List 99

Love: Erich Pfeifer, whom I had the good fortune to marry twenty years ago today, on July 31st, 1993. I'm kind of in shock that it's been two decades, but in many ways it's equally not surprising at all since it's difficult to remember life before he came into it. We were engaged after six weeks. We just knew. Cut to today and we still know. He's my best friend, a wonderful partner and father to our Stella, and keeps making me laugh. 

Like: Erich's way with a playlist. He's a genius at capturing mood, time and place with his mixes. Erich's been working on one for the anniversary dinner party we're having this weekend with a handful of close friends, and in doing so he turned me onto my new favorite jam, Don't Kiss Me Goodbye by Ultra Orange and Emmanuelle. (It's actually from 2007 but was new to me.) Listen to it here.

Discovery:  An Inverness get away.  For our tenth anniversary, we went to the secluded, cozy Manka's Inverness Lodge.  Ten years later, we're heading to Manka's Fishing Cabin and will be toasting two decades together over dinner at Sir and Star, the new and wildly well-reviewed restaurant from Manka's owners, Margaret Grade and Daniel DeLong, which features dishes like A Neighbor's Quail Plumped with Kale, Nestled in Wild Greens Pilliaged Within Reach and Crab Plucked from Surrounding Seas, Clawing at a Dip of Local Meyer Lemons.

Obsession: The Paris Photo show, which brings together hundreds of galleries from all over the world to a lovely spot in Paris each November.  We last went in 2004, right before I got pregnant with Stella, and have been aching to go back ever since.  This November our return is finally on.  Twenty is supposed to be the china or platinum anniversary gift year, but for us, it will be photography.

Complaint: I had a fleeting thought of engineering a closet makeover for Erich as an Anniversary surprise, but couldn't pull it off.  I would have used Beastie Boy Mike D's Brooklyn Toille wallpaper in the closet, which I think Erich would have loved.  Maybe for 25.

List 94

Love: My friend Lisa's idea, from her blog Picnic, for inexpensive, stylish present wrapping:  brown paper bag + binder clip + any wintery Instagram picture. This is especially brilliant for people like myself whose presents tend to look like they were wrapped by a small child, or perhaps even an animal lacking opposable thumbs. 

Like: This always reliable, always delicious Smoked Salmon Dip from Bon Appetit, for any holiday cocktail party.

Smoked Salmon Dip Recipe

Discovery: Some of my favorite gift ideas for the year...

For the geek, any (all?) of these Star Wars prints from etsy's CONCEPCIONSTUDIOS. 

For ladies/readers, these lovely versions of the chick canon, sold at Anthropologie.

For the entertainer, monogrammed cocktail napkins from Mark & Graham, in the typewriter font.

For me (hopefully), some new rain gear: a Pendleton umbrella and L.L. Bean Maine hunting boots, based on their original 1912 model.

Obsession: My new favorite weeknight dinner - Eggs with Chickpeas, Spinach and Tomato - which is as easy as it is comforting during this hectic holiday month. Bonus: it's healthy too.

Recipe here.

Complaint: Stella's, not mine: that we only have "totally, completely not-exciting" strands of white lights decorating the trees in front of our house.  She is deeply disappointed that we haven't gone full Christmas Wonderland like the houses on Alameda's Thompson Ave, who've been putting on a show every December since 1938 (save for during World War II mandatory blackouts), and where we went to walk around and mail her Santa letter last weekend.  For my part, I'm glad that other people go for it, so I don't have to.

List 91

Love: Zombies, which pop up in Fall like cherry blossoms in Spring, these three sightings in particular...

(1) The Walking Dead, which returned for a third bloody season this Sunday. Bring on Michonne and the Prison.

(2) The Twelve, sequel to The Passage which I went crazy for when it came out two years ago (it was on List 1), and whose monsters are essentially vampires channeled through a zombie filter - i.e. mindless, blood-thirsty hordes who've lost any sense of the people they once were. It downloaded at 9:01pm PST yesterday and I was reading it within minutes. Thankfully two long flights for a work trip are on the schedule this week, luxurious hours to dive into the book. 

(3) When we're in New York for a pleasure trip later this month, I'm highly tempted to join my brother on this Zombie-themed "fun run" on Roosevelt Island October 27th, in which you can sign up to play a human, wearing flag football-style strips which represent your brains, or be one of the pursuing Zombies.   

Like: New York's Beauty and Essex's take on a classic cozy and simple meal that always feels Fall-like: grilled cheese and tomato soup. Their version is called a dumpling, and it's actually a small pool of tomato soup topped with a tiny bacon-crowned coin of grilled cheese you can eat in one bite.

Discovery: This Pendleton Camp Blanket, the perfect thing to Fall-up your bed.

Obsession: These deadly good warm pumpkin donut-muffin hybrid thingies that I saw on Pinterest (which, when clicked, on takes you to a military housewife's blog for the recipe - ah, the random connections of the interweb). They make the perfect Fall weekend morning indulgence.

Recipe here.

Complaint: The Bay Area's Fall is in full swing, but I miss, for myself and for Stella, seeing and jumping in the Midwest's epic Fall leaf piles.

Stella at my parents' house a couple of years ago

List 90

Love: New Order, one of the big bands of my youth, who I am over the moon about seeing for the first time in decades this Friday night at The Fox Theater in Oakland.  I may need to watch 24 Hour Party People on my flight home from New York to gear up.

Like: The Union Jack ottoman and RAF tent from Restoration Hardware's Baby and Kids' collection.  Screw the kids, I fancy these myself, and wish Stella would have agreed with me that the RAF tent is 100% cooler than the pink one she was eyeing.

Discovery: London-based Herb Lester's playfully-illustrated fold-out guide maps. They started with several takes on London and have expanded to cover a host of cities around the world with their hand-picked finds, often according to themes, be that an Uncle's take on London, or where to find Old L.A. 

Obsession: I finally made it to The Wolseley in London this summer and think it's one of the most spectacular restaurant interiors going. Apparently, former car dealerships can clean up nicely. Seeing it in summer gave us a jones to plan a Christmas trip to London, complete with a holiday dinner here.

Complaint: That even though I'll be in New York twice this month, I'm going to miss MOMA's two screenings of my all-time favorite Bond film, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, which is part of their 50 Years of Bond Festival. Contrary to popular opinion in 1969, George Lazenby made a very good Bond, his romance with Diana Riggs' Tracy brought a depth to the series the other films lack, and the chase scene in the Swiss alps is a picturesque thrill, complete with a charming village holiday festival and Tracy's badass driving of a red Mercury Cougar Cobra.   

List 89

Love: Rookie Yearbook One, which gathers the best of crazy-talented, crazy-precocious Tavi Gevinson's teen girl site's content from September 2011-May 2012 into one well-designed package. I love Rookie's use of monthly themes("Secrets," "Girl Gang," "Transformation"), its writers' breathless discovery of, and quasi nostalgia for, things I actually did grow up with (the band Heart is "Literally, the best thing ever"), its exploration of the emotions and angst of teen girldom ("How to Approach the Person You Like Without Throwing Up," "How to Look Like You Weren't Just Crying in Less Than Five Minutes," "How to Survive a Small Town") and its mapping of the all-important little details ("Midnight Snacks: A Taxonomy," How to Clear Your Room In 10 Minutes.") Rookie Yearbook One is hands-down one of the most fun and vibrant things I've read through in ages.

Like: Portland's Olympic Provisions sausage. Double like that you can now buy it in certain Bay Area gourmet shops, like Oakland/Berkeley's Pasta Shops.

Discovery: Temescal Alley, or, as Erich brilliantly dubbed it, Hipster Deadwood.™ Tucked away behind Pizzaiolo, parallel with Telegraph Avenue, it features, among other things, a solid mid-century antiques store, a vintage clothing shop, a dry goods store, a horticulture shop (for your terrarium needs), and, yes, a barber shop.

Obsession: Horses.  Back when I was a kid, like most girls, I spent hundreds of hours playing with horse models, reading horse books like Misty of Chincoteague, and researching the feasability of turning our garage in Milwaukee into a stable (a no-go).  Stella is now playing with my old models, which had been carefully boxed in the attic all these years, and for her birthday was given a wonderful gift by some good friends, the next best thing to having her own horse: partial sponsorship of one at Sunrise Horse Rescue in Napa, outside St. Helena.  The horses they've saved have heartbreaking stories with happy endings.  This weekend we decided to contribute toward the upkeep of thoroughbreds Richie and Stryder, and plan to visit them every couple of months.

Complaint: After years and years of avoiding it, I'm going to have to suck it up and subscribe to Showtime because of Homeland.  We are rolling through Season 1 on DVD, it's gripping, the acting is bang on, and we just can't bear to wait a year with the promise of brand spanking new episodes starting this weekend.  This will likely push our monthly Xfinity Xtortion/bill past $275.