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| I don't know what this plant is called, that's what mothers are for. Isn't it beautiful? |
I haven't been spending too much time cooking in the kitchen, its been pretty standard fare around here lately. Tuna salad, pasta, and other no frills meals. About a week ago I was lucky enough to come across a beauty of a bike, a yellow vintage Schwinn Continental, and since then I've been zipping around the city, exploring more of Chicago in a week than the entire 6 months we've lived here. So you can imagine that when I say its revolutionized my life you can understand that it's not an exaggeration. Then, two days ago Joel found a 3 speed cruiser so now our biking family is complete!
Biking in the heat of summer can bring about a strong thirst and what better way to quench it than with a tall glass of lemonade? Cherries are in season right now and they've been in our fridge consistently for about a month now. I decided to throw some cherries into the mix and some mint for color and to offer a contrast of flavor to the sweet cherries and lemonade. It's super easy to make; just get a glass and fill it a quarter of the way with crushed ice. Then take about 3 or 4 cherries and a few sprigs of mint and muddle it all together. If you don't have a muddler then you can use the pestle to your mortar like I did. Just be gentle and don't break your glass like I did, but I didn't use crushed ice, which is why I'm telling you to. Also, be gentle. You just want to smush the cherries and crush the mint enough for it to release it's oils, which doesn't take much force. Now you've learned from my mistakes. Now, fill up your glass with ice and add lemonade! It's delicious. Of course this would make an excellent cocktail, but it's only 1:30 people! Cocktails are for after 5 pm, so I guess I'll have to settle for a beer!
I actually drank this last night, but I would drink another one right now if I had it. I love Lagunitas IPA but wanted to try this Anniversary Release, Lucky 13. It's a great beer. It's big on the hops but has a smooth finish, so the bitterness doesn't sit on your palate as with other beers. Does it sound like I know what I'm talking about?
After lemonade making Joel and I made plans to bike to Humboldt Park and watch some outdoor Shakespeare. We even packed some snacks and a blanket to get cozy as we got a dose of culture. But as we started out on our 7 mile trek it became apparent that the play wasn't going to happen. The sky had become dark and overcast, the wind was swirling and yet we pedaled west anyway. Just 2 streets away from the park we pulled over and looked up at the sky, the lightning that had just started was seriously making us reconsider things. I figured the play would be cancelled anyway and I was super bummed about our day being ruined. We turned around and worked hard to cover the distance we had just made before the storm rolled in. All of a sudden the air changed and I could smell the rain. The tempertature dropped and above the tree line I could see a rolling black cloud race across the sky, covering up what remained of blue. It was quite a sight to behold. Then the rain started, slowly at first, then more quickly, until a full fledged thunderstorm took over. The wind whipped dirt and leaves around and my vision became blurred between the wind and the rain but I still pedaled faster. I was soaking wet, cold, surrounded by thunder and lightening and it was one of the most fun and memorable days of the summer.
We pulled over in Wrigleyville to let the worst of the storm pass and drink a beer before heading home. Again, I'll reiterate, summer is awesome.
After lemonade making Joel and I made plans to bike to Humboldt Park and watch some outdoor Shakespeare. We even packed some snacks and a blanket to get cozy as we got a dose of culture. But as we started out on our 7 mile trek it became apparent that the play wasn't going to happen. The sky had become dark and overcast, the wind was swirling and yet we pedaled west anyway. Just 2 streets away from the park we pulled over and looked up at the sky, the lightning that had just started was seriously making us reconsider things. I figured the play would be cancelled anyway and I was super bummed about our day being ruined. We turned around and worked hard to cover the distance we had just made before the storm rolled in. All of a sudden the air changed and I could smell the rain. The tempertature dropped and above the tree line I could see a rolling black cloud race across the sky, covering up what remained of blue. It was quite a sight to behold. Then the rain started, slowly at first, then more quickly, until a full fledged thunderstorm took over. The wind whipped dirt and leaves around and my vision became blurred between the wind and the rain but I still pedaled faster. I was soaking wet, cold, surrounded by thunder and lightening and it was one of the most fun and memorable days of the summer.
We pulled over in Wrigleyville to let the worst of the storm pass and drink a beer before heading home. Again, I'll reiterate, summer is awesome.
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| Nico thinks so. |
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