The holidays are fast approaching. Are you as tired of hearing Christmas music at every turn as I am? There is just no escape!
1. My Sweet Mexico - Fany Gerson
A cookbook focusing on the pastries, candies, breads, and beverages of Mexico?! Amazing. I can't wait to explore its recipes. And of course, eventually write about them.
I love the clean, classic lines of these new men's bags from Brothers Bray & Co. I've been searching for a new day bag that can handle all the junk I tote to work everyday. This one looks perfect.
Since El Hubs and I are headed to Los Angeles to spend Christmas with my family this year, I figured the most economical thing to do would be to make up some tasty holiday treats as gifts. Some spicy roasted nuts, homemade Oreo balls, and chocolate dipped pretzels ought to satisfy everyone's sweet and savory tooth.
I'm not going to lie. Midwestern winters are tough. Snow. Wind. Ice. Below freezing temps. Brrrr! To get through it, you need a dose of hearty comfort food every now and again to lift your spirits and fill your belly. This Broccoli and Cheese casserole recipe piqued my interest. It's a dish I've never been a big fan of, but this one looks positively delectable.
5. Running - Have I mentioned that El Hubs and I are training for a half marathon? We've been on a training schedule for about three weeks now, running about 3 times a week. It's difficult to explain the sense of accomplishment that comes with finishing a run that's longer than you've ever done. This week's long run is 5 miles...and I'm looking forward to it. I really do need a better pair of running shoes though.
Shhh. It's late. Work continues to kick my ass day in and day out. On to more fun things!
1. I've been contemplating inexpensive gifts to give to my extended family at Christmas. When I saw this post on Design*Sponge this week, I knew I'd found something perfect!
I'm loving the print on this bag. When it comes to purses, I'm incredibly picky. The bag has to be just the right size, color, and texture. This one has all of the design elements I love.
3. "You WIll see me again"
Have I ever mentioned how I love trashy, ego-maniacal, and delusional reality television? Because I do! At the top of my piss-poor reality tv obsession is America's Next Top Model...because it manages to completely fail at ever producing a model who is even remotely successful. The best part about the series is the recaps by Rich Juzwiak over at FourFour. Just take a look at this ANTM supercut he did:
Another Design*Sponge beauty! How cute is this unique take on the traditional journal? This is one that I might get rolling on once the new year rolls in.
Geri Hirsch had to go and post a link to the most lovely oxfords that I've been looking for since earlier this fall. Now I'm in love. And I need these shoes in my life. Like, yesterday...
Do you know the profoundly odd twosome Vince Noir and Howard Moon? You don't?! This show isn't for everyone. If you can hang with their magical surrealism, quick wit, catchy songs, and decidedly British sense of humor...you're in for a real treat. The clip below is as good an intro as I can give you.
Say what you will, but I can't get enough of this late 90s animated show. I finally broke down last night, after spending half an hour scrounging around for links to episodes, and bought the complete series.
After seeing the film Control a few months back, my obsession with every single Joy Division recording was rekindled. The flame hasn't died down either. Much like my love of all things Smiths and Morrissey related, so goes Joy Division.
4. Madewell - You've got me. I'm a convert now. When they opened their first Midwest store about a month ago, I popped in to the shop and was utterly delighted to find how well curated their collection was. Oxfords! Cardigans! Skirts! Oh my!
I realized the other day that this poor space had been sorely neglected in the past few weeks.
Just after I wrote about my good fortunes at work, things took a turn. At the end of October, my co-worker took a few days off to attend to some medical issues. She has still not returned to work. It's now been 5 weeks, and very little has been communicated to me in regards to when she will in fact return. I've been left to handle her responsibilities in addition to my own, and it's required a significant amount of energy to keep things flowing properly. Vendors need to be paid, phone calls need to be made, payroll must be processed, angry customers need to be dealt with, financial statements need to be prepared, and bank reporting needs to be submitted. I've been left exhausted by handling the work responsibilities of two people, juggling a multitude of roles. Add to this stress a frustration with the lack of communication regarding my missing co-worker and colleagues in other departments continually passing the buck until it lands on my desk, and I'd reached a tipping point. Perhaps it's the same for other young women in this position (early in their careers, lower level employees). We have this sense that we're just supposed to do what we're told in the workplace, to clean up other people's messes, or to "just do it because no one else will." Or maybe it's just me and my Catholic guilt combined with lingering Latino traditionalism, I don't know... But I'd had it. I felt as though I'd spent that last four weeks being stepped on by colleagues because they figured, "Well, Maya will do it." Oh no. No no. Not anymore. That first instance where I stood up for myself, (really, truly asserted myself) and said I wouldn't clean up the mess someone else's ineptitude and lack of professionalism created was invigorating. You don't mess with this chola anymore, goddamnit. I am my mother's daughter after all.
All that aside, it's been a rough few weeks. Though I did manage to squeeze in a few projects/items on my November list:
1. Chiles rellenos!
I made them.
They were a lot of work, but so fucking delicious that even a perfectionist like my grandmother would have been proud of my first attempt.
They didn't come out as pretty as I'd hoped they would, but I knew going in that the step that would trip me up would be coating and frying the chiles in the egg white batter.
My mother assured me that with practice, they get prettier.
2. Surprise office makeover! The disastrous state of my husband's home office compelled me to give it an overhaul while he was out of town for a conference. Behold what my craftiness and mad organizational skillz were working with...
And the result of a weekend's worth of dust, sweat, and paint fumes?
Mad skillz. I has them. El Hubs was beyond surprised when he came home. I'm just happy that he has an organized and comfortable place to work at home.
3. Try one new cocktail: Arsenic and Old Lace. There's a lovely cocktail bar in our neighborhood. After opening early this summer, they've just started to really get their footing and expand their drink selection to some lesser known and adventurous vintage libations. Arsenic and Old Lace had gin, Pernod, creme de violette, and a hint of dry vermouth. My favorite bartender there put it best, "The Pernod and creme de violette battle it out on your palette. And it's a lovely battle indeed."
4. Try one new beer: Bell's Kalamazoo Stout. In fact, I'm enjoying one right now! It's a really lovely winter stout. Not as heavy as other dark, winter beers, but with just the right flavor notes to become one of my favorite stouts. It ranks just a notch above my long favored bourbon barrel stout (the brewery's name escapes me right now).
5. A Southern fried Thanksgiving. It was awesome. It inevitably involved USC* football, jackalopes, a tiny dog that grunted like a piglet, walks on the beach, beating El Hubs at skee-ball, eating wayyyyy too much rich Southern food (why helloooo mac 'n' cheese!), and drinking lots and lots of this:
Fuck yeah.
Yuengling!
If you haven't had it, then you're missing out. I'm still patiently waiting for them to expand their distribution further west.
I also had a chance to experiment with my Blackbird Fly camera down there. Scans will be posted once I get the rolls developed.
Sadly, I didn't finish On Beauty by Zadie Smith, though it's still on my reading list for December, along with Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. A week and a half off from work and a stint in Los Angeles over the holidays will ensure plenty of reading time.
Casual Fridays posts should be more regular, as I'm working to plan those better. The hard part is sitting down and pecking these posts out. I'm working on it.
If you've labored through this much of this rambling post, you at least deserve to know where its title comes from. So, here you go.
