what if ... ?

... your fish could come out of their tanks and swim in the air ? you can't pet them because you'll harm their slime coating. but, they're so pretty ....

i know where the action is ....

i had the cooking bug the other night, and was craving brussel sprouts. i opted to not go to the whole foods because i knew they had brussel sprouts already in little mesh bags at the teeter. so, i went to the teeter, and the ones in mesh bags looked old. ick. so, i ended up with the giant stalk of brussel sprouts instead. let me tell you, there's no graceful way to walk around the grocery store carrying this monstrosity on a friday night. it's almost obscene. but, it's a good deal too! more brussel sprouts for less money! i also got a couple of small steaks to grill.

the brussel sprouts were roasted with garlic, a la 28 cooks.

this picture is from saturday night ... yep, action on south street ... not terribly uncommon. i was very surprised that there was only one police car. often, if there's one, more are sure to come.


after sitting on the curb for a good 45 minutes in the freezing cold, the officers let the three guys (not dressed for sitting on a curb in freezing temps) go.

cooking escapades ...

i am not the most ______ in the kitchen. i am heavily dependent on recipes, experience, and jackie. aside from my cookbooks, she is my lifeline.

so, with her inspiration, i cooked tonight. i sauteed red swiss chard. and, with the help of 28 cooks, i made the poached tilapia.

dinner was extra yummy, with minimal effort ....




doesn't red swiss chard make you think of the aliens from tom cruise's war of the worlds ?!

comfort food

when the brain just can't be creative, and the tummy rumbles, and it's cold outside, the easiest thing for me to cook is a nice pot of chili. it was also an opportunity to use up some veggies that were on the verge of death (ie: see the red peppers floating in there?). i used ground turkey breast again for this. i like using the ground turkey (or chicken) because i don't have to touch it. i just untie the plastic bag it's in, and turn it inside out into the pot.

and the nicest thing is ... besides being yummy, ... is that i now have 6 portions in the fridge. that means: 6 meals i don't have to cook !

happy valentine's day

this is how i'm celebrating the holiday that most of us love to hate ... i'm enjoying a bit of vosges red fire bar and tzao passion tea, and later tonight, i think i'll have a little bit of red wine ... or, as my mom likes to call it, ju ju juice.

same view, different exposures ....

the fishes

i haven't taken any good shots of my plattys, but did find this pretty fat quarter of this fish fabric today. i don't know if it will make its way into the final quilt ... but if it doesn't, i'm sure i will make something small and nice with this fabric.

yeah!

i have a date next week with a certain agent scarlet. we're going to go dancing in a lesbian bar ...



that's right! jonathan richman will be at the cat's cradle next tuesday!

monkeys!

what's better than one pair of sock monkey socks? two pairs ! agent aubergine gifted me a pair the other day, and i sheepishly admitted that i already had a pair, but no way was i going to give these back ! thanks agent aubergine!!!

the weather outside is frightful ....

the weather gods delivered and we actually got some wintery stuff today! ... i think it's raining now though ....

in anticipation of today's weather, plus i needed a meal of the week, i made a nice batch of turkey chili. i've made this recipe before, but always with chicken. for this version, i bought some ground turkey breast at whole foods. i think i might do that again next time, as i'd much rather not handle raw chicken. with the turkey, i just dumped it from the plastic bag into the pan! no touching!

and to brighten up a dreary day, i picked up some daisies at the teeter. flowers tend to last awhile around here, as my apt. feels like floral refrigeration.

and here's the gang hanging out