Jello Salad

Doug is from Western Pennsylvania. A big thing there is ... Jello salads or molds that are actual side dishes at meals, sometimes they're desserts. But the idea is, you serve these beside your main dish. When we first got together I went out in Pennsylvania visiting the family, and his grandmother served a really bizarre concoction of some lime jello and it had carrots in it, topped with some sort of mayo and whipped cream mix. 

This New Yorker with very a low-brow palate was slightly scandalized. 

My face probably showed it. And his wonderful, beautiful grandmother told me I didn't have to eat it. I did. But I didn't enjoy it. 

Over the years, Doug has attempted to bring his love of the art of the jello salad into our wedded and family life. The kids hate it. I will tolerate it, if it is fruit and fruit only. No carrots, no ham, no salmon, no .... no. Just no. I barely tolerate it with the just fruit approach. I think I can blame these salads on the fact my kids hate mayo. Because these bizarre mayo/whipped cream based a lot of the time, and those ones are the worst. 

When we moved to Maryland, he invited his aunt and cousin for dinner and wanted to do it up like his grandmother (her mom) would. He did. She was thrilled while the other 3 of us in our family cringed through the presentation.

What was it? Something of a foamy green nature, I think there may have been grapes. Served on a leaf of iceberg lettuce.

Fancy like that.

He has made a couple that didn't make me immediately want to retch. I think for fourth of July one year he made a red, white, and blue one with that middle layer of white NOT having mayo involved. It was cream cheese. And it was nice. It had blue jello with blueberries in it, and the red level was strawberry with, well, strawberries. 

This year, we started our jello arguments early. Carrots were mentioned. I said no way, don't you dare. And then he found the jello recipe book, circa 1974. We finally came to a détente and he is going to make a strawberry jello thing. I'll probably be happy with it. 

Mind you, I do not hate carrots okay? I just like them cooked with butter or raspberry sauce on top, or for dipping in hummus. Just not shreds in jello.

But wow. I just want him to make a small container but he thinks he's making a giant tray of it. 

If he's not careful, he's gonna have to eat 80% of it. 

Anyway. My sister is on her way here, I think she won't be here until very late (as of my writing, eta is about 8pm but it is after 8pm). She should have left early, but sometimes in life you can't get out of your own way. I get it. I'm just glad she is on her way instead of coming down Monday morning. A late start out of her house, and she won't get to DC in time for anything ... and she will miss out on all the fun and joy.

My mother called in a panic at about 6:30 because Linda had not called her yet. I called back and told her the ETA and she was astonished. 

Lady. It's a long trip, with traffic, and a late start, but she'll get here.

We got more tidying up work done today. I found lights down in the basement that I want to string around the living room. Geoff brought up some books I picked out to put on the shelves Doug had bought at a yard sale recently. Doug went to Target for some things we need, a dry goods/pantry pre-stock before doing the "official shop" probably on Wednesday morning early. He got a 27 pound turkey, and I hope that's enough. Stuffing, pumpkin pie mix, crusts, a bunch of stuff. 

He bought a brand new toilet seat for our upstairs bathroom. Fancy! Ours had a big crack in it from someone [GWG] slamming (dropping) the seat down. We put super duper tape on it months ago, good enough for our asses, but for guests? Gotta have a nice seat for our guests' butts. 

I cleaned the microwave. Holy shit, that was gross and it still isn't all the way clean. I feel like I clean it all the time though. Had to lay down the law. I told Geoff that from now on, he has to put a piece of paper towel on top of anything he cooks. The inside top of the microwave should not be ... crusted with spaghetti sauce and chili or whatever.  He gave me a snarly look. And I told him I'll make him clean it next time. Snarling right back.

I cleaned the top of the bar, all the bottles Doug & Geoff have saved are up there. 

I wanted to clean the top of the fridge, but right now I'm tired. Gonna sit on my ass and play Candy Crush, while we wait for Linda to arrive. 

I still need to clean the top of the dining table, get the china out and do the plate count. Doug and Geoff are going to bring another table up from the basement, check on repairing a chair or two that the rungs look like they want to let loose. 

And he'll start to decide his jello concoction.

Please note, if you ever have a dinner party, this is me and Doug showing up with the strawberry dessert thing. You've been warned.

digits

exercise:

blood glucose:
8am: 181
5pm: 122
11pm: 154

food:
coffee, water
11am: BLT salad (with mayo) 
1:45pm: metformin
5:30pm: bowl of cheese ravioli (small, probably 8 ravioli total) sauce and diced sausage. 
6:30: metformin+jardiance
8:30: white wine with linda
9:30: some extra raviolis to finish off the package