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Waste not, want not…

Yesterday morning, my friend Martin, the private chef, was prepping for a dinner party he would be cooking and serving that evening. 

I got a phone call while I was cleaning in the production kitchen, “Hey Julz, I have some leftover lobster claws and knuckles if you want them; I won’t be using them.”

Of course, I told him yes and ran across the street to his house. Martin was doing mise en place for the dinner; he just took a cake out of the oven and started a sauce. 

It smelled heavenly in his kitchen! He got out the leftover lobster for me. I stayed and chatted for a few minutes but got on my way since I knew he was busy. 

Martin was making an old-school dish called Lobster Thermidor. He was cooking for an older crowd who would go crazy for it. I would go crazy for it! 

This morning, I started the kitchen task of cracking the claws and knuckles and pulling out the lobster meat. There were a lot of them! 

At first, I was out of practice and timid, but then I sprung into action and was done in no time.

I had a lot of that “unwanted” lobster meat and decided to make Connecticut-style lobster rolls for lunch. 

Easily 2 lbs of lobster meat came from the claws and knuckles!

Instead of using mayo like in Maine lobster rolls, Connecticut-style warms up the lobster in melted butter with chives and a crushed garlic clove. Just warmed up, not reheated entirely. 

Sam came home last night to work a shift in Bennington since he is still a per diem employee. It was perfect timing for the lobster since it’s Sam’s favorite. 

I toasted some GF baguette (even though we would all rather have had a potato hotdog bun but can’t), melted some butter, and added chives and one crushed garlic clove. 

I let the butter simmer for a few minutes, added the lobster meat, and heated it until warm. I filled the buns, and viola! A delicious lobster roll lunch for free! Yay! 

I thanked Martin and texted him photos. He was so happy I got so much meat “out of those things.” Lol

Another cook’s waste is another cook’s treasure. That’s how stocks and sauces are made. 

Saucier Chefs come into the kitchen early in the morning and use the waste of bones, unused ends of produce, and the stems of herbs from the prep cooks. Nothing is thrown away.

The saucier chef roasts the bones and creates stocks, reductions, sauces, soups, and demi glazes. Basically, they are building flavors using waste, time, and skill.

Saucier Chefs create the backbone of the finished dishes prepared by dinner service line cooks and chefs. 

My culinary dream has always been to be a saucier chef. I love making stocks, sauces and gravies. Some of my culinary students used to call me the “Gravy Master.” 😂

I would love to come in early while the kitchen is quiet, except for the baker, who has been there since the middle of the night, creating their own magic with flour, water, and yeast.

The job is to create magic out of waste, then get the heck out of there before all hell breaks loose during dinner service. 

Sounds like a perfect job for me. 👩‍🍳

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A bull in a china shop…

It’s been a challenging week. Klaus had surgery on Thursday to remove a large cyst on his back paw. Of course, it started to grow and get angry looking in November when Otto began to fail. 

After losing Otto on December 9th, it was excruciating being in the same examination room where my poor sweet boy died. Klaus was even sitting in the exact spot where it happened. 

We sucked it up and moved past it keeping our emotions to ourselves, not wanting to let Klaus feel like something was weird or bad happening. 

The surgery could have gone either way, difficult or smooth; luckily for us and our vet, Dr. Beau, it was easier than he thought. He was happy with how the cyst came out/off, and he could close the wound tightly. 

The wound didn’t have to be bandaged, which was terrific for us since Klaus doesn’t like anyone but Sam to tend to those issues. He growls at us when we try to manage him when necessary. 

We don’t think he would bite us, but like my father said, “Any animal with teeth can bite you.” It has happened to people, so it makes me leary.

When they brought Klaus out when we picked him up, he looked pathetic, out of it, and mad. He was wearing a soft cone to protect the wound from licking. A soft cone was the only kind that fit his huge neck. 

Bulldogs are notorious for getting many infections that are hard to get rid of, so he must wear the cone all the time for ten days. Ugh!

Thursday night was rough because he was drugged, uncomfortable, and confused by the cone. We felt horrible, to begin with, then he would turn his head away when we tried to talk to him and wouldn’t look at us.

Friday morning was a completely different thing. He woke up not groggy and didn’t act like he hated us or was mad. He even started wagging his nub again. Yay! 

He quickly figured out how to drink and eat wearing the cone and had no difficulty walking. The wound looks good and doesn’t seem to bother him. 

We have been taking turns sleeping downstairs since he has needed to go out more frequently since he is on prednisone. He usually comes upstairs and wakes Marty up to go out. 

As the day went on, Klaus had no regard for the cone. He is a bull in a china shop knocking into things, bulldozing his way through the house, and bouncing off things he can’t see without his peripheral vision.

He slept great last night, only getting up once, and is back to his old self, making it tricky to keep him quiet and not want to go out and play ball. No Ball for two weeks, Dr. Beau said. Oh boy. 

Klaus is the biggest whiner and crybaby as it is following Marty around constantly and stares at him to go out and play. The next ten days will be challenging in that respect. 

After talking to other bulldog owners, we found out that they are not only one of the most expensive dogs to have since they have a lot of medical issues, but they are crybabies and want to play all the time.

I had a sleepover with Klausie downstairs last night and stayed home from the market today to keep an eye on him and let him out. 

Thank goodness everything went well, and he is on the mend and feeling better. We are keeping our fingers crossed the wound heals without any infection. 

I didn’t realize until Otto became sick in November how hard it is to be a dog’s steward and how much we love them and have to make the right decisions for them, not us. ♥️♥️

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The mysterious black shoe…

We’ve all seen a single shoe on the side of a highway or maybe in a parking lot. Before I wrote this piece, I had no idea how big a phenomenon a single shoe left behind is.

People have been finding”concealed shoes” for centuries in Europe. People have very different thoughts regarding concealed shoes, depending on who you talk to. 

Different countries and religious beliefs come into play when discussing concealed shoes. Concealed shoes are found in the walls of castles, churches, chapels, homes, and other buildings. 

Homeowners here in the states renovating their homes are also finding a single shoe in their walls or hidden in basements. 

These shoes may not always be concealed but hidden. Some are found up on shelves or windowsills right there in the open. But why? Some people believe on a spiritual level that losing a shoe is good luck for several reasons.

The first reason is protection. Shoes protect the feet from harm, cold or hot, and bug bites. Shoes make walking easier in rough terrain. Some say that leaving a shoe in a building or home protects it or the people who live there.

Losing a shoe can represent freedom. Freedom to walk on a new path in life or away from something negative. Some people think losing a shoe is a sign to travel or a new opportunity is waiting. 

Others believe losing a shoe can be a bad omen or not being fully in control of one’s life or what path to take. It may also mean you cannot handle a problem you face.

A person who loses a shoe may have been in danger or been running away from a crime scene. There have been many lost shoes found at crime scenes. Missing shoes became clues that later lead to the capture of many criminals and murders.

Our belly dance space is in an old mill building in Bennington, VT, which now houses many businesses. I love people are rehabbing old buildings instead of leaving them empty and eventually becoming eye sores.

Businesses such as gyms, doctor’s offices, retail businesses, creative spaces, and business offices. The building is in rough shape and not necessarily nice in the hallways and stairwells. 

The hallways and stairs are dark and dingy; the public bathroom is literally a shit hole. The business owners renovate their rented spaces to fit their needs. We have two gorgeous new bathrooms in the space where we dance, called Time for Yourself.

In true Irish fashion, telling a long story before the story, the point of my post, in late November, Kathleen and I noticed a black high heel shoe at the entrance of the Mill building at the bottom of the staircase. 

“Kathleen said, “There must have been a wild party; someone lost their shoe.” I replied, “No if it were a wild party, there would be a pair of panties too.” “True,” Kathleen agreed. Lol.

We saw the shoe every week, then right before Christmas, it disappeared. I thought someone must have finally found their shoe. Kathleen did too, but we never discussed it.

Yesterday, we both gasped, “The shoe is back!” It was proudly displayed on a wooden box at the bottom of the staircase. 

Kathleen shared with me her theory of the black shoe.”It’s a signal for something or someone.” “You mean like, ‘come up and see me sometime,’ as May West said. “Could be,” Kathleen said. 

Then I started thinking of different scenarios of why the shoe was there in the first place. It could have fallen out of someone’s gym bag. That’s a good guess. 

Many people come straight from work to the gym, but after living in Vermont for 30+ years, I know that hardly anyone wears high heels to work. Even getting dressed up super fancy, requiring high heel shoes, is a rarity. Medium heels, yes, those are doable.

I found out quickly when we moved here that the sidewalks and parking lots are unlike in metropolitan areas; if you wear high heels, you are sure to break your neck. Seriously.

Another far fetched theory, it could be a one-legged woman or drag queen needed a shoe for a Christmas party. It was spotted by a friend who took it. The one-legged person wore it to a party; their friend returned it afterward. That’s probably unlikely, so back to Kathleen’s idea of the shoe being a signal. 

I picked up the shoe last night as we left after dance class. It was a Jessica Simpson brand shoe in size 7 and in worse condition than it looked from far away.  A size 7 meant a one-legged drag queen didn’t borrow it, that’s for sure.

I hope I am not offending anyone who has only one leg. Please forgive me, I don’t mean it to be hurtful, but it’s part of the investigation and included in the files.

The clues here are the shoe is from Jessica Simpson shoes. with something strange inside.
Jessica Simpson hawking her shoes on HSN>

After further inspecting the shoe in question, I saw a mysterious piece of painted paper inside the shoe which looked like a piece of bacon to me. It was cut out and not torn, and why was it in the shoe?

When I showed it to Kathleen and Emily, they agreed it definitely didn’t look like bacon. Is the bacon paper another signal for something? Is it a clue? The bacon was not in the shoe before it vanished.

Will we ever find out the meaning of the black shoe? Do we care? Hell yeah! It’s winter in Vermont, so playing Scooby Doo by solving a mystery passes the time and is entertaining.

My last theory is since I can feel the building is haunted, an old mill ghost is screwing around and having fun with the shoe, making a strange noise that sounds like a peg-legged pirate. Ghosts love pulling pranks like this! 

In closing, I don’t think it is a lost shoe anymore since it vanished and reappeared. What do you think? Scooby dooby doo! 🧐

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Oatmeal raisin cookie?

Plus ice cubes!

Take a look at the ingredients in the photo above. You may notice the ingredients are different from other oatmeal raisin cookie recipes. That’s because it’s not a cookie; it’s a smoothie!

I never make New Year’s resolutions, but back in December, I started craving salads and smoothies. Salads in the winter? Ok, there are plenty of winter salads out there. A smoothie? That’s the thing that gets me; I don’t like smoothies.

The closest thing that comes close to a smoothie that I do love is an Orange Julius that you find at the mall. I’ve been in love with these since my teens and still get one every once in a while when we are at Crossgate Mall in Albany. An Orange Julius is like a frothy creamsicle. Yum!

I started looking through smoothie recipes. I have no interest in powdered smoothies or fruit drinks; if I am going to drink one, it will be made with natural, wholesome ingredients. I want to control the flavor and texture.

Replacing my regular on-the-go, quick breakfasts with smoothies isn’t dieting by any stretch of the word. It’s hard to think of what to make for us for breakfast every day before production.

It has to be filling enough to hold us over for hours, something a carby breakfast doesn’t do. A yogurt isn’t satisfying, and a banana with peanut butter gets redundant. Most importantly, it has to taste good.

I picked up a few ingredients to start making smoothies. I bought bags of frozen blueberries and tropical fruit. I got a bunch of bananas and spent way too much time in the milk section deciding what type of milk I wanted to use in our smoothies.

I don’t want to use yogurt in our smoothies since I don’t like the tang they leave. I want the smoothies to be creamy, which means using some kind of milk. I drink Lactaid milk since I am lactose intolerant, but I thought that would be a waste since Marty isn’t.

Many recipes I looked at used oat or cashew milk which are all lactose-free. Then I noticed coconut milk which had fewer calories than regular milk. Coconut milk seemed like natural milk found everywhere worldwide; meaning, how the fuck do you make milk out of oats?

On Monday morning, I made a blueberry and banana smoothie adding protein powder, a drop of vanilla extract, honey, and coconut milk to the fruit. It was meh at best. Shit, it’s the first day, and already it’s not what I was expecting.

I returned to the drawing board, started looking for different smoothie recipes, and struck gold! I found a recipe for Oatmeal Raisin Cookie smoothies! I read the ingredients, knowing I had what was needed. Of course, I tweaked the recipe because that’s me and my palate.

Before and after adding the coconut milk.

If you click on the recipe link above, you will notice the recipe contains cashew butter for more protein. I didn’t add it to our smoothies but added a teaspoon of maple syrup and kosher salt. Before adding the salt, I tasted the drink and thought it was ok, but it didn’t taste like a cookie. After adding a pinch of salt, voila! A cookie in a glass! I loved it!

The other thing I loved was the texture. I blended it well with the blender, but it left small pieces of oats and raisins, which was fantastic in adding texture. I put bubble tea straws in our smoothies to make them easy to drink. It was so damn tasty! Lol.

While making spätzle batter, I started thinking about other smoothies I could make, like the oatmeal raisin one. I have a bunch in mind and will start putting together ideas. Blueberry “pie” is already on the list. 🫐 🥧

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Three strikes…

I charged all of my crystals and gemstone during the full moon last night. I still put them all on the windowsills even though the beautiful moon was covered up by thick clouds. This little crystal & gemstone tree was a Christmas present I received from Aja. I love it and can’t wait to feel its energy which will be magnified by the copper the stones are wrapped in.

I am feeling the doldrums of winter in every way possible. Even though I am on anti-depressants, seasonal depression has been gnawing at me and I know I am not alone.

I’ve been tired, sluggish and feeling lazy. All I want to do is lay on the couch with a blanket and do nothing, I don’t of course, but think about it all day. I hate feeling this way. 

I wrote three blog pieces this week, but before editing them I realized I wrote nothing more than the ramblings of a crazy person. So I deleted them. This went on for 3 straight days. 

I don’t write for the sake of writing and won’t publish shit just to publish something. I am glad after I write an article, I let it sit and simmer before I go back and reread it. 

So basically, I’ve got nothing this week. I need to get out of this lazy funk. I feel like a grizzly bear waiting for spring or at least a few days of sun.

Living in the Northeast isn’t a good place for people with seasonal depression. I can’t wait to be in a position to be a “snow bird” one day, getting the hell out of here for a couple of months and getting into some warmth and sunshine.

I am still working, cooking and keeping up with chores, but feel like I am doing it in a pot of molasses. 

Anyway, have a good weekend guys. We are on our way to the farmers market even though all I really want to do is go back to bed. I’ll put on my “julz”‘and make it through another cold, gray, and gloomy day. 😕

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Comfy on a raw & wet day…

We were on the road early this morning making deliveries to Greenwich, Saratoga, Clifton Park and Albany. Then, we went to our oil change appointment at 11 am in Latham.

After our oil change we planned to stay in the Albany area and pick up some supplies and eat lunch but decided to go home. The weather was dreadful.

Today, feels like a gray November day, in the mid 30s with rain, later mixed with sleet. It’s raw, and foggy. A perfect day to light the fireplace, grab a blanket and my kindle.

I rarely take the luxury of cuddling up with a blanket and book at 2:30 pm, but today I did and it feels nice and cozy.

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First dinner of 2023…

I haven’t made pork and sauerkraut in years. The last time I made it, I still owned a crockpot. The last meal I made in that crockpot was pork and sauerkraut.

I was so disappointed with the way the dish came out I remembered it was strike three for the crockpot. To me, the texture of foods is off, and it’s impossible to build flavor.

Instant pots like Sam have remedied the flavor ability with a sauté function. He uses his all the time and produces some delicious food. His sauce in his instant pot is pretty damn close to mine.

I wrote previous posts about crockpots and how they aren’t my thing. I understand the purpose for busy people on the go or people who prefer to make “dump and go” meals.

Most people don’t enjoy food prep and cooking as much as I do, and I applaud anyone preparing any meal at home.

Let’s face it, figuring out what to make for dinner, shopping for ingredients, and cooking the meal takes effort. If a crockpot works for you, then, by all means, crock away.

Back to that pork and sauerkraut, we bought a case of pork ribs at Restaurant Depot during the summer, so I decided to braise a couple of racks instead of barbecuing or smoking them.

Eating pork and sauerkraut on New Year’s Day is an old German tradition that is supposed to bring good luck to the new year.

When I planned to make pork and sauerkraut, I wasn’t thinking about good luck or German traditions. I was thinking how my mouth was watering for pork and sauerkraut.

I am a more advanced cook than when I made this dish before. Back then, I followed a recipe from a German Cookbook and didn’t know how to build flavors.

I also didn’t know to remove the membrane from the ribs. I didn’t season the ribs and brown them before braising them in sauerkraut.

After the ribs were browned, I sautéed onions and apples until golden brown, then added sauerkraut and brown sugar. I added salt and pepper and let it cook for ten minutes while the oven was preheating.

I placed the browned ribs in a large roasting pan and topped them with the sauerkraut mixture and the pan’s juices. I added water until the liquid came up halfway on the ribs.

Right out of the oven.

I covered the pan, popped it into a 300-degree oven, and let it braise for three hours. In the meantime, I made potato dumplings.

Whenever I made pork and sauerkraut, I topped it with Bisquick-type dumplings, put the lid back on the crockpot, and let them cook. The dish always looked better than it was.

Cooking the dumplings on top of the dish was easy but made it dry since they sucked up all the juice from the pork and sauerkraut. I was not happy and vowed never to do that shortcut again.

I made potato dumplings this time, which I’ve only made once or twice. As I mentioned earlier, I am a much better cook now and can take bland, ordinary dumplings and turn them into something special.

I let the dumpling dough chill for a few hours before forming them. I also boiled them in chicken stock instead of water for more flavor.

In a small sauté pan, I melted a tablespoon of butter, added gluten-free breadcrumbs, and toasted them. I added freshly chopped parsley for a bit of color and freshness.

Fresh Italian parsley has a purpose in many dishes that can make or break the dish. Dried parsley, on the other hand, is suitable for adding color to a dish; that’s about it. By the way, have you ever smelled dried parsley? It smells like horse food.

Today’s dish was easier to prepare than it was years ago when I followed a recipe and used a crockpot.

Cooking is second nature to me now, and so is building flavors. The extra steps aren’t additional anymore; it’s the way I cook. I only use recipes when baking because baking is a science.

I remember being impressed and in awe of people who could cook from their hearts and souls, not their brains. They could tell when things were ready by feeling them with a quick touch of their hands.

It was the same thing whenever I watched someone dance; they became the dance, the vessel based on how the music made them feel. They danced “in” the moment right then and there.

I can now cook and dance this way. It happened little by little over time. I learned to trust my instincts and use my senses. The more confident I became, the more I enjoyed cooking and dancing. I still hold my breath when I am baking because you never know.

Our dinner of pork and sauerkraut was the best I had ever made or eaten. It was flavorful and juicy with fall-off-the-bone tender pieces of pork. The sauerkraut still had some tooth to it. It wasn’t limp and textureless like it was in the crockpot.

The potato dumplings were light and fluffy, not dense like the ones I used to make. The crunchy, flavorful breadcrumbs on top gave the whole dish a nice crispy texture. The fresh parsley brightened it up.

Will our traditional German New Year’s dish bring us good luck in 2023? Who knows? What I do know is that it was a fantastic first dinner of the year.

As far as that old crockpot is concerned, I took the crock outside and smashed it after eating that last disappointing dish I made. Several times, I swung the base from the cord into the ground and tossed it into the trash can. That took care of that. 😜

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Co-pilot…

Since Otto passed away at the beginning of the month Klaus has been different. At times he is glum and depressed and it got worse especially after Sam left.

A few times he was happy when he got his first toys for Christmas, but he’s not interested in them anymore. On the bright side, he is interested in me, a little. Lol.

I don’t know if he sensed my sadness or I could pay attention to him without a dog fight. Klaus was a strong alfa and needed to show everyone who was boss. Everyone but Sam that is, Sam could get him to do anything. Sam was the pack leader.

Marty is working on taking that role in the pack. Mine is still to feed and nurture. I’ve been Klaus’ private chef for years and he knows not to bite the hand that butters your bread so to speak.

After Otto’s absence was more than obvious, Klaus started following me around like Otto did. Up and down the stairs. In and outside. In and out of rooms.

Last week, I asked him if he wanted to go for a ride. We could never take either dog for a ride or one would get jealous which led to growling and the fur on their backs standing on end. We were always on the lookout for this forewarning.

Now, if I am running a quick errand or local delivery I take him with me. He loves it and I like having him with me.

Klaus and I are getting to know each other better even after 8 years. He is still lost and not quite sure what to do, or even where to lay down. It’s sad he misses Sam and Otto so much.

Marty and I are helping him along and trying to get him into new routines and activities. Next week, he won’t be very happy since is is going to the vet for a surgery consultation.

He has had a cyst on his back right paw for a while. We agreed with the vet if it gets worse it has to be taken care of. Of course, during the last month it got worse. Not what we needed so soon, it hasn’t even been a month since we lost Otto.

Anyway, Klaus is my new co-pilot and I don’t even care about getting pet hair all over my trucks seats. I needed to get an air freshener, so the inside of the truck doesn’t smell like a dog.

Happy New Year everyone! Cheers! 🥂 Here is to better days ahead. I’ll catch up with you next year!

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Flex space…

I need sheer white curtains for the space.

I got a consolation prize when Sam moved out; his bedroom and closet. I knew exactly what I wanted to accomplish; it was just a matter of doing it. After Monday’s downstairs cleaning project, I worked on the new upstairs flex space.

Flex space is one of those new words to me in the last ten years. People have used rooms for multi-purposes for decades; now, it has a designer name. Our flex space would become half guest room and half music room.

Not everyone has a huge poster of themselves that hung in the kiosk of Bennington’s Four Corners a few years ago for a fundraising show we were hosting. I never thought I’d have an appropriate space to hang it up.

I’ve had my electronic drum kit packed away for about six years. I had a friend who was my drum teacher, but that was a bad idea. Period. I found I could naturally follow rock songs I knew by heart, but I still had a lot of work to play correctly and build up the muscle in my right base drum leg.

Marty’s dad’s piano and my other drums and tambourine.

We also brought up Marty’s dad’s piano, another instrument I want to learn to play. I have my middle eastern drums and a cajon, a drum you sit on. I don’t know how to play the cajon, but I want to learn. Marty has a guitar he wants to learn to play.

Never having a place to set up a music space stopped us from playing and learning; now, there are no excuses. I also want to learn to speak French; there is no excuse for that except laziness.

Like many others, covid taught me to start doing the things I still wanted to do and places to travel to. This is my chance to start learning. I won’t tackle everything at once, but I will start with the drums and how to speak French.

The guest bedroom half of the room came together in a snap. The large armoire now houses all the linens for the bedrooms and bath. I’ve never had a centralized space that will make changing linens easier than hunting around for matching duvets and sheet sets.

As for Sam’s closet, I finally have a closet dedicated to my belly dance costuming, which is a lot after 20 years. I can now see and touch everything easily and not have to go through oversized totes shoved into my closet. This is a total luxury to me, and I love it!

This closet has a lot, including 9 totes, a shelving unit, cubbies, and suitcases tucked under everything on the floor. How the fuck I fit it all in my closet is beyond me.

I also got around to filling my new old armoire my friend Marcia gave me before she moved back to France. It was her childhood furniture growing up in Paris. It fit perfectly in our bedroom, but I was unsure what to fill it with and had no time to figure it out.

I filled it with all of my favorite things! It’s a magical armoire to me now displaying my favorite books and items that mean a lot to me. All the other junk I had I got rid of. All my treasures in one place and perfect use of the Parisian piece.

I worked hard after production for two days, about 15 hours worth of decluttering, cleaning, and organizing. Marty helped me with the new flex space yesterday. We set up my drum kit, and I sat down, trying to remember what I had learned.

New linen armoire and tv to learn on! Yay!

Sam’s room has a TV he left behind, which I can watch on YouTube. I found plenty of drumming for beginners’ videos and can easily see the tv from the drum kit. I started watching an instructional video with a young woman as the teacher. I like the way she taught and will probably use her.

That’s what I’ve been up to; I haven’t cooked a real meal since Christmas. Marty has been working out in his workshop, so we have found easy to prepare foods to eat in between projects.

We will be in production tomorrow and make a couple of deliveries, then that’s it. We are taking Saturday off from the market and will enjoy our holiday weekend. We don’t have any concrete plans yet, but I am sure we will hang out with friends and celebrate the upcoming new year.

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Different energy…

This morning, Sam left to go home to Essex, VT; he is starting a new job tomorrow at UVM Medical Center in their Emergency Department. A fantastic opportunity for him to see and learn so much.

As soon as he left, I cried for a few minutes and decided to take down the Christmas tree. This is not new; I try to get the house back to normal as soon as possible. Last year, I waited until New Year’s Day since my sister Jennifer and her kids Sofia and Julian visited over the holiday break.

The tree looked great in the corner, but this is so clean looking!

It’s incredible how long it takes to decorate and how quickly everything gets packed away. Marty was also working on projects to keep ourselves busy and not sit around moping. Before we knew it, the house was sparkling clean, clean enough for a real estate visit, I always say.

While I was cleaning, I was sad because I realized when I decorated at the beginning of December, we had five family members living here; we only have three while I am taking everything down. I still can’t believe Otto isn’t with us anymore. Sam leaving at the same time has been a hard pill to swallow.

Such a peaceful space with good energy for Otto’s ashes.

I made a place for Otto’s ashes, his paw print, and photos on the shelf in our living room. We still haven’t been able to look in the bag everything came in. I put the bag on the shelf in the meantime. It is comforting knowing he is home with us. I touch the bag and speak softly to him in the morning and at night. I lose it every time because I miss him so much.

Marty and I have many winter projects planned now that Sam doesn’t live here anymore. His room will be a guest and music room. His closet will become my costuming closet. Marty will install electricity in both of my closets and put in lights so I can finally see things and find them easily.

The little vintage Christmas tree and manger are lovely, but this I love, nice and simple.

Marty said he didn’t think our house had even been so clean, organized, light, and airy. He is 100% right since that’s been our goal since covid started decluttering and minimalizing our home.

The house feels different without Sam and Otto’s energy here. The house is tranquil since Klaus doesn’t make any noise unless someone comes to the door. Otto was a big-time whiner and was needy. Klaus had started following me around the house like Otto did, which is funny because he never gave two shits about me before unless I was feeding him. LOL. Maybe he senses I am lonely and sad.

Hopefully, I will adjust to this new chapter of our lives soon, but I am still struggling. I do have to say, on the bright side, the house looks great. The new occasional chairs we purchased when we gave away the old sectional are comfortable and sleek. I put up lighter, gauzy curtains, and we bought a new shag rug to lighten the space further.

Today it’s all about eating the leftovers from Christmas Eve and Day; then, we can start fresh. I have to learn to cook for only two of us since I am not feeding two men anymore, plus I always made sure there were enough leftovers for Sam’s work dinners.

Have a great night; it’s back to work for us tomorrow, which is a good thing; keeping myself busy keeps my head out of my ass!