Friday fixations

I improvised this delicious dinner last night based on this recipe here. I've been wanting to make it forever but I just wasn't finding pork chops cheap enough (for me). Anyway, I only pan fried these since my pork chops were of the quick cook skinny variety and skipped the oven step which made this a super quick meal. I also swapped the cider vinegar for balsamic (because there are only so many vinegars I can purchase), the shallot for a small onion, the thyme for simple salt and pepper, and the pure maple syrup for the, uh, Aunt Jemima variety. So yum, I'll probably improvise it again in the future.

Oh, quick tip I picked up in a comment section somewhere: brush your meat with oil and then sear in a dry pan. I tried it out on the pork chops and I thought it was much better than coating the whole pan in oil. I used the oil only where I needed it which reduced the amount of smoking and reduced the amount of oil I used without sacrificing any flavour.

Current fixations:

{rock yards} As seen on a lazy Saturday afternoon of driving around, snooping at yards. The only thing I would do differently is that I would NOT use varying junipers or juniper-esque plants (surprised? And just as an aside, after painting the house trim behind the junipers, my legs look like someone beat me with a bag of oranges. I still have to do a second coat, but my bruises hurt so much I've been putting it off all week). So I think this would look much more modern with a variety of interesting prairie grasses, bamboos, succulents, and leafy perennials.

{nail polish} Joe's fall colours, to be precise. I spotted them on the website a while ago, but only found them in the store yesterday. I bought Fog and Storm, but I wish they would have also had the Orchid colour left because I really like that shade, too. I've been looking for a nice grey nail polish forever so it was so great to find one that's not only really pretty but also affordable.

{skinny jeans} No; I still haven't found a pair, but I'm trying them on like a madwoman. Mom came for a visit on Wednesday, and without planning it, we found ourselves at the Bay. I tried on a few pairs and again there seems to be an issue between waist size and hip size. I really want to find the new improved Levi's jeans, Curve ID. I hear they've discovered that women aren't built like a brick house from their hips up and we actually curve in at the waist (whoa! revolutionary breakthrough for jean manufacturers). I thought they had them at the Bay but apparently not at the Southgate store. One good thing that came out of it was that everything I tried on was slightly too large which was a huge boost to the ego.

{socks and sandals} I used to think this was so dumb, but now I'm really loving the idea (when done the right way). It's kind of the perfect thing for this weather. Especially if you're like me and freeze to death whenever your feet are unsocked.

{the pumpkin pie blizzard} This is the only time -- the ONLY time -- I'd break my rule and go to Dairy Queen. The pumpkin pie blizzard is the most fantastic blizzard they sell and it's only available for a limited time. That's probably a good thing, actually, and thank god for the new mini size.

{plants vs zombies} for the XBox. I know, I know. I totally played the hell out of this for the PC, but when it came out on the console, we couldn't help ourselves and bought it again. The best part? We can play cooperatively or against each other which is the number one thing I look for in a game. The only other thing I wish it had is more achievements. I'm not necessarily an achievement whore, but it gives you something hard to work at. The most I'm working at now is my endless score (if only my PC flag count of 92 could transfer over) and figuring out how to beat Idle Husband since he always kicks my ass no matter if he's a zombie or a plant.

{black purple} Mom sent me this picture of her black chokecherry tree against her yellow crabapple tree and I just can't get enough of it. I wish it were my picture, actually. Those black leaves against that yellow?! Gorgeous! I was really smitten with the bright reds and yellows of the season, but now I can't get enough black purple. This is definitely a potential new backyard tree.








{do-it-yourself handwriting} When I saw this post recently, I loved it so much that I honestly want to write over all of my pictures now. I don't know whether it's their actual handwriting or a font made to look like awkward handwriting, but I don't think it matters. It looks so much more personal and makes me feel like I'm being transported back to the days of receiving pretty letters in the mail. A personal touch is so important, and I'm really loving the blogs who get that.

{miniature pumpkins and squashes} When are the mini pumpkins coming out?! When?! Someone tell me! I want to buy them and have a nice little tabletop display. Yes; in previous years, I thought they were pretty useless, but this year I want them piled in a bowl on my table. I managed to get a miniature butternut squash and an acorn squash, but I was literally picking from the bottom of the barrel. Where have all the pumpkins gone?! (Gross. I just sang that to the tune of this.)