-24T19:59:53.492-04:00

Since I am an avowed fan of Bear Grylls, I have gotten a few inquiries about the recent revelations about the production details of his show. Several news reports over the summer indicated that his crew did a lot of the work, that he stayed in hotels rather than in "the bush," and that some of the situations are contrived.Those involved in the show seem to confirm the details, but is it really a

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-52168383431051307972007-10-23T20:31:00.000-04:002007-10-24T20:03:38.795-04:00

Normally, I am not one to go all out for a birthday-- certainly not my own. I don't like to draw attention, don't like to be the focus of attention, and don't see the point in made-up sorts of holidays like New Years Eve. I'm an adult and I can drink any time I want. Similarly, I don't tend to foist my birthday on people.This year, however, I did. It all started with a trip to Illinois to visit

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-31282037383993931702007-10-01T20:06:00.000-04:002007-10-01T20:11:38.490-04:00

According to an episode of "Unwrapped" I was watching over the weekend, the largest ovens in the world are used to bake... Cheez-its! Yeah. Is that not amazing? They don't bake baguettes, they don't bake pies, they don't roast chickens. They bake delisciously trashy, fat-building Cheez-its. Sometimes I am just so proud to be American.

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-80807922342616028212007-09-30T11:29:00.000-04:002007-09-30T11:49:00.029-04:00

S and I are back from vacation and here are some pictures from our trip. We spent most of a week at Deep Creek Lake in Maryland and I spent the remainder of the week tinkering around the house and playing with the cats. S, I, or both of us had been gone three out of the last four week weeks, so the cats enjoyed a little attention.The lake proved to be the perfect vacation for us. It was only a

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-64140144646408040352007-08-18T19:44:00.001-04:002007-08-18T20:28:47.724-04:00

The last time The Lovely S left me for the weekend was about two years ago. I bought a new lemon zester and made a few martinis (avec twist). A few too many martinis. It resulted in a phone call that was amusing and memorable to her, but which I don't remember at all. It was a while before I could drink gin again. Fortunately I have learned to intersperse my cocktails with mineral water.This

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-75232592962728640672007-08-14T20:11:00.000-04:002007-08-16T19:05:18.213-04:00

埿䍐ҕ ਁĂ Ȁ ࿊ Ȁ 嶂潆縅ᶵᖺㄾ❕ᶭਮ檉횀碰쵱麚抵ڼؼ㎉쉒❔尘ể캔험媞Ƽⶖ䚨퐸ꎵꁀﾂ篧㳡о졜꛸༃ࣙ꬙ꝃ瞧뒣ፈ？ꎲ짛밣Ц蟯꾸淼᳌霅鳴⣆뢾ℯ瓘ⳝ鬙轴ꯢꋨ燩Ƀ貺쑿㴪⹓킖봟莌햡ӟ⤂ꎡ㼂栎천町㌴ᱢⲉ礗ӱ㎽ꋭ첖㯇뺠﹦膼삯觐⸹ᛴ᭴圪ഉ︗䮠狣亿ᧀ쫯ᓥ瘟쾐觉厷㋫䒛︁뻶꽩톍ࣥ䚹᪝ᬠ㔿워炒湹ᶝڸˣ馎싉俀衞ԝ澞陪☵쁲諹፤왅믰蔳媭ꋮ煉逈蛄煆⤔鉶ẕ냘胸串㎁縥懡≢缲蒇뗍☠ྋ移麟떪렆饲쯼䌿鱧ࠡ赧ῦꀥ덗클報볶㑯ퟛ楐笑䵰ࡼꐰ꽫䩙呰圸钜믝뿄ஃ㙀⤌藗ඥ✺拹㬞 ⌈ ġ ʚ 唀 N λ ┉ Љ 》 ( Џ 师 з 眈 у 㐈 љ Ȉ ѭ ဈ Ѽ 洉 Ѿ 頀Fax

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-70757506658907428472007-08-10T16:53:00.000-04:002007-08-10T17:15:43.971-04:00

Thank God it is August and I am in vacation mode. It seems the world is melting down with the stock market tumbling and our currency and real estate plumeting rapidly toward worthlesness. Fortunately, I decided to take the day off and can watch the apocalypse from the balcony with a refreshing beverage. How 'bout another cocktail?I have been in Covington, Ky on business and the trip reminded me

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-9205431061111210972007-07-16T16:18:00.000-04:002007-07-17T15:35:57.140-04:00

A friend told me a few weeks ago she was going to run her first marathon in Florence. She lives in Northern California, so I assumed Florence was a little town around the bay somewhere. No! She's going to Italy to run the AIDS marathon there. Support a great cause!

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-10484347794321551412007-07-15T11:54:00.000-04:002007-07-15T12:27:20.326-04:00

Well, you know, when you are Type B, sometimes you just aren't motivated to blog. Summer has been in full swing and I've taken a bit of a hiatus. But I am still here and will be more regular in the future. Among the newest developments:S and I got to see an old friend from college when he visited DC for a couple of days.Bear Grylls is back with all new episodes.I travelled to Philadelphia,

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-71856451142453758912007-06-12T20:13:00.001-04:002007-06-13T21:03:45.410-04:00

For a while, it was a food blog. Looks like its turning into a drinking blog now. Here are a couple of recent articles singing the praises of the classics. I love the quote from Mr. Rowles that, "All these new drinks drive me nuts."Cocktail's Namesake, NY Times5 Cocktails that Deserve a Comeback, MSN(Though, despite the claim in the article, no, the Morrises haven't been forgotten!) :) Cheers!

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-78620289604970723782007-06-05T21:29:00.001-04:002007-06-05T22:12:34.877-04:00

Every summer, I like to designate an official cocktail of the season. Normally it is not a difficult choice, but I have been having trouble settling in this year. Narrowing the list is easy enough: Nothing unnatural (mixes), too trendy (caiparinas), too complicated (clover clubs), too girly (cosmos), or too undignified (must I say it, "sex-on-the-beach"). But after rejecting the obvious, there

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-46109611207768172432007-06-03T10:04:00.000-04:002007-06-03T10:13:59.955-04:00

Another in the continuing, sporadic series of things I could not live without: The Gaggia Espresso. I bought my first espresso maker a long time ago, and never really got the results I wanted. When it was time to upgrade I did some research and found this one. It is simple in that it only makes espresso and steams milk. No bean grinding or other extras. But it is pump driven as opposed to

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-77250813461342644092007-05-26T15:15:00.000-04:002007-05-26T15:26:25.235-04:00

As I blog, the Summer Season is beginning. It is Memorial Day weekend, the weather is warm, and it is time for summer cocktails. While pregaming in preparation for a trip to Wolf Trap to see Prairie Home Companion, I stumbled across the realization that a G&T is not actually my favorite summer cocktail. My favorite is a Tom Collins. So there it is. The official cocktail of Summer 2007: The Tom

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-4908530939453263592007-05-21T21:05:00.000-04:002007-05-21T21:37:28.896-04:00

This weekend S and I joined a group of friends to tour four wineries in the beautiful countryside of Virginia. A friend of a friend was ambitious enough to rent a bus for us and coordinate a group of thirty crazy dunken Washingtonians tooling around the state from tasting room to tasting room. The hands-down favorite turned out to be Chateau O'Brien. The Northpoint Red stole the show as far as

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-70921244271653272442007-05-16T19:59:00.000-04:002007-05-16T20:22:31.474-04:00

My current favorite pasta is Carbonara. Ocassionally my favorite changes, but one thing that stays the same is that I like simple paste. Deceptively simple. My past favorite was bucatini all 'Amatriciana; just onions, garlic, butter, tomatoes, and pancetta with some bucatini. It took a while to get the carbonara just right. First it was too dry, then it was too soggy, next it was too eggy. So

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-13421402913325926562007-05-15T21:10:00.000-04:002007-05-15T21:38:33.355-04:00

Ah, well, we managed to do it again. We spent a weekend in NYC and failed to take pictures of most items of interest. Here are a few, though.We checked out Lombardi's Pizza in Little Italy. This was S's first time at Lombardi's. This place is so well known that I suspect it is derided in NYC as a tourist trap, but the pizza really is excellent. What makes it great-- as with all great pizza--

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-45480683629591157832007-05-10T21:47:00.000-04:002007-05-10T21:56:35.508-04:00

This week has been a rough one. I thought I had a touch of food poisoning after eating some seafood Monday, but I think it was just a flu bug. At any rate, I have felt lousey all week. I will spare you the details. Fortunately I am starting to feel better today, just before S and I head to NYC to visit some friends and family.Too bad these are not popular in New York City. As much as I like food

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-83532373860322393582007-05-07T20:45:00.000-04:002007-05-07T20:53:27.976-04:00

Have I shown you this? We have made it before, but I don't think I have posted a picture. Since we make batches of pizza dough on a regular basis anyway, we sometimes mix it up a bit with a pissaladiere. This is a Provencal specialty made with pizza dough, caramelized onions seasoned with salt, pepper, and thyme, oil cured black olives, anchovies, and parsley. Very salty and crispy! Makes a

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-79620919160406622642007-05-02T21:01:00.000-04:002007-05-02T21:21:46.566-04:00

Several years ago, no doubt before Mickey Drexler got there, J Crew lost its way. It stopped selling the basic preppy stuff and started selling proto-metrosexual clothes. All tight stretchy pants for men in lots of black, grey, light grey, dark grey, and medium grey. For several years now they have been back on target with khakis, polos, rep ties, and tailored fit oxfords. Then today, this

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-44359572254373662522007-05-01T20:58:00.000-04:002007-05-01T21:02:09.673-04:00

Oh, of course, blogger doesn't support video, or at least doesn't tell me how to support it. So The Lovely S has posted a video of one of our cats on her blog.Halle loves to chase hands on the teevee. She particularly likes/hates Fred Barnes and MortKon.Check it.

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-77972260407862998582007-05-01T20:39:00.000-04:002007-05-01T20:54:21.849-04:00

Sunday and Monday nights The Lovely S and I made one of our regulars, a steak salad from a Tyler Florence cookbook. We forgot pictures on Sunday, but thought we would just take some Monday. Forgot Monday. Tonight we made pizza, but you've seen that.We planted loads of flowers on the balcony over the weekend. Well, S planted loads of flowers over the weekend. I carried potting soil bags and

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-69593373300415406632007-04-28T21:59:00.000-04:002007-04-28T22:26:34.870-04:00

I know I have been MIA for a while, but last week was one of those that left me wiped out every evening. All weekend we cleaned out the house and storage space, rearranging and reorganizing in preparation for item one of the renovation: new carpet and wardrobes in the bedroom. Monday was a marathon board of directors meeting with a lot of complaints and no action and Wednesday was the first golf

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-48802509844733554802007-04-21T21:57:00.000-04:002007-04-21T21:58:56.083-04:00

I have said many times I like to keep my blogging positive, but sometimes the truth must be told, particularly when it serves the public good. I last dined at Charlie Palmer Steak in D.C. about nine months ago, but I can assure you the horror has not faded. In fact, I walk past Charlie Palmer Steak on my way to work most mornings and every time I pass, I must relive the whole ordeal again in my

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-76936341577111976232007-04-16T20:31:00.000-04:002007-04-16T20:41:30.299-04:00

Well, thankfully, this week's culinary experiment turned out much better than the last one. The Lovely S and I have long enjoyed watching Good Eats, but for some reason, we have seldom tried any of AB's recipes. We are rather obsessed, though, with trying his pouch ideas. Tonight, we baked a whole fish in a parchment pouch with couscous, parley, thyme, lemon, onion, garlic, tomato, artichoke

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-29755019713177966472007-04-14T14:56:00.000-04:002007-04-14T15:45:46.992-04:00

Wow, I have been away for a long time! Last weekend S and I were preparing for a visit from my family-- shopping, cooking, running errands, etc-- and last week I took a few days away from the office to show my sister, brother-in-law, and nephews around town. One of our tourist excursions was to Mount Vernon, home of our first President, George Washington. I have lived in D.C. for almost nine

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-74011589810979504632007-04-02T21:41:00.001-04:002007-04-03T22:26:23.121-04:00

Here is the second installment of The Short List-- things I could not live without. Today's item is the Broken in Chino from J Crew. I supposed J Crew itself could go on the list of things I could not live without. Wearing the clothes, shopping there, browsing the catalog, everything. It is a lifestyle brand. I love it. But I wear these pants all the time. They work in the office on a

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-20474119143712925532007-04-01T22:33:00.000-04:002007-04-01T22:51:12.709-04:00

No, there will be no pics of this one dear blog readers. The Lovely S and I are normally pretty decent cooks-- at least we cook often enough that we are not terribly intimidated by new recipes or techniques. We can usually manage to take a few scraps or leftovers, toss together a quick pasta dish, and end up with something as good or better than a recipe slavish followed and fretted over for

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-12677465863589044252007-03-29T21:31:00.001-04:002007-04-02T21:43:08.795-04:00

Everyone has a talent. I am not one to brag, but everyone has a talent, and I am no exception. I sure can pick a pineapple. Always ripe, sweet, and juicy. Mangos are another story, but I have the touch when it comes to pineapples.

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-78892073356759997192007-03-27T22:09:00.000-04:002007-04-02T21:45:04.376-04:00

Okay, maybe this will be a food blog. Some time ago, The Lovely S and I decided to try making our own limoncello, Italian lemon liquor. We first tasted this while vacationing in Positano and absolutely loved it (gratuitous pic of positano at left).It is very simple. Zest about ten lemons, soak the zest in a fifth of vodka (high proof) for three weeks, strain, add simple syrup made from boiling

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-28178789535621468552007-03-26T21:03:00.001-04:002007-03-26T21:05:19.942-04:00

This is what last Sunday looked like in our nation's capital. A lovely spring day on the balcony in shorts and polo, enjoying a bloody. May there be many more like this! Perhaps we will not see any more of this for a while:The Lovely S enjoyed her bloody, too!And little Lucky, not yet two years old, is just learning to wear his dashing red harness and walk on a leash on the balcony:My sister and

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-49519765408227987252007-03-25T20:02:00.000-04:002007-03-25T20:36:04.215-04:00

No, I don't intend to make this completely a food blog, but there is some news worth relating. I neglected to post last week's success stories and there is a reason for that. Last week's dinner was a new recipe that was absolutely delicious, but S and I kept forgetting to take pic's. I was holding off posting until we remembered, but we never did.We followed the instructions from a Good Eats

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-40918069888292019112007-03-19T21:26:00.000-04:002007-03-19T21:59:51.770-04:00

Two books I recently read and that I would highly recommend are Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil and City of Falling Angels, both by John Berendt. Midnight is his first and the first one I read. They both investigate the atmophere of beatiful cities and the personalities and characters of the the cities' residents. The approach is straightforward, but Berendt is a master at describing

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-28432943771980251882007-03-17T21:12:00.000-04:002007-03-17T21:53:01.690-04:00

Ah, one of my favorite things to do is visit the "Cheese Guy" at Eastern Market on Capitol Hill. But let's face it, my cardiologist will only put up with so much cheese. I really can't go there every week and stock up on another pound of arterial plaster. I allow myself a little in the fridge at all times for an occasional snack. This week S and I were getting low and I had some free time at

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-62892579979437260492007-03-12T20:58:00.001-04:002007-03-17T21:55:15.084-04:00

This is the first in a series of posts about indispensible items in my life. About a year ago, something, I don't remember what, sparked my interest in Moleskines. I picked one up, and now I could not live without one. I have gone through several and find using them to be a joy.If you haven't tried one of these beauties, you have to pick one up. One of the things I love about the Molskine is

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-34196606469372153802007-03-11T17:31:00.000-04:002007-03-11T18:03:12.798-04:00

I really would like to post more often, but if I did, I would not be much of a slacker, would I? Oh well, here is the week in food:Thursday S and I met some friends at Pizzeria Paradiso to support Dining Out For Life. If you missed it, try to support them next year. It is a great cause and it is the easiest donation you will ever make: Just eat! Pizzeria Paradiso used to be my favorite

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-91511640144579295932007-03-06T21:00:00.000-05:002007-03-06T21:20:42.352-05:00

Life has been very routine lately and I haven't blogged much, but here is some recent productiveness. The Lovely S and I entertained Saturday and that involved making a red velvet cake. My grandmother used to make this cake every Christmas and it was always one of my favorites. The cake was delicious and it brought back wonderful memories. This recipe was from the Waldorf Astoria, via the NY

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-25887982345334588382007-02-24T21:17:00.000-05:002007-02-25T19:33:35.457-05:00

I probably need to take a course in food photography, or perhaps a culinary course in plating, because most of the photos I take of our dinners do not do justice to the food. Setting asside the issue of why I fetishize food to the degree of blogging about everything I eat, I should mention a couple of recent successes in the kitchen. It all goes back to the Frug.The Frugal Gourmet was the first

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-82249664988694156452007-02-24T21:03:00.000-05:002007-02-24T22:21:13.036-05:00

I am admittedly harsh on The New York Times, but I obviously enjoy reading it or I wouldn't know what they were misreporting. They published a nice piece on Brooks Brothers Thursday, though. BB's looks very good and seems to be getting back to its roots. A true preppy tradition! The current upswing in preppy populartity is wonderful, but it will pass, and it is comforting to know that after

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-48027865636658400322007-02-21T21:31:00.000-05:002007-02-21T21:41:54.925-05:00

I don't want Bear Grylls to think my obsession with his show is failing, but I am now splitting my attention between Man vs. Wild and Francesco de Mosto's Travel Channel show, "Italy Top to Toe." I love that it is not just a typical travel guide advising viewers to stay here, eat there, and buy that. It picks a few random places, the stories of which help illuminate the Italian ethos, but makes

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-15668697817573724652007-02-15T22:17:00.000-05:002007-02-21T21:46:39.443-05:00

I had an appointment at the doctor's office last week and that was a good enough excuse to take the rest of the day off. Perfect timing as it turned out, because the J Crew in Georgetown had just gotten its shipment of spring clothes the night before. Before shopping, I tried stopping by Nathan's for lunch. No luck. There was a lunchtime Q&A scheduled and they were closed to those without

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-4160126759525862742007-02-14T21:48:00.000-05:002007-02-14T21:58:17.470-05:00

A MEASURE OF THE CRAPPINESS OF WASHINGTON DC CONDO/HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATIONS AND FEDERAL AGENCIES, BASED ON WHO HAD SHOVELED THEIR SIDEWALKS BY 9 A.M. THIS MORNING.Edgewater Condo, Shoveled (thanks Jackie)Harbor Square, Not Shoveled (but they're a COOP!)Carrolsburg a Condominium LLC, ShoveledPotomac Place Towers, ShoveledNASA, Shoveled (Or laser-dried?)State Department, ShoveledVoice of America,

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-18708137153368185482007-02-13T17:07:00.000-05:002007-02-11T21:07:09.050-05:00

Daniel Jones is the editor of the New York Times "Modern Love" column. If you have written in for advice, she has something to say to you: You're an idiot. Despite repeated romantic failures, you never learn and your questions are contemptible.Now, I totally agree, particularly in light of some of the gems she lists here. Then again, I'm not in the advice business. If I were, I might be

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-6588432437709904402007-02-11T20:54:00.000-05:002007-02-11T21:06:23.191-05:00

What is it about weekends? I never seem to do anything, and yet they are so much fun. Every Monday morning somebody asks me, "What did you do this weekend?" I of course feel obligated to come up with something fabulous to report like emerging as the champion beruit competitor at some all-night party or engaging in some lofty artistic or cultural pursuit. But no. The Lovely S and I slept late

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-36393450424063042692007-02-06T19:52:00.000-05:002007-02-06T20:06:11.717-05:00

I really don't feel like I'm THAT old. But I keep reading stories like this one in today's Post about how stressed out and Type-A all the high school kids are these days. I graduated from high school in 1991 and from college (the latest round) in 1998. I don't remember it being this bad. I don't remember the pressure. I don't remember caring that Harvard might turn me down leaving me with no

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-11294477162972036172007-02-02T19:43:00.000-05:002007-02-04T20:19:51.228-05:00

I am rapidly becoming obsessed with this Bear Grylls show on the Discovery Channel. He purposely gets himself trapped in some isolated, dangerous wilderness area and then tries to get out using like, a toothpick and a paperclip. He's part Crocodile Hunter and part McGuyver. Discovery had a marathon on Friday night. Guess what The Lovely S and I did?I wish I could tell you when you can

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-20391765238801647382007-01-31T22:24:00.000-05:002007-02-02T19:23:38.701-05:00

The Lovely S and I went to Super H-Mart last week and made a couple of impulse purchases, both very successful. One was a can of dulce de leche sauce. What is a latino food item doing in a Korean grocery store? Who knows! It goes great on apple cake with whipped cream, though.While at Super-H we also picked up a bag of papaya drink mix. Suspiciously enough, also in the latino isle. If you

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-10923418574788956032007-01-31T21:28:00.000-05:002007-01-31T21:40:20.330-05:00

Here's a good blog idea from a blog I love, Mel's: Cities I visited in 2006:Phoenix, AZEldorado, ILKansas City, MOOgden, UTPark City, UTSan Francisco, CABoston, MARome, ItalyNaples, ItalyPositano, ItalyCapri, ItalyTaipei, TaiwanHong Kong, PRCMacau, er, Macau?Shenzen, PRCGuilin, PRCand finally, back home to D.C.Here are a few places at the top of the list for next year. Actually, I will be happy

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-74949245891337763862007-01-27T11:21:00.000-05:002007-01-27T11:24:59.605-05:00

I'm glad it finally feels like winter, but if its going to be this cold, can't we have some snow??????Lucky would like to add that he wants his own small bird to "play with."

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-13702860517488287222007-01-16T20:59:00.000-05:002007-01-16T21:14:19.817-05:00

Here are a few food items we've been cooking and consuming recently. The first is a quickly improvised desert which turned out to be delicious! We took some left-over chocolate cake, tore it up into little pieces and topped it with a thin custard sauce flavored with brandy and vanilla. Cherries on top, of course. The next plate is saltimboca alla romana with patate al forno. We object to the

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-61173793466059527102007-01-02T16:55:00.000-05:002007-01-06T19:37:32.451-05:00

One of the more interesting places we visited was the "Silver Cave" in Guilin, China. A photo of the party's tastefully illuminated monument to a harmonious society is below. I'm not sure quite what the one at left was trying to prohibit. As with most places in Asia, translation to English can be challenging (not that my translations from English to Chinese would be very accurate). S and I

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-71798974586078736732007-01-01T18:39:00.000-05:002007-01-02T17:22:25.899-05:00

Here are some pics of our recent trip. We started off in Taiwan where we visited family and ate a lot of excellent food. One of the best was the flavored milk. This seems to be a Taiwanese specialty, as we saw it nowhere else. Our favorite was papaya, but we also saw apple, custard, capucinno, and mango.We also tried a multicourse pre fixe at Mitsui, a Japanese restaurant in Taipei. There

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-68633539281669575132007-01-01T18:20:00.000-05:002007-01-02T17:34:19.149-05:00

I don't want to be negative, so let me try to keep this positive. On our recent trip to Asia, S and I noticed a few opportunities for improvement.I have somehow managed to avoid much travel through LAX thus far. Our EVA Air flights connected through LAX last week, though. LAX could improve the traveling experience by implementing the following changes:Put flight monitors in the International

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1167691623335906052007-01-01T17:29:00.000-05:002007-01-02T17:22:13.609-05:00

No, I haven't posted for a while, but there is a good reason: I have been out of the country for a week and a half. The Lovely S and I were in Taiwan to visit her family for the holidays, and then spent a few days traveling to Hong Kong, Macau, Shenzen, and Guilin in China. Oh, does it feel good to be back home! I think this China trip may be my last to a third world country. The country and

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1166402816526941722006-12-17T19:18:00.000-05:002006-12-17T19:56:05.446-05:00

Sunday morning the cats got to unpack their stockings! S knitted each of our lttle darlings their own, complete with monogram! They got sardines in tomato sauce, chicken sausages, and catnip mice! They must have loved everything because they spent all morning chasing the mice around.Saturday night S's brother stopped by for dinner and a quick family Christmas celabration. We tried Ina

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1165794506023469172006-12-10T18:25:00.000-05:002006-12-12T20:40:40.686-05:00

Wow this Holiday Season is a busy one. I had planned to luxuriate in some sick days to sleep late and do some shopping, perhaps enjoying a martini during a quick break at the mall. But with the new job, I'd prefer to make a better impression. So I'm there every day. I did, however, have my regular Friday off this week and managed to get all of my Holiday shopping done! The crowds and traffic

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1165017944367138122006-12-01T19:00:00.000-05:002006-12-01T19:06:45.283-05:00

I just have to mention: David Shuster is sitting in for Chis Matthews tonight. His delivery of, "Lets play hardball!" Is really pretty week. No C.M., that's for sure. If you can't deliver the line, you should just skip it.

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1165015269321291612006-12-01T18:15:00.000-05:002006-12-01T19:07:51.096-05:00

A Krispy Kreme tragedy! That's what it was. I might as well say up front, S and I have a little problem with ants. Something about the soil that our building sets on. We aren't overwhelmed with ants, but occassionally we see them in the house. Well...The night I brought home the KK's I had drank some coffee at the KK restaurant and couldn't sleep. The KK's for my co-workers were sitting on

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1164767707248005532006-11-28T21:19:00.000-05:002006-11-28T21:37:18.653-05:00

Oooooh I loooove Krispy Kreme! The Lovely S and I decided after dinner tonight that we needed a little desert. So we jumped in the car and headed down Richmond Hwy to the big Krispy Kreme in Alexandria. S got a lemon custard filled and I got a dozen original glazed with coffee for dunking.They have such an ethereal quality when they are hot off the river! Of course when S and I opened the box

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1164595093172403062006-11-26T21:27:00.000-05:002006-11-28T21:38:48.610-05:00

Early Thursday morning, The Lovely S and I high tailed it out of town to visit the relatives for Thanksgiving in Kansas City. It was a wonderful travel experience that really made me wonder why so many people have so many travel difficulties. We all know that the Wednesday before Thanksgiving is one of the busiest travel days of the year, right? So S and I left on Thursday morning. We all

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1164243558355976522006-11-22T19:57:00.000-05:002006-11-22T20:00:32.016-05:00

The Lovely S and I have opted to sit out the crazy day-before-Thanksgiving rush and leave tomorrow morning. Kansas City here we come! Not that I have anything against Thanksgiving, but here is a take on it that is not quite as sugar coated as most. Perhaps I'm just in a poor mood because I still have a cold and can't drink... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMcIrYZ4R7Y

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1163975286526521272006-11-19T17:14:00.000-05:002006-11-19T17:31:51.493-05:00

Ugh. I came down with a cold while in Boston this week for a conference. I was there to present some recent research. I drew the coveted 8:30 A.M. SATURDAY MORNING slot. The conference ran from Thursday through Saturday and I came down with a cold Friday night. I'm still doped up and sleepy, but feeling a lot better after some long, long naps. I did get a chance to try some great food while

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1163361892475800192006-11-12T14:51:00.000-05:002006-11-12T15:23:36.106-05:00

The year is coming to a close and it is time to start thinking about the best of the last year. Here are a few of the best recipes The Lovely S and I have tried.Ina Garten's Spiced CashewsMichael Chiarello's Spuma di TonnoAlton Brown's Fromage ForteThe Frugal Gourmet's Sardine CasseroleEach of these recipes is delicious, easy to make, and pleases a wide audience (okay, maybe not the sardines).

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1162689969728971232006-11-04T20:13:00.000-05:002006-11-04T20:26:09.746-05:00

If The Lovely S and I could drop everything and go anywhere right now, we would travel to Venizia. Then, when we grew tired of it, we would spend a few days in Positano. Perhaps, taking a suite at La Sirenuse.

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1162684896628688872006-11-04T18:59:00.000-05:002006-11-04T19:01:36.640-05:00

I raise my glass to you, Mr. Freije.

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1162000767603810682006-10-27T21:49:00.000-04:002006-10-27T21:59:27.620-04:00

All is forgiven. Would you believe, the next day when I checked the mail, J Crew had blessed my mailbox with a November catalog? Still looking forward to the Holiday edition, though!Thursday I was asked to serve a detail to a projections and forecasting group where I work. After eight and a half years it will be a welcome change of pace. It may even be permanent. This work will be far more

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1161742233907793782006-10-24T22:08:00.000-04:002006-10-24T22:10:33.916-04:00

And here it finally is. The whiskey sour. I measured this one freehand, no jigger. Filled it right up to the tippy top, too!

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1161739480741118742006-10-24T21:09:00.000-04:002006-10-24T21:24:40.756-04:00

J Crew, don't you love me any more? Haven't I bought enough broken in chinos this year? Don't I know that the green argyle socks are called "lawn" and the pink are called "azalea?" Don't I keep my Gordon suede wingtips cleaned and buffed? Didn't I upgrade to thinsulate in my Baywater Peacoat? Is it because I don't pop my collar? I knew it, it is because I don't pop my collar isn't it? Or

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1161567459069341502006-10-22T21:17:00.000-04:002006-10-22T21:39:55.130-04:00

Work has been busy the last week and I haven't had much extra time. The Big Project is almost done, though and I'm almost prepared for Boston in early November. S is deep into her career hunt with graduation approaching in December. This weekend we checked out some Armenian food at a church fundraiser in Bethesda, made a big dish of rigatoni alla Bolognese, a big pot of nyo rho mien (Chinese

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1160442921307680952006-10-09T20:57:00.000-04:002006-10-09T21:15:21.316-04:00

Well the Ogden trip went quite well. A few days of sushi, a few frequent flyer miles picked up, a little reading accomplished. The weekend was relaxing once I got back. S and I perfected our whiskey sour recipe (S's new favorite cocktail) and cooked a few tasty meals. Here are pictures of my homecoming meal on Thursday night and tonight's meal. The lovely S greated me with roast chicken and

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1159721925629600282006-10-01T12:53:00.000-04:002006-10-01T13:10:41.880-04:00

On another note, I'm off to Ogden, UT early Monday morning. Don't ask. Work thing. Ogden is not the most exciting place on the planet. Pretty, but not exciting. The upside usually is that I get out of the office for a week. This time, though, I'm leaving a lot unfinished in the office and I need to meet some deadlines. I'll be happy to get back and take care of it. The benefits of this

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1159721592603618022006-10-01T12:43:00.000-04:002006-10-01T13:05:10.036-04:00

Well, looks like S and I have found something else to entertain the gatti. We recently started making sushi ourselves at home. We've never been the squeemish types when it comes to food, but somehow we had more faith in a good sushi chef than we had in ourselves. We found some excellent sashimi grade tuna at Super H recently, though, and we've gotten pretty good at doing it ourselves.The cats

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1159479170497994232006-09-28T17:22:00.000-04:002006-09-30T17:53:06.923-04:00

Earlier this week, The Washington Post ran a story on sexually suggestive tee shirts and the problems public schools face in dealing with students who wear them. This conflict seems to point to a couple of disturbing trends in our culture. First, why is it such a huge problem for the school administrators? Private schools would not think twice about accepting their responsibility to turn young

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1159144061292619012006-09-24T20:11:00.000-04:002006-09-25T22:55:44.256-04:00

And now we introduce you to the last but certainly not least of our gatti: Lucky, a.k.a. Vlad, a.k.a. Freeky Lips. S and I went our for a post-dinner stoll through the neighborhood one night last summer, about two or three months after we moved into our place. As we walked past an apartment building with a concrete deck overhanging the ground with about a foot of clearance, we heard a pitiful

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1159142800850636112006-09-24T19:56:00.000-04:002006-09-25T02:26:27.330-04:00

I know you've all been dying for a new post, but it has been a slow weekend. The Lovely S made excellent chocolate chip cookies and a new recipe, pineapple upside down cake. Here you go. It tastes as good as it looks. She used moscovado sugar for the gooey topping.A cousin of S's was in town apartment hunting and we took him out to dinner at a restaurant we hadn't tried before, Artie's. It

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1158799799096044622006-09-20T20:43:00.000-04:002006-09-20T20:49:59.116-04:00

The NY Times food section had an interesting article today about how much business traditional supermarkets have been loosing recently. Old school stores seem to think people are going to Whole Foods, Trader Joes, et al because of fancy gimmicks and tech bells and whistles. I certainly can't get lots of healthy organic stuff at Safeway, but that's far from the only problem. I would defintely

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1158455308996630672006-09-16T21:01:00.000-04:002006-09-18T02:08:21.286-04:00

S and I enjoyed sleeping in and reading the paper in bed with our cappuccini today, but by about 11 a.m. we went to work. We made a black bean & yellow rice salad with cilantro and lime for lunch at work next week, a pinto and black bean salad with smokey chipotle vinaigrette, a broccoli, cheddar, and bacon quiche, fruit salad, and hot rocks for tomorrow's brunch. S is getting up to make the

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1158366576236725962006-09-15T20:14:00.000-04:002006-09-15T20:29:36.293-04:00

The work week zoomed by after returning from vacation. I was out of the office today and S and I ran some errands and cooked a delicious dinner: Pissaladiere and roasted brocolli. If you can't tell, those are sauteed onions with thyme and garlic, anchovies, and black olives. We also stocked up for brunch at the ABC, stopped by the nursery for fall plantings, and picked up the week's

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1158257782457994392006-09-14T14:13:00.000-04:002006-09-14T14:18:53.416-04:00

Oh, and one more thing. Last night The Lovely S got a little surprise. I'll give you a hint: The box looked like this.

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1158257193559339502006-09-14T13:55:00.000-04:002006-09-14T14:06:33.633-04:00

I know I know. Its been a while. But I have a good excuse, I'm ill. Last week I kept noticing my hearing was getting a little muffled. I finally went to the doctor assuming something was clogged and could be cleaned out. But no! Its clear. I just have a sinus infection that has gone to my ears! Super. I always get sinus infections in Spring and Autumn when the weather changes. The ear

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1157920570811499942006-09-10T16:19:00.000-04:002006-09-10T16:36:10.860-04:00

Damn. The last day of vacation. Tomorrow it is back to work for me. S and I made a few daytrips and very much enjoyed our time off. We picked a week with great weather. Now, summer is over, G & T's, seersucker, and white pants are of limits, and the hot weather is behind us. We are looking forward to wonderful Autumn weather in DC, though.Things we did not accomplish during vacation: Going

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1157768402627753372006-09-08T22:14:00.000-04:002006-09-08T22:20:02.630-04:00

But wait, there's more! Thursday we drove to Annapolis for a quick daytrip. S had never been to Annapolis before. Aside from the obvious fact that it is in Maryland and the surprise they spring on you that there is NO WHERE TO PARK, it is a beautiful little town. We roamed around, checked out the Naval Academy, and sailed on a schooner. We learned that a schooner is not a sloop because it

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1157767994979320352006-09-08T22:00:00.000-04:002006-09-08T22:13:14.993-04:00

Well, we've slacked off quite a bit on the updates, haven't we? Here is a recap of the waning days of summer vacation. Wednesday, The Lovely S and I went to Leesburg, Va., Shepherdstown, W.V., and Charlestown, W.V. The Leesburg stop was supposed to include at least one winery, a quick swing through downtown, and a stop at the outlet mall. We made it as far as the outlet mall. I wiped out J.

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1157550998839879852006-09-06T09:54:00.000-04:002006-09-06T09:56:38.880-04:00

Wow. Check out The Mohairknitter. I really don't know what to say about this one, but enjoy.

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1157336455374633462006-09-03T22:09:00.000-04:002006-09-03T22:24:08.470-04:00

I DID go to the gym today, so I DESERVE some dry aged USDA Prime and Maytag Bleu . A bit of weight lifting followed by fourty minutes on the treadmill while watching a Laguna Beach marathon. Here is a pic of tonight's dinner. When I'm working, The Lovely S and I don't often have a lot of time to cook, so we are gourmeting it during vacation week. Tonight was a New York Strip Salad with Maytag

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1157247606020438062006-09-02T21:28:00.000-04:002006-09-02T21:44:59.446-04:00

If you are keeping track of the vacation agenda you can check three items off the list: Celebrated with Asian Viking Girl over some excellent Korean BBQ, went to the gym, and got a haircut. Tomorrow, Eastern Market for some fresh local peaches.Today's cat is Cosmo, a.k.a Mr. Giggles. He acquired his nickname after we watched his "pouches" swing wildly from side to side while running down the

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204385.post-1157075171067978132006-08-31T21:24:00.000-04:002006-08-31T21:53:15.213-04:00

Tonight I'm going to have quite a relaxing evening. This morning The Lovely S and I got our vaccinations for an upcoming trip to Taiwan and China. The Lovely S needed only a Tetanis shot, but I needed Tetanis, Hep A, and Hep B. Surprisingly, though, not painful.Now the end-of-summer vacation begins. I am vacationing until Monday, 11 September. But don't worry, I'll keep you updated. Here is

Matthewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01857679321581358335noreply@blogger.com0