A LATE SKYWATCH FRIDAY, A 5 COURSE LUNCH AND AN EVENING PERFORMANCE

I am so behind...here goes.

This morning was certainly a lot nicer than it was yesterday.  More beautiful skies.

Smooth sailin' out in the barn.  Finished up early.

The paddocks were still a disaster, so I put the hay out in one of the pastures.

There was a dusting of snow on the rock wall...it disappeared quickly.

When I got back in the house I put a coat of white paint on my djembe drum (it had already been primed).

Later, I drew on some zebra stripes with a black marker.

Finally, I painted them black...had to redo a section and am not sure I'm happy with the end result.

At 11, Chet (the bread man/drummer) drove up to the farm so he could ride into Rochester with us.  We were going to attend a special luncheon at Monroe Community College.  They have a Culinary Arts Program there, and the students were offering one of a series of great meals.  Today...Greek food...five courses.  It was brought to our attention by Kim J-R, who is part of the program.  She lives in Brockport and is a fabulous cook.
 

What a great venue!  The restaurant itself was not too large, but was very well set up....I'd say it could seat about 40 people. 

Great lighting, comfortable chairs, fresh flowers, linen table clothes and napkins.

A little service bar area....again, the lighting really added to the ambiance.

When we were seated, there were Greek olives and Feta cheese at the table.

Our first course was octopus, stuffed grape leaves and a hummus/caviar served in a shot glass.
I only went for the grape leaves, which were delicious.

Next, we had a bowl of lemon/chicken soup.  Outstanding! (Notice, I can't remember all the Greek names for everything).

Between courses, Kim gave me a tour of all the kitchens.  I was very impressed.

The students were doing everything.

They did a great job with presentation and I loved the plates that were used.

The teaching kitchens were not lacking a thing...if I were a kid again, this is where I would be.

The two girls below were going to prepare a dinner for the staff, that they would eat when they were through serving.

I'd say there were at least 20 people working, between the waitresses, supervisors and kitchen staff.

 This man is a cousin of Chet's wife.  He is a Professor of Biology at the college and participates in events like this for the love of it.

They were grilling the main course while I was back there.

Above is Kim with James Dean....a master in the kitchen.

Next, came the main course.  A spinach pie, pilaf and a skewer of lamb/peppers/onions served with cucumber sauce.  All was perfectly prepared.

Our waitress was friendly and very attentive...she knew what she was doing.

It was nice to have a chance to speak with some of the people who work with these students.

Last course...baklava and a little scoop of honey/cinnamon ice cream.  Delish.  Quite a meal for $15!

Below is Jerry B., the head chef.  Ironically, he is a good pal of the chef (Steve) out at our favorite haunt...the Carlton Grill.

What a program!  These kids are going to be so prepared when they look for jobs.

We were home a little after 2.  That's when I did more work on my drum. 

The sun was starting to set and Barb had chore duty.

At 5:30 drove out to Kendell for our chorus performance.

It's the first time we wore our tuxedo shirts...they looked pretty nice!

There's Tom!

and Bill....and Gary....

Home by 9:15...no bike ride again!
Night all.