Dee - Hey Gorgeous - I wish I was meeting you this weekend as originally planned, but it all worked out for the best, since my nephew has indefinitely postponed the wedding LOL. Have fun. BJ - you better not be stressing over any unfinished business. Donna - WTG with your loss. You are doing awesome. Marci - I hope you get in a lot of quality time with DD. Suzanne - I am sorry to say that my years of enlightment didn't take place until the 2000's. It's a long journey and I wished I had started much earlier LOL. I put my zen garden on a tray on my ottoman yesterday - this way I will play with it more often. QOD - my weekend starts on Thursday because we have a standing date with good friends that come up every Thursday for the weekend and we always meet them for dinner. Tonight I have nothing planned, but my girlfriend is home alone this weekend and I may invite her over for dinner (if I can get my act together). Saturday we are going to a birthday party for another friend and Sunday nothing planned yet. My sister cancelled and will probably come next weekend. Just as well, it may take me that long to catch up with laundry, etc. Tikanis, if you can read this, get your butt back here! That goes for you too Gretchen, Jen, John, Amy - you all know who you are.

Good question! My son and daughter-in-law are coming for dinner at 6:30. I was making a favorite dish, Monastery style lentils, figuring we'd have that with a salad and popovers. But at 5:00 p.m. I remembered Monastery style lentils is definitely not a favorite of my son's. Oops! Quick change of direction. Now I'm making tofu and broccoli over spaghetti. No popovers. Date-Oatmeal bars for dessert.

Patti43-I'm not Maryanne but I'll try to give you an idea what it is.There are many variations but this is my recipe.Some people make it with pork or chicken but we prefer beef.I usually use sirloin or sometimes boneless round roast or london broil if it's on sale.Most any kind of lean,boneless roast can also be used.It is basically just meat stew.The seasonings and spices are what make it "Mexican".Some people add other veggies but we prefer it without. Carne Guisada 4 lb. lean beef cut into 2 in. cubes 2 med. onions,roughly chopped 2 green bell peppers,seeded and cut into chunks 2 med. size Jalepeno peppers,seeded and chopped.You can adjust the amount according to how much heat you want. 3-4 cloves of garlic,minced 2 tsp. cumin powder 2-12 oz. cans Rotel 1-14 oz. can diced tomatoes with juice 4 Tbs. Kitchen Bouquet browning sauce Flour for coating meat Peanut or canola oil In a large,heavy pot over med. high heat pour in enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan.Saute the onions until just tender then add garlic,cumin and the chunks of meat that have been seasoned with salt and pepper and dredged in the flour.I put the flour in a plastic zip lock and shake the meat in it then shake off the excess flour.When the meat is browned add the Rotel,tomatoes and peppers.Pour in enough water to cover the meat.Scrape all the bits from the bottom of the pot.Cover with a tight lid,reduce heat to simmer and cook until meat is tender,about 3 hours.When the meat is tender add browning sauce and simmer uncovered,stirring occasionally,until sauce is reduced and thickened. Serve with rice,refried beans and flour tortillas. I haven't made this in a while and now I want some!

Hey, we had Cuban Sandwiches, too! I made mine with leftover Pork Tenderloin from last night. I also made Black Beans and Rice. Did you heat your sandwiches? I did mine in a frying pan sprayed with butter flavor Pam, just long enough to melt the cheese. The recipe I used is from a restaurant in Miami known for them. You are supposed to use a bacon press or something heavy to weigh them down. I just used my spatula.