Snow, snow, snow, and soup.

Usually when it snows, I start roasting a squash.  It's my thing.

But last Tuesday, I had run out of squash.  So I made soup instead.

I made it in a cast iron pot, just to be fancy.

Vegetable soup with rosemary dumplings -- divine!

Then there was... the sunshine!

Today was the first day in a long time that I went outside voluntarily.  Does that make me sound like a hermit?  Well, I am a bit of a homebody (my Mom calls it "being a houseplant"), but it's not nearly as dramatic as that made it sound.  Sure, I go outside to walk the dog, or trek to the grocery store, or to ship packages, but usually I put that off for as long as I can.  It's cold, and windy, and cloudy, and my couch is more comfortable, accented with a hot cup of cocoa and warm wool socks, than any Winter city sidewalk could possibly be.

But today, the sunshine came out, I heard birds chirping in the tree outside of my window, and so I went outside of my own will, and rather enjoyed it.

It's so nice to be reminded of Spring.  I'm sure it's still a long way off, but these little teasers don't really do any harm.  Of course, the ground is still covered in snow.

Ike LOVES it.  He'll walk in the snow until his little paws go numb, then come back to the sidewalk and look up at me, waiting for me to pick him up like an infant to carry him home.  Last year we bought him little rubber booties to wear in the cold weather, but I can't find them for the life of me...

These ladies seem to always be outside, walking up and down the sidewalk with the help of their walkers, all of them interrupting each other in what sounds like Russian.  I've never seen them acknowledge anyone else on the sidewalk, they're pretty much in a world of their own.  Their conversations get really animated sometimes, too.  I wish I understood... probably a lot of old lady gossip.

Just in case you forgot (as if you could, with me reminding you all of the time) -- the RAW Showcase is taking place in 15 days!!  Tickets are still only $10, but they'll go up to $15 if you end up buying them at the door.  This is a great opportunity to see new, fresh faces in the art world -- photographers, painters, dancers, musicians, makeup artists, fashion designers -- and to get out of your Chicago-Winter-cave for a night.  Heck, if I can get there on the CTA with all of my booth decorations and wearing a dress (unheard of, I know), then certainly you can do it too.  You can also use that opportunity to come to my booth and tease me about how silly I must have looked getting all of that stuff on the CTA while wearing a dress.

Buy your tickets here!!

I'm going to be right next to the downstairs bar (y'heard!), outfitted with two very comfortable booth seats, perfect for lounging on while eating our take-out from Native Foods down the block.

Uh-huh, I've got this all kinds of planned out.

A Nice Day to be Inside

Recipe: Roasted Butternut Alfredo

Countdown!

It's kind of funny how I start actually looking forward to being laid off toward the end of the Cubs season.  I mean, not the dirty reality of it -- looking for a temp job, being broke, having way more time on my hands than any human really should -- but then, this year, it's going to be a really great opportunity to work on my pendants (and other things! coming soon!) and maybe hopefully fingers-crossed develop this whole thing into a "real" (read: highly profitable) business.  I don't expect anything miraculous to happen over night, of course, but I think a lot of hard work this Winter might start to pay off.  The opportunity to actually work at a craft, as an artist, to be my own boss (because goodness knows, I don't like anyone else being my boss) is so great, and rather than hopeful, I want to be determined.  I really want to do right by myself, I owe myself a genuine solid effort.

So the countdown?  About a month, give or take a few.

The Winter Housewife

That should probably be my new nickname, "The Winter Housewife".  During the Summer (well, during the baseball season), I'm so busy working I can hardly see straight.  But once we get into off-season territory, it's all making soups, baking bread, and decorating the apartment.  I'm a Winter Housewife (House-Domestic-Partner, actually).

Yesterday I made a positively delightful Sweet Pepper Soup, today it was Blueberry Jam.  I think tomorrow I'll try Peanut Butter Dog Treats for Ike.

I also have enough time to leisurely drink my Buttery Caramel Coffee.  So far, life is pretty sweet.  I know myself well enough to realize I'll get bored very quickly, but for right now, I'm enjoying this slow-paced city life.

What I'm photographing... Random shots around Uptown and Boystown

My 'fella and I walked to Whole Foods (after a short detour to Wrigley Field) to get epsom salt, vitamins, and thank-goodness-he's-finally-coming-around: natural sodas!  I haven't brought my camera out in a while, so it felt good to snap a few pictures along the way.

You can see more of my photos on Flickr