Gram on the Web!

For anyone who's interested, I only just discovered that Gram's photo is on the home page for the Jewish Community Center elderly housing where she lived for the last 15 years or so. She's the one all the way over to the right in the smart brown suit, with her coordinating scarf and earrings, and hair and makeup "just so." That was taken a few years ago, when she was "only" in her late 90s.

The JCC was an ideal place for her, because she got to live in her own apartment there but also had access to the many community services available (like a hairdresser who came to the building, and a van to take her to the supermarket after she wrecked her car a few years ago), plus there were movies, parties, exercise classes, bingo and card game nights, and so on. When she first moved in, we had to buy her an answering machine because she was never home! She even volunteered at the front desk in the lobby and was Queen Esther in the Purim play a few years ago. Ah, Gram....

Comments

[amy]

karen,

wow, your gram looks amazing! i can't believe she was in her 90s in that picture, she looks like early 80s at the most.

sounds like you may be, like i am, cooking your turkey etc. out of cook's illustrated. i have already made the turkey stock and am making the roux today; gravy tomorrow when turkey one comes out. so that you are don't feel you're in the crazy all alone, below is my schedule for two turkeys and other stuff for thursday. have a good thanksgiving!

6am: melt butter for turkey 1, prepare turkey 1. oven at 425°.

6:30am: turkey 1 in oven, breast side down for 1 hour

7:30 am: turkey 1 gets flipped over, breast up, for 2 hours, oven at 325°.

9:30 (or until done...): turkey 1 out of oven.

(I am starting this early because i am running a road race in framingham at 8am, and don't trust doug to put turkey in oven!)

11am: make gravy from turkey 1

12pm: make mashed potatoes, prepare turkey 2. mashed potatoes go in crock pot on low to stay warm but not get stiff.

1pm: guests arrive, turkey 2 in oven breast down at 425° for 1 hour.

2pm: flip turkey 2 over breast up, oven at 325° for 2 hours.

3pm: take out squash casserole (must sit out for one hour at room temp) and other side dishes.

4pm: turkey 2 comes out, oven up to 400° and squash casserole in.

4:30pm: squash casserole out, other side dishes in to heat up, oven at 350°. This will be heating stuffing, leeks and other sides that were already at room temp. Add liquid to mashed potatoes if needed.

4:35pm: pour self big glass of wine

5pm: eat

[Karen]

YIKES! The only change I would make is to have the big glass of wine a little earlier. ;-)

My turkey recipe is pretty much from Joy of Cooking (http://verbatim.blogs.com/verbatim/2005/11/turkey_101.html). I brined T1 yesterday afternoon and air-dried it overnight in the fridge last night; it's in the oven now (2 hours breast-down, then 30 minutes breast-up, basting all the while with melted butter). T2 is brining and will air-dry tonight, then roast tomorrow morning. Guests arrive at 1:00.

I can't believe you're running a road race AND hosting Thanksgiving! Hope you have a great day!

[Stephanie]

I'm a few weeks behind in my Verbatim reading but wanted to say that as soon as the JCC page loaded I noticed your beautiful your Grandmother and saw how she resembled you. I hope you are finding ways to comfort yourself with warm memories of her.