Isorhythm

I made it a priority this autumn to eat as many pumpkin and pumpkin-flavored things as possible. So I compiled a list of recipes, stocked up on organic pumpkin puree and pie pumpkins, and made as many pumpkin treats as I could in a single October. The recipe I was most excited to try was one I found, I'm not at all embarrassed to say, from The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess via  The Geeky Chef -- Yeto's Superb Pumpkin and Goat Cheese Soup . I'd never paired pumpkin and goat cheese, but just the thought of doing so made my mouth water. The recipe looked a little bare but also easily modifiable, so I made significant alterations (different cheese, different squash, different spices). It's been delicious every time I've made it. Ingredients 1 small-to-medium pie pumpkin, peeled, seeded, and chopped into 1" cubes 1 large white or yellow onion, chopped 5 cloves garlic, peeled and cut into quarters 4 c. chicken or vegetable stock ½ c. goat cheese, ...

So far this fall I've written several unfinished blog posts. I've stalled on my rigorous reading schedule, taking twice as long to finish Les Misérables than I probably needed. I've knit blanket patches for refugees, weeded too-large and too-small items from my wardrobe, and turned many squash into many soups. I've photo-documented much of this with the intention of uploading images to this blog, but as the days get shorter, it's become harder and harder to do anything but sleep after work. It's been an autumn of false starts. Within the next few weeks I'll be curating secret Christmas-gift Pinterest boards, planning for the new year, and baking with copious amounts of cinnamon.

Oh my brothers, this is the point of junction, of those who think and of those who suffer; this barricade is not made of paving-stones, nor of joists, nor of bits of iron; it is made of two heaps, a heap of ideas, and a heap of woes. Here misery meets the ideal. The day embraces the night and says to it: "I am about to die, and thou shalt be born again with me." From the embrace of all desolations faith leaps forth. Sufferings bring hither their agony and ideas their immortality. This agony and this immortality are about to join and constitute our death. Brothers, he who dies here dies in the radiance of the future, and we are entering a tomb all flooded with the dawn. Les Misérables . Victor Hugo.

There's a huge problem in America with the thinking that if someone can't afford something, he or she does not deserve it; that we're only worth what we can pay for. I've been mulling over this for a few days, and my thoughts are still cloudy and not fully formed.

I am amazingly excited that the NC gubernatorial debates are being broadcast live. Voting affects everyone. Educate yourself .

I always approach giveaways and sweepstakes with a grain of salt because so many people enter. But I also figure that, statistically, if I just keep plugging away, eventually something will come of these entries. And earlier this week it did: I won The Clothes Horse 's a-thread giveaway! So now I have $75 to spend in their online shop, and I have no idea what to get. Below are some of my favorites: Fierce Floral Shift Dress ,  Scallop Print Dress ,  Lace Swing Dress ,  Big Floral Surplice Dress ,  Brooklyn Chambray Blazer ,  Splat Dot Racerback Blouse ,  Woven Peplum Top in Maroon/Orange ,  Silk Stripes and Flowers Blouse I can't decide if I should opt for the less expensive items so I can get more than one, or if I should go ahead and blow it all on one piece. At the end of a hard week, this is one tough decision that's nice to make.

I worry about a lot of things. It's easy for me to believe that everything happens the way it's supposed to for other people, but when it comes to my own life I'm plagued by all the little what-ifs. Did I make the right choice taking time off after grad school? The free time I thought I'd have without classes has turned into a string of endless, numbered days. Work leaves me too exhausted and drained to make much of my evening hours, especially after cooking dinner, cleaning, and preparing for the next day. It's somehow duller, lonelier, and more leeching than the schoolwork that sent me looking for a break in the first place. Should I have studied music in grad school or even gone to grad school straight out of college at all? As hard as I worked for the degree, it does little for me other than acting as a stepping stone if I ever go back for a doctorate. Maybe another major or an internship or an entry-level job would have been a better post-college choice? It...