A note on tacos and ground turkey...

Tacos might be one of the easiest dishes to make, and quite possibly one of the fastest. Yesterday my coworker Dan mentioned he made tacos the previous night for dinner, and I won’t lie, I was a little jealous – tacos sounded delicious. So tonight when I got home after the final day of our Dreamweaver class, I whipped together a beautiful taco dinner in a matter of fifteen minutes. I kid you not, from the moment I started cooking to the moment I plopped down on the couch to watch last night’s episode of American Idol, it was literally no more than fifteen minutes. Brown the meat, add the seasoning and water, let simmer, dice tomatoes, chop lettuce, open tortillas and cheese, stir sour cream, assemble. Tacos, mmm!

Now, as most of you should know, I am a partial vegetarian. I do not eat pork products or any shellfish for religious reasons, and I gave up eating red meat about ten and a half years ago because I really just didn't like it. All that being said, there are a lot of beef dishes out there I don't usually get to enjoy, one of which being tacos. Jennie-o has solved said problem with a line of turkey products without which I cannot live. Jennie-o ground turkey may possibly be one of the best turkey ingredients ever made, right next to turkey brats and turkey hotdogs. Ground beef can easily be swapped out for ground turkey. It’s amazing – and actually better for you than ground beef. Try it… you’ll like it!

So tonight I tip my hat to ground turkey tacos. Tomorrow night: ground turkey nachos!

There's nothing worse than a bad ending...

I'm not sure if you all know, but I have a thing for the Italian mafia. Maybe it stems from Al Pacino and my love for The Godfather, but at this point, it doesn't matter. It's not personal, it's business... and I love it.

Tonight I capped off the evening with the series finale of The Sopranos. From the very beginning I was hooked. A late bloomer, yes, but once I started I could not stop. I found myself flying through the discs as quickly as they arrived in my mailbox. I would rush home to finish the disc and then run to Blockbuster immediately to swap my completed disc for the next. Yes, I got addicted.

So one can only image the anticipation (and maybe a little sadness) as I popped in the final disc to watch the final two episodes. Last night I watched the first of the two and tonight, the last. The entire show was amazing -- I'd watch it all over again and again, if not just to watch James Gandolfini (with whom I admittingly would have sex, come on, he is one enticing man!), but to pick up all the little hints and clues and figure out who was going to be clipped and when.

However, the ending of the entire series.... sucked. I hate it, absolutely hate it when shows, movies, anything ends like The Sopranos ended. I understand the effect this ending had on the show, but I am telling you, it didn't do the show justice. I wanted more. I needed more. Black screen, my ass.

And we'll leave it at that. Watch The Sopranos from start to finish. Love James Gandolfini as much as I. And then tell me what you thought of the finale.



And to my dear sister: come July and you're trying to think of what to get your favorite (and only) sister for her birthday, I surely wouldn't mind adding the complete series to my collection.

A stale morning...

There's nothing worse than pulling into the office with a steaming cup of coffee and a slice of pecan pumpkin loaf than sitting at your desk, sipping the delicious java, and breaking off a piece of the pecan pumpkin loaf only to find it stale.

Happy Friday. Rah.

To the appliance team...

After working an 11-hour day, sans lunch or workout, I headed to the grocery store for some ice cream and came home to watch American Idol (no, I cannot get enough) and an episode of The Sopranos (no, I cannot get enough of this either). Everything was perfect: a quiet night at home. Leftovers for dinner, American Idol, James Gandolfini (HOT!), and some ice cream.

8:55pm -- my phone rings. Naturally I figure it's DJ -- probably walking home from the clarinet studio, about to get some beer. I look at my phone to find a number I do not recognize, though it appears to have a work prefix. I answer. Yep, work. Thomas has called to tell me China (ok, not the entire country, rather the factory in China) has not received the manuals and warranties for the new 4.5 cu. ft. refrigerator and will delay shipment if they do not receive tonight. I tell Thomas to relax, I can tap in to the system from home. So I do. Only to find the manual cover is missing the image. Awesome.

9:00pm -- call Thomas. His pissy wife answers as if 9:00 is so late and I am the rudest woman she has ever met. Talk to Thomas. Give him three options: send a manual with an incorrect image, noting the factory will still delay and make me revise tomorrow; send the manuals tomorrow, one day should not delay the shipment that much; or, drive the 7 minutes it takes me to get to the office and fix the manuals, send them to the factory, and call it a night.

9:05pm -- back in the car, heading back to work. Thomas has told me it is my decision as what to do and he will live with the decision I make. Bastard. Doesn't he know me at all?! Lord knows I could never have slept the night know the shipment would be delayed and ultimately due to my manuals and warranties. Not to mention the disappointment Thomas and Dan (his boss, who someone cleverly cc'ed on the damn email, and for whom I have total respect) would have in me.

9:12pm -- arrive at work. Walk through the creepy dark building to my desk, wondering if Al the Security Guy will be making a special visit to see what I'm up to.

9:14pm -- computer has booted, Outlook has loaded, warranties are sent. On to the manuals.

9:25pm -- manual covers fixed, sent to factory.

9:27pm -- computer shut down, back down the creepy dark hallways, have a nice little chat with Al the Security Guy about how "when China calls, China calls", wish him a pleasant evening, and head back out into the cold to my car.

9:35pm -- home again.

I will now sit on the couch with my ice cream (which after the first two bites isn't even any good) and see how many times James Gandolfini says "fuck" in the next episode of The Sporanos.

And to the appliance team, never forget that while I may be a shared service, I do care.

Happy Valentine's Day

After sending a note to a coworker in our Boston office regarding some work, I wished him a Happy Valentine's Day. Here is his response:

"I hope there’s a guy in your life who’s got a plan to make it a special day."

How sweet is that?!

Legacy

Dear Boys:

Thank you for making me a legacy at the house.

I love and miss all three of you so much it hurts sometimes (ok, all the time).

-LIZZO-

A weekend in review...

It was one of those weekends you really don't want to end. We hadn't seen each other in over a year and a half, though the moment I picked him up at the airport it was as if no time had elapsed. We picked up right where we had left off. Though he was in town for a lesson and audition for a doctoral program at the U, we made it a long weekend, both taking off work and/or school. It was great.

Sunday we had an "us" day. Friday and Saturday had been jam packed with clarinet, seeing a couple of mutual friends, and taking care of everything that had to get done around his audition, we decided to make it our day and just spend it together. We had bagel and lox at my place, then I took him to see St Louis Park -- the area of the cities where he wants to live to be in walking distance of a shul. We moseyed through Fishmans, the kosher grocery store, and a Judaica shop, then headed to Uptown to the Walker Art Museum. We spent the afternoon at the museum - if you haven't been there, go. And if you're a writer, bring something in which to write. I will go back and I will write. We finished the Walker, noting we'd have to go back and take it all in again, and went back to my place to relax for a bit. Sunday night was Hot Date Night, so we got all prettied up (yes, I wore a skirt!) and went out for a really nice, quiet dinner. Yes, we watched part of the Super Bowl, but were both more interested in spending the evening together than watching the game (being Packers fans and all). We had an amazing dinner, came home, and just hung out -- I successfully drank an entire bottle of wine and felt amazing. It was truly a day perfect for the two of us.

Today was a quieter day. The weather was shitty -- there was even a moment or two we thought his flight might get canceled and he'd have to stay other night. We bared the cold and snow to grab a nice kosher-style lunch at Pastrami Jack's and came back and just hung out. Eventually I had to take him to the airport. I did so well, holding it all in until after I gave him a hug, told got home. I hopped back in my car, made sure he made it inside the airport, and drove away. Then I cried -- all the way home.

It was an amazing weekend I really didn't want to end. So thank you for the best weekend I've had in a long time. I love you and can't wait for you to come back...