Nouvelle Blogger

I may turn into a book blogger yet....

2009-02-08T00:22:00.000-08:00

I am currently reading The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery, and I came across the following paragraphs that I just loved. So...I had to share them. Florinda--you are right--you may yet turn me into a book blogger!

"The cherry plum test is extraordinary for its disarming clarity. It derives its power from a universal observation: when man bites into the fruit, at last he understands. What does he understand? Everything. He understands how the human species, given only to survival, slowly matured and arrived one fine day at an intuition of pleasure, the vanity of all the artificial appetites that divert one from one's initial aspiration toward the virtues of simple and sublime things, the pointlessness of discourse, the slow and terrible degradation of multiple worlds from which no one can escape and, in spite of all that, the wonderful sweetness of the senses when they conspire to teach mankind pleasure and the terrifying beauty of Art.

The cherry plum test is held in my kitchen. I place the fruit and the book on the Formica table, and as I pick up the former to taste it, I also start on the latter. If each resists the powerful onslaught of the other, if the cherry plum fails to make me doubt the text and if the text is unable to spoil the fruit, then I know that I am in the presence of a worthwhile and, why not say it, exceptional undertaking, for there are very few works that have not dissolved--proven both ridiculous and complacent--into the extraordinary succulence of the little golden plums."

Ahhhh, I love food and so take great delight in the idea of measuring the worthiness of literature against the perfection of a single piece of fruit. Food and reading--two of my favorite things in the world. Brilliant, I say, just brilliant.

He's all boy....

2009-02-07T08:36:00.000-08:00

Any doubts I had about my son being raised in a very female-influenced household have now been laid to rest. To wit:

1. He just watched a video of a boy screaming for 30 seconds while said boy (not son) farts 5 times, then falls on the stairs. "Mom, this is so cool--you've got to see this...." Although he did watch it only 8 times in a row. (Gee, thanks iCarly.com).

2. While playing solo video games, he acts as his own announcer: "No one has ever defeated E_____; he steals right, then left...oh no, here comes the cheese. Hah!--E_____ is victorious again......" etc. etc. etc.

Tuesday Teasers on Thursday.

2009-02-05T18:32:00.000-08:00

Teaser Tuesdays, hosted at Should Be Reading, asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.

You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given.

I'm sick, so no rebellious poetry or snarky comments. Just the quote, ma'am; just the quote.

"I wonder if it wouldn't be simpler just to teach children from the start that life is absurd. That might deprive you of a few good moments of your childhood but it would save you considerable time as an adult--not to mention the fact that you'd be spared at least one traumatic experience, i.e. the goldfish bowl." p. 23

From The Elegance of the Hedgehog, by Muriel Barbery.

Poem of the Day

2009-01-31T09:47:00.000-08:00

It's official: I am obsessed with the poetry of Mary Oliver. Here is the M.O. poem of the day--from Dream Work.

Members of the Tribe

Ahead of me
they were lighting their fires
in the dark forests
of death.

Should I name them?
Their names make a long branch of sound.

You know them.

~~~~

I know
death is the fascinating snake
under the leaves, sliding
and sliding; I know
the heart loves him too, can't
turn away, can't

break the spell. Everything

wants to enter the slow thickness,
aches to be peaceful finally and at any cost.

Wants to be stone.

~~~~~

That time
I wanted to die
somebody
was playing the piano
in the room with me.

It was Mozart.
It was Beethoven.
It was Bruckner.

In the kitchen
a man with one ear
was painting a flower.

~~~~

Later,
in the asylum,
I began to pick through the red rivers
of confusion;

I began to take apart
the deep stitches
of nightmares.

This was good, human work.

This had nothing to do with laying down a path of words
that could throttle,
or soften,
the human heart.

Meanwhile,
Yeats, in love and anger,
stood beside his fallen friends;
Whitman kept falling
through the sleeve of ego.

In the back fields,
beyond locked windows,
a young man who couldn't live long and knew it
was listening to a plain brown bird
that kept singing in the deep leaves,
that kept urging from him
some wild and careful words.
You know that
important and eloquent defense
of sanity.

~~~~

I forgive them
their unhappiness,
I forgive them
for walking out of the world.

But I don't forgive them
for turning their faces away,
for taking off their veils
and dancing for death--

for hurtling
toward oblivion
on the sharp blades
of their exquisite poems, saying:
this is the way.

~~~~

I was, of course, all that time
coming along
behind them, and listening
for advice.

~~~~

And the man who merely
washed Michelangelo's brushes, kneeling
on the damp bricks, staring
every day at the colors pouring out of them,

lived to be a hundred years old.

Tuesday Teasers on Friday--Yes, Late Again

2009-01-30T15:27:00.000-08:00

In keeping with my recent rebellion against all rules and constraints, I bring you not just Tuesday Teasers on a Friday--but I bring you poetry--in the form of a whole damn poem.

Teaser Tuesdays, hosted at Should Be Reading, asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.

You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given.

I'm currently in between books, more or less (I have more partially read books laying around my house than surfaces to put them on. I'd like to think it's just that I've become more discriminating and don't want to waste my precious time reading stuff I don't enjoy, but really--I think I've just completely lost all focus--for reading and just about everything else.)

Last week, I accidentally came across a couple of poems by Mary Oliver (of whom I had not heard, despite the fact that she has won a Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award), and I was very moved. I am not a big poetry reader--I'm just too linear, I suspect, and that makes me impatient with what I perceive as the inaccessibility of some poetry--The Wasteland, excepted, of course. However, I so loved and related to the poems I read, I immediately ordered not one, not two, but three volumes of Mary Oliver's poetry. I can't ever remember buying even a single volume of poetry, outside of class requirements. (Oh, once I bought some Rilke, because I was trying to track down, unsuccessfully I might add, a poem I had heard quoted....). This week's poem is from Mary Oliver's, Dreamwork.

Anyway, here's your dose of poetry. Now sit back and take your medicine like a good girl/boy. It's really NOT that bad:

WILD GEESE

You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting--
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.

p. 14

2009-01-27T23:06:00.000-08:00

As I am sure has become painfully clear, I have had a hard time mustering the requisite motivation to write of late. Too long a story to go into why--but I assume some time in the next few months, my output will pick up. At least I hope so...

In the meantime, and luckily, I have others who can fill in for me periodically. This week, it's my son. Each week in his First Grade class at school one lucky student is picked to write "This Week's News." Last week it was my son's turn. So I will let him tell you about his week in his own words. Oh, and don't worry, I have ensured that he retains all copyrights in his material. I would never deprive my son of a livelihood. (Snort).

And now, may I present......

This Weeks News by E______.

It was Miss B____'s birthday on Monday. We celebrated R______'s half birthday yesterday which is tomorrow. We did a science experiment called Will It Float? Some things did and some things didn't. This weekend we had a long weekend, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. For the past two days it's been raining so we get to have lunch inside because of rainy day schedule. Usually we have morning work in the morning, but this morning we had DEAR, Drop Everything And Read.

We had two Mad Minutes in a row and also Ms. S said we are going to have subtraction instead of addition. Everyone should be finishing their handwriting books very soon. Yesterday we had P.E. at 10:35 instead of 11:45 because of our rainy day schedule. In P.E. you have to wear sport shoes, but if you don't and wear Uggs you have to sit out or walk during P.E. time. We had an excellent week.

I hope you all have an excellent week, too! Buh-Bye.

LA Inauguration coverage

2009-01-20T01:35:00.000-08:00

Despite my near absence from the blog world of late (I seem to blog in spurts....it's just been a tough winter folks....), and in the spirit of a new era of hope and cooperation, I will be blogging and/or tweeting (www.twitter.com-I'm Nouvelleblogger) live on January 20th from a bi-partisan, single gender and very plugged-in inauguration-watching party, sponsored by Jessica Gottlieb, Elizabeth Petersen and Quaker Oats.

As a staunch Democrat in a sea of Republican moms (apparently there will be a few of us brave Donkey souls attending....), I think I will find this event very......lively? Spirited? Engaging? Passionate? Enraging? Frustrating? Liberating? Tune in @ 9 am PST to find out...

And finally--to the truly public service portion of this post: Quaker is using the parties to spread the word about their "Start with Substance" campaign which runs from January 12 through February 28. By visiting http://www.startwithsubstance.com/ and entering the UPC from any Quaker hot cereal, you will be able to donate a bowl of nutritious oatmeal to Share our Strength. Quaker hopes to reach the goal of 1 million bowls. Quaker's "Start with Substance" Campaign, which encourages consumers to feed their families and "fuel it forward" to those less fortunate, gives American families an easy way to answer the call of the President-elect to help others in a time of need.

TTYL.

USAir Passengers and Pilot--Courage

2009-01-16T20:09:00.000-08:00

Extraordinary stories here--but do remind me never to travel in the company of Ms. Bruce....

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/17/nyregion/17flight.html?partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

Tuesday Teasers on Saturday...

2009-01-10T20:18:00.000-08:00

What can I tell you? I've been running late for everything this week. To make up for my tardiness, I will gift (ha!) you with quotes from two books. Better yet, both of the quotes will be whole damn paragraphs--just 'cause they're so damn well written. So there.....Better late than never

Teaser Tuesdays, hosted at Should Be Reading, asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.

You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given.

The first promised paragraph is from a book of short stories, Sunstroke and Other Stories, by British author Tessa Hadley. She has a devastating way with words and with tone...

"Neither is exactly unhappy, but what has built up in them instead is a sense of surplus, of life unlived. Somewhere else, while they are absorbed in pushchairs and fish fingers and wiping bottoms, there must be another world of intense experiences for grown-ups. They feel as if, through their perpetual preoccupation with infantile things, they, too, have become infants; as if their adult selves were ripening and sweetening all in vain, wasted. You can see this sensual surplus in them. It glistens on their skin and in their eyes like cream rising to the top of the milk (though neither of them is fat: Rachel is tall and muscular, Janie slight and boyish, only her breasts rounded because she's breast-feeding). They half know this about themselves, how visibly they exude their sexual readiness. They know that they make a picture, spread out there under the trees in their summer dresses, with their brood gamobling around them." Page 5 (from the title story "Sunstroke").

The second is from a book called, inaptly enough, The Little Book, by Selden Edwards. Why inapt? The book is not little and it took 30 years for the author to write it. Little indeed. It is about a 47-year-old man in 1988 who is plunged back into turn of the century Vienna by an event he cannot immediately remember. Thus far (I'm only about 60 pages into it), the book is mesmerizing.

"Wheeler's mind raced, and then as if his grandmother's frail hand reached back to him one more time, he remembered her last words at the conclusion of the waltz a few days before, as they sat on the couch. 'You need to know-' she had said, catching her breath in short little gasps, then recapturing her composure. 'My life was very different from others. But-' She paused and looked down, as if distracted by a thought too complicated for words. 'Because of what I knew.' Then she looked up squarely into his eyes, as if trying to penetrate across time to the deepest recesses of collective history. 'You must know-' He remembered something in those strong eyes of hers. What she might have called ardor. She took his hands in hers and held them tightly. 'You must know this and remember this.' Wheeler felt something indescribable in her eyes and held them with his. 'That I was happy.'" page 109.

Check out my friend's giveaway....

2009-01-04T15:21:00.000-08:00

Chef Druck is at it again--check out her giveaway:

http://chefdruck.blogspot.com/2009/01/writer-mama-giveaway.html

Uncle Jay Explains 2008

2009-01-04T12:40:00.000-08:00

Will Someone Please Bite Off His Little Head?

2009-01-01T20:14:00.001-08:00

Does anyone else hate the Gummy Bear Song (in all its many incarnations) as much as I do? If I have to hear that insidiously contagious tune one more time (my son listens to it over and over and over), or view the chubby green guy shake his workman's smile-baring butt one more time I will pull out each and every one of the hairs on my head. Smash the computer.

Who thinks up this shit? Someone--please bite off the rest of his chewy little head (check out his ear--someone's already started nibbling)....end the agony, already.

Tuesday Teasers

2008-12-30T00:00:00.000-08:00

Teaser Tuesdays, hosted at Should Be Reading, asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.

You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given.

This week's work is a beautifully written (and very short) novelization of the author's parents lives and their family secrets. Spare and devastating--I highly recommend this quick, but haunting read:

Memory by Phillipe Grimbert; translated from the French by Polly McLean:

"A woman who'd tucked a stray lock of hair back into her bun. Now she was just this broken doll, dragged along like a sack, her back bouncing on the pebbles of the path." p. 52.

Every parent's dream . . .or is it nightmare?

2008-12-15T19:45:00.000-08:00

You'll just have to turn your head sideways. I promise you it's worth it. Oh and make sure the sound is ON.

PSA

2008-12-15T12:11:00.000-08:00

Ladies (and probably gentlemen, too): Do not blow dry your hair when you are naked if you are using a brush with a very sharp pointy end. Your nipple will never be the same....

This public service announcement is brought to you courtesy of the "Duh School of Klutziness."

Words on Women and Strength

2008-12-11T21:15:00.000-08:00

I'm too depressed today to write. Just one of my periodic existential crises. It will eventually pass. The following, sent to me by one of my best friends (thanks Coop!), cheered me a bit, so I'll share it here (I also shared it on Facebook, if you must know).

Miscellania

2008-12-10T15:34:00.000-08:00

It's another shallow, yet busy day for me. So, in keeping with my renewed commitment to post more frequently, I am going to do just that. However, I can't promise it'll be deep. In fact, it'll be pretty durn shallow--as my entire day has been.

The World's Best Hot Chocolate:

Although I hestitate to call anything having to do with chocolate "shallow" (especially this--which is among the most intense chocolate experiences I've had in a couple of years), in the grand scheme of things--looking at the economy, the state of the world, corruption scandals and terrorist killings--it's pretty fucking shallow. But we all have to get a little pleasure somewhere, don't we??

So, if it's pleasure you are seeking (or at least pleasure of the chocolate variety), hie thee over to Chocolatt on the south side of Wilshire, a little east of Bundy. This Belgian chocolate shop has all sorts of ways to satisfy your chocolate jones, but by far my favorite is the store's intense hot chocolate. We're not talking your mom's hot cocoa. We're talking thick, hot, molten, melted, creamy, chocolate goodness like nothing you've ever tasted. (Although it's not as thick as the pudding-like consistency of Spanish hot chocolate). It truly is like drinking melted chocolate. With a lot of cream. My daughter and I are both pretty devoted chocoholics and neither of us could finish our small, extremely rich drinks. (They will make a less intense version for kids, but my daughter was having none of that--she wanted her chocolate straight up, thank you.) Never fear, however. You can bring home your cup of chocolately goodness, store it in the refrigerator (just watch how thick it becomes as it cools) and microwave it later.

A friend who introduced me to this little slice of heaven (or hell, depending upon your perspective on calories and fat.....) likes to take the decadence one step further. She gets the hot chocolate alongside a scoop of the shop's delectable homemade ice cream, dipping her spoon into one and then the other...Frankly, I don't even want to venture into that realm. I might never surface.

So check this place out on a day you need to warm up--or just be comforted.

New Nail Color:

Now we are truly entering the realm of the shallow. Another friend introduced me to the COOLEST nail color (I thought it was new, but upon further research, it appears the color has been out for at least a year....). It's called "My Private Jet" (from OPI) and it is, well, so cool. It is a gray--almost charcoal--based color with multi-colored metallic flecks in it. If you put only one coat on, it actually looks a little brown (and sparkly). With two coats you the gray really pops, and the shade changes with the light, because of all the different metallic colors in it. I guess it is hard to describe adequately. Let it be said, though, that I rarely put dark colors on my fingernails (I hate my stubby little fingers), but I love this shade so much it I tried it out. And it rocks. It really does. Almost makes me feel young. I'm sure my husband will make fun of me for this, but what the hey. Might as well get what joy we can from the little things.

My Teaser Tuesdays are Back. . .and hopefully so am I.

2008-12-09T17:53:00.000-08:00

Teaser Tuesdays, hosted at Should Be Reading, asks you to:

Grab your current read.

Let the book fall open to a random page.

Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.

You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given.

Good to be back, folks. How you been? I am hopeful that I will be posting more frequently again. Hopefully, the more I write, the more inspired I will become.

In order to ease back into posting, I thought I'd choose an easy day to start...hence, I begin with Teaser Tuesdays, which require only a minimum of thought on my part.

Two books again this week: One fiction, one nonfiction.

The first is the novel The Great Man, by Kate Christensen. It tells the story of an artist, a male painter, after his death, as revealed by the three women in his life: his wife, his long-term mistress and his artist sister.

"Being dragged from the world of painting back into the world of life was as difficult as forcing herself from the world of life back into the world of painting. A thick but permeable membrane separated them." p. 118

The second is Woman: An Intimate Geography by the brilliant Natalie Angier.

"The aesthetic breast is a bon vivant, after all, a party favor. For reliability, look to the ducts and lobules. They'll return when needed, and they're not afraid to work up a sweat." p. 145 (Okay-it was three sentences. . .but they fit together like....like...like breasts and brassieres!).

Happy Reading, folks!

Because Everything Tastes Better With Dirt

2008-11-30T19:42:00.000-08:00

One of my great joys in life, as you may have already ascertained if you've read my blog in the past, is listening to my kids mangle the English language. I don't know why. If you were an adult, I'd want to launch an RPG at you for misusing our esteemed language, but if you're a kid--well, it's just adorable.

One of my son's newest malapropisms is getting some extended play in our household. You see, he is one of those kids with an extremely limited diet (yeah, yeah, lecture me all you want. . .I know). One of the few things he eats is soy bacon, otherwise known as fake bacon around here. And it probably would not surprise you to learn that he is very particular about how is fake bacon is prepared. It has to be chewy, oily and a bit underdone. Well, sometimes Mama and her microwave don't quite measure up to his standards.

Recently, when this happened, my son yelled: "Mama my bacon isn't SOILISH." I looked at him in askance and said, "What?." "Soilish, Mama, soilish, my bacon isn't soilish enough." "Soilish"? I replied. I'm thinkin': his bacon isn't dirty enough? What the hell is this child's problem? Finally, after a lot of digging, I was able to figure out what he truly wanted. He wanted his bacon oily and limp (sounds appealing, no?). Somehow, he must have gotten the words soy and oil all mixed up, and came up with "soilish." Once I was finally able to stop howling with laughter, I wiped the tears from my eyes and asked him if he knew what soil is. He shook his head, no, so I explained--and he thought that was pretty darn funny--but he still wanted me to re-cook his bacon to "soilish" perfection.

Plopping a new plate down in front of him, I said with a grin: "Because everything tastes better with dirt."

And from there a mantra was born...

Thanksgiving

2008-11-26T20:24:00.000-08:00

Hey there...remember my friend Jerry? Well, I'm continuing to steal his words for my posts, as my well has temporarily (I hope only temporarily) run dry. I couldn't sum up the Thanksgiving holiday any better than he has. And let's all do as Jerry suggests...give thanks for what we have and remember to reach out to those we care about.

Thanksgiving Again!

Posted 10 hours ago

One of the first words that our girls learned was “again.” When Emma and Claire were very little, if they liked what you were doing and wanted you to repeat it – they would say “Again!”

If you have little kids – or spend any time with little kids -- you know what I mean: Playing peek-a-boo. “Again!” Tickling their sides. “Again!” Pushing them on a swing. “Again!”

Never has the word “Again!” been more powerfully on my mind than right now. As I think about what I am thankful for this Thanksgiving, I am thankful for the ability to say and do “again” this year. To host Thanksgiving, to accompany the girls on Halloween and to the pumpkin patch, to celebrate the Jewish holidays this fall, to be at the girls’ bus stop when they get home from school, to cheer Emma at her soccer games, to walk the Billy Goat Trail, to play poker with the guys. I could list hundreds more activities. Pretty simple things. But things that I did not know I would be able to do this year, and I am grateful for the ability to have done them all again.

I am also grateful for lots of things that were “firsts” for me in 2008 – including Space Mountain, Bermuda, the GammaKnife and visiting the Golan Heights. This list is long as well, and I am hopeful that I will have the opportunity to say and do “Again!” for many of them in the months and years ahead. (More like Bermuda, less like the Gamma Knife. Although I am glad to know it is there if I need it again.)

I looked back at what I wrote last year on Thanksgiving. And I am still grateful for each of the things I outlined here last year. I am not sure I would say things much differently than I did last year. Perhaps I am just a little bit more grateful to be able to share last year’s posting with you -- “Again!”

Wishing you and your family a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Love,

Jerry

Posted Nov 20, 2007 10:11pm

On Shabbat, Lisa and I talk with our girls about what each of us is thankful for that week. But on Thanksgiving, we tend to focus more on drinking, overeating, football and, in more recent years, karaoke.

This year is, well, a little different. And I wanted to let you know some of the things that I am thankful for. This Thanksgiving I am particularly grateful for:

• Waking up each morning, the summer-like weather we had through the end of October, and the beauty of leaves changing colors.

• The fact that I am not spending my time angry or bitter. That I can concentrate on getting well and enjoying life. That I laugh every day and have not lost my sense of humor.

• My brother Norm and my friend Steve, who are both doctors. When I could not mentally or emotionally sort through my options for treatment this summer, they, along with Lisa, did it for me.

• Michael Nissenblatt, the oncologist who treated me the second time I had cancer in 1984. Mike taught me then and reminds me now to look hell in the eyes and to fight back. His ability to inspire is unmatched.

• Memories of my mother. Her perseverance for years in the face of illness provided invaluable life lessons. If I am pushing my body too hard now, if I am spending more time with people than resting, if I am crazy enough to host 22 people for Thanksgiving two days after chemo, it is because I saw my mother push herself long after others would have quit.

• My sister-in-law Barbara, who has guided Lisa and me in addressing perhaps the most difficult part of our situation -- our kids’ emotional well being. Thanks to Barbara, we know exactly what to say when the girls ask tough questions.

• My team at Johns Hopkins, in whose hands I feel both comfortable and confident. I am so fortunate that JH is only an hour away from Bethesda. It has helped us to live a normal life in the most abnormal of circumstances – while receiving the best medical care in the world.

• The results of my scan on October 25.

• The pharmaceutical industry, whose discoveries are keeping me alive.

• That my side effects have been tolerable. I am really grateful that I can eat virtually all the foods I like – and that they taste perfectly normal to me. (Today it is worth pointing out – turkey is not a food I like. Never liked it. Still don’t.)

• The Washington Wizards, for not going 0-82. I am glad to have something to cheer for this season.

• Casey Jones, who has assumed so many of my responsibilities at CEB. He is an outstanding leader, with a huge heart and great sense of humor.

• Rabbi Greg Harris. He is a friend and teacher as well as a spiritual leader and provides me with incredible comfort, strength and a greater sense of purpose.

• Our family and many friends. The Beth El, Bannockburn and CEB communities. The well of support is much deeper and wider than I could ever have imagined. Your good thoughts, prayers, great meals and non-random acts of kindness have sustained us. We will be forever grateful.

• Lisa, whose beauty, strength, intelligence, persistence and compassion sustain me and comfort me every day.

• Emma and Claire. They make me laugh, make me proud, make me cry and make me scream. And when I look at them, I am reminded that miracles can and do occur.

For these things, and so much more, I thank God every day.

This Thanksgiving, if your parents are still alive, thank them and tell them you love them. If you have children, thank God and tell your children you love them. And reach out to a friend – maybe one with whom you have not spoken in a while – and say hello.

Happy Thanksgiving. With love and a heart filled with gratitude – Jerry

The Great Obama--a Guest Post

2008-11-08T09:08:00.000-08:00

I thought the following might be interesting for you to read. It was written by one of my best friends from law school, Jerry Sorkin. He has given me permission to post it here. Jerry is a tremendous and remarkable person--I wish I could be more like him: This was posted to his John Hopkins Care Pages website. For more than a year, he has been battling Stage IV lung cancer. He is doing amazingly well, and his optimism, humor, humanity and expansiveness are an inspiration. No one who has ever met him has failed to be impressed--or to have become a friend. He's just a lovely human being. So read on. . .and if you wish, keep Jerry and his family (wife Lisa and daughters Emma and Claire) in your thoughts and prayers:

The Great Obama

Twenty years ago, I was a first year law student. I can’t remember who came up with the nickname for our classmate, but there were a few of us who called him “The Great Obama.” I don’t think we ever called him “The Great Obama” to his face – it was a nickname that grew out of the kind of admiration and jealousy that you might expect from first-year Harvard Law students, who all had very high opinions of themselves as well.

From the beginning of law school, he stood out. Smart, articulate, a leader. Ironically, he stood out, in part, for having “real world experience.” Most of my classmates had come to law school straight from college. Barack was a few years older, and when he spoke he could talk about his experience outside of the classroom in a way that few others could.

Not surprisingly, Barack got a lot of airtime in class. And sometime during first year, I learned to do an impression of him that made friends laugh. I can’t do that impression anymore. Over the years his rhetorical skills have improved far more than my ability to impersonate. But every time I hear him interviewed, if he uses the phrase “my sense is…” or uses the word “folks” when he means “people”-- I laugh, remembering him talking in class during our first year of law school.

You could tell from the moment you met him that Barack would do great things; he had the charisma and leadership ability that just made him stand out. But no --- I certainly would not have predicted that he would run for and be elected president. I don’t know that any of our classmates can honestly say that they could have foreseen what has happened since.

When he decided to run for President I had my doubts – too inexperienced, too soon in his political career. But I supported him because of what I and my classmates had seen in him 20 years ago. He was smart, honest, hard-working, cool, and open-minded. Law school was a place with its ideologues on both sides, but Barack was willing to listen to and work with people regardless of their political beliefs. I didn’t think he could win (I had my doubts until Fox news called Ohio for him on Tuesday night), but I figured if he did it would be great. Barack has the characteristics that I wanted to see in my president.

Across the last two years, we have done our tiny part to support his campaign. We’ve had yards signs and bumper stickers for the first time. We’ve attended fundraisers, I’ve made phone calls, Emma and I have been canvassing in Virginia. We’ve even eaten Obamaburgers. And we got on the local TV news for doing so:

http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/us_world/Gastro-Politics_All__National_.html

I spent the last few days of the campaign volunteering in Virginia, helping to get out the vote. On Monday, the final day of the campaign, we went as a family to canvass in Manassas, Virginia. We stayed that evening to attend the final rally of the campaign -- along with 80,000 other supporters --- at the Prince William County Fairgrounds.

It was very important to me to bring the girls – even though Claire fell asleep before Barack spoke at 10:30 p.m. I wanted them to be a part of history at the rally. To remember that they heard Barack Obama speak the night before he was elected president. But even more importantly, I wanted them to help – even a tiny bit -- on the campaign. I wanted to help drive home the lesson of the importance of working for causes you believe in. It is not enough to sit home and watch it on TV and to wish for something to come true – if you want something to happen, you need to work for it.

One thing that amazed me about the Obama campaign was how many people I know got involved. We had friends and relatives volunteering in Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio, Wisconsin, Indiana and Florida. And many of these were folks like me: People who had never been involved in a campaign before – and they were traveling to battleground states to try to make a difference. Yes, a few of them were law school classmates – but the vast majority was not. They were simply moved by this election to take action.

I believe that – whatever your political beliefs -- electing the first African-American president is both an historic moment and one that makes you proud to be an American. It has been so moving for me to speak to people who see Barack’s election as a validation of the American dream. To speak with immigrants and people of color who can now say to their children honestly, “In America, you can grow up to be anything you want, even President.”

I believe in Barack Obama, and despite the horrible state of current affairs, I believe he and his administration will be able to help right the ship of this country. I believe it because of the character of the man I met 20 years ago. I believe it because I think he will attract a new generation of the “best and the brightest” to come to work in government again. And I believe it because of his (and his campaign’s) ability to motivate millions. If he can run a government half as well as he ran a campaign – as a country, we will be in good shape.

I haven’t done much celebrating since Tuesday night. In part, I’ve been in shock. In part, I’ve just been exhausted. I put all my energy into those last few days of the campaign. But I did not want to wake up the day after the election and see that Barack had lost Virginia by a few votes and know that I might have been able to contribute. Even in some tiny way.

The election has held such a fascination for me, I am certain to go into withdrawal over the next few weeks. Luckily, we have the transition and the inauguration to look forward to.

Oh, and if someone can score tickets to the Inaugural Ball where Springsteen is going to play…let me know.

Love,

Jerry

Oh, and (Karen here. . .), for those who want to know Jerry's background, his undergraduate degree is in economics from Yale and he has spent most of his working life in business-and finance-related fields...

In Memoriam

2008-11-01T21:49:00.000-07:00

Edith K. Lipson May 11, 1924-October 31, 2008

Loving and well-loved; beautiful inside and out. I'll miss you Aunt Edith.

Vote No on Prop. 8

2008-10-28T09:35:00.000-07:00

I don't have as much time as I'd like to get up on my soapbox and harangue you all about the importance of voting no on this CA proposition. So, I'm linking to a fellow mom blogger's entry, complete with compelling video. Go, read, watch, and vote no on prop. 8. http://www.svmoms.com/2008/10/how-the-calif-1.html

Green Lemonade

2008-10-28T07:23:00.000-07:00

Short post today--still too much to do before reno. Wanted to let you know I continue to live and breathe, though.

Okay, those who know me know that, although I try to make reasonably healthy food choices, I cannot be called a health foodist. I enjoy chocolate cake (and a few thousand other sweet treats) as much as anyone. Foie gras? You betcha. An occasional greasy fry? Oh YEAH. Still, all in all, I try to keep the crap to a minimum.

And every once in a while, a truly healthy food crosses my path that I actually love. Lately, there have been two items. First is--hold your hats, folks-- Kale in a Krunch Chips in Pleasing Pesto by Alive and Radiant Foods. These are basically dehydrated pieces of kale, flavored with basil, garlic, hemp seeds and some other stuff. Most of it organic. All of it raw. I know, I know. Kale? Hemp Seeds? Dehydrated? Raw? Have I gone off the deep end? Nope, nope, nope and nope. These are the most addictive things this side of crack. The crunch is perfect (if you make sure they stay dry after opening) and the pesto flavor is so savory, so yummy, that it is almost impossible to stop eating them. It is rare that a whole bag will last even a day in our house. Lest you question my judgment, I brought them into my Pilates studio to share--(I know, this is arguably a self-selecting group) and they were a huge hit. (BTW, not every one who takes Pilates is all crunchy and healthy. My Pilates instructor, despite her g-ddamned perfect body AND face, is also a pastry chef--we spend almost every session exercising and talking about food. There's probably something wrong with that. . .but we don't care.) I'm telling you these things ROCK. And on top of everything else--they are really good for you. Kale is a major superfood, so you can satisfy your savory tooth and feel good about it at the same time. This stuff comes in other flavors, but I love the pesto flavor so much that I've not yet been tempted to stray. . .

Aw man, what was I thinking? This stuff is hard to come by--and now I've shared the secret. (Head. Banging. On. Wall.)

The second item takes a little more labor, but the health benefits are so great and the taste so yummy (assuming you like lemon), that all the work is worth it. If everyone drank a cup of this every morning--it might just bring down the cost of health insurance. 'Cause I'm tellin' you, hardly anyone would be getting sick. What is this nectar of the gods, you ask?

Green Lemonade. I cannot even begin to take credit for this recipe. It comes from another raw food source. (I know, what is UP with all this raw food stuff in my house?): The Raw Food Detox Diet by Natalia Rose. Again, you don't have to be a raw foodie or detoxing to benefit from this juice. I'll let Ms. Rose describe it: "[Green Lemonade] literally infuses your body with millions of enzymes, keeps your immune system strong year-round, offers unparallelled protection against osteoporosis, and tastes highly refreshing and filling." It also cures the nastiest of hangovers. (Okay, she didn't say this last--but I thought it sounded good anyway. And you know what--I wouldn't be surprised if it did cure what ails you the morning after. . .).

I give you....(drumroll, please). . . .

GREEN LEMONADE

Makes 1 serving

1 head (yes, head) romaine lettuce or celery (NB: Unless you LOVE celery, I, Nouvelle Blogger, recommend you stick with the romaine).
5 to 6 stalks kale (any type)
1 to 2 apples (as needed for sweetness--Ms. Rose recommends organic Fuji)
1 whole organic lemon (you don't have to peel it)
1 to 2 inches fresh ginger (optional)

Process the vegetables in a juicer. (Apparently, a food processor or blender is NOT what you're looking for here). Pour into a large glass, and drink! Notice how the lemon really cuts out the "green" taste that most people try to avoid. You may use any greens in place of the romaine and kale, like celery, chard, collards, spinach, cucumber, and so forth--as long as there are some dark leafy greens in there too. For best results, enjoy Green Lemonae on an empty stomach.

Try it, you'll like it. Trust me. And the check's in the mail. Really.

You know it's bad when. . .

2008-10-22T13:12:00.000-07:00

You know it's bad when menopause looks like an attractive option.