i made a list the other day. i wrote down a few things that i believe in.

aprons
shower caps
hot water bottles

it makes me feel rather domestic, but the items listed above are so useful! it also makes me feel a bit oldladyish, but maybe those old ladies know something i don't?
what's the favorite thing on my list? the hot water bottle. man, you fill that baby with super hot water about an hour before bedtime, pop it into the bed between the sheets, down near the feet, and it preheats your bed for you. there's something about having your feet warm that warms your entire body. the bottle stays hot to warm all night long too. hikers do this too with boiling water in their nalgene bottles in the foot of their sleeping bags.

about the photo. it's this recipe from the whole foods website. it was tasty and easy.

homefront

this was yesterday, as the front was passing, letting in some late afternoon sunshine .....

this was today, as i was making another batch of veggie lasagna. i like to play rack em stack em in the kitchen sink!

swish go the fish

i cleaned their tank today, and moved their rock and plant to a new position. i meant to take pictures of the new setup, but, was captured by their swimming and movement instead. i often just sit infront of the aquarium, watching the fish swim to and fro. though, sometimes they hold still, and i grab my camera, and they take off! they know ....

this is the kind of day that i would be walking with haste, constantly checking over my shoulder, searching out the sky, checking my watch for the barometric pressure .... today is blustery, warm, balmy, rainy, windy, and the temp is suppose to drop tonight.
my buddies, KTR and SOLACE, are heading out again, from springer mountain, this march. they're coming to visit me first, on the way down to georgia. i guess, between now and then, i need to think about what i want to do.
do i go out again, for a few days, a week, or longer?
mom, why did you give me that appalachian trail calendar?!!!!

the haphazard cook

it looks more like a CSI crimescene, vs. the kitchen of an inexperienced cook. it especially looked so after dropping the saucy wooden spoon on the floor, and spraying a ton of tomato splatter across the floor and trash can. thank god for black pants! (i'll scrape the crusties off later!)(giggle giggle)

this is the scene of making spinach and roasted red pepper lasagna from this gem. (ps. the photography in this book could certainly lure a vegetarian to omnivore). little did i realize it was an almost from scratch recipe, thus requiring hours of attention. i'm sure it will be worth it though. i also learned that my 9" x 13" pyrex is a bit on the shallow side, as i had leftover sauce (not to mention it did not meet the measurements of the required baking dish dictated in the recipe. oops). after this masterpiece comes out of the oven, i will be off to target for some appropriate containers for freezing yummy portions.

nothing to say

but something to look at ....

the sun is setting

i feel like i need a replay on today ... not because i need to right a wrong. i just need to have more of the glorious daylight shining today, and the groove i'm in, getting things done. but, as i sit here, i can see the sun about 20 minutes away from hiding behind the neighbor's rooftop. the day is fading. too fast.
i love that my apartment gets so much sunshine. i've not taken full advantage of that aspect in terms of machine knitting and sewing. the room i chose for those crafts gets flooded with daylight all day. i love it. most of my apartment is blasted with sunlight on a sunny day. i don't have to turn on any lights during the daytime (unless, it's waaaaay after noon, and i'm in the kitchen pretending to cook). ummmm ...... no pretending here.


chicken chili. scrumptous. a friend made this years ago, and gave me a copy of his recipe. if anyone wishes, i will post it here. it was easy to make, it all fit in my 4 qt. pot, and i will likely bag up and freeze the rest tomorrow.
i've been on a bit of a cooking trip ... enjoying my time in the kitchen and reading about food. i was, thanks to mr. crumbles, able to add some books to the library recently. so, my bedtime reading has been divided between reading about food and reading about fictious lives .... i finished _memoirs of a geisha_ and started _blind assassin_. this is my attempt to begin reading again, without reading smut. all these books are on loan from ms. mouse.



this is the shit that drives me crazy! i have been sooooo in and out of here since/during the holidaze, that my apartment has fallen into the depths of HELL! all i need to add to the photo is some stunt cockroaches, as this place looks like a dump! the massive clothing explosion is thanks to me having a frantic run of dressy bessie before work yesterday. it gripes me more than too small underwear!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

blogger has wussed out on me, so i cannot leave you all with my parting shots. just think new years/spiders/and the hood.

blog about it !

this is the beauty of instant gratification! this is the scene outside my apt/house this evening. i propped the side window open to listen to the action. "i didn't do it! miss agnes! they took my $10 !" and then some of this, something about "car broken into, head bashed". hmmm .... after awhile, i spotted the man that i think lives under the house next door. we exchanged hello's and gossip, and then he disappeared over the fence at the back of the yard. i don't blame him, ... he did not need to get tangled with the 7 cop cars, ems, and fire truck. i do love my neighborHood. really, i do.

tonight's agenda? i was completing my new year's dinner. tonight, i went shopping at target, after yesterday's flop at the mall (maybe because crate & barrel was closed?), and found a great little pot. i needed something between my largest saute pan and my giant 8 qt. stock pot. in this, i cooked my collards. and, they were absolutely yummy! since i am a novice, there's still a big bunch of greens waiting in the fridge. but, that's okay --- collards are hardy, and they can wait a bit for me :)

my fish.
what can i say? the little guys/gals (?) sometimes, just linger there, watching me. and whenever i grab my camera, they swim away and hide! but, they're cute, and still nameless. i've never been very good at naming things/pets. i had a hamster named hammy, a calico kitty named patches, and my fish? big fish, little fish?

i'm glad the holidaze have passed, at least for the most part. i still light my decorations every night, ... and will until next week.


on the twelfth day of christmas, my true love gave to me, a little striped patagonia T

well, maybe not. i guess this is just me "testing" to see if he's found this blog and reads it .... are you there? is this what you meant by "i've read your links" ?

burning eyebrow

though, i know it sounds ridiculous, when i took my shower today, it felt like my eyebrow was on fire. that would be the eyebrow i rubbed yesterday when chopping up all the jalapenos for the cornbread. good thing i hadn't "touched" myself anywhere else! yes, i know the fish have nothing to do with my eyebrow, but which would you rather look at?

let it be a better year

this is the closest thing i've seen to snow this season. these snowflakes are window thingies. you know, the clear thingies you can put on a window, and reposition, like colorforms.



new years day needs to be extended into tomorrow, as i did not accomplish all i had hoped to do. and i hope, that is not an indication of how the rest of my year is going to unfold. making a bloody mary is a cinch. but, i was a novice at cooking the blackeyed peas with the hambone, not to mention the bone was too big to fit in my little crockpot. the peas were delicious nonetheless. i failed to cook my collard greens (that's why i need an extention on the holiday), as my big pot was tied up with the peas.

i also made a big batch of jalapeno cornbread muffins. i diced about three jalapenos for the cornbread, without wearing gloves. i will never do that again. let's just say i rubbed my eyebrow earlier, and it still burns. also, my fingers burn when i wash my hands with hot water. it feels like taking a hot shower with a bad sunburn. tomorrow, i will complete my meal and cook the greens.

this was my view, yesterday or the day before, as i sat at my computer. the sky was just glowing, as the sun went down. then, i was reading something for a couple of minutes, and when i looked out the window again, the magic had passed.