Voila!

Just a Little Guy

Muffin Loaf

It'd be weird to grab the muffin loaf back to take a picture of it, right? (Hence, the sketch.) I used frozen wild blueberries--the little mini ones. They bled blue all over the loaf--hence the greenish tinge. Irresistible, huh? It looked a lot better and tasty in real life. Ricotta added an interesting texture definitely. Lime is more assertive than lemon but it mixes things up. I don't know if I'd make it again. I'd make a coffee cake maybe. It held up well though. It's a Dorie Greenspan recipe. (Click on the loaf sketch for the recipe.)






I think I'm going to search Etsy for something cute for Dayna. $10 is our limit. Any ideas?

TGIF!

Ate on 11/18

I saw this article on the New Yorker website and thought I'd try it out and see how I liked it.

In the meantime, I'm trying to think of something fun to bake/bring for breakfast tomorrow that will impress my coworkers. (We're having a meeting for our Secret Santa.)

So far the menu is: OJ, doughnuts, my handmade baked good (!)

I hope it doesn't suck. Any ideas? I was asked to bring chocolate, but I don't think it's a requisite. Maybe a Spanish omelet?

A Super Special Shapes Party

It's kind of late in the day and it's right after a pretty horrible meeting that no one enjoys and I get a cover for a book. The book is for everyone's favorite little Mandarin-speaking cartoon and is about shapes.



I check it and all the text is fine, but this is the first time we're seeing art. The art of the main characters and details in the center of the book look fine too.



But then I look down on the right corner and see a parachuting bug. And I'm thinking maybe my eyes are tired. (An editor at the horrible meeting nearly ripped me a new orifice because I misread my 4 as a 1.)



But no, there's a parachuting bug and then I see her bug friend cheering her on from a leaf below. And I'm like, well, what else is on this cover that might seem odd?



And then I see mushrooms growing by the bamboo stalks.



And then it's so clear why there are parachuting bugs.



And then I had to route that and other work and draw these sketches for you to see because I could hardly believe it myself and wanted to record how strange (but awesome) my job can be sometimes.

Stars/Freelancing

Yay! I proofread the first one and keyboarded the second one. Freelancing!




FOLLOWING BOOK RECEIVED ITS FIRST STARRED REVIEW IN THE DECEMBER 1, 2010 ISSUE OF KIRKUS.

THE EDUCATION OF HAILEY KENDRICK
Written by Eileen Cook
(Simon Pulse; ISBN: 9781442413252; January 2011; Spring catalog page 75)

“Ever since her mom was killed by a drunk driver, Hailey—rich, smart, pretty and popular—has specialized in avoiding risk. Tristan, her boyfriend at their upscale boarding school in Vermont, dotes on her. So why does she risk everything she’s worked so hard for on a random impulse? Or is it random? After her dad cancels their long-planned summer together, she’s caught vandalizing a statue of the school mascot. Worse, she’s seen kissing her partner in crime, and he’s not Tristan. When she refuses to divulge his name, not only is Hailey grounded, so are her classmates, and they’re not happy about it. Her punishment includes assisting the janitor, Drew, a townie whose perspective rocks her world. (It doesn’t hurt that he’s also smart and gorgeous.) Hailey may be an A student headed to the Ivy League, but when it comes to taking a chance on life, she’s clueless. She’s also enormously appealing and great company throughout this breezy read. Yes, it’s chick lit, but of the highest quality—like a gourmet truffle. Cook has whipped up a real treat.”



THE FOLLOWING BOOK RECEIVED ITS FIRST STARRED REVIEW IN THE DECEMBER 1, 2010 ISSUE OF KIRKUS.

CAMO GIRL
Written by Kekla Magoon
(Aladdin; ISBN: 9781416978046; January 2011; Spring catalog page 49)

“Ella and Zachary, sixth-grade misfits, cling to each other to get through the taunts, rejection and, sometimes, abuse from their classmates. Ella is the only black student, and her discolored skin tone has some calling her “Camo-Face,” short for camouflage. Zachary, or “Z,” is small for his age and takes refuge in fantasy to cope with abandonment by his father. When a new black student arrives and seems open to Ella, she has hope for a new friendship, especially because, even though he can fit in with the popular group, Bailey reaches out to her. The insecure Z sees this as a threat, and Ella is torn between her loyalty to him and her wish for some normalcy. This elegantly crafted story features strong writing and solid characterizations of both main and secondary characters. Ella and Bailey’s racial identity is one element in a full and richly textured narrative. An out-of-the-ordinary setting—just outside of Las Vegas—and the nuanced picture of young teens and families under stress make this an outstanding follow-up to Magoon’s Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award–winning debut, The Rock and the River (2009).”

Fog Across Manhattan

Monday



morning



was foggy.

Bus Detour

Seriously? Cop parties all the time...

Happy 50th Birthday, Ma!

Today is my mom's 50th birthday.



We got her a scanner for pictures and negatives.



I took the Amazon paper stuffing and used it to wrap up the present, and since there were still a few feet of paper leftover, I rolled it up and made a bow out of it. (My mom made a awesome wrapping of my Dreamcast for my 21st birthday out of the newspaper's colorful comics section with a fanning bow. This doesn't top it, but I think it still looks cool.)



The card is made from the cardboard that usually comes with stamps when you order it from usps.com. I used my X-Acto to trace out a 5 and 0.

I left the 0 chunky enough to write out a happy birthday note. Usually, we sign it, "Love, Your bad kids," but we signed our names this year because it was a special birthday.

Hopefully, I look as good as she does when I'm fifty.

Really Nice Night in Bryant Park

The Spectacular Art of Japanese Chrysanthemums

Lux got tickets from her employer for the New York Botanical Gardens on Saturday. I'm superpsyched for the chrysanthemum exhibit in particular. They're like the peony of the winter--and a tasty tea.

Also superpsyched to hang out with Bryan with a y and Lux.

Veteran's Day

When I worked in VA, nearly everyone was off for Veteran's Day because nearly everyone worked for the government there. It's kind of nice to be surrounded by people who don't have off today.



While in Oahu in October, we went to Pearl Harbor. It felt like the hottest day.



We went to Target to cool off. They were selling hats and glittens there.

Then we drove northeast and then west along the coast looking for some surfers riding giants, but there were none so we got shaved ice, tote bags, and T-shirts. We stopped at the Pali Lookout before heading back and then went to Yohei for omakase dinner at the sushi bar (amazing!). I think we stayed up past midnight (first time during our vacation) deciding on I Melt with You as our intro wedding-party song while playing WordJhong Party on the Wii.

My feet and hands are really cold today. Oh, to be warm and on vacation!

More from the Big Bambú

On Halloween, Jon and I went to see the Big Bambú exhibit on the top of the Met before it closed forever.



It was a nice day. We got musubis from Mitsuwa and drove around the UES to find parking. When that failed, we parked inside the Met and ran to the exhibit.



At some point in October they started deconstructing the exhibit, so it was kind of short, which didn't impress someone.





I think at one point they ran out of rope while building the exhibit.



Ah, the article that refers to it is here.











An hour later we went home.

Fall Flowers

In mid-October, Whole Foods had the most interesting flowers. It was just too hard to resist them.



Velvety cockscomb. The color was just amazing. Even my dad commented on how rich the color was.



Fuzzy.



And chrysanthemums are gorgeous too. At least there are some things to look forward to in the fall besides dead leaves.



I forget what the red flowers on the sides are called, but they reminded me of Jim Henson muppets like Elmo or Telly Monster.

Driving to My Parents' House

A few weeks ago I drove to my parents house and saw the prettiest sky. Ah, pollution. The BP green is also kind of complementary to the scene.

And, yes, that's bird poop on the windshield on the top left. Landscape photographers, eat your heart out.

Chestnut Bento!

Blackened Garlic Ramen!

This weekend only. I love Mitsuwa.

Fish Eye

Does it come out sideways?

Playing With New App

Lunch Dessert

Jon, You Are On The Right Floor

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Christina Solazzo" <csolazzo@gmail.com>
Date: Nov 1, 2010 7:19 PM
Subject: Jon, You Are On The Right Floor
To: "Christina Solazzo" <csolazzo@gmail.com>

Monday: Duckie

Watching Duckie dance is almost inspirational for a Monday.