Kings, Cups, and Honey

It's been a rainy week in Chicago. Fall is still my favorite season here though - lots of colors and not too cold. :-)

This week I'm:

• Listening to: Kings of Convenience. According to their Wikipedia article they're from Norway. I've only experienced their album "Riots on an Empty Street" so far, but I'm excited to check out "Declaration of Dependence" sometime soon. This band falls into the category of quiet indie. My favorite songs so far are "I'm Rather Dance With You" and "Surprise Ice". Some of their songs have great lyrics that are funny but still kind of insightful. I love the harmony in the chorus on "Surprise Ice".

• Eating: Really Raw Honey. I tasted this honey at the Chicago Green Festival last year and haven't been the same since. I bought some on the spot, and got another (gigantic) jar last week. It's so thick and sweet, it's like spreading pure sugar on bread, only better. I highly recommend it even if you don't think honey is for you.

• Checking out: "I Am Not A Paper Cup..." coffee cups by DCI Products. I saw this at the Art Institute in Chicago, and initially thought it was a play on Magritte's "This Is Not A Pipe" painting. This cup actually isn't made of paper, however, but is porcelain and silicone. I think this design is pretty clever: taking something anyone would recognize as disposable and making it permanent.

Calexico, Macarons, Alexander McQueen

It's time to change things in this blog - yay! Much as I liked writing just about design last year, I realized over the summer many of my favorite conversations were about the small things that keep me going every day: the music I play on repeat while I do work, the junk food I sneak in between meals, the random item I spend hours looking at online... When I like something I tend to surround myself with it, but I love finding something new to keep around. So this blog is going to be about just that: my weekly addictions.

This week I'm....

• Listening to Calexico, a band I know very little about because it was recommended to me by a friend. So far I've only discovered their album Carried to Dust, and some stuff they've done with Iron and Wine. If you like mostly chill indie with a little salsa beat, this is for you. My favorite song on this album is "Man Made Lake" - I love how the song layers steady beats to grow in intensity. I also like the variety of the album, and am excited to discover more of their stuff.

• Eating macarons, and not the ones with coconut. I was turned onto these by the owners of Al's Deli, my favorite francophile deli in Chicagoland. These French desserts are two "cookies" filled with "paste"... I think the key ingredient is almond flour... let me just say they're fabulous beyond description. Especially the chocolate ones. Apparently these are becoming a big thing: I've also become addicted to Tastespotting, and they've recently featured several macaron recipes. Here's one for the mocha spice macarons in the picture. (image and recipe from the blog Baked in Birmingham!)
• Still checking out Alexander McQueen's 12 inch high-heeled shoes from New York Fashion Week. The New York Times had a fun article about shoes and what they do to us ladies, body and soul. But you have to admit these shoes are pretty cool to look at, no matter how impractical and painful to wear. I love the crazy shape and textures. High fashion is so much fun when it makes you debate the interesting things you could wear. (image from the NYT article - my favorite is the center!)