Before Pinterest was even a dream, Stephanie H. (one of my high school besties) and I would while away literal hours on the floor of her bedroom with spiral notebooks, scissors, rolls of Scotch tape, and a heft stack of bridal magazines. We cut out pictures of bridal gowns, tuxes, bouquets, veils, and all the trimmings and taped them in our spiral notebooks. I had one version of a wedding that was straight up "High School Musical" before anybody knew anything of Troy and Gabriella. I can't vouch for the taste level. It was the 80's and I was caught somewhere between Jessica McClintock and a John Hughes "Brat Pack" movie. We poured over the registry lists...always questioning why anyone needed a chafing dish in their kitchen. (I'm still not sure anyone other than a caterer needs a chafing dish.) So when it came time to actually pick out wedding gifts, that well worn spiral came right along with me.
Mr. Snark and I went to the nicest department store in my hometown, Sperry's, to register. Much to my surprise, most of what I had in my book wasn't available at Sperry's. I don't remember why...possibly because I had chosen things from manufacturers not stocked at Sperry's. We ended up choosing Pfaltzgraff Gazebo for our dishes and received a full set of service for eight from Mama's siblings.
MILove had Pfaltzgraff. She was pleased with it and it had served her well for many years. We chose Gazebo because it was simple, clean, white...seemingly timeless. Imagine my surprise when it was discontinued. Why? There were other patterns that seemed more suited to being discontinued than this simple white design. Being as close as we were to Pigeon Forge and the dish outlets, I bought as much of it as I could until there wasn't any more to buy.We received a full set of it from Mama's siblings. I was so thankful. We didn't ask for formal china. Storage space in our married student apartment was limited. This would have to suit for everyday and fancy...and it did.
We were near to the end of our time in Cartersville when I had to make the decision to replace them. We were sitting down to plates and bowls that were chipped or had hairline fractures. I would have happily gone on using this same pattern until Gabriel's horn sounded, but it wasn't possible. It wasn't an easy decision. Once their replacements were found, packing up the remaining, useable pieces for the thrift store was sad. They were more than JUST dishes.
They held the edible memories of the first sixteen years of our marriage. That first meal I cooked...fried chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans, and biscuits. It was not a thing of beauty. The chicken was a soggy mess because the grease wasn't hot enough and the biscuits were like hockey pucks. But we ate it...on our lovely plates. All the newlywed culinary experiments were served on these plates...successes (manicotti and calzone)and abject disasters like the previously mentioned fried chicken and these spinach and sundried tomato stuffed chicken leg quarters (pretty picture in a magazine) that were never again attempted (the latter, not the former). As finals approached, MIL was always good about funneling frozen portions of her spaghetti sauce, chili, and lasagne to us which removed the stressor of meal planning in the middle of test stressing. There were meals that came from MIL's recipes...that always got changed JUST the littlest bit to make them my own. Oh, and the Food Network years! Not that I was ever on Food Network, but I sure watched more than my fair share. Paula Deen (all the dairy fats with a side of lard), Ree Drummond, Rachael Ray, Mario Batali...they became close friends. My appreciation of and for Ina Garten came when I realized sometimes Rachael Ray could be a little much. Mr. Snark says this is when I became kitchen confident. If those dishes had the power of speech, the stories would be quite entertaining.
This pattern will always be my first love in what has become a very long love affair with dishes. I have gone on to purchase, receive, and inherit others, but Gazebo will always wear the crown.
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