annie blog

Well, y’all, I’ve been cleaning and reorganizing and culling books like a madwoman today. There is nothing like me finding out that I have, like, 5 copies of Pilgrim’s Progress as I sorted through all the books in the basement to make me feel like my books are, perhaps, procreating on their own.  (Not to mention how uneducated and, well, lazy I feel for having 5 copies and never, once, reading any of them.  Shhhh!  Don’t tell anyone.  I do claim to be a Presbyterian, after all.)

All I know is that my books have books.

Yikes.  It is just crazy, the number of books I have.  And, let me not fail to mention the spiders, the mold, and the dust that had me vacuuming with a bandana tied cowboy-esque across my nose.  Nothing like cleaning my basement to really cement in my mind how pitiful a housekeeper I truly am.

So, enough grody details.

What do you say that we talk about shoes?

Yes.  That’d be lovely.

As I mentioned on yesterday’s post, I found some awesome shoes at the Goodwill when I stopped in there to donate some stuffed animals and clothing.  (That Goodwill had better be glad that I’m donating my books elsewhere….they wouldn’t know what hit them…)

I had my youngest son with me.  He loves, LOVES the Goodwill.  He could stay there all day looking at the knick-knacks and what-not.  So, as he ran around with a copper fish pan on his head, I perused the shoes.

Because, you never know what you’ll find.

First, I found these.  I like them a lot.  Truthfully, I just might love them.  So much that, if they don’t bring enough on ebay, I’ll be ending the auction early and keeping them for myself.  If that happens, I’ll be needing fashion advice from any/all of you on how and what to wear them with.

Then, I found these.  Unbelievable.  These cost $300 new — and they appeared to have never been worn.  Crazy.  These are the shoes that Barbie would wear if she were a living person.  That is why I’m selling them even though they are my size.  I like odd shoes….but pink iridescent shiny patent leather….well, I don’t think that I can rock those.

Ta Da:

I’m sincerely grateful for folks who will donate unworn gorgeous shoes to a thrift store.  Bless them, truly.

And, sorry my Anna Maria Horner pillow is upside down in the picture.  As you can tell by this post…shoes and cleaning have scrambled my brain.

I hope that you’ve had a good Wednesday!!!

Or, maybe, I should revise that to “Hey, You!” or “Anybody there?” since I doubt anyone is still reading this seldom-updated blog of mine.

What’s been up is that we’ve been out of town.  I know awesome folks who continue to blog when they travel.  I’m not one of them.

So, just to catch up, we’ve been to Alabama, to Mississippi, to Alabama, and back to Mississippi again.

Oh, the food I’ve consumed, y’all.

I altered a cool vintage dress to fit me just before I left.  I thought to myself that I’d put a picture of it on here when I returned.  That is not happening, now.  Why?  Well, I can get the dress on, still, but breathing after I’ve zipped it is a little less certain.  And, seeing as how oxygen is necessary and all…..

Who is to blame? Well, besides my own hand that lifted the food to my own mouth, of course,  is all of that good Southern food and the fact that I didn’t have to make any of it myself.

The culprits:  Fried Catfish, BBQ and tons of awesome vegetables, hushpuppies, BBQ again, pizza on the road (twice), smoked ham, smoked ham again, fried catfish again, brisket (2 times), Key Lime Pie, poundcake — everywhere we went, things purchased during the Sonic happy hour, the best trout I’ve ever eaten, earth-shattering strawberry cheesecake, fried green tomatoes on a red sauce with a dab of fresh mozzarella on top, BBQ, BBQ…….and I’m sure that I’m forgetting something.  Oh, that’s right:  beer, wine, and sweet tea.

Needless to say, now that I’ve returned home, I’m back on my healthy food wagon.

Along with my healthy food good behavior, we have begun doing the paring down of unneeded household items that I try to do every summer.  This usually happens after we get back home.  I guess that is because we go from spacious interiors back to our cozy cottage.  So, the battle against extra stuff is being waged.  I just took some clothes and stuffed animals to the Goodwill this morning.  Then, I went shopping.  Ridiculous.  But, you just never know what you’ll find.

And, guess what I found? Well, I found that Barbie went shopping at Kate Spade but somehow left her shoes behind.  Also, I found that Dorothy is missing some gorgeous ruby slippers.  The unworn things that people donate (not to mention, buy new in the first place) just astound me.

Come back tomorrow and I’ll show you my finds!

Until then, I hope y’all are having a happy Tuesday!

must be summer.

The rapidity with which we embrace summer’s change of pace is always interesting to me.  I find myself having to consult the calendar to see what day it is, frequently.

I like this change of pace.  It’s a thing of beauty.

I have a few things of beauty to share with y’all today:

First off, you MUST see this fried pie.  It has strawberries, and moonshine (or grappa if you don’t have any moonshine), and it might just be one of the most beautiful desserts I’ve ever laid my eyes on.  Side note:  have any of y’all seen this magazine, Garden and Gun before?  It looks very Southern and very interesting.  Hmmmm.

Then, there’s this potato salad with tzatziki from SmittenKitchen.  My mouth is watering.

Okay, switching from food, since I’ve gone and made myself hungry….

I love this guy’s voice.  He’s a folk singing Sri-Lanken-American who grew up in — St. Louis! Wow.  I don’t really know what I was expecting, but I’m happily surprised.

Here he is doing “Crime of Passion” during a live session for HearYa.  This song is stuck in my head.

Bhi Bhiman has a fine tenor, right?

Happy Wednesday, y’all!

I hope that this finds all of you having a good weekend.

Summer is almost here — it is beating on the door, really, since all the boys have only 2 or so days left.  There is just something about the end of the school year.  Their excitement is like a hum in the air.

We’ve no great plans for the summer.  Just the pool, Alabama, Mississippi, the pool, the pool, the pool.  So, basically, our favorite kind of summer plans.

It opens today.  I must go buy a vat of sunscreen for my pale children and my pale self.  By August, only one of us will still be pale.  Guess who?

Anyway, I saw a few things this week that I thought that you might like.

This needlework seen hanging over the bed in the first image of this house tour on Design*Sponge.  The homeowner said his grandmother made it by just designing as she went.  Stream of consciousness needlework, I guess.  I think this is right up my alley.  Maybe it’ll be something I will do between reading books and counting to 4 at the pool.

This is a beautiful, beautiful sandwich.  I want one.

I’m reading this book, At Home on the Range.  Absolutely delightful.  I was reading it last night and James kept asking me, “You’re laughing at a cookbook?”  Yes.  Its author is one of those rare souls who falls into the Force of Nature category.  Wonderful.

Happy Saturday, y’all, and happy weekend, too!

Last August, I blogged about a dress that I had scored at the Goodwill, altered with some thread I had on hand, and then went on to wear all summer long.

Well, today, I was on The Sartorialist and clicked on one of his favorite images.  Guess what I found there?  My white dress!  It is totally the same one though, I don’t think that she paid $4.50.

Funny coincidence.

And, I hope that y’all have had a good Sunday and a great Mother’s Day!!

I made a semifreddo for Cinco de Mayo last week.

It was good, so very good, and was delightedly eaten by all those in attendance.  Except E, my baby (who is 8 but still the baby).  We weren’t concerned because that just meant more for us.

I think that a semifreddo like this one might be the perfect summer dessert.  It is easy to put together, and, except for a little time on the stovetop, doesn’t heat up the kitchen one bit.  Also, we had it with mango, but it would be wonderful with just about any beautifully ripe fruit…..peaches, fresh pineapple, strawberries….you name it.  As long as you like the way the fruit tastes with coconut and lime then it’ll be awesome.  And, as far as fruit goes, I usually employ my dad’s saying,

It goes together if you put it together.

Papa Joe uses this motto for clothing and home design, too, and although I embrace it in theory, I still can’t wear certain things together….because they would never, ever go.  Fruit isn’t clothing, though, so the motto goes here.

So, now that I’ve digressed from the recipe…here you go.

Coconut Lime Semifreddo

(slightly adapted from Shutterbean, who has wonderful step-by-step photos)

Serves 12

• 1 can unsweetened coconut milk (13.5 oz)
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk (14 oz.)
• 1 tablespoon finely grated lime zest
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cup cold heavy cream
• 1/2 cup natural shredded coconut, toasted
• 1 mango, thinly sliced, or whatever seasonal fruit is available

Toast the coconut on a baking sheet in a 300 degree oven until light golden brown.

Line a 4 1/2 by 8 1/2 inch loaf pan with parchment paper leaving an overhang on each side. In a medium saucepan, combine the coconut milk (I used the regular, full fat version)  and the sweetened condensed milk together and bring to a boil over high heat.  Stir frequently.  Meanwhile, prepare a large bowl of ice water, set aside.  (The bowl should be large enough for you to place the saucepan in, later.)  Reduce heat and cook at a rapid simmer until the mixture starts to thicken, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the salt & lime zest. Place saucepan over (in) the bowl of ice water and stir the mixture until it’s cool, about 5 minutes.

In a large bowl, beat cream until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the whipped cream into the coconut milk mixture. Pour into the loaf pan and top with coconut. Freeze until firm, 6 hours or overnight. When ready to serve, let the semifreddo sit at room temperature for 20 minutes. Invert on a platter, remove the parchment and top with the sliced mango.

This is great, y’all, give it a try.

I don’t know what it is about do it yourself projects….I’m just drawn to them, I guess.  Especially those projects that transform something old and useless into something new and useful.

Like this hanging lamp.

In this article from the New York Times, Andrew Wagner talks about seeing abandoned, rusting bicycles around town and how that made him wonder what could be done with them.  He and his collaborator, Jen Turner, came up with a hanging lamp inspired by Noguchi.

I think that this is very cool — in part because I can’t afford but LOVE Noguchi designs, and in part just because it is awesome all on its own.

Speaking of Noguchi, did y’all know that he designed the ceiling of a building here in St. Louis?

Also, I want one of his coffee tables.

Hope y’all are having a good Tuesday!

is a very interesting place.

I went there a week ago — this happens if you neglect to get the tags on your ancient car renewed on time.  Ahem.  Anyway, any budding authors out there?  Well, I know exactly where you might go to get inspiration. The stories abound.

I really should have known that I was in for a bit of an odd experience when I showed up, wearing my casual t-shirt, cardigan, jersey skirt and flip flop combination that I had been wearing all day — and they asked me if I was a lawyer.  Do lawyers wear flip flops now?  Well, you know, at this court, I think that they just might.

Other highlights:

• Seeing a lawyer that I’ve seen on billboards around town.  I recognized his eye-patch.
• Feeling like I was in high school as the crowd was continually shushed and cell phones taken by those in authority.
• Hearing LOTS of interesting names….like the 18 year old kid that got his trial postponed.  His name?  Dorian Gray.

It was a funny experience and motivating, too.  The next time my plates are due I’ll renew.

I hope that y’all had a good Monday!

I hope that this finds y’all having a great day.

Here are a few things that have caught my eye this week:

Noise Trade is a music site that has free, legal downloads from all kinds of bands. They also have a blog. Way cool.

I’ve been waiting for a  year, nearly, to make this Coconut-Lime Semifreddo with Mango.  I made it tonight and we’ll eat it tomorrow.  Fingers crossed that it turns out great!  It just seemed very Cinco de Mayo-ish to me.

They are reading this book, An Everlasting Meal,  on a blog that I read.  It looks really interesting.  Have any of y’all given it a read, yet?  Hmmmm.

Another food book that I’ve recently read but haven’t cooked anything from yet is Jamie Oliver’s, Meals in Minutes.  In it, he cooks an entire meal in, like, half an hour, and tells you specifically how to do it, too.  I’ve already bookmarked some of the salads and desserts.  Plus, I like the way he has methodically fit it all together like a great jigsaw puzzle.  Is the whole technique awesome?  Yes.  Will I be able to employ it for my army?  Probably not.  But I really like the ideas behind it all and I admire anyone who tries to get folks to cook and value cooking and good food in this busy world.

I’ve been reading The Autism Revolution, lately.  My first thought is that I think that this is a really good book and that every doctor who sees an autistic patient should read it with his mind wide open.  I’m still in the middle — already I will say that I wished that everyone with a dog in the autism fight would just be as reasonable as the authors of this book.  Come together, people, please.

Pokey LaFarge and the South City Three will be performing for free at the Saint Louis Art Museum on June 22nd.  I can’t even express how exciting  this is.  We saw him at the Whittaker Music Festival last August.  It was one of my favorite concerts, ever.  I remember just sitting there, listening to the music,  thinking that both my parents and grandparents would have found it equally entertaining….and there aren’t many musicians that you can say that of.  See you there?

I really like this bedroom.  Both versions are good with me….though I can’t get into monogrammed linens.  Not for me and my dirty bunch.  That isn’t happening.  There is possibility and then there is reality.  And, if reality has me doing more laundry than I’m already doing, well then, count me out.  Can I get an amen?

Finally, I’m so excited to see that the Smitten Kitchen Cookbook is on its way.  I really want to get this cookbook and I haven’t even seen it yet.  I rarely buy books these days,  but, I don’t know, maybe I’ll actually purchase this one.  All Deb’s recipes are just right….I mean, look at that french toast casserole!

Okay, that’s all the coherence (or semblance of it, anyway) that will be issuing forth from here tonight.

Grimm’s on y’all!  I can’t wait to see what happens tonight!  And, don’t forget the new Sherlock that comes on PBS this weekend, I think.

Okay, over and out.  And, Happy Friday!

This is a great song from the recently released album, Stars and Satellites, put out last month by the band, Trampled by Turtles.

If you like Bluegrass or AltCountry music you should check it out. Also, make sure to listen to the 2:55 minute mark because that is where they kick it in.

Happy listening and happy Thursday, y’all!!