Girly-Blog

First of all, they're not really that slippery. Second of all, slapstick is just so universally funny--anyone can understand the hilarity of a botched motion. And third of all, it's because no one makes me laugh as much as Ty, and when there's an added bonus of her being goofy and gesticulating wildly, forget it, I'm a goner! It's like it awakens the kid in me that remembers thinking she was the funniest person I had ever met (in second grade) and then it triggers every funny thing we've ever laughed about from childhood to now. Like the time we got in trouble (um, in college) for passing funny notes to each other and trying to stifle our giggles in Electronic Music class. The professor pulled us aside afterwards and was like, "What is wrong with you two? You act like you're in high school!" Which made us giggle even harder because that's exactly what we we did in high school.

We just got home from a 3-week tour that completely rocked our socks off. With your help, we sold out the Barns at Wolf Trap, Joe's Pub, Club Passim, the Iron Horse, and the Old Town School of Folk Music--with near-capacity crowds everywhere else--and we were thrilled by the spontaneous creation of a different show every night. I want to send out huge thanks to everyone who came out to these shows and offered up their big energy! What a blast. (Our road manager Turtle, who takes lots of pictures on tour, said that in nearly every picture she took of us, we're cracking up about something.)

We've also gotten tons of great feedback from you about the new live CD, which really warms our hearts because the CD is such a home-grown, bare-bones project, just straight from us to you--and we're all excited to keep on in that spirit. The rawness of it seems to have buoyed us to a new place creatively, and we're already starting to get jazzed for whatever the next project will be...

Thanks, y'all!

OK, so, we just got back from the Iron Horse show and there's this box of kumquats that Nate bought yesterday at Trader Joe's, sitting on the table. And I have to say, I get it! I understand! I cannot stop eating kumquats, all of a sudden! They are, we all decided yesterday, nature's Sour Patch Kids. A burst of sour, then a burst of sweet! Perfect!

Some of you may remember that many months ago, I was mystified by Nate's obsession with this odd fruit. But it takes one to know one, or something, because I am now converted, sold, transformed. I love kumquats!

I'm sitting in the van right now, as we drive over the Kosciusko Bridge on the BQE, and I'm reminded of the ode to NYC roadways we sang Sunday night at Joe's Pub ("Start spreading the [crash!], I'm leaving to-[bump! bump! bump!]" ).

Yesterday, we had a day off that I spent in Brooklyn. I got to do one of my absolute favorite things - cook a feast. The three of us, our manager Genevieve, and couple other friends all came together for the meal. Living on my own in Atlanta, I've been cooking a lot, but it's so much more fun to cook for a big group. I made a wild boar ragu (based on a Mario Batali recipe), Spanish-style garlic shrimp (Cook's Illustrated, December '07), broccoli rabe, and roasted potatoes. The boar was very exciting - I was searching through the meat section at the elite, members-only Park Slope Food Coop (my friend Kate let me in a as a "guest" ), and I came across a D'Artagnan wild boar loin roast. It was too good not to try. Kate asked me not to tell anyone it was boar until they'd already tried it, which I did, although I think it's a little silly. It's just a hairy, tusked pig, really. It gets a little more exercise than most pigs, so it has a richer flavor (it was free-range, too).

Keeping on the meat theme, I went into Manhattan this morning to Faicco's Pork Store in Greenwich village to get my favorite sandwich in the world - a hero with prosciutto, hot sopressata, and mozzarella cheese (with mayonnaise). I placed my order, turned around, and found myself staring at Mario Batali, himself placing an order at the other counter. I am often rendered star-struck by chefs, particularly celebrity ones whose food moves me (when introduced to Scott Peacock in Atlanta, I found myself stuttering incoherently). As Mario bragged to the man helping him about the success of his father's meat shop in Seattle (Salumi), I debated whether or not to say something.

But what? "Holy crap, it's you!" (a little weird). "I've always been a fan!" (a little boring). "I made your boar ragu last night, but I used a loin roast instead of the called-for boar shoulder, does that make a difference?" (I already know the answer - boar shoulder has more fat and connective tissue, and will render a more tender and flavorful ragu).

So I said nothing, and he left on his vespa, wearing his trademark orange Crocs. As I thought about it, I wanted to say, "I made your boar ragu last night, and it was wonderful. Thank you for all the energy you've put into showing the world new ways of cooking food. It's been a fulfilling part of my life that's given me a creative outlet, as well as a healthy dose of self-confidence. Thank you, sir." I didn't say it then, so I'll say it now. Thanks, Mario. Thanks, New York.

Well, while my dear counterparts were experiencing tornadic turmoil down south, (boy am I glad everyone's ok!) I was up north in Jersey celebrating my grandmother's 100th birthday. A hundred years is a damn long time, so I decided to ask her some questions (with translation help from my mom) to see what her secret was. I know you're all dying to know, too.
Apparently it boils down to 2 very surprising things: McDonald's cheeseburgers and America. I was shocked. She basically said that coming to America at the age of 57, was the best thing she ever did. She lived an incredibly hard life in Japan, and after WWII had to sell everything she owned, including all her fancy kimonos in exchange for food for her family. Existence was hand to mouth, more suffering than I can ever imagine. However, when she got here, in 1965, she got assistance from the government and has had nothing but gratitude for this country. She is, ironically, probably the most patriotic person I know, considering that most of my family has tremendously mixed feelings about the bombs and Pearl Harbor.
When I asked her about her dietary habits and what her favorite food was, she shouted (as only the hard-of-hearing can do) "CHEEZU-BAH-GAHHH!!" The hilarity ensued when she got on a roll and started chanting over and over again, "AMERICA GOOD! I LAH-VU AMERICA! I LAH-VU CHEEZU-BAH-GAHHH!" I had tears rolling down my cheeks as I heard my dad, who was watching tv in the other room, mutter in japanese, "What is going on?? What is she talking about?!"
She's happy to be alive, that's all.

As Nate said in his post, we are all ok and I am incredibly grateful for that. I kind of can't believe how lucky we got--all we lost was our dogwood tree. But many of my neighbors here in Cabbagetown weren't as lucky. I spent the day outside, picking up debris and helping to clear roads of roof shingles, tree limbs, etc.

Since I just moved here in September, I guess you could say this is an interesting way to meet my neighbors, even if it's not exactly what I would have chosen.

I don't know if any of you saw the news, but first off, it's very rare for a tornado to hit Atlanta. I'm pretty sure this is the first time the city has taken a direct hit like this. Yet, I had this weird feeling that it would happen. Starting about a month ago, I started dreaming about tornadoes a lot, and and wondering if it had been a good idea to buy a house that doesn't have a basement. I was advised by friends that tornadoes really don't like metropolitan areas. But this one did.

Second, I'm in that state where I keep thinking that I'll wake up and everything will be normal again. But right now, a block away, many of my neighbors' houses have been smashed in half by gigantic trees, live oaks that have been here for probably hundreds of years. Their huge and complex root systems tore out of the ground, pushing up sidewalks and fences. The city is waiting for help from GEMA (Georgia's version of FEMA) and FEMA itself, but apparently it's very slow going. So, as so many neighborhoods in comparable situations have done, my neighborhood has come together to take care of itself. I'm amazed by how much we got done in one day.

On Friday night, I had the pleasure of welcoming a new acquaintance into my life - an EF-2 class Tornado. I was sitting at home alone, watching TV, when I started to notice the thunder of an approaching storm. The power started to flicker on and off, and then I heard it coming. People often say that an approaching tornado sounds like a freight train, but it wasn't quite like that. It was more surreal (somehow I feel more like a southerner now, trying to describe a tornado in my own words). It was kind of like the sound of someone blowing in your face, multiplied by a thousand. It was like wind you can hear coming long before it gets there. It was strange and scary enough that I guessed what it was and ran into my bathroom (no basement here). Then the power went out, and the sound slowly went away.

Aside from the weirdness of spending a night alone in total darkness, I'm fine, and my house seems to be intact (I now appreciate how bright my cell phone can be in the dark). Ty and her house are also fine, although houses a block or two away from her have been severely damaged or demolished (Doris was in New Jersey at the time). On Saturday, we had a sizable hail storm, so Ty came over, and we cooked all the food that had thawed in my freezer overnight. We were very grateful. Thank you to everyone who's written to see if we're okay. All in all, we're not so bad.

Recently the biofuel industry has come under increasing attack from the press. The production of this so-called "luxury fuel" has been blamed for deforestation and for stealing land used for food crops and using it for biofuels instead.

This blanket condemnation frustrates me. While many of these claims are valid for the biofuels industry IN GENERAL, there is a tendency to ignore the fact that biofuels come from many different sources; like most products, biofuels do their best work when produced locally. To ignore their potential by acting like they are all produced the same way is irresponsible.

These recent attacks from the press ignore the fact that in many communities across the country, biofuels are produced via local oil recycling efforts. For example, our local biofuel source here in Atlanta is called Refuel Biodiesel; all its biofuels come from local waste oil supplies and do not contribute to deforestation or any other global ills. Biodiesel made locally from used cooking oil yields about 6 units of energy for every unit invested. In addition, biodiesel emits 78% less CO2 than petrodiesel. If produced in a responsible way, its contribution to the fight against global warming is significant. For more information, check out the FAQ section on Refuel Biodiesel's site:

http://refuelbiodiesel.org/

I agree that like many of our industries, the biofuels industry needs to be rethought. But let's not throw the baby out with the bathwater; let's support local biofuel programs the way we are increasingly supporting local produce. Please feel free to ask any questions, and do spread the word, because the smear campaign against biofuels is very damaging to our efforts to have viable alternatives to fossil fuels. Thanks, everyone. xo ty

Every year I get a check from my parents for my birthday and Christmas. It didn't always used to be this way, but as I got older and they got older and wearier of the crowds at the shopping malls, it just seemed easier for me to pick out what I wanted rather than them trying to figure it out. It used to bum me out though, cause part of the excitement of a birthday and Christmas is the surprise and anticipation of unwrapping a gift, no?
Anyway, this year was no different, except that something extraordinary happened after I got back to Brooklyn. I got home and saw I still had an unread issue of Gourmet magazine lying on the floor. I don't usually read the editor's notes, but since I'm a big fan of Ruth Reichl and wish she could be my friend, I always read her letter in the beginning. She talked about the holidays and how gifts are "much more than just the object" because "when someone gives you a gift, they are not only telling you that they care about you, they are also revealing who they think you are." She used an example of a friend who gave her a gift of antique kitchen utensils when she was in college, and while she loved the gift, she loved the fact that he saw the burgeoning cook in her.
I used to think my parents were uninterested and dismissive about me and my life and it caused me a lot of grief. But I realized that with their gift of money, they were saying something very different; they were saying, Hey, we may not know exactly who you are or exactly what you want, but we want you to find that out for yourself. Because it's your life and we want you to be who you want to be, not who we want you to be.
Honestly, it was the most glorious gift I could ever receive from them.

It could have been the saddest Christmas ever, seeing as my 19-year old cat passed away, but the fact that my mom, dad, and I gathered around him as he took his last breath and watched as his soul presumably joined the Source around us was, in its own way, uplifting. I had never witnessed the moment of death of any living thing before, and though it scared me a little, I had faith it wasn't a true end. We buried him later that night in the front yard, and laid some pretty stones around his grave. 19 years is a long time. I remember when I brought that cat home to my mom as a mother's day gift (a girl at the mall had a boxful of kittens and was giving them away.) After being denied a pet for my entire childhood, I realized I had to be proactive AND creative! Although he turned out to be utterly wretched (hated to be pet, hissed when you came near him, swiped at the air by your passing legs), he was part of the family. And to his credit, he did tolerate a smooch and a hug in his old age, albeit with a low disgruntled growl.

I also saw the movie "Juno," which I thoroughly enjoyed. I used a movie pass and ended up getting three dollars in cash back because they thought I was a high school student (?) I guess I should be flattered even though high school blew. Like, chunks. I was happy to see that Kimya Dawson, who we played with in Seattle and Portland not too long ago, had a bunch of her songs in the film.
I have to admit that, despite my 12th grade appearance, I felt like a grandmother whenever the main character, a 16 year-old, and her friends started talking fast. I no longer understand What the Kids Are Saying These Days. Sigh. Does that mean I'm old?
And then I went to Whole Foods (or Whole Paycheck as we like to say) and they had so many unsold poinsettias after Christmas that they were giving them away for free. Free! "With Our Compliments" the sign read. Nothing is ever free, especially at that place (except cubes of dried out cheese that everyone has touched or poked at with a toothpick and an occasional orange slice.)
Happy New Year!