M. Suzanne Terry

I love this May.  May is usually crazy and full of transition.  And this one was, too, to an extent.  But the weather has been unseasonably cool and gorgeous:

And my day job is Summer Housing (i.e., working with college students) instead of Summer Conferences (i.e., working with minors…who…I’m sure it’s different when they’re your own…but working with other people’s children makes me never want to find out).  So I had a fantastic May and a fantastic start to summer.

How May makes me feel. This cat understands me.

Here’s what I’m into this month:

To write:

I started my Getting it Together series on the blog.  I am enjoying the food.  I am tolerating the cleaning.  My entryway is giving me fits.  I hope the rest of the rooms aren’t this much of a struggle.

My favorite post that I wrote this month was Badger. It was good to talk about it, and I think I was fair enough.  It’s hard to be fair when you’re telling your side of the story.

To read:

Summer (and perhaps my Getting It Together project) have me dreaming up food ideas and being drawn to ideas that others have dreamed up.  So I read cookbooks and foodie memoirs and foodie fiction even more than usual.

There are not many books that I read and then need to go immediately and buy because I can’t stand the thought of being without it.  A Homemade Life by Molly Wizenberg is one such book.  This is my favorite book that I’ve read this year. It’s a treasure.  And arugula salad with dark chocolate bits?  Pretty much the best idea ever.

I also read Keepers by Kathy Brennan and Caroline Campion.  Most of the book is meat-intensive, which I am not, but I will end up buying it for the sauces alone. I’m a sucker for a sauce.

To watch:

I have continued my obsession with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and I will probably end up buying it by the end of the summer.  Such great characters.  Such amazing one-liners.

I have also watched Chocolat four times.  Because chocolate.  And France.  And Johnny Depp. I will probably watch it four more times before I return it to the library.  Because I checked out the book, so I’ll need to watch it again after I finish the book.  NEED.

To hear:

I’ve been writing and scheduling posts for What Not to Say, so I’ve been listening to my WNTS station on Spotify. Maybe not safe for work, depending on your workplace.

To eat:

May has been DELICIOUS.  As part of my Getting It Together series, I’m going through some of Mom’s recipes, so May has tasted like my childhood.  There was cavatini (which is basically pasta, sauce, ground beef, pepperoni, and cheese, all in one glorious dish), chicken salad, and sausage balls. I’ve also made a couple of loaves of beer bread, which makes fantastic toast for breakfast. Food at my house has been so good that I haven’t even wanted to go out, which is unusual for me, but it was a nice change.

We’re gathering at Leigh Kramer’s blog to talk about what we’re into – join us!