Finding Gifts: A Jackalope

I just started using an old camera of mine (here‘s why) and I found these pics of a crazy Christmas gift I made my brother this past year.

We have a thing for the mythical, magical Jackalope, thanks to a memorable wild west roadtrip we took in our 20s, and our love of the movie Watership Down. It seemed only natural to carve him a Hazelesque Jackalope complete with Christmas Flair. Maybe I'll inspire some folks for the holidays this year. Ha.

The Summer of Sweeping Changes: Stella

My love and I decided in May that it was going to be The Summer of Sweeping Changes. So this Independence Day, we bought our new baby, Stella—a 1968 Shasta LoFlyte. Giggity. Thanks to my dear friend, Sage for sending me the Craigslist link just in the nick of time.

It’s bright.

I made a window shade for the patio door out of an old sack.

The Polaroid Project: Bedroom Wall

So much of my time lately has gone to my plant-based recipes and resources website, YumUniverse and a new online publication called YEP. It’s an exciting time, but a busy one.

This last month, I have been making a big effort to organize, spring clean and take care of projects I’ve been wanting to get through, like setting up my Windowfarm (still in progress). What’s great about making time to organize and catch up is that projects create themselves along the way. Purging the office closet can sometimes lead to a whole new bedroom wall made out of treasured polaroids. They deserve to be on the wall, not stacked in a box.

Kentucky

My talented friend, Marta and I collaborated on these shots taken on a recent roadtrip to Nashville. I made the headress and she took the shots. Fun.

Cleaning the Closet

Cleaning the closet out can be fun. Look what I found today. Yes, I’ve painted a mini velvet Elvis or two in my life.

YumUniverse™: Soft Launch

Psst! This is where I have been spending most of my time the past eight months—the YumUniverse. Last Tuesday, I soft-launched my new website resource for dairy-free, meat-free, soy-free and mostly gluten-free livin’. What a colossal amount of work. We are now planning our launch party, which should be locked down any day now and once that date/locale are determined, we will make the official launch announcement. Until then friends, come by and say “hello”.

We have 50+ recipes so far, tons of resources, a shop, glossaries—everything to make a healthy diet that much easier.



Read about why I started this site. And also read about our talented and varied group of contributors.




Try some of our recipes...




and learn how to prepare unique ingredients...



Whatever you dive into, let us know what you think and what you’d like to see on YumUniverse. That’s what it’s there for!

California II

You can really see a lot in 5 days.







View the entire Flickr set here.

California I

Just got back from a quick trip to California—LA > Ventura > Big Sur > Sequoia National Forest > Palm Springs > LA again. All in 5 days. One of the best was when we went from this...



to this...



View the entire Flickr set here.

Zoom

My old cat Zoom (21.5 years old) is the coolest. She likes to be vacuumed.

Exploring the YumUniverse

Raw Apple Cake

Starting in the beginning of October this year, I had a pretty significant realization about the next chapter of, well, my life. I had just come back from an incredible roadtrip (my heart still aches for it really) and it simply was powerful how free and joyful I felt. While I have been lucky enough to structure my life so I get to collaborate on a contract-basis with seriously talented people creating relevant work in the graphic design industry—inhale—it isn't all that I want to do.

I have found such healing and happiness in learning about and experimenting with the raw and vegan lifestyle. It really is a creative outlet with infinite possibilities and those include valuable connections. I have noticed how much easier it is to stay on track with a supportive network of folks who are on the same page. A community. Hmm....


Raw Spinach Ravioli with Walnut Filling

So, in a few months, I will officially launch YumUniverse.com. It is my home of the recipes I adapt, discover and create, the restaurants I enjoy, the tips and tricks that I find invaluable, the people who help me and that is just the beginning. YumUniverse is going to be a place chock full of infinite possibilities for a yummy, healthy life. I'd like to share what I've found and what I will continue to discover on my journey. The continuation of which, as I mentioned above, will take me all over the country sharing through workshops, exploration and more.


Dairy-Free & Gluten-Free Cacao Cardamom Muffins

Have ideas for anything you’d like to see in the YumUniverse? Don’t be shy, let me know. In the meantime, get a sneak peek of some of the photos from recipes you’ll find at YumUniverse.

So for those of you who have been sweet enough to ask me where I’ve been, see the title of this post and receive a playful wink from me.

Sketchbook: Shark

My friend Mike introduced me to an iPhone app yesterday called Sketchbook Mobile. He is currently teaching a class about iPhone art and will be showing the student work in February at his gallery, The Chicago Art Department. I am having a ball with this app and my skepticism about its capabilities is out the window now that I officially have 24hrs of exploration and play behind me. I absolutely prefer the intimacy of drawing and painting with actual tools, but I am pretty happy with tonight’s electronic exploration created entirely with my fingers interacting with my iPhone screen. Neat.

The Atlantic Ocean

It felt as cold that day in June as it did today.

Chicago: Halsted Street

I have only lived on Halsted Street my entire 11 years in Chicago. As north as 3000 and as south as 1800.

Isn't she lovely.

Giving Thanks 2009

Thanksgiving this year was, well, “Legendary”. I put the most into my hosting.

We ate, drank, ate some more...



Then we jammed...



Photos from the Feast. Photos from the after-party.

The Unobvious

Next time you are watching an indoor soccer game, remember to look up...



and down.



Regular things can look really lovely.

Chicago Love: Skyline

I love my town. Even when it rains for 21 out of 27 days.

Thank you Chicagoist for posting this pic and many others from my Chicago Flickr set.

The Fauxlaroid Project: Destination Story Inn

I ventured to Story, Indiana this Halloween weekend for a visit to one of my favorite hideaways, the supposedly haunted Story Inn. Great time as always. See the entire to and from here.

HooperPower: Warrior

Warrior from Heather Crosby on Vimeo.

Had a lil’ time before I taught class today. I love this song. Nothin’ fancy practice-wise, but thought I’d share. Enjoy.

The Fun Theory