Spring Fling

April 14, 2014 – Spring Fling

We’ve been taking advantage of the delightful spring weather to get out and have some fun.  I kicked off the past weekend with my friend Michelle, an AHS ESOL teacher who was celebrating the start of the week-long spring break.  We had dinner in Fairfax City at Sisters Living Room Café (a wonderful new Thai restaurant), followed by a spirited performance of Carmen at George Mason’s Center for the Arts.  Amazingly, I had no trouble staying awake until midnight. 

Saturday was a day to enjoy being out of doors.  In addition to working in the garden (I finally got those pansies into pots), I went for a ride in my friend Cheri’s convertible.  Then we took a long afternoon walk through a neighborhood park, where we came upon a colony of frogs who had set up a playground in a swampy area.  Frogs of all sizes and ages entertained us with their antics for several minutes.  An extra bonus on Saturday was a quick visit from Elisa.  She and her friend Lauren stopped by for a quick visit on their way to a bridal shower.   

  

Sunday was Hair Day.  Elliott, Marshall and I took in a matinee performance of the 1968 musical at the Keegan Theater (near Dupont Circle) in DC.  I wanted to get into the spirit of the era by dressing in appropriate clothing.  However, I scoured my closet in vain for bellbottoms, tie-dye shirts, and love beads.  We all enjoyed the show (so much familiar music!) but instead of making me feel young again, it actually made me feel older, part of an earlier generation.  The young actors did a wonderful job capturing the feeling of the time.  But for them, it could only be history, whereas I lived through it.  

Right before the show began

 Then it was just a short stroll over to 17^th Street for a dinner of Turkish mezze (fried sheep’s milk cheese, beet and orange salad, zucchini pancakes, grilled squid, chicken skewers, lamb chops for Elliott, creamy rice pudding) at Agora before heading home under the luminescent full moon.  

Some of the mezze at Agora

 

 Monday morning brought gray skies and a brisk breeze that liberated clouds of tiny blossoms from the cherry trees.  Petals of pink and white enjoyed a brief moment of magical dancing before they traveled earthward.  Once settled on the ground, they transformed mundane lawns, curbsides and parking lots with their random beauty.

Back at home, I’m happy to report that we’ve packed up over 50 percent of the kitchen.  Elliott has worked out a detailed schedule of the work for the project.  I hope our contractor is grateful!  Speaking of the kitchen, I’d better get in there right now and start cooking.  Passover begins in a few hours and I’m bringing a sauté of asparagus, shallots, garlic and arugula to my friend Eleanor’s house as my contribution for the Seder dinner.  Fortunately, the pared down kitchen hasn’t kept me from trying some new recipes.  Since eggs seem to be such an important part of the holiday food tradition for both Passover and Easter, I tried a tasty new version of egg salad.  This one has no mayonnaise, just plenty of Mediterranean flavors – chopped hard-cooked eggs with olive oil, za’atar, lemon juice, green olives, red onion, pine nuts, and cilantro – and it made for an absolutely delicious lunch today.