So the Progress! playlist has at last been finalized . . . and here it is (Lane, it will be in the mail tomorrow!):
Dancin' with Myself--Billy Idol
Pursuit of Happiness (feat. MGMT and Ratatat)--KiD CuDi (thanks Miss!)
Hold Your Head Up High--Miri Ben Ari (feat. Lil Mo)
Fear and Love--Morcheeba
I'll Work for Your Love--Bruce Springsteen
Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow--Amy Winehouse
The Way I Am--Ingrid Michaelson
Love, Come Save Me--Right Away, Great Captain!
To Start Anew--The Perishers
Woman Be Strong--Will Hoge
The Heart of the Matter--India.Arie
Love Will Come Through--Travis
Stronger--Britney Spears
Stronger Woman--Jewel
You Can Have it All--Yo La Tengo
So Happy I Could Die--Lady Gaga
You Move Me--Pierce Pettis
Hot Like Fire--the XX
Here Comes Your Man--the Pixies
I'm finally satisfied with its progression, and super excited to have a physical (and musical) manifestation of 2010's commitment to forward-motion and progress!!! Except that I fully intend to drink wine and watch the Bachelor tonight, which doesn't seem to be very progressive, huh? Whatever, after managing my 5th period hellions today, I deserve some time-wasteful indulgence. ;) Anyone else watching the Bachelor? This guy is such a Goody Two Shoes, gosh.
Another thing I did today: Make some pretty fantastic vegetable soup. I made it for my posse in Russian River last weekend, but I think that performance anxiety + cooking in a place other than my own kitchen yielded less than optimal results. I made it again today, however, and it's back to its delicious essence:
Speaking of my kitchen, that's another thing--it's so luxurious! For those of you who live in SF or another big city, you know how precious a spacious kitchen is. Ours is even bigger than it looks in this picture, cause it's L-shaped and juts out around the fridge. And we even have a separate dining room, so this bistro table is just extra! Here it is:
So this is how I make my yummy veggie minestrone for anyone else trying to endure this gross, chilly, rainy, wet weather:
Dice a large onion, red pepper, and yellow pepper, and saute in olive oil (in a BIG pot) until pretty well cooked
Add a little minced garlic to the mix
Add various spices . . . I use basil, oregano, parsley, Tony Chachere's, chili flakes, s&p
After all this is well sauteed, add a jumbo can of diced tomatoes (either just one, or a jumbo one and a regular one. sometimes I add a little tomato paste as well)
Fill the rest of the pot (minus a couple inches) up with water and 4 Knorr vegetable bouillon cubes . . .
(Meanwhile, cut a large potato into chunks)
Bring to a boil & add the potato
Let the potato cook for a bit, then add a small pasta (I usually use orzo)
Add a can of kidney beans and a can of corn
And that's about it! I usually check the seasoning & add from there. YUM!
I finally finished Girls in Trucks by Katie Crouch (lent to me by my awesome friend Josh Klipp) and let me just say I LOVED IT. And highly recommend it. Imagine that . . . I loved a book about a southern girl in the big city who can't seem to find the right man. How funny! ;) In any case, it's well-written, engaging, relatable, multi-dimensional, quirky, and honest. I'll definitely look out for whatever's coming next from Katie Crouch.
I'm so grateful to have had long conversations with my sis and Lesley (my semi-sis) today . . . I miss my Georgia girls so much. I love California but it's so far away! Oh and speaking of Lesley, check out her ridiculously cute Etsy shop. OMG. Prettiest little girl clothes and accessories and toys you can imagine. And every single one is hand-made! Too bad all my little rascals are baby boys.
And now onto my favorite part of the evening: cheap red wine!
