The Cast of Characters & Quick Guide to the Story

Friday, November 12, 2010

Preparing to Depart

Pictured here, me with the onion goggles on and 
my fancy apron. Just another day at the office.
Well, we are finally leaving. Tomorrow I have to put breakfast on the table at 7 am. We are to leave directly afterwards for Bermuda. They are forecasting 25 knot winds and high seas. Exciting. But I will be out of contact for a while, at least until we reach Bermuda, which I'm told will take us three to four days if all goes well. Wish me luck! Tomorrow I'm making pancakes for breakfast, spaghetti and meatballs for lunch, mushroom risotto for dinner with dinner rolls and butterscotch pudding for the night watch that comes off at midnight. Pfew.


The Crew
At some point I decided to fictionalize the names of the people onboard so as to protect the identities of the innocent (and the not so innocent). Mostly the not so innocent. So, just to be clear, there is a head captain, named Captain Wright. There is a relief captain, Captain Might. There is a first mate, named Zeke; a second mate, the Philosopher. The one who subbed in for me as cook before I arrived is Filip. The teenager is Huck. There is a Swede named Kakan and a bareback pony riding, tough-ass girl who's in my age bucket named Sugarbelle. There is a tree-planting Canadian named Jenny and a sweet, endearing young thing who is always reassuring toward me and her name is Cat. The guy from the further reaches of Massachusetts, with whom I shared his first oyster and who gave us the gift of his own hard-won venison is named Will. And the one who seems to miss the old cook the most is Elise.

When we headed out from Boston, we also had cargo - three guests I will refer to as Nice, Quiet, and Too Nice. Nice got off in Bermuda where we exchanged him for a gal named Cracker, a long-time occasional crew member onboard our ship, which I've affectionately nicknamed, "The Neverland."

5 comments:

  1. I love this picture. Funny to compare this get-up to your corporate uniform of Skanska days! What a versatile girl you are.
    XOX

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  2. You look great! Have a good trip to Bermuda. Looking forward to more menu postings... I think I'll keep reading just to get yummy dinner ideas. xo lar

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  3. Cole, did you know that googles don't help when peeling onions because the reason your eyes tear up is because you are inhaling the onion? At least that is what Franz told Tristan and Tristan told me. To test, get very close to cut up onions and breathe in.

    Anyway, you are adorable. And looking very svelt!

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  4. Best pic ever! Hey, Leigh is doing a warm butterscotch pudding for deux! Erika took pics of the dining room today, and it feels like a cozy place to dine. So much more spacious than Casellula.

    Your blog makes me feel like I'm NOT trapped in a midtown restaurant for 14 hours a day. There's a world outside! I miss Casellula, and all the people, but the people are coming to deux soon enough.

    I helped Megan make breadcrumb stuffing for pickled roasted sardines with kumquat stew. Yum! I've never seen folks devour sardines so hungrily. Breadcrumbs: soften chopped fennel and shallots in a pan with butter. Add cracker crumbs and butter, stir to coat and brown. Add salt, pepper, and fresh chopped parsley. Stuff into split pickled sardines, tie with twine, roast. Kumquat stew: reduce white wine, sugar, and bouquet garni. Add sliced blanched kumquats, cook until soft.

    Don't tell Megan I gave away her recipe.

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