Traipsing and turkey

My family and I spent the holiday weekend in Colonial Williamsburg.
The weather on Thanksgiving Day was absolutely superb. We got up early, and were walking down Duke of Gloucester Street by 10 AM!
We had such a good time taking in the sites.
I might have fallen in love with every house I saw...
But can you blame me?
On top of the houses, we had an excellent time observing the different tradesmen and women in action.
Our first stop was the weaver.
They showed us a variety of spinning and weaving techniques...
Along with a myriad of wheels and looms!
Further down the road we saw the Wythe House. I just loved this house!!
Across the road, we visited the Founder and Gunsmith.
While the tools for this job we a little more abstract to me...
The the fruits of their labor was quite familiar!
A couple blocks further down Duke of Gloucester Street we saw the Courthouse, originally completed in 1771.
A couple of blocks further, we had the chance to visit the Margaret Hunter Shop.
This tailor and milliner was really interesting- I really liked looking at the clothing!
The wigmaker's shop was especially interesting- when we visited, one woman was creating a wig while the other was styling one... it was great!
When we visited the apothecary, it took all my might not to jump the counter and grab a few of these jars.
And I suppose the chemist might have stopped me.
But boy, I sure love those containers!
On our visit to the printer's shop, my brother reminded me of a tidbit he had learned before I arrived. During colonial times, the printer kept the capitol letters in the top case, while the rest of the letters were kept in the bottom case... ergo, Uppercase letters and Lowercase letters.
I hadn't heard that before, and was duly impressed!
In front of the town Magazine was Market Square. We had fun checking out all the wares- from baskets and hats...
To fifes and drums!
After a wonderful afternoon spent wandering around Williamsburg, my family headed to our Thanksgiving dinner at Dudley's Farmhouse Grille in Toano, VA.
We started our wonderful meal with soup and salads- either the seasonal mixed greens, spiced pecans, dried cranberries, and shaved Parmesan Reggiano, with house balsamic vinaigrette...
The classic wedge of iceberg lettuce, served with house balsamic vinaigrette and crispy bacon pieces.
Or the crab bisque.
For an entree, my brother ordered the special of the day: a traditional turkey dinner...
My dad had the boneless breast of chicken stuffed with Portobello mushrooms, spinach, goat cheese, and sundried tomatoes with demi glace...
My mom went with Dudley’s steak au poivre: peppered New York strip steak served with a green peppercorn and cognac demi glace...
And I rounded out the evening with pan-seared black Berkshire pork tenderloin served with a mustard, cream, white wine, and chive sauce... SCRUMPTIOUS!
It sure was a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner! Thank you for joining me on our afternoon stroll through Colonial Williamsburg and holiday meal- I hope you have a great Tuesday!

Popcorn in a bag

Homemade popcorn is SO yummy!
Have you ever tried colorful popcorn? I picked up this bag of rainbow popcorn in MN, but I've also seen blue, red, and purple kernels available. Believe it or not, this stuff is the bees knees! The kernels pop into the most tender pieces of popcorn you'll ever taste!
But what if you don't have a cool hot-air-popper machine? Or you don't feel like lugging out a big soup pot and shaking it over the stove for a while? Luckily, my Dad came to the rescue... and all you need are these few ingredients:
Can you believe it? Homemade Popcorn In A Bag! Dazzle your friends- impress your in-laws- amaze your family! (I think the hawker at Coney Island rubbed off on me a bit...)

In any event, my Dad found a recipe on Alton Brown, and he generously shared it with me.

First, you take some popcorn (Alton says 1/4 cup, I say a pretty little red ramekin full), 2 tsps olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, and put it into a paper bag.
After STAPLING (yes, can you believe it?) the bag closed, throw it in the microwave for a few minutes. My microwave has one of those nifty 'popcorn' buttons, but I've found that my bags always need a few more seconds than the button allows- just an FYI! After the corn has been popped, rip the bag open and enjoy.
Doesn't this look fantastic? The bag soaks up most of the olive oil, so all that's left is YUMMY popcorn!
Mmmm... this is making me hungry! Is popcorn an okay breakfast food? Oh, and don't forget to garnish the popcorn with your favorite toppings... Salt? Butter? Cheese powder?
NOTE: Yes, I realize that I'm displaying my microwave popcorn in a gorgeous Jade-ite serving dish. But I can't help it- PW has these beauties... and my Momasita has some... and then she sent one to ME! I think it's absolutely DIVINE, and I couldn't wait to use it- I'm officially in love!
That's it for me- I hope you have a wonderful Thursday wherever you are! And, please go home and make this popcorn tonight... you won't be sorry!

Rain, rain... go away!

This is what the city looks like after weeks of rain...
Everything is gray and drab. (Though, truth be told, I would live in this building no matter WHAT the weather... isn't it fab?)
There seems to be a constant mist, that makes the view from my office window a little dreary...
I mean, I can barely make out the water towers that I love so much!
Plus it means that when I walk along the sidewalk, I have to dodge the umbrellas while at the same time trying to make sure that I don't poke out an eye with my own!
But I should find consolation in the fact that I don't have to drive in the icky weather, right?

Normally, I would agree in an instant... the subway is the BEST... except for when it acts up on me... and last night was a perfect example.(I will be referencing the subway system in a moment... if you would like a visual aid, please click here for the MTA Subway map- it may help!)

When it's time to go home, I enter the N/R/W subway line at 8th Street. But last night, after I had swiped my Metrocard and walked down to the platform, I heard an announcement that service was suspended between Canal Street and Herald Square... which affected the very station where I was waiting. Luckily, all trains were supposed to be going express from Canal to Times Square, which would avoid the problem areas. Canal is only 2 stops farther south from the 8th Street station, so I quickly ran up to street level, and re-entered on the downtown rail side. After a little discussion with the station attendant (since I had just swiped my Metrocard I wasn't supposed to be able to use it again), he let me through the turnstile and I jumped on the first southbound train. Once at Canal Street, I scurried through the passage way under the tracks to the northbound platform, only to find this:
Yep- an R train, which won't take me home. So, I did what any normal person would do- I stopped to take some pictures. (Note: Canal Street is in the heart of Chinatown, hence the figures next to the station name in the mosaic below.)And before I knew it, a W train came along... which meant that I was on my way home! Oh- and please let me explain the picture quality. It's kind of dark in certain subway stations, and you're not supposed to use a flash when a train is entering the station- it really bothers the train conductors. So, sorry about the blurriness!
Here is my beloved train, rushing by!
Here it is, slowing down... don't these new subway cars look lovely? So smooth and shiny, with hardly a trace of graffiti.
So, I boarded this lovely train... and do you know what happened? The track was fixed, and this train was the first to make local stops all evening! How's that for bad luck? I didn't mind TOO much, as I had a good book and a seat on the train, the perfect recipe for making ANY commute a breeze!

It looks like things will be a little sunnier today- I'd better take a long lunch to enjoy it! I hope you have a great Thursday!!