the fun list.

Last weekend, as our extended holiday time off was waning, Rob cheered me up by proposing that we create The Fun List -- a bunch of places to go, restaurants to hit and things to do during these short, dark, cold days of winter. I think his suggestion was mostly an act of self-preservation, as I can get sort of grouchy as I wait for the days to get longer, sunnier and warmer. The Fun List is a welcome distraction.

First up on the list: a trip to Jungle Jim's, a crazy food emporium (six acres under one roof!) on the way northwest side of Cincinnati. Yesterday was the perfect day for this Bit of Fun, as the weather was simply disastrous. So we trekked up I-75 and hit JJ's; an hour an a half and 130 bucks later, we emerged with a really random assortment of things. Our receipt shows:

-- 3 boxes of DeCecco pasta and a bag of my favorite, Fregola Sarda
-- 1 bottle of Verjus (a variant of wine vinegar that I've been interested in trying)
-- a liter of imported olive oil
-- bananas, zucchini, carrots, garlic, avocados
-- 2 cans of San Marzano tomatoes and a tube of imported tomato paste
-- 2 different kinds of fancy butter
-- 2 Spanish cheeses: an aged Manchego and a stinky-as-feet blue Cabrales
-- assorted fresh olives
-- 2 kinds of imported sea salt (coarse and fine)
-- a gorgeous piece of Sockeye salmon which, with the red lentils we also bought, was the centerpiece of last night's dinner
-- Cafe du Monde coffee
-- 4 additions to Rob's Pez collection: the Riddler, the mom and baby from "The Incredibles" and Linguini from "Ratatouille"

It was great fun!