Bolognese Sauce in 90% Humidity

What kind of food do you crave when it's 90 degrees out and 100% humidity? Bolognese sauce over pasta? ME TOO!!!

It was so hot, that the first night we planned to make it I bagged out and got take-out from Whole Foods. Last night, however, I was determined. T was not so determined. Instead, he slept off a stomach-ache in our sleeping bag nest on the floor of our air conditioned living room:

Meanwhile, I entered into our curtained-off (and non-A/C) kitchen and got to work.

An hour or two later, bolognese!

I'm happy with it. And sweaty.

And ready to EAT. Strangely, T's stomach ache had receded enough for him to eat dinner... but re-appeared after dinner before the dishes were done.. ;-)  but seriously, he was not in a good way. But was better this morning.

I used this bolognese recipe from Epicurious. My tips:
- Use powdered milk (with water), and add more powder than normal to make it taste creamier
- Try diced tomatoes to avoid the cuisinart step
- If you got your nutmeg (or 'nutmag') from Thailand, be sure to remove the shell before grating
- Add plenty of 'nutmag'
- Sprinkle in some basil
- Use a mix of red and white wines
- Definitely simmer for awhile

YUM! I just finished leftovers for lunch. Even better today.
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My Alter Ego Leaves Out Old Lemons

I stopped reading after "I understand that the fitness desk job can have it's tedious moments". Don't feel bad if you want to skip down to my reply, which uses similar grammar.

Hello Everyone,

   

I find it necessary to address the issue of the responsibilities and duties assigned to each of you as fitness desk staff. I regret that it has come to the point that I have to come in and reiterate what Heather and Lauren, as your direct supervisors, have already charged you to do in this job.

   

I understand that the fitness desk job can have it's tedious moments. I did it for many years. However, it is a very important job in the facility. You are the first impression members get of the facility. You represent not only yourselves, but me and the entire fitness staff. If you make a bad impression or no impression at all, that reflects on all of us. You have got to understand that we are here to serve our members. There would not be an ROCC if it weren't for our members. Yes, it can be trying at times. But, guess what, every job has it's moments. You are to greet every member by making eye contact with them and acknowledging them. You are to make sure they have what they need. It should be a rare thing that members have to ask for more ice in the bin or more cups to be put out. If you've finished the duties lists, then you take the initiative to dust, clean or just pick up the facility. There is always something that needs doing: cleaning mirrors, checking trash etc..

  

For the last couple of weeks, I have come to work and found ,or been informed, that lemons were left in the container overnight, that ice had not been dumped, that essentially the duties of the beverage stations were not completed. This is not acceptable. Heather and Lauren have given each of you specific instruction and written lists of what has to be accomplished each day/shift. There is no compromise. A country club's sole purpose is to serve the members who pay dues to be provided the servces they desire. Not following shift proceedures puts everyone else on the staff in the position of having to pick up the pieces and to do damage control if members are miffed that our facility is not running as it should. If comments about such lax performance gets back to the general manager, Mr. Stuckey or any board member, our department is made to appear as if we don't know what we are doing. And believe me, if you catch a board member at just the right moment, it could mean lost jobs.

   

It is very, very important that each of you are diligent about checking for "house" guest passes. Remember a house guest is the only guest allowed in the facility. If they are a house guest they will have a card issued to them by Susanne Lyles from the front office. As uncomfortable as it might be, it is of the upmost importance that you enforce the NO GUEST policy. If the member starts to argue why their non-house guest should be allowed to work out, tell them that the fitness committee put this policy into place. If they want to talk to someone about it, give them my number and have them call me. BUT YOU HAVE GOT TO BE DILIGENT ABOUT THE NO GUEST POLICY.

   

Additionally, all desk staff has got to be diligent about asking the age of people who come up and look like they might be be below the age of 18. Yes, this can be uncomfortable. But, again, this is part of our duty to run the facility as charged and to lessen liability. Again, if they have an issue, have them call me.

   

The upstairs bathrooms and the downstairs locker rooms also need better attention. Yes, housekeeping does the "deep" cleaning, but it is our duty to do walk throughs and pick up errant towel, trash, etc. that is left behind between the times housekeeping is here. It is not beneath any of us to do this. I often do it because it is the right thing to do, not because I enjoy doing it.

   

Lists and proceedures are necessary and important in order for a department to run effectively and as efficiently as possible. If someone drops the ball, we all end up having to pick up the slack.

   

I regret if this has a hard tone or is as if I'm "gettin' on" to everyone. But, guys, we are under a microscope. We will be for a long time. Everything we do is being examined on a daily basis. We literally can not afford or appear less than uber-professional.

   

If you have any questions or need clarification on your job duties, contact Lauren, Heather or myself, asap.

   

Gina Raybourn

Fitness Director

Royal Oaks Country Club

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My reply: 


Hi Gina,

I did recieve you're email, but I don't work at the ROCC.


I do understand you're frustrations resulting in a lower than acceptable standard of service. It can be tough to enforce. May I suggest that you have a "Caught Being Good" sticker reward program? We used to get these red stickers in first grade when we where (you guessed it) "caught being good," and everyone just about DIED to get one (except that dying wasn't being good, so we tried not to do that). I saved each and every sticker I got, and brought them in for show-and-tell once when a less good classmate of mine stole one of my 14 stickers. My teacher made her give it back. Now, looking back on it, I think it was sad that she thought the only way to get a 'good' sticker was to be bad.

Alternatively, consider an "Employee of the Month" award. Whoever does the most dusting or fresh lemon slice replenishment without being asked could get the award, which could include a gift certificate or something.

Good luck being under the microscope!

Best,

Casey A. Williams

Boston, MA

PS. I have CC'd the Casey Williams I believe you were trying to reach - CaseyEwilliams at gmail. 

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Blog Postscript: My alter ego does not understand email. She replied to ME to let ME know that she received the "don't re-use the lemons" email.

casey

 to Casey
Casey - You should email your boss, not me.

On Tue, Jun 29, 2010 at 10:02 AM, Casey Williams  wrote:

I did recieve your e-mail.
Casey williams

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Summer Jobs

My mother wrote a blog entry today about getting your teenager to work during the summer. Of course she used an anecdote from my own childhood, when I was the first from our family with four kids to get a job for the summer. Essentially it was because she demanded it. What she may not have known is that I did want a job (money = freedom) - I just had no idea how to go about doing it!

Yes, there was babysitting, but I didn't have any nanny connections. Plus, I didn't relish the thought of watching kids all day.

Instead, with the push from my mother (and a ride), I applied at McDonald's (where I forgot to fill in my DOB), Fashion Bug, Walgreen's (I think?), and Boston Market. At Boston Market, I bumped into a girl I knew from marching band who worked there 'cause her older brother got a job there, and the rest, as they say, is history.

I went on to spend over five years working there on and off, during school when I was in high school, summers, sometimes just for a winter break home from college. My arms and fingers still bear scars from the heat lamps and very sharp knives. My brain still associates the chicken smell with high school and hormones.

Things I learned:

1. If you ride your bike to and from Boston Market (2 miles each way) at least 4 times a week, you will lose weight even if you're eating Boston Chicken twice a day.

2. You really have to scrub a floor if you want to get rid of a bug infestation.

3. A 'crew' of workers is brought together by its leaders. Our favorite managers (and the ones we worked hardest for) were the ones who worked hard themselves, and were funny and honest.

4. People of very different economic and family backgrounds can work together well, and even become friends. I had friends from the 'Tech (Nashoba Tech), from my own high school but different crowds than my usual marching band comrades, single moms, and many, many Brazilian immigrants.

5. Having a paycheck of your own is awesome.

6. It's way easier to work with your siblings than pretty much anyone else. This is only true when the work occurs outside of the household and you're getting paid and directed by someone who is not your parents.

Where did you spend your high school summers?
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Boston CSAs Rock! - Silverbrook Farms

Hands down the best thing about my job moving downtown is the twice weekly farmers market in Copley. Ok, maybe not having to drive to Watertown is the best thing, but the farmers market is second best.

Even better - so good that it's not even on the same scale - is the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) membership that I started today with Silverbrook Farms. For those not in the know, a CSA is basically like a Book-of-the-Month club, except it's weekly. And it's produce. And you can't choose what you get.

Anyway. I went down at lunch and picked it up! So easy! And it wasn't so heavy that it will be hard to take home on the T.

The very first share included:
- 1 lb each sugar peas
- 1 lb snap peas
- 1 lb shelling peas
- 1 head of chinese cabbage
- A bag of salad greens
- 1 quart of strawberries
- 1 container of deluxe cheese curd (kind of like cream cheese in this case)
- A jar of blueberry ginger jam

Next week we'll even be getting some farm fresh eggs! I think the best thing about this particular CSA is the variety that it provides - veggies mostly, but also other food items. Most CSAs are tons and tons and tons of veggies. But I just can't eat all of them, even with T. Maybe if we got a dog, she could eat some (hint hint, T).

While I was down there, I also picked up my weekly bunch of basil, a tasty pint of raspberries, and a loaf of Iggy's bread.... and figured there must be a lunch in there somewhere.

Here is what I enjoyed:

That's right, bread, cheese curd, basil, and raspberries! My new favorite sandwich.

I also gazed upon the most-photographed flowers in Boston at the Atlas Farm Stand:

My iPhone (3G) doesn't do the flowers justice.

When I returned indoors, I decided that I really should test out the jam to see if it was good. So I split open a homemade blueberry muffin leftover from breakfast, and spread on the goods:

Verdict? Delicious jam. The ginger off-set the super sweetness that most blueberry jams (including my own) suffer from.

And yes, I also enjoyed a delicious non-organic, non-farm raised, Diet Dr. Pepper.

And now? Lunch time is over.
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Things that make me happy

Inspired by Color me Katie, here are a few things that made me happy this past week:

Giant margaritas at Masa in celebration of Carrie's birthday

FINALLY framing our handmade paper from Thailand

FINALLY framing the embroidered 'lenco enamorado' I made for T for Christmas. Oh love!

Making MC Escher-inspired shapes out of picture framing hardware.

Celebrating Steph's med school graduation with a sock monkey, and thinking about how I could make a sock monkey that would have a womb and give birth. (Steph's an OBGYN.)

Watching the monkey frolic in the gardens, happy to finally be united with his new owner

Gazing deep into beautiful purple flowers

Daydreaming about building a doll house one day.. for myself!

Laughing at silly sock monkey products.

Wearing purple monkey socks with my purple laced sneakers!

:-)
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Love in the Time of Window Washing

Yesterday, I rummaged around my desk looking for my phone to photograph "a day in the life of a sky-scraper cubicle dweller". I found the phone, but more impressively, found this hidden message below my wrist rest (which I use as a left-elbow rest):

Never fear, when I was rummaging I did in fact wipe off some of the dirt you see in this photo. It's probably mostly skin cells. And crumbs from lunch.

But more perplexing: Who wrote the message? WHO LOVES ME? Really, WHO LOVES ME AND WROTE IT HERE ON MY WRIST-REST? I've had this thing since college, so the possible scribblers are endless. Female friend? Male? Canine?

Either way, when I need a pick me up, you know where I'm going. The wrist-rest-cum-elbow-rest. Someone out there loves me.

And yes, I did manage to photograph the more interesting part of "a day in the life of a sky-scraper cubicle dweller": The window washer!

Considering the tower has over 60 stories, the fact that he's almost on 23 must feel pretty good. Please note the suds. And the reflection of my desk, where if you look closely enough you can see the sock monkeys sitting on a shelf.

The entire time, no eye contact. He must either ignore all the crazies inside, or not be able to see through the reflection. I admire his mustache. It is a bold fashion statement.

That, my friends, is what it's like to work in the Hancock tower. Really, what else do you need to know?

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An Open Letter to the Huntington Theater

Dear Huntington Theater,

Once upon a time, I used to tell all my friends to go enjoy performances that you put on because you have that great "$25 [if you're] under 35" program. What a deal!

But then two things happened.

1. T and I saw your holiday production - A Civil War Christmas - this past December. It was so weird and not good that we left at intermission. I don't think I've ever done that, but the show was not what I expected. It was weird versions of carols intertwined with criticisms of Mary Todd Lincoln. And an odd Abe Lincoln. All caricatures of themselves. We hated it. A month later we saw something at the Central Square Theater that was amazing, so.. we're biased towards them now.

2. You call incessantly. You call more than my boyfriend (though we live together, so that's not a good excuse). You call more than my mother. You call more than anyone else I know.

In the beginning of our relationship, I used to answer the phone when you called. I told you to call back in the evening hours, and you kindly obliged. Later, I told you that I wasn't interested in ticket packages, nor donating over the phone. I said that I preferred to be emailed or mailed.

You ignored me. No, that's not accurate - One week you called me three days in a row, including a Sunday - so it's more like you ignored my request. And, recently, you started calling me in the afternoon. I guess you figured since I ignored your 7 PM calls, I might answer the 3:51 PM call. Wrong.

I'm under 35, hence my ticket purchases. Here's a clue for you for targeting my demographic - WE DON'T LIKE BEING HARASSED ON OUR CELL PHONES. Or on any phone, really, but cell phones are likely our primary numbers.

Here's a clue for you for your marketing in general - if someone doesn't answer the phone 100x in a row (I tried to log into AT&T to provide an accurate count, but the server was down), you should stop calling them.

Now, instead of being an occasional Huntington theater-goer, I'm an active Huntington Theater-hater.

Good luck - you clearly need it. And please - stop calling me.

Best,

Casey A. Williams
Former Fan

PS. Terrence wants you to stop calling him too. And you only need to send us one mailer, not two. We have the same address - duh.

Update: They called again today (Tuesday), this time at 3:53 PM.
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MaidPro to the rescue.

Terrence and I talk a lot about cleaning our small apartment. Mostly I think it is because I hate cleaning, and we can never seem to be in the cleaning mood at the same time. I'd rather spend that time cooking.

So on the recommendation of a friend who wants to remain anonymous, I contacted MaidPro. Some of their questions were funny to me. I realize they have a form that they send to everyone, but still...

Hi, Casey!
Thank you for contacting MaidPro to assist you in your home cleaning needs. We received your request for a home cleaning estimate,  and since you said e-mail was a better form of contact for you, I’d like to ask a couple of extra questions to better customize your estimate, thus getting you an idea of pricing.

The questions I have for you are: 

1.) Would you like us to clean the bedroom each time?

Yes. But our bedroom is 15 feet by 6 feet. It is very small. In fact the visible floor area not covered by the bed, dresser, radiator, or closet is just 10 sq feet. How much could it cost to clean that? 

Also, I understand that you will change the sheets on our bed if we leave clean sheets out for you. Since you only have to throw the sheets over the headboard to get to our laundry basket, do we get a discount?

2.) Is your full bath a master bath where the tub and shower are separate from one another? 

No. In fact, the bathroom is barely separate from the bedroom. The only thing coming between the bed and the toilet is a lovely folding door that T put in.

3.) Is there only one kitchen in your home? 

Yes. This is a funny question, because in my original form I indicated that the apartment is only 475 sq feet. If we had two kitchens, there would be no living room.

4.) Is there an office in your home?

No. Well yes, but I see that you have a question about a foyer, and since the office area is actually the foyer, I don't want to create a false impression of two separate rooms.

5.) Do you have a living room, dining room, or family room that are all separate from one another? OR Is your living room, dining room, and family all one big area?

There is a small foyer directly attached to the living room. Between the living room and kitchen there is a butler's pantry. HA bet you didn't expect that in such a small place. There is no dining room, just a two person table in the kitchen that one time a fireman who was going through our apartment told us we shouldn't have because it wasn't safe. To be fair, he couldn't really fit in the space we left for walking, but most people don't wear a fire suit and O2 tanks on a daily basis.

6.) Do you have a laundry room or a foyer that you would like cleaned?

Yes. A foyer. That is also an office. Is there an extra charge since the area serves two purposes?

7.) Are there any other rooms within the home that you would like cleaned that I may have missed? For example, a bonus room or finished basement? 

No. The entire apartment is just 475 sq feet. We would love a bonus room, where can we apply?

8.) What is your flooring like? Do you have carpet, tile, hardwood, etc? 

Hardwood with 1 area rug. Oh and the bathroom is tile.

9.) How many stories is your home? If more than one, what kind of flooring do you have on your stairs? 

1 story. Unless you count all the stories we have in books. Boom-ching!

10.) Is there anything specific about the home that you would like us to focus on or pay attention to while we're in your home cleaning? 

Dusting. Windows. General cleaning would be great.

With the answers to these questions, I will be able to customize your estimate to your home and from there we will be able to provide you with a quote. 

Thanks, MaidPro.

Motivation is not what you think

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What Summer Means to Me

Summer, to me, is a lot of things.

But first and foremost, it is pesto. Basil pesto. None of this cilantro pecan pesto crap.

My grandmother used to grow these huge bushes of basil next to her tomato trees in her garden on the hill. No, this was not Italy, it was Delaware. And those tomatoes and basil LOVED it there. I seriously have never seen tomato or basil like hers anywhere else. My city basil is pale and sad compared to her hardy bushes. Maybe it's because it's growing in a pot next to a parking lot instead of in the fresh countryside air of Delaware. At least I used organic potting soil! Apparently plants actually LIKE being IN the ground, not just in a pot.

Anyway. My grandmother and mother used to regularly make strong flavored pesto from this basil. Oh man, it was SO GOOD. We would eat it on pasta, smeared on homemade bread, on more pasta, and maybe sneak spoonfuls of it.

Now, though, I'm a grown-up and I would never ever eat spoonfuls of homemade pesto. No siree.

When I do make pesto now, I use basil from the farmer's market or from my local Whole Foods. In an effort to stretch out that pesto and make it maybe a little less calorie dense so I can feel less guilty about eating spoonfuls I mean eating it on pasta, I have a little trick: Add a half cup to cup of steamed spinach! It not only stretches the pesto, but it gives it a smoother flavor and brighter greener color.

My scientific recipe:

2 garlic cloves, smashed and chopped
2 cups of basil leaves, washed
Handful of pine nuts
Equal handful of walnuts
2 T extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt to taste
1/2 to 2/3 cup shredded parmesean cheese (or another hard cheese)
1/2 to 1 cup steamed spinach (I use frozen, since that's what I had on hand)

Put everything in the cuisinart except the spinach because you're defrosting that in the microwave. (Coincidentally, my cuisinart is also from my grandmother. It's from 1980 - literally one of the very first ones - and so freaking heavy. But it still works. And she got it for me used!) Blend until smooth. Add more EVOO if necessary. Add the spinach, continue blending.

Serve over pasta. Or snitch nibbles with a spoon.

Confession: I may have eaten spoonfuls last night.
Confession #2: I may have had this pesto 3 nights in a row for dinner. And once for lunch.

I found this on Flickr. It's called "Grandma's Food Processor." It's the same one I have, and goes by the same name.

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