Welcome to the Original Dixie...

My friend and fellow sound designer/engineer Amy Altadonna is in Montgomery working for me on Menopause the Musical. Amy joined us at ASF for Beehive a few summers ago. When she was here before, the time went by so quickly that I didn't really show her much of Montgomery or the area and this time, I told her I was going to give her a proper introduction to the South.

Amy - a.k.a. Annie Oakly

True to my promise, her second day in town, I took her out in the country for "guns and grilling" with Jess, (another ASF coworker) Jeff, and our friends Layne and Tracy, as well as some of their friends. Amy fired a gun for the first time in her life - and wasn't a bad shot, either!

Jess and Layne sparklein'.

After our bottle hunt was over, we headed to Layne's house for boiled peanuts, chicken kabobs, some off the hook spinach dip, beer, and some pre-4th of July fireworks.  The hit of the evening were super sparklers!

Chicken 'n dressing and black
eyed peas!

I also took Amy for some BBQ, to a meat and three, and to the farmer's market. I also had her over for dinner. I may not be a born and bread southerner - but I do enjoy cooking like one. The plan for the evening was chicken and dressing, collard greens, black eyed peas, fried green tomatoes, and peach cobbler. Sadly, we took too long at work and the store before hand, and I had to reduce the menu - leaving out the collard greens. Then I forgot to get the cobbler in the oven... SIGH. Another day!

The long and the short of it... welcome to the original Dixie Amy!

Farmers Marketing

This past weekend, Jeff and I FINALLY visited Montgomery's Farmer's and Curb markets.  We had a great (if rather early) morning on Saturday - we bought Chilton County peaches, some home grown tomatoes, blueberries, plums, corn, an eggplant, and peppers. With the eggplant and tomatoes, I did some experimental cooking and made ratatouille for the first time. It's good stuff! If a little time consuming. As for the fruit...

Blueberry Pancakes
with Blueberry & Peach Compote

Peach Cobbler 

Keeping up with the Jones'... er... Pridmores

Once upon a time, there was a little girl named Richelle. She was an avid letter writer - sending two, three, maybe four letters to various people each week. Time went on, and e-mail came into popular use. So Richelle wrote one or two letters a month, and e-mails almost every day. Time still went on, and as it did, Richelle wrote fewer and fewer e-mails. Then social networking sites came into the picture, and Richelle all but stopped writing - sending post cards on trips and emails typically only at work. So Richelle decided that it was time to start a blog, so those people who have no idea what's going on in her and her husband's life can (if they so choose) and can right out skip it if they don't.