Lib Slack's Potatoes Au Gratin

This is my grandmother's recipe for potatoes au gratin...or as we like to say around these parts, "rotten taters".  My grandmother was a dyed-in-the-wool southern cook who last used a measuring spoon during the Depression.  She taught me to make these the same way she did...by eyeballing the ingredients.  Measure if you must, but I'm not quite sure the end results will be the same.

You will need the following ingredients:

 Potatoes, peeled and sliced

Sliced onions (yellow or white, doesn't matter)

Butter

Grated cheese (a sharp blend is best)

Milk

Flour

Salt & Pepper

Your first step is to peel and slice the potatoes and the onions and to grate the cheese.  Once you have done this and have assembled your ingredients and your casserole dishes you're ready to put it all together.

 Grease the inside of the casserole dish.  I normally make at least one large and then prepare a smaller casserole dish in case there are extra ingredients.

 This sweet little casserole dish is from Whynot Pottery and is the perfect size for two. 

 Layer the ingredients.  Start with a layer of potatoes.

 Add some of the sliced onions.

 Next dot the potatoes and onions with a little butter.

 Sprinkle a little flour, salt and pepper over the mixture.

 Next, sprinkle grated cheese on top.  Don't make it too thick.  Some of the other ingredients should peek through.  You will be using lots of cheese in the entire dish, so don't put an excessive amount on each layer.  The end result will be plenty cheesy.

 End with a sprinkling of cheese.

The last step is to pour milk over the top, so it drips down between the layers.  Use enough to come 1/3 to 1/2 way up the layered ingredients.  I use 1 percent.  You can use skim, 2 percent or whole milk, whichever is your preference.  Don't use something heavy like 1/2 & 1/2 or cream.  I've tried that and it doesn't improve the taste. 

I did have enough to make a small casserole full...which delights my significant other.  That means he'll have leftovers when the guests are gone.

Cover with casserole lid and bake at 350 degrees for at least an hour.  Test to make sure the potatoes are soft and cooked through.  If the dish gets too soupy you can pour off some of the liquid...just be sure not to toss your potatoes into the sink!  Remove the top of the casserole dish and let the top brown towards the end of cooking.  Depending on the depth of the dish (and sometimes the alignment of the stars or so it seems) I will cook it for up to 1.5 hours.  Just do whatever it takes to get it done and nicely browned on top.

This is the finished result.

I normally serve these with a ham dinner.  I make them at least twice a year, but not too more often...they're quite rich and best used as an occasional treat.

Hope you enjoy some of your own.

Happy Feasting.

Dick Cavett - rediscovered

What a treat today to find Dick Cavett as a story on CBS Sunday Morning.  I have often wondered what happened to one of the brightest interviewers of our time.  He is still around, still smart and still contributing to intelligent discourse.  Turns out he is one of many bloggers for the New York Times' Opinionator Blog site.  I particularly enjoyed his take on the Quitta from Wasilla.  Enjoy: http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/11/14/the-wild-wordsmith-of-wasilla/?scp=1&sq=Opinionator%20+%20Dick%20Cavett%20+%20Sarah%20Palin&st=cse
Dick, I can promise you I'll be back to catch up on your writings.  It's like reconnecting with an old friend.

Wednesday...a poem



• I can’t wait for Wednesday and the silence of the phone.
• No incessant ringing and the politicians’ drone.
• I’ll be unencumbered by the shrieking of the ads
• That play on t.v. and on radio; they’re driving me quite mad.
• I will treasure all the silence; I will revel in the quiet
• I can’t wait for the non-ringing, yes I really want to try it.
• I will thank the stars above for bringing to an end
• Yet another endless cycle of the politicians ginned-
• Up promises of votes they’ll make on issues big and small
• That they tell us will improve the lives of not just one but all.
• So bring on the silent Wednesday, and give my ears a rest.
• Then take the promises that each has voiced and put them to the test.

Taking the Waters

A couple of hours west of Charlottesville, hard up against the West Virginia line, is Bath County.  In Bath County you will find two little side-by-side towns, Warm Springs and Hot Springs.  Both names are quite descriptive because, well, they have them...springs.  Warm ones.  Not only are they warm springs but they're warm HISTORIC springs.  To wit, the one and only Thomas Jefferson soaked in these very waters in the 1800's.

At the Jefferson Pools you will find two wooden, octagonal structures, each housing a pool of spring fed warm water.  98 degrees of warm, slightly sulphuric smelling mineral water and it feels divine. 

My friend Pat, her daughter and my daughter (also old friends of ten years' standing) took off for what we hoped would be the cool of the mountains around mid-morning.  We drove through some scenic Va countryside and ended up at the pools just before 1.  We went in, paid our fee, and were rewarded with an hours' soak in that lovely mineral water. 

I had been up that way before with another friend a few years before.  The Jefferson Pools must have fallen on hard times since then, though, because they were more than a little down at the heels.  What used to be quaint and rustic is now close to falling down around our ears.  The facility is now owned by the far more elaborate Homestead and I do hope they have plans to improve the condition of the baths, what with the mold, the rotting boards and the general state of disrepair.  These places have the potential to be quaint and charming, but look like they are barely going to hold up for the next hour.

After "taking the waters" - or so it was called in Jefferson's time - we drove down into town and found The Homestead in all her glory.  We found parking and went on a brief tour. Then we availed ourselves of some pleasant alcove in the lobby and proceeded to partake of afternoon tea...served daily at 3:00 p.m.  It was a lovely interlude. 

After tea we were back on the road and made our way over to Staunton.  We found a nice little restaurant housed in an old mill.  We were attracted by their advertisement of the best ribs in town.  They weren't kidding.  Those things were quite tasty.  Come on over and I'll give you a ta...  oops.  Can't.  I ate them all and they were delish.

After a great and relaxing day there is only one thing left to do.  Night all.  I'm going to bed.

Cleaning up e-Mail

After five years of neglect I've decided to clean up my email inbox.  I have found a few little "gems" from years gone by.  This is a particular favorite.  My female friends may well be able to relate.  Hope you're as amused as I was.

This is purported to be an actual letter from an Austin woman sent to Proctor and Gamble regarding their feminine products She really gets rolling after the first paragraph. It's supposed to be PC Magazine's 2007 editors' choice for best webmail-award-winning letter.
Dear Mr. Thatcher,
I have been a loyal user of your 'Always' maxi pads for over 20 years and I appreciate many of their features. Why, without the LeakGuard Core or Dri-Weave absorbency, I'd probably never go horseback riding or salsa dancing, and I'd certainly steer clear of running up and down the beach in tight, white shorts. But my favorite feature has to be your revolutionary Flexi-Wings. Kudos on being the only company smart enough to realize how crucial it is that maxi pads be aerodynamic. I can't tell you how safe and secure I feel each month knowing there's a little F-16 in my pants.
Have you ever had a menstrual period, Mr. Thatcher? Ever suffered from the curse'? I'm guessing you haven't. Well, my time of the month is starting right now. As I type, I can already feel hormonal forces violently surging through my body. Just a few minutes from now, my body will adjust and I'll be transformed into what my husband likes to call 'an inbred hillbilly with knife skills.' Isn't the human body amazing?
As Brand Manager in the Feminine-Hygiene Division, you've no doubt seen quite a bit of research on what exactly happens during your customers monthly visits from 'Aunt Flo'. Therefore, you must know about the bloating, puffiness, and cramping we endure, and about our intense mood swings, crying jags, and out-of-control behavior. You surely realize it's a tough time for most women. In fact, only last week, my friend Jennifer fought the violent urge to shove her boyfriend's testicles into a George Foreman Grill just because he told her he thought Grey's Anatomy was written by drunken chimps. Crazy!

The point is, sir, you of all people must realize that America is just crawling with homicidal maniacs in Capri pants...which brings me to the reason for my letter. Last month, while in the throes of cramping so painful I wanted to reach inside my body and yank out my uterus, I opened an Always maxi-pad, and there, printed on the adhesive backing, were these words: 'Have a Happy Period.'
Are you kidding me? What I mean is, does any part of your tiny middle-manager brain really think happiness - actual smiling, laughing happiness is possible during a menstrual period? Did anything mentioned above sound the least bit pleasurable? Well, did it, James? FYI, unless you're some kind of sick S&M freak girl, there will never be anything 'happy' about a day in which you have to jack yourself up on Motrin and Kahlua and lock yourself in your house just so you don't march down to the local Walgreen's armed with a hunting rifle and a sketchy plan to end your life in a blaze of glory.
For the love of God, pull your head out, man! If you just have to slap a moronic message on a maxi pad, wouldn't it make more sense to say something that's actually pertinent, like 'Put down the Hammer' or 'Vehicular Manslaughter is Wrong', or are you just picking on us?
Sir, please inform your Accounting Department that, effective immediately, there will be an $8 drop in monthly profits, for I have chosen to take my maxi-pad business elsewhere. And though I will certainly miss your Flex-Wings, I will not for one minute miss your brand of condescending bull shit. And that's a promise I will keep. Always.
Best,
Wendi Aarons
Austin , TX

Wild Things...

Here's to living on the wild side.  After a full day of work the mister and I went out for some wild and raucus music last night.  Local boys gone (somewhat big) Sons of Bill played the Jefferson Theater.  They're a country rock group with emphasis on the rock.  A little hard to pin down they play what they write and what they like.  We have another connection with them other than just the fact that they're locals.  Our daughter attended high school with the lead singer.  She rode one of those big yellow school buses with him to Western and she said he pretty much sat in the back like a slacker.  Now we know...he was just busy composing music and working on his plan for fame.  Who knew?

We enjoyed the evening and very much enjoyed getting to see the inside of the Jefferson Theater.  the JT is a turn-of-the-century movie house which was purchased and renovated by local music manager guru Coran  Capshaw (who saw early on the talent in another local band, DMB and developed them).  It looks good and the fact that they took an old movie house and turned it into a great place to hear music at a reasonable price is a bonus in my book.  (Who does $15 tickets??)

Anyhow, it was a fun night and the mister and I enjoyed an adult beverage, some good tunes and made it all the way until after midnight!  However, embarrassingly enough we were too tired to outlast the 88 year old grandpa of the bass player who was sitting in his wheelchair at a table right next to us.  Boy, what does that say about our stamina?  Yours in wimpiness...I think I need a nap.

We Are All Hokies 4-16-07

In Remembrance

• Ross A. Alameddine
• Christopher James Bishop
• Brian R. Bluhm
• Ryan Christopher Clark
• Austin Michelle Cloyd
• Jocelyne Couture-Nowak
• Kevin P. Granata 
• Matthew Gregory Gwaltney
• Caitlin Millar Hammaren
• Jeremy Michael Herbstritt
• Rachael Elizabeth Hill
• Emily Jane Hilscher
• Jarrett Lee Lane
• Matthew Joseph La Porte
• Henry J. Lee
• Liviu Librescu
• G.V. Loganathan
• Parthi Mamora Halomoan Lumbantoruan
• Lauren Ashley McCain
• Daniel Patrick O’Neil
• Juan Ramon Ortiz-Ortiz
• Minal Hiralal Panchal
• Daniel Alejandro Perez Cueva
• Erin Nicole Peterson
• Michael Steven Pohle, Jr.
• Julia Kathleen Pryde
• Mary Karen Read
• Reema Joseph Samaha
• Waleed Mohamed Shaalan
• Leslie Geraldine Sherman
• Maxine Shelly Turner
• Nicole Regina White

We are Virginia Tech
We are sad today, and we will be sad for quite a while. We are not moving on, we are embracing our mourning.
We are Virginia Tech.
We are strong enough to stand tall tearlessly, we are brave enough to bend to cry, and we are sad enough to know that we must laugh again.
We are Virginia Tech.
We do not understand this tragedy. We know we did nothing to deserve it, but neither does a child in Africa dying of AIDS, neither do the invisible children walking the night away to avoid being captured by the rogue army, neither does the baby elephant watching his community being devastated for ivory, neither does the Mexican child looking for fresh water, neither does the Appalachian infant killed in the middle of the night in his crib in the home his father built with his own hands being run over by a boulder because the land was destabilized. No one deserves a tragedy.
We are Virginia Tech.
The Hokie Nation embraces our own and reaches out with open heart and hands to those who offer their hearts and minds. We are strong, and brave, and innocent, and unafraid. We are better than we think and not quite what we want to be. We are alive to the imaginations and the possibilities. We will continue to invent the future through our blood and tears and through all our sadness.
We are the Hokies.
We will prevail.
We will prevail.
We will prevail.
We are Virginia Tech.
~Nikki Giovanni

Gardening

Gardening

I spend a good deal of my life gardening but the flower beds around my house don't necessarily reflect it.  My gardening is not performed in the traditional sense.  My gardenening is more of a mental activity.  I do not have a lush rainforest pictured in my mind to which I retreat in times of stress.  The gardening I do is with ideas.  You see, I am not a pushy or confrontational person.  I am more on the quiet side especially if I don't know you particularly well.  Nope, when it comes to making suggestions or trying to convince someone of something I am more of a gardener.  I plant the seed of an idea.  Then periodically I return to that idea with the person in whose mind I've planted it and I water a little.  Sometimes I come back and fertilize the seed a little bit.  Over time I find out whether or not the idea has blossomed into an action or if it is destined to die on the vine before coming to fruition.  There are some folks who will never embrace a new idea, move in a new direction or come to embrace a new opinion unless nudged.  They won't accept that idea unless and until they think it's their idea, not yours.  So, I garden.  Sometimes that turns into a beautiful thing.

Done At Last!

When last I posted, dear reader, I was just beginning my gathering of information for the taxes.  I JUST finished my part and have given the form (from the accountant, thank you Jeeeezus) to dear husband so he can enter his info (of which there is little, since his office manager prepares the business info to send in).  I always feel such a sense of relief when all's said and done.  I wonder why I drag my feet and torture myself with this every single year.  I also VOW every year to be more organized in future.  O.K....some of the organization is improving. I actually have a file in which I keep MOST of my tax files.  Notice the most in capital letters...I still haven't quite got the hang of the 100% thing.  Oh, well.  Done and free at last.  Now I can have a guilt free weekend. 

Happy Easter to me.  This is better than a box of Peeps!

Tax Dodging

Tax Dodging

Yeah, yeah, yeah...it's not what you're thinking.  No, I'm not plotting some way to avoid paying taxes.  I'm not a huge corporation with friends in Washington after all.  I'm merely referring to my annual dodging of the hunt for the various and sundry official documents, receipts, crumpled post-it-notes and miscellanea that comprise my personal tax filing system.  Yeah, I have a small file that holds all things tax related over the course of the year...when I can remember to put the papers and such in there and when I can find it under the usual flotsam and jetsam of my "office" but as always there are bits and pieces that get away and I end up spending an inordinate amount of time searching for those bits. 

Every year I swear I'm going to do my taxes as soon as I get my W-2's, and every year I put it off as long as possible...like until DH starts bugging me to get the info to him so he can get it to the accountant.  Yes, I said accountant and can I just confess here and now how relieved I am that we FINALLY have one?  Did I mention that I was the accountant for the first 20-some years of our marriage?  Me?  The one in the family who can't "borrow" and "carry" without having to first remove her shoes? 

So, having set aside 3 of the last 4 weekends for at least starting to gather all my "stuff" so I can see what's missing I guess I need to bite the bullet and begin.  (I was out of town for the one weekend that I hadn't dedicated to taxes.)  Notice how I decided to do a blog entry after more than a month's hiatus INSTEAD of getting the taxes out?  Yep, I'm that dedicated a procrastinator.  Gosh, if I had the same dedication to completing the taxes as I have to avoiding them, then life would be sooo much better.

O.K.  Off to get the file and the calculator.  Sigh.  Have I mentioned that I hate this??  Maybe next time I'll offer my sister that I'll go get her root canal - without anesthesia - if she'll do my tax prep.  She's much better with numbers, after all. 

Pencil sharpener, here I come.

In Case You Were Wondering About the 5 Second Rule...

For those of you who may have been wondering about that all important 5 second rule, here is a flow chart to help you with your decision making.

And now here is an article to further clarify the rules.  Read it and rejoice...for you may be able to salvage more than you thought.  http://blog.syracuse.com/healthfitness/2007/05/change_5second_rule_to_30secon.html

Happy New Year

Don't know about you guys but I am delighted to see 2009 in the rearview mirror.  It was a pretty crappy year for us, primarily because of losing someone we loved dearly, John's mom.  We also lost our adorable 11 year old "puppy", Champ.  He was a great dog even though having him was a lot like owning a perpetual toddler.  His enthusiasm was part of what made him so fun, though. 

In addition to losing family members, the physician community at Martha Jefferson Hospital lost two great docs this year to accidents.  The first, Jim Knight, was my doctor when I first graduated from UVA.  A well respected and beloved internist, he fell from a ladder while trimming branches at his church, First Presbyterian, and died back in June.  Just last month one of the private practice surgeons, Latham Murray, died in a tragic accidental drowning over Thanksgiving weekend.  It was a shock to everyone.  He was one of 8 sons of parents who are still living at 92 years old.  They're a well established local family who give generously of themselves and of their resources to the community and to the University.  The brothers hand made a coffin for Latham.  He was a father of five, loving husband, and a repected surgeon.  He has been sorely missed.

We have had many good things happen this year as well...it's just that they're a little overshadowed by the intensity of the deaths we've experienced. 

I found gainful employment again and at a place I really enjoy working.  Although it's only part time it's still interesting and provides me with challenges.  Christine has returned home and is working at a local vet, getting more experience under her belt as she ponders her next career move.  John's schedule is busier.  Although he lost his long-standing Office Manager he was able to replace her relatively quickly and with someone who is a real go-getter, so we have hopes that she will be able to learn quickly.  I am also working part time at his office doing some medical billing, fighting the good fight with insurance companies, and making bank deposits. 

We miss those who are gone for good, but we focus on those who are here and who are near and dear to our hearts.  We have hopes that our economy will continue to improve (in the hopes that we MIGHT be able to retire one day).  We give thanks for being in relatively good health for a couple of half-centenarians-plus.  We wish good judgment on our elected officials that they might make wise decisions to move this country  forward and to strengthen it.  We wish all of our family and friends a happy and healthy 2010 and look forward to our next decade of adventures.