Date Night

Thursday nights, our kids are with their respective other parents (it's complicated), which means it's date night. We almost always go out to dinner, but tonight we're going to cook instead. The menu: Chipotle-lime chicken on the grill, accompanied by a grilled sauce (you grill all the components, then throw 'em in a blender with your liquid ingredients and spices) and a fresh tomato-and-corn pie that a foodie friend recommended. Never made any of these dishes, which is part of the fun, plus they sound great to me. I'm thinking a Sauvignon Blanc will pair nicely.

It's yet another gorgeous day, with a warm breeze and clear skies. I can't believe this summer, and now this almost-fall. So we intend to eat on the back patio, then take a nice walk, then come home and watch new-season TV. It sounds underwhelming, I guess, for a "date," but I adore these kinds of nights and I'm already looking ahead and missing them from January's vantage point.

Crab and Avocado

Last night I dropped my son off with my mate and stepdaughter,took my daughter to soccer practice and took a long walk along the paved paths that wander through the soccer park. The sky was clear and blue, the temperature was warm but not evilly so, and I listened to Squeeze on my iPod and tried not to sing loudly enough to startle the joggers around me. When the girl and I got home, I made myself this very simple dinner that's so delicious I can hardly bear it. Thin white bread, toasted and brushed with olive oil; topped with mashed avocado mixed with a pinch of cayenne; topped with canned crabmeat mixed with lime juice, salt, pepper and fresh chopped mint from the backyard. I had a bottle of Riesling open from the night before, so I drank a glass of that. (A Sauvignon Blanc would have been even better.)

The combination of all those things put me in the best mood for the rest of the night. I was a better parent, a better partner, and a happier person than I usually am.

I wish I could re-create that experience more often. I should get more avocados.