Return from Sick Leave

I'm baaaaack!

Hopefully it isn't as scary as the ghosts in poltergeist.

I had my hip replacement surgery, I'm mostly off the narcotics, and I'm feeling pretty good.  I get to go back to work in a couple of weeks, and we all survived.

My husband was so awesome!  He took really good care of me and this whole experience just reaffirmed how lucky I am to have such a wonderful man that loves me, takes care of me, and while he might not totally embrace my level of neurosis, he puts up with it well.

He has one story from our experience with the surgery where he just showed how he rolls with it. (I say "He has a story" because I don't remember any of this and just have to take his word for it...there were drugs involved!)

I have tiny veins and they collapse easily.  The day of surgery, the lady came in to put in my I.V.  I told her she had to use a butterfly and it would be hard.  The anesthesiologist came in as I was saying that and told her a butterfly wasn't appropriate for this surgery.  She got a little nervous and the anesthesiologist said he would go ahead and do it.

Well, he even struggled, and after about 12 pokes and two ultrasounds on both arms, the dr. decided he needed to give me something to relax me.  He inserted a butterfly into my hand and gave me a little something.  A minute or so later her asked, "How are you feeling, Toni?"  I said I was still a little nervous.  He gave me a little more and then asked, "How are you doing now?"  I turned to my husband and said, "I want a monkey."

"Did she just call you a monkey?" the dr. asked.
"No, she wants a monkey and she keeps asking for one.  She had one when she was a kid, her mom is a little eccentric." Dave calmly replied.
"That explains a lot." the dr. said.

And I was out.  Apparently the surgery didn't take as long as getting the damn I.V. in my arm!  I was in my hospital room about 1.5 hours later and standing a couple hours after that.

Well, my husband is really in the running for Husband of the Year with all this he has had to do and put up with.  So I do want him to know how much I appreciate him and all he has done.  I'll be cooking some husband friendly dinners now that I can get back into the kitchen.  This means we will be eating a lot of red meat, bacon, butter, and beer braised roasts.  He should be very happy.

I thought I would start with a little spicy treat.  Dave loves bacon and spicy things so I made these sweet and spicy bacon slices.  I hope he is happy and I am still working on that monkey.

Sweet and Spicy bacon

1 lb. bacon, slices cut in half
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp. Sriracha
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. ground chiles de arbol

Preheat oven to 375°F.
Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.  Place bacon in a single layer on baking sheets, bake for 15 minutes.  Drain extra fat off sheets and turn bacon.
Mix brown sugar, Sriracha, cumin and ground chile in a microwave proof bowl.  Heat for 1 minutes and mix well.  Brush mixture over bacon slices and place in oven for 10-15 minutes.  Watch carefully as the sugar burns easily!
Let cool.

1 year ago:    Start of a New Collection
2 years ago:  Braised Endive
3 years ago:  Surprise Pears and Cranberry Cheesecake stuffed Pears
4 years ago:  Banana Cake with Nutella and Hazelnuts and the Bad Mood

January 15, 2016   Sunrise 10:27  Sunset 3:34  Temp.  H -1/ L -3