Only Fern

Father's Day weekend found me hundreds of miles south of my Dad, and at least 40 degrees hotter outside than my Dad on Saturday.  My folks traveled to Wyoming for a cousin's wedding. Congratulations Johanna!! I hear that it was a beautiful ceremony, a wonderful day, and that you were a pretty bride.  Who could want more, right?! I found myself home for the entire weekend with no obligations filling my calendar.  Saturday, I putzed around the house--cleaned, washed laundry, found new recipes to try, worked on a dissertation, you know anything NOT OUTSIDE in the blistering 112 degree heat.  Yes, I said 112!!  Newton has come to believe that he is now a house dog.  "Hi, my name is Fern and I have turned my blue heeler into a grouchy show heifer.  All he has done for 2 days is eat, want to stay inside, and lay under the fan." Friday afternoon I had laid a Beef Flank Steak out to thaw.  When using this particular cut of meat, please be sure to giv...

I found this recipe the other day on http://neo-homesteading.blogspot.com . I don't even remember what chain of events got me there.  That ever happen to you??  It's a common occurrence to me, and lately I've realized it's not just pertinent to web browsing, but life. Bringing the rabbit back around the tree.... Last night in the search for something different, something un-heavy, something delicious for dinner (or supper, however you want to think about it), I looked through a couple of cookbooks and remembered this recipe that I'd emailed to myself earlier this week.  I do that a lot, email recipes to myself from sites I find.  The recipes end up in my email, consequently on my phone.  My phone later ends up on the counter with smudges on it due to my using it as a recipe card.  This practice needs to stop.  It's probably not sanitary and it's definitely not good for my phone.~~~~sorry, rabbit must have taken a left to get to the pond~~~heading h...

It's Friday!! Okay, so that really doesn't count when all I have looming ahead of me is DISSERTATION! However, I do I have some weekend recommendations brought about by recent experiences. **please note, any day of the week is fine** 1) Boxed Wine. A recent find is 'The Black Box' boxed wine. One box of wine is equal to 4 bottles of wine. At my local H.E.B. it worked out to $5 and some change/bottle! Score! I tried the Cabernet Sauvignon. Not too shabby. The box claims that wine will stay fresh for up to a month. I say, "Who keeps open wine around that long??!!" 2) Eggs. Eggs were my staple one week recently. I think I ate eggs at least 4x one week. Not just any ol' eggs--I made scrambled eggs with tomato, onion, feta, and basil...scrambled eggs with tomato, bacon, mushrooms, onion and blue cheese...scrambled eggs with pico de galo and cheddar and avocado. The eggs with tomato, basil, onion, and feta were by far my favorite. Don't go t...

I had a great weekend. Spent Friday at the Texas State Jr. Hereford Show. Caught up with some old friends, made a few new ones, and got to hang out with the cows (my favorite part...it was cheaper than seeing a shrink). It was Fun In The Sun on Saturday at the Texas Reds Festival --a celebration of steak and wine! Tried most of the wine and missed the steak. I'm okay with that...I really enjoy the steak that I am capable of at home--Nebraska Beef and Cavender's Greek Seasoning--mmmmm delicious! It was VERY, VERY hot that afternoon, but Brandi and I persevered. Los Pinos Ranch Vineyards Landon Winery Inwood Estates Vineyard I've had in my possession a Wine for Dummies book. I've made it through a chapter or two, and I've set it aside for one reason or another. I think I need to get it back out. I went through the tasting on Saturday with this attitude "Fern, do you like it?" I answered "yes" to some, "mmm, okay" to many, and ...