Loving Tulle

Yesterday I did a little shopping. Mostly I did some looking after I ran errands. (And I certainly didn't cave and buy the cutest pair of gray boots. Nope, beau, no new shoes here. No need to check the closet... But, for the record, if I had purchased these boots, I would have had $15 off, thus making them pretty affordable.)

(Diba shoe image from DSW)

As I was driving home from said shoe shopping errands, I decided to stop in a little shopping center I'd never explored in the historic part of town. I found this great little clothing store called Provisions.

I fell a little bit in love. (And found myself wishing that raise was a little bit bigger.) Provisions carries a brand called Tulle. Be still my heart. Here are two items I'm really digging.

(Images from Tulle.)

OK, actually three items, since the LBD under that fantastic plaid coat is adorable, too.

The entire line is lovely and I'm seriously considering a coat from Tulle. (Gahh, which one...there are so many choices...) I think my newest jacket is four years old. It is a ski jacket. The newest coat I own is at least six years old. I was told the other day that if you can wear a piece often enough to bring it down to costing a dollar a wear it is a good buy that need not be questioned. I'm pretty certain a wool coat will be worn frequently now that fall is officially here.

What are you doing this weekend, my dear readers? Hiding shoes from loved ones? Errands? Enjoying fall weather outdoors?

Blasphemy

As a Southern California gal, I have a deep love for all things CA. My deepest love might just be for this place.

If you have ever been to Texas, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, or California, I hope that you felt the magnetic pull of the neon arrow. The menu is basic at best. If you are looking for selection, this little slice of heaven is not for you. If you like the gooey goodness of this, though, heaven awaits you.

(In-N-Out images via Pinterest)

MMMMM. Yummy. All of a sudden I am feeling a little homesick. Imagine my shock, awe, and disappointment when I was reading my favorite magazine, Food & Wine,  and stumbled upon the following quote: "As a native Californian, I grew up loving the famous In-N-Out Double Double, but the Paradise Burger (oak-grilled with cheddar, onions and tomato) blows it away." Jesse Rodriguez, sommelier from San Diego had that to say about Paradise Cafe in Santa Barbara, California.

(Image from here)

How can this be? Did Food & Wine, a magazine I have always thought to be reputable, dare to blaspheme In-N-Out? Food & Wine  has never--let me repeat that--never lead me astray. The recipes have been divine. The restaurant reviews have been spot-on. The wine suggestions perfect. You see where my confusion lies, right? Years of consuming burgers, fries and shakes have told me one thing. Food & Wine has told me another.

Clearly there is only one remedy.

(Image from here via Pinterest)

 (Image from here via Pinterest)

(Image from here via Pinterest)

Yep. Road trip. I need to sample the Paradise Burger. While I'm there, I'll have to stop here...

Has anyone had the Paradise Burger? Does anyone else feel that Food & Wine might not be the food experts they claim to be? C, can you make a short trip for me and do some recon?

Movie Night

Beau and I have been dating for just over 18 months. I knew shortly into our first date that he was a wonderful man and that I'd see him again. (I was, of course, making the bold assumption that  I was charming him as much as he was charming me.) Obviously, I saw him again. (thus making me charming?) I actually saw him the very next day. I liked him that much.

What was it about that first date that got me? Aside from being so stinking handsome, he was also articulate, smart, well-read, and funny. I'd hit the online dating jackpot. I could go on with adjectives to further demonstrate my good fortune, but you get the point.

Some people put no value in a person being well read. I do. So, when beau recommended a few books to me on that first date I was more than impressed.

One book that he talked about (the only one that I have yet to read, actually) was Moneyball. He spoke at length about this one. Beau is from Massachusetts and was born a Red Socks fan. He experienced many, many cursed years as a member of that particular fan club. The ideas and principles in creating a team in Oakland that Michael Lewis pontificated about in Moneyball were the same tactics that the Red Socks later employed. Two years later they won the World Series. Because of that, Moneyball resonated with beau.

When the movie came out last week he wanted to see it. As much as I dislike staring at Brad Pitt for two hours, I decided I would see it even though I hadn't read the book yet.

And you know what? It is a really good movie. It is the basic underdog story. It is true. It is funny. It is believable. It is smart. It is about baseball. What more could you ask for in a sports story?

Once again, beau was dead on. I will continue to read the books that he recommends (except for the ones that are on the stock market...), I will continue to try to charm him, and I will continue to find him to be stinking handsome, charming, articulate, and well read.

What's the last movie you saw? Does a well read person make you swoon?

Loving Laundry

There is something very, very exciting going on in our house right now. I've been looking forward to it for a very long time. Months, in fact. i am doing laundry. At my house. Not the laundromat.

Yep, Tommy the plumber (here) got the gas hooked up to the drier and now we have the ability to  wash the mounds of laundry that have accumulated over the past few weeks. As you can see in the photo,  we haven't done the trim yet, and I need to figure out what to do about the door. but seriously, focus on what is important.

The laundry.

I don't want you to think I'm bragging, but tomorrow Tommy will also be finishing up the ducts. That means the AC will be working again. Woop woop.

Sometimes it is the little things that make me so happy.

What makes you happy?

Write on

The reason I started this blog is to fulfil one of my bucket list items: #16 Write more often. See, I love words. I love the way they are nuanced and there is (generally) a perfect word to fit every description or situation. Sometimes it takes quite a bit of work to formulate the perfect sentence; sometimes the perfect sentence is elusive. I love reading good writing and I aspire to write as well as possible. Prior to starting this little blog, I wasn't doing any writing at all. I knew there was something missing in my life and I was pretty certain that void had something to do with #16 not happening. I was happy with my life, but I could sense a gaping hole. I knew words were missing.

Often life gets in the way of the things we want to do. Since writing won't pay the bills for me at this point in time, I have to keep on keeping on. Actually, I get to do more than keep on. My day gig is pretty incredible; I get to teach writing. Granted I'm teaching writing to very reluctant writers, but every once in a while they surprise me. This morning I was wrapping up a talk about narrative writing and I noticed I had lulled my little muffins into a coma. In my defense it was only 8:00 a.m. At that point I had committed the cardinal sin of too much talk and not enough action.

So, I made them write. Instead of talking about writing, they wrote. I asked them to show me their morning. With words. I gave them four minutes (and counted them down on my fancy new interactive whiteboard that I can make moo, quack, or crow. Impressed? Don't be. See yesterday's post...) Next I had them show me a party (decidedly an unwise topic to ask for vivid description about since they don't think about their eighth birthday and ponies when I say the word "party." But, trust me, at this point, they were wide awake.)

Then, I asked for a time they were really nervous. At each moo, quack and crow they begged me for more time. When I challenged them to develop it further ("OK, now add a metaphor that isn't forced." "How about some dialogue. Make it authentic...") they pushed themselves. All of a sudden they were trying to outdo each other with suave and smooth metaphors that were perfectly placed.

Were they... ? No. Not...? Wait? Enjoying the craft of writing? What the....?

While there is the distinct possibility that moms put something in their eggs this morning, I'm thinking that there might be the possibility that for just a few moments I had twenty nine writers in my senior English class.

Today was a pretty good day.

What's on your bucket list?

(Images from here and here.)

Because I'm Awesome...

I stole the title from Dwight Schrute. Maybe you know him. Maybe you can relate to him like I can...

I was watching The Office on Netflix and this scene reminded me that I didn't brag about my latest increase.  See, I got a raise the other day. It was the first raise we've earned in three years. And opening my paycheck the other day was much like christmas morning.

Because I'm awesome, I earned one half of one percent. Yes, my freinds you read that correctly. Perhaps that would be easier to comprehend in Arabic numbers: .05%.

So what does that equate to? After taxes I saw $5.83 in my paycheck. As a tea drinker, I can maximize that and purchase two Trenta iced teas from Starbucks. Per check. That's four teas a month.

Again, to clarify, the raise is largely because I'm awesome.

Don't get me wrong, I know in this economy I should be stoked that I saw any raise at all. And to be fair, we are also going to get a 2.5% bonus, so I know that my school system is working hard for me. I know that there have been huge federal, state and even city cuts that have made giving students a quality education and giving teachers a cost of living raise each year impossible. Since we are in the business of education, kids should obviously come first.

I've got four iced teas in my immediate future...oh, and when it cools down a bit I can go for hot tea and probably eake three teas a paycheck out of that. Also, my kids get a pretty ok education.

Oh, and I get the knowledge that, Like Dwight, I'm awesome.

What makes you awesome, dear readers?



Let There Be Light(s)

I suppose you have noticed the lack of kitchen updates. I know I have. Sadly, there was very little to update since Irene came through and washed out all of the newly run power lines under the house. (No oven! No outlets! No dishwasher! Aaak!) The duct work for heat and AC was filled with water, too. So, as we waited on insurance people, estimates, and people to be available to get the job started, the kitchen project came to a sad, screeching halt.



While we still have no AC (thank you, Mother Nature for being good to us and pushing this cold front through!), we now have power to the kitchen. No thanks to our kitchen contractor's electrician who "promised" several visits that never came to fruition. Instead, beau crawled under the house and cleaned out boxes and their newly corroded wires (all of this with the power off, of course) and the power was up and running. (He's my new hero!)

Never did I think I would be so pleased to see a digital clock. Those four green numbers mean that now I can bake. In my kitchen. Oh. my. goodness.

While he was wearing his handyman hat, beau also hung the light above the peninsula. Perhaps you recall from this post that I fell in love with a light that was just going to hang way too low. We returned the light of my dreams and I started a long and difficult search for a replacement. Our low ceilings and bar height dining area created a bit of a problem. Nearly every hanging light was going to hang too low to be practical.

Finally I found a solution that I found to be acceptable. It isn't perfect. I think it is too high, but with the option of too high or too low, we opted for a fixture that was going to be high.

Here's what I found, and what beau so beautifully installed.

Nice, huh? I like how it is some kind of strange combination of industrial and warm. Maybe the Oil Rubbed Bronze finish is what warms it up. (The flash makes it look silver in the second photo. Don't be fooled. It is ORB!) It isn't the  perfect fixture, but it is pretty great.

You know what is pretty perfect?

See the bar to the left of the lights? That, my friends, is lovely. Here's the whole thing.

There will be tile along the wall there, but we haven't found any that we love quite yet. We're still looking. Beau's travel schedule might put the tile project on hold for a little while.

All in all, things are shaping up here. It has been a slow and frustrating process. We were so close to done and then Irene came through to throw us off and slow things up a bit. Our laundry list of mini projects is still pretty lengthy, but things are happening. It is my sincerest hope that I will be able to show you some fantastic final photos relatively soon.