Things I loved this week:
1. Roasting tomatoes
I know, so random. I bought a bunch of little tomatoes on the vine at one of the outdoor markets in town and when I got home discovered they were absolutely tasteless - truly terrible.
Rather than toss them I decided to try roasting them, which I had never done with tomatoes before. The result was divine. I smeared a tiny bit of olive oil on a cookie sheet, and then cut the tomatoes in half and put them on the sheet cut-side-down. I then sliced (not pressed) about 5 cloves of garlic and sprinkled around the tomatoes, and added a little fresh basil (again, scattering around the pan). A little sea-salt, pepper, cayenne (I am addicted to cayenne) and thyme (I didn't have rosemary) and I stuck it in the oven. I roasted them for about an hour and a half, until they were super wrinkled and tender. I dumped it all into a bowl and then smeared it on bread with some cendre chèvre on top... DELICIOUS CITY. They were also good for days cold, straight out of the refrigerator. I am about to go eat some now.
2. The Wolf of Wall Street
Are you kidding me? This movie left me speechless. It was shocking, entertaining, brilliantly executed and quite nearly perfect; there were several scenes where I thought to myself, "I think this is one of the best scenes of ____ that I have ever seen." Leonardo DiCaprio is perfect throughout. But so are the other actors, the editing, the writing, etc. I wanted to watch it again immediately after seeing it, and I never want to do that. Go see it. I hope it wins everything.
Side note: how boring was Gravity? Kill me now. Sorry, wrong list.
3. Sherlock
I feel like I have been waiting for 10 years for this season. As usual, it was worth the wait. I mutter, "Benedict Cumberbatch," frequently throughout the day, not because I love him more than Martin Freeman (I adore them both), but because saying his name actually releases endorphines.
4. Watching my man's face as I explained the Chris Christie scandal to him.
5. My friend Meghan buying a ticket to come to Belgium in September
Words fail me. So many people have the intention of visiting, but so few people actually do. Meghan is one of the reasons I consider myself to be the luckiest woman alive, and I will enjoy every moment with her as I show her my home and explore Europe with her. ECSTATIC.
6. Café Georgette and my birthday party
I don't know if anyone will show up (expat reality), but the venue is so fun that I will just dance with Arnaud and order drinks from my personal bar-tender for the entire night regardless. Complete with one of the best burgers I have had in my life (I know, extreme but true), a smoking room and a view of the city, this private bar (within walking distance from our house) above Café Georgette makes me very happy. It also makes me wish that I could fly all my Seattle and Chicago and Texas and Arizona and Louisiana and Tennessee and California and North Carolina friends up to attend... again, wrong list.
7. Zella "live-in" Leggings, from Nordstrom
When I say that I never want to wear anything else, I am dead serious. I have arranged every outfit around these bad boys since receiving them for Christmas. My sister Kensey and friend Nikki have told me for years that they are fabulous - I am now a believer. I can now frequently be seen stroking my legs distractedly, amazed by the support and comfort they feel and the softness of the material. I am getting excited just talking about them... they are in the wash right now so I feel panicky.
8. Watching my man get dressed in the morning
I said it. Every morning I pretend to be asleep but am actually watching as he busts into the bedroom from the shower, always rushing. It's such a good show every time, like an intimate, erotica vitamin.
9. My red watch
I received a beautiful red watch from my man for my birthday. He once gave me a battery charger for Christmas, so let's just say that this gift took my breath away. I feel about the watch like I feel about saying Benedict Cumberbatch. Win.
10. Feeling like a food snob
Not that being disappointed is fun, but realizing that we eat (cook) very well as our norm was a fun moment this week. We ate at a "nice" Italian restaurant and could not believe how mediocre the food was. We still had a great time and loved the atmosphere, but spoke later about how our "home cooking" put their "upscale cuisine" to absolute shame. Then we high-fived and slapped each other on the ass.
11. Dreaming about dinosaur fish
I had the most vivid, apocalyptic dream that the world transformed into a thick jungle where dinosaurs again roamed. The main point of the dream was that the FISH were about a thousand times bigger than normal - dinosaur fish - it was a fly-fishing wet dream. YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN the fish I was catching on my 5 weight fly rod...
12. Ishmael Beah
How am I just hearing about this man and his books? Thank you Colbert Report. I felt more hope watching a 10 minute interview with Ishmael, a phoenix, than I have felt in quite a while. I am starting his books tonight.
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