It has been a week…
…A week of mayhem and miracles.
Mayhem first.
Between re-entry into the workforce and the pressure of major 2010 resolutions which involve a timeline and a checklist, I was this close (pinch fingers together here, please) to doing a perfect pencil off of the 59th Street Bridge. Monday through Wednesday was Cranky Pants, full-on; tripping on a perfectly flat area of carpeted floor, dropping a belt buckle-first directly on my big toe, and talking to myself…loudly. When the copy machine wouldn’t do it’s damn job on Monday, I shouted “Guess what! Does anything work anymore?!” This was supposed to be between me, the Xerox, and the King of the Universe who was obviously after me the first half of this week. The only person who responded was a friend walking by, “Ummm…I heard that.”
Total Mayhem.
Things began looking up on Wednesday when I remembered that Noodle Bar existed. It’s probably not the best idea to look to food for comfort at the beginning of a new year, especially after my 2009 cookie bender. But we all have to recognize that a belly filled with Asian noodles on a mid-winter day is the best. You call in your order for Veggie Bee Hong Goreng which is always 2 bucks cheaper than you think it is, at a restaurant that’s closer than you remember, with the fastest kitchen in New York City.
Then of course, there’s the side of Sriracha sauce…
For those parts of the country who have not gotten a lick of this stuff, please call your local supermarkets and demand that they start carrying Sriracha it! I’m not a hot sauce girl, but please believe that this is just different. Spicy and crimsony and vinegary, Sriracha is guaranteed to get out of your funk so you can see the good stuff around you. I’m convinced that my week got better by at least 67% thanks to chopsticks full of Sriracha. Well, that… and the Wood Sprite.
The Wood Sprite is a mystery freelance employee who I have seen on and off for the past 3 years skipping around our offices. She probably weighs in at about 90 lbs when you include her horn-rimmed glasses and Converse sneakers. I have told my friends for years that she is such an adorable human being that she cannot possibly BE a human being! She is obviously a magical woodland creature dressed in hipster Brooklyn clothing, here to bring good luck to all the Cranky Pants New Yorkers lucky enough to catch a glimpse. A real miracle!
Sriracha got me out of the funk, but a Wood Sprite sighting after at least a year without one made me rise above. I had a much better grip on it all yesterday and was able to appreciate the little things again. So little, some were mini. Mini-pies to be exact! Jean at Renovation Therapy posted an entry with the most ingenious and adorable baked good I have ever seen; individual homemade pies that you build in freaking mason jars and freeze until you are ready to bake and eat! Can you imagine how cute that would be?! There is a baking moratorium in my kitchen until February. So I can almost guarantee this will be the first thing I bake come February 1.
When I forwarded these to a friend whose kitchen is similarly closed this month, I could almost hear her sigh over IM. “Ohhh man, why are there so many good things in the world?”
I know why.
Sriracha and Wood Sprites.
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6 Comments
Thanks for making me laugh! I’ve been in Cranky Pants the past few days myself and it seems like there is this huge conspiracy to get this week to the finish line already! (Of course, that’s not helped by the fact that tonight kicks off weekend of scrapbooking/general female mayhem with many dear friends.) And d*mn Jean and those pies! I kept tuning in for those, too, and am dangerously close to revisiting my kitchen, which, considering that I am SO NOT Betty Crocker, is a HUGE deal.
May your weekend be all Sriracha and Wood Sprites.
I want a Wood Sprite!
1. The Wood Sprite is real. I’ve seen her and was blessed with good luck the rest of the day.
2. Yes, I did say that there is too much good stuff in the world. In fact, cookies are one of my “Reasons to Live”.
kim
I feel strongly for you unfortunate souls in the northern hemisphere. Where we come from however, the New Year is ushered in with merriment and sun and beach and an allround sense of festivity. did I say too much?
Nicole, I am not exaggerating when I tell you that I’ve been thinking about those mini-pies every 20 minutes or so. What am I going to do?! Those jars need to arrive immediately!
RT, The Wood Sprite is amazing. The best part is we have seen her all over the city, not just work. My last sighting was the 14th Street Subway platform. Random NYC sightings make the Wood Sprite even more magical!
D&M, I cannot wait for the pie party in L’s office. It’s going to be so much better than the first one. Millions of tiny pies for the tasting!
Matthew, Look…I am well aware that all you Sydney-siders are in your shorts and flip-flops right now. Drinking your VB, eating fish and chips on Manly Beach. But do not forget- even when it’s cold as butt here, we have the best food anywhere! (Ummm…I tried your pizza. I’m just sayin’) Good pizza and Sriracha will keep us warm. And the Wood Sprite! She keeps us warm, too!
-Sarah
Look I’m not gunna get into a big long drawn out debate here, but your food is simply not the best. I lived in New York for almost a year and the truth us both our produce and our cooking are superior. You didn’t have good pizza cause you didn’t know where to go, period. Should you return 2010 I will educate you on what good food is. Now, if you will excuse me, I must try and sleep because it is freakin hot here!!!