a photo a day

this weekend ruby had mixed feelings about her dog friend piper.  she spent portions of the weekend hiding in places where piper couldn't get her, but she could still observe the goings-on:

and portions of the weekend peacefully coexisting.  on the same couch-turned-bed!  without humans to mediate!

they really got along great!  other than the two glasses of water that ruby knocked over in the middle of the night (obviously it was too tempting not to), she was a model guest.  whew.

february: 3

i am delinquent.  the 11th day of the month and i'm just now posting my summary of the book i read in february?  bad claire.

the husband's secret, by liane moriarty (i just read one book this month, and it was for my book club.  i liked it, but wasn't running home to finish reading it.  i would call it one step up from a beach read (where a beach read goes quickly and doesn't require a huge amount of brain power), so if you're looking for a spring break book, this would be a fantastic one.  i'm realizing that this is a relatively luke warm review, and i don't mean for it to be.  i enjoyed reading this book!, but it won't be the best book i read in 2014, i'm sure of that.)

a photo a day

a photo series in which the ladies from this weekend (the dog and cat are both girls, too!) attempt to take a self-portrait that includes all five of us.

think of it as our own little photo booth.

a photo a day

a conundrum i face: when writing a letter to someone in prison, which stamp do i pick to put on the envelope?

by my logic, the only acceptable one is the "equality" one.  or am i over thinking this and no one notices stamps anyway?

i've been following this story for a couple months - SO interesting: early treatment is found to clear HIV in a 2nd baby

laurie

this weekend is the 4th annual reunion of jenny, laurie, and me.  we worked together in atlanta for a few years until jenny moved to idaho and laurie retired and moved to new hampshire.  laurie was a huge mentor to me and jenny, and for the past three years we've gotten together for a weekend (one year in idaho, twice in new hampshire, and now in texas - each with other friends tagging along, but schedules didn't work out for those friends to come this year).  though laurie is at least thirty years older than us, she is a great friend and so easy to spend time with.  she gives incredibly sage advice on our careers in education, saying often throughout our friendship: "when you run your own school…"  we love that - she believes we could run a school one day.

i'm thinking of laurie this week since i know i will see her this weekend, and i realized i've started doing something she does - something i used to consider unthinkable.  laurie said she would always drive to school in the morning in silence - no radio on - just her thoughts to get her ready for her day.  i could never do this, listening to NPR or a podcast or the bits and pieces of music through the talk radio show jabber.  but i've found myself doing it this year - turning the radio off and driving to school in silence once or twice a month, with just the white noise of the car and some time to think.  it's not as bad as i imagined.

a ruby a day

someone likes small spaces!


(don't worry: i saw this coming from a mile away, so there was no danger to miss ruby.)

30 vegetables update

day #4: dinner was vegetable red curry from my neighborhood take out thai restaurant, and included 14. cauliflower, 15. snow peas, and 16. bamboo shoots (i had to google whether that's a vegetable.  it appears to count).

day #5: i went over to a friend's house for her birthday dinner, which was potluck.  people brought such delicious food!  i brought kale salad…there were veggie samosas…two chicken dishes (of which i didn't partake)…and a chickpea and 17. sweet potato curry with naan…then chocolate cupcakes for dessert.  delish!  and great company - it was a fun group of people to spend the evening with.

what i'm listening to right now

"all of me," by john legend:


this is the first song of his in a long time that i've really liked.  gold star, john legend.

30 vegetables update

day #1: my dinner was a burrito with lots of veggies and beans and 11. corn in it.  roasted corn in a burrito is the best thing ever!

day #2: one new vegetable to add to the list - 12. peas in my mutter paneer for dinner.  i tried a new indian restaurant and found it just okay…the search continues for the perfect indian take out in my neighborhood!

day #3: dinner was pasta salad with feta cheese and veggies in it, including one of my favorites: 13. broccoli.  (i'm omitting tomatoes from this 30 vegetable challenge because maybe they're a fruit, huh?)

30 vegetables in 30 days

on the radio this morning - when NPR switches to local programming for a couple minutes an hour - there was a story about an initiative in houston that is encouraging people to try to eat 30 different kinds of vegetables in 30 days.  this sounds like my kind of challenge!  here i go.

day 1:
today for lunch i had an asian salad from whole foods that had the following in it:
1. red peppers
2. zucchini (this is clutch, because i really don't like zucchini, but it was chopped up super small in this salad and thus it was acceptable)
3. cabbage
4. onions
5. kale
and chickpeas and cilantro, but i don't think those count.  unless - cilantro?  is that a vegetable?  what's the difference between a vegetable and an herb?

also had some veggie spring rolls from whole foods with 6. lettuce & 7. carrots inside (plus tofu and noodles).

i eat a lot of vegetables, but i'm pretty sure i don't have 30 different vegetables in my repertoire.  i guess we have 29 more days to find out!

[updated: i forgot!  i had an omelet this morning with 8. asparagus and 9. spinach in it, with some 10. potatoes on the side.  i am totally counting the potatoes even though they are a pretty starchy and not-good-for-you vegetable.]

kale salad

a woman i work with passed on this kale salad recipe to me and it's so good!  i've been eating pretty badly recently (work meetings that ran from 3-8:30pm two nights in a row with dinner provided meant i had more than my fair share both evenings because i was stuck in a room and kind of bored)…so this was a welcome dinner for me tonight.  she calls this two servings but i definitely ate it all.

As a symbol of how far Ruby and I have come since we got the automatic feeder.

Pre-feeder: Ruby wakes me up at 4am every day and annoys me (by chewing on my hair - very effective!) until I either (a) lock her in the bathroom until I'm ready to get up (with her meowing sadly for a while), or (b) feed her.

This morning: Ruby woke up at 4:30, but did not bite my hair! Instead, she purred a lot and snuggled with me until 5am. The SECOND the kibbles began to fall from the automatic feeder into her bowl at 5am, she bolted from my side, using my face as a lift-off pad, and ate her breakfast. I didn't see her again until 6:30 when my alarm went off. 

The feeder is SO worth it already. And she hasn't broken into it yet. Yesssss. 

Hilariously, she doesn't yet understand that the feeder only magically gives her food once a day. I find her at other times just staring at it hopefully. Oh Ruby. Good try.

cooking fail

Recently I made saag paneer (Indian spinach curry with cheese cubes).  It was bad. I didn't even finish it all...that kind of bad. The spinach didn't get smooth enough in the food processor...and didn't have enough flavor...and the paneer was a bright spot, but overall it couldn't save the dish. Sigh. Throw that recipe away; I'll stick the Trader Joe's frozen saag paneer, which is gourmet by comparison.

The aforementioned homemade saag paneer. I know it looks fine - do not be deceived. 

because i know you're on the edge of your seat

i set up the new automatic feeder and programmed it to feed ruby at 5am.  fingers crossed that it is ruby-proof!

"what was the last lie you told?  why did you tell it?"

when i was returning the automatic feeder that ruby broke into, i might have told the check out woman, when she asked, that it hadn't been used.  but people.  the receipt clearly said that the product you returned had to be in re-sellable condition, and it was.  this is a lie that hurt no one.

am i a bad person, or is this the kind of lie everyone tells?

since i know you want an automatic feeder update, i have now purchased the $80 feeder (see, this whole transaction was really an exchange), and once i buy some D batteries (this feeder is serious business), i will report back on its break-in-ability.  stay tuned.

love,
miss claire the liar

literally one hour later.

back to the drawing board.

ruby & claire attempt to negotiate their differences in preferred wake-up time

me: sarah says i should get an automatic feeder, but i'm worried it's going to be expensive.
jenny: how much would you pay every day not to be woken up at 5am?
me: $1 a day.  no!  $5 a day!
jenny: so this feeder could cost a thousand dollars and you would still buy it.
me: excellent point.

1 day later: automatic feeder purchased.  cost?  $40 + 1 AA battery.

i guess the theory behind an automatic feeder is that your cat doesn't associate you with getting fed, so she doesn't wake you up in the mornings in order to be fed.  in my dream world, ruby annoys this automatic feeder at 5am instead of me.  my friend sarah tells me that this worked for her and her cat.  fingers crossed, people!

a photo a day

president's day morning: eating brunch and grading quizzes on the patio of a nearby restaurant.  the sun was out and it was 70 degrees.  such a fantastic way to start my day!  i also ran errands and saw monuments men with some friends (DEFINITELY worth seeing, especially if you have an interest in history).

and let us give thanks for february in texas:

a Ruby a day

The ultimate sign that my kitten is becoming a grown up cat? She naps on my lap while I knit. A couple months ago this was not possible, as she attacked the yarn, the needles, my hands...anything moving. Knitting was impossible at home. Now? Ruby thinks that a warm lap on a Saturday afternoon is more important than playing with some silly yarn.

I am quite pleased. 

new york times interactive - can you live on the minimum wage - both interesting and really powerful!

a ruby a day

what i have to entertain me while i'm cooking (aka: ruby is adorable).

roasted eggplant curry

last night i made baingan bharta, which is roasted eggplant curry, and it was AMAZING.  i order this in restaurants sometimes, and i'm telling you: what i made was restaurant-quality.  mark bittman, you did not let me down!

i've been intimidated by making indian food at home because it seems like it requires a lot of spices…but this recipe only requires turmeric (which i bought recently for a different recipe) and garam masala, which whole foods had.  and man - using all the spices makes a difference.  i sometimes just omit one if i don't want to buy it.  do not do that if you make this recipe!

i warn you that this curry never looks good (even in restaurants), because roasted eggplant is grey…but trust me: it was incredible.  add some rice and a piece of naan (thank you, trader joe's frozen foods section) and you have a perfect meal.

a photo a day

First attempt at making homemade paneer for homemade Indian food. Saag paneer and baingan bharta, here I come! (Shout out to Becky for cheese making kit!)

paul simon + sting

last night i went to see paul simon and sting in concert!

reasons this concert gets a GOLD STAR from miss claire:
1. they sold $40 tickets.  there are so many concerts where all the tickets are over $100, and this is not okay.  let the common person (read: me) in!  so this was a totally affordable concert even though it was two huge starts on stage, and i loved that.  our seats were way way far away, but that is what is a-okay with me.  my view:

2. the concert was scheduled to start at 8 and started at 8:15.  i am NOT a fan of concerts that start 45 minutes late.  it makes me think that the artists are super high maintenance, and i do not like that.  be prompt!

3. there was no opening act.  YESSSSS.  i did not go to this concert to see the opening act.  i came to see paul simon (and sting).

4. they played for almost 3 hours.  yes!  do not put on a weenie concert.  put on an awesome concert!

as much as i LOVE paul simon, you can tell his is getting older and he can't hit all the notes that he used to be able to.  sting, however, has an amazing voice.  so i give sting props for his voice and i give paul simon props for his song writing.  the concert was about 1/3 paul on his own, 1/3 sting on his own, and 1/3 them singing together.  when they sang together, most of the songs they sang were simon & garfunkel songs.

this person had much better seats than me.  and their phone didn't run out of battery power 2 minutes into the concert, unlike moi.

my favorite moment (almost got a little teary - i love this song) - an "america"-"message in a bottle" medley:


my new favorite sting song (i didn't know it beforehand) - "fragile":



this was the first city in their many-city tour together over the next months, and you could tell.  there were some kinks to work out - who would sing when, their harmonies (though some harmonies were OUT OF THIS WORLD), and the didn't have a song planned for their second encore (because, yes, there was a second encore.  but i kind of loved that they came out with a second encore and then winged it).  if you get a chance, go see them.  they put on an AWESOME show and have an incredible band.

a Ruby a day

Lying on the couch with Miss Ruby is the best way to spend a Saturday afternoon!

Also, can we discuss how social Ruby is? Last night I had 7 people over to watch the opening ceremonies of the Olympics, which was really fun and my first little party at my apartment. Yay! I was worried that Ruby would be a weenie and hide under the bed the whole time, which would have been fine but boring. Instead, she wanted to say hi to everyone (especially people who are allergic to cats) and didn't get scared once and snuck bites off plates and snuggled with me a little. She was actually kind of out of control in the opposite way that I had imagined. So I put her on her leash so I could minimize the running around and allow my friends to actually watch the opening ceremonies instead of protecting their plate from Ruby. She is used to wearing the harness/leash for like 15 minutes at a time, but wore it semi-happily for more than an hour last night. She also got many compliments on how pretty she is. (I don't think it went to her head, though.)

Ruby gets a gold star for liking new people and being cute in the process. 

winter in Texas

This morning I woke up to the sound of hail on my windows. Not even enough to coat the ground when all was said and done, but it accumulated in the gutters and on my windshield. The high today was supposed to be 42, which is pretty cold for us - most days it is in the 50s and 60s, though it got to 77 two weeks ago.

So was 39 degrees at lunchtime and I walked outside to go to the cafeteria and I saw this. 

Um, yes. This is a tree that is blooming. Like it is spring. It is February 6th. 

I can officially say that I do not understand Texas winters. 

january: 1 & 2

first books of the new year!  this month i read:

fall of giants, by ken follett (i loved this book!  it's the first in a series of three books, and it chronicles the lives of five fictional people in different european countries during world war one.  it's fast paced and interesting, and much like pillars of the earth, i learned a lot of history in the process of reading the book.  it is a long one - 900 pages - but totally worth it.  i highly recommend it and can't wait to read the second in the series!  another bonus?  this was part of my purchase of history-related books this fall that my school paid for.  free book?  yessss.)

the spectacular now, by tim tharp (um, they made a movie out of this?  the book wasn't my speed.  i found the main character pathetic and his quasi-transformation not terribly interesting.  this book has such a fantastic title and was getting lots of press because of the movie…but i don't think i was its target audience.  and maybe i teach some sutter keelys, and maybe that turns me off to kids like him.  i don't know.  this one didn't do it for me.)

what i'm listening to right now

dar williams, "storm king":


she has such a beautiful voice.  hat tip to abby for posting this song on facebook and thus introducing me to it!

a ruby a day

Reason #1 why Ruby only gets let out of her carrier during rest stops.

what i'm listening to right now

kelly clarkson covers - hat tip to willis for sending me this link!  he is kelly's #1 fan and he knows i think she's pretty awesome, too.  #5 is my fav!

ice day #2

another day with no school!  it sleeted (that looks wrong - is that the correct usage?) all day and didn't get above freezing until 4pm, so it was probably a good decision for us weenie southerners.  we got the call that school was cancelled at 10:30pm last night, so i was able to turn off my alarm and sleep until 9 (minus the half-asleep stumbling to the bathroom to feed ruby at 6:30am).  yippee!  ruby and i watched tv and napped all day, and i finally ventured out at 5pm to buy more yarn for some projects i'm working on (stay tuned*) and to buy some groceries.  i'm about to kick this cold, so it was fantastic to have a day at home to focus on getting better.

*i recently bought these two books on knitting little stuffed animals, and i'm kind of obsessed with trying out some new patterns.  right now i am finishing a rainbow octopus, and then i want to try an elephant wearing a sweater.  because what self-respecting elephant goes around naked all the time?

tooth fairy hilarity.

weekend recap

i hate blogs where people just tell you what they did.  and here i am doing that.  ugh.  but here's what i've been up to!

on school on friday - ice day!  houston, as you might imagine, is not prepared for winter weather, so when there was freezing rain and 28 degree temps all night thursday night, school got cancelled for friday.  yippee!  i did a whole lot of nothing and it was fantastic.  i maintain that every year school should be cancelled for one day for a weather related reason, so i appreciate houston making that dream come true this year.  the joy of a snow day does not wear off, even when you are 31.

saturday - my sister got engaged!

i had been in on the surprise for quite a while and am so so happy for her that she's in on it now, too!

saturday i went to yoga and a coworker's party even though i felt a cold coming on, and both were fantastic.  sometimes i go to yoga and feel really strong and have excellent balance and try advanced moves.  this was one of those classes (yesssss).  (alternatively, sometimes i go to yoga and somehow can't stand on one leg even if my life depended on it and get tired really quickly and have to drag myself through the class. often their is no logical reason.)  then i went to a coworker's party that i almost didn't go to (see: cold coming on), but she texted to make sure she had enough vegetarian food for me, and then i couldn't say no.  the party was so. fun. and i ended up being one of the last people there, playing cranium and laughing a lot.  hooray for new friends!

today the cold attacked with full force, so in between trying to take breaths through my nose i watched a lot of the last season of dexter and then went to the movies to see her with elizabeth.  pretty good movie - it really made me think.  still want to see nebraska and captain phillips before the oscars in march.  i tried a new recipe and made spinach dal for dinner and it was pretty delish.

downton abbey + nyquil + 9pm bedtime + ruby had better want to snuggle = what i have planned for the rest of my weekend.  on to monday!

a ruby a day

THERE IS A BIRD OUT THERE!

a ruby a day

Can you spot the acrobat cat?

particularly beautiful photography - russian kids with their pets on their farm.

des hommes et des chatons

my new favorite blog - des hommes et des chatons - male models and kittens in the same poses.  HA.  i laugh just thinking about this blog.  totally safe for work as long as the people around you don't mind seeing half naked men AND WHY WOULD THEY.

long weekend in austin

i went to austin this weekend to visit my friend jenny and had such a great time!  we ate very good food, hung out with her friends (who i really enjoy), hiked enchanted rock, visited the cute little town of fredericksburg, watched downton abbey, and spent a lot of time watching her dog (piper) and ruby get to know each other.  (also, it was 70 degrees the whole weekend.  we kept telling each other: this is why we moved to texas!)

the first time ruby and piper met (this fall) ended with ruby trying frantically to climb a wall of my bedroom…which is to say, it didn't end well.  i figured if it was that bad this time around, ruby would spend the whole weekend in jenny's guest room, which is better than in a cage at the boarding place in houston.  the weekend started with them staring at each other from across the apartment for long periods of time (pictured above), and evolved into piper trying to play with ruby and ruby holding her ground by hissing and batting at piper…but being curious enough by sunday night to prowl around the apartment and interact with piper instead of staying under the bed (where she spent much of saturday).  it was pretty adorable. they did not end up cuddling together on the couch like i wanted, but i think they enjoyed each other.

hooray for a fun weekend with jenny!  back to work in the morning...

"the price of gold"

i was RIVETED by ESPN's "30 for 30" special on the nancy kerrigan / tonya harding scandal of 1994.    if you didn't see it on thursday night, you should absolutely watch it the next time it comes on.  i was 11  years old in 1994 and only remember a sketchy outline of what happened.  hearing more of the details - and listening to interviews with tonya harding today looking back on it - was fascinating.

today i learned that sochi is 10 hours ahead of central time.

i haven't had many people over to my apartment yet because that's a thing close friends do and i'm, you know, new to this city.  newish friends go out to restaurants and bars.  old friends sit on the couch in their pajamas and eat take out food.

but!  i love the olympics, so i am having a party to watch the opening ceremonies of the winter olympics.  i decided this at 3pm and sent out the invitation like 3 hours later.  (apparently i work quickly once i make decisions.)  hopefully some new friends will want to come over and eat and drink and relax and watch the opening ceremonies with me.  a step forward in my new home!  ruby better not hide under the bed the whole time.

cue the obsessive checking of the evite to see if people have replied.

TWO PEOPLE HAVE REPLIED YES!  wooooooo!

a ruby a day

she begrudgingly obeys, even without a treat in sight:


how smart is she?!  love this girl.

(not pictured: when she immediately jumps back up on the counter.)

there is a great moment in the movie philomena, which you should absolutely see, where philomena (played by judi dench) turns to an aging nun who has horribly wronged her and says "i forgive you."

her companion is still angry at the nun, and says to philomena, "what?  just like that?"

philomena replies, "it's not just like that.  it's hard.  it's a hard thing to do.  i don't want to hate people.  look at you.  i don't want to be like you."

--

the dixie chicks song "not ready to make nice" puts it this way - and i sing this line in my head a lot: "forgive, sounds good.  forget, i'm not sure i could."

--

i have been struggling with how to write this post for a long time - even whether i should write the post at all...whether i should share this private part of my world on a public space.  but it has been a part of my life for the past year, and at the end of the day i want to share it.

on december 5th a friend of mine entered a minimum security federal prison to begin a 5 year prison term, after 13 months of house arrest.  the crime that he pled guilty to is one that shocks and horrifies me, one that still makes my stomach hurt when i think about it too much.

i have come a long way in those 13 months.  from "he couldn't possibly have done this" to "he did this."  from "a person who does this is a horrible human being" to "good people do bad things."  from "do i call him?" to where i am today, writing letters with "federal corrections institute" in the address and coordinating an email list of people who want to send him books while he's in prison.  he deserves to be punished, but it doesn't have to be by me.

i didn't feel this way immediately, and i know we will never go back to our friendship as it existed 14 months ago.  but he is my friend.  i will never forget what he did, but i forgive him.

what i'm listening to right now

"the moorings," by andrew duhon:

only in texas

my cashier at the grocery story this afternoon asked me if i was "enjoying the cold weather."

it is currently 48 degrees outside.

discuss.

the last week of winter break

late on saturday the 28th i got back to houston from NC.  on sunday i picked up ruby.  she approves of the pajama pants that becky got me for christmas.

i finished knitting this stuffed bunny!  i am helping teach a knitting class during my school's interim term, so he is a demonstration bunny so the kids have an idea of what they might be able to make.  more stuffed animals to come, as this one was easy to make and is SO CUTE.

ruby has worms (not pictured.  you're welcome.).  she gets a dewormer and then proceeds to spend 23 hours a day on my bed looking SAD for the next three days.  i kind of panic.  she is eating normally, but seems to have zero energy.  becky and mom both have to talk me down.  i do a lot of lying on the bed, reading my book, and petting her.  normal ruby follows me around the apartment, plays with toys, and purrs when petted. this version of ruby does not do these things.  i tell myself that a pill is destroying a parasite inside her and this cannot feel good.  i decide to call the vet on day 4 if she isn't feeling better.

in the meantime, i buy my 2014 calendar from paper source.  you, too, need this calendar.

new years eve with two new friends!  good food, fun music, hilarious people-watching, and great company.

when i get home i try to make ruby pose with my new years headband.  she feels well enough to attack it from her spot on the bed.

new years day...sad ruby continues.  and i don't get out of my pajamas.

january 2...ruby feels better!  she does all her favorite things...play with toilet water:

help me cook:

try to get in the washing machine but accept the fact that she can just sit on top of it:

yay!  my kitty is okay again!  we do lots of cuddling and playing to make up for lost time.

jenny visits on her way back to austin from NC.  i see the secret life of walter mitty.

i also went to four yoga classes this week - it feels good to start the new year on the right foot.

season 4 of downton abbey starts tonight!!

and tomorrow…up at 6:30am and back to work.  sigh.

2013 in review: books

a recap:
2010: i read 15 books
2011: i started my book challenge with the goal of reading 25 books; i read 38.
2012: year two of the challenge; same goal.  i read 34 books.
2013: year three of the challenge.  i read 34 books again.

2013 broken down:
17 books written by women
17 by men

22 fiction books
12 nonfiction

(as mentioned in my previous post, i know that i'm drawn towards fiction because it's such good reading in bed before i fall asleep.  i have several historical books that my school bought me that i need to dive into this year, though!  and i got three (fiction) books for christmas - hooray!)

my favorite books of 2013? columbine and let the great world spin.  put them on your list!

there's a great line in quiet that i thought appropriate to use to end this year of books:
"It's always been private occasions that make me feel connected to the joys and sorrows of the world, often in a form of communion with writers and musicians I'll never meet in person. Proust called these moments of unity between writer and reader 'that fruitful miracle of a communication in the midst of solitude.'" (pg. 68-69)

happy reading in 2014, friends!

a photo a day

I got to meet my friends Emma and Ryan on Saturday!  They are almost 5 months old and I had yet to snuggle them.  Don't worry: that was corrected.  Aren't they SO CUTE?

Mamas and Daddys and babies!

I miss these friends and their new additions and wish I got to spend more time with them!

december: 33 & 34

to round out 2013, i read:

tell the wolves i'm home, by carol rifka brunt (my new school has an annual book fair and parents sometimes buy gift certificates for teachers to use at the book fair, and one of my new students bought me a gift certificate (!), so i bought this book and the orchardist, which you will see here eventually.  i had heard a lot of good things about this book, and it didn't disappoint.  it's 1987 and the main character (she's 14)'s uncle dies of AIDS and then she finds out he had a long time partner that her mother forbid her uncle to tell her about.  the story is about her discovery of her uncle's secret life.  i flew through it and would really recommend it!)

quiet, by susan cain (i read tell the wolves i'm home in the middle of quiet.  i should say that quiet is VERY good, but i don't love reading nonfiction before i fall asleep - it requires too much concentration - and so it took me two months to finish quiet because i kept getting distracted by other, lighter, reads.  when i was in grad school last year, this was a book that everyone was talking about.  it's about the difference between introverts and extroverts, and as a person who identifies as an introvert parts of it were really fascinating.  this fall i also had a parent tell me that this book had totally changed the way they treat their introverted daughter, and i love books that can make such an impact on peoples' lives.  i'm sure i'll be referencing this book a lot in the future, and all you introverts out there will find it hits home, i think.)

knitting projects

the latest round of knitting projects, just in time for christmas!

1. adult hat.  this took a little perfecting - the first one i made wasn't quite long enough and looked slightly ridiculous, but i think i've got it down now.

no selfie is complete without a kitty.

2. baby hats.  i mean, how cute are these?  i have no idea how large a baby's head is, but the internet has some ideas, so let's hope the internet is right.

3. baby blanket, take 3.  this one is so comfy that ruby snuggled up on it.

up close so you can see the detail.  i think it turned out great, but i did get prettttty tired of knitting the pattern.

completed blanket!

Merry Christmas!

Abby and Stella got new beds for Christmas! However, they did not get the memo that the big bed is for the big dog and the little bed is for the little dog...

all the christmas music is making me sentimental

i sit here with a kitty taking a nap on my lap for the SECOND time today, which is unprecedented…normally she would like to be right. near. by. (as in, under my chair, next to me on the couch, following me around the apartment, lying on the kitchen floor while i cook dinner, cuddled up against my legs when i sleep), but not on top of me, and i'm enjoying her soft warm self very much.  oh wait - she had enough.  she is back to her spot under the chair.

what i was GOING to say still applies…which is that i feel very very lucky these days.  why did i wait so long to get a cat?  ruby is the sweetest kitty ever (and is now back in my lap).  i felt a great deal of love from my students this week, with several of them stopping by with cards or candy or little gifts for me.  i went to trivia with work friends this week - my first trivia night in over a year - and it was so much fun and sounds like it will be a semi-regular thing.  today i went to get tea and see philomena (and cry kind of a lot - what an amazing movie) with a new non-work friend.  i am healthy and happy.  i am lucky.  thank you for being part of my little life.

i've probably posted this before, but it's one of my favorites so you get it again:

a Ruby a day

Ruby would like everyone to know that Sundays are for napping on the couch.

last day of work in 2013!

two articles i found interesting:

the documented life

OED birthday word generator ("downloadable" was added to the dictionary the year i was born!)

cat lady talk

1. the first day of ruby's new diet ended at 11pm with her licking her bowl for like 5 minutes straight…getting all the yummy stuck-on bits off.  the bowl ended up on the other side of the room from all her vigorous licking…poor hungry ruby.

2. i should also mention that ruby is learning "down" - as in: get DOWN! off my damn countertops, cat.  so now she comes when she's called about 80% of the time, will wear her harness and leash but still gives me dagger eyes while it's happening, and gets down off the countertop about (let's be honest) 25% of the time.  progress!

3. she has gotten into the habit of waiting by the door if i am home later than 5pm.  surprise!  a ruby is waiting to greet you.  it's very sweet.

4. additionally, ruby can quasi tell time.  i mean, animals are good at this, i guess.  if i get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom and it is before 4am, she will wait in the warm bed for me to return.  after 4?  she will come along, as if i might perhaps be confused and feed her breakfast while i'm up (her food bowl is in the bathroom).  silly ruby.

5. obligatory cute ruby picture.  she will wear the ribbon, but she doesn't have to like it.

this weekend was fun

on friday i went to dinner and movie with some friends from work - we saw dallas buyers club at an independent theater near my house that sells beer.  the beer was delish and the movie was really good.  hard to watch at points, but so well acted and a really compelling story line.

on saturday i lazed around, baking and cleaning and doing laundry and snuggling a cat and watching christmas movies, then went to yoga, then to a christmas party with some friends from work.  i made brown butter sea salt rice krispy treats from the smitten kitchen cookbook, and they were hands down the best rice krispy treats ever and were consumed quickly and with happiness by my friends at the party.  i heart smitten kitchen.

today ruby started her diet (i can't deny that she's got some extra belly fat…but she is unamused by the change from 1/2 cup to 1/3 cup of food in the mornings), then i went to lunch and the symphony with some friends to see their holiday pops concert - my atlanta friends and i did this two years in a row when i lived there, and i was excited that some of my new houston friends wanted to go.  tonight is dinner and the homeland finale at josh and holly's house.

it was a weekend full of friends, none of whom i had six months ago, all of whom i enjoy spending time with and feel increasingly close to.  a great weekend!  houston feels more and more like home.

can it just be winter break already?  nope, one more week of work to go...

saturday morning in december

home alone on tv, doing laundry, baking cookies…the perfect saturday morning in my house!

a ruby a day

ruby's newest trick.  who needs opposable thumbs?

“The problem, often not discovered until late in life, is that when you look for things in life like love, meaning, motivation, it implies they are sitting behind a tree or under a rock. The most successful people in life recognize, that in life they create their own love, they manufacture their own meaning, they generate their own motivation. For me, I am driven by two main philosophies, know more today about the world than I knew yesterday. And lessen the suffering of others. You'd be surprised how far that gets you.”
--Neil deGrasse Tyson

thanksgiving

my grandma's fruit cobbler recipe is DELISH.  blueberry cobbler is the best kind of cobbler (do not argue with me), and becky's boyfriend really likes cobbler, so we made some for thanksgiving alongside a pecan pie.  the dish was scraped clean, but thankfully not before i woke up from my nap (whew).  do yourself a favor and make this ASAP!

action shot on thanksgiving day: becky's making mashed potatoes (her specialty - secret ingredient: cream cheese) and i'm assembling the cobbler!  (thanks to laura for this great sisters picture.)

what i'm listening to right now

thank you again, shazam.

"human," by christina perri - i love her voice.

a ruby a day

ruby when she was 2 months old

ruby at 6 months old

once a comfy napping place, always a comfy napping place.

a photo a day

My cousin Kate, the ballerina! I saw her perform in The Nutcracker yesterday - she's a new corps member at the San Antonio ballet. I'd never seen The Nutcracker live before, but it was fantastic and she's such a beautiful dancer.

I also got a chance to have lunch and see the Alamo with my aunt and uncle before the performance.  (It was my first trip to San Antonio.)  Such a fun day!

The drive home was a little nuts…it was sprinkling rain and then the temperature dropped from 35 to 29 degrees…and there were no fewer than 6 accidents (caused by ice, i guess) that I passed, including two (one in both directions) that SHUT DOWN I-10 FOR MILES.  I called Becky to tell her that the zombie apocalypse was happening…it's bizarre to be on a highway with no traffic at all coming towards you.

What have we learned?  When it gets below freezing all hell breaks loose in Texas.

a kitten (who are we kidding - she's a cat) a day

Christmas kitty!

two great NPR stories to listen to

a cool concept, and beautifully done: lincoln's 272 words, a model of brevity for modern times

i cried when listening to this - it's incredible, but perhaps you shouldn't listen to it while on a walk in a public place (rookie mistake): moved by kennedy's death, the boston symphony played on

a photo a day

i'm sorry to every other sandwich i've ever eaten: this one is my lifetime favorite.  truffled egg salad on a pretzel bun from local foods - INCREDIBLE.  how did i live in houston for six months before going here?  and when can i go back?

what i'm listening to right now

"compass," by lady antebellum - another shazamed find!

a kitten a day

ruby explores.

 

november: 32

for the first time in a LONG time, i only read one book this month.  i have no excuses, other than it is hard to read when a certain kitty willingly snuggles like this.

this month i read:

interpreter of maladies, by jhumpa lahiri (this is a set of short stories, all of them great - particularly the last one in the bunch.  my only complaint is that almost all of her stories are about indian immigrants in boston…and there's nothing wrong with that, of course, but it really was EVERY story and i sort of got tired of that.  she's a fantastic writer, though, and i'd recommend you read one of her books if you aren't familiar with her!)