What I've Been Doing...

I'm back!

Look: fall semester has been crazy hectic! Here's a quick look back at the things I've been doing.

Trip to Asheville
Max and I enjoyed a wonderful long weekend in Asheville the first weekend in October. The weather was glorious, our B&B hosts were attentive and non-intrusive, and we had two great meals -- one at Zambra (tapas and Spanish wine) and one at Table (tuna butter, anyone?).




The Living Newspaper: 1935
This year, I am leading the Advanced Drama class at BHS; this class is responsible for producing the non-musical each semester. For our first show, we revived a production that I had been involved in at UGA several years ago -- a "living newspaper" from 1935. The "living newspapers" were part of the Federal Theater Project's attempt to combine theater with the news and bring stories to the outlying regions of the country. We were fortunate enough to be invited to present our show at the Georgia Theater Conference where we competed with 19 other schools and unofficially finished in the Top 8 (among schools from all classifications -- big ones, little ones, public ones, private ones). Additionally, one of our students, Maggie, was named to the All-Star Cast!

Homecoming at MHS
In late October, Max and I ventured to my hometown and my high school alma mater, Manchester. The occasion: my niece, Chelsea, was the 10th Grade Homecoming Representative! We had a little cheering section in the stands and it was heartwarming and fun to see Chelsea and her father (my brother) on the field at halftime. MHS also won the game (which they didn't do a lot this season).






Holiday Dinner at Floataway Cafe
Since Max and I have to spend this holiday apart (he's on his way to Alabama as I type), we decided to have a nice holiday dinner for ourselves. In our continuing efforts to dine at all the major Atlanta restaurants, we selected Floataway Cafe (it's relatively close to where we live and it's part of Star Provisions restaurant group -- the same folks who own our favorite Atlanta restaurant, Bacchanalia). You might say that Floataway is Bacchanlia's more casual little sister. It's almost an understatement to say that our dinner was EXCELLENT! We started with cocktails -- Max had an apple bellini and I had a lavender gimlet. For starters we shared a wonderfully onion-y beef tartare and a crunchy and delicious salad of apples, endive, walnuts, and gorgonzola. For his entree, Max selected the duck breast served atop a cannellini bean stew (it was wonderfully warm and savory). I had a giant bowl of gnocchi and seared scallops served in a deliciously bright sauce. Both were wonderful. For dessert, Floataway offers homemade soft-serve ice cream topped with a variety of eclectic things. I opted for the more traditional topping -- caramel sauce and almond brittle. Max went for a more exotic choice -- saba and sea salt. (Saba, it turns out, is a sort of super-aged balsamic-esque substance made from grape must.) Our GIANT bowls of ice cream were served with warm chocolate chip cookies on the side! All in all, it was a great way to celebrate our thanks for each other and for the rather incredible lives that we are fortunate to have.