Sultan's Kitchen Food Cart Night............

Roger just has a one hour break between his Wednesday PSU classes so it's easier for me to stop at one of the food carts for his supper.  Tonight he's eating Turkish food and he's having barbecued chicken kabob with rice and a turnover filled with chopped parsley and feta.

I picked up a chicken Banh-mi sandwich from the Vietnamese cart so tonight we're eating "international".  Roger's chicken and rice was $5, the turnover $4 and my sandwich $3 so we love the opportunity to try food from a variety of countries and still stay on a budget.

Mucca Osteria Wine Dinner..............

Last night Allison and I went to an Italian wine dinner at Mucca, an event that we always look forward to.

Now we know what the Roman feasts and orgies must have been like - total decadence and gluttony......................

Fortunately, the food was served family style so we tried to be careful not to take large portions.

This is an abbreviated version of the dinner:

(1) Organic greens, Gorgonzola, walnuts, pears...........etc.
(2) Roasted beets filled ravioli with brown butter sauce
(3) Pan roasted Draper Valley chicken breast with Marsala sauce
(4) Roasted squash and crispy Brussels sprouts with Madeira reduction
(5) Carlton Farm pork shoulder, demi-glace
(6) Crispy polenat with pan roasted wild mushrooms
(7) Housemade gnocchi with wild boar ragu
(8) Pan seared black cod

Piemonte wine was served to accompany the courses so it was a memorable dining experience.  If you are in Portland, please check out this amazing restaurant.  The chef/owner lived in Italy prior to coming to Portland and all of his food is authentic Southwest Italian and prepared with the finest ingredients.

www.muccaosteria.com

Truckee on a Sunday Afternoon.........

I never get tired of visiting Truckee.  Yesterday it was especially lovely because it was sunny and a little over 60 degrees.  It was a treat to wear light weight clothes in January and be able to soak up some sunshine.  Shown here are some shots from Cindie's back yard and one of downtown Truckee.

Busy Weekend in Reno and Truckee...............

This weekend, Lori, Pam and I went to Reno to meet Jordan and to celebrate the upcoming birth of their baby girl, Zoey Annlouise Meuhler.

Ashley's friends gave her a huge baby shower with beautiful decorations and delicious food on Saturday.  The cute little guy in the picture is Horace, a very adorable teddy bear faced little guy.

After the shower, we headed for Truckee to spend the night and enjoy a great dinner at Moody's.  The weather was so warm we were able to sit outside to enjoy our cocktails.

Cindie lives in a cottage that was built in the mid 1800s.  It has been fully remodeled with three levels and two huge decks that overlook the Truckee River.  Jordan and Ashley joined us for breakfast so it was a really great weekend.  The baby will be born late in March or early in April so we're already planning our next trip to Reno..

Another Finished Painting...........

 Roger just finished another painting.  This one depicts a caged eagle who has broken the cage and escapes into the open sky.

DECEPTION.................

Roger's painting teacher loves his painting technique and she has made arrangements to put one of his paintings into a gallery.  He calls this "Deception".  The fox has disguised himself as a duck and he's leading the ducklings from the castle and a rich and beautiful life into the darkness.

Today is NONG'S KHAO MAN GAI Time

And............. you're thinking what in the heck is Khao Man Gai?  As it turns out, it's one of Portland's hottest carts to get a simply prepared dish of chicken and rice.  The recipe originates in Bangkok and we love it because it is delicious and healthy (plus one night a week I don't have to cook dinner).

Roger has classes on Wednesdays from 2 to 9 pm with an hour break between 5 and 6 so this is our Wednesday night's "special".  It's easy to heat up and quick to eat so he can head for his next class.

Check out the web site.  They have a video on "how to eat" the dish.

khaomangai.com/story/

Another Finished Painting............

This is one of Roger's recent paintings that depicts the darkness of living in a country without freedom and finally escaping and walking into the light................  He used modeling paste to create texture and depth to the cave so it's very impressive when you see the detail. 

Good News About Bella.............

Yesterday, Bella met with her new doctor for a blood test and check-up for her heart problem.  The medication is working well and all of her tests came out positive.  It's a relief seeing her running and playing with her toys - clearly feeling much better.  She's still on a diet and so far she's lost 6 ounces.  (Another pound to go........) 

In Memory.............

We are saddened about the death of talented and courageous journalists in France.  Roger still grieves the death of one of his younger brothers, Rahman, who was a brilliant and talented writer..

In 1979, Roger's brother, Rahman Hatefi, became editor of "Keyhan", the largest Iranian daily.  Under his supervision, the paper published articles that the Khomeini regime thought to be "leftist".  When Rahman refused to print an article to counteract one of his reports, he was arrested and subsequently was killed in prison while being tortured.

Nine Classes So Far.............

When I logged onto the PSU web site this morning, I found a list of the classes that I've taken and, as of this term, I'm taking my ninth class.  So far they have centered around ancient history and art history subjects and this term I'm taking "History and Contemporary Issues in Photography".  Yesterday was my first class and this will be really interesting.  We're starting with the very first photo that was taken in 1826 and working our way through the 1950s.

Bella's medication seems to be helping.  The first pill prescribed is a diuretic to eliminate any swelling around her heart and since she's taken it, her coughing and choking is only about a quarter of what it was before.  Sunday she has an appointment for a blood test and the doctor will prescribe one more pill that we're hoping will completely eliminate the cough.




Roger also started classes yesterday so he'll have a class five days of the week.  Wednesday is his big day with classes from 2 in the afternoon to 9 at night but he has only one class on each of the other days.  He's in an advanced painting class so he learned yesterday that he has to have ten 24 x 30 inch paintings completed by the end of the term.  Today he's at his life drawing class so I suspect that will come with a heavy workload, as well.  He has his studio organized and ready so it will be exciting to see what he accomplishes.

A New Beginning...........

Happy New Year to friends and family.  We're looking ahead to another exciting year and spending time with family and friends.