um...hello?
check
...check?

Holycrap. WHAT happened to August, and WHERE is September going? I'm freaking out just a little that time has flown and I seemingly have nothing to show for it. And it doesn't help that this is the time of year in Minnesota where one starts to panic over what still needs to be accomplished inside the rapidly closing window of hospitable weather.
again, holycrap.

So, since we last met I've:
had a birthday
dined at 20/21 at the Walker...um delicious? YES!
cut back the insane, house invading tomato plants by more than the size of any normal tomato plant and they're still like 5x normal size
panicked (see above) and more or less aborted on trying to plan a 40th B-day party for Boy
and made about a bajillion new things and cooked some seriously yummy stuff.

Here's a look at part of my birthday swag from Boy, along with the delicious breakfast I made for myself on the day:
and yes, thats FOUR pieces of candied bacon. Because it was my birthday, and if you must know, I ate them all and then felt sick. The omlette was mushroom, carmelized onion and goat cheese with fresh herbs. The whole deal was freakin delicious. I love birthdays.
Isn't Boy an insane good present wrapper? He could totally work in the gift wrap department at Macy's. Like for real. He wraps like no other man I have ever known.
(oh, and under the wrapping was a fancy iPod stereo (with a remote!) for my studio to replace the retarded eighties boom box I have in there now that takes up like ten square feet of space that I can no longer spare. ) Great thinking, Boy!

Here's a dinner you missed, Tamarind Glazed Pork with Melted Greens and a side of Sweet and Sour Tomato Salad, all from my other favorite birthday gift, courtesy of Knit-Whit, The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper:

I had the cookbook on my Amazon wishlist because it got a rave review from Gourmet magazine and then I read something else great about it in the NYT and I figured all of that must count for something. Mind you, now, I am a serious cookbook snob. I think most of what's been published in the last decade or so is complete and utter crap by people who have no business writing cookbooks, a problem made worse by the whole celebri-chef issue, but now that I have this one in my hot little hands, I recommend it wholeheartedly. As in this could be your new go-to cookbook kind of recommend, because every single recipe in it sounds and looks amazing while being simple and free of hard to find ingredients. I can't wait to cook from it from cover to cover!

So there's lots, lots more, including the exciting bits of news I teased you with last month and promise to deliver upon shortly, but it'll have to wait because it's dinner time and I'm starving...
Check out Flickr for more food and craft pics!