March Madness (not the basketball kind)

 

Thursday, March 15, 2012 – March Madness

No, I’m not following the college basketball madness this month.  The March Madness I’m referring to is this incredible spring weather, which has unleashed a frenzy of spring-cleaning aspirations.  My cleaning mantra, developed as I pondered what to do with the brochures and maps of the Tampa Bay area strewn around the back seat of the car:  When in doubt, throw it out!  Of course, I expect that Elliott will invoke a competing mantra:  You might need it someday, so put it away!  (and then forget where you put it.)  We’ve always had conflicting approaches to the retention of possessions.  It remains to be seen whether my aspirations will translate into actual activity.  But this might be a good time to try, since Elliott is distracted by tax preparation. 

This week’s culinary highlight was a Convento (our street) dinner party at our house to celebrate neighbor Anne’s birthday.  Everyone’s contributions made it a huge success.  It was a good excuse for me to try out some ideas inspired by a recent Washington Post feature on macaroni and cheese.  In my version, the would-be retro dish was barely recognizable.  Rigatoni replaced elbows.  Cheddar gave way to gruyere, fontina, and chevre.  Chopped shallots and baby bella mushrooms sautéed with herbes de Provence provided additional flavor and texture.  The consensus was overwhelmingly positive, but I won’t be making it again anytime soon.  It has way too many calories, too much fat, and too many carbs. 

The Convento crew convened again, quite spontaneously, late Wednesday afternoon, on the Traynors’ front lawn, to celebrate the gorgeous weather.  Daffodils are nodding their approval of the warmer than usual temperatures for early March.  The neighborhood is adorned with lush magnolia blossoms, delicate cherry blossoms, and the occasional white flowers of the Bradford pear (which look pretty but stink like garbage left out too long).  The forsythia and azaleas will be out soon.  Before the month is over, I must find time to walk around the Tidal Basin in DC to admire the clouds of pink and white cherry blossoms, although it’s always a challenge to avoid bumping into the slow strollers. 

Today we have another doctor’s appointment for Elliott at the pain center.  His natural reticence about taking medication makes it hard to keep the pain under control.  I haven’t convinced him yet to keep to an every 8-hour schedule, even if it means setting the alarm clock to get up at 6 a.m. to swallow a pill.  Once he takes the medication, his pain eventually goes away.  He is also doing his stretching exercises more regularly since he feels that they are beneficial.  In fact, Elliott surprised me today by mentioning that he’d like to find out about joining my health club.  It would really motivate me to workout if he joined me there.   

And tonight will be Heritage Night at Annandale High School, an annual event showcasing performances by students from a variety of ethnic backgrounds.  Every year, many of the ESOL students participate.  I’ll be there as a volunteer, helping out in whatever capacity I can, and I’m sure I’ll see many of my former students there.  Look for details in my next post.