All the sweetest winds they blow across the south

Sometimes I just miss Savannah and living in the south in general. So I decided I needed to make a low-county boil the other night for dinner and it turned out pretty good- except that we didn't eat it outside on a picnic table covered in newspaper. Still, Nathan said that it was really good and his favorite part was eating with his hands :)
I used a huge pot and filled it with
water
a beer
lemon- halved
1/2 cup old bay
onion
Bring it to a boil, add
potatoes
corn (cut in thirds)
Bring back to a boil, and cook for 20 minutes
add
pre cooked smoked sausage (cut into 1-inch pieces), and cook for another 5 minutes
add
Shrimp (in the shell), and cook for about 3-4 minutes

serve with cocktail sauce (extra horseradish), hot sauce and lemons


I also made pesto and served it with ciabatta bread

Waiting for my Hogwarts acceptance letter.....

Yes, yes, yes...I went to Harry Potter-land today. It was pretty great considering I love broomsticks, magic and stuff :)
Although I had other options I went for the butterbeer

broomsticks


It was a chilly 100 degrees outside-FREEZING!







Chocolate Toad


Gigantic Jelly beans

Me- leaving the park- Fabs

Summer camp, crafty birdcages and vino

I was staying at the Atlantic Center for the Arts in New Smyrna for the past two weeks and I am home again, home again... I only have one more class until I have my masters degree ...phew. Ready for classes to be done and hopeful I'll find a teaching job for the fall.

Below are my two pieces...

listening to critique stuff....

I loved this book that this girl chrystina made, it was very detailed and time consuming and she said " I will never make another one of these ever again


Ruth's wall art was fantastic
Stuart below was fantastic all week (love him)
Chad made a house made of cigarette boxes and pill bottles. He brought several of us to tears when he started crying talking about it.

close-up of an assemblage piece before it was done
the summer camp (ACA) buildings
the buildings floated

The maintenance guy, Tom, also happened to cook every once in a while for groups that were at the ACA. When he was cooking we were to call him "Chef Tom." I had the pleasure of attending Chef Tom's taco bar lunch- title is questionable

They had a really great library with a neat-o spiral staircase- it was very Harry Potter.
I did go to Mon Delice while I was in New Smyrna. I brought back key lime pie, snowballs and strawberry squares for dessert.



my art space- clean as usual

little loves

Nathan planted an herb pot for me yesterday and I am very happy about this. I would like 100 of these just because I love fresh herbs.... and would like to make enough pesto to give it away in mason jars to everyone I know (good thing the list is small).
I have a few good finds from the antique store I went to yesterday..
Flamingo hair pins "for hair loveliness" ridiculous
nice old book full of maps
old bingo cards and flash cards
And my favorite find...Cake of the month club magazines from early 60's. I mean, look how silly these dancing eggs are on the cover, classic.
I feel an assemblage project in the near future (like, tomorrow)

And I want to share this today too...

A hamburger is companionable and faintly erotic

A Hamburger is warm and fragrant and juicy. A hamburger is soft and nonthreatening. It personifies the Great Mother herself who has nourished us from the beginning. A hamburger is an icon of layered circles, the circle being at once the most spiritual and the most sensual of shapes. A hamburger is companionable and faintly erotic. The nipple of the Goddess, the bountiful belly-ball of Eve. You are what you think you eat."
Tom Robbins


So, tonight we are making grilled artichokes and burgers. We are pretty sure we have figured out what our favorite assemblage (if you will) of toppings are:

roasted red pepper
guacamole or sliced avocado
sharp cheddar
homemade aioli
I like truffle oil on mine

Aioli-
1/2 cup mayo
couple garlic cloves
a large spoonful of grainy mustard
salt
pepper

I LOOOOOOVe the artichokes from Houstons in Winter Park. So I have gotten into trying to make mine similar.
I cover the whole artichokes (trimmed) with
water
a lemon, halved
couple cloves garlic, smashed
bay leaf
Throw in a little white wine if you want. Boil untill just cooked (30ish minutes)
Place on the grill with the burgers until they have nice grill marks.

I make a similar Aioli as above but add
capers
fresh parsley (or whatever fresh herbs you have)
a bit of lemon juice.

Lobster for dinner

Every once in a while Nathan makes us lobster for dinner. I understand that its not that complicated but it's kinda scary to throw those guys into a salted pot of boiling water. So the hipstamatic helped catch some creepy shots of the cooking process....
Lobsters awaiting the bath


The creepy all-clad cauldron
Nathan and his sexy lobster cracker mustache
And finally, dinner. They were very sweet and tasty. Thanks Nathan and lobsters!

Matthew Cusick and Hipstamatic

My two new obsessions today. Hispstamatic application for iphone and Matthew Cusisk.


My beautiful husband and his succulent pots (below)


Nathan took this..

Our prized snapper in the backyard
Nothing I love more right now than flamingos....
our orchids are blooming like mad

This artist screamed Nathan to me...

Well all of these did, Antique maps and landscapes...



my favorite is below called "Fiona wave"

Thank you Matthew Cusick