Perfect Practice Makes Perfect

One of Richard’s favorite sayings is “Practice doesn’t make perfect; perfect practice makes perfect.” He must really believe this because he creates protocols for everything he does, including leaving the house for a road trip. He has a list on his computer that he prints and uses as a checklist as he loads the car and secures the home front. Richard’s toiletries - check. Richard’s clothes – check. Adjust thermostat – check. Navigation system in car – check. We rarely leave and have those “Did I turn off the iron?” moments.

Our over-the-hill neighbors take care of our pets when we leave town. Richard has a protocol for getting our pet supplies ready for our pet sitters. It’s nice for me that I don’t have to worry that in the middle of my drive to wherever, I’m going to have a panic attack wondering if I remembered to put out the cat food.

Our first stop was Atlanta to deliver donations to the family members who lost all their household possessions in a flood. Holly and Don have been receiving donations, so we added an overnight visit with them to our mission of mercy. The plan was that Richard and Don were to drop me off for a haircut while they made the donation deliveries.

We had driven through rain all the way to Atlanta, and Don wasn’t at home when we arrived. Their second floor guest room overlooks the hardwoods that were shimmering with raindrops on the last of the fall foliage. I couldn’t resist the temptation to let ourselves in and nap through the rainy afternoon. One of my favorite sayings is “Tomorrow is another day.” -- Besides which, we have to pass relatively close to the flooded family’s new residence on our way out of town. And I can always put my hair in a bun.

Holly is the chef for the Georgia governor’s mansion, and she and Don usually cook for us. But, their house is in the process of being put back together after a full house interior paint job, so Richard offered to take us all out to dinner. Aspen is a good steakhouse owned and operated by a local husband and wife team. Holly and I have enjoyed a meal there before, so we braved the short drive through the rain to get there. A gas log fire greeted us in the dining room. How cozy!

We started with very nice chopped salads. I then had wonderfully prepared grilled scallops – caramelized on the outside, butter-tender on the inside served with crusty polenta and endive. Don enjoyed his ancho pork loin chop, but thought the kitchen needed a course in chorizo and potato casserole. Don and Holly make several to-die-for versions of potato, sausage and cheese casseroles, so I’m not surprised that this wasn’t up to their standards.

Holly was dissuaded from getting her usual rib eye by the prospect of trying a special bone-in filet glowingly described by our waitress. It was nice that Holly was asked to check for proper doneness before the server left our table. Richard had the flatiron steak with a gorgonzola topping. As he got to the halfway point in his meal, the waitress brought over extra gorgonzola for the second half of his entrée.

We had a very nice evening, and the waitress was wonderful, despite Richard’s declaration that her “Minnie Mouse” voice felt like chopsticks being shoved into his eardrums.