sunday drive: fantasery

After managing to revive the Bulli from her Winter’s hibernation without much effort or hardship, we took her for a calisthenics drive through the woods and over the mountains to the fair city of Fulda. We had explored the historic part of town with its impressive abbey transformed into a basilica as a reliquary for the remains of Saint Boniface, apostle and patron of the Germans and founding archbishop of Mainz, which was constructed as a tribute to the original St. Peter’s in Rome (not the one today at the Vatican), and baroque adornments, so we also visited the abbot’s Propstei (Provostship) at Johannesberg.

The steeples and towers rising up from the start of the Hessen Alleenstraße (manicured, tree-lined lanes) was quite something but the complex of buildings, though well preserved with the chapel still there, was converted to more of a office-park, with an information-technology company and a realtor there. Next we stopped at the Schloss Fasanerie (DE)—as in pheasant-hunting, although I insisted on mispronouncing it “fantasery,” as in some place fantastic.

This was an absolutely massive but typical German weekend hunting retreat. The façade of the main building of the lodge was undergoing restoration but it was neat to be able to stroll down the long, continuous corridor through the endless scullery, lager, weems and stables. For its size, it seemed a model of efficiency and industry for entertaining, and I was impressed with the bath for the horses after a long day of pursuit.

jet jaguar

‘Bring back life form. Priority One. All other priorities rescinded.’ One of the very fine things that the democratization of the internet has spurred is that there is no limiting factor to subtlety in jokes and references. There is no pandering to mass appeal.  Only a few true fans need appreciate the allusion and there’s a venue and vehicle for insider merchandise, apparel and poster art especially. Threadless is a fantastic community of designers whose fashion is peer-reviewed and continuously revived by popular demand.

I was late discovering it, but Last Exit to Nowhere out of the UK specializes in the fictional corporate and souvenir merchandise mostly from classic sci-fi and horror films, producing memorabilia--though the source may not be initially apparent, that cannot be ignored even if one tries--as genius as vintage bowling league or obscure work shirts. The equally archetypal Mystery Science Theater 3000, I think, also operated on the principle that if one other viewer got the joke that was more than enough.

rehoboham, imperial, methuselah, mordechai, salmanazar, balthazar, melchior, nebuchadnezzar

By no means do I consider myself a connoisseur---though it is rather strange how most people over-estimate their abilities when it comes to common feats, like driving: most people estimate themselves as better than average, but are rather self-effacing when it comes to the usual or not-everyday sort of thing, like juggling, where even a mediocre or self-described bad juggler is better than most--but wine is a little vacation for the palate.  We have a lot of fun trying new vintages, and I have acquired some favoured varieties: Spanish Tempranillo, South African Pinotage, Austrian Blauer Zweigelt, French Muscat and a lot of regional rich destinations.  Though maybe my standards and discrimination are somewhat compromised, I find it a challenge not to find a bad, cheap wine but to find a decent one priced above that catagory.
Recently our neighbour clued us in on a trade secret, mentioning that a discount supermarket chain (this store is inconvenient and across town) carries an astonishingly and incongruously good selection of wines at a low price.  I wonder what buyer they have in retainer to orchestrate this coup.  Not ascribing to the by-laws of the Institute of Wine Drinkery, they carry a consistent selection of award-winning wines, the sort that let someone with not so refined taste get a fleeting taste of what's meant by all the protocols (burgundy and white wine glasses, letting it breath, temperature), acolades and descriptors.  The title, by the way, refers to overs-sized measures of wine, bottles with a volume of 4,5 litres on up.

bulli for you

After the successful launch of the reinvented Beetle (albeit more than a decade earlier but Fahrvergnügen takes time), Volkswagen has decided to reintroduce its Microbus, the Bulli, to new generation of drivers and nostalgic adventurers.

The design looks very flashy and I am sure a good work of engineering--however, I think this new model is no comparison with our classic: where is the VIP lounge, the little kitchen with cook top, refrigerator and sink? I am sure everything is sleek, clever and modular--but where is the place to sleep and stretch out? I don't think camping could be as much fun and would be more like just parking, adverse to getting this car too dirty. Also, there is the matter of all those dials and electronics and I am sure that this modern car couldn't be overhauled on the side of the Autobahn with a hammer, spanner and syringe, like our 1984 version, and without computerized diagnostic equipment. Plus, the face and eyes on the new model are a bit harsh and severe, more like a Decepticon's rather than your friendly neighbourhood Autobot's.

Still, I think this is a good thing to promote exploration and freedom and maybe recapture something genuine from that time. Personally, I can't wait for the Spring, when we can tinker with ours and take it out on the road again.

verbraucherschutz

 Everyone is a comedian. I am not sure if the authorities at the US Consumer Products Safety Commission are as well or if I just have an imaginative departure from the agreed-upon standard grasp of the language. We are kept too safe, I think, and who couldn't foresee some risk inherent in a Johnny-Jump-Up or a bucket seat to take one's baby for a run, but I think reading the bullet-briefs without going into the explanation is much more scary and treacherous.

Just after Christmas there was a recall notice on certain mittens due to strangulation hazard (that's a popular theme) and I envisioned some demonic possession that caused the wearer to channel some murderous spirit, but it turned out the seasonal appliqué work could come loose and someone might choke on them.

Caveat emptor--who would have thought that Tommy Bahama travel candles are a safe and viable product? Their advocacy, especially revealing hidden dangers and shoddy workmanship, is a welcome and necessary thing, even though many warning should come as little surprise.  Maybe the Consumer Safety Commission should have tried an iconic mascot. Most people that grew up with such characters as Woodsy Owl and Smokey Bear--or even Mister ZIP and Reddy-Kilowatt--would be too embarrassed to make a foolish mistake in their presence. A safety mascot might have dissuaded some of these items ever being brought to store shelves to begin with, shoppers instilled with a little more common sense.

fusion cuisine

Having watched coverage of the Middle East protests continuously, my mother was curious about the mention of an Egyptian national dish: spaghetti-rice as it was called from time to time. I thought it was quite interesting to pick up some cultural tidbits on the side, especial considering the open pledge drive for pizzas for the workers’ sit-in in Wisconsin in the States. Benefactors from Egypt donated $1000 worth of it to feed the movement. After a little research, we found the simple dish was kushari and a real staple of day-to-day life. I experimented and improvised a bit. The presentation is aesthetically not too pleasing but it was easy to make and boasts a lot of potential.
The ingredients that I chose were based on cooking time (the particular kind of pasta and rice could be set to boil and be done in the same time) but I am sure a lot of other variations, depending also on what is at hand, would be equally as good.

1 cup (about 100 grams) of Basmati Rice
1 ⅓ cup Penne Pasta
1 cup diced tomatoes (I tried Rotel)
1 ⅓ cup lentil soup (drained)
Hot Madras Curry Power
Ground Cumin
Garlic (clove)
I started the rice first, which required about twelve minutes on low boil, but started the pasta, with a bit of salt and olive oil at the same time. Then, removing the extra liquid from the tomatoes and lentils—dried lentils surely would have been better but take an hour to prepare and the bits of onion and peppers in the soup gave the dish some added texture, and as I vegetarian, I was sure to get lentils without Bauchspeck (pork belly) which is a challenge to find but I am sure kushari is great with lamb or chicken (schawarma it’s called, like Döner meat) as well—I added the spices, generously, and chopped garlic with the mix in a sauce pan, letting that simmer throughout. Everything was pretty much ready at once. Gently, I mixed together the rice and the pasta and then smothered it with the tomato and lentil sauce. It turned out to be really delicious, and I think it might come out better with the crunch of some caramelized onions or those crunchy, French-fried onions that have their only foothold in green-bean casserole, and also topped with garbanzo beans (chickpeas). One is meant I think, however, to go with whichever of the stock items one has in his pantry. This was a good meal for two, and though so much of my cooking is a one-off affair, I think I might try making this again.

vexillology

Since following closely the uprising in the Middle East, I have come to fondly identify our big mood lamp in the living room--"horned," originally, but now decidedly crescent, especially when viewed from outside on the balcony--as a sign of solidarity with the protesters, a sort of Bat-Signal, beacon, that this will ultimately turn out for the best for everyone. 

There seems to be genuine progress, condemnation and empathy in a united front however much that may be wanting to stave off interference and the potential to meddle and vouchsafing the people's security, safety and precariously delicate revolution.  It is more than a talent of statecraft to strike the right accord between talk and action, especially when the revolt itself was in part made possible by the byways and transparency of communication that make it more and more difficult to make one's self-interest and motives diffuse and deniable. 

Some governments have not yet invented (or forgot) the vocabulary to express honest and undisguised intentions, and such intrusion might be checked within a larger framework.  It is difficult to say what the international community could or should do, beyond being receptive to developments, not unfairly burdening the people's business of change with future projections and fears--the cost of oil and the flood of refugees--and applying the lessons that these cautionary leaders have been teaching all along. Incidentally, notice how one of the banners of the Franconia region of Germany, of which there are many standards of state, has a strong, inverted likeness with the flag of Bahrain.

fáil whale or pot-of-gold

Ireland's incumbent government was brutally routed as retribution for gross dereliction when it came to the custody of the country's wealth. Mismanagement and buying into flimsy schemes excited the ousting of the outgoing Fianna Fáil coalition, and though, no doubt, the people should be held to account whose conduct has lead Ireland's betrothal to years of indebtedness, the elections seem one on hand symbolic and moot. Saddled with this financial crisis, the incoming government has very little latitude in determining any significant changes to welfare or austerity, since all future funding has already been allocated--spent--to pay off IMF loans with money tight and choices narrowed. Many other places facing similar situations fear population and talent drains as people move with the fleeing job opportunities and spiraling revenues. Huge swaths of land stood nearly deserted already on our visits, with little going expect for the holidaymakers, but what may not have been visible or appreciable to us was I am sure a lot of individuals getting creative and inventive. Governments may never be luminaries at stretching the household budget, and some ministers, fearing saturation and stagnation, can only hope to repackage, refinance, or hope that extra-terrestrials will infuse the market with fresh buying-power.

One nation in the same predicament as Ireland, having already dumped its lax leadership and dealing summarily with withering investment and hardships to come, is Iceland.

The bit of genius they are testing, albeit ambitious and grandiose, is a proposal to channel geothermal energy from volcanic fonts in Iceland via cable to Scotland or Ireland and onto Europe. Considering how Iceland's exposure only shifted from news of the country's financial melt-down to how Eyjafjallajökull (Kajagoogoo) grounded air travel, that is a good stroke that people may soon be associating the country with plentiful, clean and cheap energy. There's a bit of wildness in laying a two thousand kilometer power line under the Atlantic, but the project's scale and goal is little different from the Suez or Panama Canals.