Scone Fail Continues

While stocking up on Buffalo "Chik'n" Nuggets the other day @ Trader Joe's, I happened upon TJ's mini cranberry orange scones and decided to give them a try. (Aside: the search for a suitable replacement for Panera's orange scone has begun in full force, and will not end until said replacement is determined.) They're tasty! And mini! Not as tasty as the product I'm seeking to replace, but pretty good. There's a unique set of drawbacks associated with the cranberry orange scones, though, these being:

1) They don't have as much frosting as I would prefer;
2) They come in packages of six, and six is too many scones for one person to comfortably eat in a few days' time (Hook doesn't eat scones);
3) They seem to spoil quickly. The package I purchased (on 3/23) had a sell-by date of 3/27, but the scones had gone bad by YESTERDAY. Believe you me, I'll be sending an email of complaint to Trader Joe's corporate to notify them of this mold problem.

***

Hook and I saw "Greenberg" last night and it was considerably better than either of us expected. We both had a hunch that it might fall into the "Away We Go" category - you know, movies that (based on their trailers) seem like they'd be enjoyable, but that are actually deflated by their own strained efforts at "quirkiness" and indielate20somethingsearly30somethingscuteness. On the contrary, "Greenberg" was mellow, plot-wise: the apparent paucity of a plot didn't announce itself as such, and Ben Stiller was the perfect casting choice. Hook was totally amused by the similarities between Greenberg and myself, these being:

1) Our tendency to write letters of complaint to major corporations;
2) Our sample shopping lists (His list included ice cream sandwiches and whiskey);
3) Our tendency to walk in pedestrian-unfriendly zones.

***

My mom arrives today! Our city-touring plans aren't totally solidified, but I think tomorrow is MoMA day (and, if my mom is up for it, a tour of the claw-machine floor at the Metreon). Today we'll probably walk through GG Park and visit the Tea Garden - a lot is blooming this time of year.
Holla for family visits!

Let's just say I'm less than thrilled that the holiday weekend is over & that it's back to the regular routine. That's the thing about holiday weekends: afterwards, the transition back to one's regular schedule is un-fun and grouchy.

Some good things:

1) I realized today (while re-doing the Key Office's whiteboard calendar) that there are only two weeks of classes left (three of the semester). Hot damn! Salvation will be here before I know it.

2) Saturday, my mom, sis & I spent the day in Shelburne Falls, quite possibly the cutest place in MA. It reminded me a lot of Osceola, WI: both towns are on the scenic riverfront, both are rife with mom & pop cafes/gift shops/trees, both are nice weekend diversions. I hadn't thought about Osceola in who knows how long; when I was in high school/college, I used to drive there from CR to get my hair cut. (A good family friend has her own salon there.) Getting a haircut was a daylong event: the drive to Osceola took an hour; the cut itself, an hour. Afterward, I'd get lunch at Dagwood's, a place on Main St. specializing in subs and tacos. Then, I'd spend an hour or so browsing the antique store, looking for Lucite earrings and chunky plastic bracelets. Ah, Osceola. Dagwood's is closed, I'm fairly certain. In fact, it may have closed while I was still in college, the market for tacos and cold cuts not being as strong as it once was. Hopefully, I'll get the chance to venture (mid)westward before the winter's up.

Happy post-Thanksgiving! And pre-winter! Let's all not be too long faced at work and school today. The end.

Thanksgiving was pretty great. I have to admit, I was worried that we wouldn't pull everything off - we had an extensive-ass menu - but we did. We did. Here is what the four of us cooked:

*Turkey (11.1 lbs.: the smallest bird we could find) & gravy
*Mashed potatoes (garlic, and also mashed potato casserole, which is regular mashed potatoes + sour cream + grated cheese, baked with cheese on top: one of Ali's concoctions)
*Old skool stuffing (so much butter)
*Corn bake
*Raspberry salad
*Cranberry, apple, and orange relish
*Steamed broccoli, steamed carrots
*Snowflake rolls (these, admittedly, were store bought)
*Chocolate cupcakes
*Pumpkin pie

and...

*Nachos, with Ali's specialty dip.

The nachos don't really fit into most people's Thanksgiving schemata, but they were a delicious accompaniment to football. My all-time favorite, of course, is my mom's stuffing: there's no written recipe, but the constant is BUTTER. I know she seasons it with thyme, sage, poultry seasoning, s&p, but the exact proportions are a mystery. Srsly, though: I look forward all year to this stuffing, and I did not leave the table disappointed.

Later, after we'd slept off our food hangovers and cleaned up, we saw Four Christmases. I wasn't too eager to see it, not being much of a Vince Vaughn fan (I guess I don't mind Reese Witherspoon?), but it wasn't too bad. I think this assessment was strongly influenced by my initial low expectations, though. Bottom line: Vince Vaughn does and always will play VV, and if you're not in the mood for his schtick, then this is not the holiday movie for you.

Happy post-Thanksgiving kickin' around to all, and to all a good morning! I'm not sure what's on the schedule for today, but I hope it doesn't involve shopping or simple carbohydrates...