High-res Found this lovely quote from Dr. Seuss on Pinterest and wanted to share. The type is deliciouso too, no? Happy Monday!

Found this lovely quote from Dr. Seuss on Pinterest and wanted to share. The type is deliciouso too, no? Happy Monday!

High-res From my friends Christa and Gregorie. Inspired by old 45s found at a flea market. Absolutely gorgeous! http://joliekolaj.com joliekolaj: THE VINYL WORD Diana Ross, absolutely beautiful, and love the theme song from Mahogany. Do you know where you’re going to? I know I don’t but that’s what makes life so fun… X O • J K

From my friends Christa and Gregorie. Inspired by old 45s found at a flea market. Absolutely gorgeous! http://joliekolaj.com

joliekolaj:

THE VINYL WORD

Diana Ross, absolutely beautiful, and love the theme song from Mahogany. Do you know where you’re going to? I know I don’t but that’s what makes life so fun…

X O • J K

make good art: neil gaiman’s inspiring address

As creative people, we always need to be reminded WHY we are doing what we are doing. Especially on mornings, like this one, when you have to apologetically post date a check to pay for your son’s dental appointment. It makes you wonder: Why am I drawing a bunch of skinny-legged chickens? Why am I writing personal essays in which my payment is often two copies of the literary journal in which they were published? 

A facebook friend shared this today and I took a moment to watch. (I couldn’t get the video to embed properly, so just click on the title link.) I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did, and I hope it helps you to remember WHY.

Much love!

miami

I am lucky to have a group of friends who are incredibly talented, smart, and inspire me every day. Last weekend sixteen women flew down to Florida to celebrate my friend Karen’s (http://www.kkclardy.com) latest achievement — placement in the Miami gallery, Art Fusion, as winner of an international competition. The gallery exhibited two of her paintings — huge oil on canvases that juxtapose vintage 50s advertising images and 21st century pop icons. 

We had a wonderful time and with the exception of a sprained ankle and an incident with a man in a banana suit, returned to Greenville with renewed energy to create and stay curious. Much gratitude to all my friends who lift my spirit, make me laugh, and hold me accountable in my own work!

chicken soup for the “cold as a witch’s boob” soul

Before anyone rolls his or her eyes at me for complaining about cold weather in South Carolina, please know two things:

1. I have lived and worked in places like NYC, Cleveland, and Toronto so I have some idea of what constitutes real cold weather.

2. I’m a bit of a wuss.

Anyway, it was actually in the 20s here one morning and I was having my incredible peeps over for lunch and book club (we are reading “Finding Your North Star” by Martha Beck — a book I highly recommend), and decided a hot and somewhat spicy soup would be the only way any of us would survive a day that would only reach a high of 43. (Wuss)

My friends loved it and wanted the recipe and so I’m posting here. The great thing about this soup is you can throw everything in a crockpot when you wake up (though I don’t recommend doing so before you’ve had a few sips of caffeine). Then you’re free to pick up all the tufts of dog hair and half-chewed Legos or whatever might be lying around your house so that your guests might believe they have not walked into an abandoned hovel. It also makes things smell divine!

I first made this soup a few years ago when I wanted to use things in the fridge and cupboards and named it Chicken Tortilla Soup since that is what it most resembled and gave me carte blanche to add sour cream and avocado. So here it is.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

image

2-3 chicken breasts (depending on how long you have, you can put them in frozen. I’ve also shredded the meat off a rotisserie chicken, but add that at the end if that’s how you choose to do it.)

1 can chopped tomatoes (I’ve also done fresh salsa)

1-2 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (spicy!)

1 onion sliced into thin half circles (I’ve also added carrots and celery here if I’ve got it)

2 quarts chicken broth

Cover and cook on high for about 5 hours. Take the chicken out and shred with a fork (or if using precooked chicken add now). Take an immersion blender (best thing ever invented next to the hot glue gun) and quickly blend the soup. Put the chicken back in and serve with tortilla chips, sour cream, chopped avocado, lime wedges, and minced cilantro (optional). 

Enjoy!!