Sunday Bloody Sunday

I am not naturally graceful - anyone who has known me for longer than 20 minutes can attest to that. As a matter of fact, I've banned myself from using the good crystal and begun collecting Braswell's jam jars, "packaged in fine European glassware."

That's right, now I'm swilling whiskey from a jelly jar - and saving a lot of money on replacing crystal rocks glasses, thankyouverymuch.

If EVER someone was not fit to enter a construction zone, c'est moi - but the damn heart of this home is a construction site at the moment, so what to do?

Bang into things, trip over things and systematically break all the glassware as I box it up to protect it from the construction guys, that's what.

As a result of this graceless activity I've invested in a jumbo box of Band-Aids and a new tube of antibiotic ointment for the SEVEN cuts on my hands. I look like I've been bare-knuckle fighting with a brick wall. Nice. Very attractive.

So now I'm off to dress in steel toe boots, leather gloves and a hardhat to do laundry, make a stew, strip paint and pack up the rest of my little war zone.

This is what else is going on today, if you're interested:

What I'm Eating: I'm about to get to work on a lovely Portuguese Fish Stew with cod, mussels, shrimp, clams, saffron and paprika. I wonder how seriously my knife skills will suffer because of the gloves....

What I'm Drinking: Had a Castiglioni 2005 Chianti last night - and woke up with a headache this morning. That hasn't happened in a long time. It wasn't a cheap bottle, but there were better Chianti alternatives - live and learn. I don't have a Spanish or Portuguese wine on hand for the stew tonight so I'm going with an Italian 2003 Zenato Valpolicella Classico Superiore. It's light enough for the seafood, but assertive enough to stand up to the seasoning, I think. We'll see.

What I'm Listening to: Lawn mowers - the last of the season.

What I'm Reading: Are you kidding me? It's two weeks before Thanksgiving, aka The Height of Cooking Magazine Season. I'm already full of ideas for the rest of the winter.

What's Pissing Me Off: Drywall dust INSIDE the refrigerator. How exactly does that happen? There isn't a crack, crevasse, surface or human orifice in this house that isn't packed with drywall dust. I'm tickled pink with the construction, but turning freshly suffocated blue from the dust.

What's Cracking Me Up: The F Word. Yes, Gordon Ramsay again. This time he "teaches" Jeremy Clarkson (grrrr) to cook lunch. Clarkson has a very young daughter who looks and behaves exactly like him. Heh-heh-heh. And there's Gordon giggling the whole time. It's classic.