(no subject)

[which_chick]

Went to Sandra's, got piece of furniture. It's big. It needs some work. I think it'll be fun. Went to not_your_real's house for Halloween function and arrived more or less on time, so yay me. People ate the pies. I was not entirely thrilled with how the squash pie came out but partly this was because the cornstarch is only supposed to be 1 Tbsp and not three. There's still three of flour. Anyway, I was apparently thinking of the cheesecake recipe (that's three each) when I was making the pie. I will try harder to get it right in the future. Fortunately, the pie eaters were all reasonably okay with it OR too nice to say anything... but it was not one of my better efforts. It comes out better if I actually pay attention to the recipe. Oops. I didn't have a piece of the apple, but it also all got gone and nobody said it sucked. Probably the apple pie was also okay.

I stayed overnight and scarfed extremely good pancakes for breakfast, then drove down I-95 to Baltimore for the opera. I'd like to point out that most of I-95 through Philadelphia is about a thousand million feet off the ground. It's like driving on air. I was not amused. I got to Baltimore in not horrible time so we had ample opportunity to Akbar and go to the pre-opera lecture. The opera (La Traviata, a Verdi effort on the tragic side of things) was good but the tenor was weak in spots. (Really good tenors are frequently beyond the reach of the Baltimore Opera. Theirs aren't horrible, but sometimes they get hidden underneath the weight of the orchestration.)

When I got home, I removed my (dead, as per expectations) cat Tine from the middle of the living room floor and buried him in the yard underneath the snowball bush. As it was dark when I got home, this was a burying-by-flashlight experience, not that it mattered because I couldn't see for shit anyway because everything was too blurry. He was a good boy. (Important note for friends and relatives: I DO NOT want a replacement cat for Christmas. I realize that I am difficult to buy for, but cats last a long time and I don't want an ugly one. I do not trust anyone else's judgment on the relative attractiveness of the various and sundry cat models on the market. I will select my own replacement cat in the springtime so please do not be picking a cat and presenting it to me even if it DOES seem like the perfect gift idea.)

After that, I unloaded the furniture off my truck and schlepped it into my house (by myself, because I'm talented that way -- this information added to impress the people who saw the furniture in person at the Halloween function).

Comments

[not-your-real.livejournal.com]

I'm so sorry Tine died. Thanks for keeping us updated.

The pies were both really very good. What effect did the extra cornstarch have on the squash pie? It tasted fine, but I don't know what it was supposed to taste like.

[which-chick.livejournal.com]

It wasn't a taste effect as much as a texture effect. The extra cornstarch made it more solid, heavier and slightly paste-like.

[ornery-chick.livejournal.com]

Sorry about your cat, though it sounds like his time had come. At least you don't have to create invalid-cat consommme' anymore for the poor old fellow.

Your weekend sounds pretty damn awesome, except for the cat thing. And you are abounding in newfound furniture these days, it sounds like.

[cousin-sue.livejournal.com]

Yes, the pancakes were lovely, weren't they?

Yes, I had wondered about the texture of the squash pie, as it was different from how I've made it before. But you sometimes have different expectations from mine when cooking, so I figured it was something different. The apple pie was tasty, and the crust was very good!

I also liked your mittens. I didn't get to say, as we were in the middle of The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra when you showed them to me, but I really liked the pattern.

I'm sorry about the cat, but somewhat glad that the time had come and you won't have to worry anymore. Aside from the grieving. Waiting for my own to follow suit, as we came back to find a large number of clumps of hair about the house. She's still perky though.

[sara-merry99.livejournal.com]

OH, I'm sorry about Tine! You could take one of our cats, just to keep the Less Favored Cat company until you get a new one in the spring. I think 6 months of your Cat Finishing School (and can't that be taken in more than one way) would do Zippy a world of good.

[which-chick.livejournal.com]

Tumnah is the Favorite Cat, always was. Tine was the less-preferred cat. She doesn't appear to be heartbroken about his absence, but Tine was ailing for quite a while and wasn't much company for about the last month and a half. Probably she got used to his absence gradually.

I appreciate the offer of a loaner cat, but I'm not really ready for another one just yet... that's part of the reason I'm waiting until spring.