Getting in a Wintery Mood in SoCal

We didn't make it all the way to Dec 21 without turning on the house heat this year. Winter came early. The inside temp fell to the mid 50's overnight on the 14th, so I set up the winter program and turned the heat on. The thermostat is programmed for 62 during the day, 68 during the morning and evening hours when both my spouse and I are here, and then 55 at night for when we retire under a big down comforter.

It's been raining for the past 12 hours; that's a lot for here. It means snow at the higher elevations nearby. And the good news: the roof on our 81 year old house doesn't leak. I love a sound roof. It leaked when we moved in five years ago, but I discovered a lot of leaves and debris trapped in a narrow valley, and removing that mess cured the leak.

I made a fire in the fireplace two nights ago: we use eucalyptus, oak, and orange wood in the current mix. My previous fire was nearly a year ago. It was a nightmare, an absolute disaster. It was very windy out and rather than creating an updraft, we experienced a weird downdraft that filled the room with smoke. Then I tried to open a window to help it draft, but that didn't help and the wind grabbed the window and banged it wide open and made a crack in the glass pane. I had to carry the smoking logs outside and douse them. I felt really stupid. But this week's fire was just the opposite, a perfect fire. I'm smart again.

Winter weather makes warm comfort food sound good. For us, that means getting out the big crockpot. We've started with soups this year. I made a butternut squash soup a few days ago, and am making a tomato/onion soup for tonight, flavored with vermouth and tarragon. It's smelling great. We'll have a fresh French baguette to go with it, and a nice Pinot. This simple fare suits these economic hard times.

Speaking of value, we were out and about yesterday and stopped at an Indian fast food place for dinner, where we shared a meal. Two entries and rice and nan cost $9. That's a tasty and nourishing value meal. I've adopted my spouse's trick of ordering plain water, then adding a splash from the lemonade tap; it improves the flavor and the price is right. We eat well and still live within our means.