Hope

I took this picture with my cell phone. I just held it up in the air (while I was driving very, very slowly).

Books

Well, it was my first day back to school. I'm taking a German culture/film class (for fun, natürlich), contemporary literary theory and criticism (something I've always been wary of), and late 19th century American literature (the professor is new and has furloughed the first two weeks).

Let's just say that I'll be reading a lot. Can I emphasize that? A LOT.

Oh, and I just found out the M.A exam is in week seven, not week eight.

Bring on the panic. Bring on the coffee! Bring on the soothing photos that remind me that once, reading was really delightful and fun...

Like a fairytale!

Check out this beautiful wooden house in Siberia. People actually live in homes like these! Aren't they wonderful?

Look at how the sun and the shadows from the tree play on the detailed wood work! And what do you call that blue mini-roof thing over the doors? It's lovely!

I would love to at least visit such a house. I'll have to add Siberia to my travel list. :)

Photo from Vlad Studio.

Tart

While we're on the topic of food...

I thought I'd include this picture I took on my cell phone of a lovely fruit tart I spotted at a bakery in Ventura. (I got a mini version of it!)

I'm thinking of having a garden party in August for my birthday, and I'm thinking such a dessert would be perfect!

The kumquats are coming! The kumquats are coming!

I have finally finished grading at least 4,092 papers (at least it feels that way) and I have submitted 21 grades. This came with some fear and trepidation. For some reason, I'm terrified my finicky students are going to contest their grades. On the other hand, I'm afraid the head of the program will complain that my grades are too high. I didn't have one D! (The director feels that there should be a sprinkling of Ds in all final grade reports.)

So, rather than let the remainder of my break be plagued by these fears, I decided to take a recipe from the smitten kitchen (I belive it's just smittenkitchen.com) and make a "Spring stew" which is basically artichoke, lemon, pancetta, onion, and a few other small ingredients like that.

I went to Trader Joe's and was on my way to the pancetta when--oh my! What are those? Those little orange delights? What were they, reader? They were kumquats!

For awhile I have been wanting to try this odd fruit.

"Are you sure you eat the skins?" I would ask my friend skeptically at the Farmer's Market.

"Yes, yes. You roll the kumquat in your hands to release the odors and such, and then you eat it!" she informed me, probably feeling very superior in her kumquat knowledge.

So I bought some! They say Spring! They say Summer is on the way! They say Sprunger! (Ok, now you can tell I've graded papers for two days straight.) They are so brilliantly orange and oval shaped and bite sized and perfect.

Anyway, go out and try some, readers! They're so delightful and it feels so wrong to eat the skin!

Happy You-Must-Wear-Green Day

So, if there's one thing I dislike, it's cheese. Actually, I love cheese and I dislike many things. Let's try that again. I dislike cheesiness. I dislike having to wear green because people (thinking they're rather clever) pinch you and claim that a leprechaun will do the same if you don't put some green on at once.

I dislike people who are 1/100th Irish using this day as an excuse to get drunk and go to school, too, but that's another matter.

Anyway, I *do* like the occasional green element in my outfits. I think this girl from Stockholm (photographed by the Sartorialist in 2007) does an excellent job of incorporating green into her wardrobe without looking like a total cheeseball. Granted, this was taken in August and not on March 17th, but you get the picture.

Americans, take note! ...and go eat some soda bread.

6:30pm

At 6:30 pm, you know, the time most people eat dinner, Kamilla and I decided it was time for a nap. So, we took one. (Honestly, how can you not be inspired to nap when you have a cat?)

Now we're all charged for the rest of the night: Linguistics final, you will be mine!

p.s- daffodils = 1.29 at Trader Joe's

Why is it that, come every finals week, I simply can't focus?

Perhaps it's because I find websites like weheartit and get distracted by amazing photos like this one. Appropriately, it's a clock... tick. Tick. Tick. Tick...

Three Years

It's hard to believe I lost my father three years ago today. I think it's really easy to romanticize those who have passed on, but I can honestly say that my dad was one of the best people I knew.

Here's why:

Every day he would kiss me on the forehead and say "I love you" at least once (I thought this was silly and annoying when I was in the throws of my teenage years, but now I really appreciate it.)

Nighttime philosophical talks

Introducing me to music

Introducing me to cleaning...

Hash breakfast (left over hamburger meat, zucchini, potatoes, onions, broccoli...)

Sailing

Carrying my tent and backpack through the switchbacks on the way to Gilbert Peak for me

Meeting me in England so we could fly to then explore Sweden and Denmark just because he knew I was obsessed with Scandinavia

5000 more reasons

This is a picture of us in Stockholm in 2006.

I miss you, Dad.

How to make Mondays happy

I think if I could wear this, even the gloomiest Monday mornings might be ok. Look how lovely it is! The two best colors in the world united in one charming cardigan!

Does anybody have 88 dollars to spare? Or, perhaps, would anyone like to convince me that spending 88 dollars on a cardigan at this point in my life isn't actually so bad? (I read you could survive off of pasta and pb&j for 28 dollars a month, for example.)

What are some of your favorite clothing items, readers?

*Note: Valerie, I already know you like to dress as inconspiciously and plainly as possible....

Can you knit me a vase?

It's beginning to rain again, but nearly-Spring flowers are blooming. What's one to do? I'd recommend sticking some flowers in this lovely knit vase by Ferm Living, a Danish design company. ("Ferm" in Danish means "clever.")

If flowers aren't your thing, stashing some colored pencils inside the vase would be equally charming, plus, they'd stay nice and cozy.

So, who wants to knit me a vase?