Thursday 5 April 2018

It's been an interesting few days!

I'd spent the afternoon with my client.

As we sat talking, I told her self-deprecating stories and made her laugh! It's difficult as your friends pass away, your siblings, as well are either sick, or gone. Her loving family just warms my heart. Yesterday would have been my late mother's birthday. My client is one year older. I get as much as I give.

She is sharp. She always asks what I plan for dinner. We had leftover ham from Easter, I told her.

As a homemaker, she always had big meals to prepare, with home made bread, and donuts that her kids loved. She had 7 kids and told me she was tired of spending so much time just watching food cook! She is so funny! But she is right!

Because my visits are sometimes emotionally draining, we'll often bring in Asian Fusion meals from our take-out place, as hubby also volunteers Tuesday mornings. I like cooking, though. The chopping, dicing, fresh smells, usually sipping wine, listening to the rush hour traffic reports with glee! (My last Ottawa teaching job required me to drive 5 km and go through 15 traffic lights to work! Some days it took a half hour! )

As we chatted, it came to me: I had a butter chicken recipe I'd adapted for hubby (who cannot have dairy, yeast or eggs) and I could integrate the ham into it. I had to substitute butter for olive oil, and coconut milk for cream.

Quick Butter Chicken from Marilyn Denis became Quick Ham Curry with linguine! The leftovers were great, too. Whew. Another successful meal.


My orchid cactus is doing so well, despite Hooper trying to eat it.





In the meantime, the other day JB spotted a vulture sitting on the top of the building they are deconstructing. You can read about the Darou Farmhouse here.




Then, there was our storm of the past two days. We had about an inch of precipitation (24 mm): rain, snow, sleet and hail. Not in that order. I collected and melted it.

There were wild, wild winds! Many had power go out, I collected a few images here. We were good. I kept the fire going. Hooper went out and played in the shed, looking for mice friends. He's a challenge!

By the afternoon, more snow, more wind. 
And more wind... at 6:00 p.m. 83,600 without power.

You could see the lightning, at Lightning Maps, which was incredible.

It was a mess from the US to Quebec, and it is headed further east.

10 comments:

Yamini MacLean said...

Hari OM
Snow here too. Hey ho... Liked your little bits of this and that, a post put together like a tasty meal &*> (anything with coconut is good in my book!) YAM xx

Nancy J said...

That is a massive area of storm. Your client, I am sure they all really look forward to and so lap up your time with them. This is so valuable, and where would they live without you to cheer up a day or two? Hooper, please learn to leave the mice outside!!!

Karen said...

That was one crazy storm. It was a blizzard around my place. We are sitting right under that little *12* outage marker. Power outages happen too frequently out here so we have a generator and jugs of water always on standby. When JJ forecasts a storm we fill buckets in the bathroom for flushes. After 30 years here in the Valley a person learns these lessons.

William Kendall said...

Hooper can be a handful!

We got the snow, and then last evening heading home, the wind was really gusting out of the north. I wondered at one point if it was going to keep me in place crossing a bridge.

Christine said...

I love hearing stories from older people. Your food looks delicious! That was some windstorm yesterday.

Red said...

Spring storms can be nasty.

Olga said...

Weather reports froom the north country are not making me want to head back.

I often enjoy creations made from leftovers more than the original meal. My daughter did once say. "mom, your leftovers are better than my first overs."

Powell River Books said...

We have a good friend who had his colon cancer return after many years of remission. At first he didn't tell anyone, even his wife who never really recovered from bypass surgery four years ago. For over a month he hasn't wanted visitors, but he just sent an email saying we can come by "at our convenience." I'll be going tomorrow or Saturday, whichever day he chooses. He has been his wife's caregiver ever since her surgery, and now he is very ill himself. I'm not sure what the future holds for both of them or if there are any services they can obtain in our small town for home care. I'd hate to see them get split up in nursing home care. That happens a lot around here. - Margy

Jenn Jilks said...

Margy: That's so sad, isn't it? I hope things sort themselves out for them. It's the most difficult in small towns.

Anvilcloud said...

Nothing particularly good in the long term (14 day) forecast either.