Love A La Carte features all the little things that make my life just a little more delicious.

♣ MUSIC, MUSIC, MUSIC: of all kinds. Lately: Enya, Motown, Chuck Berry, Bob Marley, Jimi Hendrix, Imelda May, Rodrigo y Gabriela, Ryan Adams, Kate Nash, the Smiths, M. Ward, She & Him, Greg Edmondson (the Firefly soundtrack), Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson, Sondre Lerche, Erlend Øye and Kings of Convenience. What music are you listening to lately?

♣ Long-distance phone calls.

♣ Emails from friends who might as well be family, who have known you forever and known you through everything beyond life itself.

♣ My iPhone and all of my nerdy news apps: BBCNews, Huffington Post, NYTimes, and NPR, as well as the Council on Foreign Relations. Yeah, I’m a huge dork. I embrace it.

♣ Burt’s Bees Replenishing Lip Balm with Pomegranate Oil.

♣ Multi-grain tortilla chips.

♣ Going to the salon for hair dying and new style. Pampering myself in general. Might even get a manicure!

♣ Making peace with the fact that I can’t afford graphic design school just yet. But I will find a way. I am determined.

♣ Having guy friends I can just chill with. The balance of energy is different than with girls and I’ve missed having friendly, non-romantic relationships with guys.

♣ Hot caramel mochas.

What’s making your life sweet this week?