Friends

if you can rec something good by/about:

1) a post WWII japanese writer
2) a catholic woman with queer sensibilities (that she possibly doesn't get)
3) little girls who live in lonely houses who do very mean things
4) gay twins
5) shakespeare (and how he is teh suck)
6) really, anything that is teh postmodernz and teh gayz

i'll read it (unless i already have.) :)

When I flew into L.A. at the beginning of this week, I was taken out to dinner at marché LA, a restaurant opened by one of the people associated with Palate (a wonderful food experience in and of itself; they offer a "porkfolio" appetizer, need I say more?). Our dinner at marché was delightful: the service was inobtrusive and prompt, and the dishes were all delicious and inventive. The menu is like a cross between a prix fixe menu and a tapas menu; the dishes were all more-or-less a la carte and meant to be shared. The culinary influences ranged from the obvious French overtones (such as the coddled hen's egg with shaved truffle appetizer) to a truly Californian emphasis on fresh, seasonal ingredients reminiscent of Alice Waters's cuisine. We had lamb, a fois gras pate with cherry preserves and brioche, orange-cured olives, house-cured veal tongue pastrami, baby carrots with violet artichokes, and more. The mocha creme brulee that we had for dessert, which came with house-made donuts, was phenomenal. We shared a bottle of Sangiovese that complemented everything we put in our mouths. In short, totally worth checking out.

I've been treated to Mexican food, specifically huevos rancheros, at Carrillo's (a great local place on Sherman Way near Corbin), Brazilian BBQ in Long Beach, and eggplant parmigiana sandwiches at the Bay Cities Italian Deli in Santa Monica. Oh, and during our trip to drool over the kitchen goods at Surfas, my parents and I shared a Valrhona dark chocolate brownie to go with our espresso... yum! (if I had my way, I'd only ever bake with Valrhona chocolate, but that shit's expensive!) We've also brought home bagels from Western Bagel, which I've been eating the traditional way: lightly toasted with lox and cream cheese on top.

In terms of home-cooked meals, we've had chicken marsala, my mom's pear-caramel ice cream, my mom's pumpkin whoopie pies, roasted chicken, pasta with veggies and pesto from our garden, fig tart, and a stunning coq au vin and quinoa pilaf combination that I assisted lifeofreilly with the making of while hanging out.

I've felt the urge to knit again, so my mom and I looked up local yarn stores and ended up at La Knitterie Parisienne, which has one of the best yarn selections I've seen in my entire life. And in the few years that I've been knitting, I've managed to visit a lot of yarn stores!

So, good times have been had here in L.A. I've also made it out for a number of very nice, very sunny, very non-freezing-temperature runs, and spent some quality time with my dog. I'm looking forward to time with my sister and a handful of friends, and hopefully also some peace and quiet so I can catch up on my academic obligations like book reviews and essay revisions and dissertation research and the like.

?: to what extent are the boundaries you cherish a function of your privilege as___? is there anything you have to give up in order to maintain your personal/professional boundaries?

right now, i'm really missing the anonymity of the night shift.

p.s. the one day a year when i inexplicably remember my meyers-briggs personality type has arrived! i'm an intj, which is to say that's how i see myself. for all all i know, everyone around me feels differently. are you an e/i, n/?, t/f, p,j? ;)

A stroll through my Facebook photos just made me all misty-eyed over the time I spent in Bloomington.

Damn, I miss you guys.

You know who you are.

Back to studying... two more exams to go, and I'll be done for the semester on Friday.

It has been a few days, so I suppose it is safe to share; the garage door opener works!!! Yay!!! After the grudgematch of saturday night's installation that lasted till 1:30 in the morning all seems to be working well. I like not having a frozen car in the morning, it makes going to work a little less painful.

Medicine cabinet now attached to wall and full of stuffs, this pleased the kitten who slept in the chair that I had piled all the bits and pieces in that once again became empty.

There have been some lovely catch-up girly lunches lately. I adore lunchdates, and the people that I have them with.

Sewing continues on, covert projects are apace, a commission has been completed, and I'm undecided upon the next dress to begin. Handsewing is slow, as always. I've been pleasantly surprised with the mockup from the silk Caravaggio dress, ran it though the wash to shrink it up a bit and now it is the perfect length for a day/camp/casual dress! Wore it dancing on sunday and was quite pleased, it may come back out and work the shift wrapping prezzies at B&N this friday night, too. * Come to Barnes and Noble anytime between 9 and 11 pm this friday; I will wrap your purchases for you! * (and you can keep me company) The shire is giftwrapping for donations again and nobody would volunteer for the late shift so dear Lord Vindis and I will be wrapping again. He makes fantastic bows, come see!

WHY IS EVERYONE HITTING ON ME?!?! jeez, what did i do?!?! i really want to know so i can do it again. when i care.

it must be my shitty grown out (hat) hair. yesssssss.

Updating from the Indianapolis Airport before I head out to L.A. to see family and friends. I'll be there til January 4th, hopefully also getting research/reading done and getting in exercise and eating and all that good stuff.

Hopefully the pear brandy will be ready to drink by the time I get back...

So I got dressed up today to attend Dark Side Tribal's winter hafla. It was quite fun. d_c_m and I did a fun tribal improv duet to a Watcha Clan song, wherein we showcased many of our new fun cues, including a grapevine thing I invented that is also kinda inspired by Unmata. I enjoyed dancing as well as watching everyone else dance. I feel like watching tribal improv, when you know how it works, is really engaging and intriguing because it lays open the creative process and lets you observe expressive culture in motion. Everyone should give an improvised art form--whether it be tribal improv belly dance or jazz music--a try, in my opinion.

I also decided that since I was all pretty, I should use my webcam to take pictures of my NEW SHORT HAIR!!! Yes, that's right, over a foot of hair was chopped off this past week. The quality of the pics isn't too great, but they give a feel for how it now looks:







I imagine there'll be more pics over the next few weeks, due to holidays gatherings with my family (which always involve picture-taking) and maybe a photoshoot if anyone can squeeze me in? Lots of my Bton peeps have seen my hair while I was out and about this weekend--thanks to everyone who's taken the time to tell me how it looks! I was actually kinda terrified to chop off so much hair because it feels like my hair's become a big part of my identity, but I'm lovin' this new look so far. It doesn't get tangled, I can't accidentally slam it in my car door, it doesn't hurt if I sleep on it the wrong way, it doesn't give me a headache to have it up all day (since long hair can get quite heavy), and so on. I may be a short-hair convert, who knows...

i had red wine and a chocolate orange for breakfast.

um, why aren't more people talking about how wtf racist this movie appears to be?

i mean, yeah, it is about fucking time they made a disney movie with a black female main character.

but couldn't they save this voodoo/houdoun/wooo crazies shit for the second or third movie with a black female main character?

does someone know/see something i don't here? please do tell.

So I was at Whole Foods this morning, and there in their produce aisle, they had a gigantic Blue Hubbard squash for a mere five dollars. So I bought it. And I lugged it home. And now I need to figure out what to do with it.

I've seen recipes for casseroles, for pies, for stuffed squash, etc. So figuring out what to make isn't really the problem. The trouble is figuring out a) how to open the thing without having to fling it out a second story window, and b) figuring out how to fit it into my oven.

If I can solve those two problems, I think that I'll make roasted squash with garlic and maple. I've done similar things with smaller orange hubbards and had it come out well. But without a large vice and a saw, I'm not really sure how to start.

Wish me luck!

Update: For reference, this is the type of squash in question:


It's about the size of a small to medium turkey.

me + roosevelt mfa students

reading here at 7:00 pm tonight

Meme from everyone:

If I came with a warning label, what would it say?

Biking to class today.

14 degF outside. Check
Insulated ski helmet. Check.
Goggles. Check.
Awesome. Check.

I recently did a shoot with Chris Chambers, a local photographer who is a friend of a friend. This was part of project "document long hair before I chop it off" but it also turned out to be a lot of fun! I would totally work with Chris again and recommend him to other models or anyone else who wants to work with a fun photographer.

Here are some of my favorites. I'd love comments, ideas for which I should use in my modeling portfolio, suggestions for which would make good userpics (and if anyone wanted to make me a userpic or three, that'd be great too!), and so on.



( Read more... )

Hello!
I am very glad, that you have written to me the letter. I with
impatience forward to hearing from you. To me it is pleasant,
that you have become interested in me as well as I am interested
by you.
I wish to tell to you a little about myself. My name is Olga.
To me 32 years. I live in Surok. It not the big settlement
of city type. I live together with my mum and my grandmother, in a small
apartment, in the center of settlement. I was married but as 4 years
I am dissolved. With the former husband we have lived together about
2 years. But, to my regret, I do not have children, but I very much
would like, that I would have children. Start up they will be and not
my native, but I shall love them all the same as the . When I left for
the husband, thought that he good, but there was all on the contrary.
I have been very disappointed. I wish to find such the man which will
look at me not as on a toy or hobby and as on the person who has ideas
and the opinion. Also that there would be always a trust and
understanding. Because without trust, and understanding will not be
attitudes between two people. I wish to tell to you that the
age in this life has no value. The most important, that two persons
would be happy together. I think, if love, do not look on his age, and
the main thing that him is good also they are happy together. My trade
the financier. I work financial expert in the Ministry of Internal
Affairs of my settlement, and I like my work. I love the work.
To like me that I there do. And at you what work? I hope for your
understanding. You have very much interested me! Together with the
letter I send you my photos! I shall wait from you for the answer.
Olga.

***

my sweetest olga flower,

for dearest, the time became weaving, for waning, explaining to tell.
that i have too the darkness for husband that i am divided from.
allenaejandro. he did beat and accuse me then i find power. i could
now stain for life the bloom. the love love love and shining in you.
and myself. and the power of woman.

oh my shining one. you have seen me. i work in a desk. when im
folding, in myself, the day be day i look up. dreamsee the shine. for
you the someone, celestial. be told, to interwish, the fast believing,
but i tell myself, to you, can i be truly real? but not with you then
WHO? you are a moonshore.

for you i give the rose of all my love,

jennifer jason leigh

***

p.s. first snow!



wheaton is absolutely adorable right now, i must confess.

compliments of the plaza hotel

I just cooked Mark Bittman's recipe for beef stew in How to Cook Everything, except I used bison, and turnips and parsnips instead of potatoes. Lots of red wine, too. It smells delicious, but I had dinner already and so I'm going to look forward to having it tomorrow night when I return from teaching my last Women's Folklore class up in Indy. *sniffles*

I also made Mark's roasted brussels sprouts, which were DELICIOUS. I have to give a shout-out to my Philly crew for turning me onto this delicious recipe. Even if you don't think you like brussels sprouts, you will like these.

(how dorky is it that I want to write fan mail to Mark Bittman? he's a runner, too, how awesome is that?!)

I also-also made whole-wheat banana bread to bring into my class tomorrow. Totally not a bribe to get good evaluations, really...

On a somewhat related note, does anyone have advice regarding cast iron pans? I inherited one from my grandma and it's small-ish (maybe 8 inches diameter?) and also kinda old and rusty. I've scrubbed off most of the rust, and I think after another round of scrubbing, the pan will be ready to season. From what I can tell, seasoning a cast iron pan involves cooking something very fatty in it (e.g. bacon), then letting the grease accumulate, sometimes helping it by sticking it atop a burner and/or in the oven so that the grease cakes on in a layer, which will then make the pan a) nonstick b) delicious. I know not to use soap or tough-scrubby-thingies on a cast iron pan once it's been seasoned; as I understand it, I can use a gentle-scrubby-thingy and/or wadded-up paper towel with or without water to wash the pan once it's been used, and then I'm supposed to dry it over a burner to ensure that it doesn't rust.

Is that about the gist of cooking with cast iron? I can't wait to get this thing seasoned so I can make eggs, tarte tatin, and so on! (other suggestions welcome too!)

omg, utada hikaru's coming to chicago! http://www.houseofblues.com/tickets/eventdetail.php?eventid=60568