Level & Plumb: Tooling With Life's Imperfections

Kitchen Backsplash

2010-10-18T20:30:00.005-04:00

I had a dilemma and I solved it for $25.00, but I've probably committed a design faux pas. I'm confident enough with my ideas to say, "I like it, therefore it's fine." I'm single, and there's no approval committee, which means that I live with my mistakes and my victories. I'm thinkin' I made a mistake!

My sister and our friend Diane are coming to visit for the weekend and if it truly looks "bad" they'll tell me and I'll go from there. The wall space above my cooktop and below the microwave is 17" tall, and it's pretty wide...extending a few feet to cabinets on the right, then making another right turn--more cabinets and wall... and a few feet to a short wall and granite "peninsula" on the left. I want to add a backsplash, because once the pots and pans get going, grease spatters onto the wall, and it doesn't wash off the flat paint. If I chose tile, it would be too much ceramic. There is no obvious "end point" on the left side...and it would look awkward to have tile or metal end at 17" and nothing on the wall above.

I was thinking of getting sheet metal and cutting it to size, maybe stainless steel in a quilted diamond pattern. An internet search turned up some interesting ideas, from mat tile to magnetic board. Most sheet metal stock panels were 30" x 30" and around $150.00.

There are also "tile size" self stick, thin metal sheets that you can apply in a subway, herringbone or another pattern of your choosing. Good idea, but tin snips, end points and math are involved, and the latter is not my forte. Dividing fractions--eek! I admit my shortcomings.

I headed to Home Depot for mulch and stuff, and came upon a "Weekend Project" kitchen backsplash display. Cue the angels singing! I found "decorative thermoplastic" panels 18" x 24" for $19.95 each and a roll of heavy duty double sided tape. You can use contractor's adhesive for a larger job, but why get all goopy for a small project? The area in question for me is 17" x 29".

The panels come in various designs and colors...champagne, bronze, copper, and this lifelike brushed stainless steel! Once home, I did an internet search for kitchen backsplashes at http://www.homedepot.com/ and the panels do come in the quilted diamond pattern via online, but I got this one and now I know I can easily switch it out.

Flip the panel over and mark the area you need to cut, and for electrical outlets, if applicable. Glad I got my utility scissors sharpened last week after 25 years of use! The acrylic cuts very easily.

I decided to use one panel and aim for the the middle of the cooktop, and the middle of the microwave. Since the back of the panel is not flat, I used 7 strips of heavy duty double sided tape, twice the recommended amount. I marked off the left, center and right ends of the panel with green painters tape. Place the tape, and smooth out any air bubbles. Peel off the white backing, and push the panel up against the tape.

Am I crazy, or does this look ok? Click on the photo to enlarge. If I were to add panels to the right, I'd be fine because I saw corner pieces in the display. At the far left, there would be an unfinished edge on the top of the panel on the wall to the left of the cabinet. If I took it to the left edge of the cabinet, there'd be an unfinished edge down the left side. Now that I've lived with it for a few hours, it looks half-done. I'll see if Home Depot sells borders for the top and side. I need your advice!

Question: Patience and Fortitude?

2010-10-13T00:32:00.004-04:00

Answer: Adjectives, noble traits, and also the names of the lion sculptures outside the New York Public Library, on Fifth Avenue.

The lions have been guarding the Library and watching life and history go by (parades, Library fundraising events and parties, commuters, dates, "meet me on the steps", marriage proposals, tourists, etc...) since 1911. They were originally called Leo Lenox and Leo Astor, after the founders. Though they are males, the lions were also called Lady and Lord Astor.

In the 1930's Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia borrowed from Ralph Waldo Emerson, who wrote, "Patience and fortitude conquer all things." LaGuardia nicknamed the famous lions to reflect the qualities that New Yorkers needed to weather the economic Depression, and the names have stuck.

For the winter holidays, the lions wear holly wreaths and they've worn floral wreaths to signal Springtime. The regular practice of decorating P & F with Mets and Yankees caps, graduation mortars, top hats, etc...was discontinued after the sculptures were cleaned and restored in 2004. I don't see the harm, frankly, but I'm no historic conservator. I like the humor and the incongruity.

I snapped this pic of a house in my old neighborhood, before I moved away. The lions are a tad too big...but they certainly make a statement. The statement that comes to mind is, "Hey, your lions are way too big."

My sister Leslie gave me two cement lions over 20 years ago and I never had quite the right place to put them. They're a good size, heavy but manageable, 16" high and 28" long. Here at my new house, I finally have the perfect spot--flanking the front entrance on a low wall. They are symbolic to me--two sisters, both of us Leos, with some patience, and plenty of fortitude.

I've named them Finisterre and Flaneur. Don't they look thrilled?

F&F are ROCKIN' their bee costumes for Halloween 2010!

Where There's Smoke, There Could Be Fire

2010-10-06T12:20:00.004-04:00

Here comes Autumn. Cool days and crisp nights, when thoughts turn to relaxing in front of a blazing fire. I grew up with fireplaces at home, so I'm pretty well versed in opening and closing the flue and how to start and stoke a fire. I also have a very healthy respect for how quickly things can get out of control--whether it's a fireplace, a grill, or a gas kitchen stove. Suffice it to say...if you've burned candles in your fireplace, make damn sure you get all the wax off the bottom before you have a wood fire. And, heed the warning on a JavaLog or DuraFlame--DO NOT POKE the logs. Sparks will fly. And not in a good way.

Autumn is also a time when family and friends get all "Country Living Magazine" and gather to cook. And the Fire Department gets very busy. Outdoor firepits and chimineas are left unattended. Potholders and kitchen towels get too close to the stovetop flame, flowy sleeves on holiday blouses brush past a candle. Food Network addicts buy a blow torch from Home Depot to make creme brulee. Use a culinary propane model, for heaven's sake. He-men think it's a great idea to deep fry a turkey, for the first time, in the GARAGE. A household pet or a small child can knock over a dry Christmas tree, while you're sleeping, you've turned your attention away or you're out of the house. Turn those string lights OFF, keep the tree watered, and secure it with wire to a mantle, wall or a windowsill. Doesn't a trip to the Caribbean sound great?

I've never had to discharge a fire extinguisher, inside or outside, but I know how to use one and what the differences are. I keep THREE in the house---One on each floor for paper/wood/cloth fires and one in the kitchen. Now that I have a garage, I have one there, too.

What follows is a basic overview. I urge you to read up on this topic further, and to make or review your exit plan, whether you live alone or have a family! Babysitters, petsitters and housesitters should be made aware, too. This is also a good time of year to change the batteries in your smoke detectors---or to install new detectors if you don't have them already.

Might want to peek at your homeowners policy, too---to make sure the value of your home is reflected, and coverage is there for replacement. While you're taking those holiday pictures or videos, pan each room so you can prove what was in there. Store the pix, CD or digital card in a fireproof box.

In the event of a fire:
1. Call 911 or your fire department directly.
2. Tell them your full address, where the fire is, and if anyone is still in the house
3. Try to extinguish if the fire has not spread
4. Get out of the house

There are MANY different types of fire extinguishers--with different contents to fight various kinds of fires. I'm going to talk about the 2 most common household types, AB and ABC.

Fire extinguishers have lettered ratings...Class A, B, C, D

A= Paper, wood, cardboard, most plastics
B= Flammable liquids, grease, oil, gasoline and kerosene
C= Electrical: appliances, wiring, circuit breakers and outlets
D= Used in chemical labs, for combustible metals

ABC is a multipurpose extinguisher with dry chemicals inside. ABC fights wood, paper and cloth fires, as well as flammable liquid and electrical fires. There will be a residue left behind that can be corrosive, so try to clean that up as soon as you can. But, things are just things---they can be replaced and YOU cannot be replaced.

**There is a Class A type that has water inside (APW air pressurized water) but you can't use that on an electrical fire, because of shock, and it will make a grease fire spread.)

Kidde markets this Type BC fire extinguisher in white for the kitchen. Stylin'! Let's review: BC is for flammable liquid or electrical fires. Don't be intimidated. They are very easy to use. Just pull the pin out (it's red), aim, and squeeze the handle.

To put out a cooking fire:

Call the Fire Department or 911. If the fire is out by the time they get there, they will at least look around and make sure you and your house are OK. Make the call. Embarassment fades, they've seen it all. It's their job. Don't cook naked. For soo many reasons.

1. If it's a stovetop fire in a pan with grease or oil, slide a pan lid over the flames to smother the fire. Turn off the heat and leave the lid in place til it's cool. Do not take a flaming pan outside--you could ignite your clothing or dry grass.

2. For other food fires, pour baking soda over the flames. NEVER use water or flour on cooking fires. After you read this blog posting, put Baking Soda on your shopping list. A big box is good to have handy--it's not just for baking!

3. If the fire is in the oven or broiler, keep the door SHUT and turn off the heat to smother the fire.

Invest the money in a few fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, fresh batteries and take a few minutes to read the instructions and familiarize yourself with the do's and don'ts. Enter the Fire Dept # in your cell phone, or your speed dial if you have a landline. Your heart's gonna race, you'll yell expletives, but you'll have a cooler head and can minimize the damage if you know a few tips ahead of time.

Next up, how to prevent drowning and swine flu when bobbing for apples...

Happy Autumn!

Back to Basics

2010-10-05T02:18:00.006-04:00

The world is on the move. Technology gets faster; teensy chips, ever-smaller Bond-like devices and massive satellites giving everyman and everywoman a global reach.

I'm no Luddite, but I can't see myself buying a Kindle. I keep things pretty simple, with just enough techno-jazz to get me what I need. I text, but I don't tweet. I blog and do a little online banking. I still like the weight of a book (nap-inducing on a wintry afternoon), the feel of magazines and the sharp inky smell of a newspaper. I download recipes from the internet, but I love it when my cookbooks fall open to a favorite recipe, on a splattered page.

Trends are cyclical and it seems that what's old is always new again, despite the constant push for bigger/smaller, better, faster. There's renewed interest in preserving and canning, plaid, old time cocktails, food trucks, and cupcakes. I'm all over it. Slow Food, my bike with a basket and a bell, farmers markets, baking on weekends, my new life in the 'burbs.

After 9/11, I just "wanted out" of the city commute and the cubicle life. I took a job selling meat and fish door to door. I drove a white Toyota pickup truck from NYC to Stamford CT, out to Long Island, NY and back every day. It was exhausting and exhilarating. With push-in robberies a reality, tensions running high in the Northeast and big-box stores selling meat at lower prices, I had some rough days with a l-o-t of rejection. Though people were "more likely" to open the door for a woman, more often than not they were sorry they did, when they figured out that I wasn't asking for directions. I had doors slammed in my face, the cops called on me, a client who left the freezer door open all weekend and demanded that I replace the food. It wasn't my fault, but I made it right. That took a chunk out of my profits, but she became a loyal, repeat customer. My boss was relentless--I worked for myself (!) 6 days a week, 12-14 hours a day. I liked the challenge of convincing people to open the door, come outside to look, then to buy and to trust me enough to come into their homes to re-organize their freezers. It was fun to stand in someone's kitchen and talk about cooking, and to answer them when they asked why in the world a girl like me was selling meat.

The job looks odd in the midst of corporate sales positions on my resume, but my headhunter has used it to full advantage...telling his hiring managers that if I can sell meat out of a truck, I can sell anything. I'm pretty persuasive, whether I'm selling shish kebabs or stock reports.

When I see little businesses on wheels, I appreciate the hard work it takes to keep them going.

I remember the late 60's--the rattle of the glass milk bottles being delivered and the thud of the "Dellwood Dairy" milkbox lid closing. The milkman was expected, just like the diaper truck and the mailman. It was probably less stressful for them than for the cold-callers. The Fuller Brush guy and Encyclopedia salesmen knocked, despite the "No Soliciting" sign my mother tucked into the corner of the front door. They had the added pressure of selling themselves first, then their product. I know the feeling.

I was at a farmer's market a few weeks ago and I saw a knife sharpening truck. I took a business card--it was a Band-Aid stamped with the company name "A Finer Edge--We can sharpen everything but your wit." I went back the following week with a bunch of stuff that needed sharpening, but the van wasn't there. Grrr. On the website, there was an update that A Finer Edge was no longer at the farmer's market but could make house calls. Gary's van is white and new, not as retro and cool and attention getting as Mike's Sharpening Service in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. But he got the job done!

The knives sliced paper with no effort, so I forked over $31.00

I like finding the old fashioned, in this new fangled world.

Farm to Table Dinner, This Summer's Last

2010-09-30T00:56:00.002-04:00

Poplar Ridge Farm in Waxhaw, NC had the last of their series of 6 Farm to Table dinners tonight. It was the second one I've attended, and I'm already looking forward to next June.

Tonight it rained heavily. 50+ guests and no one bailed due to the weather. That says a lot! There was a tent over the dining terrace, and the slightest autumn chill in the air.

I invited my realtor, Kim, who's become a friend. She's a native Charlottean, and had not heard of this event. It's fun to surprise a local!

Bonnie Warford, the co-owner of Carpe Diem restaurant in Charlotte, and her Executive Chef Paul Ketterhagen were at the helm in the kitchen. The veggies were grown at Poplar Ridge, the poultry, eggs, cream and goat cheese were sourced very locally.

http://www.carpediemrestaurant.com/menu.php

We sipped Pimm's with cucumber and strawberries while we met our tablemates, one of whom I'd met at the previous dinner.

The menu

First course: Butternut Squash Bisque with Chipotle Croutons, and Grateful Growers Latin-spiced Bacon.

Wine pairing: Brocel Malbec.

The soup was smooth as silk and the chef cured the bacon himself.

When the second course was being prepared, we gathered in the presentation room. The Guest Speaker was Greg Pillar, Asst. Professor of Environmental Science and Chemistry, Queens University of Charlotte. He's partnered with Poplar Ridge Farm for 4 years, bringing students to learn about farming. He gave an interesting talk about growing and eating local food. It was enlightening to see what "one week of food" looks like when photographed in the U.S. and in Peru. No frozen food, cans or packaging at all in the latter... It showed the *garbage* that we put into our systems and that we literally put into our environment.

Second course: Goat Cheese Panna Cotta, served with a salad of Arugula, Roasted Beets, Radishes, Walnut Pepper Brittle, and Port Wine Vinaigrette
Wine pairing: Jaboulet Cotes du Rhone Blanc

The panna cotta was light and silky, the beets were perfectly roasted. The salad, along with the radish and 'walnut pepper brittle' were a spicy foil.

Third course: Braised Rhone Chicken au jus with Carmelized Carrots, Fingerling Potatoes and Turnips.
Wine pairing: Lazaret Cotes du Ventoux

This entree screamed, "Autumn!"

Fourth Course: Anson Mills Carolina Gold Rice Pudding with Roasted Plums and Pistachio Biscotti
Wine Pairing: Volpi Moscadoro Moscato

Flavors and textures--pure perfection!

Kudos to the chefs and to the farm owners and staff for another wonderful collaboration. For a little town, Waxhaw's got some good stuff happening.

New Technology, Old Values

2010-09-29T01:22:00.002-04:00

I just started banking online this summer. Very late to the party, and still a hesitant guest. My debit card was skimmed/compromised last summer...and I'm skittish.

I admit that I do like the convenience of paying bills online. Transfer funds, press a button, save a stamp, avoid late fees. No chance of forgetting that stack of bills tucked into the car's sun visor. Though George Costanza's fiancee died from licking "bad glue" on her wedding invitation envelopes (I know...it didn't really happen, Seinfeld is a sit com), the taste is a trigger for me. Memories of a time before stamps turned to stickers.

We live in a "I want it yesterday" world. Business proposals and reports sent from a wi fi hotspot, e-mails being answered while on vacation "just to stem the tide." No more notes being passed in class, send a text and pix, tweens are too naive to know the consequences of those being forwarded. The dog can't eat your homework if its saved in a Word file.

My niece and nephews will never know the adventure that was banking in the 60's and 70's. Open an account, get a blanket or a toaster! Mom would roll up to the drive-in window in her burgundy convertible LeMans, long brown ponytail, sunglasses, Eve cigarette, and four kids in the back seat. No booster seats, no seatbelts. "His leg is touching mine!!"

We'd stop pinching each other (for a minute) and watch, rapt, as our mother put white yellow and pink slips of paper into a plastic container, that got sucked into the bank. A few minutes later it came back out in a mechanical drawer, full of money and lollipops! I loved the bank!!

Charlotte, NC has a small-town feel. I was inside the bank the other day and watched as a teller greeted a drive-up customer. She was pretty loud on that mike, going on about vacations and summer news. Her colleagues didn't shuush her, they were all chatting too. Through the drive up window I could see it was a family with about 5 kids. One kid climbed over a seat and asked about the teller's dog. She took out her cellphone, pulled up a photo of the dog, put the phone in the automated drawer, the carload all ooohed and ahhed while they passed the phone around..then the dad put the phone back into the drawer.

The perfect mix of new technology and old values.

There is no bullet proof plexiglass separating the lobby from the tellers. We exchanged pleasantries, I did my banking, and I availed myself of the lollipops in a vase on the counter. They still look the same as they did when I was a kid. Ribbed cellophane, straightforward flavors, smaller than a Charms and bigger than a TootsiePop. Generic but comforting.

When life offers you a lollipop, take it!

Slow down. Make a phone call instead of sending a text. Write a letter on paper and address an envelope. It'll feel good and it'll be appreciated. You can bank on it.

Savannah, Georgia

2010-09-27T20:12:00.006-04:00

I grew up on Long Island, NY and have lived both in Manhattan and on the Queens side of the East River. I've travelled to about 20% of the world. Not nearly enough!! I made the big move to Charlotte, NC this summer.

I've seen so many interesting images over the years, but I've missed the opportunity to capture them, mostly because I'd leave my camera home during my day-to-day, work-a-day existence. I always meant to go back to Rt 25A in Flushing, NY to snap a photo of a Live Bait shop that was next to a sushi restaurant. I love graphics, words and landscapes moreso than photographing people.

With the daily grind of work in NYC behind me, and while I've not yet found "what's next" work-wise in Charlotte...I'm taking the time to look and to really 'see.' And I keep my camera nearby.

This past weekend my friend Jane, a recent empty-nester and I, drove to Savannah, Georgia. 4 hours, a straight shot down I-95. We stayed at the Hamilton Turner Inn, an historic B&B on Lafayette Square. Savannah is a city of Squares, gas lamps, live oak and magnolia trees and "tabby' sidewalks made from crushed oyster shells.

We golfed, walked, talked, saw fireworks over the River, did a bit of shopping, took an overview trolley tour and the "Paula Deen" tour, which took us to the outskirts. A great girl's getaway!

Here's how I saw it...

First impression. We arrived at 9pm, under a tunnel of massive Live Oaks with hanging Spanish Moss. We were told the next day that tourists sometimes pull the moss down and wear it around their necks. That is, until they realize that there are red bugs and chiggers living in it. Gack!! In days of yore, the moss was used to stuff furniture, once the bugs were smoked out.

The Hamilton Turner Inn. We had a room in the Carriage House.

Carriage House living room. It was nice to have an alternative space as our room was tiny!

Nightly turn down, fluffy robes.

Chocolates on the telephone table, with a handwritten welcome note from innkeepers Gay and Jim Dunlop.

The Parlor, Main House. Coffee table books, hot bevvies, lemonade, sweet tea, wine, hor's d, port and the daily paper. Very relaxing! All that plus breakfast for $199/nite.

Breakfast each morning. Day 1 Stuffed French Toast. Day 2 Veggie Fritatta over Cheese Grits. Whoa. Ate half and had little or no room for yogurt, fruit, biscuit or muffin. Walked it off all day!

Lovely yard at the B&B

Parker's Garage and Market--gas station and gourmet food!

Topiaries flanking the gas pumps. Tres chic.

Wines and food to go at Parker's

We followed the sound of fireworks for ten minutes til we saw them lighting up the sky, down on River Street. A pyrotechnic convention was in town--this was a nice gesture for the city.

The Waving Girl, waiting for her lover to return from the sea. His ship disappeared and she waved and waited for 40 years, until she died.

60's architecture at the edge of the Historic District. Lax rules!

The Club at Savannah Harbor. What a gorgeous course. It was raining just north in SC, but we had perfect weather.

There was a gator on the 7th green. The ranger drove up and told us he couldn't get it to budge, so we should take a par, and keep going! On the 17th hole, I inadvertently hit my ball a few yards from a huge gator that was yawning and either angry or hungry, next to a swamp, short of the green. Jane and I went to scoop the ball up and our golf cart got stuck. We forgot that the starter told us that the carts' power cuts off on Par 3's. Weird and very inconvenient at that precise moment. You never saw people move faster to push a cart! We found out later that "Yeah, he's a big one. He'll run after you alright, but only so far because he's got 3 legs." Well, 9 feet trumps 3 legs in my calculations!!! We were OUTTA there! And that's no fish story!

Aptly named hole!

The skies were so painterly.

We took the Paula Deen Tour, which took us out of the city, to Whitemarsh and Wilmington Islands. I'm a fan of Deen, a Food Network star, and was glad that Jane wanted to take the tour. Paula lost her parents when she was 19 and 23. She was an agoraphobic single mother who worked hard to build her catering business. It grew in less than 20 years from simple bag lunches delivered to offices by her sons, followed by running the kitchen at a Best Western hotel. She's now at the helm of a multimillion dollar empire---books, appearances, cooking shows, a food and cookware line. She is a true daughter of Savannah, and gives back to her city. Her sons manage The Lady and Sons.

The tour company's proposal offered her a cut of the revenue and she refused, preferring that they make donations to her local charities. I like her story.

The Old Buggy Road, at the Bethesda School for Boys. In operation since 1740! Paula Deen married river pilot Michael Groover in the school's chapel, below. The chapel interior is very simple, with well worn pews.

Artwork on the school farm's fence. The school is the oldest in the U.S. for 'boys in transition' and the mission is hard work, love of God and school.

We stopped at this produce stand on the way.

Muscadines and Scupperdongs---big ole grapes.

I can cross "boiled green peanuts" off my bucket list. They need salt, but they're not bad. Kinda mushy.

Paula designed the tour NOT to stop at The Lady & Sons in town because she has more business than she can handle. Instead, the tour includes lunch at her brother's place, on Whitemarsh Island. It's called Uncle Bubba's Oyster House. I guess it's to be expected that for tourists, there is a back room reserved. We were herded in along with another group and sat cafeteria style, for a "Country Boil." Regular diners can order from the menu. Bubba and Paula are victims of their own success...and they are churning out buffet food for 1000's to keep up with the demand.

Pulled pork, lima beans, fried shrimp, cole slaw, fried fish and a little corn muffin. I would never order this from a menu...it was 'ok' but lunch was a cattle call.

Bubba's is on a marsh and off in the distance, you can see the back of Paula's roof. Nice setting. Local boy done good.

The weekend was great and we got a nice overview of a charming city. I'd head back that way to wander and explore Edisto and Hilton Head, and surrounding towns. Maybe drive to Jacksonville, FL. I can tick Savannah off my list of places I've visited. I wonder if I'm up to 21% of the world?

Calendar vs. Thermometer

2010-09-22T02:00:00.002-04:00

Tomorrow is September 22, the first day of Fall! New York friends are letting me know they're stoking the first fires of the season, and that the air is crisp. In Charlotte, North Carolina the temps are hovering at and above 90. It figures. I move here and there have been nearly 80 days over 90 degrees...double the usual # for any summer in recent memory. At least the humidity has diminished. I will get my reward, soon enough! Temps will drop after next week, and I'm in for a long autumn, a mild winter, and an early Spring. The golf clubs will stay within reach.

My internal culinary equinox shifted to Autumn tonight. I baked Pumpkin bread in my gleaming new oven.

I have some nice people I'd like to thank for their kindness to me, in welcoming me to the neighborhood. I was invited by a neighbor to The Levine Museum of the New South. There's a lecture tomorrow night for 'New Southerners' and we'll be given a copy of "Living Here" the annual magazine published for newcomers. After the program, there's a wine and Southern fried chicken dinner. I'm really looking forward to this event!

I'll say thank you with Pumpkin bread on the first day of Fall.

It's too soon for pumpkins at farmstands, so I used a can of organic pumpkin puree.

Ready for wrapping and some ribbon.

Frosted Glass

2010-09-21T00:10:00.006-04:00

Frosted glass has comforting connotations---a frosty beer mug straight out of the freezer, steamy windows on a snowy night, bits of beach glass; translucent in the waves and opaque when dry.

In New York, it takes on a different meaning...because there are neighbors, passersby, onlookers and peepers--glancing casually, looking a tad too long, or purposely staring. I took down a window treatment to repaint the living room, and no less than 4 people knocked on my door, looking for a rental or asking if I was selling. They were like ants all over a crumb at a picnic.

Jimmy Stewart starred in the Alfred Hitchcock thriller "Rear Window." He played L.B. Jeffries, a photojournalist laid up in his apartment with a broken leg. It was a long, hot summer and he was bored. He pointed his telephoto lens across the courtyard and watched his neighbors--ironing, dancing, fighting, having dinner, etc... Then he zoomed in on Raymond Burr and got himself involved in a murder plot.

There was a real wingnut in my office a few years back who received night vision goggles for his birthday, from a girlfriend, no less. He was NO Jimmy Stewart and I would bet money that she was no Grace Kelly. He brought his spygoggles into the office and was showing some of the guys how they worked, in a dark supply closet. "How many fingiz am I holding up?" It creeped me out to think that he was looking into people's apartments in Manhattan, at night!!

Anyway, my front door in North Carolina has "sidelights" and from the front porch, one can see straight through to the back of the house. Day or night. You can take the girl out of New York, but you can't take New York out of the girl. I am a nighttime shade puller and though I'm not walking around in the all-together, but I'd rather be the one able to see OUT, through the peephole. It's designed for that. Out, not in.

I imagine there are far fewer wackadoos and weirdos per capita here than in NYC, but I'll err on the side of precaution.

Options included:
Custom plantation shades (too spendy at $250/pr)
Curtains with rods (there's no place for tension rods to grip, and too much fabric for the 6" x 72" windows)

I found 'Privacy Film' with a sand finish at Bed Bath & Beyond for $14.99 and I thought I was done. The photo on the package showed the exact type of windows I have.

I assumed the film would be like "contact paper" and adhere to the glass once I removed the backing. Well, there was no adhesion. I resorted to reading the instructions...which directed me to cut the plastic to size, spray the glass with water, then affix the plastic film and squeegee the water out. A spray bottle? I didn't have a spray bottle handy, so I emptied out a windex bottle, cleaned it, then filled it with water. I used a shower door squeegee and there were still water marks under the plastic, no matter how much I squeeg-ed. Squee-geed? It looked 'alright' from a distance inside, but terribly splotchy from the outside. I was very skeptical that the film would stay attached to the glass once the water dried.

Product review: It's a pain in the neck to apply and looks splotchy on one side. I went back to the store, told them what happened and even though I already cut it, they said they'd send it back to the manufacturer, Brewster Home Fashions. Full refund--glad I asked instead of just tossing it!

I went to "Michael's" craft store and found Krylon Frosted Glass Finish semi-transparent paint for glass. Bingo.

I picked up 2 small cans for $9.99 each. It's for interior use only. (I later found RustOleum frosted spray paint for half the price, and twice the size at Home Depot!)

I masked off the edges and sprayed 2 coats, letting each one dry for 30 minutes.

The glass is totally opaque, the finish is very smooth--no drips--and sunlight gets through. I left the transom window clear. If there's a peeper out there on stilts, then I give up.

The Humble Fig

2010-09-18T13:28:00.005-04:00

"I call a fig a fig, a spade a spade" said some ancient Greek playwright.

Those who think about figs, a member of the ficus family, tend to think about them in the Summer and Fall. The season is short, the fruit is easily bruised and very attractive to birds and bees. Figs have been around for centuries and there are over 700 varieties. Adriatic, Mission, Calmyrna, Kadota, Brown Turkey, Celeste, Zebra, etc... The fig leaf was the inspiration for Adam's jaunty Speedo. The leaf is also a great natural doily, on a platter underneath cheese, crackers and spreads!

If I had a timeline for figs in my life it would begin in the late 60's, when I wondered what those Brits wanted when they sang, "Oh bring us a figgy pudding and a cup of good cheer" in "We Wish You a Merry Christmas." No one ever brought our family any pudding. Cups of good cheer, yes! Our pudding was up in the cabinet in My-T-Fine or Jello-O boxes---Chocolate, Vanilla or Banana. We didn't grow up on cooked fruit. Fruit was a snack eaten raw, cut up into cereal, available on the countertop in a bowl, in a cooler at the beach, maybe rolling around in a lunchbox.

Through the years I've been wary of food that that was in my opinion, misnamed. I love raisins, which are dried grapes. I've never had a prune on purpose, but they are dried plums, so it turns out I have and I liked them. Call it what it is! Mincemeat pie is all kinds of dried fruit and does NOT contain meat, for the most part (except for beef suet--and that was not on mom's shopping list.) Sweetbreads are not sweet, nor is it/are they bread. Offal is pretty close to what it is = awful. But I digress.

Apart from mysterious Dickensian references to "puddings" Nabisco made it easy for kids like me to like figs, via their cookie called the Fig Newton. This sliced fig cake was invented in the late 1800's and named for a town in Massachusetts. I still like Fig Newtons, they are kind of dry, semi sweet and then a little sandy...but in a good way.

When I moved to Long Island City, NY in 1989 the neighborhood was slowly shifting from all-Italian and Irish to the full-on melting pot that is New York City. Over the next 20 years I heard Francesca Monaco, a longtime widow who recently passed away, speaking Italian to her old lady friends and her family. From my yard I could smell the aroma of garlic and basil as she cooked. On the other end of the "row" my elderly neighbor Joe Savino would pick figs from his backyard tree. Some September days, he'd wait for me to pass by as I commuted home from work. He'd say, "Hello, Dawn!" and hand me a brown paper lunch bag filled with warm and ripe figs. What a gift! I'd race to Manetta's restaurant and buy thinly-sliced prosciutto, and have myself a wonderful appetizer, with a glass of red wine out in the yard. I'd survey "all that was mine"-- a15' x 40' postage stamp yard, and think about planting my own tree. But, winterizing a fig tree in the Northeast is no easy feat--it requires a bucket, burlap, and bungee cords. With marriage, work, grad school, volunteering, divorce, more work, etc...I never got around to it.

Dining at Otto, Mario Batali's restaurant in Greenwich Village, NY and through taking cooking classes I started to appreciate the combination of fruit, honey and cheese. Not just sliced raw fruit. I mean baked fruit tarts, marinated cherries, truffles in honey, quince paste, fig preserves. The humble fig kept reappearing.

Scroll forward to Summer 2009. My first stop in Italy was Lake Como to visit with my friends Amy and Guido and their boys Liam and Luca. The ultimate Irish Italian family! Amy had set the temporary kitchen table for lunch and it was a welcome sight. She apologized for the height--it was a door on top of the washing machine! I cared not; it shortened the trip from the plate to my mouth! I was so tired from the overnight plane and train trips. I slipped happily into my afternoon jetlag nap after a simple and delicious salad of greens, fresh figs, a light dressing and shaved parmasean cheese. The view of the red tiled roofs and the mountains right outside the kitchen window was more intoxicating than the wine!

Then came this incredible appetizer in the Tuscan town of Cortona. A massive fig, ripe, quartered but upright, filled with mascarpone, drizzled with honey and with a shaving of fresh parmasean. Yowza.

Later in the trip, our group went to Emilio Carlotti's olive grove in Montevarchi. I blogged about that last week. It was neat to see fig trees planted among the olive trees--happily coexisting as they have for centuries in the Mediterranean. Bright green, willowy branches heavy with fruit, contrasted against the silvery leaves of the sturdy and ancient olive trees.

Chef Faye Hess and her friend/our guide Claudio picked some fresh figs for us. This was the ultimate backroads Tuscan trip--no tour bus, no crowds, off the map, no tasting room, no shop. Just us, snacking on figs in a rainy olive grove.

Ok, so I've had 40 years of 'fig related signposts' in my life and it finally hit me over the head. Buy a fig tree, for fig's sake!

I bought this 4' tall Brown Turkey variety for $15 at Grower's Outlet in Pineville, NC. It doesn't look like much (I was tempted to buy a few) but this baby will grow to 20' high and more than 8' wide if I let it!

It's going to replace a ho-hum rose bush, and it will be the star of my yard, in time. It's going to be nice to watch this tree get strong and bear fruit...for jams and tarts and a grilled pizza that my cousin Chris has requested: Chicken, figs, balsamic vinegar, fresh mozzarella and shaved parmasean.

I'm a recovering "Type A" but I don't think I'll be able to wait two years for my first harvest to make all that! I'll stock up at the farmer's markets as summer winds down.

Stay tuned, canning season is upon us. And now that I know what's in a mincemeat pie, I'll be making one of those. Dee-lish!

Farm to Table Dinner

2010-09-16T01:25:00.002-04:00

I've joined the Charlotte chapter of "Slow Food" and I attended a "Farm to Table Event" tonight at Poplar Ridge Farm in Waxhaw, NC. It's a pretty rural town (pretty, and rural) about 10 miles from where I live.

http://www.poplarridgefarmnc.com/

Poplar Ridge Farm is not just a farm. Aside from growing and selling produce, flowers and herbs, they are a CSA (community supported agriculture) distributor and they are very involved with education. Their interns work the farm, admin staff have gone on to food policy jobs in DC, and they give area culinary students and chefs the opportunity to see where the ingredients they're cooking with, originate.

After driving on winding, field-lined country roads, and crunching along the gravel driveway, I was very surprised by the modern "farm pavilion and dining terrace" at Poplar Ridge. I thought to myself, this is a pretty fancy farm! The owners are Marianne Battistone and her husband, Philip Norwood. Movers and shakers. Click on the link below the photo, for their story.

http://www.localharvest.org/poplar-ridge-farm-M12536

While the 50 or so guests trickled in, we milled around the pool and the gardens, and enjoyed a Pimm's over ice with sliced cucumber, strawberry and mint--very refreshing!

Ten round tables were set with charming mismatched tablecloths, fresh field flowers and "condiments" in Ball jars pickled by this summers' intern. Bread & Butter Pickles and Pickled Okra---yum!

Bread was provided by Bakers Blessings and the goat cheese came from Bosky's Acres. I've enjoyed Bosky's goat cheese from the farmer's market in Matthews.

The Dinner featured the farm's produce prepared by two area chefs, Jamie Lynch of Barrington's Restaurant & Hollace Stephenson, a caterer/private chef/yogi who owns Taste Makers of Charlotte. Hollace came out of the kitchen to describe each of the four courses, and she was very passionate and serene. It was a great evening, being surrounded by people who really care about what they're doing, and about Charlotte.

In between courses, guest speaker Allison Mignery spoke about "what everyone should know about food policy." She is a registered dietician who works with the city and in schools to increase awareness. Her work is as basic, yet critical as teaching children that ketchup comes from tomatoes and that french fries come from potatoes. (I was 21 when I saw olives on a tree in Greece...and I can only imagine what an inner city child would need to learn about food!) On the other end of the spectrum, Allison is a founding member of the County's Food Policy Council. They identify "food deserts" and compile demographic data so that supermarkets can be introduced into low income areas.

She supplied a list of restaurants that source local food, community gardens in the county, CSA's and farmer's markets. I've been to some of them and now I know about more!

Dean and Deluca supplied the red, white and dessert wines.

First course
Salad of spicy greens, marinated squash, roasted sweet peppers and heirloom tomatoes with feta cheese.

Second course
Handmade ravioli filled with swiss chard, with housemade mint ricotta cheese, on a sweet potato cream sauce.

Third course
Tomato braised lamb cheeks on pickled eggplant, with a toasted pine nut topping.

Fourth course
Orange blossom rice pudding with strawberries, a bittersweet chocolate straw and a citrus tuile.

Delicious Food. Magical Setting. Interesting People.

$65.00.

I'm making a reservation for the last event of the season, September 29th.

Lancaster, SC

2010-09-14T00:38:00.001-04:00

Businesses along Lancaster Hwy, South Carolina. Wow. It gets rural fast outside of Charlotte.

My New Bike

2010-09-10T00:26:00.002-04:00

A 3-speed "Commuter Bike" with a basket, perfect for meandering along these manicured roads and leafy Greenways. I'm terra firma girl, no off-roading for moi. The sunflowers, wine and baguette would fall out!

Olive Oil

2010-09-06T13:22:00.007-04:00

Have you ever tasted something incredible, at the source, then wrinkled your nose (in recognition of, and maybe disappointment with) the mass produced version? Once you've had a fig the size of a baseball, in Umbria, you wonder what the heck is in a fig "newton." It's like comparing a homemade chocolate chip cookie to a Chip's Ahoy...which clearly has less taste, and is filled with preservatives. It's not likely that you'll NEVER eat a packaged cookie again, but you definitely know there's a DIFFERENCE.

My food senses were awakened here and there in childhood, and while working summers at a farmstand. More recently through cooking classes that I've taken at the Institute for Culinary Education in NYC (formerly Peter Kump's Cooking School) and on a less formal basis, with Chef Faye Hess, my neighbor when I lived in Long Island City, NY. One sense that needed awakening is BREATHING more deeply, something I've been working on. Subway = bad. Fresh herbs and cooking aromas = good.

Beyond her classes, Faye teaches in Tuscany and France, has a site/blog and a book called Faye Food, a blog called BacktoBetty, and has a collaborative instructional video/show called Dinner Confidential. She cooks in silver Birkenstocks but does not recommend that. Wife to Jonathan, mother to Ferdinand. Busy, fun, frazzled in a low key way, if that makes sense. Totally attuned to food--feel, sense, smell, texture, flavor---she LIVES it.

http://www.fayefood.com/

In one of Faye's classes, we did an olive oil tasting. We learned (gasp!) that many mass produced olive oils are colored oil, with other ingredients. Filipo Berio, which I like, uses a mix of oils from Italy, Greece, Spain and Tunisia. Not sure why it takes 4 countries, but at least there are no other ingredients. Good advice: read the labels, then decide.

The final 'shot' in our tasting was reserved for an olive oil that we'd seen Faye cradle like a baby, and swoon over in the kitchen. La Macchia, from Italy.

Pure, with the scent of fresh cut greens. Extra virgin, highest quality, first pressing, no preservatives or chemicals. Better advice: if you can, get olive oil directly from a grower or a small batch brand from a specialty store...whether it's from Spain, California, Italy, etc... Taste them, test them, find one you like!

Click below for a quick primer on Olive Oil, courtesy of The Mediterranean Foods Alliance.

http://mediterraneanmark.org/documents/OliveOil101.pdf

I travelled to Tuscany for Faye's class last summer, and I've blogged about it a bit. I'll be in the Loire Valley for her class this November, and can't wait to experience the people, the chatueax, the countryside, the wine, the food, the flea markets, the, the, the... Oh, and PARIS!

In Tuscany, one of our day trips was to Faye's friend Emilio Carlotti's olive grove, a side business of his. Now I know why she was swooning in that kitchen in New York. One tree yields one liter of olive oil, one time per year. I would like to see the 'trees' that produce the truckloads of grocery store olive oil ;-(

The dog stopped and turned around, as if to say, "Hey, a mudslide." There was a huge rainstorm the day before.

When I was a 21 yr old backpacker in Greece, I saw for the first time, gnarled gray trees with netting on the ground and old ladies shaking the silvery-leafed branches. "So THAT's where olives come from!" I had only seen them in our fridge, in jars, with or without pimentos. It only took 27 more years and a couple of farmer's markets in between to bridge that gap between groves in Greece and Italy--but I'll never tire of learning and appreciating.

Grapevines and fig trees are planted among the shimmering olive trees.

Our group's olive oil orders! I'm down to my last liter ;-(

The olive oil Emilio presses there is named La Macchia, after his family's home, Villa Macchia. It dates from the 1300's. The farmhouse (pictured below) where I stayed and took classes is part of the property.

One night the 12 of us dined at the Villa with Emilio, his mother Countess Chiara Scarpaccini and his sister, Francesca Carlotti. Wow, is too small a word. I didn't bring my camera, because I respected their home as their home, it's not a tourist attraction. Imagine a massive stone house, big iron gates, cool dark interior, deep fireplaces, centuries old books, visible electrical wiring wrapped in fabric, worn marble stairs, huge wooden pocket doors, paintings that you'd see in a museum... The history that Chiara relayed, the dinner that Francesca made...chick pea appetizer, salad, pork swimming and marinating in Emilio's olive oil--yet not at all greasy, dessert, wine, toasts, stories, laughter, hugs, the walk home through the dark woods. And, and, and...

..I'm down to my last liter.

Roasted Tomatoes

2010-09-06T09:31:00.001-04:00

I have a favorite summer salad, that I adapted from The Food Network. It's corn, cherry tomatoes, mozzarella and avocado with a cilantro/lime vinaigrette. Simple and good, it gets raves.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/aida-mollenkamp/aidas-corn-tomato-and-avocado-salad-recipe/index.html

In my version, I roast the corn kernels with a drizzle of olive oil and some kosher salt. Today I decided to use plum tomatoes, and to roast them, too. The original recipe is good, but it's a little "raw." I prefer the deeper flavors that roasting reveals, and for the salad to be served only slightly chilled.

I assembled the ingredients, with the dressing and a few lime slices for the garnish on the side. I tossed it when I got to the BBQ, so the salad would not be sodden. I was flattered that the hostess asked to keep the leftover salad, while she returned my bowl. Heck, yeah. Pay it forward!

Here's the tomato(e) how-to:

I learned this simple recipe in Tuscany last summer. Preheat the oven to 275 F. Slice the tomatoes in half, cut off the woody stem end, including the little white piece inside. Use your thumb to remove the seeds.

Parchment paper on the baking sheet makes clean up easier, and the tomatoes won't stick. Drizzle tomatoes with your favorite extra virgin olive oil (I had this La Macchia shipped from Italy after I visited the olive grove), and sprinkle with kosher salt. No pepper; it's bitter, and what you want here is to coax the pure good taste from the tomatoes.

Roast for 2 hours. Go play, write a poem, do some laundry, take a walk, wash your car or see a movie--the key here is to roast "low and slow." I flipped these over and sprinkled a little kosher salt on top for the last 30 mins. Peel off the skin, and there you have it--roasty, tasty plum tomatoes. Serve them as a side, put them on a panini, or slice and use them in a salad, such as the one pictured below, and to which I've linked above.

Ready for the BBQ. Off I go!

Waxhaw, NC

2010-09-05T01:52:00.003-04:00

Charlotte, like many cities, has "First Fridays" events at the beginning of the month. I've been to the ones in the historic South End and to NoDa, known for the gallery crawl. Loads of people come out to sip wine, have some cheese, gather on the sidewalks, have dinner, listen to live bands, and peruse the galleries and shops. It can be hard to find a parking spot!

There's a little town called Waxhaw, about 25 miles south of the city center. It's been hit hard by the recession, and many of it's stores, restaurants and pubs have closed down. I went to Waxhaw's First Friday and the locals were giving it their all, but I was in and out in less than 2 hours.

The band was pretty good--playing rock 'n roll covers.

When the sun went down, a movie was projected on the side wall of "The Furry Godmother" pet store. It's such a cool idea and if they showed a classic film it would have been a perfect setting on a really nice night. Grab a blanket or a chair and settle in with some vino and snacks. But, they played an animated Pixar flick, and it wasn't well attended. Skipped that!

There's a guy named Mark who started making brooms about 15 yrs ago, using a wooden, pedal driven 'Kick 'n Stitch' machine from the 1880's. The shop was small, and it's set up like a museum. It smelled like fresh cut hay and Mark was there making brooms and whisks. It takes an hour to finish each one, including handsewing and wrapping the top in leather.

I bought one, with leather woven through the straw, for $34. I appreciate the artistry, and it's something that I'll definitely use. Mark's tag line is "Han Dun."

The website is partially under construction, but you can call him to order this little piece of history. http://www.handuntrades.com/

I'll go back to Waxhaw on a weekend day, to check out the other shops and to try Rippington's Cafe. It's important to support the local economy!

No Tipping, Please

2010-09-05T01:18:00.000-04:00

I put some new office furniture together, and though the floor is level, the piece is sitting on new carpeting, and I wanted to make 100% sure that the hutch won't topple off the double file cabinet.

Tools you'll need:

Mending brackets/screws
Phillips head screwdriver
Threaded screw starter
Marker to mark the hole placement

Hold a mending bracket up, and mark the top and bottom holes. Turn the screw starter clockwise about 10 turns, then carefully remove it counterclockwise. You have now prepped the holes, and the threads will "take" the screws more easily.

I spaced 4 mending brackets along the back, the top hole is in the hutch, and the bottom hole is in the file cabinet. Don't overload the hutch, or it will be top-heavy. If you have small children or pets who could climb onto or knock over furniture, then you'll want to secure the piece to the WALL as well, and you can also place "shims" under the front of the piece at the floor level, to tilt it back slightly. It's just me here, so the brackets will do the job.

Ready for business!

Preserving Preserves

2010-09-05T00:57:00.001-04:00

Whether you go to farmer's markets or can your own fruits and veggies, the end of the summer is a great time to stock up on homemade canned ketchup, jams 'n jellies, and pickled peppers, kimchi, etc...

Canning jars...the jars are glass, not metal cans! Canning refers to the process.

The jars are reusable, but the metal bands and lids, once sterilized and boiled, are NOT reusable.

While you're still enjoying what's in the jar, sometimes the lid gets a little sticky, it may come apart from the band, and it's tricky to pry off.

Once I've opened a jar, I throw out the lid and band and replace them with a plastic lid, which is reusable. The lids come in small or wide, 8 to a box and you can get them at a hardware store, or a big box store like Target. I'll include a lid with the canning gifts I give, I think it will be appreciated!

Spices

2010-09-02T01:32:00.005-04:00

Is your spice rack/cabinet/drawer a random collection of bottles, jars, tins and bags? Have you purged your spices lately? Are you still using "Italian Seasoning" from the '90's? Ground spices lose their potency, so buy smaller amounts from a bulk spice purveyor, or use whole spices when possible. You can use a microplane to grate fresh nutmeg, and a small Krups coffee grinder (labeled for spices only) to whiz up mixed spices or dry rubs for meat, etc... It can be less expensive to buy spices in the "international foods" aisle, for example Badia brand or bagged spices from World Market versus well known McCormick.

Love Penzey's, too. http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/shophome.html

I purged, replenished and replaced over the past year. Still, my spices have been a big jumble of sizes and containers. I'd have to take 10 jars out to get to the sesame seeds or the wasabi powder, way in the back. I always kept them semi-organized though, by separating cooking and baking onto different shelves.

As I set up my new kitchen, there was one big drawer left over. Prime real estate. I didn't want it to become the catch-all, junk drawer. I have enough space here, and I will endeavor to have everything stowed logically.

I unpacked the big tub of spices, and I set up the assembly line. I found clear glass spice jars $3.99 for a set of 3 at World Market...same price for small or large.

http://www.worldmarket.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3597572

...and these nifty preprinted labels at Ace Hardware. (Who keeps a whole jar of M.S.G.??) I have a label maker for the odd spice that they don't list. The jar lids swivel around to reveal 3 sizes of sprinkling holes, and they twist off easily so I can get in there for a pinch, or use a measuring spoon.

The labels can go on the side, or top.

I'm splitting the drawer in half--one side for cooking spices and one for baking. It's great to have everything within reach, and on one level!

A Street By Any Other Name

2010-09-01T11:57:00.004-04:00

In New York, the City is broken down into Boroughs and the outlying suburbs are broken down into Towns, or Villages. Within those neighborhoods, there are streets, parkways, avenues, lanes, etc... Sometimes homes are named, as an additional identifier to their address. In the heyday, one might have directed one's driver to drive one to "Utopia" for a white tie dinner. The location was just known. (Does anyone actually know the street address for "San Simeon" in Los Angeles, CA or "Biltmore Castle" in Asheville, NC? ) The mail's gonna get there. Sometimes the name is humorous, like "Casa Collapso" for a too-big money pit.

There are also subdivisions with names, and they evoke real or imagined levels of success, inclusion or exclusion. "The Enclave." What sign for "Nob Hill" doesn't have some kid's spraypainted "S" as a preface?

Here in Charlotte NC, acres upon acres of former farmland and mill houses are being bought up, razed and built up into subdivisions. Within them are massive homes, apartment homes and patio homes or condos and apartments. There's a bit of a glut (buyer's market!), and you wonder if the tag lines in real estate magazines and on the signs might seem a tad desperate.

*Close to Work. Close to Play. Close to Perfect.
*Experience Life in the Circle (Circle at South End)
*New Management, New Attitude. (What about the first buyers? Old Management, Bad Attitude?)
*Hip To Be Square (Elizabeth Square)
*Your Invitation to the Exceptional
*A Country Feel With Big City Convenience
*You'll Feel Right at Home in Unparalleled Elegance
*Designed With You In Mind (Me? Really?)
*We're Unique To Meet Your Needs
*Real People. Real Living.
*Discover a Lifestyle Full of Options
*Dedicated to Exceeding Your Expectations
*The Links at Citiside (Um, there is no golf at this location.)
*Living Right Just Got Easier
*Just Blocks From the YWCA Without the High Prices!
*Start Living Your Legacy Today!
*Lease It! Live It! Love It!
*Where Your Journey Ends and Your Dreams Begin.

I thought of one...
"Wheelchair Run at Colostomy Bay...You've Got Life in the Bag!"

I found my home, no fanfare, no signs or slogans, no balloons...in a subdivision that was built 8 years ago. Nice and quiet, no salesman telling me, "Well, Dale, what you're gonna love here Dale, is the clubhouse slated to be built in 2013, and Dale, the Olympic size swimming pool with a Lazy River and 2 story slide!" I stopped listening when he told me my name three times.

And gimme a regular Road, Avenue or Lane! The street names all end in Acres, Cove, Creek, Run, Trace, Terrace, Circle, Square, Meadows, Hills, Loop, Path, Alley... I would personally draw the line at GULCH.

I love my home, and my little neighborhood, but I do wonder why my street is called a Boulevard! It's a weighty moniker for a normal sized tree lined street, with sidewalks on either side. Boulevards are wide, multilane arterial thoroughfares with medians containing above average quality landscaping and scenery, according to Wikipedia.

In France, frequenters of Boulevards were knows as boulevardiers. I haven't seen anyone in a top hat jog past my house, but I'll keep a look out.

Media Maven

2010-08-31T00:59:00.006-04:00

Cool stuff is usually wasted on me. I'm not quite a Luddite, but the simpler the better.

I'd drive a Porsche just a tad over the speed limit, and not at all if it was a stick shift. I use about 10% of the capability of my Blackberry and my computer. I have no curiosity beyond e-mail, and I use a cellphone and the little camera for exactly those purposes---calls, texts and photos. Never gonna play Brickbreaker, use the calendar, V cast apps or Slacker Radio (whut?), Voice Notes Recorder, etc...

When I bought my house, the sellers "left behind" a Bose surround sound system which seemed pretty cool. I looked at the pile of cords (cables, whatever!) thinking they'd just get attached to my TV, but a friend's 18 yr old kid told me I was missing the receiver and the speaker selector. So all I got was a pile of cords (cables, whatever!). Oh well, at least the speakers were all there, with corresponding volume knobs strategically placed around the house.

It's all wired into one discreet corner. I came up with a great idea for the TV. I didn't want to put it over the fireplace, I don't have a wall unit, wasn't going to get one either, so I bought an artist's easel. I know--pretty neat!

The cable guy came and said this was the first time he'd ever hooked up a TV to an easel. I told him I wanted the smallest digital cable box possible, and that I never figured out how to program a VCR, so there is no chance I will need or use a DVR recorder. The fewer components, the better. I barely watch TV--maybe 5 channels out of 100's...but I do want those 5 to look sharp and to sound great. The picture was indeed sharp. Check that off the list.

My grill/appliance guy sells TV's but I already have one. He recommended a home entertainment system guy, and he came over with a receiver, a subwoofer and a speaker selector. I asked him for small, dark and handsome. And for "cord management" so that my whole "mimimalist easel idea" was not going to be compromised. All the boxes fit neatly under and behind the easel and the cords live inside a mesh sleeve. So far so good!

But then...the pile of remotes and instruction manuals. Nothing makes me glaze over faster. Well, maybe talking politics.

Gah! Remotes, manuals and schematics.

"All these remotes to listen to a CD, watch the news, cooking shows and some movies? Not happening. Not happening. Too many steps." I pleaded and he came back this week to program everything into a universal remote. It looks important. It's got some heft, it has a digital display, but it's surprisingly easy to follow and I'm totally in charge! One zone for video and TV, and another zone for music to be heard out in the yard, or on the front porch, or above the tub in the master bath. Hello, Mr. Bubble!

Sleek-ola!

Grillin' and Chillin'

2010-08-30T23:57:00.007-04:00

I left my Weber gas grill behind in New York, but I packed the little "Smokey Joe" kettle grill for the move South. My buyers, apartment dwellers, were happy if not a little apprehensive to inherit the Weber. I spent time really giving it a good cleaning, dug out the instruction book, and gave them a quick overview to show them that they need not be afraid of the propane tank.

My confidence in propane grew over time. Slowly.

I'm not a big fan of sticking a lit match into a peephole to ignite a gas grill or an oven. If any gas has been released and for some reason it doesn't ignite, I shut the operation down and use a grillpan inside. Or have cereal for dinner. The jitters remain after having been blown across a kitchen after using a match to light the stove while babysitting back in the early 80's. The propane tanks had been filled that day, and there must have been a buildup of gas. I did not have a gas stove in my formative years. But, I had watched many episodes of Little House on the Prairie.

Kaboooom. I "saw" the air encircle the room, and as I was sailing backwards, pictures were coming off the walls.

After I collected myself and felt around for my eyebrows, I went out to the yard and casually said, "C'mon kids, let's go to McDonalds!" I made them sandwiches and salads for the rest of my stay. Plenty of Cheez-Doodles and ice cream, too. They had no problem with that. "You're cool!" (Yeah, I almost blew up your house and now I'm overcompensating.) The parents came home from 3 weeks in Hawaii, and I sheepishly showed them the bowed out sides of their stove. Thankfully their kids were outside when it happened, everyone was ok, eyebrows eventually grow back, and they were set to renovate the kitchen anyway...

At my new place, the buyers took their grill with them, and I was happy to get a brand new one for myself.

It came with a little "venturi cleaning brush" which I've never heard of, but will not ignore. It seems spiders can spin webs or insects can build nests in the venturi tubes. Is nothing sacred?? The grill may still light, but the nest will block the flow of gas, and can cause a flashback.

I've got some time before that will happen. For grilling quick dinners and desserts, I prefer using gas...but when friends are over, I also love the ritual of lighting coals and using them from firey orange down to the white ashes. Why do carcinogens TASTE so good?

I got to the farmer's market too late on Saturday, and didn't get anything fun like peaches, figs, big red onions or peppers. I christened the grill tonight anyway, with a super simple dinner. Grilled fennel salad and chicken breasts with mustard marinade.

Brush a chicken breast with a mixture of dijon mustard, a little olive oil, a squirt of blue agave (it's not blue, and it's lighter than honey), some salt and pepper. Halve or quarter a fennel bulb, after cutting off the fronds and peeling off the tougher outer layer. Drizzle fennel with olive oil and grill for 10 mins or longer, depending upon how carmelized you want it. I grilled everything on a sheet of heavy duty foil for this maiden voyage, because I wanted the heat...not any kind of factory burnoff.

Cut up 2 ribs of celery on the bias, and slice the grilled fennel thinly. Make a vinaigrette using the juice of one lemon, some grated lemon rind, and finely chopped fennel frond. Season with salt and pepper and whisk all together while drizzling in good olive oil. Some shallot would have been nice, to add some flavor and color. I didn't have any shallots, and I was too lazy to make any kind of a starch...but all in all this was just enough for a Monday dinner on the fly.

Cooler days and nights are just around the corner, and I look forward to really getting the grill going with some of my new friends. Cedar plank salmon, grilled peaches, kabobs, pound cake, mmmmmmmm.

Let Us Spray

2010-08-24T11:50:00.003-04:00

I don't have a lot of DIY projects in line, since my house is under 10 years old...and that's a good thing. DIY was a major part of my life in NY. Now I can shift my focus to looking around and living life without tackling repairs and upgrades. To start finding that balance I keep talking about!

Rocking chairs and front porches are pretty popular down South, and of course I wanted rockers since I have a house with a front porch! The weather is cooling after a broiling hot summer, and my porch will be a good place to read and survey all that is mine. Out front, that would be a 27' x 6' strip of sod. I mean that philosophically, life beyond that. The previous owners left me a pretty tricked out porch--it has a Bose speaker and 2 ceiling fans!

There are rocking chairs along the Charlotte Airport concourse, out in front of shops, on the front porches of restaurants and of course at private homes. I started looking for mine and I was surprised to see that they can run to $300 apiece.

I pay readily for things that I want, when I want them. If the situation allows, I haggle with the best of them. But, when I get it in my head that I'm NOT going to spend top dollar, the mission begins. I looked in local stores, I searched online and still...too expensive, or not the style I wanted.

On July 4th I was on my way from golfing to a BBQ in Pineville. It's a "blink and you miss it" kind of town, with one small row of shops on Main Street.

I peeked into the windows of the shops--most were closed for the holiday, then I looked across the street and saw them! I did a double take--are you kidding me?

Two rockers, exactly what I was looking for...and just $49 each. Bingo! I didn't ask for the "best price" because I knew from what I'd seen, that I was getting a great deal.

All they needed was a light sanding and some spray paint. Too many nooks, crannies and slats to paint with a brush. I used spray black paint with a satin finish.

Do yourself a favor and get one of these 'spray handles' to attach to the can. This one from Rust-Oleum was about $5. No more numb index finger!

Each chair took 2 cans of spray paint, by the time I flipped it every which way to get full coverage.

A coupla cushions, and I'm good to go! Lemonade, anyone?

Welcome to the Neighborhood

2010-08-24T02:15:00.000-04:00

My neighbors have seen a flurry of activity at the house over the past month. On the heels of the sellers moving out, I had the gas, water and cable guys here, then painters, paperhangers, electricians, my movers, and last but not least the landscaper.

Coincidentally on my birthday, Debbie, a neighbor across the street, walked over and said, "Welcome to the neighborhood--I baked you a Coca Cola Cake!" I've never heard of that before, and she said "It's a Southern thing." I was wowed, awed and felt really quite special and welcomed! I thanked her and said my cousin Chris was coming down from Connecticut to celebrate my birthday...so her timing was perfect.

I dug up the recipe on the Coca Cola website. It probably dates to the 1950's. I can tell you that it goes very nicely with Southern hospitality, and a cold glass of milk!

Cake:

2 cups sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups small marshmallows

1/2 cup butter or margarine

1/2 cup vegetable oil

3 tablespoons cocoa

1 cup Coca-Cola®

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup buttermilk

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Frosting:

1/2 cup butter

3 tablespoons cocoa

6 tablespoons Coca-Cola

1 box (16 ounces) confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, sift sugar and flour. Add marsh- mallows. In

saucepan, mix butter, oil, cocoa, and Coca-Cola. Bring to a boil and pour over dry

ingredients; blend well. Dissolve baking soda in buttermilk just before adding to

batter along with eggs and vanilla extract, mixing well. Pour into a well-greased 9-

by-13-inch pan and bake 35 to 45 minutes. Remove from oven and frost

immediately.

To make frosting, combine butter, cocoa and Coca-Cola in a saucepan. Bring to a

boil and pour over confectioners' sugar, blending well. Add vanilla extract and

pecans. Spread over hot cake. When cool, cut into squares and serve.

*The cake recipe was contributed by Lee Avery Catts to "Atlanta Cooknotes"

published by The Junior League of Atlanta.

Uniformity

2010-08-24T01:46:00.002-04:00

Why are there 12 holes at the top of a shower curtain liner, 12 to a box of shower curtain rod hooks, and 11 holes at the top of a shower curtain? I won't (can't) leave it like that---I have to remove a hook, and move the liner down one space. It's going to look all loose. Kind of annoying.

Same situation in my hotel bathroom this past weekend in Nashville. I did not take a photo.

It's like the 8 hotdogs to a pack, 10 hotdog buns to a bag conundrum. Have you ever wondered why A and B don't match up?

Or, is it just me?