My best friend!

I met my best friend over 12 years ago. I don't remember the actual year, but we were both in college at the time. She was as she is today, a fabulously funny confident woman. Full of wit and full of love and an amazingly sincere, thoughtful lady. Through the years we have gone through so much together. We even ended up being a couple for a while!

Yes, I'm gay and she is straight, but there was a time when I was in denial and we became fast friends, which grew to a deep sense of caring and eventually love. Yes, a gay man and a straight woman can fall in love. It is a different kind of love. For a while it masked itself in a pseudo hetrosexual relationship, but eventually we evolved to what it is today, the love of a true friend and soul mate, and a kind of love that I will always be able to count on.

As I already mentioned, she is a thoughtful amazing lady. I am constantly astounded by the fact that she always remembers to call at the right time and a card always arrives for Christmas and birthdays on time. She has a special gift for making people feel loved and cared for.

My life is truly better with her in it and I'm so grateful for such a lovely person to call a friend. Thank you Joanne for always being there and always taking the time for me. Now that I'm married you treat Szejn the same way. Your card of course arrived today, perfectly timed for Szejn's birthday, making him feel special and loved. For that and so much more, I love you.

Okay, time to close this off. I feel like I'm writing a request to one of those crapy late night radio shows. Well no Delilah for me! Joanne, you know what I'm talking about.

Monday I had a great day and met one of my milestones in regards to cooking. I was able to make pizza. Now that may not sound like a lot, but I've been quite intimidated by making the dough from scratch. After all, my mom has made pizza's from scratch my whole life and not just your average pizza. She makes amazing pizza and is legendary with most of my friends. She even made pizza with some of the other mom's in High School to raise money for our High School graduation. I knew one day I'd try too, but being the procrastinator that I am, I waited and waited, but I knew one day I'd go for it. So, Monday was the day I decided to try my luck at the process and take the plunge. With the help of Ina Garten's pizza dough recipe from one of my new Barefoot Contesa cook books (love, love, love her), I was off and running.

The dough was a lot easier than I ever imagined. With the help of my handy dandy, red kitchen aid mixer (thank you Jason and Capri for the lovely wedding gift). Add flour, water, yeast, honey and salt and your good to go. Okay there were a few steps, but rather easy. Then just let let it rise for 30 minutes.

While I was waiting I started putting together the pizzas. A lovely bruschetta top with lovely vine ripen tomatoes, a whole head of garlic (yes not good to eat with company), salt, pepper, italian parsley and some lovely extra virgin olive oil. The bruschetta was my base for all the pizzas, but how I changed it up was with the other toppings. The cheese was the main way to shake things up. Some were coated with some fabulous brie, some with havarti and others with a lovely blue cheese. The blue cheese isn't for everyone, but I just love the intensity of this cheese and it really makes a pizza zing. Another way to make a pizza dance is jalapeno peppers. Nothing makes something jump like the heat from a good pepper.

Well, anyway, I'm so very happy to have jumped this hurdle in my culinary adventures. What next? Hmmm... Just wish that I didn't love food so much or at least didn't indulge so much. My waist is punishing me. Ha!Ha!