Category: Ten on Tuesday

Carole picked a timely topic this week! To further simplify my meal planning, this year, at the beginning of each month, I’m scheduling the type of meal for each day. The schedule in January is:

• Monday: pasta w/salad
• Tuesday: pierogies w/vegetables (usually broccoli)
• Wednesday: soup
• Thursday: veggie pie w/salad
• Friday: homemade pizza w/salad
• Saturday: steak (for Neal), baked potato (sweet for me), and salad
• Sunday: free for all.

This bit of planning saves me time when I do my Sunday meal planning. It’s flexible, of course, and I have a number of recipes for soups, veggie pies, pasta, and pizza that equate to plenty of variety. An additional benefit: almost all of these meals result in leftovers, perfect for the next day’s lunch.

Back to Ten on Tuesday, huh? Soup. I really like making soup, even if I have, in fact, burned the soup. Here’s my list of top ten favorites to make (and eat), with recipe links when possible.

1. My very favorite is Creamy Tomato soup from Jack Bishop’s A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen. It takes a bit of doing, but the layers of tomato goodness make every step worthwhile. For the record, there is no cream in this soup.

2. Butternut Squash soup. I’ve been making this recipe since it first appeared in Real Simple. It is a winner. The croutons are good, too.

3. Feel Good Soup. Like most delicious soups, improvisation improves this one, which is, as its name suggests, meant to make the diner feel good. Simmer chopped veggies in some clear veggie broth, and a few minutes before serving, add some pasta. Since I don’t eat chicken noodle soup, this is my I-have-a-cold substitute.

4. Gazpacho. Next summer I may have to freeze a few batches.

5. Cholula Vehicle Lentil Stew. Okay, that’s not the official name, but I make this stew in order to top it with my favorite hot sauce.

6. Julia Child’s Potato Leek soup. I rarely get this just right, and after my trip to Paris, I know why: the leeks are better in France. Oh, I don’t mean the farmer’s market leeks, but those aren’t always available. I mean the sad excuses for leeks that are in the grocery store when I want this soup the most. They have so little leek to them, and so much green, that I often get the proportion of leek to potato wrong. It’s important to use a less-starchy potato, too, or it just tastes like potato soup.

7. Tuscan Bean Soup. I don’t have the recipe online, but it’s a broth-based soup with loads of beans, kale, carrots, and celery. It’s great with crusty bread.

8. Corn and Quinoa Chowder. I haven’t made this recipe yet, but doesn’t it look good?

9. Vegetarian Minestrone. The soup for this week! I use this recipe as a rough guide, but I put in whatever looks good from the produce section.

10. Spinach and Tofu soup. I don’t make this one; I order it from a local Thai restaurant. It’s a simple, clear soup with bits of, well, spinach and tofu in it. It tastes very nice when I don’t feel like making soup for myself!

How about you? What’s your favorite soup? Bonus points for linking to a recipe in the comments!

I don’t know about you, but I am all sorts of optimistic and excited about 2012. I am confident it is going to be a productive year. Carole’s prompt for today, Ten Things You Want to Do in 2012, is perfect to help me focus on how to make the year everything I want it to be.

1. Publish e-book of crochet patterns. Since summer I’ve been slowly stitching away on a series of potholder patterns, one of which is available already through CraftSanity Magazine. My nephew is going to do the layout design work for me, and I’m looking forward to the challenges of creating an e-book. Of course, having taken an e-book class with Shannon at the Knitgrrl [virtual] Studio, I have a solid base from which to experiment.

2. Ride a century. I love my Trixie Trek bike. I’ve been training inside as I’m a wimp about riding in the cold, and once the warm weather is back, I plan to put many, many miles on Trixie to train for a 100-mile ride. I might get a bike tattoo once I reach that goal!

3. Refine my elegant, minimal wardrobe. I spent close to a year dressing with 33 items. Different items each quarter, but still limited. All fall I’ve been planning a new minimal wardrobe project in which I spend the 52 weeks of 2012 with only 52 items. Don’t worry, I’ll share my list with you later this week!

4. Sketch and paint more. I get a lot of pleasure from drawing and painting, even if the results don’t satisfy me. Neal recently made the wise observation that if I wanted to improve my watercolors, I ought to watercolor more often. Wise man.

5. Make a souffle. The scene in Sabrina when she is at the culinary school in Paris and forgets to turn on the oven when making her souffle amuses me. I hope I will at least turn on the oven!

6. Garden with Greater Gusto. I had little gusto for gardening in 2011. I’m aiming for a bumper crop of veggies in 2012!

7. Knit TTL Mystery Socks. I’ve done my gauge swatch, and maybe later today I’ll work on the cuffs. I’ve never made it through the KAL as its usual run in October comes at a too-busy time for me. I’m optimistic that I’ll do better with my participation in January.

8. Knit Sprossling. I have the yarn. I have the pattern. I want this sweater, and the only way I’m going to get it is to make it, right?

9. Build my conversational French skills. I have a good schoolgirl’s grip on French. I can read it passably. I can manage to get out a few phrases that keep me from appearing rude. The next time I go to visit Sara, though, I want to not only speak more fluently, but more importantly, to be able to understand the replies of those with whom I’m speaking. I’m going to use this BBC course as a start, and I also plan to visit a nearby French patisserie for their conversation nights.

10. Cultivate kindness. It’s all too easy to get snappy and judgey, which I dislike in myself. I’m going to strive to break myself of those reactions as much as possible.

11. Be bold. I’ve long believed that life is too precious and short to be wishy-washy and cautious. I’m not afraid of failure, yet I am not as bold as I know I could be, so in 2012, I want to open myself up even more to the possibilities and risks before me.

12. Dance. My body and heart love to move, and this year I want to try out different forms of dance. Jen has long inspired me with her ballet tweets, Neal became intrigued by contra dance recently, and I’ve always loved to swing. This is the year to dance!

Yes, you saw right; I broke the rules and listed TWELVE things because it is 2012! The list could go on and on, and my personal journal has a list I’m building that does seem to go on and on.

What about you? What is on your list?

*

Carole kindly asked for our to-do-before-the-holiday list. Early on, back when my blog was called Wearing Black in New Mexico,  I often used it for a receptacle for my to-do lists. I even crossed out items as I accomplished them. I can’t promise that much precision over the next few days, but I will share my list:

1. Buy a kissing ball. I put one up from Christmas until Valentine’s Day, but I keep forgetting to buy one this year!

2. Bake cookies. I’ve pulled out the recipes and blocked Thursday as Cookie Day. Neal is even taking the day off from work, just in case some testing is necessary.

3. Wrap and ship PA and TN gifts. The final gift I was waiting for arrived yesterday, so I can mail everything off. That post office line shouldn’t be bad, right?

4. Review gift list. I confess that I was not as organized as usual this year. I don’t know if there are gifts for everyone, but I’ll finish up by Sunday, except I must…

5. Finish mom’s shawl. My mom asked for a hairpin lace shawl, which I started last Tuesday but have not done much to finish. Time to get cranking on it!

6. Write a few last Christmas cards. I wrote most of them over the weekend (and, yes, I write a brief note and address the envelopes by hand…a rarity, it seems), but I have to find a few addresses and mail out the last few.

7. Wrap Neal’s gifts. I use brown kraft paper and ribbon to wrap, which keeps my task simple.

8. Make a vegetarian dish for Sunday’s supper. We’re going to my MIL’s, and she is making ham. She’s always thoughtful about having a little vegetarian plate for me, but this year I think I’ll make a big tray of the lasagna I made for dinner last night.

9. Devise a plan for Christmas Eve. We’re not hosting anyone this year, nor are we visiting anyone. I want to come up with a festive plan so it doesn’t turn into just another Saturday.

10. Soak in the tub. My hope is that grades will be submitted by Wednesday night (one class done; half my portfolios are graded…this is an achievable dream), gifts will be wrapped by Friday afternoon, and I will be able at some point to luxuriate in things being complete.

What’s on your to-do list?

***

Happy birthday to one of the coolest bloggers around...go offer festive wishes to Maryse!

* I made Wink in no time flat as a gift for my hair stylist. I modeled it just before I went to see her. I couldn’t exactly grab it back once she’d done my hair all pretty for a picture. Well, I could have, but that would have been a bit bizarre.

 

I love this week’s topic. I have real joy in bringing something special to a party, something that will make the hostess happy, and I’m tickled when I’m on the hostess end of a lovely gift. Here are some of my ideas for a great hostess gift. If you need more ideas, well, just take a look at all the ToT participants’ lists, which you can get to from Carole’s blog.

1. Quilted Coaster set. These are fun to whip out, and since they don’t require much fabric, if you have even a little stash, you can make them at the last minute.

2. Bubble bath basket. Hostessing, even a lunch, can be tiring. A bubble bath cures all. Put in a scented candle, a loofah, and, of course, the bubbles.

3. Fantastic bottle of wine. I’m lucky in my package store. There are several people who work there (including one of the owners) who are so great about recommending excellent wine in whatever price range I need. I’ve read some etiquette guidelines that deplore wine as a hostess gift, but the hostess does not have to open it during the party! She can tuck it away!

4. Breakfast basket. I am compelled to clean up before I go to bed after a party, and in the morning, it sure would be nice to have a fancy breakfast. Include a beautiful loaf of bread, maple syrup, jam, and maybe a jazz cd (my favorite breakfast/brunch music).

5. Homemade delights. I canned nothing this year, but when my shelves are stocked, hostess gifts are a breeze: pop an apple butter, a peach butter, a relish, tomatoes–whatever–into a brown bag with some raffia tying it up, and your hostess will invite you right back!

6. A Good Book. If the party is themed, give a related book. Or, pick your favorite novel, memoir, or book of poetry to share. If you’re reading this, you are probably crafty, so make a book mark to go with it.

7. Flowers. To my way of thinking, there are two approaches to hostess-gift flowers: either get something inexpensive in great quantities (carnations come to mind), or get something really showy and dear, but a minimal number of stems. I miss the local florist I used when I lived in New York. She always, always had something unusual that I could bring to my hostesses.

8. Soap. A big bar of amazing handcrafted soap makes a beautiful gift.

9. Bowl of fruit. Not just any fruit, though. Find something really ripe and perfect, buy a few of it (figs! or pomegranates!), put it in a pretty bowl, wrap it in tulle, add a wide-ribbon bow, and you’ve got a lovely offering.

10. Extravagant tea or coffee. Don’t bother with mugs; we all have enough of those. Consider what the hostess prefers, then find the poshest brand around.

Really, I don’t think you can go wrong if you simply consider what may make your hostess’s next day a bit more pleasant.

What’s your favorite hostess gift to give? How about to receive?

Well, hey there! Power outages, trips to Paris, grading frenzies…there’s a lot for me to share, but I’ll start with a Ten on Tuesday. This week, Carole asked for Holiday Traditions. This is a bit of a challenge; my family is so spread out that it is difficult to maintain traditions from childhood, but we’re not a family that is steeped in tradition anyhow. Traditions established in my last marriage have no place in this new life, and after celebrating eight holiday seasons together, I guess Neal and I have started to create our own. So, here it is, a mix of old and new:

1. The silver tinsel tree. My asthma prohibits me from having a real tree, and I’m of the mind that if I’m going to have something fake, let it be REALLY fake. I adore this tree.

2. Baking cookies. One of my best friends arrives from New York each year for a cookie-baking frenzy. We usually bake for about 8-10 hours. It is so fun to share the cookies with merchants and friends.

3. The Christmas boot. My family didn’t have Christmas stockings; we had ceramic Christmas boots made by my gram. I still use mine, though I now also put out a stocking made for me by my ex’s aunt.

4. Holiday movies. Nothing gets the spirit going like a good holiday movie. I’m not a fan of the more modern classic, you know, the one with a leg lamp? I go for the old-school classics like It’s a Wonderful Life.

5. Christmas cards. Each year I waffle on sending these. I learned a hard lesson the first year I was separated from my ex. My card list at the time hovered around 100. That year I did not send any out; I was too blue. I received only about 15 cards. So now my list is more limited, but I find I enjoy writing the cards more.

6. Butternut squash galette. Is it tradition if I’m the only one who cares? As a vegetarian, holiday meals can be a little bland, unless the sides are spectacular. I make this recipe every year for my holiday feasting. I don’t always have it for the holiday meal, proper, but it is my go-to festive dinner.

7. Submitting grades. This may seem unrelated unless you, too, are in academia. I like to submit my fall semester grades as quickly as possible, and that last “send” is the real signal to me that holiday festivities may commence in full.

8. Christmas Eve gift opening. My siblings and I were allowed to open ONE gift on Christmas Eve. I still love to do this. It helps with all that anticipation!

9. Christmas Night gift opening. I like to save some gifts until after our family dinner. Christmas Night sometimes feels like a let down. Neal and I are usually home alone, no little ones to enjoy, no one to play games with us, and saving a few gifts keeps the festive atmosphere going just a little longer.

10. New Year’s Hike. The holidays extend to the New Year, right? This is a tradition that I started participating in around 1991 or 1992 in New York. After I moved away, it sort of fell apart, and last year, I finally said “enough”. I missed the noon-time hike and picnic, and I re-established it in Connecticut. It is the very best way for me to start a new year.

How about you? What are some of your holiday traditions?

Hey, I’ve missed you all! I’m juggling a few deadlines and buried under a pile of grading from which I may not emerge until December, but I may finally have started to find a little balance again. Anyhow, I’m procrastinating on a bit of grading that must be done before 7:50 a.m. on Wednesday to write my ToT, because, people, I have had a jam-packed weekend, which is perfect for this week’s topic.

Here’s Ten Things I Did this Weekend.

1. Visited with Sara. Yup, she’s on our side of the pond, and on Friday I had lunch with her and got to hang out for a few hours.

2. Crocheted thousands of stitches. Okay, maybe two thousand. I’m working on some hairpin lace crochet designs, and I’ve been stitching like a mad person.

3. Ate dinner in the living room. That’s not such a rare thing, but this weekend, the dining room was off limits because Neal sanded and polyurethaned the hardwoods. They have to cure for a few days before we can move the furniture back in, and man, are they shiny!

4. Tutored. One of the services I offer through my writing consulting business is tutoring, and I’ve been working with a cool student since summer. We only have a few more sessions together, as her college application essays are the last work on which we’re focusing.

5. Made my favorite pizza.

6. Chased a bird out of my office suite. Seriously. Monday was a holiday on campus, but I went in to get ahead on some prep work (or to at least stay afloat), and what do I hear? Flap, flap, flap. Chirp. I opened some windows. It took a while, but birdy finally flew free.

7. Joined Rhinebeck Blogger Bingo. I’m a square! I’ll post a picture of what I’m wearing on Friday, and I hope I’ll see you there on Saturday.

8. Raged against cancer. One of my pals is fighting the good fight, but I’m pissed that there’s a fight to be fought.

9. Baked sugar cookies for my dad. I send him a box of cookies for his birthday in January, but he’s in FL then, and I’m in CT, so I don’t get to watch him enjoy them. I brought them over on Sunday, and I was pleased to see him in cookie-eating action.

10. Watched many episodes of Breaking Bad. All that crocheting necessitates entertainment. I’m on season three and really like the show.

What about you? What did you do this weekend?

It’s Neal’s birthday!

I snapped this photo of him last week, in just one of the many poses I love to see: him, reading on the deck. When we first got together, he wasn’t much of a reader (though there was plenty of evidence that he had, in fact, once been an avid reader). He claimed law school ruined him for reading (I understand; the summer after I finished my MFA, I read ONE book. It was a long book [Blonde], but, still), but then sheepishly acknowledged that law school had been over for quite a while.

Trying to recreate some of my favorite pastimes from my life in New York, I started a book club here. When we read The Road, or maybe it was The White Tiger,  he joined us for the discussion, and soon after became a regular member, in part because it pleased me beyond measure to read together and discuss books with him.

That’s how Neal is. He will make an effort. He’ll make a commitment, and he will take that commitment seriously. I have learned more about loyalty and love from him than I ever thought I needed to learn. I’m grateful to be married to a dear man, a dear friend, and if I could shout it from the highest mountain, you’d hear quite the echo of “Happy birthday, Neal!”

While I don’t get to say happy birthday to him every day, I can manage to segue to this week’s Ten on Tuesday list. Carole asked for Ten Things I Do Daily:

1. Tell Neal I love him.

2. Move. At a minimum, I walk the dogs, but I also try to run some stairs (laundry in the basement is good for that), walk instead of drive (especially on campus), ride my bike or the trainer. I’m going to run a 5K in December (and, hey, there’s a $100 fundraising goal if you care to contribute to a good cause), which will mean a little more diversification in my workouts. It isn’t much of a run, but I’m looking forward to the camaraderie of running with my friends and colleagues.

3. Straighten up. I have a routine before I leave for work or start my day at home: wipe down counters, bring out recycling, tidy the living room, make the bed, put dog toys away. This doesn’t replace real cleaning, but I do like to come home to tidy rooms.

4. Hang out with the dogs. Sometimes Neal gives them their afternoon walk, but even if he does that, I hang out on the deck or in my office with them.

5. Read. It often takes me all week to read the Sunday New York Times, which I usually read with my breakfast and lunch. I also like to read for a little while when I get home from work (often on the deck, while the dogs roam the yard) and again before I go to sleep.

6. Write. Sometimes I’m working on a story, sometimes I’m writing here, sometimes I’m writing in a paper journal, sometimes I’m writing letters. I try, as my tattoo reminds me, to never go a day without a line (or more!).

7. Feel gratitude. My religious life has changed a lot since I was a girl. I still maintain the belief I held as a young Roman Catholic, though, that prayer is simply reflection, a time to feel gratitude, to examine myself, to examine my world, and to consider how I might improve both. I subscribe to belief in a Great Creator who wants me to create, too, and I honor that as much as I can.

8. Dream. No, I’m not one of those lucky persons who remembers all sorts of crazy dreams upon waking. I rarely remember my dreams, and most often, what I remember could be better called nightmares. I do spend some time every day dreaming about my goals, considering the possibilities, refining what I want to do to breathe life into those dreams.

9. Enjoy social media. Once in a while, I have a day when I don’t post somewhere: Twitter, G+, Ravelry, Facebook, Pinterest. Most days, though, I have happy little breaks when I look at pretty things on Pinterest or catch up with my writing, teaching, and crafting communities. While I know it is easy to use social media as a procrastination tool, used with restraint, it enriches my world.

10. Shower. Yeah, this is an exciting addition to the list, almost as thrilling as teeth brushing. While I no longer wash my hair every day, the rest of me does get clean. Mostly, though, I like the water’s heat on my back. Even without coffee (which I drink every day, just one cup), if I’ve had my shower, I’m awake.

How about you? Beyond the obvious, what do you do every day?

Today’s list is Ten Headlines from the Year I was Born. So much for the mystery of my age…oh, wait, you already knew that I’m not, in fact, 32 still?

Well, the biggest news of my birth year has to be that

1. I was born in a blizzard! Wikipedia may just call it a nor’easter, but ask my parents; it was a full-on blizzard, and, yes, my dad managed to shovel out the car and get my mom to the hospital before I arrived. Guess that’s an advantage of having one’s fifth child: one doesn’t panic.

2. Man walked on the moon! My mom always told me that I was born when man first set foot on the moon. I thought (for a really long time) that she meant, like, the exact same minute. It was a little disappointing to realize I’d been around for a few months when that happened. Because, you know, a blizzard is not quite enough drama for me.

3. Those dirty hippies all got together to make some music.

4.Midnight Cowboy won Best Picture. My buddy Ben showed me the movie when I was in my late twenties, and despite my dislike of film aesthetics from the 60s/70s, I loved this one.

5. The horrific Manson murders shocked the nation.

6. The Concorde took her maiden flight!

7. The first withdrawals of U.S. troops from Vietnam were made.

8. Gap opened its first store.

9. The Chicago Eight Trial began.

10. Muammar Gaddafi gained power in Libya after a military coup.

Quite a variety of events, don’t you think? What was in the headlines when you were born?

This week Carole asked for a list of Ten Weekly Purchases (not groceries).  Other than groceries, there is little that I do purchase on a weekly basis, so I’m stretching the time frame to the very unspecific “regular”.

1. Tall non-fat, no-water dirty chai. Or sometimes a tall non-fat latte. Or, last week, a tall, non-fat, no-whip two-pump pumpkin latte. In other words, a beverage at Starbucks (for our lack of local mom & pop cafe that stays open late enough to accommodate the knitters).

2. Fill-up of regular unleaded gas. I use my Stop & Shop points and buy it in Massachusetts about every 8-10 days.

3. The Sunday New York Times. Technically, I’m buying it monthly as I have a subscription. Our local paper, bless its heart, is a tad thin on actual news, plus, after living in New York for 15 years, and working with Times journalists/photographers when I was in PR, it’s a nostalgic purchase.

4. Dog food. The mutts eat a non-grocery store brand of kibble, which necessitates a trip to the feed store every week to ten days.

5. Patterns. I have slowed down my pattern buying, but I can’t resist reading patterns when I love a knit or crocheted object. Oh, Ravelry, what you’ve done to me! I’m getting better at just favoriting items I like, but sometimes, I just have to know how the thing is made.

6. Greeting cards. I love to send birthday cards, off-beat holiday cards (you’re more likely to get a Halloween card from me than a Christmas card), and thinking-of-you cards.

7. Flowers. When the gardens are in bloom, I cut them myself, but otherwise, I buy flowers every few weeks. They keep me cheerful.

8. Thai food. Green papaya salad; spinach tofu soup; pad thai; sesame tofu; massamum curry; mango tofu. So many delicious dishes! Every other week or so, I happily indulge in some take out.

9. Books. I would guess I buy at least one a month. I borrow a lot from the library, but there are many I want to annotate while I read, and the library frowns on that.

10. Time. Okay, so maybe I’m not purchasing it with cash, but I do try to buy time by being organized and focused.

Whew! This was a challenging list for me! What do you purchase on a regular basis?

As Rae wrote to me when I sent her a link to yet another sweater I want to knit (want to wear, really, so must knit), I have quite a line of projects before I can think of something new. Still, I can dream of casting on, and Carole’s topic for this week’s Ten on Tuesday is perfect for such dreams. Okay, fine, Rae, I’ll add some things I hope to finish, too.

Here, then, is my list of Ten Things I Want to Knit this Fall/Winter:

1. Sprossling by Anne Hanson. I tried on the Black Water Abbey model at Stitches East last year and fell in love. I even have the yarn ready for this classic cardi: BWA’s Sport in Pippen.

2. Apocalypta by Amy Herzog (I’m about 50% done). I tried on the model at the Webs book signing event this spring and immediately bought the yarn. Watch out for that Caro and Stitchy! They will coerce you into trying things on that you then Must. Have.

3. Wintery Mix by Amy Herzog. I like the neckline on this, and I think I would wear it a LOT.

4. Elstar Capelet by Erica Lynne. I have some bulky yarn and a hankering for capes.

5. Mohair Bias Loop by Churchmouse Yarns and Teas. I have some Kidsilk Haze and a hankering for…you get the picture.

6. Crocheted knee socks. I’m waiting for this pattern book to arrive. Won’t these socks look great with a skirt and funky shoes?

7. Urban Troubadour Cowl by Mary Lena Lynx. Doesn’t this look so fun to knit?

8. A bolero. Not sure if I want to make Ysolda’s Briar Rose Bolero or Pam Allen’s Streakers Shrug, for which I bought the yarn the last time I was in Taos, lo those many summers ago.

9. Earth & Sky Shawl by West Knits. I have two clues completed, two to go.

10. Hawthorne Shawl. I messed it up when I made it last winter, and I want to rip it out and make it correctly. I love the yarn, and now that I “know” the pattern, I think it will be a fun re-knit.

What do you want to knit this coming “high season” of fiber?