Nov 27, 2003 10:53:18 AM

I'm hoping to link to all of my recipes here, but for right now I'm just going to do the hour by hour countdown. By my calculations my 15 pound turkey needs to get out of the fridge at 12:30 to make it into the oven by 1 PM in order to be back out at 4 and on the table around 5. Of course, the 15 minute cooking time will have it out at 4:45, and with half an hour sitting time it will be ready after five ... but who knows, I never get things done on time.

10:53
Pecan pielets: cooked
Chocolate pecan pie: almost done
Pumpkin pie crust: finished
Cook: famished, haven't had breakfast yet.

12:39
Chocolate pecan pie: done
Turkey: due for prepping (ten minutes behind)
Middle-eastern rice stuffing: 70% done (rice simmering, fruit cut, almonds need toasting)
Hors-d'ouvres tray: ETA 3 PM
Living room: better
Table: upstairs
Plates: still in closet
Turkey pan: location unknown
Stuffing: in oven
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Posted by webcowgirl @ Nov 27, 2003 10:53:18 AM [Link]

Nov 26, 2003 8:30:12 PM

Countdown to turkey time: T-20 hours. The cranberry chutney has been made. By the end of the night, I intend to have made two pies, boiled sweet potatoes, and made the stuffing. Oh yeah, and cleaned the living room.

This year I'm making most of the regulars (cranberry ginger chutney, heart stopper stuffing), but also this new recipe: Cheddar and herb biscuits (see "more" for recipe).
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Posted by webcowgirl @ Nov 26, 2003 8:30:12 PM [Link]

Nov 25, 2003 3:38:47 PM

I had some strange dreams last night. In one, I was out for dinner (in Arizona) with my grandfather, my sister, her husband, their older son, and my aunt and her husband. The waiter came up to us and said that he'd only serve us if we promised to be on our best behavior. I got really mad because I assumed that he was only saying that to us because my sister's husband was of a different race - since God only knows I've never been asked to do that before. I stormed out of the restaurant, thinking that the rest of the crew would follow me ... but when I came back an hour later, they had all put up with the treatment of the racist waiter, including my sister. I'm sure this dream was caused by the fact that supposedly my grandfather doesn't want my sister cooking Thanksgiving dinner for him - our guess being that it's because of the race issue.
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Posted by webcowgirl @ Nov 25, 2003 3:38:47 PM [Link]

Nov 21, 2003 11:41:39 AM

Yesterday's issue of the New York Times had a great review of a painter named John Currin whom, of course, I had never heard of before, living in a cultural backwater as I do. I realy loved the paintings they had on the online slide show - his hands and the lovely texture of the faces were entrancing. However, I thought it would be worthwhile to reproduce the essay below since it may not stay on the Times' web site for long.
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Posted by webcowgirl @ Nov 21, 2003 11:41:39 AM [Link]

Nov 17, 2003 11:17:34 AM

Ever since GeekCorpse moved from Fremont to downtown Seattle, I've had trouble updating my entries. I just got an email from the folks at Tad's Chicken and Dumplings asking me to add a link to their site on my review of their restaurant, and I can't even edit the entry. How frustrating!
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Posted by webcowgirl @ Nov 17, 2003 11:17:34 AM [Link]

Nov 2, 2003 12:48:31 AM

We went and saw Love, Actually at a preview last week. Here's my review:

"Love, Actually" is a series of romantic vignettes set in London. A secretary has the hots for her boss; two coworkers smoulder for each other but are two shy to act on their passion; a cuckholded husband falls for a Portuguese housekeeper. All of these (and more) take place during the five weeks leading up to Christmas and are tracked in parallel during the course of the movie, with occasional reminders on the screen about how long it is (in weeks) until the big day.

While some of these loosely interconnected tales have more emotional impact than others (Emma Thompson's turn as a wife whose husband may be having an affair is especially notable), none of them seem to have any real weight. Instead, all are played up for heartwarming moments and avoid any sort of unpalatable unhappiness. The only real pleasure the movie offers is a chance to see one after another top-notch British (and occasionally American) actors on the screen ("It's Hugh Grant! It's Rowan Atkinson! It's Billy Bob Thornton! It's Snape! It's Mr. Darcy! It's the hot girl from "Bend it Like Beckham!"). Unfortunately, each gets so little screen time it's like sitting down to dinner and watching all of the good food go by on carts to some large party in the private dining room - there is no chance to savor any of them.

After the originality of "Four Weddings and a Funeral" (and the "Black Adder" TV series), it seems like writer/director Richard Curtis has found his niche, which sadly is creating comfortable, commercially viable entertainment products ("Notting Hill," "Bridget Jones' Diary") that are as stripped of artistic merit as the Christmas-hit machine song mocked within this movie. "Love, Actually" doesn't stink, but it's a whole lot of nothing taking up two hours of precious time. If you're looking for inoffensive light entertainment, "Love Actually" is just the ticket, but if you're looking for a movie that you'll remember for more than five minutes after you walk out the theater, take a pass on this cinematic twinkie altogether.

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Posted by webcowgirl @ Nov 2, 2003 12:48:31 AM [Link]