New Year's Eve

Looking forward to ringing in 2007 by orchestrating and running a Fireworks Show was just fascinating for me to undertake. The weekend prior to New Year's Day was the second time I had spent staying in my own home since my accident on July 18, 2006. On Saturday December 30th, I went to the Black-Cat Fireworks warehouse. I ended up buying small, medium and large sized "cakes" which are boxes attached by a single fuse. Inside the boxes are several mortar shots.

On December 31st, my friend Kevin and I proceeded to organize and set up the fireworks in a choreographed manner. We set up 2 rows of fireworks to be exploded with the second row to be lit last and serve as the "Grand Finale." We then proceeded to take the first row outside and set up on the street in front of my house. We had an outside table for small stuff and to hold the punks and flashlights. Portable chairs and sparklers were also placed in the driveway for an excellent view of the fireworks to be exploded. The show then began. There were several neighbors outside in their yards waiting for the ensuing show.

Man oh man, what an incredible show! After the first row of fireworks were expended, we decided to take a break and eat our dinner of homemade black-eyed peas and cornbread. That was delicious!

The second set or row of fireworks started off with a bang. The cakes were larger, more numerous, and even better than before! After eating dinner I was really excited about doing the best fireworks show ever. Once again a lot of neighbors came back outside to watch and enjoy the show. This time around, along with lighting up the cakes, I also began blowing up multiple packs of firecrackers in 1000 and 2000 firecracker rolls.

What a BLAST! Nothing like have a fireworks show with all kinds of firecrackers blowing up at the same time. All in all, this was definitely the best fireworks show I have ever put on. HAPPY NEW YEAR! Welcome to 2007!

Memories of Christmas

There is nothing like a delicacy of exotic bird (dove and quail) for a fantastic Christmas family meal for brunch after the Chrismas presents are opened. This is a long-time family tradition enjoyed by all participants. Started by my Aunt Sissy many years ago, the birds are carefullly prepared and cooked slowly in the oven. Ingredients for the birds include: parsley, onions, salt/pepper, and cooking wine (could be substitued by some drinking wine such as Chardonnay). The birds are initially browned on the stove with some butter and olive oil (or cooking oil) and then inserted into a baking dish with the above ingredients. The birds are cooked for approximately one hour at around 300 degrees before they are ready to eat. Just before the birds are ready, my mom would prepare bacon, eggs, toast, and muffins. The dessert is usually prepared and cooked ahead of time the day before.

The neat thing about eating birds is that you can save the breast bones after the meal is eaten. The cleaned breast bones are set aside and allowed to thoroughly dry. We all then have a contest to see who wins the breast bone. Pairs of people are given a breast bone and then they snap them in half. Whoever ends up the the biggest bone fragment wins! That way, there is a winner for all pairs of people.

Have a very Merry Christmas and enjoy your meal! Enjoy the specialty dish created by my Aunt whose recipe will live on.

[Note: This article was publilshed in the December issue of The Rock.]