No High Drama Here

The Village - Mendota Heights. This is a new shopping and eating complex where all the stores are on street level and in open air style. So I guess this is what will replace the "strip mall" in the future.

The day was beautiful with little wind. But, here in Minnesota how many days can we depend on such weather? I imagine on a windy day you'd want to be inside to get from one place to the next. But who am I to say? Just a consumer! Hey, with today's technology we can easily find the answer to that question:

 "The warm season lasts from May 21 to September 16 with an average daily high temperature above 71°F. The hottest day of the year is July 23, with an average high of 83°F and low of 65°F." (weatherspark.com)

 So, you can see what I'm talkin' about. Well, we were fortunate to have a "comfortable" day!

Mendoberri is the creation of Viennese chef-owner Robert Ulrich who thinks we need to eat more vegetables! And I think he is right. He has put together some really beautiful dishes, and we got to try some.

There were some cool sounding things on the menu! A fresh cheeseboard. Tomato soup. A fresh beet salad. Quiche soup. All organic and fresh.

We started out with a pesto chicken flatbread that was delicious. Also, potato wedgies seasoned with sea salt and just a tiny touch of lemon.

I had the Schnitzel - a perfectly breaded and flattened chicken breast on fresh greens. The chicken breast was so big, it looked like a huge fish filet! It was enough for 2 meals, and indeed, fed me for lunch the next day as well.

We shared a nice Root One Sauvignon Blanc, as Jarby told us what it was like to spend the winter in Florida! Tennis! Beaches! Wonderful villas! People of all ages biking, swimming, sunning. She says it wasn't too stressful. Imagine that! We are very happy for Jarby and Lee and hope that becomes a regular occurrence for them. Jarby looked rested and content.

We all had our various dramas to share, but nothing as dramatic as Vincent Van Gogh cutting his ear off. What a story that was. I think we've all heard rumors about why it happened - imagining a lover or a terrible voice inside his head - whatever - I never would have dreamed that it was all about the artist Paul Gauguin. So there you go. Learn something new every day! And the horrible way he died. A shooting - but was it attempted murder or attempted suicide? We shall never know. A gun was never recovered. This I never knew, either.

So I have a new appreciation for Van Gogh and his work. He was an art curator before (or as he was perfecting his craft) he was an artist. And he only sold 1 work of art while he lived. Amazing!

Next time we will read a book recommended by Jarby - The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. We will meet in June at Marie's.

See you then! And until then, enjoy some of these warm "comfortable" days! We don't get too many of them...

Happy Reading,
Katie