Tie-Grrr

Didn't take long for me to fall behind. No excuse, really, aside from just being busy. I guess it's all about choices: sleep or write, go to work or write, go out and play or write, watch the Daily Show or write... How many times have I don't this (have we done this), waited til the last minute, or longer to do what we have to do, or worse, what we really want to do.

While I could complain about my jet lag for waking me up at 4:30am Pacific Time, I'm considering this a jump start. I have a few extra hours of nothing to do but write. Ok, I could Facebook or write, email or write, catch up on TV or write, check out DC Snowpocalypse pics or write, or try to fall back asleep or write. Well, truth is, I kinda did and none of those worked, so here I am, tied to this blog. I made a commitment, right? Write.

So today I sit in my comfy apartment in Seattle next to the sweetest and most affectionate cat ever. I've had T-Grrr since March 14, 1999 and he's witnessed so much of the evolution of my life. How could I leave this creature for so long and so often? I've only been home a week or a week and half every month the past few months and it's starting to take its toll on both of us.

At first I didn't mind so much. I had a friend who could use a place to stay and could appreciate T-Grr's super-affectionate nature. But now she's probably not going to stay as much and I hate the idea of T being home alone so much and for so long. My other friends who could have used an extra place to stay now have their own places to be. And even with a cat-sitter coming daily, 30 minutes out of the day really isn't that much time over a 3-week span. Shall I bite the bullet and have him come with me?

It's a thought, but between all the airline fees, hotel fees, vet paperwork fees and mainly just the trauma to the poor cat since I have two cities to travel to, may not be worthwhile. Well, if only I could explain the situation to T-Grrr and if only he could explain his preference to me, we could figure this out together.

Right now, he is lying across my hands and arms above the keyboard as I type this. What do you think?

Cutting those ties with my new knife skills

It's probably a little early in the month to write about cutting ties, but I just completed the Knife Skills class at Hill's Kitchen in DC's Capitol Hill and figure it's only too appropriate. Cutting, chopping, dicing, slicing area all words you'll see in any given recipe. If you cook, there's rarely any getting around working with knives (well, unless you get any of the pre-cut items from Trader Joe's like I've done -- shhhhh...) so good knife skills are really important.

One of my biggest regrets is not taking a class from Culinary Communion in Seattle, and I've vowed that while I'm traveling around so much, I would do what I can to learn about food and cooking. I've been blessed to learn about some of the regional specialties from the different cities but sometimes, you've just got to learn the basics. Plus, living in a hotel 3 weeks out of the month, I get the itch to work in a kitchen every once in a while. Luckily, I was able to score a spot at Hill's Kitchen, a gourmet's paradise both for products and education. I say luckily because every time I've tried to sign up for their Basic Knife Skills class during my limited times in DC, they've been full. (LESSON: plan far in advance, or just get on the watilst and pray.)

Prayer was answered. $40 and 2 hours later, I learned about the different knives and their functions, how to hold a knife, and the differences between slicing and chopping. Most importantly, I learned good posture and hand/finger control to ensure I don't cut myself. Embarrassingly, I also learned that many of the issues from my own kitchen have to do with the dullness of my knives, the way I store my special chef's knife (unprotected in a drawer with other objects) and that I just need to practice, practice and practice. So perhaps I'll be cutting my ties to the prechopped and prepackaged stuff from Trader Joe's and start prepping and cooking from scratch some more next time I'm home.