In a recent post, I mentioned that I’d just gone up to my family’s Tahoe cabin for a few days with my dad. I mentioned ice cream and lounging by the lake. What I didn’t mention is the grand renovation that’s taken place this past year making our humble, rather tiny cabin into something a bit less humble and much less tiny. When I really think about it, our Tahoe cabin is the one stable house in my life. My folks are divorced and live in different houses than the one I grew up in, and if you’ve been around the blog for any period of time, you know I’m a serial mover. So the Tahoe cabin is it. It’s where I’ve been coming at least twice a year since I was two years old. Same little town, same street.
During the renovation this year, my dad just kept saying how I wouldn’t believe it–how much different it was. I’d overheard conversations about reclaimed barnwood and tile, about a courtyard breezeway and flat screen TV’s. So when I drove up, I’ll be honest: I expected to be a little sad. I braced myself to put on a big happy face for my dad and thought of all the ways I could tell him how great it was. I figured I’d miss our funky little cabin and all its quirks. After a record breaking personal best of 3 hours and 15 minutes, I pulled up, parked, and saw a totally new house. The funny thing? I wasn’t at all sad or nostalgic or disappointed. Don’t get me wrong: it was different. But it was great, too. The sleeping loft was still there, the windows looking out onto the lake were still the center of the house, and the stools at the kitchen counter–all there. It just got a face life. A fancy face lift.
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Have you walked into Staples lately? Well, I strolled in right before closing a few night’s ago and was struck with a whole in-your-face Back to School extravaganza. Yikes. How is July almost over? Thankfully we’re all about Indian Summers here in the Bay Area. But it did get me thinking that I should do some planning to make sure I squeeze in everything I want to do before September shows its face. I was inspired to make a Summer List by Molly who was inspired by Maria. Both jotted down things they wanted to eat, feel, and think about while the days are long and the evenings are warm.
So here’s mine. I encourage you to jot a few things down, too. And while you’re at it, have a drink. Isn’t that what summer’s for? I recently discovered Pimm’s and a quick and ruthless obsession was born. If you don’t know Pimm’s, it’s a gin-based liquor that’s a little bit citrusy, a little bit spicy, but extremely light and crisp. I sip it straight, I add it to bubbly water and squeeze in lemons from my mom’s tree, I throw a bit into ginger beer or iced tea and give it a brisk stir. So in addition to your list, you can mix yourself up a quick Pseudo Pimm’s Cup, my version of the original that’s a tad bit bubbly, less sweet, and a little stronger. Just the way I like my drinks, as you already know. So here’s to making lists, drinking summery drinks, wearing flip-flops every day, reading bad magazines, and not stepping inside a Staples until (at least) September.
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So my blog’s birthday came and went. I was never the type of person to bake my blog a cake (although I think it’s awesome that some of you do) but I have to say, I was surprised when I realized the other day that it’s been just over a year since I started. How’d that happen?
Birthdays are cool for a few reasons. First and most importantly, cake. Second, cards and family and friends and a check from your grandma. If you’re a member of my family and you happen to be home at the time, you get to wear the beat up, pink glittery birthday crown. That thing’s been around the block. Let me tell you. But the other cool think I notice as I get older is the element of reflection when birthdays roll around–thinking about the past year and how you want the next year to pan out.
I began A Sweet Spoonful never having published a piece of writing but always wanting to. I started it late one night on a complete whim figuring at least it was one place where I’d see my work in print. Now, one year later, I’d call myself a writer. I started out with small local publications, peeing my pants with each acceptance letter and now you can occasionally find me in national rags and, if you flew Frontier this winter, you saw me in your trusty in-flight magazine. I talked about fried chicken and grits and all my friends who read it had a good chuckle.
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What are you up to this weekend? I hope it involves a little lounging.
Perhaps some ice cream. Below is a photo I took two weeks ago while up at Tahoe with my Dad. We went to Log Cabin Ice Cream — where I spent many a summer night as a kid. It’s still around and they still have the same exact sundae menu. It makes me smile.
And maybe…if you find yourself with a little downtime, you’ll want to check out a few of these sites. You know, we often talk about how much trash is on the internet (and don’t get me wrong, there is), but there are also mini pockets of genius. Everywhere. Here are a few new-to-me sites and projects that I think you’ll get a kick out of. Happy weekend.
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Do you ever play the ‘if only’ game with yourself? It goes something like this: “if only I had a Mini Cooper, I’d be happy” or “if only I’d studied harder, I would’ve gotten into a better college” or “If only I had a bigger apartment, everything would be fine.” Of course you do. We all do. My ‘if only’ game is kind of more like a neurosis and an obsession rather than a fun hypothetical consideration. The earliest I remember it showing its ugly face? 5th grade. All of my friends brought those packaged pies from the grocery store — the ones filled with bright yellow lemon filling, gooey chocolate pudding, or glowing fake cherry. My mom packed me carrots, hard boiled eggs, and healthy sandwiches. I was convinced my life would be better if I had pies in my lunch. I’d be happier, certainly. I remember eying those pies on a daily basis and wondering what the hell was wrong with my family. If only.
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Summer. Barbecues, road trips, flip-flops, rope swings, a new swimsuit, homemade popsicles or rides with the windows down and feet out the window. Reading outside. Doing just about everything outside. Gardening. Sprinklers. The list could go on.
Lately I’ve been thinking about the time when summer actually felt like an eternity. Remember that? The days right before you or your friends had a car and you came up with impossibly creative ways to pass the time–perhaps feeling bored and tortured, not realizing how you’d look back on those listless, empty afternoons with nostalgia and longing.
During those summer days, the above list would look quite different: making chocolate chip cookie dough and eating it straight out of the bowl. On the roof. In our underwear. Or walking downtown barefoot with my best friend Kristin to buy fried rice from the one and only decent Chinese restaurant in our small town. We’d wear cut-offs and put on lots of fruity lip gloss and hope to be noticed. We’d spend hours making mix tapes and sneak bottles of Zima and clove cigarettes into the garage for a smashing afternoon of pure daydreaming. The Cure. The Flaming Lips. Sublime. Tori Amos. Kristin and I would sneak out at night and traipse around the park with boys much too old for us. Those were the days. How little we knew and how much we thought we knew. But such is adolescence. I don’t really miss that. The one thing I do miss is the cadence of the days, the way they literally folded into one another into a beautiful, long swath of months we called summer.
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So here’s what a day off looks like–a day off nearing the second half of June where I try to squeeze in way too many things because I know I won’t have another leisurely day in awhile. Is that what you do on your days off? Oy.
There was a double espresso with almond milk, my favorite yoga class, and plenty of ball with Noel:
There were also drop biscuits to make. Whole wheat drop biscuits from Good to the Grain to be more specific. There were also strawberries to wash and slice. My sister’s boyfriend flew in tonight from Philly and I wanted to make dessert but didn’t have much time. Solution: drop biscuits with strawberries and cream.
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We had a bit of a heat wave in the Bay Area this past weekend. Saturday, in particular. There’s nothing like coming off of a long flight from China and having your typically foggy city greet you with blazes. I mean really, there was no easing into summer. But it’s no problem. I’ve gotten my cotton skirts out of storage and plan on wearing them all summer long. That and flip-flops and high ponytails. There will be iced coffee in the mornings and lots of leg-dangling in my mom’s pool.
What is a problem, however, is even thinking about turning on the oven to bake during the summer. But I’ve found a solution. Its name is slump. Do you know slumps? If not, you should. I’ll introduce you.
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How to sum up a week in China? In photos? In strings of words? Maybe both. I started and stopped writing this post on the eleven hour plane ride home about sixteen times. Ultimately I decided to show you some of my favorite photos, give you links to some of my favorite spots, and let you run on over to flickr to check out more of my photos if you’d like. In total, my dad and sisters and I were in Shanghai about four days and Hong Kong for two days. Too short, but we managed to pack it in. So off we go. You ready?
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The early morning view from our hotel
Hi from Shanghai!
I’m sitting here stealing a bit of Internet on the 32nd floor of our hotel all too early in the morning. The sun’s gleaming in through the curtains, horns are starting to honk below, and I’m clutching a steaming cup of strong coffee that Walter has so kindly prepared for me. Walter’s the dining room attendant and, for the lone souls who can’t seem to sleep much in Shanghai (I being one of them), he’ll make you one mean cup of coffee at sunrise. I have so much to share with you: photos & stories. The World Expo was really incredible, the food’s been amazing, the streets are lush with leafy trees and wide-open city parks. I’ve discovered dragon fruit and boiled peanuts, and learned that scooters and bicyclysits don’t adhere to traffic laws. We’ve finally figured out how to say common phrases like “thank you” properly and are logging some serious miles in our Converse.
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