it’s been raining cats and dogs for the past two days. our street is flooded. our roof is leaking. and i kinda like it.  things (like water) don’t usually fall from the sky here, so i will take it when i can get it. and it’s a good excuse to sip whiskey and wear sweaters.

happy almost winter y’all.

it’s been cold on my bike ride to work in the mornings.
real cold. in the 30′s. not pretend desert cold.

i wear my red felted mittens that mom made for me 10+ years ago.
they haven’t aged at all. they are still brightest red and the warmest.

everyday i pass the same dog walkers.
the construction crew giving the art building  a new coat of pink paint.
(for the record, i prefered the old sun-bleached pink over the new pink).
the spaced-out students bundled and exhausted from finals.
the landscaping crews zooming around in their golf-carts. 
it’s not a bad commute at all.

leonora & genna’s kitchen:  we ate a birthday feast and breakfast-for-lunch   

miriam & chris’s kitchen:  we ate eggs and tomato soup and grilled cheese
 
with a side of wild rice salad

liz and jake’s kitchen:  we ate risotto and a shrimp feast  (thanks to claire and matt)

we ate really really well. and that was just the week before thanksgiving.
thanks for filling us up friends!

 every year after we fill our bellies with turkey and fixings,
we climb lookout mountain.
and then we go back to the house and fill our bellies
with ruby’s famous upside down apple pies.

[kitchen standing and wine drinking, two things we excel at]

[thank you amy for getting this picture]

[pretty mama of mine]

[baby max meets his great grandparents]

we have a pomegranate tree in our backyard and this year it has a bumper crop of big beautiful pomegranates. they are such impressive fruit. labor intensive, but amazing. meg calls them “little jewels of goodness.” last weekend we picked a big basketful and i set up a cleaning station on our front stoop. i listened to music and picked out the little seeds as the sun goes went down over the railroad tracks. i have to admit, i was pretty much in love with this desert in that moment. it’s hard to beat a pomegranate tree in your backyard.

thank you elizabeth pastorfield-li for making this video of your dancing feet.

happy friday y’all.

[photos by mav of MORE & CO - a beautiful and inspiring place to visit]

how do you feel about being upside down? personally, i find it a bit disconcerting.
in theory, i know it is good for my brain and my body to switch things up and let gravity shift it all around, but in reality, there is voice that shouts “no! keep your head up top, don’t kick your legs up like that – you might fall!” and even though i can manuever myself into a head stand, actually doing it always gives me butterflies and makes my palms sweat a little. but i totally get it, inversions are good for me.

where my legs shake in warrior, where i sweat puddles onto my mat, where i breathe like darth vader, where i chaturanga my heart out, where i find whispers of stillness.

i hope you all find some sweet fall stillness this weekend. i am headed up the mountain for snow(!) and a world-famous cocktail party.

my brain feels a bit like these stitched drawings by emily barletta lately: precise and flustered at the same time, but filling up the days one way or the other.

today i stopped by ye ole bloggy blog to give you homework. it’s ok, you will like this homework. it will make you feel better, even if you aren’t feeling bad.

1.) make this chicken for dinner this weekend. i know chicken + milk + lemons sounds weird, but it is magical and delicious. i left out the cinnamon (i don’t love cinnamon with savory things), and i used rosemary instead of sage (what we had), and i kept the chicken covered until the last 20 minutes of baking (to keep it from drying out).  

2.) while the chicken is in the oven (it takes 90 minutes, so you have plenty of time to relax and fix whatever veggies you are making), pour yourself a glass of wine and read dear sugar. start with this week’s column, but read them all. she tells the truth. she cusses. she will call you sweet pea.

if you complete both of these homework assignments, you will have a really satisfying evening. i promise.