Back on Line!
Five months is a long, long time to be off-line. The computer crashed just before Christmas. Not a good time, financially, to buy a new one. It isn't that the old one totally died, but it showed signs of dying a slow and painful death. So, it was unplugged and sent to the inner sanctum of the storage room.
I cancelled the internet (and phone - decided to only use the cell) and went into withdrawal. It was more difficult than I imagined. Since I had worked for a dot com for many years and made my living on the internet, it seemed unnatural not to be connected to those in cyberspace.
This is a small living space. An area dedicated to office space took up valuable real estate when not used daily. So, furniture was moved around. A small table and two chairs replaced the desk. Now it became a place to have morning coffee while watching life unfold outside the window and a comfortable place to play cards in the evening.
I replaced the big round dining room table and chairs for a smaller set, and replaced my living room set for a love seat and a rocker - lounge chair (which I hate). The traffic flow improved, but I missed being on-line.
Finally, in April I called Time Warner and requested that the phone and internet be reinstalled. They came yesterday. I dusted off the old computer just to see how bad it really was. It's semi retirement didn't resolve the old problems, but it did allow me email access and the ability to get to this site. I'm back online, but not fully functional. hmmmmm, I wonder if that is a metaphore for my personal life?
What have I done to keep busy for five months? I spent a lot of time in the kitchen. There are loads of new recipes to share with the readers and I'll begin posting them soon. One, in particular, is perfect for those of us who are cooking for one or two. It isn't just one recipe but a series of recipes when cooking a half pork loin. The first is straight forward and extremely simple.
Roasted Pork Loin
Pre-heat oven to 350.
1 pork loin
Montreal steak seasoning.
Place the pork loin, fat side up, in a roasting pan. Rub the loin with the steak seasoning.
Insert a meat thermometer in the thickest part of the loin.
Place pan in oven - do not cover. Calculate cooking time for 15 minutes per pound or until the meat thermometer reaches 160 degrees. Remove pan from oven and let meat stand for about 10 minutes before cutting.
The key is not to add anything to the meat....no liquid...no additional veggies...nothing. Just let the oven do the work. The roast is tender, flavorful, and offers a myriad of opportunities for other meals.
Last night we had the pork roast with roasted red potatoes; broccoli slaw; applesauce; and steamed carrots.
I sliced half the loin into chops and will use them for dinner later in the week. I froze the other half to be used later in the month.
Can't be easier.
