Sunny Weekends...

Sunshine does a lot for the mood and this weekend was full of it. As much as I adore snow, there are times when it's nice to see the sun. I think there's definitely something to that Seasonal Affective Disorder in which depression sets in during the winter months. Spending some time outdoors in the sunshine does wonders for the mood.

It was a little too cold to spend too much time outside but Rory, Sookie and I had a lovely time taking walks around the neighbourhood. We took two each day: One in the morning, one in the evening. I think the pups were pleased to get out. It was a little hard going at times. Even though the sun was slowly melting the snow and ice, there were patches that were a little hard for two little dachshunds and one unsteady human to maneuver. It's not really even snow anymore- it's just snow coloured ice, much like the stuff you see on snowcones.

Yet each time we walked, there was less ice and snow. The grass, flattened and soggy, is starting to show again. The pups seem to appreciate being able to walk on the grass, wet as it is, rather than have to trundle through the snow. I can't blame them- it has to be cold on the feet.

It's been a nice weekend overall. It's the first one I've had at home in quite a few weeks which is probably why I enjoyed it so much. I love going to my parents' because I love seeing them but there's something to be said to having time in your own home to do what you want.

In my case, I took advantage of the time to cook. I now have a fancy KitchenAid stand mixer with pasta roller so today, I spent the day making ravioli. It was relaxing and fun, especially when I put my iPod on my iHome speaker set and had fun dancing while I kneaded pasta dough, made filling and, finally, put it all together in the form of cheese ravioli and butternut squash ravioli.

I even made the ricotta myself. I've seen them do it a few times on the Food Network and Mario Batali kindly provides a recipe for it in one of his cookbooks. It was ridiculously easy and twice as tasty as the stuff you buy at the store. Tonight, for dinner, I'm going to have homemade ravioli with homemade ricotta filling topped with homemade marinara sauce. It's a nice feeling to know that I've accomplished something, even if it is only making food. To me, cooking and making things in the kitchen is relaxing. The only time it's not is when it involves baking becaue I don't find that particularly relaxing. It's ok when I have time but it doesn't help that my oven isn't the best and so baking isn't as easy as I'd like. I do like to bake at my parents' house because they have a nice oven. Also, my dad likes kitchen tools and gadgets and they have almost anything you could need for a good baking experience.

I'm trying to get my kitchen like that. I'm getting there. Yesterday, I bought a fish spatula from Williams Sonoma. My good friend Saz was kind enough to give me a gift card for my birthday so I took advantage of it yesterday. I'm very excited about my spatula. I think I mentioned in my blog a while ago that I thought I might use my gift card for this and it turned out, I did.

I don't know why things like fish spatulas make me happy. It's the same content feeling as having a day where all I have planned is to make ravioli, walk puppies and relax. I think maybe that's one of the reasons I've been feeling blue: I haven't had time to just relax at home for an entire weekend.

Now the weekend is drawing to a close. The sun has set and it's dark outside. I don't know what the weather is supposed to be like this week. I did hear a rumour that more snow is on the way. I don't mind. I never mind snow. It's just nice to separate bouts of it with a little sunshine.

Sometimes, we just need a little sunshine in your life. It chases the Pootle clouds and the January blues away.

Happy Monday!

Happy Birthdays...

Today is/was my birthday. It’s been a good day so far despite falling on a Monday. I had no expectations, in all honesty. Having a birthday in January has never guaranteed a smooth, fun-filled birthday. Too many times, my birthday has fallen during a period of horrible weather and it’s been hard to get out and about. As a child, people had a hard time finding gifts to give me because my birthday falls in that period after Christmas where stores are clearing their shelves of the crap they couldn’t sell.

Still, thanks to friends and family over the years, I’ve had some good birthdays in spite of bad weather and the time of year. Thanks to Facebook, I’ve found my birthday is more acknowledged. Some people find it tacky that people use Facebook to say happy birthday. Me, I find it flattering. All those people who posted on my wall took the time to acknowledge that it was my birthday and to send me a little message. That means a lot even if it doesn’t take much time. Given that my brothers forgot my birthday this year- which isn’t really that unusual as they’re not really very good with birthdays anyway- it’s nice that friends both close and casual do take the time to look and see whose birthday it is and then take the time to send their good wishes your way.

Those Facebook messages were fun to get at work. They came throughout the day and it was nice to feel ‘special’ as I read every greeting. My coworkers were also very thoughtful. They got me a very cute birthday card with dachshunds on it which made me smile the minute I saw it. That’s the type of card that was chosen specifically for me and I appreciated it. I also appreciated my boss taking us out to lunch to celebrate. At my last job, we did birthdays very casually- always a group of us would take someone out. It was never my boss who would initiate and invite. So it was a pleasant change when my entire office acknowledge it was my ‘special’ day.

And of course, the nice thing about birthdays is that they come with gifts. I got some nice ones this year, even if they were a little unexciting. My parents gave me a drill/screwgun. It doesn’t sound exciting but having my own house requires tools and the next time I go to IKEA, putting the furniture together will be much easier. Granted, I’m sure having cool tools won’t stop me from putting it together backwards the first time as I inevitably seem to do but at least it’ll mean I can get the screws/bolts out a little more quickly when I have to dissemble it.

I also got a lovely thoughtful gift from Saz who gave me a gift card to Williams Sonoma. As a budding cook, Williams Sonoma is one of those stores I love to peruse but when it comes down to it, it’s hard to justify wanting a fish spatula/turner for $15 when there are more necessary things I should buy such as groceries and dog food. However, with a gift card, I now have the power to buy that fish spatula with zero guilt. It may seem like a weird thing to want to buy but if you watch as much Iron Chef America, Top Chef and Food Network as I do, you start to realize that there is a significant difference in spatulas and there’s a reason there’s a special one for fish. Either that, or I might buy the chef’s knife I’ve been wanting for a while. The possibilities are endless. Gift card=power. I love that.

It’s not just about the gifts, of course. It’s about having one day a year that’s yours, that makes you special. Ok, so there are other people born on that day but within your inner circle, that’s your day. It’s the one day of the year that gets to be your celebration day.

The only problem with birthdays as you get older is that they’re far less exciting than they were as a child. When you’re a child, birthdays are a big deal. I was never the type of child to want a huge birthday party. I always thought I did but when my birthday came around, the idea of having that many children around just didn’t really appeal. I much preferred the alternative- inviting my friend over to ‘tea’ and being able to have whatever we wanted.

I inevitably always wanted fishfingers and chips. That’s fish sticks and French fries to you American readers. It may sound rather an odd choice for a child but when I was a child in the UK, fish fingers and chips was the equivalent of hot dogs or pizza in the U.S. nowadays. In other words, it was child-friendly food. My mum would make chips and we’d have them with peas and fishfingers. Malt vinegar was, of course, a big player in the meal. For ‘pudding’ (translation: dessert), we’d have ice cream and jelly (translation: Jell-O) or we’d have little tea-cakes and Viscounts. Tea cakes are these cookie like things with a layer of jam with a mashmallow filling on top of that and the whole thing was encased in a thin layer of chocolate. They were my favourite. Viscounts were mint filled cookies covered with chocolate (of course) and wrapped in a foil wrapper. They were a big deal to a child because we only had them on special occasions.

That was it, really. Now I look back, I realize that even as a young ‘un, I never really wanted to do anything truly exciting for my birthday. When I got older, I got to go to a movie and/or dinner. That suited me fine. I had a surprise party my first year in college thrown by my roommate and our next door dorm neighbour. That was so much fun because I had no idea they were planning anything. A few years ago, friends took me out to a fancy steakhouse in L.A. That was a good birthday because I didn’t realize I was being taken out and it was a wonderful treat.

This year, my friend took me out to dinner. We didn’t go anywhere fancy- just the local BJ’s Brewhouse. Yet it was fun. I ordered fish tacos which, really, when you think about it isn’t a far cry from fishfingers when you stop and think about it.

It just goes to show that no matter how much you think you change, in some ways you stay the same. That’s not such a bad thing. In fact, it’s rather nice. Happy Tuesday!