Saturday, February 24, 2007

So far, so good

Last night, after a "Save the Leftovers" potluck (more on this below), sixteen of us headed to the opening night of Amazing Grace. This was a fantastic movie, and I strongly recommend it to anyone -- good message and great story. Go see it!

During the two hours we were in the theatre, the storm had started, and there was already a few inches of snow on the ground as we headed home. We drove home in some pretty snowy weather and slick roads but nothing too terrible.

This morning, things are fairly quiet, however, apparently, while the volleyball tournament has not been cancelled, the storm itself will be really getting going this afternoon. We'll have to wait and see whether we can make our trip to the cities on Sunday morning or not.

So back to that potluck I mentioned in paragraph one ...

Our friend's Tara and Lesley (pictured below with my Aunt Jan on the right) are very extreme in their opinion on food wasting. If you don't believe me, check out the title of Tara's blog: "That banana is still good". I kid you not! Both Lesley and Tara are legendary for saving food that should really just die a nice death in the local trash heap. Old bananas and year-old yogurt are only the tip of the iceberg. If I want to assure people take food with them when they leave our house after a big dinner, I just say the magic words: "I think I'll just throw this away" and suddenly, Tara and Lesley swoop in, scouring the area, filling up Tupperware and plastic baggies, making sure that no food makes it to my trash can. Moving and want to clean out your fridge? Call these two. Your fridge will be cleaned for you!

Anyways, a few weeks ago, Tara and Lesley came up with this idea to have a potluck and to not make new food but instead rescue food that would otherwise not survive. So JB and I combed through the refrigerator and freezer and found a bunch of odds and ends that we would have otherwise probably thrown away. The food, most of it, was actually very good, and I felt like I had done a good deed. However, Tara actually brought some pickle wraps that had been sitting for over a week only under saran wrap. These wraps included some cream cheese, and even JB would not go near them. Tara couldn't see what the big deal was, and even Lesley popped a few, but man ... those things looked horrible! (Okay so I don't like pickles -- I'm sure that didn't help my decision not to rescue them.)

Last night, we had another one of these potlucks. Tara ended up bringing a salad littered with corn, and JB drank one of her juice boxes. Leftover lasagna, ice cream, pineapple, Mac & Cheese. Fun times!

Speaking of Tara, I also promised that I would post some funny events that happened yesterday. JB and I were on our way to lunch downtown (to Camille's -- I love that place Rachel!), when we ran into Tara, killing some time during a break from dermatology. (Speaking of dermatology, most students call dermatology "derma-holiday" do to the relaxed schedule and great money that dermatologists make. Three years ago, eleven of the forty classmates in one of the medical classes chose dermatology, obviously opting for "lifestyle" over other reasons for choosing a field.)

All right. Stay on track Wendi. We walked to the lunch and then returned, the same way we had come -- through a back hallway in the subway. However, on the way back, Tara remarked, "Wow, I've never been down this hallway before." JB and I both looked at each other, very confused, since we had walked TO the restaurant down that hallway. I think Tara ultimately believed us, but we imagined all the places we could take Tara without her ever knowing it.

And, if I am going to tell the funny Tara story, I should tell the funny JB story. We walked with Tara to this restaurant, and she went and got a booth while JB and I ordered. A few minutes later, JB turned and said, "Hey -- there's Tara", forgetting for a split-second that Tara had actually come with us to the restaurant.

Both of these events made me feel very un-blonde! Who said blondes are air headed? Tara and JB are brunettes. (Can you call a guy a brunette? Not sure.)

Okay, off to shower and then play some volleyball.

P.S. Right after writing this post, I went to Tara's blog and noticed she had done a whole post on dermaholiday! Check it out!

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yes, the "Save the Leftovers" potluck is a great way to rescue food! (Everyone has to have a cause). But I have to mention that you and JB have a way of throwing together gourmet meals with just the leftovers from your kitchen (for example, the mussels on a half shell last time). I have enjoyed watching the sleet and snow from our windows...there's nothing like being warm and indoors during a winter storm!

Wendi Kitsteiner said...

Lesley, you said "you and JB" ... you mean "JB" ... anything that tastes good, I am not a part of ...

Wendi Kitsteiner said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

My favorite Tara story is the one when she went through the bank drive through thinking that they were something new. That cracked me up.

TAV said...

Am I really that clueless? Maybe I'm using all of my brain cells to save patients. I am a big fan of the "save the leftovers" potluck... can we do it weekly? I want my fridge and cabinets to be EMPTY by the time I leave... Did you guys play v-ball today? It looks horrible out!