Thanksgiving came early at the Joppa household. Darin and I were back home in Fargo, North Dakota early November. We were so pleased to see everyone healthy and happy. Unfortunately, I caught a nasty head cold just prior to leaving San Diego. I did my best to keep my social obligations, but my brother and niece had to be missed, since I couldn't speak above a whisper for 2 days. I think they may come visit us here in NZ at some point.The flights to and from the US were on Air New Zealand, and I got to catch up on some movie watching. Best film was Hot Fuzz, and a close second was When Night Falls. Perfect Creature was boring, and A Mighty Heart was long and just sad. Knocked Up had its moments, but was not that great.
Our visit to San Diego (the week prior to ND) was awesome. We ate mexican food almost daily,
caught up with our old friends, and did some shopping. The recent wildfires there caused several of our friends to evacuate, but fortunately none of their homes were damaged. We drove past our old house, and it still had our yellow sign on the fence, "Rottweiler Crossing". The garbage can still had the Lou's Records and Comic Book Legal Defense Fund stickers on it. Now we are back in New Zealand, it's Spring, and our Feijoa trees are blooming. The birds really like to eat the flowers, and we watch them from our kitchen window above the sink. The cucumber plant died, but the lettuce and silverbeet are doing really well.
I've been cooking a lot lately. I like cooking because it's something I can plan, perform, and then enjoy eating. I am not happy at my "real" job (that pays the bills) right now, so cooking gives me job satisfaction. Tonight, Darin and I made Salsa del Norte, consisting of roasted tomatoes, onion, cilantro, garlic, chipotle peppers, and red wine vinegar. Necessary to make your own, because the only "salsa" you can get here is the El Torito brand- glorified tomato sauce. 
Here's an asparagus, blue cheese, and smoked salmon omlette I made this morning. Strawberries are in season. The weather is absolutely grand.
I've been cooking a lot lately. I like cooking because it's something I can plan, perform, and then enjoy eating. I am not happy at my "real" job (that pays the bills) right now, so cooking gives me job satisfaction. Tonight, Darin and I made Salsa del Norte, consisting of roasted tomatoes, onion, cilantro, garlic, chipotle peppers, and red wine vinegar. Necessary to make your own, because the only "salsa" you can get here is the El Torito brand- glorified tomato sauce. Here's an asparagus, blue cheese, and smoked salmon omlette I made this morning. Strawberries are in season. The weather is absolutely grand.
