[Reflection of Downtown Roanoke in my coffee, taken December 2011]

It's almost nine this morning and I am just waking up with a raging caffeine headache. One of the owners of the coffee shop is out of the country for a month, and they need me to close instead of open on Fridays while he's gone. I was looking forward to sleeping in a little bit, but missing my 7:00 tea and 8:30 espresso really is taking its toll on my body. 

You know, withdrawal.

So now I'm sitting with my computer in my favorite chair--it's all asymmetrical and artsy--waiting for espresso to brew on the stove. It looks freezing outside, my head is pounding, Rob is still asleep in our warm bed, there are episodes of LOST to be watched and I also just started a new book that has nothing to do with my thesis but has me hooked and I really just can't put it down. I'd rather not go to work this afternoon. It sort of feels like Saturday.

Rob got home from his trip to Portland yesterday and I felt kind of bad, but immediately went out to go running with Shawna. But we still had all afternoon to hang around, then I made dinner and Shawna came back over and we all watched a movie and polished off a bottle of wine. It feels really nice to get back into running. Yesterday was really warm and it smelled like spring and it made me want to drive to Farmville and visit my professors at Longwood and then walk around Hampden-Sydney. I might actually do that the next time it gets unseasonably warm. Or I can wait for real spring.

It doesn't take a lot to make me miss college.

So that's what you get when I'm home on a weekday morning instead of at the coffee shop. My thoughts, scattered as they may be, as they work their way out of this caffeine-addicted brain.

Have a really happy weekend, friends.

I went to Twitter yesterday for some help deciding which of the Paleo recipes I have up my sleeve should be the first on this here blog. I was sort of looking forward to sharing an awesome muffin recipe with you or talking about my latest adventures with bacon, but Jackie insisted that she needed some chocolate. (Consider this an engagement gift, Jack).

This is how you make the most wonderful dessert/snack in the world. 

In the world? 

That's what I said.

Here's what you need:

9 ounces of good quality dark chocolate. 

(It needs to have 85% or more cacao content if you're concerned about making it Paleo).

About half a cup of macadamia nuts.

(You could use any nuts you want, but peanuts aren't Paleo! Next time, I'm trying hazelnuts).

Half a teaspoon of salt.

Here's what you do:

In a double-boiler (that's a bowl on top of a pot of hot water), melt the chocolate.

Chop the nuts and stir them into the melted chocolate.

Add salt.

Pour the mixture onto a parchment-paper lined baking sheet. Make sure the paper covers the sides, too.

(If the baking sheet is small, you'll get thick bark. 

If it's larger, the chocolate will end up thinner. That's up to you).

Stick the thing in the refrigerator and let it harden. This could take more than an hour. No biggie.

When it's hard, take it out and break it up! Try not to eat it all in one sitting.

We're such good friends, that chocolate bark and I.

On Saturday afternoon I found myself back at the lake.

Rob has been visiting some friends in Oregon for a few days, so I thought I'd take some time that would have otherwise been spent alone in Charlottesville and hang out with my family. Sometimes, a quiet road trip on your own can be nice.

I stopped in Roanoke first and saw my friend Andy, then met up with my mom, dad, and brother for dinner. We went home after dinner and watched a movie before I went to bed and passed out. I'm really not good at staying up past 10:30.

I got up on Sunday and hung out with my mom on the couch. She's been kind of sick with a little cold lately, so we made some tea and just talked for a while. Then we went to mass downtown and got breakfast at Mill Mountain, which has always been my favorite place.  For as long as I can remember, that coffee shop has been part of my life. When I was little, my parents brought me there so they could get coffee. When I was in high school, my friends and I would go really early before school or we'd meet up there on the weekends. And I worked there as a barista during summer and winter break when I was in college. As dramatic as it may sound, no other physical space has ever meant so much to me.

Mill Mountain Blend

Salad with my eggs and sausage. So paleo.

Some more snapshots from my weekend at home:

Family photos.

Tea

I really liked my stuffed animals as a child.

Mom

Brother

Waiting for breakfast at MMC&T.

This is our church. It's sort of awesome.

Sean really loves his apple cider.

Bite-sized desserts that I frosted for a work party.

Choppin' dem herbs.

The more I visit, the more I miss it.

Emma, one of my lovely best friends, came to Charlottesville yesterday to stay with me for a few days. We've been relaxing together, sitting on my couch with our laptops, catching up, drinking coffee, napping, window-shopping in fancy stores, and going out to eat. And Shawna came over last night, so the three of us spent a couple hours cuddled up together telling stories. Our group of girlfriends rarely gets to spend time all together in one place, so it's always extra-special when more than two of us have a few moments together.

I really thought these few days were going to be lonely with Rob on the other side of the country, but the past seventy-two hours or so have reminded me how lucky I am to have been blessed with these friends and family.