looking at everything and smelling flowers

2007-11-02T21:45:00.001-04:00

no apparent order

2007-09-28T20:55:00.001-04:00

mmm

2007-09-26T22:41:00.001-04:00

photographs

2007-09-24T11:13:00.001-04:00

i like photographs.

2007-09-22T10:53:00.000-04:00

these make me happy

A Knight Without A Sword

2007-05-16T10:45:00.000-04:00

As my roommate is moving out, I've noticed that the only substance I've contributed to our home is the furniture (and my warm and tender love). The kitchen cabinets have been bursting at their seams all year, full of plates, bowls, serving dishes, glasses, mugs, pots, pans, mixers, carafes, butter keepers, asparagus cookers, and ice cream makers. Not a bit of it's mine. Fortunately, my brother and sister-in-law handed down some remnants of their bachelorhood and so I will indeed have silverware for the next two weeks. What I've learned, though, is that this baking fiend and domestic goddess owns no rubber spatula.
Not a one.

2007-05-01T10:20:00.000-04:00

Happy May Day!

The first day of May used to be the worker's holiday in 19th century America, at the peak of the labor unions. The holiday was moved to September for us here in the U.S. (perhaps due to the very left wing--even communist--vibe of the celebration), but May Day remains a worker's day in France. So let's celebrate May Day like the French. Lilies of the valley, muguet des bois, are given to friends or left on their doorsteps. Too bad they're not in bloom yet here...

Also: If you're curious, as I was, about the use of the phrase "mayday" in cases of distress, it turns out to be unrelated to the first day of May. The term comes from the french "m'aidez," which means "help me."

amiss, faulty, and buggered

2007-04-24T22:21:00.000-04:00

*I wish I could stop biting on my fingers. It's not the nails I bite, but the actual flesh. I bite the skin that surrounds my nails until it's raw and it bleeds. Why do I do this? It hurts and I can't stop. I am actually doing it right now. So I'm conscious of it and still don't stop.
*I wish I knew what to do with my arms when I'm standing and listening to someone talk. If I cross my arms, I look upset, distant, impatient. If I put my hands on my hips, I look bossy, mean, and impatient. I usually go for the holding-the-other-arm's-elbow position across my chest.
*Why was I born pigeon-toed? My feet actually hit each other when I walk. This isn't even endearing.
*My natural standing position is not feet spread apart, facing forward. Nope. It is both feet in the very middle of my body. Left foot is angled to the right, right foot is placed directly in front of it, angled to the left. This is neither comfortable nor sensible.
*I can never remember which comes first, P or R. I have to sing "L.M.N.O.P."
*Touching paper products makes me uncomfortable. I can't handle the feel of cardboard, newspaper, even paper towels against my skin.
*I keep track of breaks in an open pattern while i'm in motion (this is something i've never put into words before), like driveways on the road or spaces between orange cones on construction - or patterns on rugs or wood floors when i'm walking.

I can sleep cozy at night, though, knowing that you probably aren't any more normal than I am :o)

(I just learned that in-toe-gait (known as being pigeon-toed) is caused by the baby's position in the womb. Interesting. Perhaps has something to do with the fact that I was a teeny bit cramped in my early 9 months, due to this.)

Whatchya Watchin?

2007-04-10T10:37:00.000-04:00

I think it's an oversimplification to ever declare an all-time favorite movie. I'm entirely unprepared each time I'm asked what my favorite movie is. You'd think I'd have time to at least come up with a general answer. Does anyone ever have an answer to this question?
It's dependent on mood! Atmosphere! Present company!
Here are some examples of movies I love in certain situations:

-Weekend night with at least three people: Count of Monte Cristo, Pirates of the Caribbean
(Genre: Action, Adventure)
-Trying to fall asleep: 13 Going On 30, Bridget Jones's Diary
(Genre: Comedy, Girly)
-Cozy night in with a significant other: When Harry Met Sally
(Genre: Romantic Comedy)
-Weekend night with one other female friend: Amelie
(Genre: Drama, Foreign Film)
-Daytime with a family member: My Fair Lady
(Genre: Classic, Comedy, Musical)
-Night in by myself: Pride and Prejudice, The American President
(Genre: Drama, Romance)
-Lazy Sunday morning: You've Got Mail
(Genre: Romantic Comedy)
-Late autumn through winter: Love Actually
(Genre: Holiday, Comedy)

Usually, I'd love to rent something I've never seen or go to the theatre, but these are some of the movies I would watch over and over again. What's your favorite movie?

2007-04-05T11:43:00.000-04:00

......................................................................................................................................
"Spring is when you feel like whistling
even with a shoe full of slush."

............................................................................................................... [Doug Larson]

Cupcakes and Truffles and Pie, Oh My!

2007-03-27T22:10:00.000-04:00

I'm mentally retracing my steps to see how it is that I've come to be the me that I am. Specifically, I'm curious why I'm so bewitched by sweets!sugar!bonbons! I didn't grow up baking blueberry pies with my grandmother, and I can't recall any "aha!" moment with a chocolate chip cookie. Perhaps it has something to do with...

-I remember a special day when I was a little girl with thin dark brown hair that curled at the ends. I got a splinter in my finger. My very first goshdarn splinter, and my dad took me for an ice cream cone.
-When I fell off a boardwalk at the ripe age of 6 (stop laughing, you!), I tumbled down a wee cliff and broke my left arm. I was given a hot bath, a trip to the emergency room, and all the candy I could fit in a large station wagon. I was the Candy Queen.
-A pesky baby tooth fell from my gums and its empty spot bled for 6 long days. Milkshakes, milkshakes, milkshakes. Food for healing my wounded mouth? (shakes head back and forth.) Food for healing my soul.

By George, I've got it. Yummies turn my frown upside-down.

Cheeeeeeeeeeese!

2007-03-22T19:20:00.000-04:00

We all take pictures of ourselves with someone else using our own extended arm. It's convenient! Gets just the right angle. Needn't worry to bother a stranger.

As I've been going through my pictures recently, I've noticed that I do this quite a bit.

With animals.

2007-03-13T09:53:00.000-04:00

How does it all work in the real world? When you aren't a student with free summers or opportunities to travel abroad, when can you ever have the freedom to say, "ok folks let's pack up and go see Spain!" I have the impression that I will essentially be a permanent slave to whatever site will hire me (unless or until I ever stand alone) for years and years and years. I will mourn my school years. There's no preparation for this! I want to go back to Europe. Maybe I should just live there and I will only have to work 30 weeks a year. Plenty of spare weeks to travel back and see you.

f l u b u g

2007-03-05T19:42:00.000-05:00

I was so excited to go home last Friday morning. I packed my bags and left for the airport around 8am. Around 9am, I boarded the airplane, dizzily. From 9:30-11:30am, I sat smooshed between two armrest hoggers as my nose began to run and my equilibrium shifted. As soon as I landed in Detroit (where there was snow!), I couldn't stop shivering and I felt as if I might die.

I took many baths to warm up, drank tea and hot cocoa, and wore the same fuzzy socks for over 48 hours. That first night's thermometer read 103.2, and my head started to develop into one large mass of congestion. Don't mess with the flu bug, dear amigos. He's one meeeeeeeeeeean little devil.

Fortunately, I have a lovely, amazing, supercaring and reallygoodathugging family. My week with the flu, then, turned out not to be so bad. It was a week of all things I love: blankets, tea, fire, movies, lots and lots of family, and some sleep. But man! Mr. Flu wiped me out for 8 full days. If it had been any other week, I'd have had no one to take such good care of me. :)

2007-02-22T15:08:00.000-05:00

....................................................................................................................

"Home is not where you live,
but where they understand you."

........................................................................... [Christian Morganstern]

Procrastination Fascination

2007-02-19T21:56:00.000-05:00

http://www.joeykatzen.com/alpha/ver4/

How well do you know your retail alphabet?

Dog Blog

2007-02-19T15:53:00.000-05:00

I know that I can't afford one and my life isn't near stable enough for a puppy of my very own. But I wantneedwant one SO badly! I am passionately addicted to fluffy and soft things of all shapes and sizes, but I can't and won't actually go out and buy a puppy because I am a responsible young woman. Right. No buying puppies. Yet. But you can bet your bottom dollar that I'm going to search for one online, put it on my desktop, name it, and put my finger against my computer screen to scratch it behind its ears when no one is looking.

Friends, I would like to introduce you to the newest member of my family: Gretta, my sweet curly Goldendoodle.

(Now I said I can't go and buy a dog myself, but if someone were to give me one as a gift, that would be beyond my control -- and keeping it and showering it with love would be incredibly responsible, as I would be saving it from a cold and uncertain future.)

I Love Learning

2007-02-05T20:41:00.000-05:00

Journal of Community Health Nursing (2003, Vol. 20, No. 1, Pages 27-35):

Fifty-two women over the age of 70 participated in a study to investigate the use of an individualized protocol to promote sleep onset and maintenance. They were recruited from the practices of physicians and nurse practitioners, and met the inclusion and exclusion criteria of the International Classification of Sleep Disorders (1990), and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (1994). Results indicated that the use of music decreased time to sleep onset and the number of nighttime awakenings. Consequently, it increased satisfaction with sleep. Nurses may wish to recommend the use of music at bedtime to older women with insomnia. [or me.]

A selection of the many, many songs I fall asleep to:

Carla Bruni - Chanson Triste
Joe Cocker - Bye Bye Blackbird
Leona Naess - Ballerina
Caitlin Cary & Thad Cockrell - Warm and Tender Love
Hem - We'll Meet Along the Way
Tom Waits - I Hope That I Don't Fall In Love With You
Sufjan Stevens - Tahquamenon Falls

I Have Buttercream On My Elbows

2007-02-05T14:59:00.000-05:00

I've been in four classes so far in my baking & pastry program here in Charlotte. First was breads and I loveloveloved it. Next was classical French pastries (pâte à choux dough and puff pastry), which I really could take or leave. I barely even remember the entire class happening, it was one of those blahs. Hot and cold plated desserts was a stressful, mostly unpleasant though successful endeavor, ultimately not my cup of tea. Now I'm in cakes! I really like cakes! Cakes and bread.

I visited a bakery in Michigan and met with the chef to ask about my internship program this summer. Mr. Chef was very friendly and gave me a tour of his entire kitchen while asking many questions about moi (though admittedly not interested in participating with my program). When I mentioned that I loved baking breads, he didn't hesitate to tell me--with a smile on his face even!--that no establishment will ever hire me as a bread baker because i am (and I don't know how he gathered this so quickly, he's European and probably very clever) female. So there goes that? For now, at least?

Perhaps I will be in the cake business for a little while here in the beginning. Or maybe I'll end up working my tail off in a restaurant. But here's the thing: Soon, I really really need someone to hire me!!

2007-01-20T09:54:00.000-05:00

Perhaps I am a bear, or some hibernating animal underneath, for the instinct to be half asleep
all winter is so strong in me.

[Anne Morrow Lindbergh]

Edible Mail Order Holiday Gifts

2006-12-18T17:33:00.000-05:00

American Spoon

Hearty Breakfast Box $34.95

Includes: Wheat & Malt Pancake Mix, Buckwheat Pancake Mix,
Maple Cream (my favorite), Michigan Maple Syrup, and Marrionberries.

www.americanspoon.com

Zingerman’s

Holiday Bread Box $49.00

A loaf each of artisan Farm Bread, Cranberry Pecan, Roadhouse Bread,
and Chocolate Sourdough.

www.zingermans.com

Harry & David

Royal Riviera Pears $27.95

Harry & David is renowned for these rare winter pears.

www.harryanddavid.com

Lobster Gram

Lobster Gram For Two $61.95

One pound of live lobsters, plus cooking instructions. Much more fun
to open than a fruit basket. And I don’t even like lobster.

www.livelob.com

Wisconsin Cheeseman

Gingerbread Petit Fours $14.95

20 Piece box of bite-sized holiday cheer. Yum!!!

www.wisconsincheeseman.com

2006-12-15T19:22:00.000-05:00

Dessert is a good thing. It can make us feel as warm as a brown betty, as sharp as a Key lime pie, as witty as a baked Alaska. Dessert satisfies us. Dessert makes us happy. It rings out meals and rings in holidays on a sweet note.
We can be 8 or 38 or 88, and dessert still excites us.

[Pam Janis]

Startling Realities of a Culinary Student

2006-11-15T14:56:00.000-05:00

There are two phrases that are constantly spoken by chefs to their culinary students.
1) "Oh, you're tired?? You think 7am is too early? Welllll (haughty laugh) you've sure chosen the wrong industry."
2) "Make sure you start burning yourself a little bit each day. You don't need your finger tips.*"

The first is the chef's very obvious attempt at amusing him or herself, and only seems clever. Ho-ho, chef, haven't heard that one before.
The second tid-bit of advice truly, truly agravates me.

Go on, rip those pages out of your textbooks on life. Burns, ladies and gentlemen, are GOOD! They're encouraged! They don't actually hurt! We are seriously advised by our instructors to purposely sear our own flesh. If you accidentally drag your underarm on the bottom of a 480 degree deck oven while rotating your loaf of sourdough, you will be in an extreme amount of pain. The burnt skin turns dark pink and swells. You impulsively shout out and the tears don't even give you the option of restraint. Should your chef witness this accident, it's foolish to expect any remorse. He or she will laugh in that I'm-so-much-more-experienced-than-you way and say, "Good. You can check today's burn off your list."

*My chef claims she actually has no fingerprints, as she has burned them off her finger tips.

A Few of My Favorite Things

2006-11-08T21:52:00.000-05:00

One Hundred Things I Love
(For days when the world's too big)

Snow
Being a twin
Big brothers
Rochester, Michigan
Wake Forest University
Wine bars
Dijon, France
Blankets!
Ancestors
Molten chocolate cake
Weddings
Dog sledding
Playing tennis
Real hot chocolate
Christmas music on the radio
Fuzzies
Mom’s Christmas china
Pumpkin blizzards from Dairy Queen
Puzzle piece hugs
Grand Haven, Michigan
Up north
Fireplaces
My wine bottle lamp
The striped knee socks I took from my host mom in France
Reading in airports
Chicago
Camembert cheese
Antiques Road Show
Euchre
Hercules Poirot with mom and dad
Mittens
Magnolia trees
Psychology text books
Adobe Photoshop (I miss it.)
Dad’s handwriting
Paul Newman
McCauliff chex mix
Shiraz
Jack, the cat that lives with me
Pumpernickel bread
Sausage egg & cheese Croissanwich
Josh Turner
Doritos
Our home videos
Waiters at Camel City Cafe
Cider mills
Photography
Coffee
Waking Lesley & Peter up on December 25^th
Cashmere
Barrettes with my name on them
The Eiffel Tower
Catalogs
Thunder
Bernese Mountain Dogs
Chocolate birthday cake with marshmallows on top
Gingerbread people and the houses they live in
Recipes
Hand-holding
Alpacas!
Chicken Tikka Masala
Whiskers
Hot baths
Real Simple magazine
Braids
Dresses
Pride & Prejudice movie
Ukraine
Trader Joe’s
Life’s Little Instruction Book
Cookout mint oreo milkshake
Camisoles
Loose tea
This color
Fly fishing
Aprons
Big Green
Breugger’s Herby Turkey softwich
Power outages
Chocolate lab puppy faces
Long-sleeved waffle t-shirts
Forehead kisses
Saturday mornings (sleeping in past 6)
Watching old movies in bed
Libraries
Sarcasm
Champagne toasts
Fried potatoes
Driving long distances with someone else
Williams Sonoma taste testers
Seeing the play A Christmas Carol at the theatre every year
The Office
Rosemary
French Onion Soup
Twix bars
Norah Jones
Paint-Your-Own-Pottery
Apricot jam on toast
Flannel
Parades

Top 6 Christmas Movies

2006-11-08T19:26:00.000-05:00

Don't ask me to pick just 5!

6. Home Alone
5. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
4. A Christmas Story
3. How the Grinch Stole Christmas
2. Miracle on 34th Street
1. The Muppet Christmas Carol