Christmas in Honeoye

I was worried that we wouldn't have a white Christmas, but the capricious weather of western New York always pulls through.

 

Chistmas Eve dinner: artichokes French, lemon-wine scallops, langoustines, Parmesan roasted cauliflower & broccoli, a spinach salad, and a few glasses of champagne. 

Present opening with the family on Christmas morning!

The standard brunch spread.  My mom has a habit to over-cook, and we were left with a few meals of leftovers (which isn't the worst thing).

// As requested, I didn't receive as many gifts as usual because my parents are financing my interview travels and attire (aka, shopping spree coming up!).  However, they still gave me a lot of useful objects, colorful jewelry, and objects for my hypothetical 'future apartment' (ha!), as well as books!  Now, I admit I have a habit of collecting books through discounted sales and then end up too busy with schoolwork, consequently leaving them unread.  I just reorganized my book shelf and was embarrassed by the amount of books I need to read, and rediscovered my Kindle.  I like the slim portability of the Kindle and the eLibrary is full of free downloads, particularly the classics, but it will never replace the palpable texture and binding of real books.  This is the sentimental pack-rat within me speaking.  Nevertheless, the books pictured here will fuel my food & travel-oriented mind even further: The Great Railway Bazaar and Dark Star Safari by acclaimed fiction, non-fiction, and travel writer Paul Theroux; On the Road by Jack Kerouac, in original manuscript form (which basically equates to the unvarnished, raw version of Kerouac, albeit more difficult to read); and The Gastronomica Reader, which is an interdisciplinary food journal published by the University of California Press.  I don't have the money for a subscription, but this enormous coffee table book of selected articles should be a valuable reference!

// A photo I captured from my friend Ally's home in Bow, New Hampshire last winter was published online here at RoosterGNN, an independent bilingual media agency based in Madrid, Spain.  I mentioned in a previous post that they published a food & travel personal essay on their GapBrave travel blog, and it turns out that I'll be contributing more to them in the future!

// I can't believe the year is almost over.  Here is a throwback to last year's Rubblebucket concert where friends from throughout western NY converged to sing and dance in elation~ I can't wait for tonight!

Listening: A brilliant 17-piece chamber band based out of Austin called Motherfalcon.  Listened to them last year on NPR's Tiny Desk concerts while in China and needing pseudo-live music, and now revisitingtheir sweeping tunes while on NPR's 2013 review.