another delicious way to stop your heart

skillet mac & cheese. wow. i think i may have gained 3 lbs just looking at the recipe.
(via seriouseats.com and food52.com)
i'm pretty sure mine will include bacon.

the informant

i had high hopes for this movie. i really like soderbergh's movies (except the girlfriend experiment, which was total, total garbage). i had listened to an interview with MD and soderbergh on fresh air, and then i listened to this american life's episode they did years ago. turns out, this episode inspired the making of the film. it's a fascinating story of greed, conspiracy and total lunacy. however, the film, underscored by a twinkling marvin hamlisch soundtrack, tries to mix whimsy with a hard-cutting look at worldwide price-fixing. i find the whole tongue-in-cheek approach to be pretty annoying. it only became interesting toward the end, when we see the degree to which damon's character just spins out of control. but do yourself a favor. save the $12.50 (!) and download the podcast for free here.

peter coyote

maybe it's me, but i could listen to him read a phone book. and this show is his perfect medium.

senescence

def:
1. the state of being old : the process of becoming old
2. the growth phase in a plant or plant part (as a leaf) from full maturity to death

i kind of love this word. just read it today in the this article. i had to look it up. i have decided i will only use it in terms of its 2nd definition because it truly is STILL a growth phase. i really do believe the following is true (even if i don't like her sentence structure):
..."But most women, I think, end up taking these feelings in stride. Most women in their 40s, however conflicted, however sometimes confused, aren’t actually spiraling into self-doubting despair, but are actually working their way toward some greater degree of self-acceptance. Many experience — along with the shift in body mass that pulls things down and pushes them sideways — a kind of psychic shift that frees up some of the energy that once went into external appearances. Many come into their own, creatively, professionally. And in motherhood, in friendships, in romantic relationships."

it has been my experience that the older my women friends become, the more interesting and sexy they are. this, of course, could also be my reaction to my friend brian's bon mot, "well, you had a good run."

another common weight gain indicator

you own more black sweatpants than actual "pants".

another common economic indicator

british version:

and the winner for grandparent of the year...

this is kind of great

www.grubhub.com
the height of laziness. now if i could only find someone to go downstairs and open the door for the deliveries, carry it up, open the bags, plate it and feed me, it would be perfect.

JCVD

this may just be one of my favorite films of the year so far. who knew VD was a great actor? he may be crazy as a loon, but he gives one of the most beautiful, hypnotic soliloquies that i have seen in a movie in a very long time. he's hilarious and he's heartbreaking. this guy can act. and he can still kick a ciggy out of some dude's mouth.

why i love the cod cont'd...

1. a 200 lb tuna caught by b. in the morning, then served sashimi style and also barbyqued steak style by dinner time. with plenty left over.
2. hootenannies.
3. chloe playing ukulele and singing cat stevens.
4. portuguese style chowder. (aka, butter and fish, including cod and pollock, which b. also caught)
5. a somewhat dramatic, but not threatening hurricane.
6. several found 1960's "pic" mosquito repellent coils.
7. newly discovered kettle pond.
8. another hobo dinner. just as good as last year.
9. new rafts that are kind of like a lazy boy. but in water. thanks stop n shop.
10. charisse. unbelievably great sausage.
11. an unruly, but totally entertaining squirrel.
12. cast iron skillets and pancakes. who knew?
13. beans is a water dog apparently.
14. the crazy, spooky, ghost-infested cottage that i will be seeing again next year. hopefully...

why i love the cod cont'd.

pick a coffee cup:


pick a book:


water the flowers:


pick a chair


head to the beach:


do some shellin' at low tide:


build a beach fire:


and the end:

closing time

while this has been the summer of cheever, it has also been the summer of biographies and memoirs. this was a gift from my dear v.
i've always enjoyed queenan's essays for their brutal and somewhat unreliable prose. but after finishing this book, i may not read anything by him again without a healthy dose of cynicism. while the writers of memoirs re: cruel and alcoholic parents have been part of my personal pantheon for years, i just can't admit queenan into this lauded circle. he writes much like a petulant child, angry at some points then whimsical at others. his vitriol for his parents (and deservedly so for his father) seems to wax nostalgic when it suits him. it also reads like several essays grouped together; he repeats stories, anecdotes and moments, sometimes living differently in another chapter.
his anger is palpable. and rightfully so. but i guess after reading this book, i was left thinking, why did you write this?

the cod

packing my bags...here i come!

the perfect steak

via Brooklyn Based. i've always had an issue with meats. cooking them, i mean. i do have my grandmother's awesome cast iron skillet and sometimes my steaks are perfection, other times it's like i've cooked my shoe. i thought these were some handy and straightforward tips from brooklyn's most famous butcher, tom mylan. i totally agree about the fat. i would put butter on butter:


Butcher Tom Mylan completed his long tenure at Marlow & Daughters/Sons/Diner this Saturday. He’s on to the next episode, but thanks to our special access (Tom and our Senior Editor, Annaliese Griffin, will marry this fall!), you’ll find his meat wisdom here at Brooklyn Based in our occasional new series, Ask the Butcher. Email us with questions for future columns.

Dear Tom,
I love steak, but I never seem to cook it as competently as they do in a restaurant. My current method involves searing it on both sides and then putting it in the oven for about five minutes. The problem is in the searing. I can never get it crispy (is that even the right word?) on the outside, while keeping it nice and bloody in the middle. I can’t even get the crispy outside when I cook it that way thoroughly. Can you please describe the right way to cook a nice piece of steak rare? Also, what cut should I be buying?–Judy M.

Judy, it’s complicated. Variables like: how thick your steak is, what kind of pan you use and even how good (or bad) your stove are end up huge factors in cooking a delicious steak at home. That said, I’ll make as simple as possible for you:

Step one: Buy good meat. Pay a little more and get properly raised and well hung (dry aged) beef from mature animals (over 25 months old). The cut is not as important as the quality of the meat but you can tailor the cut to your desires. If you like more fat, buy a rib steak. If you like a lean and beefy cut, get a flat iron. Feeding a lot of people? Get a porterhouse.

Step two: Treat it right. When you get your steak home take it out of the package and let it be free. Salt and pepper it liberally and let it sit out for an hour or so before you think of cooking it. This will insure that the steak is warm and thus will cook evenly and not be overdone one the outside while staying cold in the middle. Last thing is to pat the steak with a paper towel to remove the moisture. A wet steak steams instead of fries when you put it in a pan. The number one key to a good crust on the outside is a dry steak.

Step three: Cooking, well done. Before you start, get your skillet very hot to help set up the beginnings of a sear. Cast iron works best for cheapest. Skip the raised grill pans unless it really important to you to get grill lines on your steaks, otherwise you’re just missing out on flavorful crust. Right before you throw your steak in the pan, toss in a few tablespoons each of butter and olive oil. This is a key to a pan steak on a New York City apartment oven: you don’t fry a steak you frrrry a steak. Using lots of cooking fat is key to that great crispy outside but without it seeming dry and weird. Fat tastes good. Use lots of fat. Lastly, you can skip the oven finish unless the steak is thicker than, say, 1 1/4 inches. Test for doneness by feel (Google it) or by sticking the steak with a paring knife and holding it to your bottom lip. If the knife is lukewarm pull the steak and let it rest for 5-10 minutes. The result (with a bit of practice) will be a perfectly cooked medium rare steak.

i think this is kind of cool...

i wish every town did this.
hat tip: wc. otherwise known as godihateyourband and rrthur?

WTF?

very funny and interesting bit. truly, truly incoherent.

here is a gem that is truly hilarious, via gawker.com:
"In the winter time it's the frozen road that is competing with the view of ice fogged frigid beauty, the cold though, doesn't it split the Cheechakos from the Sourdoughs?"

Gawker's critique: "It's like Peggy Noonan, Jack London, and William Faulkner wandered into the woods with three buttons of peyote and one typewriter, and only this speech emerged."

awkward teenage photo #1

suck it criss angel. that's david m.f. copperfield. and his popped collar. and a fern.

my new favorite summer cocktail

two parts cherry lemonade (recipe to follow)
one parts hendricks gin
one parts lemon/lime seltzer
over ice.
yum.


Cherry Lemonade

- makes 2 quarts of lemonade -
Ingredients

1 1/4 cups water
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 6 large lemons)
6 cups cold water
1/2 pound cherries, pitted and halved
Procedure

1. Bring 1 1/4 cups water to a boil in a small pan. Once boiling, turn off heat, and stir in sugar until dissolved.

2. Combine sugar mixture, lemon juice, and 6 cups cold water in a pitcher. Add cherries and let sit in refrigerator for a few hours, until chilled.

3. Stir and serve, scooping a few cherries into your drink after you pour.

fun ways to waste time

when the weather is not cooperating. some of my favorites are on the list. you decide. i especially love this one.

the memorial

i'm embarrassed to say that while i was in midtown i ducked into chevy's to watch the mj memorial service. it seemed kind of fitting to be in a grotesquely designed tourist trap to watch this spectacle. and what's not to love about a $16 dollar plate of nachos?

now, having been to my fair share of funerals (i have a well stocked closet full of black dresses), i would like to offer my critique of today's festivities.

things not to do at a funeral/memorial service:
1. you are not allowed to chew gum at your dad's funeral.
2. if you are the father of the deceased, you should take your damn hat off, asshole.
3. sunglasses are not acceptable inside darkly lit auditoriums.
4. don't fake cry. it's totally embarrassing. and you will go to hell.
5. you are not allowed to pose for pictures, red-carpet style, before the service.
6. you cannot make claims that are not true (see al sharpton's line about Live-Aid).
7. back up singers are not to be used as a substitute for the deceased's performance.
8. if you are going to go on stage and sing the lyrics to the deceased's songs, know the fucking words.