In The Midst of the Battle

(Here you go, Selena.)

Last night, for reasons too tedious to tell, I ran at full speed out of the basement towards the stairs. I tripped over something and fell flat on my face. People, it was a flat-out body-length belly-flop straight onto the bare concrete floor. Fortunately I threw up one arm in front of my face on the way down, so I didn't lose any teeth, bones or, you know, a nose. But now I'm hobbling about like Quasimodo, dragging a bruised and scraped leg and unable to lift one arm above waist height.

If there's one thing I've learned over the last 33 years, though, it's this: Nothing numbs the pain like a great new pair of shoes. And I have two. Both were purchased at shockingly low prices on Boxing Day. For your delectation:

I. Cannot. Wait. To wear these fabulous shoes.
Easter morning, baby, I'll be sallying forth in these.
I call them my Mary Pickfords.

I call these my Black Barts.

In unrelated news, I've been cooking Mexican food again. That doesn't have anything to do with the fact that it's been a year since we went to Cancun for our belated honeymoon. Nor does it relate to the fact that, having quit my glam job, I am no longer at liberty to jet about the world, sipping cocktails in business class and laughing indulgently at the beleaguered and harried travelling plebeians behind the curtain. Rather, it has to do with the following gorgeous tomatillos:

These lovelies were found in Save On Foods, bizarrely enough. I couldn't possibly abandon them to some unprincipled northern BC redneck type, so I purchased them and lovingly transformed them into a batch of Salsa Verde.

Salsa Verde

• 1/2 kg tomatillos, husked
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/2 Tbsp lime juice
  
• 1 serrano chile peppers, minced
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• salt to taste

Throw everything together in a saucepan and blend the bejeebers out of it with your new Cuisinart Smart Stick, lovingly bestowed upon you by your sister-in-law. Bring to a nice boil, then reduce heat and let simmer for about 15 minutes. Cha cha cha! Olé!