A Tribute to Sue Grafton & Kinsey Millhone (plus some ramblings)

Sue Grafton is one of my favorite writers. She died in 2017, but not before writing what is known as the “alphabet mysteries. It started with “A is for Alibi,” and went to “Y is for Yesterday,” coming out the year she died. I read somewhere her family says the letter z doesn’t exist in their alphabet. *Wiping away a tear*

In the books, her protagonist is named Kinsey Millhone. She’s a private detective who is stubborn, independent, solitary, and other admirable qualities. The books are short and easy reads, something I enjoy from time to time.

Kinsey goes to a bar in one of the books (well, probably in all of them) where she is fed a sandwich that sounded like heaven. Grilled bread, fried salami, pepper jack cheese, and topped with a fried egg. Every time I read about it, my mouth salivated. So, I decided to make it.

I don’t think I chose the right bread. I got brioche, but next time I’ll probably get a nice sourdough. The rest was pretty easy. The Tillamook pepper jack was thick and perfect, and only took one slice. (This is a blend of two different sandwiches, one for me and one for my sweetheart.)

I overcooked the egg by just a little and came dangerously close to burning the brioche. What is wrong with me?!? Oh, and next time I’ll use just a bit more salami.

The sandwiches were finally done. I was tempted to grill some onions or put mayonnaise or something fancy on it. Luckily, I kept it how Kinsey had described it (as much as I could), and it was w.o.n.d.e.r.f.u.l.

I could have used a little runnier yolk and different bread, but this sandwich is just good. Healthy? No. Tasty as it can be? Absolutely.

I don’t know about you, but here in Oregon the weather cooled off quickly. It was like we went from summer to winter without stopping to pass go. Strangely, as the weather is colder, I feel myself wanting to go hiking again. I thought I would only want to do that in the summer, but I think my summer got busy and it was hot. Either way, I find myself thinking of hikes I have yet to do.

Unfortunately for me (and also fortunately), I’ve accepted a job in a different department that is full-time. I will soon have a lot less time off. Boooooo. I’ll be able to afford new hiking shoes if I want them though, so that’s nice. I might just have to pick the “premium” hikes instead of… well, all of them.

Back to food. This blog has been much about trying to get healthier and much about food. Some of the food is healthy, some is just damn good. I’ve been struggling a lot with my diet. I’ve tried many kinds of diets: restriction, keto, paleo, primal, intermittent fasting, low carb, etc. I’ve not had any good news on the scale or in non-scale victories.

Recently, a couple of friends who I go to Orange Theory with started talking about trying to lose weight and the difficulties that go with that. We agreed to be a support system for each other and to track our food, etc. We’re not doing the same diets or keeping the same restrictions, etc., but we are going to check in weekly and say if we’ve lost/gained/stayed the same weight, or if we have non-scale victories. We’ll talk about struggles and how to master them.

In my journey, I’ve decided to go back to more of a primal way of eating (similar to paleo and Whole30). I feel the best when I eat those foods – mentally and physically. Readers, prepare yourselves. I’m going to be documenting a lot of those meals, because they’re fun! They’re usually different from the “standard” foods, and I love being creative with my food.

My husband and I are still doing the international dinners twice a month, which will most likely NOT be primal/paleo/Whole30, but it will definitely be enjoyable. I hope to post food stuff as well as activities (hiking, etc.). TTFN!