Top Davis Headlines of 2011

No blog would be complete without a top 10 list for the end of the year. Well, here's ours, with just a few hours to spare. See you in the blogosphere in 2012!


1. Robby
There’s nothing surprising about No. 1. Of course the biggest story of the year was the birth in September of our beautiful son, Robby. He’s truly been a gift and a blessing. We can’t wait to see what happens in 2012 with Robby on our team!

2. Bobby earns his MBA
Three years of hard work finally paid off for Bobby in August. Now I have to finish. I’m eight classes in with another eight to go. I should be done sometime around 2030.


3. Blizzard Blizzard Blizzard 2011
Ugh. We wished we could have forgotten this, but January and February of 2011 were brutal. Feet of snow upon feet of snow. Thank goodness we had a guy to plow the driveway.

4. Winter Storm A-hole
Ugh again. This Halloween storm drove us from our electricity-free house for eight days. We (two adults, one four-week-old baby and a grumpy cat) took shelter with family, but really missed our own bed (and litter box). With a generator in the garage we shouldn’t be in that position ever again.

5. Bobby’s new job
As if we didn’t have enough going on around the end of summer, Bobby started a new job in August. He’s now the OEM Market Manager at Henkel in Rocky Hill. Henkel is a Germany-based industrial adhesives manufacturer. Danke schoen.


6. Christina’s career transition
With the arrival of Robby, I stepped down from my role as editor of the Worcester Business Journal. I’ve started working for the same company (New England Business Media) part-time from home, focusing mostly on web efforts. I’m really lucky to have the flexibility to work from home!


7. Finishing the basement
We’ve had our fair share of projects at Chez Davis including a new deck, a brick patio and walkway, two new bathrooms and digging out the foundation to fix the drainage. This year’s big headliner was definitely the basement, which is now pristine with a coat of paint. We just have to hang our custom wallpaper – an 8-foot by 2-foot image of the beach at Cape May.

8. 60 Recipes Challenge
This year started with a pledge to cook 60 new recipes in 60 days. Unfortunately the plan was thwarted by morning sickness (see No. 1). But we’re back on the wagon, cooking up a storm and blogging about it. Eat your heart out.

9. Trip to Asheville
Our travels were relatively limited this year. We skipped our annual trip to Savannah in favor of a visit to Asheville, N.C. We enjoyed the hippy city in the mountains, especially the Biltmore Mansion.

10. A man and his top 10 list
Bobby and I headed to the Big Apple to see Mr. Letterman live and in person. It was a blast. Dave is a true entertainer. The entire process, including waiting in line out in the cold, was so much fun! Some day I'd like to see Saturday Night Live. If anyone manages to score tickets give me a shout!

New England Potatoes: See Alternative Uses for

Buying local is a goal we can all aspire to, and a way to improve your health and the health of the community as a whole. Local Honey builds your immunity and helps maintain the bee population. Buying local produce when in season keeps farms active and maintains land for future generation. Seeing that your pizza is bought from within a certain radius of your home means your dinner comes quicker and you burn less gas.

And Farmers markets are a joke, don't bather going unless you need 1980's cassette tapes, turquoise jewelry, or jellies made from fruit you don't want to eat. And pan-pipes.

But I did find a New England product I highly recommend:

Cold River Vodka

Finally, Something to do with all those grubby potatoes they have up there in the ground.

Makes a great martini, buy the way.

And supports the local economy. Plus, it beats the hell out of going to a Farmer's Market and buying mis-shapen tomatoes and tiny squash.

Cheers!

Recipe Fail: Olive Chicken Junk

They can't all be shiny gems, you know. This dinner: Lump o' Coal. The recipe sounded great, and the ingredient list included everything we liked, but the outcome was, well, pooh.

The recipe called for browning the chicken in olive oil--It had no actual flavor and tasted rubbery.

The sauce was anything but, and each flavor got lost in the others. It was rather non-descript.

Thumbs down, Chicken with warm green olives. You are terrible.

Three Blind Muse: Gallery Spoon Smile

Its everyone's favorite time of the week; the moment you've all been waiting for: Three Blind Muse. This week we did, as the title suggests, Gallery Spoon Smile. Three Excellent Choices.

But before we go ahead, we need to tally the scores from last week: With one vote for Blizzard 2016 and one vote for The Character's Court, we have another tie. Reminds me of last week's post:

Blah Blah Blah, no one votes. Blah Blah Blah, maybe I should have figured out that no one's reading this blog.  Blah Blah Blah dreams crushed under the weight of a cold, uncaring world. 

Wait a minute: one last vote just trickled in through the interwebs. Who could it be for? Blizzard 2016!


By the power vested in me by Shakespeare, Kafka, Swift, Nabokov, Milton, Chaucer, Solzhenitsyn, London, Faulkner, Tolstoy, Conan-Doyle, Poe, Steinbeck, Twain, Goethe, Descartes, Mill, Dickens, Tolkien, Hemingway, Orwell, Joyce, Fitzgerald, Wilde, Vonnegut, Rand, Woolf, Camus, Melville, Dahl, Huxley, Bradbury, Blake, Sheldon, Shelley, Beckett, Nietzsche, Emerson, Lawrence, Sartre, Thoreau, Chekhov, Lewis, Salinger, Dostoevsky, and, most of all, Chuck Norris, I declare Robert Clifford Davis III, begat of Robert Clifford Davis, Jr, begetter of Robert James Davis, as this week's undisputed Champion of the the free world of Three Blind Muse. It's about F*&king time. Took you people long enough. A#%holes. Seriously. I've been giving you F*&king gold for three weeks, people. Make like a straw and Suck it. 


Oh. No. I read it wrong. It was actually a vote for The Character's Court. That means Christina won. Yeah. 


 Anyway. Here's this week's entries. I stand behind everything I said.

Reclamation

Capo gave me a wry smile as he clicked on his intercom. “Another spinner.”

He kicked at the rubble, clearing shards of pottery and wood until we could see a blackened hand. It shook like palsy. “Pull it out.”

“I hate these Infects”, I mumbled. Ever since the change, we’ve spent all our time flying to earth and burning off the stain of what used to be humanity.

“You could be one, you know.” He smiled at me again, motioning at my bio-suit.  “What do you think this place used to be?”

“Before the cleansing?” I surveyed the room. “I don’t know. Museum? Picture gallery? There’s a lot of crap on the walls. Maybe some wealthy guy’s house.”

“Well, the silver spoon didn’t help this guy any”, Capo observed, poking the discolored corpse with the muzzle of his M326 heat rifle as I pulled it from the debris. It flailed like it was trying to get up. Capo pulled his trigger, turning it to dust in a matter of seconds.

I turned to Capo, “What do you say we fly back up to SOH318, clean up, and wait for the next supply delivery?”

“Sure. Some dinner sounds good, Johnny Cake”

A Capital Offense

John dropped his spoon absentmindedly into his empty soup bowl.

“Need something?” asked the waitress.

“No, ma’am,” John said, shifting his gaze toward the door.

She followed his eyes. “Got any plans?”

“I’m going to the theater,” he answered, grabbing the bill and pulling out his wallet.

He threw cash on the table and headed outside. He kept his head down and walked across the street.

There was a crush of people pushing their way in. The crowd was hoping to get a glimpse of the honored guest. They didn’t realize that they would be witnesses to history.

John slid his way through the crowd and made it into the lobby. He handed over his ticket and bounded up the stairs.

The second floor outside the balcony was oddly empty. John paused to take in a gallery of paintings. His heart jumped when he realized he wasn’t alone.

“Can you believe all these people for a play?” the stranger chuckled. “I’m only here because my wife dragged me… Sorry, I should introduce myself. My name is Louis Smith. What’s yours?”

“John Wilkes Booth,” he said with a smile. “Nice to meet you.”

So, what do you think? Is there a clear winner this week? Use the comment section below or send an email torcdavis3rd@gmail.com to enter your vote for this week's Three Blind Muse winner. We'll announce the winner next week. 

The three words for next week's contest are:


Binge Gossip Hamburger

Sweetness!

We'll be putting our stories together here at Ashford Living. 
And if you want to be a guest writer, send your story to me, rcdavis3rd@gmail.com
Remember to follow the rules. If you do, we'd be more than happy to have you in the show!

Cacio e Pepe -- Pasta done right

If you're anything like me, you grew up eating spaghetti and meatballs for dinner what felt like every night. It's a staple of the American family and one of many great imports from "The Boot".

But we just had an even better take on noodles and sauce: Cacio e Pepe, or Cheese and Pepper

Very simple ingredients--deceptively simple for the rich finished product it produces-- and only 5 of them.

Simple to make as well:

Boil your pasta

Add Butter

Pepper

Parmesan

Pecorino

Stir in and serve.

Eccellente! Very creamy with the butter, and a deep, nutty flavor from the cheese. The pepper adds just the right amount of bite to balance out the savory. Highly recommend!

Daily Happy: Shameless Dad blog

This week was an exciting week--changes, naps, and a lot of singing! and the Tiny Tubs keeps getting bigger! Here are a few more shots of der Junger from this week:

So fresh and so clean! No more stinky neck.

 Here's my new best friend: Horse.

Mommy and I play with it all day.

Changes, and naked baby time. Think I'll pee on mommy when she rolls me over!

The original Napster.

Look at them cheeks!

Me and my other best friend Mousy. I'm mastering this Bumbo thing.

maybe my back's getting a little tired?

Quite a fitting gift

When people think of me, I certainly hope they think of a proud father and upstanding citizen; an individual who cares about others, supports and encourages those he loves, A friend and a neighbor who works every day to make this world a better place.

Or, maybe they just see me as the guy who loves Bacon!

It's the truth, I do.

See, look at my shirt (it says Bacon, ! swear.)

Great gifts, Goffs. Thanks for the smiles!

Poco Taquitos deliciosa

In our continuing series "60 Recipes", we often take the time to let our taste buds travel outside our native land. This recipe comes to us from some exotic land that likes to spice up the night with chiles and chili powder!

Here you have it: Fantastic Chicken Taquitos

Rich, spicy flavor with jack cheese and sour cream, cumin and green chiles. And some spicy barbecue sauce. All packed inside a tortilla--like a Tex Mex hunger seeking missile!

Roll 'em up

Fry 'em up

Stack 'em up

Eat 'em up!

Daily Happy! Shameless Dad Blog

Here's two pictures of Robby in his new High Chair.

He's ready for dinner!

Although he may have already filled up on Thumbs.

And now for some good night singing and dancing!

I hope you enjoyed this week's Daily happy!

Muffuletta: Ashford goes Big Easy on your hiney!

Check this out:

A New Orleans (pronounced N'awlins!) classic done up right here in New England.

Who dat? Capicola, Mortadella, Ham and Salami. Mozzarella and Provolone Cheese. Excessive? maybe. Delicious? Absolutely!

The piece de not resisting is the olive salad. Tangy and bright, it balances out the heavy cured meats.
When the juices soak into the big hard roll, perfection!

I took a total of 10 minutes to put together, first time through. Now if I could only talk Christina into putting this on the regular menu....

Christmas Carol -or- Missing you in Maryland

For all of our family and friends that we could not be with this Christmas, we humbly offer you the following:




We wish you a Merry Christmas

Granny, Pop-Pop, Auny Sandy, Aunt Jennie, Uncle Eddie, Morgan, and Dylan.
Aunt Nancy, Uncle Mike, Andy, Lauren, Amy, Chris, and Dan.

Merry Christmas to all of you. We miss you and hope you're having a wonderful time.

We will see you soon!

Fried Deviled Eggies

Here's a twist on two favorite classics:

The savory flavors of spicy deviled eggs, combined with fried in peanut oil. Mustard sauce added for that extra special kick!

Mustard. Crunchy. Warm.
So. Very. Good.

As always, recipes are available upon request! Ask Christina for a copy--she's the the mastermind behind this deliciousness.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Wishing you and yours the best this Holiday Season.


Have a safe and prosperous 2012

Bobby, Christina, and Robby

Three Blind Muse: Slippery Coronation Coat

Its everyone's favorite time of the week; the moment you've all been waiting for: Three Blind Muse. This week we did, as the title suggests, Slippery Coronation Coat. Three Excellent Choices.

But before we go ahead, we need to tally the scores from last week: With two votes for Lumberjack Slam and two votes for Minding My Business, we have a dead heat. Or as the sporting folks say: Two losers!

Now, you could take this outcome, and many may still, and decide that each story was of equal value to the other. That would mean a tie would be declared, everyone would hug, hand out trophies, have a banquet, distribute participation ribbons, and the story would end happily ever after. That's socialist crap, I tell you. Only California ninnies, soccer moms and pinko commies would accept that as a plausible outcome. I'm from New England, the land of long winters, witch hangings, and a certain swap game played at Christmas aimed to snatch toys from the hands of happy children, reminding everyone that life isn't fair, no matter how much you cry about it.

So, I declare the winner to be Lumberjack Slam by Christina Davis. That's right--I know which side my bread is buttered on. Hard, yes. Stubborn, yes. Stupid? No Way.

With that settled, here's this week's entries:

Blizzard 2016

“Put your coat back on”

“But I’m a princess, Daddy”, three year old Anne rebutted. It did say ‘Princess’ on her pink snowsuit.

“A princess? I don’t remember the coronation”. I started putting her arms in the sleeves.

“What’s a crononation?” Anne screwed up her face.

“It’s a big party to celebrate the princess”

“With Cake?” She smiled at me

“With Cake”

“And Pizza?”

“And Pizza” I slid the door open. Anne grabbed the hand rail with both gloved hands and made her way down the steps, sideways. She looked like a pink marshmallow.

“When will I have my crononation?” The tiny furrowed brow of deep thought.

“Walk slowly, Ann. It gets very slippery when it snows” I followed her across the patio and held her hand as we walked toward the driveway. “Are you ready to go sledding?”

“Can we have it tonight? I want to wear my princess dress and have a crononation!” all the time looking up at me and smiling.

“Absolutely!” How could I say no to that face?

“With Cake?”

“With Cake”

“And Pizza?”

“And Pizza” Smiling eyes and rosy cheeks. I set her in her pink plastic saucer. “Hold on tight, your majesty!”

The Characters' Court

WAPNER: Ms. Hearts, what’s your beef with the defendant?

QUEEN: I’d ask that you refer to me as the QUEEN.

WAPNER: This is my courtroom and I make the rules. I’ll refer to you as Ms. Hearts.

QUEEN: Very well. This slippery little trollop stole my mink coat. The nerve!

ALICE: Your honor, I never stole anything. All I ever wanted was to get home. I fell down this rabbit hole and then there was this tea party… It’s too complicated. The real question is, Who died and made her queen?

                                                                                                          
QUEEN: My coronation was a stately affair celebrated by all the cards. How dare a lowly human girl like you question my authority?

WAPNER: Calm down. Ms. Hearts, when was the last time you had the coat?

QUEEN: I had it at the crochet game where this miserable wench showed up uninvited. Off with her head!

WAPNER: Do you have any evidence that the coat was stolen?

QUEEN: Why would I need evidence? She stole my coat!

WAPNER: Well, Alice, this is your lucky day. With no evidence, I find you not guilty. Just do me a favor -- stay away from rabbit holes.

So, what do you think? Is there a clear winner this week? Use the comment section below or send an email to rcdavis3rd@gmail.com to enter your vote for this week's Three Blind Muse winner. We'll announce the winner next week.

The three words for next week's contest are:


Gallery Spoon Smile

Yeah!--Nice random words.

We'll be putting our stories together here at Ashford Living.
And if you want to be a guest writer, send your story to me, rcdavis3rd@gmail.com
Remember to follow the rules. If you do, we'd be more than happy to have you in the show!