Headvoice

Farewell Julia

Last month Julia Child died, just before her 92nd birthday. She was a remarkable person in so many ways, and I was lucky enough to meet her a few times in the '80s.

She was so delightful to me—easily approachable and yet so venerable and wise. And, as someone who actually served her dinner once... I can confirm she was a great eater, eager to see any next course arriving at the table.

Looking back, her work really changed my life in many ways, and yet it came about quite simply. It was in Boston; I was simultaneously flunking out of Pharmacy studies and living with a new lover in the South End. Living in any city was new to me then, and Boston was just revealing it's onion layers of complexity at the same time I was really looking inward and discerning mine. It was good timing in the right city...

And there she was—on afternoon television, almost always at least showing twice a day and often restricted to glorious black and white, describing in detail how to make poached sole in white wine and mushrooms, or detailing the secrets for making homemade French bread and pastries.

I started with breads... especially interesting because most recipes used cheap and readily available ingredients.

And they worked! Ten months after my first loaf I was baking puff pastries and crusty round loaves of French bread, I found myself just getting started on a lifelong adventure.

North Korea

Boom Boom

Over the thick wall I understand we can see mysterious explosions... but details aren't readily available. What else does this country hide? Everything I read lately makes me more interested in North Korea...

This shot from last night's orange sunset is my shit-ass-4-megapizel-shizzel relatin' to the posting. African orange sunsets do it every time for me.

It might also ping to a work from Woody Allen's oeuvre here here... where the leader's nose even gets the special cloning treatment.