Monday, January 18, 2010

A Fresh Start

-Happy to no longer be living in a cold garage. Also, they want to know where dinner is.-

Back from Mexico and now it's crazy time to put the new place together. We just signed the lease and I am waiting for my insurance to get a check to me so I can replace my, well, everything.

Here's a quick snapshot of my kitchen. You'll immediately notice that it's not on fire.

Now the crazy ride of re-acquiring food, utensils, appliances, spices, alcohol, oils, plates, pans, pots, tupperware, and so on begins.

...Oh sweet lord, can I just go back to Mexico?

On the plus, side we now have a garden space. Our first initiate, or my roommate's as my hands are that of the Reaper when it comes to plants, is a humble little blueberry bush who will soon be planted when the weather lets up. Next will come some rosemary, mint, and - most awesomely - a dwarf yuzu tree and a dwarf makrud lime tree.

-Hopefully, these little flowers will become blueberries. Since they aren't under my watch I have hope.-

Wish me luck in rebuilding. Here is to the beginning of an even better home and the start to a hopefully promising decade.

28 comments:

  1. Good luck rebuilding your house :-)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Congratulations on your new place. Before you know it, you'll be fully re-stocked and cooking up a storm.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Good luck also from chocri, and LOL at "You'll immediately notice that it's not on fire." :))
    All the best, that's a nice kitchen!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oooooh, that is exciting you have a garden space. I'm happy to see you ended up with a nice place after all that trauma.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hooray! So glad you're back in the kitchen!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Much luck with your fresh start. I envision lots and lots of deliciousness filling that kitchen. xox

    ReplyDelete
  7. ...and IN with the new! I'm sure you'll have a blast doing all that kitchen shopping. And of course, don't forget the alcohol. =)

    ReplyDelete
  8. This is great news. Congrats on the new place (and the new garden). If you have the space, oregano and thyme do exceedingly well in our climate, with almost zero maintenance. My plants have come back on their own for three years now, despite the curse of my black thumb.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Yay for a new beginning. It'll be interesting to hear what you deem essential for your kitchen. My top three: immersion blender, good knife, good pot (umm.. not THAT kind of pot!).

    Some types of blueberries require a partner plant for cross-pollution or something. Hopefully you got a variety that can produce blueberries on its own!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Good luck Garrett! The new kitchen looks really nice, I hope it provides you with many delicious meals to come :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Restocking that kitchen is an opportunity to think about what tools in the kitchen you really use and to resist the urge to replace everything. I like moving (well actually I hate it, but I like the end result) for that very same reason. And I prefer a few really good kitchen tools that do lots of jobs. Happy shopping!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Ah, home sweet home!! And, the start of a new adventure!
    CP

    ReplyDelete
  13. Good luck Garrett! I have a "new home" giftie for you. (Given the circumstances, the phrase "housewarming" just seemed wrong.) Is there somewhere I can mail it to you?

    ReplyDelete
  14. Courtney - That's very sweet of you! Thank you! It's best to e-mail me as I don't want to put my address out on here. ;)

    Beth - Immersion blender, kitchenaid, and crock pot. The three things I am looking forward to most (electronic wise).

    ReplyDelete
  15. Here's to new beginnings and a new kitchen (w/ less fires we hope)! : )

    ReplyDelete
  16. Congrats!! I know you must be relieved to have a kitchen of your own again. If I were you I would have to invest in a good bottle of tequila to ease the transition from food blogger camp.

    Immersion blender and kitchenaid I get - crockpot? I use one constantly to keep my boys fed while I teach in the evenings (otherwise they're making mac n cheese or frozen nuggets every night). But somehow I didn't peg you as the crockpot type! What do you make in there?

    ReplyDelete
  17. Hi Garrett! I love reading your blog. I hope you like your new place and enjoy regaining all your kitchen essentials!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Good luck!! It's good to hear that you're rebuilding.

    ReplyDelete
  19. i think you should deep fry a turkey, inside, flaunt it in the face of the fire gods!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Rhulman - I think I would need to be bendaryl/tequila drunk for that one. Ready for round two?

    ReplyDelete
  21. Wishing you the best and I think exciting you have a garden...a bit of parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme will make it all better!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Missing your company, giggling with you in the ocean, the swinging pitch of your voice when you get frustrated, and that funny little thing you'd say before a big wave hit.

    I'm glad to see you in your beautiful, clean, not-on-fire kitchen.

    Miss you darling.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Good news on the garden space. As a fellow Sacramento area resident, I would recommend basil and a few tomatoes if you can. They grow extremely well here and of course are delicious!
    A new kitchen can be a fun project to set up again, despite the angst, so hopefully you will end up with all the goodies you need and want.

    ReplyDelete
  24. good luck, garrett! i love that you can still be cheerful about everything that's happened. it reminds me that i have things pretty good. :)
    thanks for being an inspiration.

    ReplyDelete

Hey, you're leaving a comment! That's pretty darn cool, so thanks. If you have any questions or have found an error on the site or with a recipe, please e-mail me and I will reply as soon as possible.
~Garrett