Week Thirty-One: Aunt Debi and Uncle Jim

Come the first day of the eighth month. Come the second roommate. Yet come no artwork on the dining/living room walls. Come car trouble! Oh yes, car trouble come. Come extra work training. Yet no come raise. And come family. Aunt and Uncle from Arizona, Debi and Jim, come.



My Aunt Debi is my Mom's (Week 20) younger sister. They were raised in Tucson, AZ together. And Debi didn't end up far from home, eventually settling with her love Jim in Phoenix. I've known them both for as long as I can remember. We've broken bread at every single possible family function: Christmas, reunions, vacations, Weddings, you name it. I have always enjoyed their company, and looked forward to seeing them in particular, if I was going to be around relatives.



I got word that Jim was coming up for his annual fishing trip with my Dad (also, Week 20). This time, Debi was coming along to visit Mom and see plays and go shopping while the men were away. I jumped on the chance to play host to a couple who has so many times provided me with a meal.



In fact, once on a tour with Louis Logic and my former group The Let Go, Debi and Jim put us all up and cooked us steaks on a break between Flagstaff and Los Angeles. It was a well needed down time and real food on a rugged path that ultimately lead to the band... disbanding. Had it not been for this halftime break, we might not have finished the tour!



Prior to Debi and Jim's visit, Erica and I discussed the gene on my Mom's side of the family that makes the women organized and thorough. She erroneously claimed it was a Tune gene. To correct her, I noted it was from my Mom's side, thus not a Tune gene, but a Mickey gene. And of course, when Debi arrived, in the effort of achieving perfection, she corrected me that it was also from her mother's side, and thus, a White trait. My family tree is culturally dominated by White women.



And those White women love their white wine. They arrived with two bottles, to match our two bottles. The meal was still in process of becoming edible. Surprisingly, it was the red potatoes holding me back. So we popped open the champagne and did a tour of the Castle while I shifted the batch from the oven into boiling water to speed up the process and hopefully moisten up the tatters.



When they had what I thought was enough time, I plated the meal. And this is what I cooked: breaded pork loin chops, baked asparagus, red potatoes and a side of coleslaw. The potatoes, yet again, ended up too firm, but very flavorful. The asparagus and slaw were pretty standards sides. But the pork turned out fabulous.



And this is how I prepared it:
-rubbed the pork loin chops in flour and garlic powder
-dipped them in three scrambled eggs
-covered them in seasoned Italian bread crumbs
-placed them in the oven for 45 minutes at 350
-started a mix of white wine, milk and cream of mushroom soup on a burner
-pulled the pork out and dumped the mixture in the pan
-placed the pan in the oven and baked it for another 45 minutes



Over dinner, we discussed how their son (and my cousin) Brian and his wife are doing. We briefly talked about politics, as I ranted about how odd it is the Republican Party is putting forth a Mormon Presidential candidate. I believe that contradicts directly with the values of most conservatives, seeing as the right wingers gain a large portion of their stance on main issues from Christian philosophy (abortion, gay rights, etc). This lead us into a long-winded discussion about religion and spirituality. Always one of my favorite topics.



Speaking of topics, we did the Table Topics. In the course of the game, I looked at Debi and Jim and said "It's nice to get to know you as friends." We always knew each other through these boxed in, defined roles. But now, as an adult, I was able to sit down over dinner and a bottle of wine (or 4) and be myself and get to know them, just as people. As friends. And that is the greatest part about getting older. The labels just kind of shake off and you become you and people allow you to be you and you get to see them as well.

Next week I'm having over part of my high school family, the "other Aaron" (or White Aaron, as my Dad would call him). I knew him as a friend first and he became family. Then he traveled the world for a while and has since moved to Olympia, WA. So I am very much looking forward to seeing him and meeting his lady friend Nell. Cheers.