My Sailor, My Love (2023)

I watched this on a flight from Sydney to Queenstown, which directly followed a transpacific flight that was brutal, so consider the source. I thought this was a very nuanced film, quiet and yet beautiful in tone, that depicts how trauma ripples across generations and messes everything up if it isn't dealt with. The movie is filmed on Achill island off Ireland’s west coast, and has at its core grappling with the rough currents of late-in-life regrets and resentment. Cranky retired sea captain Howard –who was once content with shutting himself off from the outside world – is forced to open his disorderly home, and subsequently his heart, to Annie, a housekeeper hired by his overworked daughter Grace. What begins as a lighthearted autumnal romance gradually evolves into a thorny study of familial grievances. Grace is unable to stop herself from ruining anything good in her life, and it turns out, in the lives of others as well. She is troubled by her own unhappy marriage, and grows increasingly bitter about her father’s new relationship. The reasons for her disturbing, self-destructive behaviours spring from a traumatic childhood, the details of which are revealed too late to fully flesh out, but she cannot stop herself. It leaves you with something to think about, and is beautifully done.

The Best Minds by Jonathan Rosen

The subtitle of this is :A Story Of Friendship, Madness, And THe Tragedy Of Good Intentions. Once again, a book about mental illness that is well received and well reviewed but that I flat out did not like. Reviews describe it as examining the nature of madness but all that it examines is one man, Michael, who has an exceptional intellect and who also has schizophrenia; his outcome and course of illness is unlike the average person with psychotic illness and not one generalizable conclusion can be drawn from this example. If you are looking for a better book on this subject, check out Elyn Saks' book The Center Cannot Hold. The other aspect of this book that I find annoying is that there is nothing said about treatment. The treatment for schizophrenia has changed substantially since the time described in Hidden Valley Road. The prospect for living without hallucinations is better than it has ever been, but it does require that the patient be compliant with medications and the overall treatment plan, and that often involves the psychotic persons family and friends. Schizophrenia is not an illness that is easily navigable alone, and there is little if any information on that aspect of Michael's life. Then finally, this book perpetuates the myth that people with schizophrenia are violent. After every mass shooting there is an outcry that we need more mental health resources. That is certainly the case, but irrelevant to the situation at hand. No amount of mental health resources will prevent mass shootings until the access to guns is limited. To be helped by a mental health professional you have to want to be helped, and it requires a lot of work on the part of the patient who wants to kill people to get better, and that describes very few of the men who take an assault weapon into a public place. It is true that some people with schizophrenia are violent, but the numbers are few, and no greater than what is seen in the population as a whole. Unfortunately, the public perception of the prevalence of this and the reality are miles apart, and this book pours gasoline on that fallacy. I wish it were written more as a memoir and less as an analysis of what happened and what went wrong. As it stands, I cannot recommend it, although it is well written, I will give it that.

The Bijou

A jewel of a (pre-prohibition) cocktail! I really liked this one. Spirit forward but balanced. 1 1/2 ounces gin 1 ounce sweet vermouth 3/4 ounce green Chartreuse 2 dashes orange bitters Garnish: 1 cherry (I used Amarena, from Trader Joe’s)

The Chinese Groove by Kathryn Ma

This is a story about a young man from small city called Gejiu in Yunnan who has given himself the name of Shelley—as in the poet—has developed a term to describe a “belief in the unspoken bonds between countrymen that transcend time and borders”. It gives its name to the book, The Chinese Groove, which is both unrealistic and optimistic at the same time. Shelley’s mother died from a heart attack years earlier and it was her wish that her son travel beyond the borders of Yunnan and even China itself. So when Shelley is of the age to attend university, his father sends him to San Francisco to study and live with distant relatives. When Shelley arrives in the US, or what he refers to as the Peach Blossom Land, he is not greeted with much of a warm welcome. The problems are two-fold. There was an exaggeration of the success of the relative who left, and there is a gap between expectations for caring for a relative from those in China and those in San Francisco. Luckily Shelley didn't quite know what to expect and he is able to read the room and make do. I really enjoyed this from start to finish.

Ortega Fish Shack, Wellington, New Zealand

This was a great meal in a fun place, and if it wasn't such an amazing food trip this would have been rated higher in my overall ranking of meals on a less delicious vacation.I qould definitely recommend eating here, even if seafood is not your thing. Like many restaurants we encountered in New Zealand, there is more land based food than ocean acquired fare, and it is not hard to find something for everyone here. The atmosphere is casual friendly, and the decor looks like either someone emptied out their aunt's attic or went to a series of garage sales. It is full of things that you could see people buyiing but deciding that putting it on the wall was not an exceptionally good idea--but in the restaurant they work. It is interesting, much like the food. I could go back and have nothing that we ate when we were there and I suspect I would be quite happy. There wasn't a clunker and we ordered several small things rather than a couple of larger plates.

Master Slave Husband Wife by Ilyon Woo

The subtitle is :The Epic Journey From Slavery To Freedom, and that sums it up in a nutshell. Other than Frederick Douglass' story of escape, I haven't read many detailed accounts of just how southern slaves made their way northward other than by the Underground Railroad. Ellen and William devised an ingenious plan and carried it out in broad daylight, and most impressively, neither of them could read or write. Prior to their escape they worked to learn their letters, which having made my way in both Greece and Russia with that and that alone, helps, but not a lot. Ellen Craft was born to a white father, James Smith, who also enslaved Ellen’s 18-year-old mother (who also had a white father). Smith’s wife gave Ellen, who she might have had mixed feelings about, as a wedding present to their daughter, Eliza, when she married Robert Collins of Macon, Georgia. Being half-sisters, the girls had grown up together, and Ellen, looking as white as Eliza, was trusted as a “house slave” to sew and cook and take care of the children. While in Macon, Ellen fell in love with William Craft, an enslaved man who lived nearby. He was working as a carpenter, and keeping some of his earnings, although they mostly went to his owner. Together, they schemed to run away at the end of 1848, more than a decade before the Civil War and on the eve of a last ditch compromise whereby escaped slaves in the north would be returned to the south. The story of how they managed it all and what happened to them after is best read than said, but they were clever, resourceful, talented, and a little bit lucky. Like Douglass, they had to flee the country for a bit, and none of it was easy, but the ending is not a sad one.

Salsa Borracha Ribs

Another winning recipe from Bricia Lopez' cookbook Asada. We did the slow cooking part in the oven and finished on the grill. Really excellent. FOR THE RUB: 2 tbsp of sweet pimentón (can substitute smoked paprika) 1½ tbsp of garlic powder 1 tbsp of sea salt 1 tbsp of onion powder 2½ tsp of ancho chilli powder 1 tsp of freshly ground black pepper ½ tsp of dried oregano ½ tsp of dried thyme 2 racks of St Louis-style pork ribs, trimmed (2.3-3.2kg) FOR THE SAUCE: 300ml of tomato sauce 140g of chipotle in adobo 1 medium white onion, ¾ quartered and ¼ minced 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 tbsp of olive oil 120ml of distilled white vinegar 75ml of Worcestershire sauce 2 tbsp of dark brown sugar 2 tbsp of Tabasco hot sauce 1 tbsp of tomato paste 1 tbsp of sea salt 360ml of dark Mexican beer Method STEP 1 Make the rub, whisk together all the pimentón, garlic powder, salt, onion powder, ancho chilli powder, pepper, oregano and thyme. STEP 2 Place the ribs in a shallow pan and generously rub the spice mix all over the racks of ribs, on both sides. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour. STEP 3 While the ribs are marinating, make the sauce: in a blender, add the ingredients, including some of the chipotle adobo sauce. Blend until smooth and set aside. STEP 4 Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the minced onion and stir until translucent and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Carefully add the blended tomato sauce. Bring the sauce to a boil over medium heat and cook until it has reduced by a third, about 10 minutes. Add the vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, Tabasco, tomato paste, and salt and stir to combine. Lower the heat and continue to cook for another 20 minutes, until the sauce has thickened. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. STEP 5 Preheat your grill to 135°C if using a pellet grill. If you don’t have a pellet smoker, you can use your oven for this step. STEP 6 On a work surface, spread out 2 large sheets of aluminium foil on top of each other (big enough to wrap each of the racks individually). Working one at a time, remove a rack of ribs from the fridge and place it on top of a piece of foil. Pour about half of the cooled sauce over the top and wrap the ribs in the foil, pleating the edges so the package seals well. Repeat with the second rack. STEP 7 Place the ribs in the middle of your preheated grill or oven, meat side up, and cook for 3 hours--this can be done in a 275 degree oven instead. After 3 hours, carefully uncover the ribs. Reserve 240ml of sauce in a serving bowl for dipping later. Liberally brush the ribs with the rest of the sauce. Cover the ribs again and allow to cook for 1 more hour. STEP 8 Remove the ribs and prepare your grill for hot direct cooking. Make sure the grates are clean. If using a pellet grill, raise to high heat and crisp your ribs for about 4 minutes on each side, until the ribs are fall-apart tender and really saucy. If using a pellet grill, remove the ribs, carefully remove the grill grate using two tongs and grilling gloves, and add more charcoal until you reach a higher temperature, and place the ribs back on the grill to crisp up then. STEP 9 Once the ribs are crispy, using either two spatulas or a spatula and tongs, remove the ribs to a platter and serve right away, with the leftover sauce on the side. The ribs may be so tender, that they will shred when you try to serve yourself.

The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese

I very much enjoyed this book--I love a long drawn out book that meanders in a leisurely way towards an ending. These books are like the ballads, they imbue the story with culture and history that leave the reader hoping for more at the end, but also leave you with a satisfaction that you could go on, but you in some ways have also had enough--until next time. The story opens in 1900, and a 12-year-old girl takes a boat to get married to a 40-year-old widower. She goes on to become Big Ammachi, the matriarch of the estate of Parambil. Over the course of seven decades, she will be the unwavering enter of this estate and its community. She will discover that there is a curse, they call it a “Condition”, that runs in the family – a drowning in every generation – that no one can explain but that always occurs. In parallel, there is another story, of Digby Kilgour, a young Scottish doctor who travels from Glasgow to Madras to join the Indian medical service during colonial times. The two stories flip flop throughout the book and as you would imagine, eventually come together. Each path is filled with tragedy and a bit of bad luck, with medicine and a history of illness, and with love and a little bit of hope. It has all the elements of great fiction.

Shed 5, Wellington, New Zealand

We ate at only one restaurant the whole trip to an island country that was truly "on the dock" and this is the one--it may have a working class location, but it is definitely a linen and crystal atmosphere--but with big windows looking out on the foot traffic, and other dockside sheds that were still in use for their original purposes. This is the most old school of the places that we ate--and it showed, we were at or below the mean age of the diners at the midday meal. There were a number of working folks having lunch, but they were at or above our age for the most part. What I mean is that while we had some innovative dishes here, there was the most "standard seafood fare" on the menu of any place that we ate, and we were aiming for restaurants where we could have food from the ocean.

One example is this seafood chowder--it was spectacular and every single table got at least one bowl of it. It had green lipped mussels (a New Zealand product that is shipped around the world), heavy on the cream base, but served at a perfect temperature, a hearty serving, and chock full of losts of seafood. A guilty pleasure but I would order again. We had some trouble translating the description in the menu to what we were served--we ended up with fried squid when that is definitely not what we wanted (but probably should have thought to ask, after seeing the rest of the menu), and it was good, just not what we wanted exactly. We were told that on the South Island we would get blck cod and on the North Island red snapper, and so it was. Our first taste of the North Isalnd fish is picture here, all fancied up with great sides. We did not have a bad meal in New Zealand, but this one came in in the bottom half.

Lives of the Wives by Carmela Ciuraru

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This is an unusual idea for a book--it embeds the reader in five separate marriages where the partners both have a life in the arts. Some are both writers: the Italian novelists Elsa Morante and Alberto Moravia; the English novelists Elizabeth Jane Howard and Kingsley Amis. Others are not: Elaine Dundy, the first wife of the Observer theatre critic Kenneth Tynan, began by being an actor, only becoming a writer later; Patricia Neal, whose marriage to Roald Dahl lasted 30 years, was an Oscar-winning movie star who wrote one acclaimed memoir after her divorce; Una Troubridge was mostly the lover of Radclyffe Hall, and as they were both women in the twentieth century, not technically a wife. Unfortunately, the other common theme that they share is that their marriages are desperately unhappy, they spend a lot of time being cruel to each other, and often their children suffer. In summary, there’s a lot of bad behavior here, and a lot of pain, too: Neal and Dahl lose a daughter; Howard cannot fully recover from the abuse she suffered at the hands of her father. But in the end, it’s impossible – and stupid – to take sides; almost everyone in her book is damaged. Their mental health is poor, and they are ill equipped to do better. It is not a pretty picture of fame, and fortune doesn't fare much better.

80 For Brady (2023)

The bottom line is that while there are four great women actresses (Rita Moreno, Sally Fields, Lily Tomlin, and Jane Fonda) who are all above a certain age, and it is amazing that they are all up and about and still working, nothing they could do could save this script and this concept. I watched on a transpcific flight, the very definition of a situation where a marginal movie can shine and it did not happen. It is not absoulutely awful, mind you, but it does not fulfill its promise. The story is inspired by the true story of four octogenarians whose devotion to each other is matched by their devotion to NFL quarterback Tom Brady. It’s a Cinderella story with four fairy godmothers, but instead of ugly step-sisters forcing them to do housework, these women are confronting the indignities of aging and the limits of mortality, with one of them really bumping up against it. They work towards a life long goal of seeing their beloved Patriots play in the Super Bowl, and against all odds and a lot of juggling, they manage to achieve that, more or less. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the film is produced by Tom Brady, who plays himself and has a (for me at least) surprisingly engaging screen presence.

Night of the Living Rez by Morgan Talty

This is a raw and unflinching look at what it is to be an American Indian living on the Penobscot Indian Nation reservation in Maine in the 21st century. These 12 short stories have a common character in David, a Penobscot boy living on the rez, and it’s his voice, youthful, brash, angry and loving, that links all of the stories. Intergenerational trauma is the in-your-face thread that runs through the stories, binding David to his mother, his sister Paige, his father and his mother’s boyfriend Frick. Shared trauma closes in tightly on David through poverty, death and addiction--and what that looks like on every level of individual, family, and community life is what is both powerful and painful about this collection. The inevitability of poverty and its consequences holds everyone in place, and acts as a reminder of what cannot be outrun. His words are unsparing, giving a cleareyed testimonial, through David, of what it is to be in perpetual service to the inevitability of loss. On the up side, the collection is also teeming with the undeniable physicality and beauty of the natural world, from a rotting snapping turtle whose mysterious stench fills an entire home to a roiling, writhing carpet of caterpillars that takes over a stretch of road leading in and out of the reservation. There are glimpses of what is different about this culture and this brand of poverty that will also stick with you when you finish this.

New Zealand Te Papa Museum, Wellington, New Zealand

The museum name, 'Te Papa Tongarewa', translates literally to 'container of treasures'. A fuller interpretation is 'our container of treasured things and people that spring from mother earth here in New Zealand'. This replica of a waka taua (war canoe) called Teremoe once belonged to Te Reimana Te Kaporere and Matene Rangitauira, leaders from the upper Whanganui River. They had become involved in Pai Marire, a Māori religious movement committed to the defence of Māori territorial and political independence. Its followers were popularly known as Hauhau. Teremoe had a crew of up to thirty. As well as being used for warfare, it was also used as river transport and as a fishing canoe.

In 1864 and 1865 Teremoe took part in battles on the Whanganui River between Pai Marire and their lower river relatives who were loyal to the government. The first was at Moutoa Island, when Pai Marire used Teremoe to carry their dead and wounded from the battlefield. The second was at Ohautahi, where the prominent Whanganui chief Hoani Wiremu Hipango was killed. The waka did another tour of duty later in 1865 when Pai Marire besieged the garrison stationed at Pipiriki. By 1869 the breach within the Whanganui iwi had been mended, and the Pai Marire and kawanatanga (government) sides, led by Major Kemp, worked together to chase guerrilla leader Te Kooti from the upper reaches of the river.

Code Name Blue Wren by Jim Popkin

The subtitle is The True Story of America's Most Dangerous Spy And The Sister She Betrayed. I wish I could remember who told me to read this book, but I did not come upon this of my own accord. I found this to be largely a disappointing book, both in its writing style as well as the conclusions that it draws about Ana Montes, a spy for Cuba. After nearly 17 years at the Defense Intelligence Agency, she was arrested by U.S. authorities in 2001 on charges of spying for Cuba. The self-confessed traitor, who has now been released, served 21 years in a high-security federal prison. Unable to reach the imprisoned, unrepentant spy, Popkin relied on interviews with Montes’s family and friends and on government psychological assessments to explain Montes’s high-risk decision to supply her Cuban handlers with inside information, acts of betrayal for which she received no monetary compensation. Yet in Code Name Blue Wren (the label given by U.S. officials to Montes’s case), the author dismisses Montes’s avowed reason for spying—her deeply felt opposition to U.S. policies in Central America and Cuba—but fails to offer a compelling alternative theory. Instead, he echoes counterintelligence hawks in sensationalizing the damage Montes caused. He does not present credible evidence that Montes compromised agents nor did she change or significantly distort the intelligence community’s characteristically tough-minded assessments of Cuba.

Salsa de Piña Tatemada

We are loving cooking from Bricia Lopez' new cookbook called Asada: The Art Of Mexican Grilling--although we are taking the heat down several notches. This was a bif hit at a multiple protein grilled dinner we cooked. 3 garlic cloves, peeled 1 medium-size red onion, finely chopped (about 1 1/2 cups) 1 medium (about 3-pound) pineapple, peeled, cored, and cut into 3/4-inch-thick slices 2 fresh serrano chiles, stemmed 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 1 teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more to taste 1/4 cup olive oil 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh parsley Preheat grill to high (450°F to 500°F). Place garlic cloves and onion on 2 separate pieces of aluminum foil; fold each to create sealed packets. Place packets directly on grill grate; cook, uncovered, turning occasionally, until garlic and onion have softened, about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, place pineapple slices and chiles on oiled grates. Grill, uncovered, until pineapple is well marked, flipping once, 3 to 5 minutes per side, and skin on chiles is evenly charred, flipping often, 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board, and let cool 5 minutes. Chop pineapple into 1/4-inch pieces and garlic and chiles to a mince, and transfer to a large bowl. Stir in grilled onion and lime juice. Set aside. Add chile paste to bowl with pineapple mixture. Stir in parsley, and season with additional salt to taste.

In Love by Amy Bloom

Amy Bloom is a well known fiction writer who here pens a story from her own life, which is that of helping her husband to kill himself legally after a devastating diagnosis. This is a very tough read, no matter your age, and for me, almost exactly the age of the author's husband when his early onset dementia has progressed to the point that if he is going to be able to do an assisted suicide legally anywhere, he has to act then and there. There is a lot of anguish here, which is understandable, and it is not the very best writing that the author has produced, which is understandable given the subject. There is a surprising amount of humor, as well as some nuts and bolts information for the reader to follow if they should find themselves in this situation. I did not fully grasp this, but the right to die in the United States, which is only an option in a handful of states, only applies if you have six months or less to die and (this is an important and) can administer the fatal dose yourself. Unfortunately dementia, especially in a relatively young and healthy body, is characterized by the mind (and therefore free will) leaving the building long before the house lights are ready to go down, so to speak, and is therefore was not an option for them. So it is a tale of seeking out the available options, getting in the queue to be evaluated, and being able to afford the expense, all to help someone you care deeply for to end their life. There is a lot of dignity on display here that I am not sure I could mirror in similar circumstances, but it is well worth reading and thinking about.

WBC, Wellington, New Zealand

We chose this restaurant for several reasons. We were flying in from Christchurch that evening, and so wanted a place that was near the hotel--that wasn't too much of a challenge, as we were staying in a busy downtown location that offered quite a few dining options. The other was the presence of seafood on the menu, and the third was that we were able to get a reservation, which allowed us to not have to think too much, nor to worry when we were already obligated to eat later than is our norm.

We both very much enjoyed this small and bustling restaurant--our table wasn't free when we arrived, and so we sat at the bar initially, which was very pleasant and the bartender gave us a few insights into both the wine and the menu. My husband took the plunge on New Zealand oysters and we ordered a number of small plates rather than a main course, and each and every dish was delicious. He thought it was the second best place we ate the whole trip (a high bar indeed) and I thought it was in the top half. Highly recommended.

Hungry Ghosts by Kevin Jared Hosein

When I finished the last page and closed the book, my first thought was that I am pretty sure I didn't catch everything going on in this book. It is not long in length, but there there is a depth to it, and sometimes I felt like I didn't see to the bottom of it. I am not alone--one review I read noted that the author's style is one of sensory maximalism, in which unexpected shifts and juxtapositions repeatedly wrongfoot the reader. This is set in the 1940s, as American destroyers arrive in Trinidad’s harbors and naval bases forcibly displace village communities. It reaches into the country’s past as a much-trafficked and undervalued colonial possession, and it hints at the complications that might accompany its journey towards a still-distant independence. High on the list of these complications is the treatment of the people of color in general, and the island’s marginalized Hindu population, whose rights are curtailed in law, in particular. There is a hint of magical realism with a whisper of superstition that is intriguing but not fully absorbed by me. There are also a myriad of cast members whose lives we see only partially. All of them are held between past and future, their lives about to change as their country does, but with little indication that they can see the cost of transition.

Guajillo Grilled Chicken

The cookbook for Food 52's cookbook club this July is Bricia Lopez' Asada: THe Art of Mexican Grilling, and this is one of the first recipes we tried. I really loved the fruity flavor that the guajillo chiles added to the meat. We served sliced up as tacos alongside an excellent Arroz Rojo from the same cookbook. 12 guajillo chillies (50g/1¾oz), stems and seeds removed ½ large white onion (150g/5¼oz), roughly chopped 8 cloves garlic, peeled ¼ tsp black peppercorns (about 12 peppercorns) 1 whole clove 1 tbsp dried Mexican oregano 2 tbsp grapeseed oil ¼ cup (60ml) orange juice 2 tbsp seasoned rice vinegar 2 tbsp fresh lime juice ¼ tsp ground cinnamon 1½ tbsp sea salt 910g (2lb) bone-in chicken thighs In a cast-iron skillet over medium heat, lightly toast the chillies, about 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Remove from the skillet and set aside. In the same skillet, add the onion and garlic, turning once or twice until they are lightly charred, about 10 minutes. Remove from the skillet and set aside. Add the peppercorns, clove, and dried oregano to the pan and lightly toast until they are aromatic, about 2 minutes. Transfer the toasted spices and oregano to a molcajete or spice grinder and grind until finely ground. In a high-performance blender or food processor, add the toasted chillies, onion, garlic, ground spices and oregano, oil, orange juice, rice vinegar, lime juice, cinnamon, and salt. Blend until most of the chillies have come apart. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Using a gallon-size resealable bag, add the marinade and the chicken. Seal and let sit in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or overnight. Remove the chicken thighs in their marinade from the fridge to allow them to reach room temperature before grilling.

Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano

OMG I loved this. So much. I read it in a day (which is not saying a ton, because since the pandemic I have been reading at an astounding rate, more than is really sustainable, but I couldn't put it down). I think that it is not the best thing that I have read this year, or maybe not even this month, but I liked it the most. This is openly spoken of as a homage to Louise May Alcott's Little Women, but it is more about the relationship of four sisters than a retelling of that story. In fact it starts without them in it. William Waters grows up in a home where he is unloved. His elder sister died and his parents never recovered from the grief of it. He was ignored, and grew up much like an orphan, without intimacy or much of a capacity for it. He did have basketball, which sustained him on several levels, but he lacked a lot. So when he meets the spirited and ambitious Julia Padavano in his freshman year of college, it's as if the world has lit up around him. With Julia comes her family, Her Whitman quoting father, her warm and generous mother, and her three sisters: Sylvie, the family's dreamer, is happiest with her nose in a book; Cecelia is a free-spirited artist; and Emeline patiently takes care of them all. With the Padavanos, William experiences a newfound contentment; every moment in their house is filled with loving chaos. But Julia has a future planned for them that doesn't quite suit William, and so the darkness from his past surfaces, jeopardizing not only Julia's carefully orchestrated plans for their future, but the sisters' relationship to one another. The characters are richly drawn, believable and recognizable, and altogether wonderful. I wish there was more attention to why William is the way he ends up, but that might be asking too much.

King of Snake, Christchurch, New Zealand

My main criteria for picking a restaurant in New Zealand was that it had to have seafood. It is, after all, an island surrounded by the sea, and should therefore have plenty of that. It turns out that it is also an island nation with enough sheep to outnumber every resident several times over, and therefore there is a lot of everything on offer. All that is to explain how even though my spouse is not a huge fan of Asian fusion, we ended up at such a place. The King of Snake was both an easy walk from our hotel and open on Monday night. It is on the second floor at it's address and newly locaed there, so no signage, and so we had to circle the building a couple times and ask for help before we actually arrived. The menu had quite a lot of seafood options, as well as something I haven't seen much of but saw often in New Zealand, which is the ability to chose how many of an appetizer you wanted. We got just two of a few things, a taste really, but it allowed us to try a few more things, and of course, if we had found something we had to have more of it was so amazing, we could do that as well. Everything we ordered was delicious, and I would definitely go back if I was to be back in Christchurch again--the atmosphere was not to my taste, but I can overlook a lot when the food is good.

How Not To Drown In A Glass OF Water by Angie Cruz

I read in a review that the Spanish word desahogar translates “to un-drown” and that is roughly the equivalent of venting, or getting it of your chest, which is what Cara Romero does when an interviewer with an employment assistance program in New York asks her to say something about herself. The story, told in Cara’s frank, unfiltered, and sometimes hilarious voice, quickly expands like the bellows of an accordion to release chords of friendship, community and, occasionally, lust, that provides a counter balance to the financial stresses, discrimination and personal divisions faced by Cara, her family and friends in their rapidly gentrifying Washington Heights neighborhood. The structure of the novel is built around 12 interview sessions designed to assess Cara’s job readiness and eligibility for continued unemployment benefits. She fills each meeting with stories of her life’s challenges, including her arrival in New York from the Dominican Republic 26 years earlier fleeing her murderous husband, her struggle to support her son and siblings, and the sudden loss of her steady factory job to an overseas facility. She punctuates her anecdotes with clear-eyed observations about contradictions and injustices in the country where she has spent most of her adult life, even as she studies to become a U.S. citizen. She clearly tells us that the country she has adopted is not welcoming her with welcome arms, but she is staying anyway.

Ticket to Paradise (2023)

Even as romantic comedies go, this is not a good movie. First it seems to have gotten to 1990 and come to a halt--it is dated in almost every aspect of the story line, and while it could be nostalgic, it mostly isn't. Then there is the irritating part that occurs in the story, where, in this case, the divorced couple takes an awful lot of bickering and putting each other down needlessly before they start to work together for a common goal--I almost stopped watching it even though I was on a transpacific flight and had a lot of time to kill. There are two things that save this--the first is that all the main players are good, and they transcend the story line. Then there the setting--wow, is it beautiful. The movie says Bali, but the actual place is the Gold Coast of Australia, just south of Brisbane, and should encourage people to think about traveling there to see it in person. The story is that a divorced couple's daughter graduates from college (although it is confusing because they keep talking about her promising law career) and takes a post graduation trip with her room mate to Bali, where she meets the man of her dreams, and decides to give up her future in the U.S. to live with him and his family on their seaweed farm and the parents aim to stop them.

Yonder by Jabari Asim

Wow, I loved this book. The cover of the version that I read has a reproduction of Jacob Lawrence's Harriet Tubman Series #4--I did not know this, but he did 31 paintings in this series, celebrating the woman who guided so many slaves northward to freedom. The book is set in 1852 on a Southern plantation called Placid Hall (which is the antithesis of what it is to live there). It explores the intertwined lives of four enslaved people: William, Cato, Margaret and Pandora. The beauty of this is that there is no grey in this book. The slaves are known as the Stolen and they measure the passing of the years by harvests rather than ticks of a clock. The chapters alternate between the points of view of each character, allowing readers to hear their voices and understand their thoughts, hopes and fears. It renders them human as they navigate the abuse at the hand of their owner, Randolph “Cannonball” Greene, known as a Thief. There is a lot of territory covered in this. It explores the emotional and psychological acrobatics the Stolen must go through to transcend the many layers of their subjugation: First as human cargo, then as property — purchased, traded and discarded. The characters often wrestle with loving deeply, struggling to fight the feelings of attachment, fearing that if those emotions are revealed, they will be exploited and then forcibly extinguished. Some of them come to believe that human connection is futile because at any moment those alliances can be severed. Amid the bleakness, though, there is resilience, tenderness and community among the Stolen, a thread of spirituality and an upholding of traditions. Then finally, the journey northward. There is humanity, cruelty, avarice, and joy to the found in this.

Rhubarb Jam

We do not have an established rhubarb patch, but we know someone who just bought a place this spring that does, and who gave us an armload of it. This is the thing that I think reminds me the most of spring, this and asparagus, and I am hoping it will carry me through to the next spring! Ingredients ▢1 lb 10 oz (750g) Rhubarb stalks ▢1 Tbs Orange Zest from about 1 large orange ▢1/3 C (70g) Orange Juice fresh squeezed, from about 1 large orange ▢1 3/4 C (400g) Cane Sugar ▢1/2 Vanilla Bean optional but recommended For this recipe use three 1/2 pint mason jars with screw top lids. Wash and rise the jars and lids in hot soapy water, or wash in the dish washer. Set aside to dry. Find a large heavy bottom nonreactive sauce pan (like stainless steel) or use a Dutch oven to make the jam, at least 4 quarts (3.8L), larger if you have the capacity. You want a heavy bottom so the jam doesn't burn and the pot large enough so that the fruit is at least 2 1/2 - 3 inches (7.6 cm) below the rim of the pot. Wash the rhubarb stalks to rid it of any dirt or debris. Trim the ends and discard. Cut the rhubarb stalks to 1/2 - 1" (1.7 cm - 2.54 cm) pieces. If there are thick pieces, cut the rhubarb through the center lengthwise so that all the pieces are of about equal size. You should have about 5 1/2 C (685g) once the rhubarb is cut. Set aside. If using the vanilla bean, scrape out the seeds and set aside, reserving the pod. To Make the Jam: To the heavy sauce pan or Dutch oven add the rhubarb, orange juice, zest, sugar and vanilla bean pod (empty of its seeds). Stir, coating the rhubarb - use your longest handle wooden spoon. On medium high heat, bring the mixture to a simmer. The sugar will start to melt and the rhubarb will begin breaking down. Once simmering, increase the heat to high and bring the mixture to a boil, stirring as needed (often) to prevent sticking to the bottom of the pot. Rotate the pan if needed to avoid burner hot spots. The mixture will boil vigorously at first, but as it cooks down, it will boil more slowly. You'll notice foam starting to form on the surface. Skim this off and discard (don't worry about getting all of it, just do the best you can). Continue cooking, stirring and adjusting the heat a bit as needed to avoid sputter and spattering, while keeping it bubbling. Use the spoon to mash the rhubarb to help break it down. Meanwhile, fill the sink with a very shallow pool of water. Cook until a temperature of between 220-222F (104-105C) is reached. This will take about 18-20 minutes (see note* if you don't have a thermometer). Remove from heat and dip the bottom of the pot in the shallow pool of water to stop the cooking process. Stir in the vanilla beans. Set a timer for 10 minutes and allow the mixture to cool slightly, stirring occassionally to help cool. You'll notice the jam start to thicken. Fish out the vanilla pod and discard or place it in one of the jars where it will continue to flavor the jam. Transfer jam to clean jars leaving about a 1/2" (1.3cm) head space so the jam has room to expand as it freezes. Lid and allow to cool to room temperature. Chill in the fridge overnight where it will thicken further and set, then transfer to the freezer. How to Store the Jam: Jam can be enjoyed after chilling in the fridge for an hour or two. Store in the refrigerator for up to two weeks or in the freezer for six + months. Do not store at room temperature as this jam is not shelf stable.

This Other Eden by Paul Harding

This book is on a list of "15 Books You Should Read Now" that the New York Times put out recently, maybe their version of a summer reading list that doesn't include what might be considered beach reads. This is an antiracist book, one that demonstrates subtle shifts in attitudes and deeply held beliefs when what you have been taught to believe is contradicted by your life experience, causing a shift in your world view. It is a book with both text and subtext. The text is this: the story opens on Apple Island, named because of the trees once planted there by the first settlers: a runaway slave, Benjamin Honey, and his Irish wife, Patience. A hundred years later, their descendants get by on scraps of food and tobacco from the mainland. The governor of Maine resolves to evict them from their inherited land, apparently for the sake of “humanity and public health”. The outcome is just what you would expect. The subtext is more subtle. Midway in the story that spans more than a century, we meet a white racist missionary teacher, Matthew Diamond, who wants to teach Latin and Shakespeare to the island’s racially diverse residents. His views are changed by what he experiences there in a nuanced and believable way. The reader is left with a lot to think about as well as a well told tale

Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū, New Zealand

This is the best art museum on the south island, and of all the museums we went to on our recent trip to New Zealand, it is the one that has the most contemporary art. Some things were so recent that the paint was barely dry! The building itself is as contemporary as the art--it has a glass dominated fascade that curves much like the Avon River, which flows through Christchurch, containing 9 galleries. It is a work of art itself. The Māori name, Te Puna o Waiwhetū, relates to the life-giving properties of the artesian spring on which the Gallery is built and the museum's role in contributing to the cultural wellbeing of the community--the no defunct university campus across the street has several spaces that have been repurposed for artists to create and show their work.

The emphasis on New Zealand, with its mixed Maori and European heritage, is very clear and interesting to behold. All signs are in both Maori and English--it reminded me of Canada, where roughly 20% of the nation is French-speaking, but throughout all signs are bilingual. About 18% of New Zealanders identify as Maori, and many do not speak Maori as a first language, but it is a way to keep Maori alive, as well as celebrated. This was a great introduction to art in New Zealand as well as a lesson on how to embrace a diverse heritage in a former colony.

In This Place by Amanda Gorman

There’s a poem in this place— in the footfalls in the halls in the quiet beat of the seats. It is here, at the curtain of day, where America writes a lyric you must whisper to say. There’s a poem in this place— in the heavy grace, the lined face of this noble building, collections burned and reborn twice. There’s a poem in Boston’s Copley Square where protest chants tear through the air like sheets of rain, where love of the many swallows hatred of the few. There’s a poem in Charlottesville where tiki torches string a ring of flame tight round the wrist of night where men so white they gleam blue— seem like statues where men heap that long wax burning ever higher where Heather Heyer blooms forever in a meadow of resistance. There’s a poem in the great sleeping giant of Lake Michigan, defiantly raising its big blue head to Milwaukee and Chicago— a poem begun long ago, blazed into frozen soil, strutting upward and aglow. There’s a poem in Florida, in East Texas where streets swell into a nexus of rivers, cows afloat like mottled buoys in the brown, where courage is now so common that 23-year-old Jesus Contreras rescues people from floodwaters. There’s a poem in Los Angeles yawning wide as the Pacific tide where a single mother swelters in a windowless classroom, teaching black and brown students in Watts to spell out their thoughts so her daughter might write this poem for you. There's a lyric in California where thousands of students march for blocks, undocumented and unafraid; where my friend Rosa finds the power to blossom in deadlock, her spirit the bedrock of her community. She knows hope is like a stubborn ship gripping a dock, a truth: that you can’t stop a dreamer or knock down a dream. How could this not be her city su nación our country our America, our American lyric to write— a poem by the people, the poor, the Protestant, the Muslim, the Jew, the native, the immigrant, the black, the brown, the blind, the brave, the undocumented and undeterred, the woman, the man, the nonbinary, the white, the trans, the ally to all of the above and more? Tyrants fear the poet. Now that we know it we can’t blow it. We owe it to show it not slow it although it hurts to sew it when the world skirts below it. Hope— we must bestow it like a wick in the poet so it can grow, lit, bringing with it stories to rewrite— the story of a Texas city depleted but not defeated a history written that need not be repeated a nation composed but not yet completed. There’s a poem in this place— a poem in America a poet in every American who rewrites this nation, who tells a story worthy of being told on this minnow of an earth to breathe hope into a palimpsest of time— a poet in every American who sees that our poem penned doesn’t mean our poem’s end. There’s a place where this poem dwells— it is here, it is now, in the yellow song of dawn’s bell where we write an American lyric we are just beginning to tell.

Street Corn and Bacon Pizza

We, like thousands of others, got a pizza oven during the pandemic and my spouse went about perfecting his pizza dough game. We have settled on a 48-72 hour dough that has such good flavor and texture that while we get pizza out, it has become consistently disappointing. The very best pizza outside our house is equivalent to the worst of what we make at home. This pizza topping combo was the hands down winner amongst the adults at our last pizza dinner at home. It is simple and so so good! 1 pizza dough 4 slices bacon 1 ear fresh sweet corn on the cob, husked 1 jalapeno, sliced into rings, seeds removed or not, your choice About 1/4 of a medium red onion, sliced with the grain 1/3 cup mayonnaise 1/3 cup full fat Greek yogurt or sour cream 4 ounces crumbled cotija cheese (This Mexican cheese is very similar to feta only without the brine) 2 teaspoons fresh garlic, minced 1/2 teaspoon chili powder 1/2 fresh lime, to squeeze over pizza after it is baked Cilantro, to top pizza after it is baked Flour and corn meal to prepare crust Use the pizza dough you are going to use, and prep it as you would. Cut up the bacon and cook until almost done. Leave heat on medium high and add whole corn cob to skillet and cook for about five minutes, turning to brown all sides. Remove to paper towels. Once cool enough to handle, cut corn from cob and place corn in a small bowl. Set aside. Add jalapeno and onion and cook until no longer raw but not quite cooked, about 1-2 minutes. Remove to a bowl. In a small bowl mix yogurt or sour cream with mayonnaise and set aside. Spread ½ cup of the mayonnaise mixture onto the dough, going to within a half inch from the edge. Place the remaining mixture into a squeeze bottle to squeeze over the top of the baked pizza. If you do not have a squeeze bottle, cut the tip off of a sandwich bag, fill with mixture and use that in place of the bottle. Top the sauce with half of the bacon, corn, jalapeno, onion and all of the garlic. Then top with all of the cotija cheese and finish with the remaining bacon, corn, jalapeno and onion. Sprinkle chili powder over of the whole pizza then slide onto the pizza stone. Cook as usual, until the crust starts leoparding. Remove. Squeeze lime juice over the pizza as well as sprinkling with cilantro. Drizzle with the mayonnaise mixture and serve.

Flight Paths by Rebecca Heisman

I saw the author speak as a key note speaker at the San Diego Bird Festival right before this book was published, and she is a great speaker, one who should be considered for a variety of different events, because the story of bird migration and resiliency is one that could fit a lot of different professions. I think while it is billed as great for avid birders, in some ways it is more amazing for people who know almost nothing about birds. The modern technology for tracking migratory birds can sound like something out of science fiction—for example, analyzing the hydrogen isotopes of a single feather from a bird can indicate the breeding range of that particular species. Weather data can show their migration patterns on radar, and minuscule devices can be implanted under feathers, using the movement of the sun to determine their location. Earlier techniques, on the other hand, bordered on the mystical: moon-watching parties, for example, where ornithologists would spend hours with a telescope, waiting for a bird to fly across the full moon. The author creates a skillful and accessible narrative about how we research and understand bird migration, from the first birds ever to be banded to current methodologies. As the author shows, community science, where people who track birds as a hobby contribute essential data, is more important than ever in the current era of dramatic climate change. I hope this gets more people than ever downloading eBird and adding to the body of living knowledge about birds!

The Streets of Christchurch, New Zealand

Happy Canada Day! The three countries besides the United States the British colonized that were largely unpopulated when they arrived are all worth visiting, and are populated by very nice people, much nicer and friendlier than my own country (especially if you consider I am a native of one and a visitor in the others).

Christchurch is the largest city on the South Island, and unlike Queenstown, it is largely flat and not a mix of residential and commercial. We stayed in a late 19th century house that is now a bed and breakfast and right across the street from the art museum. The old houses in the neighborhood have not been engulfed by high rises or businesses.

There is a lot of public art on the streets, and I recommend walking everywhere.