July 4 Weekend, 2013

There ought to be a special place in lawyer hell for lawyers who file motions whose answer is due right smack dab in middle of what is a long weekend for most people, my wife included.  Having said that, I spent a good portion of the day July 4 sitting on the deck in front of a laptop answering a frivolous, knee jerk, "I object to everything" motion. Granted, I got to work in shorts and flip flops, but I was still working.

Friday, we bummed around.  We had a late breakfast at IHOP and I needed to go to the pharmacy.  Sheila had managed to get herself infected with poison ivy again and went to the doctor's office for a shot to clear it up.  They "got her right in."  She showed up at about 9:45 and they got her a 10:45 appointment.  She got out of her "10:45 appointment" around 12:30.  Then we stopped by Name Brand Clothing for a few minutes and both walked out with a couple of items.  I got a thirty dollar pair of "wicking" golf shorts for six bucks and a forty dollar pair of Levis for Ten.Sheila bought several tops and a pair of shorts. Sheila has a thing for Ci Ci's Pizza but we don't eat there often because of the carbs and the fact that they don't really have much that I should eat.  But, this was a special occasion, a holiday.  We went to Ci Ci's and Sheila took full advantage of her opportunity.

Saturday we loafed mostly.  At least I did.  Sheila cleaned some, etc.  I called Michelle and asked if she and Robert would like to come for dinner.  When they agreed, we asked Sheila's sister Gwenda as well.  I grilled a turkey tenderloin, corn on the cob and peach halves which we served for dessert with ice cream.  Little Ben Bob didn't feel well.  He fussed quite a bit and then slept right through everything on our bed.  I let Robert and Michelle sample what was left of my home made

wine.  Michelle didn't like it.  Too sweet.  Robert did and had a couple of glasses to prove it.

We had intended to go to the farm today and I decided against it.  Monday is a work day after a long weekend.  If we had gone to the farm we would have been gone all day, worked several hours while down there and generally came back tired.  I decided that rest was in order and that's more or less what we did.  Sheila and I cooked a Spanish omelette for breakfast.  Turkey sausage, onions, roast jalapenos and tortilla strips cooked with egg beaters, topped with cheese (at least for Sheila) and then garnished with avacodo slices.  We ate it on the deck, sipped our coffee and enjoyed the cool of the morning.  It was a pleasant experience.

About mid-morning, we experienced what I am calling the "miracle of vino blanco."  I had two partial bottles of my home made wine left.  The blend of red and apple had done well and was sweet and smooth.  That was the stuff that Mike Sala  liked and that my son-in-law Robert was drinking last night.  However, the white that was made with white grape juice and peach nectar had gone through several evolutions none of which were very good.  Yesterday, I sipped a bit of it and it had turned even harsher still and had developed an aftertaste like dirty feet.

Sheila's now dead brother in law August used to play a game with her.  He called her "Sally."  August was a Cherokee.  Not a college Cherokee but rather a roam the hills and deep woods, kill it and eat it Cherokee.  When he would kill and cook something nobody else would touch, he would call "Sally."  Sheila has always
been adventurous about her food.  She'll try anything once.  So, I thought I would prank her by getting her to take a sip of the dirty feet tasting white wine.  I did.  She did.  She said, "It tastes like white wine."  I was taken aback.  No bad faces, no spitting it out.  I asked for a sip.  Miraculously, it tasted like a good sweet white.  I soon learned why when I looked at the bottle.  Sheila had laid it on its side overnight because we ran out of room in the fridge.  On careful examination, I saw a thick scum of dead yeast and wine solids coating one side of the bottle.  With that stuff settled out, it was darn good.  I guess we had just been drinking it too "green" and hadn't given it time to mellow.  I quickly filtered it and re-bottled it.  There's a good two thirds of a bottle left and it is better than the stuff I normally buy.

Sheila has two turkey cutlets thawing.  We will have dinner in a while, watch Masterpiece Theater and call it an evening.  It has been a quiet Fourth but not a bad one.