Christmas Cake

Joe's parents flew in to Arizona on Christmas evening, and we decided to greet them with a festive dinner.  Living within the constraints of a limited kitchen (as in, there's no mixer) and not wanting to buy a bunch of ingredients that we'd never use up in the three weeks we're here, I opted for the simplest of desserts: a chocolate cake.

The meal was a lamb leg, marinated in chipotle, adobo, and lime accompanied by roasted root vegetables and a citrus/serrano pepper/cilantro salad.  In keeping with the southwestern theme, I found this lovely (and adventurous) Mexican chocolate cake (balsamic vinegar in your cake, anyone?) online from Pink Bites.  I also found a tiny tiny bundt pan in the cupboard!  Home. Free.

I made the glaze from the recipe too (YUM).  And then sprinkled pomegranate seeds on top.

Because nothing says Christmas like the juicy red garnet seeds of the pom. Nothing.

World's Largest

Kokopelli.

The 32-foot tall, humpbacked, flute-playing god of fertility and harvest graces a strip mall in Camp Verde, AZ, containing a drive-thru Starbucks, a Verizon wireless store, and--wait for it--the Krazy Kokopelli Trading Post.

 It was definitely worth the stop.

33 things to do before I turn 34

1. play with the daring bakers. this is a year-long commitment, as you get kicked out of the secret daring club if you miss more than two months. hmm.  started here.
2. learn to roller skate backwards. (I'm not actually ever going to do this. Let's be honest. Maybe it would be better just to learn to skate competently forward.)
3. etch some glass. Like this.
4. make (or pay someone to make) a real gavron website. done.
5. read more poetry.
6. make patchwork wall hangings. 
7. provide pro bono graphic design work for a local charity.
8. keep playing Toy Society quarterly.
9. play with my niece.
10. bake with my nephew.
11. roast the coffee beans. (this is a repost from last year, but dammit, it's going to happen this year. I swear.)
12. draw. add watercolor to said drawing. repeat.
13. make brioche.  this takes three days, people. and that is why, thus far, it has eluded me.
14. learn (and then do) to take better/prettier product shots. more light. more props. more patience.
15. make a ruffled shirt. one of these.  (done) maybe this scarf, too.
16. spray paint the cuckoo clock.
17. knit weight covers for the cuckoo clock.
18. three words. bunting. stamp. roller.
19. go to ye olde curiosity shop. (how have I not made it there yet?)  done.
20. continue the search for Roadside America treasures
21. knit or sew outfits for the posable artist models.
22. next holiday season: make these walnut ornaments.  heck. you might not have to wait until the holidays.
23. get tattooed. maybe.
24. make a cover for the sewing machine. the machine works so hard, shouldn't we keep it free from dog hair?
25. eat a croissant in paris. done.
26. have some family portraits taken. family = me + j + t + roo
27. witness my friend sayra's wedding. (yippee!)
28.                                           [<--- this space left intentionally blank.] leave space.
29. make injera. convince joe to make food to eat with said injera.
30. look to nature to solve a problem. (thanks to Second Sam for this one.)
31. continue working on Not a Book.
32. find a vintage typewriter to call my own. (this is a repeat too.)
33. find...and note...small bits of joy along the way.