Wednesday, July 30, 2008

God Bless YouTube.

We did lots of strenuous things today, and I am too tired to blog about them. Instead, I offer you this jewel of the internet. Enjoy it in good health.

P.S. - Don't touch that! It's not the stereo.


Thursday, July 24, 2008

what IS this blog about?

I'm sure I don't know. Thus follows a series of photos, related only in that they were all taken by me, recently.


I got a free phone, in a shameless attempt by AT&T to trick us into signing another two-year contract. Which we, uh, did. So I crocheted my new phone a phat cozy. Yes, phat!

Then the little lady wanted one.

That phone came with her play kitchen. I adore it. ("2 Calls Today!")

**Non-existent Segueway**

For the first time, this week, I mustered up the courage to buy a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. This is after years of wistfully musing in the Goya section, picking up the can, quietly admitting, "not today," and putting it back next to the mango nectar.


So far I have made several chipotle-flavored dips, chipotle pizza, and the pasta salad featured above. A warning - given the fairly bland nature of most commercial "chipotle" sauces (good evening, Subway), I totally did not expect actual chipotle peppers to be that spicy. In fact, I was mistaken. They are not vindaloo-spicy, or even San-Loco-suicide-standing-on-the-corner-of-2nd-avenue-pouring-
a-quart-of-milk-from-the-deli-into-your-face spicy, but they do pack quite a zing.

What else could I blog about, you ask? Why, this tomato, of course.
It was our first. It took superhuman effort for N. not to eat it for the length of time it took me to take the picture. I am very proud.

Friday, July 18, 2008

First Fruits


Well, not completely - we have been grazing on the occasional peapod. But the first serious Product of Our Garden was picked today. We turned that cucumber and those basils into these delicious:
Princess Tea Sandwiches.

1 small cucumber
several leaves fresh basil
cream cheese
four slices whole-wheat ciabatta
sprinkle curry powder
salt to taste.

Oh indeed, summer. Well played.

Monday, July 14, 2008

Hee hee hee.

This is very sweet and funny. Takes a minute to warm up, but then it's giggles all the way...

Sunday, July 13, 2008

The Frugal Stylist

So, the kid has been after one of these for months:

Her best friend has one, and it is apparently a constant source of torture to her. Alas, they are running $40-50 on the ol' ebay (NMIB!! VERY RARE!!) So today, we went to W*m**t, bought $2 worth of purple "satin" and some $1.79 silver chain ribbon, and made this:


with the indispensable help of my very crafty mother - she made the pattern and did all the tailor-y preparation stuff, and I hemmed all the edges and sewed on the silver trim. We also had to give Giselle a little trim, because the hair on the other doll is shorter, um, cleaner, and not ratty and full of debris from being dragged around everywhere. Yeah.

So. Success - I feared a meltdown due to some missed detail or other, but it was more than acceptable to the client. I guess I'll carve the prince out of soap.

Friday, July 11, 2008

Variety Pack One

1. I filled a four-hour gig all by myself tonight, which surprised me. I reached all the way into the bottom of my song-bag, however, and eventually had to sing "Brown-Eyed Girl" in desperation. I also sang stuff by Taj Mahal and Duke Ellington though, so that's ok. Possibly. And of course, lots of songs by ME (now available at a digital retailer near you. "Ever get sick of my relentless plugging? Sure, we all do...")

2. I transplanted two tomato plants today, and am really hoping they don't die. My quilt progress is somewhat stalled. I need to do laundry, and other domestic news items.

3. Yesterday's Dialogue Between Me and My Child:

Child: Momma?

Me: Hmm?

Child: Momma?

Me: Yeah?

Child: Momma, could we get a time machine?

Me: What would you want to use it for?

Child: To make time go back and forth.

Me: We'll have to see.

Saturday, July 5, 2008

Update: ARGH, TOO CUTE!

My child just grabbed my face, kissed both cheeks, and said:

"I'm European, and you're MY-OPEAN!"

How to Make a Something Something


I am piecing together various Terribly Significant scraps of fabric that have been bouncing around my life for the past several years into a...lazy-person's quilt? I don't know what you would call it. I'm not actually making little quilt squares, just using big whole squares of cloth. And a couple of quilt squares, but very lazy ones. And maybe some applique stuff later.

Anyquilt, there are scraps from when we made N.'s snowsuit, tablecloths from our wedding, pieces of the soft bed-railing we made and slept on for two years (that was the background of my album cover)...flannel that was going be boxers for D., but we split up before I finished them, so I made it into pillows for school...

I need to start and finish a large, physically realized creative project to give myself a concrete sense of progress, because I am feeling a little plateau-y at the moment. Which is, of course, better than a screaming zero-g dive; nevertheless.

What else, you ask? Well. I'm trying to make a solo guitar record in my spare time. Yale hired me to play on a street corner on Friday, and it poured rain for part of it, so they tucked me into a neat little bookstore and asked me to play quietly. So I went through a bunch of my instrumental noodles that have developed themselves into songs-ish, and they were well received. By a cute guy. Who came up and spoke to me after, but alas, didn't give his name. So. Solo guitar record. Hoping for many startlingly lucrative licensing opps.

In other news, it is so DAMP in my house I could PLOTZ. Now, if you'll excuse me, I am urgently needed in my capacity as a Polly Pocket shoe-positioner.

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Seriously -

This is the tremendous. Just breathtaking, especially the end. It's the work of the Japanese artists collective Rinpa Eshidhan.