The sun is out!

Folks, I will tell you that I started this day off in a seriously grumpy way. I was having the best night of sleep when lo, Oliver woke me up at 5 carrying on about a tee-tee deluge. I recognize that a flooded diaper is decidedly yuk, but how does such a small being produce so much after he's not eaten or drunk for hours. I changed him and put him in bed with me and told him in no uncertain terms that he'd best not consider uttering even a peep. Then he starts wailing, Mr. Overly Tired, Nearly-4-and-Thusly-Dramatic child that he currently is, telling me that I was making him do it. Y'all, I did not feel happy thoughts at that moment. I just did not at all. I believe I slipped back asleep for a bit but it wasn't much in the way of good rest, and I was extremely peevish by the time I finally dropped him off at school FOUR HOURS LATER. Isn't it absurd to have already been awake FOUR HOURS when you're to then spend a day at school?! I'm so over being this tired. I've been tired of being this tired since it became abundantly clear that while we'd hit the sleep jackpot with Jack, we went in the opposite direction with Oliver. That was about 3 years ago. No wonder I look like I do sometimes. Shite! Nonetheless, I came home to my quiet abode, tidied up, was excited to find that my Celeriac-Potato Mash with Beer-Molasses Reduction was chosen as a Community Pick on Food 52, made some fresh ricotta (I've been pining for it for ever; why has it been so long?!?), ate a great sandwich and chopped up some fruit for a playdate here later. The sun is out, my mood is improved, I think I'll hit the gym!

One of the best soups I've ever made

Three cheers and an amen for this new souply creation of mine. Swear to god I'm already looking forward to eating more and making it again. It came about as I attempted to warm my cold self, clean out my fridge, and feel truly sated, and I must say it's a huge success on all counts! Literally chock full of leeks, onions and sunchokes, those flavors are buttressed by roasted garlic, thyme, nutmeg, pecorino and buttermilk. I cooked everything relatively slowly, in roughly three layers, and immersion blended at the end for a smooth yet still slightly textured mouth-feel. Some roasted and chopped chestnuts topped off my bowl, but these are optional so don't fret if you want no part of them.

I truly can't imagine a better meal on a cold night. Off to write up the recipe so as not to forget a thing. It'll be in Soups as Leeky Sunchoke Bisque.

A tired day

Until now, as I see a small patch of blue emerging from the clouds outside my window, the sky today has been shrouded in a dense gray fluff. It almost feels like a shawl, so low-hanging it appears. My thermometer registers a temperature in the mid-40s but that relatively warm read for this time of year belies how bone chilled I’ve felt all day. I can’t seem to wake up, don’t really want to; I’d much prefer to burrow in a quiet cocoon of warmth, hunkering down until the sun shines again. Hourly I’ve struggled to really warm up, whether during a brisk walk with Oliver and Percy or wrapped in a thick sweater and furry socks. Even the kitten seems slow. He’s had moments of playful whimsy but, by and large, seems as sapped as I do by the funereal atmosphere outside. Waking at times to languidly bathe another paw, he soon returns to his peaceful slumber by my feet, looking at me with confusion when I move as if to say, “what’s the point.”

The trees look perfectly rigid; if they could, they might worry that swaying would only create a breeze of sorts which would surely enhance the chill. The earth seems impermeable, the concrete sidewalks even harder than usual, if that’s possible. My computer is, inexplicably, struggling to open the most basic of pages. I don’t really understand wifi- mustn't there be a frozen wire somewhere along the way, slowing the connection to the most glacial of trickles?

It’s definitely one of those days in which I'll later consider lighting a fire if I have enough wood in the firebox; I’m certainly not going outside to fetch more, and as T is out of town, I can't bat my eyes at him to do so. A goblet of hearty red wine and my new New York Magazine crossword sound like the perfect accompaniments and the makings for a wonderful evening for one. I hope the babysitter I'm so fortunate to have right now is feeling the vibes of gratitude I'm sending her way.