#why do so many of my dreams feature boxes of pasta | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

seungmoroll · 4 years

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Movie Night Confessions - Bang Chan

Word count: 2.8k

Genre: fluff

Requested: yes

A/N: honestly I got carried away and didn’t plan for it to be this long, but I hope you enjoy it!

“No, Jackson don’t go.” You reach a hand out towards him, but he steps farther away from you. The two of you stand on top of the hill as the sun sets in the back. The wind, gently blowing your hair and dress.

“I have to, Y/n. We can’t be together anymore. If we stay together, we’ll only hurt the people we love.” Seeing that there is too much sadness in your eyes, Jackson looks away from you.

“And what about me? Don’t you love me?” You ask him, pleading for him to be with you. You look at his crowned figure, wondering what went wrong.

“But what about Chan?”

‘What does Chan have to do with this?” You think to yourself.

“Yeah, Y/n, what about me?” Chan randomly appears, slowly walking towards you. He’s in his suit of armor, sword by his side. The sunlight hitting his features makes him look even more beautiful to you.

Shaking your head, you yell, “I love you Jackson, not Chan.”

In unison, they ask, “Do you?”

Repeatedly, you yell out your love for Jackson, ignoring the pain in your heart.

“I love you Jackson, not him. I love you Jackson.”

“Y/n, wake up. Wake up!” You are shaken awake, by the loud voice by your head. Rubbing the sleep off of your eyes, you see the owner of the voice. Not bothering to get up, you shut your eyes again. When you feel the impact of another body lay beside you, you still don’t bother to open your eyes, instead you opt for grabbing the pillow your head was resting on and smacking said body with it.

“Awe, are you grumpy because I woke you up from your dream about Jackson Wang?” He manages to grab the pillow this time when you go in for another swing and lays it underneath his head. He turns his body towards you and props his head on his hand.

Mumbling, “Yes Chan, I am grumpy because you woke me up. I’m also grumpy because of dream you.”

His eyebrow raises, “Oh, do tell me what dream me did to make you grumpy.”

Refusing to tell him what happened in your dream, you snuggle into your stuffed bear. That is until you quickly pop up into a sitting position, realizing the current situation you’re in. Slowly turning your heads towards Chan, you ask, “What are you doing in my house?”

He chuckles at you, checking his phone for the time, he says, “Well, it’s my off day and you told me to come by at 4 pm. It’s currently 4:08.”

Surprised by the time that it was, you go to check your phone, seeing that there were a few text messages from Chan. Plopping back down, you shut your eyes and groan in exhaustion. You think to yourself that it was a bad idea to binge watch Criminal Minds until 6 in the morning. Feeling movement beside you as Chan gets up from out of your bed, you don’t bother to move an inch, and when your duvet is yanked away from you, you yelp in surprise. Chan grabs your arms in attempt to get you out of your bed.

“C’mon Y/n, you got to get up now.” You mumble something incoherent that sounds like “don’t want to,” and this makes Chan hoist you over his shoulder, leading you to your bathroom. At this point, you’ve been hoisted over his shoulder so many times that it doesn’t bother you anymore.

Chan sets you down on your bathroom counter and grabs a hair tie and puts your hair into a ponytail. There were many times where you were too lazy to put up your hair, so Chan learned how to do it for you. You hazily watch as Chan prepares your toothbrush and toothpaste, and when he puts it in front of your mouth, you automatically open your mouth and let him start brushing your teeth.

“Aigoo, my Y/n is such a baby.” Whining at the name he called you, you gently kick your legs at Chan, but he manages to dodge them. Feeling the need to spit, you grab Chan’s wrist and move it away from you, turning your head to the sink to spit. Quietly getting down from the counter, you motion for Chan to get out the way to finish your skincare routine, but he grabs you by the waist and place you back on the counter. Just as you were about to speak up, he goes to grab your face wash and motions you to get closer to the sink. As Chan does your skincare routine for you, he occasionally squishes your cheeks together and laughs it off when you frown at him. After Chan was done pampering you, you went to go change into a different outfit, while Chan went out to your living room. Emerging from your bedroom, you make your way to the living room. Upon reaching the living room, you are met with the sight of Chan scrolling through his phone on your couch. Plopping yourself on top of Chan, you lay down and rest your head on his lap. Without looking away from his phone, Chan raises his arms to give you room and resumes scrolling through his phone once you’ve settled down. The two of you stay like that for a few minutes until you become bored. Wanting Chan’s attention, you begin to mess with his hoodie strings. You tie them and pull on them, yet he doesn’t give in to your antics. Pouting, you begin to boop his nose instead, and after the sixth boop, he turns off his phone and puts it down next to him. Looking down at you, he begins to play with your hair, twisting and braiding it. “You know,” Chan starts, “you’re so needy.”

“I’m not needy, I just need my daily dose of Chan.” You give him a wide smile. He returns it by gently petting your head, which makes you giggle. Remembering why Chan was at your house in the first place, you ask, “What’re we watching tonight?”

Taking a moment to think, Chan shrugs, and asks you for your opinion. You suggest watching Tangled, which he agrees to. Chan gently shakes his leg, motioning for you to sit up. Once you sit up, he gets up and stretches out his hand towards you. Without thinking, you take his hand and let him pull you up from the couch.

“Let’s go to the store. I checked your fridge earlier and there’s basically nothing in there. How do you survive Y/n?”

“I don’t need food if I have you.” Instead of finding your response cute, Chan sighs and gently flicks your forehead. Taking your hand in his, he guides you out the front door. As he drives to the grocery store, the two of you discuss what to buy.

Whining, you ask, “Why can’t we just get takeout for tonight?”

“Because dear,” Chan begins, giving your thigh a slight squeeze with the hand that’s been resting there,” it’s better to eat a home cooked meal,” he answers.

At the grocery store, you and Chan push the cart side by side, grabbing the ingredients that you need and the snacks that you want. Chan decided he was going to make you guys pasta for dinner, and while he grabbed the ingredients, he let you put them in the cart, making sure you’re somewhat participating. As the pair of you were in the pasta aisle, trying to figure out which one to get, an older lady tries to pass by, making Chan grab you by the waist and pulling you closer to him to make you avoid get bumped into. You ignore the comment the older lady makes about you two making a cute couple and focus on how close you were to Chan.

Sure, you two were always touchy with one another, but that was when you guys were alone or with your friends. Out in public, you kept the touches to a minimum. With Chan’s job, it was dangerous for him to be anywhere near a girl, but the fans knew that you two were only best friends, so they never questioned it, but still, you didn’t want to risk any rumors spreading.

Clearing your throat, you slip out of Chan’s grip and randomly grab a box of pasta. As you walk back to the cart, Chan looks at you with a raised eyebrow, but doesn’t say anything. The last aisle you go to is the candy aisle and before you can say or do anything, Chan grabs your favorite chocolates and puts them in the cart and then he leads you to the checkout. He ends up paying for everything because he didn’t give you enough time to grab your wallet, which makes you feel bad, but he tells you that it’s alright because he’s the one that wanted to cook. On the ride back to your place, you guys jam out to the GO LIVE album. Chan laughs at you whenever you attempt any of the raps, but hey, at least you were trying.

Once you arrive back to your place, you carry in all the bags; it’s more like you carry the one bag, while Chan carries the rest, but it’s the thought that counts. Since it was still too early to be making dinner, you and Chan decided to relax on the couch. Chan sat down against the arm of the couch and spread his arms out for you. You immediately dive into his arms and settle into his lap, proceeding to watch the Tiktoks Chan puts on his phone. This was something normal for you guys, initially the other boys were surprised when they saw the two of you in this exact same position, but as you continued to hang out with the eight of them, it became something normal for them to see so they ignored it, giving one another a knowingly look. The time you guys spent watching Tiktoks flew by fast because before you knew it, it was already 6:50. Unfortunately for you, you were already too comfortable in Chan’s embrace that you whined, when Chan picked you up and gently sat you on the couch as he got up and headed towards the kitchen.

Like a little child, you follow him into the kitchen and sit yourself on top of the counter. You watch as Chan moves around your kitchen as if he has lived here his entire life. He grabs a pot of water and begins to boil it, and as he waits for it to boil, he asks for you to wash the vegetables as he cuts them up. Standing side by side, you listen as Chan sings a familiar melody. You recognize that he’s singing ‘My Universe’ and begin to sing along with him. Moments with Chan like this were nice; you didn’t have to worry about fans or the public, it was just you and him. It wasn’t often that you guys spent time together, but whenever Chan had the chance, he made sure to spend time with you.

The aroma of the food was surrounding you as Chan began to assemble everything together. You had helped season the pasta as Chan was washing the dishes, but as Chan fed you a piece of pasta, you realized that it might’ve been a mistake to put you in control of seasoning. After observing your face, Chan tries a bit of the pasta himself and makes the same face as you do. “What did you season this with?”

“I put in everything you told me to.” You show him the seasoning that you put in and when Chan grabs a bottle to read it, he shakes his head, “Love, you do realize that this is cinnamon right?” When he shows you the bottle, you gasp, “Oopsies.” You make an apologetic face and say, “I’ll call for pizza.”

Waiting for the pizza to arrive, you and Chan head out to your backyard and set up the screen and projector for the movie. The weather that night was perfect for watching a movie outside, so you wanted to be a little bit spontaneous and watch Tangled underneath the stars. While you were positioning the blankets and pillows the pizza had arrived and Chan went out to get it, after you had screamed to him to grab money from your wallet, which you know that he didn’t. Looking at the whole scenery, you admire the work that you and Chan did. The aroma of greasy pizza fills your nostrils as Chan walks out the backdoor, pizza in hand. Settling down on the mountain of blankets and pillows, you begin to start Tangled. Chan takes his position right next to you and quickly opens the pizza box, drooling as he takes in the visuals. The pair of you sit pressed up against another as you guys eat your pizza and watch the movie.

Tangled was your favorite movie, the storyline and the soundtrack were amazing. You could watch it all the time, and luckily for you, Chan never minded. He also never minded when you sang along with the movie, laughing when you were too out of tune. Once you two were done eating, Chan pushed aside the pizza box and wrapped his arm around your waist, pulling the blanket that was sat on your lap across the two of you. You had easily melted into his warmth, breathing in his cologne. As the movie goes on, you begin to get a bit sleepy, and so you rest your head on Chan’s shoulder, face slightly buried in the crook of his neck, but just enough for you to still see the screen. Watching as Flynn takes Rapunzel to see the lanterns, you realize that Chan isn’t watching the screen anymore, but at you. Nosing at his neck, you ask as you begin to sit up, “What’re you looking at?” Instead of replying, he brushes the strand of hair in your face behind your ear and gives you an embarrassed smile. “Ah, I guess I got caught. I was looking you, wondering how you could be so beautiful.” You blush at his forward response, and give him a slight push, “Oh stop it.”

“I’m serious, Y/n, I think you’re as beautiful as the stars.” Pushing at him again, your face burns even more, however, as you go in for another push, Chan grabs your wrists and pulls you closer to him. He falls back to the ground with you on top of him. Hovering above him, you laugh at his antics, but realize that Chan is staring intensely at you with that same look from before.

Before you could ask him what’s wrong, he begins to speak, “Y/n, there’s something I have to tell you.” Taking a deep breath, he begins, “I like you. I’ve liked you for so long now, I’m surprised you haven’t figured it out by now. The boys have been telling me that I’m so obvious about it, but you obviously haven’t figured it out. Honestly, I was so nervous to tell you because I didn’t want to ruin our friendship, but tonight has made me realize that I want to become something more with you, and I know that being in a relationship with an idol isn’t the ideal relationship. I just know that we could make it work…that’s if you’ll have me.” It takes you a moment to process his words and once you have, you do the one thing that you’ve been wanting to do for so long now. You lean forward and plant a kiss on his lips, quickly withdrawing from him, but you don’t make it far as Chan grabs your face and pulls you back to him, crushing his lips against yours. The kiss is gentle and not rushed, the two of you wanting to savor each other. Once the two of you pull apart for air, you rest your forehead against Chan and entwine your fingers together. He gently brushes his thumb against the back of your hand, waiting, wanting to hear something from you.

“I,” you begin to say, but stop, unsure of what you wanted to say to him. Chan brings up his other hand and caresses your face, encouraging you to go on. “I don’t know how a relationship with an idol works, but what I do know is, is that I really like you too Chan. If you’re willing to try, then I am too.” Giving you the biggest smile you’ve ever seen on his face, he brings up the hand he’s holding and places a kiss on the back of it.

“Love, for you, I’m willing to try anything.”

A/N: I hope you enjoyed reading this! feel free to make any requests and let me know what you think.

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thepencilnerd · 4 years

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Pasta and Dinner Parties

"Edamame," Theo says.

"The fuck did you just call me?" Blaise’s face contorted quicker than a shifting boggart.

Another eye roll. “The pasta, it’s made from edamame.” Theo pronounces it with a certain twinge of pomposity that would have Percy Weasley reeling. Too many syllables. Vowels too lengthy. “Type of soybean, I reckon.”

"IT'S NOT PASTA!" Blaise’s roar shook the walls of the foyer.

Pansy snorts into her mug. “I don’t know about you, but I think this dinner will go swimmingly.”

Draco and Hermione have reached a domestic milestone. They've finally decided to move in together. Draco invites her over for dinner, but what would a little Slytherin hospitality be without some sugar and spice?

Rated M for language and discussions of heavy topics in future chapters

Full fic + updates on AO3

"Luna sent a box of these over, wonderful isn't she?" If lovesick eyes had a picture to accompany the definition, Theodore Nott’s face would be front and center. In his left hand, he held an empty cardboard carton with a sticky note adhered to the front flap.

Simmer for 10 minutes with a sprig of rosemary and a teaspoon of salt. Keeps away the balfspracks.

Blaise rubs his eyes. It’s half-past five and he’s already had it with Theo. Had it. Patience wore down to the bone. Basta. Finite incantatem. In all honesty, he’d gladly throw himself in front of a flying—

A shorter figure crept up from behind. Wrapping her arms around his waist, she gives her boyfriend a peck on the cheek, which seems to loosen the wrinkles settling over his forehead.

"Ladies," Pansy jests, mediating the arguments between the two as always. "I'm sure there's more than enough pasta to go around."

"Not pasta," Blaise muttered. He tried to concentrate on the lingering warmth Pansy’s lips left on his face. The poor bloke sounded like he was about to hurl.

At this, Theo rolled his eyes and waved dismissively. “Yes, yes, yes, you can flaunt your Italian heritage some other time, now let me work my culinary magic!”

Blaise takes a deep breath. High blood pressure, he remembered Pansy saying. Need to stay calm. "Mate, I love you, I really do, but if you don't tell me what those green things swimming about in my favorite crockpot are, you have another thing coming."

"You used a crockpot to boil pasta?" Pansy’s head popped up from behind Blaise’s shoulder. Her nose wrinkled like she’d caught a whiff of something foul.

“Not pasta.” Blaise was a broken record.

Draco groaned from the living room. The headache from earlier evolved into a full-blown migraine by the time lunch was over. His eyeballs were absolutely throbbing. He jammed the heels of his hands into his eye sockets as if it would relieve any of the aching. To no avail.

"Granger's coming over in half an hour and we’ve yet to transfigure a dining table." He verbalized his misery in as simple terms as he could. Sitting on the living room couch, he calculated the farthest distance from the kitchen and found himself just a few feet away. Problem with having a small flat. He couldn't find it in himself to raise his voice. Not with the demon baby currently going stir-crazy with a gavel in his skull.

He questioned his level of sobriety when he agreed to this.

Meeting Hermione Granger’s parents had been less stressful than this.

Introducing her to his mother was a Christmas tree full of Christmas presents compared to this.

Sitting in a train compartment with 2nd-year Hufflepuffs sounded more bearable than this.

Why, oh why, did he have to open his big mouth that night?

“Seems proper that I’d at least get to share dinner with them before we move in together,” Hermione shrugged. Her hair was still damp from her—their—shower. Stray curls escaped, framing the curves of her face. Draco loved how her sheets always smelled like her soap. The scent of her shampoo was reserved for the pillowcases.

“Come over for dinner,” he suggested. Quite impulsively, really. “Allow me to treat you to an evening of... Slytherin hospitality.” Draco’s trademark grin served him well. Resting on his side, Draco was propped up on one elbow with no shirt and sheet draped over his bottom half. She wanted to believe he was wearing briefs underneath. He looked absolutely wicked.

Hermione scowled tentatively but surrendered with a smile. Her chest rose before she let out a sigh. “Well, I’d be lying if I said I’d experienced an inkling of that before.” Mirth graced her tone.

The embers from the fireplace bounced off of her bare skin like rays of summer sun; warm and welcoming. Draco’s fingers fondled the strap of her bra, the only thing she was wearing, and earned a breathy giggle from her. Tugging the lace down, he sat up and started pressing a trail of kisses along her skin. Goosebumps erupted where his lips traced her flesh. The bath had stained her skin; she tasted of rosewater and honey.

Hermione let out a hmph and tried to focus on the book she was holding. She developed a knack for knowing when he craved attention. Whenever Draco came over, he turned into a literal child. Always nagging and begging for her every time he got the chance. If she wasn’t superglued to his side, Hermione would bet a million galleons he’d throw a fit.

“Turn around and face me instead. I don’t fancy being smothered by your hair while we sleep.”

“How do you turn on the stove?”

“Granger, help me fix the antenna!”

“Could you take a look at this spot on the back of my head? I might be balding.”

“Granger, I think I nicked myself on the aluminium.”

“If you weren’t wearing so many clothes, we’d probably warm up faster. Becoming a pair of popsicles isn’t exactly on my bucket list.”

This time around, his demands were very clear.

“Pay attention to me.”

Hermione’s eyes shot up from her book. Shock painted her features like a splash of cold water.

She blinks once. Twice. Three times for good measure. And then, her lips break into a blinding smile, pearly whites and all. The corners of her eyes curl into half-moons and her whole body shakes with glee.

Sweet Merlin, he was fucked.

Setting her book down on the nightstand, Hermione sits up straight and looks at Draco expectantly. He sits unmoved beside her. Staring. Admiring. Waiting. The cheeky grin that etches into her face is one Draco would give the world to see every day.

Draco leans back against the headboard and stretches his legs out towards the foot of the bed. Scooting closer to her, she flips her leg over his awaiting lap. She’s straddling him in the span of two seconds. The feel of her bare flesh against his is utter bliss.

Her arms wrap around his neck like a koala bear and her head nestles into the crook of his neck. Despite lathering him in her soap, he still smelled like Draco. All these years of dating and she still couldn’t put her finger on the bevy of aromas.

Draco mirrors her actions like a reflection, one and the same. His arms make her feel so incredibly small when encased in them. Like a bear cub. Or a kangaroo in a pouch. Maybe mammals would be an appropriate term to generalize how warm and safe she felt in his embrace, but it wasn’t the most attractive or poetic—

“I thought we finished showering earlier,” he sighs into her hair. “Why is there steam coming off your head?”

She blows a puff of air into his neck and he jolts at the sensation. Ticklish. Draco knew that secret would die with Hermione and she was honored to keep it. Unless it served her in times of duress.

“I was just thinking about how safe I am when I’m with you.” The tip of her nose brushes against the junction above his throat and feels his heartbeat, delicate but strong.

Da-dum.

Pulling back, he slides his left hand along her cheek and she leans into it like second nature. Hermione raises her right hand and cradles it over his. The way it pales in proportion almost makes him break into laughter. When she presses open-mouthed kisses down his bare wrist, Draco resists the urge to take her right then and there. It’s too perfect of a moment to ruin. Not tonight.

She’s even more tender when her lips reach his scar. The marred flesh that takes him back to his inescapable past. A reminder of everything wrong he’s been taught since childhood; everything bad in this world; everything wrong he’s done throughout his entire life.

But more importantly, it’s a symbol of how much good was left in this dismal world.

It’s a battle scar that reminds him that he lived.

Something that motivates him to keep trying.

A reminder of how despite being swallowed by the darkness that plagued the world, he chose to hold onto light.

A reminder of how above everything, he chose Hermione and Hermione chose him.

He takes a moment to look at her, really look at her, and melts.

Hermione is a vision actualized. He sees the dreams and aspirations swirl about her irises in flickers. Roaming freely and always there when you needed them. He wants to bask in them. Relish in them. In her. For as long as she’ll keep him, no matter how infinitely small or finitely large. He’d burn through galaxies if it meant seeing her happy and safe. Anything and everything he could provide for her was his to offer. She need only ask.

Draco Malfoy was wholly and irrevocably head over heels for Hermione Granger.

Magic and might, save him.

No really, save him.

What the bloody hell was that infernal yapping?

"I, for one, thought it would be better to go to an Italian restaurant, but Blaise here," Theo quipped. “—wanted to dish out his non-existent cooking skills,” He paused to stir the pot. “At least Luna was kind enough to—”

Blaise stomped his foot on the kitchen tiles. Miracle they hadn’t cracked yet. There was no point in trying to hide his tantrum. “Just because my ancestors were Italian doesn’t mean I’m a master chef!” He narrows his eyes. “Honestly Theo—” The words die in his throat when Theo fishes out a noodle from the pot. Maybe it’s just his eyes playing tricks on him but he swears it flipping wiggles. “What in Merlin’s great magical kingdom is that abomination and why the ever-loving fuck is it green?”

Pansy gave his cheek a pat. “Colorful, Blaise. Truly”

"Edamame," Theo says.

"The fuck did you just call me?" Blaise’s face contorted quicker than a shifting boggart.

"IT'S NOT PASTA!" Blaise’s roar shook the walls of the foyer.

Pansy snorts into her mug. “I don’t know about you, but I think this dinner will go swimmingly.”

A crash echoes from the kitchen and Theo lets out a screech that rivals grindylows.

Pansy takes a long, calm sip. Likely pumpkin juice. Draco wouldn’t be surprised if it were laced with some pre-appetizer spirits. How she managed to deal with Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-dum was beyond him. Hell, he needed some right about now. At least to dial down the nerves. Not to mention the spike in blood pressure provoked by his flatmates.

The remaining minutes pass like clockwork and before he knows it, the front door dings. Never has a bell sounded more menacing than now. Why is he so nervous? She’s met them a few times before and they’ve definitely shared rounds of drinks. No doubt, gone to Diagon Alley with Parkinson, Lovegood, and Weasley. The tolerable one.

Did he clean his room?

Theo promised to dust right after tea but the bloke was delusional about everything except Lovegood. A bit poetic, not that Draco ever cared to admit it.

Pansy and Blaise stopped by the market yesterday and restocked the pantries and fridge.

And then Luna dropped off her bag of goodies this morning.

“She’s early.” Theo stuck his head out from the kitchen. Why was he covered in flour?

So many questions. Draco didn’t even care to know the answers to half of them.

“She’s always early when she’s excited.”

The three stooges stand shell shocked and stare at Pansy. They just stare.

She blinks like an owl and shakes her head. “Honestly, are you three just going to stand there or is someone’s boyfriend going to get the door?”

Draco’s brain registers the words too late for his liking. He’s dead sober but his brain is all fuzzy. Just as she’s about to knock for a second round, Draco’s feet propel him to the door so fast a whip of apparition cracks.

The door clicks open to reveal a dazzling frame. Hermione Granger is, to say the least, an unreal figment of everything good in the world. War heroine, member of the Order of the Phoenix, magical, academic, and practical genius, pure in mind and soul, and his girlfriend. His girlfriend. His. Donning a pair of black leggings and a flowing cream blouse, she’s bundled in a beige trench coat and blush pink scarf. Dark mahogany brown ankle boots boost her height by a few centimeters. Draco still overshadows her by a good head or two. Nevertheless, it’s a thoughtful effort. She’s holding a bouquet of flowers and a bottle of wine.

“Hello—woah!’

Draco’s arms are around her instantly and she’s brought into the house. His broad shoulders envelop her into a cloaked embrace that lets his scent wash over her. He never wants to let go.

Initially surprised at the abrupt shift in balance, Hermione relaxes into his hold within seconds. He still smells like her soap and Draco and… smoking?

“Blaise!” a female voice shrieks. “Don’t just stand there Theo, do something!”

A cloud of smoke—contained by a bubble charm, thanks to Pansy—swirls above the stovetop, large and foreboding. The source? A deep green crockpot placed on one of the burners.

Wait. Why is a crockpot on the burner? Hermione wonders.

“I told you we needed to salt the water and add the rosemary! Now you’ve got balfspracks all over the bloody place!” Theo’s voice changed from panic to mockery. He turned his nose upright and growled in a nasal tone. “‘Oh, salt is acceptable, but rosemary? Unacceptable. A disgrace to all cuisine Italian. May as well—’”

Draco pinches the bridge of his nose. By the end of the day, he’d probably have to ask Hermione to heal his bruises. “Bloody hell…”

“Oh, it’s my fault now, is it?” Hermione realizes Blaise’s name suits him very well. Almost too well. In any other life, he might have been sorted into Gryffindor with that fiery temperament. “Next time we have a guest over, we’re ordering take-out. From Hogsmeade!”

“Someone help me get rid of this burnt pot of—whatever the hell pasta Theo was making,” Pansy gags while trying to contain the swelling bubble. The scent is overwhelming. Something between seaweed and polyjuice. Perhaps a vile mixture of the two.

“EDAMAME!”

“NOT PASTA!”

Draco can’t tell whether he wants to burst into laughter or cry. Maybe he’ll do both. Hermione was there to wipe away the snot or tears, regardless of whichever it would end up being.

Giving him a chase kiss, Hermione placed the gifts in his hands and made her way to the lounge. Draco was going to kill them. He was going to kill them dead.

She pulled out her want and raised it towards the giant orb of smoke, confidence igniting her eyes. Her wand moved as if it were on its own, guided purely by magic and intent with an undeniable essence of Granger. She draws a broad circle that covers the entire room and summons the wisps of smoke like a magnet. The ashy tendrils of burnt food claw their way out of the floorboards and ceiling cracks, latching on for as long as they can before they’re drawn out Aiming towards the ajar door, the coils of smoke and singe are thrown out the entrance with a deafening gust.

A single strand of hair falls out of her ponytail.

She blows it out of her eyes with a single, deliberate puff.

The corner of her lip quirks upwards the slightest.

It’s so fast you’d miss it if you blinked.

If Draco wasn’t so overcome with the urge to skin his friends, he’d dive in there right now and kiss her numb.

The flat has returned to an atmosphere of calm.

“Fucking finally,” Draco mutters out loud. Not intentionally but he doesn’t regret it one bit.

Pansy, Theo, and Blaise resemble owls; wide eyes, unmoving bodies, twitching necks that swivel side to side.

Theo breaks the silence with something along the lines of a chortle. “Welcome to our humble abode, Granger.”

“Pleasure to have you here,” Blaise adds. His hands are still clenched around Theo’s shirt collar.

Pansy is still trying to catch her breath having inhaled a hefty amount of the fumes. Blaise and Theo had probably tumbled around the living room enough to avoid the thick of it. Still, she refuses to let it impede on her hostess abilities.

“Hermione!” Pansy coughs. “Why don’t you and Draco check out upstairs while—” she pauses to glare daggers at the two boys covered in God knows what, “—we deal with the mess down here.”

Hermione draws out the excess smoke from Pansy’s clothes and hair with a swish of her wand. The next thing she does makes the three boys’ jaws unhinge. They bring each other into a warm hug and laughter rings in the air.

“It’s good to see you too, Pans,” Hermione breathes. Draco was definitely going to have a fit over this later.

Hermione gives Theo and Blaise a shy wave. Hopefully, they’d understand. In any other instance, she’d be more than happy to rid their clothes of the stench. They wouldn’t even have to ask. But this was Pansy Parkinson and if Hermione knew Pansy Parkinson, she knew that the Slytherin would want to drag on punishment as long as possible before even thinking of succumbing to forgiveness.

Hermione Granger’s stubbornness coupled with her Gryffindor loyalty?

She’ll be damned if she lets either waver when surrounded by friends.

Draco clears his throat forcefully and offers his arm. “Upstairs then, shall we?”

Hermione loops her arm through his and grins. It’s contagious and Draco already feels his anger ebb into affection.

She speaks almost as lightheartedly as the wand movement for a levitation charm. "We shall."

#dramione #draco malfoy #hermione granger #dramione imagine #draco x hermione #theo nott #blaise zabini #pansy parkinson #dramione fanfic #incorrect dramione quotes #hermione x draco #post wizarding war #crack fic #dramione headcanon #harry potter #hp quotes

63 notes · View notes

mypassionfortrash · 4 years

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Quarantine dream: day one.

It’s the Great Quarantine of 2020, and you and Roger find yourselves cooped up together. Will you get on each others’ nerves, or do you love each other enough to weather the storm? Warnings: Mentions of really weird sex stuff (as a joke), strictly 18+ Notes: New fic. It’s a bit on the nose, but if we don’t laugh, we’ll cry! I’m going to try and update this daily. Full disclaimer, it was written quickly and might be very disjointed.

Day one.

The missus is working from home now. We’re essentially going to be housebound for the foreseeable. She’s already forbidden me from revving the Porsche too loudly in the garage, coming into her ‘designated work space’ between the hours of nine and five, and trying to help her with the cooking and cleaning. Apparently I’m ‘getting in the way.’ I’ve been cast out to my ‘man cave’ during the daytime... and god help me if I leave to scavenge for snacks or even a cuppa!

Which one lives, which one dies, we’ll see! I have a feeling only one of us is getting out of here alive.

In other news, John sent me a video of him and Ronnie in Tesco. Trolley piled high with TP. Now I have the overwhelming urge to brave the dreaded Coronavirus and get the shopping in a couple of days early.

I’m clearly going to go mad, aren’t I?

One more hour of work. That’s what you told yourself as you settled back at your makeshift desk in the spare room. One more hour and then you could get the dinner on.

Working from home was harder than you imagined. Not having the commute was lovely, but only having contact with Roger – as much as you loved him – was enough to drive anyone to the edge of sanity.

And it was only day one.

Hunching over your laptop, you scrolled through the emails that had piled up during your tea break, now wishing you could just have a meeting. Times had changed and you didn’t have time for 800 word emails about your company’s next rebrand.

Soon enough, something out in the garden caught your eye.

Roger emerged from the garage, his white t-shirt spattered in dirt and grime from a day of tinkering with his collection of four-wheeled loves. He moved swiftly, shaking his head as he looked down at his phone.

You heard the back door slam closed and his footsteps trudge upstairs. Silently praying he wasn’t coming to bother you, you counted his footsteps in your head, imagining every door that lined the hall.

“You’re never going to believe this, darling!” Roger called.

Your eyes burst open the second he entered the room.

Roger leaned over you and thrust his phone in your face, so close you could barely see what was on the screen. “Look at John!” He screeched. “Look at him!”

“What am I looking at?”

Roger’s voice kept going up an octave every sentence until it made you wince. “The bastard’s cleared out Tesco! Look at his bloody trolley!”

Huffing and rolling your eyes, you turned around, going nose to nose with him. “How many kids does he have?”

Roger quietened down. “I don’t know,” he shrugged, “a lot?”

“Well, I don’t thi–”

“You’re not telling me that’s their weekly shop though. They’re stockpiling toilet roll! It doesn’t make you shit yourself! I’ve got a good mind to go down to Tesco and–”

“And what?”

Roger’s attitude came in peaks and troughs but now he looked utterly sheepish, sinking on to the edge of the bed and batting his lashes. “Maybe do the shopping a couple of days earlier? If you want.”

You sighed and leaned your head on the back of your chair, allowing your eyes to wander towards his. You couldn’t say no to him – he made it impossible for you. “One more hour of work and I’ll come with you to supervise.”

Roger’s eyes narrowed as a broad smile lifted his features. “Good.”

As Roger rose to his feet, you reached out to grab the hem of his shirt, pulling him into you. Your lips met with an audible sigh and a fleeting kiss. “And for the love of god, jump in the shower and change your clothes.”

“Why?” Roger smirked. “We’re only going out during the apocalypse.”

An hour and a clean shirt later, you and Roger bundled into the Range Rover to embark on the five-minute drive to Tesco, completely unsure of what you’d find when you arrived.

The radio droned on in the background, covering the latest developments from the Prime Minister’s daily press conferences. Roger listened on with disdain as he drove – he never had much time for politics at the best of times – but he still listened intently. The situation was getting serious enough to worry him.

Boris bumbled through the airwaves but his message was clear: stay home.

“It’s what we should be doing,” you sighed, leaning forward to reach into your handbag.

“What?”

You took out a box of latex gloves. You, being the sensible and prepared one, always made sure you had some in the house. Blowing into one and slipping it on your hand, you mumbled your response. “Staying home.”

“What are those for?” Roger asked, glancing over at you snapping on the other glove.

“We’re being careful. But you can’t guarantee everyone else is.”

Roger’s hand found your thigh and gave it a reassuring squeeze as the car spun around the corner into Tesco’s car park.

Neither of you were sure of what you were expecting.

Chaos? Crowds? Cars everywhere?

You and Roger sat in silence as the car thudded to a halt right at the front door. There wasn’t a soul in sight.

“This is creepy,” Roger stated. “Bet we’ll be going in to empty shelves.”

“It’s going to be ok,” you said, jumping out and heading towards the door. “Remember the shopping bags in the boot!”

You could hear Roger groan as he retraced his steps. “This is why I hate going shopping with you,” he grumbled, fumbling through the boot for the almighty Bag of Bags. “We’re rich enough,” he wittered, slamming the boot. “We can get plastic carriers.”

From the corner of your eye, you could see him stomping back to you as you grabbed a trolley. A small one, so Roger wouldn’t succumb to temptation.

“…All because some little Swedish girl’s bloody whining about the planet getting warmer… not a bad thing if you ask me.”

“What are you droning on about?” you asked, grabbing the Bag of Bags from him. You hoped that putting them in the small trolley would lessen the amount of space available to him too.

“Greta’s probably having a fucking field day,” Roger mumbled. “Us using those bloody sacks for the shopping. No cars on the road.”

“It’s not a bad thing. We’ve been in London how many years? And when have we ever been able to get a proper breath until now? I quite like the lack of traffic.”

“Make the most of being able to breathe, darling. Corona’s a bitch, I’ve heard.”

The sight of the baron wasteland in front of you stopped you in your tracks. No people, no food, just rows and rows of empty shelves.

“I have a list,” you said meekly, taking a crumpled piece of paper out of your pocket.

Roger laughed. “Good luck with that.” He barged past you, peering over his shoulder. “I’ll take the cleaning stuff, fruit and veg, and toiletries. You check the rest.”

Empty supermarkets were strange places. Flickering lights and empty shelves, the only sound came from the creaking wheels of your trolley as you snaked the aisles for something – anything – from your shopping list. The only items left were either expensive or things you’d never be able to cobble a meal out of. Bread and pasta were non-existent in this liminal space, as were eggs and flour, so you couldn’t even make those from scratch. All you managed to find were two sorry looking ready meals, a bottle of gin and a tin of chopped tomatoes – none of which were on your optimistic list.

Roger didn’t do much better, either. He seemed to spring out of nowhere with armfuls of Bayliss and Harding soap at a fiver a pop, a two-litre bottle of bleach and one measly aubergine.

“What are we going to do with that?” you asked.

“What, the aubergine?” he smirked, waggling his eyebrows.”That gin might loosen me up enough.”

“Oh, fuck off! When have we eaten aubergine, Roger!”

“Well,” Roger began, grabbing the trolley, “it’s like that nature man from the telly says. Adapt, overcome… and...”

You glared up at him, “and?”

“I don’t even remember.”

“This is dire.”

Having checked out your scant supermarket haul, you and Roger embarked on the drive home, trying to figure out what you could do with the food you had found.

“I’ve always wanted to shove an aubergine up my arse,” Roger huffed.

“Why’d you think I kept these gloves? I’ve seen the weird shit you’ve been watching,” You mused. “Oh! Moussaka! We still have mince!” you squeaked, bobbing up and down in your seat.

“Kill the mood, why don’t you,” Roger laughed. “But yeah, moussaka could work.”

“I think this apocalypse thing might just turn out ok after all.”

#roger taylor #roger taylor x reader

65 notes · View notes

asfeedin · 4 years

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Mother’s Day Gift Guide | Serious Eats

Gift Types

Batch Cocktails: Make-Ahead Pitcher Drinks for Every Occasion

Serious Eats’ former drinks editor Maggie Hoffman has packed this book with 65 terrific make-ahead cocktail recipes. Entertaining guests while serving them libations should be stress-free, and this book makes it so.

Sorghum Syrup

Sorghum syrup is made from the pressed juice of sorghum grass, which grows prominently throughout the American South. This amber-colored syrup has a unique, nutty flavor that’s both sweet and savory. And since the 1960s, the Guenther family of Muddy Pond, Tennessee, has been making some of the best.

KitchenAid Pasta Attachment

This is hands down the KitchenAid attachment I use most often. It takes all of the frustration and fussiness out of making fresh pasta, and, unlike the manual alternatives out there, it’s incredibly easy and efficient to operate on your own. Hello, homemade ravioli!

Cacao Barry Extra Brute Cocoa Powder

It’s almost impossible to find good-quality Dutch cocoa in supermarkets, so make it easy for your favorite baker to whip up the best possible chocolate treats. This cocoa powder is unusually dark, with an earthy chocolate flavor for out-of-control brownies, devil’s food cake, and ice cream.

Pineapple Tumbler

Your mom might already be the ultimate entertainer, but this gift will make her parties even more fun. Sure, you can serve crushed-ice cocktails in a regular old glass, but these shiny pineapple-shaped tumblers really up the ante and make a tiki-themed evening feel special.

Sorghum’s Savor

Kentucky-based writer Ronni Lundy is an expert on the foods and foodways of the Mountain South. In her book Sorghum’s Savor, she explores the history and folklore, and the many uses, of the region’s staple sweetener. Recipes range from fried chicken to sorbet.

Durable 3-Quart Saucier

How do you make perfect caramels, ice cream, gravies, and reductions? A nifty pot called a saucier. The durable stainless steel is cladded with aluminum for even heating, essential for temperamental ingredients like caramel and egg custards. A curved bottom makes whisking a snap (no more lumpy gravy!), and the wide top encourages evaporation for fast sauce reductions. You can buy cheaper versions than this All-Clad saucier, but this is one piece of equipment in which quality really makes a difference.

Le Creuset Wooden Scraping Spoon

I have a problem with wooden spoons. I collect them like nobody’s business. But there are a few I always turn back to, and this one, from Le Creuset, is one of them. It’s gorgeous to look at; it has a flat front, which makes it great for scraping up fond or stirring vegetables; and it’s got a smooth, ergonomic grip that makes using it a joy.

OXO Pop Containers

Not all containers are built the same. OXO’s Pop Containers stack neatly in the cabinet, make it easy to see exactly what’s inside, and have a neat push-button top that forms a perfectly airtight seal, keeping your dry pantry goods fresher for longer.

Colorful Tea Towels

Heavy-duty kitchen towels have a tendency to accrue big, ugly stains. That’s why it’s nice to keep a separate set of more attractive towels for gentle drying, transporting too-hot-to-handle serving dishes, and lining bread baskets. These colorful, summery tea towels instantly brighten any kitchen or tabletop, while still doing a stand-up job at the tasks they were made for.

Terra Cotta Cazuela

Daniel’s owned these terra cotta dishes in several sizes for many years now. They’re attractive enough to go straight from the oven to the table, and versatile enough to be used as baking dishes for cooked foods or as serving dishes for snacks when you’re hosting guests.

Hawker Fare: Stories & Recipes from a Refugee Chef’s Isan Thai & Lao Roots

Hawker Fare is a wonderful introduction to some of the flavors that make Isan and Lao cuisines unique. The recipes are excellent, but what we find so compelling about the book is Syhabout’s story: a refugee who arrived with his family in the United States at the age of two, Syhabout went on to pursue a career in fine-dining. Only after establishing himself did he embark on a personal journey of discovery to find out more about the food of his forebears.

Bangkok: Recipes and Stories from the Heart of Thailand

Bangkok is a great gift for anyone who loves cooking Thai food at home and wants to expand their culinary repertoire. It’s a steal for the noodle soups alone, but we particularly enjoy Punyaratabandhu’s seafood recipes, like the pan-fried salted king mackerel steak.

Unicorn Magnum Pepper Mill

I’ll admit it: I’m a pepper mill snob. I need my mill to produce a shower of evenly crushed peppercorns. I want to be able to control the size of those grains, from a rough crush to a fine powder. Not only that, I want my pepper mill to last. With a solid metal burr and a unique easy-to-load design, this is my favorite pepper mill of all time.

The Noma Guide to Fermentation

The hottest new nerdy book of kitchen geekery has to be The Noma Guide to Fermentation by Rene Redzepi and David Zilber. If you know someone who’s mixed koji up with dried fish to make a kind of fish sauce, this is the book for them. Also a good gift for anyone who’s into drying meats or pickling—it details methods and processes that take those hobbies a step further.

Pretty Pinch Bowls

These colorful bowls make setting up your mise en place a little more fun, but they’re also great for bringing extra seasonings to the table, like fennel seeds and pepper flakes for pizza.

OXO Stainless Steel Scraper

A good bench scraper is one of those tools people don’t think they need until they start using it. I use it for everything from transferring chopped vegetables or herbs from one place to another, to portioning dough, to giving my cutting board a quick clean. Next to my chef’s knife, the bench scraper is the tool you’ll see in my hand most often.

Smuggler’s Cove

This remarkable book, from Martin and Rebecca Cate of San Francisco’s Smuggler’s Cove, traces the birth and evolution of exotic drinks and tiki bars—bars that embodied an American escapist fantasy. A lively exploration of our country’s drinking history (and the current tiki scene), it’s essential reading for rum lovers, offering the best categorization we’ve encountered of the head-spinningly diverse spirit. The mai tai recipe is great, too.

Digital Electric Gooseneck Kettle

This is the electric kettle of my coffee-delayed dreams. It has an elegant gooseneck spout that makes pouring a thin, controlled stream easy (very helpful for Chemex and other pourover coffee methods), and a base with controls that allow you to set a specific temperature and hold it there.

Citrus Press

For years, I thought citrus presses were overhyped, absurdly specific, rarely useful, space-consuming, money-wasting gadgets. But it took only one use to see just how wrong I’d been—not only does a citrus press guarantee that you’ll get way more juice out of every lemon and lime you squeeze, but you can say good-bye to stinging papercuts and all those infuriating attempts at pinching slippery stray seeds from your salad dressings and cocktails.

Zingerman’s Gift Certificate

It’s hard to find a better-curated food catalog than Zingerman’s. They are righteous folks, they know seriously delicious food when they come across it, and they sell it at a fair price. Nothing in the catalog is cheap, but then again, good food rarely is. So whether you order cheese or olive oil or bread from Zingerman’s, you can be confident you’re going to be very happy when it arrives at your house.

Dish Towel and Apron in One

Kitchen towels are always welcome in any cook’s kitchen, but these can also double up as a half-apron in a pinch. Plus, they’re of a nice enough quality to show Mom that she didn’t just raise a practical child; she also raised one with an eye for flair.

Cast Iron Skillet

Old cast iron has a perfectly smooth nonstick surface that’s surprisingly easy to maintain. You can sear, bake, roast, braise, stew, and deep-fry in it, and there’s nothing more thoughtful than a gift that you have to expend a bit of effort to find (check out eBay, yard sales, and flea markets). Of course, these modern Lodge pans will do in a pinch if vintage isn’t in the cards.

Tajine

I’ve been lusting after one of these hand-painted ceramic tajines since seeing one in a cookware store a couple years ago. They require some special care, and possibly a heat diffuser to prevent cracking from intense direct heat, but I think they’re worth it just to look at, even if you never cook in them. If you do, a future of flavorful North African stews, presented beautifully at the table, awaits. They also come in a variety of designs and colors, meaning there’s the perfect pick for any home.

Uuni 2S Pizza Oven

There are a lot of custom-designed pizza ovens out there in various price ranges. I haven’t tested all of them, but my favorite so far is the Uuni 2S. It consists of a small stainless steel box with a pizza stone set inside it. You load up a hopper on the rear of the unit with wood pellets, light it up with a torch or lighter fluid, and let it preheat. About 15 minutes later, you’re ready to cook. This little powerhouse hits temperatures in excess of 900°F and bakes up Neapolitan-sized pizzas in just 60 to 90 seconds.

Elizabeth David on Vegetables

Published on what would have been the late British author’s 100th birthday, Elizabeth David’s On Vegetables will teach you how a bag of grocery store onions can be transformed into an unforgettable roasted side dish, and how some fresh shelled peas can yield the most vibrant soup you’ve ever tasted. Filled with recipes that are simple, straightforward, yet often revelatory, this book also features a few of David’s best essays, as well as gorgeous photography.

Paring Knife

Paring knives don’t need to cost a lot to do their job—questions of balance and build quality matter less in a knife that fits almost entirely in the palm of your hand. Of all the ones I tested, this inexpensive blade from Wüsthof came out on top, with a razor-sharp edge and comfortable grip. This is my new go-to paring knife, and I already have several of them at work and home.

Chinese Tea Set With Gaiwan

Do you know someone who’s getting into tea? Like, really into tea? This is the tea set to get for that person. It comes with a traditional Chinese brewing vessel (a gaiwan), a decanter, four tasting cups, and a beautiful wood tea tray with a rack to store all the pieces. At $120, it’s not cheap, but it’s a bargain compared to other well-made tea sets, especially when you consider the high-quality, paper-thin porcelain. For tea lovers looking to dig into tea ceremonies, this set has everything you need.

Presto Tilt-N-Fold Griddle

Presto’s Tilt-n-Fold model is very simple to set up and operate, and it has a compact design that makes it easy to store in kitchen cabinets when not in use. It has a large, smooth, nonstick cooking surface that heats mostly evenly, can be set at an angle to drain grease, and is easy to clean. We love the price, too.

Awesome Chef’s Knife

High-quality Swedish steel and Japanese design, along with great features like a perfectly balanced handle and blade and an ergonomic bolster, make the Misono UX10 Santoku the most-used knife in my arsenal.

Black Matte Dinner Plates

Get these if you want to up your Instagram game! These are the plates we use the most in our photo shoots—the matte texture makes a great surface on which to make any food pop.

Redbreast 15-Year Irish Whiskey

For those who find Scotch too smoky, bourbon too sweet, and rye too spicy, Irish whiskey is the ideal gift. Redbreast emerges from the barrels complex and substantial; some of the whiskey is aged in sherry casks, lending it a weight and dark hue, while some is aged in bourbon casks, imparting characteristic vanilla flavors. There’s a hint of fruit up front and spice on the finish.

Mandoline Slicer

Does your mom love to make fancy salads, crowned with delicate ribbons of carrots? Is she obsessed with serving the perfect potato gratin at holidays meals? There are some kitchen tools that make the difference between amateur-looking food and pro-level stuff. A small mandoline is one of them. This one, from Oxo, is compact, easy to use, and very sharp. It only has three thickness settings, but in my experience, that more than covers most home slicing needs.

Otherland Candle

This handpoured soy-wax candle will look beautiful on your kitchen table— and the scent of Champagne, saffron, and leather, is just fragrant enough to offset any accidental burnt foods that no one needs to know about. Plus, the packaging, which comes with a customizable matchbox makes the candle an impressive (and affordable) gift.

Embossed Rolling Pin

For the baker who has it all, embossed rolling pins can make even the most traditional shortbread seem exciting again. I love this large, open paisley pattern so much, I used it for the cookies on the cover of my book! Its design works well with many styles of dough, so it’s a great starting point before you experiment with pins that have a more intricate pattern.

Recipe Journal

Trying to get your mom to finally write down all those family recipes? This sleek Moleskin journal will get her organized and become a precious family heirloom in the process.

Salt Cellar

Proper seasoning is one of the most important parts of cooking, and if you’re still using plain table salt from (heaven forbid!) a saltshaker, you’re shooting yourself in the food. Using kosher salt from a salt cellar lets you feel exactly how much salt is getting into your food, whether it’s a tiny pinch or a big ol’ wallop.

Liquid Intelligence

Dave Arnold (you might know of his bar, Booker and Dax in NYC) won’t just accept the common assumptions about cocktail technique—his mission in this excellent book is to dig into the science of how the very best drinks are made. This is a must-read for inquisitive types who like to host cocktail hour at home.

Round Griddle

My mom’s signature dish is her homemade lefse, a Norwegian potato flatbread, rolled gauze-thin and cooked on a round griddle at a blazing hot heat. Her old one has finally crapped out after many years of service, and I want to treat her to the best model on the market. If you’re not into the Scandi thing, you can use this griddle to make crepes, injera, or regular old pancakes.

Electric Countertop Pressure Cooker

A pressure cooker is a cooking vessel that just keeps on giving: Once you discover the time-saving feats it’s capable of, you’ll never look back. The good ones aren’t cheap, but man, is it ever worth having one. A countertop electric model gives you set-it-and-forget-it convenience. With the Breville Fast Slow Pro Cooker, not only do you have complete control over your pressure cooking (including any pressure level from 1.5 to 12 psi), you also have a slow cooker and a rice cooker built right in. It’ll even sear meat for stews.

The Apprentice

Insightful (and very well-written) memoir by the elder statesman of food and cooking in the United States. From his early memories of picking salad for his mother to his recollection of eating raw clams on a Connecticut pier, the book shows how food is not just a passion or a career; food, for Jacques Pépin, is life.

Rose and Orange Flower Water

Forget flowers, they’ll be dead by the end of the week, but these flower waters will last a lifetime. Mostly. Both rose and orange flower water will last just about forever on the shelf, and just a drop or two is all that’s needed to give any recipe an aromatic boost. Try a splash of rose water with a strawberry or rhubarb dessert, or orange flower water in a classic New York cheesecake, where their gentle perfume can work wonders.

Louie Mueller’s Beef and Jalapeño Sausages

When I had these Texas beef sausages delivered to Serious Eats World Headquarters, people were skeptical. The moment they took their first bite of these supremely juicy links, though, the office became totally silent. Louie Mueller’s beef and jalapeño sausages reduced the entire office to stunned, rapturous silence. And these suckers are so affordable, even with the shipping, that they’re perfect for serving at parties. You just might want to hand out bibs to protect everyone’s shirts. Phone orders only: 512-352-6206.

Meat Cleaver

This meat cleaver has a well-balanced weight, sharp edge, and solid construction—a boon since a lot of more-affordable cleavers like this one feel very cheap and after repeat use get wobbly around the handle.

Marble and Acacia Wood Cake Stand

Like a pretty Bundt pan, a beautiful cake stand has an aesthetic value of its own, even without a cake—but present it with Mom’s favorite cake on top, and it will also be a nice reminder of the day.

Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling

In this book, Meathead Goldwyn, the founder of AmazingRibs.com, distills decades of research on the art and science of barbecue and grilling into a single volume that shows not just the best ways to take food to live fire, but why the techniques work. Far more than a recipe book alone (though there are tons of bulletproof recipes), this text will teach your favorite barbecue lover the hard-tested fundamentals of outdoor cooking, giving them the confidence to cook anything, even without a recipe. The myth-busting and equipment tips alone were enough to get me hooked.

Lewis Bag

If you’re following my advice to buy your Mom some julep cups, you might as well go all the way and grab a canvas Lewis bag as well: It’s used to smash ice into a fine powder with a mallet. Unless, of course, she already owns an ice crusher.

Preserving the Japanese Way

If her first two books are any indication, Nancy Singleton Hachisu is poised to become the Julia Child of traditional Japanese home cooking. In this, her second book, she tackles the deeply fascinating—and even more delicious—world of Japanese preserving. From easy pickles made by packing foods in miso (kabocha squash! eggs! apple pears!) to homemade miso, salt-rubbed vegetables, and air-dried fish, this should be the next frontier in all your home preservation undertakings. I’m getting excited just thinking about it.

Fixed-Cup Spice Grinder

The sleek and minimalist design of the Krups means it’s easy to hold, handle, and store—perfect for anyone tight on space. Even without a removable bowl, cleanup is a cinch because spices never get trapped beneath the blade, and there are no unnecessary ridges or notches to clog with spices. The one-touch operation makes it easy to use, and it quickly yields a fine and consistent grind in both large, tough spices and smaller seeds.

Taketsuru Pure Malt Japanese Whisky

Anyone who appreciates Scotch (or good spirits in general) will embrace Nikka’s exquisite whiskies. The Taketsuru Pure Malt is named for the company’s founder, who studied in Scotland before bringing whisky distilling back to Japan. This bottling has a slight fruity character, with lingering sherry on the finish.

ThermoWorks Thermapen

The Cadillac of kitchen thermometers is indispensable when you’re roasting meat, cooking steaks, making candy, deep-frying, or carrying out any other task where precise temperature control is needed. It’s got a big display and a blazing-fast measuring time of under two seconds—you won’t find a better, easier-to-use thermometer out there.

Simple Coffee Maker

The Bonavita is one of the faster models we tested, and it earned high scores in nearly all of our tastings. A single switch governs all of its operations, making the brewing process incredibly simple.

Fancy Cheese Knives

Spending $50 on cheese knives feels a little silly, especially when a regular knife does the trick just fine. But that’s why they’re the perfect gift—arguably unnecessary, but nonetheless useful, they feel like a real luxury. I’m pretty sure they also raise your “real adult” status by at least 10 points. Especially when they’re these beautifully crafted Dubost Laguiole knives. I like the simplicity of the olivewood handles, but they do come in other colors and styles, with the same high-quality blades.

Be Your Own Bartender

This is a fun, interactive book featuring over a dozen flowcharts to guide you to the perfect drink for every mood and occasion.

BraveTart: Iconic American Desserts

Where pastry wizard Stella Parks goes deep on science for Serious Eats, her book BraveTart explores the secret history of iconic American desserts, along with updated recipes for all the classics you know and love. The perfect cookbook for any mom with a sweet tooth.

Wooden Pizza Peel for Launching Pizzas

Wooden peels absorb excess moisture and have a rougher surface than metal, which means that your stretched and topped pizza dough will remain loose and easy to launch far longer, saving you from potential pizza-spilled-all-over-the-oven accidents. Though there are cheaper options around, I love my Perfect Peel Baker’s Board, handcrafted to last a lifetime from gorgeous solid cherrywood. They’ll even put initials or a logo on it if you’d like!

Breville Espresso Machine

If you want to start making legit espresso at home, this machine from Breville is a great investment. We like that it has a built-in burr grinder that will stay set at whatever dosage you’ve decided is best for your shot, as well as an adjustable pre-infusion time. Getting the hang of it—and dialing in—takes a while, but ultimately, the results are impressive.

ThermoWorks ThermoPop

In the inexpensive-thermometer department, the ThermoPop comes in an impressive package. An easy-to-read display rotates at the touch of a button, so you don’t have to twist your head to read it. It takes a few seconds longer to read temperatures than its big brother, the Thermapen, but it’s every bit as accurate.

Korean Fermenter Crock

These fermentation crocks come in a variety of shapes and sizes, but they all have the same smart design: An inner lid can be pressed down against the surface of the brine, ensuring the vegetables remain submerged (and thus don’t rot), while the lids lock into place to keep bugs out.

Carbon Steel Omelette Pan

A good carbon steel has many of the qualities that make cast iron great—it’s durable, it forms a completely nonstick surface if cared for properly, and it’s inexpensive—but it’s lighter and easier to maneuver, making it great for sautéing and searing everyday foods.

GelPro Floor Mat

If you love to cook and host parties, you’ll know that a lot of prep time is spent on your feet. Why not make at least the cooking part a bit more comfortable with one of these gel mats? It’ll provide some nice cushion under your feet, so when it’s time to put on your party shoes, you’ll be ready.

Snowe Flatware

Functional, but with an elegant twist: The width of the forks and spoons is just slightly smaller than that of your standard set, and they feel slightly longer in the hand. This set is a good and long-lasting upgrade to those starter Ikea sets.

Anova Precision Cooker

Sous vide cooking—cooking foods in vacuum-sealed pouches in precisely controlled water baths—is no longer the exclusive preserve of fancy restaurant kitchens. The Anova Precision Cooker is the best home water bath controller on the market, with an easy-to-use interface, Bluetooth support, rock-solid construction, a sleek look, and an affordable price tag to boot.

Recchiuti’s Chocolate Mendiants

These thin chocolate disks have a creamy, melt-in-your-mouth texture and a complex, pleasantly fruity bitterness. But it’s the scattered cacao nibs on top that take them from memorable to exceptional. The crunchy bits of bean are toasty and flavorful in their own right, but Recchiuti goes the extra mile, tossing them in caramel and fleur de sel for a brightly salty-sweet finish that electrifies each bite.

All-Clad Two-Quart Saucepan

This small 2-quart saucepan is perfect for making and warming sauces, cooking small portions of grain, and heating liquids.

Brooklyn Bartender

If you know someone who has a taste for a well-made cocktail, but lives far from the heart of the Brooklyn drinking scene, this book is the perfect gift. It features 300 innovative and classic drink recipes from the best bars of the borough; every cocktail we’ve tried from it so far has been killer. The drinks Carey Jones has selected aren’t dumbed down at all, but, for the most part, you’re not looking at mile-long ingredient lists, either.

Charcuterie

Ruhlman and Polcyn do a great job of demystifying one of the more abstruse cooking arts, and, while charcuterie may seem daunting, it can be gratifyingly easy. Start simple, with the pancetta, confit, rillettes, and duck prosciutto, and you’ll find yourself with a mold-inoculated curing chamber in no time.

Bourbon-Soaked Cherries

An ideal gift for any Manhattan, cherry, or all-around whiskey lover. These cherries trade the cloying sweetness of maraschinos for the boozy bass notes of great whiskey. Use them in your go-to whiskey cocktail, or to top a favorite dessert.

An Everlasting Meal

We don’t know if there’s a book about cooking that we’ve thought about more than this one by Tamar Adler, a former Chez Panisse cook who was once an editor at Harper’s Magazine. It’s about cooking simply, and enjoying the simple meals that naturally follow from thinking about your ingredients in cycles. We forget, sometimes, that the leftover stems from blanched broccoli are wonderful cooked with olive oil and piled on toast; that their cooking liquid could be the base of a soup; that the stems of greens like Swiss chard and kale make a lovely pesto. She reminds us that stale bread can make something delicious and that yesterday’s bean broth could be the start of a pasta dish today. This book sends the valuable message that dinner doesn’t always need to be a big deal.

Paleta Iberico de Bellota

The best ham on earth doesn’t come cheap, but this is the caviar of pork: jamón ibérico puro de bellota, from purebred Ibérico pigs raised on acorns for a ham that’s nutty and sweet, with meltingly soft fat.

Dansk Kobenstyle 2-Quart Casserole

A few months back, Kristina’s mom stopped dead in her tracks when she spotted a pair of Dansk Kobenstyle pots in the window of a cookware store in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. “Can you imagine doing a fondue party out of one of those?” she squealed. If there’s one thing Kristina’s mom loves, it’s a themed party, especially one with cheese involved. And Kristina has to agree that these little guys are perfect for all your entertaining needs—they look great on a table, and the lid doubles as a trivet to protect surfaces while you’re serving.

Metal Pizza Peel for Retrieving Pizzas

Wooden pizza peels are too thick to easily slide under a pie once it’s hit the oven. For that, you’ll want a thin-bladed metal peel. Basic models made of thin-gauge aluminum, like this Kitchen Supply peel, are just fine for the occasional baker, but they’ll bend and warp eventually. If you’re going to be making pizza multiple times a year for many years to come, you might want to spring for something a little more heavy-duty. I use the KettlePizza Pro Peel, which has a thick-gauge aluminum body that extends fully past the solid teakwood handle.

Pistachio Spread

Since first getting his hands on a jar of this pistachio spread, Sasha hasn’t shut up about it. Made from Sicilian pistachios, olive oil, sugar, and sea salt, it’s sweet, slightly salty, incredibly creamy, and just flat-out delicious. While it’s not cheap, this is one of those specialty products that are actually worth the price tag, and it makes a great gift. Spread it on bread, drizzle it over ice cream, or just eat it by the spoonful straight from the jar.

Smeg Toaster

After years of putting up with a cheap toaster that I picked up at the supermarket, I recently upgraded to this super fancy Italian job in cool mint. It’s sleek design and soothing pastel color transform the kitchen’s most boring appliance into a statement piece, and it really does a good job with the toast itself. Plus, I mean, it’s really dang pretty. If nothing else, you owe it to yourself to read this toaster’s priceless reviews.

Frankies 457 Olive Oil

Fancy olive oil always makes a good gift, but there’s a difference between fancy olive oil and good fancy olive oil. The house oil from Frankies 457 Sputino in Brooklyn is delicious (i.e. great on fresh bread and in dishes), is DOC cerified, and comes in a chic tin that prevents the light from spoiling the product.

Vietnamese Food Any Day

An eloquent ambassador for Vietnamese cuisine whose recipes are always reliable, Andrea Nguyen is one of our favorite cookbook authors. Vietnamese Food Any Day educates the reader about a variety of Vietnamese techniques and provides recipes that are eminently cookable—part of Nguyen’s goal with this book was to avoid calling for any esoteric or hard-to-find ingredients, so each and every recipe can be made with items that are easily found at a large grocery store.

Pretty Carving Board

What’s the point of perfectly roasting that turkey or prime rib if you don’t have a pretty surface to carve it on? I love this teak cutting board because it’s large enough for major projects, but lighter than thicker boards, making it easy to move from the kitchen to the dining room. It’s made from scraps of larger teak products, making this cutting board a good environmental choice as well.

Marble Pastry Slab

With their smooth surface and cool temperature, marble pastry slabs are a baker’s best friend. They’re great for rolling out pie crusts, laminating doughs, and tempering chocolate—plus, this one’s pretty enough (albeit heavy) to use as a serving platter.

Mortar and Pestle

A large mortar and pestle is one of the most underutilized kitchen tools. Not only is it faster than a spice grinder for small amounts of dry spices (particularly when it comes to cleaning), it draws out more flavor by crushing rather than shearing. It’s also the perfect tool for making pastes out of moist ingredients, like herbs, garlic, and shallots.

Stovetop Pressure Cooker

I tested dozens of stovetop pressure cookers before settling on Kuhn Rikon’s Duromatic. It has a heavy sandwiched-aluminum-and-steel base that gives you even heat, and a pressure gauge that makes telling exactly how much pressure has built up inside visual and intuitive.

Collapsible Freezer Lunch Bags

I don’t really consider myself a lunch-bag person, but when I have something cold to transport, there’s only one carrying case I reach for. These PackIt cooler bags come in a variety of sizes and styles, and all of them can be collapsed and chilled in the freezer overnight to provide refrigerator-level temperatures for a 12-hour period. I use mine most for bringing beers to the park or beach, or transporting raw meat to barbecues and campsites.

Ceramic Utensil Crock

To store tools like spatulas and whisks, a good old-fashioned crock will do the trick. We like this ceramic one, which looks extra pretty on the counter. Keep it right next to your stove so your most-used tools will be at an arm’s length whenever you need them.

Now & Again: Go-To Recipes, Inspired Menus + Endless Ideas for Reinventing Leftovers

This cookbook by Julia Turshen, author of Small Victories and Feed the Resistance, is full of simple, delicious meals for everyday eating, parties, and holidays. Better yet, each one includes a bunch of suggestions for how to remake it as leftovers. It’s a trove of great, creative ideas, and a must for any bookworm.

Wine Tote

This customizable (and monogrammable!) tote plus a bottle of Sancerre will make any wine drinker’s day.

Donabe Cookbook

This cookbook has been my guide to learning how to use my donabe cooker, and thus far it hasn’t let me down. It offers a wide range of recipes to help give you an idea of just how many one-pot dishes can be made using a donabe, plus background on the history and variety of donabe cookers.

Miracle-Gro Twelve Indoor Growing System

After previously lauding Aerogardens for how easy they make it to grow herbs at home (and how having a constant supply of fresh herbs has changed her cooking), Ariel’s upgraded to this larger system from Miracle-Gro. The increased size—it’s about as big as a side table—and bright lights allow you to grow a bounty of lettuces, herbs, and other greens, and you can program the app to turn the lights off and on according to your schedule. An expensive but excellent gift for anyone who loves fresh produce and fears their own black thumbs.

Granite Mortar and Pestle

With both parts made of rock-solid granite, the Thai mortar and pestle is (literally) a heavy hitter, and arguably the most versatile type of large mortar and pestle you can own. Its heft and weight, especially when combined with the stone-on-stone action that the all-granite build provides, make it ideal for one of its intended uses: making a Thai curry paste.

Baratza Virtuoso Coffee Grinder

Baratza’s Virtuoso coffee grinder is routinely picked by pros as the home grinder to beat and for good reason: Its well-made conical burrs produce a wide range of grind sizes, the results are consistent, the machine is solidly built from both metal and plastic, and it’s all backed up by good customer service.

Le Creuset Stoneware Rectangular Dish

When fall and winter roll around, I start thinking about rich, comforting casseroles, which means that these stoneware baking dishes get pulled out, filled, and popped into the oven at least once a week. They’re great-looking on the table and provide gentle, even cooking all around for really nice, crisp edges on your lasagna.

Acaia Pearl Coffee Scale

Coffee geeks will have a lot of fun with this coffee scale. It pairs with a smartphone through Bluetooth, and an accompanying app helps walk you through the brewing processes, like pourover and French press, calculating bean-to-water ratios and brew times. It can handle customization, so with each successive batch, you can really dial in on the variables to make the cup that tastes best to you. It can also be used as a basic kitchen scale with a maximum weight of two kilograms (about four and a half pounds), so it’s versatile beyond its primary purpose.

Messermeister Knife Case

Most professional cooks own a knife bag so they can tote their knives around from one job to another. But knife bags can be really useful storage options, as well. They’re compact, they can hold many knives, and they can be moved around as needed, which means you don’t necessarily need to have a dedicated knife drawer as long as you can find somewhere safe to stash your knives.

World’s Fair Barbecue Rub

Ariel discovered this spice mix 11 years ago, and it’s still one of her favorite things to give as a gift. It’s a perfect blend of everyday ingredients (shallots, garlic, paprika, and sea salt), but with unusual flavor notes from grains of paradise. She buys it by the pound to dump on meat, seafood, and even eggs, but you can start by picking it up a reasonably sized jar or bag.

The One-Bottle Cocktail

Organized by spirit—vodka, gin, agave, rum, brandy, and whiskey—with an additional section devoted to specific seasons and occasions, The One-Bottle Cocktail makes it easy to figure out how to polish off that lingering liter of rum and is guaranteed to expand your cocktail repertoire for your go-to bottle. It does so by forging surprising, nuanced, eminently sippable flavors from commonplace liquors and fresh fruits, herbs, and other seasonal ingredients, as well as vinegars, spices, and sodas. This is the kind of book that every home cocktail-maker should keep on their shelf.

Big Ice Cube Tray

If you like your whiskey with a giant ice cube, then you’ll really be into Mammoth Cubes—unlike ice cube trays from current competitor brands, these make eight cubes (not six) and are actually stackable, so they don’t require a section unto themselves in your freezer.

Joe Beef: Surviving the Apocalypse

This is a book for people who like to live extra large, and by that we mean people who are intrigued enough by the microwaved foie gras recipe to consider trying it some day. It’s a text that espouses an eating- and cooking-philosophy as much as it is a collection of recipes.

Small Baking Steel Griddle

These days, I keep this solid slab of steel permanently atop one of the burners of my stove. One side has a pebbled surface—ideal for getting extra-crisp, better-than-a-baking-stone crust on homemade pizzas. And, unlike a baking stone, this thing is going to last forever. The griddle arrives as shiny steel, but with just a few uses, it seasons up into a dark, slick nonstick surface that can be used for everything from pancakes to eggs to hamburgers to grilled cheese.

Joule Sous Vide Circulator

The ChefSteps Joule is the smallest circulator on the market. It’s sleek, compact design fits in a drawer and it heats quickly and accurately. It has the advantage of the ChefSteps community and legacy content built into its app, though its one downside is that it requires a smartphone or tablet along with a registered account to operate.

Buvette

Manhattan chef Jody Williams’s Buvette: The Pleasure of Good Food is as charming and inviting as the restaurant that inspired it. This is a book to get greasy and damp as you cook through its pages, and it’s a nightstand read, dreamy and warm, to flip through as you wind down. Channeling a traditional French bistro, with a bit of Italy and a touch of New York thrown in, the recipes are classics, both inspirational and totally doable. Some are so simple that they hardly count as recipes at all—they’re more like suggestions for how to better your day with a plate of food, from breakfast through dessert after a lingering, late-night supper. Perfect for your impossibly, effortlessly stylish friend.

Culinary Coloring Book

I’ve long been a fan of Jessie Kanelos Weiner’s vivid and imaginative watercolors—she’s done the art for several of our stories. But when Weiner released Edible Paradise: An Adult Coloring Book of Seasonal Fruits and Vegetables, I discovered a new affinity for her work. See, like many children, I grew up with coloring books. But, unlike most adults, I continue to buy them—and fill them—to this day. For that I can thank my mother, a licensed art therapist who has long promoted the pastime as a therapeutic outlet. Far from pushing a think-inside-the-box mentality, coloring provides a healthy space for self-expression and experimentation. And, for those who enjoy it, coloring can leave you with a profound sense of zen-like relaxation and accomplishment. Weiner’s fanciful landscapes are organized by season; they’re a riot of vegetation, edible plant life, and tantalizing market scenes. They’ll encourage your mom to paint (or pencil) the town red—in any colors she likes.

Anchovy Colatura

If you want to give the gift of umami, you owe it to your intended recipient to check out this aged Italian fish sauce. Hailing from the town of Cetara on the Amalfi Coast, colatura is made by aging anchovies and sea salt in chestnut barrels for roughly three years, producing a rich, deeply savory fish sauce that can be used as a flavor enhancer for meats, fish, or vegetables. Or, try it as the star of the show in spaghetti con la colatura.

Noodle Basket

If you make a fair amount of noodle soups at home, particularly for multiple people, you should pick up a couple of these baskets. (They’re also great for blanching small quantities of vegetables.) The baskets are cheap yet sturdy, and they’re smaller than a lot of the fancier ones out there, so they’ll fit in pots that are more home kitchen–sized.

Misono UX10 Chef’s Knife

A deft and nimble blade, Misono’s UX10 is one of the lightest-weight knives we tested. It’s razor-sharp right out of the box and handled every task we threw at it with ease, dicing an onion as if it were as soft as a blob of Jell-O and making paper-thin slices of smoked salmon as if the knife were a true slicer.

R. Murphy Duxbury Oyster Knife

I’ve used many, many oyster knives in my life, and the R. Murphy Duxbury knife is my hands-down favorite. It has a fat, grippy handle that’s easy to wield, and a short blade that tapers to a point and always manages to find the sweet spot on an oyster’s hinge. Pop! The slightly sharpened blade edges make slicing through the muscle and removing the top shell as smooth as butter.

Mercer Serving Bowl

With a neutral color and simple silhouette, this serving bowl is versatile enough to complement any table setting. It’s also big enough to accommodate a big salad or crowd-sized portion of stew.

Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking

I’ve never been to Zahav, the Philadelphia restaurant where Michael Solomonov serves his Israeli cuisine, but its namesake book has nevertheless changed the way I cook. His recipe for tahini sauce, which includes a novel technique for incorporating garlic and lemon, is alone worth the price of admission. I’ve loved the Yemenite beef soup (and the accompanying hot sauce), his wide focus on vegetarian-friendly dishes, and a host of homemade condiments that will elevate almost any meal, even if you don’t follow full recipes from the book.

Diaspora Co. Turmeric

This turmeric is as bright as a bar of gold, with a lovely, sleek label to match. Apart from the high-quality turmeric and nice packaging, the spice comes with a feel-good story: Diaspora Co. is run by queer women of color, and each jar purchased puts a much-higher-than-average amount of money back into the turmeric farmer’s hands.

Provisions: The Roots of Caribbean Cooking

Hoping to familiarize yourself with Jamaican food beyond jerk chicken and curried goat? Want to learn more about the evolution of Caribbean cuisine? Provisions: The Roots of Caribbean Cooking is the book for you. Suzanne and Michelle Rousseau share 150 bright and exciting vegetarian recipes inspired by the women who first taught the two sisters to cook. The recipes are accompanied by gorgeous photos, and a thorough history of Caribbean foodways. It’s an inspiring—and delicious—ode to the women who make Caribbean food great.

Fancy Glass Pitcher

I actually received this classic Waterford pitcher as a wedding gift, and my mom’s been eyeing it enviously ever since. I can’t say I blame her—it’s become a workhorse in my home. When I’m not using it to decant wine, it’s hard at work serving cocktails, ice water, and juices. And in between any special occasion, you can drop in some fresh flowers and use it as a vase.

D’Artagnan Porcelet Shoulder

It can be hard to find skin-on, bone-in pork shoulders for roasting, but luckily D’Artagnan has got us all covered with their fantastic porcelet shoulder. We think everyone should ditch the tired holiday spiral ham this year, and slow-roast a milk-fed piglet shoulder instead. We promise it won’t disappoint.

Season: Big Flavors, Beautiful Food

Beautiful photos accompany Nik Sharma’s impressive recipes. The best of the bunch embody the kind of inventive cuisine that draws from multiple cultures to produce dishes that can only be described as emphatically, joyously American, like the roasted carrots with sesame, caraway, chili, and nori. Great for cooks looking for inspiration yet still hopelessly devoted to classic, comforting dishes.

Staub Heritage Baking Dish

It can be easy to brush off appearances as unimportant, but tableside presentation is a big part of a baking dish’s appeal. If you want excellent performance combined with a handsome and classic design that will look great on your holiday table (or on your Instagram account), Staub is your best bet. This heavyweight dish heats evenly in the oven at temperatures up to 575°F (300°C) and has great heat retention, keeping food hotter longer when you’re serving. The generous four-quart capacity is ideal for large roasts and extra-deep casseroles.

Pedra Artisan Oval Platter

A large platter is a must-have for any household, especially during the holiday season. This oval platter has high enough sides to accommodate saucier dishes, while the gray-and-white hand-glazed finish gives it a one-of-a-kind feel.

Chocolate-Hazelnut Spread

Marco Colzani is a great Italian bean-to-bar chocolate maker, with a number of excellent products under his brand, Amaro. But it’s his spreads that have Ed addicted, particularly the Cacao Nocciole, or hazelnut-and-chocolate variety. Imagine a Nutella-like substance, but made with the freshest roasted hazelnuts and extra-chocolaty high-quality cocoa powder. It’s a lot to pay for a small jar, but my guess is that your mom is worth it, and more.

Wusthof Classic Chef’s Knife

If you’re dead set on a traditional German knife profile—characterized by a more curved blade that’s bigger and heavier than the Japanese options—the Wüsthof Classic continues to be a stalwart. It weighs more than most of the other knives tested, giving it a solid and sturdy feel, but it still handles well and has a sharp edge.

Wine Fridge

Take it from us: Living in hot urban apartments makes storing age-worthy wines nearly impossible, unless you don’t mind risking the life of a pricey Burgundy by putting it through years of extreme temperature swings. Anyone with an interest in building even a modest collection of special-occasion bottles should get a wine fridge. It’s a small investment that protects your real investment.

The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African American Culinary History in the Old South

A wonderful gift for anyone who is interested in history, food, the history of food, and this terribly flawed but nonetheless beautiful thing we call America.

Plenty More

Plenty More highlights the versatility of vegetables with 120 inventive plant-based recipes. It takes a degree of commitment to cook through this book—many, though not all, of Ottolenghi’s recipes require extra time spent sourcing unusual ingredients or toiling in the kitchen—but the reward is food that is enigmatic and downright dazzling. The ideal gift for anyone who thinks vegetables are boring, and for those who know they’re not.

Chetna’s Healthy Indian

Chetna’s Healthy Indian is a bright, colorful ode to Indian home cooking. Written by Chetna Makan, an avid home cook and semifinalist on The Great British Baking Show, it offers an array of quick, wonderfully flavorful recipes. From a simple green bean, coconut, and tamarind salad to fish wrapped in floral banana leaf, this cookbook has something for everyone.

Jerusalem

One of the best cookbook gateways into Middle Eastern cuisine—an obsessive and personalized exploration of the many cultures and traditions that make up Jerusalem’s culinary world. What will you find here? A recipe for the best hummus of your life, for starters; messy-beautiful dips and salads; and the delicately spiced soups, grains, and vegetables Yotam Ottolenghi has become famous for.

Julep Cups

I don’t often recommend single-function items, but for the cocktail enthusiast, a couple of julep cups really are fun to have. There’s nothing like holding that metal cup frosted with ice on a blisteringly hot summer day—glass just doesn’t pull the effect off in the same way. If your Mom doesn’t have an ice crusher, check out my Lewis bag suggestion as well.

Serving bowl

There’s no such thing as too many serving bowls, and this simple two-tone piece goes with virtually everything. At 11.5 inches across, it’s the perfect size for mom’s favorite side dishes; in my house, it’s go-to for salads, roasted vegetables, mashed potatoes, and pasta.

Nordic Ware Platinum Collection Heritage Bundt Pan

A Bundt pan is essentially a functional sculpture that can spruce up an open kitchen shelf quite nicely, even if it never gets any use. Give one to the baker (or bakeware admirer) in your life, and, as long as you promise shared cake, I’m sure you’ll be allowed to borrow it any time.

Fish Scaler

A hefty weight and a narrow head design make this an extremely efficient fish scaler. I’ve used it on smallish porgies, bigger black sea bass and fluke, and just about everything in between. It’s a significant improvement over the clamshell I used to use, and something about its design reduces the spray of scales.

Donabe Cooker

I got one of these traditional Japanese clay pots for my birthday this year, and it’s quickly become an obsession. Not only can you cook perfect plain rice in it every time, it doubles as a vessel for flavorful one-pot stews and hot pots, and an infinite variety of noodle and rice dishes. Anyone interested in Japanese home cooking should have one.

All-Clad Immersion Blender

A high-speed hand blender is great for whipping up silky soups and purées, making emulsions like mayonnaise and Hollandaise, or smoothing out sauces, all right in the pot. No need to dirty up an extra blender jar!

Vacuum Sealer

Know someone who’s interested in sous vide cooking? They’re gonna want this. And it’s handy for way more than just sous vide cooking. A vacuum sealer makes it really easy to save meats or other foods in the freezer, and it keeps air (read: freezer burn) off it all. The Oliso sealer uses a unique resealable-bag system, which means far less wasted plastic than a conventional cut-and-seal vacuum sealer.

An Amazing Bottle of Rum

Drinking Diplomático Reserva Exclusiva Rum—with its dark caramel and vanilla on first whiff, and its rich and velvety-smooth feel as you sip—is like drinking a crème brûlée, but with a long, dry finish. Add an ice cube if you must, but it’s really worth it to give it a try without first.

All About Braising

Winter is all about slow-cooked braised dishes, and Molly Stevens’s text is the bible on the subject. Stevens first devotes dozens of pages to discussing the equipment and technique behind braising in incredible detail. Then she provides unfussy but impressive-sounding recipes to make the most of your newfound braising skills. A little hint: The vegetable recipes are some of the best.

Flavor King Pluot Jam

There are a lot of artisanal jams out there, some good and some grossly overpriced. Though I’ve tasted hundreds of them, I still haven’t had any as good as those made by Oakland’s June Taylor, who has been making what she calls “conserves” out of superb Northern California produce for more than 25 years now. The Dapple Dandy pluot conserve tastes like you’re taking a bite out of the juiciest pluot in the world, with just enough acidity to offset the sweetness.

Baratza Encore Coffee Grinder

There’s a lot to be said for Baratza’s entry-level Encore grinder, which comes in a lighter-weight, all-plastic housing. It packs the same motor as the more expensive Virtuoso, and it includes a slightly less effective burr set that grinds nearly as well as—and slightly more slowly than—the Virtuoso. Also worth knowing is you can upgrade the burr set in the Encore to the one made for the Virtuoso, if you do ever end up feeling like the Encore isn’t quite cutting it.

The Dumpling Galaxy Cookbook

While you certainly can make dumplings on your own, it’s always better (and more fun) with company. Give your mom the gift of this amazing compendium of dumpling recipes, along with a promise to join her in the kitchen for a good old-fashioned dumpling party.

Espresso Cups

Pretty espresso cups make a nice hostess gift and stocking stuffer on their own for coffee fiends. But when they’re Le Creuset, they’re even better—mostly because everything from the French heritage brand is aesthetically pleasing and built to last. Oh, and these cups might be the most affordable Le Creuset pieces on the market. So, if you want in on the trend for a moderate price, they make a good starter item.

Ultra-Deep Cake Pans

Whether you’re baking cakes from scratch or from a mix, giving the batter more room to grow will minimize doming, for thicker, more level layers. Light, reflective metal also minimizes browning to keep the cake crust delicate and pale. Because the pans are nonreactive, they can also be used with poke cakes that involve acidic liquids, like lemon juice.

Louie Mueller’s Brisket

Brisket is Texas’s best-known contribution to barbecue culture, and, though you can now get slow-smoked brisket in just about every major American city, you still need to go to the source to get brisket so good it will make you cry. But if you can’t make it to Texas, ordering Louie Mueller’s brisket is the next best thing. The Muellers have been smoking brisket since 1949. The key here? They ship the whole brisket, which means you get plenty of the critically important fatty half. Why is it critically important? Because we all know that fat is flavor. Phone orders only: 512-352-6206.

Elegant (But Dishwasher-Safe) Wine Glasses

These wine glasses feel fancy enough for an elegant dinner party—and you can throw them in the dishwasher after, which is a pretty rare attribute. Their sturdy construction means you (or your giftee) can expect to hang on to these for several years.

MAC Professional Santoku Knife

This santoku from MAC’s professional line is an absolute pleasure to use, no matter the task. It’s lightweight, well balanced, sharp as can be, and comfortable to hold. It made perfect carrot cuts, broke down a chicken with ease, and filleted a whole fish as if it were a fish-shaped block of butter.

Good Kitchen Shears

A good pair of kitchen shears is one of those things that are hard to appreciate until you have them. Sure, there are all the obvious uses, like opening food packages with a snip and cutting up poultry, but that’s just the start. Take another look at those things. Yes, that’s right, they’re also a nutcracker. Aha, yup, and a bottle opener. Did you see the flathead screwdriver built into them? Handy, right? Oh, they can also be used to unscrew stubborn jar tops. They’re way more than just a pair of scissors. Plus, the two blades come fully apart, so you can wash them really well—no icky chicken juice hiding in the recesses. Isn’t avoiding salmonella poisoning a gift worth giving?

The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science

A New York Times best-seller! The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science, by J. Kenji López-Alt, is his column by the same name on this very website, blown up to 900-plus pages (and seven-plus pounds) of concentrated culinary science. Gorgeous color photos, detailed how-tos, and elaborate explainers cover ingredients, technique, gear, and the secrets of the universe underneath it all. May include puns.

Chef’s Press

If you love beautifully seared steaks, golden-brown grilled cheese sandwiches, and crispy-skinned fish and poultry, this is a great thing to have in your kitchen. Chef’s presses help you get even contact between ingredients and your skillet. They’re vented, so you won’t accidentally steam your food, and they’re stackable, so you can get a couple for weighing down heftier items.

Extra-Large Silicone Ice Cube Tray

Souper Cubes is the brainchild of two Serious Eaters, Michelle and Jake, who wanted to develop a better way to portion and freeze soups, stocks, and stews. The food-grade silicone mold features four one-cup cube molds, perfect for meal-prepping and stocking up on winter warmers for the long, cold months ahead.

Effie’s Oatcakes

They may not come in the most festive or glamorous packaging, but you can’t go wrong with Effie’s Oatcakes. Buttery, crumbly, nutty, and salty-sweet, they’re insanely addictive. Case in point: I’ve eaten three in the last 10 minutes. My advice? Purchase them in bulk so you can gift a few backages and hoard the rest for yourself.

Egg Cups

Any mom who loves soft-boiled eggs deserves the perfect cup to eat them from. These sturdy stoneware Le Creuset cups come in a range of beautiful colors. They’re totally classic, which is a good thing because they’ll also last for generations to come.

Modified Martini Glasses

Ah, martini glasses: so angular and sexy, so prone to making me look like a drunk as I struggle to keep a generously poured beverage within their confines. The traditional wide bowl, delicate stem, and sharply sloping sides are meant to enhance the botanical aromas of the gin, keep the drink frosty-cold, and provide a comfortable wall for a cocktail pick to lean against, respectively—but in practice, all those features feel like bugs for clumsy-fingered folk like me. So I sought out a design that wrapped up those attributes in a more user-friendly package, and discovered this lovely set of glasses. The broad mouth remains, but the conical shape has been softened and the stem fattened (which, if I’m being honest, will make me all the more inclined to actually use that stem instead of clutching the bowl for dear life). Got no space for uni-tasking glassware? These double nicely as pretty dessert dishes.

Portable Kitchen Timer

I can’t tell you how many times I burn bread crumbs or forget about the nuts I’m toasting in the oven. At least, I used to. That was all before I got myself a couple of these easy-to-use, loud kitchen timers that I can hang around my neck, so I never forget about something in the kitchen, even if I leave the room.

Vitamix Blender

Oh, man, do I love my Vitamix. Whether I’m making super-quick smoothies or the creamiest, smoothest purées and soups imaginable, the Vitamix is unparalleled in its power. Best gift I’ve ever received (thanks, dear!).

Tacos: Recipes and Provocations

My good friend Jordana Rothman cowrote this thoughtful ode to tacos with Chef Alex Stupak, and it’s a must-have for any Mom ready to take a deep dive into corn, masa, tortillas, and everything—modern and traditional—you can stuff into them.

Heilala Vanilla Extract

This is one of the more complex vanillas Stella’s come across. It has the same grassy, vegetal aroma of a freshly split vanilla bean with a flavor that’s both earthy and deep. It’s a double fold vanilla, which means you can get away with using half as much in your favorite recipes—something worth remembering when you consider the cost.

Stainless Steel Food Scale With Pull-Out Display

A good digital scale is an essential tool for bakers or home charcuterie makers. The OXO Food Scale comes with an easy-to-clean, removable stainless steel weighing surface; great accuracy and precision; and a backlit pull-out display to make measuring easy, even for large or unwieldy items.

Ice Cream Maker

Homemade ice cream tastes better than almost anything you can buy in a store, and it’s a snap to make. This ice cream maker, from Cuisinart, is all the gear you need: an easy-to-use workhorse that makes delicious ice cream every time. The simple construction means that there are few moving parts to break, and the wide mouth at the top makes it easy to add mix-ins and scoop out your ice cream when it’s at its fresh, creamy best.

6-Quart Instant Pot

The Instant Pot Duo60 is a fantastic value and performed almost as well as the top pick among countertop pressure cookers we tested. It’s easy to use, the company has a reputation for great customer service, and there’s an avid and helpful community of users online to boot.

Mixing Glass

This hand-blown and -etched mixing glass from Japan looks stunning on a bar cart and even better in action, whether you’re stirring a Negroni, a Martini, or a Manhattan. Mixing glasses made from two parts joined together sometimes split at the seam, but this version, made in one piece with a beaker-like spout, can stand up to heavy use.

Bread Knife

When I tested bread knives earlier this year, I was absolutely blown away by the cutting quality of Tojiro’s bread knife. It surpassed every other serrated knife I tested, cutting beautifully clean slices of even the most tender bread, and making quick, neat work of ripe tomatoes. It’s a must-have as far as I’m concerned.

Pasta by Hand: A Collection of Italy’s Regional Hand-Shaped Pasta

No pasta machine? No problem. This book is devoted to the art of handcrafted Italian dumplings, from yeasty spindle-shaped cecamariti to classic gnocchi to golden-brown parallelograms of deep-fried crescentine. If the adage “practice makes perfect” fills your mom with excitement rather than dread, this is the kind of book that will make her utterly determined to prevail.

Pastry Tips for Decorating

This epic set of stainless steel pastry tips is perfect for the home baker with professional-grade aspirations…or the food-enthused, arts-and-craftsy Mom in your life. With this kit in hand, nothing but practice stands between her and gorgeous piped flowers, leaves, stars, and beyond.

Mastering Pasta: The Art and Practice of Handmade Pasta, Gnocchi, and Risotto

If you’re looking to give your mom the one definitive primer on pasta-making in its myriad forms, this is it: Superlative step-by-step photographs take the guesswork out of potentially intimidating fundamentals like mixing and kneading dough, as well as more intricate tasks, like pleating teardrops of corn- and cheese-stuffed culurgiònes. Better yet, Vetri arms you with the tools and knowledge that allow for controlled, intelligent experimentation and exploration before sending you into the fray.

Blade Protectors

At a certain point, you need to give up on proper knife storage and just think safety: How can I toss this knife into a drawer and not cut myself on it later when fishing around for matches? The answer is blade guards. It’s smart to put them on knives in a knife bag, but they’re also essential if you’re keeping any knives in a place where they’re free to bang around—they’ll protect the blade edges and you.

AeroGarden Harvest

Cooking with fresh herbs makes every recipe better. Cooking with fresh herbs that you grew all by yourself makes life better. The AeroGarden takes the guesswork out of growing herbs inside, with an automated light to keep your parsley and thyme thriving and weekly reminders for water and nutrients. Just prepare yourself for epic amounts of basil.

Baking Steel

I’ve cracked my way through quite a few baking stones. With the Baking Steel—a solid sheet of steel designed to replace a baking stone—that’s a thing of the past. Not only will it last forever, but, with superior thermal properties, it produces the best pizza crusts I’ve ever seen in a home oven.

Pizza Wheel

When it comes to portioning pizza, a knife simply won’t cut it. At least, not if you don’t want to drag cheese and toppings all over the place. For my money, nothing beats a traditional pizza wheel.

Best All-Around Pepper Mill

On more than one occasion, I’ve been tempted to try out the cool new pepper mill on the block, but none of the ones I’ve used have held up over time. That’s why I’ve settled on a good old classic, a wooden Peugeot pepper mill. The steel burrs last and deliver whatever grind I want, from fine-as-silt to chunky and coarse.

Straight-Sided Sauté Pan

When my little sister first moved out and started cooking on her own, this straight-sided sauté pan from All-Clad was the first gift I sent to her. It has a wide, flat base for searing off big batches of meat, and high sides so you can braise, stew, or simmer several meals’ worth of food directly in it. It’s the ideal vessel for stove-to-oven dishes like this Braised Chicken With White Beans, or a one-pot pasta dish like our Macaroni and Beef. Versatile and robust, it makes comfort food all the more comforting.

The Chili Cookbook

This isn’t just a chili cookbook. Robb Walsh digs deep into the beloved dish’s ancestry, tracing threads through Mexico City, San Antonio, and Santa Fe—as you might expect—but also Hungary, Greece, and the Canary Islands (off the coast of North Africa). Walsh is one of food writing’s best storytellers, so the book is satisfying even if you never whip out your Dutch oven and get cooking. You should, though: The fascinating tale is best enjoyed with a big bowl of chile con carne. (Walsh’s recipe from El Real in Houston is killer.)

Espro Press P5

Thanks to a few simple innovations in the filter and beaker design, this French press fixes some of the brewing device’s biggest drawbacks. The result is a cleaner batch of coffee that won’t accidentally over-steep.

The One True Barbecue

Race relations, religion, the New South versus the Old: These are just a smattering of the heavy issues Rien Fertel writes about through the lens of—well—smoked meat, in this new book. And, while you might be thinking, “Oh, man, another book about barbecue?”, this one stands out from the crowd thanks to Fertel’s superb writing and storytelling skills. In a book that’s part culinary history, part personal narrative, and part tale of an American road trip, Fertel travels throughout the South, documenting the men who have long stood behind the fires practicing the time-consuming pursuit of whole hog barbecue—the ones who have been keeping alive the embers of what once seemed like a dying art, and the ones who are inspiring a new generation of pitmasters today.

Countertop Seltzer Maker

Make your own seltzer water at home with this easy-to-use unit. It comes equipped with LED indicators displaying three levels of carbonation and a BPA-free bottle that locks into the unit with no twisting, and it requires no batteries or electricity to operate. This model fits 14.5-ounce and three-ounce CO2 cylinders, which can be traded in for just the cost of the gas at your local hardware or home-goods store.

Estela

We usually aren’t the biggest fans of the big and beautiful cookbooks put out by super fancy restaurants, in part because they have limited appeal to most home cooks, even if they are fascinating windows into the processes and methods of some of the best chefs in the world. We’ll make an exception for Estela by Ignacio Mattos, though, since it’s as inspiring as it is informative.

Ceramic Sangria Pitcher

If there is sangria on the menu, Kristina’s mom is ordering it. It’s an endeavor she’s tackled at home only a few times, but with this pitcher on hand, she might be more inclined to make it regularly. The pinched spout is a genius detail that keeps all the fruit and ice from splashing into your glass, and when it’s not filled with sangria, it can be used as a vase. We love a two-fer!

Mediterranean Mortar and Pestle

In the south of France, Italy, and other Mediterranean regions, marble mortars with wooden pestles (often made of olivewood) are quite common. It’s next to impossible to find this variety in US stores, unless you get lucky and find one at an antiques shop or estate sale. They can, however, be ordered online. We got ours through an Italian vendor on Etsy, and it’s an object of pure beauty. More importantly, it excels at making pesto and similar sauces, as well as emulsified sauces like mayonnaise and aioli.

Island Creek Oysters by Mail

Few things get me as excited as a good raw bar, but most of the time, I eat far less than I want because, after the first couple dozen oysters or so, it just gets to be too expensive. That’s even truer when the oysters are top-notch, like the briny little suckers from Island Creek up in Massachusetts. But here’s the good news: You can order Island Creek’s oysters online by the 50- or 100-count for much less than they cost at most restaurants, and have them in your hands the next day for an at-home shucking extravaganza. (Obviously, it helps to learn how to shuck first.)

Wine Carafe with Oak Stopper

I spent most of 2018 getting into wine, and one of my biggest takeaways was that most wines could benefit from a decant. Does a wine feel closed—like it has only one note on the nose or the tongue? Then it definitely needs to aerate in a decanter. This one is an inexpensive glass model with a chic wooden topper, from the Scandinavian brand Sagaform. It looks just as good on your bar cart or shelf as it does on the dinner table, and will give your Bordeaux a little room to breathe.

The Cocktail Chronicles

Having The Cocktail Chronicles at your side is like having a friend who always knows a good drink recipe for whatever you’ve got on hand. It doesn’t talk your ear off or suggest something with a dozen ingredients. Instead, it shares classics, recent spins on classics, and drinks you’ve never heard of but can easily mix up and enjoy, and the introductions are never preachy or boring. This book will appeal to full-on cocktail fanatics and newbies alike; there’s something delicious on every page.

Cast Iron Revolving Cake Stand

I can’t fathom decorating a birthday cake without this sturdy, heavy-bottomed stand. It speeds the process of crumb coating and decoration, while allowing for a whole new array of finishing techniques. It can also double as a lazy susan, so it’s often on my dinner table, piled with condiments and toppings, even when there’s no cake in sight.

Beyond Curry Indian Cookbook: A Culinary Journey Through India

Indian food has a reputation for being difficult and time-consuming, with hard-to-find ingredients and new techniques. I get it. It’s intimidating. But in this book, Serious Eater Denise D’silva Sankhé breaks Indian cooking down into simple techniques that any home cook can master to produce amazingly flavorful dishes with minimal effort. Over the course of more than 100 recipes, Denise introduces us to simple cooking from every region of India, focusing on home-style dishes that move well beyond the world of curries. I’m also super stoked that she’s included notes with every recipe on whether it’s vegan, vegetarian, and/or allergy-friendly.

Microplane

Another essential kitchen tool, the Microplane grater does fine grating work way better than those tiny, raspy holes on a box grater. Whether you’re quickly grating fresh nutmeg or cinnamon, taking the zest off a lemon, or turning a clove of garlic into a fine purée, the Microplane is the tool to reach for. It’ll make a great gift for the budding cooking enthusiast.

Intense Drinking Chocolate

This isn’t your standard hot cocoa. It’s a rich drinking-chocolate mix, made from organic, 74% cacao single-plantation chocolate from the Dominican Republic and 68% cacao wild-harvested chocolate from Bolivia. Whisk the ground chocolate with warm milk for an intense cocoa experience: It’s silky and deep, with hints of orange zest, cinnamon, and juicy berries, tempered by a subtly bitter edge.

Hero Dinners: Complete One-Pan Meals That Save the Day

Marge Perry and David Bonom’s cookbook is perfect for the giftee who loves to cook but hates a mess. Each recipe requires just one pan (or sheet pan), allowing the cook to enjoy precious downtime with family—and spend less time at the sink.

Tsukemono Round Pickle Press

The quick pickles common in Japanese cuisine that go by the name asazuke, or “morning pickles,” are typically made in a contraption similar to this one. The screwable tamper is spring-loaded, which exerts consistent pressure on sliced, salted vegetables, which presses out excess water and creates a highly seasoned brine, which then flavors the vegetables. The small size is perfect for anyone who wants to experiment with the technique.

Cuisinart Blender

The Cuisinart is an easy-to-use, powerful blender that aced many of our tests. This model’s dashboard is intuitive, and it features a built-in timer that counts down for you or can be programmed to stop after a certain number of seconds.

12-Inch All-Clad Stainless Steel Pan

The slope-sided skillet, like this one from All-Clad, is a chef’s best friend and one of the most versatile pans in the kitchen, whether you’re sautéing vegetables, searing meat, or cooking one of our dozens of one-pan meals. The best have solid stainless steel construction, with an aluminum core for even heat distribution.

Punch Bowl Set

We have this 10-piece punch bowl set in our office, and it’s been put to very good use. It’s big and impressive while still being affordable, which are the best qualities you can hope for in holiday-party decor.

Zojirushi Rice Cooker

A couple years ago, I managed to convince my wife of the necessity of buying a rice cooker. Not just any rice cooker: a Zojirushi. The only concession I was willing to make had to do with the size, since she wisely noted that we didn’t have the counter space for any rice cooker at all, let alone the kind of rice cooker that I had in mind. So I bought a little guy that fits, max, three cups of rice, but really is only usable for about two and a half. She’s since come around to the indisputable excellence of the cooker, and she loves everything about it, from the wonderful rice it makes to the “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” it plays when you turn it on. But since we’re moving to a bigger apartment with counter space enough for a small rice cooker, I think it’s high time we got an upgrade, so Mother’s Day seems like a perfect opportunity to get the 5.5-cup model.

All-Clad One-Quart Saucier

The low, sloping walls of this small 1-quart saucepan make whisking easy, perfect for making and finishing delicate sauces, and reducing small volumes of liquids. It’s also small enough to double as a butter-melter.

Le Creuset Cake Stand

If you’ve ever been given a homemade birthday cake, return the favor by buying your favorite baker this iconic cake stand. Its heavy base keeps cakes secure and makes all types of decorating techniques a breeze.

Rice, Noodle, Fish

Warning: Reading this book might lead to the purchase of some very expensive plane tickets. The Roads & Kingdoms crew will get you hungry for a journey to Japan, for onigiri basted with chicken fat, juicy one-bite gyoza, milky-white tonkotsu ramen broth, and briny sea urchin. Is Japan the best place on earth to eat? This book will convince you that it is.

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hypnocutiegypsy · 6 years

Text

CH 4. Love Eater A Paranormal Romance

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3| Chapter 4

(3732 words)

I stared back at him, gazed into those topaz eyes lit from within and he stared back. This Barnabus and his sultry tones, his sweet smile were still a big question mark in my mind. Despite having spilled all but his guts, I couldn’t force myself to let my guard down. I sensed a little sincerity in the way he spouted answers to every question I threw at him. But there was also something else. A feeling of déjà vu claimed me as I remembered my dream this morning and the cold foreboding I felt in my gut the night before.

Bibi Anui had been a bit clairvoyant. I’d never had those abilities until now. But, nothing good ever came from ignoring a feeling.

“What do you say?” he prompted, rousing me from my reverie.

My mind wants to tell him thanks for the coffee, but no. Logic would have me walking up out of here, clutching the pepper spray in case he sprang after me again. But the small suppressed voice of my iron wrapped heart whispered that I could finally have a good friend, someone I could relate to. Someone not to fear rejection from; for once I wasn’t the weirdest person in the room.

Loneliness had been my only friend for so long. No, seriously, this isn’t an emo digression, I’ve been alone for a long time. Even when I had Bibi, the grass always seemed greener for children that had siblings or parents. Or just friends. Would it be so bad to just be friends?

It would be reckless to accept friendship from a being that I don’t understand yet.

“Yes.”

“Really?” His eyebrows shot up and he grinned widely. I wonder if he knows how mischievous he looks…

I smiled and nodded.

“But if it turns out you mean me harm, I’ll incapacitate you and figure out what will kill you for real…”

He paled momentarily, the smile going cold, then chuckled nervously.

“Oh, come on. Is that how you speak to a friend?” he chided in a mutter.

“Normally it takes a while to become friends. Not that I know from experience. But as far as I’m concerned, you’re still a stranger. Even if you’re polite.”

“That’s fair…” He clasped his hands in front of him as though he still weathered the jarring effects of my threat. “So, wait. You haven’t had many friends?”

“Any friends, actually…” My callous exterior began to crack once more under those eyes. “What is up with your eyes? Is it just me or are they glowing?”

The playfulness returned to his features. “Oh, how sweet of you to say-”

“Stop it.” I commanded. “I think you ought to know there will be no romantic tension between us. At most maybe I’ll get rid of this urge to curb stomp you from creepiness…”

“That sounds violent.”

“It is. The only reason I’m really agreeing to this is because I’ve never really known anyone who wasn’t completely intimidated, offended, or disgusted by the fact I’m a witch. It’s nice to know I’m not the strangest thing out there.”

“You most certainly are not. I can promise you that. And my eyes are a result of the magic used to keep the body looking alive.”

He certainly looked normal otherwise.

“That is so strange…” I wanted to learn more about that magic, but the time dawned on me again. I gasped and reached for my bag. “I honestly do have to go, though.”

He stood with me and took out his own phone.

“Let’s exchange numbers. We didn’t even get to talk about you yet. Have to be fair, as friends, right?”

He handed the phone to me, fingers soft as they grazed mine. I fought the heat that tried to rise up my neck with the physical contact. He stared at me as I entered my number, a distant curiosity glinting in his eyes.

“That is so strange. I can’t taste a thing…you must have a charm,” he marveled quietly, half to himself.

“Wait, what? Are you… trying to feed off of me right now?” I asked in startled disbelief.

“No, it wasn’t intentional! Your fingers just sort of grazed mine. I can’t turn it on or off it-”

“Then keep your hands to yourself!”

“Ok… I’m sorry. I meant no harm. It just happens like breathing. That’s why I don’t touch everyone. I’m not a monster, you know…” he said in a low voice. His forehead wrinkled in dismay, lips pursed. He was… offended?

“Friends don’t eat friends…”

He smirked. “Friends don’t judge friends. Also, you stand a higher chance of hurting me than I you.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” I teased. A genuine smile spread across my face as his crumpled further with concern.

“Please, don’t.”

After Barnabus paid the bill, he walked me out. On the sidewalk we said an awkward goodbye and went our separate ways.

As strange as this whole thing was, I felt giddy. I think it was because someone finally knew who I was and didn’t run away. Even after I threatened him several times, he still pursued me. Common sense told me to be on guard for foul play, but my heart held on to the knowledge that someone wanted to know me. He wanted to know me and if his expressions and mannerisms could be trusted; he was somewhat in awe of me…

I smiled to myself as I made my way to the University Pantry Closet to choose some nonperishables that looked somewhat edible and a few cans of salmon for Paka. Time to get my head out of the clouds and be an adult. I know she had asked for fresh, but this was the best I could do. God knows I couldn’t afford to buy fresh salmon. She had better be grateful. Then, I made my way to the grocery store near my apartment and began the task of stretching fifty dollars as far as it could possibly go.

About a month ago, I overheard a passenger on the bus talking with a friend about meal prep. It sounded fool proof so I looked it up on Pinterest and it’s been working so far. Just need to stay on budget…

I filled my basket with the cheapest ingredients for four main meals that would feed me for the next two weeks. Or until the meals ran out. I rode the bus home. Groceries in hand, I arrived in the late afternoon and was greeted by Paka again. I shimmied over to the kitchen counter and hefted the plastic bags down, removing the death trap of crisscrossed plastic bag handles from my partially numb fingers.

“Have you got the fish?!”

Hopping up onto the ledge above the counter, she batted at a box of oatmeal trying to knock it onto the floor. I swatted her paw away.

“Will you relax, you wazimu cat? Let me put my things down, chill!” I complained, wrenching the sweaty backpack off and placing it next to the bags. I leaned against the counter and began unpacking the food.

“I got you canned salmon. I think there may still be bones, but I’ll pick them out for you.”

“How kind of you, but I’d prefer you leave them in. Then at least I can pretend it’s a real fish…”

“You’re welcome, ungrateful feline…” I murmured.

She groaned and leapt down, padding her way back to her place on the window sill above my bed. She watched the window as I unpacked and prepped for cooking. I contemplated when to tell her about my adventures today with a non-physical being that inhabited a bewitched body…

“So how was your day?”

No time like the present.

“Pretty good. Nothing too out of the ordinary. I mean, well, I met a Love Eater…” I glanced up at her from the corner of my eyes as I preheated the oven.

“A WHAT?!”

She bounded from the window and back to me, pacing back and forth before the door where I could see her. Her little cat features were awestruck. I started washing a bunch of potatoes to cut.

“I nearly tripped over him going to class this morning-”

“HIM?!”

“Let me finish, please. He spotted me because his abilities didn’t work when we made eye contact. From your behavior, I’m guessing you know what a love eater is…?”

“Yes, I most certainly do. And you need to ditch him quick. Those pawns can’t be trusted. They’re only loyal to the one who holds the leash. Which is a terrible metaphor for my current situation, but you get the seriousness I’m trying to relay.”

“Somehow I knew you would know. And how do you know? Are you ever going to give me your backstory? I know you aren’t really a cat…”

It’s been almost a year since Paka and I have been together and just as long since she’s been talking to me. She refuses to tell me why she can speak to my mind and who she really is. It always just turns into a big argument. It’s like she loves bickering with me.

“No. And it doesn’t really matter. What matters is a Love Eater is often a pawn in a witch’s game. They’re used to gain affluence, help them gather intel, they’re flunkies. Sometimes they don’t even know it!”

“He seemed pretty independent to me. And he says he can’t even use magic…”

“Where do you think he got that body from, huh? Think he just happened to be hanging around when the guy died? Just got lucky, huh? No. He works for a witch. Maybe he knows. Maybe he doesn’t. But that fact remains, it isn’t safe for you...”

“Ok, thank you mother hen. I’ll keep that in mind.”

“I’m serious, Vera. Stay away from him. Magic folk who use beings the way a Love Eater is used aren’t the type you should get caught up with.”

“Alright! I hear you, now let’s change the subject. How about I open that can of salmon you’ve been howling about?”

Despite herself, she abandoned her preaching and meandered over to me. I hid a smile as I cracked the can and poured that pungent contents into a china bowl. Setting the bowl on a small carpet at the foot of my bed, she loped up behind me and dug in quickly.

“This conversation…nyam-nyam mm… isn’t over, Vera… nyam mmm nyam goddess this is good, just like the real thing!”

“It is the real thing, Paka!” I guffawed.

“Whatever, nyam!”

As she devoured the salmon, bones in all, I began boiling water for a pasta dish. A few minutes later my phone chirped. Which wouldn’t be so abnormal if I had any friends to make it chirp. I added the pasta to the water and put away almond milk before checking it.

did you make it home safely litl witch?

I’m not sure why I suddenly got a chill at the words. I knew it was him. But that wasn’t why. Somehow it was such a thrill for someone to know who I truly was. And still want to talk to me. I should respond immediately. That’s what you do right? To be polite.

Yes, love eater.

I giggled to myself and Paka’s ears swiveled toward me, after which she popped her head out of the bowl to give me a baleful look. My smile fell off and I rolled my eyes.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to ruin your meal with my happiness…”

“Serves you right,” she harrumphed.

There was another chirp. I smiled again.

good. you can call me barnabus.

And not barnie?

ive been informed that is not attractive…

ahaha, just my luck. someone told you first…

The pasta water began to boil over and a loud hiss made me jump. I removed the jumping lid and singed my finger on its metal edge. Cursing beneath my breath, I stirred the pasta and then started dicing potatoes. Another chirp from the phone and the knife slipped, nicking my thumb just enough to draw a drop of blood. I shrieked and held the cut to my lips.

“Fother Mucker…”

Maybe Paka was right and this guy is bad news. Am I buggin’ or are these some serious signs right now? I grabbed the phone up.

what are you doing

i’m being very distracted by you actually >.<

what is that???

It’s a face of distress. I am burning and slicing myself over here. Let me call you later tonight

wow ok, yes of course

After that he didn’t message anymore; a real gentleman. I argued in my head as I continued to cook. Is having a friend worth risking my safety. Paka seemed very adamant, then of course she could be jealous. She’d laugh at the thought, but I know she likes me to herself. And when we were texting what was up with that.

Despite playing the devil’s advocate, I felt content when all of my food was prepped and refrigerated or freezing. It wasn’t pretty, but I wouldn’t starve. Oatmeal, Pasta, Potatoes, chicken, canned fruit and some random veggies thrown in will sustain me for the next fourteen days. I finished up the dishes and showered before cuddling up with my literature book and phone. I pretended to read for about fifteen minutes as I waited for Paka to doze off for another cat nap.

Quickly, I slipped into a fuzzy robe I scored from salvation army and my boots. I really ought to invest in a pair of slippers. I tiptoed as best I could out the door and down the hall to the window where a bench sat. I perched there and pulled out my phone. A wave of giddiness washed over me as my finger hovered over the name, his name. I allowed myself a small giggle as I pressed dial. Is this what it felt like to have someone to call? Someone waiting to hear from you?

It rang for three beats.

“Hello?” his voice was thick with the rasp of sleep. I panicked. Did I wake him?

“Oh-uh-I’m sorry,” I said quietly. I struggled to keep my voice from carrying down the hall.

“No, it’s fine! You’re fine, I must have dozed off waiting for your call. This science nonsense is dry stuff. And none of it at all true.”

He cleared his throat loudly and I heard the rustle of bedding. My heart fluttered at the thought of him waiting the past three hours for my call.

“Are you sure? I can just call tomorrow…”

“I’m sure. So, what spell were you working on?”

“Uh… what?”

“You said you were cutting and burning yourself and such. Was it a difficult spell? A curse?”

“What kind of witch do you think I am?!” I exclaimed. He laughed loudly in my ear.

“Well I’m sure I don’t know. We didn’t get to that part yet. What kind of witch are you?”

“To be honest, I don’t really know either. I know what I’m drawn to like uh crystals, demon hunting, herbs for medicinal teas… that sort of thing…”

He chuckled. “So what did your parents do?”

“I never knew my parents. I was raised by my Bibi Anui; my grandma. She was a witch, but she’s been gone for a while now. I sort of just follow my fancy when it comes to magic.”

His tone turned somber. “I’m sorry. No other family, then?”

“No. Well, my foster family. But… they don’t really like having me around.”

“Their loss.”

I smiled into the phone and leaned against the giant window pane, letting my forehead touch the glass.

“Nice of you to say so.”

“Of course.” There was a pause. I could hear him shifting in covers, the phone nestled against his pillow probably. “So, as far as witches go, you seem relatively inexperienced…”

“Ah, well.” I sighed. “I have a knack for banishing unwanted spirits. I’ve had my share of run-ins with demons as well. But for the most part, it comes easily to me. And I enjoy it.”

“See, I told you that you could do more harm to me than I to you…” I heard the smile in his voice.

“And don’t you forget it.”

“Do you have a boyfriend?”

I couldn’t stop the unnecessarily loud laugh from bubbling up out of me.

“What?!”

“Girlfriend?” he ventured, unfazed.

“No! No, I’m single.”

“Any exes?”

I pressed my forefinger and thumb to the bridge of my nose, letting go a sigh.

“Barnabus, what are you doing?”

“Aw, you said my name!” he said with a squee of delight.

“What are you doing?” I repeated, unable to keep the smile from my voice. Again, I heard the crinkle of bedding. Or maybe it wasn’t sheets, it sounded closer this time. Maybe paper?

“I don’t know. Aren’t these the type of questions you ask friends?” he sounded a bit nervous. It was still hard to read his voice sometimes.

“I guess… wait. Are you reading from a paper?” I asked incredulously.

“Um. Yes. It’s actu-” I couldn’t help laughing then, and I cut him off.

“You are hilarious. This is a joke, right? You did this for show?”

“It’s a magazine article…” he admitted.

“Why??” I was braying like a hyena.

“Well, you said we could be friends. I’m not sure how to speak to someone I want to keep around. Or who I want to keep me around…”

His straightforward response caught me off guard.

“Oh…”

“So happy I amuse you,” he teased.

“I’m sorry. I suppose it makes sense. Which magazine?”

“If I tell you, you’ll just laugh again…” he chuckled himself.

“Ok, fine. Well what’s next on the list?” I whimpered through my giggles.

“What’s your favorite hobby?” he asked woodenly.

“Oh, well I enjoy making different types of tea. I know that’s strange, but it’s kind of like my own personal prerequisite for potion making. It helps me pick out every note of each ingredient. My Bibi always told me never to meddle with potions if I wasn’t absolutely sure of myself.”

“That makes good sense.”

“Yes. And also, I really love tea. Very therapeutic and nostalgic to me. I also like reading. Mostly my Bibi’s grimoire or other herbal books. I haven’t found any spell books yet. Regrettably, the suburb library didn’t carry any.”

“I could probably find you some…”

“Really? Where?”

“I have sources.” “That’s… mysterious…”

“I like your voice.”

I went quiet. Stunned to silence by his comment. Did he mean for it to make my cheeks burn? This is why I need more friends. I don’t know what’s normal and what isn’t. Everything is so embarrassing. He probably is just paying me a compliment…

“I’m sorry… too blunt?” he said after my pause.

“No – no, it’s fine. Thank you. I’m a little out of practice…with compliments and such…”

“And no wonder. People this century are downright rude. This decade is by far the worst I’ve ever been in.”

“It is so strange to hear you talk that way. I’m still having trouble believing you…”

“But are you, really?”

“I guess not, huh…”

“I think you’d be less likely to entertain a friendship with someone you didn’t believe.”

“You know, I can appreciate your bluntness.”

“Few do.”

“Have Theodore’s friends picked up on his differences?”

“Um… yes and no. His phone was buzzing nonstop the first 48 hours after I inherited this body.”

“And now?” I asked.

“Now, they seem loathe to return any of my messages.”

“Well, not that I know from experience, but a real friend would probably notice if you started to suddenly text differently.”

“I suppose so. Oh, and I’m pretty sure Theodore was on his way to a date the night he died. I keep getting messages from a girl named Natalia who insists that I’ve stood her up…”

I couldn’t help but chuckle even though it was quite sad.

“How many lives would you say you’ve lived? Or bodies you’ve inhabited should I say?”

“Honestly? I’ve lost track. After maybe seventy, I stopped counting.”

I gasped into the phone. “Seriously? Who keeps calling you back from the dead?”

“That’s just it though. I’m not dead. I don’t know if I can – well, I can leave a body. But in the traditional sense of the word, I continue on living in the ether, the abyss… sometimes I wish I could die…”

“That’s morbid…”

“It’s far worse than morbid…” his voice lowered. Bad choice of topic.

“So, what do you enjoy, Barnabus? What are your hobbies?”

He cleared his throat, perhaps glad for the turn in conversation.

“Well, I like nature. I love being outside and feeling a good breeze. I’m not sure I have many hobbies, although I’ve tried many over the millennia. My last host, I believe they enjoyed the shooting range. So, to keep up appearances I’d do quite a bit of that. I can cook. I don’t particularly care for it, but it’s something to do…”

“So… no hobbies then.”

“Uh, no,” he chuckled.

“Maybe we could find you a nice hobby. You know something you enjoy that makes you feel a sense of purpose. It could probably even give you a tangible piece of your identity to take into future lifetimes.”

He fell silent.

“Did I say something wrong?”

Silence.

“Barnabus?” I whispered. I checked the phone; he was still on the call. “Are you there?”

Suddenly he cleared his throat. “I’m here, sorry.”

“Did you fall asleep on me?” I teased.

“You know I think I did, my apologies.”

I rolled my eyes. “We’ve got to work on your speech. No one says ‘my apologies’ anymore, Barn.”

“Was that my first nickname?!” his voice rose several octaves.

I just laughed.

Soon after that we said goodnight. I’m glad it didn’t last long enough to be awkward. But it was so nice to have someone to talk to and laugh with. I tried to put out of my mind that I still didn’t know everything about him. I was an open book, but Barnabus still had secrets. But it didn’t me back from him. The next night it was him who called. And the day after that it was me. It went on like this for two weeks and I couldn’t be happier. I had a friend.

***

Thanks for reading! I’m trying my best not to give up on writing. Here and there I try to steal some time for myself, but life is busy. Tell me what you think with a comment, I’d love to hear from you. I know it’s been a while, hopefully I can get back into the swing of things. <3 Love to all. Missed you terribly. So happy to be here writing mush and gush. ;D

@sincerestaffect, @zekethegm, @paper-shield-and-wooden-sword, @idleunsung, @typeaadventures, @creativityflows, @siarven, @izraiel, @jennalasby, @beautifulimposter25, @writtenhastily, @cirianne, @forlornraven, @ellenya, @lzlabseesu, @thewitchthetimeladythehuntress, @dapucha

#ch4 #love-eater2018 #vera&barnabus #paranormal romance #wip #ocs #happy to finally finish this chapter after like three months #no shame #never give #i'm trying my best #i'm doing great

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my-one-love-is-music · 8 years

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Be My Player 2? Chapter 10

Yay chapter update!! Woo hoo!! I'm really glad that I got this done today since I leave for a weekend trip tomorrow and don't have to worry about coming back and trying to finish this, so I hope that y'all are looking forward to reading it.

Also, I got a twitter if you're interested! It's just a place for me to ramble about fics and give more consistent updates about how things are going and when things might get posted. So you can follow that here: https://twitter.com/m_o_l_i_m

Cheers!

Also on AO3!

Friday felt like an utter dream to Keith. He hardly registered his own actions throughout the day and didn’t even really remember waking up or getting ready for the day. He almost felt like a zombie and didn’t really register where he was until he received a slap on the back, forcing him to look around and comprehend that he was at work. He didn’t even remember clocking in or going to class! And was honestly surprised that he managed to even dress himself in his work clothes, although he was sure Linda would’ve stopped him if he’d looked too out of sorts.

“Someone seems to be a little out of it today,” George said, bringing Keith out of his thoughts and to focus back in on the drink that he’d been preparing. “Late night? Too much studying? Or too much gaming?”

“Uhh…” Keith responded eloquently, grasping for some sort of explanation as to why he was acting the way he was. He couldn’t exactly say he was thinking about the hot guy that he met online while gaming. Not only did he not know how to go about explaining that situation, but he didn’t think he was prepared for the lecture that he would undoubtedly get about interacting with strangers online and the possibility that his life might turn into an afterschool special. George would probably even go so far as to suggest he’d been featured on America’s Most Wanted. You’d think being twenty-one would get you a pass for things like that, but Keith was never so lucky.

“Based on your intelligent response and the fact you’re grasping for some sort of response, I’m going to take a wild guess and say that you were up late gaming last night and didn’t get enough sleep,” he said with a chuckle and moved to pick up a bottle of alcohol for the next order coming in. It was getting into the busier part of the night where more people were coming out just for the drinks than for actual meals.

Keith didn’t bother responding and did his best to focus back in on his work and knew that he wouldn’t be able to let his mind wander any further. He didn’t want to risk messing up anyone’s drinks because that would mean losing drinks and money and he wasn’t prepared to be responsible for that on top of everything else. And with the growing crowds, that would slow things down for them if they had to make twice as many drinks to make up for Keith’s lack of concentration.

He looked at the pile of orders that were quickly stacking up and turned back to the drink he was almost finished with. He wanted to shove it all away and not worry about it, but a thought struck him. Something that would help to keep him focused…

“Hey, George,” he called, smirk pulling at the edges of his lips.

“Yeah?” he asked, bottle in hand and eyebrow raised in question at Keith’s expression. He’d known him long enough to know that a smirk wasn’t always a good sign.

“Feel like having a little competition tonight?” he asked, gesturing to the pile of tickets that was waiting for them.

A grin slowly pulled at the edges of his mouth, eyes lighting up at the prospect of making a game out of their workload. “You’re on,” he said, raising the bottle in his hand. “Whoever gets the most drinks made wins. And the loser has to do all the closedown procedures.”

“Hope you like staying late,” Keith said. “Because I’m not going to lose,” he said getting back to work with a renewed fervor. These next few hours were going to pass by with a breeze.

“How is it that we both managed to end up with the same number of tickets?!” George nearly screeched as they finished totaling their piles.

“Damn, I really thought that I was ahead there,” Keith said, running a hand through his hair.

“You were ahead. Clearly, I was making the most drinks during the night.”

Keith raised an eyebrow. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said, reaching for the bottle of cleaner and the towel to wipe down the counter.

“Please, you’ve been out of it all night. I don’t understand how you have the same number of tickets,” George grouched and reached for the empty bottles to take inventory of how much stock they’d used.

“I don’t care who won what or what you’re arguing about, but I want to see more cleaning boys! It’s Friday and I know that you as much as me are ready to get out of here for the night,” Linda called as she walked past.

The two of them hurried back to their closedown procedures and probably got done in record time. Getting motivated at the end of a long day wasn’t too hard when the threat of your boss was just around the corner. Keith and George parted ways quickly, knowing that they’d see each other again soon enough, and were more concerned with getting home after a long day. Keith may not have had a shift the next day, but that didn’t mean that he wasn’t looking forward to spending time with his friend that night and getting more than enough sleep.

He pushed into his apartment and made his way into the bedroom, leaving his backpack at the foot of the bed while he moved over to his dresser to pull out something more comfortable to wear. Swapping out his work clothes for a pair of sweatpants and a shirt found him back in the kitchen with his headset and rummaging around for something to make for dinner. He was still doing really well on food and thought he might be able to pull some money from his food budget if he ended up running low after being pulled from the double shift on Sunday. Things really seemed to be looking up for once. Or maybe it was just memories of having someone to lean on that were helping him see the brighter side of things.

As he was heating up the water to make some of the pasta that he’d stocked up on-and it was in fact pasta and not ramen noodles-he heard a ringing coming from his computer. Keith stepped over and was surprised to find Shiro calling him through skype rather than his Voltron account which he had already pulled up. He answered quickly and grinned when Shiro’s face came into view.

“Hey, Shiro,” he said, picking up his computer and carrying it over to the counter next to his stove.

“Wh-what’s up? What are you doing?” Shiro asked, belatedly.

“Making dinner. I just got back from work and decided to make some pasta to celebrate that it’s Friday. I would say that I’m surprised that you’re online already, but I can’t really say that I am.” He felt relaxed talking to him like this. He was a little worried that things could’ve been a bit weird after the night before, but he found Shiro’s presence particularly grounding. “How are things on your end?” he asked while reaching for the box of pasta.

“Oh, you know, just another Friday. Not really one for the history books,” Shiro said, laughing awkwardly.

Keith glanced at his screen and found Shiro looking away from him and off screen. He saw traces of pink along his cheekbones and leaned in further while absentmindedly stirring the pasta.

“Shiro, are you feeling alright? You’re not sick are you?” he asked, squinting for good measure.

He looked back at the screen and looked taken aback when he caught how close Keith was. Keith watched as his face got even redder.

“Fine, fine,” Shiro said, trying to wave away his concern.

Keith gave him one last look before returning to his pasta. “Okay. I still think you should make sure that you don’t have a temperature and aren’t sick.”

“Later. I can take it later.”

“Okay,” Keith said, not entirely convinced.

Shiro cleared his throat, searching for something to say. “Allura and Lance had a lot of fun with us the other night. They’d like to join up again.”

“Cool. I can’t wait to kick Lance’s ass again.”

Shiro laughed. “You know, the point of team missions are so that you work together and not fight amongst the players.”

Keith shrugged and speared a piece of pasta to taste. He hummed in satisfaction and turned off the stovetop, picking up the pot and carrying it over to the sink to drain. “As long as it doesn’t cause us to lose, I think that we can manage to have a little bit of fun at least. ‘Sides, Lance’s ego’s big enough that he can take it.”

“I’m not sure that he’d agree with you on that, but he’d also probably claim that he doesn’t have an ego. Still, I’d like the two of you to get along on some level at least,” Shiro said.

Keith paused as he grabbed the jar of tomato sauce from the cabinet above his head. He looked down at it as he addressed what Shiro said. “You think that we don’t get along?”

“Do you?” Shiro asked, disbelief obvious.

Keith rolled his eyes and placed a hand on his hip as he turned to face the screen. “Of course we get along. Even I could tell from our first night gaming together that Lance wanted to see how I held up. Eventually, it became less about testing me and more about seeing how far we could push each other. I just managed to come out on top. Don’t worry so much.”

Now that his dinner was ready, Keith moved his computer and his bowl of food over to the table while Shiro sat there silently, obviously thinking.

“So did you want to game or what?” Keith asked between bites since it looked like Shiro wasn’t going to say anything anytime soon.

“Hm?” Shiro asked, being pulled from his thoughts. Keith raised an eyebrow at him. “Oh, yeah. Sure, we can game.”

“You can invite Lance and Allura if you want. If they’re free anyway.”

“Actually…do you mind if we do something else?” he asked, rubbing the back of his neck.

Keith shrugged. “Sure. What did you have in mind?”

Shiro shrugged, obviously feeling a bit embarrassed about the request. “I just feel like maybe hanging out and watching a movie or something.”

Keith quirked an eyebrow. “You want to try and stream a movie at the same time?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s great and all, but I don’t have Netflix.”

“Oh.”

“Hang on,” Keith said, leaning forward and pulling up his web browser. “I don’t remember the name of it, but I heard about this website that can let you watch things at the same time. It’s sort of hard to explain. So you would be streaming from your Netflix account, but I’d be able to watch it too, even though I don’t have Netflix.”

“That sounds perfect. I think that I’ve heard of that too, actually…”

“Here it is! It’s this website called rabbit.” Keith heard Shiro typing even as he looked around the website himself.

“Oh hey, this looks pretty cool. So I just need to set this up with my Netlfix account…”

Keith listened as he clicked several things and typed in information.

“Okay, I think I’ve got this figured out. I’m going to send you the link to this room through Skype and we should be able to get started.”

Keith heard the notification from his Skype window and pulled up the room. Once it was opened in his web browser he shut off the call with Shiro and brought up the video and audio capabilities of the chat room.

“Shiro? You there?”

“Yeah. Although, cutting out without saying goodbye was a little rude.”

Keith rolled his eyes. “Oh, please. I was gone for like two seconds, it didn’t kill you.”

“It was still rude,” he muttered. “Anyway, what do you want to watch?”

“It doesn’t really matter to me. I’ll probably be fine with anything so if there’s something in particular that you like watching or are in the middle of watching, I’ll probably be fine with that.”

Shiro hummed. “Do you like anime?”

“I’ve never really watched it, but I’ll give anything a try.” Keith picked up his computer and the remains of his dinner and headed over to his couch. He moved a few of the pillows up against the arm of the couch and laid down, leaning against them and stretching out his legs. He settled his laptop on top of his legs so that he could still eat and sighed happily as his muscles relaxed in the soft cushions.

“Okay, I think this one’ll be good to start with. I’ve been wanting to watch it for a while so I guess this is just my excuse to get you involved too.”

“What’s it called?”

“The English name is Your Lie in April. It’s supposed to be really good.”

“Okay. Is this going to have subtitles then?”

“Yeah, is that a problem?”

“I think I’ll be okay. I just might have to do full screen so that I can read them, depending on how small they are and if the video quality isn’t too fuzzy.”

“Well, let’s find out.”

Keith watched as Shiro pulled it up and animated cherry blossoms filled his screen. The image followed a blond girl walking down the street and following a cat.

“Is this an anime about music students?” he asked as the opening began to play. He might never admit it, but he thought the music was pretty catchy and could see the appeal of why people went to such lengths to find it sometimes.

“Yeah.”

“Okay.”

Silence fell between them again as the episode progressed. He thought that this might be something he could actually get into even if it wasn’t along the lines of what he usually took interest in.

“What did you think?” Shiro asked as the credits began to play.

“I like it. Can we watch another episode? I really want to see what happens with her violin performance.”

“Yeah, of course.”

One more episode turned into another and another and another. Even with his eyes drooping and his mind complaining about the influx of information that the anime was giving him, Keith couldn’t find it in himself to complain or ask Shiro to stop despite the late hour and his need to actually get some sleep. Keith was enraptured by the storyline and the characters to the point that he might even be a little bit obsessed. He wanted to know what was going to happen to Kousei and he wanted so much for Kousei to succeed at his solo competition.

It was probably unhealthy how invested he was in the wellbeing of a fictional character, but the writing and the characterizations just made him want to care about him. He wanted him to do well and find motivation in the people who claimed to be his rivals. He wanted him to find support in his friends and realize that it’s okay for him to play the piano and move on with his life and be great.

Keith sat up and clutched the sides of his laptop, staring with wide eyes as Kousei battled himself during his performance. He felt himself saddened by the turn that the anime had taken and sagged against the couch’s back cushion, nearly burying his face in the fabric.

Shiro paused the episode as the ending music began. “You okay there, Keith.”

Keith groaned. “I was really hoping for a different outcome for Kousei.”

“I know, but he can’t just magically come back after having such an impactful experience. He has to find his love for the piano again and deal with the trauma that he’s been through. We’re only half way through the anime so there’s plenty of time for it to get better. Unless you want to put that off for later.”

Keith looked at the time and sighed. “3am huh? I should probably get to bed.”

“You don’t have work tomorrow, do you?”

“Nah, it’s my night off. But I’m getting together with some friends. We’re going to hang out and watch movies before mid-terms-shit! Fuck, mid-terms. I should really be studying for those.” He groaned again, not wanting to think about his upcoming tests or the rest of his anxieties.

“So study tomorrow-well, later today anyway. Get some sleep, get refreshed, and then study before you get together with your friends. We can finish this next weekend after you get through your tests. Just think of it as the reward that’s waiting for you.”

“Okay. Yeah, sounds good. I can totally do that,” Keith said, trying to convince himself. Neither of them made a move to leave the chat. “I guess, I’ll go then. Talk to you later, Shiro?”

“Yeah, talk to you later.”

Keith closed out of his web browser and stared at his desktop for a minute, not wanting to move off the couch. He hadn’t even considered the amount of hours that he’d need to put into studying next week. That would mean he’d probably not be able to game or talk with Shiro for a while at least. He sighed and shut down his computer, setting it down on the coffee table before wearily pushing himself to his feet.

He shuffled into his bedroom and let himself fall down onto his bed and pulled his comforter over himself, his eyes sliding shut easily. It was so strange. They’d only known each other for a short amount of time and had been skyping for barely a fraction of that, yet Shiro already felt like a large part of his life. It felt weird to even consider going a day without interacting with him. Shiro had wedged his way so far into Keith’s life already that the thought of him possibly disappearing was absolutely terrifying for him to consider.

#sheith #voltron #molim writes #fic: Player2 #update!!!

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kennethherrerablog · 6 years

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My Partner Has Celiac Disease: Here’s What it Costs Us

My partner Nick has been living with celiac disease for over a decade. At its core, the serious autoimmune disorder is an all-out intolerance of the protein gluten. Exposure to gluten can immediately lead to rashes, stomach problems, joint pain, fatigue and more; long-term symptoms could include chronic migraines, diabetes, multiple sclerosis and even cancer.

If you have been diagnosed with celiac disease, transitioning to a gluten-free lifestyle is of immediate importance. Doing so will require some changes to your spending. Here’s how living gluten-free might affect you financially.

You’ll Spend More on Groceries

Many foods that you regularly buy are already gluten-free, like produce, meat and cheese. However, a lot of other foods that might be staples in your pantry do contain gluten — and their gluten-free alternatives are outrageously expensive. Here are some common examples:

Bread

A loaf of bread at my grocery store in Ohio costs between $1 and $2. Gluten-free bread, which is crumbly and tastes like cardboard, is sold in half loaves, which retail for roughly $5 to $7. That means a full loaf of gluten-free bread can cost between $10 and $14, a 500% to 1,400% increase in price.

Pizza

Until I moved in with Nick, I lived an admittedly bachelor lifestyle, which meant frozen pizzas for dinner multiple times a week. While Nick cooks nice dinners for me now — salmon, homemade soup, lasagna, you name it — I still rely on frozen pizzas the nights I need to feed myself.

You can get a regular frozen pizza of decent quality for $5 (though in my college days, I always bought the pizzas that were under $3). The cheapest gluten-free pizza I can find is Kroger’s $6 option, which does the trick, but the some of the best exceed $10 and are often smaller and contain fewer ingredients than comparable pizzas that aren’t gluten-free.

Pasta

A box of gluten-free pasta can cost between $2 and $3, which is more than the $1 I used to spend on regular fettuccine and spaghetti.

Desserts

If you have a sweet tooth and love to bake cookies and cakes, expect to pay a considerably higher price for mixes. Gluten-free cookie dough, for example, costs nearly $6 and makes the same amount of cookies you’d get from a $2 roll of regular dough.

You can also make desserts from scratch, but gluten-free flour is — you guessed it — more expensive than regular flour.

Alcohol

If you are used to buying cheap domestic beer and now find yourself switching to hard cider to satisfy your gluten-free needs, expect to join the world of craft beer prices, even for mass-market ciders. A 12 pack of Angry Orchard costs roughly $18 — about the same price you’d pay for a 24 pack of Bud Lite.

And Keep an Eye Out

Living with celiac disease means always reading the ingredients. Everything from soups to pecans to chips to pudding could contain gluten, even if it is just potential traces of wheat from other products manufactured at the same location. These gluten-free apps make the shopping experience much easier.

You’ll Save on Entertainment Expenses

Dining out at restaurants is becoming easier for people with celiac, but that also depends on your level of sensitivity. Nick, for example, used to be able to eat at restaurants that had gluten-free menu items and dedicated gluten-free spaces in the kitchen, but in the last year, his symptoms have worsened from cross-contamination, and we no longer dine out.

Regardless of the severity of your celiac, you will likely dine out less. Restaurants that cater safely to people with celiac are few and far between. There are just three restaurants in my home state of Ohio that are 100% gluten-free, and only one is within driving distance. That means Nick and I dine at home for every meal. The savings have been tremendous.

But restaurants are not the only entertainment expenses we’ve cut out. Because celiac is an autoimmune disorder that makes Nick a less healthy person in general, we take our physical health very seriously. That means we spend our date nights staying active — hiking, biking, swimming and kayaking for the most part.

If you have been diagnosed with celiac, I would challenge you to make these kinds of activities a regular part of your life. They are great for your health and are free alternatives to activities like bowling, going to the movies or drinking at the bar.

You’ll Have More Medical Expenses

Celiac is a medical condition, which could mean more trips to the doctor. Because of Nick’s weakened immune system, he has been to the emergency room for illnesses that I sometimes wouldn’t even go to the regular doctor for. (He once passed out in an ER waiting room when he was there with strep, which was one of the most frightening moments of my life.)

Thankfully, we have good health insurance that covers many of Nick’s medical expenses. What isn’t covered, however, is Nick’s lost time. If you have celiac disease, you will likely need to call off work more frequently than your coworkers, which could mean lost wages or eventually an employer that passes you up for raises and promotions. Nick, who runs his own small business, takes a hard hit financially when he is bedridden from the chronic migraines that accompany celiac or just from accidental contamination.

If you have just been diagnosed with celiac and have a good relationship with your boss, start a conversation about what it means for your health. Educating your boss on the struggles you are facing could make them more understandable and flexible with your schedule.

You’ll Need to Invest in New Appliances

Nick’s sensitivity to gluten is severe. For example, he can become sick by using a fork that has been washed but has been previously used to eat a food with gluten. While that is on the extreme side, most people with celiac should not use toasters, microwaves or even ovens that have had gluten in them. That, unfortunately, means packing your own meals when visiting friends and family.

When Nick and I moved in together, I had to get rid of all my cookware and appliances, and we purchased new appliances together. We also had to invest in new kitchen staples, like spices and baking essentials, that hadn’t been contaminated. Even when we bought a house last year, we had to get rid of the previous owners’ refrigerator, oven, microwave and dishwasher in favor of gluten-free appliances.

While these are investments anyone would make over time, having to pay for all these things at once can be daunting. But if you have just been diagnosed with celiac, it is the best way to ensure your good health.

You’ll Become an Expert Budgeter

Does Nick love living with celiac? Not at all. At least three times a week, he tells me he’s been dreaming about ordering one of everything from Taco Bell.

But have there been upsides to it? You betcha. Nick and I are more focused on our physical health, both in terms of staying fit and actively considering what we are putting into our bodies. We also have a killer excuse when people ask us to go grab a bite to eat and we’d rather stay home and watch Hulu.

But most importantly, Nick’s celiac diagnosis has forced us to be budget-conscious. We talk about our expenses and savings goals together and understand the importance of sticking to our budget. While I’ve always been a strict budgeter, understanding the heightened grocery bills and the need for emergency medical savings has helped Nick budget along with me.

Celiac doesn’t have to be a death sentence on your finances. Just budget wisely and, above all else, prioritize your health in your spending habits.

Timothy Moore is a market research editor and freelance writer covering topics on personal finance, careers, education, pet care and automotive. He has worked in the field since 2012 and has been featured on sites like The Penny Hoarder, Debt.com, Ladders, Glassdoor and The News Wheel.

This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.

The Penny Hoarder Promise: We provide accurate, reliable information. Here’s why you can trust us and how we make money.

My Partner Has Celiac Disease: Here’s What it Costs Us published first on https://justinbetreviews.tumblr.com/

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opepin · 7 years

Text

july: week three

17: i was really awake at 7:15 am when my alarm woke me up, but i went back to sleep for like 5 more minutes to see what i would do in the dream i was having. LOL. well, i got up, did my hiit workout, and i had the hardest time lowering my heart rate so i could stop sweating and take a shower. .___.; after like 10 minutes, i was finally able to do it...kinda, but i had to take a shower anyway and eat breakfast and then get to work on time...ish haha. my heart rate has dropped back down to 53 bpm :) yay, it makes me happy that it’s normalizing again. my face was pretty red and i was still sweaty when i got to the train... it’s okay! i just gotta keep going and wake up earlier to give my body time to cool down. the moment i walked in, cait was like woahhh, where have you been and etc. aw, it was nice welcome back chat with her, raj, joe, and charles. some of the devs weren’t there because they had to go to their client site and everyone apparently, just rolls in later on in the day now :O lol so my not being there is not a big deal :P

i started my work day by filling out an enrollment form for benefits! i’m getting my own dental insurance -- i feel so adult. lol. then i started working on templates mixed in with some internet errands. it’ll be a short week for me because i’m taking the day off to celebrate kevin’s birthday with him on thursday :3 hmm being at the office again is so far, refreshing. i got a good amount of work done and got to catch up with phil after lunch. charles made lunch plans so i went to south station to get food from the taco party food truck but they weren’t there... so i had to do some social media hunting and i found them down the street next to gogi on the block. i got their deep fried tofu and chorizo seitan taco with a side of tortilla chips and pinto dip. mmm. i ate all of that at my desk and i was so fullll. then i ate some of the cherries i brought from home. i ate so much that i was pretty uncomfortable in the tummy for the rest of the day lol.

i continued working until 4 pm and i got real worked up about tax withholdings and allowances because something changed in my paycheck and i was trying to figure out if i needed to fix it... sigh. then i noticed that haowei and charles dipped real quick after coming back from a bathroom break... raj said he hurt physically somewhere and cait, michelle, and i were all worried and watching him lol. then i left to catch the train where this lady (she was injured / had a limp) decided to take the stairs while the braintree train was approaching. the guy behind her turned around and ran down the other side of the stairs and i just stayed behind hoping that i would make it. then she stopped midway... and when she finally got to the bottom, my train JUST left. omg, i was in such a rage. it felt like she did it on purpose because she looked back at me right after the train left and then said nothing and stopped again. i just walked around her. the next train was 15 minutes away and it was flipping packed. i had to be standing behind the most inconsiderate human being. this guy decided that he owned the entire aisle and just let his body hang out 3/4 of the aisle while holding on to the top of the holds. his hand was inches away from my butt and i was putting all my body weight on my still healing foot. i was so ticked off that i kind of pushed him whenever i could and etc but he kept taking up space -_____-” #commuterrage

he left and i got a seat on the train for the rest of the ride. i picked up packages and had to get a trolley because one of my packages was just so freaking heavy. i only realized what it was when i opened it in the apartment... me and my mom got kevin a boos cutting board and i decided to splurge and get him the largest one... i didn’t expect it to be so damn heavy. well, i read 6.5 lbs but it was SO heavy. i decided to hide it along with the boxes (just in case we need to return for a more practically sized one) under half of the bed lol. then i went to play with the new smartphone lenses i got in the mail as well. the wide angle one works like a dream and the macro one is okay... i don’t think i’ll be using that one much anyway. when kevin came back, i debated on whether to keep or return them... i made a snapchat video and asked people and they all said to keep it. i had sort of an anger episode after telling kevin about my day and what i should do about my paycheck stuff and ugh, i just couldn’t not yell and kinda shake things around. i ran around the apartment yelling ‘why ______?! why ____?!?!’

then i exercised while kevin cooked steak for dinner. the video i did was more cardio than strength so i did a lot of cardio today and i was wiped out. i took a shower and then kevin and i ate his deliciously cooked steak topped with the most delicious onion glaze ever. we watched izombie, i cut up all the dying strawberries, we ate them, and then kevin went on a small run. he’s starting to do cardio now and he told me to keep him honest... WILL DO >:D haha. i did my pt stretches and iced my feet while reading a chapter of the journey mapping book. then i brushed and got into bed just right before 12 am. i stayed up relieving an itch to edit a picture i took today with the wide angle lens, updated to instagram, and then went to sleep at 12:30 pm. zzzz. i was working from home tomorrow so i would get enough sleep to wake up at 8 am. :)

18: i woke up at 8 am, did some hip hop cardio, showered, ate breakfast, and woke up kevin. then i started work, got fired up over an article about a girl’s post on linkedin that talked about job rejection (very generic) and how she is now getting job offers and that the linkedin post is now viral -__-”, and then got even more bummed out when i was talking to cole and he revealed that all the teams at t7 will be separated when we move office locations :/ and also that the dev team went to check out the space yesterday and left me in the dark... well, i’m not in the dev team so i guess i have no right to feel sad or left out, right? it’s gonna be an interesting move :/ sigh. i ate lunch while we had our all-hands and then went to pick up kevin’s present from the package concierge :) the packaging for the thing i got him is so on point. i’m so excited to surprise him thursday morning (:

i hopped on a call with phil and dave before stand up and we figured out some things. i pointed out some design details that could be addressed -- i’ve been feeling akjnskdf about my tasks right now because everything feels so disorganized with the new features even though it’s supposed to be easier to use the product :/ well, we figured stuff out, got on stand up, and then i worked on the templates for a bit and stopped because we have a trial with a potential customer tomorrow and we didn’t want to import any unfinished sample journey maps in there if i was working on any. i got pretty tired from everything that happened in the morning so i doodled a bit to make myself feel at least a bit better before taking a nap and then doing my ab workout. after i finished, i took some pictures for pas with the wide angle lens i got and also talked to vivian for a bit on chat. kevin came back early from climbing, showered, and then we cooked right away because both of us were pretty hungry.

i rested my foot while editing my instagram and stuff. my foot started to hurt a bit but nothing is swollen. i may have done too many jumps today and yesterday... we ate dinner while finishing the latest season of izombie?! i didn’t know we went through it all that quick ): now we have to find something new to watch and / or just wait for our shows to come out again. the rest of the night, i did my pt stretches while watching half of an episode of beat shazam and then read a chapter in the journey mapping book while icing my feet. then i got ready for bed and had the hardest time falling asleep... :( i knew i wasn’t gonna get a good night’s rest by the time i did ko...

19: i had a slight headache when i woke up and my foot kind of hurt so i did low impact cardio in the morning. then i showered and ate breakfast. my stomach was cramping a lot so i decided to work from home in the morning and then head over to the office after my physical therapy appointment. i fell asleep trying to wake up kevin LOL but then i woke up and got started on work. i put on the latest world of dance episode and then continued creating templates. my stomach felt slightly uncomfortable the rest of the morning... i ate some plain buns before heading out to physical therapy. i had a bit of a longer session today because it was my last. there was some swelling in my foot again but that’s because i did 2 hiit workouts in one day on accident... i got a good farewell and then walked over to the office. i ate lunch before hopping on stand up and getting on a call. after that, i wrapped up what i did today and then headed out to pick up kevin from work at around 4:30 pm. i looped around to grab kevin a slice of cake from flour bakery and got lost doing that... so i was really sweaty by the time i got to kevin. it was soooo humid and hot today.

we walked to south station because the silver line was working above ground today and it was too hot for that. we got to south station and it was PACKED. we waited for 2 trains and then rq’d and made a reservation at a restaurant on opentable and walked over there LOL. we actually made a reservation for miel, a restaurant i booked for tomorrow’s dinner... so i had to tell kevin and he just laughed and called himself clever... haha. we were the first ones to get dinner and we also looked really out of place with our attire HAHA. we were also super sweaty. kevin got scallops and risotto and i got ratatouille pasta with red wine sangria. the sangria was good~ the pasta was subpar, but kevin’s food was deliciousssss. lol we felt too out of place to ask for the pasta to go in a box so the waiter took it and we never saw the rest again. oh well~ :/ by the time we finished eating, south station was pretty empty. we got home and just chilled out. i didn’t exercise in the evening because i walked like 40+ minutes in the humidity and i sweated a lot. so i just showered and watched beat shazam before hopping into bed at around 12 am. i stayed up to wish kevin a happy birthday of course :)

20: i got out of bed at 10:30 am or so and then set up all of kevin’s gifts on the island, wrote him a card, and made the gifts look presentable LOL. kevin already knew that he was getting a cutting board, but not the skillet and the accessories :) i woke him up at around 11:20 am and then brought him to the island and he was actually so surprised. i thought he knew i was going to get him a cast iron skillet because i’ve been telling him that we should cook steak and etc. haha. he got caught up in reading about seasoning it but then we got ready to leave for brunch at brownstone! the ‘t’ trains got there whenever we got on the platform so we had perfect timing today. we ordered drinks and got delicious egg benedicts and hash. i got the duck and sweet potato hash and kevin got the pulled pork benny. everything was delicious~ they even put a candle in his english muffin LOL <3 we got midday tipsy from drinking and walked around copley mall for a bit before going home.

we chilled on the sofa for a while when we got home. kevin read fanfic while i talked to people on facebook messenger. then we drove to roche bros to get ingredients for steak dinner (: we got back and kevin started seasoning the skillet while i did my workout for the day. he looked so happy with that large af cutting board and skillet. :P i showered and then watched kevin cook. hehe, he looked so happy. kevin had to clean the skillet a bit after cooking so our food kind of got cold but still delicious! kevin made us roasted potatoes, asparagus, and a medium steak with mushroom and onions on top. mmm. we ate while watching ‘quanitco.’ lol i got hooked right at the very first episode and we watched maybe 4-5 episodes after because there is always a twist!!! i got ready for bed before 12 am and then spent the final minutes just cuddling with kevin :3 then i went to sleep. kevin handed me my feet xray bill though and i had to look at it before i went to sleep and it got me so tilted because they charged me more than the received estimate. .__. i spent some time looking up the massachusetts pricing transparency law for health care and just gave up and went to sleep at 1 am. i did not sleep well though.

21: the health care system in america sucks. i woke up in a pretty bad mood because i looked at my x-ray bill yesterday night and i woke up with the same disgruntled thoughts -_- after brushing my teeth, i called them and they said they had no record of the estimate i was given, but they did call to check and gave me 10% off my bill. so i guess it turned out alright because i ended up paying around what i was quoted for, but still, wtf, health care? after that call, i ate breakfast, and started my work day. i felt like i needed to exercise but i needed to get some actual work done today because i feel like i’m lagging behind in some ways. i did a good amount of work and then i fit in a 30 minute oblique workout before showering, washing the dishes, and making sure all is well in the apartment before heading out to meet kevin at the envoy. this meant me stressing out about meeting him later than usual. i did calm down on the train ride there and told kevin how i felt. the overnight bag was hella heavy though so i had to stop on the bridge and rest before meeting up with kevin. my back was soaked when i got there.

we checked in and went to our room first. the room was so nice :) i loved the sliding doors with the antique map designs on them. i really liked the tv and its placement right in front of the bed. kevin and i watched quantico before getting ready to head out to miel for his birthday dinner. it was a nice walk there but our dinner there wasn’t...well, the service was pretty bad and it might be because we used a voucher? but i’m not sure. we got seated outside right away but it took forever for our server (he reminded me of my grandpa) to get our order and get our food out. he forgot to make our sangria and apologized but we were almost at our entrees by the time he remembered. he kept disappearing and attended to other tables before us for some reason too. well, the food was pretty good. we got beef tartare, atlantic sole and gnocchi, steak and frites, and sorbet for dessert. mmm. we had to take our entrees back to the hotel only to find out that there wasn’t a mini fridge. well, our dinner was 2 hours long and we spent more than half of that waiting for our food. :/ so meh. we were really full when we got back so we rested and then got a bucket of ice for our food (didn’t use it though) and then we explored the hotel. they have a fancy af fitness center that we ended up not using.

we walked along the wharf and it was so nice :) then we spent the rest of the night watching quantico. the shower was nice too with the waterfall design and the space. the envoy also has fresh brand shampoo and lotion (ofc i took that stuff when we checked out). we got a vegan almond butter coconut ice cream sandwich before room service closed down for the night and it was DELICIOUS. we stayed up until 4 am and then went to sleep in the comfy hotel bed. what a day. what an experience with kevin (: <3 i hope he’s enjoying his birthday weekend so far. hehe i love spending time with him and staying in nice hotels lulz.

22: we did wake up at 10:15 am and then i ordered room service for us for breakfast. it was so exciting! :) i got steel cut oatmeal and kevin said it did taste better than regular oatmeal hehe. i also got $6 chamomile tea... why is tea so expensive at hotels? we watched an episode of quantico as we ate breakfast and packed. lol i think we’re very lbejafhsjdf about the characters right now. we finished packing and checked out right at 12 pm. then we stopped by starbucks so i could get a drink and get gold status again LOL. we finished the pink drink by the time we got to south station. when we got back to the apartment, i unpacked all of our stuff, chilled on the sofa for a while, and i tried on my warby parker glasses. i hated them LOL. the lenses caused a lot of chromatic abberation and made my eyes terribly small so i was not into them. the frames also felt/looked smaller than they were in the store?? kevin said they looked fine and he still liked them but i was not into them. so i asked him if we could drive over to south end to spectacles and check out their frames and etc.

even though he was tired, kevin agreed and then we left :) so grateful for this bear <3 we found a really good parking spot and then met paul, the owner of the store. he adjusted my glasses for me and checked the prescription and he suggested frames and etc. the moment i walked in there, i knew that i was gonna buy glasses from him and return my warby parker ones. kevin and i had a fun time trying on glasses. kevin was also bummed because we went down to the leasing office to make an appointment to see the apartment with the den earlier that day and she told us that they had someone else sign a lease for that apartment already... wtf? we’ve been talking to her about it for weeks and they mentioned nothing about this until now. i was ajkfnsjkf about it but not as much as kevin. i got these cute round “treasure” glasses and 1.74 high index lenses for $250. it would have cost about the same if i upped the lenses to 1.74 at warby parker as well.

we drove right to kam man because we were hungry and made a makeshift meal plan for the week because we’re leaving on friday. we split a beijing crepe and bought some buns. unff chinese sponge / chiffon cakes are the best. we were in and out real quick. we put everything away when we got home and then kevin played some hollow knight while i watched. then kevin went to cook and i did 30 minutes of cardio. we ate dinner while watching quantico and then kevin went to run in the fitness center and i just did dance cardio in the apartment. this new video is pretty great, but lots of jumping x( i stopped by the center to give company to kevin and then got distracted by talking to daniel about bartering LOL. kevin showered first while i did the dishes haha and then i showered and i think we stayed up watching quantico? maybe we didn’t...but it says on my fitbit that i went to sleep at 2:30 am... he might have gamed while i watched some thing on the ipad. zzz. well, we stayed up because we had nothing planned for tomorrow :)

23: it was our lazy day today. kevin got up at 10 am to talk to priya on the phone and i lazed in the bed until around 10:30 am. i ate a banana with peanut butter and some oatmeal for breakfast while i looked at this week’s coupons and planned my outfits for our upcoming trip on friday! i watched some youtube videos and then crawled back into bed after a bit. after his call, kevin made soup dumplings and i ate some along with leftovers. i did some packing while kevin gamed a bit and then we went to bj’s to use our coupons. we stocked up on a ton of meat and i got more contact solution and lotion~ we also got a 6-pack of lunchables...LOL. right when we got back, we split a pizza and nacho one. mmm they still taste the same. then kevin went to game while i did a bit of cleaning. then we watched a few more episodes of quantico and then kevin cooked japanese curry for dinner. i did 30 minutes of cardio while kevin cooked and then stopped to fold laundry. then we ate dinner and watched more quantico. i also talked to my mom for a bit and she told me to have safe travels~ we also ended up eating 5/6 lunchables by the end of the day and then i did 30 minutes of back and then 20 more minutes of hip hop cardio because i was feeling bad about eating them lunchables LOL. i showered and then got ready for bed and snoozed at around 12 am. wow, we did a lot today :O

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