Saturday Morning Walkers - April 6, 2008

Hi everyone!

Barb, Jan, Laila, Christie, Mary and I had a great walk this morning - Barb just continues to come up with creative walks on the first Saturday of every month when we always meet at Caffe Sole. It was warmer than any of us expected, so jackets were shed along the way. We did assign dates for the rest of April - Jan will lead on the 12th, Christie on the 19th and I will take the 26th.

Book Report:
I am reading the one of our Literary Sojourn books - Elizabeth Strout's collection of "narratives", Olive Kitteridge. I am not too far along but am already engaged with the characters which run through all of these separate narratives. Strout skillfully captures the personality of place and people. Once again our book group is looking forward to our "sojourn" to Steamboat Springs for this annual event. Check out this year's list of authors - www.literarysojourn.org

From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Thirteen linked tales from Strout (Abide with Me, etc.) present a heart-wrenching, penetrating portrait of ordinary coastal Mainers living lives of quiet grief intermingled with flashes of human connection. The opening Pharmacy focuses on terse, dry junior high-school teacher Olive Kitteridge and her gregarious pharmacist husband, Henry, both of whom have survived the loss of a psychologically damaged parent, and both of whom suffer painful attractions to co-workers. Their son, Christopher, takes center stage in A Little Burst, which describes his wedding in humorous, somewhat disturbing detail, and in Security, where Olive, in her 70s, visits Christopher and his family in New York. Strout's fiction showcases her ability to reveal through familiar details—the mother-of-the-groom's wedding dress, a grandmother's disapproving observations of how her grandchildren are raised—the seeds of tragedy. Themes of suicide, depression, bad communication, aging and love, run through these stories, none more vivid or touching than Incoming Tide, where Olive chats with former student Kevin Coulson as they watch waitress Patty Howe by the seashore, all three struggling with their own misgivings about life. Like this story, the collection is easy to read and impossible to forget. Its literary craft and emotional power will surprise readers unfamiliar with Strout.

DVD recommendations from Jan: by the way, all of these DVD's that Jan has recently seen are ones she borrows from the library.

Lust, Caution - a 2007 film by Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain) - "The new film from Ang Lee, the Academy Award-winning director of “Brokeback Mountain” and “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.” A startling erotic espionage thriller about the fate of an ordinary woman’s heart, it is based on the short story by revered Chinese author Eileen Chang, and stars Asian cinema icon Tony Leung opposite screen newcomer Tang Wei. Shanghai, 1942. The World War II Japanese occupation of this Chinese city continues in force. Mrs. Mak, a woman of sophistication and means, walks into a café, places a call, and then sits and waits. She remembers...how her story began several years earlier, in 1938 China. She is not in fact Mrs. Mak, but shy Wong Chia Chi (Tang Wei)."

Planet Earth - More than five years in the making, PLANET EARTH redefines blue-chip natural history filmmaking and continues the Discovery Channel mission to provide the highest quality programming in the world. The 11-part series will amaze viewers with never-before-seen animal behaviors, startling views of locations captured by cameras for the first time, and unprecedented high-definition production techniques. Award-winning actress and conservationist Sigourney Weaver is the series' narrator.

Website of the Week - Common Sense Media - http://www.commonsensemedia.org/ - "Common Sense Media is dedicated to improving the media and entertainment lives of kids and families.
We exist because media and entertainment profoundly impact the social, emotional, and physical development of our nation's children. As a non-partisan, not-for-profit organization, we provide trustworthy information and tools, as well as an independent forum, so that families can have a choice and a voice about the media they consume."


Podcast of the Week - Word for Word - http://wordforword.publicradio.org/ - "You've heard the sound bites. Word for Word gives you a chance to hear from the newsmakers at length. Each week we feature an interesting and timely speech on a hot topic in the news: from the war in Iraq to intelligence gathering, education reform to immigration. Word for Word strives for balance, featuring top policymakers, thinkers and opinion leaders from the left, right and center. We draw speeches from respected venues like the National Press Club, the Chautauqua Institution, the Aspen Institute and other prestigious institutions across the country. Host Melinda Penkava, a 15-year veteran of public radio, provides the crucial background information and context. Then we open up the microphone and give our influential speakers the time they need to make a nuanced argument."

Vocabulary Word of the Week - Plenary ( a term that is used for some programs at the CU Conference on World Affairs (starting on Monday, April 7)
plenary \PLEE-nuh-ree; PLEN-uh-ree\, adjective:
1. Full in all respects; complete; absolute; as, plenary authority.
2. Fully attended by all qualified members.

Judges like to quote a 1936 Supreme Court opinion that spoke of "the very delicate, plenary and exclusive power of the President as the sole organ of the Federal Government in the field of international relations."
-- "Like Interpreting the Dreams of Pharaoh", New York Times, November 6, 1988

Tito called a plenary session of the Central Committee.
-- Milovan Djilas, Fall of the New Class

Plenary comes from Late Latin plenarius, from Latin plenus, "full." It is related to plenty.

Cooking and Dining Report:
Saturday night, Jack and I checked out the Empire Lounge in Louisville. I did mention last week that Rita had been there and really enjoyed it. We loved it - such a great, casual atmosphere - very retro!
We shared the polenta crusted onion rings with chipotle dipping sauce and a caesar salad - both were terrific. Jack had Bucatini with a Veal, Pork and Lamb Ragu and I had the Short Ribs in a Red Wine Reduction with Grated Horseradish - mine was so flavorful! The dessert menu looked amazing but we restrained ourselves. They do have a Happy Hour which starts at 4 and the first Wednesday of every month, select bottles of wine are half-priced. It would be fun to check that out.

Tonight we had an "adult" version of chicken tenders - from Fine Cooking, Crisp and Spicy Chicken Tenders with Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce. A great casual Sunday night meal. I served them with raw carrots and sugar snap peas, along with an iceberg lettuce wedge salad. The dipping sauce served as the salad dressing. http://www.taunton.com/finecooking/recipes/crisp-buffalo-chicken-tenders-blue-cheese.aspx?LangType=1033&ac=fp

Well, that's it for this week. I do have some great looking recipes to try this week and will report on them next Sunday from Los Angeles. I'm heading out on Saturday the 12th and will be back on Sunday the 20th - a nice long visit with Jexy, Joe and Jacob. I will be bringing my computer and will able to stay in touch.

Have a great week!


Love,
Susan