moving, a kitten and other things

It's been a crazy week. My life suddenly feels very different in one big burst and I don't know that I've entirely caught up. It's exciting, but also kind of jarring. Even when things are new for the better, they are still new, and that takes a bit of adjustment. I'll get there.


The apartment is fantastic so far. Loving the big windows, taupe walls with white detailing of vintage-y flowers and ladies waggling ribbons. Love the big kitchen and miiiiiles of closets where I can see all my clothing at once (somewhat of a scary proposition -- I think I am in desperate need of a clean out). Though the new neighborhood is somewhat sketchy (the Tenderloin), D. and I have been loving all the cheap, fantastic food. It is unreal how good one can eat around here at a reasonable price. Plus, the gas in our stove is not hooked up yet, so we have an excuse to pad our bellies with Vietnamese sandwiches from various shops within a few blocks' walk (unreal!). The gas is being installed tomorrow, though, so we will soon be excuse-less and haven't even made a dent in local grub. I'm sure we'll come up with a series of new excuses shortly.


Something else to gush about: Marlo, our new kitten. We decided now that we will likely be settled down for awhile in a place with cat-friendly windowsills and enough floor space to accommodate vigorous chases and play fights, it's time to get Mivi a best friend. Mivi, however, was not pleased with this arrangement. Over the past several days, she has relented some, with less vigorous hissing and increasingly half-hearted neck biting. Yesterday, they were both sleeping and we pushed them together for a photo op. It was terribly cute to watch their bellies rise and fall together, Mivi's whiskers twitching in a vigorous dream. Then she woke up and noticed there was an intruder on her midsection and was not amused. Anyway, we're taking baby steps.


Another exciting thing: D. and I painted a mirror. I really like decorating with mirrors and so this one was sort of a test run for a series I hope to do. We found it at a Goodwill store with a rather large chip and a price of $3.49 (arbitrarily decided by the woman at the register who told us that she wanted to give us a good price even though she was sure it was worth a lot more -- won't argue with that!). We sanded down the wood (which was painted in a shiny gold tone), filled in the hole with putty, and gave it two coats of high-gloss green spray paint. I love, love, love how it came out, and it was only about $10 total. Not bad.


That's all for now. Much more to write and much more to do!

moving!

We're moving tomorrow.

I picked up the keys today and strolled through the apartment. It smelled like paint and was full of light. The living room has huge windows and the bedroom is round, which is awesome. There's also a drool-worthy amount of closet space, which is far too exciting to me to be completely normal.

I'm really excited about buying furniture and decorating, but we are also most certainly on a strict budget, so making any major purchase is somewhat scary. For the time being, I'm stalking Craigslist.

I'll be updating my decorating decisions as the place progresses!

favorite videos: little girls making stuff up

Whenever I need a smile, I find myself coming back to these videos; within minutes, I'm cheered right up! These are some creative little ladies.

love. this. shirt.

Love this T-shirt from Threadless. Nothing more to say.

cooking ideas: turkey chili

This weekend, chewing was not on the agenda. D. had an infection in his tooth and spent his time alternately moaning and drifting in and out of a Vicodin-induced slumber.

He was also extremely hungry but not able to chew very well.

So, on Saturday, I made goulash (which has been written about in this space before -- and which I will not elaborate on, partly because I ate so much goulash that I can't even think about it at this moment).

On Sunday, D. requested more goulash. I laughed in his face and offered a compromise: turkey chili.

Did you know how awesome turkey chili is? It's so awesome! And I'm fairly certain it's healthy too, which is a bonus. It's also, the way I made it at least, super easy to make.

Here you go:

Turkey Chili

a pound of ground turkey
a big onion
5 cloves of garlic (or less if you are a wimp!)
a can of black beans
a can of kidney beans
a can of stewed tomatoes with diced chiles
a can of corn
a small can of tomato sauce
paprika
pepper
Tabasco sauce

1. Brown the turkey with chopped up onions and garlic.
2. Add the beans, tomatoes, corn and tomato sauce. Sprinkle in paprika, pepper and Tabasco to taste.
3. Simmer for a good hour or so!

This is not unhealthy, right? And for any lazy readers (or those with toothaches), not only is it simple to make, it also requires minimal chewing effort.

cooking ideas: sad mouth pudding

"Sandwiches?! Why would anyone need -- OUCH!"

D. is flipping through a cookbook, on the verge of asking a question about sandwiches that will never be answered. His head is in his hands and he's gasping in pain.

He has an abscess; his tooth is filled with pus. I know this because I spoke to his dentist on the phone about it (at almost 11 pm on a Saturday night -- nice service, doc!). When the dentist informed me that D. was in such intense pain due to the aforementioned pus putting pressure on his tooth, I acted on instinct, replying, "Eew, that's gross." The dentist paused before continuing to advise me on how to treat his patient (my patient). I felt a smidgen of judgment in his pause, but come on, that *is* pretty gross. There are places that pus is acceptable (just barely), and there are places it should never be. Your mouth is one of those places.

So, D.'s sentences have been punctuated with pain, spite and confusion these past couple of days (the confusion being a side effect of Vicodin, apparently). He is also drowsy and not able to chew effectively.

I'd like to note here that it feels like autumn today, maybe for the first time this year. I think I'd forgotten about California's fall; it's so calm as it creeps in (unlike in New York or Japan where it crashes upon you with rain showers and evenings that get dark absurdly early). The combo of the changing seasons and D.'s near inability to chew means that it has made a lot of sense to spend the weekend preparing and eating stew.

But that's another post.

After consuming stew, D. still appeared forlorn. He clutched his mouth and moaned. I wanted to make something delicious for him.

And I am happy to report, using just three ingredients, I succeeded!


Sad Mouth Pudding

one banana
one individual pack of Kozy Shack Tapioca pudding
two shakes of cinnamon




Mash the banana. Add Kozy Shack and sprinkle on cinnamon in two healthy shakes. Mix thoroughly. Will make a sad mouth slightly happier, if only temporarily.

D.'s root canal is scheduled for Tuesday.

color love: give it up for grey

I'm going to start posting some favorite items in my favorite colors.

First up is grey, one of my very favorite colors, especially for clothing. Not as harsh as black, easier to match than navy... It's pretty much the perfect neutral.

Lovely light grey mini trench (now on sale!)




Adorable handmade dress




Love the detail on these heels




Cute coat (also on sale!)



This watch is simply fantastic. Love, love, LOVE!




Last but not least: I'm in love with this bolero. You will be mine!

i heart etsy

Some things I'm loving right now at Etsy:

Cute-as-a-button necklace




Sumptuous but adorable purse




Whimsically punkish ring




Fabulous chair




Bright green skirt that makes me smile