don’t judge us

Dinner was delicious.

I cooked the lamb shanks slowly over the wood stove yesterday afternoon. When we got them from the farm there were two shank packages. One was large, so E cut it in two. (I left the building)… We had invited A over for dinner.. She is brave.. Made mashed potatoes and a big Greek salad. It all tasted great. (Thank you to my friend in France for the oregano) The veggies and broth which the lamb had cooked in all day was pureed as a gravy.. There is lots of gravy remaining which I will use as a base for soup tomorrow… There was plenty of lamb for the three of us with leftovers for tonight.

We played crib and each of us won one game.. everyone went home happy.

I love these quiet days, the sounds of the fire make the room seem so cozy. There was a huge wind and rain storm over night. It continued all day and we had the fire going strong. It was a day for indoor jobs.. Mine was to finish the last Jo Nessbo book (done) and E rewired the lighting in the main room of the house.. He moved one of the lights from the living room to the kitchen.. we don’t need it in the living room.. it is too bright.. but more lighting while cooking is always welcome.. Very pleased with how it turned out.

Lighting a fire at 7 in the morning (in the dark) is never a popular job. We share it. I find it difficult to sleep in much past 7. I don’t mind.. We don’t have a newspaper (delivery was a problem) and we have very little paper product to help get the kindling going.. It is always a pain. Old magazines seem to be made of fireproof paper.

Last week we broke down and bought a commercial fire starter. It comes in a package of 48 cubes for 5.00 at Walmart… each cube burns for 10 minutes.. Made from wax and sawdust in Canada. They are scented and make the house smell less like wet dog. I tuck one cube between two normal pieces of wood and light it. After I make the coffee, I come back to the fire and it is burning strongly.. Genius!!!

When we bought our first starter package we laughed and agreed we wouldn’t tell our neighbours.. Scandal on the island. Whispers that we can’t even start a simple fire!! Perhaps it’s time to vote us off the island. But at $3.00 a month for a one minute fire start in the morning.. It is worth the risk, please