Civic Holiday, Mind the Sharks.

Today is Civic Holiday. Of course to anyone who is retired, it doesn’t mean too much other than a day when everyone is closed. I sometimes wonder if I would rather be working so it did mean something. I still miss working in many ways. According to my calendar it is also a Bank Holiday in Scotland!! In the UK they don’t have as many holidays as we have in a year, I think we have one every month, or nearly so.

Last night we received lots of pictures of our granddaughter who has just finished being in a play (Billy Elliot) and it is incredible to see this little granddaughter who is not really little any more. Last time we were in England she was still very much a little girl. Not any more. She is an A plus student and we are wondering if she will end up trying to make the stage a career or try for something else, I think the world is going to be her oyster.

Also, last night, we watched Swordfish with John Travolta. Have seen it before but typically there isn’t much on TV during the summer. I must admit I had forgotten the story. I enjoyed it again, despite the advertising breaks. Matt gave up on it though.

Great White Sharks have been seen in numbers off the coast near Cape Cod. Apparently there are a lot of seals in the area these days and as someone commented, its like they opened a new restaurant for Great Whites. They are also out there with harpoons endeavouring to tag the sharks in order to learn more about their movements. Ain’t too good a place to swim these days although I gather a lot of tourists are out there with binoculars. The reports have been stating that Great Whites generally don’t attack humans – other than in the movies of course – let’s put it this way, I wouldn’t want to put that to the test. This picture, and several more, can be seen at http://tinyurl.com/3yjrvl4 not something you want to see when you are planning a nice day at the beach.

I’m always looking for simple and flavourful desserts which don’t pile on the calories. This appears to be one I would like.

Strawberry-Raspberry Sundaes

From EatingWell:

Nothing says summer like fresh berries. Try this simple sundae sauce over frozen yogurt for a scrumptious summertime treat.

4 servings

Ingredients

1 cup strawberries, plus more for garnish

1/2 cup raspberries, plus more for garnish

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

2 cups nonfat vanilla frozen yogurt

Preparation

1. Puree strawberries and raspberries with sugar and lemon juice in a blender. Serve over frozen yogurt and top with sliced strawberries and raspberries, if desired

Have a great day.

Saved by a Cooler, The Travoltas, Sir Ben.

An incredible story this morning of a trio out fishing - stormy seas and their boat capsized. They survived more than 48 hours by hanging on to a cooler. Their life jackets were lost in the accident (er, why weren't they wearing them?) so the cooler saved them. They had no water or food and were being stung by jelly fish as well as trying to paddle and were finally found by another boat. If I were the manufacture of that cooler, I would be inclined to make capital out of that story.

GMA were delighted to report that the Travoltas were going to have another baby. The wife, Kelly Preston, is 47 which is not young to have a baby. They have had one hell of a year from everything that was said starting with the loss of their 16 yr old son, then someone trying to extord $25 million from them, ending with the loss of two of their dogs which were killed by a service vehicle at an aiprot. Of course this pregnancy has sparked a media frenzy about "replacement" children and should they or should they not do such a thing. Everyone has to get their pennyworth in. Travolta is already on record as having said he would like a large family. Shut up all you analysts and let them get on with their lives.

Sir Ben Kingsley was interviewed today too, there is a new film with him in it, The Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. I had no idea he had changed his name from Krishna Pandit Bhanji. He did it just before he played Ghandi in 1982, which he described as somewhat ironic. He has always been one of my favourite actors and I thought he was absolutely brilliant as Ghandi.

I have been thinking about something different to do with shrimp for supper tonight and on AsparagusRecipes.net they have two, a risotto with asparagus and shrimp, and a salad. Here is the salad.

Asparagus Shrimp Salad

AsparagusRecipes.net

SALAD

1 ½ lb of asparagus, cleaned.

1 lb of shrimp, shelled and cleaned.

1 oz of grated Monterey Jack cheese.

1 medium red bell pepper, sliced.

¼ cup of green onion, sliced.

2 tablespoons of parsley, minced.

One slice of lemon

Lettuce leaves.

DRESSING

½ cup of salad oil.

4 tablespoons of vinegar.

1 tablespoon of parsley.

1 tablespoon of basil.

1 tablespoon of oregano.

¼ teaspoon of salt.

Dash of cayenne.

Pinch of pepper. DRESSING

Combine all of the dressing ingredients.

SALAD

Cook the shrimp; drain and set aside. Cook the asparagus until crisp-tender; drain well. Place the shrimp, asparagus and slice of lemon in mixing bowl. Pour the herb dressing over all, cover and refrigerate, stirring once or twice. Combine the red bell pepper, onion and parsley. To serve, drain the shrimp asparagus mixture and arrange on plate with lettuce and cheese. Serve with the pepper/onion/parsley mixture.

Have a great day