Happy Thursday evening! We are almost to another Friday, which seems amazing.
I don't know about you, but yesterday was tough. Over the past couple of weeks, I had settled in to a pretty pleasant present, where things were definitely not normal, but felt okay. And then, yesterday, I started thinking about how we don't know when or how this will end, and what things will be like when it's over. The idea of 18+ months of uncertainty, until there's a vaccine, started to weigh on me. And by that time, how many of the places and people we love will have fundamentally changed, or be gone? It's impossible to know. That is Fact, even in more normal times. But the pandemic makes this truth painfully clear. It felt like... a lot, and not a particularly welcome connection made.
But I felt those feelings, talked them out, meditated some, and today was another day. I'm busy at work with a COVID-related project. It feels good to be doing something to help, and to have my brain firing on all cylinders. There are hard problems to solve, and I'm in a place to help think it through. Tomorrow is Friday.
And we ate some delicious food.
THURSDAY
Bullfrog Bagels
If we're going to be in this for who knows how long, I'm going to have some bagels!
Part of feeling better last night involved putting in a pre-order at my favorite neighborhood bagel shop. It was the first food that was prepared outside of the house that I've had since we began our stay at home. I used to stop by Bullfrog pretty much every Monday-Thursday on the way to work. The folks who worked there were my first interactions in the morning, and it made me happy to see them each day. Plus, bagels are a favorite food of mine. Bullfrog's bagels are a nice, medium size, and soft inside, chewy outside, and covered in plenty of seeds and salt. The cream cheese is extra whipped and delicious. Jeff and I split a toasted Cinnamon Raisin and warm-from-the-oven Sesame. And I didn't eat it at my desk, over the keyboard, because... I don't need to do that here. A notable improvement that lifted my mood.
The 777
Bloc Cafe (formerly Bloc 11) was an abandoned bank-turned-hip-sandwich-shop in my Somerville neighborhood of Union Square. Bloc opened the summer after my first year, when I was studying for my general exams. On a grad student budget, a $12 sandwich was quite a splurge. But probably once a week, I would bribe myself to work by riding my bike over and treating myself. During the school year, many a Friday night was spent at Bloc 11, cross-legged in the banquette in the back, by the fireplace. I would settle in with a 777 sandwich, a large iced tea, and a stack of reading for the following week, with a goal of knocking out as much as possible so that I could have some semblance of a break on the weekend. It was a nice ritual, and the sandwich was always quite a treat.
The recipe has changed a bit over the years; apparently now it's known as the 777b, and has pork instead of roast beef. But the classic was roast beef, caramelized onions, gruyere melted on a baguette with roasted garlic mayo. Some fresh lettuce wilted into the heat after it came out of the toaster. It was delicious. My version was on toasted sourdough, with butter lettuce instead of mixed greens. As I was assembling it, I realized: no wonder this is delicious! It's basically a sandwich version of French Onion soup. We were glad we had it for dinner, because it was a soothing nap waiting to happen. I enjoyed every bite.
Also: innovation! I microwaved the sliced onions for 4 minutes, in a bowl covered in plastic wrap. They steamed and softened, and took less than half the time in a fryingpan to get deep, golden brown. I was hungry and looking for a short cut, and it's a trick I'm going to hold on to!
Chorizo and Rice, Take 2
Still delicious.
WEDNESDAY
Chinese "Takeout"
Dinner was Monday's auxillary Eggroll in a Bowl, and bbq chicken bao from Trader Joe's. All microwaved, all delicious.
More Pasta Salad
'Nuff said.
Ramen Egg on Toast, Cantaloupe
And the Big Cup of Coffee.
I don't know about you, but yesterday was tough. Over the past couple of weeks, I had settled in to a pretty pleasant present, where things were definitely not normal, but felt okay. And then, yesterday, I started thinking about how we don't know when or how this will end, and what things will be like when it's over. The idea of 18+ months of uncertainty, until there's a vaccine, started to weigh on me. And by that time, how many of the places and people we love will have fundamentally changed, or be gone? It's impossible to know. That is Fact, even in more normal times. But the pandemic makes this truth painfully clear. It felt like... a lot, and not a particularly welcome connection made.
But I felt those feelings, talked them out, meditated some, and today was another day. I'm busy at work with a COVID-related project. It feels good to be doing something to help, and to have my brain firing on all cylinders. There are hard problems to solve, and I'm in a place to help think it through. Tomorrow is Friday.
And we ate some delicious food.
THURSDAY
Bullfrog Bagels
If we're going to be in this for who knows how long, I'm going to have some bagels!
Part of feeling better last night involved putting in a pre-order at my favorite neighborhood bagel shop. It was the first food that was prepared outside of the house that I've had since we began our stay at home. I used to stop by Bullfrog pretty much every Monday-Thursday on the way to work. The folks who worked there were my first interactions in the morning, and it made me happy to see them each day. Plus, bagels are a favorite food of mine. Bullfrog's bagels are a nice, medium size, and soft inside, chewy outside, and covered in plenty of seeds and salt. The cream cheese is extra whipped and delicious. Jeff and I split a toasted Cinnamon Raisin and warm-from-the-oven Sesame. And I didn't eat it at my desk, over the keyboard, because... I don't need to do that here. A notable improvement that lifted my mood.
Bloc Cafe (formerly Bloc 11) was an abandoned bank-turned-hip-sandwich-shop in my Somerville neighborhood of Union Square. Bloc opened the summer after my first year, when I was studying for my general exams. On a grad student budget, a $12 sandwich was quite a splurge. But probably once a week, I would bribe myself to work by riding my bike over and treating myself. During the school year, many a Friday night was spent at Bloc 11, cross-legged in the banquette in the back, by the fireplace. I would settle in with a 777 sandwich, a large iced tea, and a stack of reading for the following week, with a goal of knocking out as much as possible so that I could have some semblance of a break on the weekend. It was a nice ritual, and the sandwich was always quite a treat.
The recipe has changed a bit over the years; apparently now it's known as the 777b, and has pork instead of roast beef. But the classic was roast beef, caramelized onions, gruyere melted on a baguette with roasted garlic mayo. Some fresh lettuce wilted into the heat after it came out of the toaster. It was delicious. My version was on toasted sourdough, with butter lettuce instead of mixed greens. As I was assembling it, I realized: no wonder this is delicious! It's basically a sandwich version of French Onion soup. We were glad we had it for dinner, because it was a soothing nap waiting to happen. I enjoyed every bite.
Chorizo and Rice, Take 2
Still delicious.
WEDNESDAY
Chinese "Takeout"
Dinner was Monday's auxillary Eggroll in a Bowl, and bbq chicken bao from Trader Joe's. All microwaved, all delicious.
More Pasta Salad
'Nuff said.
Ramen Egg on Toast, Cantaloupe
And the Big Cup of Coffee.
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