Recalled Dog Food

Yikes! In an article titled, “Rat Poison Found in Pet Food Linked to 14 Deaths” in today’s NYTimes, I discovered that the brand I have been feeding Giselle has been recalled. (Read the article here.) I did a little more research at the menufoods.com website (which has a complete list of recalled pet foods) and found to my relief that I have not purchased any of the contaminated wet food. I confirmed this with the feed store, who reported that even so, they have been instructed to put ALL Nutro wet food aside.

I guess it’s back to the Wellness food. Maybe Giselle was just too nervous when she first moved in to really give the stuff a chance.

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human domino

You know what it’s like turning thirty-nine? It’s like being a human domino – one by one, all the folks I thought of as being my age are turning forty this year. My fortieth birthday ever approaches.

reminds me of Holly Hunter in Broadcast News: She’s sobbing on the bed and William Hurt is trying to comfort her. She manages to choke out, “…and I ‘m turning forty!”

Hurt says, “When?”

Hunter breaks into sobs anew, “SOME DAY!”

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Fruitcake Anyone?

Yup. Made about fifteen pounds of homemade fruitcake today. That’s a pound of butter, a dozen eggs, three nutmegs grated, 3 teaspoons of cinnamon, 1 tablespoon salt, 5 cups flour, 4 cups sugar, 4 1/2 pounds candied fruit, 4 pounds golden raisins, and 4 quarts of shelled pecans, all cooked and stirred for about three hours. I posted the recipe back in  November here.

Did it all with Flavorgirl back-up. Maya, (Flavorgirl is her superheroine name), came over again this week for more cooking. She made more great enchiladas, but this time with green sauce and no beans. For about $25, we made three 9 1/2 x 11 casseroles worth of chicken enchiladas. This time I got a picture of one of the finished products.

And some pictures of the assembly. Here are Maya’s hands swiftly dipping the tortilla in the green sauce.

That green sauce is pureed cilantro, parsley, green onions, tomatillos, and, and… I can’t remember the rest. Maya promised to post the recipe at her site soon.

And voila! All ready for the oven or freezer.

Did I mention that we made a vat of corn chowder too? Nothing like a good afternoon of cooking and talking to set the brain straight.

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The Secret Ingredient is Beer

Maya and I had our third cooking whirlwind last week – so fun! Besides making the requisite Rice Nut Burgers, we (Maya) made two casseroles of Chicken and Black Bean Enchilades. They turned out very delicious by all accounts.

Maya cooked the black beans from scratch. She just put them in a pot with water and let them boil until they were soft. Me, I never make beans, so I was perhaps overly fascinated by the process.

The chicken was from “scratch” too. I had roasted a chicken (and fed 6 adults!) the previous night. I pulled the rest of the meat off, and May brought along several cooked chicken breasts (cooked in the solar oven). The beans and chicken got mixed together at some point.

To make the enchilada sauce, Maya pureed one large can of Muir Glen tomatoes with one jar of salsa in the blender. Then she added the mixture to a pan of sauteed onions. She also added one whole beer and some spices (cumin and cinnamon). Everything simmered slowly.

To make the enchilades, Maya covered the bottom of the casserole with the sauce. Then she wet a corn tortilla down in the sauce, put some stuff in, and rolled it up. Easy! (Especially when you’re just watching.)

Finally the whole thing was smothered in grated Jack cheese. Oh dear, I am making myself hungry. (Good thing I don’t write about sex too much ; )

And if I were any kind of food photographer at all I would have a gorgeous photo of the end result, but I don’t. In fact, I have a lot more respect for food photographers these days; all my photos of food look a little gross to me… But believe me, these enchilades are well worth making. And if you come and visit maybe I’ll make them for you.

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Corrina the photographer

Look at what a cute picture of my honey and his little sister!

at the beach, hopefully near where Bella and I will be moving this summer.

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Down to the wire

I am so close to finishing my thesis. Tomorrow night I meet my poet friend to edit the conclusion. To heighten the tension my printer is blown and I will have to print out my final draft someplace else. Argggh. And if you can believe it both my desk lamp and ceiling lamp went out today as well. (wait – I hope I am not having electrical problems…)

I am aiming to have it in the mail next Monday (that means to the printers before then).
Afterwards I can wedding plan and house shop to my heart’s content!

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Downloading Movies

This short article in the NYTimes today hits the nail on the head about the time and complications involved in downloading movies (even legally). Folk love the idea that downloading a movie is easy and fast – but even if every single thing falls in place (programs, internet connection, etc.) it takes my friend 1-2 hours for every DVD he backs up.

Another related article called, “The Shape of Cinema, Transformed at the Click of a Mouse,” can be found here.

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Spring Break plans

I’m just taking a little break from working through my thesis here and thinking about spring break. I will not be going to NYC, but to Laguna to see my honey and go house-shopping. (I also found out that the Matta-Clark show is coming to LA next.)

Since I will have Bella and Dawkins I will try and work in some fun too.

Friday: Leave for Laguna after school.

Saturday: Go house shopping with the real estate agent.

Sunday: House shopping.

Monday: House shopping.

Tuesday: House shopping.

Wednesday: Seaworld (remember – $55/day=a year-long pass)

Thursday: Hair cuts in Beverly Hills, art, dinner with friends (one who will have just turned forty).

Friday: Clothes shopping (Loehmann’s and a mall).

Saturday: Check out the LA transit system?? Explore downtown? See art? See the exhibition WACK! at MoCA?

Sunday: Drive home.

Is four days enough time to find a new home? Will the weather be nice enough to go to the beach?

and some things I want to fit in:

1. Check out Damien Hirst’s show at Gagosian Gallery (fits well with the Beverly Hills day.)

2. See Kathryn Andrews’ work in a group show at Jack Hanley Gallery in Chinatown.

3. See my cousins who will be in Newport for the week (from Berkeley).

4. See Kim Abeles’ two solo shows in Newport. See email flyer below.

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poochie clothes!

Corrina, thanks for sending the cute clothes for Giselle. Not sure Giselle would say thank you, but she’s putting up with us tolerably well.

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the conclusion

Just in case you’ve made it through the first two chapters and want to see how the thesis finishes, I’ve posted it here.

thesis conclusion

I have been basking in a flood of support from my friends helping me get through this last weekend of thesis edits. Thank you everybody!

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