Make no mistake

It's fall and it's beautiful. While today is suitably cold, grey skied and rainy, the weather has been majestic, the colours splendid, and Pittsburgh generally delightful. Makes waiting for the bus a little less tedious for sure.

Like Kerri Russell (without the tips)

 Well, it's a funny thing being in America, there are some things that feel very different here. Mos Def sounds different, Gillian Welch sounds different, Fall feels decidedly different to Autumn, and pie, it tastes different too. It seems to belong to this landscape. When asked to provide dessert for a recent dinner with Henry's school mates it seemed like the logical route. Amazingly easy and crazily decadent, while whipping it up I thought a lot about diners, and holiday traditions, and Kerri Russell in Waitress only I am certainly happily married, all the more so after basking in my husband's praise for this tofu pie (Victory!)

The recipe comes from a Melbourne blogger who adapted it from this great lady. And as they have both published versions of the recipe I will lead you to them if you choose embark on this pie train. PS. That pic is actually my pie!

Convening

I spent the first half a week (just gone) at the David Lawrence Convention Centre, located on the banks of the might Allegheny River in down town Pittsburgh. The occasion was the AASHE 2011 conference, which is the Association for the advancement of sustainability in higher education. It motivated the attendance of over 2000 delegates, comprised of students, staff and faculty from institutions across America - ivy league schools and small state colleges were represented and it was indeed a gathering of inspirational folks, though in truth it left me a lot dispirited. I lent my stellar timekeeping and transcribing ability to various sessions in return for attendance at additional papers and the key note addresses. It was a strange affair, and truly I left the first two days feeling like an interloper.. Alas only on the final day attendees eased into conversation and I found myself happily engaged in chatter with Sustainability Officers from Vermont, and Texas, with researchers from Ireland, and students from Eastern Pennsylvania and Portland. We talked about the world, career progression, parenting, poetry (after an amazing performance by the incredible Sandra Steingraber) and alas the awfulness of coal seam gas mining that is destroying the shale under Pennsylvania. And already it seems like long ago, though I am sure many went home inspired by the work and enthusiasm of their peers. In just over a week I fly to Anaheim California for the American Evaluation Association annual gathering... more there from the environmental evaluators interest group..

Southern influence

Yesterday I got up and in a frenzy busted out some sweet potato and black bean chilli. I had a cup of beans leftover after soaking them to make a version of a recent Vegetarian Times recipe for Edamame and Black Bean Sliders ... me I had tortilla to use up (nothing comes in small packages here!), that is another delicious post in the making, but I was flummoxed about what to serve it with after a rice heavy week last week and I ended up giving these cornbread muffins a crack. Awesome, if a little on the sweet side, next time I will trust my instincts and reduce the maple syrup content more than I did this time!

Cornbread (Adapted from The Kind Diet cookbook)

1/2 cup maple syrup (I used half a cup and skipped the brown rice syrup)

1/2 cup brown rice syrup

1 + 1/4 cup almond milk

1/4 cup safflower oil

1 + 1/2 cup cornmeal

1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

1. Preheat oven 400F. You can use 9″ x 9″ baking dish, but I used 12 cup muffin tins instead.
2. Combine maple syrup, rice syrup, almond milk and oil in a bowl and mix well.
3. In another bowl, stir together the cornmeal, flour, baking soda and salt.
4. Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture, and mix just until well combined. Stir the batter just enough to combine the ingredients. Muffins can become heavy and tough if you over-mix the batter.
5. Pour the batter in the baking dish or muffin tins. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre of the cornbread/muffins comes out clean.

And PS. I even cooked up some collard greens, waaahooo!

Lately I have been doing a lot of this

It is feeling like small things take a long time, two hours bus transit yesterday, most of it at the stops, inhaling other peoples' cigarettes (why oh why can't they just stand still while smoking and not follow the bystander moving out of their way), three hours for a quick errand on Friday, most of it in the rain... sigh. If only my reading material wasn't equally depressing(see here http://www.quarterlyessay.com/ ).. a little flat this week.

Dress-ups

Upon awaking this morning, Jassy announced that she wanted to be Maggon the Bad Tempted (Tempered) Dragon (see book in pic). Some paper and milk carton later, here is the terrifying result. As you can see, Jassy makes a very scary monster, jamies notwithstanding. Moo cow is quaking in her hooves.

I am loving your posts but still haven't figured out how to publish my comments.

With gratitude

A startlingly clear Wednesday morning spent penning thank you cards to treasured friends. A precious way to start a day, the toilet blocked for the second time a short time later, but even this was not insurmountable when basking in the love of good people. H is working from home today and we are off to the park for a stroll. x

Downtown

Grey Tuesday in downtown Pittsburgh, everyone loves an Australian, even the security man at the Social Security Authority entrance, or the civil servant who rejects your application and tells you about how last spring break he even pretended to be an Australian (you think he is flirting though because his demeanour changes markedly when he realises you are not 20 but well old at 32), even the man who turns you away at the Driving Licensing Centre telling you that you need to pass a medical and sit a permit test if you wish to drive in Pennsylvania (this guy actually uses Pittsburghese when he says to you "I heard that yinz speak British like because once when they was settling you they sent over their prisoners.." He tells me that he is Steve Irwin's age)....

Brunch

Recipe for zucchini bread from here Vegan Zucchini Bread  - inspired by a birthday gift of local cafe produce from Madeline I made two loaves last night with a loaf tin borrowed from a new friend Heidi (she is in H's program, a german modernist!) It was great toasted with some Earth Balance Butter. I am writing cards of thanks and feeling lucky in this cool fall weather. I want to try and photograph something each day this week - out of the house - to get me outdoors to sense the change. I want to share it with you, as currently I have the luxury of time (and I realise it is a luxury!!). All my love xx

saturday mail delivery

Thank you wonderful friend.

loving happy friendly cuddly inspired warm creative birthday

Dearest Lyd

May today's birthday bring forth joyous memories of a life richly lived, and the promise of wonderful adventures with loved ones and strangers. And a few nice bits and pieces along the way. (A gift voucher for anthropologie (Bakery Square, 6425 Penn Ave. Pittsburgh, PA 15206,(412) 441-2302; www.anthropologie.com) is winging its way to a letterbox near you.)

With oceans of love from us all.

xxx

(hahaha, so sneaky, i totally applaud you organisation Em, and how weird that I actually got around to posting beforehand! You are the best!)

Oh, you are sneaky. But I've edited the post slightly -- find the change. x

Blogger is not letting me comment! Not sure what I need to do.

I'm sad to hear you've been feeling blue. I bet your mood is not helped by the general atmosphere of mourning across the country this week.

Wonderful to hear about your positive and constructive morning. I'm going to follow your links and reflect on your progress in the daylight hours. Now, though, it's 2am and I've been up for 2 hours with a teething baby. So tired of waking up tired.

Missing you and been thinking of you this birthday week.

xxx

PS Silly question, but is this blog in the public domain?!

a happy reunion

career diary, wisconsin chapter

I spent a wonderful morning yesterday with two staff from the ERC at the University of Wisconsin
http://www.uwex.edu/erc/

I met with Jake Blasczyk and Astrid Newenhouse, who were both very generous with their time and interest in my work and queries, our experience (at Roberts) and who were wonderful tour guides.. think indian burial mounds, stem cell discovery centre and then we ended up dancing around the perimeter of the new university Discovery Centre to trigger the inlaid fibonacci chimes that form a part of the 'collaborative science' landscape.

My hour long conversation with Jake took part in his favourite garden at the University - a wonderful feast for the senses at this late stage of summer, and let us easily fall into discussion about woodland owners and extension, buddism and social media platforms, Dillman's survey methods, ethnography in evaluation, the limitations of indicators and the sector of the profession here that makes up natural resource evaluators. He has been doing some interesting work with a colleague on engagement of woodland owners - theorising engagement with attention to four factors including attachment and a review of the place literature - I am keen to follow up on this.

It was encouraging, he provided some feedback on the CV I had forwarded to him, and advised me to keep talking with people like I have been doing. I left energised after a dispiriting week in Pittsburgh.

Lunch with Astrid and Jake was equally entertaining and illuminating, and I got to learn more about their individual projects, some wonderful longitudinal studies, about the effectiveness of various survey methods, we debated the use of incentives, and talked about the value of control studies where budget permits.

Musings in the public domain, is this how the modern job hunt proceeds or is this advanced procrastination now that I have returned home.... 

PS. I have added a bunch here including some that didn't make it to facebook..

A check in

I love that you have been here and left some surprise updates for me to check.
I love links, the cruskit drop count and the mentions of your Monday night meals. I giggle at the quinoa because despite the grain and zucchini ribbons I feel the real appeal is perhaps its similarity to our old favourite Tessa.

Today I found bulk food supply at the stupendously excellent East End Co-Op with the help and wheels of our new friend Heidi http://www.eastendfood.coop/ She is in H's program and together with her husband Brent and their dog, Pumpkin, lives in what can best be described as a treehouse type space near our house.

She is rad - and also forwarded this excellent link for giggles http://mydaguerreotypeboyfriend.tumblr.com/

This week I shall: dodge the rain, hopefully run a little after my blisters heal (heel heal!), make some miniature pies, cook dahl, sand a bookshelf, write some thank you cards, find a job, and fly to Madison WI.

Keen-wa

I'm loving quinoa at the moment, finding it a delicious and nutritious substitute for cous cous, rice and other grains. This quinoa salad was absolutely beautiful, I think you'd enjoy, though I'm not sure what you could substitute for the goat's cheese.

75g quinoa
1 zucchini, sliced into ribbons
4 spring onions, finely sliced
100g cherry toms
1 red chilli, finely chopped
1 ripe avo, sliced (I used more!)
100g feta cheese (I used goat's, delish)
2 tbs chopped fresh mint

Dressing
1 tbs balsamic
3 tbs EVOO
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard

Cook quinoa. Combine with other salad ingredients and dress with dressing.

I served this with a warm carrot salad and roast beef with Morrocan-y spices for a flasher-than-usual Monday night dinner.

xxx

A lazy Saturday afternoon

I'm thermomixing up some vege stock to use in today's pea and ham soup. The free-range pork producer at the Subi Farmer's Markets was out of ham and bacon today so we are having to make do with D'Orsogna. Beatrice is sitting on my lap seeing how many times I will retrieve her dropped Cruskit (up to 17 -- make that 18 -- so far), while Jassy is having the sleep of her life and Daddy is catching up on some shut eye after staying up watching the ever-disappointing Australia 'til midnight last night.

Blogsessed

Just found this gorgeous blog and thought you might draw some inspiration from it.
http://aestheticoutburst.blogspot.com/

It was so lovely to talk to you.

xxx

return

for the time between cups of dandelion