Grins and Ghosts.

It's been a full week down here in Virginia. We've managed to make Christmas last the entire length of our visit together: family members coming and going, opening a couple of presents each day, trips to the playground, walks around the neighborhood and of course lots of tasty meals together.

Sometimes it's overwhelming to watch my sis live her life at such a crazy pace. When I visit her, I find myself running around too. Even though the experience is temporary, I still run out of energy! Someone in their household needs something during most moments of the day. Somehow my sister and her husband Jonathan manage to accommodate each need with patience and the appropriate response despite how fast they are moving. There were evenings when Jenny was so focused that she would literally trip over me in the kitchen and keep going in an effort to get everyone's meal on the table before, "meltdown". She knows. She is a veteran parent (of 3) and a pretty damn good one.

It's hard to live so far apart. It means we only see each other 2 or 3 times a year-the mini's grow and change so quickly and I don't want to miss it! Here are a few more pictures of our visit. Enjoy!

Adaline:

Oliver:

Adaline:

The Family in Colonial Williamsburg:

Playing with flour:

The Little Ghost:

Christmas in Virginia!

It's been a busy few days leading up to Christmas but, I finally made it down to Williamsburg, Virginia to be with my sister and her family. We've had a lot of fun in the last day and a half painting ornaments, playing in the leaves, watching Gretchen play a sheep in this year's Christmas Eve Pageant, preparing for Santa's arrival and convincing Gretchen that the reindeer wouldn't hurt her once they got into the house! It's nap time for the kids right now and honestly, I may close my eyes for a few minutes too. Christmas Day with three of them has kept me on my toes.

We're off to the airport tomorrow morning to pick up my Dad and Jane. I haven't seen them since this past summer so it will be nice to catch up few days before I head back to Burlington on Monday afternoon.

In the meantime, I hope you're all having a lovely holiday! See you soon.

Silly ducks.

Hello WINTER in Vermont!

I woke up this morning to frost on my living room window! It's been cold in Vermont but, not this cold. It was a frigid 2 degrees this morning. It has since warmed up to 7 degrees, (feels like -11 with the wind chill). This is the kind of cold that makes it hard to breath and the kind of cold that makes your hands hurt if they are exposed for more than a few seconds. I'm bundled up today and happy to be inside watching the lake steam for the first time from our rooftop conference room. What a site!

Wrapping up...

Yesterday was the last day of our shoot. After many smiles, even more raindrops, winter jackets and a sliver of sunshine every few minutes, we drove back to our hotel to unload. We had a great dinner at Garibaldi's downtown and then called it a night. Here are a couple of pictures shot along the way. We're headed back to Burlington this afternoon. It's 40 degrees in Georgia (not exactly what we were expecting) and 24 in Burlington! Brrr. See you soon!

Savannah

Savannah is a beautiful place with an old soul. Ghosts? I guess there are ghost tours given in hearses with the top cut off! If only I had more time... I've only been here for about 5 hours but, I've packed a lot in - mostly meetings with the local production resources working with us on this week's shoot and hotel staff. Our hotel, The Mansion on Forsyth Park, is located right next to downtown and Bull Street, the oldest street in Savannah. At 4:30 I finally got away from my computer for a quick walk to see the gnarled old trees and Spanish Moss. I snapped a couple of photos along the way. Neat! I'm off to find some dinner before heading to bed. We're up early tomorrow for pre-production. Onwards.

Remembering...

What a full week it's been! The biggest news I have to share is that I'm moving out of my apartment and into a two bedroom apartment on South Union Street - here in Burlington. I have loved my time in this special place on Maple Street but, it's time for a change come January 1st. I was able to discuss my plans with my landlord this morning so we could establish the details of the search for a new tenant. He and I will be sharing this task since January 1st is coming right up. I took a few pictures of my apartment for the craigslist post. I wanted to share them here so I wouldn't forget. I'll miss this place a lot but, I'm leaving with so many memories. I think great things are to come!

The reward of a thing well done is to have done it.

Goodnight, lovelies.

Being thankful...

This Thanksgiving, I'm reminded of how lucky I am to have such a full life. The key is to be thankful today and everyday for family, friends, health, good food, laughter, warmth and a roof over your head! Life is busy and sometimes we get caught up in it's challenges. Is easy to forget what we DO have and how fortunate we really are.

Today, I was at Steven's house for Thanksgiving! A group of 8 of us, including Steven's mom and sister, gathered around his table to gobble up turkey w/gravy, mashed potatoes, carrots, creamed spinach, squash, rolls, cranberry sauce, green beens and more. It was a feast! We ate what we could and shared the leftovers with each other at the end of the night.

My contribution to dinner was creamed spinach c/o my sister's recipe. It was my first time making a roux, which I learned is the simplest thing in the world to make! It requires a little butter, flour and milk and then you're on your way.

To make the creamed spinach, I softened up one sweet onion. Then, I added the cooked spinach and a bit of salt & pepper to the pot. I mixed the whole thing together with the roux and parmesan cheese...and finally a tablespoon of sour cream. It was pretty good!

Here is the beautiful bird, right out of the oven!

Mary and I were ready to roll up our sleeves and get right down to the serious business of eating turkey...the dark meat!

I think we had one dessert for each person present! There was raspberry pie, apple pie, cupcakes, muffins, pumpkin cake, s'mores brownies...oh, and we forgot about the ice cream. We were too preoccupied with the goodness that was directly in front of us.

Mmmhmmm....

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Hope you all had a delightful day.

Loveyou.

Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings

On Friday night, Steven and I went to a show at Higher Ground. I hadn't heard of either band prior to that night but, a few people had recommended the show, so...off we went! When we arrived, the Ballroom, (the larger of the two rooms there) was pretty empty. The Bad Rabbits, from Boston, MA were the first band to play. At first, Steven and I couldn't figure them out. They were sort of funky, with some occasional dark rock undertones. The lead singer bounced into and out of his falsetto voice. He could really carry a tune! After the first few very dance-able songs were performed, we decided we liked them! I'd have a hard time categorizing their sound if someone asked but, they really got the crowd going and the band was tight. By the time they had finished their set, the room was full and the show had SOLD OUT!

Steven, Ted, Tay and I managed to find a spot closer to the stage for the headliners, Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings. The Dap-Kings came on stage first. They're a group of 8 guys (3 horns, 3 guitar players, 2 percussionists). They opened with two instrumental songs. So good. As Steven said, "this is real music!" Finally, Sharon Jones came out and filled the room with her crazy dance moves, huge smile and even bigger voice! She and her band played practically non-stop for well over an hour. Even when she wasn't singing she was still performing. Her banter with the crowd was also done in her singing voice so, the band never lost momentum. She really got the audience involved too. Here are some highlights:

• plucking four women from the crowd to join her on stage for one song to just LET LOOSE and dance

• inviting a contest winning couple in their early 50's to have a dance on stage together with her

• teaching a young, handsome man from the crowd how to to be, "easy"

• finding two young men who were willing to come on stage just to be, hip-checked off when Sharon decided they were, "NO GOOD!!"

• doing the shorter person's version of the "Tina Turner shimmy" 

This woman has NO inhibition. It was amazing to see her perform...to just sing, dance and share herself and her spirit with the crowd. Every once and awhile she would check in with us, "Do you like that?" Then she would wink. Saucy!

The final song Sharon performed, was a gospel song. Before she sang, she explained (in her singing voice) why this song was appropriate to sing, on this occasion at Higher Ground. "Ya see, the first time I was here, I played in the smaaaaall room. The second time I played, I played in the smaaaall room. I told the people here that the next time I came, I wanted to play in the biiiiiig room. This time I'm playing in the BIIIIG room and we're SOLD OUT!!!" The crowd went nuts cheering and dancing, not just the front rows either. The whole place was moving! Wowsa. What a great time!

"Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings are widely thought to be at the forefront of a revivalist movement that aims to capture the essence of funk/soul music as it was at its height in the mid-1960s to mid-1970s. Part of the way this is achieved is to shun modern digital recording methods in favour of using traditional analogue recording equipment. The type of instruments used by the band may also be considered limited to those that would have been available up until the mid seventies."

Conte de fées.

Hansel and Gretel Remade For Vogue 

photography Annie Leibowitz. 

http://www.pixiome.fr/2009/11/lady-gaga-hansel-and-gretel-remade-for-vogue-dec-09/  

Polenta & Sausage Stuffed Peppers and Stout Floats!

On Saturday night, Jay, Maegen, Nelia, Marin and I got together to enjoy the 4 lbs of pork shoulder that had been cooking in their slow cooker for five hours. It was the perfect rainy day dinner entree. We decided on pork soft taco's. A-MA-ZING! I was responsible for a side dish. I looked up a number of stuffed pepper recipes. None of them seemed just right. So, I made one up. It was spicy but, pretty tasty! Here are a few pics along with the recipe. 

Polenta and Sausage Stuffed Peppers:

3 peppers (each cut in 1/2)

1 roll of polenta

3 hot sausages

1 bunch of cilantro

1 small onion

1 clove garlic

3 plum tomatoes

1 jalapeno pepper

salt and pepper to taste

Remove sausages from their casings. In a medium sized saucepan, cook the three sausages completely. In another saucepan, add olive oil, chopped onion and polenta and saute until golden brown. When the mixture is almost finished, add the garlic. Combine cooked sausage, polenta mixture and all remaining ingredients (1/4 bunch chopped cilantro, 3 chopped plum tomatoes, 1 chopped jalapeno pepper and salt and pepper to taste) in a large mixing bowl. Mix.

Place all six pepper halves into the oven for 15 minutes at 350 to soften them up. After you take them out, add the polenta and sausage stuffing and put them back in for the final 15 minutes. When there is 5 minutes left on the timer, take the stuffed peppers out and sprinkle a bit of cheese on them. Then, back into the oven to let the cheese melt. Serve them immediately.  Yum!

...and then this special dessert treat that Jay concocted. The stout float made with Cherry Garcia ice cream and your favorite stout (ideally, a chocolate flavored one). Delish!

A Bluebird Birthday!

On Tuesday night, a group of us got together at The Bluebird Tavern to celebrate Maegen's 30th birthday. We arrived at around 7:30 and immediately ordered up some fancy drinks to raise in celebration of Maegen, (seen below in the tiara she received and wore for about 30 seconds for this photo opp). We were the only group in the room we were in so, we were able to spread out and take our time with everything, (Jay, no pressure...take your time with the salad). It was such a lovely evening complete with the slowest acoustic version of Happy Birthday you've ever heard. Nelia carried the tune for the group as she had eye contact with the musicians and was able to prompt them along at a good pace. 

Dinner included: bacon candied almonds, deviled farm eggs with crispy pork, island creek oysters with lemon vinegar, vermont cheese board, pear mustard, brioche toast, spicy lamb sausage, bluebird sausage, sweet pepper relish, charred onion aioli, moules frites, house bacon, crème fraiche, apple cider, double burger with boucher blue cheese, braised red cabbage, roasted chicken and foraged mushroom bread salad. Are you hungry?  We finished things off with a mousse cake complete with three candles (1 for every decade Maegen's graced the world with her delightful presence). We all decided we're going to celebrate her birthday again this weekend. Happy times Maegen!

Car Repair Woes

I've had a 1998 Honda Civic for the last 9 years! She gets great gas mileage (you can drive to the moon and back and still have a 1/4 of a tank left) but, she's getting old. Today, I had to go in to get my center pipe replaced at Meineke. I was just there three months ago getting another new muffler installed. At the end of my visit today, I asked the manager to kindly print me out a detailed history of my visits to his establishment which he did, reluctantly. 

After three years, three mufflers and 37,247 miles I decided to write a letter to Meineke. Although many of the parts are free with the warrantee, I shouldn't be spending hundreds in labor to replace below average parts...especially after I made the initial investment in a lifetime warrantee for my muffler. 

February 2006 Mileage: 75,230 new muffler         

November 2007 Mileage: 88,567 new muffler           

July 2009 Mileage: 109,014 new muffler                 

November 2009 Mileage: 112,477 new center pipe   

I wonder if I'll get a response? Rucchi, I'm following your lead on this one.  And while I'm at it...PLEASE, don't ever get your car repaired and Handy's Texaco. If you need a ride somewhere outside of town that might be less convenient, call me! I'll drive you.

Monday is going to have to step it up!

I took Friday off from work to give my mind some time to unwind after a hectic couple of weeks. What a treat! After a morning workout, I met up with Steven for a Cobb Salad at Penny Cluse, did a bit of window shopping, had a nice chat with Anne at the Icehouse and then...off to Montreal for the evening with Adam and Isaac. We ate our way through Chinatown and kept right on going until we crossed the border back into the US. Oy...Here are a few of my new favorites from the drive. I had taken a number of shots at the Botanical Garden and Insectarium that I thought I would post but, instead decided to keep it simple this time.

Pont Champlain:

Yesterday, I spent the first part of the morning caring for my plants. I found bugs on Ingrid! Eww... I trimmed off the one stem that looked most effected. I'll be watching her closely for the next few days. I also have two new succulents that need to be potted. I started my search for the right sized pots but, haven't had much luck yet. After I finished the rounds, I was off to do laundry, buy groceries, clean out my car, pay bills, etc. By 3:00 pm, I was free. What a great feeling it is to have clean clothes, sheets and towels, an organized apartment and no bills left to pay. 

I decided to take a walk downtown to enjoy the 90 minutes of sun that was left of my short, fall, weekend day. I did some window shopping and then, some actual shopping. Damn you Stella and your 20% off sale!! A new pair of shoes were purchased. They are beautiful and incredibly comfortable. While in Stella, I got a call from Miss Sage inviting me over for a glass of wine. We had a lovely impromptu visit and got a chance to chat about everything! I'm already looking forward to the next. Then-a quick, dark walk up the hill towards home, making a brief stop at Colin and Soe's to (hopefully and selfishly) gain an endorsement of my new purchase. I couldn't resist them! But, that will have to be it for some time...

Sundays should always be reserved for catching up on everything, even if it's just to catch up on the time you haven't been able to spend slowing down. Monday, you have big shoes to fill...beautiful, blue, leather, platform heels!

Blanco

Spanish fashion label Blanco, after successful Fall 2009 campaign, released a Winter 2009 campaign featuring models Siri Tollerod (my fave!) and Andre Ziehe. Some fun pieces! Check out their Look Book for Winter, 2009. Mmmhmm...

Rupert has passed. RIP.

At just over a pound in weight Rupert was kept in a life supporting incubator in intensive care and was thought to be two or three weeks premature. He had all the symptoms of a premature human baby. His lungs were not inflating properly and problems emerged after he was not able to ingest his mothers milk (colostrum). Staff tried to give him the milk of a lamb but unfortunately he did not digest that properly because he needed his mother's bacteria. Staff knew that he had an unpredictable chance of survival but held onto hope as they tried this method of keeping him alive. It is only their second baby deer at the centre which they have had to deliver by caesarean and so everything was under trial and error. Founder of the centre, Les Stocker predicted that the odds were against Rupert earlier in the week when he spoke to The Bucks Herald. He said that everyone was worried about him as they had not seen anything so tiny. Talking about the death, Les said that next time they will try warm milk straight from a goat at a nearby farm. He added: "It is all a new science and this is just one more case to add to our experience."

Meet Rupert.

This tiny deer was delivered by Caesarean section at a wildlife hospital after a car killed his mother. Little Rupert (who is so small he can fit in an adult's hand) was born after vets failed in their battle to save his mother. At just six inches tall and weighing just over a pound, he is now in an incubator in the intensive care unit at Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital in Buckinghamshire. He has only recently opened his eyes. Les Stocker, founder of Tiggywinkles, said, "Rupert's mother had very severe injuries.  We brought him out and got him breathing, and then he went into an incubator on oxygen.  He is now being fed by a tube." Staff members are optimistic that Rupert, now five days old, will make a full recovery. "Deer are very, very tricky, but this one has spirit.  He's an extremely feisty little  guy and quite pushy," Mr. Stocker said.

Halloween!

This year, Halloween fell on a Saturday. I'm guessing that many people decided to do something fun since there was time to plan, time to play and time to unwind the next day. I woke up early on Saturday morning. After checking a few items off of my to-do list, I met Steven for brunch at Sneakers. While we waited for our food to arrive, we brainstormed about costumes. Finally, I made the final decision. I've posted a picture of the main ingredient below.

Smarties:

Steven and I stopped at Costco, Kmart, Battery Street Jeans and Lowe's to pick up the materials required to create our Halloween looks. Then, we headed back to my place to start construction. It took both of us two hours to create the pants for my costume, and another 15 minutes to create the belt to go along with the pants. Steven's costume was done as soon as the clothing came out of the packaging...oh, and once the suspenders were adjusted, (which was a small task).

Steven sewing 6 bags of Smarties onto my jeans:

"Smarty Pants"

"Deee-Lite"

Here's Ted Olsen after aging rapidly just in time for Halloween!

The Lumberjack:

Ian, the fish man:

A group of us started at S.P.A.C.E down on Pine Street to see some artwork, then up to East Ave for a bit (yummy cookies and beer pong in a really neat carriage house) then, to Jeff's place on North Willard for a dance party, vodka shots from a fireman's water hose (if you so desire) and popcorn courtesy of the host, Mr. Orville Redenbacher. Finally, we ended up down on Flynn Ave for the party of all Halloween parties. Odele did it again and really showed her guests a great time with musical performances by, The Creepy Cave Bees and DJ Luis Calderin. Somehow, I didn't get much candy. How can this be? It's probably for the best but, I'm saddened that all I'm left with is 4 1/2 bags of Smarties!

Sunday morning I met up with AB, Max, Rucchi, Dana and Steve for brunch at The Bluebird Tavern. It's becoming one my favorites in Burlington. I had a small french press, part of a scone, a taste of a sticky bun and wait for it....FRIED CHICKEN AND WAFFLES with honey lightly drizzled over the entire plate! It was the perfect mix of sweet and savory. What a great way to wake up slowly after a long night! Thank goodness for that extra hour.