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Tonight we celebrate the amalgam of Mezzo-American, Scots-Irish, and Catholic traditions that, when taken together, form the nucleus of what we modern Americans call Halloween.
The House Blond and her ASB cohorts put together a spiffy haunted house for the school carnival and dance. It was as well done as any at Knott's Scarey Farm.
Katie played the bride-murdered-at-the-altar in the wedding chapel well enough that some frightened ten year old girl smacked her in the face. That was a chapel, btw, and not a church. Not that the adviser cared, but he don't want no grief from upstairs, so it was a chapel. And no, kids, you can't paint room number 666 on the door of the haunted hotel room.
The Boy is off on some Halloween night adventure with his buds. TWC will be plunked by the bonfire in David's front yard handing out wine and candy. Hopefully, it will be candy I don't like. Meanwhile, the wymmin and the girls plan to ransack the neighborhood for a sugar fix.
After a couple too many Tequila Sunrises, I looked at Debbie, the tall scrawny ice skater, and said: you've got to drive. She said: I can't drive a stick.
Security cameras at Superior Discount Liquor in Sheboygan, Wisconsin capture a death worse than fate. A 78-foot shelf collapsed, shattering 6,810 bottles of wine and sending a lake of wine across the floor and out the front and back doors.
It took employees the better part of an entire day to clean up the mess. Just so you know, at the exact moment a wine bottle explodes against the tile, the contents thereof expand exponentially. Twenty-eight ounces flashes to ten gallons in the blink of an eye. It's like the big bang theory, you're getting a lot of something from pretty much nothing.
Though we whipped up a celebratory dinner on Sunday, this is the day Mrs TWC plopped into the world. She was quite a bit early and a bit unexpected. Wait, there's two of them, the doctor was reported to have exclaimed.
She's a late-split, identical twin. That means her twin sister is the mirror image of her. Twin sister Laura is older by two minutes, left handed, and her heart is on the wrong side (slightly), something I didn't even know until last year. The girls were premies and Mrs TWC did time in an incubator.
Sunday, we did a little filet mignon over mesquite.....
Along with some marinated shrimp.....
Shrimp Marinade:
1 Lime
2 Ozs Sushi Ginger
2 Ozs White Wine Vinegar
1 Clove Garlic
1 Oz Olive Oil
Pinch of Sugar
Salt
Whirl in a blender until liquified, dump it into a freezer bag, toss in the shrimp, coat well, let sit for a couple of hours before grilling.
The 2007 Nipozzano Chianti was a very good Chianti. In retrospect, we probably should have paired the filet with a big, bold cabernet. None the less, the Chianti was quite nice and, despite the admonition about seafood and red wine, it didn't hamper the enjoyment.
Parker thought this vintage was a ninety pointer.
.....shows the open, opulent personality that makes this vintage so alluring. Ripe, silky tannins frame a core of red fruits, flowers and spices, all of which come together with unsual grace. Though medium in body, there is wonderful generosity to the fruit, not to mention fabulous overall balance. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2015.
The Nipozzano would have complimented some red sauce and pasta with spicy Italian meatballs nicely.
TWC hauled The Boy and four of his hoodlum friends off to see Paranormal Activity 3 Friday night. The film is rated R hence the need for a responsible adult to procure access. Which does not explain the presence of six or seven unaccompanied eight year old girls who would not shut up.
Metal Matt: Would you shut up?(!).
Eight YO Girls: No! Yeeew shut up!
Metal Matt: Shut Up!
Reverberating Baritone Male Voice From Five Rows Up: SHUT UP!
Eight YO Girls: Scatter to various parts of the theater
Earlier on Fright Night, TWC hooked up with Mrs TWC and the House Blond in the bar at Macaroni Grill in The Crossings for a couple of three-dollar, happy-hour glasses of Valoroso Toscano house red. Sure, it's a corporate screw top red blend, but it is also a very quaffable red table wine. And, it is better than the old House Chianti. Three Bucks, Dude. That's the upside to the recession. These guys didn't even have a Happy Hour when things were Rockin' and Rollin'.
Paired the wine with spicy Italian meatballs and Shrimp, Cannellini Bean & Avocado Crostini.
The bartender, Brian, is the guy you *wish* was serving your table every time. Nothing beats reliability and friendly service. He makes a good mojito as well.
I noticed he noticed the House Blond. He was discreet. I also noticed that he noticed that she was too young. Good man.
I'm not a bootleg kind of guy but someone gave us a bootleg copy of Paranormal 1. Not only was it a suck movie but it had the early suck ending that was, apparently, not released in the theaters. Suffice it to say that I was not looking forward to Paranormal 3.
That said, it really was a much better flick than the original. A little tedious at first but the tedium was punctuated with a couple of good startles and several excellent sight gags. Humor and Horror. Not a bad combination and it worked. Later, the film got serious.
TWC couldn't sit down front with the boys without getting nauseated. That's how I came to be stuck with three of the eight YO juvenile delinquent females who scattered on account of Metal Matt and The Voice telling them to STHU. Like, where are *your* parents? Once the movie got with the program, though, they ran screaming from the theater. Bye. If only the couple next to me, who brought canisters of NOS, had run screaming from the theater instead of falling on the floor laughing every three minutes. This is why TWC likes Netflix and Amazon. No riff raff.
Good scary movies are very difficult to do well. I can only think of a handful that make the cut. Paranormal 3 isn't one of them, but it might be worth your while if you enjoy a good cheap scare. Certainly better than any run-of-the-mill slasher movie.
Those boys had the hair standing up on the back of their necks. They didn't shut up for the entire ride back to Jared's where they spent the night. Not a one of them volunteered to go with Metal Matt to get his laptop inside his dark, silent house. He sent the dog in first to run interference. Said he wasn't going to another horror movie until he was thirty.
This amazing soup is delicious enough to be served at a five star eatery, easy to make, and nutritious.
Here at Casa de las Rocas Grandes we do a lot of cooking by the seat of our pants. Keep in mind that the recipe proportions are approximate and require a flair for intuitive cooking.
INGREDIENTS
3/4 lb of asparagus (reserve some tips for garnish)
1 onion
chicken stock
butter
olive oil
bacon (optional)
crispy onions, homemade** or packaged
cream
PREPARATION
A stainless dutch oven works well to prepare this soup because it can be a one pot dish. However, any good sized pot can work.
Chop one small onion and sauté in butter and olive oil. The oil helps keep the butter from burning and adds a bit of flavor.
When the onion becomes slightly translucent and limp, add chopped asparagus to the pot or dutch oven and continue to sauté for another 5-7 minutes.
Add chicken stock until the vegetables are completely covered and then simmer until the asparagus is fork tender.
While the soup is cooking, steam some asparagus spears for garnish.
Whirl the soup in a blender or food processor until desired consistency is acheived.
Pour into large serving bowl and whisk in about a half cup of cream
Salt and pepper to taste
Garnish with steamed asparagus tips and crispy onions or bacon
As Ever,
TWC
Photo Note: TWC could not find his own pictures of the actual soup so he borrowed an image that is similar to Mrs TWC's soup.
**Onion Note: Lidia S suggested making crispy onions by oven baking at 145 degrees on a cookie sheet dehydrating them in a dehydrator. The oven method may or may not work.
Tip of the glass to Mary Jones
