Rebecca A. Foster

Some friends and I have the tradition of going out for cheese and chocolate fondue the day after Thanksgiving when I came home to spend the holiday with my family. Because I am not going to be here the next few Thanksgivings, we went now. Our tradition is to try a few of the cheese fondues and we usually end up getting the turtle chocolate fondue because it's flambeed and we like fire at the table. This one is spinach and artichoke, always a favorite. Don't be scared of fondue, it's tasty. Besides, can't go wrong with cheese and chocolate for dinner. www.meltingpot.com

Some friends made me this apron. I already thought it was hilarious, and then I saw the backside: Who the hell makes fabric of a guy pulling his pants off? What exactly do they think you'd make out of this? A quilt? Anyway, it's my favorite apron anyone's ever given me. My friends, they rule.

I don't remember ever not having my ears pierced. This is my niece, and her pierced ears. Her dad jokes the belly button is next.

There's this guy I knew. I loved him. I enjoyed the silent moments with him more than actually talking to any other guy. Quality of silences means something to me. Silences tell the story between two people. One thing I like about The Office is its willingness for silence. You'll notice how little talking there is in these scenes. Much more realistic than always having the perfect thing to say. (And yeah this video is cheesy, but I can't find any other clips that show the silences as well. But I really like this song.)

I don't like unidentified smells. I often ask "What's that smell?" (and often get teased for it), but I don't think I underestimate the importance of smell. Have you ever smelled an old perfume, type of food, etc. and had a flood of memories come back? It's incredible. I bought a sealed package of chopsticks in Bangkok and opened them at home several months later. They smelled just like Bangkok, a very distinct smell, and the memories were instantaneous. I have mentioned here before I love the smell of men's t-shirts, so it was interesting to read in a recent magazine blurb that the way men and women smell to each other can have as much to do with how they get along as looks and personality factors. If someone smells "off" to you, you are probably not going to be attracted to them, no matter how handsome, beautiful or likeable they are. Have you ever been inexplicably attracted to someone you know is totally wrong for you, but just can't se...

My cousin Tobe taught me to make these sandwiches, one of his specialties. I made them for my friend Rich, who recently asked me if I would make it for him one last time before I leave. I think he will miss the Tobe Specials more than he will miss me. Not that I blame him. Here's the recipe, as I remember it (I'm sure Tobe will pipe up if I'm wrong): 1 plain bagel, sliced American cheese cream cheese 1 fried egg sliced deli ham Add some sliced ham to one side of the bagel and put both halves in the oven to lightly toast/heat up the ham. When the ham is warm, open the oven and add the American cheese. Keep toasting until the cheese is melted. In the meantime, fry an egg, then add it to the ham and melted cheese bagel half. Slather the other bagel half with cream cheese. Put the halves together and eat. YUM. (Also delicious without the ham, for weirdos who don't eat meat.)

FloJo is in town, staying with me. Friday night we watched Before Sunrise . For those that haven't seen it, a guy and a girl meet on a train in Europe; he's getting off in Vienna, she's getting off in Paris. He asks her to take a chance and get off the train in Vienna and hang out with him until his plane leaves in the morning (hence the title). We had the following conversation: Me: Would you have gotten off the train? FloJo: No way! Me: Do you think I would have gotten off the train? FloJo: Yes... but I wish you wouldn't. I love trains. I love the feeling that you could go anywhere, meet anyone, have a grand adventure you could never anticipate and watch unfold with exhilaration. FloJo thinks I take too many chances sometimes. Especially the new chances I am preparing to take. But she supports me. And for all those that understand why I need to "get off the train," and who will be there when I return, I appreciate your support. I will miss you. (And, I ha...

This is a beautiful photo compilation. I love the way the photographer explains the art of attempting to map reality onto still frames. I also love his explanation that when he is not entirely comfortable is when he is at his best.

When I was a little kid, I loved my dad's old records. The Sting was a favorite, especially the track Hooker's Hooker , a classic striptease song. I would put on layers and layers of clothes and play "stripper" in the living room. ( NOTE: I was always fully dressed underneath and remained so .) I didn't understand what strippers did in a larger context, but I thought they were beautiful and got to dance to the best music! (It's funny to me now my parents never said anything to me about my "game.") I still love classic stripper music. My friend J. in Texas introduced me to this great compilation, Take It Off!. (J's house is decked out like a 60's Rat Pack martini bar, my favorite house to play at by far. Those of you who have seen the picture of me on the bed under the mirrored ceiling? J's bedroom.) It's a lot of fun to listen to, as well as a great dancing/workout CD. Try it! (Samples here as well. I especially like track 8.)