1. This morning, I thawed two quarts of crab stock, stock I had made from Elks Crab Feed shells, and I chopped up two onions, a few carrots, a couple stocks of celery, and about four cloves of garlic. In the Dutch oven, I cooked the vegetables until slightly tender and poured flour over them, cooked them for a while, and then added the stock, about a half a cup at a time, whisking the mixture. Instead of potatoes, I chopped up a head of cauliflower, put the florets in, added salt, pepper, a pinch of cayenne pepper, and Old Bay seasoning to the soup and cooked the mixture slowly. A short time later, I turned off the heat, let this soup cool off, and put the Dutch oven in the refrigerator.
Late in the afternoon, I took the Dutch oven out of the fridge. I had taken halibut fillets and pre-cooked shrimp out earlier to thaw and now I finished thawing this fish. I cut the tails off the shrimp, put them in the soup and I chopped a few fillets into small pieces and cooked them in butter for about four minutes and they went in the soup. I poured in a cup of half and half and now, to me, the soup became chowder and I warmed it up slowly and in the early evening Patrick, Meagan, Debbie, and I enjoyed our fish chowder with a baguette Meagan and Patrick purchased at Pilgrim's when they went to Coeur d'Alene today.
If you'd like to see the recipe that guided me, it's here. I have never made the seafood stock accompanying this recipe because I'm so happy with the quality of my own stock made from Elks Crab Feed shells.
2. As I was chopping and thawing halibut pieces, and thinking and yakking about Bill Murray and Lost in Translation and playing "More Than This" by Roxy Music on the Echo, Meagan asked me if I'd like to play a game of cribbage. Did I ever! I think it's been over ten years since I played a game of live cribbage -- I used to play online often -- and so I poured myself a little Uncle Val's Botanical Gin and Meagan and I played a game while listening to the soundtrack of 32 Short Films about Glenn Gould and keeping an eye on Patrick getting his cookie baking project underway.
3. I had one of my favorite afternoons and evenings today. It started around 2:30 when I walked to the eye doctor for my final, and very positive, check up after having cataract surgery. From there, I walked uptown to Radio Brewing. Debbie and I sat at the bar. I drank a couple of pints of water and helped Debbie finish her 10 oz Imperial Stout. She and I talked a bit about our life over the next few months. Around 4:45, Patrick and Meagan arrived after being in Coeur d'Alene. I nursed a 10 oz pour of splendid One Tree Lemon Basil Cider. It was getting close to time to leave and I departed first and walked as far as the Humdinger where Patrick and Meagan pulled into the parking lot and gave me a ride the rest of the way home.
I racked up almost 5000 steps today and my legs felt great -- pleasingly tired, not sore, and I knew a great night's sleep lay ahead.
Meagan, Patrick, Debbie and I ate dinner later than usual. Did I mention we loved the seafood chowder?
Christy had texted Debbie to invite all of us over to visit with her and Everett, and, it turned out, Paul, Carol, and Zoe. It was a lively time with lots of stories and laughter. By this time in the evening, I had quieted down quite a bit after seeing the doctor, walking, playing cards, cooking, eating, and having a little to drink. I enjoyed some great conversation with Paul about the NCAA basketball games coming up and started to fade. I returned home and cleaned up the kitchen, started the dishwater, sat for a little while in contemplation, and, before long, fell into bed, bringing a superb day to an end.
Wow! That's two great days in a row -- a full house and lots of family time.
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