now we can exhale
whew! i am relieved to see that the federal marriage act failed by such a wide margin. i understand all the politicking around the timing, etc., but i think most people understood it was folly from the git-go. if i hear the phrase "activist judiciary" one more time i think i'll scream. you can see how your senator voted here. this issue is far from dead. no major legislation is ever passed on the first attempt. but at least we seem to have killed it in this particular congress.
i've been spending time the last week sorting through four file boxes of old bills that i moved here from chicago. i had saved every receipt, bank statement, paid bill, atm slip, insurance card--you get the idea--since 1998. i had just blindly dumped them all into boxes to sort later. well, later is now. my accountant gave me some guidelines on what i needed to save and for how long. it is a monumental task that covers all of my L-shaped couch, the coffeetable and most of the surrounding floor space. it's been rewarding shredding everything and consolidating the remainder. out of those four, i hope to have less than one file box of things to keep.
the heatwave has passed and i have a big list of cooking projects i want to get to in the next couple days. blueberry coffeecake, chocolate cheesecake, macaroni and cheese (with caramelized vidalias and sauteed mushrooms) and cornbread. my freezer has alot of space in it and that always sends me into the kitchen!
sunday dinner at my sister's was a mid-summer feast this last time around. we had barbecue chicken on the grill, corn on the cob, a big green salad with cucumber and tomato, biscuits, corn relish and pickled vidalias, and a peach/plum/blueberry tart with vanilla ice cream for dessert. my brother-in-law is a master with the weber...the chicken was juicy and delicious. plus, my sister made the original barbecue sauce recipe from betty crocker (circa 1968) that we grew up with my mom making. i find as i get older that i love the meals that fit in to the seasons most of all. whether it's something like this meal, a perfect apple pie in october, a steaming pan of cassoulet in january, or a platter of asparagus in april, it's all about the food being appropriate to the time of year.
tony and i are taking a class at the local gay and lesbian community center entitled "the joys and challenges of being a queer couple." it's not so much a class where you would expect lectures, as it is a series of facilitated conversations amongst a group of couples. i really like the other folks in it and the discussion was thoughtful and informative. it helps just to see how other couples deal with everyday stuff. one of the issues for me is embracing the fact that tony is not as out with his family as i am. this is a big difference in our lives and certainly counts as one of the "challenges" we face.
i've been planning his birthday outing as well. we are doing an overnight trip to pittsburgh. we'll spend the day at kennywood, which is described as america's finest traditional amusement park. it looks like alot of fun, with a ton of coasters and, purportedly, the world's best french fries at the "potato patch." these fries are legendary...we'll see if they live up to their hype. after a night in a nice hotel, we'll stop at the grove city outlets on the way back. i'm looking forward to the whole trip!
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i've been spending time the last week sorting through four file boxes of old bills that i moved here from chicago. i had saved every receipt, bank statement, paid bill, atm slip, insurance card--you get the idea--since 1998. i had just blindly dumped them all into boxes to sort later. well, later is now. my accountant gave me some guidelines on what i needed to save and for how long. it is a monumental task that covers all of my L-shaped couch, the coffeetable and most of the surrounding floor space. it's been rewarding shredding everything and consolidating the remainder. out of those four, i hope to have less than one file box of things to keep.
the heatwave has passed and i have a big list of cooking projects i want to get to in the next couple days. blueberry coffeecake, chocolate cheesecake, macaroni and cheese (with caramelized vidalias and sauteed mushrooms) and cornbread. my freezer has alot of space in it and that always sends me into the kitchen!
sunday dinner at my sister's was a mid-summer feast this last time around. we had barbecue chicken on the grill, corn on the cob, a big green salad with cucumber and tomato, biscuits, corn relish and pickled vidalias, and a peach/plum/blueberry tart with vanilla ice cream for dessert. my brother-in-law is a master with the weber...the chicken was juicy and delicious. plus, my sister made the original barbecue sauce recipe from betty crocker (circa 1968) that we grew up with my mom making. i find as i get older that i love the meals that fit in to the seasons most of all. whether it's something like this meal, a perfect apple pie in october, a steaming pan of cassoulet in january, or a platter of asparagus in april, it's all about the food being appropriate to the time of year.
tony and i are taking a class at the local gay and lesbian community center entitled "the joys and challenges of being a queer couple." it's not so much a class where you would expect lectures, as it is a series of facilitated conversations amongst a group of couples. i really like the other folks in it and the discussion was thoughtful and informative. it helps just to see how other couples deal with everyday stuff. one of the issues for me is embracing the fact that tony is not as out with his family as i am. this is a big difference in our lives and certainly counts as one of the "challenges" we face.
i've been planning his birthday outing as well. we are doing an overnight trip to pittsburgh. we'll spend the day at kennywood, which is described as america's finest traditional amusement park. it looks like alot of fun, with a ton of coasters and, purportedly, the world's best french fries at the "potato patch." these fries are legendary...we'll see if they live up to their hype. after a night in a nice hotel, we'll stop at the grove city outlets on the way back. i'm looking forward to the whole trip!
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