Renewed Faith...in Baseball.

Baseball is in my blood.  I'm the daughter and grand-daughter of baseball enthusiasts.  My grandmother (more familiarly known as Nonna) lived in Central Florida and often went to see Spring Training games, or to watch the farm teams play throughout the year.   As a youngin', I  remember my dad having the game muted on the tube with either a radio positioned on the Astros station, or a lil radio walkman with massive earphones on as he walked from room to room completing his Saturday afternoon tasks.  In fact, when we went to the games (in the now retired Astrodome) he brought that same lil radio and listened to the commentators -- while he claimed resolutely that they were much better than the TV announcers or anything you saw live.  Most people agree with this.

One of my earlier memories, maybe I was 7, is being at the Astrodome standing behind the organist who was playing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" and singing along with my dad as we looked past the musical instrument to the field.  Over the years my interest in baseball has waned.  I am a peculiar sports fan.  I don't have one particular sport that I live and die for, but I can very easily get "caught up" in the excitement of sporting events.  Certain Olympics, some years Wimbledon, other times a Volleyball tournament, surfing, even golf...of course football, basketball and baseball.  That said, there has to be some human interest angle for me to start following.  I have to get to know a player or a team's underdog rise to champion.

Biggio knockin the s*** out of it in the '05 Series

All of this to say from age maybe 13 to 27, I didn't know much about my home team the Astros (except for a brief 3 month period in 2005 when I got VERY excited about their trip to the world series with the original Killer B's: Bagwell, Biggio, Beltran, Berkman).

Since being home in Texas I have renewed faith in my 'Stros.  Last year I went to 3 games with my dad, and became invested in our boys (particularly Hunter Pence and Carlos Lee...Berkman was around for part of the season but then left for the Yankees).  I looked up stats, I carefully picked which games we would go to depending on who they were playing.  I would proudly stick up for them if anyone talked trash, spouting facts about our hitting averages, and Bagwell's return as a hitting coach.

I'm excited to see where this season takes them...but if their final pregame against the Red Sox is any indication...I'm in for a frustrating year.  Maybe I should take some tips from Cub fans and gain the mindset of "if you are only a fan when they are winning, you aren't a true fan."

We trekked out to Minute Maid Park to see the game.  After a pretty tasty (but overpriced) dinner at the 5-7 (Bagwell/Biggio #s) with signature dishes by local chef Bryan Caswell -- we found our seats...home team side (as always), between first and second base, practically behind the dugout (we inched our way closer through the first 6 innings).




I won't go into the pain much -- but let's just say at the end of the first inning it was 5-0 in the Sox's favor and ended in the 9th inning 10-0.    No where to go but up, right??

Losing S**T

No, not the show.  Just lost things.  Losing things.  I hate it.  I mean, who doesn't, right?  It makes you feel stupid, it makes you feel paranoid, it makes you feel like you might be losing your mind.   Depending on the missing item, I run the gamet of emotions...starting with curiosity: "hmmm where did I put that??" 

Next, rationality:  "Ok, I know I used it on Tuesday, and I was at home, so it has to be in the house."

Somewhere along the line, I reach paranoia:  "I didn't lose it.  It was stolen.  That is the only explanation.  Someone broke into my car, and only stole this one thing, and left the ipod because that's not what they wanted.  Yes.  That is what happened."

Eventually, I progress to full blown anger:  "WHERE THE HELL IS IT?!  It doesn't make any sense!  It has to be here...where else in the world could it possibly be?  Nowhere.  It has to be here.  Am I looking straight at it?  Has it gone invisible?  This is bulls**t, Universe.  Show me now!!"

That's where I am now....I've lost a ring.  A ring I love.  A graduation present.  It makes zero sense because I took my rings (3 of them) off and put them in the console of my car with my wristwatch.  I found the watch and two rings there, but the third is no where to be found.    Thieves.  That's it, thieves.

Why does this happen?  And at such an early age?  Is it just the unconscious nature at which we sometimes do things.  Like when you are commuting from work to home (or vice versa) and you realize you don't remember the past 15 miles you drove.  Is that the same as losing things?  Is there any way to reduce the number of things I lose...because of late...I've been misplacing or full on losing more things than I can count.   I guess organization?  Stick-to-itiveness?

MISSING: 
Paloma Picasso, Le Cercle, Tiffany & Co.,  Silver Ring
Circa: 2005
Last seen: in car console around March 14

Quest for a Tortilla

You rarely appreciate things while you have them (at least I don't).  Being a size 6 (which will probably never happen again), being in school and having summers off, and the subject of this post: fresh, handmade, flour tortillas.

I couldn't even wait to take a picture before tearing off a taste

Growing up in Texas...I took both BBQ and Tex Mex for granted.  It wasn't a staple in my house, but you knew that whenever a craving came your way for BBQ ribs and potato salad or fajitas and queso -- it was a stone's throw away.  Yes, there were better joints than others, but you could get some handmade flour tortillas and light yellow (almost white) queso...as opposed to the stiff mass generated tortillas (or god forbid corn...tho I might be alone on that one), and the bright Velvetta yellow queso that other states would pawn off as Tex Mex.

As far as Tex Mex/ican is concerned, while going to school in California, I was still unaware at the scarcity and rareness of a good flour tortilla.  Cali has delicious tortillas for obvious reasons.  Therefore, it wasn't until I landed in New York City, Manhattan, that I began to realize the difficulty in tracking them down.  You'd think it wouldn't be.  You'd think that there would be specialty grocery stores, or small artisanal Latino shops, where flour tortillas would be aplenty.  You'd be wrong.  I was too.  I searched high and low for a tasty tortilla.  The closest I got was certain Mexican (not Tex Mex) restaurants.  I worked for an influential New Yorker that shall remain anonymous -- that arranged for a famous Mexican restaurant to cater her parties.  I'm not talking regular catering -- I'm talking...she gave them her cookware dishes, and they cooked meals in them and I picked them up...and she served them to her guests (as if they were her own).  This restaurant has some amazing tortillas (both corn and flour) and I snagged a few...but when I returned to buy some for personal consumption, I was refused...I would have to order a dish that they came with.  Uh, no thanks.

Eventually, failing at my quest, I had my mom priority mail me handmade fresh tortillas from Central Market in Houston.  I know, sad, but true.

Recently, in my home state of Texas, I ran into this problem again.  Central Market still has them, but they are 30 miles away.  I got hooked on Paqui Tortillas (made in Austin)...but for the past three weeks they have been missing from my local grocer.  For two weeks the space where they were normally located was empty, and today they were replaced by another brand.  I inquired and found out that Paqui was having delivery issues...so I purchased the lesser brand.  Then the blog I'd rather be in Texas suggested making them from scratch.   This thought had never crossed my mind.  It always seemed like one of those things that should be made from someone's grandmother's recipe...ideally prepared by that grandmother.  

I found one though!  They were a little thick, but I think they will get thinner the more I practice.  See pics and link below. 
From the Homesick Texan:  Texas Flour Tortillas

 

A Life Change in a Bottle

Nora Ephron once said, "hair color is our greatest invention."  She would probably deny that now, but I'm almost 100% sure she said it on Oprah, and you can't take back anything you say on Oprah.  Ephron later expanded on that observation, saying that hair dye is what differentiates our generation from previous ones, in terms of anti-aging.  We can cover up the gray, where our grandmother's couldn't (she says then there were only two colors, pink and blue).

I am not at the age that that is really of much importance to me -- although my grandmother turned white (not gray, but snow white) in her mid twenties, and a friend who will go nameless at age 27 is having a "gray" issue as well.  Luckily, I'm not in that boat.  I only say "luckily" because it can get expensive.

Perhaps my initial excitement to change my hair color is a result of that pesky Quarter Life Crisis, but the inspiration came from my friend Julia.  She went from shoulder length dark brown hair to a short, bleach blonde, pixie cut with little to no thought.  I've always admired people who can do that.  Unfortunately, my hair is a bigger part of me than I like to admit.  I hide behind it, I find confidence in it...in many ways it gives me security and strength.  All of that to say, I wasn't cutting it all off.  No way.  No how.

What I could do was color it.  I started to get really excited, the idea of change, like moving the furniture around in your house and discovering a whole new world (yeah, I'm a geek).  I didn't want to bleach it, and I didn't want to cut it off, but I did want some change.  I wanted to be inspired, I wanted to look in the mirror and see something different; and losing weight (the other way this could be accomplished) just takes way too long.  I wanted a big helping of instant gratification.

Here is the before look -- I never have been able to definitively identify my hair color.  Is it brown?  Yes.  Is it blonde?  Some.  A redness to it?  Perhaps, a hint.  And this line of questioning could continue -- if blondes really do have more fun/gentlemen prefer them, but marry brunettes who are often seen as more "intellectual;" and redheads...what are redheads?  Harlots? More unique and sexy...like Jessica Rabbit?  I don't know...but what are you if you have a little bit of all three?  Trifecta of hair color.

Then I found inspiration in my #1 Girl Crush:

Yesterday, I pulled the trigger:

Could it have been more extreme?  Sure.  I've never dyed my hair...so this is rather extreme for me.

Fallon: the next Carson?

 Most of my friends know who Johnny Carson is (or was).  It would be pretty sad (in terms of pop culture references) if they didn't.  That said, most of them haven't seen his show, unless its clips and snipets on other talk shows.  Carson's Tonight Show ended in 1992.  I was 9.  I remember going to a family friend's house to watch the final episode air (pre-DVR) and falling asleep to Bette Midler's voice.

Carson is a God to most comedians, let alone talk show hosts, and he will forever be held to a different standard.  He is what they aspire to be, what they measure themselves against, and what they inevitably fail to become.  Even with Jay Leno and Letterman (feud not withstanding) and their lengthy runs on late night, they are still no Carson (and they would be the first to admit it). 

With little to compare it to, may I be so bold as to say that Jimmy Fallon is going to be as good as it gets. He has the potential to be a new generation's Carson.  His silliness, his willingness to make a fool of himself, his ability to make a guest laugh and to appropriately laugh at the guest's stories, and ultimately his visible excitement at hosting.  The only thing that Fallon most definitely doesn't have (yet) is the guest's need to impress him.  For a comic to be called over to the couch by Carson was a BIG F***ING deal!  It was something they all remembered (if they were so lucky to succeed), and wore as a badge of honor, telling and retelling the story time and time again.  Fallon doesn't have that, but then again, how could he?  He has been on 2 years, and is only 36 years old.  After rising to fame on SNL (by freely making fun of himself...and everyone else), slightly failing at being a movie star, now Fallon has found his place on late night.  He is brilliant.  He was born to be there.  A place to showcase his imitations (sometimes not so great), his ear for music, silly mid-century game show type antics....could it get any better?




Early Fallon on Conan:






Just cuz:

a God named Sorkin

You already know who he is.  If you didn't before, you do now, post-Social Network, post-Academy Award...the genius that is Aaron Sorkin was never a secret.

I didn't set out to have a marathon.  I didn't mean to keep watching; but inadvertently, over the past two weeks I have fallen into it.  It started with discovering Studio 60 on Netflix stream instantly, next it was coming across A Few Good Men on Bravo (I suffered through the FCC corrections and edits, still finding it brilliant), which was followed by Sports Night (a show I never saw, but always heard about, and swiftly borrowed from Leigh a.k.a Girl Around Town), and now I'm on West Wing Season 1...which could lead to weeks, if not months of the following seasons. [more after the break] 

What makes his writing brilliant?  For one, I think he is legitimately smarter than the rest of us.  I believe any stories you may have heard about him being pompous or arrogant, anything that may have circled the rumor mill to create an image of him as a typical Hollywood A-hole, all comes back to the simple fact that he is smarter.  Think about conversations you have had with people who don't "get it," with people who don't understand your references, and think that the word "moot" is "mute."  Try to picture how frustrated you are in those moments, when your eyes are involuntarily rolling back in your head and you are exhaling in frustration...now imagine if that happened all day, every day.  That might be a taste of what it's like to be Sorkin.

A while back I had a realization of how fantastic it is when a director has such an immense sense of style that you can identify their work without seeing his or her name.  Examples: David Fincher, Quentin Tarantino, Nancy Meyers, Ron Howard.  How many screenwriters do you know that have that same effect?  Perhaps from other decades (or centuries): Neil Simon, Eugene O'Neil, Tennessee Williams.  I argue that Aaron Sorkin is the only writer of our time with this ability.  Who knows what "it" is about his writing but you can pretty much bet it will have a political theme (or feel) with quick and smart speeches.

The speeches.  What you wish you could say in those moments, Sorkin writes it.  They could probably be reclassified as rants, but they use big words and obscure references.  Often times, I feel I can identify which speeches are coming directly from Sorkin's psyche.  The Matt Albie speeches in Studio 60, the Josh Lyman rants in West Wing, and Jeremy's insecurities but brilliance in Sports Night.  That said, what makes Sorkin the mythic genius that he is, is his ability to argue both sides.  His uncanny brilliance allows him to realistically see both sides and argue them til he runs out of breath (or ink).

"[T]he trick is to follow the rules of classic storytelling. Drama is basically about one thing: Somebody wants something, and something or someone is standing in the way of him getting it. What he wants—the money, the girl, the ticket to Philadelphia—doesn't really matter. But whatever it is, the audience has to want it for him."  Aaron Sorkin

Check out his works from start to finish and watch him get better (if that's possible).  A Few Good Men is kind of untouchable with everyone at their best.  An American President as well.  The television shows grow -- Sports Night is great, don't get me wrong.  Krause is too cute, Huffman is smart -- but Sorkin seems to have a tendency to repeat himself.  One character says, "shoes?"  another says, "shoes."  Then the first repeats again, "really, shoes?"  and the 2nd, finally says, "yes. really. shoes."   This is an example, but the point being that he reiterates and repeats lines (often) in an attempt to be quippy and sarcastic.  Later he harnesses this tactic in a much more creative and useful way.   

Another reason I love him, he doesn't hide his rants on Huffington Post.

Sorkin Trivia:

• slips in Gilbert and Sullivan quotes/references to most work (Modern Major General from Pirates of Penzance parody in Studio 60, "I'm never ever sick at sea" quote from HMS Pinafore in Malice and Charlie Wilson's War, Ainsley's welcome party in West Wing decorated with G&S paraphernalia) -- probably explained by his musical theater major at Syracuse University
• Deborah Sorkin (his sister) works for JAG and has worked with David Iglesias (who Cruise's A Few Good Men character is based on)
• William Goldman mentored him during A Few Good Men (ie the mastermind behind Princess Bride, Chaplin, All the Preisdent's Men...and more)
• works with friends: Joshua Malina (Sports Night, A Few Good Men, West Wing), Bradley Whitford (Studio 60/West Wing), Janel Moloney (Sports Night/West Wing), Studio 60 had a lot of past people as "hosts": Allison Janney, Felicity Huffman, Timothy Busfield (Studio 60/West Wing); and of course his "partner" of sorts -- Thomas Schlamme
• West Wing was created from Sorkin attending a meeting with producer John Wells and having nothing prepared...he pitched left over ideas from American President (which started as a 385 page screenplay)
• dated Kristin Chenoweth, and then based Sarah Paulson's character in Studio 60 on her; Matthew Albie (Perry) seems to be based on Sorkin, leaving Bradley Whitford's character (Danny Tripp) to be based on Thomas Schlamme
• wrote a Few Good Men on napkins while bartending at a Broadway theater
• his classic rapid fire dialogue is one that he writes alone (see Matt Albie from Studio 60), and is classically partnered with Schlamme's "walk and talk" technique of shooting TV shows
• Sorkin wrote the first 4 seasons (87 episodes) of the West Wing practically alone, which led them to "be on time and on budget...never."  Then after 4 seasons he and Schlamme left the show because of a conflicts with Warner Bros (not NBC) leaving John Wells to be the showrunner.

A Few Good Men

The American President

Sports Night

West Wing

Studio 60

Perry as Albie & Paulson as Hayes play the fictional embodiment of Sorkin & Chenoweth

TV takes a turn...

Netflix announced last week that they would be producing the first show "made for connected television long form series."  Translation:  Netflix is making a TV show that will air only on their site.  What is it?  Are you ready?   House of Cards directed by David Fincher (Social Network and upcoming Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) and starring Kevin Spacey.

There will be at least 26 episodes, and is based on a BBC miniseries of the same name. 

This is undoubtedly a blow to television networks...how will they survive if this is a move towards the future of "tv shows"?  Will they now be "internet shows"?  "connected series?"  "streaming series?"

In other TV news:  Time Warner is set to launch an app for the ipad that will stream 32 different channels.  If this keeps up, will we need anything but an internet connection?

a Day in the Life of Nonagenarian

I recently spent a couple nights with my grandparents in the middle of nowhere Louisiana (actually its becoming less "nowhere" with the rise of filmmaking in the neighboring town of Shreveport) -- but the pair of them put together are 186 years old, which leaves for some bizarre daily activities.  

If you ever find yourself spending more than a few hours with the elderly, here's what you can expect:

Naps (and lots of 'em):  my Pop Pop sleeps alot more than my Grandma.  His usual nap routine is to sleep til 9 or so, get up and have breakfast (and handfuls of pills) and then go back to sleep at 10:30am and wake up for lunch around 11:30....then he can stay up til 8 or 9pm if he is feeling good....or slip another nap in the middle.  He's crazy like that.

Yelling:  they can't hear real well, so be prepared to not only repeat yourself, but to continue saying the same thing 4 or 5 times, each time raising a few decibels until you end up yelling "the REMOTE!"  Sometimes they still won't hear you, "the boat? Why are we talking about boats?"

Old References:  I find myself getting caught up in outdated phrases/words.  My Grandma calls the toilet the "commode" and refers to lunch as "dinner" and dinner as "supper" (which if you look up the definition of dinner its the main meal of the day...and lunch is their largest meal).  Lastly, we will inevitably end up putting on an old Gunsmoke dvd, or the Dean Martin show...and get in long conversations about who we are seeing.  For example:  Burt Reynolds was a regular in the old western TV show Gunsmoke, and later Dinah Shore was on the Dean Martin show...and there was a conversation about how they used to date and did they ever get married?  Which is usually followed by "is she still alive?"  Most of the people they saw on these shows are no longer with us.

Dinah Shore

Burt is down front w/the cast of Gunsmoke

Eating:  meals will not only come at odd times (at one point we had a lunch of roasted pork, beans, and broccoli at 10:30am...meaning my Grandma had woke up at 6am to put in the roast.)  Lunch was usually at 11am and dinner closer to 4:30 than 5. 
Disclaimer:  this usually means that because there isn't much else to do after meals (as mentioned before, its difficult to have a conversation because of the misheard words and yelling) that you end up filling the time in between with snacks or naps. 

Lastly, the elderly often have dietary restrictions on salt or sugar or nuts -- and you have to watch them like a 7 year old child because they want to sneak in a bit of the forbidden fruit.  My Pop Pop has restrictions on all of those, so they have promptly become his favorite foods.  At each meal, he would try to sneak his fork into a jar of pickles (SALT) and fish out as many as possible before anyone noticed.  Then, if you moved the jar to the other end of the table he would wink at you and say "hey, what's in that jar you got over there?"  Cokes or sodas were another issue all together.  He is allowed to have them, but the carbonation causes such a reaction in him that he takes a small sip, then burps...then burps again...and again...causing anywhere from 3 to 7 burps/belches between every sip of soda.  Let's just say I had to leave the room.

Seeing your once lively Grandparents reach this age (and knowing your parents will one day be there too...and you for that matter) is sad.  It's depressing.  Growing old is not glamorous.  That said, luckily for mine, they are basically the same people they have always been.  Grandma is the caretaker and worrier (of everyone) and Pop Pop is the inappropriate loud mouth, lovable grump.  I take comfort in that. 

Mmmm...cheeeeese.

Perhaps it isn't a popular topic.  Some of you may still be in the "no carbs" phase of life, but get over it...that's sooo 5 years ago.  Cheese is glorious. Want to know why?  Because it can pretty much satisfy any and all cravings.

There is such a wide variety of cheese available that if you are craving sweet you can find some that quells that urge, or salty that works too...or spicy.  Or hard or soft.  You can put it on crackers or bread.  You can eat it with fruit or veggies.  You can bake it or fry it.  It can be manly in forms like my friend's Superbowl tradition:  Cheesy Meaty Meat Cheese Dip (did I get that right?)  Or it can be delicate and feminine like baked brie.  It is a magical "invention."  Or was it a discovery?  I mean we all know its just varying degrees of mold, right?

Here are the cheeses I love (and I know there are bigger cheese lovers out there...as I am not a fan of the stinky cheeses, ie the bleu family).  Feel free to add to the list, I know I'm leaving an immense amount off...

Warning:  this may make you hungry (Katherine, this means you)

Favorites from Abroad:
Burren Gold from Co. Clare Ireland.  If you happen to find yourself in Western Ireland -- search for the Gold.  You'll feel like you have found a lephrachan's treasure (as it is difficult to track down).  Its in the gouda family with a medium firmness, melts in your mouth, and amazing on cracker.




                                         Dragon's Breath from Nova Scotia:  Ok, I've already gone against my rules.  Its from the Bleu family.  Its the ONLY bleu cheese that I've EVER craved more of.  I love its little wax house, and its creamy texture.  From That Dutchmen's Farm who deliver to the US!

Haloumi:  I don't have a brand to recommend, and technically my first time eating it was at NYC's Cafe Mogador, but I fell farther in love with it in Doha, Qatar.  Its an incredible cheese. In fact, I will go as far to say its my favorite cheese -- like if feta and mozzarella had a baby.  Mogador serves it multiple ways, pan seared, with pita, but my favorite is for brunch...the Haloumi eggs.  An eggs benedict concoction except instead of an english muffin or crab cake as the base -- its tomato, then the firm yet still soft haloumi, and a poached egg on top.  Find it.  Devour it.  

Fresh Mozzarella.  I think in some ways this is both an overrated and underrated cheese.  How can it be both you ask?  Well overrated in that its the "go to" cheese.  Its not offensive.  Its easy.  Who doesn't like it?  In some ways its slightly bland (or can be)...and because EVERYONE makes it there is alot of bad mozzarella out there.  Underrated because of almost all the same reasons.  There are a ridiculous amount of amazing quality mozzarellas out there too, and apparently (according to Thomas Keller in his book Ad Hoc) you can make your own with cheese curds!    Its fantastic on a woodfired Italian pizza, or a simply prepared Caprese salad (with basil, tomato and olive oil).  I, at times (shamefully), eat it plain and can eat an immense amount of it in one sitting.

   Oh and I recently discovered mozzarella burrata as well (not to be confused with mozzarella bufala).  Burrata is mozzarella but filled with a ricotta type center, its softer...its different and I like it.

Drunken Goat: Discovered this baby at Whole Foods one Thanksgiving.  A few different companies make it, and I think from time to time its even called something different (like queso cabra al vino), but always recognizable by its dark purple rind (from the wine).  Its a medium firmness goat cheese, white, creamy, another great one on crackers or pita chips.  Its soaked in wine for 2-3 days which leaves behind a hint of the acidity.  Brings a whole new definition to wine and cheese.

Cheddar, duh.  They are doing such great things with cheddar these days.  From mild to sharp, yeah, but now they are adding beer!  Houston's very own DairyMaids make a cheese called Redneck Cheddar:  "Stuart Veldhuizen took his Texas Gold Cheddar and added Texas beer: St. Arnold's to be specific. The result is a subtle yeastiness which balances the cheddar tang. A drier-style of cheddar, it is rich in yellow color thanks to all the fresh green grasses the Veldhuizen cows eat."   Its a little harder than I usually like...but who isn't going to like a beer cheese?  (That didn't sound right...)

Havarti:  I can't remember when I first tried this one...probably New York.  I was completely in a cheese haze when I first moved to Manhattan.  Every little deli, or speciality grocery store has walls, refrigerated walls of course, lined with varietal cheeses.  This is a Dutch cheese that can be sliced, grilled, or melted (oh, does it melt perfectly).  It has a butteriness too it, and I think, is in the Swiss family (but not as intense as some Swiss' can be).  

I think I'll stop there for now...for fear of a never ending cheese list (I didn't even get into spreadable cheeses!)