happy halloween y'all

professors on strike

This is the name of the bowling team that our friends John and Jess belong to. But it is also a good way of describing the weekend we just spent with them, even though Jess and I aren't professors yet. We did some sightseeing, drank lots of wine, ate and more or less digested chili and spaghetti, and briefly entertained the idea that Cincinnati isn't so bad after all. Here are some pictures, mostly of our visit to the Cincinnati History Museum in Union Terminal, a beautiful old train station containing a miniature model of the city.

squash!

Joyce wants me to call this post "Lords of the Gourd." Last night we made butternut squash risotto topped with toasty sage and bacon. Recipe courtesy of Jamie Oliver. Speaking of risotto, there's this other great recipe in Jacques Pepin's book Fast Food My Way for risotto that you don't have to stir. Set it and forget it! We've made it a few times and it's actually pretty good.



Anyway, we're excited because some friends from Oberlin are coming down for a visit tomorrow, instantly doubling the amount of people we know in Cincinnati. Today we tested our heater for the first time in preparation for their arrival. Now, where are those extra blankets?

new york

It was so nice being in New York over the weekend. I can't believe how much walking we did. We stayed in a leafy, brownstone-lined neighborhood on the edge of Park Slope, the kind of place where the Huxtable family might have lived. We saw some old friends, had great pizza at Franny's (good recommendation, Kate), were slightly bored by The Darjeeling Limited, hobnobbed with tourists in SoHo and complete foolios in Williamsburg.



Cafe Regular on 11th street and 5th Ave. in Brooklyn was one of our big discoveries, an elegant hole-in-the-wall serving delicious coffee and pastries from the Sullivan St. Bakery. Apparently this is the bakery that you want to name-drop around New York.



The one day we spent in Manhattan was fun but exhausting. We did lots of window-shopping, at places like the Moma design store (below), but ultimately the best part was eating pierogi and beets and latke at Cafe Vaselka in the lower east side.

autumn, finally

Hello all -- sorry for the lack of posts lately. The summer is finally over here and we are enjoying the crisp weather. It had been so hot and gross (93 degrees on Monday) that I myself was convinced there would be no Winter this year. And then today when we woke up it was freezing. This weekend we are off to New York for a little rest and relaxation. We are looking forward to wearing sweaters and scarves and doing some urban exploring.

We will post some pictures from our trip, but in the meantime here are some random images from our home.