jolly good show, wizenberg

I’m borrowing A Homemade Life from Allisa.  The whole blog-into-book idea feels pretty lame to me, so though I heard everyone was into it I was still playing hard-to-get with this one, but Allisa is so nice that I can’t refuse her anything, including borrowing and reading a book she likes, so…

She was right, it’s great.  I mean, the stories are OK, I’m not particularly fascinated by her life – partly because she’s one of those people that is in love with Paris, which just gets old.  Although I totally know how she feels.  Rome to me feels like a sad breakup that I just can’t get over.  So I get it, but I don’t really care.  Sorry!  But I’ve been there, and she’s local and she’s about my age so aside from the stuff about Oklahoma it’s all pretty familiar and reads like a convo with a pal for the most part.

But more importantly – every single recipe in the book looks totally rad!   Really, I might have to buy it.  Last night I made the ratatouille and the fennel-pear salad and both were great.  And I want to try every other recipe so far too.  Even things that are totally not my style (cookies with lots of pink frosting?) sound pretty good the way she describes them.  And I love that on the one hand she goes nuts for fancy pants shit and on the other she is enormously satisfied by something like… a spoonful of peanut butter when conditions are right.  Also, her husband’s (her?) pizza place is opening up in walking distance so that’s exciting too.

Meanwhile, we just watched Bridge on the River Kwai for the AFI 100 list.  It starts sort of slow, but after about an hour picks up a bit (yea it’s loooong).  It’s full of British-isms and Alec Guiness.  There is an explosion.  I think you’ll be ok if you go through life without seeing it.  After this back to back with Sunset Boulevard and close behind The Towering Inferno I think we’re good on William Holden movies for a while.

65% done w/ AFI 100 list
43% done with Academy Awards list
72% done with WGA greatest screenplays list
27% done with the criterion collection

too many projects

My disease is too many projects.  i’m really good at brainstorming and thinking of things i want to do and then moving on before i’ve even closed the browser window with all the awesome sites i’ve found in a flurry of research… my latest project is fantasizing that i’m going to do the 8-step apartment therapy cure.  the first step involves a quiz about your style and your home and one of the questions is to do with what you want in your house that’s not there now.  my answer?  more room for my projects!  supposedly i’ll do more with the right space, more time, materials, etc. but probably not.  anyway, i’ll probably forget about the cure in short order.  right now i’m thinking about how i can adapt square-foot-gardening for indoors.  how many plants can i fit on the dining table?  Also i’m going to start baking all our bread.  with all my free time.

I guess I lied, the apartment therapy project is actually 3 or 4 obsessions back.  That is so last night.

Because my memory is shit and I have no self-awareness, I looked at my history to check out some of my other project ideas:

• weekly bread baking (this is part of a larger goal of having a set schedule to bring sanity to the baby world)
• saving $1,000 a month per husband’s request.  i’m sure i can do it.  but it might involve some outlay for things like baking all our bread, growing food… and getting him to stop going to the liquor store.
• my indoor square foot garden (since my landlord is over EVERY FUCKING DAY working on the yard i don’t really feel comfortable trying to use the space outside)
• some kind of homebased mom biz i haven’t figured out yet (doing general reading on the topic)
• regular sunday dinners (i’ve wanted to do this for years.  doing so this week at least.)
• buying a house (more my man’s project, but i’m a slut for projects, so…)
• canning/food preservation
• some extreme plan and execution for using old food/spices that have been hanging around.  last weekend i used that old-ass gelatin for example…
• a career in technical writing/editing
• resuming bento/lunch making.  or a bake sale?
• Copying “a homemade life” by reflecting on my life through recipes.  supposedly activities like that strengthen the connection between the two sides of your brain.
• Writing down the birth story
• becoming a tutor-for-hire.  i’m going to have to get over feeling weird about taking money from individuals.
• thanksgiving in october!  i thought of something i wanted to do for it last night.  but i’ve lost it by now.

Those are the possibilities for the last two days.  Really i’d be satisfied if i get the printer plugged in.  I have a big list of things to print.

Wine Jelly

I have an incredibly slow-moving goal to use up old ingredients.  Among the oldest is a bunch of gelatin I bought to make marshmallows several winters ago.  Gelatin doesn’t go bad, so it’s more a matter of space/principle than spoilage, but in some ways that makes it a more urgent ingredient to get done with, since I know the day will never come when I can just throw it out and be done with it.  This weekend the stars aligned though – the cook book club did The First Ladies Cookbook this time around and therein lie not one but two recipes for “wine jelly” (also a “savory jelly” but the less said about that one the better).  I wouldn’t call this book particularly rigorous in providing historical details/proof so you have to take a leap of faith and imagine that the original recipes that precede some entries actually have some established connection to the president in question or at least the time period.  So I’ll optimistically say that what follows is an authentic Wine Jelly recipe from Thomas Jefferson’s day/time in the White House (spelling and punctuation as I found it):

Take 4 calves feet, & wash them well without taking off the hoofs. (or instead of that take 1 oz. isinglass, or 1 oz. of deers horns)  These feet must be well boiled the day before they are wanted.  Let them cool in order to take off the greese.  After taking off the greese put the jelly in a caserolle.  Put there 4 oz. sugar, cloves, nutmeg.  Boil all together.  Take 6 whites of eggs.  the juice of 6 lemons, a pint of milk, a pint of madeira.  Stir all together.  Pour it into the jelly & boil it.  Taste it to see if sweet enough, if not, add powdered sugar.  Strain it 2 or 3 times thru’ flannel til clear.  Put it in glasses or moulds.

Thankfully, the Culinary Expert (Dione Lucas) and the Home Economist (Janet C. Glenn) adapted the recipe for modern gals who lack access to deer horns, and I was able to lose two packets of gelatin (don’t worry – there is still a lot more left).  I myself adapted their recipe a bit, and I would do so further if I made it again to add even more gelatin (not just to get rid of it I swear!) because it came out on the soft side.  Fine if you want to scoop out your jelly, but no good for a fancy mold the likes of which can be found in the positively 50’s photo spreads in The First Ladies Cook Book. This jelly works as a weirdy dessert, but would also go with meat and stuff.  Maybe I’ll make another batch at Thanksgiving!

Wine Jelly à la Thomas Jefferson (with actual execution/notes in bold)

2 envelopes unflavored gelatin (I would experiment with 3 for a firmer jelly)
1/2 c. cold water (add another 1/4 c. water if you’re going for 3 gelatin packs)
2 cups strained fruit juice (grape, cranberry, or raspberry) (I used Knudsen’s pure unsweetened cherry juice with good results)
3/4 to 1 c. sugar (I used 1/2 c. and it was plenty – on the tart side if you like that)
pinch of salt (oops, forgot that.  oh well!)
1 pint wine (Madeira, red Burgundy, or sherry) (I used a Rioja Rosé and it was great)
strained juice of 3 lemons (I used 1/2 c. lemon juice)
fresh fruit for garnish (didn’t bother with that)

(First: Chill your mold.) Dissolve 2 envelopes of gelatin in 1/2 cup of cold water (put the water in a bowl and sprinkle gelatin over it, not the other way around).  Add this to the fruit juice, which has been brought to a boil.  Add sugar to taste and a pinch of salt.  Let cool.  Next, add the pint of wine and lemon juice.

Pour into mold that has been chilled.  Set into the refrigerator for at least 2 hours (many more if you want it to really be cold enough to unmold – up to 24 hours).  Unmold and serve cold.  Decorate with fresh fruits that have been rolled in powdered sugar (or not).

I might add pictures later.  Check out this flickr group for an approximation of the vibe of the whole book…

50 things i love to do

Just FYI.

1. read a new magazine
2. go to the library
3. check things off lists – like my movie lists
4. hang out with my husband
5. take pictures of my kid
6. shred things
7. finish washing ALL the laundry
8. think up projects
9. make lists
10. get mail
11. send a pal a link or piece of info that makes her/him happy
12. get rubs/massages from my husband
13. make something new with CSA veg
14. get a new cookbook
15. feel connected to family / family-style friends
16. eat ice cream/milkshakes
17. drink beer/wine/cocktails
18. see my baby do something new
19. travel
20. ride on the ferry
21. listen to positive vibrations
22. get compliments on my cooking
23. get compliments on my hard work
24. hear sweet somethings from my man
25. watch my guys interact
26. be near water
27. long car rides to a new place
28. play board games with people i like
29. watch movies alone
30. watch movies with my family
31. fantasize about reading books/occasionally doing so
32. plan theme parties / carry them off
33. plan and anticipate thanksgiving in october
34. organize things/thoughts
35. clear out clutter
36. go to the library sale
37. fantasize about my business
38. fantasize about going to school
39. daydream about all the fun things kid and i will do together when he’s older
40. not work
41. get out of going to work/school/an appointment/etc.
42. get tasks/errands done and done well
43. pick out presents for people/give people presents they love
44. whatever i want while baby naps
45. picking up long-awaited holds at the library
46. make playlists on youtube/find something great/listen to pandora
47. use netflix to the maxx.  every feature.
48. hear gossip that isn’t mean spirited
49. hear bad jokes/puns
50. acquire new pens, pencils, notebooks, calendars, etc.

are you ready for the summer?

no more classes, no more books
no more teachers’ dirty looks…

It’s been 9 months, dang!  This isn’t one of those “I’m back!” kind of posts because the truth is I’m likely to disappear once again any day now to spend my days staring at a baby instead of the internet, but whatevs.  Historically I haven’t been great about completing my summer fantasy lists, but that doesn’t make them any less worth making or sharing… Also since we moved I haven’t yet replaced my wall of friends’ lists, but this time instead of pro/con I was thinking maybe life dreams.  Will I be a better friend if I have daily reminders of what my pals long for?  Certainly anything that can help them get there will be on my radar right?

If you make a summer list or a (current) life list let me know.  Here are mine:

SUMMER 2009
months-long movie marathon with my main man
using up some of the polaroid film I’ve been hoarding on the baby
u-picks
good times sharing a CSA with a pal – more sunday dinners!

trying new edible plants.  let’s say, 10
visit tina
visit aaron
maybe visit SF.  maybe not til later.
some endeavor that keeps my brain going.  maybe a little latin and greek.
get in the water with the baby

Life!
have chickens and/or goats
swim with tropical fishes
ride a horse
go back to the middle east
live abroad when kids are young

blah

got rid of 448 songs.  what a boring process.

a few on my have-to-buy list: arthur russell, yoko, mala rodriguez, serge gainsbourg, nina simone, joy division, daft punk.  boxes like 70s punk, girl groups lost and found, brown eyed soul, etc.  bunch of putumayo comps.

have a lot more comps to listen to.

clarification

i seem to be having trouble making this clear to people, even though i feel like i’ve said it quite explicitly a million times (offline) – I completely agree that breaking the law is justified in many cases, including whenever you want if you’re a person who doesn’t care about the law.  What I think is bullshit is claiming to have ethical / carefully considered reasons for doing so if you don’t.

and for some reason i keep getting shit (lighthearted shit, but still) for jaywalking as though that invalidates everything i say.  first of all, I think lights except at huge intersections where it is impossible to see anything are stupid, and i think making everyone learn how to fucking look where they are going is way more efficient.  I loved living in Rome!  No one sat around waiting and NO ONE GOT HURT.  people just understood that it was their responsibility to be aware of what the fuck was going on in the road, and so it all worked out.  second, of everyone i know, i am THE MOST conscientious about crossing when it’s my turn.  I will walk to the end of the block and circle back to do so, and sometimes i’ll even wait if no one seems to be coming but it’s a pretty busy street so it is likely someone might come.  My feeling is that i want the cars to stop for me, so i should be willing to stop for them when it is their turn.

All that said, the point of the crossing rules is (as far as i can tell) to clarify whose turn it is (because we’re too stupid to take turns using the road without regulations) and to keep people from getting hurt.  Both pedestrians and drivers have the right to use the road, and since one of us (probably me) will get hurt if we don’t take turns, there’s a law.  If the law exists to protect our respective rights, I think i’m justified in believing that i’m not violating anyone’s rights by crossing if there is NO ONE THERE.  Nor am I endagering myself.

Since artists and publishers have the right to be paid for their work/property, it seems pretty clear that unless they willingly give up that right, we ARE violating the right by refusing to pay for it (unless we’re w/i our rights to “fair use” of their work as part of the general public).

blah blah blah

music is a rival of reality

Borgman (1999) suggests there are three types of information. There is information about reality in which reports disclose what is distant in space and remote in time. There is information for reality in which recipes transform reality and make it richer materially and morally. Finally there is information as reality in which recording information through the power of technology steps forward as a rival of reality. It is the latter which challenges the traditional view of information. Borgman (ibid) illustrates this third form with classical music: ‘The technological information on a compact disc is so detailed and controlled that it addresses us virtually as reality. What comes from a recording of a Bach cantata on a CD is neither a report about the cantata nor a recipe- the score-for performing the cantata; it is in the common understanding of music itself.’

Rogerson, S.
Information and integrity in the information age
Ethical Space, The International Journal of Communication Ethics, Vol 4, Nos 1&2, pp 10-12, 2007. (via the Center for Computing and Social Responsibility)

daring baking/not

not doing it this month, reasons include budget, busy-ness, and being fed up with buttercream.  seriously, i hate that shit.  but if you’re into fancy pants cakes, check out a shit ton of them.  i feel a little bad for not doing it this month, because it feels wimpy not to do the super complicated thing… but if it were cheap OR i had a free weekend this month OR it wasn’t layer upon layer of sweet and more sweet, I’d be in there with them… but i’ll have way more time once summer starts, and more time to host parties where i can serve these things.  reading this (among others) makes me feel bad about making something like this knowing i would need so much help finishing it and would likely toss most of it…

to make a short story long, stars did not align.  see you next time!

lingua latina

not exactly sure what this article is announcing, since i’ve looked at the vatican website years ago and it seemed to me then that everything was available in latin, but this i thought was funny:

But Father Reginald Foster, an American priest who is the Pope’s official Latinist, praises the virtues and the clarity of the Latin language.

“You have to say something and move on,” he says.

“It’s not like French and some of these philosophical languages where you can write a whole page and say nothing – in Latin you can’t do that!”

hmmm… I’m not so sure… it seems to me you can ramble in any language.