Saturday's Story

I woke up at 6:20 a.m. on Saturday, tired and cranky. I posted the Blog entry and then wandered in to make a cup of coffee.

It was 35 degrees F. (the high for today) and was either slightly foggy or lightly snowing (I couldn’t tell which).

I stripped the bed and started the weekend wash. I ate two pieces of that raisin-cinnamon bread, toasted, for my breakfast. Then I shaved, showered and got ready to face the day.

First came errands: Post Office, Meijer’s and finally Home Depot. I was home before 10:30 a.m. There was no visible snow at that time, but whatever moisture there was earlier had frozen on the parking lots, making walking treacherous!

At home, I kept my boots on and went out back to fill the squirrel feeder. Then I came back in for (hopefully) the day. I treated Caley and changed into my work clothes. I put the first load of wash into the dryer and started the second.

I had made one (well, two) impulse buys at Meijer’s: A pound of fresh strawberries (on sale) and four strawberries shortcake cakes. What else shouts “Spring” other than strawberries?

Well, maybe fresh asparagus…

Sidebar: I know, I KNOW, I could make my own shortcakes! It was an impulse buy, okay? At least I didn’t buy heavy whipping cream. I figured the sugared strawberries would do enough damage to my blood sugar!

So, after I finished the DIY show I was watching, I rinsed, stemmed them, cut each one into quarters and put them in a bowl. I sprinkled them with two tablespoons of sugar, covered them with cling wrap and stuck them in the fridge for later.

Then I went downstairs. I took the first load out of the dryer and remade the bed (except for the blanket – that was in the second load). I put the second load into the dryer and started the final load.

BTW, I finally decided to reclaim the one bath towel I used in the entry way. When it was really cold (below 0 F.) I went into the front closet for something (a warmer hat?) and discovered to my dismay you could literally feel the cold coming in from under the front door.

So, I grabbed a bath towel, rolled it up tight, secured it with rubber bands and put it against the front door to help stop the drafts. I just left it there until today. I was sure Spring was on the way (or at least reasonable temperatures) so I took it apart and it went in the third weekend wash load.

Sidebar: When it was below zero, you could also feel the cold radiating off the tiles in the main bath. I had no idea how to fix that, other than get the whole house re-insulated, the cost of which I would never, ever, recover in my lifetime.

Anyway…

I was flipping through the channels (trying to avoid working on the downstairs shower) when I came across a Bogart movie I never had seen. It was called “Dark Passage.” Unfortunately, it wasn’t the beginning of the movie, more like the middle. But I watched it anyway. I got all the laundry finished as I watched.

Then I took a nap. It was almost 5:00 p.m. when I finally woke up, so I started dinner.

I had already thawed a pound of large shrimp, so I peeled and deveined them. Then I heated a tablespoon of canola oil in my large saucepan over medium-high heat. I added three tablespoons of flour and cooked that until it was a light brown, stirring constantly with a whisk. I slowly added in 2/3 cup of chicken stock, still whisking constantly. When it was thick, I poured it into a bowl and set it aside. I wiped out the saucepan with a paper towel.

I added in another tablespoon of canola oil and set the pan on medium heat. I added in about a cup of diced onion and four ounces of chopped ham. I cooked that about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. I added a cup of chopped green peppers, 2/3 cup of celery, 1/2 teaspoon of dried thyme, three cloves of minced garlic and 1/2 pound of sliced fresh okra. I cooked that another five minutes or so, until the vegetables were almost tender.

I put the roux back in and added 1/4 cup of water, 1/2 teaspoon of ground red pepper, 1/2 teaspoon of paprika, 1/2 teaspoon of fresh ground pepper, a pinch of salt, 1/4 teaspoon of ground allspice and one 28-ounce can of diced tomatoes (drained). I brought that to a boil, reduced the heat and simmered it for 10 minutes until the vegetables were tender.

Then I stirred in the shrimp and cooked it another four minutes or so, until the shrimp were pink.

It was way too thick! I added in more chicken stock to thin it out and ate a bowl. Hmmm… it was pretty spicy, but I suppose Cajun food is spicy. I had another bowl just to make sure I liked it. When it was cool, I put the rest in the fridge.

I fired up the dishwasher. Now, I admit, it was only 3/4 full, but I was out of silverware! Note to self: Buying a big dishwasher for a one-person household was a bit silly. If the next person who owns this house has a family, they will appreciate it, but for me its overkill.

I set my watch to the computer, added an hour and walked through the house, setting all the clocks one hour ahead.

I watched TV until bedtime.