November 24, 2023
There is so much to discover at Mount Hope Cemetery, one of the two beautiful historic rural cemeteries in Rochester. On this visit on Black Friday (i.e. “Buy Nothing Day”) I caught the last of the fall’s color before a cold snap would drop the rest of the leaves to Read more…
November 23, 2023
The big food holiday was here and I planned to make a 6-course all-vegan spread in my new kitchen! And I was surprised and pleased how easy it all went down… I even had time to do batches of dishes between prep tasks. With planning, this can be even more Read more…
November 22, 2023
Life Day is a holiday in the Star Wars galaxy. Detailed in the absolutely cringe-inducing Star Wars Holiday Special, a made-for-tv special made in 1978, the holiday is traditionally celebrated on November 17. Since we would not be celebrating Thanksgiving with the kids, we decided to utilize the cookbook we Read more…
November 20, 2023
Worrying I hadn’t utilized the pumpkin purée enough, I made a unique soft, cake-like babka by making some substitutions to this recipe. First, I used all-purpose flour instead of bread flour, resulting in less gluten in the dough. I also used coconut oil instead of vegan block butter because I Read more…
November 19, 2023
A quick drive from Rochester is Rolling Hills Asylum, formerly The Genesee County Poor Farm and now a haunted attraction. I took the self-guided tour and was lucky enough to be the only visitor who showed up! To follow are some of my favorite shots of the day…
November 18, 2023
With a finally clear night, we headed to the dark. But the effect of what amounts to a small ocean continues to alter forecasts. Though it is frustrating, we made the best of the clouds, manaing to capture plenty of stars and playing with his daughter’s Fisher Price red and Read more…
November 16, 2023
The formula for a good vegan chili is pretty straight-forward……. Aromatic vegetables with varied and bright hues …….an assortment of beans of varying color ……….tomato base (crushed and whole and paste) and flavorful stock …….and, finally, a variety of spices! I also whipped up a jalapeño cornbread Ok, so this Read more…
November 12, 2023
Ok, so I never made anyone 3 baked goods for their birthday, but after the school celebration and the family celebration, it was time for the kid party. So I was on cake duty again! Though the cake looks cute, it was not how I intended it to look. A Read more…
November 11, 2023
More eats made from the pumpkin purée! First, a batch of pumpkin coconut curry I winged. I got the formula down… aromatics, protein, veg, cream (coconut) and a balance of sweet, spicy, umami, acidity… So darn good… I’ll have to write down the ingredients I used next time. Next I Read more…
November 10, 2023
After a productive week, we toasted at The Hideaway! I was excited to try their vegan options, which are clearly labelled on their menu thankfully. First, Buffalo Cauliflower with a vegan garlic dill dip. Yummy as it always is, but was lacking some texture. I got the Mushroom Risotto: Roasted Read more…
November 8, 2023
Out with the apple and in with the pumpkin! It is that time of autumn when the pumpkins have served their decorative purpose and can now finish out their lives as sweet and savory treats. The first pumpkin I processed was the yellow one, so that orange hue is not Read more…
November 5, 2023
So when she sketched a picture of the cake she wanted for her birthday, I got to work. It would need brightly colored layers; it would need to be a unicorn. And it would need to be done without having to hit the grocery store. A big 1.5 batch of Read more…
November 4, 2023
Ok, so this amusement park isn’t abandoned per se, but it is vacated for the winter season… shut down and stripped of its colorful cars… and exuding the same eerie energy. I captured the vacant color close to dusk on a brisk autumn day. The structures seemed to pang for Read more…
As I moved from one cemetery to the next one on my itinerary, I happened to pass see this on en route. I quickly pulled in, spying some monuments of height. Once I took a closer look, I was blown by its beauty, blown away by the woeful women who Read more…
Missing Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, I crafted a graving itinerary to explore some of the area cemeteries. I set off realizing the effort might be in vain, given the size and beauty of where I come from. But I was happily surprised to find three gorgeous historic cemeteries that reignited Read more…
November 2, 2023
It was time to bake a batch of cupcakes for a special girl’s 7th birthday. And because class sizes are so large, they had to be little itty bitties. So the perfection of VCTOTW‘s basic chocolate cupcake would do the trick. All done Just a small piping of vanilla buttercream Read more…
November 1, 2023
Even though I no longer teach, I would still follow the tradition I have grown so accustom to… setting up my ofrenda and honoring the lives of dearly departed. This year, a Calavera cake after I came across this pan. I imagined it decorated to the nine’s. This was a Read more…
October 31, 2023
Time is moving quite oddly. Here is to another month of time’s reckless stomp. It started with a haircut. This is when I thought “Boy, I am not in Brooklyn anymore.” This is the before… And the after… meh. Anyway, a beautiful sunrise in the backyard. Busy mornings as the Read more…
A quick photodump of Halloween’s antics.. . Silly photoshoots Googly eyes This was a great event at The Little… Nosferatu with a live score (containing a singing saw) It was really cool! Ridiculous Halloween filters Update on the Halloween wreath… gotta get back into crafting More silly photoshoots We found Read more…
October 28, 2023
You looking at me? I made some Halloween treats for a party… which means the eyeballs came out of the pantry once again. So let me talk about candy eyeballs for a bit. In the past, every time I looked at a package of candy eyeballs I saw that they Read more…
Time for the beautiful full moon to grace my page once again. I swear I will work on doing some composite images with some foreground next time. But I never grow tire of this image. . the moon in all its crater-y form beaming proudly. These shots were taken in Read more…
October 27, 2023
Marge’s Lakeside Inn is a bit of an area institution. The kind that doesn’t need a website or Instagram. A timeless place that exudes nostalgia… nostalgia of a time I caught the tail end of, thankfully. We stopped in for a drink after being lulled by the u2 cover band Read more…
I didn’t know so many kinds of plants shed their green for a vibrant yellow, orange or red hue until I experienced my first autumn in Rochester! To follow some of my foliage discoveries. Rose bush leaves change color, but each leaf at its own pace… The Japanese Maple (we Read more…
October 25, 2023
Did you know that the tradition of carving pumpkins comes from Irealand? They used to carve turnips to keep the spirit of “Stingy Jack” who was denied admittance in both heaven and hell and so was left to roam the Earth for all eternity. This tradition was then incorporated into Read more…
October 21, 2023
Austin Dam Memorial Park In all its spectacular color, and in spite of the persistent rain, we went to see the sights at Austin Dam Memorial Park in Austin, Pennsylvania. The ruins of the dam are in it of itself cause for a stop in… but in autumn, the surrounding Read more…
