Getting Back on the Horse

A few of months ago, I woke up early on a Friday morning. I packed my lunch. I ran to catch the train. I got busy reading some spreads, because I was worried about turning them around to one of my managing editors.

Two hours later, I packed up my desk and went home.

When you work in publishing, everybody tells you that there will come a point in your career when you will get laid off. You read that books are a "dying" industry. You hear that editors and designers here and there have lost their jobs. And when your own company starts to struggle, it's in the air all the time--in looks, in side conversations, in tense meetings.

It's still really shocking when it actually happens to you.

After that horrible day in January, I had a rough couple of months. I ate a lot of brownies. I wrote a lot of cover letters, and stressed out over a lot of interview outfits. Mostly, I really missed packing my lunch every morning, getting on the train like everybody else, and going into the office to read, and write, and make cookbooks.

I finally have a new job. I'm going to be working on some new projects, in totally different subject areas: film, music, photography, children's. And the best part is, I still get to be an editor, and do work that I find intrinsically interesting and deeply satisfying. In short, I'm excited again. And you know what? I would rather have had a job that I LOVED for three years, and lost, than be bored.

And now, just because I'm an English major and we can get away with this sort of thing, I'll leave you with a cowboy quote:

"Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway." --John Wayne

Explaining an Astrophysics PhD to a Seven-Year-Old

I do a bit of babysitting. This involves larges batches of chocolate chip cookies and regular dramatic readings of children's stories. It's a pretty good deal for all involved.

The kids I sit for have discovered that I have a boyfriend--gasp!--and that my boyfriend is a scientist. A number of questions have arisen.

"What is on the inside of your umbrella?"

A map of the Cosmic Microwave Background.

"Is the sun really just a medium-sized star?"

My expert says it's certainly not one of the biggest.

"Are you just like Penny on The Big Bang Theory?"

Kind of? But smarter.

And now I give to you a conversation between myself and a seven-year-old. I was unpacking a set of birthday cupcakes. Having run out of containers, I resorted to a certain lunch box.

"Whose Star Trek lunch box is that?"

"Stephen's."

"Why does Stephen have a lunch box?"

"Because he packs his lunch every day."

"Why does he need to pack his lunch?"

"So he can take it to school."

"Stephen goes to school?"

"Yes."

"How old is Stephen?"

"28."

Long pause. "You can go to school when you're 28?!"

"You can if you're a PhD."

I think I blew his mind. It was like watching a supernova. Actually, I don't really know what a supernova is. I just asked Stephen for an example of an astrophysical explosion, because I felt I needed a metaphor. I'm an English major, and we can get away with that sort of thing.

The Challenge: Tartine

This is Tartine.

It's only 8 o'clock in the morning, so that's why there's no line out the door yet.

This is a morning bun from Tartine.

You cannot order more than six of these, or the baker-hipsters will get grumpy. Take my word for it. They might still give them to you, but they'll be grumpy about it. Just wanted to give you fair warning.

This is a loaf of bread from Tartine.

You cannot get these at the same time of day as the morning buns. These come out of the oven at 5 o'clock each afternoon, and require a separate visit. Yes, it's worth it.

Together, both of these are why Tartine is one of the few establishments in San Francisco to get not one, but two mentions on 7x7's 100 Things to Try Before You Die list.

This is the Tartine cookbook.

My friend Malavika gave me this cookbook for my birthday. Moments like this make it clear to me why I am friends with Malavika (along with similar sentiments towards ponies, milk tea, and reading in cafés). Tartine's piece de resistance, the morning bun, is NOT included in the cookbook. Which is actually okay, because it means you can have more early morning Tartine dates with your friend Malavika.

This is my favorite bakery in San Francisco.

This is why I go to spin class three days a week (and yet somehow never emerge looking quite like Kate Bosworth).

Tartine. Je t'adore.