Can't Talk "Family" without saying "and Food"

Dad's ham
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic

Family, Food, Fun. That's basically what trips back here entail. I'm certain it's that way for everyone.

Here's my dad, pronouncing his ham a success. I'm sure I've mentioned before that my boys call bone-in picnic hams "Farmington ham." Taylor and my nephew Jake requested Farmington ham as a counterweight to my moussaka Sunday night. Fortunately for me, moussaka is only popular with 50% of the family. This leaves more for me!

We had corn on the cob and yellow tomatoes with the moussaka, which made our meal rather...yellow on the plate. (Fortunately I had not drawn the yellow fiesta plate, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to see what I was eating!)

Mom made this fantastic salad with baby beets, onions, and cherry tomatoes. Balsamic vinegar was the dressing. Excellent!

Monday we found Old Dutch potato chips. Easy to do here. Not easy in South Carolina. Here is Nate modeling a box.

They aren't necessarily better than some of the ones we get at home, but it's a nostalgia thing.

And here is brother-in-law Bill making burgers for the grill Saturday night. He has a technique. Pretty much meatloaf, shaped into giant balls. Portioned out fairly, then smashed into patties. Delicious!

We also had a nice bottle of Riesling...a Piesporter Michelsberg Riesling I picked up. Can't remember the winery.

Today hopefully it's Jazzercise. Then lunch with The Cleveland Company, and tonight we go out for dinner with my siblings and their spouses. Kids? Tombstone Pizza.

Still Fits!

Still Fits!
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic

Huh. Isn't that something?

Running out to have breakfast with Lis. I'll write more later. Great dinner and conversation with the family last night. I have photos of my food and some of the family.

Prison? Theatre? Antique Mall?

Shelbyville
Originally uploaded by Food Fanatic

I saw this in Shelbville, Indiana yesterday. I couldn't resist shooting it. Obviously you can see from the sign that it's an antique mall. But before I saw the sign I saw the top and thought, "Looks like that used to be a prison."

I can just imagine prison guards in uniform with guns patroling inmates behind. But of course there is no courtyard behind. It's just a big brick building.

As I was standing on the street shooting, I asked an older gentleman about the building. He said it used to be a theatre. For decades it was a theatre.

Shelbyville is kind of a picturesque little town. It's right outside Indianapolis to the east. They have a central town square that is a parking lot and a traffic circle goes around it. The circle is lined with pretty buildings. Old ones.

I spent most of the day yesterday (when I wasn't taking my turn driving) listening to podcasts from a website I found, Nikonians. Wonderful conversation about photography and equipment. Digital and film. It's a great resource that I'm glad I found. I also started working through a Nikon D40 manual that was written by a guy named Ken Rockwell. So I played with my camera and remote a bit.

I also watched the movie "Big Chill." I'd forgotten what a good movie that was. I really like the scene where they show everyone unpacking their stuff. The different items they all had with them.

That's it for the day. Hitting the road here soon. Moussaka tonight at Mom's house! Hoo HOO!