DEBBIE'S CHICKEN RIGGIES AND MY PERSONAL (now clean!) SANCTUARY.....

So, B.A. and I have been getting up at 5:00, AYEM, 3 days a week, in the brutal New York cold, to go to our town's little school and workout in their spiffy Nautilus equipped gym. We do the eliptical for about 45 minutes, then some weights (boosts the metabolism, so I'm told!), and maybe a little bit of time on the treadmills. I think it's really starting to pay off...B.A. is losing weight and building up his muscles (he looks just like Popeye, girls!) and me, well, I've lost so much muscle due to the strange weight loss journey I've been on, so this weight lifting is all good....Hey, I think I'm looking damned swell for almost 50! (please note how far away the photo was taken from my crow's feet and laugh lines)...........

Well, after all of this early morning working out a.k.a. torture, I'm usually pretty wiped out, and sometimes need an afternoon nap. BUT, the other day I decided to take a Jacuzzi soak instead, just to soothe me aching bones....BIG mistake. Why? Because, as I was trying to lie there in that hot, lavender scented water and let the jets do their magic, I started looking around my master bathroom and one thought popped into my head.....OH MY GAWD THIS BATHROOM IS DISGUSTING! Maybe it's because I had my new spectacles on (note to self : blindness is a blessing), but all I saw was grime...you know, bathroom grime. The worst kind (even worse than the dreaded kitchen grease grime, in my book).....created by months and months of hairspray and perfume buildup.  B. A. is quite the metro-sexual these days. Oh, and also created by months and months of sheer, blissful laziness....let's be truthful here! Sure, I clean up the heavily trafficked areas daily and weekly , like the countertop by the sinks and of course the toilet and shower. But I also have a lot of stuff ( a.k.a. "crap") in our bathroom, like an old Victrola cabinet--an antique! And a magazine rack, and pretty dishes that I've collected for years, decorating the walls. All of this stuff gathers dust, and most of the time I just don't see it. Or choose NOT to see it....

So do you want to know what I spent the whole morning doing today, AFTER the gym? Gutting my bathroom--that's what. It had to be done. I took every single thing out of the space, started scouring at the top (stainless light fixtures), and scrubbed, with bleach, all the way to the floors. Then, I washed every single decorative and functional thing, by hand, washed every single towel and rug, by machine, and then put it all back, in its proper place. And the end result? I've got my spa-like garden retreat back, so now I can properly relax, stress free. Here are some "after" photos--note the lack of grime!.....

Lots of towels and oils and lotions and perfumes at the ready, because I believe in pampering my fine self!.......

Oh MY, I've had these plates for 100,000 years.....

My famous antique Victrola cabinet that I've hauled from coast to coast, and always find a spot for , somewhere!...........

I love apothocary jars and terra cotta pots for everyday toiletries like cotton balls and soaps and such....

My old garden rake--the perfect earring rack!....

I know it's all sorta girlie, but B.A. doesn't seem to mind (or, maybe he's just given up?)........

I like to decorate with things that make me smile, and vintage platters and bird's nests make me smile.....

I kid you not when I tell you this random fact : Sammy Hagar's son gave me this framed picture....one of my favorite things!....

                    *******************

Cut and color day tomorrow, and I've e-mailed my stylist this photo and told her I want to leave the salon looking JUST like this, color and all! Boy doesn't she have a lot of work to do, including witchcraft? SICK to death of being a "ginger". Waddya think?......A girl can dream, right?.......

*****************

One of the very best thing about blogging is meeting other bloggers out there in the blogisphere. So inspirational! One blog that I like to follow is called Mountain Breaths, and its creator is a darling woman named Debbie who actually lives in nearby Utica, and owns a camp not far from here.........

I tell you what....if you love GORGEOUS tablescapes, beautiful photography and delicious home cooking, well then do yourself a favor and check out Debbie's blog~HERE~............        

Recently Debbie thought I should have her famous Chicken Riggies recipe, because no self-respecting upstate NY girl can go through life without a good Riggie recipe! Truth be told, I didn't even know what a "Riggie" was when we moved here, but soon figured out that basically Riggies are just Rigatoni, which I've always cooked with, complete with fantastic sauces, like the famous Vodka Riggie, B.A.'s favorite.......

Debbie's recipe instructed me to go out and buy Cora Brand (a Utica company) sweet cherry peppers, and so I did......

Aren't they pretty?.......

Boil water for pasta...cook and set aside. Just so you know, I cheated and used Penne pasta, because we like it better.......

Melt a stick of butter (oh, Debbie!!) in a large pan (I used my jumbo chicken fryer for this recipe)--add 2 cloves of garlic and saute..........then, add a chopped yellow onion, the sliced sweet cherry peppers and one sliced green bell pepper..... saute the whole hot mess for about 30 minutes.......

Add some chunks of chicken breasts to the mixture, then stir in a can of chicken broth and a can of tomato sauce....add a cup of Parmigiano cheese and simmer all for about another 40 minutes.....

Pour the mixture over cooked rigatoni, serve with perhaps some garlic bread, and enjoy!.......

Oh my goodness did we ever enjoy this dinner...thank you so very much, Debbie from Mountain Breaths!

Here's the recipe.....

DEBBIE'S CHICKEN RIGGIES

Serves 6

1 and 1 / 2 lb. box Rigatoni Pasta

1 stick of butter

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 yellow onion, chopped

About 6 Cora brand sweet cherry peppers, seeded and sliced

1 green bell pepper, sliced

1 and 1 / 2 lb. chicken breast chunks

1 15oz. can chicken broth

1 15 oz. can tomato sauce

1 cup Parmigiano cheese

Boil water for pasta. Add rigatoni and cook until al dente. Set aside. Melt butter in large frying pan. Add garlic and saute for one minute. Add yellow onion, sweet cherry peppers and green bell pepper; saute for 30 minutes, stirring frequently. Add chicken breast chunks to butter mixture. Saute for 2 minutes. Add chicken broth and tomato sauce ; stir and cook for 4 mintues. Add Parmigiano cheese and simmer mixture for 40 minutes. Pour mixture over rigatoni and serve.

TODAY I'M SO GRATEFUL FOR......

***My spooky evening tonite with guy friends Marc J., Jimmy O.  and Stuart D. , ghost hunting! I'll be sure to share all if the "boys" and I see or hear any ghostly activities!

***The psychic night coming up this weekend--always fascinating, and always a fun time with friends.

***Thanks to my rheumatologist and a reduction in medications, my horrid nausea has subsided, for now anyways! I am truly learning to appreciate every moment of actually feeling good!