Menu Plan Monday for June 20 – 24

If I watch a movie right before I go to bed, I have a tendency to dream about it. There’s probably an 80% chance that I’ll dream about the movie. My husband thinks it’s funny that I’m so easily influenced by movies as he puts it, but I think it’s more that I tend to get really involved in movies when I watch them.

My husband loves to periodically glance at my face while we watch movies to see what face I’m making and/or if I’m crying. I make a lot of faces. Tense faces, sad faces, happy faces, OMG I can’t believe that just happened faces, etc. For him it’s part of the entertainment of watching a movie. I also cry easily during emotional scenes.

I can’t help it. I get really involved in movies. I blame my mom. I always teased her about doing exactly the same thing when I was a kid. Not only does my mom make faces, however, she will also makes noises. Gasping, oohing, awing, etc. I at least don’t make noises. We both tend to dream about movies we watch right before bed as well.

Over time I have come to admit the truth. I have become my mother. As my father enjoyed watching my mother’s movie faces, now my husband enjoys watching mine. The circle of life continues.

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I recently came to the conclusion that I really don’t know a lot about cooking certain types of cuisines. French cuisine for example. Besides some basic things like quiche, ratatouille, and crepes, I haven’t really cooked/don’t know how to cook much French food.

I decided I should fix this, so I checked out a French cook book from the library last week and found some recipes to try. There are a bunch of recipes I’d like to try, but do to the, um, heavy/rich/creamy/luscious tendency of many French dishes, I’m limiting myself to one or two a week. For this week’s menu, I have two nights of French food I’m planning, but it’s all basic stuff. Nothing fancy.

Menu Plan for June 20 – 24:

• French onion soup gratinée and salad niçoise
• Spaghetti alla puttanesca (a tomato sauce with capers, olives, and anchovies) and broccoli
• Coquilles Saint-Jacques Provençale (scallops in a tomato & white wine sauce), potatoes lyonnaise (baked potatoes and onions), and leeks vinaigrette
• Thai spring rolls and tom yam soup
• Salmon burgers/wraps (haven’t decided) and potato salad