Jul 28, 2005

Too much information to follow. I'm feeling personal and I don't mind sharing.

Why is it that whenever I am just starting to feel settled, happy, content and final things get all fucked up again? Hormones, weight, relationships, emotional health, energy level, my bank account...why can't these things just STAY THE SAME FOREVER? No ups and downs, no roller coasters of happiness and sorrow...just one straight line from here to eternity. Wouldn't that be swell? And seriously unrealistic? Yeah. Shopping isn't even helping. Blah.

So, I feel all kinds of high-school girlish, being all emotional and grumpy and crampy. I used to get cramps so bad in high school that I would stay home from school for days at a time curled into a ball taking serious prescription pain killers more often than prescribed. As I matured they went away, but suddenly, without notice they are back. Not as bad, but getting there...

I still love my new job, quite a bit, actually. I'm feeling terrific about my position, comfortable and settled and like I belong here. I'm planning our company picnic in two weeks, which is giving me a serious dose of organizational comfort.

I'm not really as down as I sound, so no worries, my friends. I'm just going through my quarterly frump. I'm pretty predictable. And help is on the way... in the form of new hormone help, an upcoming bachelorette party in Atlantic City with my college girlfriends, and possible a visit to my favorite restaurant for a comforting mojito and some cuban cuisine.

My ipod battery is dying. Just another kick to the broken ribs of my emotional state. Blah.

Jul 18, 2005

You know how when you're on vacation or you have guests and you eat out a whole bunch, ingesting tons of unhealthy and large portions of food that you wouldn't normally eat, and drink lots more beer than you would normally drink? And then it is super hard to break the habit because once you've started eating fries and tacos and two dinners a night you sort of get used to it and you keep craving it? And then you eat your "healthy" lunch at 10am at work and are starving for the rest of the day and eat anything and everything in your sight, wishing all the time that you just had an entire pizza to rub all over your face? Yeah? That's me today.

So I spent all sticky nasty hot weekend outdoors at the Intonation fest, and I must say, the festival just may have been the epitome of outdoor festivals. Except for the unemptied porta-potties. And the insufficient food vendors. And the dust. Otherwise it was fantastic. And whoever had the idea to add Depart-ment to the fest...pure genius. Shopping! Music! People watching! Sweating! I got a fabulous pair of earrings, a wonderful necklace, and a killer cute t-shirt. I love to support the indie crafters. Speaking of which: The Chicago Craft Mafia is having the Summer Shakedown this Friday. Everyone should come and buy some wonderful fabulous items. Do it.

Jul 13, 2005

I finally posted a few pictures in my flickr account...and went against everything I believed about keeping myself anonymous and put up a few pictures of myself. So there I am. Although, probably 99% of the people who read this know exactly what I look like anyway...

This one is my favorite: walking west on Chicago avenue to the Black Beetle the other night, we passed this guitar store/restaurant. The best part was the gravy sandwich. If they were open I would have gone in, sat at the counter and ordered one just to see what the deal is. I mean, for $0.89, why not?

Jul 12, 2005

I mangled my feet "breaking in" a pair of shoes at a wedding three weeks ago, and have been sentenced to flip flops while they have been healing. Now that they are as good as new, I can finally wear closed-toed shoes again! Yay!

I saw a girl on the train today with the cutest t-shirt, and not an hour after I get to work I have one being shipped to me as well. I love the internet.

I also love cooking mexican-style rice, now that I've finally learned how to! Yay for me! I made a big old batch last night, and have eaten it for both dinner and breakfast. If I wasn't going to lunch with some coworkers today, I'd be eating it a third time in a row as well. Peas and corn and tomato and yum.

I might give up on posting photos soon. I'm just too lazy.

Jul 7, 2005

I'm researching caterers for work, and have been thoroughly entertained at the incorrect grammar, terrible punctuation and creative verbiage used in descriptions. By "olive oil poached" do you mean fried?

I am also entertained by the dozens of ideas for new recipes running through my head. Roast chicken with apple and grape stuffing. Oh my!

I'm a little bummed today because I don't get summer hours tomorrow. I don't think I've mentioned that before; it is one of the wonderful perks of my new job. There are many wonderful perks of my new job. Many reasons why you should be jealous. Here are the top 5 reasons I love my job:

1. A two thousand dollar coffee machine in our kitchen that grinds and brews per cup. My coffee consumption has gone up considerably in the past three weeks. Whoo!
2. Summer hours! Whoo! 1:00 Friday and I'm home on the roof. Except this week, of course.
3. 100% paid health and dental premium. Whoo!
4. Fruit, sparkling water and Diet Coke always on hand. Ahhh.
5. Flip flops! Jeans! T-shirts! At work! I wore a skirt today and had four comments on how "nice" I was dressed. Dude, I'm wearing flip flops. I don't think they'd recognize me if I wore a suit.

However, I am still getting used to a couple of things here, as working at a small creative company is MUCH different than working for a large educational institution. I'm still adjusting, but it is going quite well. Change is great.

Next post I promise to get off the job topic. And pictures? Soon!!

Jul 6, 2005

Ok, so I've been away and slacking and boring here, but I'm alive and well and my brain is overflowing because I haven't put anything down in writing in a very long time. I seem to have forgotten how to break up a run on sentence as well. I have a ton of pictures to upload, send to friends, share...I'm just so busy and preoccupied with everything else to take the time to do it. But that's ok, because I'm keeping busy.

Lately I've been feeling more and more settled, more and more real, if that makes sense. I'm feeling like I've actually become emily, and am not always waiting for the next change. Things are falling into place and solidifying, and I really really like it that way. I feel correct, in tune, real. You know?

I am thoroughly enjoying the summer, with skirts and my big pink sunglasses and three different sets of tan lines. Laying on the deck for an hour is my new all time favorite weekend activity. I look a lot healthier with a tan. I'm gearing up for visitors (as always), fairs, festivals, and music. I know I keep harping on this, but I'm incredibly happy. Things are just going perfectly. This very well may be the very best summer of my life. Wow. That feels great to be able to say. *sigh*
I wrote this nearly a month ago, after a visit from some college friends. Considering food is one of my all time favorite topics, I don't know why I saved it as a draft for so long, but here it is nonetheless:

What is it about having guests in town that make me overeat like crazy? I am a planner, and have a phobia about starving to death, so I always plan my weekends with visitors around the food we will eat and the places we will eat it. We wanted to show our guests all of the delicious eateries that our neighborhood has to offer, and a few homemade meals to boot.

I got a recipe from a magazine my boss brought in for Southern Stuffed Chicken with Apricot Rum BBQ Sauce, and I (as always) altered it to fit the ingredients I had and the skills I thought I could master. The original recipe called for chicken hindquarters, the thigh of which was to be deboned and pounded thin for stuffing while still attached to the leg. This didn't look too bad, but it seemed like an awful lot of food for one person, so I opted for boneless skinless chicken breasts and thighs instead. The stuffing was a combination of greens (I used mustard greens), bacon, fresh corn, jalapeno, cayenne pepper, onion and crumbled cornbread. I have some left over which I plan to eat straight out of the tupperware. It also called for red bell pepper, but I left that part out. The BBQ sauce was onion, ginger, garlic, apricot preserves, and I substituted brandy for the dark rum. It was really sweet, but complimented the spicy stuffing perfectly. I pounded the chicken thin, stuffed it, tied it up and grilled away. The sauce was basted on right at the end of cooking, so it wouldn't burn. We served it with fresh grilled corn on the cob and my brussel sprouts, halved and sauteed with bacon. I kept patting myself on the back for this one...it turned out pretty damned good if I do say so myself. If you want the full recipe, let me know. (although I seem to have summed it up pretty well right here.)

We had a terrific weekend, with music, food, art and lots of walking. I always enjoy having visitors, especially ones we don't have a chance to spend time with all that often.