Road Trip Day Two: Late Fall Flowers

The beautiful flowers above are still remaining from the summer. The light was just perfect for these delicate (albeit hanging on for dear life) blooms.

Enjoyed the cool weather in NC today with a 5 mile trail run, lots of delicious fresh coffee and tea, Indian food, gallery exploring, and a nice long history lesson from Daniel Day Lewis and Tommy Lee Jones (Lincoln was quite good - made me realize how little I retained of American history pre-Reconstruction).

Tomorrow we head to Atlanta for more exploring en route to the bayou. Sunset photos and those promised coffee photos will ensue.

Road Trip Day 1

Did I mention this whole road trip I'm taking over Thanksgiving? No? Well here it goes . . .

We (my mother and I) have arrived at stop number one. Our dear family friend's home in Durham, NC. We made it from NJ to NC in under 9 hours! Whew, I'm pretty sleepy. Tomorrow is a day of adventuring and then on to the ATL Sunday, before heading to New Orleans. I'm so excited to see that beautiful town - neither of us have ever been!

I promise to keep updating as we go. I have no good photos from good ol' Interstate 95, but I plan on finding something pretty to take pictures of tomorrow. Perhaps a cup of coffee . . .

Staten Island Strong

Yesterday, instead of going to work, the office organized a volunteer day to help with the clean up and rebuild of Staten Island post hurricane. I knew I loved my job before, but I'm even more proud to work there now - I work with some pretty amazing people.

What an incredible day. I met so many wonderful people (and a lovely dog too!) Way too many heartbreaking stories of loss and so much resilience.

We cleaned out a quite a few flooded homes and basements in the New Dorp area (beachfront), helped organize clothing, food and supply donations. Our office worked with Staten Island Strong - a fantastic organization. If you can get out there, they need all the help they can get. There is still SO much to be done.

The devastation is enormous.

A Little More October Please?

So as you may have noticed, the lovely month of October zoomed past at lightening speed. We closed the month with a nasty hurricane and then just like that - it became November.

I'm not quite ready to accept the impending reality of winter, not just yet. Just a few more colorful leaves please? Leave the green grass for another week or two? Here a few last looks at October - taken the weekend before the hurricane. 

(I sure hope that nor'easter threat is a lie . . . )

Anderson Park in Montclair, NJ

Some leaves. Some grass too.

Our little pumpkin friend.

A few lemons for good measure. 

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever

A few weeks ago I discovered the very best chocolate chip cookie recipe ever. Thanks America's Test Kitchen! I was pleasantly surprised with the results of the recipe - I've searched for a very long time for the perfect chocolate chip  cookie . . . chewy, moist, chocolate chip-y. Yum. The one thing that threw me off when I first read this recipe is that you have to melt the butter first, a strange step as opposed to the usual 'soft' butter, but worked perfectly, trust me. Here's the recipe - just remember, take them out before they look done.

2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (I used half whole wheat pastry, half white)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled 

1 cup packed light or dark brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 whole egg

1 egg yolk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Heat the oven to 325*

Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together and set aside.

Beat the butter and sugar together until smooth. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla and beat until fully incorporated. The recipe suggests that you use a mixer for this. It's probably a good idea, but i used a fork and whisk and it worked just fine - it's up to you!

Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Mix in the chocolate chips. 

Divide the dough into small pieces. Roll into balls and place on baking tray, spacing about 2 1/2 inches apart. 

Bake for about 15 minutes, rotating baking sheets halfway through baking time. Bake until cookies are slightly brown on the edges, while the centers are still soft. Cool the cookies on the baking sheets.

Hope you enjoy!

Instagrams from my Strange Week with Sandy

I must first say how extremely lucky we have been during and after 'Superstorm Sandy.' Living on the outskirts of NYC during the aftermath of the hurricane is something to remember. We were very lucky to only lose power for 36 hours, while thousands still go without heat, light, or water. Being that my commute (three hours to go 5 miles on Thursday!) was the worst of it for me, I really can't complain!

NYC is a different place now, as are the outer boroughs, NJ, Long Island, and parts of CT. There certainly is so much more to say, but much of it has already been said before. My thoughts go out to everyone dealing with the aftermath. I haven't seen any of the places that were hit the worst, but from what photos and stories I've heard - it's like the zombie apocalypse. Wow! Just a few trees down in our neighborhood . . .

Here are a few instagrams that I took this week. Some prettier than others! Stay warm and safe everyone - 

The GWB on my commute this morning (don't worry, I wasn't driving). Blue skies are back!

The office dogs are starting to feel pretty cooped up since the park across the street is still closed!!

Gas lines in NJ. They stretch for blocks and blocks. One side for people with cans, one side for cars. Insane.

A Hurricane-y Sandy Sunday

I took full advantage of the "impending doom" warnings regarding the apparent Hurricane Sandy that is supposed to hit the tri-state area in the next few hours. It hasn't rained a drop, the breeze is mild, and it's no colder than 55 out - but hey, an excuse to stay inside, right? I certainly hope that this storm is not nearly as bad as is predicted. However, a little rain might be nice, and if the power goes out for a little while I wouldn't mind playing scrabble by candle light and drinking wine.

I claimed that my excuse for staying indoors was the pre-hurricane grayness, but really - it was Adobe Lightroom. I have finally switched from clunky Photoshop (I say clunky only because I'm not that great at it and have an older version)! I am absolutely delighted with this program, and thanks to Adobe I was able to get the student edition for MUCH cheaper with my not-yet deleted Purchase College email address. I got bored with watching the YouTube Lightroom tutorial so I'm no expert yet, but getting there. It makes editing incredibly smooth and intuitive!

Here are a few photos from the week, enjoy! If you are on the East Coast stay safe this week!

The Arlington diner near our apartment. I spend a whole lot of time staring at this place every morning waiting for the looong light on my commute.

Easiest and best peanut butter cookies I've ever made. 1 1/2 cups peanut butter, 1 cup sugar, 1 egg and 1 egg yolk, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp vanilla. Yup, that's it.

Straws and pumpkins.

Leeks. Pre-soup stage.

Lemons and tile.

Dead leaves on the not-so dirty ground.