• 9.0 Crash

    This movie is a cartoon caricature of racism, and for the first 15 minutes I didn’t get it. Example after example of unresolved racist behavior had me squirming in my seat thinking “arty movie designed to make you uncomfortable”. But c’mon, this won an Academy Award, it...

  • 9.0 The Island

    9.0 The Island

    A visually delicious action movie with a surprisingly solid scifi storyline. I didn’t expect much and had to keep picking my jaw off the floor. NOTE: From here on out I’m trying to keep my reviews simple and spoiler-free. Even rating the movie invites the Heisenberg principle, and I...

  • [8.0] Mulholland Drive

    [8.0] Mulholland Drive

    Another full dose of trippy David Lynch atmosphere, alternating between anything-goes playfulness and suspense of an intensity limited only by your imagination. Don’t expect much traditional resolution, but if you like David Lynch, you’ll enjoy this...

  • 9.0 Zynga scrabble crack

    9.0 Zynga scrabble crack

    I swore I would never touch Zynga again after Mafia Wars took over my facebook life (and RL). But I have a soft spot for all perversions of Scrabble on my smart device, dating back ten years to pass-off games on my Zaurus (man I loved that thing, so far ahead it was like I was from anothet...

  • 9.5 Downton Abbey

    9.5 Downton Abbey

    has all of us just lit up with glee. Yet another cruel year of waiting for a TV show, hurry up Season...

  • 8.5 Burn After Reading

    8.5 Burn After Reading

    The Coen brothers keep kicking out the jams. This one was billed as a comedy, but it is painted so dark that you might feel guilty laughing. ...

  • 9.5 Cashback

    9.5 Cashback

    “Every minute counts.”  This film is “stop and smell the roses” taken to a literal level.  The characters are great – like in Extract, normal folks blown up just a little bit, each one given enough depth so you can warm up to them.  You’ll have to be able to...

  • 9.0 It Might Get Loud

    I did not know this before watching, but in addition to being both a musical legend and a genius, James Page is a real gent as well. And wouldn’t Sir Jimmy Page just sound really...

  • Apr
  • 08
  • 2013

Vegans on the loose

Vegans on the loose

Here’s the 17 pounds of food we ate tonight…

image

  • Dec
  • 11
  • 2010

Christmas requires cookies

Posted by m In Cooking, Daily Life | No Comments »
Christmas requires cookies

…and these Russian tea cakes are classic, yummmm…

  • Feb
  • 28
  • 2010

Larry shares Indian delights

The Gillespe’s had us over for dinner, Larry worked his many-spiced magic, mmm. We watched “it’s complicated”, which was fun. But the food was the real entertainment…

  • Dec
  • 20
  • 2009

A Surprisingly Delicious Gingerbread House

Posted by m In Cooking, Daily Life | No Comments »

There’s not much left of it today…

  • Aug
  • 31
  • 2009

Andrea heads to the beach

Andrea packed her bags and headed to the beach with her book club buddies this weekend. The girls and I (and Grammy on occasion) had fun playing Age of Mythology, Tribes, soccer, wrestling, cooking cinnamon rolls, walking the dogs, getting takeout at the Gillespies (including Guitar Hero and Carcassonne games), going for pizza with the Prevosts… wow, we did a lot! :>

  • Aug
  • 16
  • 2009

Rei and Dad cook: Miso theme

Posted by m In Cooking, Daily Life | 5 Comments »

Today Reiley and I shopped (and shopped and shopped – took us three times to remember everything :>) and cooked a full-course meal, with the common ingredient being miso, a delicious bean paste popular in Asia.  The menu:

  • Aug
  • 16
  • 2009

Wren and Dad cook: Pepper theme

Posted by m In Cooking, Daily Life | No Comments »

About two weeks ago, Wrenny and I prepped a full-course meal. The theme: peppers! We used green and red and orange across three recipes.  The menu:

  • Jul
  • 27
  • 2009

Seitan from scratch

Posted by m In Cooking | 4 Comments »

My favorite cookbook is called Friendly Foods, by the best vegan chef I know, Ron Picarski. I’ve sworn to cook everything in it before I die, but I’m not even halfway done. Ron turns non-vegetarian fare into “friendly” fare with style – his goal is not to imitate but to improve. One important ingredient he uses is called seitan, a great meat alternative made from the protein in flour. I’m currently obsessed with cooking, and because my zeal is an order of magnitude beyond reasonable, I attempted to make seitan from scratch.

Here’s the whole seitan production line.

  • Jul
  • 26
  • 2009

Crispy Okra Stir Fry

Posted by m In Cooking | No Comments »

With all my troubles recently, I’ve been doing a lot more fantasizing about eating than actually eating. Made for a perfect time to plan out some great meals! And now that I’m on the road to recovery (WELL on the way, actually – thanks friends for all the support!), I’ve had some time to put the plans into action!

I’ll try to start posting some of my more interesting recipes here, but a warning: I really don’t play by the measurement rules very well. I think every cook should feel free to play, that’s the whole fun! I’ll try to post pictures so you get the general idea.

This afternoon, our neighbor Shelley graced us with some fresh-from-the-garden okra, tomatoes, hot peppers and a 40-lb watermelon, and I jumped into action. Because, hey, free okra! (gratuitous obscure jack handy reference)

Here’s the recipe page!

Thanks Shelley! It’s good to have friends (or friends with friends) with gardens. :>