the end of summer

August is nearly over. I've been thinking about this blog for a long time...it took me the majority of the summer to simply come up with an appropriate title...and now that I have one, I still debate about where to start. Beyond beginning, I worry I won't be consistent...school is starting along with other new endeavors, and if I can't blog when I have the whole summer off to write and cook, then when. on. earth. will I have the time to do it in 2 weeks?

These are all valid concerns.

But.

Anywhere is better than nowhere...and waiting for the perfect spot is just an excuse not to write anything at all. And since at this point no one is reading this, where I begin and whether I continue is, for the moment, of little consequence

So.

No TV during dinner. No eating in the living room. These were the rules for many of us growing up. Oh sure, we could snack in front of the television, possibly some late night milk and cookies, a handful of pretzels...but no meals.

And maybe that wasn't such a bad policy at the time. I like to think those rules shaped me, allowed me to see the importance of gathering for dinner.

But our lives are busier now, and so many people I know eat dinner at odd times, standing in kitchens, often alone--even when they live with a significant other or have a family. Over the years my closest friends and roommates and I have made a habit of eating dinner together, even if it is in front of the TV to watch a favorite show. It's not because we don't want to talk to each other or because we have nothing to talk about--the show is the thing, the anchor, the event around which we decided to convene on a regular basis.

At least once a week when my boyfriend and I sit down to yet another meal in front of the TV, I think about why it is we are eating there. We've tried to eat at the table...and by "tried" I mean I removed my laptop and the zillions of papers, magazines and folders that clutter that area, cleared the tabletop of cat hair (or maybe the cats themselves), only to decide that listening to the pet drinking fountain was not the creating the dinner ambiance I had hoped for.

It's just not the right place.

Aside from our lovely poolside backyard patio table, our table of choice is the coffee table. And perhaps it's appropriate between the coffee table and the patio you'll find the kitchen. Which is where all this begins anyway.