It's all about Donna

So much for a weekly, let alone daily, post about life in the day of me. It’s been crazy. I haven’t really had a whole lot to say either.

Here it is a little over three months after my last post. More life has happened. I remained jobless since October 1, 2009. That has totally sucked. I’ve picked up some freelance and barter projects, but nothing significant that I can support myself on. It has totally grated on me to be stuck in this position.

Had to put down the two old horses. That wasn’t fun, but it was necessary. Boukie went down and couldn’t get up. That sucked. Several weeks later, it was clear that Louie was languishing after the loss of his buddy. I love my Vet and his people, and my good friends Lori Allen, Kathy and Jeff Hoffman, who all helped me with this huge task. Thank you all for both your physical and moral support.

OK. It’s not all doom and gloom. There have been a ton of bright and uplifting spots along the way. In March, there was all the preparation for the annual Sunrise Ridge Horse Driving Trial. I’m responsible for the program and sponsors. That alone is nearly a full-time job. The event took place in April this year.

In May, I got to attend the Certified Zentangle Teacher conference in Massachusettes. Had a blast, met some creative people and made some truly wonderful new friends. It was good for networking, too. This was truly a turning point in my life and as one new friend told me, “life changing.” She was not kidding. It has been life changing, and as a result, I vow to be more diligent in posting on a regular basis now.

Because I do have life in my day, I hear it calling my name. Until my next post, HAVE A GREAT DAY!

I was prompted today to start blogging again. So here I go.

It’s been kind of a tough year for me. Hasn’t gone exactly the way I thought it would or should. However, this wonderful circle of girlfriends have blessed my life and has made dealing with life so much easier.

Today we all met for lunch. Again, I feel so very blessed, as we have managed to pull off meeting for lunch about once a month since the first of the year. This is quite a feat as we all have such hectic schedules and demands. Today it was Lin, Amy, Dana and Gayla. Dana brought her son, Kasson, and her new baby girl, Kinsley. What wonderful children. Kasson has impeccable manners, and “Baby Kinsley” is just an absolute doll.

We met at Mi Chula’s in Southlake. Turns out I could have walked there faster than it took me to drive. Oh well. Definitely hoofing it next time. Very tasty Mexican food at this place. I had the chicken flauta platter. Yum!

It was super catching up with everyone. These women are just so positive and gracious. I am so very glad we’ve become such good friends.

Oh? What’s “G65?” We all met through an employee-only social network. G65 is actually Group 65 as it was the 65th group to be formed within the network. We all kinda came together and ended up forming the G65 Ladies Auxiliary. The rest, as they say, is history. You can learn about this cool application for your company by visiting www.cubeless.com. I highly recommend it! If you decide it’s an app you want to learn more about, tell ’em Donna sent you! Yah… that was a shameless plug, but I had to do it.

The celebrations have begun!

It is my birthday week. It’s a very special year, in which I hit the half-century mark. As much as I hate admitting that, I have to share it because that is what is driving the setting for these next few posts.

The celebrations were kicked off by my husband taking me out for the obligatory birthday dinner. Don’t get me wrong. I love my annual dinner out; it’s just usually to the same ol’ place, H3 Ranch steak house. I admit H3 is my favorite place for getting a good steak, but sometimes it’s nice to eat that steak in something not so ‘roadhouse.’ I was taken by surprise to a place that may have just landed at the top of my favorite places to eat: Eddie V’s. This shiny new restaurant, which is getting mixed reviews, turned out to be a very pleasant deviation from the usual trip to H3.

I had read that Eddie V’s was dark, and the rooms cold – take a sweater and a flashlight. I took the sweater, not the flashlight. While it was a bit dim, I found I could read the menu without too much difficulty. The wait staff were eager to offer up mini flashlights should you prefer to use one. On this particular occasion the sweater was not a necessity.

As for the food, I had read all kinds of info from ‘luke warm’ to ‘piping hot.’ Most reviews have been positive, but it only takes a few bad ones to destroy an establishment. I can say that our experience was most enjoyable.

We had reservations for 6pm, and upon arrival, we were promptly seated in a booth. Our waiter, Eric, was at the table almost immediately and I noticed that he welcomed us by name. Now that’s impressive as we have never met. A very nice, personal touch to experience. Very personable and helpful, Eric stepped us through the menu of gastronomical delights.

We decided to start the evening off with the Maryland-style All Lump Crab Cake with sauteed with Chive Remoulade sauce. I am not a seafood person. I have issues (mostly mental) with fish, but I will at least try it now. Recently I discovered that lump crab is not so bad. Visits to the local seafood kitchen, GoGo Gumbo, introduced me to this delectable appetizer when made with fresh lump crab. For me, GoGo set the standard. I was not disappointed with Eddie V’s version… if this was any indication of what was to come, we were in for a real treat.

Up next, the meal.

There were several menu items that caught my attention. The Pacific Ahi Tuna Steak seared with Shiitake Mushrooms, Wasabi Potato Purée and Ginger-Soy Jus; the Swordfish Steak broiled with fresh Jonah Crab, Avocado and Red Chile Vinaigrette; the Roasted, Double Breast of Chicken with grilled Wild Mushrooms and Natural Jus; the double-cut Colorado Lamb. However, it was the 8oz Filet Mignon that made it to my tastebuds for the evening. When delivered, my fist-size chunk of flesh was prepared to perfection. My first bite just melted in my mouth like a piece of good Swiss chocolate. The next bite didn’t disappoint either; it was as good as the first. And the last bite, was equally as good as the first.

I discovered I like sea scallops. They must be absolutely fresh, like right off the boat and served within the hour. My husband ordered the broiled jumbo Georges Bank Sea Scallops wrapped in bacon and broiled with a tomato-basil butter sauce. I, the anti-seafood person, would order these on another visit. I got a taste-test of one scallop, and just like the Filet, it just melted in my mouth like a chunk of good chocolate.

Vegetables and side dishes are served family-style and there is easily more than enough for two, and plenty for four. When we inquired about the ‘truffled’ macaroni and cheese, Eric’s response was simply, “to die for.” When I hear ‘to die for’ I think of GoGo Gumbo’s chef Kraig’s delectable dessert of fresh fruit, whipped cream and lady fingers that can only be described as To Die For, and bears the same name. So when Eric described the truffled mac and cheese as to die for, I had to try it. The spin on this dish is traditional macaroni and cheese made with black truffles and Parmesan cheese. We also split a dish of perfectly steamed asparagus with Hollandaise sauce. Needless to say, we brought home a few leftovers.

The End.

No evening out is complete without dessert. I’ve never been big on desserts, but sometimes you just have to. Like sex, I think the food leading up to dessert was just foreplay. With each dessert description, my mouth just watered that much more. Can I have one of each please? When I saw the Belgium Chocolate Mousse with Raspberry sauce, there was no doubt that would be my choice. Just like the Filet, and the truffled mac and cheese, my mouth went into orgasm-mode with each bite.

Because this was my birthday dinner, we got a few perks… my husband got to try a special drink not found on the menu and comp’d by Eric. A vodka iced tea of sorts to ‘help get him through this experience.’ Very tasty indeed. My dessert was also comp’d and comp’d or not, I would have ordered it regardless.

This was definitely a birthday dinner I won’t soon forget. Eddie V’s gets five stars from me for both service and food; and my vote for a special evening out.

Happy birthday to me!

It is most definitely all about me!

The first highlight of my day was meeting up with my girlfriend Nancy. I met Nancy working at the BNSF Railway. She’s a technical writer with an extremely dry sense of humor. I miss working with Nancy. We became like sisters. I’ve never had an older sister. I think it could Nancy… after all she is older. To me, Nancy is one of the cool senior citizens. I know when she reads this she’ll probably shoot me. Isn’t that what sisters do? I always knew Nancy older than me, but she is so totally lucky because I think she is aging much more gracefully than I and as such, she looks at least 5 years younger than she really is. But, enough about Nancy. Today is all about me! Read the rest of this entry »

I’m marking this entry as day job as well as food. Why? Because if it wasn’t for my day job, I never would have suspected that a trip to The Cheesecake Factory could be so good. The Boss in the corner cubicle decided to treat his team to dinner in saying good-bye to one team member, welcoming yet another new team member, and a general attaboy recognition of the entire team. I am glad I was invited. Being the only contractor on the team sometimes makes work life a little tough. Since I’ve contracted for years, it’s really no big deal. It’s just that every now and then it’s kinda nice to feel like part of the team and get recognized. I was glad I didn’t flake out as the Boss acknowledged me… that felt good.

Now as to why this is a food post… OMG! The food at this place was truly great. I so badly wanted to try the Filet Mignon, but it would have been bad etiquette to do so (after all, it was the most expensive item on the menu… but in retrospect seeing what others ordered PLUS desert, I think I would have been safe to get it as the dollar amount was just about the same after everything was said and done).

I had to try the Keoke Coffee. I was not disappointed. As one of my all-time favorite winter bar drinks, it hits the spot on those really cold, raw, North Texas days. This was no exception. Their version is made with Courvoisier, Kahlua, Dark Creme de Cacao, Coffee and Whipped Cream, was most excellent.

For my meal, I tried the Chicken Marsala. HOLY COW! What a plateful of food! There was enough for 3 people! Needless to say I got a togo box when I was done eating all that I could. I even went hungry. It was hard to narrow down my choices, and when the waitress got to me, I just blurted out Chicken Marsala. I was not disappointed with my choice. Looking at all the dinner plates, it’s my guess you’ll never leave this place hungry. I wanted to try one of the signature cheesecakes, but there just wasn’t any room left in my stomach.

This is a place that will definitely be added to my list of places to visit on special occasions. I’ve avoided the chain restaurant scene for years, but this one has made me rethink my philosophy about them. I would give the place 4 out of 5 stars (I was a bit disappointed in the service, thus the minus 1 star… but then there were 25 of us, so all in all our waitress can’t be faulted too heavily).

So this one is about the food, and not really about me. Well… it could sort of be about me… the Boss acknowledged me, so I guess that would make it about me 😉