Allyson Whipple

Category: Lists

  • The Best of It: Going Through Old Photos Edition

    I’ve been going through old photos. This is a sourdough misadventure from 2014.
    1. Sourdough bread with goat cheese, red pepper flakes, and cherry balsamic vinegar
    2. Looking through old photos and seeing how much I’ve improved at baking over the years
    3. Honestly, seeing how much I’ve improved at cooking in general
    4. I finally have all the material to finish my second quilt
    5. That I don’t have platinum blonde hair anymore. That was not a good look for me.

  • The Best of It: Not Titled Until 36 Hours Later Edition

    Black swallowtail caterpillar
    1. Getting to go to Bastrop State Park yesterday for a picnic and hike. It was our first state park trip in three months, and it felt great.
    2. Having tickets for Barton Springs next Sunday.
    3. Knowing that my garden is a host to future black swallowtail butterflies
    4. Watching Astrid chase lizards through the park. (Don’t worry, she stayed on-leash.)
    5. Tandoori chicken (Which I didn’t remember to take a picture of, but it was delicious.)

  • The Best of It: Summer Foods Edition

    Bruscetta platter for dinner
    1. Cherries
    2. Peaches
    3. Tomatoes
    4. Blackberries
    5. Sweet corn

  • A List of Quarantine Projects I’ve Undertaken in Somewhat Chronological order

    The old power steering pump
    • Replaced my worn-out power steering pump
    • Tilled up 96 square feet of soil by hand
    • Planted 25 different vegetables, plus marigolds to keep the nematodes away
    • Completed an EP of yoga nidra practices for equinox and solstice
    • Built a hanging rack for my pots and pans, and generally reorganized my entire kitchen
    Dishes on display!
    • Took a level 1 mat Pilates teacher training
    • Assembled and started submitting a new poetry chapbook manuscript
    • Started a new blog endeavor, The Best of It, to record the small niceties in my life
    • Took a course on the Matangi, Durga, and Lasksmi archetypes offered by Chanti Tacoronte-Perez and Stephanie Chee Barea
    Warp board
    • Took a course on Buddhism called The Whole Path, offered by Sharon Salzberg
    • Made green tea ice cream
    • Made my first quilt, entirely by hand, using tote bags from End of an Ear
    • Began making a quilt for my friend’s baby
    • Created plans for a quilt to give my aunt and uncle for Christmas
    Evolution of a quilt
    • Built a warp board for my table loom
    • Learned to make baba ganoush, as well as a few variations
    • Started submitting poetry regularly again
    • Helped Borderlands apply for funding for next year
    • Organized my bathroom cabined
    • Cleaned out my bedroom closet
    Evolution of a garden

    I hope that, wherever you are, you are as safe as possible, and finding ways to stay happy and fulfilled through quarantine.

  • The Best of It: Poetry and Pie Edition

    Gorgeous and Delicious
    1. Cherry pie and coffee for breakfast
    2. That the BookWoman open mics are still happening virtually
    3. All the work that Cindy Huyser does for the poetry community
    4. Cold dinners on hot summer nights
    5. Harvesting my first Thai chilis

  • The Best of It: Mostly Poetry Things Edition

    When you don’t have a specific photo in mind, just use an old dog photo!
    1. Cherry pie in the oven
    2. I had an amazing time in the Wingbeats workshop hosted by Dos Gatos Press last night.
    3. Signing up for the Two Sylvias Press online poetry retreat
    4. The satisfaction that comes from sending out poems
    5. Feeling confident enough to send out work again

  • The Best of It: Easygoing Tuesday Edition

    And with that, my living room is complete!
    1. The Thai chair I ordered before quarantine happened finally arrived!
    2. Cold soba noodles
    3. When Astrid gets her zoom on
    4. Breakfast tacos. Forever and always.
    5. Getting my minimum goals reached early in the day

  • The Best of It: Monday Miscellany Edition

    Last night’s pasta and foccacia
    1. The versatility of pasta
    2. Fresh, homemade foccacia
    3. Getting my closet cleaned out
    4. Harvesting beans from my garden
    5. Implementing a new exercise in my technical writing class

  • The Best of It: This Mostly Ended Up Being About Fried Chicken Edition

    Wednesday’s fried chicken dinner
    1. The fried chicken with iced tea brine recipe from Flavors of the Southern Coast
    2. The cole slaw recipe from that same cookbook has become an established favorite. I use it every time I want cole slaw.
    3. Putting leftover cole slaw in a grilled cheese sandwich.
    4. Chicken salad sandwiches made with leftover fried chicken.
    5. Getting takeout burgers from Billy’s yesterday

  • The Best of It: Weekend Miscellany Edition

    You wanted more Astrid photos, right?
    1. Picnics
    2. Clearing the air
    3. Solar Opposites
    4. Feeling inspired to join online poetry gatherings of all kinds
    5. Dogs wearing bandanas