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Today I've been listening to BBC Radio 4's piece on specialty tea, which I found fascinating, especially since I've recently developed an appreciation (well, a bit of an obsession, really) with loose-leaf teas. Personally, I find the flavor of loose-leaf tea to be greatly superior (read: bolder, more flavorful, with a discernible freshness) to that of tea found in bags. But don't take my word for it! Click here for a listen.
{Photos taken from a tea tasting ceremony in San Francisco, courtesy of T}
This shot was taken last week on the last day of a glorious three-day weekend. T woke up that morning with the urge to cook his own meatballs from scratch and he gleefully set to work while I cheered him on from my perch at the dining table (I like to keep a safe distance from beef and pork, personally). All in all it was a good day: friends came over, Uno was played, pinot grigio was imbibed, twilight walks were enjoyed, and meatballs were devoured...by the males in our party, mostly (alas, I was the only female; story of my life). I, in a very uncharacteristic move, sampled one meatball. It wasn't bad, if you like that sort of thing! T actually thought the recipe was a little heavy on the pork, so he plans on halfing the bacon portions in future. You can find the recipe here.
How cute would these Penguin postcards look hanging in a little cluster on a wall? Sadly they're not available stateside until October, but who's to stop me from popping over to the Amazon UK website and buying a box of my own? That's right, nobody.
Hope you had a lovely Valentine's Day weekend. I ended up taking my own advice and indulged in a little pre-Valentine's Day pampering (a massage here and a manicure/pedicure there), after which T and I caught a Hitchcock double feature of Rebecca and Notorious, two of my favorites, at the local theatre. And these gorgeous lovelies below, courtesy of T, were just the icing on the cake. It was such a lovely long weekend all around! Hope yours was just as great.
If only more men were secure enough in their masculinity to don a shawl with their blazer, the world just might be a better place. Don't you think? You also can't beat a smile like that.
I always feel a bit conflicted about Valentine's Day. I loathe its crass commercialism, the expectations and subsequent disappointments, the sort of pressure it bears on couples and single folks alike. And yet, I feel like Valentine's Day has gotten a bad rap of late, which is a shame because I truly feel that the idea behind it is rather sound (and interesting, to boot). What's wrong with showing the people we love most just how much we love and appreciate them? What's wrong with a little affection? Nothing, is the answer! I like the idea of celebrating all types of love--romantic, filial, friendship-based, or even self-love--not only on Valentine's Day, but throughout the year. Whether it's booking yourself that deep tissue massage you're in desperate need of or sending little notes to your twin nieces (they sent me the sweet valentine missives above), it's important to indulge yourself and the people important to you with some TLC. And when it comes to sending valentines, I tend to favor the quirky over the saccharine.
Take exhibits a and b: the felines and the unicorn, courtesy of Egg Press. They strike the perfect balance between sweet and slightly oddball that I find so endearing and not at all mawkish. This year, I'm leaving the valentine-sending for those who know good letterpress when they see it (there are so few of us out there), while giving the boyfriend something he will appreciate much more than a unicorn-adorned card (blasphemy, I know), candy hearts or boxers strewn with cupids, and that is a home-cooked meal.
{Images via Egg Press}
I saw Bright Star over the weekend and was stunned. Stunned by the exquisite, nuanced performances, stunned that a film could ever rival the beauty and grace and heart ache of John Keats' poetry. The entire film is pregnant with symbolism, every act or gesture contains layers upon layers of meaning. The more I reflect upon it after seeing it, the more in love with it I become. Ben Whishaw's recitation of "Ode to a Nightingale" as the closing credits roll kills me. You must listen to it here. Thank you, Jane Campion, for reawakening my schoolgirl crush on John Keats. I'm off to contemplate some grecian urns now.
(More images from the film here)
Today I've been listening to BBC Radio 4's piece on specialty tea, which I found fascinating, especially since I've recently developed an appreciation (well, a bit of an obsession, really) with loose-leaf teas. Personally, I find the flavor of loose-leaf tea to be greatly superior (read: bolder, more flavorful, with a discernible freshness) to that of tea found in bags. But don't take my word for it! Click here for a listen.
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