sensory overload and i'm loving it

the past thirty-six hours or so have kept my senses on their toes. i am satiated in a comfy, warm, content way and am surprisingly ready to face the next two days. i kicked things off with wendel for lunch yesterday at the fabulous talula's table in kennett square. a new "gourmet" shop catering to folks looking to spend some money on locally grown, locally baked, locally raised items along with tasty organic wares from places near and far, talula's has something for just about everyone, as long as you're ready to fork out some extra dinero for the delicious goodies. wendel went with some rabbit (!) risotto while i went with the spinach and mushroom quiche. it was so incredibly rich and (mmm) buttery, the bites melted in my mouth, save for the plethora of mushrooms. but, liz, you ordered MUSHROOM quiche, what do you expect? well it was so heavy on the mushroom side there wasn't much else to taste, which maybe was the point, but i would have erred on the side of more spinach. but that's just me. the company was stellar, the day beautiful, and our tummys were happily full as we trucked across the street to check out the paper mart. the paper mart has now moved to near the top of my list of favorite little shops. i laughed my ass off at many cards, my favorite, hands down, depicted a stick figure hooked up to an iv, clutching the iv pole, hanging his head. underneath the picture it said "a lot of us think you're faking it". funny, funny stuff. i would have LOVED that one if it had crossed my eyes while i actually was sick. so i bought it. look out, next person to fall victim to even a casual cold.


following an afternoon lull during which i alternately lounged around reading, listening to loud music, doing laundry, and watching football, rotten and zayne showed up and we motored down to the half moon for some crab nachos, among other dinner items. the early evening dinner was in preparation for a night with interpol, who were playing at the tower theater. it had been a long time since i last saw some live music, especially loud live music, and it was so good to feel the pulse of the drums echoing through my chest (maybe i have more room for echoing these days?). the rhythm guitarist was the highlight of the stage, thoroughly enjoying his hard work and driving a pretty decent show. zayne scored us some sweet seats and i found myself wanting a bit more when it came time to head home. or maybe i just wanted to watch the girl dancing across the aisle from us. "she looks like a praying mantis" rotten pointed out. he was spot on in his analogy to the insect kingdom.


this morning i couldn't will myself to stay in bed nearly long enough and i was up and out the door for a ride in the 50 degree sunshine. the breeze gave me some extra work to do, but the two hours i spent out pedaling around were two hours i couldn't have spent any better. the soybean fields were swaying like a yellow ocean under a sparkling blue sky, dotted with high, fluffy, impecably white clouds. as i rode past a horse farm i saw a red tailed hawk hovering overhead, using his tail as a rudder, keeping an eye on whatever critter was about to become his snack. he swooped down and found something, which he ate on the ground. i felt strong heading up some hills that usually slow me down and my chest hurt little, if at all. and a hot shower hasn't felt so good in a long, long time.


i spent a good chunk of the afternoon working on an apple pie, all of it from scratch. i had read an article about needing "sweet" apples and "saucy" apples and took off to the farmers' market yesterday morning on a mission for the sweetest and sauciest. i found a helpful man to ask about which apples would yield sauce and which the sweet, and after having a laugh to myself (i do this a lot, i am finding) about needing "saucy" apples, i found myself tasting the whole variety of apples he brought to market. i settled on some macouns and some granny smiths, and i could smell them from the front seat as i drove them home from the market. my mouth was watering the entire time i worked on my masterpiece this afternoon.


i've made a couple of apple pies in the past, but i consider my real strength to lie with the pumpkin cheesecake. i have a hard time with the crust part. but this one turned out really well, and the sugar/cinnamon mixture caramelized on top seemed to be a big hit all around. there's less than half left already, so if you want some you'd better hurry.


nice and full and ready for my alarm to get this week in motion tomorrow morning. i'm glad, and a little surprised to say that i'm completely at peace with the upcoming appointments. i sincerely don't think i'm sick. i feel too good.