Absent Minded Proffessor Expat...

I was house/dog-sitting last weekend so I decided to invite a few friends/colleagues over for supper. Four were invites - two accepted...was ready to have a nice night.

Anyway, a pasta/bread/wine night sounded nice. I didn't want anything complicated since I haven't cooked since Australia. I just have to say....I've had people over for supper many times....I'm no Martha Stewart...but I know my way around a kitchen. Or...so I thought...

It was a bit umm....interesting shopping for the pasta sauce ingredients since the grocery store has extremely limited goods. On hindsight...perhaps I should have just bought a bottled sauce...or a can of spaghetti-os and heated them up in the microwave?

The night started off nice...it was nice being in a house instead of the camp room...

I started to make the sauce. First step, brown the meat. (Thankfully, I ran into an acquaintance in the grocery store....and he confirmed the ground zebu I bought was okay... I'm always skeptical about buying meat here....since usually I see it hanging in the market unrefrigerated...)

La, la, la....just cooking away. Standing next to the stove...stirring my meat....when suddenly there is a very VERY LOUD NOISE AND GLASS EVERYWHERE.

Thank goodness....I wasn't hurt. I checked out the dog...

She was okay. I was okay. Had a few small cuts but nothing really! We were both lucky.

Then I had to decide what to do....I have the beginnings of supper...but...wasn't sure if there would be glass in the sauce? For a moment...I thought...maybe I could just pick out the big pieces??!?

Even the dog didn't think that was a good idea....

So I took a deep breath...and decided to open a bottle of wine. But there was no opener....so I got out a trusty steak knife and opened the bottle. Which resulted in wine everywhere, a ruined shirt, and me smelling like Shiraz.

A few minutes later, my friends showed up. I was still in sweatpants. No meal. Just me, a bunch of glass, and a bottle of wine.

And still...I couldn't figure out what the hell happened.

I was then asked: Well...you did take the glass top off before cooking...right?

Me: Blank Stare.

He repeated his question.

Oops.

I guess the top...on the stove...was for decorative purposes. (!?!?!?!?!??!?!)

It wasn't a ceramic top like I have on my ELECTRIC stove in Canada. This was a glass top on a GAS burner. Ya know what happens when glass gets too hot?

Well.

OBVIOUSLY we know. I felt...a little slow there...

But, the night went on. I had some wine, got some help cleaning up, and went out for supper. C'est la vie. :D

Great supper, great company, and great dessert! Passion Fruit (my favorite fruit!!) prepared three ways. I could have just settled with the plain old fruit...

And then I tried to pay for supper. In my mind...I invited people for supper...so I pay the tab. And it's not like it was hundreds of dollars or anything.... But, no go. They wouldn't let me. One of the guys said it best:

Drink at the restaurant...............................................................$5000 Ar

Dinner...........................................................................................$40,000 AR

The look on your face when I asked if you took the glass top off.......PRICELESS

Obviously, the blonde jokes have been in full force this week. I keep telling everyone...I'm just so damn smart that I don't have room for the small stuff...

All in the life of....an absent minded expat....