Reasons Why I Love Virginia Stewart vol. 1

• You are resilient
• You like people and don't like people for the same reasons I do (we like the same kinds of people)
• You are very strong-willed
• You don't just do what you want, you usually do what is best
• You are big and beautiful
• You love the finer things, but you are content with regular things
• You love animals and babies
• You clean up nicely and like to dress up
• You are polite and ladylike
• You are hilarious, and you think I am, too
• You follow your heart
• You are not afraid to get your hands dirty and work hard
• You love nature

I would like to mention first and foremost that I am quite an anomoly of fear. I am terrified of a couple things, yet I can also be incredibly bold and brave. For example, I am afraid of heights and very afraid of haunted houses and the like, but am completely unafraid of speaking in public, people, etc. Here are some others I really thought were interesting- and believable.

• Anthropophobia- Fear of people or society
• Asymmetriphobia- Fear of asymmetrical things
• Brontophobia- Fear of thunder and lightning
• Cacophobia- Fear of ugliness
• Chiraptophobia- Fear of being touched
• Chronophobia- Fear of time
• Coulrophobia- Fear of clowns
• Dystychiphobia- Fear of accidents (totall...

• eggs
• milk
• half and half or cream
• cheese- many kinds- always
• onions
• carrots
• sugar snap peas
• chips- always
• garlic
• EVOO/Corn oil
• chicken, in some capacity
• yukon gold potatoes
• green beans and or spinach
• sour cream
• parsley
• chives
• butter
• dry pasta
• canned beans and tomatoes
• lemon/lime
• bacon

• albondigas = meatballs
• cebolla= onion
• huachinango= cod
• fuego= fire
• anaranjado= orange
• albaricoque= apricot
• jodido= fucking
• zafiro= sapphire (my nickname)
• tranquilo= calm down
• barrio= neighborhood
• durazno= peach
• zarzamora= blackberry
• sonador~= dreamy
• salchicha= sausage (another nickname)
• relampago= lightning
• esmoquin= tuxedo
• papagayo= parrot

I like words, especially Spanish ones, with lots of interesting constants. I love how differently they're pronounced, in Spanish, too. The sound of the d and z, for...

• Clamart- peas
• Crecy- carrots
• Doria- cucumbers(cooked in butter)
• Dubarry- cauliflower
• Fermiere- carrots, turnips, onions and celery
• Florentine- spinach
• Forestiere- mushrooms
• Judic- braised lettuce
• Lyonnaise- onions
• Nicoise- tomatoes concasse cooked with garlic
• Parmentier- potatoes
• Princesse- asparagus
• Provencale- tomatoes with garlic, parsley, and sometimes mushrooms or olives
• Vichy- carrots

Recognize any of them from a dish you've had before? Nicoise salad? Eggs Florentine? Pomme de Lyonnaise au gratin?

• Chris Marcinek
• Nick Cosgrove
• Tim Cap
• Jon Sacha
• Bill Willits
• Alex Dabit
• Ben Von Koenig
• Paul Benigno
• Johnny Summerville Jr.

• cereal and almond or rice milk
• salsa
• guacamole
• ratatouille
• gazpacho
• panzanella salad
• coconut milk
• peanut sauce
• asian salad
• vegetarian tacos
• potato chips
• tortilla chips
• raw veggies and fruits
• rice
• pasta! ah. pasta.

I'm struggling right now. I don't think I could live without cheese!!!

• Romaine
• Iceberg
• Boston/Bibb
• Radicchio
• Endive
• Curly Endive
• Mesculn Greens (baby lettuces of many varieties)
• Spinach
• Kale
• Collard greens
• Mustard greens
• Dandelion greens
• Swiss Chard
• Rainbow Chard
• Arugula
• Red-tip leaf
• Watercress
• Mache/Lamb's lettuce
• Frisee

DANG!

• humor- it is a universal must have, and it needs to be backed up by true wit and intelligence, or pure innocence (people who are so funny and truly don't know it)
• big, beautiful, eyes
• big, beautiful butts (yes, i'm serious)
• open-mindedness- the kind of person who will listen to a point in full before they'll argue back at it
• bravery, ballsiness, chutzpah
• sweetness- 'ya gotta be soft in some way if you're my friend. a lot of people i love are slightly rigid, intense, or even crass, but they're sweet somehow. it's important.
• interest! yes! a person who is genuinely interesting without being fake or boastful. a person who can always find something interesting to talk about and really engage in.
• respect/courtesy/consideration- someone w...

• coming home to someone at the end of the day
• hearing your favorite song on the radio, or when you're not expecting it
• foot rubs
• the whirr and whoosh of a washer or dishwasher when its time for bed- always helps me sleep
• incandescent lighting
• things that are biodegradable
• cleaning the whole apartment and then just sitting in it
• giving advice, especially to a little kid
• working on the hot line at our restaurant for 5 hours straight, calling out tickets and banging out 300 orders
• making my bed
• drinking as much water as possible
• calling my mother on the phone
• organizing drawers/cabinets/closets

A list of injuries that sent me to the hospital, or scarred me for life... literally.

• Torn top lip, thanks to a dog who "kissed" me too hard, almost passed out from loss of blood, oldest memory I have, still have a scar, age 3
• Wicked-bad skinned elbow, flew over my bike handle bars, saw my own flesh on the sidewalk, still have a really cool oblong scar, age 6
• Broken left ring finger- broken in 5 places, smashed to bits, needed reconstructive plastic surgery, age 8
• Wicked-bad skinned knee, tripped running down rock-paved alley, rocks went into my skin, still have awesome star-shaped scars, age 12
• Reconstructive knee surgery/knee cap replacement, scariest shit of my life, 9 WEEKS ON CRUTCHES, age 14

• They are brothers, and act like it every day
• Oliver prefers his chair, while Simon prefers the bed- except when they sleep together on the chair or the bed
• Simon is afraid of loud music, yelling and dancing- Oliver is not
• Oliver is a little afraid of Johnny, Simon is not
• Oliver is quite brazen and slaps things out of people's hands, steals, growls, and swats at whatever he disagrees with
• Simon is elusive, elegant and sneaky, but often misses out and gets wimpy
• Oliver loves to be held, kissed, squeezed and touched, much like a dog
• Simon prefers gentle petting and only likes to be held and kissed when he is sleepy
• Both kittens can eat for days, but Oliver is a true fatty and belongs to over eate...

• Cilantro (Silly, for short)
• Yoshimi
• Olivia
• Violet
• Genevieve
• Sonya
• Jade (if she has green eyes)
• Ryu
• Kitana
• Guile (if he's blonde)
• Jasper
• Willis (as in, whatchu talkin'bout Willis)
• Quincy
• Fig
• Peach
• Kiwi
• Indigo
• LuLu
• Salchicha

• a tube of lipstick, preferably clinique "raspberry glace"
• paddington bear
• my antique quartz ring, preferably on my finger
• a really amazing mixed cd- yes, cd
• something from Virginia, her choice
• some really sweet flowers
• something delicious and not too perishable
• my chef knife or a tasting spoon
• sunglasses- you never know how bright that bright light's gonna be...
• a letter from someone I cherish; my husband, brother, mom, best friend, unborn child...
• pictures, new and old

• Rick Bayless
• Alex Guarnaschelli
• Mario Batali
• Martin Yan
• Julia Child
• Michael Symon
• Alice Waters
• Chris Cosentino
• Anne Burrell
• Alton Brown
• Anthony Bourdain
• Guy Fieri
• Ina Garten

• being in a hurry
• eating in a hurry
• un-packing
• food that looks good but tastes OK
• food that looks OK but tastes awful
• people who are in a hurry and mean to everyone in their paths
• jealousy
• undeserving people who spend/make lots of money
• having no milk when you REALLY want it
• having no cereal or cookies when you have a ton of milk
• dust bunnies and/or cat hair clumps
• bad hair days
• having something in your eye
• zits
• people who talk way too loud or way too soft
• feeling like you look pretty good until you notice everyone around you is better l...