Gluten-free "Oatmeal" Chocolate Chip Cookies

Link to cooking blog: Gluten-free "Oatmeal" Chocolate Chip Cookies

Happy Father's Day

Libations

For our friend James' birthday last month, we gave him an IOU for an Indian dinner. I looked online for a birthday IOU image, but the closest I could find was a Happy Father's Day one. So, James received such an IOU, with Father's crossed out and Birth written in (above).

Last night James traded in his voucher for some pakora (cauliflower, broccoli and peppers) with mint chutney, followed by tofu in garam masala and coconut milk sauce. Desert was quite American: fresh baked gluten-free chocolate chip cookies and gluten-free peach cobbler.

As it was also a celebration of M*'s last day at his internship, finishing-up his final paper and receiving a job offer, I stopped in at Oddbins and bought a highly recommended (beat Dom Perignon in recent taste test, produced by family-owned vineyard, H. Blin & Co., committed to fair-pricing). James and Manuela added to our celebrating by bringing over some Stella and red wine. By the time we headed to the Granta pub, our food and drink appetites were quite sated.

Somehow, we ended-up in Glamour Shots' poses. James, me, M* (above).
James, me and Manuela (below).

First Day, Last Day

M* first day, 18 Sep 2006 (left). Today, M* goes to turn in his final paper

Up Close and Bovine

An Irish classmate of M*'s was surprised that I would take pictures of cows. He grew up seeing our bovine friends, and, as is often the case, does not feel inclined to photograph aspects of his normal surroundings.

I think that I'll always find sharing a sidewalk with a cow quite a special experience. I passed this lovely lady yesterday on Sheep's Green.

Reason to Stay in Europe

I'm not surprised, but a U.S. Census report released yesterday reporting a record number of Americans without health insurance underscores one of the 'Pros' of staying in Europe: universal health care. As a relative recently said to me, "If I have to wait four months to see a specialist, why not have socialized health care."

This recent news reminded me about an article entitled "The Risk Pool," which Malcolm Gladwell wrote for the New Yorker (Aug. 28, 2006), covering America's history of employer-paid health care and pensions: While employers are now dropping or decreasing such benefits, around the middle of last century a number of large, influential employers chose offering pension and health coverage over universal coverage. They saw attempts "to spread the costs and risks of benefits over the biggest and most diverse group possible"as a "threat to the free market and to the autonomy of business owners." Funny, from my personal experience, lack of universal health coverage actually hurts the free market. One of the reasons my last job was so attractive was the free, excellent health care coverage—it was a major factor that kept me from finding a position that was a better fit for my skills. The market is not optimized when resources (my skills) do not flow freely in the market due to impediments (lack of health care).

As for other Europe 'Pros,' shorter work weeks and 25+ vacation days are tempting, along with the generally more cyclist friendly attitude in Europe. I'd really miss not having a bike.

Walk While One Can

The sun appeared and temperatures hit 80° this weekend. Perfect time to eschew the bike in favor of my pedes.

Paths by the River Cam are quite overgrown from all the rain.

I've taken quite a few photos from this vantage. Just really like it.

Little black bits on the grass are sheep.

Lombardy poplars are common on Sheep's Green

"Macbeth": Closing Night of Cambridge Shakespeare Festival

Not surprisingly, the last performance of the 2007 Cambridge Shakespeare Festival was packed. I'm sure attendance suffered during the festival's twelve week run with the rainy, cold weather. Saturday evening was beautiful, 70° and clear, and all the seats were taken by the time we arrived. Luckily they pushed back "the stage"—the line of demarkation running from an array of candles, above, to a supply of bowls, used alternately to mix the witches' brew, wash a traveler's face and scrub the blood from the Macbeths' hands—to allow more people to sit on the grass. We arrived late enough to get a place right in front. Having foreseen this issue, we were armed with a blanket (and wine of course).

Oh, yes the play. Good, but not the best of the series. Perhaps Shakespeare's comedies just work better for outdoor, summer theater. "Romeo and Juliet" and "Macbeth" were our least favorites, while "Taming of the Shrew", "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and "Much Ado About Nothing" were very impressive.

Berries, Bulmers and Brume

A portion of the path from Newnham through Grantchester
Meadows is overgrown with blackberry vines.

M* finds us some prime samples.

Bulmers hard cider, center and right, is the closest I can get to gluten-free
beer at a pub. It's also the only pub-offered cider that doesn't have a
stomach turning fungi-esque smell.

Matt being disappears into the encroaching brume (a great synonym for mist or fog).

As night falls, the moon and mist cast a beautiful eeriness to Grantchester Meadows.

So Much Rain

Summer in England: rain pants, sweaters and long hot showers.

What Was I Thinking?

Today, tearing out pages in a journal—out of desire to recycle not destroy—that I had used to take notes during cheese class and write shopping lists. When I got to this page, I paused and wondered how someone had snuck the journal away and added such things. Still haven't figured it out. Guess the other option is that I'm the culprit.

Spinach, Potato and Chick Pea Curry

Link to cooking blog: Spinach, Potato and Chick Pea Curry

Pictures Come Off the Fridge

With only 2 1/2 weeks left in our flat (gulp), it's time to take the photos off the fridge.

Post-Lease, Pre-USA Trip

10 Sep: dep. Cambridge, arr. Amsterdam
12 Sep: dep. Amsterdam, arr. Rotterdam
15 Sep: dep. Rotterdam, arr. Stuttgart (+1 day, 16 Sep)
23 Sep: dep. Stuttgart, arr. Dubrovnik
25 Sep: dep. Dubrovnik, arr. Sepan
28 Sep: dep. Sepan, arr. Dubrovnik
28 Sep: dep. Dubrovnik, arr. Cambridge

....then we leave the UK on 1 Oct for Washington, D.C. How long will we be there? Will we return to Europe? West Coast/ East Coast? Let you know as soon as we do.

Sad Happy

I've been packing-up our flat: It's sad. Happy moments do present themselves, however. I came across some photos that I had shoved in a book when we were leaving for Cambridge. They are from February 2000, when my sister and our friend Gary came to visit me in Los Angeles. That was such a fun long-weekend, despite the torrential downpours that required us to roll-up our trousers to our knees to get to the car. It was also an important weekend, as that is when I got Brea and Titchou. I've finally done the smart thing and scanned the images.

Gary and Carolyn, martinis in hand, at Boardners in Hollywood
Carolyn and me at Griffith Observatory

Our mutual friend Dom, Gary, Carolyn and me at The Bounty in Koreatown
Rockstar Fluffy—costume design by Carolyn and Gary

A Summer Punch, but No Summer

Click on image for larger view.

I cut this punch recipe out of a magazine that my sister left—some Martha Stewart publication. We have a basil plant and a bottle of rum, and I thought it would be great for a hot summer afternoon. But we haven't really had one yet. Maybe someone else could make it and report back.

Rice Boat

Red dots mark the stand-out items.

Yes, a photo of the two of us from our anniversary dinner at Rice Boat would have been nice, but instead all I have is a scan of our bill. There is good reason for this though. The meal was so good that I want to remember the dishes we ordered. Hopefully I will be able to replicate them in our kitchen. Rice Boat features Kerala Cuisine from India, and some of the dishes, especially the thoren, appam and rice "breads", I haven't found in other Indian restaurants. I think the beans thoren was our favorite—chopped green beans sauteed with shallots, mustard seed and coconut.

Just the Two of Us

Some photos from our anniversary day at the Cambridge University Botanic Garden.

Gluten-free Banana Banana Nut Muffins

Link to cooking blog: Gluten-free Banana Banana Nut Muffins.

I Want Someone To Eat Cheese With

The title alone is enough to get me to see this movie. Throw in Sarah Silverman and Amy Sedaris, and I am soo there.

This Is Not Photoshopped

The daily crossword from dictionary.com is usually quite chaste, and I was quite shocked the other day when I was left with no choice but to put a 'B' in as the first letter of 15 across. I immediately looked up dictionary.com's definition of boner—perhaps it meant something that I wasn't aware of.

The following definitions were given. After some thought, the last one still works the best. Pull in not the verb typically used with errors, blunders or mistakes. It is, however, common enough with 15 across.

1) a person or thing that bones.
2) a foolish and obvious blunder; stupid mistake.
3) a blunder or an error.
4) an erection of the penis.

Happy Anniversary to Us!

M* remembers that Dahlias were in my bouquet.

Flowers surrounded by cards from friends and family across the pond.
M* never just gets me one bouquet. I like that.

London: New River and Hamstead Heath

New River, Islington

Walking over to Upper Street in Islington on Wednesday morning for brunch, Thea formulated our route to pass by the New River—another body of water that I didn't know existed in London. As I learned, the water is neither new or a river. It is an out-of-use, man-made waterway opened in 1613 to supply London with fresh drinking water. The water is slow moving, hence the algal bloom.

One of the many striking trees on Hampstead Heath.

After brunch, Thea took me to Hampstead Heath, in the Hampstead area of north London, which sports the highest point in London. The area is 791 acres of grasses, trees, ponds and recreation areas. The weather was lovely for our tour around Parliament Hill and the surrounding areas.

The knees are the only giveaway.

I read later that Parliament Hill is also known as Kite Hill because it is so popular with kite flyers. I did see a boy with a kite, but he wasn't successful at getting it airborne. The top of this hill offers vistas of London, which mean a bit more if you know what buildings you are gazing down upon.

This man-made enclosure must be quite spooky at night.

London: Regent's Canal, Bicycle Commuters and Gay Bars

Last Tuesday I traveled down to London to visit my friend Thea, who I met on my first day of work at KCRW in 1998. Thea's been living in Miami for a few years, but she has the good fortune to have a sister who has a place in the Hackney area of London. We spent a good deal of time walking around Shoreditch, Brick Lane (very good Indian lunch), Spitalfields, Angel, Hackney and Islington.

Regent's Canal, London

Maybe it's because Thea bikes around London or maybe it's because the area around Hackney is more amenable to biking, but I noticed so many people cycling in the city. When Thea took me to Regent's Canal, I was amazed at 1) the existence of the canal and 2) that the canal is used as a commuting route for cyclists. We walked west on the canal path, and everyone on cycles was heading east out of the city.

A fish with a saddle? Never seen that before—on or off a riverboat.

After hours of walking, we had just enough time back at Thea's for a refreshing glass of Provencal Rosé before heading out to Hoxton Square (which she warned me was awful on weekends (packed with puking partiers) but would be mellow on a Tuesday). Two of Thea's Swedish friends had a friend playing at a bar there, but we got there too late. So we settled for a round of drinks before heading off to the gay bars.

Thea and me, Hoxton Square

As far as I know, Cambridge has no gay bars, and I must say it's lovely to be around gay men again. I know that Cambridge must have a gay population, but they don't seem to congregate en masse. London certainly has diversity—amazing that it hasn't been completely priced out of the market by now.

Penis faucets. I definitely wasn't in Cambridge anymore.

Chester (1998-2007)

After being a loving companion to my sister and brother-in-law for nine years, Chester past away on Friday. He was a great dog/ friend/ Wacha-piglet/ pupparoni. He will be missed.

Me and Chester in 2003.

Daisy and Chester relaxing by the pool (2006).

Chester and his toy (2007).

Chester goes for his final swim on Friday.