Saturday Park Walk

 Love the American Beech's and their Autumn attire.

Can you see the little Golden Finch in his winter coat?

Romeo does love to wade in the water.  I do love Romeo!

Classic Comfort Food: Tuna Noodle Casserole

I never had this growing up.  I was fortunate to find myself the adopted 4th adult son in a most amazing family post college and the mom bear introduced me to this most amazing concoction.  I fell instantly in love, but like I do, I've altered it to the point that my beloved Nickel's Family wouldn't recognize it!  Hey, it's what I do!

SO, without further ado, I give you: Tuna-Mushroom Noodle Casserole.

There are three components to this dish.  One, the sauce; two, the solid ingredients, and; three, the topping.

The sauce is made from:
~ 1 can condensed Cream of Mushroom soup
~ 1 8 oz. Sour Cream
~ .5 cup Mayonnaise
~ 8 oz. of shredded Vermont Cheddar Cheese
~ Tbsp of Olive Oil

The solid ingredients are:
~ 2 cans of solid Light Tuna (NOT albacore--yuk!)
~ 24 oz of Button Mushrooms (sliced)
~ 1 bunch of scallions (sliced)
~ 2/3 pkg of Egg Noodles (cooked)

Topping:
~ Crushed potato chips (a must)

How to do it?

Start by placing the olive oil in a medium sauce pan over medium heat, toss in the mushrooms and cover.  Let them cook, stirring them up a couple of times.  They will shrink and create some broth.  That's okay.

Next add the Cream of Mushroom soup, Sour Cream, and Mayonnaise and mix up.  Turn down the heat to about 2.8 and stir in the cheese (but conserve about 1/3 cup for later).  Let it melt slowly (5 minutes), next add the scallions and tuna and take off the heat.  Mix thoroughly and pour into a Casserole dish.

While this has been going on you've cooked the noodles and drained them.  I cook them for a minute shy of the package directions in order to keep them al dente.  Pour them on top of the sauce and mix thoroughly.  In the baking process the slightly firm noodles will absorb some of the extra moisture in the sauce--although it might not look like there is any.

Finally, top with the conserved shredded cheese and then the potato chips.

Bake in an oven @ 325˚ for about 50-60 minutes.  The rest is culinary comfort 101!

Classico

I LOVE this stuff.

It's something that I've come to use in many ways.

1) I add it to tuna and chicken salads--very awesome!

2) I add it to various cold pasta salads (mayonnaise/sour cream based) with veggies like scallions, celery, red peppers, and peas.  OHH-La La!

3) I whip some into scrambled eggs before cooking--talk about an amazing egg sandwich!

I just love this stuff.

Pride Birthdays and Memorials for the Week ~ November 9th to November 15th

Holiday House 1960 Model X: The Geographic

Another Wonderful Walk in the Autumn Woods Along Sligo Creek

I Voted...

Can't help but thing the old girl would approve---Of the voting, NOT me referring to her as the "old girl".  Cheers!

Cleaning A Book Shelf

Awoke to a migraine this morning and took a fistful of Advil then back to bed. Called in sick, then slept for 4 more hours, which was right fine byRomeo. I have to admit it was also a comfort to have his warm body nestled up against mine. And then aside from taking him for his daily constitutional in the park, slept on and off for most of the day.

The one exception was a foray into cleaning the bookshelf in the upstair's hallway. My home has lots of books shelves...and lots of books. During the police investigation following my recent break-in, one of the officers pointed to my shelves of poetry and asked me "Have you read ALL of those books?" I think in an old-fashioned way about books. They mean something. They are a testament to the invention of the printing press, the age of enlightenment, the one thing that truly separates our species from others: literacy, beyond the rudimentary understanding of symbols.

This shelf is my go to place for new books I've read or are reading on the top, and then some favorite books, some fun books, and books that represent important periods in my life toward the bottom. There are some favorite authors and books by friends, too.

So the period of my life when I was reading so much about gay culture, and its relationship to religion is clearly evident on the lower shelves. Books ( & play) written by my friends Will Leckie, Barry Stopfel, and Maggie Edson are there. Authors I appreciate like Jim Harrison, Ann Patchett, Ethan Mordden, and Sapphire can be found.

If I were to compile a gift basket of ten books from these shelves for a friend's consideration, by no ranking, but simply alphabetical by the author's last name they would be:

"A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson 

"Music for Chameleons" by Truman Capote
"What Became of the Broken-Hearted" by E. Lynn Harris
"The Poinsonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
"The Magician's Assistant" by Ann Patchett
"Hometowns: Gay Men Write About Where They Belong" ed. by John Preston
"The God of Small Things" by Arundati Roi
"The Kid" by Sapphire
"Just Kids" by Patti Smith
"Cutting for Stone" by Abraham Verghese

What's on your book shelves?

Found Photo of an Old Painting

A painting that I painted decades ago.  It is from a trip that I took to Galveston, Texas in around 1991.  The original was sold to a co-volunteer at a food co-op I spent time at in Lexington, Kentucky back then.  Still, it was a nice little painting.

My Boy Surveying His Dogdom

Chili for a Chilly Day

Last Bouquet of the Season

Autumn Rainbow

Surprise Package In The Mail!

 There is no more apropos T-shirt on the planet!  This one purchased from a booth at a Highlands festival in Georgia "manned" by a group of Lesbian Animal Activists!  It just gets better and better.  And A dream catcher ornament and I peanut butter flavored dog chew.

 And Romeo knows which one is his!

Autumn Woods

 I never tire of seeing this every day on my walk with my boy.

 I love the American Beech in the autumn.  It's branches shoot out like sparklers.

 Little black squirrel.

 Downy Woodpecker.

Pride Birthdays and Memorials for the Week ~ November 2nd to November 8th