Another Mexico blog...

One of the many internet friends I have made since I started blogging is Jill...she lives in Seattle. She had arranged a vacation to Mexico with a friend, but when her friend couldn't make it, she decided to make the trip on her own. I convinced her to take her laptop so that she could stay in touch with people without having to find or pay for internet shops. Besides that, when you're traveling solo, after a day of exploring it's kind of nice to find a cafe or restaurant that has WIFI and just sit and watch the people or scenery while you're blogging and having a cerveza or four. So, she has started a blog on her adventures...which began on November 17th. She's starting out in Merida...

... (this is just a photo I found on the internet, by the way), and will end up on Isla. If you want to check out her blog, go here. It's a fun read. I'm looking forward to her posts because I'm thinking of going to Merida for Spring break. Check it out!

Just another day at work...

The department where I work at the university is trying to break into different areas, so I've been assigned to take photos of the various laboratory activities. We have a foundry which heats different metals that are poured into molds. Today, they were pouring copper.

This is very dangerous stuff and it has to be heated to about 2100 degrees F before it can be poured. It's a waiting game until then.

But it offered some pretty interesting photographs...

One of the few female students in our department...

A crazy onion soup post...

When I was in high school, my mom and I had the opportunity to take a road trip to Montreal. Oh, my god...what an experience. As a teenage girl, I instantly fell in love with this romantic city. Everyone spoke French, the stores and restaurants were charming, and the guys...well, the guys were to die for. Cute guys AND they spoke French! What more could a girl want??

I swore I was going to apply to McGill University just so I could live in Montreal.

Well, that never happened, but I'll always remember my first trip to the most romantic city in North America.

What brings all of this up is that I had a craving for onion soup the other day. I went to Jason's Deli and had a bowl. Lame. My very first bowl of French Onion Soup was in Montreal. I LOVED it. But nothing in the United States compared with the soup I had in Montreal...

...until they started serving it at little cafe in a department store in St. Louis back in the 1970s. Famous-Barr was a large department store that had several locations throughout the suburbs of St. Louis. I googled it and found this picture of the one in Clayton. Clayton is a very upscale area of St. Louis where Washington University is located. My mom and I used to shop here after my piano lessons. According to the internet search I did, it's currently being used as a storage space for Washington University.

This was the Famous-Barr located close to where I lived as a child. It's all boarded up now and in an area where you would not want to live.

Here's the downtown store. Look at all that architectural detail. This is a more recent picture and you can see the "Macy" signs on the side. Famous-Barr was eventually bought out by Macy.

My mom and I used to shop here. I think it had about 12 levels, and as you got to the higher levels, the escalators changed to these...

Does anyone remember those narrow wooden escalators?? I can still remember the rickety sound they made.

Another memory of the downtown department stores is the absolutely wonderful Christmas displays in the windows. I remember the crowds of people that would stand in front of the windows in the cold just mesmorized by all the activity. And I was one of them.

So all of these memories come about when I think of French Onion Soup. And here's what it takes to make it. This is the recipe used by Famous-Barr and it is the absolutely best version of this soup I've ever had. It is not a quick deal and takes two days to make. My oldest and youngest sons do not like onions, but they love this soup, so that has to say something. Here are the ingredients...

Saute the onions in a stick of butter for 1-1/2 hours...

Add the paprika, bay leaf and pepper...

Then add the broth and simmer for another two hours.

Then it has to sit in the refrigerator overnight. One bad thing about this recipe is that unless you've tasted the original soup, you won't know how much to season it. When I make it, I add salt and pepper until I get to the exact taste I remember way back when.

Toast the French bread and lay a couple pieces on top.

Then top with a fair amount of Swiss cheese and pop it under the broiler until the cheese melts and starts to turn brown. Then enjoy.

Stained glass Isla style...

Remember that stained glass Christmas project I did last year when I was off for two weeks? Well, after all that time, I finally had it framed this week. I had it done at Hobby Lobby. They had only one frame available for stained glass, so here it is. It's just a light natural wood. I'm thinking of either staining it like a dark mahogany or maybe painting it black. Any thoughts on this??

And remember what's it's modeled after?

Anyway, they didn't do the greatest job, but then they admitted that they very rarely do stained glass work. NOW they tell me. Well, I wouldn't have them frame another project like this again, but for now it's okay. At least it didn't cost me much. Here is where it's hanging in my little dining area. It's really the only option I have in the apartment. I just have it hanging from the window locks because I didn't want to punch any holes anywhere. It'll do for now as a reminder of one of my favorite places to visit.

No home projects for me this Christmas! By the end of the two weeks last year, I was going stir crazy!! Hopefully, I'll get some pictures of my Mexico trip this year to offer some ideas for new stained glass projects.