Pie!

Easiest Thanksgiving Recipe.  Coming to girl obsessed with pie near you! 

Stand With Science.

And then read this.  The Science Policy Initiative is a group that I've tried to support since I arrived at MIT (I took their public policy bootcamp over IAP my first year here).  Admittedly, I've been fairly focused on research lately, but I still stand with them, that's for sure.  Take a gander, see what you think---and then if you agree, sign the petition here (there's already 6000 signatures!)

Hair

Once upon a time I had short hair, believe it or not.

But it got longer...

And longer.. (this skips my awkward ages from about, oh, seven til fifteen.  But I still had longish hair, never shorter than shoulder length).

Then girls in band decided to straighten it while we were in New Orleans (seriously, what do 18 year olds do in New Orleans?  Answer...nothing.  Straighten my hair, apparently).

And sometimes I'd be fancy and put it back in two low ponytails and buns.  Kind of Leia-ish, but not really.

Then I had friends who loved to play with my hair in college (thanks Nicole!)

But really, it was mostly frizzy and in a bun.  Seen here with flowers, which were my favorite.

Or here.  See the frizz?  So much of it.  It was just the practical way to be with so much time spent in lab (hair had to be back, no exceptions).

Fast forward to today...I hardly ever wear my hair up anymore.  Actually, I wear it all down and back in a clip.  And yes, I use the same one every day.  My braiding skills are atrocious, though a friend has promised to teach me how to french braid my hair.  And online tutorials make me feel like I'm all thumbs.  Seriously, was there some slumber party magic class that I missed to get my certification in doing hair?

So here's the question...anyone out there have ideas for me?  Besides chop my hair off and start over?  (the thought of that gives me a panic attack). 

Chicken Marbella

(also known as chicken mirabella...or just plain delicious).

Last made in January of 2008 for a crew of hungry college students...notice the fancy wine glasses.  And the sitting at the table, backs up straight (instead of eating in the living room watching Boy Meets World).

On a bed of wild rice, too, just like I'll be making tomorrow.  So good.  And don't let the green olives/prunes/capers scare you.  They mellow out overnight, promise.

Chicken Marbella

adapted from The Silver Palate Cookbook

Ingredients  (this is for 10 pounds of chicken; reduce as necessary)

1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1 cup pitted prunes
1/2 cup pitted Spanish green olives
1/2 cup capers with a bit of juice
6 bay leaves
1 head of garlic, peeled and finely pureed
1/4 cup dried oregano
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 chickens (2 1/2 pounds each), quartered
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup Italian (flat-leaf) parsley or cilantro, finely chopped

Instructions

1.  Combine the olive oil, vinegar, prunes, olives, capers and juice, bay leaves, garlic, oregano and salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add the chicken and stir to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
2.  Preheat oven to 350ºF.
3.  Arrange chicken in a single layer in one or two large, shallow baking pans and spoon the marinade over it evenly. Sprinkle chicken pieces with the brown sugar and pour the white wine around them.
4.  Bake, basting frequently with the pan juices, for 50 minutes to 1 hour, until the thigh pieces yield clear yellow juices (rather than pink) when pricked.
5.  With a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken, prunes, olives and capers to a serving platter. Moisten with some of the pan juices, sprinkle with parsley or cilantro and serve with the remaining juices on the side.

Muppets!

Please tell me I'm not the only one excited to see the new Muppet movie...

Fall in the City

I cannot even express how much I love fall.  The leaves are even prettier than usual on campus this year.  All I want to do is take a long walk outside...

A Murmuration of Starlings

Absolutely incredible.  (via SwissMiss)

Portrait of a Lady

Mary Robinson, by J. Hoppner (1782).  Anyone else entranced by that smile?

(via Emma...I wanted to do an expanded portrait search in the National Portrait Gallery, but boy is their advanced search system ever clunky!  I couldn't find anything I was looking for.)

Just in case you forgot...

 

MIT will remind you what you're supposed to remember.

And for your listening pleasure, here is the second best use of the 1812 Overture (embedding disabled, sorry).  The best is obviously Fourth of July Fireworks in Boston with the Boston Pops.  Cannot be beat.

Wedding!

 All smiles!

 The lab!

The lab, outtake!

Dancin'!