photos in the 'hood.

some photos around the neighborhood (stafford, ct).

(farm) workin' it.

'cause i like to get dirty.
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new austin cooking classes

www.ajataharimarsh.com/food/cookingwithaja.htm


here's what's coming up...

a very special thanksgiving
saturday, november 10 - 4:00pm to 7:00pm

the very basics: getting comfortable in the kitchen
friday, november 16 - 7:00pm to 10:00pm

knife skills, and nothing but knife skills
thursday, november 29 - 7:00pm to 9:00pm

the winter holidays: foods to celebrate with
saturday, december 8 - 4:00pm to 7:00pm

sweet treats: the new classics
sunday, december 16 - 3:00pm to 7:00pm


lecture: how to 'go green'
DATE TBA
if you are interested in this lecture, please let me know, and i will keep you informed when a date is decided.

introduction to healthy eating
january 2008 TBA

boom! boom!

it's nothing new, but i love love love it all the same.

a response to "a thought on marriage"

before i even begin, ryan was the one that suggested i make this a blog entry...

ryan posted a blog today titled 'a thought on marriage'. here's what he had to say:
There are lots of reasons why people get married:
- to have children (yes, it is a biological fact that you cannot do this if you are unmarried)
- society expects it of them
- to avoid dying alone (only works for one person)
- to disappoint your parents with your choice of mate

However, there's really only one good reason to get hitched - vacation.

Dinner alone or a movie alone is sad but at least it's quick. Vacation alone is pretty much unheard of and freakish. When you're a kid, there's no worry about going on vacation alone - that's what your family is for. As you become a young adult, you start going on vacation with friends.

But eventually, all those friends start to get married and settle down and start the cycle all over. If you're still single, you're relatively screwed, and all your vacation days go to absolute waste as you spend a week at home eating Cheez-Its and watching reruns of Family Feud.

For the select few George Clooney types in the world, this isn't a problem, because you can always find a lady eager to accompany you to Argentina or Corsica or whatever. For the rest of you, better find a suitable husband or wife while you can. Busch Gardens Williamsburg is totally worth it.

and then i made a comment on the matter...
i can think of one other good reason (would be my main impetus for taking the marriage plunge)... PRESENTS! it's perfect because you make lists of all of the random stuff you want, but can't afford, or the useless crap you really want, but can't bring yourself to buy, tell people you're getting married and here's where you're registered, and the presents start rolling in. and a tip... you will probably get better presents if you have a destination elopement and no one can come or even knew you got married, and thus feel guilty, and spend more money on your presents. ...professional grade espresso machine, you will one day be mine!

and then we continued the discussion via instant messenger
me: i commented on your blog.
ryan: see i think that's somewhat valid. but. for some people...they spend as much on the wedding as they would on presents. so the math doesnt work for everyone
me: that's true. but that's why you get married in secret and just make everyone feel guilty. if you do it right, you can make thousands.
ryan: hmmm... but do you risk making people mad and getting nothing?
me: i don't know. i think there's a way to get all the presents you want, and still not have to feed everyone.
ryan: hahaha
me: i mean, look at it this way... tell everyone you ever met you are getting or got married. tell them where you're registered. have a very small wedding or go to vegas or city hall. invite people to cici's, which you have reserved for the reception. people give you presents. it's perfect. ...but nowadays peple are much more open to giving gifts for occassions other than babies and weddings (holidays and birthdays not included).
ryan: plus i love cicis
me: exactly.
me: just make a big cake, have someone famous and/or naked pop out of it, and no one will even remember why they're there or that they spent $100 on a cabbage shaped soup tureen you're going to return anyway.
ryan: hahahaha...that is a good plan. this cannot fail. i think this now turned into your blog post ironically.
me: probably. i also will have to do a post about the minature donkeys since i can't stop talking about them.

new addictions.

no, no. new addictions.
not new edition the hit boy band from the 80's.

but while we're on the subject of new edition, let's break it down. maybe new edition is more famous for their spin-offs, at least in residual musical magic. (by the way, i do find it interesting that music group 'spin-offs' to solo or other group acts are generally more consistently successful than spin-offs of tv shows...i'm sure i don't need to mention 'joey', 'private practice', or anything by any of the actors from 'seinfeld')


candy girl.
LOVE that song. so poppy and makes you go 'hey! is that the jackson 5?' no silly, the jackson 5 is all grown up and old by now. what else did they do that was awesome? i'm not sure. maybe it's because they were slightly before my listening time.

bobby brown
always the bad boy, he was (by force/popular vote) the first to leave the group. he got way famous going solo, hooked up with whitney, and the rest is history and can probably be relived on every episode of 'i love the 80s/90s' on vh1.

bel biv devoe
well we all love a black butt and a smile don't we? these guys continue to rock our worlds with 'poison' and 'do me' with hot dance moves, and outfits that make you go 'hmmm' but yet they manage to pull off so well. but i don't think i could name another song they sang. i mean, come on, they're no tony! toni! toné!.

the new edition magic is still alive and kickin' though (apparently). they are still recording and touring together. their website says 'breaking the ground for [over] 20 years'. it's one of those things that, to me, makes me say 'is that cool, or is it just sad?' it was cute when they were 16. but now they're like 40. boy bands don't work past the cute stage. that's all i've gotta say.



oh and the new addiction? scrabulous. on facebook. think you got game? bring it!
thanks a lot, mirto.

al gore is my homeboy

It was awesome to wake up this morning to a NY Times e-news update with the headline "Al Gore Wins Nobel Peace Prize". Made my day a little brighter. I was just talking about ol' Al last night and thank goodness for him and his invention of the internet and devotion to all things climate change because otherwise, so many people would still be in the dark about the simple things they can do that can positively affect them, their future, and the lives of others and our earth. Some people want Al to run for president. I sure hope he doesn't-- I don't think he will. He can make more of a difference by staying out of the political rat race at this point. So long as we elect someone who agrees with his views and vows to introduce and enforce policies and increase environmental education, I think we might actually do alright.

Over 10 years ago, I did a report on global warming in my middle school reading class. I was very gung-ho about saving the environment and the rainforest and baby harp seals. I remember thinking it was weird that all of the books I could find on the subject were written in the 80s and couldn't find too much that was much more recent. Then the global warming issue went all quiet and no one attached the 'el niño' phenomenon to global warming or any other weather phenomenons. Until the Tsunami happened. And Katrina happened. And 'An Inconvenient Truth' happened (and I gave it to each of my family members for Christmas). And a tornado in Brooklyn happened. All of a sudden people talked about it like it was a new idea, or something they finally could put their finger on for the first time. We can't chalk up all of this crazy weather to terroist ridden conspiracy theory.

Come on people. Wake up and smell the compost heap. Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. Tweety Bird's been saying it for years. Walk or bike, don't drive. Use public transportation. Use biodegradeable and chemical free household and personal products. Eat locally and seasonally, or better yet, go vegan. Wear an extra sweater, don't turn up the heater. Use alternative means of power. Buy emissions credits. Remember that we as a human race have the conscious ability to care and be responsible for this planet that is homes to billions of life-forms. Let's make it a better place to live.

brooklyn to connecticut

i officially moved out of my apartment and am now relocated for the next few weeks in stafford, connecticut until i head down to austin. it hasn't totally sunk in that i have moved, but for now, i'm just glad to be able to get some sleep and stop moving for a minute.

my orange walls were painted over in white, all of my belongings found new homes, or were raised in value by being shipped halfway across the country, and i had to say goodbye to some good friends and places.

but it's not goodbye-- whatever winds up happening, i'll be back soon...sleeping on your couch.

um brasilero

today at work i engaged in mild flirtation with a brasilian model named diego.
he is charming and appealing in that common brasilian way that doesn't let you go.
and he winked at me. and i'm nothing if not a sucker for a wink from someone good looking.
he wasn't my ultimate hottie by any means, but he was of course, very attractive, and certaintly made my evening slightly more enjoyable.

i did a quick google search to see if could find him (using only his first name and 'brazilian').
i could not, but i found this brasilian model named 'diego' and he ain't half bad himself.

my room today

you're moving why?

yes. by now, you must have heard.
i am moving.
out of my apartment.
out of brooklyn/nyc.
i am moving.
sort of.

okay, for all intents and purposes, i am moving, that much is for sure. i am packing up my belongings and shipping them to my mom's house in austin. come october 11th, i will be out of my apartment and on my way to small-town connecticut to stay with shannon and steve for a couple of weeks in the country. then i fly out of hartford and go to austin.

yes, back to texas with me. why? well. many reasons. kathleen put it well yesterday at the picnic when she (who is also moving out of nyc) said, "i want a different kind of life." i've been saying i am in need of a 'change of pace' but i guess that sounds like some sort of generic cop-out reason. it's the easy description. and it is also true.

my basic idea is that i am going to austin for a few months (nov/dec/jan), and if money allows, travelling a bit in jan/feb for a month or so (thailand/hawaii/LA/mexico are the possibilities). after that, i'd like to try to go back and forth between new york and austin. i'm calling it my experiment in living. i haven't worked that all out yet, i'm just trying to do one thing at a time. but i have living situations handled in austin and new york, so that is a major help. be staying with mom/stepdad/grandma in austin, and with a close family friend in jersey city.

i'm looking for a best of both worlds scenario i suppose. a part of me is really trying to be out of nyc right now, but there's another part that feels the need to be here, so hence, the pending experiment. i think i can make it work. thank goodness i can do my job anywhere.


FAQs:

do you have a job lined up?
no. those of you who know me best know that i do not revolve my life around a job or a set of jobs. i live on feeling. and right now, what feels right is getting the heck out of dodge.

what are you going to do in austin?
who knows?! i'll continue to pursue similar things that i do in new york already-- personal cooking, private cooking lessons, catering and freelance catering. also i'm working on developing a healthy lifestyle coaching program, doing kitchen organizing and pantry stocking, doing mail-outs to food editors, and continuing with the cooking classes. and i might get a part-time job at whole foods. so there!

austin, huh? moving back home then?
technically no. i've actually never lived in austin (i grew up in san antonio). and i haven't officially lived with my mom since i was 10 years old. so this is all new to me. sure i've been to austin bunches, a lot of my (mom's) family lives there, and my dad and sister are the next major city away (only about 1 1/2 hours), so that is nice, and of course a major draw for being there.

but why are you moving?
because! lots of little things but a few of them are...
(1) i'm feeling squeezed. like an orange, and i am running out of juice and i have a massive headache. or like a vise or something. so much confinement of space-- personal space in the public sphere, personal space in the private sphere, and just feeling like if i let it keep coming i'll implode or something.
(2) i'm tired of being around so many people all the time, but yet being around no one. not getting the love of being around people. i want more love and hugs in my daily life.
(3) i'm at a point where i feel like wiping the slate clean and doing something different. learning a new city. becoming a proficient driver. spending more time with my family who i am really just finally getting to know in a real way.
(4) i crave more quiet. and more outdoor space. more nature.