Quartz VS Pot

Someday, I am going to be a great cook.  Maybe.

My Nana was a great cook- everything that she made was delicious and the epitome of comfort food.  Her bread was fabulous and she was just about famous for it.  She died one morning of a burst aneurysm in her brain. . . while she was making bread.  I always have loved that she died doing what she loved. 

My Mom on the other hand, was not much of a cook.  Probably because she never had to when she was growing up.  She was good at no-bake butterscotch cookies and raspberry squares, but she didn't like cooking and just wasn't that great at it.  The good news was that my dad was decent in the kitchen and he made dinner at least 75% of the time.  I must admit that Friday was my favorite day, though.  We ALWAYS went out for dinner on Friday night.  I loved it.

Now there's me.  I can bake bread and I can cook, but I don't really enjoy it most of the time.  I am LOUSY at following a recipe (or a pattern or any other instructions, for that matter) and so my favorite celebrity cook is Rachel Ray.  I have learned a lot from her and I really appreciate her "go for it" method of cooking. When I cook RR Style, it is usually a hit with my family.

So. . . today I got the urge to cook and to use up some left overs that we had.  I didn't have any incidents while making the pasta salad although the dogs were awfully interested in the bacon.  Then I made Sampson beans which is a bunch of different cans of beans, some hamburger, and some seasonings.  Shouldn't be hard, huh.  All was well until I sat down in Ed's chair after carrying a basket into our bedroom.  I swear his chair has a dopamine injector in it.  I promptly fell asleep. . . but only for about 10-15 minutes.  I woke up and darted for the kitchen because I knew the beans were on high.  (Ed says that I only cook on high, but it's not true.  I also use off.)  I was afraid they were burned, so I pulled them off onto the counter which is made of quartz and which we were told when it was purchased that I could put hot stuff on it.  I turned around to put the pasta salad in a bowl and I jumped a mile when I heard a large "crack".  Parker heard it and came running, too.  I knew instantly that the &8%* counter had cracked.  Luckily it is a small crack and is hard to find. 

Next time I am getting concrete countertops.  And cooking lessons.

Ahhh. . . summer!

Summer has finally arrived.  It is going to be in the 80's and 90's all week.  That is welcome news to those of us who don't really enjoy the snow!  It has been a cool spring, but there is a benefit- Utah is beautiful and green.  Quite possibly the greenest I have seen over the past 16 years of living here.  That probably means we will have a lot of fires later in the summer, but I am going to enjoy it while it lasts.

The weird thing is that I haven't planted any flowers this year.  Not one.  I usually get flower baskets and seedlings for Mother's Day, but it was so darn cold that Ed didn't buy any.  I think that was wise as some people have planted two or three times!  My backyard is a jumble of color with my roses and perennials and the front yard looks awful.  I am not pleased with how the landscaping has evolved, but am too lazy to want to do much about it.

We spent the weekend at the cabin where the scrub oaks are gorgeous.  We managed to get two sides of the cabin stained a very dark brown that I love!!!!  Murphy's Law was at work, but we triumphed.  Now we just have to schedule the other two sides. . .  Ed had a load of gravel dropped off as well and I cannot believe what a difference that has made in the look of the front of the cabin.  I will post photos when we are all done.  Right now we still have two sides and a mountain of gravel to deal with.