POUND PUPS......PIZZA PIE AND KITCHEN TIMERS...

What do those three things have in common.....Why absolutely nothing.....

Unless your spending a day with Joyce....

Yes.....everyone's favorite ex-blogger and Ms. Flour Power.....

Last Monday me and Joyce got together for some shopping and lunch.....

we started out at the new Anthropologie in Atlanta and who knew the day would turn out to be

photo worthy....

Ofcourse it would be.....nothing is ever normal when the two of us get together.....

It's like spending the day with Lucy.....

Only instead of being an "Ethel" to Joyce's "Lucy"......

I happen to be another Lucy.....

Infact I like to call us "The Two Lucys"....

Rose.....I think you would be the first to agree with that..

We moved on to a new pizza place that she had heard of called

ANTICO....

somewhere near IKEA we had to stop multiple people to ask for directions....

And with each person....Joyce asked if they would like to join us for lunch....

even the Atlanta Cop that we stopped....

A little Dive of a Place we got there when they first opened to beat the lunch crowd.....

we are both Pizza Fanatics so we were excited to be trying what is called

the best pizza in town........

It was a recommendation from the Governor's Chef....

We first came across their dessert case.....right inside the front door....

They had these fabulous Sfogliatelle

An Italian pastry that has sweetened ricotta cheese inside....

All kinds of Cannoli.....

Made fresh every day and filled and dipped in your choice of

pistachio nuts.....pine nuts....coconut...white chocolate chips...or chocolate "jimmies"...

We opted for the pistachio cannoli and a sfogliatelle....

Joyce was told to get the real experience of the place you need to sit in the back room where the three brick ovens bake the pies right before your eyes.....A bunch of communal tables and a couple of unfriendly women who wouldn't budge to give us a seat at the picnic table....we gave them the "skunk eye" and moved to a table in the back of the room....

Here were the men preparing the pizza.....I couldn't get a good picture of them flipping the dough in the air....but alot of flipping was being done.....A real art...

This poor guy spent the whole time just pulling apart mozzarella...
They get their ingredients flown in fresh everyday....
I'm assuming from New York.....as one of the bakers was from the Bronx...

I said we sat in the backroom.....This is what we sat next to....
Hey.....it's Italian Ambiance!!

No plates....no silverware....Just pizza on a big old baking tin covered with brown craft
Paper....to catch the olive oil....
We opted for a Margherita pie...
Sauce....fresh mozzarella....and basil....
Nothing better...

We split two pastries....
I got nervous when Joyce asked for a straw when eating the Cannolli...
Yes that's right....she sucked the filling right out of the cannolli shell...
We were in "Food Heaven"....

Our tablemates.....They got one with the works...
But said that ours looked better....

Everybody's Italian Grandmother...

Everyone sits together.....

You grab whatever seat you can find....

Then it was on to the ASPCA of Atlanta......

This poor dog was not interested in whatever Joyce was selling....

"We just came from Antico where we had the best pizza.....You should have come with us....

It was right down the street....Maybe we can stop and take you next time".....

Talk about something that needs a hip and knee replacement....

This dog was so bow legged that you could have thrown a bowling ball thru his legs....

This little Guy was not impressed with his lovely accommodations.....He was howling up a storm....

The Atlanta ASPCA facility was unbelievable....

I couldn't get over how spotless it was....

A beautiful home for homeless animals.....Wonderful volunteers who were taking the dogs out

One on One for some play time in the yard.....

it was so clean that you never would have thought you were in an animal shelter.....

Kudo's to the Folks who run it!!

This was a Happy Guy....

Each dog has a large run with a little bed up off the floor to sleep on....plenty of fresh water and food......and toys to play with....

All enclosed with a Plexiglas fronts so they can see what's going on....

Ofcourse They had Puppies Too!!

This one was all head and legs.....

I'm a sucker for Black Dogs.......

This pup reminded me of my beloved Buster.....

He almost came home with me but he was a biter.....He tried to eat my purse!!

His label said he was half hound and half Schnauzer.....

Sandie asked why we stopped by the Shelter.....

We drove past it....I said...."Hey....do you want to go see the dogs?"

to which Joyce responded....

"Sure".....

It's fun to be spontaneous.......

Makes life interesting....
We left the shelter before one of us brought home a dog.....

So it was on to IKEA.....

Not much new going on here.........I stopped to look at this cute little glass and wrought iron

Table.....complete with 2 chairs for $99.00

If it wasn't so cold out I thought about bringing it home in the Bug with the Top

Down

For my Kitchen....

But it was too cold out....And while I was looking this over

Joyce was doing this............

Music was playing so with her two rolls of shelf liner.....

She resorted back to her High School days and starting twirling them

Like she was in the Marching Band....

Luckily the aisles were empty...if not we might have both been asked to leave the premises....

And this is the part where the "Kitchen Timers" make their debut.....

While wandering around down in the Marketplace....I hear her hissing me to come over

to the aisle she was standing in.....

As I approach I hear ticking.....and it's getting louder and louder....

Yes that's right.....

She turned on all the kitchen timers......

And then quietly

slipped away....

HERE OR THERE..................

We have talked for years about someday moving back to the

Motherland...

That would be Jersey for some of you who don't know that is where me and the

Boss grew up....

It's where daughter and Miss "B" resides....

It's where Nunze and the Peeps live.....

Snow never really bothered us.....Well....that's a lie or we wouldn't have moved

to Fort Lauderdale all those years ago.....

But the Homeland has always beckoned us back....

The Jersey Shore.....Stewart's Root Beer....White Castle....good pizza....

Until now..... Central New Jersey....

December 26th...2010.

2 feet of snow.

Marietta....Georgia
January 28th.....2011....
64 degrees and sunny sunny sunny!

We may have to re-think this one..........


If you could live anywhere where would it be and why.....
Let's make it only in the U.S.
Because we all know if given the chance we would all live in
Paris or Tuscany!!

BONNIE CARRIGAN.........Pet Portraits Painted to Perfection!!

I was in the waiting room of Boo's Vet....Dr. B.....back in July when out walked

a lady from the back with all her animals in tow....

She handed me her business card before leaving and said if I ever wanted a portrait painted of

Boo I should contact her...

My first thought was what a wonderful business women she was using this opportunity

to "advertise" her talent....I was impressed....

So impressed that unlike the usual Sue who would have misplaced her card....

I actually put it in a safe place.....

When Boo passed away 2 months later my first thought......after all the crying and

grieving.....Was to get out her card and send her an e-mail.....

My thought was to get the Boss a portrait done for Christmas....

After all.....I fed....walked...and tended to Boo on a Daily basis...But Boo was the Boss' Dog....

Shortly after.... I requested that instead of just e-mailing her a picture that

we meet and decide together which picture would work best as an oil painting....

An hour spent at her home and many ideas like tongue in or tongue out.....

We both agreed on the above photo...

One of our favorites taken not so long ago....

She was able to get the painting to me in time before we left for New Jersey

and when I met her that Sunday at the Gallery in Woodstock.....where she was part of an art exhibit...... to pick up the finished painting....

Well.....I just stood there and blubbered like a baby.....

And here is why.....

an 11x14 oil painting of the most Beautiful Dog ever.....

After discussing with daughter about transporting it to Jersey for Christmas we decided to leave it safe and sound at home in Georgia....the oils were still drying....So two days after picking it up and about three weeks before Christmas at two o'clock in the morning.....I gave the

painting to the Boss......much weeping and blubbering occurred.......

Boo's nose is black as coal in the painting in person....But the camera picked up the shading...

She captured the color and expression in his eyes to perfection....

He comes to life right off the canvas....

The Boss was pleased...

He know hangs on the staircase wall in our Family Room where I have to

admit we talk to him every day.....Oh did I really admit that!!

The black and white sketch to the left was done by a street artist in Paris many

years ago.....The pastel drawing to the left of that is "Sissy"

One of our many Golden Retrievers we have had over the years....

Yes.....we are dog crazy....

His eyes follow you wherever you are in the room....

She managed to get every whisker....

And I love the tongue....
This was Boo....

Here is some other work of Bonnie's......
Bonnie.....I hope you don't mind that I borrowed them from your website....

How cute is this little guy.....

she does cats too!!
She really captures the soul of these animals....
Just look at those eyes....


This is one of my favorites....

And last but not least Bonnie does People too......

So if your looking to have a portrait done of your beloved animal or
perhaps a grandchild....
You will not be disappointed with Bonnie's work.....
I recommend her highly....
I know it sounds stupid to people who aren't animal lovers but I am so
Thankful for meeting her that summer day and being able to
Have Boo with us Forever.... ..........

Thank you Bonnie.....

http://www..pets4everpetportraits.com/

If you would like to read a short piece on my relationship with Boo
you can go HERE.......it's all true I'm afraid.

SUNDAY IS NATIONAL PIE DAY!!!.......come to the Party!

January 23rd. is National Pie Day......

Who Knew???

I am joining our good friend Cheryl at JoJos-Joys and lots of other

Pie Bloggers to bring you the next craze in desserts....

PIES....

After All it is the year of Comfort Food...Forget the Cupcake and even the French Macaroon....

I'm Talking good stuff between two pieces of crust....

Baked or chilled to perfection and eaten with a side of ice cream...

What could be better!

When I heard Cheryl was having a pie party I got out my new Bon Appetit Cookbook....

The family knows when it's gift giving time I always appreciate a

Good Cookbook....

Blueberries were on sale over at Publix so 2 pints later and a great recipe....

I was ready to bake a pie!

The recipe called for me to cook the blueberries first before putting

the filling inside the crust.....

This took about ten minutes....

Okay....What Betty Crocker out there......(Joyce).....is going to tell me

I did not do the lattice correctly...

I realize this and will probably never be able to make it the right way...

You know how you're suppose to weave it in and out....

I am pie crust challenged...

But I think the finished product looked pretty darn good.....

On to a big serving plate....
The small dessert plates were bought recently at IKEA.....
The big white plate with the blue stars is from
Fishes Eddy in NYC....
A great shop that sells heavy duty Diner China.....both vintage and new....

Served warm with a side of Blackberry Ice Cream.....
It was a hit with the Boss....

Here is the recipe....

Lattice-Topped Blueberry Pie....

7 cups of Fresh Blueberries
1 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of cornstarch
2 Tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon of finely grated lemon zest
1 package of Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust
(the recipe calls for homemade pie crust...I always use Pillsbury and find it to be perfect)

Combine blueberries, sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and lemon peel in a large heavy saucepan. Cook over medium heat until mixture thickens and bubbles, stirring occasionally, between ten and fifteen minutes....I had to add a bit of water when it started to get to thick.

You can make this mixture up to three days ahead of baking day.....

preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put one piece of the pie crust in the bottom of your pie pan...
Pour in the blueberries....Cut the other piece of pie crust into thin strips....
weave on top of the filling....Or cheat like I did....believe me it's easier to cheat....

Brush the Lattice with an egg wash or heavy cream and bake until the crust is
Golden brown.....the recipe calls for this to take an hour....
My oven baked it in half that time using the Convection feature....
But I preferred a lighter crust.....
By cooking the blueberries ahead of time you are really just baking the crust so when it's the color you want it the pie will be done....

Now follow the link and head over to JoJo's to see all the other wonderful pies....

Bon Appetit!!!

THE DILEMMA...........A Weekend Movie Review.

OMG......

How do you get back two hours of your Life?????

Ron Howard.....Vince Vaughn and Kevin James

Should all chip in and send me the $15.00 I threw away on movie tickets....

It was Date Night Friday so me and the Boss decided to take in dinner and a

Movie....

Billed as a "Comedy" someone needs to Sue for Misrepresentation of Entertainment

I sat for two hours thinking about all the things I could have spent the $15. on.....

15 RED BOX MOVIES.....

15 MCDONALD'S DOUBLE CHEESEBURGERS....

$15. WORTH OF LOTTERY TICKETS...

OR

$15.00 WORTH OF DISHES AND STUFF AT TJ MAXX.....

This movie was HORRIBLE.....

We love to laugh and certainly expected that when we heard both

Vince Vaughn and Kevin James were starring in it....

WRONG....

It wasn't funny.....At All.

Let me give you a glimpse of what Barbara Walters raved about saying it was

wonderful that Ron Howard was back making what he does best...

Comedies....

What movie did she go see???

These two guys have an idea to take an electric car made by Dodge....

and make it sound like the Muscle Cars of the 1960's....

Throw in Queen Latifa as a Chrysler exec......Who thinks she's a man....

Jennifer Connelly with eye brows that look like Caterpillars....

And Wynona Ryder as the cheating wife...

We waited and waited for something funny to happen and the moment never came....

Wynonna cheats on Kevin James' character and Vince sees her with the

other man at the Chicago Botanical Gardens where he goes to

arrange the perfect spot to propose to his girlfriend

played by Jennifer Connelly....

He falls into a poison plant and his face swells up with hives...

Ron Howard's creepy looking brother...... who always has a bit part in all his

brother's movies....... plays the guy in charge at the Gardens....

You wonder if he ever gets any other movie work or has he made a career in the shadow of his

Brother....

One scene has the Vince character giving a Toast at the Anniversary Party for his

Girlfriends parents....

You wait for him to say something funny and it never happens....

He just goes on and on about being Honest in a marriage...

I don't know what we expected...... after all how can you make a joke about a

Cheating Spouse....

Anyhoo......Save your cash and spend that buck on a Red Box.....

If you get bored atleast you can get up to get a snack or use the bathroom........

And there is Always the Fast Forward Button.....

On a "RedBox" scale from 1 to 15.....

It makes Sex and the City 2 look like "Best Picture of the Year".....

The Dilemma is not even worth the RedBox $1.00 rental fee....

HARPERS FERRY W.V...........A Slice of Americana

Talk about something being off the Beaten Path....It would be

Harpers Ferry West Virginia

A historic town sitting on the banks of the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers

And a stopping off point for both the

North and the South during the Civil War......

We see it off in the distance huddled at the base of

the Shenandoah Mountains....while traveling along Highway 340 between

Virginia and West Virginia....

Stone....Brick and Mortar homes that beckon you back to the 1800's....

We are fascinated on how you reach this quaint little town because there are no signs.....

But on this trip we decided to make it a point to figure out how to cross the river to the other side and go

Exploring....

Crossing over the two rivers and zig-zagging between both Virginia and West Virginia

We must have been driving 60 mpg when the Boss spied a sign

as we approached the end of the bridge....

"Shenandoah Street"....

A sign so small with an arrow pointing to the right....If you blinked you would miss it.

Almost getting hit from behind the Boss managed to turn the Bug onto

what turned out to be the "Main Street"...of Harpers Ferry....

Almost like a Ghost Town there were few tourists wandering the streets...

With my new Nikon D-200 with ultra zoom lens in tow...

A Christmas gift from Daughter and the Boss....

I give you A Slice of Americana....

The one thing I love about Blogging is how from the

Comfort of Your Own Home.....

You can get to see places around our Country and the World that you may never get to

Experience.....

If you would like to read about the history of Harpers Ferry you can go HERE......

I hope you enjoyed the little tour and

HAPPY TRAVELS!!!