Groundhog Day

I woke up early on Thursday and watched the news, waiting for the groundhog’s prediction. He did see his shadow, so we have six more weeks of winter (according to the folklore). However, if it’s the same kind of winter we’ve been having, it should be no problem.

I fired up the coffee pot I’d prepared for B___ the day before and had a couple of cups while I shot up.

As the day was still fresh, I thought I’d tackle that potato soup. I just got the potatoes cubed before my back gave out again.

The visiting nurse’s office called and asked for another inventory. I told them to call me back in 10 minutes (I didn’t want them waiting while I tried to walk into the bedroom). I got it completed by the time they called back.

I didn’t have any breakfast or lunch. I kept trying to rest and then doing a little more for the soup (i.e., I cut up about a cup of celery and then rested; I peeled two onions and then rested; I diced up about two cups of onions and then, oh, you get the idea).

I boiled the potatoes in some salted water and a whole clove of garlic while I sauteed the celery and onions in some bacon grease (I was trying to build layers of flavor).

I sat in the living room chair from 4:30 PM on, waiting for my delivery. Jake called around 6:00 PM and we exchanged stories. His were a lot more interesting than mine, of course.

The guy finally came around 7:00! He said he had a lot of traffic problems.

I mixed the drained potatoes (after I fished out the garlic) into the softened onions and celery. I added just whole milk (instead of my usual chicken stock and heavy cream) and tossed in some thyme, salt, pepper and parsley. I let that get happy while I rested up.

I pulled out some of the potatoes (maybe too many, I learned later) and, using the stick blender, creamed the rest. I added the cubed potatoes back and dished up a half of bowl. I sprinkled a little grated cheddar cheese on it and ate it, lying down (finally!)and watching TV.

The two-day soup was good. The only complaints I had were that it was too thin (I obviously took out too many potatoes or added too much milk) and it needed more salt.

I was beat, so after the soup cooled, I stuck it in the fridge. I left the mess for the morning and went to sleep.