Not Quite Hell Frozen Over … But Close …

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new kitchen counter set up 2
Vitamix 7500 with broccoli soup 2
pouring cream of broccoli
Tortilla Soup and empanadas
Empanada filling 3
Hungarian Meatballs 2

The cold snap continues … not only here in Southern Ontario but all over Canada and the U.S. as well – records are being broken every where … but, you know, I don’t mind at all 😊 It reminds me of growing up in Quebec in the early ‘60’s – snow and cold started in October and lasted until the beginning of April – the temperature was constant, the roads were drivable (for the most part stayed frozen but not icy) and you didn’t get sick all the time because the temperature kept going from cold to warm and back to cold again. Apart from allergies I haven’t had a single cold / flu this winter!! 😊 … And Doug the Dog loves the cold … he goes out in the back yard and just lies in the snow, doesn’t appear to feel the cold!! But COVID continues … The lockdown stay at home is coming to an end here in Ontario – down to the Red Level here  in London - … non-essential businesses can open (with reduced capacity) and social / public gatherings can have more people attend. However, the government can put us back into lockdown if the numbers start rising again. The delivery of  vaccines from Pfizer / Moderna are going to get back to normal this week as well – still on track to get 4 million doses by the end of April 😊 Speaking of governments … the Senate Trial of Donald Trump went on as expected … not guilty … republicans too scared to throw him under the bus … well, hope that doesn’t lead on to another nightmare in the next elections in 2024 … but at least 7 republicans voted to convict, so might be a little hope for their party yet. Okay, on to food … the Vitamix 7500 arrived!! … we had to rearrange the kitchen counters last week … moved the cookbooks and  mixers around to make it  easier to get around 😊 Did some experimentation with the Vitamix … now known as Lurch (at 2.2 HP it’s monsterally powerful!! ) … made Broccoli and Cheese Soup, Tortilla Soup, (Lurch spins so fast that the friction actually heats the soup in the blender to steaming!!), blended the chilis and vegetables together to make the stewing sauce for Mexican Beef Birria … Used the new air fryer to make French fries, Spicy Fried Shrimp, and Argentinian Beef Empanadas …used the KitchenAid mixer to make fresh pasta for Hungarian Meatballs and Mushroom Gravy … a lot of fun and a lot of food last week!! 😊  Kelly and I started watching ‘Longmire’ – a modern day oater supposedly set in Wyoming but actually filmed in New Mexico. It was on for six seasons from 2012 to 2017 and is about a sheriff getting over the death / murder of his wife from a year before. It’s not bad – we liked the first few shows – but there are quite a few episodes that don’t make sense or have plots / storylines  that remain unresolved / unexplained. I finished the four seasons of ‘Call My Agent’ – it was an  excellent  series – too bad that it  looks like it’s all over and  there won’t be season 5. I’m watching a new police mystery series – ‘Capitani’ -that is filmed in Luxembourg and has audio in Luxembourgish – yes,  Luxembourgish, I didn’t even know the language existed;  a High German / Franco language spoken by about 600k in Europe. It was a big hit when it debuted in 2019, it just started on Netflix last week – it’s okay, but nothing to write about (darn – I just wrote about it😊). Interestingly it was directed by Christophe Wagner – who also directed two episodes of the Belgian police series ‘Unite 42’. There was one PGA  event this past week – The Pebble Beach Pro-Am (except this year without any amateurs because of COVID) – only one Canadian made the cut – Nick Taylor, he won last year for approx. $1.4 million U.S., and this year tied for 39th for $30K – quite a downgrade in pay. No football – but Tom Brady did make a drunken  pass throwing the Lombardi Trophy from one boat to another in the Super Bowl Championship Parade in Tampa Bay. Have a great and safe week … we will see you in a bit!!