I Feel the Earth Move, Under My Feet…

 

Yesterday provided some unexpected excitement thanks to a 5.8 earthquake in Virginia that resonated up to DC and beyond.  I was on a conference call at work when the shaking began, and it was quite surreal to question the participants (though they were in Pennsylvania and Maine) and my co-workers around me, “Are we in an earthquake?”  I never thought I would experience one, and never really wanted to, but Mother Nature laughed at that idea. 

We evacuated quickly (amazingly, myself and others from the 8th floor seemed to be the first ones out of the building even though we took the stairs) and spent 20 minutes outside in a large soccer field away from buildings.

I seem to have a way with being evacuated from buildings.

Anyway, I’m fine.  Everyone was fine, just a tad spooked.  The strangest thing was that I felt like I was on a cruise ship after I got back inside the building and seemed to keep rocking for a couple hours after it happened. 

I’m off to Maryland for meetings today!  Happy Hump Day, and hopefully nature doesn’t send anymore surprises our way.

Q: What’s the Best Way to Make Phillies Fans Sit Down and Be Quiet?

A:  Easy.  Hit a home run to tie the game in the 9th inning with 2 outs and 2 strikes on the board.  Then, go on to win the game in the 10th inning by a walk-off run, with bases loaded. 

The silence was deafening when this happened and it was glorious.

I experienced a lot of firsts today!  First major league baseball game other than my home team, first time seeing National League teams play, first time experiencing a rain delay, and the first time experiencing a Philadelphia team in person.

Nationals Park attendees were  90% Phillies fans and 10% Nationals fans today.  How this is possible, I have no idea.  I guess a lot of fans drive down from Pennsylvania for weekend games, and DC surely has a strong Philadelphia community, but I was still pretty shocked by how few Nationals fans attended.  Even though the team isn’t the best this year, the stadium is beautiful and has fantastic burgers at a concession stand called Shake Shack.  Those two facts alone should bring more people out, in my opinion.

More times than necessary, a roaring chant of “Let’s Go, Phillies!” erupted in the stadium which led me to pinch myself and make sure that I was still in the nation’s capital.  I think the City of Absurdly Fanatical Love is a more apt nickname for Philadelphia.

It’s fun to have a new home team to root for.  I’ve got the Rays, Durham Bulls (for minor league), and now the Nats on my list to cheer on.

Some things that made me like the Nationals right away:

– They don’t have rude fans.

– There is a President’s Race during the game when past presidents are resurrected with humongous heads and race around the bases (see above picture).  It’s hysterical.

– An awesome saxophonist played the national anthem and “God Bless America” today — such a great musician and more unique than a singer!

– There are some darn good ball players on the team:  Morse, Zimmerman, Desmond, and Espinosa were my favorites.

– They won!  Maybe I was a good luck charm?

Q:  What’s sweeter in life than beating the Phillies?

A:  Not much.

So It’s Been Awhile…

 

I’ve gone yet another absurdly long time without updating.  Here’s a brief look into what’s happened the past two months.  I…

• moved to a new city
• found a new place to live
• went from having zero roommates to having four
• started a new job in a new industry
• started having a social life again

It’s hard to believe that it is mid-August already!  The summer is flying by, and I really think that this is the first summer that I have completely enjoyed.  Yes, it’s been ungodly hot at times and my legs look like I have the chickenpox (they must smell like buttah to mosquitoes), but in all, I’ve absolutely loved it.  I think being in a new place and having much more of a life-work balance has really helped. 

To help extend the summer in your mind and belly, I want to share a little recipe that I’ve enjoyed 4 or 5 times so far this season.  Amazingly, I’m not sick of it.  But it’s hard to grow tired of this Raw Sweet Corn and Tomato Salad when it showcases two of the best foods of summer.

It’s delicious on it’s own as a side, or put it on top of leafy greens (such as arugula) for a light lunch.

The key to this simple dish is to use very fresh ingredients, and I really recommend buying locally if possible (such as at a farmer’s market).  If you use any old regular store-bought tomatoes or corn, you will be missing out on the flavor.  Trust me.  Enjoy this season’s bounty!

 

 

Raw Sweet Corn and Tomato Salad
Serves 10 to 12 as a side dish

6 ears of sweet corn

2 large heirloom tomatoes

4oz. feta cheese

1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

6 basil leaves

salt and pepper to taste

fresh squeeze of lemon juice

 

1. Set up a garbage bowl or bag in the sink.  Yes, just like Rachael Ray does every time she cooks.  (Side note, but you can actually buy a “Garbage Bowl” from the Rachael Ray collection…ridiculous.)

Anyway, you will want this nearby for the next step…

2. Shuck the ears of corn and remove as many of the annoying silk strings as possible.  If you bought your corn locally as I did, you may have some “ugly duckling” kernels, as I like to call them.  Carefully remove with a knife, and rinse all ears. 

3. Place one ear of corn in a large bowl, and slowly shave off all the kernels down one side.  Rotate the ear, and repeat until all kernels are removed.  Repeat the process for remaining ears of corn.  Your trash bowl or bag should now look like this:

Thank you, Rachael.

3. Prepare the rest of the ingredients:  Chop the tomatoes, chiffonade the basil leaves, and crumble the feta into small-to-medium sized pieces.  Add and gently combine everything into the bowl with the corn.

4.  Drizzle the olive oil on top and season to taste with salt and pepper.  Lastly, spritz the juice of half a lemon over the dish.  Serve immediately, or chill in the fridge until ready to eat.  Enjoy!