My "Drug" of Choice

Emily Dickinson wrote, "There is no frigate like a book". I prefer to think of books as my favorite drug of choice. When the world gets to be too much (seen the news lately) or simply too mundane, I find I can get a nice sustained high with a book. It doesn't even have to be a good one, just something to capture my interest and set my mind wandering in a different direction.

When the holidays blues hit me smack dab in the middle of Christmas, I found myself craving just such a high... which is how I ended up "shooting up" with the Twilight series... The lovely loss of control I feel with these books is evidenced by the 1000+ pages I have poured through in the past two days. Two books down, two more to go and I am slowing down my pace ... so has to enjoy every last word. Are the books good.. they are "okay" The story on the other hand is hypnotic and engrossing... With every page, I keeping thinking and then what.. and then what...

The rumor is that the fourth book is a let down... "for the best I say"... I will read through until the bitter end... and if that end breaks the spell with terrible writing and a poorly thought out plot.. well then my detox will be that much easier....

Thank You Ms. Kitt...

I pay far too much attention to the youth oriented television and the mainstream media. As a result, I finding myself struggling to shed my belief that life ends with 40. I have mentioned this in passing to some of my older friends who seem baffled and give me assurances that 40 is where life starts to get interesting. This last year, I had been seeking role models, my age and older, to dispel my apparently misguided beliefs abouts turning 40.

I have been an admirer of Eartha Kitt, since I first saw her in old Batman episodes. As a child, I did not see many Black faces on TV and certainly not gorgeous woman who could hold there own. My mother introduced me to older movies with women such as Lena Horne and Eartha Kitt and I look to them as proof positive that Black women were beautiful. ( I should add the women in my family are stunning, but little old me would not believe anything unless I saw it on the screen).

Now as I watch these women "living the hell out of life", well into their 80's and beyond, I am reminded that true inspiration (for little black girls and 39 year old women) is found not on TV, but in the amazing lives of real women, like the amazing Eartha Kitt.

A running jump into the New Year...

Merry Christmas... phew! It was lovely fun and thankfully, it's over! (We'll in a few hours...) Some people get that post Christmas let down. Not me! I am just the opposite as the day passes I start to get energized, I can start thinking about the New Year and more importantly how I intend to live in the New Year. I worship beginnings... and thankfully every morning, Monday, and 1st of the month is essentially a chance to start fresh. Forgive myself for any past sins and strive to do the right thing. But in all the year there is no greater beginning than January 1.

I am giddy with excitement over all the things I want to do... Then of course there are a myriad of reasons to be excited about the coming year. In a word, OBAMA!!!! Logically, I know he is just a man and not the appointed savior of mankind, but I can't help but feel the warm glow of salvation when I think about him. I think today's New York Times hit on one of his cool factors with this article.. I think I need to add a visit to Hawaii to my New Year's list.

Merry Merry...

"Where are you Christmas.. Why can't I find you.."

Where Are You Christmas? from How the Grinch Stole Christmas the Movie

Merry Christmas!!!!! Truthfully, Christmas took me by total surprise. Logically I knew it was coming, I was just in denial. A punishing work schedule and being snowed in for 5 days has not helped my holiday preparations.

Today I wrapped presents and spent some time sewing. I still have a few things left to make, but thankfully, I have a few days off.

So, I hope that everyone has a wonderful holiday... see you in the New Year..

Look What I Just Won...

I haven't used my Ebay account since last year, but on a whim, I decided to check for a dress form.. Bingo, I found one that would work just perfect and today it was mine!!!!! I'll be sewing a new cover for her.. and of course will have to pick a name. I think Hepburn in honor of my two favorite fashion icons, Audrey Hepburn and Katherine Hepburn.

She doesn't know it yet, but she will be my model for a whole slew of aprons, dresses, scarves and flower pins, I will be making for the holidays...

Still Giddy About the Election

I am so excited for Obama's Presidency to begin. I love this site, http://www.ondayone.org/. Basically suggestions on what the President should do from day one.

Check out this Obamabat Font

Check out this great font... http://jeffdomke.com/?p=374

Oh Happy Day!

Fall Garden Glimpse

Our garden is taking its last deep breaths before Winter...

Flowers have faded, but look so pretty I can't bare to cut them down.

We'll most of the flowers have faded...

The vegetable garden has been cleaned and...


the vegetables harvested.

Gardening's Second Wind

There are days we labor in the garden, barely getting anything done, in a futile attempt to beat back weeds and tame unruly beds... and then there are days like this past Monday. A slight crush on tropical plants, a few days off and a shopping trip at the nursery yielded an all day planting marathon. We finished mulching beds, planted trees and perennials and the best part, a 10 foot circular bed in the middle of the yard complete with banana, orange cannas and palm trees.

This weekend I am turning my attention to the edibles. I'll harvest the last of the beets from the vegetable garden and try my luck at overwintering potatoes, and a fig tree is going on the south side of the house.

What would Coco do?

So if clothes make the Woman, than imagine my shock at realizing that lately, I have been dressing like a Hobbit... Now, before I am spammed by the People for Ethical Treatment of Hobbits, let me go on record saying "There is nothing wrong with looking like a Hobbit, it is just not for me!" To be honest, I saw it coming.

• The crop pants were just so damn comfortable and never needed hemming, than why not buy 5 pairs.
• If one white t-shirt is great than 10 must be awesome and really so what if they are stained you where shirts over them anyway...
• A summer vest professionalizes any outfit, even a stained white t-shirt and cropped pants
• Mixing patterns and textures is a sign of your refusal to conform and thus a good thing
• A boldly colored scarf is a whimsical nod to my heritage... even if it is 80's floral

and thus... the transformation to Hobbit is complete...







(Not actual picture of the blogger, but pretty damn close!)





Solution... (Not admitting to actually watching Lifetime TV, but maybe absorbing over acted Coco Chanel Biopic as I cruised channels *being fair.. it was not so bad*) I have decide to look to Coco Chanel as my design inspiration... With a little modification... I will not be chain smoking until I can fit into a size 4, nor will I be wearing any clothing with gold chains or ostrich feathers... and double stranded pearls aren't my thing.... Really, imagine if Coco Chanel shopped at Target and Lands End and lived in Seattle ... yup that is the look... classy, stylish comfort (hold the Hobbit)..

So what would Coco do when faced with my closet? After vomiting, she would promptly throw most of it out (donating such fashion don't is cruel to people in need) and then she would click her way over to Land's End (who have rocked the basics with their Fall collection) and order these....

Thank you Land's End and Coco for rescuing me from the Shire...

Fall is for food

For me, September starts off 4 months of truly inspired cooking. As the temperature cools, a warm kitchen becomes a cozy and relaxing place to spend an afternoon. Fall produce is rich with soft, starchy comfort foods, just think potatoes, pumpkins, squash, yams and apples; and cooking becomes an acceptable alternative to gardening.

If summer food is about simple and basic, such as the sweet and subtle acidity of a ripe tomato, than fall food is about complexity: layers of texture, flavor and smoky undertones. As a cook, in the Fall I feel like an artist, my paints are whatever ingredients I can get my hands on and my brushes are my Le Cruset pots and wooden spoons.

Every fall I pick a signature dish, I’ll cook it several times, tweaking it and making it my own before I release it on to family and friends. Last year, I settled on this chicken pot pie with lots of vegetables, dark meat chicken and a really creamy sauce; all covered with puffed pastry. It’s pretty damn good if I do say so myself. This year, I am toying with several ideas, so far I am thinking about these:

Sweet Potato Pie
I am in awe of the concept of vegetables in a pie. Sweet potato is my absolute favorite pie followed closely by pumpkin. Good sweet potato pie has a creaminess to it that I think would benefit from marshmallow and perhaps a little chocolate. hmmm?

Mashed potatoes
Mashed potatoes make me swoon, particularly when they have other notes like horseradish, leeks and bleu cheese.

Poutine
A Quebec comfort food consisting of French fries covered with gravy and cheese curds. I think I can make this slightly healthier with baked fries, and really light gravy.

Stay tuned, I'll keep you posted...

Dreams, Pet Projects and Burning Obsessions...

Confession... for almost 18 months I have been wanting to start a blog devoted to crafting a better life. There are many different types of crafters out there, but I rarely saw the type of crafter I wanted to be.... You see, some call it delusion... I call it divine insight, but I believe that with patience persistence and a little information, you can make anything you want. So why not focus on making things that bring you joy and improve your life...

My goal was to launch on September 1st and I am happy to say that I met it head on... (This required a 5 hour marathon session with Word Press... apparently building with CSS is not like riding a bike) So it is up, it is live and it is in progress... check it out at http://livingwithscissors.com

My first post is about my struggles in relearning penmanship and features a free template for Handwriting Practice Cards (as if anyone would pay money for what is essentially the alphabet). Enjoy...

Happy September

Okay, this barely counts as a post, but my goal this month is to post something everyday for the month of September.

Today marks the end of a 4 day weekend and the beginning of my favorite time of the year.

Fall: Let the cooking begin...

Ordering in Preparation for Fall....


Kenyon's Clam Cake and Fritter mix from Farm House Wares. I love my new hometown, but take every chance I can to celebrate the culinary joys of my New England childhood.. I love!!!!! Clam Cakes.. they are perfect on slightly chilly days... And the only place I have ever had them is the New England Area..

Warning!!!! You may think I am insane after reading this post...or Brilliant

"Christmas is only 128 days away"
Mentioning this in August is like saying you hear voices at a Psychiatrist conference... People will take notice, but not in a good way. But nevertheless, Christmas is only 128 days from today... but really who's counting. ;-)

Christmas is my favorite holiday of the year... The gifts are great, the food is awesome and I love cold weather... But really for me it is all about suspending disbelieve. Christmas (from thanksgiving to C-Day) is generally 30 days, where the entire US population goes insane... and we celebrate it.

Mass insanity... trust me..

• We think it is a good idea to dress in sweaters with appliqué characters.
• Red and green suddenly become a conservative color combination
• We pretend to be nice to people we dislike... even buying gifts for them
• Maxing out the credit card for 10 minutes of Christmas morning joy seems like a good idea.
• Dressing up your cat as a reindeer is not considered cruel. ( my cat actually enjoys this, really)
  
• Making a 5 course dinner from scratch sounds fun
• Singing at work becomes mandatory
• and being a good parent means shoving some old lady out of the way at Walmart, so you can get the last Whatever Elmo doll...
  

I LOVE IT!!!!!

So why am I thinking of it in August.... Well last year we made cards and a few select gifts. This year. I want to make cards and cookies and what gifts I do give ( I am cutting down-like I say every year) will be handmade... (exception, being books, and some tech stuff). But mostly this Christmas, I want to savor and enjoy a stress free 30 days of celebration... This means, starting a little early...

In September I will start compiling my list of things I want to make and for whom.... I love making gifts... I can make things I might otherwise not be able to afford and the feeling I get giving a lovingly handmade gift is better than any chocolate I have eaten thus far... A feeling you get to experience every time you think of the recipient or see them actually wearing/using your gift. September being only 12 days away... you can see why all the excitement and anticipation..

Somewhere Over the Rainbow

We took the ferry to Bainbridge Island on Saturday. It was very fall like with rain, a nice breeze and great views everywhere you looked.

My To Make List...

There are so many amazing tutorials on the Web of things I am dying to make. This Crochet Collar from the Ongoing Project is definitely tops my list. Now all I need to do is learn to crochet.

The Un Garden

Another photo from the Georgetown Garden Walk... This lovely dress form sitting on a porch surveying the garden.

The view from down below...

Sorting through my photos from the Georgetown Garden and Art Walk. This is my favorite. Something about the colors against the sky.