Sunday

I'm going to resist the urge here to whine about how it's chilly out, how it's gray and increasingly dismal here in Our Great and Noble Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Just another fall Sunday in New England. Not going to wax wishful about my wanderlust for somewhere warm, sunny, and beautiful for the majority of the year, not just a scant few months. Nay - there's too much positivity in the air, too many things to celebrate.

Ladies and gentlemen: Introducing Mr. and Mrs. Jeremy Bifano! A hearty congratulations to Laurie and Jeremy on their wedding this past Friday. I had the honor of being an usher in the wedding party, and it was a lovely affair. I think I need to rock the tux more often. More of my friends need to get married. Or at least I need to get invited to more weddings, they are a blast. The Scottographer was out in full force at the reception Friday night, snapping pics left and right and burning through film like the unpaid professional that he is. Too bad we can't expect to see those pics for the next several years, if at all...

Lazy Sunday reading: Catching up on my weekend WSJ, Globe, blogosphere, internews, and hopefully putting Prague out of its misery. Possibly my favorite way to spend a Sunday...

...with the exception of the Hub Sunday Sports Smorgasbord! Patriots-49ers at 4:15 and Game 3 of the Sox-Angels ALDS at Fenway at 7:17. That's about 6 or 7 hours of televised awesomeness, not to mention the associated daytime beer drinking. How 'bout those Sox taking two from the LAAoA out on the Best Coast and bringing it back to the Easy Coast to seal the deal? ThatswhatImtalkinabout.com. As for the Pats - Someone please tell Cassel the guys in red and gold are not his receivers. Thanks.

Victory Chili is a-simmering: One of the few benefits of cold weather is that it gives me the opportunity to cook up big, hearty meals, like stews, soups, chilis, and a ridiculous amount of glazed bacon. If everyone could start every day with glazed bacon, this world would be a better place. Football season means it's time for Victory Chili, and I've been simmering this season's first batch since about 3:30. Should be perfect in a couple more hours. For those interested, I once again used homemade turkey stock (frozen since April - the only stock in this market that's way, way up!), added a bottle of Sam Adams Octoberfest (minus a few sips for taste testing purposes) and substituted black beans for the cannellini. I'll let you know how it comes out. Preliminary tasting predicts near-perfect levels of flavor and heat. Full credit goes to my Gourmet magazine apron.