Today was an excellent day. Ann, Jack, and I took Hero (Ron and Ann's golden mutty dog) to the nearby pond for a long walk this afternoon. It was sunny and 60ish, which was just perfect for walking around in jeans and short sleeves. I had the brilliant idea while we were there, in the spirit of sun and outdoorsiness, to grill out for dinner, so we went to the grocery store to get some hot dogs, portobellos, and pineapple to grill. (You've never had grilled pineapple? You're missing out.) Ron came home early from work, because I had requested to ride in the sidecar of his motorcycle sometime while we were here. Jack decided just after I asked that he wanted to go too, so we got to take turns riding. Ron took me down VA highway 42 for a while, which was mostly 55 and a bit curvy, and I had a great time! I could have done without starting on their gravelly, uneven road that leads out to the highway; I thought the sidecar was going to disconnect itself from his bike because it was shaking so much, but everything held together. Once we got going on even road, I had a really cool time leaning into the curves and looking out at the gorgeous spring scenery. My neck got cold from all the wind, but the rest of me was covered up, and I adapted to the helmet much quicker than I thought I would. (I tend to be claustrophobic, but this was open at the bottom, so I was okay.) The only thing I really didn't like is that the part of the helmet that clicked down over my face got stuck down, so Ron had to pull the helmet up and off my head, rather than my being able to remove it comfortably. I felt like a dweeb until he told me the hinges were weird and that it wasn't just my inability to operate a switch. I had fun waving at all the people we saw, including a large group of cyclists from VA Tech. We had to stop for gas on the way back, so we were gone for about 30 minutes total, and then it was time for Jack's turn. What fun! I'm sure that when both of my grandmothers read this, they'll be slightly freaked out, but I'm fine! I have the best father-in-law ever. He's the coolest.

While we were preparing dinner, Ron and Jack set a controlled fire in their backyard to get rid of the brush and sticks they had gathered since last fall. That heated things up enough that we could eat dinner outside, which always makes grilled stuff even better! The bonfire was still going after dinner, so Jack and I decided we'd better find some marshmallows to take full advantage of the situation. Well, the ones we found in the pantry were a little stale. Even though we each ate two, we decided they had seen better days. Jack was just going to throw them away, but I thought it would be more fun to take the marshmallows out of the bag and toss them on the fire. They came out in one crystallized chunk, so I just plopped the whole thing on the flames and watched it go up. Therein lies the secret to my title today. It became black rather quickly, and then we were both rather surprised that it kept smoking for about ten more minutes. Interesting, right? Also interesting is the fact that the moment I came inside and sat down to write this, Amber found my lap and is being soft and purry again. Yay cats.

Labels: family, felines, kitchen adventures, travel, Virginia

• posted by erica 4/06/2004 09:44:00 PM
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