2eclipse | status

i was out sick yesterday.
laryngitis. better today, but still itchy throat-low energy.
still, it's amazing how a day of rest can clear your head.

and of course there is a crisis while i'm out. one of our aquisitions is throwing a tantrum because they're out of product because they didn't set up their items correctly. and of course they blame the buyer. grrr.
luckily my boss is awesome and recognizes that THEY are the problem. and AP backs her conclusion.

susan and guiness crashed again last night. i'm glad we are friends and that she trusts us and that she is slowly acclamating our cats to the presence of a dog.

i finished busman's honeymoon yesterday by dorothy sayers. i have been craving mystery lately and this was exactly what i needed. it was delightful. i will definitely read more of her books. i especially love that she challenges my french. even if she gets french chansons stuck in my head.

i decided to try to duplicate the mushroom barley soup from the cafeteria. it's that good.
i think i got pretty close.

1 smaller can of diced tomatoes
2 lbs of baby bella mushrooms sliced and stems removed
1 onion diced
2 carrots sliced small
1 turnip sliced small
1 celery stalk sliced (or in a pinch 1 Tbs celery seed)
2 bay leaves
2 Tbs thyme
1 cup fresh chopped parsley
1 cup pearl barley
1 quart vegetable broth
2 Tbs tamari
1 Tbs worcester
1/4 cup sherry
1 quart water
2 Tbs olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

in a deep saucepan, fry onions in olive oil. add carrots, turnip and celery and cook until soft. add mushrooms water, broth and tomatoes. bring to a boil and add sherry, tamari, worcester, barley, bay and thyme. cook for at least one half hour. add parsley, salt, pepper and more tamari if desired. serves 10.

also i have made some progress on the shawl

it kinda looks like cat yak. but i think it will be awesome when blocked. i haven't spent nearly as much time on this as i have wanted to.

the lot done so far. you can tell these pictures were taken with morning light as opposed to the bright sunshine that comes into the room in the afternoon.