JennVT

Happy Interwebz Birthday Sid!

Headed to the good butcher shop here after work for some "big beautiful meat" myself LOL

I hope to find something as spectacular as yours. 😄

Also headed to the grocery store for the "cheap" NY strips on sale to make into fajitas. Friends coming for dinner Saturday so fajitas with all the trimmings, fresh corn on the cob and mojitos are on the menu. Also bought a bottle of Pisco this week so I may crack that open for some experiments as well. Though just 2 of us are likely to be the cocktail drinkers so maybe I will keep it simple. Plus I have a boatload of mint outside that needs using up.

8 hours ago, mopedmom1 said:

Well, it's official. I am unemployed. My company didn't lose the contract but have been placed on a six month probation and that probation includes me not being there. 

 

I have two vacations planned and mostly paid for that we will still go on. We are visiting my parents in Alaska in three weeks for 10 days. In late October we are doing a Mexican Riviera cruise with a few days added on in Disneyland at the end.  After we get home I will reevaluate and probably look for something. 

 

At least now I know where I stand.

Uggh! So sorry! At least they finally put on their grown up pants and told you. Enjoy the travels in the mean time and fingers crossed you find something awesome when you get back.

14 minutes ago, AmyJA said:

 

Weeellllll….. just to be contr...um..err...a different view.....

I like Napoleon House for a Muffaletto and a Pimms Cup better. NOT upscale! ! !

Also Pat O' is fun but the drinks are way sweet and premixed stuff. So don't expect an excellent drink there. NO is queen of the craft cocktail. Try El Garo Negro for a margarita.  Best I've ever had! ! !  (and will have as I can't do tequila anymore...I think)

Nice restaurants my selection would be:  Mr. B's, Commanders Palace for Sunday brunch just for the fun of it and Domenica.

Or try the bars in upscale restaurants.  Often they will have a similar menu or smaller portioned Happy Hour with great craft cocktails.

 

Just relized...my pix is from my 2018 NO trip....yep I do land vacations also....haha...

 

Stanley is good for brunch....fried oyster eggs benedict! Or soft shell crab eggs benedict if in season. With an extra extra spicy bloody please. 

Also call your insurance provider, a regular well physical is supposed to be covered. My DH was billed for x-rays that were not the ones the doc ordered so useless. Weight bearing x-ray was ordered but the machine supposedly wouldn't go low enough to get his knees so the tech had him lie down. Had DH known they had to be weight bearing he'd have said something but all he had been told was go to x-ray before your appointment.

Clearly we weren't paying for the x-ray tech's mistake! The doc could not have cared less, the hospital billing couldn't care less but his insurance was mighty interested! Then he started contacting the patient ombudsman and the VP of patient care. It took some calls but not only did we not have to pay but his insurance didn't pay either.

23 hours ago, Saint Greg said:

Next the Carousel Bar at the Hotel Monteleone. It took three attempts for me to get a seat at it. I had one of their cocktails they invented called the Goody.

 

The Bar is on a carousel. It makes a revolution every 15 minutes. Ernest Hemingway, William Faulkner and Tennessee Williams all sat here.

 

 

 

 

 

I stayed here a few years back for a conference. Absolutely gorgeous, fantastic eggs benedict.....definitely out of my usual price point! 

Deannie's Seafood around the corner has fantastic BBQ shrimp and a friendly vibe to sit and eat at the bar. Getting a table was not happening!

"Enjoying" a fair amount of political type bs at work this week and recruit foolishness and bats, real live bats in the building.

On the plus side I am currently enjoying a much more badass rep with the recruits than a 50 year old non-LEO female would generally have because I "neutralized" one of the bats with a wet floor sign. I hated to do it (bats are cute) but if they get into the sleeping quarters they have to be sent to the lab and there may be rabies shots.

On the even more plus side it is nearly time to send the recruits home for the weekend, my husband called and is going to the good butcher shop for steaks, and the beer is already cold!

Can you check their "menu" of services and see if they offer prenatal massage?

I've got to get my crap together and figure out posting pictures so I can show off my food porn. We had people over this weekend and did: Sous Vide Salmon with sesame oil, fresh corn on the cob, caprese salad, baby yukon gold potatos with butter and chives, and a loaf of brick oven baked italian bread from the farmer's market. Dessert was a truly terrible chocolate cream pie brought by one of the guests. I don't think there was one bit or real dairy in it...frozen pie that strongly resembled shaving cream in a cookie crust. Hahaha

At work today is "Day 1" for a new recruit class so I will spend the day shouting at people and making sure no one passes out. Usually I end up here until 10:00 at night.....looooong day! Cross your fingers my voice holds out. 😈

Having put on my "uniform" it seems I'd better get into some healthy eating so it will fit my fat ass better for the next class. 😔

So sorry to hear about Koda! He looked like a good pupper!

21 hours ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The top two flowers (the spiky fellows) are Lupine (loo-pin) and very common here in New England, especially the blue/purple variety. Once established they reseed themselves and spread nicely. The bottom is a fuchsia I believe but I've only seen it in summer hanging baskets. 

Lovely pictures!

Tonight we have friends coming for dinner. So we have pork belly gong in the soups vide for 24 hours + in two styles. First an Asian style with ginger/garlic/scallions/honey/soy which will get served with a citrus ponzu. Second a maple/garlic which will get a maple balsamic reduction glaze. Both will be seared extra crispy. Baby red potatoes and fresh green beans along with some Italian bread. The main event will be some gorgeous rib eyes that will get a ride in the souls vide at about 130 degrees which will make them perfectly rare then a garlic butter brushed over them to enhance the sear. 

Pour friends went on a brewery tour of the white mountains so we also have a crap load of NH’s finest beers. 

Have a great 4th y'all! I'm taking off shortly to go pick up 6 lbs of beef tenderloin for grilling. It seems likely that some beer will somehow end up in my cart as well. And more soda for palomas.....which will mean I need to buy more tequila. 

We also have to drive over the mountain to my parents. My Dad is having 2 should replacement surgeries this summer and I am surprising him with an electric lift recliner so he will be able to get up and down without Mom's help. He has parkinson's so getting up on a good day takes him some leverage and a couple tries. 

12 hours ago, ceilidh1 said:

I'm in for the lakehouse getaway....I will bring maple syrup!

 

Sid - where did you get the awesome (rude) shirt? I need to find a cool and unique gift for a male friend and this would be perfect! I did try googling "sex position shirt" but you don't even want to know what sites came up!

I'll bring some maple syrup too....we can have an international throw down over which is better! LOL 

Can also bring beer, cakes, and the sous vide set up for steak cookery.

11 hours ago, Webecruzen said:

My DS bought me a Sous Vide a year ago for my birthday. Tried it once for thick bone in pork chops.  I have a lot to learn before attempting steak.   Will have to read more and try again.  I thought about regifting it to him and let him do the Sous Vide cooking.  Ready to get the short week over and celebrate the 4th over a long weekend!  

Hit youtube and search "sous vide everything" and watch some of his videos. He does some crazy experiments but also covers the basics. He's kind of the "Cook's Illustrated" for home sous vide. Like CI he tests out all the possible methods and then shows you the results of each. 

Which one did you get?

On 6/30/2019 at 12:50 AM, deedle7544 said:

So...I just ended a 3 year long distance relationship yesterday. At least I think I did. Its complicated, and this man has been in my life off and on since I was 18. (I'm 55 now, and he's not the one I married). I'm just not sure where I go from here now. And his silence is deafening...

 

Wine, you are my bff

 

 

Ugh! Sorry there is ambiguity there and silence. It is tough enough when its a clear clean break. 

On 6/29/2019 at 8:54 PM, blarko said:

Today is my dad’s birthday. He passed away last year, so I had to take his Yuengling and bottle of Jim Beam to the cemetery. Afterwards, a few of my family members went out for tacos and margaritas in his honor (forgot to take photos). There is a local taco place called Barrio that also serves the best margaritas in Cleveland. I had a pomegranate margarita and a blood orange margarita, others had blueberry margaritas, the monthly “especial” margarita and the old standby “original” margarita. My dad would’ve loved to join us. We toasted to hm and a great time was had by all, and I’m home by 8:30, ready for bed......lol.

Sorry for your loss. But what a great way to celebrate his life! I hope that folks will meet up for drinks and tacos to remember me after I'm gone.

Y'all we have upped the ante on the meat game in the JennVT household! My husband bought me a sous vide. Seal your steak in a vacuum bag with seasoning and immersion cook it at the temp you want achieve. We went very rare so 124 degrees for an hour. Then take out, pat dry and sear. We bought an attachment for our propane tank that's close to a flame thrower. You can also pan sear on the stove if you don't have a place that's safe for torch wielding meat games. We just got some decent grocery store rib eyes for the maiden run. Oh. My. God. I can't remember having a better steak! Made a salad of cherry tomatoes, chopped cucumber, red onion, and fresh mozzarella pearls with vinaigrette for the side.

In summation:

Plenty of time to drink while you're cooking the steak

You get to play with fire

Best steak achieved

The down note is that I have come to accept that I am just not going to talk the hub into a cruise and dragging him will mean that I am unlikely to have a good time. So for the foreseeable future I will have to live vicariously through the reviews here. 

On 6/28/2019 at 4:33 PM, Greenpea2 said:

Hmm. I might like that. I don’t like grapefruit juice (too tart) but grapefruit soda must be sweeter, yes? I’m not even sure I have heard of grapefruit soda. Will have to look around. Sounds yummy with tequila. 

I use pommelo San Pelegrino : https://www.sanpellegrinofruitbeverages.com/intl/beverages/fruit/pompelmo

I don't find it tart, certainly not like eating a fresh grapefruit. If you leave off the wedge of grapefruit you should be good. Or muddle a lime wedge with some superfine sugar in the glass then add the booze and soda if it isn't sweet enough. Apparently some places use Ting and the best one I ever had was in Dallas where they made their own grapefruit soda but that's a little more work than I am willing to do for the home version.

Palomas are on the agenda tonight. Tequila, grapefruit soda and lime. I also throw in a wedge of ruby red grapefruit. You know, to prevent the scurvy.

And while we're all offering hospitality....

Clearly in Vermont I am no help with pre/post cruise stays....

But if you decide to take a break from cruising and go skiing I am at the foot of Killington which is apparently now a big deal ski area. I can show you were the good beer is and help you get maple products without getting hosed on the price. 

16 hours ago, Greenpea2 said:

I have been a bit perturbed (love that word) because CC has been acting up and not allowing me to sign in! Minor withdrawal going on. I saw a thread where others have had the same problem. Seems to be a glitch with iPads, iPhones and Androids. :-(

 

I couldn't sign in on my iPad at home last night so I am forced to read CC at work. lol

I tried on Chrome and Safari....went in and out of both apps a few times...even did a hard reset of the device....nada

I see lots of posts/reviews from folks who are sailing in suites, balconies, etc but not much from the folks who are sailing insides. Even the reviews are scarce or the search function is failing me.

I'm also a first time cruiser and have finally gotten DH to consider joining a cousin on the Equinox in early January 2020. Key West and Cozumel! We would definitely be in an inside or an ocean view. Any feed back from folks who are sailing in those classes and probably not doing much in the way of specialties for dining? What was your experience like? Especially post dry dock.

13 hours ago, 2bthere said:

^^^Truth!
And yes to doing your onions post steak. When you tent your meat you just have enough time to toss in the onions to get a bit caramelized before adding a small splash of wine to lightly simmer/get the bits off the bottom of the pan = easier to clean pan. 

Throw in some thyme (fresh if possible), fresh cracked pepper and a knob of butter at the end. I've also been known to cook mushrooms with the onions but am aware that fungi is a divisive topic. 😄

On 6/22/2019 at 12:33 PM, willdra said:

 

I split my deliveries between my office and home. That way W has no idea how much I get. 😅

Hahaha me too!

Just now, cocobakerchica said:

Yes, espresso, cappuccino, cafe mocha, lattes, cafe Americano, the non alcohol based coffee drinks at al Bacio are covered under the classic beverage package.  I'm not sure, but I believe the Affogato(espresso shot poured over a scoop of gelato)is a premium beverage package drink. Someone will correct me if I'm wrong.

 Wonderful! Thanks for the help!