A Mexican Food Treat

One of the things I have missed since we have been stuck in the house since March 13 is Mexican food. My husband doesn’t care for it as much as I do, but he likes quesadillas and tortilla soup. We used to go to Tortilla Coast in the Capitol Hill neighborhood about every six weeks. It was just up the street from our condo. On our latest grocery order I made sure to include refried beans, chicken, corn, and tortillas. We had salsa and the rest of the fixings, and my husband got everything going. He mixed the chicken with peppers and onions and mushrooms in olive oil on the stove top. The end result was a delicious Mexican treat. We made enough to have leftovers, which is also a treat. A few things were missing - chips, rice and a margarita. Maybe next time? 

US Botanical Garden Vegetable Garden

We haven’t planted our usual cucumber and tomato plants this year. It’s been sort of weird weather and too much rain. However when we walk through the Bartholdi garden of the US Botanical Garden, it feels like we are on a farm with a huge vegetable garden. Last year the garden was not as lush or filled in because it had just undergone a complete update. This is the first year it is completely intact and beautifully landscaped. The funny thing is the distinguished backgrounds when you look in any direction - the US Capitol building; the Smithsonian American Indian Museum; the House of Representatives Building; and the Disabled Veterans Memorial. Last week there were two wheelbarrows filled with just picked huge radishes. Today we walked by several varieties of lettuce - Seeded Simpson, Red Sails, Deer Tongue, Monte Carlo; corn, cabbage, okra, pepper, tomato, and a whole host of interesting flowers fill the place. The fountain is on and the setting is absolutely lovely. As my husband said - if you can walk through this place and not feel good there must be something really wrong with you. It is one of our favorite places. Too bad we can’t pick the produce! 

I Miss the Wisconsin State Fair

While at the Capitol Building on Friday evening, I made a movie of the army band playing the theme song from the Cowboys movie because it was John Wayne related. Anytime we watch a John Wayne movie I take a short clip of it or a photo and text it to my colleague from Milwaukee. So I sent the clip of the music and within a few minutes he responded. He loves John Wayne and likes to impersonate him. I was entertained at work by this foolishness - especially that lopsided walk. It was always a source of extreme laughter. This time, however, he responded to the text with a photo from the Wisconsin State Fair. The first with a goat, and then with a corn cob - standing next to one and holding a cob with a few bites taken out of a row or two. That is one thing I really miss about Wisconsin. We always went to the fair. I loved to see the animals, eat the corn and assorted other foodstuffs, and maybe a cream puff. My husband loved the strange characters that came with the carnival rides as well as the sales pitches from the vendors for all the kitchen gadgets. I know there are state fairs around here, but we never got to any of them. It's probably something you just have to grow up with. And after thirty years of Wisconsin State fairs, nothing could possibly be the same. Thanks Paul for reminding me of it. I wish I was in Wisconsin this week!