Happy Wednesday: Introducing the Sassy Domestic.

Okay, so maybe your picket fence is actually a row of garbage cans lined along the curb of your sidestreet and your 2.5 kids are your twenty-something dude roommates who don’t need you to transport them to various extracurricular activities, just a ride home from the bar after last call once in a while.  That doesn’t mean you can’t revel in a bit of domestic bliss.

You don’t have to sport a Peter Pan collar or a diamond on your ring finger.  What the hell, you don’t even need a man at all! It’s 2009 and about time that tradition had a makeover.  I give you: the Sassy Domestic. She works.  She leaves dishes in the sink.  She might call him.  She might not.  She’s any girl who can enjoy a good recipe when paired with a tall can of beer.

Every domestic needs a good cookbook.  Written with the sassy domestic in mind, I Like You is an indispensable guide chock full of recipes, notes on ettiquite, and part ideas all from the whimsical mind of Amy Sedaris.  You probably know her best as Jerri Blank from the TV series, Strangers With Candy. If you don’t know her, get to know her and you’ll make a beeline to the bookstore for your new kitchen bible!

While cooking alone or for your roommates, impress others or just feel more legit with an adorable apron from Anthropologie.

Spruce up your space without spending a fortune with Orla Kiely’s home line for Target. What would a girl do but dream without Target’s sweet designer collaborations?

Sprucing up may also involve cleaning out, but don’t toss everything!  This D.I.Y. project can make an old record worth your time!

Lastly, nothing makes a home more homey than candles.  Make your own teacup candles to give that glow a personal touch!

Restaurant Week Shall Be Henceforth Known as Restaurant Weeks

This just in from R.J. at the Center City District, Restaurant Week—originally slated to take place from Jan. 25 to Jan. 30—has been extended through Feb. 6. Not all restaurants will participate in the second week, but those that do will offer the same menu.

This is what I call a fringe benefit of a fucked up economy.

For a list of participating restaurants, click here.

NYT: Crushed foodie dreams

A very sober outlook on opening and running your own restaurant in the New York Times is a solid read. Linda Lipsky of Broomall-based Linda Lipsky Restaurant Consultants, Inc. opens the story by talking about how when she taught a course called “So You Want to Open a Restaurant” at Temple her goal was to smash students’ dreams into a million little pieces.

But running a restaurant–especially living the Philly BYOB love dream–seems soOoOooo romantic, yes? Just a little place that’s all our own.

I’d love to hear from some crushed dreamers on how it went down for them in Philly.

R.I.P Blue Angel, Angelina’s, Felicia’s, Pasion, Cibucan, Opus 251, Adriatica, Rococo, Circa, Knave of Hearts, Minar Palace (c’mon now), and on and on.

Is there a conclusive list out there?