Wednesday, January 29, 2014

cooked up: turkey bone soup

in an unusual twist of meterological events, us floridians have been experiencing a pretty decent amount of cold weather as of late. i've been savoring it, mostly because: soup making! i love cooking of almost any sort, but cooking up a soup has got to be my favorite. generally speaking, you throw a bunch of things into a big pot with some sort of liquid, let them simmer and fill your home with amazing smells while you do whatever you please, serve with big hunks of sourdough bread, eat slowly and experience the warming of your entire body and soul by something simple and delicious! ok, enough general soup praise and on to the specifics - my turkey bone soup! this requires a tiny bit of pre-planning because you need a turkey carcass. i got the idea to make this particular soup when we had a smoked turkey feast last week. afterward i glanced over at the turkey bones, with all their meat having been carved off, and realized a big pot of soup was in order. come sunday, after many hours of slow cooking, it didn't dissappoint. this soup is basically one big pot of coziness, and you need it in your life this winter. next time you cook a turkey, think before you throw away that carcass!
 
 
 
turkey bone soup
 
you'll need:
 
a turkey carcass
3 quarts turkey or chicken stock
1 lb bag of great northern beans
2 carrots diced
1 cup diced celery
1 yellow onion diced
3 diced garlic cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons marjoram
1 1/2 teaspoons thyme
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
salt and pepper to taste
additional leftover turkey (not mandatory, but a great way to use any extra leftovers from your bird)
 
the night before, soak beans overnight in a pot as directed on the bag (there is an option to quick soak the beans, but i've never had much luck with doing it that way. soaking overnight is effortless and surefire). the next day when you're ready to begin your soup making, put the carcass in a large pot and add 8 cups of stock. add the marjoram, thyme and smoked paprika. cover and bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer, covered, for an hour, turning the carcass occasionally. add carrot, celery, onion, garlic, beans and 3 more cups of stock. uncover and simmer for another 90 minutes, adding the last cup of stock as needed. most of the meat should have fallen off of the bones at this point. pick through the soup with tongs and discard bones. have a cutting board handy so you can place any bones with meat still attached on the board and pick off the meat, addding it back into the soup. add additional leftover turkey and season with salt and pepper to taste. serve with a big, crusty loaf of bread!

 







 

Saturday, January 25, 2014

babes of yesterday: jake ryan

a few nights ago i had a big and lovely dinner at my mom's. afterward i had gathered my chihuahua, my boots and the mountain of leftovers that my mom loves to send home with me, and was about to say my goodbyes when i heard the first chords of "i know this much is true" drifting out of the living room. i knew it could only mean one thing, and sure enough, when i turned to the television, there was jake ryan's heavenly face and bod slow dancing with caroline mulford. just like that, regardless of the fact that i've seen "sixteen candles" approximately 72 trillion times, i sank down onto the couch and stayed there for the next 90 minutes. i had things waiting for me at home! i was going to begin a new sewing project, take a bubble bath, make tea... but here's the thing: once you catch a glimpse of jake ryan you can't look away. you just can't. jake was the third crush of my life (preceded by jordan knight and then devon sawa), and he, in all his ripened good looks made the first two seem a bit purile. i mean, he's the most popular guy in school... devastatingly handsome, athletic, with a smile that could make you die instantly. every girl at school wanted him, every last one. when you add this stuff together the result should be a total cad, but no. jake ryan was disinterested in all that surface bullshit.. he was bored and brooding at parties while everyone else was sloppy and wasted, he wanted something deep. how is that even possible? you're a miracle, jake ryan.
THE LIP BITE.

of course you do jake! i'll be your serious girlfriend. real serious. SO SO SERIOUS.

and that personal style! a preppy sweater with those rough and tumble boots and cuffed jeans?!? total insouciance.

and let's not forget those legs.

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

dressed: big cozy sweater

at the thrift store i'm constantly searching for amazing sweaters. in order to fall into the "amazing" category, one must be soft, well made so that it hasn't shrunken or stretched into an awkward shape, and slightly slouchy. i often find that the men's section has the best offerings!


sweater, thrifted. plaid undershirt, thrifted. jeans, urban outfitters. doily socks, little girl's section of target. shoes, new balance.


Saturday, January 18, 2014

hot shit: a rant

this has popped up in my facebook feed at least 10 times in the past 24 hours. don't get me wrong, i see dumb little things on facebook every day and i hardly ever take them seriously or give them a second thought. this, though... for some reason this really gets to me. the idea that this puts out there is as follows: all women are pretty much full of "shit" that men have to deal with and eventually get sick of. when it comes to average looking women, it's super easy to understand how a man could quickly and easily be sick of them and their "shit". some women, though, have things like boob jobs, ultra hot bods and pretty faces.... and from the viewpoint of most men who see them in passing, it would seem almost impossible for a man to get sick of a woman like this when he can simply objectify the shit out of her and pay attention to only her physical features. BUT WAIT..... NEWSFLASH via this incredibly clever and informative meme! behind every woman, even one as sexy as the one pictured, there is a man who is sick of her "shit". it seems to me that the basic lesson the dudes posting this little gem are trying to impart is that no matter how nice a woman's tits are, eventually those will become old news and, just like all the other dudes with plain looking girls have had to do, her male companion will be forced to realize that the piece of meat, i mean, woman in question possesses a brain and a personality <----also known as "shit". in fact, as his relationship with her progresses she might even want to exchange ideas and tell him about her interests, opinions, likes and dislikes. if things start to get really serious, there might come a time when, in the event of a disagreement or something of the sort, she wants to solve the problem at hand by talking about it. at this time, the man in her life, in all his super perfect, red-blooded manliness will be massively sick of her shit. that is the point, right guys? maybe all the boys who've made this silly little thing go viral are just joking? not funny, just dumb. and most of all, embarrassing. why would you want any woman- your mother, your sister, your girlfriend, wife or friend, to see you perpetuating something so impolite? whether or not you intend to, you're kinda sorta aligning yourself with the type of men who think of women as objects- someone to fold their laundry, make them a sandwich and not talk back. and THAT is total shit.
 

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

dressed: palazzo pants party

just an afternoon jaunt featuring the widest pant legs ever, and the most gorgeous pair of vintage opalescent sunglasses!
"don't you just love this spotted dress??"

just kidding. they're a pant. so.. much... pant.

palazzo pant jumpsuit, thrifted. boots, zara. vintage glasses, a gift from a great friend.

Wednesday, January 8, 2014

dressed: errand day

running around town in stripes and blue jean cut offs on the day before the cold set in. i got a million things for soup making... so far we've had carrot and taco. next up: caldo gallego!
top: vintage. cutoffs: old cheap monday jeans made into shorts. shoes: chuck taylor.

Saturday, January 4, 2014

babes of yesterday: lewis thornton powell

lewis thornton powell a.k.a lewis payne/paine, or doc if you were among his closest pals, was without a doubt the dreamiest of the lincoln conspirators. he attempted unsuccessfully to assassinate william h. seward on april 14, 1865. as unbabely as the whole attempt on the secretary of state's life was... his face... those eyes.. that deeply furrowed brow that plucks at your heart strings as he sits in wrist irons, gazing fervently into the camera... phew! ok, moving on. keep in mind that lew had experienced much turmoil in the years just before he went all conspirator. he became a soldier at the ripe old age of 17, fought at gettysburg and was deeply stricken by the death of his brother in the battle of murfreesboro. he paid for his crimes dearly, too, when he was tried by a military tribunal and sentenced to die. on july 7, 1865, he fell from the gallows at fort mcnair and struggled for over 5 minutes before death came. ouch, doc.
aboard the monitor uss saugus. source.

shortly after his arrest, in the coat he wore when he attempted seward's assasination. source.

source.

and a colorized one, because good god. source.


Wednesday, January 1, 2014

2013:

i lounged in the park with the best dogs,

ate suppers outside with my love,

 got fancied up a time or two,

we enjoyed some of the finest locally grown vegetables,

saw many old films and a few new ones,

my friends and i looked like we were in a band,

i drank a lot of good beer with the greatest brother,

had many empanadas,

slept in sometimes,

did some painting with my best gals,

witnessed many sweet moments and felt the love,

said goodbye to the best grandpa and bravest man,

paid the goose hollar a couple of visits,

stopped off on the side of the road to check out some hotrods,

drank champagne with gorgeous girlfriends,

saw fleetwood mac with my mama,

raced cars,

learned to sew,

got tropical with my pals,

floated in pools,

drifted down rivers with best friends, 

had a few jolting experiences,

spent time in the sunshine with my boys,

swam in the ocean with my family,

and loved this guy every single day!