sultry nights
rum, rum wherever you are. rum away from all your fears and cares.
languid meals lit by candles. slow motion camera as he lifts his wine glass from table to lips.
pinot noir smiling out the corners of his mouth.
pinot noir kisses when the waiter isn't looking.
legs curled under my hips fashion a sofa into a love seat.
how silly of us not to eat with toothpicks at home.
here, can i offer you another plantain dunked in honey, honey?
misty rain calls for bare feet; no matter how pretty your party dress may be.
the wet tiles are still warm the day's sweltering heat in the shade.
off to dream under a swirling fan, in a pitch black room, listening to thunder and waves bowl for strikes.
sublime.
a birthday party
it's my birthday today!
i'm having a party. you're invited.
please wear your fanciest frock
and shoes for shimmying to the left and to the right.....
we'll finish with smiles and sugar!
a party favor of sprinkles to keep you safe until next year.
we'll twirl our way back home; whirling into dreamland, weary from the whimsy.
happy dance!
rationalization
according to organic.org, eating organic foods:
1. reduces toxic load
2. reduces/eliminates off farm production
3. protects future generations
4. builds healthy soil
5. tastes better with truer flavor
6. assists family farmers of all sizes
7. avoids hasty and poor science in my food
8. gives eating a sense of place
9. promotes biodiverstiy
10. celebrates the culture of agriculture
you know me and helping biodiversity?!? stand back people. like a mama and her baby cub.
i think i'm on my 6th bag.
happy weekend
dears, what have you planned for this weekend?
in an effort to disburden my doldrums i will be dusting off the ol' beachcruiser.
the wind wafting my hair wispy; i'll coast, standing upright, legs locked, eyes closed, head held pertly up to the sky so that my body can sop up as much breeze to skin action as possible. like limp ranunculus needing the sun to survive i'll be stretching my stem as far as i can out of my vase.
even more fun is when hh joins me, and we ride to our favorite neighborhood cafe for greyhounds and truffle fries. we'll flirt madly, stuff ourselves silly and pedal home like puppies. 
maybe i'll try wearing a fancy dress too. bikes and ballgowns?
you never know what silly combination can dry a tear. these days i'm up for all kinds of crazy.
love. love. love.
happy weekend
2:30 alarm today. has anyone read the healthcare bill? say anything about a national naptime referendum?
all in favor say "aye".
a giant thank you to meghan, shannon and deborah for their meth face advice.
deborah, the last 10 checkups have included a thyroid check. in addition to meth face, i have crazy night sweats (think underage gay boys/studio 54 dance floor).
and when i'm not changing my sopping wet clothes (amazing i found a fella) i'm teeth chattering, freezing cold (wearing a parka in 90 degree weather). yet, my butterfly gland shows normal.
as for the gluten. i've never heard of it causing skin issues. ever since elisabeth hasselbeck stopped eating gluten it's been my mission to consume as much as possible. i'll try the celiac diet, but if i start squeaking in gibberish and quoting unicorns please give me back my wheat.
but give up dairy girls?
as in burrata con foglia and jasper hill cloth cheddar?
like for more than a 24 hour cycle? does this include greek yogurt too?
can't i just hold my breath all day instead? or make out with them instead?
anything, but give up dairy.
(sob)
(sob, sob)
embracing my inner betty draper
i'm a sucker for casseroles. love! love! love anything in an 9 x 9 baking dish. put a can of cream of mushroom soup and some dehydrated onions......i'm yours forever.
luckily hh shares my obsession for all things creamy, noodle-ly, and rectangular. his favorite is tuna casserole. i'm always trying to fancy it up a bit (sometimes that just involves wearing heels as i make it from a box though).
last night i made (from skeeeeee-ratch) the most delicious recipe from bon appetit's march issue. here's how it turned out:
leeks, celery seed and dill gave it a little glamour.
the mounds (i added SO much extra) of gruyere, gave it a european, let's savour this bite a bit longer, verve.
the crumpled salty potato chips made it 60's fabulous.
here's the recipe again.
with the exception of the cheese, i followed directions exactly. i went balls out on the gruyere. for the potato chips i used organic salted kettle brand.
still licking my lips.
oink oink
full disclosure: this is not a review.
i don't eat bacon. anymore.
(pause for moment of silence as i commemorate days of crispy salty, sweet love. love that made all things bad and scary..disappear, for 12 seconds as i chewed and swallowed).
i'm not one of those vegetarians who doesn't miss meat at all (take that double negative and shove it where the seitan don't shine). i crave tofu and tempeh like i crave being hungover. so when my friend, tara simon, started selling her katie treats candied bacon, i tried my best to avoid her.
but unfortunately, my plan to evade my fellow pilates co-worker (yes, you read that correctly; she is also an amazing pilates instructor) worked out disastrously.
her new company, the sticky pig is cooking like betty crocker!!! people are losing their minds over her candied bacon confections. seriously, say those two words together "candied"/"bacon". they're perfection. that's like "parisian"/"vacation"...."cashmere"/"bathrobe"..."folded"/'laundry"...(you get the idea). flavors come in coconut curry lime, raspberry jelly doughnut, s'mores, orange ginger, maple cinnamon, apple pecan dulce de leche, dark chocolate peppermint, the elvis, chocolate covered strawberry, and original.
these morsels sell and ship all over the country. orders range from 4 pieces to 12 month supplies.
this is a fabulous valentine's day present....a nice break from the normal chocolate, wine and flowers. how great would these be at your next chi-chi dinner party or reception?
love it tara!
Simple Things
christina is hosting the simple things today.
a call out to bloggers to "show what we appreciate, and what we are grateful for - no matter how big or small, these things may seem."
if christina asked me to dig ditches with her all day long in the hot sun, i'd be the first to sign up.
in an effort to help the haiti rescue and rebuilding, she is giving one dollar to doctors without borders for every participant.
thank you christina for inspiring me daily. here is my laddleful of love to you:
katie's simple things 1/27/2010
freshly scented, french milled soap
clean, empty notepads. ready for my days' plans, ideas, and aspirations.
homemade morning coffee. french pressed with ground cinnamon. a mug reminding me what matters most.
waking up in the middle of the night holding hands with hh.
fresh, inexpensive, trader joe's flowers on my desk
our sweet tree standing tall again. post storm destruction. so glad we were able to keep you in the family.
peanut m& m's, and don't you dare try to substitute plain!!!!!!
profanity. terrible, i know. i'm a good girl otherwise. i just like to swear.
perfume before bed, after my bath.
afternoon naps.
mornings. the promise. the second chance.
this song.......it renders me tear faced every time i hear it. but happy, oh my god, i'm so damn lucky kind of tears.
it's hard to have animosity in your heart with this music in your soul.
i'd love to twirl on fence posts with you, na-na-na'ing to this song.
happy wednesday. love, katie
alfresco daydream
we're having 'storm-watch' 2010 here in so-cal (insert eye roll). i do love a nice (rare) spritz here in sunny-ville, but these photographs do have me longing for skies of blue and cocktails with sand between my toes.
i read about this company in vogue. literally "a restaurant without walls," they ramble the country making meals in open fields, sandy beaches, or in forests made for fairy-tales.
join me for a daydream?
cloud nine weekend
oh my! don't you just love open weekends that just melt seamlessly from no plans set, let's see where the hour takes us to ....well isn't this delightful and unexpected? this morning i found myself making snow angels lying in bed; giddy still from our joyful non-events.
i think the weather played a major role in my dreamy weekend. seventy degrees, skies pale blue, just enough clouds to make it girly and scenic.
let me summarize (smile).
the beasts got an outing to the park.
football silliness at the local high school.
a presidential 40 yd field goal kick costing hh to fess up the big dough in a lost bet.
i found my new favorite nail shade.
the MOST beautiful flowers (big, fat peonies!!!!!) delivered to my doorstep
a fish taco so delicious, only expletives and moans suffice.
a bubblebath or two. or four or five.
where i finally finished a nice, didn't suck, book of short stories.
all the while green fiddlehead fragranced the house with tea, clean cut grass, and spearmint.
and as you can tell, i'm back to taking photos again. sadly, alice, at only 3 months old, was on the fritz. a lemon. i had to return her. tamra is her replacement. i'm already attached. tamra the camera is a sassy shot and hasn't given me any grief since we've started courting. i think i've found my new dance partner.
happy monday friends!
click book, nail polish image for more information.
you had me at pale pink
there's just something about coral colored candy, salmon hued sweets, and plum tinted pastries that i just cannot resist. resolutions be damned! these photos make me mad for sugar naps and buttercream comas.
click image for source
Happy New Year
resolution time.
i detest these silly things. i detest uncomfortable shoes. yet i still wear them.
i am resolute to make the following things happen this year:
you dears? what are you resolute to change? i hope nothing because i adore you all exactly the way you are. yes, brandi even you with that giant herp on you face.
happy new year loves.
-katie
click image for source
oh mother may i
uh knt buluv owwww fikung gooooooot sih missu mayzz zzz krincha sih!??!?!?!?!??!?!? mmmm hmmmmm (swallow) pardon me????????? what i was saying, mouth full of rich, tasty goodness, was i can't believe how fucking good this mrs. may's holiday crunch is!?!??!?! 
trying to be sensitive to my gluten sensitive pal bernie, i purchased ol' mrs may's for a dinner party last week to pour over coconut bliss (another celiac disease friendly product.) i inwardly pitied the purchase as i envisioned the rest of the party gorging down on my other buy: a gluten-glutted chocolate cake with whipped cream frosting. (which by the way i plan to force feed halfwit Elisabeth Hasselbeck if ever we meet.)
so much for courtesy and concern? my gluten free diva stood us up for another party! the nerve? these prima donna's and their "disease's" think they can just crap all over us healthy, cereal and pasta eating folk. a pox on him and his villi . i hope his guilt triggered symptoms of bloat and menstrual periods missed. hmph!!but their was some silver lining to this ugly blouse. yesterday i found myself with a deadline, 15 free minutes i needed to commit to that deadline, and an unopened bag of mrs. may's holiday crunch. deadline's be damned i dived headfirst into that scrumptious sack. a-maze-ing!!! almonds, cranberries, pomegranate, acai powder, and a little smattering of sea salt. it was a yuletide party in my mouth. but not in a whorish way (don't be dirty you guys.)love the pared down ingredients. apparently it's kosher too, so i'm covered if ever i get celiac AND decide to become jewish. it's a fucking win win!!!!!i discovered mrs. may's at mother's market, give her a "click" to find her near you.