Happy Holidays to All

Not posting much, rather baking (6 diffeent cookies so far).  Got inspired by the film "Julia and Julie" and cooked a couple recipes from Mastering the Art of French Cooking.  I made a chicken with onions and fried potatoes and was it ever tasty. Easy, too.   Nostalic articles in the NY Times today about "Le Cafe des Artistes" on Manhattan's west side, and also what has happened to all the super-duper French restaurants in NYC?  What has happened everywhere?  Go to Montreal for good French cooking.  Or France, or course.

Tonight, with the first child back in the fold, we had a steak dinner with rib eyes, baked potatoes with all the accoutrements, Italian green beans, a fresh salad and wine.  Tasted really good.  I ate half a steak and that was plenty.   Looking forward to cookies.

Still need to do some shopping.  My bad!  Reading a Cynthia Riggs book (fun!) and volume II of Proust and the story stories in Quarry from Level Best Books.  It is hard to keep up with the papers and magazines much less the books.

Compared scallop recipes today with a woman at the Roche Brothers fish counter.  In the old days in Wellesley, on a day before a big holiday, the checkout line would wind all the way back to the meat counter and the store would practice queueing theory and everything moved along nicely.  They also had  a cheese labeled "local goat" and we always wondered if there was just one.  I never expected to spend such a large part of my life in Massachusetts.  

I am doing all right on the MAC, and getting the hang of things quite handily.    Poor Annie spent yesterday and part of today at the vets.  Water around her heart.  They drained it.  She did NOT say, "all is forgiven" when she got home but she was obviously much better.  Ate, drank, indulged in a little catnip.  The best present is having her better.  She is a love.

Christmas greets to everyone.

Grapeshot