Category: Ten on Tuesday

Earthquakes, hurricanes…Mother Nature sure has pitched a little East Coast fit in the last week, hasn’t she? While there’s no warning about an earthquake (although there IS a rather chatty post-earthquake Twitter feed to confirm that, in fact, one is not just a dizzy broad, but has felt the movement of the earth), the East Coast did have ample warning to prepare for Hurricane Irene.

We lost power for about a day, and I felt that we were pretty well prepared. Carole’s Ten on Tuesday prompt will help create a good archive of advice for future storms. Here are my Ten Ways to Prepare for a Big Storm:

1. Create an emergency box. I didn’t have one, but I will, just to make preparation easier. Mine will include: candles, matches, envelop of cash, batteries (change these out regularly so they actually work, ahem), and an old-fashioned corded phone. This site has a more extensive list.

2. Gas up the cars. Not only so they are ready to take you to an emergency evacuation point, but also so if you have to charge up devices, you have a little juice.

3. Charge up all devices. Throughout the day on Saturday, as my phone and iPad started to drain, I plugged them in and charged. It was nice to have a little bit of contact on Sunday via my phone’s 3G.

4. Get sensible food in the house. We made a pasta salad (N’s creation: pasta, sliced olives, diced onion, olive oil) that would hold up in a cooling fridge. While I mock the empty bread aisle, it is good to have some bread and peanut butter on hand. And, if you’ve read or seen The Road, you know that canned fruit is a thing of joy in troubled times. Just be sure to have a manual can opener. This is not a problem at Chez Golightly as I have never mastered the art of the electric can opener. Stop judging. You’ll be knocking at my door when the power is out next, now won’t you?!

5. Pre-pop some popcorn. Boy it would have been nice to have a bag of popcorn as a snack!

6. Plan coffee consumption. We had an epic fail on this front. Neal prepped Sunday’s coffee on Saturday; it was ready to plug in and brew on Sunday morning. Except, you know, for that lack of power. My pathetic “no power, send coffee” Facebook post garnered several suggestions:

• Use a French press to cold brew
• Get a Coleman stove
• Brew it on the grill
• Make it and pop it in a thermos until needed
• Keep a pitcher of coffee in the fridge

Ahhh, the beach! The crashing waves, the salty air, the cool sand: I can’t get enough. Good snacks are important, too, and Carole has asked for our Ten Best Beach Snacks.

1. Pretzels. I like the honey wheat twists; I can pretend they have some health benefit.

2. Celery. I chop it into pretzel stick lengths. It’s pretty refreshing!

3. Watermelon. Again, chopped up into bite-sized pieces, it tastes great in the heat.

4. Cheese sandwich. Maybe a little mustard, maybe not.

5. Tomatoes. I like a baggie filled with sweet 100s or other one-biters.

6. Canada mints. If you have mustard on that cheese sandwich, you’ll want to freshen up your mouth.

7. Frozen water. It will serve as an ice pack, and then the sun will warm it up, and you can drink it.

8. Italian ice. If there is a cute guy selling ice creams from a cooler all along your beach, you can’t go wrong with a cherry Italian ice!

9. Cheese and crackers. As the sun starts to wane, consider it cocktail hour. Don’t worry, the frozen water has been keeping the cheese cool.

10. Glass of Chardonnay. Neal said “beer” when I asked him what the best beach snack was. I confess: I have never had a beer on the beach. I’ve had plenty of glasses of vino, though only during that sun-starting-to-wane part of the day!

What are your favorite beach snacks?

Remember when the plants were all tiny? Before they busted out with produce?
This week’s list is Ten Things to do with an Overabundance of Produce. I did not plant a garden this year as we were supposed to be in full renovation mode (more on that another day), but I’m fortunate to know lots of good, productive gardeners.  Here are my ideas about dealing with a bountiful harvest.

Planning to use that harvest yourself? 

1. Make gazpacho. I use the linked recipe as a guideline. I’m trying to knock a few ell-bees off, so there is no way I’m adding all the oil Ina suggests; I just put a tiny drizzle in. Also, I use a low-sodium tomato juice and whatever veggies I have. As long as there are cukes and peppers, it tastes delicious.

2. Zucchini bread. Lots of zukes means lots of opportunities to try different recipes. The linked one is the one I will make today.  There are also zucchini brownie recipes that look good if you like chocolate.

3. Speedy tomato sauce. Sara taught me to make this. The recipe is super flexible. Rough chop some tomatoes (I like using Romas best, but any will do), put them in a blender and add a drizzle of olive oil, a handful of basil, garlic cloves to taste (I tend to go heavy on these), a dash of salt and pepper. Blend away, and pour over pasta. I add peppers that I’ve rough chopped when I have them.

4. Roast ’em. In the oven or on the grill, roasted veggies are so versatile. I like to eat them cold the next day!

5. Refrigerator pickles. Oh, so good!

Want to save it for later?

6.Blanch and freeze. One of these days, we’ll get a chest freezer in the basement. In the meantime, I load up the fridge’s freezer with fruits and veggies. I especially like having summer cherries (which I do not blanch) in February (clafoutis for Valentine’s day!).

7. Can. Do you read Amy’s blog? She is an inspiring food preserver! I most often refer to this book or this book to guide me in my canning efforts. While we don’t go through the jams and other foods I put up, we have willing families; I gave bags of preserved food as Christmas gifts last year, and the homemade catsup and peach butter were especially well received.

Going to share?

8.Donate to a food bank. In CT Foodshare will accept fresh fruits and vegetables. Be sure to check, as not all food banks are able to.

9. Post on your SnB group’s page (ours is on FaceBook now) what you have and see what your crafty pals would like to use. I give away lots of sage and mint this way!

10. Ring and run. I have a neighbor who is generous in sharing his bounty. Without him this year, I’d have to depend on the farm stands for my plethora of produce!

Carole asked for Ten Best Romantic Comedies. Here are some I enjoy:

1. Much Ado about Nothing. While it is not my favorite Shakespeare play, I count the film version among my favorites. The setting is about as romantic as it can be, and I love Kenneth Branagh as Benedick. Emma Thompson is magnificent as she laments “Oh, god, that I were a man. I would eat his heart in the marketplace.” That may not be the most romantic or most comedic line of the play, but it is one of the most passionate.

2. Breakfast at Tiffany’s. One could argue that it is not a comedy, but since it ends in the coming together of society (the way I was taught to define comedy in my Shakespeare studies), I count it. Audrey Hepburn is sublime.

3. Sabrina. The version with Audrey Hepburn, of course. “Yards of skirt, and way off the shoulders”…one of the prettiest dresses yet, and for the record, Humphrey Bogart’s character would have been my pick, too!

4. Roman Holiday. The two times I’ve been to Rome, I traced all the places Princess Anne visited. If only Joe Bradley had been giving me the tour.

5. The Wedding Singer. I just love when Robbie sees Julia practicing her introductions through the window. If only he knew she was in love with him!

6. When Harry Met Sally. Sure, it looks dated now, but the New Year’s Eve scene at the end? Timeless.

7. Emma. Ms. Austen knew how to write a good romance, and Douglas McGrath brought it to the screen with all charm intact.

8. Joe vs. the Volcano. One of my all-time favorites.

9. The Accidental Tourist. Muriel Pritchett is adorable.

10. Adam’s Rib. Kate Hepburn at her best!

There’s no shortage of great romantic comedies; these are the first ones to pop into my mind. What are some of your favorites?

When Carole told me this week’s ToT topic (Best Beach Tunes), I said I was going to fantasize that I had a convertible. Come along, then, in my cool topless car as we cruise to the beach. Here’s what is playing:

1. Barbara Ann. All Beach Boys music is good for the beach, but this song, named after my mom, is my fave.

2. Venus. Bananarama’s smash hit from the 80s sounds best at high volume.

3. Margaritaville. It’s not the beach without a little Jimmy Buffett

4. I Shot the Sheriff. Bob Marley is perfect for the beach.

5. My Favorite Things. Don’t you love a glass of cold wine and some Coltrane while the sun sets and the salt air tangles your hair?

6. Dream. Priscilla Ahn’s lovely voice suits a rainy beach day.

7. DaDoRunRun. Shaun Cassidy was my first crush, and if I’m riding along the beach in my convertible, I don’t think there is any reason not to continue the fantasy with his tune on the stereo!

8. Secret Agent Man. I love me some Dick Dale, but if I’m listening to surf guitar at the beach, it’s Johnny Rivers I want!

9. Minnie the Mermaid. One of the many musicians who used to couch surf at my apartment in Westchester used to sing this to me. I love it. Such a fun sing-along song, great for bonfires at the beach!

10. Brandy. My all-time favorite song is perfect for feeling a little melancholy at the beach.

What makes your list of beach songs?

Carole asked for Ten Awesome Things about the Harry Potter Books. I read them along with one of my nephews, and it has been a while, so forgive the many Awesome Things I might forget.

1. Kids read good writing. I’ve gotten less than 50 pages into a more recently popular series about shiny vampires, and the writing was so horrible that I could read no more. With so many well-written books for kids and young adults on the market, it is a shame to expose young people to bad writing. I would hate for any kid I know to think bad writing is acceptable.

2. Well-developed characters. The pleasure of a book series is that the author has the space to develop even the most minor of characters, populating the world she has created with fantastic, well-rounded, flawed, lovable (and  hatable) characters.

3. Platform for critical theory discussions. I teach critical theory to my freshmen. I have had colleagues raise eyebrows at this, but I believe it is vital for young people to learn that there are different ways of thinking and that those different ways of thinking have names. One of my classroom mantras is “if you can name it, you can tame it”. In other words, if I want to have the students consider structuralism, I use the Harry Potter novels as a springboard. Most of my students have read at least a few of the novels, and the patterns Rowling developed are fun to trace.

4. Clear roots. It doesn’t take much of a literary background to see that Rowling has paid tribute to the great fantasy works that came before her. I love the detective work of seeing where Tolkien’s stories are referenced, for example. Again, this is a wonderful teaching tool, but I also like it for the pure fun that my lit crit background has when reading the series.

5. Compelling story. There is not much better in life than a great story, one that makes the reader stay up all night just to see what happens!

6. Rich setting. With each book Rowling made Harry’s world more real. She’s a wizard at choosing vital details.

7. Strong, important messages. Years ago, one of my widower uncles married a woman I never met. She got my email (back when I was Lady MacBev on AOL!) and forwarded all sorts of nonsense to me. My usual habit was to delete without reading, but when I saw one email was a fundamentalist Christian rant about Harry Potter, well, my graduate degree in literature reared its pretty head (I think its head has lots of snakes on it. Don’t look directly at it!). I responded point by point to the accusations made in that email, sent it, and never had another email from her.  I tell this little story, not as a triumph of logic and reason, but rather to emphasize that the messages throughout the series are those that I, at least, want to hear, and if I had kids, that I would want them to hear: loyalty to friends; trying, even if one might fail; good struggling, but persisting, over evil. I won’t even start on what I admire about Rowling’s gender messages.

8. Magic! I just love a good story about magic. What fun!

9. Humor. Rowling writes with humor. As the books progress, the subject grows darker, but there is always relief that is not silly, but smart.

10. Contemporary classics. Really, people say a book or film is a classic all the time, but I believe those of us that have read these books really have had the pleasure of being among the first to read an enduring series, one that will be read for generations. That’s pretty awesome!

What do you think is Awesome about these books?

This week, Carole asked for our Ten Favorite Herbs. The timing couldn’t be better for this list. Next year, what was my little veggie garden:
is going to become an herb garden. It is not sunny enough for growing most veggies, and we’re taking over a big piece of what used to be the front yard for the veggies. This little garden will become my kitchen herb garden (by the way, this picture is circa 2008. It looks a bit different in there now!) Here are the herbs I am growing or plan to grow in the kitchen garden:

1. Lavender. I have six well-established plants now, and I want to add a few more. It has a beautiful fragrance, and I use the flowers in a few recipes, including my favorite cookies to make for picnics. It is great in the wool closet, too!

2. Sage. My sage plant surprises me with its gusto each year. I can’t give enough away, and I’ll probably start drying my own. I like to make raviolis with a browned butter and chopped sage sauce. Simple and tasty!

3. Chives. I like to snip these into salad or eggs.

4. Mint. I use the mint that has overgrown the area by our stoop all summer long. It’s a tricky plant in its love for reseeding and desire to take over the world, but I can’t get enough of it!

5. Rosemary. The herb that says “Albuquerque” to me! In the northeast, I’ve never successfully wintered over my rosemary, but I just replant it. I loved the way it was used as a decorative plant in New Mexico; at UNM, there were some HUGE bushes. When Neal and I created my back yard oasis at my condo in the North Valley, the only plant I knew I wanted was rosemary.

6. Basil. With fresh tomatoes and a bit of mozzarella, basil becomes the taste of summer for me. I love stepping out on the deck to pick a bunch to add to whatever I’m fixing for dinner.

7. Oregano. I most often use this dried, but I had a plant that did come back for a few years, and it tasted great fresh.

8. Horseradish. My dad grew this, and I’d like to plant some next year. I sure like its zing!

9. Lemon Balm. This tastes so good added to salad.

10. Bergamot. Neal grows this as a decorative plant (oh, how it draws the hummingbirds), and I just learned that Bee Balm is, in fact, the same as Bergamot.  I’ll be using it in the kitchen from now on!

One of the many advantages of growing my own herbs is that most of them make fantastic cut bouquets, too. I keep a big bundle of herbs in a mason jar on the kitchen counter and snip away when I am cooking.

What are your favorite herbs?

ETA: I got so excited to learn that bee balm = bergamot that I left off cilantro. Only after reading Carole’s list did I remember that I wanted to link to this NY Times article about why some people detest it! I, for the record, am in the can’t-get-enough-cilantro camp!

June is nearly over, which means July Fourth is nearly here.  Carole’s asked for Ten Favorite Things about this holiday, and I’m glad to oblige!

1. It is a good day to re-read the Declaration of Independence.

2. Picnics. A blanket (even if it is just in the back yard), good food, cold drinks, maybe a frisbee to toss around. Perfect way to wile the day away until it is time for…

(Picture by Smithsonian Institution)

3. Fireworks. Ooh-ing and ahh-ing at a color-filled sky is my idea of fun.

4. Watermelon. I can’t eat much (melon makes my throat scratchy), and it never tastes better than on July 4.

5. Flags. Our flag has a neat history, and I love seeing it flying proud.

6. Summer. While most consider Memorial Day the unofficial start of summer and Labor Day the unofficial end of summer, July Fourth is simply summer.

7. Music under the stars. The pops orchestras in many cities play along with the fireworks. I think it is super fun to listen to rousing music while watching fireworks.

8. Parades. I’m not a fan of parades normally, but last year we spent the holiday with my pal Dana’s family in Kansas, and one of the best parts was a sparkler parade around the pool. I’m hoping our young neighbors will have a patriotic bike parade like they did for Memorial Day.

9. Vacation. The July Fourth holiday makes it a good week to take vacation, and vacation is something to love, all right, especially if it includes a visit to a National Park.

10. Red, white, and blue abound.  I love seeing the color combo on everything, including cupcakes!

What are your favorite things about July Fourth? And for my non-U.S. readers, what do you do to celebrate your national holiday?

Carole asked for Ten Books I Would Recommend to a Friend. While I might not recommend all of the following to the same friend, I would recommend them all to friends

1.  The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse by Louise Erdrich.

2. Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky. (link to my review)

3. Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D. H. Lawrence. I didn’t care for Lawrence when I read him as a teen, but I devoured him when I re-read him in my 30s.

4. So Long, See You Tomorrow by William Maxwell. A practically perfect book.

5. Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer. This remains one of my all-time favorite novels for its humor and depth.

6. A Widow for One Year by John Irving. I credit this book for helping me to transform into a writer.

7. Saturday by Ian McEwan. I read this in a writing workshop years ago, and while I didn’t love it at the time, I haven’t forgotten it.

8. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath. (link to my review)

9. The Delicacy and Strength of Lace by Leslie Marmon Silko and James Wright. (link to my review)

10. The Road by Cormac McCarthy. I’m in the camp that finds this book uplifting. Not all do. Be warned.

I don’t review books as much on the blog as I used to, but I almost always rate what I’ve read at Goodreads.  Feel free to friend me there if you like! I’m always interested in seeing what others are reading.

Which leads to the obvious question: what book would you recommend to a friend?

As an adult, I can think of only a few times when I’ve had insomnia. Two incidents of chronic insomnia occurred during huge life changes.  Both cases lasted about a month; one was the result of a major relationship change, the other, a real estate transaction. In the first case, time started to heal me, and in the second, completion of the deal healed me.  Otherwise, I’m generally a good sleeper.  There are occasions, though, when I simply can’t fall asleep, and here are my Ten Ways to Beat Insomnia.

1. Count sheep. Really. I picture a meadow with a fence, and I have one fluffy sheep (oh, the wool!) jump over a fence. Then another. I think it bores me to sleep!

2. Read something dull.  This is not the time for a book like The Hunger Games!  Find a book that plods along. For me, most non-fiction fits the bill.

3. Drink warm milk. Some say it is purely psychological, but if you don’t mind the taste (I like it), then take the comfort. Just don’t make it a big glass!

4. Write. During my first bout with chronic insomnia, I did a lot of journal writing. I wrote until I felt spent, and sometimes that would enable me to drift off for an hour or so.

5. Clean. If you live with someone, don’t pull out the vacuum! Don’t wake up others, please!  I find that sorting a drawer or a bookshelf is just dull enough to make me drowsy.

6. Get out of bed. There’s nothing worse than staring at the clock, knowing you have to get up in only a few hours, and you’ve had NO SLEEP! Well, there are worse things, but it stinks! Sometimes it helps me to move to the living room or the cozy chair in my studio with a blanket and pillow.  No clock to mock me.

7. Make love. This doesn’t really work when a person has chronic insomnia due to a break up (I do not condone casual sex with strangers merely for sleeping purposes!), but if you’re in a relationship that is going well, maybe an orgasm or two will help you nod off to sleep.

8. Inhale lavender. Rub lavender oil on your pulse points or sprinkle it on your pillow and breathe it in. Maybe it is the scent, or maybe it is the deep breathing, but it works.

9. Work hard. Exercise, garden, clean.  Whatever working hard physically means to you, do it. Sometimes we just need to wear our bodies out, and our minds will follow.

10. Drink a small cup of Sleepytime Tea. This stuff knocks me out. Seriously! I can’t have a mug if I want to stay up. I’m out within the hour!

I hope you don’t have insomnia, but if you do, what are your tricks to get to sleep?

***

Guess what? There’s a new prompt up at Open Road Writing!