Wednesday, October 28, 2009

on being fed

Life has got me feeling a little burnt out lately. Some nights when I get home from work I just feel like curling up in a ball. My friend Mindi said something recently about wanting to hide under a blanket with a glass of wine, and that sounds about right too.

When you're going through a rough time, having someone put a plate of food before you is like slipping into a hot bath. It is one of the most soothing, comforting things in the world. Especially when the food is made by someone you know. Going to someone else's house for dinner can be even nicer than going out to a restaurant because it's personal. It's not some anonymous chef in a kitchen churning out your supper. It's something cooked for you by your friend, your father, your wife, your grandmother.

So when our friends Jon and Lara emailed to invited us over for dinner, I think it may have taken me all of five seconds to reply "YES!!!" They couldn't have asked at a better time.

Had I known what an impressive spread they were going to make, I would have replied even sooner. Wow, what a meal. The prettiest little vegetables and bright yellow aioli, perfectly roasted Cornish hens, lamb and rice stuffing spiced with nutmeg and coriander. If someone served you this meal on Thanksgiving you'd be completely wowed.

After a few glasses of wine and an extra helping of stuffing, I was as happy as if it was an actual holiday. I stopped worrying about work, stopped thinking about what I had to do the next day, stopped thinking ahead and just relaxed into the moment. Sitting around a table in Jon and Lara's apartment, laughing at YouTube videos, and eating ice cream may be the highlight of this whole difficult month. There's nothing like a home-cooked meal to make you feel good all over again. Or at least until Monday rolls around. Thanks, guys.

Dinner at Jon and Lara's
Crudite and homemade aioli
Cheese and crackers
Kale chips
Roasted Cornish hens
Lamb and rice stuffing
Roasted brussels sprouts
Salad
Ice cream with chocolate sauce

5 comments:

Daniel said...

Yes, many thanks to Lara and Jon. Are we going to get a separate post about the kale chips?

lulu said...

Was so nice to have you over, and such a nice post- I love the bird's eye view- but we forgot to send Dan home with a cornish hen!

Daniel said...

Vanessa and mom if you're reading: thanks to Lara's comment, now the entire blogosphere will know about that cornish hen!

Judy said...

That looks like quit a spread.

Lisa, I wish I could make you dinner whenever you're sad.

Dan, how does everyone know about the cornish hen? Anyway, I still think it was very Martha of me.

Lisa said...

Lulu: Thank YOU! And Jon too. You guys did such a great job. I'm sad Dan missed to chance to eat a cornish hen at his desk, though.

Daniel: Some kids got Lunchables in their lunchboxes, some got cornish hens. Consider yourself lucky.

Judy: Aw, that's such a nice thing to say.

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