Four Seasons in Rome

I read the perfect book recently. Four Seasons in Rome is an eloquent account of an author's experience living in Rome for a year with newborn twins and a book-writing project. Anthony Doerr got to experience fatherhood in a foreign country - where experiencing something as little as going to the grocer can seem alien.

The book alternates between stories of raising newborns and impressions of Rome. My favorite was when many months into the trip, when needing to communicate, Doerr found that most of his vocabulary had to do with where Romans he met could find a double stroller such as the one he brought with him from the states.

In other news: A Polish Catholic monk publishes a book providing married couples a theological and practical guide to spicing up their sex lives; Goldie Hawn thinks Kate Hudson needs to stop dating and settle down; And Ted Kennedy is going to be given honorary knighthood in recognition for his work as peace advocate in Northern Ireland.

Mother's Day

On Mother’s Day this year, my family not only celebrated our appreciation of our mothers (yes, plural), but we also celebrated spring. With gifts of flowers and other things that will sprout, a quick trip to the cemetery to bring flowers to past-mothers, and a bout with crazy Chicago traffic, followed by a meal of everything delicious that is currently in season– it was spring at its finest.

Just days before Mother’s Day, my local grocer sent me an e-mail to let me know that not only were they selling pies for Mother’s Day (three cheers for strawberry rhubarb pie with an oatmeal streusel!), but they had gotten in fresh morels. Now I KNOW that much of the enticement in morel season is the foraging for them – but here in Chicago, the little grass I DO encounter outside of my yard is frequented by pet owners and I wouldn’t eat anything I found there, even if I were so lucky as to spot a morel. Plus, some morels are poisonous. I don’t recommend serving THOSE on Mother’s Day.

Alas – I don’t have pictures of any of the people who I celebrated with on Mother’s Day, but of course I DO have a picture of the food. Below is my first serving of Angel Hair Pasta with Morels and Asparagus. I recommend it with good bread, a little parmesan cheese, a couple of bottles of wine and a strawberry-rhubarb pie. Quick – it is all still in season!

Botanic Gardens

Ahhhhhhhh - Spring. Ahhhhhhhh – environments carefully manicured to make Chicagoans feel as if they are a part of nature. Ahhhhhh – too much sun!

This past Friday, Otilia and I went up to the Botanic Gardens in Glencoe for most of the day. We walked the whole thing – more than once, sat and had a snack in an orchard, wrote postcards in an English garden and a Japanese pagoda, and ambled along enjoying the colors, the warmth and the peace.

Fringe tulips – aren’t they fabulous?! They look like CLOTH!

This would be okay in my front yard.

I came home with a mini-rose plant of my own and a mini-sunburn to mark the first bit of Vitamin D I have gotten in a while!


In other news: Many people are unaware that alcohol contains calories, pandas show a preference for artificial sweeteners, Paris Hilton takes Amanda Bynes' ex to Japan, and Happy Mother's Day to all three of my mothers!

Cello and Piano

Really now.  What is better after a long day than good sushi, a bottle of wine and sightreading Chopin with your sister?  

All of the above while messing with my new recording device.

There you have it:  A bit of Chopin.

I'm completely neurotic - why didn't anyone tell me?

Here it is - the end of February.  Have those of you who made New Year's Resolutions stuck to them?  Were any of them major changes to be made?  Starting a healthier lifestyle?  Spending more time with your family?  Saving money?  Well, studies show that over the age of 30, our personalities are pretty fixed and these changes are much harder to make.

Regardless of individual personality, according to an article I read in Scientific American Mind, as the years pass, our eagerness for novel experiences and our stimulation by the world outside our personal and professional arenas diminish.  It is thought that this was to help stabilize families for child-rearing.  For those of you who are uncomfortable with this idea - fear not!  After age 60, when it is no longer essential to maintain that stability, that openness to new experiences that was squelched for procreating purposes reemerges and our personalities become more malleable again!  We're free to travel the world!  Change careers!  Become a hobo!  Take piano lessons!  ;)

To see where you fall on the Big Five Personality Traits, (with openness being the one that begins to decline in your late 20s) take the free test here.   I still scored pretty high in openness (76%), was pretty average in conscientiousness (69%) and extraversion (50%), but scored a mere 1% for agreeability and a whopping 90% under the label "neurotic."  C'mon!  Get to know me!  I'm great!

In other news:  The problems with the economy have driven diners to go to great lengths to avoid paying for their truffles; goldfish can navigate mazes much the same way rats can (though under water); and be careful what you post on facebook - it isn't really private (did anyone ever think it was?)!  

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Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

Hesitant to pick up this book for all the hype around it, I heard a clip of an NPR interview with Barbara Kingsolver about a year ago and was charmed. I found a used hardcover copy in my local communist bookstore and snatched it up! I can't imagine why anyone would get rid of it! Communists.

This book turned out to be great - and I was able to make it last a full eight months! Since Barbara Kingsolver and her family set their local eating experiment to last one year, she divided the book up by growing season - one chapter a month. It was so nice to read about what was in season as it occurred and to find recipes for cooking what I was getting in my weekly produce box.

The family's experiences with farming, written humorously by Barbara Kingsolver, the helpful research providing links to local food sources and the benefits personally, economically and socially of sustainable living written by her husband, Steven Hopp, and the seasonal recipes included by their daughter, Camille, made the book a really interesting read. They were not self-righteous about their experiment, nor were they out of touch with the situations of us more urban dwellers without a family farm at hand.

I was particulary fond of Barbara's accounts of trying to have a second generation of turkeys when the ability to mate had virtually been bred out of these animals. Not that it matters, as they rarely live long enough to mate.

I have decided to keep this book for the helpful links, the seasonal recipes, which I have already tried, and the growing tips in case I ever decide to go searching for mushrooms in a forest presere or grow asparagus in my apartment's little front yard.

Garfield Park Conservatory

The other day, anxious for spring and not able to wait the few days for warmer weather, my friend Otilia and I went to Garfield Park to lift our squashed winter spirits in the warmth and humidity of its greenhouses.

Otilia, in the fern house.

Me, still indecisive about a haircut, and some azaleas.

Inspiration for my next haircut.

Bananas.  All I could think of was caramelizing them with lime.

Spring is just around the corner!

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Buddha, Picasso, and Mini-Muffins

Today I puttered down to the Art Institute to mark my day off with something interesting. It is currently under construction so many galleries are closed. This got me off my familiar beaten path and looking at things in new light.

I first wandered through an exhibit of the photography of Yousuf Karsh. He took portraits of many famous people and the gallery was full of recognizable faces, like Clark Gable, Queen Elizabeth II, and Kurt Vonnegut. What was much more interesting were the faces of people I knew, but wouldn't recognize.

Carl Sandburg

Pablo Picasso, 1954

There were several others that I wanted to capture, but I got yelled at for taking pictures.

Wandering around the rest of the museum, avoiding the droves of children on field trips, I ended up tracing the changes in the presentations of Buddha as Buddhism traveled from India to China to North Korea and Japan.

On the left are depictions of the life of Buddha from India in the 10th century. In India, it seemed Buddha depictions referred to one entity.

Below is a seated Bosatsu from Japan. A Bosatsu is just below a fully enlightened Buddha and acted as an intermediary. Seems a little more complicated.

Further into the Asian exhibits I found all sorts of different complications in figures that appeared to me as just Buddha symbols. Pictured below is a Bodhisattva, which is a merciful deity that helps to guide men to salvation. They are portrayed as more humanistic, reachable and less formal than the Buddha would be. See how the hand is open and the left foot is reaching down from the pedestal? There you have it. More humanistic.

The last "Buddha" picture is actually of a Kannon from Japan during the Kamakura period around 1300. A Kannon is a bodhisattva of compassion. Though I think this one looks a little bored, they are supposed to be eager to help mankind!

I wandered around the rest of the museum, bought a coloring book and some postcards, and came home to make some cherry-orange corn muffins to get me through the weekend of dropping temperatures we're facing. Stay warm!

In other news: Magpies join the elite group of animals that can recognize their own reflection; People actually feel colder when they're lonely and lonelier when they're colder; And winter just isn't over YET.
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Makeover Wednesday

Somebody recently told me I should grow my hair long. While that would mean less frequent trips to the salon, it would also mean more care. And I'm not sure I'm a long-hair kind of person! In the spirit of down-to-earth, valid and meaningful research, I went to Daily Makeover to find out.

Here is what I came up with:

Thank goodness it isn't the eighties anymore and I don't have to wear light pink lipstick!

This is my Ashlee Simpson hairstyle. The eyemakeup was fun to try and I don't have to worry about trying to scrub it off!

My Barbie doll look!

This is my witness protection program look.

So - what do you think - should I go with any of the above styles?

Happy New Year

Usually I take some time to reflect on the year that just ended and rarely do I make New Year's resolutions. But, I have been hearing everywhere recently that it is time for a change. So here goes: Goodbye 2008!

In 2009 I resolve to:

1. Hang out with friends regularly
2. Play more at the piano
3. Get through the winter by cooking something beautiful every week.

Pictured below is my first experiment with resolution number three. It is called a Sunlight Souffle, and it was delicious.


So, friends..... wanna come over and hang out for my next delicious creation? I'll provide the yumminess, you trek through the cold to get here! Fair deal?

In other news: Russian gas giant Gazprom has accused Ukraine of stealing gas meant for other European countries; Coral growth in the Great Barrier Reef is at its slowest rate ever due to the increased acidity of seawater; Jennifer Love Hewitt just became single; And to avoid getting the flu this year, I am going to eat.

Other People's Creativity

cheep cheep!

Eggnog ice cream and red wine? THUMBS UP.

Pumpkin ice cream and red wine? Not great at all. Really. But, not so horrible that I have stopped eating either one of them.

Cheers!

Staycation 2008

Times are tough, money is tight, and my family is HERE. So instead of escaping to someplace tropical to sip pina coladas on a beach, I remained in an urban environment, snug in the comforts of home, sipping hot tea in my pajamas. That's right. I have been on staycation.

I spent most of my time at home.
Playing with my dog,
Taking baths,
Drinking tea,
Wandering around childhood places,
Spending time with family,
Goofing around,
Eating sumptuous meals,
Playing in the snow,
Wearing funny hats,
Celebrating,
and sleeping in.

And of course, for those of you who do travel, don't forget to send me a postcard!

Flowering Tea and Needle Sculpture

To make sure this day didn't blend with all the others, I started my morning with a beautiful flowering green tea:


and then watched this incredible video:

I'm amazed by some of the things people do with their lives!

In other news: Australia's Navy has been given two months off for Christmas; homeschooling is great if you're Louisa May Alcott and get lessons from Thoreau, Emerson and Hawthorne; And movie buffs are agog over the new James Bond movie - here are some do's and don'ts on the James Bond lifestyle.

Booooo!!!!!

I think booing is crass. Many of John McCain's supporters booed during his concession speech last Tuesday. Even though they were booing his praise of Barack Obama, it couldn't have been comfortable for him to stand there as it happened. Why would people be so mean-spirited and rude? When did this become acceptable?

Booing has a long tradition in entertainment arena. A friend of mine who does poetry readings explained to me the system of hissing, booing, and snapping that the audience uses to let a reading-poet know how he has offended them. By as long ago as the 6th century B.C., this type of audience participation was commonplace at the annual Festival of Dionysia in Athens where playwrights would compete.

A system of booing was also used in ancient Rome during gladiator games and I have read that it even helped determine whether a competitor survived or not. How grim! How aggressive! Surely we don't want to behave the same way today!

It wasn't until the 19th century that the word, "booo," came into English use. And since, it has become quite common in sports to comment on an unfair call or unsportsmanlike behavior by the other team. It is true, booing is often over-used, especially by mean-spirited kids. And that is what I think of when I hear booing such as I heard on election night. Nobody was being unfair to John McCain up there. The timing was wrong. If a supporter wanted to boo, the time was when the election results were determined. Not when John McCain was giving a speech that must have been hard enough to deliver. There was no beer and hotdog devouring on bleachers, and the offenders were not teenagers - I just can't imagine what would bring that out in a person.

But now I have gotten carried away. What I really came online to share were a couple of pictures from the rally in Grant Park on Tuesday. Most of them didn't turn out. But, I was there and I have never seen Chicago in such a state. I hope the Olympic games stay away!



In other news: Ethiopian wolves are dying out fast - as few as 500 still survive today; President Bush and President-elect Obama have their first White House meeting today while both teams hastily try to make a war-time-economic-crisis transition go smoothly; Even Rachel Wood breaks up with Marilyn Manson; And octopuses are smarter than you may think!

Greenland

I’m baaaaaaack!!!

I have actually been back for weeks – forgive me.

I took a vacation. Some of you with more sorority-like hipness know it as a vacay.

Knowing my distaste for cold weather, with winter approaching, one might assume I went someplace to gather those last few rays of warmth – to bake my bones a bit in preparation for the dismal grey of Chicago’s winter season. HAH! Gotcha! Instead, I took a freezing military plane up to the northern part of Greenland (700 miles north of the Arctic Circle) where I got to experience my first snow of the season; wear a down coat, tights under my jeans and all the typical winter trimmings; and visit my husband who is stationed up there with the Air Force.


Monte and I climbed a bit of a mountain, which was a little scary not for the height, but for the loose rock that continually slipped from beneath us as we climbed.


Greenland has no squirrels. Nor any brown bunnies, centipedes or children. I did see huge arctic hares, ravens and arctic foxes. Pictured below is a brown fox. A day after I arrived it started snowing and the foxes started shedding their summer coat for a white one to keep them hidden in the snow.


The base is pretty utilitarian (ugly) with all the buildings looking like metal shacks and you would never know that building 105 is a cozy dorm and that building 2 something something (how quickly I get rid of useless information!) has a bar, the best karaoke I have ever been to, and a very nice restaurant inside. The one below might be the post office. Or maybe a dorm. Or the community center? I have no idea. Snow is not a good landmark.



When we weren’t out trying to make the most of my trip



we were indoors relaxing – reading, cooking, playing board games and rearranging furniture. For more on how interesting Greenland is, you can check out Monte’s blog. For more about Thule Air Station (where it is currently twelve degrees with a windchill of -4, and there remains only about four hours of sunlight), you can check out their official site here.



I’m back in Chicago and in the swing of things – I just turned on the heat in my apartment yesterday and can’t wait for Thanksgiving – scalloped pumpkin anyone?

Where Else Would I Be?

Confederates in the Attic

In an attempt to bond with my husband I read the book Confederates in the Attic by Tony Horwitz. I just finished tonight and enjoyed it.

I found it to be an honest and curious look into how the Civil War has shaped the South - what real memories and consequences there were as well as what iconic ideas have been latched onto. Horwitz travels through fifteen pertinent southern states interviewing an interesting collection of people (each with their own vehement opinion) to report on relevant stories of prejudice and obsession and a certain way of life that continues to separate the North from the South to this day.

While the book made me really feel how close in history the Civil War actually occurred, it also shocked me when it led me to understand that this far-off, long-ago time of bloody heroism is still so present in so many different ways for so many people.

Next week I'm in Greenland, but for now it is all mango yogurt smoothies for me!

Enjoy the weekend! And if you'd rather not, go ahead and take the ABC News Match-O-Matic quiz to see which of the presidential nominees' politics you align with most. I came out split almost down the middle with only one more check in the Obama column.

Got a ticket for my destination

We can finally put that age-old (generation-old?) question to rest. In what part of the country do you use the term 'sneakers,' and in what part do you use the term 'tennis shoes' or 'gym shoes?'

Nah. I'm just kidding! Most of my readers are adults! We don't care about THAT! The real question is where do we use 'soda,' where do we use 'pop,' and where do we inexplicably use 'coke?'

Here is your answer:

And for those of you that are adult-enough to not be able to see this clearly, you'll be happy to know that the term 'martini' is (ab)used the same way in all parts of the country.

The Accidental Purple Dinner

Someone I don't know posted a blog a while back about a food/photography experiment of eating only one color food per day. I thought of this creative consumer tonight as I sat down to my mostly purple dinner.

Beets, blue mashed potatoes and wine. Not bad! Not a lot of protein, but at least it satisfied me!

In other news: It is hurricane season (no!); As it turns out, it is NOT more stressful to be rich than it is to be poor (see article); Wooden pencils are probably better for the environment than mechanical pencils; and Lindsay Lohan has thoughts on politics.