Monthly Archives: April 2011

342 | 365

342 | 365

I spent most of today quivering from the stress. Last week’s cold knocked me way off my game as far as the cookbook goes and so I started to panic about how I could possibly get it all done in time. Finally, after a pep talk from my mom, I asked my editor for an additional week. She said yes. I feel like I’ve been granted a huge gift. I will get it done after all.

The little helicopter you see above is one of the toys on Scott’s desk. He’s had it since childhood. It’s made of sturdy metal and feels solid in a way that is rare in toys these days.

341 | 365

341 | 365

A friend from church (the one we toasted on the eve of her c-section) is now a new mom. I went over this morning to bring muffins and meet her new daughter. Kate reports that parenthood is both far harder and more wonderful than she dreamed it could be.

I am so ready to know that for myself.

340 | 365 (Eulogy for a 1992 Subaru Wagon)

340 | 365

I bought my 1992 Subaru Legacy wagon in July 2003, from a woman who lived about ten blocks from my apartment. It cost $2,000 and was the exact car I had wanted during my high school years, right down to the blue-green color. I had been without a car for 18 months and it was such a joy to have the freedom to come and go as I wanted.

In the nearly eight years that I owned it, that ’92 wagon was such a good car. It always turned on. Every single time. It got good gas mileage, never overheated and did just what I needed a car to do — carry my passengers, stuff and me from point a to point b. I also so appreciated the fact that it was cheap. I did have to spend some money on it from time to time, including a putting in a new transmission and two new clutches over the years, but compared to having a car payment (particularly through those lean grad school years), it was quite a bargain.

It did have its quirks and inconveniences though. The air conditioning hasn’t worked since the first summer I owned it. The interior door locks and latches were slightly broken, so that you had to hold the lock open while pulling the handle. This was a hard procedure to explain to people and often I’d end up hopping out of the car to open the doors for my passengers from the outside in order to avoid the confusion. It required two different keys to unlock and operate, despite the fact that it was only supposed to have one. Some of the exterior trim had fallen off (though I was still carrying it around in the back seat).

The roof directly above the driver’s head was shriveled so that it looked like a brain. The interior lights didn’t really work and did not illuminate when the doors were open. The driver’s seat belt was held together with duck tape and the driver’s seat fabric was beginning to shred to pieces. The hub cabs were long since gone. Ever so often the hood would come unlatched a little bit (not so much that it would fly open, but just enough that it would have to be gently clicked closed). And finally, it smelled ever so slightly of mold.

Huh. When you list it out like that, it sounds pretty wretched. And yet, I loved that car.

We’ve been talking about getting a new car for a while now. Last summer was ferociously hot and Scott and I were both ready for a car that had a more advanced air conditioning system than just a hearty breeze. A couple of months ago, we test drove a Ford Fiesta, but it just didn’t do it for us. And really, I’m a Subaru girl at heart. Other than a brief dalliance with a Ford Tempo in the mid-nineties, I’ve always been a Subaru girl.

Tonight we paid a visit to the Cherry Hill Subaru dealership. Just to look and test drive we told ourselves. Three hours later, we’d traded in my beloved ’92 wagon and had bought ourselves a 2011 Subaru Forester. It’s a sparky silver color and has a dark fabric interior. We got a fairly basic model, however compared to what we had before, it still feels super luxurious.

Here’s hoping that this new car will serve us even longer than that trusty Legacy did.

339 | 365

339 | 365

The family Seder was held at Amy and Jean’s house tonight. It was a night early, but was easier for the little kids to attend this way. I do love a good ritual, though it will be even more fun when Dan and Sabrina’s kids are a bit older and understand the Haggadah a bit better. It’s always a kick when they get the fun in searching for the afikoman.

338 | 365

338 | 365

I pulled out my beloved label maker tonight, in order to do a bit of organizing and filing. I always get a little carried away when I’m labeling things.

337 | 365

337 | 365

More pie recipe testing! This time, blueberry pie topped with tiling of pastry stars and a peach pie with a crumble topping. Both were quite tasty.

336 | 365

336 | 365

The kitchen sink, with the remnants of the dinner dishes yet to be washed. Turkey burgers with cheese always taste good, but the pan requires a bit of soaking to loosen the hardened bits of melted cheese.

335 | 365

335 | 365

A quick snap of the living room bookshelf in the moments after getting home from work, while the sunlight still fills the room.

334 | 365

334 | 365

My June article for Grid Philly is all about fruit pies for summer, including this luscious strawberry rhubarb pie. I can’t tell you how pleased I was with how the lattice top turned out. I plan on making more pies come summer when the fruit is ripe and in season.

333 | 365

333 | 365

From Greensgrow Farms today. Such a good reminder, though I’m rarely as patient as I should be, particularly when it comes to tomatoes.