new work: give and take

This is from a new narrative-type piece I have been working on, Give and Take. I have actually been making a lot of new work lately and am really thrilled about all of it. I had a good critique tonight which is always nice. I've been reading The Artist's Way (cheating...it's a 12-week book but I am taking it at my own, much slower pace) at the suggestion of Erika who writes the blog A Tiny Rocket. Reading this book and doing some of the activities in it have been helping with my "artist's block" which I definitely felt all summer. I don't want to jinx it by saying too much, but right now I have more ideas than I have time to make! Definitely a good thing. More updates on the new work soon...this is just one of many.

super secret salsa recipe

After buying cilantro at the last farmers' market the other day (another reminder that winter is coming...), I decided to whip up some of my "secret salsa." While not actually a secret, I just like to call all of the recipes I write myself my "secret recipes" to make them sound more official. This salsa can be made without cilantro, but it adds a flavor I really love. As an alternative when it's not available, try 1-2 tsp. of ground coriander (cilantro seeds).

1 can fire roasted tomatoes, or 2-3 ripe tomatoes, roasted in the oven
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (if you want a mild salsa, try 1/2 pepper)*
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp sugar or brown sugar
1 tsp garlic powder or 1/2 tsp minced fresh garlic
1 tsp lime juice
small handful cilantro leaves (about 1/4 cup or a little less)
dash of salt only if your tomatoes had no salt added

Put all of the ingredients in a blender or food processor, and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust the spices to your preference.

*if you're looking for chipotle peppers in adobo sauce at the supermarket, check the Mexican food aisle and look for a small can--I transfer these to a resealable container and keep them refrigerated since I only use them one at a time

This is my base recipe. Sometimes I play with add-ins, such as:
- peaches or pineapple
- black beans
- corn
- avocado
- onion (use less than you think you need--the onion flavor gets really potent)

The chipotle pepper and roasted tomatoes give this salsa a rich, smokey flavor, and the cilantro adds a fresh aftertaste. If you've never had chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, I highly recommend them! They taste sort of like what you might imagine a spicy, Mexican barbecue sauce to be.

it's getting cold(er)

The swiss chard is still thriving...

...while the tomatoes are slowly dying. 36 degrees this morning. Cold.

the vicious squirrel strikes again

The squirrel strikes again...stealing a ripe tomato, taking a bite, and displaying it on a fence post for me to see.

The damage was kind of gross. (It's rainy today, by the way, so that's not all squirrel slobber.)

I also heard a loud noise on the back steps and looked out to see this...the last of my giant zinnias toppled over. Although it's rainy today, it's certainly not very windy or stormy...I think the squirrel did it under the guise of bad weather. At any rate, they are completely severed, so that's the last of them.

I still have my thumbelina zinnias although as you can see they have almost run their course.

I'm really sad that winter is almost here, and that this squirrel is ruining my last precious few moments in the garden.

mail from me, mail from you

I love sending and receiving snail mail! I have not been so good about sending it over the past year for some reason, but I would really like to start back up again. I especially love sending holiday cards to my relatives as a way to stay in touch. A few days ago, I received these goodies in the mail from my friend Elizabeth who guest posted here last week!

It included three collage drawings, a Holga photograph, stickers (I love stickers!), and a note. I am still putting together a few things to send to her in return...I want my package to be as exciting!
Corey also received mail from Elizabeth on the same day...he ordered her chapbook! It is excellent and comes with some goodies inside, like the little sea drawings you see here. Get yours today, she is almost out!

saying goodbye to the tomatoes

Today I made this picture for a local autumn-leaf themed photo contest. My arrangement of the leaves was inspired by an "art experiment" I recently took part in for one of my fellow grad students. I decided to do tomato leaves because I figured that everyone else in the contest would send in pretty pictures of orange and red and yellow leaves (and I also figured there would not be many staged photos like this). This fall for me has been much more centered around my garden (although I appreciate the changing leaves too). Last year I did not get to enjoy my garden in fall, because I moved away from it at the beginning of September. This is my first time to have fall tomatoes, and I wanted to show the transformation of the tomato leaves. I am feeling a resistance to let the garden die, as that means winter is on its way, and I just don't feel quite ready for snow and cold yet.

one year later

This weekend, I went to the Circleville Pumpkin Show with Corey and Brittney. We had fun reliving last year's visit, when grad school had just started. All of the vendors looked exactly the same, and were in exactly the same places at the fair, so going back felt like revisiting a memory from last year...but it was different at the same time. Isn't it that way with a lot of things? One year later, so much is the same, and so much is different.

I took all of my Pumpkin Show pictures with my trusty 35 mm Canon, so you'll have to wait until I pick them up at the lab to see them (probably Wednesday--I have night classes today and tomorrow)...so for today I'll leave you with a few fall pictures I took with my Holga last year.