Joy Begets Good

Remember Jill and Kevin, those two wild and crazy kids who, along with their friends, brought so much joy, to so many via their wedding entrance video? Well, they have found a way to do something else very special. At last count, their video had been viewed more than 13 million times. In response to all the publicity, they created a simple webpage. The song they chose for their processional was Chris Brown’s “Forever”. Brown recently pled guilty to assaulting his girlfriend Rihanna. So in light of this one discordant juxtaposition, Jill and Kevin have invited visitors to their webpage to contribute to the Sheila Wellstone Institute (part of the late Paul & Sheila Wellstone’s Wellstone Action!.org) which works to “ensure ending violence against women and children is a national priority”.

Nicely done Jill and Kevin.

A Simple Idea

Brett Westcott and Cameron Brown, from Purdue University are “The Compliment Guys”. They spend each Wednesday afternoon giving out compliments and words of encouragement to passersby on the Indiana campus. It’s not a gimmick nor a marketing ploy nor a proselytizing technique. It’s just a series of not so random acts of kindness by a couple of outgoing college guys with their hearts in the right place. You can read Brett’s essay here and watch a brief video here of the Brett and Cameron in action.

So, how shall we keep this moving in the universe? A kind word, a compliment or a cheerful good wish given to folks we come in contact with throughout the day? Sounds good to me!

Thanks for stopping by and reading this post!
;o)

Idiots

Dan Kennedy of Media Nation and Northeastern University, has an excellent piece in The Guardian this week. Using Charlie Pierce’s book “Idiot America” as a framework, Kennedy takes on “The Birthers” - the idiots who refuse to believe that President Obama was born in Hawaii. Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis (1856-1941) wrote: “Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants.” This fight requires more than just sunlight. Kennedy and Pierce make the case that we need to speak the truth clearly and repeatedly to those who spread lies loudly and vociferously.

Age

There are moments when the experiences, the health problems, the stubbornness, the worries, the confusion and the fears of our ERs (Elderly Relatives) can really get to me. I think I cope pretty well day in and day out with whatever comes up. But it’s those middle of the night can’t get back to sleep moments, when I start to worry that someday I am going to wake up and be just like them. By “just like them” I am referring only to the troubling parts. I never wake up in the middle of the night and think “Gee, one of these days I am going to wake up and be just as open hearted, open minded and full of life as my octogenarian friend Marion!” Plus, it usually takes Chuck to remind me that I am not really like any of these ERs to begin with. I am, in fact, just like me. Nor will I wake up one day and suddenly be old. Every day I will simply be one day older than the day before. And what really matters is the age in my soul.

With all that in mind, I bring you this quote:

“Age only matters when one is aging.
Now that I have arrived at a great age,
I might just as well be twenty.”
- Pablo Picasso (1881 - 1973)

Robusto

You know I like cheese, right? While chocolate is a legitimate and venerable food group, when I crave, I crave savory. Cheese falls under the savory category, even when I serve it with fruit. Ironically, while pizza is near the tippy-top of my favorite foods list (vegetables, crust, spicy meat all in one), I prefer it to be “light on the cheese”. Too much cheese, especially a near-ersatz mozzarella, can dull the palate and drown out the complexity that is, after all, pizza.

Anyhoo, what I wanted to mention was a cheese we have recently tried and are enjoying. It’s called Robusto. We’ve been buying it from Whole Foods, where they have a very nice cheese section. To me, Robusto tastes like a combination of a nutty Swiss and kicky Parmesan. It’s a Dutch cheese, from the Gouda family, with a firm, smooth texture.

By the way, Trader Joe’s is once again stocking their Mini-Toasts “crackers” from Holland. (We weren’t the kiss of death after all!) They are eensy-weensy, very crispy pieces of toast, shaped like a slice from a loaf of sandwich bread. They are quite mild in taste so they provide crunch, texture and a platform for any cheese.

Dream Travel

If you had an unlimited budget and a miraculously zero impact carbon footprint, where would you go? O.K. and you can teleport a la Star Trek so there’s no annoying airplane travel nor miserable jet lag. It’s sort of the travel equivalent of a Genie in a bottle with a fistful of wishes.

Me? I have to go first? Is there a limit on the number of locations? Oh, right. I’m making up the rules as I go along!

O.K. First, I’d go back to Bermuda. Chuck and I went there on our honeymoon and it was lovely. Unfortunately, our cottage colony no longer exists, but there are lots of other great options.

Next, Paris, France. Ironically what makes me want to visit are all the episodes of House Hunters International where folks are searching the various arrondissements for the perfect Parisian flat. I hear the food’s pretty good too!

Next stop, Iceland. Specifically I want to visit their hot springs. We enjoyed the hot springs in Banff, Alberta, Canada and the ones in Iceland look spectacular. Actually, thinking about Banff, I’d definitely go back to the Post Hotel at Lake Louise. It was delightfully decadent, yet down to earth. And we’d stop for a pie at Aardvark Pizza in Banff first!

O.K., now closer to home: Washington, D.C. I haven’t been since I was a kid and I’d do the whole touristy tour of every monument, museum and landmark I could find. It would take a long time but it would be so worth it. By the way, I’m probably teleporting home every day or two so I can sleep in my own bed, ‘cuz I’m kind of a lousy traveler!

I’ll stop there - for now!

Where would you head off to in this ideal travel scenario?

Well Deserved

Jim Rice, 56, and Rickey Henderson, 50, were both inducted today into the National Baseball Hall of Fame at Cooperstown, New York. Both men were veterans of the Boston Red Sox, Rice having spent his entire career there. Both come across as good guys, were great players and are deserving of this honor. Congratulations to them both!

Stand Down

This is a positive, compassionate (albeit temporary) response to terribly tragic circumstances none of our veterans should ever find themselves in.

More information on Stand Down operations can be found here. A list of remaining 2009 Stand Down events can be found here.

My World

: : I’m tired of the humidity. This is a problem because I live in Southern New England where hazy, hot and humid are known as the “Three H’s”. If it has a nickname, you know it is as common as dirt.

: : When the weather gets like this we do run the small air conditioner in the bedroom. The lure of cool and dry air is so tantalizing that I will figure out a way to make almost any task, short of food preparation and washing clothes, portable enough to be moved to that blessed room.

: : Speaking of food preparation, pouches of cooked brown rice from Trader Joe’s are saving my life this summer. I have made many variations on my Quick & Easy Rice Salad. The last one I made I added chicken to it for a complete one dish meal - with very little heat needed from the stovetop or even the microwave.

: : I’m on very close terms with the two fans we have on tall stands (one upstairs, one downstairs). It could be that all the moisture in the air is causing my brain to get moldy, but I think I heard the downstairs fan humming “Me and My Shadow” today.

: : And if I get to the point where I feel downright downtrodden and beleaguered by the “Three H’s”, I take the laptop to - wait for it - the bedroom. I sit in front of the fan, which is front of the A.C. and watch the video of Jill and Kevin’s wedding processional. And for well more than five minutes and nine seconds I feel much, much better.

May It Ever Be So

“May the saddest day of your future
be no worse than the happiest day of your past.”
- An Irish Blessing

Pure Joy!

Watch it in full screen at full volume and be prepared to laugh and cry! I know I did!




This makes me think of Carrie and Al and Kate and Phil...

Thanks to Barbie2Be for letting me know about this wonderful video!!

Better Late Than Never

I’m lucky to have regular readers from all over the world, so in order not to be cruel to them, I’ll try to keep this brief. It won’t be easy! Tonight Chuck and I finally had a pizza from The Corner Grille at 806 Pleasant Street in Worcester. (Music plays when you click the link.) It was unlike any pizza I have ever had. But it reminded Chuck of the essence of pizza from a place his family went to in greater St. Louis, Missouri. The Corner Grille is in a bijou storefront replete with twin bow windows, a touch of stained glass and tin ceilings. Large chalkboards display the creative, yet simple menu. The whole place is charming without tipping over into kitschy.

Decor and atmosphere aside, the pizza was fabulous. Despite the mouthwatering list of unusual pizzas, we chose to build our own. We thought by ordering something close to our “usual” pizza we would best be able to compare and contrast. We ordered sliced tomatoes, green peppers, mushrooms and sausage. The pizza arrived square and paper thin - literally, not figuratively. I held a piece up to the light and could see the toppings through it! There was a narrow, delicate char around the edges and the toppings were scattered equally, yet lightly around the surface. In an era where chain restaurants are competing for business based on how many pounds their servings weigh, the Corner Grille shows restraint. They have found the perfect intersection where taste meets “less is more” and something spectacular is achieved. Each bite had us savoring the flavors, especially the frequent micro-bursts of basil. I don’t know if it is prominent in the red sauce or tossed on under the cheese, but it adds a wonderfully fresh note.

The Corner Grille also serves a wide variety of interesting salads, soups, sandwich wraps and baked sweet treats. We may be eleven years late to the party, but we won’t be strangers now!

Good & Honorable

Three weeks ago I posted about Bernard Madoff when he was sentenced to 150 years for his dreadful Ponzi scheme. Today I want to introduce you to Robert I. Lappin age 87, of Swampscott, Massachusetts. Mr. Lappin is the polar opposite of Bernie Madoff. Mr. Lappin is a mensch. Robert Lappin lost approximately 90% of his personal wealth to Madoff’s thievery. Unfortunately, his eponymous charitable foundation was also invested with Madoff, as were his employees 401(k) retirement plans. Now Mr. Lappin, with the blessing of his family, is donating five million dollars to restore his employees retirement accounts. That five million represents more than half of his net worth, post Madoff’s depredations.

Mr. Lappin’s honorable and generous choice reminds me of another Massachusetts mensch named Aaron Feuerstein. Back in 1995, Mr. Feuerstein was the CEO of Malden Mills which was known for its “Polartec” polar fleece fabric. The mill burned down and Mr. Feuerstein continued to pay thousands of employees their regular salaries, plus benefits, while the mill was rebuilt in the same location.

All three men; Madoff, Lappin and Feuerstein are Jewish. Madoff used his heritage and his religion as a tool, a passport if you will, to target fellow Jews in an Affinity scheme designed to lure investors into his elaborate Ponzi scheme. Mr. Lappin and Mr. Feuerstein also relied on their heritage and their religion, as well as the Torah and the Talmud to inform their honorable and moral decisions.

A Hot Time

The thunderstorms were rough last night and the rain continued into the morning. But as noon approached, we found the skies clearing, the sun burning through, the temperature rising into the mid 80s F (30 C) and the humidity remaining fierce. By the time we arrived at Goddard Memorial State Park in Warwick, Rhode Island, there was a more than welcome steady breeze. J.R. had erected a tent and its shade, as well as spots beneath the nearby trees, were very popular attractions! Naturally, the best part of the day was being with family. But a personal highlight was every time I was able to plunge my hand into the bucket of ice water to fish out another can of seltzer! It was heavenly!

By the way, Fiona asked about my triple chocolate brownies. They are a total cheat. I buy the Betty Crocker Original Supreme Brownie Mix, which comes with a pouch of Hershey’s Syrup. (That’s one.) I follow the package directions, but I add two tablespoons of the best cocoa powder I have in the house, like Scharffen Berger. (That’s two.) After all the ingredients are combined, I add a half a bag of Nestle’s Mini Chocolate Chips. (That’s three.) I bake according to the package directions but usually leave them in longer than suggested. Even with the extra time they come out incredibly rich and fudge-y, so I cut them into tiny bite size pieces and place each square into a mini muffin paper. There you have it. The secret is revealed.

If You Can’t Stand The Heat...

Today was hot and humid followed by thunderstorms. Not my best timing, but I needed to bake my triple chocolate brownies. We have another family wing-ding tomorrow. This one is being hosted by my nephew J.R. and his wife Lorrie. A few months ago, a friend of theirs passed away. As they greeted and reminisced with old friends at the wake, they decided to provide an opportunity for everyone in their lives to all come together, under happier circumstances, at a huge picnic. So rain or shine we’re headed to Rhode Island tomorrow. Fingers crossed the thunderstorms pass early in the day. And as long as I’m hoping, I’d love a cool, dry, breezy day! Greedy? Why yes I am!

Liberation

Remember the daylily from Carrie and Al’s home? It was the one I posted because I had neglected to take a photo of the ones I had freed from their rains of June induced jungle. Well, this is one of the liberated lilies. It lives on the far side of the driveway and makes us smile when we stand at the kitchen sink and look through the window to see it bobbing against the lush green chaos behind it.

In other news...
The “asked and answered” game continued today in Washington D.C. What was new? Perry Mason. I’ll admit, I was grateful for the lighter note. But there’s gotta be a better way to make sausages - er - confirm a new justice for the SCOTUS!

Asked & Answered

I’m bleary eyed with exhaustion (not enough sleep last night and zoomed off in too many directions today). But I did catch some of the Senate Confirmation Hearings for Judge Sonia Sotomayor. I will simply repeat my Tweet from this morning:

Re: Sen. Jeff Sessions' (R-AL) questioning - Too bad the objection of "Asked & Answered" isn't available in a Senate Hearing!

I get that the Republicans have decided to be the party of “No”. I get that they feel the need to harp on the phrase “wise Latina”. But Lord love a duck, they began to sound like the annoying younger sibling who repeats everything you say, just to make you crazy! And, in keeping with Newton’s Third Law (for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction), the Democrats had to swing all the way over to fawning, just to get across the idea that she would not be a crazed, bigoted, liberal, activist justice! Throughout it all, Judge Sotomayor remained unruffled and gave new meaning to the word unflappable.

At least no one is talking about Coca Cola cans...

Laws and sausages, laws and sausages - and senate confirmation hearings - Sheesh!

Goodnight...

Hello, Thank You & Goodbye

It is difficult for me to grasp the life cycle of a Lune Moth (Actias luna).

They are startlingly large, yet delicate creatures. (A Luna’s wingspan can be 3 - 4.5 in (8 – 11.5 cm). The clapboards it is resting on in the photo above are standard width.) We see them only in the summer months, almost exclusively at night. We have an old outdoor floodlight above the main door of our barn. Whenever we have it on, it attracts a great deal of activity. Tonight, a Luna came to visit. The photo above was the only one which was clear enough to post. Trying to zoom in on the Luna, fighting the glare of the floodlight, while staying far enough away not to disturb the beautiful moth was a challenge. But learning more about the Luna moth, puts my photography challenge into perspective. They emerge from cocoons only to mate. They do not eat or even have mouths. They live just one week. Being 51 years old, it is almost too much for me to comprehend. And I can’t help but wonder which day it is of this Luna’s seven.

Something Sunny

The gal at the farmers’ market called them “Sundrops”, but the name appears to be just the first clue. Sundrops are part of the Onagraceae family and the genus Oenothera. Another common name for them is “Evening Primrose”. However, with well more than 100 species about, I can’t tell you any more specifics. But I will pass on what the plant seller told me: “They’ll grow in almost every possible condition.” Sounded good to me and so far so good!

A Wild Deal

Attention all Worcesterites!

Wild Willy’s Burgers at 317 West Boylston Street, is running a super summer special. Beginning this Tuesday night, July 14th and every Tuesday evening through the end of August, if you buy one burger, chicken or bison sandwich, between 5:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m., you get a second one free - a BOGO! Considering how yummy the burgers are at Willy’s that is one heck of a deal. And, if that isn’t interesting enough, they’re also offering a number of gluten free items on their menu, including gluten free buns cradling their scrumptious burgers.

See you Tuesday nights at Willy’s...


: : Update: Just to let you know, the BOGO doesn’t work on TOGO - that’s to go orders. So pull up a chair and enjoy your burgers in-house!