OK, enough of that, let’s get the pensive stuff from the last entry off the front page.
I had a nice, relaxing weekend, which included having my friend James over for dinner on Saturday night. The menu: grilled lamb sausages, yogurt dill sauce, pita bread, salad, and some incredibly good hazelnut gelato I found at the market while shopping for a suitable dessert. Oh, and lest I forget, I also rented a very sweet and lovely movie — “The Namesake,” with Kal Penn — yes, the same guy who’s in the “Harold and Kumar” movies, but much more serious here. That kid is a hottie. Anyway, rent this one, you won’t be disappointed.
This morning I went on a club bike ride with pal Nancy and did a pleasant 36 miles in the not-too-humid, not-too-hot air. We were back in the parking lot by noon, eating melon her boyfriend brought. On the way home I stopped at the Burger King to treat myself to a Whopper Jr. and diet Coke. After getting home and unloading the car, spent some time in my flower garden, where the wild morning glories are fighting hard with the domestic ones. Pulled out a mass of the wild ones, gave the weeds a lick and a promise, and then proceeded to the shower. Spent the rest of the afternoon and evening indoors, where I read the Sunday paper and read/reviewed/commented on the essays of my classmates for next week’s writer’s workshop in Vermont. Looks like we have some really good writers in the class, and not a one of them writes in that overly academic LiteraryJournalSpeak that disturbs me so.
Speaking of the conference… Woo-hoo! I’m off to New England Wednesday after work. I’ll drive about three hours, then stay overnight somewhere and finish the rest of the drive the next day, about eleven hours all told. I’m so looking forward to this. We’ll be in Montpelier, which is a darling little town. It’s also home to the New England Culinary Institute, and the culinary students are cooking the food for our group. That should be wonderful. The conference I went to last year, in Gettysburg, Pa., was okay food-wise but it was standard cafeteria fare. The one in North Carolina I attended the previous four years — the food was edible most of the time, but there were some truly spectacular failures (such as the tuna melts they always insisted on serving for lunch once during the week, which looked like cat food on a bun, with cheese). This year should far surpass both, gastronomically speaking.
Also — did I mention? Yes, I think I did but let me mention it again. The average high in Montpelier for this time of year is 75 degrees. I’m totally looking forward to sleeping with the dorm windows open. (Although to hedge my bets, I’ll be taking a floor fan with me because said dorms are not equipped with air conditioning.)
And even if the conference sucks (which I don’t think it will) I’ll be in VERMONT, so who cares?