27.

hello blog,

i know i just re-hashed our neglected relationship, and i'm sad to tell you this, but i have to leave you again. i'll be back one day though, don't worry...

real talk though: i'm going to take a serious break from "social networking" sites and the internet in general. since the internet intruded on my simple, secluded life back in the 90's, it has kind of taken over my life, and not in any positive or productive way. i can say with a decent amount of certainty that it has caused more harm than good in my life. i let it rob me of my time, of which i have a limited amount, and i let it affect my emotions more than a brightly lit box ever should.

the internet has taken a small world and made it even smaller. it serves as an easy reminder of things and people that have no place in my mind. it keeps me from being productive. it doesn't help me keep in touch with friends - at least not in a meaningful way. i see people act and say a lot of things that i find depressing and sickening. this list could easily keep going, but i think you get the picture. in short, it's a waste.

i subscribe to the idea that if you don't like something in your life, you should do what you can to change it, and i've found myself in a place that i don't want to be, and nobody is keeping me here but myself. i lack self control in quite a few areas of my life, and hopefully if i can be stronger about one of them, the others will be close behind. i know that saying goodbye to a few websites doesn't seem like much, but for me it is. i'm a quitter, always have been.

i hope by the time february 12th rolls around (that's a month, but who knows, maybe it will be longer!) i hope to feel a sense of accomplishment. not only because i achieved a goal i set for myself, but because i made better use of my time and my life. i want to build friendships, see the sights, cook delicious food, read books, write letters, watch documentaries, go outside, make things, clear my mind, and so much more.

so yeah, there we go! if you want to get in touch with me then please! ask me to hang out, send me a letter, write me an email, text me, whatever you want. i want to know people past their status updates.

good luck to me!

xoxo

Tara

(hello.talk.goodbye@gmail.com)

26.

work...

(makin' mini snowballs)

(not amazing, but taking baby steps)

for a non-baker like me, making cupcakes start to finish is pretty exciting. slowly, slowly, slowly, i am learning. even though it's a small feat, it still makes me proud of myself. i kinda fucked up mixing/baking the eggnog ones, but i did an okay job frosting the little snowballs on top, which i was nervous to do. since i got side-sloping peaks on the cupcakes, i'm just pretending i made a ski hill on top of each one. working with frosting is harder than it looks!

left: chocolate "snowball" cupcakes filled with cocoa mousse, topped with vanilla frosting and coated in coconut.

right: eggnog cupcakes filled with creamy "eggnog", topped with vanilla frosting and a sprinkle of nutmeg and cinnamon.

25.

(last picture from 2011)

wowee! it's been almost a year since i last updated this bad boy. a lot has happened since then, so i think it's time for another a-z to catch up...

a) tara susan anley

b) a quarter of a century old

c) been living in the great city of chicago for four months now

d) forever mending broken hearts (maybe it's time to give the little guy a rest!)

e) slowly and clumsily learning how to bake (and getting paid for it)

f) in dire need of a dentist. who needs teeth, really?!

g) currently in possession of four bicycles

h) consistently tardy

i) learning emotional self control

j) trying to be better with words

k) currently trying to read "on love" and "the zookeeper's wife" - been trying for three months now

l) painfully nostalgic. still working on that time machine

m) lucky to have friends that will pitch in and buy me a shot of malort for breakfast

n) living without power in my bedroom for four days and counting now...

o) finally a fan of the office

p) making my way through all the seasons of the wonder years. been waiting for this forever!

q) still haven't shipped any of my belongings from san francisco. please shoot me.

r) lucky to have the best mama!

s) can't swim or ice skate

t) terrified of airplanes, but needing needing needing to fly

u) in need of a bailey hunter robinson horse head tattoo

v) in possession of a 1933 chicago worlds fair good luck token

w) commuting about 9 miles a day for work

x) waiting for snow so that sledding can take place

y) constantly overwhelmed by how shitty people are

z) still trying to make the most of things

...

i was reading back over past entries, and i realized that a) it's nice to have reminders of what you and your life used to be like and b) lately i haven't been getting excited about things, or dreaming enough, or putting positive magic out into the universe, and that needs to come back. so i think i'll try and write a little ditty here and there and keep the spirit of online narcissism alive!

for cross reference purposes, here's my new year's resolutions for 2012...

- stay in touch with people who are important to me, and be better about responding to people when they reach out.

- stay calm through anger and hurt, and not let it overwhelm me. “this too shall pass.”

- be impeccable with my word (thank you four agreements)

- hang out with friends more

- change situations that i’m not happy with (if i can) “if you don’t like the life you live, change it now it’s yours”

- try to be the best person i can be, even when others aren’t.

- drink less.

- try new recipes

- be strong

- keep my room tidy

- start keeping track of incoming/outgoing funds

- punctuality

- spend less time on the internet.

- worry about my life, not the lives of others

welcome 2012, let's fucking do this!

xo

22.

this will be a post about vegetables. ramps to be exact.

and what is a ramp you ask? it is a wild onion that looks like a scallion, is available for a short period of time during the spring, and supposedly tastes like a combination of onions and garlic.

(nicely cleaned ramps)

i work at an "organic" grocery store twice a week in the produce department, and i don't take advantage of that fact nearly enough, so when we got these babies in the other day i decided to be adventurous and try something new - i had never heard of them either! i bought some ramps, a lemon, a portobello mushroom, some rigatoni and i saved some withering asparagus from the compost bin for my lunch time treat.

i steamed my asparagus pieces and set them aside. then i put on a pot of water. then i discarded the bottom ends of my ramps, chopped them up to the green leaves and proceeded to saute those puppies in olive oil for a minute or two before adding my portobello pieces. sprinkled on some salt + pepper + chili flakes, squeezed on some of the lemon so my mushrooms would get their cook on and then i waited for the magic to take hold. once the mushrooms started to get tender i threw in the asparagus and grated a little lemon zest in there. when the pasta was el dente i threw that in the mix as well. i chopped up some of the ramp greens, grated a little pecorino romanoin on top, gave my lemon another squeeze and tossed that shit around. when everything was well mixed i scooped it into a bowl, grated some more cheese on top, and then proceeded to chow down. it was funking delicious!!!

(pasta in a bowl)

sorry i don't have any photos to post... my camera is broken and i am a) lazy and b) technologically challenged. this crummy photobooth shot will have to suffice. (and yes, pasta and asparagus did fall onto the floor)

for dessert i had some coconut based vanilla ice cream with pomegranate juice tenderly poured over top. yum!

xoxo

tara

ps. if you would like more information/recipes regarding ramps, click here

21.

hello blog,

as you can see from this picture, i'm not dead! (i just can't think of anything to say lately)

here's what has been happening in my world-bubble lately:

a) excessive mumford and sons sing-a-longs

b) working, working, working

c) failing at productivity because of too much text messaging and smiles

d) not cleaning, ever (need to clean!!!!)

e) lots of friends supposed to be visiting this month. stoked for that! hoping i can find the time for maximum fun!

f) getting tattooed by cris cleen on saturday. not sure what it's gonna be yet, but i know it's going to hurt!

g) gonna try my luck at some mint-chocolate chip ice cream real soon

h) finally ate at le grand dakar in clinton hill. it's no bissap baobob, but the spring rolls were awesome and i would go back to try their okra gumbo (even though i don't like okra)

i) my feet have been very itchy, but i think that phase is almost over. bittersweet on getting them coloured in!

j) i love girls nights! even when they happen at shitty places like papacitos! (never again!)

k) my letter press internship is going great! i always have long days, but it's like a sweet hangout party. beers and jokes and music.

l) i dyed my hair. now i just need it cut!

m) mia bought a super cute shower curtain (non plastic!) for our bathroom. now it doesn't look so drab and downtrodden

n) winter is over! so stoked beyond words!

o) currently reading "every man dies alone" (ulysses is on hold until i finish)

p) became familiar with the antics of lady gaga (who would have thought)

q) realized that there are way too many girls putting their business up on the internet. i think it's kind of sad. less is more sometimes.

r) realized that music videos from the nineties are the best...

the end. xoxo

20.

18.

who wants to listen to me talk for 28 minutes?

if you've never read ulysses before, let me read it to you. it's full of mistakes and weird pauses, coughing, page turning, mispronounced words, laughing, and more.

(ulysses - pgs 1-14)

i was told that it is easier to make it through ulysses if you read it out loud... so that's what i'm going to do. i'm going to read ulysses by james joyce out loud, and i am going to record it, and post it. it's not really anything that anybody will want to listen to, but i am excited to take on and finish a project that will take some dedication. i am excited to become a better reader, and possibly a better public speaker too.