A Milestone of Sorts

And on the 7th Day... was my 100th blog post. My one year anniversary went by un-noticed while I was abroad in August. No candle, no cake, no funny hat. But who remembers their first birthday anyway? I'll cut my teeth this year, and on my second anniversary - my terrible twos - we'll do it up right.

But a hundred posts! Whodda thunk it? Thanks to my small gaggle of loyal followers and to the tens of readers out there who end up here accidentally. You inadvertently bump up my tracker count, and I find that somehow gratifying in an empty sort of fraudulent way.

We are by no means done with The Very Brady Thanksgiving, but I found the pretty picture above on Google Images and wanted to get it up here before anything else. So keep checking back periodically, tell all your friends and acquaintances about me (without divulging my true identity), and don't forget: the Post a Comment button actually works!

Thanks for taking the time, seriously - Blog O. Food

Europe 2009

"I fooled her," I thought. On the Eurostar from Paris to London, I was in the bar car ordering a snack when the attendant asked me to repeat my order. "Le Rapide, si vous plais," I repeated more clearly, emphasizing the hard "d". She started rattling away in French and my mind immediately froze. In a now halting voice, all trace of accent gone, I feebly asked that she speak more slowly. "Oh, you're American," she replied in English. "I thought you were French." My chest puffed out, my ego doubled in size and just as quickly deflated upon the realization that my French comprehension really sucks. Oh well....

That little shortcoming aside, it was a fantastic trip. The French, in my opinion, still hold on to the culinary crown. At any corner bistro, sit down to a gastronomic masterpiece with maybe five ingredients and a flare for presentation with just the flick of a wrist.  But the English have come into their own with chefs young and old re-defining British cuisine. In a small countryside inn, I experienced the beatitude of transcendence with my first Michelin Star meal, an epiphany. And Denmark continues the long-held tradition of breaking bread together. All are welcome at her table.

I was so happy to be the solo traveler this time around. It afforded me the luxury of reacquainting myself with favorite sights seen with an older eye and at a different angle.

Old friends awaited in galleries in London and Paris. I stood with goose flesh in the presence of royalty and enveloped by the colors of the Impressionists.

I tried new things. I ordered off the menu, attempting a native casualness and never walked away disappointed.

It was a period of respite and great excitement all at the same time. I visited loved ones from my past and made new friends along the way. I hope they will become good mates with time. It was a homecoming and a farewell party wrapped into one. I don't know when I'll be back, and thus treated every second there as if it could be my last.

I came home tired, thrilled, renewed, reflective. It will probably take weeks of debriefing, but this I know intuitively: we are, all of us, connected to one another. We dream, we love, we hurt, we laugh. Our commonalities bind us. Our differences are trivial. I am more in love with this planet and its people than ever. And I'm gonna spread that love through my stories and in opening my kitchen to all of you, who and wherever you are.

Thanks for taking the time - Blog O. Food

A.W.O.L.

I have alluded to a trip to Europe this summer. My boy Whogus celebrates his 50th birthday this August, and just like his 30th and 40th, he's throwing himself a three-day party at his family's summer cottage in Strib, on the island of Fyn in Denmark, the sight of some very festive soirées. I have every confidence the old boy will out do himself this time around. After all, he's not getting any younger, you know.

Since I'm going all that way, I've padded the travel budget a bit and extended the visit to three weeks. Based on the national flags above, see if you can work out my other destinations. (Hint: run your mouse over each image.) I'll be visiting old haunts and hopefully making wondrous new discoveries as well. All the while casting myself in the role of le pig de guinea gastronomique. I will have limited access to the double-u, double-u, double-u's; but will be taking copious notes and photographs cataloging what went into my stomach, and how it got there. I'll stop in an Intertube cafe as often as possible with brief updates. Real blogging, however, will have to wait until my return mid-August.

Until then, my gentle readers, I thank you for checking out this here blog thingy. You can rest easy knowing that my extended absence is for epicurean research only, and not for anything as frivolous as fun.

Hasta pronto - Blog O. Food

New York City Pride

It's Gay Pride weekend here in New York City. I'll be marching with the New York City Gay Bloggers in Sunday's parade. If you're in the City, do make a point of saying hello as we march by. It would be my pleasure to meet you.

Thanks for reading my blog - Blog O. Food

Sins of Omission

I don't get it, I actually feel guilty if I don't post something at least weekly on this here You Gonna Finish That? blog thingy. If it weren't for regular visitors from Pittsford, NY, Santa Cruz, CA and London, England, I'm not sure I'd bother. (That's not true!) Anyway, I am über-busy this weekend; triple booked from now until Sunday night. It's coffee and toast then out the door.

I'll be back next weekend, and in a couple more weeks school is out.  I'm sure I can find plenty of ways to stay occupied here in Blogton. In the mean time, here are a few of my favorite things:

Small spaces.

Island communities.

Birding.

Golfies.

Surfies!

Beers.

Cooking goes without mentioning, of course...

Squawk at you soon - Blog O. Food

I didn't do it!

Blogger.com is having an "Image Uploading" issue and is currently working on the problem. Once that's solved, beautiful images of food will spring from your computer monitor to tease your eyes and trigger your taste buds into overdrive.

In the mean time, simply enjoy the rapier-like prose! More food thoughts to follow.

Thanks for taking the time - Blog O' Food

Really? A food blog!

There must be a cooking gene. Both my parents were great cooks; my stepmother was a master of Mexican cuisine. Even my stepfather, who rarely cooked, still knew his way around the kitchen. I was always encouraged to help out and must have absorbed hundreds of techniques and recipes. More importantly, I learned to appreciate good food and to be comfortable with the tools of the trade. Up until college however, my greatest culinary adventure was adding Kraft American singles to Chef Boy-R-Dee ravioli as an after-school snack.

So does that qualify me to start a food blog? Well, yeah! I have a take, just like anyone else out there (well, one wonders what some of these bloggers' take might actually be). Let's see if you share that take, m'kay?

Look for recipes, stolen, tweaked and created from scratch; restaurant reviews; "food personality" character assassinations; wine pairings; and a collection of my far-flung friends who share our passion.

Thanks for taking the time - Blog-O-Food