so what have i been up to

Hibernating with this blog, for one?

Cooking? Yes, to an extent.

The winter, you might ask? What's been on my fork? Jambalaya with shrimp, pork, beef, and andouille. Twice. Rich crab gumbo served piping hot. T-bone steaks bought on sale, thick-cut, seared on a new cast-iron grill pan. Vegetable de-tox soup, with homemade veg. stock, which needs a little work, but is basically vegetable tea, superfood. Spinach omelettes, heavy on the spinach, binded by a single egg. Whole braized branzino cooked summer style in lemon and herbs (possibly the most enjoyable meal of all). Lots of roasted roots. Couple of tempeh meals (yes, I can eat that stuff, but lately have not been enjoying it much). Slow-cooked pork shoulder bought real cheap, cooked all day, so good you could have cried.

Drink-wise? Two major beer, um, tasting sessions, fridges stocked with serious brews - the Harboon Leviathan collection, home-brewed coffee stout, Bitches Brew from Dogfish, rubbing elbows (and ice fishing) with a national award-winning IPA home brewer, a brewery trip to Brooklyn Brewery.

In the meanwhile, what else, as homework?

Just about finished digesting the food edition of The New Yorker, which came out in November. Brushed up a little more on Euell Gibbons and his foraging genius.

Made plans to plant potatoes at the lake next month (they'll be ready in time for the fall - cut up a potato, put one "eye" in the ground, and wait six months, that's it).

Made further plans to be at said lake in mid-July, knowing that raspberries surrounding the entire place will not be there two weeks later.

Considering purchasing an outdoor food smoker "for my Dad."

Signed on to cook Easter meal for parents, because they'll be traveling and arriving back in NY that Sunday.

Ate at a trendy Korean food truck on a cold day and was disappointed. Ate at a Bistro Truck, well.. the "Bistro Truck," and loved it.

Took my parents to Gino's Italian pasta place in Bay Ridge, swearing that it was awesome, and it held true to my swears. They loved it.

For food safety reasons, held true to only ordering burgers in restaurants medium-well, even though I'd love them medium or medium-rare. Also, held out on calling anyone out or mentioning said rule.

Been a year-plus of eating no chicken. OK, ate chicken once, but it had to be "air-chilled."

Progress -- what have YOU done?