Vampituity- An Improvised Perspective on Our World

Dragon New Year Wishes

2012-01-23T12:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Chinese New Year! It's the year of the dragon!

Can you see the sea dragon here? Look for the sea horse's snout in the upper right and you'll see him (or her) in all the floating glory.

You can enjoy spectacular sea horse and underwater wonders at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey. The sea dragons are part of the Secret Lives of Seahorses. I managed to see it before falling terribly ill for nearly a week. 2012 has not been super great thus far.

Kung Hei Fat Choy!

Belgium For the Senses

2012-01-13T20:00:00.000-08:00

Belgium, a land where dairy rules and dessert is afforded a higher status than in other countries. In this country with its funny language, dessert can be a meal onto itself. The French culinary influences offer up abundant cream sauces and most anything you order is drenched in rich dairy. Actually, it can be too much. But then there is the chocolate to rescue you. If you prefer some modicum of healthy eating, get thee to the weekly market!

My recent first-time ever travels to Belgium left plenty for my senses to enjoy...and not just my taste buds.

For Taste: We found a very "parentlicious" restaurant concept that doesn't exist here in the US: classy, restaurants with child care or spaces/toys for children to play built into them. Parentlicious means, "you must go." If you're ever in Antwerp with little ones, Sens Unik is a must destination. It's a classy 3-story place to have dinner while up on the 3rd floor your children are fully entertained and supervised in a multi-room play space with toys and gear. On the ground floor pictured here, you can watch them by video monitor and even go as far as to have them served their dinner on their floor.

Sens Unik also served this Piedboef, a kind of root beer beer that was pure fun to drink...and yes, very sweet. The ribs (I never eat ribs) were out of this world and the French fries (because in Belgium, ya gotta') were fantastic.

For Smell: Pretty much anything that is edible in the country is fair game. The weekly market in Antwerp was kind of like an American farmers market only 5 times as large and with a much more deeply Middle Eastern variety of nuts, fruits and breads. Vegetables, handmade goods and ethnic specialties were abundant. Nothing beat the wrap experience: Ricotta cheese drizzled with honey in a crepe; or roasted veggies in a crepe.

For Touch: Most of what you can buy or eat (or eat and buy) can be touched (diamonds, chocolate, beer, pastry, cheese). But for those with kids, there is a great destination in downtown Antwerp called in Den Olifant (on Leopoldstraat). It's a giant local toy store that can keep kids occupied on rainy days and best of all, it is across the street from Het Gebaar, a very fancy lunch and chocolate place with an acclaimed Belgium pastry chef, Roger van Damme. We didn't get to eat there, but we stood in line awhile. Reservations are a must. English is a third language step child here so if you can go in French do, otherwise, English is perfectly viable.

For Sight: Antwerp and Brussels are Art Nouveau meccas, but let me first mention the Antwerp Zoo which does a fantastic job of getting you very close to the animals. The zoo sits on the backside of Central Station, so a visit there can be paired with train travel back to the airport or to other destinations.

For Art Nouveau, I loved the Four Seasons district along Waterloo Street. We headed there in search of the Cogels Osylei quater (quarter) which boasts an intersection with Art Nouveau mosaic tiles on 4 houses representing the 4 seasons at Waterloo's intersection with Transvaal straat. After enjoying the district, we happened upon a lovely lunch at the Wattman Cafe.

For Sound: Enjoy the Musical Instruments Museum in Brussels. It's lovely art nouveau exterior, extensive listening stations for many historical instruments and posh cafe at the top make it worth the trip.

So what is she eating in the lead photo? (See the last photo). You cannot believe how amazing this berry cream pie thing was. None of that meringue/egg white lightness, it was deeply creamy. And alas, just mere museum food in Brussels.

All in all, Antwerp is a very personable and walkable city with lots to see and not much crowd to fight. It's also a great jumping off point to many other destinations around Europe.

Occupying the Holidays

2012-01-07T19:12:00.000-08:00

As a new(ish) parent, I find myself hungry to revisit and revamp my childhood holiday memories. The process also involves reclaiming some of that emotional and traditional "freight" and re-crafting it to fit my values. This is for others there wanting ideas on exposing their little ones to whatever holiday rituals feel most natural at this time of year.

I started around Thanksgiving with my strong need to give back and help others. It's a struggle, but I recommend finding ways to make this kind of activity a part of what you do in December. And that's a little baby step toward integrating it in year round.

Consider "the Christmas sandwich." Sandwich Christmas between 2 trips, a pre and a post-holiday trip, into San Francisco (or your nearest urban center). Great destinations here in the SF Bay Area include:

- The lobby of the Hyatt San Francisco which is filled with a giant Christmas village exhibit and leading up to Christmas. In past year, the giant lobby has also been host to some live performances, but I'm not sure that's a sustained thing. Close at hand to that is the ice skating rink in Justin Herman Plaza.

- For lights and shimmer, we enjoyed the tremendous ornament varieties offered at Gump's, which had a lot of stunning, handmade ornaments from Poland. Not local art and I had a lot of guilt about it, but it was a wonderful holiday experience for my little one. I didn't know they made organic gardener/Slow Food Santas, not to mention the Harley Davidson Santa, a Pirate Santa or...the Leprechaun Santa. Our splurge purchase, however left us with a Boxing Day return to Gump's which hosts an after-Christmas swarm in the store. Some amazing fruit and vegetable ornaments out there this year as well.

- Union Square's giant Christmas tree overlooking ice skaters and the nearby Macy's windows dressed with miniature "home scenes" for SF SPCA kitties and puppies seeking real homes. Lots of spots had "adopted" signs which is always awesome.

- We aren't Christian, but we were raised with varying strains of it (Christian Scientist, Baptist and Catholic). It was really easy to unite on something we both love: music. Jazz in particular. Yep, there's a church for that. We headed off for a candlelight Christmas eve service at Plymouth United Church of Christ in Oakland. They call themselves the Jazz and Just Justice church.

The service brought us both tears of joy and wowed us. It wasn't a spiritual/sermon that amazed us, it was the deity of music. The congregation is a thriving hotbed of all ages, races, and persuasions of singer/songwriter/musician talent (piano, sax). Standing ovation for songwriter Lady Bianca! To boot, pastor Marjorie Matthews' sermon included science, politics and an almost Monty Pythonish kiss of perspective. We'll be doing that again next year.

- We also managed to celebrate all but one night of Hanukkah with Hebrew prayers and lighting candles on the menorah. Our daughter very much enjoyed the candles and prayers. So we'll be coming back to take this on again next year as well. There is no reason to choose just one faith, other than limited time and energy.

- After Christmas, we cast our votes in the Gingerbread House Competition that we happened upon at the Palace Hotel downtown. We then had an amazing lunch at Maxfield's Pied Piper Bar. I highly recommend the Butternut squash soup! Brown sugar as the mystery ingredient (used as a thickener).

The "Painted Ladies" gingerbread street at the top was my favorite exhibit. This was also a very sweet one. Actually, I think I left my heart on BART, headed toward Oakland. But my dreams are always fired up when I look across the Bay to San Francisco.

Holy Grail of Mirth

2011-12-29T23:55:00.000-08:00

To close out 2011, my husband decided our home would be host to a Monty Python and the Holy Grail party. It was inspired in part by his 9^th year participating in the Christmas Revels- which carried an Arthurian theme this year. He claims the idea just came to him. It must've nibbled his buns or something. But I live with the bloke so...put up and shut up, right?

In search of a dessert fit for a king, I scoured the script (for those of you wishing a leg up on your own theme party or dessert) to find the following foods referenced in the movie: Bread, apples, cherries, coconuts, gravy, cider, banana, ham, jam, Spam, elderberries, biscuits, tea, rabbit stew, herring. I'm not counting swallow or moose as edibles here. Gather your own list of animals!

So off I rode with my trusty stash of unsweetened coconut at the ready and I came upon this Cherry Ripe Cake recipe, an adaptation of an Ina Garten's chocolate cake recipe.

The cake was moist and delicious but honestly the cherry coconut buttercream, while appropriate in its under-diced glory to best illustrate the bloody fight between Arthur and the Black Knight, was really jacked up. I should have food processed the cherries...though they weren't the problem. The proportions of powdered sugar to butter were off and I couldn't seem to correct them. The icing recipe did make a lovely slightly sweet tasting topping, but it was definitely not good icing consistency.

The recipe called for both cherry coconut buttercream and a chocolate ganache. I think a girl should be free to go without chocolate ganache, don't you? Besides the cacao bean is tropical!

As for the rabbit sitting atop my mini-bundt cake castle, here's what I shared with guests:

Welcome to Castle Anthrax!

In our story, we believe the bunny was an undercover agent secretly leading the women of Castle Anthrax to pursue Galahad and ultimately, all the Knights of the Round Table.

The bunny was definitely the instigator who drove the Black Knight to his chopped up fate (in the photo above, he appears to be rooting for the Black Knight rather than his intended function of whispering in his ear)

P.S. Eat me! I’m coconut cherry chocolate cake.
And don’t worry; your slices of my delicious innards will be mere flesh wounds.

With a wave of my shrubbery, I bid 2011 adieu. It has had some wonderful moments for me personally but has been a lot harder for my loved ones. I am humbled by both the joy and the sorrow.

I'm looking forward to 2012 and what an adventure it will be. Choices, choices, choices. The significance for you non-numerologists is 2+0+1+2=5. It's a 5 year. I'll let others do the rest.

Holiday Root Mash

2011-12-24T17:00:00.000-08:00

If you're looking for a twist on side dishes or appetizers, this was a total experiment that I find absolutely to die for delicious. It's totally vegan but you can probably de-veganize it with butter and regular milk or cream if you want the "fatified" version (sort of a humorous take on "fortified" for you).

Ingredients:

5 medium sweet potatoes (regular or Japanese), sliced thin
2 large turnips, sliced thin
1 small butternut squash, halved, de-seeded and baked with a little olive oil
2 tbs. Herbs de Provence
1/4 cup almond milk
2 tbs. Earth Balance spread
1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg

Bake the sliced squash for 30 minutes at 400 degrees or longer at 350. You want the squash to cook long enough to be soft and easily scoopable out of its skin. Scoop and set aside.

Slice the sweet potatoes and turnips thinly and spread over a cookie sheet covered in silver paper (the southern descriptor for "aluminum foil" or "tin foil"). Drizzle olive oil, salt and pepper on them and then sprinkle 1 of the tablespoons of Herbs de Provence on the turnips, the other tablespoon over the sweet potatoes. Broil on high for 15 minutes, or until the edges are slightly browned (times may vary depending on your broiler).

Once cooked, combine the hot turnips, squash and sweet potatoes together into a blender or combine using a soup wand. Then blend in the almond milk, Earth Balance spread and grate in the nutmeg.

The mash can be served as a side dish or as an appetizer. I used pita bite chips here (a little bit starch on starch but still yummy).

What I found delightful about cooking with the turnips is the designs at the center are always different. Here's something that reminds me of a snowflake...and this Christmas there isn't a drop of moisture in sight here in the Bay Area! Honestly? Sniff. I like a little dreariness to brighten the fires of home, don't you?

A Season for Dark (Black) Humor

2011-12-12T22:45:00.000-08:00

We were traveling in Dublin this Halloween this year. But not being home for my favorite holiday has left me feeling unfulfilled this December. And I'm firing up a bit of satire and irony about how a typical American interprets the December holidays.

With all due lack of respect for you Christmas (Yule) and Halloween (Samhain, Dia De La Muertos) lovers out there, my wires are happily crossed. I call him "Jason the Pirate: Our Christmas Angel from Below."

Our kitty, Joule Cortez thinks he makes a pretty darn good bed, too! Raggedly cloaks are much better beds than Santa outfits.

After publishing this post, I found some kindred spirit holiday decorators had decked out their porch on Telegraph with these two "elves of Christmas past."

Band Aids for Thanksgiving

2011-11-23T20:35:00.000-08:00

Earlier this week, I was explaining what would happen on Thanksgiving eve to my daughter. We were going to make a lot of pies using our own and borrowed ovens from the neighbors. It was because it is important to me to help people less fortunate. People without homes to live in or knowledge of where their next meal was coming from.

"Awww...I have a bandaid for them," she said. "I have Bactine for them," she nodded tilting her head to the side.

Bactine and band-aids are what she offers when she wants to give comfort or express sympathy for others' sadness or pain.

One of the things I am grateful for this holiday is that I have what I need to do this for my community. It's a small gesture but it goes far because it leverages what I do best--not writing checks, but making dessert. Best of all, I am able to tag on to the Thanksgiving Day Celebration made possible by the Dimond's Two Star Market- not a non-profit, but a local business that has been giving back to this part of Oakland at Thanksgiving for the past 9 years.

How can you collaborate with your friends and neighbors to touch people or families in need in your very neighborhood? Poke around, the options are certainly out there through local businesses, churches or non-profits.

More than ever, I'm grateful for the capacity to give. It's not just financial, its spiritual, emotional and I am grateful that my family let me take it on (full-time+ working Mom with a gazillion interests and hobbies).

Photo: What do you see in my pumpkin pie?
A four-leaf clover
Pumpkin pie crop circles
A cross
A person waving their hands wildly around in circles.

8 Strangers Facing 2051

2011-11-20T21:01:00.000-08:00

I cannot recall the name of the jazz great who recently celebrated his 80th birthday. Another fleeting NPR moment gone by except for one thing: 40 is half of 80. Here's why I was doing math listening to NPR.

On October 1st, I and 8 strangers came together under the auspices of my Forty by Forty initiative. I called it an Idea Party. The goal was for women to share our experiences about entering the 4th decade and to make a virtual time capsule for baby girls being born this year to open in 2051. What would it have been like if someone had done that back in 1931 for us this year?

These 8 women all arrived either through neighborhood list postings or acquaintances. They were armed with a willingness to celebrate and learn about each other, but also with a wide open mind. In each of them, it was clear there was a woman coming into herself, knowing what she wanted and didn't and living through events, positive or negative, that reinforced their power of self.

As for capsule for 2051 that we built here are some of the contents:

Examples of current feminism and what we struggled with in 2011.
Anxiety about resources – clean water, organic seeds, fresh air, and a clean lake to swim in.
Half the Sky by Nicholas Kristoff.
A real account of Beyonce's Girls song, to show that far from any truth, we do not "run the world."
A clarinet to play for one of the women's daughters (something not yet shared).
A lump of coal with the explanation – this is where we got our electricity.

We talked about the ways (digital and not) to build our community and express ourselves and build our connection to one another. A few had very amazing examples from their lives of collective power through women's groups and New Year's Resolutions. It seemed a shame to never see each other again.

Because we were meeting in person, it seemed that something tangible was in order. One of the women agreed to start a letter that we would send around to each other, over and over, with our thoughts, reflections, art or whatever we were motivated to share.

As I recall this year's Forty by Forty journey, there were far more than 8 women who have been touched and interested. So before the end of 2011, I will issue the call for the last phase of Forty by Forty to all the women waiting in the wings who had the kindness to respond to me and lend their support (from near and far). There are about 25 of you out there, each with amazing stories of your own about this year.

As far as those jazz greats go, I caved. And I found what I heard, too. Happy Birthday to all 3 jazz masters! 80 is a feat I am not sure I can achieve.

2051 Photo used under Creative Commons license. Photo by Eva the Weaver.

Cake for Occupy Oakland

2011-11-10T18:24:00.000-08:00

Knowing the Occupiers had called for cake, I headed down into the heart of my city this evening. Quiet, peaceful and enjoying a drum jam session or playing guitars, it was amazing to see the mini encampment with library, food, medical tents, etc.

Cake in hand, I looked around for someone to take my cake and found a guy who asked me if I was making a donation. I told him yes, and handed him my cake.

I asked him if he would sign my copy of Of Thee I Sing, but as I did so there were 6 shots fired...and it didn't seem real to me.

I ran and hid among the tents of the Occupiers for a few moments and then headed out of the plaza. I saw the gunman running and shooting, and people running beside him. Someone was shot, but it was on the periphery of Occupy Oakland, not from within. The noise of people converging on the scene was drowned after a few minutes by the sirens of police, fire and ambulances. Indeed, the mainstream news channels are still covering it now.

Oakland, my heart aches for you.

What has happened to my city? Are we going to let the perpetrators of poverty and violence have stronger voices than ours in these times of change?

I knew I was taking a risk to deliver my cake on a full moon, but I do believe the Occupy movement, the We are the 99% and other online communities such as Four Years Go are all fighting to create community and mobilize some sort of tipping point for change.

They have inspired me to listen, to watch, and to show support and pay closer attention.

I Stand With (in) Oakland

2011-11-09T17:00:00.000-08:00

The agents of change have taken up residence my city. Oakland has been an epicenter for those wanting change and a few fringe crazies who insist on making it violent- both inside and outside of the city government position- these past few weeks. I was closer to the sister "Occupation" efforts (Occupy Dame Street) in Dublin, Ireland.

I am due to visit the Oakland city center encampment and frankly, I'm hoping to be able to take those folks some pie or something delicious. As I'm finishing up this post, I see they are having their 1 month birthday party tomorrow night and are asking on Twitter for cake.

The Occupiers are doing what I cannot. But there are other things I'm doing to wield my own power:

- I'm participating in Small Business Saturday. In fact, I always try to keep my business with local, family-run chains. It really should happen every day, but you have to start small. I have my breakdowns in truth- times when I patronize national retailers. When they happen, I try to make sure my purchase tax dollars go to Oakland.

How can you feed the businesses and entrepreneurs working in your community?

- I'm dumping Bank of America for good. I missed Bank Transfer Day but the spirit ($80 million dollars moved in one day?!!) is still with me. Here's how you can find a credit union too.

- I'm going to continue to read and point out the current political relevance and examples of certain pages of President Obama's book Of Thee I Sing. It is in this spirit that I write (and take my little one to also go deliver cake this evening). He writes:

"Have I told you that you are part of a family?"

"A man named Abraham Lincoln knew that all of America should work [Occupy?] together. He kept our nation one and promised freedom to enslaved sisters and brothers. This man of the people, simple and plain, asked more of our country--that we behave as kin."

I think I should help them eat cake, don't you? :)

Photos: Occupy Dame Street, Dublin, Ireland.

Samhain in Éirinn

2011-10-31T22:51:00.000-07:00

A whimsical wish declared years ago has now come true. "I want to go to Ireland for my 40th birthday." I had forgotten until this year about that wish. I have returned to the country of my mother's forebears and it is every bit as mystical and breathtaking as promised.

It is Samhain-eve and I am walking the streets of Dublin. My Irish ancestors are on my mind. This is the time of year to remember and celebrate those who have passed. It is a time of death and rebirth. My grandmother's heritage was from people who came to America from county Clare--a very long time ago. I am a 7th generation child, a daughter of the American Revolution.

All around me pubs brim with nightlife. Millenials in costume roam in groups as if destinationless and out...just to be seen. Both traditional Irish and modern music blare from the pubs. The Halloween thrill this year has been given an extra hour's oomph from the shift off Daylight Savings time. Ireland celebrates Halloween as a national holiday. Many banks and businesses are closed and it is treated like we treat the New Year.

I watch the locals as they flit about full of life, filming each other, laughing and delighting in the pretend horror and alter-ego reality. Race, religion, sex and sexual orientation do not matter. Anyone can participate in this festival of the dead. Its offer to "make believe" there for anyone. I circumvent the creatures, superheroes and ghouls in search of medicine for my daughter. We are travelers here, attempting to continue nursing her back to health in a hotel room after spending several hours at Dublin's Children's Hospital. An Irish hospital wasn't on our list of planned destinations. A sick child is a grim reminder of how thin the veil between the worlds can be at this time of year.

As a foil to the festival of the dead, this year's 32nd annual Dublin Marathon happened today. An endurance race of this length (26.2 miles) is, for me, the ultimate celebration of life. It is also one of he many things here that puts me in a state of déjà vu. Dublin has many streets, parks and buildings that could easily be part of my hometown of Boston, which has its own marathon of the same length in January.

It is now October 31st. Samhain morning has arrived after an evening quiet with my daughter's sound recovery sleep that happened despite the wild parties all around us. I am grateful for the blessings that brought us to Ireland and for the kindness of fate that allow us to now see our daughter happily jumping up and down on the bed. It is a blessed morning. Go raibh maith agaibh, Éirinn! (Gaelic for "Thank you, Ireland.")

Notes on the spelling of Éirinn.

Lead photo: A stone at Knowth, Ireland.
2nd photo: Halloween turnip in the National Leprechaun Museum, Dublin, Ireland. In earlier times in Ireland, turnips were carved for Samhain instead of pumpkins.

End of Harvest: Pan de Coco

2011-10-26T12:00:00.000-07:00

Do you find yourself seduced by recipes that you hang onto month after month? Do you go out and buy the ingredients and then not execute on the recipe (like me)? Finally, late in this year's harvest season (Lughnasdh/Mabon...I'm finally getting around to posting it now that it's nearly Samhain), I got a chance to make this Pan de Coco recipe I found at Whole Foods.

What's neat is it's inspired by a woman named Euceria, a microcredit client of the Adelante Foundation in partnership with the Whole Planet Foundation.

We put in a new drip system to take better care of the fig and this year it's produced these gorgeous and delicious Brown Turkey Figs which pair really nicely with the coconut bread.

Ideas on directions to take Pan de Coco in:

- Basis for bread around strawberry shortcake. Yep, not the season for that now.
- Dip the bread in a variety of things as suits your after-meal (dessert) or breakfast preferences: Melted chocolate, lemon curd, orange jam or caramel sauce.
- Pair it with middle eastern avgolemono (that could work)

Are You Parklandish?

2011-10-23T11:28:00.000-07:00

Are you..."Parklandish?"

For the city of Oakland, this is a great word I created that fuses the well-known Oaklandish city pride/local arts vision with the International Park(ing) Day dream to create community gathering spaces, art, and urban re-visioning. PARK(ing) Day was celebrated in many cities across the world last month.

Creating community, one parking space (and day) at a time is what Park(ing) day was about. This international grassroots event is the kind of thing that could really help rally small and local businesses together to cultivate innovative use of community space and artistic expression. Maybe one day it'll be a whole week of establishing "mobile community places" where communities can come together.

This year's Oakland's Park(ing) Day this year was sponsored by Walk Oakland, Bike Oakland (WOBO). Internationally, the event is now in its 6th year.

On Piedmont Ave. in Oakland I found this friendly group of Park(ing) day participants.

Their parklet came complete with free cupcakes as a way to draw you in.

Lead photo: Lakeshore Ave. Parklet.

Sweet Heat: The Roundup

2011-09-30T21:00:00.000-07:00

The roundup for this month's Sugar High Friday is here! My great thanks to Heather of Soufflé Days for her participation in the theme with Mexican Chocolate Pots de Crème:
.

A rich chocolate pot de crème made with rounds of Mexican chocolate. The initial spoon of smooth custard is coupled with a heated chili aftermath.

I learned a few things about the traditional French cake, the Madeleine with my Dark Chocolate Pepper Madeleines.

And yes folks, that's the roundup for September.

Dark Chocolate Pepper Madeleines

2011-09-26T23:40:00.000-07:00

As I cook and create, I often make up stories in my head if there aren't real ones to accompany the recipe. This month's Sugar High Friday theme of "Sweet Heat" seemed an appropriate occasion to bring that inner narrative to life. I wanted to create a spicy/hot twist on the traditional French cake, the madeleine.

But as I was mixing, I kept thinking of them in my mind as "hot madeleines." I kept wondering: who is, or was "Hot Madeleine?" Maybe she was a Moulin Rouge dancer or some Josephine Baker-like (below) character who went around offering up a real "burlesque dessert." Maybe her name was Madeleine. Can't you just see her open hand holding a little plate of them?

From my experiments with the various kinds of hot peppers I could have used in the cake, I learned that you cannot judge a madeleine simply by its color.

The undipped half of the cake looks traditional enough but when you bite in, you don't expect the hint of tangy, sweet vegetable flavor. It also suggests the lemon (that is there), the coconut and a very tiny mystery tinge- a spice. In this case: coriander and cardmom. The chocolate has chipotle chili peppers in it. The cake has diced small peppers like the one shown at the far left in the batter.

While the chile chocolate only detracted from the taste, my goal of using vegetables to upend a very classic dessert worked well. And the coarse salt I used baked out to the edges giving the cakes an unusual coconutty-salty experience that was well received. Veggies can be part of desserts with delicate flavors!

The recipe: Martha's Lemon Madeleine recipe combined with the following additional dry ingredients:

2 tablespoons flaked, unsweetened coconut
1 tbs. mini sweet pepper
2 pinches of ground coriander
1 pinch freshly grated cardamom pods

Once cooled, they were dipped in melted Chipotle Chili Dark chocolate bars I found at Cost Plus. If you're making dessert for a hot foods lover, give the chocolate a try- maybe it will work for you.

Thanks to my brave taste testers, I also learned this recipe can fly all on its own without the chocolate.

Garnish: I chose pink and purple sugar sprinkles (because they were obnoxious and synthetic and seemed a laugh--maybe at me--next to my garden tomatoes) and flaked, unsweetened coconut.

A toast to dessert and dance!

Don't Forget Your Sweet Heat

2011-09-25T12:49:00.000-07:00

Don't forget, tomorrow Sweet Heat entries are due for Sugar High Friday September 2011.

Sugar High Friday is a monthly blogging event started by Jennifer at the Domestic Goddess.

September Meditations

2011-09-19T22:50:00.000-07:00

In this season of harvest, I remember those who are now behind us and who have now moved on from this world. You are missed and your memories give new life to memories of my own loss from years past.

It is a time for bittersweet experiences, like the taste of the pure fruit sugar from the orange-yellow mini tomatoes that are exploding in my garden right now (move aside strawberries!!): so sweet and yet so small.

My little girl's best friend is moving away this week. May she not see it as loss and may Skype, time, and fortune somehow sustain her dearest, first friend.

What's on your road ahead? What tastes linger from your plate? Where do your footsteps take you? And frankly, are you doing wheelies with your stroller?

Recommended listening for your meditation: "September" by Earth, Wind and Fire.

May the dance heal your sadness and embody your joy. And may Mother Mabon take you gently into her care this September.

Earth, Body, Forty

2011-09-10T18:00:00.000-07:00

Dear Body,

After these long 7 years away, thank you for allowing me to return to the joy of dance. When you move, my breath grows short and my emotional state of being transforms. I feel happiness and sadness more deeply. You have several amazing parts that work together that make dancing one of the most profound ways to celebrate life.

In sound, movement, expression, rhythm, flexibility, spirit, creativity and strength,
Thank you.

If you had to throw a dance party for friends what would be on the playlist and why? In celebrating the "Earth" portion of my 40th (Earth, Wind and Fire), I had to figure it out. I found myself reaching for diversity in musical genres. What can be danced to? In my book- almost anything!

The above music was stripped down from a 3.5 hour compilation. It was pruned both for songs that I truly love, but also so my girlfriends attending the party would agree, 'Yes! I can dance to this song.'

We had a delightful, if unexpected for me, time. An intermittent bellydance lesson, courtesy of leading lady Samar at Hipline plus a few kinks in my planning and execution...we hardly danced to any of these songs. But a very good, very expressive time was had by all.

Because it was a private party, we didn't take any video. However, I wanted to share this "ongrowing" collection of lovingly curated collection of all sorts of dancing and dance-like celebrations put together by Luc de Boer on Storify. My favorite? Hands down James Brown! Runner up- Obama!

Lead "feet" photo by Laura Turbow: My cohort celebrants' (maenads? well, maybe not with the lean 2 bottles of Hey Mambo I provided) feet. We are all connected by the steps we make on the earth.

Sweet HEAT: Hot and Spicy Desserts

2011-09-02T18:33:00.000-07:00

Burn after eating? Sugar and spice and everything nice? Sweet, hot... and spicy? Flambé?

I'm all fired up to host this month's Sugar High Friday dessert blogging event: Sweet HEAT.

Share your dessert and its story as you interpret the theme.

Sugar High Friday was created by Jennifer Hamilton of the Domestic Goddess.

Need ideas?

Heat could be the way you make the dessert, it doesn't necessarily have to be part of the flavor. Literalists however, need not apply: I would guess something like hot apple pie won't win you any fans.

Popular Plates Magazine had an end of June issue devoted to fiery foods. The issue had this article on the origins of chili peppers. The dessert section of the issue had recipes for Strawberries with Tex-Mex Tequila and Black Pepper, Chile-Chocolate Pretzels, Peanut-Chile Cheesecake, Habanero Mango-Walnut Cookies and more. Just some concepts...
Maybe the heat is part of your story about the dessert. Is there a dessert that means "romantic evening" for both you and your sweetheart, or perhaps a dish you recall sparked a huge fight some years back? Entertain us and demonstrate your interpretive creativity.

How to Participate:
- Your blog post needs to publish by September 26, 2011. Once that's done, please send an email to: rachel{at}vampituity{dot}com and make the subject line: "SHF Sweet Heat." . I won't know you've posted until you send that email. Here's the information I'll need from you:

-- The permalink for your post
-- The name of your blog and its main URL
-- A brief summary of your submission (3 sentences).
-- Your country of residence
-- A 100x100 pixel image of your dessert
-- If you don't have a blog but would like to participate, feel free to post your contribution in the comments to this post.
--Please submit your entry no later than September 26th to be included in the roundup at the end of the month.

Enjoy and...beware the stinging juices of the capsicums (if you're looking to peppers for your heat).

Trains Run Through

2011-08-11T22:49:00.000-07:00

My daughter is in love with trains (and buses, planes, trucks and heavy construction machinery). All my life, I've never lived in a place where I cannot hear trains passing by deep in the night. Their distant whistles or sirens have always been my backdrop for life's extremely still or frenetic pace.

When I'd take a moment to stop and listen, trains were my reminder that time and change are constant, though not always perceivable. Here's a fantastic steam train whistle that is better quality than the wind whipped iPad recordings I took of the Niles Railway engine's whistle. Zen out on and ponder how change and time move through your life. Is it like an unstoppable train, or a meandering bird pecking about for a worm?

This summer we've delighted in two of the Bay Area's historic rail lines still in operation today. Lots of fun for the kids and a fun thing to do if you live here and have guests in town you need to entertain.

The Niles Canyon Railway is a delightful 40 or so minute train ride into the beautiful hillsides of the East Bay. There is nothing more exhilarating than that blaring steam train whistle and the turn of the (20th) century enclosed and open air rail cars to give you a feel for what transport used to be like. The Niles Railway first started in 1866, briefly, then resumed in 1869 as part of the Western Pacific Railway effort to link Sacramento to the San Francisco Bay Area. Here's the history.

The volunteers working this experience were all dressed to the part and their dedication is worth noting in how much passion and energy they give to a preserving this authentic experience. Thank you!

The Redwood Valley Railway running up in Tilden Park in Berkeley is a small gauge steam train that boasts scenic views of San Francisco Bay and the scent of redwoods as the miniature train chugs its 8-minute journey among the trees. The Tilden Steam train has been running since 1952 and was started by hobbyist Erich Thomsen.

Breakfast among a model train collector's collection? If you have a real train (and breakfast) lover on your hands, I highly recommend breakfast or brunch at the Montclair Egg Shop. A serious train lover has decorated the place with lots of model trains in viewable boxes, plus historic photos. Running back and forth along the kitchen wall is a model BART train in addition to a miniature funicular that runs just around the back of the restaurant's open kitchen. And breakfast is fabulous, too!

Red Tricycle also has a nice resource article on other train-loving destinations around the Bay Area.

Happy 50th Mr. President

2011-08-04T23:10:00.000-07:00

Happy 50th Mr. Obama!

Our friends in Alameda hosted us for a wonderful hometown-style 4th of July parade and they has this fun way for you to "also be there."

I stand with you and am proud to have a President I don't have to be embarrassed about when I travel to other nations.

I had the random fortunate to see you in San Francisco back in April and I am grateful. I'll just add: I am still in!

I love this video of you dancing from way back when. I hope you get to dance in the Oval Office in rare private moments.

From your April San Francisco appearance:

Lammas Collage

2011-08-01T19:00:00.000-07:00

Summertime heirloom ahhhh...

See how she has grown by looking backward about 2 years!

And more of the same from last Lammas bursting out of the garden- see here.

Since we're on the subject of her, anyone know any good toddler tattoo artist schools so we can focus this energy a little bit? Oy. ; )

Whole Foods Molten cake. Buttercream icing. In a size we love, too!

There are echium among us? Or would it be echii?

40, to the Moment

2011-07-12T04:38:00.000-07:00

I am 40 years old now, to the moment. As promised in my Forty by Forty Project's search for the Daughters of 1971, I am reporting back. My quest was to find and talk with 40 women anywhere in the world born sometime in 1971.

The last 7 months have been an adventure...in logistics...and networking..and frustration. All you gals who are or will be 40 this year are dang busy! Your schedule, my schedule, your/my kids, work...we cannot find the time to connect.

And you're hard to find, too. But you're out there, lurking. Fearful that perhaps you aren't interesting enough to join me (just a logical guess based on the way I feel). All life paths are amazing so don't hesitate to reach out to me at: rachel[at]vampituity[dot]com.

Just a few days ago, I implemented the Facebook "Like" button and discovered 9 "likers" on my Forty by Forty post. Thank you! But, the web is a lonely and mysterious place, isn't it? I have faith that somehow, we can all find the strength to move beyond the Like button.

I did find about 15 women who wanted to talk with me, and I managed to interview 4 of them. But as I forged on, several realizations took hold:

Turning 40 is my reason for seeking out community with other women living through that same transition in 2011.
I am seeking collaborators. 39 of them, to be exact. I knew it all along but ignored it because it was a conversation with myself, ignored like meaningless small talk at a party.
At heart, despite my typos and grammatical degradation from far too many years in technology marketing, I'm still a journalist. Journalism, thanks to the Web, is changing into a rich media world where words are no longer enough. Text is...boring. Images are required but audio, video or something else are now on par with this vast world wide sensory realm!
With the help of a dear friend/life coach, Elyse, it became apparent that for Forty by Forty to be real, it had to get out of the digital realm. On the web, in the email of women I knew or didn't who'd expressed interest, Forty by Forty just wasn't tangible. It was ignorable.
In searching for the women, I began inadvertently curating all the people, events, places, and culture that were also, turning 40. It's an incredible list- wow what a year!

I want to honor and thank Delia, Diana, Angela and Rebecca for their trust in and time spent with me, reflecting on 40. The conversations were amazing and...they are not lost, but I want a chance to extend collaborative roles to each of you.

In honor of their 40th year and the great love I have for their music, I am adopting an Earth, Wind and Fire approach. Forty by Forty has gone tangible. It will likely return to the Web, but not without my 39 other collaborators. I know they are out there. Perhaps there are 3900 of them!

In August, I will initiate Earth: A dance party celebration for the women (of all ages) who have gotten me to this point in my life with their friendship and love. And most importantly, we will dance to express our gratitude for life and each other. Because when you dance, 40 years become real.

In September, I will invoke Wind: Any woman born in 1971 who is in the San Francisco Bay Area is welcome to come to my home to brainstorm. What is Forty by Forty? What could it be? Let's make it ours, let's have an evening together with each other away from family, obligation, work. Let's have an idea party and enjoy this bond of time we share.

After September, what's left will feed Fire: What will be left to sustain and burn is anyone's guess. I hope we will all be listening more closely then, as I should have, to the winds of our souls.

Photo credit: "Earth, Wind and Fire" Photo by Jeff Tidwell, licensed under Creative Commons.

Buckle Up for Transit(ion)s

2011-07-11T22:41:00.000-07:00

"See, I don't see it because I'm on the other side of health," my massage therapist (I'll call her "Sarah") cheerily tells me, her luscious grey curls falling down over a gorgeous turquoise scarf.

On the eve of my 40th birthday, the universe angled our parked cars right next to each other. Apparently, it was so "Sarah" could tell me that I might be experiencing "it," a Uranus transit, which happens sometime between the ages of 38-42 for most people. Get more fun facts about Uranus, the tilted planet.

Health problems, divorces, death, career changes…apparently sudden events are what Uranus transits are all about. With many years of massage and other healing arts experience, Sarah has seen some clients over the years who are going through Uranus transits and are thus treating their health problems with her capable hands. That's why she claims to have no way to see the "good transits," like having a baby or getting married, because when people feel good they are less likely get a massage.

Because of the day, I hope you'll allow me a slightly wider berth than I normally take OK? Cool.

Given my upbringing with astrology in the family mix, I cannot ignore Sarah's insight but I know more importantly that (at least in this culture) 40 is a renewed time for humor. Isn’t every birthday? Over the years, I've had a ton, rather, a "shitload" of fun deconstructing the word: Uranus. Your Anus. Mine is in Libra so apparently, I can't decide if I need to go or not.

Anyhoo, back to the next 2 minutes estimating when the transit will hit for me. Mid-June 2013 is when my shit will hit the fan, apparently. May it be a pleasant awakening; change doesn't always have to be all bad. In reflecting on my own 40 years, I tried to remember the decade-marking birthdays. Where was I on my birthday at:

Age 10- Probably in Arkansas with my grandparents; probably one of several birthday celebrations. Childhood pretty much got truncated for me at 7 so who knows or remembers clearly? Not me. Can I get a life transcription, please?

Age 20- I was a mail carrier during a typical hot, humid Boston July summer; most in-shape I've ever been, but they gave me impossible routes and then reprimanded me when I didn't deliver properly. The mandate was to finish the route in a certain amount of time, no lateness. Where are you now postal service management morons?

Age 30- Really not anything special except in my mind I was banking a lot on shaking free of the loneliness and utter romantic life failures from my 20s which were, except for the years as a bellydancer: abysmal.

Age 40- I’ll be right here. But where’s that exactly? The answer is: It's complicated. It really is. And why would it be anything but complicated when it's about UrAnus?

Photo credit: NASA/Space Telescope Science Institute. Taken from the Hubble Telescope in 2006.

Community Beauty, Community Emblems

2011-07-10T09:15:00.000-07:00

Like jewelry, makeup, tattoos and clothing we wear to adorn and celebrate ourselves and our bodies, I have taken notice of a few wonderful ways Oakland's Measure DD and local neighborhood efforts have created emblems that celebrate the city's history and help us to remember the ground (or streambeds) we're walking on.

I'm particularly fond of the Dimond district's - sidewalk public art: mosaic diamonds set into the pavement. Each diamond has four corners that note parks, cultural landmarks, adjacent Oakland districts, creeks and more in each direction.

A much better set of photos is available here from Monte McClain.

The Chabot Space and Science Center diamond:

The Fruitvale district diamond:

The Glenview district diamond:

In the Rockridge district several miles away, they've noted where creeks run underneath our feet with inset bronze emblems:

More information on these can be found here on the City of Oakland's web site.

Most exciting is the neighborhood art that's being painted on the side of the Farmer Joe's building in the Dimond district: it's due to be finished sometime in Fall 2011 (The first image with the lights hanging down off the wall is my favorite because it celebrates the area for which the street is named, "the fruit vale," in spring):

More information on the Dimond district and other works of public art.

What's a little sad is to see all of this coming to fruition from Measure DD as our city is facing huge budget deficits and cuts. Also, the effects of Governor Brown's recent budget pass are forecast to come down hard on California cities.

Coconut Oatmeal Bacon Bliss Sarnies

2011-06-27T23:26:00.000-07:00

This is the first in an ongoing series of recipes inspired by my daughter. To put bacon with oatmeal was her idea. I added coconut because it was on my mind, in my cabinet and, for all the lactose intolerant folks out there, I am having a love affair with the frozen coconut milk based dessert called Coconut Bliss. I used the plain coconut flavor, but they also have coconut pineapple if you can find the brand. It also uses agave rather than sugar for sweetener. Sadly, you may have trouble sourcing some of the flavors of this stuff until later this year due to a severe drought in Thailand, read the Coconut Bliss blog post.

I was sure this recipe wouldn't work out. I veganized this Coconut Oatmeal cookies, used the VERY sexy Allrecipes.com engine to recalculate the thing so it produced only 12 cookies (6 sarnies) and then I added the pancetta dipped in 73% El Rey dark chocolate and that sent the thing over the moon of fabuluousness and back. El Rey sources from Venezuela where the chocolate is fruity and flavorful. I used Bob's Red Mill Egg Replacer and Earth Balance spread and I was very careful to slightly undercook the cookies.

Side ideas- because it's a dessert that begs your own special touch:
- Skip the bacon and go with the cookie and Coconut Bliss scooped in between- so yummy.
- Make it gorgeous and season by alternating chopped, chocolate-dipped pancetta with halved, pitted Rainier cherries; 'tis the season and this would be an exotic dance of sugars

I also love this recipe because, like human nature, it is an expression of ideological contradiction (hypocrisy) all wrapped up in one gorgeous, delicious package. The dessert is entirely vegan except for the chocolate dipped bacon on the rim. We want our cake and to eat it too. We want our meat, but we care about how the animal lived and died.We are at a great crossroads with food. We want to get back to the land, care for our health, eat well, eat in moderation, eat lower on the food chain and yet the sweet and the savory continue to spill out of our souls.

Solstice Portraits

2011-06-23T20:03:00.000-07:00

I am very thankful for this year's summer solstice and the many blessings of the day I enjoyed. Simple pleasures are so close to my life, family and where we live.

I am humbled. Thank you.

Above photo: Tree dragon in Joaquin Miller Park, Oakland.

Brie...(with art deco packaging- yummy on several levels)

Lemon Basil bread from Whole Foods, with avocado and a sunflower, the ultimate solstice flower.

Summer berries on a custard cream tart

Magnificent redwood trees

Solstice hair: Naturally occurring Goldilocks curls

Seraphina, our weeping birch tree does a longest day shadow dance in the wind.

Harmony Festival Delights

2011-06-18T08:20:00.000-07:00

Delicious sounds, sights, activities and tastes were abundant at this past weekend's Harmony Festival in Santa Rosa, Calif. While the audience (and their personal/lifestyle habits) are not our scene, we still had (with our 2 year-old in tow)a great music experience, food, activities and entertainment that we wouldn't hesitate to return to next year.

Call it a blend of Burning Man, a summer music festival and the Green Festival, the event blends top notch performing artists, sustainable food, and sustainable (and beautiful) goods suppliers.

Harmony also dubs itself a "lifestyle festival," meaning speakers sharing visions and practices for how to "live better" are present. I like that vision but the diversity of it can be really hard to manage when woven into a "we need change" agenda. It fell a little short and shallow for me because there is such a diversity of philosophies that comprise a progressive lifestyle movement.

Nevertheless, they did a really nice job accommodating families--complete with a children's stage area, an abutting a crafts and bookmaking garden, and ceramics painting--all that could be done while enjoying whatever was happening on the children's stage.

Some of the great music we saw:

Grace Potter and the Nocturnals. One of the groups my husband wanted to attend and see. Loud, strong rock like I didn't think he could appreciate. And after 15 minutes, our kid was listening and then rocking out with her Daddy!

Natacha Atlas (top photo): I've loved her music for a long time. During the mid-day show she sang in French, Arabic but when you listen to her, she sounds like any Brit you'd meet in a pub somewhere. She proclaims herself a "human Gaza strip" and has a fascinating musical career if you like multi-cultural collaborations. Her 2010 album, Monqualiba, is a really fun jazz piano, Arabic-spiced auditory journey. You probably haven't heard anything like it ever before.

Essence: A San Francisco-based singer and songwriter with a lovely voice and great stuff for kids to enjoy.

Other Fun Stuff:

Kuna Prints: A vendor dedicated to using recycled mola fabrics to make fabulous, one-of-a-kind shoes while changing the lives of the Kuna Indians in Panama and Colombia.

Dreadlock-like yarn...in hair. Isn't it fabulous?

There must have been ladybugs among us too...

Four Years Go. This is an interesting one, it's an online engine for change- of sorts. It is a way to publicly commit to changing your life in the next 4 years--away from our unsustainable path. What they seem to be doing are an echo of the community engaged with Causes (which is more fundraising oriented) but it's a more open-end version of One Million Acts of Green. As I write this, For Years Go has almost at 11,000 commitments worldwide. Log in to get inspired, declare your own or just play voyeur on what others have said they will do. I think change is calling out for a leader and one single agenda that gets us all out of our seats.

Moonalice. Whoever thought of discovering a band by their incredible artwork?It was really hard for me to choose, just one...and their music ain't bad either.

And the finish? Dessert.

Coconut Bliss: We've had it before but for those with any sort of lactose intolerance who cannot eat ice cream, take note, paradise has returned! More to come in this blog on something truly sinful I'll do with their amazing coconut-based frozen desserts.

Automotive Digitorium

2011-06-09T21:42:00.000-07:00

In this overloaded digital age, we are all living out loud. Apparently, we're driving that way too, sort of.

For several years, I've been observing window decals on large vans and trucks. I call it Facebook for cars- the attempt to put a human connection (showing family members with a decal) on the back of your vehicle.

I don't fully understand the reasoning. Is it for purposes of defraying environmental judgements (I drive such a large polluting vehicle because I have kids and dogs) or merely making an attempt at being personal (if you're thinking about driving like an idiot, know that I have a big family who may be riding along in the back or who expect me home). I've always felt my cars represented my identity but I never liked people who used them as status symbols. I've always adorned my cars with some subtle subcultural humor if I possibly can.

Some auto makers are embracing our continued obsession with personalization and identity by bringing Internet-driven content into the car, like Ford and its "Sync in-car communication system." If you listen to tech visionary Jeremiah Owyang, he believes built in digital updates (about needed maintenance) is probably what's coming next from cars (it's likely already here but not as sexy as Pandora and thus isn't mentioned outright). But Ford's system also lets drivers listen to a Tweet stream. Would you find that distracting? Not exactly a book on CD, right?

Giving devices a digital stream to communicate through is what Owyang calls "ambient intimacy." For now, we're starting with a stoplight, tailgating form of ambiance. We're using decals to communicate that despite how we're driving, we are human, we have families and reasons for choosing the kinds of vehicles we drive.

Bakery Fantasy? Petit Fours in Sausalito

2011-05-27T21:45:00.000-07:00

(Re-posted due to some sort of mysterious Blogger.com outage or something around May 11th; well either that or I'm totally imagining things!)

Bay Area dessert making lovers can geek out on tools, technical tips, mass production machinery and techniques by attending Dragonfly Cakes' two hour class on petit four making. They're almost as fabulous as cupcakes (I'm speaking for what I currently perceive in the U.S: a cupcake-obsessed culture).

Dragonfly was started several years ago by a recovering marketer, Brooks Nguyen who leads a team of 6 in petit four making in a commercial kitchen in Sausalito. They produce up to 90,000 petit fours a week, sometimes more for holidays. She had energy and spunk for us...on Mother's Day weekend after the recent double whammy of that combined with a very late Easter.

As I watched the other woman of varying ages around me painstakingly pipe on color, dip in white chocolate, and carefully apply edible decor to their petit fours, I was striving for the opposite experience. Dessert shouldn't be taken so seriously, especially when your artistic side is being encouraged. The more painstakingly those around me worked, the more powerfully my sarcastic and avant garde side forced its way out!

Cast your vote in the comments on this post and tell me which crazy or whimsical petit four appeals most, or least:
#1 The Emotifours Collection: Flirtifour.
Because we're all doomed to use the web now, we might as well start having fun.

#2 Red Marblifour (red marble pattern)

#3 Gay Pridifour (Gay pride petit four)

#4 Uprightifour
(Because taking on the world lying down, the way all the other petit fours do, just isn't enough).
I decorated it standing on its end. A nice approach for that unique individual you love so much.

#5 Petit Fucked. Perfectly imperfect.

#6 Lucky Charmifour. It's magically delicious.

Inspiring Passages, Inspiring Places

2011-05-23T21:18:00.000-07:00

I grew up with astrology around the dinner table. It was talked about over meals and studied as an intellectual pursuit as part of the fabric of our lives. Astrology isn't deserving about the hatred it gets. It's not about believing or not. It is a framework through which to understand people.

If you grew up with some sort of practiced family hobby, like following or being on a sports team, or if you had any kind of "ism," growing up (all religions included here) you had a similar experience to mine. It's the culture that bi polarizes us, forcing us to think things are good or bad. In my case, it left its mark on my personal narrative.

When I was born, Mars was in the constellation of Aquarius. One of the things I grew up knowing was that I had "Mars in Aquarius." One of the texts around our house was The Astrologer's Handbook. From about age 8 on, I always enjoyed reading the following passage pertaining to my Mars in Aquarius:

In the year 1971, Mars was in the sign Aquarius beginning on May 4 and lasting until November 6. During this period, when the planet was in a stationary position and retrograde motion, many souls came into the world who will be the spearhead of a new way of life. They will have the special abilities of Mars in Aquarius, trine to Uranus in Libra, which will produce a balance between inspired social concepts and the action necessary to implement them.

As I grew into my twenties, I always wondered: What 'new way of life' would I and others born during this window in 1971 be the spearhead for when I grew up?

A few years ago, I engaged in some coaching work that helped me re-craft my personal narrative around career which is an important part of my identity. The coaching yielded fantastic results and I took a full-time job working in the field of online community.

I recently revisited the location where much of that coaching work took place: the lobby of the Hyatt in San Francisco. This visit to the old familiar space was like a creativity colon blow. I began to take notes in a journal, jotting down ideas to problems I had been struggling with for months. The "self-coaching" waves began to roll in by being in this space.

Much of the creative approach was coming around the ideas and concepts related to my work: the wisdom of crowds, collaboration to solve problems, make money, make the world a better place and be part of a virtual "community" for change.

As a digital content creator in almost every realm- personal, professional, as a hobby, for various causes- I realize that this is the new way of life I am helping to spearhead. Because the online world is so prevalent, I'd say the passage isn't accurate to limit it to just those born during those days in 1971...but maybe I am wrong...

What are the places that inspire you and why? Were you born on or between those days in 1971? If so, do you feel as if you are spearheading a new way of life?

Photos: Ceiling of the Hyatt with the green color balance tweaked to predominance (I heart Photoshop).
Floor, decor and elevators in the Hyatt tweaked toward a magenta predominance.

Bakery Story

2011-04-25T23:15:00.000-07:00

For dessert lovers with entrepreneurial fantasies of managing their own bakery, there is a new virtual evil with no caloric penalties for consuming it: an app for the iPad called Bakery Story. The app has also somehow managed to attract the attention of my daughter, though hardly for very long. It's a quick fix experience anyhow.

The object of the game is to have happy customers and earn virtual money so your business can grow. The experience is a mindless social game of tapping the iPad to "prepare" baked goods and to design a brick and mortar business, all while keeping customers fed and happy (plus occasional gift giving to your virtual "neighbor" bakeries).

The folks who developed the game didn't take it the direction I hoped. What by title alone seemed to promise a creative outlet for recipe development (Lemon thyme caramel tarts, anyone?) instead offered a game that is worlds simpler. I am not desperate to participate in it, but it has become something I tend to keep up with as if it's dishes or laundry--the kinds of things you need to survive while working full-time, being tired often and parenting (and blogging occasionally). OK, my bakery is more aesthetically pleasing than my laundry pile!

As the weeks flew by and I tried again and again to get this post done, something happened. All around me, I began to become aware of the real bakery stories, corporate, independent, and local.

Here is what having a bakery is like in REAL life (in varying degrees):

Au Bon Pain- remember them? Harvard Square, 1990. Boston summer rain. The chess masters that would sit outside and play? Ahhh. Nevermind. Anyway, they got bought by Panera. Cool on them for pioneering the pay what you can concept. But in my excitement about their Strawberry Hot Cross Buns, I raised my camera and was shooed away (no photos allowed). Really?
Donsuemor. Susie sings in the Revels. A baker and a soprano. Music and baking sounds (and tastes good to me). Their madeleines are exquisite and what they do, they've always done fabulously...and it's nice to see they are expanding!
Starbucks. They didn't start as a bakery, but look at any store anywhere in the world. There is lots of consistency in all the pastry choices you find. I wonder who developed their very cool Red Velvet Whoopie Pies in honor of their 40th anniversary last month?

Your Black Muslim Bakery. A real tale of darkness amid healthful, fresh and delicious breads. When I used to work in the arts, I made a few visits to the downtown Oakland store. Unfortunately, the owner was also in the business of baked goods as well as physical and sexual abuse, fraud, extortion and murder. I didn't know that at the time or I would not have even thought about taking my business elsewhere.

Even though social dessert recipe creation isn't yet a game, the virtual experience for now is something my daughter has picked up. She likes the music of the app (it is truly atrocious) and she likes to practice her near complete sentences as she observes the customer flow through my bakery (she's under 2): "The people...happy." "People...are hungry."

Well, Little Bug, so are the cats. So let's go feed them their dinner and call it a night.

Meyers Gone Wild

2011-04-14T22:40:00.000-07:00

The perfume of jasmine hangs in the air. Brutal rains and wind have exfoliated our weeping birch. In a week and a half 3/4 of the mature leaf has emerged on her many hanging branches. The mockingbird is at full throttle and is answering spring with full repertoire. He carries on nearly 20 hours a day (well into the night and early morning hours).

We've been graced with lemons and oranges from our trees. Three full baskets this size got juiced into a gallon of homemade Meyer lemonade. The pomello branch seems to have given the tree a robustness that has tripled the harvest this year.

Yep, she likes to eat lemons as if they were oranges- that's a special tree.

Lots to look at so I'm giving words a rest!

Ok, I am breaking my promise. Have you ever seen anything more gorgeous than those power lines?!! I love March in California. For a few months, it truly is like a road to the Emerald City.

The Stories of a Warm Stove

2011-03-29T23:45:00.000-07:00

I just realized that I like to cook. I know, kind of a head scratcher based on how often I write about food. It's just that I grew up among women who defined themselves by how much they hated to cook (and still do). My Mom hated it but was pretty good. My grandmother was a wonderful cook but also claimed to hate it. Perhaps it was having to do that and everything else raising 3 children in the South whilst married to reclusive minister- just guessing really. My aunt hates it as well. For the longest time I thought this was also my story, but it isn't.

There is a comfort of home (hearth really, the modern kind embodied in a gas stove) that I'm aware of suddenly after all these years: cooking is a way of relaxing for me. It isn't always because I'm essentially a mood driven creature. In the case of dessert (frequently covered here) it is a source of tremendous creative expression- it's like cooking and dreaming up art.

There is also something wonderfully illicit in the fact that (with my made dinner warming on the stove awaiting my family) I am typing this at dinnertime. Ooooo, stand back! I'm a tradition breaker!

Does cooking warm your heart and hearth? Here are some of my favorite food posts from the past that you might enjoy (after doing this so long, it all gets buried until I can find time to implement sexier tech that does a better job of cataloging it for you):

Photo: Part of a "lit kitchen" exhibit I happened upon at the Tate Modern in London. Couldn't find any labels for it while I was there. Hey, if lighting up your culinary tools is the fetish you call art then....oh never mind.

For the Trees

2011-03-21T19:00:00.000-07:00

As a child, I spent a fair amount of time among the trees. There were a few years when I could be found on my own escorted by a neighborhood dog named "Bear" (because he had the head and jaws the size of one) through the Arnold Arboretum passionately in search of police horse tracks. I loved horses so much just finding their mere hoof prints made my heart race and my mind wonder about how recently the track could have been left.

Today is World Forest Day today and Forest Ethics has a great online action center. Take their survey, tell them why forests matter to you and get practical information like details on paper grades or companies that are refusing to take action on their direct mail. The executive director, Todd Paglia has a nice blog post entitled I am the Lorax. And so are you. It reminds me of one of the heavier books we have around (but haven't dived into deeply yet) for my daughter, Shel Silverstein's The Giving Tree. I cry every time and I am not sure how I will explain it to her.

Strangely, The Lorax will be 40 years old this year. With 4 decades behind it, it has become far more profound than the Wikipedia description for it, "It chronicles the plight of the environment and the Lorax, who speaks for the trees against the greedy Once-ler." If we had groundbreaking ideas like this come to light 4 decades ago, has it made a difference? Has it affected who were are and how we think? Perhaps there is a lot to celebrate, but there is also a lot to worry about for the next generations.

Also, if you love trees and nature photos the way I do, gather your visual appetite and visit last year's 40th celebration of Earth Day post. If you love trees and cherish green spaces, another great person to connect your mind to is Frederick Law Olmstead who founded the Arnold Arboretum and many other amazing urban green spaces.

Photo: Mount Diablo State Park, California

Celebrating and Creating: A Women's Centenary To Remember

2011-03-08T23:00:00.000-08:00

Another woman who shares my name (Rachel) is in labor tonight as I write. For her, it is already tomorrow (she lives on the East coast). She is giving birth to her second child (a girl). Her son's birthday is/was today and he shares that birthday with his aunt (my friend and blogging pal, Amy). This is also the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day. It is an amazing day to be a woman doing what we do best (creating life). My prayers as I write are for Rachel.

I was also blessed enough to be able to partake of an amazing tribute to today to women. My employer, Cisco, held a day-long reception sponsored by Cisco Connected Women and Xerox. Large portraits of 45 women were on display to celebrate today's amazing centenary: the first International Women's Day event was run in 1911. They were photographs of amazing women throughout history. The choices of women who were included and not included in the exhibit was as interesting and as worthy of discussion as the women themselves. And discuss we did.

Amy had me and other friends for dinner to celebrate her birthday and reflect on the women included in the exhibit. Between cake and dinner and afterward, we Googled who these fascinating women were. The most mysterious story we happened upon was that of Henrietta Lacks' immortal cancer cells. You can read more of her amazing story here.

Here are the names of all 45 who had photographs included in the exhibit:
Ursula Burns, Wilma Mankiller, Benazir Bhuto, Ellen Lauri Ochoa, Condoleezza Rice, Oprah Winfrey, Jane Goodall, Wangari Maathai, Helen Keller, Marian Wright Edelman, Sonia Sotomayor, Harriet Tubman, Nadine Gordimer, Mae Jemison, Indra Nooyi, Jhumpa Lahiri, Rosa Parks, Eleanor Roosevelt, Coco Chanel, Margaret Thatcher, Grace Murray Hopper, Aung San Suu Kyi, Indira Nehru Gandhi, Bessie Coleman, Frida Kahlo, Kristy Yamaguchi, Marie Sklodowski Curie, Billie Jean Moffitt King, "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias, Shirley Ann Jackson, Amelia Earhart, Golda Mabovich Meir, Jane Addams, Mother Teresa, Michelle Robinson Obama, Princess Diana, Michelle Wingshan Kwan, Galina Sergeyevna Ulanova, Portia Lucretia Simpson-Miller, Henrietta Lacks, Evita Peron, Michelle Bachelet, Sofia Vasilyevna Kovalevskaya, Queen Rania of Jordan, and finally Calafia, a fictional warrior queen.

In addition to Rachel, my thoughts tonight are with the women of Egypt who bravely attempted a Million Woman March. I was sort of afraid this would happen, but I cannot be sure of all that did happen from behind the CNN lens.

A Vice for Each Year

2011-03-06T22:00:00.000-08:00

A moment of Gemini ingenuity comes out as he glances at the dashboard of our hybrid in the rain. I have returned from a Sunday afternoon visit to the Temescal Farmer's Market in Oakland. "Is this the tribute vice pays to virtue?" he asks.

Our 4th wedding anniversary is approaching. So my gift was a box of 4 Passionfruit Thai Chili chocolates made by Vice Chocolates of Oakland.

So is this the tribute? Yes is the answer. Absolutely, yes! When you bite down it is an explosion of virtuous tangy, juicy, fruity, sweet, chocolaty, melodic, spicy and then...comes the burn, the vice! Oh the chili burn paired with the Venezuelan chocolate (my favorite area of the planet for cacao). This is amazing stuff. And Hercules thought all along that he'd chosen virtue. Ha! Not inside this box.

Vice Chocolates can be found at this year's upcoming 5th Annual International Chocolate Salon in San Francisco at Fort Mason. Vice was a gold winner in the Fall 2010 salon. We will be there for our first time, trying once again to attend our 3rd ever chocolate festival without making ourselves sick. And we'll have a little one who now loves chocolate to bring with- that should do the trick of moderation faster than anything.

Vice is really nice if you want to send chocolate your loved one will remember...

A Horse Lover's Thirty Hours in London

2011-02-18T21:30:00.000-08:00

The tourists all around me were making low sounds of fear and wonder as they watched Isengard, a giant, black Irish Draught gelding nuzzle me, slobbering all over my coat. I was delighted. He was delighted to have someone to "talk" to, albeit just long enough for a photo to be taken. As one of the Queen's Life Guard, he and his rider would spend several hours patiently enduring...as tourists came up one after another to have themselves photographed beside him...until the changing of the guard.

It was with the goal of unearthing this English love and reverence for their horses that I spent 30 hours in London taking as much in as my feet would allow, following a proverbial trail of hoof prints to works of fine art, museums, city statues and the like--collecting horse lovers destinations all around the city of London.

If you love horses in all forms: real-life, sculpture, paintings, statues...this blog post charts an express path into several parts of London where you can find real ones and enjoy art that celebrates them. But this is also a map to get yourself into some of London's most fantastic locations. Enjoy the journey!

Located on Whitehall, the Household Calvary Museum bring tears to the eyes. Historically a military organization, this regiment of the British Army has had to adapt their role through times of war and in its aftermath to the new world of war: dominated by technology that does not include beasts anymore. While that is largely a good thing and the Calvary have taken on humanitarian and community stabilization missions, some of the hardest missions have been as recently as during the Bosnian Civil War in the mid 90s.

It is clear the traditions of the horse human bond have remained with this part of the British military. Rider and mount relationships of lifelong service are fostered and treasured, even after the horses have retired and been adopted out to families/farms connected to the officer. The steed remains the lifelong concern of the officer, even in retirement.

Also just off Trafalgar Square, I stayed at the The Royal Horseguards, a five star hotel that goes a bit over the top at seducing you to stay in your room in the heart of such an exciting city- not a chance! They even gave me a sneak preview of a new interior design they were working on integrating into the downstairs (more horses, less aged nobility portraiture, please!)

The hotel's fabulous location puts you within walking distance of the Royal Mews (Queen's stables) and Buckingham Palace, as well as Big Ben, Westminster Abbey and one of my favorite public statues: Boudica. Be sure you Google the opening hours and get tickets in advance. You CANNOT, for example, run over there the morning of your afternoon flight out of Heathrow (not that I...uh...know anything about that- DOH- I was pretty bummed.)

The National Gallery, Rooms 41, 42, 34. You can dive in here to paintings by Eugene Delacroix, Theodore Gericault, Stubbs' famous "Whistlejacket" and more. I thought this little boy's rendition of the Stubbs painting showed great talent at drawing the horse from an entirely different angle than represented in the painting. I asked him if I could photograph his picture and have "whited out" his name for his privacy.

Seeing schoolchildren sprawled across the floor of the National Gallery, drawing by great paintings made me very happy.

The British Museum, I have a particular fondness for the Ancient Greece and Rome collections here. I got stuck down there and shooed out of the upper floors because it was closing time. :(
Bellerophon (riding Pegasus) and Chimeara plaque. 450 B.C. from Milos, formerly Melos, an island in the Aegean Sea.

The Tate Modern, Red Star Over Russia Room 11 on the 5th floor dedicated to "States of Flux." An incredible collection of Russian Revolution street posters that are something to behold all collected together. Many of them incorporate an angry red, the misery and persecution they were enduring and a few images were hope for freedom- the emotional tone of this collection is stunning. On loan, unknown for how long. Go!

A statue in honor of the Disabled Living Foundation somewhere between Picadilly and Leicester Square.

And don't forget, if you thought you were coming to this blog to read about food or dessert or some such- London is a great city that has taken its food up to be at levels on par with the most gustatious (Shame on me for thinking I just made that up, just now! sigh.) foodie meccas around the world.

I got a kick out of this hot chocolate which I experienced as more than chocolate and warm milk, it was participatory food art!

Here's how it started- that's fresh, unsweetened whipped cream served on the side.

Here's what happened when you stirred:

Valentine Mashup

2011-02-14T22:48:00.000-08:00

A fun view of Rodin's "The Kiss" sculpture currently housed in the Tate Modern in London.

And speaking of passion, Rodin here talks about something that sometimes goes beyond human love with its power (the power of art):

"The artist must create a spark before he can make a fire and before art is born, the artist must be ready to be consumed by the fire of his own creation."
Auguste Rodin

All the Pleasures Prove

2011-02-07T23:20:00.000-08:00

I don’t consider myself romantic (anymore). A bit sad, isn’t it? If someone had told me in my twenties that all my pining and longing for what didn’t happen (and the underwhelmed feeling for what did) had a basis in the human organism and the presence of oxytocin as Louann Brizendine writes (some say theorizes) in The Female Brain, I would have really appreciated that knowledge. Right or wrong, scientifically sound or not (the book is criticized for lack of this by some) having the book then would have given me something to at least step back on and really call the bullshit out for what it was (and the effect it was having on me). I just needed a tool for talking myself out of the romantic pains of my 20s- THERE, I said it! {Big sigh}. :) Yeah, NOW you publish your book!

But I had a welcome reunion with this verse on a coaster for sale the Globe Theatre Museum Shop in London recently. It took me back to the days when as a tween, I was not even yet capable of lusting after anyone specific. They were years of my life when I adored this poem (I still do, all hope is not lost).

But is it my imagination or have we lost the ability to be romantic? My mind reaches out with some vague commentary that because aspects of our lives are being swallowed by the digital and the instantaneous state of being, romance has lost some of its best footing. We’ve done just about all we can to destroy what romance needs to thrive in a human brain. Anticipation: we’ve done away with waiting in our communications. Patience: because we don’t wait any more, we now lack this talent. Imagination: is there an app for that in the iPhone App Store? Fantasy: log in and we’ll give you some template worlds where you can have it all visualized for you. Surprise and the unexpected are perhaps the last holdouts to which romance can cling! My phone is ringing as I write here--- who IS that? Oh. Surprise! Ha, knew it was him.

I am grateful for having been able to go immerse myself physically (and not digitally) in a city that was the birthplace for Elizabethan ideals. As for my love of London and the family to whom I return:

Christmas Dinner in a Foreign (Home) Land

2011-01-26T23:50:00.000-08:00

We were traveling over the holidays to Cape Cod in Massachusetts. I call the state home, but I’d never been to the Cape in childhood years that I can recall. We had an amazingly wonderful Christmas dinner on the Cape at Harbor Point in Cummaquid, Ma. It was a gorgeous, if long-established place that was decorated to the hilt. Fireplace, lights, a homey and warm Christmas feel, a sense of history, lovely food, fresh veggies, amazing red velvet cake.

It’s just that with the warm, comforting bread they brought to the table, they served this. Nope, they didn’t serve a pacifier, I just had an unanticipated chuckle as I realized all the elements of this photo.

Am I a snotty California Foodie? I didn’t say organic butter- I just wanted…butter. The cost of the amazing Christmas dinner they served was surely something that this wouldn’t pose a problem? Maybe they were out of the fresh stuff? What do all you foodies think?

Reposted from my BlogHer account

A few other shots from our journey.

Heading into Provincetown at the western end of Cape Cod

Pie Destinations in February

2011-01-16T14:07:00.000-08:00

It's the winter here in the Bay Area, so the seasonal local ingredients are wrapped up in something tasty that is also most likely, delicious. If you love food and art the way we do and love to mix them up (with a little bit of community thrown in for good measure) there are several destinations to taste and do for a little slice of divinity and something gorgeous to behold:

Mission Pie: San Francisco's haven for pie that sells pies made from locally grown ingredients from Pie Ranch down in Pescadero.

The Pie Extremist's Celebratory Pie Event: I covered this last year in the blog. It's the St. Valentine's Sweetie Pie and Art Fest. This year hosted at 111 Minna in the City (San Francisco). The event features the work and sweet gifts of local artists as well as a potluck pie gathering. Whip up your best and bring it on down on February 12th! See the Facebook group here.

Pie Ranch: Crisp and sunny winter days here in the Bay Area mean it's a nice time to take a ride down the coast to Pescadero. Find it raw and from Mother Nature right there in the field or at the farm stand.

Duarte's: While in Pescadero, you can also sample the famous ollalieberry pie and artichoke soup.

Not much enthusiasm for sweet pies? The best deep dish pizza pies in the East Bay can be found on one of Zachary's Pizza locations scattered around Oakland, Berkeley and San Ramon.

I have a particular love for the coconut cream pie at Rudy's Can't Fail Cafe in Emeryville. If you like vintage, avant garde Barbie and Ken dolls, this destination is a fun place where the locals form a line out the door.

Lastly, I love the quiche and little savory pies (best to call ahead and order if you want a full size quiche) from Ladyfingers Bakery in Oakland. Egglishcious!

A little known secret I had to add in after the fact; savory galettes with baked crusts to die for (just that hint of sweet and yeah, probably duck fat they are so good): Remedy Coffee in Oakland's Temescal district.

Photo: Pie Ranch sent out its recipe for pumpkin which I tweaked with adding some of our meyer lemons, honey and Straus Creamery Organic Whole Maple Yogurt. A gift for my sister-in-law. Awesome!

Daughters of 1971: Call for Voices

2011-01-01T16:04:00.000-08:00

As part of my gratitude and celebration for turning age 40 in 2011, I am taking on a new project that fits well with the final Reverb assignment for December 31st: Core story. The prompt is specifically: What central story is at the core of you, and how do you share it with the world?

As part of my journey to find that story within myself, it's time to return to my core as a journalist. I want to find (and empower) the core stories of other women born in 1971 and share them with you. I am calling this effort:
40 Women Speak on 40

Here are the details:

I am seeking women from all over the world to interview about their perspective on turning 40 this year. If you are or know a woman or are born between January 1, 1971 - December 31st, 1971, please reply to this post with an email to me at the address below, or have the person you know do so, so I may get in touch with you/her.

It does not matter if your birthday is today, next week or has already passed for me to want to speak with you.

I want to talk with you no matter where you are in the world and as long as you speak some English. We'll work out the details- Skype, phone, photos, what to share, etc. when we connect.

On my 40th birthday (that happens in July this year), I will begin to unveil my findings in whatever form they come (stories, images, your blog or Twitter feed, possibly video). I'm not entirely sure, as you might guess, where this project will lead me, but I hope it evolves into a wonderful journey for all involved.

Feel free to share this on Facebook or Twitter it out to your peeps, I would love that!Tag your tweets with #fortybyforty. The Twitter feed for the project is @fortybyforty.

Get in touch with me by sending email to: rachel(AT)vampituity(dot)(com).

Don't be shy and don't worry, I'm pretty good at getting people talking about themselves!

;P

Weaving Reverberatory Laces

2010-12-25T00:01:00.000-08:00

Reverb. Reverb. REVERB! Like little bitch slaps in my email, drowned in spam from a deactivated filter yet buzzing in desperation toward life, chi, survival. My inner creator, dying to get out. Trying a daily email to force a daily thought about the journey of writing and reflecting. It's a little self-involved these prompts, no? Well, no, turn the tables on it, Rachel!

I joined the Reverb10 project in an effort to write more, but the goal is daily. Cumulative is okay, or so they say. There's a muse shrieking to be rescued for sure when you sign up for something like this. It means, "Hi, I'm in here but I cannot get free." Time poor. Time poverty. Some people in the world don't have homes, water, clothing, love, convenience, peace, friends. I don't have time. I am blessed and yet in other ways, I come up short.

Time poverty was my revelation for 2010 and it touched on the topics of several of the other Reverb prompts too. Friends in 2010? They largely fell off the map. Lessons learned in 2010? I break. I break in half. I break down. I stretch too thin, too far, too ambitious, too imaginative. Too what?! You're kidding, right? Too imaginative? Well, yes. And entrepreneurial. And I can't live up to the dreams. I can't execute the intention. I'm time poor, don't forget. What am I sacrificing right now to type this? What are you giving up to read this? How did you get here and where will you go once you've consumed this improvised (oh the truth you don't know about how quickly this emerged onscreen!) perspective?

But all that leads me to the next prompt in the project: what should I have done in 2010? I'm doing it now- reading. Amazing writers. Amazing blog rolls on their blogs! So much to read and consume. That's what I need to try for next year- engaging more. Writing is an exchange. Listen then spout. Reflect then spill; wipe up, boil water again, pour...oh shit the tea bag broke open! It's the journey not the destination that will let you heal.

That's how I healed in 2010. Coaxing the little perpetually sore spot on my spine back out with intention. Peek-a-boo. Hey! Here I am again- whole, except for you. Come on! It's just us vertebrae here. 'Come join us in chorus and cheers to the spine!' (inside lyrics joke thing...) But it's a process, not a state of perpetual painlessness. Once you get that reality, you're good! ;)

Photo by me: The teakettle is boiling.

Happy Solstice!

2010-12-21T09:47:00.000-08:00

Welcome Mule!!!

Northern California December Portraits

2010-12-15T22:15:00.000-08:00

Here's what I found in our garden earlier this month, in addition to two more pomellos coming off the lemon (turns out it is a grafted branch). Mandarins and Meyers from our trees. And the Brown Turkey figs are still ripening, too!

It's a feast of citrus, a winterseason harvest that seems to have arrived more quickly perhaps due to all the early rains.

Because of those early rains, our trees, now finally entering fall and heading toward winter turned much more vividly than I'd ever seen. The cold we've had also added a kick to that process - a few pictures of local tree color celebrations below.

Now more than 15 years into my life on this coast, this is my approximation of our version of seasons (we have 5 instead of 4):

Spring: February to May/June
Summer: Sometimes part of August- but definitely September and October (our hottest months)
Fall: November to mid-December
Winter: Mid-December to January (with typically a spring-warmish week or two in mid-January)
WinterSummer (due to the cool of the fog): June, July, sometimes into August

Ginkgo splendor anyone?

When Autumn and Christmas preparations collide!
A west coast December sunset...

A Mother's Meditation

2010-12-06T22:23:00.000-08:00

My little girl’s breath smells of garlic, pumpkin and corn. The scent of hummus, roasted regional farm pumpkin and corn I fed her at first seemed to also be coming out of the tail end of her diaper, but I realize it’s just her breath. She is nestled beside me in our warm bed, trying to head off to her nap as we listen to the first severe storm of 2010 beating our skylights. The dying light of late November and Daylight Savings, now just a memory, have allowed to this second nap which has taken hold despite the thunder and lightning. She stays asleep as the hail arrives. Pelting, torrential, angry arms of it lash the house and sky. An involuntary prayer flits inside my head- may the roof and windows be strong and solid. This is expected to be the biggest November storm in 6 years, but it’s nothing like the invasion motherhood makes on your identity.

Being a mother causes you to contemplate everything from childhood, be it recalled or strangely, forgotten and blocked out. It’s a chance at a “do-over” if failed decades characterize your past. It’s also a chance to watch the influx of language, movement, song and the senses as they arrive. Where once the lemon was tasteless, it is now truly sour. How cupcakes didn’t used to be desirable is forgotten. The mimicked action of inhaling fresh rosemary now has a genuine olfactory consequence.

Our little branch of May is now a year and a half into the voyage of life. She delights in the simplest things and bathes us in the rays of her wonder, laughter and mischief.

Pumpkin Catharsis

2010-11-27T17:45:00.000-08:00

Hey diddle diddle
The kitchen's not a place to fiddle,
The mix jumped out of my bowl.
I cried out and caught the bowl at seeing such baking ill-sport,
A prayer answered on Thanksgiving eve: I still had 2/3 recourse!

I had the blend I wanted. Experimental, yes, but I knew it would taste fantastic. And then the plastic family mixing bowl, a seemingly un-delicate little green thing with high sides, began to fall (note, this was not a family mixing bowl handed down by anyone in my family!). My in-law karma began to pour out to one side as gravity grabbed the exquisite pumpkin pie filling (fresh Blue Moon pumpkin, Straus Whole Milk Maple yogurt, organic eggs, freshly grated nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves and more) and pulled cruelly downward. It fell down the fronts of the most used drawers in my kitchen. Red drawers with silver handles became drenched in frothy, light yellow filling. It seeped quickly past the drawer edges and down into each drawer. In my state of shock/amusement and sadness, I didn't take a picture! Now there was foolishness!

I moaned, calling out for help and grabbed the bowl, rescuing 2/3 of the mix but feeling awful for my inadvertent tap that had set the bowl falling. And yet, I was also calm and efficiently engaging in repetitive sponge motion- absorb, wring, absorb, rinse, wring. It was a little silly. I chuckled and then went back to thinking I was out of the yogurt and wouldn't be able to redo it: I had promised the family a fresh pumpkin pie for thanksgiving. But then I realized the amount I did rescue.

Answering the Previous Post's Call for Pumpkin
My usual issue with authority reared its ugly head again. My invitation to readers to vote on which pumpkin recipe I should transform the magical Blue Moon pumpkin into fell to a majority vote for the pumpkin ravioli- thanks readers! But I discovered I didn't care what a bunch of people on the Internet wanted. I thought I could care, but it turns out I'm the type that doesn't want to follow directions (in cooking or in choosing what to cook), even if I've asked for them.

The magnificent grey pumpkin was transformed into several things, none of which were the 4 suggested recipes from Edible Allegheny, as I'd implied. It became pie (several kinds and wonderfully experimental variations, pumpkin apple soup, homemade and healthy pumpkin/carrot/cornmush for my toddler and I just roasted the last of it that awaits a final fate. For now, we have savored, slurped, scraped and imbibed.

The soup shown above is roughly:

2 onions
1 golden apple from Mom in law's tree
16 oz. fresh raw pumpkin, peeled
nutmeg to taste or infatuation with its qualities
24 oz. chicken broth
5 slices of fresh ginger

Onions, pumpkins and apples were browned in a cast iron skillet until softened. Then they were put in a slow cooker with the other ingredients and slow cooked 30ish minutes. This soup ages VERY well.

My toddler slurped it up with several declarations of, "Mas!" after I served it. It must feel great for her cold. I give thanks for the gourd!

Gobbling Pastured Turkeys

2010-11-21T11:00:00.000-08:00

Around me in the Foodie Mecca (the San Francisco Bay Area) many are choosing to take the origins of their food back to the land. Slow Food, gourmet, artisan, food as diety, Michael Pollanism—whatever you want to call this renewed passion for connecting to the way food used to arrive on our plates, this cultural trend goes by many names. And it is all one and the same for me, despite what zealots of one strain or the other might rebut.

Heading into Thanksgiving week I am thankful for having had the chance to hear Bill and Nicollete Niman speak at Market Hall. They are champions with a vision to change the way animals are raised and treated in the US. Niman is a rancher and founder of Niman Ranch. His wife Nicolette is an attorney, rancher and author of The Righteous Porkchop.

Since severing his Niman Ranch association, Bill and Nicolette are enthusiastically answering the call of the pasture, with pastured turkeys. It is a vision I can endorse and patronize. From their limited supply of turkeys, I am one of the lucky few, this year.

On the pages swelling open before me in the November issue of Martha Stewart’s Living is a lush article entitled “Land of Plenty” about Stone Barns, a New York Center for Food and Agriculture located 25 miles outside of New York City.

The article chronicles a potluck Thanksgiving Dinner which derived all its ingredients from the farm. Friends, family, babies, corn, kale crisps, Dumpling Squash with Cream and Sage, gourds and beautiful tables, the sensuality of going back to the land and reconnecting with community is almost overbearing (but that’s typical of the publication). Photographs and recipes abound so you too can choose to make your Thanksgiving celebrations the same caliber of affair.

But there is a continual cultural disconnect between those who have the motivation and the means on how to actually head down the path of consuming pastured meat- be it poultry, pork or anything else. Where do you find it if you don't live close to the Bay Area, the Big Apple or other urban centers of culinary innovation taking part in the movement? There seems to be something like $2-5 a pound difference between one of the Nimans’ Broad Breasted White turkeys (the lower end turkey they offer) vs. what you might find or even be given by a grocery store chain like Safeway for being a high volume customer!

Attendees were treated to a serving of the Nimans’ new Heritage Bourbon Red turkey. The taste of real turkey, that lived well and that was raised with care and humane concerns is on my tongue. It is delicious and unlike any turkey I’ve had before.

There is a fantastic resource on the web designed to help you get you closer to your meat and small family farmer. It's Eatwild.com. Select your state and the wealth of offerings will astound you.

To read more from Nicolette, here is her recent piece in the Atlantic Monthly

Possibly also of interest: A tech entrepreneur turned Heritage turkey farmer.

Lead photo: I thought the Crosby, Stills, and Nash song Woodstock was an appropriate frame of reference for this piece. My adaptation (perversion) is shown here to part of the original poster. Are we getting back to the land? Are we setting the souls of those few humanely farmed turkeys free? This movement over food, similiar to the cultural revolution that came together at Yasgur's farm, is yet another Aquarian Exposition.

Hard to Recognize Charities

2010-11-07T09:35:00.000-08:00

Can you see the turtle in the pond? In this season of culturally sanctioned giving (Thanksgiving and Christmas on the way), the following entities are so much the fabric of my internet-era life, I forget they aren't for profit and that they need help. These organizations quietly exist and give me what I need to function as a time impoverished blogger. Or maybe I should say, artiste. There, now I'm not as responsible for what I share. Ha!

Consider turning your resources to help the below entities. My new favorite donor tactic is sustained monthly giving.

#1 Wikipedia. The source I most often cite in my writing.

#2 Creative Commons. When my own photography storehouses cannot suffice, I need a trouble-free place to turn to for photography and art. Shame on me for not moving some of my own Flickr international collection into Open License status (must renew Flickr Pro account first!).

#3 Soma FM. Internet radio. Because these decades since the 1970s have really just sucked for music. Not everything, not everyone! Don't get all up in arms! In the late 90s I started listening to (fled) world and middle eastern music and I haven't really looked back. Thumbs up for SomaFM's best music channels: Groove Salad, the seasonal Halloween channel, Secret Agent and best of all Suburbs of Goa!

#4 UMass Amherst Journalism Department. (Insert Your Alma Mater here). Critical thinking skills--sharpened and brought to you by--the good folks in the J. Department (no, I'm not fixing my m-dashes). From email to blog posts to the sentences desperately in need of re-working you read here (courtesy of working as a marketer for more than a decade), it's important to reach back to your roots and support the next generation. This is an economy where having a degree means nothing in terms of earning your way. The job market I graduated into also left me "earning at a loss" (not earning enough to fully support myself) until I was 27 years old.

As you look for the turtle in the picture, think of all the things in your life that support your world. Which of them deserve a gift in return for all they give you?

Image used by permission of Creative Commons. Photograph by zappowbang.

If Pumpkins Were Wishes

2010-10-30T14:09:00.000-07:00

Some girlhood dreams do come true. We have to be creative enough to accept them in the form they arrive.

As a child, I dreamed of having a dapple grey horse to ride, love and cherish. This Halloween, I instead was given a pumpkin- and it's supposed to be very yummy pie making. We'll see...

My husband was laughing at me because I was carrying around my dapple grey pumpkin (better known as an heirloom strain called Blue Moon).

Here in California, this is the second year I've seen a huge influx of locally grown heirloom pumpkins for sale in the makeshift pumpkin patches that pop up in empty lots chock full of pumpkins and amazing, weird and funky squashes--so I had to share. They come in many exotic colors- grey, white, dark green, even a blend of orange and yellow. A few of those are shown here (though overexposed) at our local Whole Foods display.
When I carve up my dapple grey pumpkin, I'm going to save the innards and actually make something with it in gratitude for the gift of such an unusual pumpkin.

I found an amazing collection of recipes in Edible Allegheny's article "Pumpkin it Up," published out of Pennsylvania. By the way I love Edible Communities around the US- we have several here in the Bay area- check this link to find the local publication near you.

In honor of Samhain tradition, I'll also dedicate this recipe to my Dad who grew up in PA! But I need your help in choosing a future use for the fresh pumpkin.
(Yes, you can vote for two, I'll probably have plenty to work with!)

What should the grey pumpkin transform into? Take the poll at top right and then I'll blog about it next month.

5 Ways In Which BlogHer Food 2010 Was Sumptuous

2010-10-17T11:30:00.000-07:00

As I entered the morning welcome to BlogHer Food 2010 on Friday (shame on me for just signing up for one day!), I came upon a very young child crushing blueberries in a bowl with a small glass jar of honey. She was sitting on a brightly colored rug outside the Intercontinental Hotel’s ballroom. This set the tone of un-convention-ality that characterized a whole day of things that were delicious to the tongue AND mind.

- The connection between food and community was absolutely apparent among all attendees I met and chatted with. I attended alone, but never felt alone in my interactions with complete strangers.

- 6 years ago, I didn’t know what a Foodie was. I didn’t know how I’d ever afford to dive into such an identity. After having Ree Drummond, the Pioneer Woman sit down at my table, I know I am now a Foodie for sure. She’s a cookbook/food blogging celebrity.

- I got pretty fired up in the post-lunch Storytelling session moderated by Diane Jacob . The Journalism 101 feel of how the session was led bugged me. Storytelling in a blogger’s world is not about just words anymore. Words are still important, yes, but sometimes images, video and sound function as the lede now. Jacob acknowledged this input, but it took me a couple of tries to get past the big journalism mentality. My question felt argued with. I was trained in that; I don’t always engage that training because blogging is more about expression for me. Thank you Michael Procopio for your support of this “blogger as artiste” point of view.

The mike wrangler told me later in the day that she thought my comments were thought provoking. I feel a bit disempowered about chasing down my issues with this session precisely because I don’t always abide with a hook or lede to draw my audience in. Do I suck? Maybe, but in the end I was still able to take away good reminders for how to be more creative and engaging with my voice. I do too much with social media stuff for the day job not to be passionate about this point of view though. Those traditionally trained writers need to realize that we all struggle to come forward into this (still) brave new multi-medium world.

- Limited, delicious sponsors. I really enjoyed talking and eating the food of the sponsors who were present. A few were a little out of place, like Kraft (not giving away samples- smart of them, really). But they admitted they were there to learn something about sustainability/organic ingredients/ethics around food, so I spent time telling them why those things are important to me. I learned a ton about the Nature’s Path philosophy and business ethic. And finally, Scharffen Berger was a lovely one to see (again) promoting their Chocolate Adventure Contest which was originally started by Lisa at Tuttifoodie. I’d attended the amazing and fun preview tasting event the night before at Orson.

- The food safety, policy and equality panel was really good because it brought writers and ideas to the panel and room I wanted to follow (Fed Up with School Lunch , 10 Reasons to Eat Local ) and gave me lots of inspiration about future topics (genetically engineered salmon , The Food Environment Atlas) I want to address.

Looking forward to going next year and for those of you contemplating it, it is worthwhile, delicious and a lovely community to connect with.

Besame, Besame Mucho!

2010-10-02T22:25:00.000-07:00

Harvest has made its entrance--hand in hand with the calendar. October. Are you joking? I'm on my 9th pint of strawberries, my first 1/2 pint of figs, my 4th lb. of tomatoes and the lemon is putting off pomelos and lemons. The borage has sprung back in the garden and it's all--very exciting.

So I thought I'd share an image of a card I got from a family member years ago. It's been kept in the relationship corner of our bedroom and is as red hot as our tomatoes. And no, we're not having another kid in case you were layering on new definitions of "harvest" and "entrance" in my opening sentence.

The words in the card (received years before I met Dave in my" solitary and mostly pretty content about it for a darn long while" 20s) read:
Besame, besame mucho!

I got a chance to redo the Mocha Brownies (this time with Dave home) for the Revels retreat. In the disclaimer, I deemed them brownies straight from Dessert Hades, a recommended item to have eaten in the event of an earthquake immediately following consumption (eat, lick fingers and then shake, rattle and roll, to be specific).

The brownies were well received, in any case. And you think we're all health nuts here in California. Butter, sugar, eggs, white flour (sometimes you have to give the almond milk, olive oil, hummus and whole wheat tortilla a break, you know?)

One of my daughter's favorite stories is Miss Spider. With the turn of the season, we've had an outbreak of these enormous beauties- all orange and brown and tiger striped in their glory. They're everywhere. Get us ready for Halloween Miss Spider!

Dancing with Cupcakes

2010-09-26T10:45:00.000-07:00

This is in part my "Temporary Intermission-Talk Amongst Yourselves" sign. I'm up to my ears in it being a Mother and working full time right now.

But wait!

While you're clicking off elsewhere, throw on your shoes and toddle on over to 4th Street in Berkeley to get in line for Cupkate's Cupcake truck! It's a fabulous mobile adventure into cupcakes- which seem to continue being all the rage right now (I think I recall while planning our wedding 3 years ago they were all the rage). Cupkate's keeps a nice Facebook page as to their status. They are creative treats worth going out of your way for if you're having a craving. Think lemon raspberry cupcakes or salted caramel cupcakes.

Also, this year's Chocolate Adventure Contest also seems to have a focus on cupcakes. I am attending a special preview event next month for it (hooray!). Also, stay tuned for our upcoming adventure out to Full Belly Farm (after many years of not being able to go- we're on our way!!) Yay!

Thanks for your understanding. Type at you next month :)

Today's inspiration from the truck (we didn't partake - the art of them is just sitting in their trays with the curlyfrosting tops is just dandy all by itself):

In the Ancient Company of Water

2010-09-07T23:00:00.000-07:00

Through a number of different experiences, I have stumbled into writing this post now--close to Rosh Hashanah. In this Lilith blog post, Maya Bernstein shares her thoughts on the holiday's tradition of "return" as she contemplates her experiences as a new mother now "returning back"...to work. It is a lovely piece of writing that reminded me that I also made this same return very close to this time last year.

Life shifts this summer have led me on a number of occasions to seek out solace in water. My spirit is perhaps yearning for a Rosh Hashanah ritual called tashlich, a "casting off" of sins in preparation for the new year. But unlike that tradition of prayers beside a body of water, I'm looking to immerse myself in it. Only there can you truly contemplate the waves created by the weight of your body sinking downward; immersed in water is a place where I find renewed intention and the power to create.
For me, it's not about a paradigm of sin that we commit or are born with that needs to be cast off into water (Judiaism, Christianity), it's about cleansing me of those things that are no longer suitable goals or ways of being. Change is constant around me as well as inside me. Water is a tonic for those life moments (or months).
In celebration and in redefinition of tashlich (to honor my dormant Jewish half), I'd like to share some images of this dear and beloved element that has provided a backdrop of joy, nourishment, identity and imagination throughout my life. May you find your solace, purpose and peace in the water.

Navarro River, California

Mendocino Coast Line from a Kayak, California

Lake Temescal, Oakland, California

Pacifica, California

Exotic Dessert: Chinese Tree Slice

2010-08-31T22:25:00.000-07:00

My husband brought these yummy pastries home from Shanghai. They are like buttery angel food cake. I am not sure the flavoring, but it is kind of nutty and very subtle.

They're apparently based on the actual Swiss Rolls and started in Beijing by the local bakeries. The trend then spread to Shanghai. They come packaged in plastic and they actually sit in a little tray that you can see here. They really do look like they have tree rings.

He also returned home with 3 lovely kimonos, one of which fits now (the others are for when she is older). A co-worker carefully transcribed her measurements that he took to a merchant who sent him home with these gorgeous outfits. Here is a peek:

Precautions (Tricep) Shaken, Not Stirred

2010-08-22T23:00:00.000-07:00

This was recreated by our friends. It's called a "Useless Precaution," and is an original drink on the menu at Marzano, which I mentioned in my 72 Hours in Oakland, Calif. post some months back. Marzano now has a College Ave. location as well as the one on Park Blvd. A fancy pizza place for sure, but also a great destination for mixed drink lovers too.

I'm not much of a drinker, but this photograph (taken with a Samsung cell phone no less!) certainly was worth sharing more widely. It's just a palm tree in the drink being reflected- otherwise the surface is just barely being breached by a tiny piece of ice.

Here are the ingredients for a Useless Precaution (you can figure out the proportions yourself):

Regan's Orange Bitter

Sherry

Brandy

Be sure when mixing the drink to engage an overhead mixed drink shake that starts behind the head to get a good "tricep shake" all the way through the arc downward to the waist. Long strokes up and down are the tongue in cheek method that comes recommended to make this drink. Or is that just a useless precaution and you can shake it however you want to? ;^P

Another Righted Imbalance

2010-08-05T23:27:00.000-07:00

No reverse pun on "righted," is intended mind you.

Photo: Carlos Avila Gonzalez, SF Chronicle

I'll let SF Gate do the writing on this one- another pun!

And a NYTimes Op Ed piece.

It is wondrous to see this shadow lifted. It was a blight on the joy of knowing we'd elected President Obama back in 2008.

If You Covet Something: Abandon It at a Party

2010-07-30T21:24:00.000-07:00

The Pioneer Woman's Mocha Brownies

As my second recipe attempt from my Mother's Day gift of "The Pioneer Woman Cooks" cookbook, I had many weeks of anticipation before actually getting the chance to make these. I had been dreaming of time in the kitchen to create and see if these brownies were as luscious as they looked to be in the book. I was determined to make this the day--and since my dessert philosophy (vs. just intention in my head) is now officially: don't make it unless you have somewhere to take it, I was happy; we were heading to a party.

For about 2 hours (also trying to get her to nap as these baked), I tangled with a vocal and precocious toddler. The laws of Toddler Psychophysics dictate that every second not spent with your child must be filled with an equally intense display of protest intended to make you abandon whatever other passion you are indulging and make you resume focus on your Kidlet.

Admittedly, she was fascinated--she watched from her high chair, she stood up leaning against the living room furniture so she could peer up into the kitchen to watch me running the mixer. She wanted to see. She studied the eggs as I broke them into the mix. But there was fussing. There was screaming. She made ugly, high pitched noises, because she wanted my attention. There were a couple of instance of firm, frustrated Mama shouts followed by dismayed "how can you not pay full attention to me" glances from her green eyes. But I was determined to make these- icing and all. She didn't nap either, but for a weekend that's normal. Holding the brownies accountable for that is really not fair.

Brownies have never been my baked item of choice, I enjoy them but they aren't at the top of the list. But I do love mocha. It was the mocha frosting and the use of unsweetened chocolate that seduced me. Mocha is my favorite way to have coffee. The brownies turned out crunchier on the outside and moist on the inside, a rather rare good performance from our oven. The thing I would do over however, would be the icing. Sorry Mae, whoever you are. In fact this "Best Frosting [She's] Ever Had" looks fitting. Why? Because it's what I call broccoli cheese sauce frosting. It has flour in it. I think that's what you should call it Ree, Fantastic Broccoli Cheese Sauce Frosting (for cupcakes and desserts).

If you covet something, abandon it at a party. The afterword on these brownies was (in due time once food had happened) they were devoured. Yay!

The 1920s Roar Into West Oakland

2010-07-22T21:30:00.000-07:00

Always fun. Always in summer. Our annual hometown Burning Man here in Oakland. I am ever grateful for the art and fun that comes with the Crucible's annual fire events.

This year the theme was the Roaring 20s so many flappers showed up in their very best and some of the men even looked swanky too (thanks for puttin' on the Ritz, guys!).

Top: Jazz and blues vocalist Kim Nally.

Here are some salvaged photos (it was dark in there, except for all the FIRE) from Heat: A Fire Cabaret. Here is the page from Crucible events past- there was no official fire festival this year.

Below: An awesome, awesome aerialist and Flamenco dancer, Rose Nisker. Here she is in the air and then on the stage.

The period cars were a nice touch.

The event was a nice blend that included fire dancing, fire hula, faint scents of Steampunk, belly dance, mime, aerialist art, pole dancing, hints of Vaudeville and cabaret blended with the traditional metalsmith/fire oriented performance art with a few gentle Goth undertones (mostly from the attendees). As always, lots to look at among the performers and attendees. A male engineers paradise, perhaps?

This male fire spirit (sprite?) seemed to find me a bit too combustible. Sand on your flames, baby, I'm a Mom now!

Tiny Inspirations

2010-07-16T21:31:00.000-07:00

What in life gives you renewal and inspiration to turn over the daily leaf and find something amazing in each day? Looking back on a year of intense, amazing change in life, I've come up with a few here:

Distant portrait of the single chick bedroom: Not only do I now have to carefully engineer a photo like this (with clutter that isn't mine apparent), but rarely does the bed ever get made or is it ever toy free. I couldn't see my future of being a mother clearly when I was in my 20s, but when I was single I would actively treasure the serenity of a pretty, restful bedroom knowing that one day, it would be gone. Joyfully and yet a little wistful, I know now I was right.

Fresh flowers: Divine.

The Occasional Waiter. Someone to take my olive pits while we're at a dinner gathering because I can't reach and have a child filling my arms and skewing my sense of balance. That's love.

Pinocchio Noses! Those little things that grow on Maple trees.

Coach-types who are about empowering you. Britt Bravo's "Big Vision Goals" downloadable worksheets that she publishes in her Have Fun, Do Good Blog. They remind you to keep your eye on your personal prize and reflect on where your day-to-day is taking you (are we in a hand basket or perhaps on a Magic Carpet Ride?) :P

Share yours or link to where you've blogged or written about them in the comments on this post- it sure would be super to create a world wide ring of inspirations!

The Independent Latte

2010-07-04T22:30:00.000-07:00

There is something wonderful, like aligned stars or meeting a romantic interest, when you stumble upon a coffee house that is that perfect harmony of ambiance, delicious food, wonderful coffee, local art, engaging but not distracting music, diverse, watchable clientele and comfort. I recently discovered the greater Seattle, WA area's such jewel: Caffe Ladro.

They have 13 stores in the area and on several visits, they had varied and wonderful latte art to share with me in my coffee.

They were also selling a sweet and simple illustrated children's book about two cats- Sam and Coco. These main character cats, were near carbon copies of my cat Joule and her preferred arch-rival, the neighbors' cat Cocoa.

I have found my bliss in this independent coffee chain, thriving by serving fair trade coffee in the artisan coffee mecca that Seattle is.

Rainier Cherry Chloë Tarts

2010-06-16T07:00:00.000-07:00

To comemorate the past year, I went back to the challenge I had last May- of trying to put together what I call "Chloë Salad." It's very seasonal, very sweet and very tasty if you like a bit of sweet and adore fruit.

Chloë Salad is simply Rainier cherries, pineapple and strawberries mixed together. I gave it a twist and baked in Rainier cherry slices into mini pre-baked crusts and then garnished with slivered almonds (which should have been toasted- do do that!) as well as tiny slices of strawberry and fresh pineapple.
As for the rainbow in the custart of my unbaked Rainier cherry tart- that kind of timing is the sweet magic of the day to day that sometimes happens accidentally when you hang crystals in your windows.

Here are the finished tarts:

An El Niño year here in California this year let Mother Nature give us the most amazing gift of the largest strawberries our garden has ever produced (here are your raw ingredients for Chloë Salad- no sugar or any additives please):

What Made California Dreams: History at the Oakland Museum of California

2010-06-09T22:37:00.000-07:00

When traveling abroad during the dark Bush years, my husband and I made it a point when asked--whatever country we were traveling in--to say we were from California. Though none of our state's history stacks up in richness to many areas of the world that offer hundreds of years, the allure of San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Hollywood and other "sunny California" destinations seems to have touched whoever we meet, wherever in the world we happen to be. Everyone wants to come visit and is attracted, especially to the mystery and recent past San Francisco offers.

In fitting tribute to the allure of California, the Oakland Museum of California reopened last month with a bang. My pal Amy covered that event in her blog. The museum apparently underwent $62m in renovations...including a new brand makeover which I love. At first glance it says "OM Ca." Ommmm indeed!

With Miss Miss, we managed to get through just the California History hall and it was truly fantastic. It starts with the Conquistadors and how in many ways, both intentional and unintentional, they decimated the native populations. The testimonial at the bottom of this simulated "ship's wall," complete with porthole showing a loop of crashing hull waves against it, reads, "We came to serve God and His Majesty, to give light to those who were in darkness, and to grow rich as all men desire to do." Typical of the idealism that still represents California today, as its historical loops like the Gold Rush seem to being repeating themselves with each generation, technological advancement or societal need that "draws in the aspirational dreamers."

This is both poignant and ironic. We always think what we are doing is best and right, don't we? Each of us believes we are enlightened and "on the right path" with our actions, beliefs, and judgements--regardless of what they actually are. They are familiar and most likely, what we grew up with. They are what we knew and know. Surely, whatever we are doing, others are being brought out of the darkness.

There is no delicate treatment of the horrible past mass atrocities committed against the Indians, but it's not over-dramatized either. It is just the cold facts, offered in maps, testimonials, books of personal accounts that you can touch, interactive drawers and doors you can open and close. The hall itself truly lives up to the slogan that runs with the logo- that California history is about you.

What I loved most about this experience was its open invitation at the entryway to include the viewer and invite participation, the sharing of stories, reactions, memories. Post it notes are not high tech or super fancy which is a refreshing choice in use of funds (not to make it a super techie project to document the ongoing "curation" of the space with successive visitors.

The hall features some cool new concepts I've never seen in a museum including a literary room, jukebox listening booth, the ability to "unpack" trunks from the immigrant ships to see what "treasures and customs" they brought with them. It also had some nice but sparing use of technology- a very cool freestanding interactive map station where you can enlarge/shrink/move around historical maps plus filmed stories playing inside constructed sets of actors speaking about "life as it was" in times and places.

It presented a simple and gruesome experience of the Bay Area history around Japanese internment camps in WWI , the influx of jobs and people fostered by the expansion of the Southern Pacific railroad and then during WWII as shipyards boomed.

The ironic and timeless invitation "How do you Fix a Broken System" was the message for the Great Depression years and the WPA that came about in the late 30s. The question however, still remains relevant today to a very broken state.

For its tribute to the 1960s, a colorfully lit area and soundtrack invited you in to view the collected stories and memorabilia from 24 guest curators--Californians who lived during the 1960s. The range of ethnic and cultural backgrounds was striking-along with the memorabilia they each shared. Emory Douglas writes, "The Black Panther party fed more hungry children than the U.S. government."

On the timeline of events from that decade, three items catch my eye:

- 1960 Birth control is approved by the FDA

- 1973 Homosexuality is declared not a mental disorder

- 1967 Monterey Pop

I had never been inside a museum exhibit where I could rock out, harmonizing along to the tunes (along with my husband and another person present at the time) as they played while dancing with my kid. CCR, CSN and more were on the loop. Viewers were asked to reply on sticky notes about "what they remembered about the 1960s."

Perhaps a bit of feel good (there was a bit more to the hall we didn't get to), but wow what a journey!

Pioneer and Daring Women

2010-05-17T23:55:00.000-07:00

A couple of nice pieces about women out there on the market this year- or at least this is the year they've turned up for me as gifts:

The Pioneer Woman. She's a blogger my husband discovered long before I did. Her blog is all about food, life on the ranch, photography and Photoshop technique, her 4 children and more. And she's a damn fine writer too- Ree Drummond. So for Mother's Day, her new (ish) cookbook showed up in my hands. Animals, horses, photography, delicious home cookin' recipes (no shaved fennel when you're out in the middle of nowhere!)...I devoured it like the food porn ANY good cookbook becomes in our house (more about the food reading and viewing, rather than actually making any of it). I highly recommend, "The Pioneer Woman Cooks" to women foodies who love horses, photography and the farm life.

Women Who Dare: A 2010 Engagement Calendar. This was a cool gift this Christmas from my Mom all about women making waves in their own worlds (dance, chemistry, jazz, sociology, reporting/spying, civil rights, diving, suffragettes). They are the women from the 19th and 20th centuries we haven't heard of who need to be known more broadly for the mark they made on the world. A very cool calendar if you have a chance to get a copy this late into the year.

Pan

2010-05-01T23:00:00.000-07:00

Several years ago, Pan was spotted playing his pipes outside the deYoung Museum in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.

Pan was a Velocity Circus creation for Summer Dreams in the Fog, from the wildly creative minds of Gregangelo Herrera and Jeffrey Ferns. I've had the pleasure of dancing an engagement with some of their aerial artists once. And I had the pleasure of engaging them for a fundraiser once. I miss working with artists like these guys!

If you're local, you should check them out at CUE Space in Oakland on June 5th:

Gregangelo & Velocity Circus will participate in the East Bay Open Studios (produced by ProArts) from 11am-4pm at CUE 1824 9th Street, Oakland, CA 94607.

Here's the blurb from their newsletter about what it will be like:

CUE Space will be transformed into an environmental labyrinth of color and immersive experiences through the installation work of Gregangelo for this event. Museum commissions for Gregangelo include San Francisco's deYoung Museum, Berkeley Contemporary Art Museum & Film Archive, Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History and the Museum of Oakland, California College of the Arts (CCA), San Francisco Symphony and Humanities West.

Be sure to listen this Beltane for the tunes from Pan's pipes. ;)

Roundup: Personal Feats of Dessert, SHF #65

2010-04-30T21:15:00.000-07:00

I issued a challenge for Sugar High Friday and 5 brave souls answered it! This month's Sugar High Friday was an invitation to re-create a past dessert failure. Or, to revisit a dessert recipe, ingredient or dessert genre that had bad memories or a past failure associated with it.

From Australia, Cathy X. who writes Aficionado-X led the charge by sharing Green Tea Macarons. Her vision: to overthrow the notion of macarons being notoriously difficult to make, I'm sharing a recipe that rids the need for conventional Italian meringue once and for all. It's based on the very first method which I was taught and have adjusted a little here and there since.

Janet who writes Tastespace also brought tea to into her quest and revised Earl Grey Tea Shortbread Cookies. She writes, "A subtly addictive shortbread cookie featuring Bergamot from Earl Grey tea, with lime and orange highlights, wrapped in a sugary coating. Take this Martha! :)"

Solange from Europe who writes Pebblesoup conquered cakes that didn't rise and that were moist in the middle. Her new creation: Jam Filled Cakes. She says, "I have never been able to make cakes properly so thanks for spurring me on--possibly I would have always thought that when it worked it was a miracle. Now I know it is a matter of using the right ingredients and timing."

Victoria from Singapore who writes Sweets by Vicky tackled comfort-food superstar: Banana Cream Pie. In particular she addressed the challenge of how to make a good Gluten-free crust. She says, "Banana cream pie is supposed to be comforting, but making pie crust is one scary feat! Gluten-free pie crust has a bad rep so I tried to turn it around. Sad to say 'Operation Pie Crust' wasn't too successful but hey, I tried!"

Mansi from California in the US who writes Fun and Food Cafe worked with chocolate- it really does require some dessert chops! She shares with us Rich and Decadent Cocoa Brownies. She says, "This recipe comes from a colleague's wife, who is a great baker. I used to shy away from making these brownies as I could never get them to be as good as hers, despite all that cocoa and butter that goes inside!

But with a strong desire to tame this demon and perfect the recipe, I gave it one more shot, this time with a few changes and some help from Alice Medrich, they turned out perfect! Soft and airy, just like a cake, yet loaded with cocoa flavor which is not the same as eating a chocolate cake, these ultimate Cocoa Brownies promise to be a hit at potlucks and parties!"

I set out to tackle egg whites and meringues with the help of a friend. Sweet Potato and Lemon Ice Cream housed in Cinnamon Meringues. I got an adventure in whole-family dessert making, as well as lots of tips from a superstar husband and wife team who are masters in the kitchen.

Thanks for reading our Feat Adventures for Sugar High Friday!

Rebirthing Egg Whites: Cinnamon Meringues for Lemon and Sweet Potato Ice Cream

2010-04-26T22:15:00.000-07:00

When you have a cooking disability (in my case, I have multiple disabilities) there are things you can do to overcome them. For this month's Sugar High Friday (which I'm hosting) I schemed up the challenge to transform a past dessert failure or fiasco and rebirth it in a new form- even if that meant only part of a recipe. Whatever was needed to personally rise above (no baking puns intended) a past failure would be welcomed. My agenda was in part to expose to the conscious world what life has been hiding from me for years: a fear of working with egg whites--meringues in particular.

I knew if I got help, I would be more precise (no shell shards dropped into the white--it makes a difference what bowl you crack them on!) and thorough (really grab the entire white by actually handling, yes, handling the yoke--as in--with your hands!) and adventurous (I got scope creep and decided to make 2 flavors of homemade ice cream to sit INSIDE the meringues). Best of all, I got by with a little help from my friends (and her whole family).

I chose to make sweet potato ice cream, lemon ice cream and cinnamon meringues for them to sit inside (as if they were meringue ice cream cups). My friend was kind enough to lend me the Ultimate Ice Cream Recipe Book.

So here's the journey. Mother, father and 3 kids (roughly ages 4-14) arrived. We set the lemon ice cream ingredients I'd prepped immediately to churning in the ice cream maker they brought (they'd thought in advance to chill the maker- what a concept!). After the plate of fresh croissants and pastries distraction wore off, kid #1 and Dad begin toying with the iPad and various technology around the house. Kids #2 and #3 were beginning to make "can I help?" and "can I mix it in?" appearances in the kitchen. I was prepping sweet potato ingredients and cream to simmer together while also answering familial requests for drawing paper, scissors, tape, the network password and such.

During the experience, Dad swooped in and out of the kitchen twice: once because he had an instinct that the lemon ice cream had churned long enough. The second time was when he magically knew (and was right) that the meringues were ready for the oven- shiny, perky and like taffy in consistency.

Mom was tag teaming this whole experience, able to concentrate on kids' requests, questions and still be articulate while merging together ice cream ingredients and most importantly...the egg whites. I was mostly a meringue spectator, but I took Dad's advice on how to hold the improv pastry bag (a gallon plastic food storage bag with a hole cut in it for cake icing tips) to get good control over the egg whites and allow me to "shape" the meringues.

We found the recipe called for too low of an oven temperature. In following the directions, they came out chewy. A bit more cooking at a higher temperature advised by both Mom and Dad left me with crispier meringues with harder external shells. It really just depends on how you like to eat them.

I am now convinced I will play with meringues with more confidence in the future but...I'm still not sure I like them. They are sugar and eggs- no fat. But being able to make shapes is fun and how many things can you put in the oven and then take back out looking exactly the way put them in? The chemistry effects are pretty darn cool. As for the ice cream- both were yummy, but the lemon was outstanding. We used some store-bought lemons and a few from our Meyer tree.

Top photo: cinnamon meringue with lemon ice cream and a flower garnish.

Sugar High Friday was created by Jennifer who writes the Domestic Goddess. Learn more about Sugar High Fridays.

Got Feats of Dessert?

2010-04-24T14:42:00.000-07:00

Don't forget to make dessert personal this April. Join the Personal Feats of Dessert Sugar High Friday monthly blogging event--entries are due Monday 26 April 2010.

Tranform your tragedies past to something new, something simpler or some new twist to help you through the dark memories of dessert failed

The round up will be posted here in Vampituity, an Improvised Perspective on the World...

Get details on how to participate!

Celebrating Earth Day's 40th...

2010-04-22T21:29:00.000-07:00

In honor of Earth Day's 40th Anniversary, I thought I'd share some of my hidden stash that I don't trot out very often. I've shared quite a bit over the years on this blog, but there is always more. Thank you to Mother Earth for giving me so many opportunities to capture the beauty.

There is lots more to celebrate. Lots more to work on. Lots more to write about and examine. Lots more ways to be thoughtful...but the time is not there for me right now. As I see fit, I may add photos to this post.

May the vision of John Muir, David Brower, Wendell Berry and many, many others dedicated to the preservation and protection of Mother Earth prevail.

Passtara: Re-Envisioning Passover and Ostara Traditions

2010-04-09T22:10:00.000-07:00

Having a child forces you to think about what was, what you wish had been, what was that was wonderful and...make new traditions! Never having been raised Jewish, I don't have much knowledge of the faith so I've had to do my learning in my adult years, on the fly.

I was invited to my friend's Passover celebration for Easter weekend. I sketched out a few basic new traditions that my daughter will really be able to enjoy, despite what she ends up experiencing for Ostara and learning (or not) about Passover:

- When attending a Seder, the host should be given one golden egg with flowers in it. I included flowers from our yard including borage (the bees love it) and jasmine. My gift to our host for having us in her home and blessings for the rest of the year.

- The menu should include celebratory foods for Ostara as well as Passover. In this case, I avoided the grains I needed to with an unbaked dessert called Pashka- which focuses on dairy for the Pagan spring equinox- which was several weeks ago, actually. I decorated it with daisy chocolate mints and borage flowers from my garden, as well as pistachios. Inside the cheeses are a combination of quark and ricotta with fresh lemon, pistachio and dried bing cherries. I also chose Pashka because it did a nice job of honoring my Russian heritage and my cat, who is Pasha (just add the "k" and you're good to go).

Sure enough, in our local gourmet store Market Hall, they had their own Pashka for sale, along with Kulich, a Russian easter bread not too far afield from Hot Cross Buns...but minus the cross, the annoying candied fruits and hints of...is it anise? I really want to like Hot Cross Buns and just never have. I try every year. Sigh.

- I noted several really wonderful parts of the Seder and their similarities to those "tag along" traditions that even the Romans haven't been able to wipe away after this long.

Because Ostara is about the Goddess Eostre (the Dawn Goddess) from the Germanic tradition, I really wanted to color Easter eggs. Eggs and bunnies are Eostre's symbols of fertility that are still part of Christian Easter celebrations today. Where the egg thing derives from is the Roman Catholics who worked very hard to make Christian beliefs palatable to the once Pagan masses. So I colored a dozen. A few broke, but especially attractive were the ones I boiled in onion and cabbage skins, water and vinegar, without the use of Paas pre-fab egg dyes. Ahh Paas.

We didn't touch on all parts of the Haggadah, but I have always enjoyed Karpas because it feels very Pagan to me. It is the ritual of honoring the earth and the physical supports around us, the eating of parsley dipped in salt water. Karpas was defined by our Haggadah as: The moisture of birth. The pain of birth. The tears at new beginnings.

We are grateful for every tear of joy we experience every day as new parents. There is nothing like it in life.

My daughter sat quiet and listened interestedly to the singing those in the group did (having been raised in the faith) during the first parts of the Seder. She especially liked Urehatz, the washing of hands. I asked for my back pain to be washed away and blessed be, the wine granted my wish for the evening. :)

I found the tradition of hiding and inviting others at the Seder to "seek" the Afikomen an interesting coincidence with the hunting for eggs.

Our homework as a group for next year is to each choose a part of the Seder to modernize or give our own personal twist to. I look forward to that.

I had to come back and add to this post- a very cute and modern day Haggadah you really shouldn't miss.

Sugar High Friday #65: Personal Feats of Dessert

2010-04-02T07:00:00.000-07:00

This is an invitation to revisit your dessert memory vault and take another look back at...a dessert disaster.

Perhaps you only remember the way it made you feel, the disappointment and embarrassment, or you have only a vague recollection of what actually went wrong--like any other bad experience that gets instinctively blocked out because of negative emotions or trauma. You've buried it in the past and have moved on with your life, though you carefully (perhaps even for years) still avoid it- that recipe, that dessert, that ingredient, that genre of desserts (pastry, tarts, souffles) that you couldn't manage to make delicious. You are wounded.

As the host for this month's Sugar High Friday created by Jennifer of The Domestic Goddess, I am asking all participating bloggers to conjure up those recipes, ingredients or genres of dessert that are lodged deep in their "I'll NEVER make that dessert again! Ever!" places.

Bring us your failed attempts, your ruined creations, your watery, your risen and fallen and recreate them right before our very eyes! As the phoenix rises from its own ashes, I invite you to go back to a past failure and from it, create your own Personal Feat of Dessert. No matter how basic or easy the recipe or ingredient was, if it proved challenging for you to make it come out the way you wanted--it is fair game.

Perhaps cakes have always gone wrong for you and you've resigned yourself to mixes forever. How can anyone make a cake from scratch?

Or maybe it's candy. That stuuupid thermometer is NEVER right!

Do puddings confound you? What do you mean 'until it thickens,' it never thickened!

For me, I've had perpetual troubles over the years with anything that involves egg whites as a core ingredient or that involves using a candy thermometer. Any recipe involving those things in my cooking is doomed to fail. I just can't do it--I can not. What do you have to choose from? Bring it into the light of the Web and engage this month's Sugar High Friday in some true transformative dessert therapy. We will be here to witness your feat of dessert.

Need more inspiration? The editors of Cooking Light did a nice article in their March issue about the 25 most common cooking mistakes- read that and I'm sure some inspiration (blocked out past dessert memory) will come to you...

How to Participate

Post your submission to your blog by Monday, 26 April 2010. Once live, email me the following items (my email is jasperpippi [AT] live.com) with the subject line: SHF#65.

The permalink for your entry- your entry must be live on your blog in order for you to participate
The name of your blog and its main URL
A brief summary of your entry (1 paragraph max)
What country (or continent) of the world you live in and typically blog from
A 200x200 pixel .jpg thumbnail image of your entry

If you not have a blog but would like to participate, post your entry in the comments to this post and I will refer to it in the roundup (please do send me a photo and the items above via email, though so I can track your participation).

Photo: Some fudge that turned to hard candy on me about 2.5 years ago Photoshopped together with a Rising Phoenix photo used under a Creative Commons license.

Choosing Your Herd

2010-03-28T03:23:00.000-07:00

Somehow, having a child forces you to contemplate things you haven't thought of or had active in your life in years. It causes you to go dredging the river of your childhood, sifting out the flakes of gold, the sludge and the other interesting and perhaps nourishing minerals with less glamour factor than gold.

Some three decades later in my life, Breyer now produces (coincidentally) foals for its Stablemate collection. I have been strangely compelled to buy them in hopes my daughter will want to play with them. But let's face it, if you're going to add babies, you can't forget the hybrids. Where are the mules in the collection?

My product idea submission to Breyer is this: build a model plastic mule called Pippi Longstockings. Pippi is a 6 year old gaited mule- she's a foil for life's lessons. Her Mom was a Tennessee Walker and her Dad was a Mammouth Jack. She loves to roll in the dirt and then dry in the sun (mudbaths). She's seeking a trail to walk and treats (carrots, beet treats, apples, celery). Stubborn, smart and always a challenge, Pippi is very sexy and intriguing to most horses and generally isn't accomplished at much except being a very smart (and therefore challenging to anyone who rides her) creature.

On a more personal level, having a child forces you to ask: where is my herd? With whom do I run? Whose lead do I choose to follow? Who are my chosen community?

In Pippi's case, she's often blowing out her nostrils angrily because something in the bushes (a flock of wild turkeys, or a deer) threatens the entire stable. Mules are very protective of the herd. As a child, I always appreciated the role of the stallion or the lead mare as protector.

Meyer Pomellos

2010-03-14T21:30:00.000-07:00

Our Meyer lemon tree has a strong branch low down near the trunk with 3 pomellos growing off it. We're not sure how "the birds and the bees," or maybe it was the bees, made the lemon sprout a new branch to bud pomellos on by mixing pollen in our lemon flowers on legs and abdomen.

Anyone have any theories?

I guess when your branches have spikes this long on them...you think you can do anything. And often, you can.