cadillac ranch

dateline: amarillo, texas


way back in 1974, an eccentric helium millionaire named stanley marsh 3 hired a california art collective known as the ant farm to bring his homage to the golden age of automobiles, tail fins & route 66 to life on an amarillo, texas dirt farm.


it was created by ant farm members chip lord, hudson marquez and doug michels and consists of what were (when originally installed during 1974) either older running used or junk cadillac automobiles, representing a number of evolutions of the car line (most notably the birth and death of the defining feature of early Cadillacs; the tail fin) from 1949 to 1963, half-buried nose-first in the ground, at an angle corresponding to that of the great pyramid of giza in egypt.  (thanks, wikipedia)


i've been passing by it for years and finally decided on a closer look.

too cool!!

when you get up close you realize that they're pretty much held together by generations of spray paint...

man, i just LOVE this stuff!!!!!

listening to neil young le noise

tattoo you, maybe....

dateline: oklahoma city


on the way to folk alliance ~ memphis.
this place is around the corner from KC and david's house.

thanks, but i'll pass.

listening to ~ abigail washburn   city of refuge 

snowstorm soup!

ok, i admit it...i'm getting a little soup obsessed this winter...part of this health kick i'm on. but i'm down about 15 pounds since the holidays.  diet and exercise...who knew?
anyway, here's one more pot of soup before i hit the ol' road dog trail again this weekend. off to memphis and the folk alliance conference.  tunes and friends and NO SNACKING!


this one's a good hearty healthy roasted butternut squash soup.  it goes thusly:


INGREDENTS

• 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 three-pound butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 2-inch chunks
• 1 softball-sized sweet Vidalia onion, cut into chunks or rings
• 1 head garlic, cloves separated and peeled
• 3 1/2 cups stock, divided
• Salt and pepper
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter (optional)

step the first:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Toss squash, onion and garlic cloves with 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil; spread on glass baking dish and pour 1 cup stock over the top. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt.  

Bake at 350ºF for 1 1/2 hours or until fairly soft and a little caramelized-looking; check on the pan every 20 minutes or so and if necessary, add additional liquid to keep it from scorching to the bottom of the pan. Stir once during cooking.

step the second:

well, with all this time to kill, let's see what we can do about all this snow...

got it!  turn up the laura nyro greatest hits album you're listening to and run to the window.....now, do the "shoo snow" dance...."HURRY DOWN TO A STONED SOUL PICNIC!!!"

...plus it has the added effect of amusing the dog... ("what the  hell's he doing now?")

ok, back to the soup...here's the the roasted veggies...

step the third:

Add squash, garlic, onion, and any liquid from baking dish into a stockpot. Add 2 1/2 cups stock and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper to the pot, and cook over medium-low heat for at least 20 minutes (30 is mo' better, sorry sev)...

step the fourth:

now i get to use what's become my favorite kitchen weapon of the year, an immersion blender.  great for pureeing veggies and such.  and much easier to clean up than a food processor or blender.

just make sure that you turn off the blender before taking it out of the soup.  it saves a messy clean up and or re-painting...trust me on this one, kids.

stir in the butter and there we have it...roasted butternut  squash soup!  

aw, hell.....let's dance some more!!  "AND WHEN I DIIIIIIIIIE!!!!!"

listening to:  laura nyro ~ stoned soul picnic (the best of laura nyro)

(ps: found the recipe at seriouseats.com)

SOUP'S ON!

anybody want to try a pumpkin ~ yellow split pea w/ saffron soup?  best damned soup i've made all winter....


OK, then.....first gather up the following ingredients:

1/4 tsp saffron threads
10 cups (2 1/2 quarts) chicken broth
1 1/4 cups dried yellow split peas
1 large onion, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
3 15 oz. cans of pumpkin (plain, not pumpkin pie filler)
Minced fresh parsley

Bring broth, peas, and onion to a boil in a large soup pot over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer, partially covered, 30 to 40 minutes. 

OK, we've got 40 minutes to kill....what to do?.....what to do???
well, we could run to the ol' home studio and see if there are any new songs in the taylor.....






guess not....well, we could always try to repair our favorite coffee cup from Sun Studios that we just knocked off the desk....good thing i'm goin' to memphis soon.








better get back to the soup before we do any more damage...

OK, saffron time!





ah, hello my preciousssss.....
In a large metal spoon, heat saffron over low heat about 10 seconds until dry, then grind 
to a powder with the back of a spoon and steep in 1 tbsp boiling water to release flavor.

and then........put on some bluegrass and play the spoons!!!!



OK, back to the soup.

Stir in oil, cinnamon, ginger, spoonful of saffron. Bring to a boil, then reduce to low and 
simmer, partially covered, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour. 
Add pumpkin and simmer another 25-30 minutes or so. The soup is done when the peas aretender. Salt and pepper and sprinkle with parsley.

mmmmmmm.....dig in.....







listening to: jaime michaels ~ the man with the time machine
(not ego...last minute check....it's being released TOMORROW!!!!)

it's not dead yet...

...but it's gettin' there
my poor poor lemon tree....not so very pretty.
come on everybody, we can do it!  clap your hands!!  "i believe...I BELIEVE!!!!!"

listening to: buddy mondlock ~ the edge of the world 

why i live in santa fe - reason #1267

because the sunsets look like this....a LOT...

listening to laura marling

ahhhhhhhh.....home.

dateline: my living room.


had a blast this weekend completing the "i'll be on your album and you be on mine" trade with george breakfast up at jono manson's kitchen sink studio.  george's is called committing to love, mine is the about to be released the man with the time machine.
it was a joy to get to do  it.

the guiding hands...

...like this?

...george likes it!

jono likes it!

we all likes it!!!

listening to the beau brummels station on pandora.com......laugh laugh...