zin for breakfast

table scraps

The front page of the Style section in yesterday's NY Times was one big shout-out to my life. First there was the article on Food Network chefs and their favorite agent, Jon Rosen, and featuring a photo of the one-and-only Rachael Ray. I still love that lady.
Then there was the "breaking news" that BBC nature show Planet Earth has a cult following among hipsters, potheads, and two-year-olds (and me). It's the one show I made sure to burn to my external hard drive before leaving college.
Lastly, there was Recklessly Seeking Sex on Craigslist, which, let it be known, is not a shout-out to my life until you replace the word "sex" with "jobs."

Additional news: "Brunch: The Musical" manages to be hysterically good and then hysterically bad. Seafood weekend with Julia at Balthazar and then the John Dory. Chorizo-stuffed squid? Yes please. Treacle pudding doused with vanilla sauce? A sugar bomb never tasted so good.

On the horizon: In the words of my girl Beyonce, so crazy right now. I'm trying to pack, write, read, critique, work, job hunt, etc etc. We had a tantalizing taste of summer this past weekend. I want it to hurry up and come!

in case you forgot, here i am

Well hello!

As I mentioned, my camera stayed in California when I came back, so I've been a little shy about posting without its aid. But until my aunt figures out the postal system, I'm left with only words, and there are worse ways to be left, I think.

Big news is that I signed a lease on a new apartment, and, as of today, I have the keys! I'm not moving until the end of the month, but now I can stalk the plumbers and carpenters as they finish renovating the kitchen. That's right: stainless steel appliances, baby! I'm very excited about the move--and my new neighborhood. Remember when I said that Hell's Kitchen was the perfect neighborhood for me? Well, now I get to live there with a lovely roommate and her lovely cat, and we're going to have parties and watch Irish gangster movies and drink wine on the fire escape.

Which means that California plans have been postponed. It makes me sad, and sometimes I can't sleep because I worry that I'll never live there again. I try to remember that I have agency in these decisions. If I want to move to California, I can do it. It's just these pernicious roots that seem to want to plant me wherever I am.

But I'm happy here! I love my job, though sometimes I wonder whether it loves me back. I have a community of weird creative types who will stay out late and dance with me. And I'm "supposed to" write. As much as I can. I'm almost half-way done with grad school. I don't know how that happened, but it's terrifying.

I've had a few great meals lately: macaroni and cheese at Eatery, the cornbread and just about everything I tried at The Redhead (bacon peanut brittle!), and cacio e pepe pasta at the aptly named Cacio e Pepe. They bring out the peppery spaghetti in a huge round of Pecorino Romano Cheese, stir it vigorously so the cheese melts into the pasta, and then dump it on your plate. A masterpiece.

Okay, loyal readers. here's a question. What do you do with Peeps, the one Easter candy that no one likes to eat? Microwave? Leave out until hardened and use decoratively? I've got a box of them here just waiting for your suggestions.