Breathing life back into this blog...

So I'll have to make this short...because I'm on Julia's sofa after a long weekend and we're headed to "Sunday night Asian" which is apparently a tradition with her and one that I'm sure to enjoy.

The fabulous weekend reminded us of a few things:

a) that we miss the rest of you terribly b) that we're going to at least see our Ali in 2 weeks and we need to make dinner resos (another blog post / email to follow on this c) that new year's eve should be reunion time in nyc and we need to plan d) that this is the year of agility (more to follow on this from kelly) and e) that we needed to start blogging again to keep up with all these plans.

You can expect more from me on all of the above as well as a potential jackson hole trip in the spring. I miss all of you.

--Mary (aka Max this weekend only)

Fall/Football :)

Hey ladies! I just wanted to check in & see how everyone's doing...hope all is well! I was thinking about heading down to c-ville for a couple games (I'm definitely trying to go to the BC game bc I think Cory & some of his buddies are going down too). Any thoughts on which games may work? Miss you all!!!

Pictures from Newport!

Here's a link to the pictures on picasa if you want to check them out. Enjoy!

http://picasaweb.google.com/m.catherine.clark/NewportFavorites?authkey=Gv1sRgCLTpie370pm8Uw&feat=directlink

Newport

Hey Ladies!! I'm hoping this post finally works (sad to say but this is not my fist attempt!) Anyway, I hope you all had a blast...you all look so great & relaxed in those pictures. I miss you all terribly!!! Love you!

Sadness

Hope you girls are having fun at the Newport Folk Festival!!!

I found a great pre-made pizza crust for our recipe - it is the Whole Foods 365 brand in their bread section. I think it is $4 for 2 crusts. I made one with tomatoes and zucchini last night - it was very tasty! Miss you!

The art of packing light!

2 days and counting and then Kelly and I are leaving RIC for Newport. As a serial over-packer I've decided I'm going to take a page out of Kelly's book and start packing lighter. Simplify life.


I found this quote in an article from the San Fran Gate that says it all. This girl won't be checking a bag for Newport..but she might be borrowing shampoo, hairdryers, and lots of other things from you guys!

"Packing light offers less tangible but very real benefits. It's a chance to pare down and simplify our lives, to discover what is truly essential and
what is not. It's a reminder that we're more than the sum of our possessions." Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/06/11/TRGIKJA90J1.DTL

Simply cannot wait! Listen to the playlist below, pack your carry-on and be there! Ali, I'm still holding out hope that you'll change your plans and surprise me ;)...Fi, we'll see you at the train station on Thurs! Oh, and I don't have time before the trip to buy the bag pictured from http://www.zappos.com/, but isn't it cute? Carrying that through the airport is reason enough to pare down a bit.

sadness

Unfortunately I will not be coming up North. It is up in the air right now about whether or not I will start my job early. Have tons of fun, as I know you all will! Can't wait to see everyone again soon.

Yay!

I figured out how to get on!!!  And I'm going to Newport!!! Love and miss you all.  I'm sorry, I have no recipe or tidbit to contribute at the moment... but I'll work on it...

Key Ingredient?..cute fish monger (just add Dill)!

Per Jen's request here's my salmon recipe from Corolla

Combine in a small bowl: 2 cloves chopped garlic, juice of 1 lemon (or white wine vinegar), lots of
chopped dill (stems removed), 1-2 tbls dijon mustard, salt & pepper. Drizzle in about 2-3 tablespoons ev olive oil while whisking to create the marinade.

Remove skin (especially if you're not sure about the quality of the fish). side note: the PCBs and bad things in farm raised fish tend to be in the skin and the fatty parts - but just try to get non-farm raised fish. seriously. food for thought. http://www.shapefit.com/salmon-farmed-wild.html

Pour over fish and marinate for a half hour or so. Don't marinate too far in advace of cooking - the vinegar/lemon in the marinade will cook the fish. I sauteed on each side about 4-5 minutes over medium/high heat in a non-stick skillet. I took fish out, turned up heat, splashed white wine in the pan and whisked in a tablespoon of butter to create a sauce I put over the fish. Enjoy!

'...we are headed north!'

Newport, newport take me in! Kel is hosting (I'm flying up and hopefully Jen too!). And, in short, all of you need to plan on meeting up with us. July 27 through Aug. 3. We'll be hanging for the week and taking in all that Newport has to offer.


Come weekend we'll be perched on sailboats listening to Ben Kweller, Neko Case, the Decemberists, the Avett Brothers (think sexy north carolina goodness), and the list goes on. In my head, I picture Sperrys and a navy hoodie...maybe a head scarf just to folk it out a little but in general I think I'm going to have to bring the 'prep' back into my style for this trip.

Now, go ahead, blog away about when you'll be joining. We haven't booked flights yet - but as soon as we do we'll 'tweet the deets' so to speak. No excuses... ps - below you'll find a compilation of music that's to be heard...check it out (how else can we sing with the bands at the top of our lungs?)

http://www.brooklynvegan.com/archives/2009/05/newport_folk_fe_1.html

Official Food, Inc. Movie Site - Hungry For Change?

Official Food, Inc. Movie Site - Hungry For Change?

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Ah yi yi...we must see.

My idea of Capri

http://www.trekearth.com/gallery/Europe/Italy/Campania/Naples/Capri/

I found this website that has fantastic pictures to inspire us for our 2011 trip. Take a few minutes to look at this one...there's a lot going on and I like it all!

Kelly's french dinner party...with Julie and Julia

In theatres August 7, Julie and Julia looks like something we'd love. Click the picture for the trailer. Kelly's idea was to have a dinner party and then go see the show. How fantastic. Details to follow when we find out where it's playing...

Heavy handed herbs de provence pizza

I found it, ladies! The star of our culinary show on our beach vacay...the famous pizza crust! The bad news?..it doesn't seem like it's at a store near us so we'll have to look for a worthy substitute and of course we'll stop at Farm Fresh on our way down next year!*

*For those that weren't there, this is an original recipe that makes a perfect 3pm lunch accompanied by 2 bottles of white wine (for 3 of us) and Jen's avacado, gorgonzola salad. A nap on the beach immediately following is a necessity.

Ingredients:
1 pizza crust (see above)
1/2 vidalia onion per pizza (sliced in half moons)
2 cloves garlic
Olive oil
Herbs de provence
Thyme (fresh or dried)
2 fresh tomatoes, sliced
a few handfuls of shredded parmasean cheese or italian blend
6 to 8 (or more) slices fresh motzarella

In a nonstick skillet sautee the onions over medium heat in about 2 tbls. olive oil. Once slightly softened add in a 1/2 teaspoon thyme and dump in a few heaping tablespoons herb de provence (to taste of course, but this was a Kelly oops that turned out perfect!). Add in the chopped garlic and turn down the heat to low/medium. After another 5 minutes add in about 1/8 cup white wine. Cook another minute or so and turn off heat. None of this is exact so just eyeball it. Assemble the pizza as follows: Parmasean cheese, onion mixture and juices, sliced tomato and top with fresh motzarella. Drizzle with olive oil and cook according to pizza dough instructions.

Surf Camp

You all should check out www.surfdiva.com. They have two locations - one in San Diego and one in Costa Rica. They teach surfing (duh) and also have yoga and massages! Looks like a contender.

Thanks Jen!

"Party this way!" Jen, Kelly and I had the best time in Corolla. Beaucoup de vin, good food, stories about doctors and overgrown children. The meeting of actual children (love to the dillweed) and getting drunk on north carolina sunshine. We missed everybody so much. Let's get 2010's annual weekend on the calendar now. July works for me - same weekend would be July 8th - 12th. Should we?