Thursday started off with a trip to the grocery, list in hand; I was hosting A.J.S. for dinner. And ended with grilled sesame tofu, lemony creamed Brussels sprouts, and steamed asparagus. Pretty tasty. Though... not nearly as tasty, not even close to the dinner the man in A.J.S.'s life, S.A.G., hosted Boyfriend and me for on Friday. We started with Brussel sprouts afelia, replicating those of chef Jose Andres. The dish was spot on, delicious. Beyond. The progressive dinner continued with collard greens, acorn squash soup, and grilled cheese. And in between each plate, we cleared our palates with the homemade brownies I whipped up. From the minute we walked in the door, Christmas music was playing. The music continued through the post-dinner tree decorating. There was wine and beer and Christmas cheer abounds. And later, a few new friends joined us for my soon-to-be-famous holiday cocktails. I think I fell into a food comma around this point. I surely made a fine impression on our new friends.
Saturday I slept until 11:00 am. I do not kid. I cannot remember the last time I did that. I made pumpkin pancakes for breakfast... or lunch. And then Boyfriend and I left for The Laughing Man Tarvern--a local University of Kansas bar--to watch the Jayhawks take on the Colorado Buffalos, Boyfriend's Alma Mater. We met our favorite Kansas friends there. I only invited Boyfriend because this was a for sure win for the Hawks. Except the Buffs dominated the entire second half. Even when KU tied it up with three seconds to go, the Buffs were able to get off a game-winning, buzzer-beating three-point shot. Boyfriend proceeded to make a fool of himself with the one other CU fan present, while the rest of the bar went dead silent--stunned. Bill Self had not lost to CU in his 11-year tenure at KU prior to this gloomy, sad afternoon.
I was nonfunctional proceed this loss--the second one of the season, which is probably how we ended up on a bus going the wrong direction in route to S.N.L.'s for a Lesotho potluck dinner. We eventually got there, thanks to the friendliest WMATA bus driver. While we were driving all sorts of wrong ways, I put my fate in Bus Driver and buried myself in
Where's You Go Bernadette?--my current read. We eventually made it to S.N.L's new adobe. And I was immediately jealous of his brick-walled kitchen and all the contents being brewed within.
Together, all five of us Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (from Lesotho) went all out, but A.A.P.'s chakalaka, a vegetable relish, took the win for best dish. He was smart enough to beg for a local recipe before hopping continents. To "compliment" the chakalaka, there was pork smothered in local spices; papa, ground maize meal and water cooked to a Pay-Doh texture; samp, hominy loaded with butter; moroho, mustard greens cooked to death in oil and salt; and Eat Sum More biscuits, shortbread cookies. The dinner was MSG-loaded; we did Lesotho proud. As I have mentioned once or twice before, Lesotho is heavily influenced by South Africa... and with Nelson Mandela's death on Thursday, the timing of this feast was appropriate. After a few wild games from the Peace Corps days, Boyfriend and I headed home. Only we didn't go to bed because Michigan State was beating Ohio State... and with the earlier loss... I needed to go to bed on a positive note. Go State Go!
Then, yesterday, the most anticipated day of this season--Kansas City Chiefs at Washington Redskins game day. This day started early with layering up for the outside sub-arctic, snowy weather. I could hardly contain my excitement--December 8 was finally here and we had free(!!!) club-level seats. Boyfriend and I caught the metro to Morgan Boulevard where we met A.A.P., a devout football fan, and H.M.O., my childhood, Chiefs-adoring friend for tailgating with more fans. The designated tailgate spot happened to be forever away from the metro, but our brisk walk was probably good for our already freezing selves. At the tailgate, we celebrated and cheered and amped up... until we were frozen. Then a magic fairy appeared with a fire. At this point my fingers burned the most painful burn as I tried to thaw them over open flames. There was an abundance of tailgate no one consumed because that meant risking further frostbite and crunching on icy cold food. It was not such a pretty thing.
We arrived at our seats just before kick-off... and as mentioned... they were club-level... which meant I was perpetually tempted by the warmth of the indoors. I had to remind myself on more than one occasion that I was there to watch the game live, despite pounding ice pellets. Though we prepared for the "ice pellet" condition, we did not actually expect ice pellets/sleet/snow because forecasters are never right. Except I guess when I have outdoor plans in December. And if I haven't made my point about the freezing cold yet, let me share this tragedy: I paid $13.00 for a Bailey's infused hot chocolate. That has a whole lot of desperation written all over it. The Chiefs pummeled the Redskins, in a game that will ultimately cost Mike Shanahan his job. So I think even the Redskins were happy about the loss!
After the game, H.M.O. and I ran to the metro in the icy conditions--she fell twice, once for both of us--as A.A.P. and J.P.B. tried to keep up! I wish I could express how warm the train felt. I didn't even care that people were breathing down my back. We survived, though it was close to midnight before I felt warm again.
And that was my weekend. Hope yours was good, too.
