No More Kitchen

April 21, 2014 – No More Kitchen

The day we’ve been anticipating with such mixed emotions has finally arrived.  In honor of the occasion, I presented Elliott with an early birthday present.  You can see him modeling his personalized hard hat in the photo below.  

In the kitchen at 9:30 a.m.

We have set up our temporary kitchen headquarters downstairs in the rec room.  As I was setting aside non-essential items this past week and packing them up in boxes for the duration of the project, it struck me how much “extra” stuff I have when I really need so little to get by.  Is it perhaps time to simplify our lifestyle?  Would we feel younger and more carefree with fewer possessions and less clutter?  I’ll have to ponder that over the next 3-4 weeks. 

Before the demolition began, I had one last cooking session over the weekend.  Our downstairs refrigerator and freezer now contain enough prepared food to last for several days.  On Sunday, Elliott, Marshall and I went to Baltimore to join family for a lavish Easter lunch.  For our first course, Marie-Claude had prepared a classic French chicken liver pate to go along with the homemade baguettes.  My contribution to the menu was one of my favorite spring vegetable sautés (a mixture of asparagus, fennel, garlic, shallots, arugula, and feta cheese).  It was a pleasure cooking it in Marie-Claude’s beautifully equipped kitchen.  Elliott’s great-granddaughters made colorful holiday decorations for the dining room and gave each of the guests a handmade chocolate lollipop.  It was a very festive afternoon. 

In Marie-Claude's kitchen

Marie-Claude's delicious and beautiful pate.

Marie-Claude's egg-shaped cake covered with white chocolate ganache.

 I’m signing off for the day now so I can go get some rest.  We made a late afternoon trip to Home Depot to purchase floor tile, cement board and related supplies.  I got my exercise hauling bags of grout and something called thin set adhesive.  Elliott’s been working hard all day, supervising the demolition.  As you can see that there’s really nothing left in the kitchen. 

In the kitchen at 4:30 p.m.