the adventures of naked man

Does this guy look familiar? If he doesn't, that means you're not reading Jane's blog or following her on instagram (@borrowedabode) or twitter and you really should be. I can personally attest to her awesomeness in both real life and on the internet.

Anyway, the clotheless child's toy naked superhero above is none other than Naked Man! Naked Man accompanies Jane to wineries, helps build stuff, fights bad guys, and is found swinging from various objects in The Borrowed Abode.

As for me, the past few weeks have been full of stress, anxiety, and me basically running around like a chicken without its head. (See: lack of blogging.) So I'm going to take a little social media break to relax. In the meantime, Naked Man is going to take over. He came over to visit last night and promptly made himself at home in the faux Bertoia/Eames hybrid mini chair. (I personally do not recommend sitting in such a chair without pants. It leaves hashmarks on your butt.) Now he's packed his bags - er, blue banana hammock (he likes to travel light) - and is heading off on an adventure. Follow along @funnelcloud on Instagram, hashtag #nakedman. (Don't blame me if other things pop up in your feed if you search for #nakedman, though.)

P.S. I swear I'm not crazy. Ok, maybe I am, but Naked Man is awesome. See you in a few weeks!

things I love | winter treats

It's no secret how much I hate winter, and I've been surviving the season this year by stuffing my face with some delicious treats. Which might be why when I stepped on the scale on January 1st, I received some very unpleasant news. In an effort to recover from the holiday binge and to prepare for an upcoming vacation, I've been trying to eat healthier and have given up some of my favorite and most fattening foods for the month of February: bread, pasta, dessert, and beer. So basically I'm posting this so I can live vicariously through my own photos!

I also can't help but share some of the tastiest things I've recently discovered. You all know I'm a huge fan of supporting local small businesses, and five of the seven products below are all made within two hours of my house. Luckily, for those of you not in the DC area, several of these treats are available for purchase online.

LANGDON WOOD (Washington, DC)
Langdon Wood was a neighboring vendor at GRUMP - an art market my shop vended at in December. And it may have been the most popular booth - shortly after Larry scored three bottles of their Maple Syrup which HAS BEEN AGED IN WHISKEY BARRELS, they completely sold out! We gave all three bottles away as Christmas presents, so it was a total bummer that we didn't score some of this delicious syrup for ourselves. Luckily, the syrup can be purchased both locally and online.

While Langdon Wood is based in Washington, DC, they source their whiskey barrels from Catoctin Creek Distillery in Purcellville, VA and their maple syrup from Milroy Farms in Salisbury, PA - so it's almost like three local(ish) businesses in one! The company calls their syrup "an adult twist on a breakfast staple" and claims "It Won't Change Your Life. It Will Change Your Pancakes." Awesome.


WHISKED! (Washington, DC)
You guys, these might be the best cookies I've ever had! These were another score from GRUMP - first Brandi stopped by and offered me a cookie from her stash (Thanks, Brandi!), and then I made Larry run over to the Whisked! booth to buy me a whole sleeve of them. Milk Chocolate AND Nutella in a giant, soft, chewy cookie? How can you go wrong?


THE VIRGINIA CHUTNEY CO. (Washington, VA)
I discovered this stuff through Jane - during one of our weekend excursions, she pulled out a smorgasbord of bread, cheese, and this delicious chutney. I sat in the passenger seat and stuffed my face while she drove. "What is this stuff?!" I demanded between bites as chutney dripped down my chin. "Spicy Plum Chutney," she responded. "You can get it at Whole Foods." Done!


SILLY COW FARMS by BURNHAM AND MILLS (Wells River, VT)
Last winter, I was on a mission: I spent several months searching for The Best hot chocolate. I sampled many that were disappointing, some that were undrinkable, and was about to settle on one that was just average when I caught sight of these adorable mini milk bottles of hot chocolate in Whole Foods. While I made the purchase based entirely on the cuteness of the container (they make great bud vases when empty), Silly Cow Farms ended up being the winning cocoa and now it is the only hot chocolate I drink. (Yes, I am a hot chocolate snob - I think that's allowed considering how discerning people are about their coffee. I don't drink coffee, but I do love a hot drink in the morning year round.)

I've tried several of the flavors (and consequently have amassed quite a collection of bottles), and while they're all good, the Chocolate Moo-usse is my absolute favorite. Add a splash of cream to your mug for extra decadence.


WONDERMADE (Orlando, FL)
I can't talk about hot chocolate without a marshmallow mention, can I? Larry was intrigued by the gourmet flavors at Wondermade and purchased three boxes before Christmas: Peppermint (our favorite), Bourbon (really good), and Guinness (more of a novelty). These aren't your grocery store jet-puffed mallows - they're delicate and tender and really do seem to be made of sweet, magic air. Eat these plain or put them in your cocoa, but as we learned during our cabin weekend, they melt over a fire.

Also, last night I had the pleasure of meeting Beth of FLUFFED UP DESSERTS. Beth makes homemade marshmallows here in the DC area and she has over two dozen flavors, including cookie dough, chocolate-covered strawberry, eggnog, and cinnamon toast! I'm so happy to have found handcrafted marshmallows made locally and can't wait to work my way though Beth's offerings.


THE FARM AT RED HILL (North Garden, VA)
Just as I'm a hot chocolate snob, I am also a hummus snob. I eat hummus nearly every day and find most of the grocery store choices extremely disappointing. Enter hummus from The Farm at Red Hill, which is hands down the best hummus I've ever had. I discovered it at Whole Foods and was elated that this hummus comes from a local Virginia farm - bonus! Their original flavor is my favorite, and it contains a dash of cayenne and some cumin for an extra kick.


LINDEN VINEYARDS (Linden, VA)
I have to include at least one adult beverage on the list, right? In my opinion, wine is the best medicine for surviving winter!

I first visited Linden with Jane in the fall, and then went a second time in January - that's all it took for me to become a lifelong fan. This really is some of the best wine I've ever had and definitely the best in Virginia. The winery is gorgeous, too, and the owner is an inspiration for all small business owners. I'm currently hoarding three bottles on our wine rack: a 2007 Late Harvest Vidal, a 2010 Vidal Riesling, and a 2009 Boisseau. Now I just need a special reason to drink them!

guest post | new music ahead!

I've mentioned before that I think Larry should write regularly about music and he's always ignored me. But several of my readers have mentioned the same, and so Larry has honored this request. There's some exciting music coming out in 2013 - Larry and I are really looking forward to these albums and to seeing my musical crush, Josh Ritter, in concert for the fifth time this May!

--Rachel

Rachel recently posted my favorite music of 2012 list. We’re not too far into 2013 – and I’m already seeing some structure to my list for 2013, since some favorites are going to be releasing new stuff early this year. For instance…

On my twitter feed the other day, I was happy to see that Frightened Rabbit is streaming their new album, Pedestrian Verse, over on The Guardian, and has released the first video "The Woodpile" on YouTube. I’m absolutely in love with FR’s The Midnight Organ Fight and The Winter of Mixed Drinks albums. After a few times through, I think this one is just as good. So go ahead and listen for yourself - the album will be available for purchase in just a few days on February 5th.

Another long time favorite, Josh Ritter is releasing his new album, The Beast in Its Tracks, in March. From the advance press, it seems that this album is Josh’s response to the crumbling of his marriage. The first available song, “Joy to You Baby”, tackles that subject with such heart-felt grace that it stuns. This song has been available for a while, but that doesn’t make it any less of a MUST listen.

Josh has also released the song “New Lover” from The Beast in Its Tracks. No less of a stunner.  Anyone who’s had a break-up can surely relate – though probably can’t make the points so eloquently.

The best English folk-punk artist going right now is also releasing a new album in early 2013. Frank Turner’s Tape Deck Heart is hitting our shores in April. Judging by his new song “Four Simple Words”, Frank continues his streak of life-affirming and thought-provoking songs. I dare you not to smile/dance/yell when this one is on. If you like it, there’s still time to enjoy his previous Poetry of the Deed and England Keep My Bones before the new one is released.

Also appearing in April is a new album from Iron and Wine, Ghost on Ghost. You may recall that the last Iron and Wine Kiss Each Other Clean appeared on my favorite of 2011 list. I'm usually on board with whatever direction Sam Beam and his band head toward, but the first song released, "Lovers' Revolution", has me a little stymied. The jazz rock backing beats are new to the Iron and Wine experience, but the song writing is still as strong as usual. I think it will be a grower though.

Check them out and let Rachel and I know what you think.  Or, if anyone wants to catch any of these folks when they come through the area, even better.  We're always up for catching a great live show.

--Larry

weekend adventures: lost river state park

During our West Virginia getaway to Cabin Sweet Cabin, we spent a few hours on Sunday afternoon exploring Lost River State Park.

We enjoyed walking along the creek with the dogs and checking out the park's cabins (we're hoping to rent one for another weekend getaway later this year). Larry used to visit this park as a kid and reminisced about picnicking here with his family.

We love visiting state parks because they are usually less crowded than national parks. During the off-season, we often have the place to ourselves:

cabin sweet cabin

The stress of the holidays and our jobs over December and January have taken their tolls on Larry and me recently. Neither of us have been in very good headspace lately, and so we decided to take a last minute getaway over the holiday weekend. A google search, a few phone calls, and we had secured ourselves a dog-friendly little cabin in the woods in West Virginia: Cabin Sweet Cabin in Lost River.


Here's the thing about Lost River: There's almost nothing there. There's no town. There are no grocery stores. The only industry is chicken farming. There are only two places to eat in the whole area (we ate at both over the weekend) and I'm assuming that the waitresses are the daughters of the chicken farmers. Other than that, it's just you, nature, and a handful of cabins. It's kind of the perfect place to get away from it all and it's only a two-hour drive from DC. Here's another thing about Lost River: Larry used to live there. In a gas station. No lie. (He wasn't a chicken farmer, he was an engineer for a construction project.)

Anyway, Cabin Sweet Cabin turned out to be the perfect place for us to relax as a family of four. It was a simple camp - no "amenities" (except for a much-appreciated bottle of Cab Sav, a corkscrew, and two wine glasses that greeted us as we walked in the door), no hot tub, no big screen TV - just some fresh mountain air and lots and lots of trees. I had expected a good base of snow up in the mountains and was excited to wear my winter boots, but there wasn't a bit of snow and we had blue skies and unseasonably warm weather all weekend.

The only downside to the trip: Banjo barfed all over the car during the drive there and we had to toss his dog bed in the trash, which meant he spent the whole weekend searching for a suitable place to sleep. He settled for a little area rug, while giving us sad puppy eyes for having to sleep on the floor.

Keeping it simple and snuggling up in a cozy little cabin all weekend with our pups napping at our feet and a fire crackling in the background was pretty much perfection.


What we did:

+ Walked in the woods.
+ Went for a country drive.
+ Admired the stars in the dark West Virginia sky. Seriously, they glittered.
+ Had bedhead all weekend and didn't care.
+ Dined at The Guesthouse, drank cocktails under a taxidermied elk head & witnessed a marriage proposal.
+ Ate breakfast at Lost River Grill: 2 biscuits, 2 eggs & 2 pieces of sausage, followed by a 2 hour nap.
+ Explored Lost River State Park.
+ Cooked up a delicious pot of Moroccan Braised Beef.
+ Drank wine.
+ Worked on (but didn't finish) a craft project.
+ Watched Jim Gaffigan's Mr. Universe and Jeff Who Lives at Home on the iPad.
+ Lit a real fire in the woodburning fireplace.
+ Saw cows, chickens, ducks, horses, goats, sheep, and deer.
+ Roasted marshmallows over the fire & made amazing s'mores with chocolate chip biscuits & raspberry jam.
+ Took deep breaths of mountain air.
+ Fantasized about owning our own cabin some day.




































P.S. See photos and video from our last trip to Lost River here. (Note what these two trips had in common: dog vomit.)