de re coquinaria

I was looking through a cookbook that we found the other day, one that reached all the way back to the kitchen and cuisine of 1898, and noticed that organizationally and instruction-wise, like other older volumes of recipes that we have, there’s a verse-like brevity to them, almost like a haiku and something self-contained, with mostly no measurements, cooking times and temperatures. If you have to ask, then you are obliviously are not a good homemaker and Hausfrau. There are some interesting basic meals and descriptions of sauces that would be interesting to try to recreate, and it was worth noting how one can rate the familiar and the exotic food of the time, given the attention to detail and exacting instructions for preparation: one dish that’s described as italienisch was steamed rice with green peas and was called “Risi-Pisi.” I cannot imagine a good bürgerlichen family of the turn of the century asking for such a thing by name from far away Italy.  It will be fun to experiment and see what other changes in tone and method come up.

happy fathers' day

Here is a candid gathering of famous and infamous dads. Don't forget to tell yours how special he is and Happy Fathers' Day!

panhandlers and paupers

I am not quite sure what to call the growing and morbid fascination with ruin and distress on exhibition, and thankfully no one has tried to apply the label of poverty porn universally because there are significant differences in degree and dialogue. Of course, things can slide into neglect and disrepair quickly and destitution can be an equalizing force, but it does not do to compare the Sword of Damocles hanging over Greece and Europe with the Rustbelt of the United States and explicit profiles of crumbling and de-peopled urban centres. Detroit is a pinup girl.

The so-called poster children of the eurozone, however, are not positioned to relinquish hope, sovereignty, identity or anything else and will continue to engage the union and their people in setting this framework.

The euro is not in danger because of debate or controls more stringent and exacting than were originally agreed to (though perhaps not abided by) but is rather reinforced by vocal and public investigation and scrutiny. Trying to force American-style solutions of throwing money at problems, hollowing out social support programs and allowing the banks and markets to dictate to government and the real economy is obliviously a threat, even though the crisis stems from a uniquely American export, greatly exacerbated by American-style over-exuberance and over-exposure. Budgets and expenditures, though crises can be enlightening for systemic problems, could have continued at a parallel pace if it was not for one costly mistake, and with attention and care can be realigned and made stronger. The peep-show comes in the form of rallies, strikes and street protests and threats to monuments, artefacts and infrastructure rather than the abject desolation, that many like to ogle over but that’s apparently all talked-out.

as seen on tv

From the creative franchise that offers the daily web comics Toothpaste for Dinner, Married to the Sea, and Natalie Dee, there is a new Sharing Machine blog, The Worst Things for Sale, that is an intelligent and funny commentary on culture through reviews of the craptabulous and derivative ways to part people from the money and good senses.  You should check out them all.