rushed

Rrrrrgh. Sorry for the long silence, folks; my only internet access is at a library with plenty of computer users and only four computers, which are indubitably occupied when I most want to write something; and when I do get on one of the computers, it's generally one of the two whose internet access is so slow I could probably cultivate a tree to full adulthood and die of old age myself before it reaches its webstination.

There's a LOT to tell, but I can't blog about it for a couple more days yet.

In the meantime, the weather has reached its Indian summer (are we still allowed to call it that?), and things are looking beautifully "up." I keep daydreaming about Pennsylvania in the fall.

Simon has been absurdly cute the last few days, and engaging in one of my favorite of his affectionate habits -- standing next to me while I wash my face, or prepare a meal, or wash dishes, with his tail curled absently around my calf while he stares off into feline space. Big deal; cats' tails twitch all the time, you might say. But this curling of the tail is twitchless for the few minutes at a time in which he does it. It's like standing or sitting next to a beloved family member, or friend, or significant other, while both of you are doing or thinking about something separate, and one absently puts an arm around the other's shoulders or waist, or lays a hand on the other's arm, and just quietly leaves it there for awhile.

It makes up for the other increasing moments lately where he walks up to me and sharply nips my ankle. Not sure what's up with that.

Other than that, life continues apace -- finishing things up at work, keeping up with friends, breathing freely (yay for no cigarettes!), drinking lots of herbal tea of an evening from my darling little teapot and fun little cups and saucers (which don't match the teapot in anything but size). Starting to pack, and cursing the teeniness of the house all over again -- there' s nowhere to put the boxes. Ah well; I always figure something out.

I made a really yummy Italian pasta sauce last night. Here's what you need:

1/2 huge red onion, finely chopped
5+ garlic cloves, finely chopped
4+ dried red chillis, finely chopped
1/3 c. olive oil
4-6 salt-cured anchovy fillets
2+ Tb dried porcini mushrooms, soaked 15 min. in warm water and finely chopped
6 strips bacon, fried until crispy and crumbled
3 lg. fresh tomatoes, peeled and finely chopped
4 fresh sage leaves
dry white wine, to taste
1 c. black olives
1-2 Tb capers, finely chopped
salt, to taste
fresh parsely, finely chopped
spaghetti, al dente

1. In a large frying pan, saute the onion, garlic, & dried chillis in the olive oil on medium heat until softened
2. Turn the heat to low, make a well in the center of the pan, and add the anchovy fillets. Mash them with a fork until they dissolve in the oil. Stir.
3. Add the tomatoes, mushrooms, bacon, sage leaves & wine; simmer, uncovered, until reduced, about 15 min.
4. Add the olives & capers. Simmer another 5-10 min., covered. Season to taste.
5. Serve on pasta, topped with sprinkles of the parsley.

It's YUM. I borrowed and combined a couple of recipes from one of my Italian cookbooks (Italianissimo - I don't remember the editor), and added a flair or two of my own. I didn't have many leftovers.