Watching shadows change across the valley floor as the sun rises.
Sunday, October 25th, 2009
November 7, 2009
Mystery Weather
Pre and post Halloween or Samhain always seems to be a settling in time with longer nights that are highlighted by the music of leaves dancing across the roads and laughter indoors where it’s warm and things that go bump in the night are selectively welcomed in. Usually it’s via annual viewings of Charlie Brown and Garfield specials (candy, candy, candy, candy…), a fun movie romp or maybe something more psychologically scary, and of course books of a certain genre that can run the spectrum from charming to nightmare rewarding. I lean towards historical, cozy, and British mysteries. Also childhood sleuth series. You’re never too old to enjoy red leather bound books inherited from your grandfather’s library when you were ten. Or randomly coming across more in a beloved series and then some at completely random used book stores. The bulk of Lucy Maud Montgomery’s novels were bought in this way. A couple of weeks ago while traveling it took Resolve to not to leave here in Mariposa, California with an armload of used treasures. Damn baggage limits!
Recently I came upon this Mystery intro and it was like entering a time warp to the mid eighties on Thursday nights. I associate that night with PBS Mystery, As Time Goes By, Keeping Up Appearances, and my mom. I grew up in a home without cable so PBS was never buried among 125 flashy channels of… crap. Edward Gorey is why I’m very fond of pen and ink drawings no matter how macabre. There are a few Gorey inspired intros but that’s the favourite. It’s disturbingly amusing, especially with the two legs slipping into the pond at the end. Love it. And St. Louis native, Vincent Price, always had that intrigue of wicked eyebrows and a magnetic voice that draws the viewer in whether he was himself or a sinister character.
As a bonus to this post I’m including Mystery Wallpaper gleaned from an old computer before an upgrade. The past month my computer has been creaking and eerie footstep falling with every move in this almost forgotten, favourite theme. This is 400 x 300 but I’ve a 800 x 600 plus the full deal for sharing if anyone comes across this in search. The wallpaper is almost impossible to find, let alone the full theme. It’s a definite keeper.
Source: Microsoft Windows ‘98
October 1, 2009
5 Things
1) No more hiding inside where the air conditioner is and pretending it’s not 33C/92F outside, at 9am. You know who you are. 
Time for a trek and to rejoice! Sweater worthy Autumn has not only officially arrived but also arguably the best month of the year, October.
2) Flip Mino in High Definition at a decent price. The anticipation of fall field trips and touring just jumped 1000%!
3) Pumpkin everything. Carving, candles, pie, lattes, ravioli, soup, cookies, scented oils, seeds! Especially toasted pumpkin seeds.
4) The arts. Local workshop theatres and coffee houses are cozy and very welcoming right now with the influx of energetic university population. And poetry feels… right at the moment either reading while tucked under a soft blanket or milling around in thought during long walks among golden leaves. Also re watching Dead Poets Society is in the queue, the scenes of New England autumn are gorgeous.
5) The moon, bonfires, and hot drinks. Life is good in these small, treasured moments.
By an Autumn Fire by Lucy Maud Montgomery
Now at our casement the wind is shrilling,
Poignant and keen
And all the great boughs of the pines between
It is harping a lone and hungering strain
To the eldritch weeping of the rain;
And then to the wild, wet valley flying
It is seeking, sighing,
Something lost in the summer olden.
When night was silver and day was golden;
But out on the shore the waves are moaning
With ancient and never fulfilled desire,
And the spirits of all the empty spaces,
Of all the dark and haunted places,
With the rain and the wind on their death-white faces,
Come to the lure of our leaping fire.
But we bar them out with this rose-red splendor
From our blithe domain,
And drown the whimper of wind and rain
With undaunted laughter, echoing long,
Cheery old tale and gay old song;
Ours is the joyance of ripe fruition,
Attained ambition.
Ours is the treasure of tested loving,
Friendship that needs no further proving;
No more of springtime hopes, sweet and uncertain,
Here we have largess of summer in fee
Pile high the logs till the flame be leaping,
At bay the chill of the autumn keeping,
While pilgrim-wise, we may go a-reaping
In the fairest meadow of memory!
September 19, 2009
British TV: Jam and Jerusalem
I really love British telly so no doubt this will be the first of many mentions of admired shows from across the pond.
Jam & Jerusalem is also known as Clatterford. I don’t get the marketing and interchangeable titles but no bother when it’s coming from the pen of Jennifer Saunders and Abigail Wilson! Jen Saunders as in Absolutely Fabulous and French and Saunders. Yeah. Yeah! This isn’t AbFab or sketch comedy though, it’s a series akin to Dawn French’s Vicar of Dibley with focus on characters and storytelling in a rural setting. In Jam & Jerusalem Saunder’s plays a minor role and there are brief, disguised appearances from her AbFab partner in crime, Joanna Lumley. The ensemble is a collection of ladies with the lead being played wonderfully by Sue Johnston as the village nurse Sal. They start the series with Sal’s husband kicking off at work in the surgery aka doctors office and the ladies of the guild gather to support…and annoy her. I don’t know how they came to decide how many women they would write as being a part of Clatterford’s guild but gradually they take on individual characteristics. And some are unique straight off. Dawn French is memorably cast as sweet, cheese loving Rosie with her alter ego being Margaret, who’s a bit of a bully. What’s charming is that in Series 2 it shows clearly how much the majority of them just accept her and her split personalities and manage to successfully communicate with them both no matter what the situation is. Not in the woman’s group but always about is Sal’s daughter, Tash. She’s an aging free spirit, says ‘like’ every other sentence, and is the complete opposite of her dour brother James, who inherits his father’s practice.
This is a cuppa tea kind of show. It’s amusing with moments of humanity involving forgiveness, kindness, and sentiment about loss. When Tash marries Spike at the end of Series 2 Kate Rusby, who does the title song, performs with her band. Underneath the Stars especially stands out and sets the mood. It was such a pleasant surprise to come across this show and while it looks like it’s over after Series 3, one can hope that Saunders, French, Lumley and Co. will continue to entertain and bring us laughter well into the future.
September 17, 2009
Farewell Summer
Thank you for the ambient light during many long evenings of shared conversations while we sat and gently swayed on the yard swing.
September 3, 2009
3 Awesome Things
August 27, 2009
Bean Burrito Casserole
Can be made ahead and served the next day, which actually improves the tasty sauce.
Preheat oven to 175C/350F
6 Servings
12 flour tortillas
Sauce:
2 c. tomato sauce
3 c. water
¼ tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp. onion powder
3 Tbsp. chili powder
4 Tbsp. cornstarch
Filling:
2 c. pinto beans, drained and mashed (soaked overnight or canned if short on time)
2 c. cooked rice
2 c. of shredded cheese (sharp cheddar, Monterey jack, whatever appeals to your taste buds)
a few tablespoons of prepared sauce per burrito
Optional:
Sour cream
Green onions finely cut with kitchen shears
Cook rice first, set aside. In a large sauce pan, mix tomato sauce, water, garlic, onion, and chili powders together with a whisk. Simmer on low heat until warmed through. In a small bowl, whisk half a cup of warm sauce with the cornstarch until smooth, return to sauce pan and mix thoroughly. Stir frequently with a wooden spoon as the sauce cooks until small bubbles form on the edges and it begins to thicken. Remove from heat. Cover the bottom of a 10×15 inch rectangular, glass baking dish with sauce, reserving the rest. Assemble each burrito with mashed pinto beans, rice, shredded cheese, several tablespoons of sauce, and green onions. Place seam side down into the sauce on the bottom of the glass dish. Pour remaining sauce over the assembled burritos and if desired, add more cheese on top. Cover with aluminum foil and bake 30 minutes. Add sour cream and green onions after plating. Share and enjoy with sweet tea or margaritas.
August 24, 2009
EAC: Bride and Prejudice
Bride and Prejudice was next on my Everything Austen Challenge list to rewatch. The first time I hesitantly saw this was some time after it was released on dvd. It was kind of hard at first to get past the giggling fit brought on by Sayid from Lost, Naveen Andrews, busting out the MC Hammer moves but I ended up really liking it for the cinematography and notably Aishwarya Rai. She plays Lalita, the equivalent of Lizzie in Pride and Prejudice, while Martin Henderson fulfills the role as Darcy. This time around watching, I’ve decided Bride and Prejudice is a keeper worth owning. It’s amusing, creatively interpreted from Jane Austen’s original pen, and fun! The setting is modern day India and breaking into song should be expected during any given scene. Also note it’s in English with Punjabi being featured in several of the songs.
My review is a list of likes with the sole dislike sandwiched between the abundance of positive.
1. Pink, orange, white, lavender, gold, green, red, blue, teal…this is a feast for the eyes! Apparently no one sweats or gets dirty wearing these clothes either. Plus this film allows that people come in all shapes and sizes, always a bonus.
2. Kholi aka Mr. Collins is comic relief rather entirely repulsive. The closed captioning humorously states accurately (and several times!) “laughing like a braying donkey.” Interesting the very thing Lalita wrongly accuses Darcy and by association Balraj of, Kholi is actually and unapologetically there to do: Seek a traditional wife in India to take back to “Amrika.”
3. The family is cohesive and quirky, especially mom who is completely embarrassing and yet somehow loveable. There may be many complaints about their home and it may have a leaky roof but holy it’s huge by anyone’s standards and even has a courtyard!
Dislike: Darcy tells Lalita about his young sister Georgie and her pregnancy by Wickham but what happened is left hanging. Did she have it; was there a sad Peacock Spring type of resolution? The latter struck me when I remembered what I’d first seen Balraj/Naveen Andrews in, besides the obvious Lost on tv. This topic was simply brought up to illustrate Wickham’s character and then dropped entirely.
4. Really like sneezing being explained as someone is thinking of you. The scene between Lalita and Darcy on the plane is wonderful with no singing and no dancing, just intimate conversation. And there is kindness on his part giving her mom his first class seat.
5. The film doesn’t stay in one location. Besides starting and ending in India, they also stop over in London twice and go to the states where the equivalent of Pemberley is one of the huge hotels Darcy’s family owns and runs. The resolution in London the second time with the misleading two timer, Wickham, and the two sisters, Lalita & Lakhi, post brawl with Darcy is also perfection in this viewers opinion.
6. Music and dancing abound! Okay so this is Bollywood meets Hollywood and some of it is hokey but I also encourage watching the extras on the dvd. The director and the crew do a fantastic run through of the big number in the hall and down the stairs. The interview with Martin Henderson/Darcy also puts it into perspective somewhat with him describing his first experience seeing a Bollywood film while waiting for a bus: A confusing, six hour plus film with random dream sequences that make no sense to the storyline. Bride & Prejudice is much, much shorter…just to be clear…and these type of scenes include a full, robed chorus on the beach and Lalita & Darcy running through fountains to express feeling…rather than sense. 
It’s a musical after all, they’re allowed!
Check out Heather’s review here as well as the trailer here to give you a more complete feel for this gem of a film.
August 14, 2009
Miff-Muffered Weekend Moof
We’ve been drinking larger quantities of lemonade and amber iced tea as the mercury has been spiking. Perhaps it should be something stronger this weekend. Today I made the iciest lemon granita speckled with strawberries that became tasty little ice cubes when added during the last half hour of freezing. Rather than using an ice cream maker, I kept it simple: a shallow metal pan and a fork. The plan for tomorrow is to cook as little as possible by making panzanella without using the oven, nap with a feline who’s an expert on laziness regardless of what the weather is doing, and eventually emerge to watch Bride and Prejudice for the Everything Austen Challenge. There’s also the alarming, recent addiction to Home & Away to catch up on. Alarming because it started as passive, quasi watching because I follow the numerous actor alumni from McLeod’s Daughters, which I love, as they move on to other projects down under. Fie soap operas, even half hour Aussie ones! The views of Bondi Beach are beautiful though, especially at sun rise. I’ve a ridiculous weakness for traveling vicariously and watching shows for their locations.
There are also a few projects to work on, like researching places in the San Francisco area for a trip this Autumn. And possibly begin to sew from a recently acquired, huge $5 bargain bag containing remnants of Polartec 300 fabric. Who gets excited over a cheap bag of fleece? Me! And a few others I know. So many possibilities! There’s also a small pile of unread books on the bedside table patiently waiting attention: Breaking Dawn as well as two from the library, The Essential Tea Companion and the beach read Sandcastles. So much to enjoy, so little time to do so. Happy weekend to you, stay cool!
