K's family just left this morning. They were only here for two nights...I'd have preferred that they had stayed longer. Also, it was a blessing to have my mom here for a month. I'd be thrilled if she would come back in January for another month or two, but that's because I can use all the help I can get right now.

Tom's work = not cool. Verra sucky.

The Noah's Ark exhibit was fun... lots to look at and do. If you have a toddler, I'd assume it's even better because plenty to crawl on, in and around. My Noah is utterly spent though. Poor poor noodle.

I'm at work now. This really blows.

It both blows and sucks. And not in a fun way.

If my parents were to visit for any length of time, I would think the Apocalypse had arrived. My mom has visited 2 times. Both times when I was in the hospital. My dad has never visited and with his health the way it is now, he cannot visit.

My mom's here right now, falling asleep on my couch even though I told her to go to bed. She came in on Friday for her 50th class reunion, and is flying back on Tuesday morning, so she dropped her rental car off at O'Hare tonight and I picked her up for the next 1 1/2 days. Just long enough for some shopping and a manicure, and possibly a movie.

anybody want to post a recipe for the pie crust?

2 C flour
12-16 oz fat*
1 T sugar
1 T corn meal
pinch salt
1/4 C ice water

Assemble all but that last in the Cuisinart and mix dustily. Pour in ice water and hold down the mixy button till it all suddenly coheres into a ball. Split the ball in two, wrap each in Saran Wrap, and allow to rest no less than 1/2 hour. (You can freeze them nicely.) Unwrap, roll, and make pie.

(Baking us usually 10 minutes at 425, turn down immediately to 350, bake till the fruit is cooked, which for apples is another 3o minutes.)

* The fat content is where the foofaraw is, for me. I vacillate between all-butter (just shy of 2 sticks), which is harder to work but tastes so awesome, and 75% butter, 25% Crisco, which is much easier to work. I never go below 50% butterfat content, and lately I've taken to using unsalted butter, and frozen it before using. That's yielded my best results so far.

I have never tried a lard or leaf-lard crust, although this winter I am planning on it.

Corwood, I'm so sorry for your loss.

wait, didn't the CI recipe have vodka?

When am I going to shake my Brothers & Sisters addiction?

I am clearly in an abusive relationship.

wait, didn't the CI recipe have vodka?

I don't know the CI recipe. That's my recipe, that I learned (and adapted) from a caterer named Ariadne Clifton.

Cor, I'm so sorry for your loss.

There's a major clusterfuck with the computers at work. I'll have to go into work later tonight.

No fair! You didn't even fuck 'em up.