huh

When a person is told that they have Celiac Disease and that henceforth they are no longer allowed to eat any of their favorite foods, their life can feel as though it has been thrown into turmoil. It was an adjustment for me, a fairly big lifestyle change. I went from being the girl who would eat anything, to being the "challenging" one when we go out to eat. The first holiday meals are a disaster and no one quite understands.

That being said, you would think I would have been much more aware of what this weekend was: my one year anniversary. I was sitting here about to crawl into bed when I realized (belatedly) that the anniversary of the day I started my gluten free lifestyle had come and passed. It is almost an afterthought. Strange. Also strange that I am sitting here thinking about being GF for a year while all bloaty and with a big case or gurgly tummy. Can't imagine what I ate. Nothing should have had gluten. It could just be too much fat or dairy. Cheese, pasta with a heavy cream sauce, and...oh. duh. White Chili. Sometimes I am quite dumb.

A fun find

I have started cooking again a bit. Stress seems to wipe out any desire to cook, but lately I have been having fun with it again. Meals have been made, food pics have been taken, no posts have been written. I promise to fix that in the near future. A few of the meals actually turned out quite good.

The reason for my writing today is food related, but not cooking related.

A little over a year ago, after a relationship I quite enjoyed came (sadly) to an end, I decided I needed to focus more on my friends. I always seem to feel that way after a breakup. While I may not have been smart about the dating decisions I made after that, I did make a smart decision by starting what has become a bit of a tradition. Once a month I host a movie night. I cook an entree (usually something big and meaty) and everyone else brings a side dish, dessert, appetizer, etc. It is a big old potluck. I baked my first ham, made chili, created a taco bar...among other themes. A few moths back I added a new element to our monthly gathering: wine. There was usually at least one person who would bring a bottle along. Month after month I would hear people say "I wish I knew more about wine." So why not? Movie Night became Monthly Movies & Wine. I try to pick a theme for each gathering: West Coast Wines, US Wines (not West coast), and College Wines (nothing over $5). It has been fun and interesting. Perhaps not educational yet, but that may change.

Last week I was watching Nightline. Why? I never watch Nightline. It usually depresses me with all of their child predator stories. I teach children all day, that topic just depresses the hell out of me. For whatever reason, the show was on. They featured a segment about a gentleman on the east coast and his web site. Gary Vaynerchuk owns and runs a wine store that his parents started when they moved here from (I believe) Russia. It is now a monstrous wine superstore. About a year or so ago he started video blogging about wine. The result is Wine TV. He is crazy. A huge football fan, he often talks about the Jets and how terrible they are doing. He is not a wine snob, sounds like your average Joe. He presents wine in a way that is entertaining and approachable for the average person. If you want to learn about wine, whether you are a newbie or a seasoned wine connoisseur, this is the place to go. Check it out. Nd if you have any wine suggestions of your own, pass them my way. I am always looking for a good wine to share with friends.