the bag. a Christmas gift from the wonderful Jenny Morgan. it’s got amazing pockets, a great lining and straps that I can’t possibly bust. it’s the perfect size to fit all the crap i carry without being uber-mondo.

kindle. always carrying it around now. great for waiting rooms and reference.
what is a healthy church member. i talked about this a couple posts ago. it’s great. also, very light.
moleskine journal. i love the red ones. in this i keep lists, dates, thoughts, story notes.

i don’t go anywhere w/out these things.
sunglasses. i love my raybans, a birthday gift from my dad. and since i hate smudgy glasses, always a cleaning cloth.
orbit. i’ve always been a big gum chewer. i love the orbit taste and duration. plus the packaging design is cute.
wallet. vintage from Yesterday’s Rose in FFX. not even going to bother you with all the crap that’s in it.
headphones. urbanears, Plattan, in Mocha. Clare Rich & I highly recommend these & they come with an in-line mic & audio control.
ipod. i have way too much music to keep on my phone so i tote this everywhere. gotta have my full discog of the Mamas & the Papas!

iphone. i love this stupid thing. and it’s massively useful for research and communication. also, gorgeous.
notepad. featuring British propaganda. gift from husby. grocery lists, notes, bright ideas, phone numbers.
novel. lately i’ve been carrying around chapters from my novel so i can edit when i get free time. know what’s harder than writing a novel?
second drafting a novel.

tide pen. Kendall P and I have strong feelings about our Tide Pens. I have one in my car, one in my purse and one in Spencer’s nightstand.
pens. the Pentel needle tip .5mm ballpoint liquid gel. one in black, one in blue. i like options.
hand food. hand lotion by Soap& Glory from Sephora. i’m not wild on the fragrance but that’s b/c i’m not wild on fragrances. but my hands get dry and cracky in the winter time and this stuff makes them all better and it has a fabulous finish on your skin.
lip gloss. Lustreglass lip gloss from MAC, in  Morning Glory. I like it. It’s shiny without being obnoxious and while initially a bit sticky, it blends really well.
lipstick. Bare Minerals lip color in Ripe Fig. I’m a big fan of Bare Minerals makeup and this is a yummy purple that I get a lot of compliments on.
lipbalm 1. Burt’s Bees tinted lip balm in Honeysuckle. I got this in place of the MAC Gaga lipstick b/c I wanted a nice nude. I like it when I have on noticeably eye make up and minimal lip color. it feels very yummy and low oil.
lip balm 2. Smith’s Lip Balm in Minted Rose from Rosebud Perfume C. This stuff is my new jam. It’s tint free, tingly and delicious. Super healing and gives you just a hint of shine.  picked mine up at Anthropologie but it’s also available in both pot and tube forms at Sephora and Urban Outfitters.

So that’s that. It snowed last night in Baltimore. Husby and I are in our jams for the day, videogames and reading.
Enjoy your weekend!

h

The Canton Safeway has Little Pepe’s Pizelles. A friend I was house sitting for last summer introduced me to these delicious waffle cookies and they’ve since been my favorite. I prefer the chocolate but I’ve heard the anise is also pretty tasty, if you’re into that sort of thing.

Heavy Seas has produced some really wonderful brews. Small Craft Warning is a crazy pils. My good friend Caitlin recommends this. And me I’m the lager girl, and think this one goes really well with pork and most red meats.

Dinner with friends. Caitlin, Cymber and I made dinner the other night at the Purple House. The sausage was supposed to go in the stuffed pepper but Cymber forgot. Didn’t matter, still delicious. The pork chop was grilled in salt and pepper and a little oil. I dipped mine in the Brianna’s Poppyseed dressing (a classic favorite of Clark House dinners). Caitlin made delicious brussel sprouts and we had a simple salad. Caught up on the Office, talked. Good stuff.

Kindle. Spence got it for me for Christmas (but gave it to me December 1st) and I’ve already read three or four books on it. It’s SO handy to take around. I have on here my Bible, a commentary, the Complete Works of Shakespeare, a bunch of novels, a dictionary, some devotionals… it’s great. I can also keep pdfs on here, so it’s good for reviewing stories and articles I’m working on. It’s crazy light, surprisingly durable and with almost daily use, I’ve only had to charge it once since I started using it. I highly recommend it.

Knitting. I’ve been knitting a lot lately. Made myself a circle scarf and a cowl for dad. Currently working on another scarf for Spencer. I’m still on pretty basic patterns right now but I find it’s therapeutic and I have a lot of fun. Plus it’s cheaper than buying a whole scarf. I’ve been thinking about going to knitting nights at Carma’s and expanding my knitting horizons. In other news, I’ve turned into an 80 year old woman, knitting at home with her cats, listening to books on tape…

What is a Healthy Church Member by Thabiti M. Anyabwile. The members of our church are reading this collectively. I’m only a couple of chapters into it but it’s incredibly thought-provoking and illuminating. I’m being challenged to interact more deliberately both with scripture and with my church as a whole.  It was harder to do that with McLean, although I think a big church like MBC could definitely benefit from a reading of this book. It’s hard to foster community and accountability ever, even in a small church like The Garden but it’s still very possible with loads of people.

Genius Loves Company by Ray Charles. This is a really fun collection with a lot of great collaborations. My favorites being “Sinner’s Prayer” with B.B. King, “Sweet Potato Pie” with James Taylor and “Do I Ever Cross Your Mind?” with Bonnie Rait.

Ghostbird by Zee Avi. They’ve been playing “Book of Morris Johnson” on WTMD a lot and  ”Concrete Walls” was on last week’s Gossip Girl, so I expect she’ll be blowing up soon but she’s really quite talented and her backstory is really interesting. The album is a mix of inventive and standard pop songs, really light and floaty.

And that’s it for the first edition of “The Good Stuff”. Time to make dinner.

h

beyonce is fantastic. “countdown” is so danceable and gorgeous.
and the Sondre Lerche cover ain’t bad… 

I hope you enjoy.

By Kimber

by Cody Griffith

By Aziz

By Jared Tyler

by maks39

Saw some of my friends move across the country or the world, get engaged, get married. Finished two novels. Got married myself, to my best friend. Moved back to Baltimore. Discovered the absolutely joy I have in cooking. Found a new church and a new church family. Got two kittens who are growing into awesome and cuddly cats. And today, just to close out the year with something interesting, getting a “new” car. Will keep you posted on that.

It was a pretty medium year for music. I did discover some things pretty late but still.
As for books. I was kind of busy but I did manage to read some really really great fiction this year. Below is a list of my top 24 (two per month) songs of the year (not that they were actually created in 2011), and my top 5 reads of the year.

I hope you had a Merry Christmas! I kept my goal about a 7 and only by the grace of God was it that good.

Spencer and I will be going to a fancy party at the Waterfront Kitchen in Fell’s with my dad for a six course meal with champagne ending in fireworks. I had never heard of this place but it looked phenomenal so we said yes. Dad called last night to tell me he went to check it out and it’s the place Spence and I got married they converted the back part of the Douglass Myers museum into a restaurant. So a year after we got engaged we’ll be celebrating in the place we got married. Isn’t life cool sometimes?

The sun is spilling up Chase street and it is shaping up to be a glorious day.

MRS. PALINDROME’S TOP 24 SONGS OF 2011:

January: Engaged

• Creature Fear // Bon Iver
• How He Loves Us // David Crowder

February: Lots of gym training and navel gazing

• Sleeping Lessons // The Shins
• All Flowers in Time Bend Towards the Sun // Jeff Buckley & Elizabeth Fraser

March: Took Kendall to Baltimore for the first time, started cooking a lot.

• When I Fall / Liz Wright
• Me No // Clem Snide

April: I quit LUSH, it starts to feel like Summer, my first going to a Celtics game.

• Did You See the Words // Animal Collective
• Vireo’s Eye // Future Islands

May:  My first Hopkins lacrosse game (“Better luck next time, LOYOLA!”), Sweet Green Festival

• Oh No // Girl Talk
• High School Lover // Oregon Bike Trails

 Soul Christmas : you should be listening to this. Especially Otis Redding’s “Merry Christmas, Baby”. Do it. Do it now.

A Very Special Christmas. This album is so fun. Madonna sings “Santa Baby”, that Christmas classic “Christmas in Hollis” by Run DMC, Mellencamp sees Mommy kissing Santa Claus… it’s magical.

Harry Connick, Jr. What a Night! I know, right? HCJ? But yes. Get it. “O Come All Ye Faithful” is so beautiful. He’s got a great voice, he’s not Michael Buble, and hello, cute as a button.

Christmas with the Rat Pack. Dean, Sammy, Frank! All of them have great Christmas albums but this is the combo pack.

You can find my Spotify Christmas mix  here, featuring these and others. Elvis’ Chritmas, Ella Fitzgerald’s Christmas,  Christmas with Rosemary Clooney!

It’s gettin’ close. By now, Joseph has decided not to publicly humiliate Mary, they’re hitched and she’s waayyy preggo and they’re about to start hoofing it up to Bethlehem, which will be packed, so they’ll crash in a manger-cave. Even if you don’t believe that the Savior of the World and lover of our souls is about to be born, it’s still a great story.

<3 h

A lot of this has to do with the Muppet Christmas Carol, so thanks Clare.

Another large part had to do with being at my grandparent’s house for my cousin’s first birthday. The McFaddens are Christmas people, there is no denying. All over Christmas and a lot of love. Also Drew nomming a whole cupcake to the face in about 20 seconds, which was incredible.

Also, putting up Christmas decorations today felt good. I’m trying to do more DIY this year. Hopefully I’ll get Woody over here and we’ll make our paper chains and string ornaments. But even if I have to do it alone, it should be fun. A little mulled cider, a little Bing Crosby. And this year, I WILL watch A Charlie Brown Christmas. ‘Tis my favorite. Besides the Grinch.

Made Joy the Baker’s Kale and Sweet Potato Soup today. I’ve made it a couple of times but for some reason it turned out especially delicious tonight.  I highly recommend it for nasty chill wet days. Comforty!

Anyway. This weekend, Spencer and I are going up to New York to visit Johnny & Jovo with Killer. I hope to see Jay and Greggy also but these are tender hopes, easily dissolved by hard cold fact. At least I’ll see the city lights. Huzzah for New York.

Hope you all are well and getting into the Christmas Spirit!

oxoxo, H

I love napping with the kittens.
Furry, warm purr monsters.
It’s so delightful when they’re not being horrendous little orcs.

H

nanowrimo. half way through my second novel.

**

cooking: acorn squash- pumpkin soup; pasta with bacon, acorn squash and blue cheese; chicken and dumplings; fancy hawaiian pizza;  Dutch oven chicken; fried chicken livers with sriacha.  now making chicken soup with the carcass.
and i’ve been perfecting cranberry chess pie. SO good.

i love cooking. i’m finding that cooking for people puts me at my happiest.

**

spencer’s roof was cut over the weekend. it was parked in a garage and there was nothing in it. thanks, criminals. two days later, on his way to pick me up, someone smashed into spencer in my car. so now both our cars need doctoring. Betty’s ok, I can pick her up tomorrow but the Red Rocket has to have its whole roof repaired, which will take longer.

“Car crap comes in cascades.” – GK

**

my pre-Christmas Christmas gift from my husband: a new set of headphones. The UrbanEars Plattan in Mocha. They are very cool. I was initially a little nervous about them. It takes me forever to pick out headphones. I like sound quality but I never have more than $50 to spend on headphones. These didn’t get glowing reviews but they didn’t get bad ones either. Anyway, the sound is good. Good bass and mids, which people were hesitant on. They’re stylish, the fold up and they have a really good inline mic/ volume control.

**

listening to a lot of music lately– cooking, writing. Spotify is my new boyfriend, also. Here’s some thoughts.

Ceremonials is great. But I agree with the Pitchfork review (surprisingly), that by the middle it kind of feels like she’s shouting at you. There’s no midstream ballads or soft songs like in Lungs, it’s just her yelling. Dunno.
Live by R.E.M is my favorite live album. The end. “Leaving New York” is so good and you can tell, even in a random city, how in love with New York Stipe is. I’m so sad they’re gone as a band. Prompted by this article, I’ve been listening to them again, going over albums I hadn’t thoroughly appreciated. While I agree with most of Stipe’s ideology/theology, I hugely agree with his musical choices.
Achtung, Baby is brilliant. It just is. Prompted by this article, I started relistening to all my favorites, Joshua Tree forward. I miss the days where it was the whole band, not just Bono’s voice blasted over everything and The Edge self-gratifying in hi-fi.

Also, Camp is out. Donald Glover references not only tumblr but also Invader Zim and raps about James Mercer and asian girls.  He’s just… I can’t. anyway. Everyone lobby hard for Community to come back. NBC is a moron.

**

Meeting with some Garden girls tonight for a small-group. Pretty stoked about it. I really like these women and am so blessed to have good fellowship with people I find interesting. Also, I baked chocolate chip cookies  for the hang out and they are DELICIOUS.

Sad to be missing the Yojimbo screening @ Hopkins but if you’re free, you should go. Go!

**

Going to Arlington this weekend. Mom and Fred are hosting a Thanksgiving open house to celebrate mine and spencer’s marriage and also, all our friends that we’ve been graced with over the years. I’ll get to see people I haven’t seen in ages and eat DELICIOUS treats. I’m stoked.

xo, h

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