Washing Pots?

Let's take a vote. Let's say you used your biggest pot to cook pasta. You didn't put salt or oil or anything into it, just water and dried pasta. Once you're finished, do you need to wash the pot? Keep in mind the pot won't fit in the dishwasher, the next thng you cook in the pot is likely going to be the exact same thing, it looks clean, and handwashing dishes is probably going to be the death of you.

I may or may not have just rinsed the pot out with hot water and called it a day. Is this disgusting or kind of genius?

Blackberry Picking

We met some friends at a farm on Sunday to pick fruit. Turns out we were about a week too late for blueberries and a week too early for peaches. Fortunately, we were there at just the right time for blackberries. Chuk and I picked over eight pounds of the biggest blackberries I've ever seen. Yum.

I'm Still a Cheap Date

I always like spending time with my husband, but I like it even more when our dates are cheap. (Remember this and this?) Yesterday, I had a case of the blahs so I convinced Chuk we should celebrate 7/7/11 by going to 7-11. Cost of a shared slurpee was less than $3, but the experience was worth much more. And dang, I had forgotten how yummy slurpees are. Just the thing to beat the heat. I have a feeling we'll be back again. We're within walking distance of two 7-11s.

Band Meeting

This morning, over breakfast, Chuk and I hammered out band names. If he ever has a band, he's going to name it Waning Gibbous after one of the phases of the moon, you know, because he's a nerd. If I ever have a band, I'm going to name it Playlist, because I'm cool and it would be all ironic and stuff to have a Playlist playlist.

I'm really glad we got that all figured out since neither of us plays an instument or sings, so there's a super high probability that we'll need to have band names ready to go at a moment's notice. What do you talk about at breakfast? I hope you're as random as we are.

All this talk of awesome bands has me thinking of a particular awesome band that I miss.

Pasta Salad

Summer cooking, for me, is mostly about figuring out what we can eat that doesn't actually involve cooking. Virginia is hot as Hades in the summer and I do what I can to avoid turning on the stove, and especially the oven. Pasta salad is a frequent go-to meal for us during the hot months.

Pasta Salad

1 lb. short pasta, cooked and drained
1 bell pepper, diced
1 cup chopped green onions
1 cup of corn
1 can sliced olives, drained
2 6oz. cans of wild Alaskan salmon*
vinaigrette (bottled or homemade)

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl and refrigerate for at least four hours before serving, but it tastes better the longer it sits.

Other tasty additions to this salad are grated carrots, hearts of palm, tomatoes, raw baby spinach, and artichoke hearts.

*To make this salad vegan, substitute one can of drained and rinsed chick peas for the canned salmon. It's just as delicious, cheaper, and still a complete meal.

Celebrating Independence Day

One of the great benefits of Chuk's job is that on the fourth of July we can go on his building's roof and watch the national fireworks show only two blocks from where they're set off. But because Chuk had to work both days this weekend and had to work again today, he didn't really want to fight the crowds on Metro and then hang around in the heat for hours. Plus, I think he was just getting sick of being in that building. So, at the last minute we sent out an email to five of our friends and neighbors asking if they'd be interested in doing a potluck.

To our surprise, nobody had plans and everybody was into the idea of a cookout. We set up our little charcoal grill in the parking lot of our building and stood around talking, drinking and cooking, like a trashy tailgating party.

We grilled corn on the cob, cheeseburgers, Copper River salmon, two kinds of German bratwursts, and chicken kabobs. We had tossed salad, watermelon and potato on the side and then brownies and berries with poundcake for dessert. All that food for only seven people! It was good.

So there were no fireworks for us, but there was lot of food and friends and laughs, so it was still a pretty great holiday. What did you do?

Perfect (and Less Than Perfect) Saturdays

Last Saturday was wonderful. Chuk made me brunch.

It was a beautiful day, a rarity during a Virginia summer.

Because it wasn't too hot or humid, Chuk suggested we go down to the river and feed the birds.

There were a lot of birds: geese, ducks, and songbirds.

It was a lovely, peaceful afternoon. Then, in the evening, we met a friend and his parents for dinner and a walk through Old Town, and we ended up, once again, down by the river. It was an idyllic Saturday.

This Saturday is less than perfect. My poor Chuk has to work today and tomorrow, so I'll be spending the day catching up with my DVR and the laundry that needs to be folded. If it can't be perfect, at least it can be productive.