Music Monday: (More) Fleet Foxes

 

YOU.  GUYS.

Friday's show was so ridiculously amazing, 

I kept reminding myself to just pay attention to everything because I

knew it was one of those shows I would remember for, well, forever.

It was too, too lovely for words to even begin to describe.

The mountains, the music, the company, 

everything combined made for a perfect experience.

I hope, if you ever get the chance, you will see Fleet Foxes live.

You won't be sorry.

A Gentleman's Evening with Whiskey...

Planning a party can be so fun, but I've usually had the pleasure of getting the details of the celebration in order with my partner in crime, Shug.  Since this Gentleman's Evening was supposed to be a surprise, I couldn't enlist my spouse for his creative powers, and what's more, I had to keep all of it a secret from him.  I can't tell you what was more stressful: planning a party without Shug or keeping a secret!

Lumberjack Photobooth!

Countdown

It really really really helps a person to get through a crazy insane-o week when you know you'll be traveling to Ireland for a wedding in a little over a week...!

Words cannot express how excited I am to be a part of my good friends' celebration.  Both Supermodel and Best Bearded Friend are some of the hardest-working people I know and they deserve this little break!  I'm so looking forward to windy beaches, verdant farmlands, and warm pubs.

Have any of you ever been to Ireland?  What should I check out? What foods (or brews) should I try?

I hope you have a wonderful weekend!  I'm on call: BOO.  But I also leave for Ireland in a little over a week: YEA!!!

Tongue Kisses are on Hiatus

I am super sick right now.

It seems my body got word that I had a few days off

and decided to MAKE me take a break 

with a horrible cold.

The bum deal is that I still have a ton of papers

and final projects that need to be completed!

Shug and Ruby are only allowed to kiss each other.

I don't want to give anyone else this grossness.

If you would, send some healing thoughts my way.

Pretty please.

A year ago today...

...Shug asked me to marry him!

It was the biggest surprise of my life.

And the best.

He was so thoughtful and sneaky when planning on how he was going to pop the question...
This is one of the roses he gave me that day.

It's a good thing he asked, 'cause I'm pretty sweet on him.

Recipe of the Week: Shug's Polenta Salad

Those of you who have the pleasure of knowing Shug in person also know that he cooks about two things: leftovers and t.v. dinners. It's not for lack of ability or the excess dribbles of machismo, it's just he's never really learned how to cook. When there are days I know I won't be home until 8pm, I always ask Shug to "take care of dinner," which usually means delicious take-out of some kind and my favorite bottle of wine.

So last week, when I passed dinner responsibility over to Shug, I was expecting some styrofoam clam shell brimming with heaps of Pad Thai or Tibetan spicy potatoes, but Shug had actually PREPARED dinner for us. Yes, it's true, and no, it's not the apocalypse.

Shug made the most delicious and healthy meal in under 30 minutes! So today's recipe is all Shug's!

Shug's Polenta Salad
Serves 2 hungry folks or 4 appetizers
Ingredients:
One tube of prepped polenta, we like the sun-dried tomato and basil flavor, sliced into 1/2 inch discs
6 ounces of goat cheese
Extra virgin olive oil
White wine vinegar
Juice from half a lemon
1 clove of garlic, minced
Pinch of dried basil
Pinch of dried oregano
Pinch of salt
Pinch of pepper
1/4 cup of sliced sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil
Heaps of fresh spring greens

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. On a cookie sheet that has been prepped with extra virgin olive oil, plop down the polenta discs and give each one a little more love with the olive oil. Put cookie sheet in the oven and let bake for ten minutes.

While your polenta is crisping up, portion your spring greens into bowls. Add equal portions of the sun-dried tomatoes to each bed of greens. To make the dressing, add equal parts olive oil and white wine vinegar to a small container you can lid and shake. Add the lemon juice, garlic, basil, oregano, salt and pepper to taste. Shake it like a polaroid picture. Set aside.

Pull the polenta out of the oven and quickly add a dollop of goat cheese to each disk. Return to oven for 5-7 minutes or until the goat cheese is all melty and awesome. Remove polenta from the oven and portion the disks evenly onto the bowls of spring greens. Dress with the Italian dressing.

Kiss the cook.

Holiday Lists for Him

"Makers on the rocks" gets a whole new meaning.

90 Days

Well, it's been 90 days since our wedding.
And I couldn't be happier about our decision.
Here's to three month's of being hitched!

Stop Motion Insanity

I know, I know, stop motion is now what animation was to indie videos 5 years ago. Everybody's doing it, even of it's getting a little OVERdone, like, ahem, mustaches...

But just like facial hair done right, this stop motion beaut from Grizzly bear tickles in all the right places.

Recipe of the Week: Pasta or Notpasta with a Goat Cheese Sauce

Are you busy? Tired? Run down? Are you dreaming of lazy conversations in outside cafes surrounded by a language you don't speak? What about a bonfire completely fueled by the pages of your useless and exorbitantly priced textbooks? Weird. Me, too.

So, in this haze of schoolworkteachhomeworkstressschoolworkwork, this is a comforting little dish that can be whipped up in the time it takes to boil water. Or plot an escape plan.

Pasta or Notpasta with a Goat Cheese Sauce
Serves 4 regular folks, or 2 Americans
Ingredients:
16 oz. of your favorite pasta or notpasta (i.e. gluten-free)
1 1/2 c of goat cheese, crumbled
1/4 c shredded Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper
handful of shelled pistachios
sun-dried tomatoes, packed in olive oil
extra virgin olive oil.

Get a big pot of generously salted water boiling on the stove. Once it's at a rolling boil, add all of the pasta and give it a stir to make sure none of the pasta have stuck to the bottom of your pot. Boil as per the package instructions until al dente.

Reserve about 1/2 cup of the pasta water and drain the rest. Put the pasta back in the pot with the reserved pasta water, the goat cheese crumbles, shredded Parmesan, and freshly ground black pepper. Stir well until the cheese is all saucy and melty.

Portion into bowls and add a squidge of extra virgin olive oil, another grinding of black pepper, a spoonful of sun-dried tomatoes, a few shelled pistachios, and a sprinkling of some more Parmesan cheese.

Don't worry about the dishes, just enjoy!

A Vacation Would Be Nice

I'm going on my second day of teaching.
I'm teaching a lesson on substance abuse that is so watered down and innocuous
these kids called my bluff right away.

So I'm taking a cue from all the other teachers these kids have:
I'm on mental vacation today.

I'll be listening to the waves tease the beach and
Shug burning slowly in the sun.
(We put sunblock on, I swear!)

I'm pretty sure wine is a part of my vacay, too.

Autumn Walk

Ruby has been LOVING walks in the afternoon.
This was her last walk before the snow fell.
I hope she likes her walks as much in the winter!

Weekends are good, but...

Um, I'm talking to you, Shug...

Via t spoon of sunshine.

Beans

If I can 1/10th the amount of fun this guy is having this weekend,

I'll be set!
He's amazing!
More of Beans found on LATFH.
P.S. NSFW

Remember How Yesterday Was Charmed?

It's because Supermodel and her Love (Shug's Best Bearded Friend) got engaged!!!

To say I'm elated is an understatement.
These are two of the best, yes BEST, people we have the luck of being friends with!
Congratulations!

Photo from our wedding photo booth!

Je pense que ce vin a déjà ete bu

Fleet Foxes - A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

*Swoon*

Reason #3 Why I Love Shug So

He is so creative.

First Aid Kit

These are two sisters from Sweden, Klara & Johanna Söderberg, and they pretty much made my day after I heard their little Fleet Foxes cover. Their band is called First Aid Kit and they are so adorable it makes my cheeks hurt.

And while I'm losing my mind over how great this little band is, here's a different version of "Mykonos."

Oh and here is a NEW Fleet Foxes song, "Blue Spotted Tail." Holy god.