Penny in Boots

Winter is coming...

which means it is getting cold, wet and dark around here. It makes me glad that I won't have to trek across campus much more in the near future, or stand out in the near-freezing rain waiting for the campus shuttle.

There are some lovely things about this. Baking or cooking has the welcome side effect of warming up the kitchen, and a little of the dining room. Casseroles and stews are back on the menu.  I get to pull out the quilts and afghans that languish in closets so much of the year. 

 I get to watch my dog wear boots. 

If you have never stumbled across the videos of dogs wearing boots for the first time, welcome to the internet, and allow me to assure you they are hilarious. 

Penny is small enough, and has enough chihuahua in her, that the vet recommended we get her boots for when it is cold and wet. We are not doing it because we are mean, but because we want to prevent frostbite. The fact that she is unbelievably funny while wearing them is just a happy side effect (for us). 

She is not exactly happy, but she is pretty docile while you put them on. As soon as you set her free, she is determined not to wear them anymore. The first time we put them on her, she wobbled over to a carpeted area and immediately worked them off. Ditto the second time out.

The third time out was even funnier, because she actually kept them on for a little while. She managed about 10 minutes, intermittently walking funny, just standing there  and trying to get them off.

I'm hoping eventually she stops fighting them, so she can enjoy whatever snow we get this year, and keep jogging even when it is freezing. 

Christ the King Sunday Mediation

Today is Christ the King Sunday, which is the last Sunday in the liturgical year for Christians who keep the liturgical calendar (some denominations ignore everything except Christmas, Easter and Pentecost).

This is the Sunday where we celebrate something that, in some sense, has not happened yet. Christ has triumphed over the grave, he has ascended into heaven, the gates of death and hell are broken, but we still live in a sinful world. The Kingdom of Heaven may have  broken in on the world, but we are not yet living in the new Heaven and new Earth.

Christ the King Sunday looks forward to the day that we are living in the new Heaven and the new Earth. The time when God shall dwell among us once again, when the lion shall lie down with the lamb, when the swords shall be beaten into plowshares and the faithful live in the City of God.

The life of a Christian can feel as futile as raking leaves in the fall. No matter how hard you try, you know you are always going to sin. You are never going to feed everyone. You can never bring everyone to Christ. You can never live up to your own expectations, let alone the expectations of God.

This Sunday reminds us of our goal. We are running a race, and this reminds us of the finish line. It's out there, and it will be wonderful. No more sickness, no more death, no more tears. It lets us end our year on a high note, and then we slide gently back into the hope and expectation of Advent.

~PhysicsGal

Shower Saga Update

Now that all the damage has been done, and the insurance company has finished its investigations, it is time to begin repairs. Firstly, to get our lives back and our house in order, but also to release from captivity the portion of repair money the insurance company is holding hostage until we demonstrate we are using the money for repairs and not for... I'm not sure what else we would use it for. Parachute pants?

It is turning out to be surprisingly difficult to locate a drywall person to repair our ceiling. Anyone we've been able to get a recommendation for is either too busy to take a small job, or has retired. So the search for a reputable drywaller continues. But we were able to get recessed lights put in (not technically part of the repairs, but if the ceiling had to be open, may as make the best of it) and we will get carpet installed in short order (Thanksgiving makes next week too short, but hopefully the week after). 

There is two awesome things about the recessed lights. One, I get way more light over my stove and all my food prep areas. Two, I got rid of the ugliest, most useless light fixture that was off center with the rest of the light fixtures. As a bonus, the electrician found and removed some wire that had gotten nicked, most likely during the removal of the ceiling, and was a fire hazard.

So, I have found the silver lining in  a very wet cloud.

~PhysicsGal

Penny, one year later

Wednesday marked one year since we met Penny and took her home with us. We were happy before, but we didn't know how much we were missing until she came into our lives.

Sitting in her chair. Dear Husband only thinks it's his. 

Refractive Index: Ninja Fish

It's been a while since I promised to explain the Ninja Fish, and here it is, at long last. 

This is for you, sister. Sorry I couldn't get it animated.

Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken pot pie is the pot roast of the poultry world. Everyone has their own recipe, usually based on a family recipe passed on from mom or grandma. It is comforting, warm, and homey. It can be as simple or as fancy as you want. It combines all necessary elements of a meal into one delicious dish (carb, protein, vegetable, gravy). It is a special level of awesome.

My chicken pot pie is pretty basic as far as ingredients go. Chopped or shredded chicken, carrots, peas and onions in gravy, baked under a crust. However, mine strays from tradition slightly in that instead of just sauteing my onions, I let them caramelize to a deep mahogany brown.

An Orgy of Cooking

After nearly a month of being unable to really cook, first because I was down a hand and then because of the great shower disaster, I tried to make up for at least a week of it, all this weekend. I was, in fact, so busy cooking I forgot to take pictures!

It began on Friday night, after an afternoon of joyous grocery shopping. I rubbed a bone-in/skin-on split chicken breast with a dry brine* and let it sit, uncovered, in my fridge for a few hours before roasting it on a bed of stuffing with some carrots and serving with a caesar salad as a starter, and mini desserts from Whole foods for dessert (pecan tarts for Dear Husband, cheese cake drops for me. I have perfected neither). After weeks of take out and frozen dinners, it tasted like heaven, and it had a lovely presentation to boot.