Pictures and potatoes

My pain is your gain. I'm still a bit overwhelmed by the pre-defense workload I'm juggling, but I caught a cold which has sent me to bed for a few days. I'm just tired enough that real work seems like too much effort, but a blog post is do-able.

My parents celebrated their fortieth anniversary recently. (Wow. Forty years is a long time. That's all I can say.) Their gift was a family portrait, which is something we've been meaning to do for a while. The picture below does not adequately demonstrate how much effort went into getting eight people to the studio, in non-clashing clothes, and smiling. (I will add: the photographers were pros at getting kids to smile. Tickley feather dusters work miracles)

This particular studio can print small-ish photographs immediately, so I could take mine home. But the larger size that my mother wanted took a few weeks to print. They called my sister-in-law to say they were ready to be picked up, and then disaster struck. The photography studio, which is part of a national chain, went bankrupt and immediately closed the doors at all 200 stores. Thus, my parent's portrait is still locked in a studio, irretrievable. My sister-in-law has been vigilant and has even talked some of the lawyers on the case. Hopefully we will eventually claim the photo.

*****

I recently had friends over for dinner and decided to make potatoes Anna again. This recipe, from Julia Child's The Art of French Cooking (I forget which volume) is classically French in the sense that it is all about the technique, rather than the ingredients. In fact, there are only three ingredients: potatoes, salt, and butter. But you have to clarify the butter, slice the potatoes extra thin, and then layer them in a hot cast-iron pan. The end result is a crispy-on-the-edge, melting-in-the-middle potato cake.

And now back to our regularly scheduled thesis-writing...