Word

We have to remember: There is nothing wrong with women writing about themselves, their youth, their indiscretions, their habits and values and personal development. Men have been writing about this stuff for thousands of years; they call it the canon.

And like their male contemporaries, a lot of this writing disappoints. When it does, there is nothing wrong with criticizing it. The thing that is wrong -- really wrong -- is when we forget that these kinds of stories are not the only ones that women have to tell.

TK

Must haves: Mud in your eye

is much, much worse than sand on your wine bottle/glasses, but why have that either? Perfect for Father's Day.

(Surely there's a better name for this item than Wine Holder ...)

(Swiped from Restaurant Girl)

Shuesday: Hot in the City

Yes, it's the week that movie premieres, and yes, the FG, T-Izzle, and The Pastry Chef have tickets. Don't you think these would be perfect to wear to the premiere?

Icons we mourn: Sydney Pollack

I'm not sure when I first fell for Sydney Pollack. On reviewing his oeuvre, he was involved in so many of my favourite things, on screen or behind the camera, that it is hard to know where to begin.

I'd have loved him forever if "Out of Africa" were his only accomplishment. He will be sorely missed.

NYT

Casting Call

Over brunch yesterday (at The Chip Shop in Bay Ridge - Welsh rarebit followed by full English breakfast (veggie -style) with tea and treacle pudding for dessert), I had a moment of casting genius - Angelina as Wonder Woman!

There is, I'm told, a movie slated for release in 2009, with a script once penned by Joss Whedon (sigh!), but still in production throes and therefore uncast. Angelina could be back in shape by then (post pregnancy), I'm sure.

Anyone?

Speaking of handbags ...

And contributing to organizations you care about ...

The Material Girl parted with a few personal possessions — a custom-made white guitar and the contents of her handbag — at a benefit to raise money for AIDS research.

Madonna emptied her purse and came up with a magnifying mirror, hair clips, skin blotting tissues and lip gloss. She put it on the block along with a one-of-a-kind diamond-encrusted alligator bag donated by Chanel. The lot sold for $472,000.

Five Things

5 things (always) in my( good but not-for-profit appropriate) handbag du jour

1) The Blackberry
2) Mac Pro Longwear Lustre in Jazz-y-Razz
3) Sunglasses (unless they're on my face, which they are most of the time)
4) Business cards from last few restaurants/bars I went to (to remind me to blog them)
5) The New Yorker

5 things in my "room"

1) too many pillows
2) my Japanese tea bowl
3) a stack of books I am pretending to read (see The New Yorker, above)
4) a photo of my parents from 1962
5) my mask from the 2006 Seattle Opera Ball

5 things I’ve always wanted to do (of the non-save the world variety)

1) Be paid to read full time
2) travel the world for a year (and I don't mean with a back pack)
3) support the organizations I care about in a financially meaningful way
4) learn 2-3 languages well enough to converse with a native speaker without being laughed at
5) write for a living

5 things I’m currently into

1) BSG (still catching up)
2) lightweight tops for summer - it's still on the calendar, right?
3) Scrabulous (I see your larynxes, and raise you an autocoid)
4) gourmet chocolate
5) TV and takeout with friends on a week night - ANTM, Gossip Girl, Top Chef, etc.

Blame WendyB! (again ...) But I can't wait to meet her next month! Oh, and TR? There isn't a part two to this post =).

Must haves: Eggs in a pod

I looove poached eggs. Deciding between Eggs Benedict and French toast at brunch is sometimes the hardest decision I make on a weekend, and the reason I almost always swing savoury is that I've never been able to make the eggs well at home. I know about swirling the water in the pan, I know about adding vinegar to the water, but they always fall apart in the pan and they're over or under cooked.

This past weekend, in beautiful Concord, Mass, I discovered a solution, and it works! The Poach Pod! Will I ever brunch out again?*


(I also found a recipe for EB Bread Pudding - yuk!)

* You know that I will ...

Shuesday: Life is a ...

Liza would looove these. Not very summery, but neither is the weather.

Icons We Mourn: Robert Mondavi

Robert Mondavi, the California vintner who set in motion the rebirth of the Napa Valley wine industry and, to a generation of Americans, championed the idea that fine wine was an integral part of the good life, died Friday at his home in Yountville, Calif. He was 94.

His death was announced by the Robert Mondavi Winery.

The winery, hailed as an architectural masterpiece when it was built in 1966, set the style and tone for scores of wineries in later years and is still the valley’s most popular tourist attraction.

Under Mr. Mondavi, the winery grew into a $500 million-a-year business as it introduced to the United States European winemaking techniques like the use of French oak aging barrels and stainless-steel fermentation tanks.

An Italian immigrant’s son, Bob Mondavi, as he chose to be called, battled puritanical tradition, a hidebound wine industry, a skeptical public and even opposition within his own family as he fashioned himself into a symbol of America’s mid-century affluence and cultural coming of age.

With other promoters of good living like Julia Child and Alice Waters, he tried to lead the country away from shopworn Old World ways, insisting that Americans were second to none in creating elegance and enjoying it. Few did that better than he: he lived like royalty.

NYT

Shuesday: Dental floss

Apparently does make a good shoe ...

Must haves: Coming up roses

I don't think I'm an egregious product placer* (unlike, say, the producers of Lipstick Jungle) but this stuff is really good. I'm especially digging it over Benetint for summer, and for my cuticles. Also, they're both rose-scented!

Warning: it does not contain SPF.



*unless you count Shuesday, which I don't.

Little India

A week or two ago, The Pastry Chef and I took advantage of one of the many extracurricular activities offered by her school, and went on a walking tour of Little India. If I'd realized I'd agreed to meet TPS before noon in a borough, I might have been less enthusiastic, but we had a fantastic time, and came home with lots of delightful Indian treats, including the candied fennel seeds so often found on the way out the door of Indian restaurants.

I was quite prepared to give you the blow my blow meeself, and then TPS alerted me to this delightful write-up by the more than delightful Kate Morgan. As she was taking notes, and I was struggling to remember the names of the places we visited, posting her article seems to make the most sense. I highly recommend a trip.

Little India Walking Tour

On Sunday April 27th, 2008 a dozen alliance members met up in Jackson Heights Queens, otherwise known as Little India, for a culinary tour by Surbhi Sahni, Executive Pastry Chef of Devi Restaurant.

The day kicked off at Maharaja Sweets where we sampled fresh onion bahji’s and a selection of Delhi-style sweets made from condensed milk, washed down with a cup of chai. Locals believe it is good to begin the day with something sweet in the hopes the rest of the day will be just as sweet.

Next stop was a tour of Patel Brothers, one of the leading Indian food stores known for its authentic Indian staples including a wall of spices, dozens of fresh breads and a fascinating display of unusual vegetables from fresh curry leaves and turmeric to baby ginger and Ghia, a squash traditionally used in many Indian dishes.

After an engaging presentation by Surbhi guiding us in the selection of spices and the preparation of almost every item in the store we made our way to Nanking for lunch. Nanking is an interesting restaurant serving Indo-Chinese, Indian Food prepared with a Chinese culinary influence. We sampled both fusion dishes and some traditional Indian fare including Manchurian cauliflower, a mustard leaf spinach curry and Kadhi Pakora, a rich curry dish with a yogurt and chickpea flour base with delicate vegetable pakora pieces.

Our last stop was Butala Emporium where some serious shopping took place, from authentic cookware to traditional music.

—Kate Morgan

Shuesday: Convertibles

I understand that people sometimes suffer from wearing too high heels for too long, but these seem a little much.

Also, not exactly stylish, and way too expensive.

E.U.

Midwest Medved was in town again, so we went to The E.U. for dinner, and were mostly happy. We started with a charcuterie plate, which was a mixed experience - parts were like cubes of bologna, for example, the grilled octopus - delightful, fresh oysters - which were delish - and lamb with cucumber and mint (which I don't remember), and brussels sprouts - also delish. And the waiter helped us find a lovely bottle of wine.

I confess that I have waited too long to blog this, and further details escape me. We agreed that there were hits and misses on the menu, but the waiter was really good, and that almost made us forget about the misses.

Memories

Showmance:

When actors engage in a romance for the run of a show. Once the run is over so is the romance.
The term originated in the theater and moved to movies and scripted television and then reality television. The term has now moved to the populace to discribe any contrived romance.

Dude 1: I didn't know Anthony and Cicely were dating.
Dude 2: It's just a showmance, Cicely is just dating Anthony just to make Edgar jealous.

Dude 1: I didn't know Anthony and Cicely were dating.
Dude 2: They're not. It's just a showmance, Anthony is gay.

Urban Dictionary