On Saturday, Daughter #1 was off on the south side taking an all-day Red Cross babysitting class (she's turning 12 in a few weeks, and we figured she could start sitting with the younger kids in the building), so Daughter #2 and I headed up to Dojo.
A while back I had made the discovery that Binny's (a local wine vendor) had swallowed up the Chalet and Gold Standard chains ... substantial, because last year (on Fathers Day or something), the family got me a $25 Chalet gift certificate, which I had not gotten around to using before out local Chalet (with no warning) suddenly closed. This made me sad, as this had been my cheese vendor of choice for many many years. I made a call and found that Binny's was more than happy to take the Chalet certificate, and began to triangulate a trip over to their downtown location. While not convenient to home, they are just three blocks or so up from the Merchandise Mart, and thereby the Brown Line, which is what we take to Dojo ... so once Daughter #2 was done with her class, we took the train down there, walked up to Binny's and I got CHEESE.
It is amazing how little cheese you can get for $25, however ... I got a pound of Stilton (one of my long-time favorites), and a half-pound of Pradera, which is a name I'd not heard previously for an aged Gouda (which I'd always known as "aged Gouda"). It turns out that Pradera is aged six years or more, while some aged Goudas are only aged 36 months. This stuff is like a rock (you pretty much have to chip bits off), but has an awesome, buttery, nutty taste. Yum. It's amazing that I've been able to control myself and there's still some of both left in the fridge!
Speaking of The Bears ... good thing I didn't throw in the towel this week. It was a pretty horrible game for the first 56 minutes or so of a 3-3 tie (the Raiders' kicker made a 52-yarder with about 4 minutes left, which seemed to be "it"), but then Grossman (who'd replaced the injured Greise) heaved a 59-yard TD pass to Berrian (yay "Good Rex"!), and The Bears had the lead. The Bears stop the Raiders 3-and-out, and get the ball with 2:24 on the clock. The Raiders hold and burn up their timeouts, getting the ball back with just under 2 minutes left. It was then that The Bears' defense decided to wake up and play like they're supposed to, causing a QB fumble back to the 5 yard line, which Benson takes in on the next play ... Bears add 14 points in the last 4 minutes and win 17-6. Nice way to finish a game!