nichole's auxiliary storage

Shameless

Well, well, well... Eating in Madison A to Z has been nominated for "Blog of the Week" at mkeonline.com. JM and I both (oops) submitted it for their directory last week and BOOM seconds later, we're up for a vote with four Milwaukee bloggers. On a Milwaukee website. So, um, yeah. Click click!

Congrats to Dane101, who only missed 1st place by a couple votes in the last round. Not bad for out-of-towners.

Changes at Catacombs

The Madison Observer reports on the demise of one of my favorites.

The Catacombs Coffeehouse is not dead; neither the physical space, nor the community that grew within it, although these two entities that were once one and the same now exist on separate planes and in separate places. The story of Catacombs is the stuff of inspirational myth and the sobering reality of relationships.

More from Isthmus.

What to do with 15# of apples

from Eplegaarden:

Give away 3# at game night.

Save 5# of the best Galas to pack in lunches.

Bake 3# in apple crisp and watch them vanish.

Dig out the food dehydrator and turn 4# into a few ounces of rather tasty fruit leather. It helps to swish the slices in lemon juice and water first.

Then, use the dried apples in walnut cheddar apple muffins, modified from the Amish & Mennonite Apple Cookbook.

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Grease a muffin tin.
3. In bowl #1, beat 1/2 C butter and 1 C brown sugar together.
4. Beat in 2 eggs and 1 tsp vanilla.
5. In bowl #2, combine 2 C whole wheat flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp baking soda, and 1/4 tsp salt.
6. Mix bowl #1 into bowl #2.
7. Add 1 C sour cream and 1/4 C milk.
8. Stir in 1 C shredded Cheddar cheese, 1 C diced dried apple, and 1/2 C chopped walnuts.
9. Spoon into muffin tin and bake 20-25 minutes.
10. Cool in pan 15 minutes, then cool on wire rack.

Almost makes me wish I'd picked 30#. Almost.

Chocolate shortage

Warning: dumb post. But I'm out of my favorite chocolate and no one in Madison has any. Reduced to eating Hershey's Dark, that lump of snuff-colored sugar. It provides an occasion to be thankful that this is the worst problem I face today.

LibraryThing

One of my projects for this two-week hiatus between jobs is finally getting this here church library in order.

Enter LibraryThing. So far, so good. It has most of the features I could want: web-based, cheap, and the use of LC is a big plus. I hope to have time to reflect on its pros and cons at more length later.

Apple time

Sunday drive

Eric

Meet my aspidistra. He flew in from a nursery in Louisiana this week. I guess this means I've arrived.

He's in the same class as the Codex - something I've coveted for a long time, and eventually bought thanks to the web. Unlike the Codex, he wasn't stolen from a library. I hope.

Dork Tower on Ticket to Ride

Today's comic by John Kovalic reveals that Ticket to Ride hooks everyone who plays it, at least in some way. I am immensely proud to say I played John and the lovely and talented Judith in their first-ever game a few weeks ago (unless, of course, they just said that to make us feel cool).

"Evacuees contemplate leaving their life behind for Madison"

The WiSJ describes social worker Rita Adair's trip to Houston to offer 20 Madison apartments to evacuees. It's hard for me to imagine all the considerations they face.

But one factor seems a point in Madison's favor, at least in Peggy Jourdan's eyes.

"Is there a Whole Foods in Madison?" she said. "I've been dying for an organic spinach salad."

She smiled when she heard the "yes."

Peggy, if you do decide to come to Madison, I will treat you to the best organic spinach salad in town.

Later: 7 evacuees on the way to Madison.

Still here

Just that all my online time has been spent reading and digesting the hurricane news. Most of my offline time has been spent feeling sick.

What have I been doing to distract myself?

Why, reading a delightfully diverting book about pirates! The Laffite brothers, to be precise, who plied their trade in illegal slaves through New Orleans in the early 19th century. How pleasing.

Thinking about my music therapy professor. She lived in New Orleans in the early 80s and was a department head at Children's Hospital in addition to keeping a private practice. She is a veritable whirlwind of energy and resourcefulness. This is a woman who went without sleep for days - some said weeks - rather than neglect a single student or client. I wonder what she's doing, whether she's starting the school year in Eau Claire as usual or what. Sometimes I wish she were President. Or head of FEMA. I'm convinced she could do it all and still cure stroke victims in her free time.

Navigating the incredibly delicate waters between jobs. My high school English teacher once said the longer you leave a bandage on, the harder it will be to remove it - flesh grows into the fabric and you're left with a bloody, putrid mess. That's about where I'm at, for all sorts of unbloggable reasons. The good news is I do have a berth on a friendly vessel waiting for me.

Cleaning out the raspberry patch. Discovered 3 or 4 bushes with new fruit coming in. Not as sweet at July's, but still a blessing.

Also finding a real apple branch grafted to a crapabble tree in my in-law's yard. With two real apples, which Kayla and I ate before I thought to take a picture.

Travelling to St. Louis for a beautiful wedding.