in the fall, in the fall when the tide took them all

Menu: Peanut butter milkshake and chocolate malt at Chick and Ruth's. Guacamole, fish tacos, gazpacho, and braised pork burrito at The Latin Quarter. Tomato carbonara (Eat, Pray, Love style) and piadina parma at Carpaccio Tuscan Kitchen and Wine Bar. Fancy drinks, oysters, crab cakes, and soft shelled crabs at Hell Point. Crepe florentine and a nutty banana at Sofi's Crepes. Sashimi, a California roll, and a spicy tuna roll at Joss Cafe and Sushi Bar. Pizza and grilled cheese ordered through in-house dining at the Westin Hotel.

Keep sweeping, Martha

Finished reading Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay. Watched Get Him to the Greek, Killers, Me and Orson Welles, and Shutter Island.

500 days

The other day, Mr. Beeton and I had the horrible realization that the summer had passed us by without our having engaged in some of our very favorite summer activities. We've been so busy visiting family, entertaining friends, writing treatises, and repairing atrocities that we had neglected to eat ice cream, visit a farmers market, and see an outdoor movie. This past week, we tried to correct these mistakes and cram these last few days of summer chock full of fun.

To start, we visited Moorenko's in Silver Spring, Maryland just a short drive from Quackenbos Street. While parking was terrible and an aging hippie less than welcoming (not to mention not very deft at packing a cone - my two scoops became one after the first lick!), our ice cream - Guinness flavored and ginger - was delicious. And, we were equally delighted when the shop got a shout out in the most recent edition of the Post's Sunday magazine. The Post also mentioned Summer Delights in downtown Takoma Park, so we headed over there last night. The ice cream wasn't quite as good, but you can't beat downtown Takoma Park on a hot summer night.

Last Friday, we went with our new neighbor and friend, The Rockstar Librarian, to the Petworth Farmers Market, which despite having lived in the adjacent neighborhood since May, we had not yet visited (read about it here). We walked around, bought beautiful red peppers, a big purple eggplant, some yummy tomatoes, and cucumbers. And, with our leftover change, we picked up two pieces of Dangerously Delicious Pie - Baltimore Bomb and raspberry. The Rockstar Librarian then headed to DuPont Circle to pick up some obscure DVD, and we headed across the street to the newly opened Sala Thai for sushi. Afterward, we took a long walk with Ella around the neighborhood. She especially likes to run in the fields by Coolidge High School.

While we still haven't seen an outdoor movie this summer, we did go see the summer blockbuster Eat, Pray, Love. And soon, very soon, we're headed out of town for a little 72-hour vacation before the madness that is school starts - just me, Mr. Beeton, and Ella.

Keep sweeping, Martha

Watched Date Night and Eat, Pray, Love. Been re-reading all kinds of food memoirs.

mess o'

I blame the picklebacks for my absence of late. They really derailed my progress in a number of areas of my life. But, I'm back on track now - writing book reviews, painting, organizing, and blogging. Oh, and picking peppers. While my tomatoes did not fare very well in our (sometimes) neglected garden plot, Mr. Beeton's peppers have been growing like gangbusters. Here's just a few we picked this past week.


Keep sweeping, Martha

PS - Check out our new Flickr photos. We've made quite a bit of progress on both our master bedroom and bathroom.