Food..

Terrible always comes in threes right?

And it's been a shitty year last year right?

First my father-in-law, next Meg's grandmother...

And then my cousin Kate. Lord, c'mon, I guess you can take the older ones, it stings like hell, but seriously? You gotta take the one who just graduated college?

Yeah, no rhyme, no reason. Slick icy road, spun out car, traumatic brain injury, close curtain. I briefly grieved, sobbing in my living room by myself. Thank god for our puppy who licked away my tears, thank god for our kitten who purred her little heart out to make it better. And I've remained stoic, and angry, yet accepting this is what happened. C'mon...seriously?

With heavy hearts and armed with a good cookbook (Molto Mario, James Beard Award winner...don't leave home without it), we headed to North Carolina to provide some reprieve. My Aunt Linda and Uncle Paul share the same birthday, and painfully, their birthday is about 2 weeks after their daughter died...ugh.

But you know how the Jacobs do...and since you read my blog, and if you wonder where I get my kindred spirit, look no further than my father, and his brother Paul. When in need, drink...celebrate...lottery, funeral, birth? Drink more! Their birthday was coming up? Well...let's....

So we cooked from the soul...an old Italian standard one pot meal...Chicken alla Vin Cotto (Chicken in cooked red wine), Cheese Bomb Polenta, Arugula Salad with Fried Goat Cheese Balls (thank you Carla Hall), and a yummy orange/Grand Marnier vinaigrette, and Orange and Olive Oil Cake with a Grand Marnier reduction.

My favorite part of the meal was the hand holding prayer before we broke bread. My Uncle Paul always did that before good meals. He is such a GREAT cook...he always says the BEST prayers hinging on sincerity mixed with some great theatre...his wife Linda is a great artist and potter and has made us some of the nicest pieces for our wedding and for Christmas...and their daughter Kate could bake...man could she bake some good stuff. I shared that Meghan and I channeled Kate, putting all the love we could into their early birthday meal.

Grief really has no bounds, and I'm not sure how to grieve especially at this tragedy. And I guess sometimes grieving doesn't deserve tears. A thoughtful meal, a holding hand, or a listen to someones prayer. In our case, on that very day, we laughed, ate, drank, and came together to celebrate what we had.