Sunday, August 26, 2007

Don't abandon the Bolognese



When lightning struck, I was in the kitchen stirring the Bolognese sauce.

Whump!!!

WTF?, I thought after hearing that strange sound and then looked out our double glass doors to the back yard to see nothing but leaves and branches.

Last Sunday we had an adventure thanks to a fast-moving and brief thunderstorm. A zap from the heavens struck our silver Maple, sending a big honkin’ branch down on our deck and part of our roof. Lovely.

Mrs. Oz was all atwitter, urging me to join her in the backyard immediately to pull the limbs and branches off our deck and roof. The branches aren’t going anywhere, I assured her. My Bolognese sauce required attention at the moment.

I encouraged Mrs. Oz to take the camera out back to document the destruction in case we would need to file a claim. Seemed to satisfy her urge for action.

So I remained at my post, tending to that evening’s dinner. Once the sauce was under control and simmering, I turned down the heat, adjusted the lid just so and grabbed my bow saw in the garage.

After a few strategic cuts, I was able to drag the biggest branches off our wounded deck and dinged roof. I set them aside as a task for another day.

Then I returned inside. Cooked some pasta, adjusted the final seasoning of the sauce, and sliced some baguette. And dinner was served.

Not two minutes after placing the pasta-filled bowls on the table…. Bang!! Zzzzt. A transformer down the road blew. No power. Electricity would not be restored until 4 o’clock the next morning. The Oz family dined by candlelight.

Was an interesting display of how we all respond to a crisis and where we place our priorities. Not exactly sure what it indicated, but I was intent on enjoying the Pasta Bolognese I had been craving for weeks no matter what chaos raged outside my door.

After all the excitement last Sunday, I had a great week or running. I was true to the schedule, logging an easy 4-miler on Monday, 7 on Tuesday and 6 on Thursday. Saturday I did 12 on the Little Blue Trace trail out in Independence.

Still a little hot and steamy, but the weather finally broke, giving us at least 10 to 15 degrees cooler temperatures than we have had through much of August.

Today I had hoped to squeeze in a bike ride. But instead I devoted my time and energy to cross-training with my bow saw and the monstrous pile of limbs and branches Mother Nature left for me a week ago.





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