Posted 1:18 PM by Rob Holland
Daddy's Mayonnaise-free Greek Red Potato Salad

6-8 medium red potatoes, boiled but not too mushy
6 kalamata olives, pitted and cut in quarters
1/2 green bell pepper, cut into one-inch strips
2 oz feta cheese
1/2 bunch cilantro

For dressing: 2 T olive oil
3/4 cup wine vinegar
3 T Dijon mustard

Cut potatoes into bite-size pieces and place in large bowl. Add olives and pepper. Crumble in feta cheese. Chop cilantro leaves and throw on top. Mix sauce ingredients and pour over top, then thoroughly toss. Garnish with cilantro if you're feeling fancy. Feel free to alter sauce proportions to suit your taste. Tastes best at room temperature, but is also good as next-day leftover.

Posted 9:34 AM by Rob Holland
Like most of the rest of the family, it seems, I ordered Sarah Harmer's "You Were Here" after hearing her song "Open Windows" on Christopher's wedding video. I ordered it used through Amazon, and it came yesterday from a place called Duffelbag.com. It only cost $7.95 and despite being sent media mail arrived in just a few days. I guess it only had to come to Atlanta from Nashville. They also sell movies, vinyl, and collectibles.You might check them out. The Harmer CD is very nice overall, beyond the wedding song, but that one of course resonates the most.

We got the van back last evening. It needed only a new battery cable, which was a refreshing development, given what we thought was wrong.

Other than that, not much cooking. It's supposed to rain tomorrow, just in time for the big move. . . .

Posted 7:02 AM by Rob Holland
To pick up on Christopher's dinner theme, we had leftovers from Jen's wonderful poblano pepper and ground beef dish (I don't have the recipe, but it's similar to chile rellenos) and her masterpiece, a dessert made of fried flour tortillas sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon, and filled with fresh berries and sweet cheese. Mmmm. Jennifer herself was "Mexicaned out" from work, but the rest of us enjoyed a wonderful meal. Perhaps Jennifer will post the recipe here. Only trouble is, she does it differently each time.

On other fronts, the van is in the shop with electrical problems, probably related to the alternator. I know, Benjamin, we need to sell that van. However, we still owe a good bit on the Camry. Hopefully it will be fixed in time to be used to assist the move this weekend. Bill just called me and said all it apparently needs is a new battery cable, but that has to be ordered from Ford, so it will probably be tomorrow before it's fixed.

We continue to attempt to order bowling shoes for Christopher online. However all the places we've called so far have been unreachable. Selling bowling shoes online must be more of a hand-to-mouth existence than quilt software! We're also on the trail of pieces for our china pattern, Royal Doulton Carlyle, which we recently found out was discontinued. This has made for a field day for china purveyors on eBay. I've got a bid in on a couple of dinner plates from a company which advertises itself as "Shipping World-wide from Staffordshire." They're pretty pricey, but Royal Doulton has always been expensive.

On the "dumb cats" scene, last evening Calvin attacked Sophie in a great roiling ball of fur. Malcolm traditionally comes to Sophie's rescue in these situations, and he was nearby. Apparently confused by the noise and motion, he entered the fray, but started beating up on Sophie. Then he stopped, blinked, looked around, and went after Calvin, who took off for the back bedroom. I suppose it was a good match -- between the house's two spaciest felines. It's going to be a lot different around here with "only" five cats again.

Posted 9:25 AM by Rob Holland
Pamela had a family birthday party last night. I don't know how happy it was, as she seemed to have tears in her eyes half the time, but we chose to interpret those as tears of joy at having such a fine family. They were really because the asiago cheese that was supposed to go in the orzo was molded and parmesan had to be substituted (she later said the taste was the same) and she had to take a hand in preparing her own birthday dinner.

Her presents-to-open were a bit sparse as well, since the girl already has everything. She wanted to be surprised, but nothing seemed like the right thing, and she's getting a lot of other perks this spring, like another trip to New Orleans in March and a trip to London in April. We'll find a birthday present for her at Harrod's, I'm sure. Christopher and Christina got her an obnoxious talking doll whose name escapes me. I'll have to admit the doll has an infectious laugh. She also got a Tommy Hilfiger towel wrap and a few other small things. A Quble is on its way from Amazon, and she got a hairbrush. Oh, and a manicure yesterday afternoon. She got calls from ALMOST all of her out-of-town brothers. Nicholas seems to have disappeared into his briefs again.

Pamela has a ticket to visit Tulane again March 17-19. We arranged through the assistant dean of Newcomb College for her to stay with a couple of current Dean's Honors Scholars for two nights, even though admissions said she could only dorm it one night. The asst. dean, who was the one to call and tell her about her scholarship, knew her by her famous shoe project, and referred to her as "the talented Pamela Holland." She was most gracious in going out of her way to contact the students and set it up. Pamela will do the rest by e-mail directly with the girls.

Jennifer cooked a big Mexican spread last night for an office potluck today. There were poblanos everywhere. She was hoping to impress Rhonda with her cooking, as they've indicated they might like her to cook for them at home some time. She had a good time shopping at the Farmer's Market, too, for all the ingredients.

We're in final countdown on Geoffrey and Jennifer's big move into the apartment. A brace of wrestlers, a pick-up truck, and other assorted volunteers have been lined up. Mommy and I are going out of town for the day, to Watkinsville for the annual Hellebore Days and Quilt Show in Oconee County. Hopefully the weather will warm up by then. I about had frostbite in the MARTA station this morning.

Posted 5:44 AM by Christopher Holland
Happy Birthday, Pamela! Check your e-mail for the virtual birthday cards that will surely be there later today.

Posted 7:20 AM by Rob Holland
Foodies, be on alert. Tonight on "The Best Of . . ." on the Food Channel they're featuring Lynn's Paradise Cafe in Louisville, where Mommy and I had lunch last week. It's a funky place with kitschy decor and great food. Check your local listings.

Posted 5:53 AM by Rob Holland
We visited with Nicholas for a little while late yesterday afternoon at the Hyatt Hotel in Buckhead, which is v-e-r-y swank. It's right near the law firm where he was interviewing for the internship. One of the associates, also a Transy grad, took him to dinner last night at the Buckhead Diner. His interview's this morning and then he flies back to Durham later today. We didn't have time to fit him for a new suit, but at least we got to see the view from his hotel room. Nice angle on the Rooms to Go Store on Piedmont.

Posted 5:41 AM by Rob Holland
We arrived home about 4 p.m. yesterday afternoon from Kentucky, having had a successful visit to Transylvania. We now must wait about three weeks for Pamela to hear something (they have another batch of interviews this coming week) about their decision. This wait is obviously made a lot easier by the already-received Winthrop and Tulane offers. The letters formalizing the latter were in the mail upon our return, so now we've got it in writing. Pamela will probably go for another visit to Tulane in March to check out the place more closely, and actually SEE the glass lab they have told her exists there. We couldn't locate it on our first visit last October.

When we arrived home Geoffrey and Jennifer were here with Jennifer's mother, Spring, who is visiting this weekend. We had a pleasant dinner and evening, during which everyone got a chance to see the wedding video. I'm sure there will be several orders for videotapes on Jennifer's side of the family, Christopher. Jennifer and Geoffrey are moving into their own apartment next weekend, two or three mile from here, near the DeKalb Farmer's Market. Any who wish to come help them move are welcome!

Nicholas is supposed to be in town some time today for a callback on a law firm summer internship. They're flying him in and putting him up in a hotel somewhere. His mother is trying to corral him to buy him another suit, but he's not being very forthcoming about his ETA or his whereabouts during his stay in Atlanta. If you didn't know better, you might think he didn't want to be seen with us.

Well, I've got orders to process.