That's all she wrote!

Hey kids. There's no getting around it now - summer is officially over. There are no loop holes this time and I'm going to have to face it. I have to tell you - I feel pretty good about Autumn coming. It's my absolute favorite time of year and I'm just fine with summer ending. I think I just heard a collective gasp shudder through the universe, but it's the truth. I will not miss it. This summer was just. Too. Hot.

I did OK on my list, too. I did 6 out of 11, which ain't too shabby. Also, I did two things that were pretty cool that weren't on my list.

I walked across the Brooklyn Bridge. I've lived in NYC for 8 years and have never done it and I was pretty thrilled on that random Saturday afternoon. It was all totally random - started out in Chinatown with random, unplanned dim sum and ended walking across the Bridge to a BBQ in Brooklyn. Lovely.

I also did this crazy taco truck crawl through Queens. I found out about it from Jeffery Tastes, who hosts all kinds of these crawls. I think I ate a total of 3 tacos, which is a lot and, at the same time, isn't very much. I don't think I took full advantage of all the goings on and fully plan to go the next time he organizes one. With a big group of Queens peeps. (I'm also considering going back to this particular truck, 'cause it was soooo good.)

I have some finished knitting projects that I'd like to share with you, but I've yet to take decent pictures. Also, my life it pretty much totally preoccupied with The Great Apartment Search. I'll be checking out until that is over.

In the mean time, I'm going to watch Vampire Diaries. No, I'm not kidding. Later!

Afterthoughts

Hey guys! Thank you so much for those of you who spoke up after my last post. Shana, you were right on with your advice. I cannot tell you how right you were. I found The One last week and the process is rolling. Please send all your positive thoughts towards the management company!!

I wanted to talk to you for a minute about pesto. Did you know you can make pesto out of anything? Not just basil. No really.

Typically, pesto is basil + pine nuts + parmesan cheese + garlic + olive oil. There is a magic ratio that I've discovered over the years and there are only two numbers you have to remember. 2 and 1/2. Here's how it goes:

2 cups of basil

2 cloves of garlic

1/ 2 cup of pine nuts

1/2 cup grated parmesan

1/2 cup olive oil

This time of year, however, I make a lot of arugula pesto. More often then not, I buy a big bunch of arugula to make a salad and I have a bunch left over and that becomes the basis for the pesto. I simply swap out the arugula for the basil.

The olive oil and garlic are constants, but you can sub out the type of cheese or nuts and also the base. It helps if the cheese is a dry crumbly variety.

It might go a little something like this:

arugula + pine nuts + parmesan

sun dried tomatoes + almonds + goat cheese

sage + walnuts + parmesan

olives + pistachios + feta

Mix with pasta and veggies (remember to reserve some of the pasta water to mix with your pesto. At least a cup) for a great main dish.

I like to mix it with small white beans for a great side dish to serve with fish.

Ooh! Imagine an olive pesto mixed with white beans and luscious canned tuna for a great lunch! Maybe some diced tomatoes, too?

It also makes an awesome marinade for meats or fish and freezes like a dream. Often I make it when I have a lot of leftover herbs and then freeze it for a rainy day.

(The recipe above is enough for 1 pound of pasta.)

Seeing Advice

source

Hey everybody!
So I'm in the middle of The Great Apartment Search and I'm having a little anxiety. I need some input from my fellow New Yorkers because I feel like the apartment search process in NYC is so unique/specific.

How many places do you look at before you feel comfortable making a choice?
Or do you just keep looking until you find The One?
What kind of concessions are you willing to make? (i.e. Is a street-level apartment unacceptable even if everything else is amazing?)
When do you start to feel anxious about not having a place? One week before move in date? Two weeks?

I've only been looking for one week and have seen about 6 apartments. I have found 2 for which I might be willing to over-look some less than desirable qualities, but I'm not sure that I should. I'm feeling a little lost.

Thoughts? Comments? Advice?

Have you seen this?

So lovely!

You thought I forgot?

It's Labor Day weekend, the unofficial end to summer, and I have two items to check off my list!

First was the P.S. 1 summer warm up. I was about to throw in the towel on this one when I received an invitation to my friend's birthday. He and his wife live in LIC and they started the evening off here, at P.S. 1.

I guess the party really gets started after dark, but we went around 4pm and the courtyard was full of young people and families, young children frolicking in the wading pools. The museum is open and you can buy a beer and wander around. It was fun and there was an incredible vibe from the crowd - relaxed and engaged at the same time. Maybe I'll try to go more often next summer.

The big news, however, is that I finally finished my quilt!!!! I knew that by putting it on my list and giving myself a deadline, I would buckle down and get it done.



It's far from perfect. I didn't really know what I was doing. Many of the lines are crooked and some of the squares don't quite line up, but it's just as I imagined it would be.

I can honestly say that I've never been more excited/satisfied with anything I've ever made. Never. When I took it out of the dryer- all fluffy and puckered up like a quilt should be - I giggled. I actually laughed out loud. And I clutched it to my heart and grinned like a fool all the way home from the laundromat.


Not a bad way to (unofficially) end the summer. Not at all.

Wish List

It's official, ya'll. The Works is packing up to move, yet again.

Well, it's not official, in a having-a-signed-lease-in-my-hand kind of way, but it's official in that I've made all the necessary decisions and notified all relevant parties.

No, I don't have a lease, but that hasn't stopped me from starting to daydream about my new space, no matter what it may be.

I need to have all of the following items. Need. Really.

Antique industrial stool? Of course.

This rug from Jonathan Adler? Sigh.

Removable wallpaper? It's vinyl - perfect for a blah rental bathroom!

Cork lamp? Lights up the room and ideal for reminder lists! (Buy milk! Call mom!)

Acrylic coffee table? Makes a small space feel light and airy!

Charley Harper wall mural? 30" x 30" print on canvas. Because I love Charley Harper.