Bad news about my now-endangered beloved avocado toast. I guess I have to move to Mexico or Chile.

I am most certainly the luckiest girl in the world. No lie, y'all.

On my desk this morning:

In my office lobby:

and when I stepped off the train:

and of course, MORE chocolate babka appeared from the best place to get babka in NYC... it never ends. 

weekend. filipino peanut butter, hand-pulled noodles, and then an attempt at making duck bacon. 

it's winter, so butternut squash and/or yam in EVERYTHING. 

also, persimmon. every day i crave persimmon. 

then prosecco after three different types of tea while listening to cello concertos and heart-pounding flamenco guitar.

now THAT is what i call being well-hydrated. 

breakfast, because it's never too early for pie.

Or Dark and Stormys.

movement and breath,

caramelizing and red wine and Puerto Rico and lemon bars for his mom and frothing and whipping (the eggs, of course) and Xiomara and Dickens and Herbie Hancock and other such activities.

"stop being restless"

gratitude before the day dedicated to it. 

Today, the cold came. Though it did so with warning and fanfare, still I found myself unprepared.
I could not feel my lips.

yet, I smiled anyway.

J instructed me on the difference between chives and jiu cai. 
We sampled apple cider home-brewed with cloves. And pondered the sugar content.

Then, R came over and we roasted some acorn squash together.
Then he casually sharpened my knife with the bottom of a ceramic bowl.
It was sexy.

He told me I am one of the most deceptively guarded people he knows. I slowly realized that perhaps this is true.
It's been a while since my face has appeared here, and I don't let anyone see my room.
I pretend my heart is a fortress and stand forlornly wondering what to do when someone tries to scale its walls.
Mostly, I adore mystery, so perhaps I preserve it in myself.

I lost all of my spices and my teapot and tea leaves during the last move, but I vowed to rebuild my collection.

"The lack of height made me kiss your neck."

Recently, I've been listening to many songs about falling asleep- coincidentally during a time when I find it impossible to do just that.

- san francisco (by om). my quiet little version of lost in translation. 

Only now, after midnight, do I find peace to sit down and write.
Only now, after midnight, do I feel warm.

Notes to remember by- the epic NYC food and drink adventures of me and ML:

- Random Japanese Curry that made the top of his head sweat (Curry-Ya)
- Japanese barbecue (Gyu-Kaku)
- David Chang's culinary greatness. Twice so far. (Momofuku Noodle Bar)
- Flushing Dim Sum with the best name (Asian Jewels)
- Pretty amazing pate with figs. Dim light, wine, pear salads, flickering candles. (YN)
- My favorite neighborhood speakeasy cocktail bar (Dutch Kills)
- My favorite neighborhood restaurant all around-  with hands down the best servers (none of whom are native New Yorkers) (LIC Market)
- Mediocre Midtown tanmen where tipping is not mandatory (Riki)
- French food paired with the best wine. Escargot and amazing bread. (Amelie)
- Charcuterie, bourbon, live jazz. and hush-hush rendezvous. (Analogue)
- No one can officially say they reside in NYC without having tried these. (Doughnut Plant)
- Overrated but immensely popular, partially due to proximity to the Highline. (Cookshop)
- Of course, my very own. (Ellary's Greens)
- Rustic, underground, and the best pear almond upside-down cake. with vanilla gelato. (The Smile)
- The onion rings are to die for. Oh, yeah, and there are burgers. (Bareburger)

it rained and poured today. so like any normal person would, we went to get noodles and coffee / pomegranate white tea. 

my day with sunrise, sweating it out with udon, a walk in pacific heights lusting after house furnishings i never knew i needed, green smoothies, and a visit to four barrels.

today. half hour long walk through the perfect autumn weather.

and then this happened- yes, mr. david chang's hand at "al pastor" and "shrimp & grits"

thank you new york city, for bringing me a taste of the south.

Evening:
an overdose on strawberry rhubarb jam and bread (which isn't necessarily the worst drug to OD on),
long chats over ginger and fiji tea,
followed by a long train ride to Park Slope
an endeavor into cooking with achiote
and a 2-hour-long wait for the rice to be ready.
filled in between with sea salt chocolate,
lemon echinacea,
lime flavored tortilla chips,
and bad salsa out of a jar.

while listening to old gospel songs and learning how to lindy hop for the 87th time in my life.

this time it will stick.

finally, radio jarocho at barbes.

Today.

yoga in a sun drenched room,

then gluttony.

market where they cook the fish you choose (today, branzino) and then you eat it. with a humongous greek salad and terrible-but-awesome buttered bread. And ample squeeze lemon juice. With hearty greek men smiling at you, hoping eagerly that you're enjoying your food.

then, home-ground and brewed coffee. i brought my own almond milk because i'm a coffee wuss (read: i like my sugar with coffee and cream). i also experimented by mixing it with homemade sujeongwa (korean cinnamon hot punch/tea). and we tried different pairings of brooklyn-made (synonymous with self-declared ridiculously artisanal) chocolate.

finally- mate with honey, ginger, and lemon zest. "oh, this is so drinkable!"

and, at the asian supermarket later, "hey, can you make really good mexican food?"
i blanked.
dammit, i guess i know why i need to go back to texas.

the day?
it was all all right, i guess.

i love it when a friend is about to prepare a meal for me and IN ADDITION says, "do you want to see what's in my fridge?"

i love the whole process, watching people prepare food with care and love and passion. 

"emergency lemongrass" was the final thing he showed me. you can see it peaking out on the right. he makes a tom yum that apparently will knock my socks off. 

here is today's lunch decadence, reward for not dying while rock climbing. also for not dying while riding on the seat of his road bike while he pedaled all the way home?! even in new york, where you see everything, it was a sight to see. 

beef pho. 

fresh sashimi. 

papaya salad(!).

and a not-ripe-enough peach yet, that was crunchy yet delicious. 

basically, yes. 

breakfast and lunch. 

my frozen spinach and strawberries made a gloopy mess of a smoothie, so I treated it as soft serve topped with cranberries and pecans and cinnamon. It was enough for two glassfuls and I finished it all. Perfect for my first 80 degree day here.

weekend picnics. 

lunch. toast in oven because you don't have a toaster. smash avocado on top. red pepper flakes and garlic. green tea and a good book.

today's lunch. 

sweet potato and shiitake tofu scramble. 

served with ample drizzles of ginger-soy-shiitake sauce... 

with

ample servings of whole apples for dessert. 

lunch today. my mom's ubiquitous vegan mapo tofu recipe. 

fine. admittedly, i might have just consumed a dozen cookies for dinner.
and the equivalent of a carafe of mango rooibos tea.

i can hear my heart beating against my shoulder blades. as in, the back of my torso.

spin, spin sugar.