Random Thoughts...Food, Firearms, and Fun

I hope Michael Vick is worth it to the Pittsburgh Steelers, I really do. Signing him has upset a lot of fans, a lot of rescues, and has a lot of people trying to justify how he's "turned his life around," or "done his time." I've been a lifelong Steelers fan. I'm 37, and some of my earliest memories are watching games with my father and going to training camp every year, as a Daddy-Daughter day. I remember the One for the Thumb t-shirt that was huge on me, as a child, but that I proudly wore. Steelers football days were Daddy-Daughter days, and the Steelers were always something that my father and I could discuss, a tie to bind even as I was looking to find my own way. One year, on Christmas Eve, when I was maybe 8, my father slipped on ice and broke his leg. A few days later, I remember watching a Steelers game with him sitting in his recliner, me on the couch. They started showing a replay of the Immaculate Reception, and as Franco Harris somehow fou...

I had to take Geno to the vet last week. He's been drinking a lot of water, and I was concerned. He has a UTI, plus crystals, so he's on two different medications--an antibiotic and something to reduce the pH in his urine, with hopes of eliminating the crystals. Geno tends to be difficult when trying to give him meds, so Wednesday night was interesting. I basically pried open his jaws, shoved the meds down his throat, and then held his mouth shut until he swallowed. He did try to cheek the one, but eventually took it. Thursday morning was very similar, and Thursday night was a bit easier, as Mac covered them in peanut butter, and he took it a bit warily, but without the typical struggle I have with him. On Friday, Mac tried something new. Since we had leftover mashed potatoes from dinner on Thursday, Mac rolled the pills in mashed potatoes. Geno loved it! He swallowed both without any hesitation! This is how we've been giving him his meds ever since! Friday was a bad da...

Tonight, after work, I'm headed to get my hair cut to donate to Locks of Love , and colored. I'm trying Bernard's at Brighton, where we were last Sunday, for their Spa, Shop, Wine, and Chocolate event. We each received a $15 gift certificate, so I'll use that to offset the costs. I also won a door prize at the event, so I'll pick that up as well. After that tonight, I'm going to cook the Dream Dinners Chicken with Honey, Garlic, and Orange, along with rice and broccoli for dinner. After tonight, I'm not cooking again until Tuesday, for various reasons, in part that Mac will be at the Steelers game on Sunday. On Tuesday, I'm going to prepare the Chicken and White Bean Chili with Corn Fritters. That will leave me with 3 additional meals from November to prepare, and those will probably be prepared in December, since Mac will be hunting much of the last week of November. I'll only be hunting for a day, but he'll be out in the woods for much of...

I prepared the St. Louis Smokehouse Ribs on Thursday for an early dinner. We headed out to Philadelphia for the Steelers-Eagles game. That was an experience, just trying to get there, with the Turnpike closed in several areas. The stadium layout is so disorganized, and you have to go down to the lower level to get to various "sections" of the upper deck. Horrible layout and experience! Anyway, back to the ribs... The Dream Dinners ribs were easy to prepare, as I only needed to open the packages, wrap them in foil, and bake them. I used additional BBQ sauce, and served them with cole slaw. Mac and I split a rack of ribs, and kept the other rack wrapped in foil, in the fridge. He prepared those for lunch the next day, although he didn't bake them quite enough to heat them. Such is life! The ribs were very meaty, with minimal fat, and had a nice flavor, although the extra sauce was definitely necessary to add a bit of extra moisture to them. As Mac mentioned, they'd ...