Today was crazy!  Mandy Novotny was making coffee for everybody after lunch and I had a mocha and she gave me one of the biggest mugs that we have and I was on edge the rest of the afternoon!  I kept thinking, "Why am I so anxious? Am I just stressed about all the special meals we're having this week?"  I didn't realize it was the coffee until almost 4:00.  I think that's probably the most coffee I've had at one time in my entire life.

 Of course for dinner we had one of my favorite meals that is also one of the most involved meals I make!  I always remember the time Mr. and Mrs. Nutter took me out to Indian food for my birthday this year.  And after the caffeine wearing off and me not stuffing myself with chicken tikka masala and naan, I went to choir practice.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 For Adam and Lini's reception yesterday, I ran the bar.  Well, okay, no alcohol was involved, but I really did mix drinks upon request, and it really did look like a bar.  Besides iced water and coffee punch that guests could serve themselves, we offered made-to-order Italian sodas.  I spent three hours of the afternoon behind the counter measuring ice, sparkling water, syrup, and cream, finishing with a professionally torn straw.  People were raving!  I've discovered my new calling as a bartender.  Maybe not.  How about I just get a job at Starbucks.

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Real gold fears no fire.

Did you think I died and fell off the face of the earth? Well, I've been busy feeding people, taking pictures (when I remember and have time), catching up on sleep, playing soccer, and learning French. J'aime jouer au soccer!

Time permitting, one of my favorite things is chopping, slicing, or dicing anything by hand. Just give me a good knife. Whether it's mincing fifty cloves of garlic or slicing a pile of onion rings, there's just something so satisfying and calming about the repetition of the knife across the board.

I undertook, on the same day, two of the most intimidating projects and had to follow through practically flying solo...mm-hmm...and blind...and walking backwards, on my hands, juggling with my feet. Okay, no, not really. But I did have only the recipes and the memory that what was written wasn't all there was to it. My source and inspiration was unavailable two time zones away and not even answering her phone. For paella, I used the recipe for amounts and order of addition to the pan and relied on my memory of how we did it at camping. It tasted just like I remembered it should! Doughnuts were a bit more of a challenge because I was present for only part of the previous doughnut-day and didn't actually see the whole process. And of course there's the whole frying thing that I've never done before, not helped by the fact that I don't even have a thermometer that goes that high and, what type of oil does Mrs. Nutter use? They turned out well...oh my goodness! I love doughnuts! And they were so easy. Two batches of doughnuts, start to finish, clean kitchen to clean kitchen, took only one and a half hours. Of course, I admit, I had seven people helping me and pretty much did nothing but direct...but that counts for something too!

Well, this post has been gestating for almost a month and it's past my bedtime so I'll leave you with these two pretties from the marriage conference. Bonne nuit!

--

After making tarte au chocolat, I had two discs of pâte sucrée left over and, oh look, new fluted cookie cutters and four colors of sanding sugar from Williams-Sonoma! It must be a sign. So, on Saturday, with nothing else to fill the afternoon, I pulled out my rolling pin (and camera!) to pass the time. Lesson of the day: I really, really want...dare I say?... need...a macro lens.

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Real gold fears no fire.

Gone Fishing

I've been having many wonderful menu ideas this week. Where were they all when I was planning for this week? Due to my muse taking a vacation, all we're having this week is nasty American food. Okay, okay, it's not nasty. It's tasty (Yeah, tasty...that 'n' must have been a typo.), hearty, reliable, fool-proof, unimaginative...you get the picture. I mean, they're all good things, meatloaf, chicken pot pie, fajitas, hamburgers, ham...but...p- leaze, all in one week? I suppose everyone is satisfied with good food in their stomachs but, every time I look at the menu, I cringe. The one breath of fresh air was a last-minute substitution today at lunch. Instead of tuna wraps, I pulled a recipe out of a library cookbook for ginger-lime chicken salad wraps. That was a brilliant epiphany from God. I was just flipping through one of my eight cookbooks that I checked out, trying to finish the menu for the marriage conference in two weeks and just happened to pause on this recipe and noticed that we just happened to have all the ingredients, even, would you believe it, jicama, *goofy, John Ratzenberger voice* oh, I just always keep jicama in the fridge(!?!), and an already open jar of Major Grey's. So I'm excited about getting out of the midwest next week and back to world-traveling. Where will I go? France, home to the Northwest, India, Italy, Asia, and Central America. Hey, that's almost all the continents. Hmm, now what could I serve from Antarctica?

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Crazy Week

I screamed almost every day this week. It was not a bad week, just insanely crazy and unbelievable. Jars melting, waiting forever for the dishwasher to fill while, all the time, it was actually emptying, almost forgetting to place an order, both ovens going out, the new Sysco delivery driver telling me to stay pretty and not become a nun, and pieces of the rusty washing machine lid falling in all combined to make this a week wherein I question my sanity. Meanwhile, I've had to go back to classic stand-by meals because I've just been drawing a blank when it comes to menus. Desserts, however, are another story. I was so excited about desserts that I didn't bother trying to decided which one to make. I just made them all!
Whole lemon tart made with pâte sucrée was a new recipe I had to try to see if I could do it...you know...for my education. The pâte sucrée was amazing! Buttery, crumbly, and sweet (but not too sweet), I ate probably half a tart's worth before it even made it to the oven. The filling was super simple but, I thought, too much. Imagine, if you will, a dear little shortbread cookie with a dollop of lemon curd...yeah, that would have been the perfect balance. Speaking of cookies, that's probably what will happen to the pâte sucrée I will have left from making tarte au chocolat this week, that is, assuming I don't eat it all raw.
I had been craving peach blackberry pie with homemade vanilla ice cream all summer until I finally went of the deep end and decided to have it the same day we were making about twenty dozen cookies, the same week I made two chocolate cakes because, here's the best frosting I've ever had that I've been eating with a spoon, and how much trouble would it be to just make some cake to celebrate Rachel's visa and Luc's acceptance to Verity. Back to the pie. Peach blackberry was what I wanted, but how could I resist throwing in some plums and strawberries I just happened to have on hand? I couldn't. I borrowed the crust from my apple pie and 'winged it' for the filling. No lattice crusts on these babies, not that I'd been planning to, but I couldn't have even if I wanted because, just as I was filling the third and final pie, I realized I had yet to put my order in, didn't even have a list, did I even have a menu, it's due in an hour, and it usually takes me an hour or more. I passed the top crust baton to someone else (they turned out beautifully) and, after running around like a chicken with my head cut off, finished my order in twenty-five minutes. The pie was as perfect as I imagined it could be. Tender summer fruit hid beneath a sugar-sprinkled crust that stayed crisp even under a lopsided pillow of half-melted ice cream that dripped down the edges to mingle with the sweet juices. Wow. How's that for summer?

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Pure Inspiration

 I've been a bit stuck lately, having almost no new ideas for what goes on the menu.  But, a week and a half ago, I did have a lunch that was, I tell you, truly inspired.  During breakfast clean-up, Claudia pulls me aside and hurriedly informs me that the CI team is going to be here for lunch and she is so sorry she hadn't let me know ahead of time, but they don't communicate their schedule to her.  Well my brain started scrambling.  What do I have to feed twice as many people as I planned for?  Scanning the fridge, I came up with sliced ham, some turkey, pepperoni, salami...hmm...that looks like some sort of Italian sandwich to me.  But on what?  There isn't any bread.  Then I'll make bread.  Do I have time?  Just barely, I see, as I pull out the recipe.  Between mixing, rising, shaping, and second rising, the girls and I pulled together the rest of the fixings for an amazing sub sandwich on fresh baguette.  A baked pasta dish from the freezer assured that everyone had plenty to eat.  In the end, no one even realized that, before breakfast, I could not have even told them what was for lunch.  Miracles do happen.

--

 Wow.  How ready am I to come home?  This afternoon I was so tired I could have been asleep in three minutes if I'd been given half a chance.  And after dinner I started laughing at something and kept on hysterically for probably twenty minutes.  Tonight we're going out and I plan to sit at Starbucks with a coffee frappuccino and draw lines on paper.  Of course, as soon as I get home, I'll be back on the road and going for another week, followed by a week of scrambling to fit things in and get ready for camping.  *sigh*  No rest for the weary.  At least I'll end on a relaxed note.  Camping, here I come!

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Real gold fears no fire.

 During a short break in my busy schedule the other day, I decided to go for a walk.  I didn't have that much time so, to avoid going up to my room and changing shoes and then having to change back, I thought I would just walk barefoot.  Yeah, I'm smart.  I had done it earlier in the week without any trouble, but after my fifteen-minute circuit of the parking lot, I discovered a thumb-sized blister on each heel.  They had me limping the rest of the night.  I considered lancing them...but thought better of it.  By next morning, I could feel them only in certain shoes, and today, not at all.  Besides that, I've just been partying it up in Claudia's apartment last night and going to a three-hour Shabbat service with Katie at a friend's church.
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Real gold fears no fire.

It seems I have the most to write about when I have the least time and energy. Oh, the irony. Friday was bursting at the seams with things I had to do. Getting ready for Saturday's banquet and still putting meals in people's mouths kept me going in four directions at once. I'm serious; I was doing four thing at the same time. That was the day that, one of the two times I went to light the griddle, the pilots were out and, when I lit them, the gas was on. Yeah, not so smart. So my eyelashes were blonde-tipped for a day or two. But I made good things! Everyone devoured the grilled sandwiches that came from the 'poof' incident and the naan from that evening turned out very well and was perfect with the Indian food. I made Indian food, people! Chicken tikka masala, spiced basmati, garlic naan, mango chutney, cucumber raita...mango chutney being the only thing we didn't make from scratch. It's so weird how all those crazy-different flavors...taste the best together! Anyway, Claudia, who's been bugging me to make Indian food for forever, had an option to go out to Indian food a couple of days after, but decided against it because, "it probably wouldn't be as good as Anna's." !!!

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Real gold fears no fire.

 Have I told you about the cheese crisps?  I've made them twice.  The first time I didn't cook them long enough so they were...chews.  Tasty chews, but not what I was going for.  Last time, they turned out perfectly amazing and wonderful.  I lined sheet pans with parchment paper and dotted it with pinches of shredded asiago, flattening each little mound as I went.  Into a hot oven they went, until they turned toasty brown.  Barely cool before I had to 'test' one, they met my expectations in every way.  They were the perfect accompaniment to fettucini with baked tomato sauce and the best chicken caesar salad I've ever had.  If I do say so myself.

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Real gold fears no fire.

Tonight...I outdid myself. Dry-rub sirloin steak with fresh fruit salsa, lemon couscous, summer squash carpaccio salad, and strawberry breeze pie had everyone exclaiming and cleaning their plates. Saturday I will have another chance to top even that. For the father/daughter banquet we are having mixed greens with avocado and fruit, sirloin steak with hunter sauce, risotto-style mushroom barley, honey-balsamic green beans with onions and walnuts, rosemary wheat rolls, and petite cheesecakes. Imagine that. We're having steak twice in one week! I don't know how I'm ever going to live up to that.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 Well, the weekend is over.  With all the stuff I did this weekend, it should have been longer.  We went to a wedding in Fort Worth on Friday and got back at midnight, I got taken on an 'I know how it can be cooped up at a training center so let me take you out' outing to the mall on Saturday, Starbucks included, and, even better than the mall, Whole Foods.  Came back and served dinner to a very small crowd and afterwards played with a basketball and a volleyball outside till dark then watched a movie with Katie and Claudia and went to bed at midnight...again.  Sunday got up early to go to choir and crashed when I got back for a two hour nap, made dinner, and turned in early after our John Piper video.  Okay, I'm done.  Let's make tonight an early night too.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 Well, it will be at least a week before the air conditioning gets fixed because the repairman is in North Dakota until the end of next week.  In the meantime, we'll just walk around like zombies every afternoon.  But we are finally getting our stairs re-carpeted.  After a year of trying to get somebody to deliver the carpet...we decided to go with someone else.

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Back to the Grindstone

 I was able to scrounge enough food together for two decent meals today, but I'll have to make a run to the store for tomorrow's lunch before the order comes in.  The a/c is out for the kitchen so it was 88º in there today, and muggy.  I come up with lots of reasons to go in the fridge when it's like that.  Choir practice tonight, early to bed, early to rise, farmers' market, grocery store, meals, orders...  When am I going to unpack?

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Real gold fears no fire.

I'm coming home tomorrow!

 Oh glorious day!  I get to drive a manual!  I get to go barefoot!  I get to wear pants!  I get to be outside...a lot!  I don't have to serve dinner twice a day!  I get to make soap!  I get to go camping!  I get to go to the beach!  I get to see everybody!  Spider-man!  Campfires!  Gaelic Storm in stereo!

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Real gold fears no fire.

View of our frisbee field...

...(parking lot) from the room next to mine...as taken from my room. My most amazing play of last night's amazing game: running deep in the near endzone, I snagged the frisbee just enough inbounds for a goal and finished with a crash and burn that broke out in a rash up my right arm. I couldn't begin to tell of John's innumerable amazing plays. I'll just leave it at: I'm glad we were on the same team some of the time.

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Real gold fears no fire.

Lemon-Honey Drop Cookies

Monday we made these delectable little cookies no one could get enough of. Imagine honey-butter infused with lemony sunshine and this is what you would get. I won't even disclose how many found their way to my stomach in the name of 'taste testing'.
Speaking of large quantities, last night during Bible study we counted over 20,000 clear and pink beads for craft packets for Pre-EXCEL. We paired up, one girl counting 44 clear beads and the other, 32 pink. The girl I was working with had a speedy counting method that I had a hard time keeping up with until I adopted it and we became *cough* the fastest counting team *cough*. We probably counted enough for the next two conferences.

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Real gold fears no fire.

Week at a glance

 Monday: We had a windy picnic in the courtyard to enjoy our newly painted gazebo.  I made lots of picnic-y things to eat including raspberry lemonade and, not so picnic-y, shortcakes with lemon curd and raspberry sauce.

 Wednesday: Took a long drive in a rainstorm so severe that visibility was reduced to lights and reflectors and we could barely hear each other in the same car because of the noise the rain was making as it pelted the van.  Meanwhile, back at the ranch, 90-100 mph winds blew in a window, causing glass to fly some 40 feet from its original location, and downed several trees and large branches.

 Thursday: Scraping out the seeds from a jalapeno for salsa, I got squirted in the eye and spent several minutes on fire at the same time remaining completely calm so Katie wouldn't freak out.  Later on, since Katie and I were the only two around for girls' Bible study, we decided to convene at la Madeleine over a groan-worthy chocolat mousse crêpe.  I love that place...Bible study I mean, Bible study.

 Saturday: Our day to celebrate a few staff birthdays and, it being the 5th of May, the theme recommended itself.  The menu comprised chicken empanadas, salsa fresca, mango salsa, agua fresco, and dulce de leche flan, none of which I had ever made before.  Everything turned out wonderfully and I would definitely make any of them again (except perhaps the same flavor of agua fresca; I think I prefer to eat my watermelon), especially the dulce de leche that I had to make for the flan, if only because it just tickled me so much to make something by boiling a can of condensed milk underwater for four hours.

 Only one week and two days until I'm home!  I'll have to post if I make anything wonderful between now and then.

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Cheers

On the Wall

Coming from choir practice, I got to Exposure Rock Climbing Gym about an hour after the rest of the group. After watching a cheesy orientation video, I harnessed up and made a quick trip to the top of their 'we just want to be sure you're comfortable with the equipment' wall and belayed for Rachel as she went up. I made a beeline for John and he pointed out a couple of walls that he thought would be good to start on. Most of the time John and I would alternate between belaying and climbing but we got someone else to belay so I could take pictures and then so he could. I only climbed one wall that was a real challenge. John picked it out for me and coached me to the top. At one point, I had to jump to reach the next handhold, but fell off the wall because I couldn't get a grip that would hold me. Back on the wall, I tried it with a different foothold and didn't have to jump. My forearms were so tight after that climb. After two and a half hours, most everyone was ready to go, but I kept climbing as long as I could and was the last one out of my harness. That's one more thing I can check off my list, and definitely something I will do again.

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Belaying for Johnny

Last one of the day for John.

Belay Man

Concentrating on keeping me on the wall.

I never did get that picture, but if I ever do it will go right here.

 

 The Monday before my birthday, a storm threatened to keep us in from our after-EXCEL picnic, which would mean staying inside the building and, of course, no running around barefoot, kicking a soccer ball, and playing frisbee.  Happily for me, the rain held off long enough for us to be already in the vans driving out to the lake.  We ate and played with the soccer ball under a covered picnic area until there was a break in the rain when I could convince everyone to come out and play frisbee.  People are so funny.  They won't come out to play in the rain, but once they're started...ch...what's a little rain?  The game is ON.  We ran, slid, slipped, churned up the field, and made a mess to remember our time by.  The only way it could have been better is if we had been in Oregon...and if I had been wearing pants.

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Real gold fears no fire.

Adventures

I don't suppose this first one actually counts as an adventure, but it was quite an experience. I pulled up to the gas station and hopped out of the van, when up strolls a gas station attendant. "I'll take care of this for you today," he offers as he takes my card and starts filling. He makes small talk as twenty-eight gallons of gas transfer ownership and, finishing up, hands me my receipt and sends me on my way. Now, you know, Texas has self-serve gas stations and I've never seen any attendant talk that much with a customer. Interesting.

Driving back from running errands, with one more stop to make, I found myself in a right-turn-only lane one street too soon. Rather than try to change lanes and continue, I decided to turn and make my way over down the street. As I was approaching the first light, I noticed a left-turn-only sign for the lane I was in, which was exactly what I wanted and, conditions being favorable ( i.e. green light, oncoming traffic way down there), I turned...onto a one-way street...the wrong way. Apparently the sign was for the next light. Faced with a wall of cars, my split-second decision was to pull up on the sidewalk and let the back half of the 15-passenger van hang out on the lightrail tracks while all the one-way cars made use of their green light. As soon as they were cleared out, I backed myself right around, made a right on red and got out of there. If you can think of a time when I was that embarrassed, I'd like to hear about it. At least they all just thought I was from Illinois.

Friday, forty minutes before EXCEL graduation, ten minutes before we're supposed to be back in the kitchen cooking for the reception, the power went out...with a little girl stuck in the elevator. So while everyone's running around trying to open the elevator, get the generator started, and finish preparing for graduation, I'm thinking, "Well, at least all the cold reception food is ready." After forty minutes in the dark with no air conditioning, just in time for graduation I might add, the generator kicked in enough to power the main hallways and the meeting room...but not the kitchen. It was another ten minutes before there was enough power for that. With forty-five minutes before the reception, the kitchen was a flurry of activity as hot appetizers slid onto pans and into the ovens. Punch flowed; cake was frosted and decorated; plates, napkins, plasticware, and trays piled high all made their way to the line. Finishing touches for a beautiful reception were placed with plenty of time. Success!

The final adventure of this series must wait till I get some pictures, but feel free to stew and wonder what in the world it could be.

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Real gold fears no fire.

No One Likes Their Job Every Day

Such a partan (crab) I was today, at least until midafternoon when I chilled as I cut twenty-one pounds of raw chicken thighs and 14 pounds of raw beef. No one could have told, if I hadn't answered how I really was when they asked, but I woke up on the wrong side of the bed. An hour too early. And all because my window being open let the wind bang my door repeatedly and insistantly. Being wide awake for an hour after lights out last night didn't help my mood either.
Instead of taking a break today, I ran errands. Usually I like to get out and go for a drive and see the outside world once in a while, but not if it means giving up my break. Yay for working 10-hour days!

 Our staff outing today was a trip to West Village in downtown Dallas.  We walked to the trolley and rode across town on a 100-year-old streetcar.  Our first stop after we got off was (I'll give you three guesses and the second two don't count.) *surprise* Starbucks!  We browsed in Borders for a while and saw way too many things that called out to be bought and spent the rest of our time drifting in and out of the shops.  We got back just in time to roll out the dough for stromboli so the EXCEL girls could have dinner on time.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 The best way to get acquainted with the lay of the land is to traverse it.  You could do this by taking a leisurely drive on a Sunday afternoon...or you could attempt to reach a destination you've only been to once and are unsure of its location, take a wrong turn, have to turn around twice to get back on track, drive past it because you're looking on the wrong side of the road, finally arrive and complete your errand, and have construction workers close the ramp to your next stop so you have to continue to the next exit to turn around and make your way back.  Quite an educational experience that would be.

 

 Oh, speaking of educational!  The church is having a new organ installed and our accompanist, after choir practice last night, gave us a tour of the pieces since they are strewn all over the sanctuary.  This particular organ has between 5,500 and 6,000 pipes, each having to be individually tuned and voiced.  The process could take as long as ten weeks.  So we saw all the different pieces that make an organ.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 Mr. Bell ran errands with me yesterday and took me out to Starbucks.  It was a good break from routine, but made a long workday since the only time we could really go was right on top of when I usually take my break.  Things coming up and taking me from my lunch hour didn't help either.  Shocking fact of the day: World War II veterans are dying at a rate of 1,000 per day.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 The end of last week was spent getting ready for the annual meeting of *ominous music* The Board.  Claudia and the girls spit and polished the whole building.  All I had to do was make sure I ordered sweet potatoes, Mr. Gothard's favorite food.  I almost didn't see him at all because *ominous music* The Board spent most of their time in the second floor conference room and I spent most of my time in the kitchen.  Most everybody heaved a collective sigh of relief when *ominous music* The Board left, but I had barely noticed they were here since I had just continued to do my job as usual.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 I have the weekend off.  Lisa put brunch out, Advanced EXCEL took care of dinner tonight, and Laura is doing dinner tomorrow.  Yay for not thinking about work!  This afternoon the staff girls went out thrift store shopping and, of course, Starbucks run. ☺  I took a short extra-hot mocha with an extra pump of mocha, and ordered a grande mocha frappucino with a pump of hazelnut and a pump of caramel for one of the girls who wanted to try something new and really likes sweet drinks.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 I've had a lot of firsts while I've been working here.  First time pumping gas, first time going to Sam's, playing ping pong, and volleyball were a few from last year.  This year, I've driven a fifteen passenger van, carried a cell phone, gotten a credit card, cooked something I've never tried before for more than eight people, and bobbed for an apple.  Tonight was my first time to play soccer...and be hit in the face with the ball.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 This morning, as we were trying to get lunch out with ovens that were unreliable, the health inspectors showed up.  First Josh came through and told me that there was a Dallas Health Department truck outside and we were probably about to be inspected.  So I quietly tidied a few things up and Laura had one of the girls wipe some counters.  We kept working on lunch and chores till Trevor came in and said the health inspectors were here.  They asked to see my certificate, checked up on things, and ended up giving us 96% and remarking that we have the cleanest place in Dallas.  We all had a buzz the rest of the day.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 This morning we had no butter to make granola bars.  When I was going out to Farmers' market and to get butter, Josh wasn't around to give me petty cash and I had to switch vehicles twice.  When I got back the girls informed me that one of our ovens wasn't working.  EXCEL girls came to help in the kitchen an hour earlier than expected and the granola bars weren't ready to set out at snack time.  We didn't have enough broccoli for dinner and the steak was still frozen when I wanted to be cooking it.  And yet, in spite of everything that went wrong, nothing bad actually happened.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 It was chilly out this morning as Amy and Rachel and I left for choir practice and the fifteen minute drive to church was quiet.  I followed Rachel and Amy through the halls and up the stairs to the choir room where I found my music folder in the 14th cubby and pulled my choir robe off its numbered hanger.  After warming up, we ran through the two songs we would be singing a couple of times and then filed out and down and across the church and up to the balcony where we would stand to sing our introit.  Down we came again to process into the sanctuary to the choir loft.  The whole choir had been introduced to the song we sang only last Wednesday, so we met in the choir room after service to practice a little bit more before the second service.

 Tonight we're having a 'staff activity' with refreshments (super bowl food!).

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Real gold fears no fire.

 We have two new vans here at the Dallas Ministry Center: a 2000 E-350 fifteen passenger and a 2003 E-150 Chateau.  I much prefer the 15 passenger.  The Chateau, being an E-150 and not having a V-8, is really just a car trying to drag around the shell of a van it got stuck in.  I had never driven a fifteen passenger before last month, but it's only a little bit different than a twelve and only slightly scary.

 Tonight since it's too cold to play outside, we're playing sardines in the basement.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 Two of the staff girls just realized they would both be gone before my birthday and decided they had to give me my present now.  They had already planned ahead and gotten it last Saturday when we were out at the mall.  I was very surprised, and delighted, to be getting a present two months before my birthday and from people I've known for less than a month!  They're both a lot of fun, and very observant to get me something I really wanted.  I now own the Fiddler on the Roof soundtrack.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 Last night was PCPC's choir's open house.  Anyone interested in seeing what choir is like was welcome to come join practice and share some eats afterwards.  Rachel invited me to come along and I liked it so much...I joined!  I'll start singing with the choir during service this Sunday.  It's going to be very different from youth choir, and it means giving up going to bed early on Wednesdays and sleeping in on Sundays, but I loved singing with them.

 Yesterday I probably spent more time out than in.  I went to the farmers' market after breakfast and heard from Bill that it's supposed to get colder over the weekend.  I had already been wearing pants under my skirt for three days so that didn't thrill me, but I'm hoping it will stay above forty so we can play ultimate tomorrow night.

 I needed to make a Sam's and Walmart run after lunch, but had to wait till Josh could go to the bank because I'd run him out of petty cash.  Waiting for him to get back, I put in the Sysco order and wrote out a chore list for the girls.  As soon as he got back, I signed myself out, gave the girls instructions for the afternoon, and took off.  It was nice to be out and I didn't hit any traffic on the way back so I was even back in time to help with dinner.  And I skipped out on dinner cleanup to go to my first (of many!) choir practice.

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Real gold fears no fire.

With EXCEL starting today, we're back up to ninety people and a 7:00 to 7:00 schedule.  Even though everything was going well today, I found myself in a bad mood this afternoon.  Waking up late today gave me a little more sleep, and taking a nap after lunch took the edge off my tiredness, though I had to get up before I was ready.  But later in the afternoon, I heard a rumor about myself that made me laugh and put me in much better spirits for the rest of the day.  Apparently, I have a beau who is going to be sending me chocolate for Valentines' Day. ♥

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Real gold fears no fire.

 One of Katie Dorman's favorite foods is tres leches cake.  As soon as I found this out, the day after I got here, I wanted to make it for her sometime.  Now, I've never made tres leches before.  I've never even eaten it.  But I did today.  I saw the recipe in my new cookbook over the weekend and determined that it needed to be on the menu before we have 90 people in the building.  I had to wait till the order came in to start because we didn't have the eggs we needed, just the leftover egg whites that had been saved for the purpose of making tres leches.  In spite of the fact that it involved beating egg whites, it turned out very well.  Katie was very pleased, and Esther said she'd never had better tres leches, even where people are supposed to know how to make it.

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Real gold fears no fire.

Folding Party

 Today was the big after conference laundry day, so all the girls got together after dinner cleanup to fold and watch a movie.  Piles of sheets became stacks of fitted, flat, king, full, twin, and pillowcases as fifteen pairs of hands folded and fifteen pairs of eyes watched "Love's Enduring Promise".  We paused the movie partway through to put away the sheets so we could actually sit on the couches and chairs, and took advantage of the break to finish off some sheet cake.  How fitting.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 My first conference is successfully over.  Since last posting, I've been to the farmers' market twice, taken a scenic drive in downtown Dallas (due to a wrong turn coming back from the market the first time), served fifteen meals/snacks, worked 33 hours, and cried from sheer exhaustion.  Tonight we ordered pizza and watched "On the Road with 16 Children".

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Real gold fears no fire.

Tomorrow is the first day of the conference.  People are starting to arrive and the pace is picking up.  We woke up to snow on the ground and it was just cold enough that it didn't melt and ice over before I had to go to Walmart this morning.  So my second time driving a fifteen passenger van was my first time driving in snow/slush.  The day was full enough to keep the girls busy in the kitchen and me in my office.  I pulled out recipes for the weekend, put in a Sysco order, and  finally got next week's menu typed.  And now, my room is calling.

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Real gold fears no fire.

Two skirts was the order of the day.  I came down to breakfast with one and went right back up after breakfast for another one.  It was that cold.  In the building.  It didn't seem as cold outside when Mr. Bell and I went to Sam's later in the afternoon.  We needed to get me a credit card so I won't be having to carry a wad of cash when I go get supplies.  So I will have a credit card in 7-10 business days.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 Today was so cold!  My room has its own heater so it was okay, and the kitchen wasn't so bad with the oven on (as long as we stayed out of the freezer), but my office was freezing.  Spending most of the day in my office planning menus and ordering and looking up recipes, I was having a lot of trouble typing.  Mr. Bell had been planning to take me out to Sam's today to get my card, but we postponed it till tomorrow.  Tomorrow is my morning off!  I get to sleep in until...6:30.

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Real gold fears no fire.

Driving

 Today I went for a drive with Mr. Bell to run an errand so he could see whether or not he needs to worry when I'm on the road doing my own errands.  His conclusion was that he wouldn't need to worry about me.  He says he can usually tell about a driver in five minutes and commented that I wasn't a tentative driver.  We had a nice drive out to Albertsons and I told him that Dad and I always used to go to Albertsons and park in the same parking spot.  I got to exercise my new driving privileges later in the afternoon to take Josh to the bank.  As compensation for taking him, he bought me a Starbucks.  I ordered an iced tall passion tea lemonade with two pumps of melon and two pumps of valencia (thank you Evan, for the suggestion).  I love driving.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 I had a very non-stressful afternoon working in my office and making cookies.  This week Mrs. Bell gave the rest of the staff the option to take care of a meal before we get too many people.  Amy voluneered for tonight, Rachel has tomorrow lunch, and Mrs. Martinez will make dinner tomorrow so I didn't even have to think about cooking today.  The cookies were so I didn't get too used to it.

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Real gold fears no fire.

 By Sunday night my room had been ordered and was at its best.  Come Monday afternoon, though, my office desk was heavy with menus, worksheets, forms, ads, notes, lists, catalogs, and recipes.  It took no time at all to accumulate, but all day to clear.  I breathed a sigh every time I could file something or throw it away.

 In the four hours between when I wanted to go up to my room and when I actually made it, I ate dinner, cleaned up, did computer stuff, and watched the first half of the Buckeye/Gator game.  I see this morning that I didn't miss anything I really wanted to see.  The Gators played an excellent game.  Too bad I wasn't rooting for them.  I should have stopped watching after the first play.

 After my long day yesterday, I was envisioning being miserable and dog-tired the rest of the year.  Today has been a lot better.  I think once all the one-time things are taken care of I'll be able to catch up and work ahead of schedule instead of under the wire.  Having short-term staff coming in tomorrow will allow me to delegate so I won't be having to juggle two things that need to be done at the same time.  This week is my only chance to get ahead.  After this weekend...no breathing till May!

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Real gold fears no fire.

Settling In

 My room is a mess.  All three of my bags are sitting on the floor, open, the floor is littered with things that have come out while I was looking for other things, my desk is covered with things I haven't had a chance to put away, and all other surfaces are similarly draped.  At least my bathroom is orderly.

 Yesterday was spent hearing what Mr. Bell's goals are for the coming year, taking down Christmas decorations, going out to dinner at Spaghetti Warehouse, and having a campfire at the park.  Today after brunch a few of us helped Mrs. Bell with a project and tonight we are watching a movie on the wall.  I'm hoping to get my room put together some before dinner and finish tomorrow afternoon.  I must go.  If I'm not my own taskmaster, the clock will be.

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Real gold fears no fire.