I meant to write this post on Saturday, you know, Valentine’s Day, but um…well, I didn’t. Well, then I mean to write it on Sunday and well, that didn’t happen either. Then I came into the office about two hours ago saying to my husband “I’m going to blog now” and well, found other things to do for two hours (damn that Facebook!). And just now, I stopped in the middle of this post and decided to do some software upgrades on my computer – yeah, I’m motivated to write this.
So here it is, my post-Valentine’s Day rant – seems a bit anticlimactic now, but whatever…
I have decried that hence forth, Valentine’s day will no longer be celebrated in our household. Granted, we never id much for the “holiday” anyway. In fact, I think our one and only big Valentine’s celebration was our first one together here in LA (the hubs went all out…roses, dinner and a spa package). We’ve never really done anything since. I’ve opted instead to stay in and cook a nice meal. Of course, nearly every year, that “nice meal” experience has driven me crazy…beyond crazy even!
You see, we have a teeny, tiny kitchen with no more counter space than the size of a toaster oven. Up until recently, we didn’t even have an oven that worked properly. Well, this year, thanks to our brand new, gotta love it, oven, I decided it would be the PERFECT time to roast my very first chicken. I figured how hard could it really be, it goes in a pan and I just sit back while it cooked. I figured I’d roast some potatoes alongside and make some asparagus for the veggies. Easy peasy, right?
Well, turns out this was NOT the case.
While my chicken did indeed turn out quite lovely (and allowed me to cross it off my 101 in 1001 list), it was a major hassle. First and foremost, if they can take off all the feathers and take the time to remove the head, why oh WHY can’t they also remove the innards? That was just gross! I did it though and then proceeded to stuff the cavity with oranges, lemons and some fresh herbs. Too bad our apartment was conspiring against me.
My smoke detecter went off and on and off (due to it’s lousy location – hello heat rises, maybe putting it directly in the straight away path of the oven wasn’t the best idea) the entire time the chicken was roasting. That’s an hour and a half for those of you keeping track! Both the dog and the cat were freaking it. I did everything I could, moved in fans, opened all the doors and windows (thank God it was in the low 60’s), but we weren’t spared. The hubs finally figured something out and suggested we hang something in the doorway to blog the heat (or at least slow it down) as it passed from the kitchen into the hall.
On top of all that noise, the potatoes burned (which was my fault because they were too close to the heat…whatever). Then because of the fans, the water never came to its second boild once I dropped in the asparagus so they were mushy. So yeah, our “romantic” dinner was basically just chicken. And to be honest, while it was good, it’s not something that I ever plan to repeat again until we get into a real house with a real stove with a properly ventilated kitchen. It just wasn’t worth it.
Luckily, my darlinng husband, seeing how stressed I was offered to take me out to dinner instead (but I said Hell No! wanting to avoid the crowds and the pricey meals) or to at least pick up some dessert. Since the dessert was taken care of thanks to the lovely (and so very helpful) Trader Joe’s, I told him it wasn’t necessary. But being the prince of a guy that he is, he promised to take me out to a nice brunch on Sunday to make up for it.
Thing is, I can’t believe I put so much pressure on myself for a silly, made-up holiday that we pretty much don’t even celebrate to begin with. At least I knew better than to get caught up in the whole Valentine’s Day hubbub of gift and flowers thing. We let that one go after that first year. Next year, it’s pizza or take out all the way baby! I just don’t know how some of you are able to make such amazingly fantastic meals without going crazy!
Now I just have to remember the promise I made to myself…I won’t freak out over birthdays and anniversaries and try to make something fantabulous again. Well, until we can get ourselves into a decent kitchen anyway. I’ll either stick with something I know and can easily whip together or I let someone else do the cooking for me. Just be sure to remind me of this fiasco next month when I take on the hubster’s birthday dinner.
So how about you, how was your Valentine’s Day? Just another day or did you succeed with the fantastic dinner? Any suggestions on how to take the more laid back approach?
