A number of years ago, Jacquelyn and I bought an old house. Built in 1915, the house came complete with walls leaning precariously into the adjoining street, one dilapidated bathroom for three upstairs bedrooms and ancient, stained carpeting covering up (mostly) beautiful floors, hardwoods alternating with decaying plywood. We tackled the inside of the house…
We’re in love with Florence, Italy
April 25th is a holiday in Italy celebrating the liberation of the country from Fascism and Nazism. One April 25th, a thousand years ago, an earlier version of myself at nineteen turned a corner in Florence and ran head-long into a parade marching toward me, with what my memory tells me held at least a…
Why use Mason jars: the clear (glass) answer (with recipes)
One day in a Weight Watchers meeting, a member mentioned Mason jar salads. She said it was the easiest way to prepare salads ahead of time and prevent the salad from getting soggy from the dressing. This was genius to me. Did I try it right away? No. I don’t do anything right away. I…
A Letter to Paris
Reputationally, a visit to Paris is rife with rudeness: the maitre d’hotel looking askance at you over the rooftops of his European-sourced eyeglasses, the apron-bedecked waiter ignoring your pleas for service, the elderly, compression-stockinged resident, baguette clenched firmly in hand, contemptuously turning her back as you ask for directions. The reputation is inaccurate. Paris is…
The Story of Our Passports: Why We Started Traveling
Steve and I made a deal when we married. We promised each other we would travel. We promised ourselves one major trip a year and then smaller short getaways throughout the year with the goal of traveling once each quarter, if possible. I know what you are thinking – you make promises, you have high…
Meal Plan: Lobster Mac and Cheese, Pork Loin and Crab Cakes
Some weeks I plan a meal for each night of the week from Saturday to Friday. Some weeks I know we will have leftovers or we will go out for dinner and then I do not plan as many meals. Sometimes I over plan the meals and that just means I carry over our meal…
Introduction to Our Meal Planning
We are both lawyers with full time jobs; full time jobs where the job description does not include meal planning, grocery shopping and cooking as part of the requirements. This means we have to find the time or make the time. And we do each week. I meal plan for a very specific reason –…
Looking Back at the Eclipse
The ubiquitous stories of the eclipse are now behind us. But the memories live on. We saw the eclipse from Tacoma, Washington, laying out a blanket on a portion of the golf course abutting my in-laws home. We were asked to move only once by a groundskeeper so he could mow beside us and once…