EOW

Let me clue you into what happened this week. On Monday I smashed my computer (long story - not pretty). On Tuesday I searched my iPhone Best Buy app and in about 10 minutes chose and bought a new 17" laptop. On Wednesday I worked late, bought a jar of pimento-stuffed green olives and drank too many martinis (2 to be exact because I am - like - old). On Thursday I left work early, put the top down ('cause it was perfect weather in New York) and drove to the mall to pick up my new computer. Friday I had another martini (because after all those olives were still in the fridge), took a nap, got up at midnight and stayed up until 3 rebuilding my computer. On Saturday I stumbled to the kitchen desperate for a cup of coffee and something to soak up the last bits of vodka in my belly. By the way isn't it amazing how coffee can practically make itself when you are half asleep and completely uncoordinated because you haven't had coffee but you have had booze? Anyway - horror of horrors - no bread! Well, moldy bread. Nothing else. But guess what was in the cupboard? Pancakes. Or the dry part of a recipe for cornmeal pancakes I made a few weeks ago. I had stuck a big ol' label on the jar advising me that I would need to add 1/2 an egg, 1/2 a cup of buttermilk and 1/2 a teaspoon of vanilla extract to make the pancakes appear. Well I'm not sure how you measure half an egg and I didn't have any buttermilk. So once again, I improvised. I thought I totally messed it up when I added apple cider vinegar to the mix because I read that's how you make buttermilk. I think they meant white vinegar. But I didn't have that either. It seemed really wrong smelling vinegar in the pancakes but what the heck. I also had some ricotta cheese and I wondered if that would fluff up the pancakes so I added a few tablespoons. The batter got a little thin so I added in some more cornmeal and flour. Then, when I put the vinegar back in the cupboard, I saw the coconut. Let me tell you if you haven't yet discovered the large flake, unsweetened coconut chips they sell in the health food store you-don't-know-what-you-are-missing! Wow! These pancakes are amazing if I do say so myself. I guess the cornmeal and faux buttermilk make for a yummy crispy outer layer. The coconut bits are like little flavor bombs in there. Of course pure maple syrup and lots of butter never hurt. Crisp bacon adds a nice salty counterpoint. Yum. YUM. Super YUM.

Type

I guess this is my month to be tubing..um You-Tubing (insert groan here). Yah I've been blog-hopping again. My girl Tracy over at Shutterbean posted a link to this video in one of her highly entertaining "I Love Lists Friday" - um - lists awhile back. I am all up in this video's business for it has all the can't fail elements I adore: good old fashioned stop-motion animation, charming music, whimsy and lovely books, fun books, quirky books. It reminds me of Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks falling in love over books, business and Christmas in New York; Anne Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins' book-based bittersweet transcontinental flirtation; Hugh Grant without Julia Roberts, trying to convince us he can relate to being a geeky bookshop owner. Type. Great name, great logo, great little movie.

The Facts of Life

Fact: change sucks. Alright I don't totally believe that. Sometimes it sucks. Sometimes it kinda ticks you off. So Benjamin Moore's Color Preview did away with their little dot swatches. You can see them in earlier posts below. Cute right? Now check out the post from March 7th. The bar of colors at the bottom? Yeah it's nice. It's a bit more classy. But it doesn't really say "paint" now does it? So I am thinking it's time for a little blog redesign. I love the look of creaturecomforts blog. And I sorta like katiespencilbox. I guess sometimes change IS good - an opportunity to try something maybe you wouldn't have thought of before. Maybe the kick in the pants you need to embrace a little change for yourself. Keep an eye here. Let's see what I can come up with. In the meantime: enjoy some healthy and delicious waffles, Hudson Valley style: saute apple slices in butter...add a few tablespoons of honey to farmer's cheese...toast up a waffle...assemble all on a plate...add some pure New York State maple syrup and a few dashes of cinnamon.

Art Friends

I received an email the other day from an old friend I don't know - kind of what I love about the Internet and em. I met Pam once many years ago and have followed her ever since. She is a very, very successful artist. I own her works. I covet more of them. She emails me whenever she has new work to premier, is mounting a big show or hosting an event. She lives way across the country - on an island off Seattle. She has the life I want. She travels the world, painting. She is prolific. She sells a ton of her stuff. She immerses herself in all the beauty and light the world has to offer and then she records it, interprets it, expands on it. She makes memory tangible. Pam Ingalls. An artist in the Russian Impressionist tradition.

Cottage

I've been away for awhile...navigating through holidays, medical scares, busted computers and information lost (thank goodness for Picasa). When last heard from, you  may remember, way back in September we were preparing a new home for Mom.Well, she moved in around the beginning of October - it turned out great and she loves it! The fresh colors of peach, pink and persimmon, tempered with a creamy warm tan and rich mocha, give the little cottage a cozy yet whimsical look - perfect for our favorite grandmother!

Vacation

Vacation is over. Back to work on Monday. A good way to finish off an extended vaca? Brunch with friends. One last visit to the Farmers' Market. A wildflower bouquet. Ahh summer. Smiling yellow sunflowers. Candy-colored zinnias in shades of orchid and carnation. Fuzzy purple - or is it blue? - ageratum. Tanned burgundy dahlias with white bottoms! Snapdragons making like a tequila sunrise. Emerald bedding. All stuffed in a handmade pot the color of faded denim, kiddie pools, summer clouds at dusk.

Rainbows

So I was at the Farmers' Market.

As usual I bought a lot of pretty vegetables...as if I like to eat vegetables. I went a little color crazy...red beets, yellow beets and a huge bunch of multi-colored chard. Even the farmer remarked on my rainbow mania.

I cooked the beets when I got home. I chopped 'em, seasoned 'em (s&p) drizzled 'em (olive oil) and tossed 'em. Pop 'em in the toaster oven at about 400 for what?... 15 minutes? Super easy. Super good.

 Serve 'em:

Cool: layered over vinaigrette-dressed spinach.

Hot: alongside just about anything.
And tomorrow we'll talk about the chard.