i know nothing with any certainty

farm house fun

2010-07-23T09:03:00.002-04:00

it's been awhile - ive been to cincy and back, and now i'm house sitting a beautiful farm house, complete with a dog, 4 cats, a horse, a donkey, and a handful of sheep.

it's pretty sweet, i won't lie.

first share

2010-06-17T10:51:00.009-04:00

behold, the bounty of my first csa share. i've already made bruschetta with the basil and a quiche with swiss chard, mushrooms, onion, and goat cheese (and fresh west virginia eggs from ian's wonderful aunt, who keeps hens).

here's to a summer of tasty (note i did not say tasteful, te he) adventures.

this is why i can't have nice things...

2010-06-01T10:20:00.002-04:00

and by nice things, i mean indoor plants.

oh, kale smoothie - how i newly love thee

2010-04-29T09:57:00.005-04:00

{: completely and utterly unrelated to the following post, but adorable nonetheless :}

so, it took awhile. at first, kale and i were the faintest of acquaintances. i could handle him in small doses - salad here, coupled with couscous there. the first time i met his brother, kale smoothie... well, it was less than a stellar first date, let me tell you. one of those "don't call me, i'll call you" kind of dates.

but call him i did, and kale smoothie and i have quite the blossoming romance going here. its just a wee bit reminiscent of my very first boyfriend... the one i impulsively invited to junior prom after meeting once (at the mall, no less!), totally regretted it, suffered through the night, and ended up dating for two and half years.

yeah, that one.

earlier today, kale smoothie and i had a torrid affair with our dear old friend, peaches.

{: okay, okay, enough with the double entendre. i promise, no more sexy food analogies. or are they metaphors? :}

baking adventures

2010-04-18T17:13:00.006-04:00

the perfect saturday evening (er... sunday morning) was had at casa g-dub, thanks to these homemade cinnamon buns.

said cinnamon buns were begun saturday evening after a few episodes of arrested development and a glass of wine each. then came the 10 pm realization that the dough has to rise for 2+ hours... but not to worry, that's what 8 hours of sleep (dough rise time) and sunday mornings are for.

even moka got in on the fun.

{: i'm so lucky to have a boy who enjoys baking adventures as much as i do :}

my current aspirations...

2010-04-16T18:10:00.004-04:00

graduate.

save money.
buy RV.
convert it to veggie oil.
make it purty.
hit the road.

who's with me?

oh, let the sunlight in...

2010-04-07T08:58:00.004-04:00

... i wanna feel it from within.

this song is great.

{: and it also happens to be what i wake up to every morning :}

cherry blossoms along the athens bike trail. and ian over there on the left, wishing i'd stop taking so darn many pictures.

mr. fluffenstein's (aka myles) first adventure in the out-of-doors.
now he sits at the door and wails until i let him out. meek-meowed myles he is no longer - i've created a monster.

"remember when you were a kid, and everything was possible...?"

2010-04-05T09:15:00.007-04:00

when you start to question your work, thoughts, or impact, remember this video -
and remember that it's not just entrepreneurs who change the world, either.

(stumbled upon over at Make Under My Life.)

an unintentional tour of athens' tasty treats

2010-04-02T14:59:00.003-04:00

so, i'm about to place my order at Athens Hills CSA for the summer/early fall.

i was originally planning to get just the veggie half order, which is delivered every other week for 20 weeks. It ends being about $13 bucks a week for veggies.

but now, i'm kinda of thinking about going for the whole half combination share she-bang. $450 bucks for 20 weeks of veggies from Green Edge Organic, fruit from Cherry Orchards, bread from Village Bakery, goat and cow cheese from Integration Acres, and milk from Snowville Creamery.

it's a big hit for me to take now, but it ends up being $23 a week with probably not much outside supplementing. certainly some eggs from the Athens Farmer's Market and herbs and odds & ends from the Farmacy, but i think it could end up being pretty affordable when it's all said and done.

what do you think??

{: i realized as i was writing this that it's essentially a tour de athens, making mention of all the hot spots except Casa Nueva & Jackie O's. :}

so there, now you've experience the virtual food tour of athens, ohio. come check it out for real sometime, perhaps for the Nelsonville Music Festival (headlined this year by Loretta Lynn!) in May, or Brew Week in July.

once upon a time, on a lovely spring day in athens...

2010-03-31T16:33:00.004-04:00

... a girl finally turned in her thesis proposal, and waited anxiously for the defense date to be chosen.

on a happier note, i declare iced chai season officially open and delicious!

tailwinds.

2010-03-30T10:28:00.007-04:00

Last summer, i spent 10 days sea kayaking near Cape Lookout National Seashore, just off the coast of North Carolina. Core Banks is a true Down East barrier island. Even thought all of it's permanent residents have long been gone, you can still feel them there. You can hear their voices in the wind as it whips the sand into a fury. You can see their hard work in the old, sea-worn houses, and in the abandoned duck decoys scattered around the shores.

It's a trip through time and space, into the heart of North Carolina's true Down East. It's a place fashioned by the sea and sand and wind, and the people who called it home. Here, history if a patchwork quilt of ancient whaling stories and round-stern work boats, crab pots and clam rakes, and waters where fishermen and hunters navigate their boats by the church steeples rising over the mainland. Ducks and decoys fashion a lens through which you can see, and understand, Core Sound's environment and natural history, her folk art and her unforgettable folks.

There is no other place like Core Sound.

I spent one afternoon wandering around the tiny Cape Lookout lighthouse, enjoying a brief respite from the hot sun. One panel caught my eye. It said "These islands are nature at it's wildest, best loved as a romantic flong - an escape, however brief, from the world these lands hold at bay."

In Core Sound, knowing where you are means knowing that there is no way to draw a line between who you are and the world of marsh and beach and tangled piney woods that you call home. It means hurricane, nor'easter, mullet blow, gale. Winds such as these have shaped this place, the trees, the shoreline, and the people of the Sound. You let the salty breeze of Down East fill the sails of your imagination. You hear breezes roaring through the dunes and rising in strength, driving a century's worth of settlers off the vulnerable barrier islands and into the nearest mainland shore. You'll feel the wind of a winter dawn burn your cheeks, the winds that bring the ducks - redheads and canvasbacks, and geese cackling like children at play - and the duck hunters and decoy makers out of the past and into your hands.

The winds of the past have calmed, but history and lore cling to this sliver of coastal North Carolina likes barnacles to a skiff bottom. Once you are here, you'll know why. Core Sound is not an east place to get to, but you will learn that it's an even harder place to leave.

fears erased

2010-03-30T08:50:00.000-04:00

gabe kirchheimer

New beginnings.

There are so many emotions wrapped up in that phrase. Excitement, anticipation, joy, wonder, apprehension... fear. Of course it's scary, starting something new - duh. But it's also exhilarating. So in the spirit of new beginnings, I'm embracing the exhilaration part. Thanks, but no thanks fear. You'll have to go bother someone else from now on.

So, here's to new beginnings: on the blog, in my heart, and in life.