nostalgia, tape decks, and some pizza / chili

I am training for my half marathon--but Tavo has also caught the running bug! As a Marine, he's already done a half marathon (and can run about a jillion times faster than me)...but that doesn't stop him from being excited about some new shoes...


I, too, am excited by my crazy silver and blue new adidas...(seriously--all running shoes are gaudy...I want the SILVER ones!!)

One can never go wrong with pizza
or chili...from Maggie's--of Dog Hill Kitchen recipe
Vegetarian Chili. Maggie is from my (Lini's) hometown--Detroit. She is astounding in the kitchen and also building a gorgeous home in northern Michigan. (props to anyone who noticed the Eugenides novel)

and when you have leftover chili and leftover dough...one makes chili pizza!
Tavo and I grew up in a great time--we remember house phones, television without cable, keyboarding, and yet we appreciate and have quickly adopted new technology. Regardless...we fondly embrace the mixed tape. While I love my cell phone, internet and of course, I do dig the I Pod (Tavo says its apparent in my typing that I don't own or use an ipod....) Regardless--its nice to just chill in our 90's truck, and listen to the tape deck. A mixed tape is something that can't quite be replicated in our "I Pod" type world...
you guys remember something like this, I'm sure....
view from truck with tape deck
time for a new tape


This song breaks my heart every time I hear it--yet, I love it. John Prine, done justice by Bonnie Raitt.

Some work on the house and a fantastic Caribbean dish!

We're both breakfast people. Today, it was eggs, toast, and the last of the blood oranges. Now let's get to work on the house!
We've been tearing up the floor for our plumber, Steve. We should have plumbing soon--he's been busy recently due to the frigid temperatures and many pipes freezing and bursting in the area. Here's our kitchen:

Laundry room
Bathroom. Quite a bit of work to be done yet..
Today, though, it was over 40 and sunny--so we decided to stay outside and finish painting the house. Orange!

Tavo, Sprayer Extraordinaire!

Yep, it's bright.
And we decided to try one of Cynthia's fantastic dishes from her blog, "Tastes Like Home." She recently published a cookbook, as well. We tried the Stewed Pork with Lima Beans from her recent post. Tavo was floored--it was FANTASTIC! Definitely, we have to make Caribbean food more often. Thank you, Cynthia!

Blood Orange Lemonade

My friend and hiking buddy, Jennifer, came over on MLK day to go for a hike south of the city. She came with a present for us...lemons from her dad's lemon tree! (Jen is from Florida)

Seems only logical to make lemonade with these giant, juicy lemons.

Name that cooking technique!

Yeah! I got 100%

Name that Cooking Technique Score: 100% (10 out of 10)

Here's where you can go to take the quiz: Name That Cooking Technique

Thanks, Mental Floss, for shaving a few minutes off my Thursday afternoon.

Cheers to President Obama! We have great hope and belief in our country today

We are very excited about our new president! As an educator, I was encouraged by the student movements on campus to increase voting, to watch the debates, and overall--the participation in the presidential election. Today, the students at my college were moved to tears, cheering, hugging, and much celebration! I really think Obama has the support to make quite a difference in many people's lives.

Tavo and I decided to share in the celebratory spirit with a decadent cocktail, Mudslides!

Here is Tavo, exuberant! Is it our new president, or is it the Ben and Jerry's???
We did eat some normal food first. Such as tortillas. Yep, boring!
Smiling pretty with beans and eggs....
oh, but now its time for dessert! Bailey's (or the fake) and Kahlua (or the fake) vodka--real--some ice cream, some ice cubes...

yeah, the glasses are above my reach so I still climb up on the counter. And Tavo takes the opportunity for a WIDE camera angle :P

I am happy with the jeans--vintage Calvin Kleins from the West End thrift store.
yeah for ICE CREAM
This shot is inspired by Chocolate Covered Vegan :o) Everything is better with a little bit of chocolate!

Two frosty Mudslides

...and a fantastic new day for the United States.

yep, potato soup again!

Making up a vat of potato soup for the weekend. We're mostly going to be working on the house, so needed mass quantities of food with minimal prep time. I know I've posted this soup before, but hey--it's good! I used a different recipe this time, focusing the soup flavors with thyme and sage, then stirring in a special treat from our friend, DoggyBloggy.

Regular old ingredients for regular old potato soup...but on the far left you can see some whole foods rosemary sourdough and the cheeses for some GOOD grilled cheese.
HERE is the secret ingredient--chile! From DoggyBloggy, via New York, via New Mexico. I wish I travelled as much as this chile does ;)
Four cheese grilled sandwich on rosemary sourdough--we have cheddar, parmesan, the port salut...and yeah, I threw in some american. Don't hate!
Potato soup with attempted chile swirl...
and with the grilled cheese


Stay warm and stay safe, everyone!

sad

I feel sick. I usually don't use this blog for social commentary, but there have been two murders in our community in the last week. Both are devastating to me.

John Henderson, a bar tender at the Standard in Grant Park was fatally shot last week by thieves when they were closing up. The bar was robbed as well.

Last night, a man, approached a couple outside a bar in East Atlanta to rob them. The victim shot the robber 5-6 times, killing him.

Robbery suspect shot and killed by intended victim
http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2009/01/15/east_atlanta_shooting.html

It's all just awful to me. Even though robbery is wrong, especially robbery with a gun--violence and death are not the solutions to this problem. This is not right, regardless of who is at fault.

Two people in the past week, right here, have been killed. I don't really know what to say, but I know in my heart that this is not right.

--Lini's view

impressionist picnic

Here are some nice impressionist shots from my phone of Tavo and I having a Whole Foods picnic at our new house.

(I worked at Whole Foods for a few years, so I know who to hit up for the best deals)

Tavo had some ribs, we shared a loaf of rosemary sourdough, a 2005 screwtop Shiraz, a soft Port Salut cow's milk cheese, and two honeycrisp apples. Okay--these apples are pricey--I think I paid $3 for 2 apples. Kid, they're worth it. Not everyday, but on an otherwise boring Tuesday--grab you a honeycrisp. The space heater made it all good!

The Coast, the City, and things in between.

Let's have a bit of Paul Simon to start us off...

Tavo and I danced to this song from, "Rhythm of the Saints" this Saturday afternoon. It was my favorite part of the whole weekend.

Hello--I just signed up for the half marathon here in Atlanta with a college friend, and to get myself in the mood, I'm borrowing the idea of this post from Jesse of the fantastically funny blog, We All Go Poopie. Jesse is a phenomenal runner--and recently posted pics of her route in her hometown Los Angeles, as well as her current digs in Oxford, England. While I reside in Atlanta, we did go to Hilton Head, South Carolina, over Christmas. The route there, on the beach, was too breathtaking to not take a camera. I also took pics of one of my normal routes here in Atlanta--but on an oddly rainy day (we've been in drought for going on 2 years)

Here's Hilton Head:






and some of my jog here in Atlanta:

(the cobblestone sidewalk can get quite precarious)
you can not go more than a half mile without seeing a marker concerning, "The war of Northern Aggression."
Orthodox church
Much of Grant Park has been restored, but this fountain is still in a state of repair

some fences are fancy
some just are
the trees are very alive. Honestly, the first thing that struck me about Atlanta is how green it is. And this is the dead of winter, mind you.
There are many beautifully restored homes
some have graveyards right on the property


and of course, we do keep eating--here's some oven fries
I made a tomato - zucchini soup (because I miss summer!)
and someone was happy to find a pot of Beef Stew!
with random homemade baguette (i.e. leftover dough)
Packing lunches for the week--quite important to make sure each day has an equal amount of stew!


I hope all of you had a wonderful weekend!