Matthew Robinson

I have this joke I heard a few years back that I always text my friend Kayla on December 24th:

My text: “What did Adam say to Eve the night before Christmas?”
Her text: “I don’t know, what?”
My text.”It’s Christmas, Eve!”

Her text: “You’re a dork.”

Never fails to crack me up, though.

Two days before Thanksgiving, I’m getting ready, picking up, doing Friday and Thursday things on Monday and Tuesday and am generally excited for the approaching holiday.  Mom, Dad, Heather and Chris come tomorrow, and my cousin Thomas and his wife will be joining us for the big dinner.

I wish I was that professor who told his students that they really didn’t need to worry about coming on Wednesday…that “nudge, nudge, wink, wink” they really didn’t need to be there.  Oh!  That’s right, I am that professor ;)

I saw Vonna (real first name Yvonne…weird) Hall and Heather Stanford at the mall today as I was registering the fam for the Turkey Trot.  I actually first met Heather, pre-Well, at the Turkey Trot two years ago.  Vonna is transferring back from Auburn to FSU, and informed me that the other day she had looked me up on RateMyProfessors.com.

Apparently, I’m the jam.

I’ve never really thought of doing this.  I mean I’ve heard my students talk about it, but perhaps still being fairly young, and not really caring, I’d never thought to check myself out.  And I still haven’t.  I’m resisting the urge.  While Yvonne claims they say I’m incredible, I’m not sure I really want to know the truth.  I do get my SUSSAI and SPOT evaluations back every semester, and I do take them to heart.  But they just come.  I don’t have to go looking for them.  I’m just not sure I want to put myself in a position to get depressed.

Ms. Hall did mention, though, that I did have at least one chili pepper.  Score!

Randoms:

• HV Michael makes the most amazing squash soup I’ve ever had.  Actually the only squash soup I’ve ever had.  But a dinner with the Michael family in Monticello has been the highlight of this week so far.
• Jenny Rosen is making me nervous.  Seriously, way nervous.
• Dean got “told” today as he says it.  Very interesting.  Pray for our Pastor.  And not becuase of one email from one person who doesn’t get it.  Just do it every day.  We all need it!
• The folks at The Copy Shop, where we get all of our Well printing done, are some of the best in Tallahassee.  And I tell them that as often as I can.
• I had a class last week while I was in DC that a sub did not show up to.  A paid adult who simply didn’t go.  “Forgot.”  But the worse part was that not one student told me.  My secretary did.  I would have expected some email or note or phone call asking why the heck I wasn’t there.  I let that class know how I felt today.  I used the dreaded ‘D’ word that I hate when it’s directed my way: disappointed.
• The guy at WalMart tonight, in front of me, purchased a combo DVD/VCR player.  (1) Why didn’t he just buy a DVD player?  And I know I got called on the carpet for dissing people who like creamed corn a week or two ago, but I mean, really, who still watches VHS tapes? And (2) why did he agree to purchase the one year protection plan?  On a WalMart DVD/VCR player!?!?!  Sucker.
• I can’t stand having my receipt checked on the way out at Sams Club.  I’ll tell the “We’ve Got A Runner” story on here sometime over the next few days.

Back to Thanksgiving…every year that I’ve hosted in Tallahassee (the last four I think) I’ve had Thanksgiving Day Dessert–a time for any of my friends still in town, and any of their extended families, to come by with something sweet and be given an opportunity to sample some of my latest creations.  This year it’s going to be quite different. No Karyn and Kat Rushe, no Matt and Jamee and Gustavo Childs.  No Maxons.  But, a nice group is getting lined up.  Not replacing, but just refreshing with some of my family and some friends still around.

I keep getting asked “so what are you making for Dessert this year?”  I do love to cook.  And I’m not just a dessert guy…I can handle an awesome entree any day.  But my desserts have garnered a following (and I’m four wedding and rehearsal cakes in…and all of the marriages are in fine shape!).  People at work question me all the time: “So when are you going to bring in something again?”  Former students write and ask: “Can you send some of those cookies in the mail?”  Day-to-day pals salivate over the thought they speak out loud of “won’t you please just make that chocolate cake real soon?”

I’ve shared before that one of my goals in life is to open up some kind of restaurant. Or bakery.  Or cafe.  Or catering business. Something in that genre.  I’ve already got the name picked out: EightyTwos (and yes, I do own the EightyTwos.com domain already!).  Good home cooking,  Perfect for a nice lunch or a birthday dinner or a hot date.  Quality.  And dependable.  And irresistibly mouth watering.  Just how I like to cook.  Creating in the kitchen is one thing that truly relaxes me.  Fold in the fact that there’s a formerly fat boy living inside of me, and the combination is perfect.

So, the drum roll back to the answer to that “so what are you making for Dessert this year?” question is: Sweet Potato Cheesecake, Chocolate Layer Cake with Cheesecake Filling, and Sour Cream Apple Pie.

82’s is going to be a place where the recipes are going to be made available.  So I’ve thought, why not start now?  I’m sharing with you.  I’m convinced most food tastes better when made by someone else (especially sandwiches and spaghetti), so I’m not worried about “secret” recipes getting loose. I also believe in the CASE method…Copy and Steal Everything.  These recipes, and the ones that will follow in the future, are a part somebody else from what I’ve found that they’ve tried, bleneded with a dash of me.  I’ll get pcitures up as soon as I plate these sweet treats.  I can’t wait for Thanksgiving Day!

Debut: Thanksgiving 2008

This one is from Paula Dean’s kitchen.  I used amaretto liquor purchased pretty cheaply at ABC.

Cheesecake:
2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons almond flavored liqueur

In large bowl, beat cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add sugar, beating until smooth. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in sour cream and liqueur. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 45 minutes then turn the oven off and leave the cheesecake in oven with door closed for another hour. Let the cheesecake cool completely in its pan on a wire rack then cover and chill for 4 hours. Using edges of foil as handles, remove cheesecake from pan and peel away foil.

Spread a layer of frosting on top of chocolate cake. Next, layer cheesecake and top with chocolate icing. Place second chocolate cake and ice with frosting on top and on the sides. Sprinkle almonds on sides or top.

Chocolate Cake:
1 (18.25-ounce) box chocolate cake mix
1/2 cup almond flavored liqueur
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 2 (9-inch) round cake pans.

In large bowl, combine cake mix, liqueur, water, oil and eggs. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Divide batter evenly between the 2 prepared pans. Bake 20 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pans 10 minutes. Turn out onto wire racks and let cool completely.

Chocolate Almond Frosting:
1 cup butter, softened
12 ounce semi-sweet chocolate, melted and cooled
3 tablespoons almond flavored liqueur
6 cup confectioners’ sugar

In a large bowl, beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add chocolate, beating until combined. Beat in almond liqueur and confectioners’ sugar until light and fluffy.

Debut: Thanksgiving 2008

On of my friends coming over for Thanksgiving dessert in lactose intolerant.  With a reduced amount of sour cream (halved it, substitute with applesauce) this works perfectly.

Crust:
1 Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust (from 15-oz. box), softened as directed on box

Filling:
1 1/4 cups sour cream
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 egg
6 cups 1/4-inch slices peeled baking apples

Topping:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Dash salt
3 tablespoons cold butter or margarine

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Unroll pie crust in 9-inch glass pie plate as directed on box for One-Crust Filled Pie. In large bowl, beat sour cream, granulated sugar, flour, salt, vanilla and egg with wire whisk until well blended; stir in apples. Pour into crust-lined pie plate.

Bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F; bake 30 minutes longer.

Meanwhile, in medium bowl, mix all topping ingredients except butter. With pastry blender or fork, cut in butter until mixture looks like coarse crumbs; refrigerate until ready to use.

Sprinkle topping over pie. Bake 20 to 25 minutes longer or until topping is golden brown. Cool completely on cooling rack, about 2 hours. Cover and refrigerate any remaining pie.

Debut: Thanksgiving 2008

Why not try it, I thought? Pumpkin cheesecake I’ve made before, and I like sweet potato pie.  I searched around and sorted through about two dozen recipes, and this one combines my favorites from them all.  My friend Sarah (as in Sarah and Alex at Princeton) has stock, I’d swear, in sweet potatoes.  That, and gourds, I think :)  She made pretty incredible sweet potato pancakes when I was there a while back, so this one is dedicated to her! (and Alex too, of course, who I’ve heard beg for my regular cheesecake!)

Crust:
35 ginger snaps, crushed
1/4 cup of pecans, finely chopped
1 stick of butter, melted

To make the crust, mix together the crushed ginger snaps, chopped pecans and melted butter.  Press the crust into a 10-inch spring-form pan, evenly covering the bottom and going up the sides about 1/4 of an inch.

Cheesecake:
2 pounds cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
Pinch salt
5 large eggs
2 egg yolks
1/2 cup sour cream
3 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
4 sweet potatoes, baked, peeled, and passed through a food mill(or pureed in a food processor)

Preheat oven temperature to 450 degrees F.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, place cream cheese. Use paddle attachment and beat until smooth. Continue to mix and add sugar and salt. Add the eggs 1 at a time, then add sour cream, flour, and spices. Lower speed and add sweet potato puree. Pour the batter into crust lined pan.

Place a baking pan of hot water under cheesecake pan. Bake for 15 minutes at 450 degrees F, then lower temperature to 250 degrees F and bake an additional 1 1/2 hours or until cake center is firm.

Topping:
1 cup of sour cream
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of ginger
1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
1/2 cup of chopped pecans
3 tablespoons of maple syrup
1 tablespoon of brown sugar

To make the topping while the cheesecake bakes, place 1/4 cup of chopped pecans in a heated dry iron skillet, and toast for about five minutes.  Mix the sour cream, vanilla, spices, syrup and sugar together. Add the pecans.

Take cheesecake out of the oven, spread on the topping, and let sit for another half hour.

Chill in the refrigerator for 4 to 8 hours.

I’m spent. Totally running on e.  E for Exhaustion.

The alarm went off at 2:15 a.m. this morning.  I woke up in D.C.  Traveled through Atlanta.  Landed in Tallahassee.  By the grace of God had enough energy to serve and produce a Sunday service at the Well and just got done grading two sets of tests.  It’s 11:37 p.m.  I’m dead.

I knew I had to get up early.  I finished a work project and was in bed by 8 last night.  My mind just wasn’t having it.  TV on.  TV off.  Roll around.  Adjust here.  Adjust there.  When I got to Weekend Update on SNL (circa 12:05 a.m.) I knew I was in trouble.  The 27 minutes my eyes closed on the first flight proved more harm than good.  I did meet a seat-mate who was traveling back to Anchorage. As in Alaska.  She was cool to talk to.  And no, she’s never met Sarah Palin.  Of course I asked!

I’ve been meaning to make a behind the scenes at the Well video to post on here one Sunday.  Cameras start rolling when I pull up and cut off when I head over to the Encore Dinner.  I can’t wait to do it!

And how about the Hot Chocolate Bar?  The Portico is taking shape, and getting the kinks worked out for next week and beyond is the easy part of just getting it started.

Randoms: I love it when Krissie plays keys in the band.  And how about Bethany Brimer?  Met her and Sam, actually, for the first time tonight.  And I’ve been wondering where this hidden talent has been.  The Cupid Shuffle was definitely planned (search facebook, and find a few certain sophomores out there and you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about).

I also love the Huxtibles.  There’s no shame in that.  This Friends clip was the second runner up, though it would have required some editing.  I love fat Monica :)

The Stubblefields blew me away tonight.  Man oh man.  I’ve been taught more about obedience from that family than from any other person or circumstance in my life.  Thank God.

Dean-ism of the night…not sure if I can truly classify a random story about stomach growling as a Dean-ism, but for me it was: “The best part is not supposed to be here…89 years old is nothing compared to forever…As bad as things are right now, it is going to get better.  It is going to get better.  But I gotta be honest…it just might not be here…sometimes, it sucks.”

Wow.  Still dissecting this.  Darn you Dean!  And darn you James! Darn you in such a thankful way.

Countdown to Turkey Day is on.  The rents and sister and new husband will be on their way up to Tally real soon.

I’ve got six hours to crash before tomorrow starts.

And this picture still has me cracking up:

Don’t let the bed bugs bite!

It’s cold hear.  Like colder than I’ve ever experienced before in my life.  Like bone-chilling-face-chapping-wind-blowing-I’m-rockin-the-Gap-scarf-I-bought-in-Tally cold.

BUT, I did see snow.  Well flurries anyway.  So cool.

I’m attending the AMATYC (American Mathematical Association of Two Year Colleges) Conference.  Yes, think Math Camp.  Even better, think about your College Algebra teacher.  And then multiply by 2,200.  And divide by the cosine of 42.  And then raise all that to the jabillionth power.  Yes, that’s who I’m surrounded by.  Me and about 2,999 other math professors.  Seriously, it’s scary.  Maybe even better people watching than the North Florida Fair.

I’m all about passing on great restaurants.  If you’re in DC and get a chance to stop and need an incredible dinner or lunch, visit Matchbox in Chinatown.  A novel concept.  Amazing people.  And a killer atmosphere.  Absolutely worth it.

I am also here doing some work with McGraw HIll Publishing.  I don’t think I’d ever be good at the corporate sales life.  Well I might be amazing at the corporate sales, but the travel and lifestyle still certainly make me uncomfortable.  Between the conference sessions and actually having to be productive with McGraw, the time has flown by.  The FSU-Maryland Game isn’t too far away, and if I weren’t leaving the hotel at 3:30 a.m. tomorrow (thank you Super Shuttle, and thank you way too far away Dulles Airport) I would have gone to the game with some friends.

I’ve got former FSU students who are now teaching all across the country.  It has been fun to catch up with two different sets of them while I’ve been in DC.  I started teaching college students when I was 22, and with 4 years of them behind me now, it’s been more than fulfilling to keep up with their beginning careers (heck, mine has been beginning just as much as theirs have!) and continue to hear from a distance about the difference in education they are committed to making.

Some sight seeing today, including Dorothy’s slippers and the original Kermit.  Attempted to go by Ebenezers Coffeehouse for Dean, but no great luck with any info on what we’d love to open up in Tallahassee through the Well.

Back home in the early morning for pre-Thanksgiving prep.

I’ll sign off with these words from the National Archives:

I was 14 when I first flew in an airplane.  We went on a tour of Europe and to see the relatives and where my dad grew up in England and where my mom’s family was from in Italy and Germany (both sets of grandparents were first generation immigrants).  I remember the excitement of that trip and that adventure and of flying general aviation for the first time.

I’m not so much a fan these days.

I “remember when” all this security was not in place.  I remember as a kid being able to go all the way to the gate to pick up Nana and Jim from their return trip to Africa; taking the people mover tram across the concourse at Tampa International Airport.  I remember in high school the mayor of Tampa recalling to my mother how great it was to see my friends and me at the airport (during a school day) and getting busted for skipping (I’m still not sure what we ended up doing there besides just walking around and having lunch).

Those days are so over.

First bag fees.  Shoes off.  No drinks.  Hours of delays.  It’s the norm.

Now granted, I do love a good airport story.  Love Actually is one of my favorite movies (yes, I just publicly admitted that.  And yes, I know there’s a minute and a half of inappropriate scenes.  The story, though, is unbeatable.  “Bonita Ariella” and “your Natalie” are two of my favorite lines) and I actually have been at the arrivals gate at Hethrow airport and I do have “a sneaky feeling you’ll find that love actually is all around.”

And I’ve got a pretty good airport story of my own.  I’ll tell it on here one day.   While my friend Paul Michael likes to embellish it, let’s just say it involves a day and a half with a stranger, a girl named Kelli, 9 hours on a tarmac, Colbie Caillat, a dude called Duane, and my best ever use of the line: “What’s your name again?”  I’m telling you…this is a pretty darn good story.

But today’s travels by air to our nation’s capital were much less exciting.  I got bored.  And a bit irritable.  And overabundantly impatient.  And at the end of it all, I realized that I had occupied fairly close space with two individuals whom I echoed nothing more than a “hello” and small smile to over the course of two flights.

How could I pass up the opportunity?  Why was I so self-consumed?  What path could have been crossed that I dared not take advantage of?

I’ve been reflective this evening.  And disappointed in myself.  We’ll see how a 6:00 a.m. return flight from Dulles on Sunday pans out.

Airports are great for people watching, though.  And listening.  I overheard conversations about:

• A father’s son who used the “big boy pottie” for the first time.  “He went poopie!” the dad explained to his business partners.
• A heated discussion regarding a perceived conspiracy by the Democrats who allegedly caused all of the financial down spiral to help win a certain election.
• A woman’s grown daughter who hasn’t called her in nine years.
• Why Joe the Flight Attendant hates Hartsfield International.
• How unfair a $7.00 airplane cocktail is.
• Why the Zone Seating System is the most inventive ploy ever.
• A man who has been unemployed from his engineering job for six months and just doesn’t know what to do with his life.
• The will, and why it has to be faxed.  And what the fax number is (who could miss the shouting repetition of a woman who did not understand that try as she might, the louder she spoke was not going to make the connection less choppy).
• The state of 20-somethings in America.  Now THAT was a great conversation to listen to.

Conference and work time starts tomorrow morning.  Solo in a hotel, though I’ve done it more than a few times now, still feels weird.

But D.C., and a glass of wine and the most amazing piece of red velvet cake I’ve ever eaten (truly…and I’ve never thought of warming it up before) in Georgetown with a couple of old friends was the perfect winding down to a long day.

And thank you Dean, Marty, and Lawton for your poking and jabs regarding the “coolness” factor of this conference.

Tomorrow it just might be another glass of wine and a piece of pecan pi.

(Buh dun, ching!  Ladies and gentlemen, I’ll be here all night!)

I get to hear Dean’s sermons all week long.  And it amazes me how they take shape.  Every time we talk he talks about something he’s going to talk about.  He swears he thinks through them and writes them down and he has them in his head.  And I totally believe him.  But he never uses notes (the flashy table we carry out has a bible marked with the verses) and I don’t know what he’d be like with notes…too…tied down.  But somehow, it always comes across.  Brilliantly.  I’ve given speeches.  And I teach lessons.  But 35 minute talks every Sunday?!? It blows me away how he communicates God’s word so clearly.  It’s appealing…still, even for me, to hear my Pastor preach.  And I hardly ever hear the whole thing live.

I’m watching the service (thanks to the super fast rendering of the Well’s 24 inches of new beautifulness called the iMac) now in HD on my tv in my living room.  Sitting in front of the fire.  Reflecting on an awesome night.  I’m not sure the last hours of any given Sunday can get any better.

When I heard someone say in the monitor in my ear “the camera just fell over” my first thought was: “I can’t wait to see what that video looks like.”  Is that horrible?

Back to my point…well, the first part of it any way: I heard a report on “Only A Game” yesterday about ex-Indians pitcher turned announcer, Herb Score, who passed away this week.  He’s known as “that pitcher who took a line drive to his head and had his career (as a player) ended.”  He went on to have a hugely successful career as a broadcaster.  And from what I’ve read about, a pretty darn good career as a ball player.  But in spite of all his hard work and efforts, he always gets mentioned as that guy who got hit right between the eyes.

That guy was me tonight.  There have been certain sermons I’ve heard, certain preachers who have spoke, where I feel like they were speaking directly to me.  I get this when someone brings a friend to our church and afterward that friend says “I felt like he was talking directly to me.”  And tonight, through James 4, even though I’d heard the sermon all week, and read the chapter 7 times (I read Dean’s chosen text every day during the week prior to a Sunday) I got slammed.  Knocked out.  He was talking directly to me.

And because I was in that room with just under 300 people, I think there were many others in a very similar, yet unique, position.

I don’t have a Dean-ism this week (though “fat guy in a little coat” did speak to me) because the whole sermon was one giant Jesus-inspired-James-spoken-Dean-related-ism.  You can watch it (come Monday morning) here.

This past week, as I told Matt Long on Friday, was in a word, crappy (I actually said the more profane version.  Sorry.  But it was).  But this weekend, and this Sunday night, was awesome.  I tried so hard to become distracted from the distractions that I poured all I had into our service.  Dean did.  Sarah did.  And Matt Long did.  We all did.  And man oh man what a night.

The game on Saturday was freezing.  And I wish they would have just put Drew in.  But the friends and tailgate were loads of fun.  I miss my crew who moved away this summer.  So much.  Especially right now.  But regrouping and picking up right where we left off was so comforting.  And there’s rumor that Andy and Karyn might just come back here.  Here’s hoping anyways!

I’ve been reading the print copy of a Newsweek article this week (actually a 50,000 word essay) titled “How He Did It.”  It’s fascinating.  The narrative comes together from the vantage point of three reporters, who, for nearly two years, followed Clinton, McCain, and Obama around.  And never has one word been published until now.  They work and write along the way on an “embargoed” basis: “the assignment entails an enormous amount of travel, months and months away from home and delayed journalistic gratification; none of their work sees the light until after the ballots are cast.”  I’m not sure I’d have this endurance.  Or patience.  But this story, the making of a President, is remarkable.

Starting to make all the arrangements for D.C. for most of this week–I’m going to be gone before I know it, and back, more than likely, before I’m ready.

A little over a week until Thanksgiving, and two before Christmas on the Moon.

And oh yeah: Matthew Lamar Simmons.  I think it fits.  And I can’t wait to meet you come June.

A buddy of mine sends out a “Friday Funny” ever Friday morning to start the end of the work week off with some humor.

It’s a disgusting a.m. in Tallahassee right now.  Thunder.  Lightening.  Rain.  Flash flood advisory.

We all need this one today!

T.G.I.F.

Wasn’t expecting to think this much tonight:

“What would the world be like without you?”

Yeesh…