Of Want and Plenty

I got an odd comment on my blog post yesterday.

It confused me at first (remember I am on cold-chasing medications, so kindly factor in the grogginess).

It was this, copied and pasted from my comments:

Itinerant Interlocutor said...

thanks, Mom :)

also, spread the news that you can text "HAITI" to 90999 to donate $10 to the red cross, right from your phone!

January 13, 2010 3:14 PM

*****************************************************************************

Huh? Why, I wondered, is a wandering straight guy from a vaudeville act writing to me, and why is he/she/it calling me MOM?

Then came the epiphany: Itinerant Interlocutor is my daughter Alida. Philosophy grad students talk funny.

However, the gist of her message was about a simple and quick way to donate to the Red Cross, for devastated Haiti. So far, the Red Cross has raised three million dollars through cell phone donations. Three million dollars, as of 10:00 this morning, ten bucks at a time.

Lots of people doing a little, ends up being a lot. That you can text "Haiti" to 90999, and donate ten dollars to help the rescue and recovery -- it is amazing; every bit helps, many bits help more.

(Update: You will be charged the ten dollars on your cell phone bill, but there's no other fee. The money does not go to Haiti directly, but to the Red Cross. Even the State Department has endorsed this way of donating. There are many other reputable organizations deserving of contributions; just be wary of groups that spring up overnight looking for money for Haiti -- check the bona-fides of any organization before sending money.)

That's the Want of today's post, now for the Plenty.

*****************************************************************************

One thing in generous supply at That Old House is . . . dishes. We have plenty of them.

I haven't been playing with my dishes much lately; too busy feeding crowds of people to fuss with the china!

But today is Tablescape Thursday, and Thrifty Thursday, and who can resist that? Not I.

You are invited for a simple supper, just the two of us -- a cozy little bistro meal,
lovely for a chill winter's night. On the menu is
Boeuf Bourguignon, which is simply good old Beef Stew with Red Wine.

Come back next Friday for the recipe and pictures; I'm not doing real cooking this week. In fact ask Howard, and he will tell you the truth: I am not doing any cooking this week. (Sneeze sneeze, sniffle sniffle.)

I'm thinking we'll dine in the conservatory where Dr. Crane, our aging Frasier Fir, is still valiantly holding court. Dr. Crane has seen better days, but what with all the goings-on here last week, and my cold this week, he won't be denuded and kicked to the curb until the weekend. Meanwhile, he lives on in blissful ignorance of his future as mulch.

Season's Greetings? Well, it doesn't say what season!

Red. We'll do red and white tonight. Red to heat up the January cold,
and white to echo the drifts of leftover snow outside the windows.

A simple table, no folderol.
We can tuck our crusty bread on the sides of the underplates, which came from Dollar Tree,

or put them right in the bottom of the bowl to sop up the stew.

The Boeuf Bourguignon is ladeled into flat bowls from The Christmas Tree Shop.
It's hard to find just the right size bowl for stew and pasta;
I am in love with these; they are the perfect size and shape.

We'll use 150-year old Rogers Nickel Silver flatware,

simple and big -- peasant flatware for peasant food.

Boeuf Bourguignon is not fancy fare; it evolved so that poor folk
could cook and eat stringy, tough cuts of meat. Savvy people, the French.

We'll drink the same wine we put in the stew, in big sturdy Dollar Tree wineglasses.

White daises remind us of the spring to come,

and cozy little red tea light holders (Dollar Tree) give us just a bit of candlelight.

I love crackly finishes. You can see me taking the shots, reflected in the tea light holders.
Peek-a-boo!

Placemats and napkins are from Home Goods.

Total cost of this tabletop, for everything except the table itself

and the flowers -- $15.00. Now that is thrifty.

Conversation provided by . . . us.
And I don't think we'll ever run out of things to chat about, do you?

You bring dessert; chocolate mousse would be nice, or a simple pear tart. I've done enough cooking! -- Cass

*************************************************************************

Now hop on over to Susan's Tablescape Thursday blog party at her Between Naps On The Porch blog.
It is worth your while!

For brilliant thrifty ideas and inspiration, visit Leigh of Tales from Bloggeritaville for Thrifty Thursday.
Just click and be transported!