Happy Halloween

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stop, look, listen

My roundup of what I'm reading/watching/listening to this week:

• William Kentridge: Anything is Possible full movie available online!
• David Meslin for TEDxToronto.  Awesome.

• 26 covers, samples and spoofs of "Float On" by The Floaters from WWAATD.  Which one is your favourite?
• New Elvis Costello album streaming for a short time here.  Listen to You Hung The Moon.  Swoon.  
• Roger Ebert gives us 10 great films about horror just in time for Halloween 
• Best Music Writing 2010 teaser. 
• Oliver Sacks examines "The Mind's Eye"
• Test how consistent your philosophical and moral beliefs really are
• 
  

rainbows and reveries

Stained glass window, faculty club @ Brock University

Reveries, Duncan MacDonald, @ Rodman Hall Art Center

mural, Brock U

::K a t e::

stop, look, listen

Some lovely pictures of the sky (courtesy of my talented mother) and a roundup of things on my mind this week:

• Will Aitken's interview with Anne Carson for Paris Review
• Authors Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall and DBC Pierre in conversation with Brent Bambury for the IFOA
• This video about the problems with our education system and what needs to change. 
• Steven Loft's lecture:Towards Forever... An Indiginous Art Historical Worldview (looking forward to it)
• A look at this year's possible Grammy winners
• Ari Up passed away.  So sad.
• James Elkins teaches us how to look at a Mondrian
• Duncan MacDonald's solo show Little Revolutions at Rodman Hall Art Center in St. Catherines, Ontario
• The Toronto Mayoral elections are tomorrow... VOTE!

forest mushroom chowder

With the leaves changing colour and the weather finally cooling down a bit, I'm starting to crave some heavier fall fare.  And what could satisfy my hunger (or yours) on a cool day better than a steamy bowl of mushroom chowder?  This recipe for forest mushroom chowder does just the trick.  The corn and carrots' sweetness compliment the richness of the cream and the earthy mushrooms perfectly.  You can use any combination of 'shrooms you like, but we used shiitake, portabello, and plain old buttons for this one.  If you don't have any sherry on hand, red wine vinegar works well, too.   Don't forget to top with cracked black pepper, and serve with a nice crusty piece of bread so you can get every single drop from the bottom of your bowl.

2 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup sliced onions
1/2 cup diced carrots
3 cups sliced wild mushrooms (chantarelle, morel, shitake, oyster)
3 cups chicken broth
2 cups whipping cream
1/4 cup diced potatoes
1/4 cup frozen corn
1/2 apple, peeled and diced
2 bay leaves
3 tbsp. sherry
2 tbsp. chopped parsley
salt and freshly ground pepper

In large saucepan, heat oil and sauté garlic, onions, carrots and mushrooms.  Do not brown.

Add broth and cream to vegetable mixture.  Bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer.

Add potatoes, corn, apple, bay leaves, sherry and parsley to soup.  Simmer about 1/2 hour.  Remove bay leaves and season with salt and pepper.

Serves 6.

words to live by

Manifest plainness, Embrace simplicity, Reduce selfishness, Have few desires. 
-Lao-tzu

Fashion Week Favourites

Alexander Berardi

Versace

Karen Walker

Lanvin

these are a few of my favourite things

adorable wooden spoons from Elizabeth Dunker

Embroidery by Eudoraeudora

bathroom from www.lonnymag.com

marc by Marc Jacobs Tote from our.city.lights

 Isabel Marant S/S 2011

Polarbear - Peepers

Toadstool rings by Sarah Dingwall

Bow Bins from Cordula Kehrer

Bike (Natalia Vodianova by Bruce Weber for Vogue Paris June/July 2005.)

duet 

the budva riviera

A few weeks ago my parents and I spent a weekend in Budva, Montenegro for a little r&r.  Budva is known mostly as a popular beach resort destination with a busy nightlife, but it's also has a rich history, as it is also one of the oldest settlements on the Adriatic coast.  Nearby our hotel was Sveti Stefan (the triangular-shaped island jetting out from the mainland in the second from last photo, above).  Sveti Stefan is an exclusive resort island that was once popular among celebrities such as Princess Margaret, Marilyn Monroe, Sophia Loren, Carlo Ponti, Monica Vitti, and Kirk Douglas.  Montenegro is one of my all-time favourite places to visit.  It's a beautiful country, and the drive along the coast (which includes highlights such as the Bay of Kotor, one of the most beautiful bays in the world) with the expanse of the Adriatic Sea on one side, and the majestic black mountains on the other, is unforgettable.