Indulgence

If healthy eating is a habit to be cultivated, then the corollary is that sometimes you have to throw broccoli and self-discipline to the wind and make a pilgrimage to the local dairy bar.

On a warm spring afternoon, there aren’t many things better than sitting at a picnic table amid good company, waiting for your order number — your first of the season — to be called over the PA system. Pay for your order and grab your tray. Quick detour to the condiment bar to load up on specimen cups of ketchup and mustard, each one too small to satisfy the dipping needs of even the dantiest and most fastidious diner, but you always end up getting too many. Back to the table. Pass around the food. Grab a couple of onion rings from the communal order in the middle of the table. Eat. Talk. Laugh. People watch; families, high school kids, seniors, a business type in shirtsleeves walking up to the counter for a decidedly non-business lunch.

You’ve definitely had — and made — a better burger, but context matters. Sunny day, picnic table, not a care in the world except whether or not to go back and order a chocolate frost.

Getting all up in your grill

A week of unseasonably nice weather (for a few days, Mother Nature leapfrogged over spring to give us a little taste of summer) turned this young man’s fancy to thoughts of…grilling. After a thorough — I’m still trying to get the last of the gunk out from under my nails — cleaning earlier in the week, I’ve celebrated the end of a long winter with a few nice grill-centric meals.

Grilling lines up nicely with the healthier eating kick we’re on here at the Modern family compound. As gas prices and food prices continue to rise, we’re making a real effort both to stretch our food dollar as much as we can and to devote the greatest possible percentage of every food dollar to the purchase of, you know, food. This makes trips to the market something of a balancing act. Real food, particularly things like produce, tend to be more expensive than the packaged, processed, partially hydrogenated, high-fructosized. You get more fruit roll-ups for your grocery dollar than you can real fruit.

Okay, so none of this is a revelation. I’ve known for a long time the difference between a real strawberry (or apple, or peach) and a machine-extruded strip of strawberryish plasticine. I know which one is better. I know which one is cheaper. So what’s the point, here?

At present, mindfulness is the point. At present, we’re thinking a lot more about our food when we buy it, and when we consume it.

I’ve always been a by the list grocery shopper. Obsessive-compulsively so at times. I’m not immune to the occasional impulse purchase or good deal, but by and large I have a plan and I stick to it. Improvisational grocery shopping doesn’t work for me; it’s too easy to go over budget, and even easier to load up on things that are not remotely necessary. Lately, in addition to making lists based on what we need, I’m also becoming a circular shopper.

For a long time now, I’ve shopped at one particular store. Not out of any tremendous sense of loyalty, but because they usually offer slightly better specials, which makes them the cost-effective option. Now that I’m shopping mindfully, which has had the added effect of further simplifying an already straightforward list, I’m comparison shopping among markets a lot more. With a pared down list, the value proposition of one store over another on any particular week becomes much easier to determine. I suppose if I were truly dedicated, I would make two or more lists, and break up my shopping trip to maximize value, but I’m not there yet. The gas price and time value costs of multiple shopping excursions outweigh any marginal savings, at least for the time being.

Like the markets themselves, the circulars offer a lot of deals on things I don’t need, heavily discounted in the hope of convinving me that maybe I do need them after all. So, while my actual frozen pizza (or processed cheese single, or store brand ketchup) need is zero, I have to consider whether loading up on ten frozen pizzas for ten bucks might not be such a bad idea. Fortunately, I’m sufficiently cynical that that line of thought usually culminates in the realization that convincing people that buying a whole lot of something they don’t need is a “savings” is part of the reason our economy and our collective values are so screwed up.

So it’s grilling season, and I can get a good deal on a rainbow assortment of grilling sauces and marinades featuring our good friend high-fructose corn syrup, and its hench-additives, the nefarious twins artificial and natural flavor.

Here’s my thing: given a reasonably well-stocked pantry, who needs prepackaged sauces? How hard is it to mix soy sauce and ginger to make a soy-ginger marinade? Absent a smoker to give you the tang of mesquite, why not just add a couple drops of liquid smoke to some chili and lime juice? Sure, chipotles in adobo aren’t a staple in some households, but a choice between a chemical slurry of faux chipotle and mesquite flavor and picking up a can of chilis is really no choice at all. Lemon-pepper? Herb and garlic? Make them at home. They’ll taste better, and you’ll have more control over what goes onto your food.

I speak from guilty experience when I say the main reason people opt for prepackaged sauces is time and convenience. Open the bottle, glug a portion over your food, mix it up to evenly distribute the marinade, and let it sit. Elapsed time, maybe 30 seconds. Simplicity itself.

Know what else is simple? Take a clove or two of garlic, and chop it finely. Transfer to a small bowl. Give it a few shakes of oregano and basil (or toss in a chiffonade of fresh herbs if you have them on hand). Add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, half again as much lemon juice, and a dollop each of mustard and honey. Whisk to emulsify. Pour over a boneless pork tenderloin and distribute evenly over the meat. Elapsed time, maybe three minutes, four if you take a minute to rinse out the bowl and clean your knife and cutting board. The result, however, is at least six times better than the prepackaged option:

Preheat your grill to medium-high heat. Remove the tenderloin from the marinade, and wipe off any excess. Sear the tenderloin on all sides, then grill covered for 20-25 minutes, turning periodically. Let the meat rest for five minutes before slicing. Accompaniments at the cook’s discretion (grilled tortilla and a cucumber salad go very well with this meal).

I’m havin’ an ‘art attack

At the risk of once again laying siege to the unenviable blogging niche of MASS MoCA apologist and New York magazine scold, I’ll note the magazine once again gives short shrift (whether intentionally or carelessly, I hesitate to speculate) to the museum.

The April 7, 2008, issue of New York magazine featured a profile of photographer Gregory Crewdson by Amy Larocca. In her piece, Ms. Larocca wrote,

Crewdson produces large-scale, elaborately constructed photographs taken in and around the town of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, where the Crewdson family has forever had a small log cabin in the woods.

She went on to note,

Crewdson’s method of photography is highly unusual; he has not taken a picture all by himself for the last ten years, save the occasional snapshot of his kids. He works with a crew of about 40: lighting, set, production designers, and even a director of photography.

Interestingly enough, it turns out there is a large contemporary art facility in the vacinity of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, that has hosted Mr. Crewdson and his crew in the past.

As always, let’s remember that correlation does not equal causation. The fact that New York magazine failed to acknowledge MASS MoCA’s positive contributions (such as supporting Mr. Crewdson’s work, or being the first site to exhibit Cai Guo Qiang’s Inopportune) while commenting critically on its challenges (as with its one-sided and rather judgmental coverage of l’affair Büchel) does not indicate a conspiracy on the part of the magazine against the museum. On the other hand, we all have our biases. While mine run in favor of scrappy museums in rural New England, it’s not surprising that New York magazine has a vested interest in preserving New York as the center of the art universe, and indeed of projecting and championing the image of New York as the center of every conceivable universe.

Where I have a problem — not just in the case of New York magazine, but in every corner where this lamentable facet of the human condition rears its ugly head — is with the notion that one person or organization’s success somehow threatens someone else’s identity. Is New York, the city, the magazine, or the concept, really lessened if something wonderful didn’t originate there? Are the museums, galleries, and theatres of the city truly diminished just because some museum, gallery, or theatre might get there first from time to time?

West Side Story (1961)

Random observations while watching a film classic:

During the opening aerial shots of the movie, I was amazed at how little traffic there was on the streets of New York City over forty-five years ago.

It’s been a while since I saw the movie, so I don’t know if I forgot or never noticed that the Sharks all wear black shoes and the Jets all wear white. On the streets, they wear sneakers. During the dance, the Sharks wear black dress shoes, the Jets two-toned blue shoes with white tops. It’s a nice little touch, unsurprising given the overall brilliance of the production design.

It’s sad that a free showing of West Side Story at an independent cinema in a college town (said college town being the alma mater of one of the creators of the work in question) and sponsored by the college drew such a miniscule crowd. If I say there were twenty people in the audience, I’d be exaggerating by a good fifteen to twenty percent.

Unpack your (culinary) adjectives

A few towns over from where I live, there is a spoon of indeterminate but presumably highly concentrated greasiness. Whenever I drive by this beanery, I notice the sign in front that has the words “Large Food Menu” printed on its face.

I always wonder which noun the word “large” modifies, and which of the various meanings of large the sign’s creator intended.

Does the eatery have a menu of large food — meatballs the size of grapefruits, cheeseburgers with the same diameter as manhole covers, omelets made with a gross of eggs apiece?

Is the term “large food” related to portions? For example, do they serve diners enough pasta to choke a horse that was itself used to choke a blue whale?

On the other side of the equation, perhaps “large” is a measure of the extensivity of the menu itself. Perhaps this seemingly unassuming slop house has a selection reminsicent of a place like the Cheesecake Factory, where the diversity of the offerings raises the inevitable question of if they offer so many different things, how can any of them be good?

Regardless of the application of the word “large” one thing seems certain: I derive more satisfaction from pondering the meaning of this sign than I ever would from a meal at this restaurant.

Cai of Frustration

Sometimes, it seems like the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MASS MoCA) cannot catch a break. The museum spent a good portion of 2007 mired in controversy due to its commissioning of, and subsequent legal wrangling with, artist Christoph Büchel. The museum eventually received permission from the judge presiding over the case to cut its losses, scrap Mr. Büchel’s unfinished exhibition, Training Ground for Democracy, and move on.

During the controversy, much of the reporting in major media outlets, including The New York Times and The Boston Globe sided with Mr. Büchel, if only (in the opinion of this observer) because the artist played better offense than the museum played defense.

New York magazine used the Büchel brouhaha as a negative example in an article published on October 7, 2007 issue. The piece, “Has Money Ruined Art?” by Jerry Saltz asks

Can the general public look at contemporary art without thinking about money? Will young artists having 30-month careers be able to also have 30-year careers, or are we simply eating our young? And if money is mainly what people are thinking about, does that mean art’s audience will turn cynical or hostile toward it?

One museum already seems to have crossed that line. This summer, Mass MoCA, in North Adams, Massachusetts, allowed visitors to walk through an unfinished Christoph Büchel installation—one whose incomplete status had already inflamed the artist, leading to the show’s cancellation and a lawsuit—as they made their way to another exhibit…A Massachusetts judge agreed that the museum was acting within its rights and ruled against Büchel. Really, it was as if Mass MoCA was trying to humiliate Büchel, to teach him a very public lesson…This kind of hostile attitude toward artists from general audiences is familiar; from a museum, it’s deplorable.

Deplorable. That’s it. No statement from anyone affiliated with the museum. No pretense of responsible reporting. The museum was David, and the poor artist Goliath. That was the story, from which few, if any, stories deviated.

The exhibition that replaced Mr. Büchel’s incomplete installation, Jenny Holzer’s Projections, is magnificent, and will doubtless help mend any small tears in the fabric of MASS MoCA’s reputation, at least among visitors. However, the media seems still unwilling to give credit where it is due.

In my opinion, one of the finest exhibitions at MASS MoCA was Inopportune, by the expatriate Chinese artist Cai Guo-Qiang. The installation opened in late 2005, and resided in the museum’s mammoth Building 5 for some ten months. MASS MoCA staff members were instrumental in helping the artist present and realize his vision.

Now, Inopportune is part of a retrospective of Cai’s work that opened at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City. Unfortunately, but perhaps unsurprisingly, MASS MoCA’s contribution to the exhibition goes unmentioned in the major media coverage of the show.

On Sunday, February 17, 2008, Arthur Lubow contributed a profile of Cai to The New York Times Magazine. The article, “The Pyrotechnic Imagination,” discusses Inopportune:

One of the most striking pieces in his current retrospective is “Inopportune: Stage One,” from 2004. As recreated for the Guggenheim, “Inopportune: Stage One” consists of nine white American cars suspended vertically in the rotunda. Flashing light tubes protrude from the cars like arrows.

No mention of MASS MoCA. Note, however, the way that Mr. Lubow cites the provenance of other pieces of Cai’s work included in the Guggenheim retrospective:

In 2006 Cai did a rooftop installation, Transparent Monument, at the Metropolitan Museum; in it, he erected a large sheet of glass, through which the skyline was clearly visible, and placed replicas of dead birds at its base.

Apparently, the Metropolitan Museum is more deserving of credit than MASS MoCA. So too is the Venice Biennale:

The most elaborate installation in the Guggenheim exhibition is Venice’s Rent Collection Courtyard, the piece that won the Golden Lion at the Venice Biennale in 1999 and secured Cai’s international prominence.

If Mr. Lubow cites the Met and the Venice Biennale, does he not have a responsibility to be equally assiduous in presenting an accurate history of all of the Cai Guo-Qiang works he references?

Mr. Lubow and the Times are not alone in their sins of omission. The February 25, 2008, issue of Newsweek somehow manages to overlook MASS MoCA as well. In “Pop Goes the Easel”, Cathleen McGuigan writes:

The first artwork you’ll see in the Guggenheim show is Inopportune: Stage One, a spectacular stylization of a car bombing, unfolding cinematically—or like the narrative of a Chinese scroll—with nine identical white Chevy Metros tumbling down the museum’s spiral atrium, and vibrantly colored light rods projecting from each one. The impact is frankly gorgeous.

Inopportune: Stage One: called into being from raw firmament, apparently. How does Ms. McGuigan deal with another Cai work?

In the powerful installation Head On, originally created in Berlin in 2006, a pack of 99 soaring wolves race toward their annihilation into a transparent wall, like birds smashing a picture window.

No institutional reference, but at least the reader knows where Head On came from.

I recognize it is unlikely that the contemporary art commentariat will experience a collective epiphany where MASS MoCA is concerned. The people who get it, get it (and there are people who do). The people with narrow, New York centric views of the art world will avoid anything that threatens their prestige and prerogatives. Why should the art world be different from any other field of endeavor?

I don’t expect that a museum in the Berkshires will get the credit it deserves just because people stand up and demand that, in the words of Arthur Miller, attention must be paid. However, before attention can be paid properly, those responsible for presenting basic facts must be challenged to present them completely and accurately.

Cai Guo-Qiang deserves every success, and every scintilla of attention that will be paid to him through his Guggenheim retrospective. MASS MoCA is equally deserving of their share (however large or small that share may be in the grand scheme of things) of the credit for helping Cai realize his vision.

“Stand back! I have powers! Political powers!”

I attended a Democratic Party political rally on Friday night. Strong remarks from Senator Kerry got things going.

My state representative offered a reasoned endorsement of Senator Clinton’s candidacy; he believes she has the ability and the knowledge to do the job*.

The gentlemen who spoke up for Senator Edwards offered a game but lifeless explanation of why he supports the candidate. The most charitable thing I can say about his endorsement is that it was marginally less damaging than having no one speak up for the candidate.

Any notion I had of giving my vote to Representative Kucinich during the primary was severely jeopardized by the gentleman who advocated for him. He took the stage with his little bound copy of the Constitution, and proceeded to explain to all us poor benighted poseur progressives the importance of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. You know, phrasing that doesn’t appear anywhere in the the Constitution. Patronizing schtick is never going to get very far with me, and you lose all credibility when you @#$% up basic references.**

Finally, our state senator offered a powerful endorsement for Senator Obama. Despite his passion, and the passion evident among all of Senator Obama’s assembled supporters, I remain unconvinced. When you get past the candidate’s emotional appeal, I haven’t heard a satisfactory answer to the “Yes, and then what?” part of the Obama equation.

I went into the event with an open mind, and no clear favorite. I left the same way.

*If media coverage to date is any indicator, these qualities don’t seem to be playing much of a role in the campaign.

**This should go without saying, but it won’t, so let me be clear: this is a statement against the ineptitude of Congressman Kucinich’s proxy, and not against Mr. Kucinich, his candidacy, or his positions, except to the degree that the latter inspire the former.

Burger, Pittsfield, Massachusetts

I take my burgers seriously. By the same token, I’ll note the charms of In-N-Out Burger were lost on me the one time I had occasion to try a double double, which I know calls my burger street cred into question in some circles. This gastronomic lapse notwithstanding, my personal gold standard includes Bartley’s in Harvard Square, and O’Sullivan’s in Somerville, MA. Lanesboro’s Olde Forge serves a terrific burger as well, but there it’s mostly by way of accompanying their beer menu, for which any superlative is too faint praise.

Recently, The Lovely Wife, The Kid, and I visited Burger, the recently-opened spin off of Pittsfield’s Spice restaurant.

Burger’s decor called to mind an idealized fast food joint, with a central aisle for ordering, and a range of table, booth, and counter seating arrayed throughout a large, well-lit, and comfortable dining area. There were a few retro signs (a Coke-branded luncheonette sign, and other, similar adornments) hanging on the walls, but these were tastefully restrained, thematic accents rather than an indication of mistaking aggressive kitsch for design sensibility. Granted, the faux broken plaster and distressed brick near the back entrance was a bit cheesy, but I saw it as a sign of the pride the owners take in the work they have done renovating the building. That pride was apparent in the caliber of the service as well; from counter to table, it was efficient and friendly.

Now, the ideal burger must have a nice crust on the outside, while being rare and juicy on the inside. It should be mostly pink in the middle, but not so undercooked that the meat lacks texture. I’ll rarely say no to a nice slice of cheddar and a couple strips of crisp bacon on top of my burger, but when trying a new place, it’s best to let the sandwich speak for itself.

The Lovely Wife and The Kid chose to have their conversation with Burger’s Classic 1/4 Pound burger. TLW’s medium well burger was a bit overcooked for my taste, but that’s going to be true of any medium well burger anywhere. TK’s medium was more to my liking, as it held on to more of the beefy flavor that TLW sacrificed on the altar of doneness.

This being a special occasion, I opted for Burger’s Kobe burger. It came slightly less than the medium rare I ordered, which meant that the balance of juiciness to texture wasn’t where I prefer it to be, but it was still incredibly rich and flavorful. It was definitely worthwhile as both a curiosity and an indulgence, but ultimately, the classic burger acquits itself so well that there is little reason to indulge except to be indulgent.

While all the burgers were quite good, the real star of the show was the rolls. Most of the time, I take the roll — or the rye, in the case of a patty melt — for granted. It’s a mere container, a delivery system for the patty payload. If it’s doing its job, you don’t notice it. On either extreme however, the roll can make or break your burger. Bad bread can ruin an otherwise excellent slider. Great bread can elevate an average burger to heights undeserved on the merits of the meat itself. While Burger’s burgers are well above average, their rolls most definitely put them over the top.

The bread itself had a slight sweetness similar to a Portuguese roll. The inside was moist, with an almost steamed texture, while the outside was apparently finished on the grill, or on a grill press. The result was bread that adhered, almost melted into, the patty, while having a crisp texture on the outside.

For sides, we ordered plain french fries, chili cheese fries, and eggplant fries. TLW’s eggplant fries were the clear winner, and that’s coming from someone who usually prefers to avoid eggplant. They were light and crunchy without being greasy. The result was something that tasted like a glorious hybrid of french fry and onion ring.

The plain fries were nice (although next time, I might opt for the “dirty,” which I take to mean skin-on, variety), thick cut, crisp on the outside, fluffy on the inside. The only way these might be improved is by including a bottle of malt vinegar among the condiment options on each table. I’ve got nothing against good old ketchup, but chips this good and this substantial would be best with salt and vinegar.

The fries also served as a solid foundation for Burger’s chili cheese fries. The fries had the structural integrity required to support the mass of nicely flavorful chili, accompanied by straight-from-the-nozzle Technicolor orange processed cheese. Unfortunately, beside a hefty burger and a large milk shake, these fries were perhaps an exercise in undue optimism. They were very good, but more than I could handle. Next time, I believe I’ll opt for Burger’s sweet potato fries.

[Another suggestion: gravy for the fries, either alone, or as part of the classic gravy and cheese goo tandem affectionately known as Disco Fries.]

The shakes were merely all right. The consistency was nice — neither too milkily thin nor so thick you risk an aneurysm trying to suck it through the straw. I had a coffee shake, and the Lovely Wife and The Kid each opted for strawberry. Burger’s shakes weren’t overly sweet, which is nice. Too much syrup is often the unfortunate norm, and Burger avoided this pitfall. Our shakes were indeed coffee-esque and strawberry-ish, but I believe Burger accomplished this by using less syrup — and sacrificing flavor along with sweetness — rather than by using a syrup with a higher flavor to sweetener ratio.

For those for whom a burger just isn’t a burger without a cold beer alongside, Burger offered several varieties, as well as wine for more refined tastes. For those for whom wretched excess is an excellent starting place, Burger featured a range of spiked shakes that blend in various spirits along with the ice cream and other flavorings. The serving counter also boasted a tempting array of cookies, pastries, and other delectables for who prefer their decadence in solid, rather than liquid, form. I can offer no assessment of those, as we had a dessert date with some whoopie pies from Molly’s Bakery in North Adams (but that’s a story for another day).

Burger is located at 279 North Street in Pittsfield Massachusetts; 413-997-9797; www.eatatburger.com; open from 11:30 a.m. daily.

Curse of the WanVino

I was given a bottle of Manny Being Merlot the other day. My aunt bought one of each bottle of the Longball Vineyards wines launched as charity projects by Manny Ramirez (the aforementioned Manny Being Merlot), Curt Schilling (Schilling Schardonnay), and Tim Wakefield (CaberKnuckle) of the Boston Red Sox, and offered them to my mother and sister during a recent visit. My sister claimed the Caberknuckle, the LV variety I was most interested to try, based in no small part on the review of the project by the noted culinary luminaries at Sports Illustrated (as noted in the issue I leafed through recently at The Greatest Barbershop in Berkshire County). My mother offered me a choice between the merlot and the (s)chardonnay. Intending no disrespect to Mr. Schilling, but given that my philosophy of white wine states that I’d sooner be beaten to death with an unopened bottle than drink the contents therein, I opted for the Merlot.

Here’s what the marketing copy has to say about Manny Being Merlot:

2005 Merlot, Lontue Valley, Chile

This estate-grown, hand-crafted merlot shows a deep red color with aromas of black pepper and ripe red fruit. The velvety and spicy finish matches perfectly with grilled meats, pastas and pizza.

And here are the tasting notes from the Bart Modern Test Kitchen:

Rubbing alcohol laced with Liquid Smoke(tm).

This is a thin and astringent wine. While The Lovely Wife claimed she detected the promised black pepper aroma, I will note that this wine is not so much spicy as throat searing. To the degree its finish is velvety, it accomplishes this in a way designed to mask the inevitable and proverbial iron fist around which this velvet has been wrapped.

In the end of course, no one should be under any illusion they’re getting something for their twelve bucks that would make Robert Parker stand up and take notice. That’s not the point, of course. The point of Longball Vineyards is to make some money for the charities sponsored by the participating Red Sox players. So, in the case of Manny Being Merlot, my aunt’s investment (or about 75% of it, according to the marketing materials) is going to support CHARLEE Homes for Children, a Miami-based charity “that provides therapeutic, residential, and supportive services to abused, abandoned, and neglected children within a safe environment in a community-based continuum of care.” I’m not entirely sure what that last part means, but it sounds like something I can get behind.

More Cookin’ with The Kid

Necessity is the mother of invention, and The Lovely Wife is, apparently, the mother of necessity. On the walk home from Natural Bridge State Park, and faced with the dreary and mundane prospect of a dinner of baked pork chops, brown rice, and steamed broccoli, she challenged us to come up with a more interesting, but still palatable, meal. No shrinking violets we, The Kid and I rose to the occasion. We scoured the fridge and the pantry, and came up with the following tastiness:

Pantry Pork Soup
(As developed by Bart Modern and The Kid, August 5, 2007)
————————

1T sun dried tomato oil
1T olive oil
1/2 t chili powder
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, chopped, diced, pressed, or sliced, as you see fit
2-3 T oil packed sun dried tomatoes, chopped
2 medium carrots, sliced lengthwise and chopped into 2-quarter thick half moons
2 center cut pork loin chops, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
(Note: chicken would work just as well, I suspect, although it would require changing the name of the dish)
1 can black beans, drained
1 quart chicken stock (I like the stuff from Pacific) [One quart makes a fairly thick, stew-like soup, as the noodles absorb a fair amount of the liquid. For something brothier, add 1/2 quarts, or pre-cook the noodles.]
5 oz (1/2 package small egg noodles)

Bonus level: ***Secret Ingredient*** — if you should happen to have the remains, say 1/3 to 1/3 cup of a truly excellent homemade ragu bolognese kicking around the fridge, why not add that to the recipe? It certainly didn’t hurt in our case. Got a can of white beans in the pantry instead of black beans? Shine on you crazy dinner makin’ diamond! Want to make it truly vegetarian by using tofu instead of pork? Go for it! Improvise! Innovate!

Heat the oils in a medium-sized stockpot set on medium high heat. Add the chili powder, stir for a few seconds. Saute the onions for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they just start to take on some color.

Add the garlic and the sun dried tomatoes, and saute 1 minute. Add carrots and saute 1-2 minutes.

Add the pork cubes, and season with salt and pepper. Cook about 3-5 minutes, or until the pork is no longer pink on the outside. Add your ***Secret Ingredient*** at this point. When the pork is ready, add the drained black beans, and stir to combine.

Pour in the chicken stock, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the noodles, and simmer an additional 10 minutes. Season to taste and serve.

The Kid was integral to both the creation and the preparation of this dish. As long as she’s interested in learning her way around the kitchen, I’m thrilled to act as her guide. Except in the area of baking. That’s her mother’s area of expertise.

37. The Last Colony, by John Scalzi

While I requested this book through interlibrary loan* at the same time as The Android’s Dream, I did not intend to read these books back to back. What happened is the book I intended to read between TAD and The Last Colony was so deathly dull, so unspeakably tedious, so “things you want to pound and pound with a shovel” irritating that I dropped it about eighty-five pages in, and turned to a second helping of Scalzi.

The books are different enough that I needn’t have worried about repetition or overkill. Where TAD presented new characters and situations, TLC was the conclusion of the story cycle** Mr. Scalzi began in Old Man’s War and continued in The Ghost Brigades.

Where the first book is about war, and the second about secrets (and lies), TLC is about politics and diplomacy. That is to say it’s about war and secrets and lies all rolled into one, and how the interplay of these dynamics variously costs and saves lives, maintains and shatters the status quo.

These dyamics all coverge on the shoulders of John Perry, the hero of Old Man’s War, and his wife, ex-special forces officer and The Ghost Brigades protagonist Jane Sagan. They are recruited to lead a new human colony which, unbeknownst to them is not yet another home for humans among the stars, but the linchpin of a plan to force a conflict between the human Colonial Union and the alien Conclave. Moreover, as the story progresses, Perry and Sagan learn that the plan they’re serving benefits more from their colony’s obliteration than from its success. This information makes them…unhappy…and drives them to search for a way to thwart the destructive ambitions of opponents on both sides of a game of empires.

Although this is a science fiction novel — you can tell by the space ships and the genetically engineered human warriors, and the aliens with eye-stalks — The Last Colony is a novel of ideas and situations set against a futuristic backdrop rather than a simple space fantasy. The ideas and situations advance through the actions of interesting characters and strong dialogue, but the larger issues of colonization and hegemony, expansion and isolation, war and diplomacy are timeless.

*Let’s hear it for the Western Massachusetts public library system shall we? In fact, let’s hear it for public libraries in general while we’re at it.

**I wouldn’t go so far as to call it a trilogy. While the books feature the same major characters, the situations are different enough, and the stories self-contained enough, that they can stand alone without too much reader confusion. While a reader of The Last Colony will benefit from knowing what happened in Old Man’s War and The Ghost Brigades, the story doesn’t depend on familarity with these details, except to the degree that a reader possessed of such familiarity may have a richer appreciation of the details behind the context information Mr. Scalzi references.

Simple joys

I’m paraphrasing, but there’s a bit in My Dinner with Andre where Wallace Shawn talks about the appreciation he finds in life’s simple things. In particular, he talks — more or less — about waking up in the morning and knowing there is a cold cup of coffee from the day before waiting for him in the kitchen, and about how much he looks forward to that cold cup of coffee.

I know how he feels. Indeed, I have taken to making extra coffee in the morning, so that there will be leftover coffee the next day. I don’t have Wally Shawn’s fortitude; the thought of cold coffee first thing in the morning, especially a chilly winter’s morning, is more than I can bear. But a good cup of reheated leftover coffee, dropped into a saucepan and brought up to a boil and drunk strong, hot, bitter and black? There are few things better. Sometimes I finish it, and make a fresh pot for The Lovely Wife. Other times, I share it out, so we both have something to drink, but I don’t have to bother with the mechanics making coffee. Some days, such simple tasks elude my early morning capacity to accomplish basic tasks.

This came powerfully to mind this morning when I dragged myself out of bed at 5:00 a.m. to attend to the first of what I assume will be three or four rounds of shoveling related to DoomStorm 2007. The storm didn’t drop as much snow as anticipated overnight, but I always like to get a head start on it, so that if work and school are on, I don’t have to rush the rest of my morning. As I finished the shoveling, that leftover coffee was powefully on my mind; when I came in, I made a beeline straight for the saucepan.

Looking at the snow blowing outside my window as I write this, and thinking ahead to the next time I go out to shovel, I’m glad I made a fresh pot this morning, so I’ll have something waiting for me when I come in from the cold.