look at those outer banks

hurricane irene seems to be headed right for the outer banks.

when i look at this map, i can't believe the outer banks even exist at all anymore. they look so fragile and tenuous out there in their tiny string of sand.

i lived in kill devil hills for the summer of 1997. i waited tables at a restaurant named after an iguana.

good luck east coast.

sweet mountain cabin for sale

my friends lindsay and josh are selling their super cute little mountain lodge in south asheville.

new roof! new A/C! new hardwood floors! so much more!

it is just so cozy and homey and NICE.

check out the listing details here.

you know you want to buy a house from people who look like this, imagine the good vibes that permeate the structure:

el chapala, mexican for great value

i have frogged about el chapala before, but think the value of the tacos a la parilla warrants another post.

$7 for combination #11 - 1 beef burrito, 1 chicken taco, 1 chicken enchilada

$4 for a 34 oz (34 oz!) mug of dos equis (this is 10 oz free)

FREE HOT baskets of nachos and carafes of salsa

$4 for refried beans and rice (least value on table)

***BEST VALUE ON THE TABLE***

$2 for chicken 'tacos a la parilla' - bowl of fresh pico de gallo, two hot corn tortillas, and hot grilled chicken. for $2! $2! i want my $2!

stylized

reminds me of pacific northwest native indian art.

willie!

i just got back from fantastically fun family vacation to kiawah island, south carolina.

my nephew will is the cutest sweetest little kid. he is only 15 months old and he is already 3 feet tall. he has a wide-footed sturdy walking stance and gets around pretty well.

he likes to rest his feet on the table while he eats. he is very dextrous with a fork.

he chased two little girls in bikinis down the beach.

he loves to turn light switches off and on, and watch the lights. he likes reading books and studying objects.

he is very analytical and calm and wise already. and has fantastic hair.

he is good at throwing and kicking (dribbling) balls.

his favorite word is 'more!' he says it like 'mmmmaw.'

he also likes pulling hair. sometimes he throws up on airplanes.

he went out to a 2 hour dinner and didn't make a peep.

i think he will be an engineer. and a heart breaker.

plate of love

you can really tell somebody loves you when they cut your roasted red pepper into the shape of a heart.

i am a lucky dog! or more accurately a lucky bitch!

friday

yesterday i ran my left pinky toe as hard as i could into a concrete step.

i get no sympathy from a person whose pinky toes are permanently in this position, i'm told i don't need it and i kind of agree.

i killed a small black widow spider. on the freakin couch.

i wore a skirt for a dress. not outside the house.

i saw gilian welch & david rawlings. 

my soul was stirred. there was banjo but it was low, slow & sincere & i liked it.

it was dangerously hot in the orange peel until we weaseled our way under the giant ceiling fan. dangerously hot. 

i'll fly away!

scene: lying on the couch watching tv

happy birthday MOM

i hope you have a fantastic day! thank you for making my lunch every day (and dinner and breakfast) and driving me around everywhere for the first 17 years of my life!

and i wish you saved all your clothes from the 70s - 80s. you were always pretty stylin!

good use for the money section

and they're off

my money's on the chocolate dog. 

5 minutes after eating the leftover prime rib

you may remember nachodoggy won a contest a couple weeks ago for $25 gift card to outback.

we went last night and used it. that place is not great. it is not cheap! a (small) glass of wine was $7. to add 3 super-SUPER-measly dry shrimp (size of a poker chip) to your steak was $4. a salad was $12, and the dressing choices were ranch, bleu cheese, 1000 island, and bleu cheese vinaigrette.

anyway we had a gift card and it was nacho who won the contest so we brought home a few bites of prime rib and sweet potato for him to eat. he shared with his brown bro eli.

then they wrestled for 20 minutes. nacho's head was inside eli's mouth for 15 of those minutes.