The Essential Things in Life

Night after the painting is done.
These are the essential "things" in my life now:

a toothbrush
a tube of toothpaste
some changes of clothing
water and cups
cable internet connection and my laptop
of course, electricity and air purifier
lamps
a sofa used as a bed

Squeezed Space

The painters are coming to do all the walls tomorrow. We spent last night and all of today rearranging the furniture and pushing each piece away from the wall, to the center of the room. Taking down books just to put them back again. Finding objects lost and forgotten for the past few years -- some of them we kept with delight but others are now lying peacefully in the trash pile...

Lily's room is done, the kitchen is done, the living room and the dining area and the main bathroom are all ready for them.

Goodreads

So, I joined GoodReads to keep track of books I am reading and my friends are reading. I know, it's a geeky thing to do but how gloriously so!

Beet and Carrot Slaw

Ingredients:
Beet (1, medium)
Carrot (1, large)
Lemon Juice (1 tbsp)
Olive Oil (1 tbsp)
Sugar (1 tsp)
Salt and pepper (to taste)

Peel and grate beet and carrot and put in a big bowl
Mix other ingredients to make dressing
Pour dressing over grated vegetables and toss

Voila

Braised Cabbage and Chicken with Tomato Sauce

Cabbage
1. A really good looking head of cabbage, curly savoy cabbage
2. Cut up the cabbage into big pieces
3. Saute chopped shallets in olive oil
4. Add cabbage and bacon bits and cover until tender
5. Add white wine when time is right

Chicken
1. Saute shallets in olive oil
2. Chicken squares
3. Canned of diced tomato
4. Cover and cook until done

Halloween 2006 at School

So.. for Halloween, I dressed up Goth... seen here with Russell, who happened to have the same idea this year - and then Joe, as Count Q., as usual. Haha.

Pre-Halloween, 2006

So... for a whole year, Lily had her heart set on being an iPod for Halloween. After months of "planning" in our heads... this costume was finally made. We picked our new favorite band: Red Hot Chili Peppers as the iPod Video band; two band members, Anthony and Flea are put on sticks and can jump around against the background; and Lily sings Dani California, one of her favorite songs, as she trick-or-treats. Today, at the neighborhood pre-Halloween party, she was the only child with a home-made costume and got a lot of happy exclaims from passers-by and some of her old friends.