The Meat and Potatoes

I am many things that straddle the line of regular, but at the core I am truly, in the most traditional, milk every night with dinner sense....Midwestern. I believe that kids should play outside instead of watch tv, potatoes are a legitimate serving of vegetables and Marshall Fields was a high-end department store. I experienced travel as a child in a yellow station wagon with one of those seats in the back that allows you to move forward while being reminded of where you've been.

And, no matter if my family was speaking to one another, financially strapped, or prying us out of our teenage angst and blaring music, we tried our best to sit down for a meal. Together.

I made a big, fat rib-eye last night for the husband. I had no idea how to do it, it was slightly overcooked, and the final, wounded product had 55 cuts in it due to excessive "checking" but he loved it. It felt like one of the first real meals we've had together because it was simple, nourishing and just...Midwestern.

Years from now, I think I'll remember that meal, just as I remember the steaks my parents served us growing up. The difference is, I never knew how many cuts they put in it before it reached our table,or what a luxury it was sometimes just to have it. Now I know.

Happy 60th birthday, Dad.