cool summer
this is the third round of this cooler weather and i am so relieved. now summer is more than half over, so how bad can it get? the less time i spend with the house closed up and the a/c on, the happier i am. it's been mercifully little time this summer.
tony and i had our last meeting with our couples' group on monday. it was fascinating to meet these other men and learn that the issues they face and the ways they deal with them are not that far from what tony and i are experiencing. of course there are differences, but in principle it's the same. we all agreed that we would like to continue to meet up socially, so we are planning on dinner at my house in a couple of weeks. i think it will be fun to have them over. these are some of the first friends that tony and i have made together as a couple. we have seen each of the couples at other social functions. one of them is even friends with yet another couple that we know....which none of us realized until after the fact. it's a small, gay world here in cleveburg. at long as i don't do/say anything embarrassing, i think that can be a good thing.
my eldest niece is off to college next week. we had the "advice from your uncle" conversation last night. i am SURE that this young lady will succeed at whatever it is she decides to do. she has a very clear vision of her life (college/med school/residency/job) which is a great way to get started. i warned her that what she envisions today might fall away when she is presented with other options at school. when i left for college, i wanted to be a german major and go into international business. HAH! at the very least, she understands that she has led a sheltered life up until now. she'll be going to a big school, in a major city, with lots of people from different backgrounds. this can only be a positive experience for this smart, talented young woman. i wish her all the best.
my raise came through on this most recent paycheck, and it makes a HUGE difference. i feel like i can finally really relax about the money aspect of my life. i plan on plowing most of it straight into my retirement account. some of it, though, will be added to my monthly budget for recreation. i want to feel like i can take tony out for a nice dinner on the spur (spurt?) of the moment, with out having to make it a special occasion. i feel now, too, like i am being properly compensated for the work that i do in the number of hours i put in. what a cool thing to feel like that is the case so shortly after having gone to work for this company!
my kitchen this week has been a little hotbed of activity. yesterday i managed to turn out four discs of pate brisee, a double batch of biscuits, croutons, creamy parmesan salad dressing, a big sheet of brownies and a double batch of kitchen sink cookies. these last two are as a favor to a friend, who is having a big barbecue this weekend and doesn't know haw to bake. i am flattered that he asked me to bake for him, and he'll gladly pay me for the goodies. i get to skim some of them off the top to take to work for my buddies there, so it's a win/win situation. (btw, kitchen sink cookies include oatmeal, walnuts, pecans, coconut, white chocolate chunks, semisweet chocolate chunks and bittersweet chocolate chunks.)
speaking of food, tony and i walked up to draeger's ice cream and candy shoppe the other evening. it is totally olde-timey from the fifties, with pastel green booths and pink paisley wallpaper. there is an original soda fountain setup and waitress service. they make all their own ice cream and a full line of candies and chocolates. it was alot of fun, although the icecream was rather unremarkable. it looks like it's on its last legs, so i'm glad i got to experience it. it's been a cleveland tradition since it opened in 1953.
tonight we are going to the cuyahoga county fair. an article in the plain dealer promised lots and lots of fried foods, including (but not limited to) cheese curds, dill pickles, snickers bars and oreos. i'm hoping for a light, refreshing salad bar choice, but i think i'm dreaming. ;^) i'll let you know what we ate, once the gas-x works its magic.
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tony and i had our last meeting with our couples' group on monday. it was fascinating to meet these other men and learn that the issues they face and the ways they deal with them are not that far from what tony and i are experiencing. of course there are differences, but in principle it's the same. we all agreed that we would like to continue to meet up socially, so we are planning on dinner at my house in a couple of weeks. i think it will be fun to have them over. these are some of the first friends that tony and i have made together as a couple. we have seen each of the couples at other social functions. one of them is even friends with yet another couple that we know....which none of us realized until after the fact. it's a small, gay world here in cleveburg. at long as i don't do/say anything embarrassing, i think that can be a good thing.
my eldest niece is off to college next week. we had the "advice from your uncle" conversation last night. i am SURE that this young lady will succeed at whatever it is she decides to do. she has a very clear vision of her life (college/med school/residency/job) which is a great way to get started. i warned her that what she envisions today might fall away when she is presented with other options at school. when i left for college, i wanted to be a german major and go into international business. HAH! at the very least, she understands that she has led a sheltered life up until now. she'll be going to a big school, in a major city, with lots of people from different backgrounds. this can only be a positive experience for this smart, talented young woman. i wish her all the best.
my raise came through on this most recent paycheck, and it makes a HUGE difference. i feel like i can finally really relax about the money aspect of my life. i plan on plowing most of it straight into my retirement account. some of it, though, will be added to my monthly budget for recreation. i want to feel like i can take tony out for a nice dinner on the spur (spurt?) of the moment, with out having to make it a special occasion. i feel now, too, like i am being properly compensated for the work that i do in the number of hours i put in. what a cool thing to feel like that is the case so shortly after having gone to work for this company!
my kitchen this week has been a little hotbed of activity. yesterday i managed to turn out four discs of pate brisee, a double batch of biscuits, croutons, creamy parmesan salad dressing, a big sheet of brownies and a double batch of kitchen sink cookies. these last two are as a favor to a friend, who is having a big barbecue this weekend and doesn't know haw to bake. i am flattered that he asked me to bake for him, and he'll gladly pay me for the goodies. i get to skim some of them off the top to take to work for my buddies there, so it's a win/win situation. (btw, kitchen sink cookies include oatmeal, walnuts, pecans, coconut, white chocolate chunks, semisweet chocolate chunks and bittersweet chocolate chunks.)
speaking of food, tony and i walked up to draeger's ice cream and candy shoppe the other evening. it is totally olde-timey from the fifties, with pastel green booths and pink paisley wallpaper. there is an original soda fountain setup and waitress service. they make all their own ice cream and a full line of candies and chocolates. it was alot of fun, although the icecream was rather unremarkable. it looks like it's on its last legs, so i'm glad i got to experience it. it's been a cleveland tradition since it opened in 1953.
tonight we are going to the cuyahoga county fair. an article in the plain dealer promised lots and lots of fried foods, including (but not limited to) cheese curds, dill pickles, snickers bars and oreos. i'm hoping for a light, refreshing salad bar choice, but i think i'm dreaming. ;^) i'll let you know what we ate, once the gas-x works its magic.
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