Cabin Fever

I've been home since 1 pm yesterday, and I'm already itching to go do something. Five inches of ice kept the car doors from opening this morning; John had to throw himself into the front door to get it open so the dog could go out. Plus, periodically running water faucets for ten minutes at a time so the pipes don't burst - apparently, that's normal here. There wasn't a storm like this all of 2009. We're going on five inches of snow on top of the ice.

Now I'm one more week behind on my running schedule, since I took a few days off for my aching right Achilles tendon. The breadmaking and whiskey lying around the house aren't going to make getting back on track any easier. At least there's no chocolate around here.



The dog likes the weather. And I'm grateful we're not one of the 15,000 here in the city that don't have power.

Tuesday, with poppy seeds and sleepy cat

Poppy-seeded Bloomer: it took all day to rise, with several serious kneading times in between, and so heavy the Kitchenaid couldn't deal with it - both knuckles and wrists got a good workout from the kneading. To me, it tasted like a crusty French loaf, but John thought it was more flavorful, and denser.



New orchid buds! I'm relieved. The only other one that made the transplant from Chicago to Oklahoma City (I lost 2 out of 4 immediately) is nearly a goner, but at least one is still happy.



And our little tiger is very sleepy, here.



Oh, he sees me. But it's too much work for him to get up.

Meatballs of the week, on not-underwater subs

Homemade noodles to go with the meatballs in tomato-serrano chile sauce, which I decided to make anyway, minus the Mexican rice (we also used turkey & lean beef, rather than beef & pork). John loved the recipe, as did I - best sauce ever. I've never cooked meatballs straight in the sauce before, though, without browning them first, and we needed a bigger pot - the meatballs ended up turning into a meat sauce, hence, no pictures. Meat sauces aren't as aesthetically pleasing as a perfectly placed pile of meatballs.

The noodles must dry for an hour before they get cooked.



Also, Buddy is getting more belly spots! Apparently it happens as Dalmatians grow older.