“You Are Not A Stranger Here”
You and all the inheritors of wealth who think life is a matter of perfected sentiment. You are wrong.
Adam Haslett’s first published book, You Are Not A Stranger Here was a both a finalist for the National Book Award in 2002 and the Pulitzer Prize in 2003. – a notable achievement that few writers attain. A collection of nine short stories, You Are Not A Stranger Here was written by a master storyteller who skillfully weaves psychosis, devotion, death, clairvoyance, neglect, suicide, abandonment, and homosexuality into the lives of his characters. Cleverly written, many of the stories contain a train wreck the reader rarely sees coming which is the beauty of Haslett’s writing – the element of surprise. Read more 
Nature’s Path Qi’a Superfood Breakfast Cereal
Nature’s Path Organic Qi’a Superfood Breakfast Cereal is more aptly known as Qi’a (pronounced Kee-ah), a trio of seeds and grains – chia, hemp, and buckwheat – full of plant-based protein, fiber, and Omega 3’s. Certified gluten-free with no added sugar or salt, Qi’a is also certified organic, non-GMO project verified, and vegan. Loaded with protein – 6 grams per 2 tablespoon serving – Qi’a also provides 4 grams of dietary fiber per serving with no added sodium. Read more
Charles Chocolates Bars
Charles Siegel is the creative genius behind San Francisco based Charles Chocolates, a company with a total passion for producing the finest confections. Established in 2004, Charles Chocolates makes a variety of sweets: truffles, cremes, nuts, pralines, caramels, orange twigs, gourmet S’mores, chocolate covered nuts, edible chocolate boxes (really!), and my favorite: the Charles Chocolate Bars. Made by hand in small batches using the finest ingredients – chocolate, organic herbs, fruits, organic cream and butter, and nuts – and traditional artisanal techniques, Charles Chocolate Bars are decadent, rich, and deeply satisfying. Read more
Millet: The Pearl of Ancient Grains
Millet – and specifically pearl millet – is a widely grown grass that gives off small grain seeds which are hulled and used as a cereal food. Creamy or yellow in color, round, and small, the tiny circular grains of millet hail from Asia where it has been cultivated for more than 10,000 years.
Able to grow quickly in dry, high temperatures, millet has until recently been used as an ingredient in bird seed in developed countries (but it’s really not for the birds as USAID recently – July, 2013 – awarded Kansas State University nearly $14 million dollars to research millet and sorghum). Millet is gluten-free and a complete protein, with 1/4 cup of dry millet providing 7 grams of protein, 7 grams of fiber, magnesium, calcium, B6, iron, folate, and zinc. Read more
“Night”
NIGHT. No one was praying for the night to pass quickly. The stars were but sparks of the immense conflagration that was consuming us. Were this conflagration to be extinguished one day, nothing would be left in the sky but extinct stars and unseeing eyes.
In May, 1944, 15-year old Elie Wiesel and his family – his mother, father and three sisters – were ordered from their home in Sighet, Transylvania (the central part of Romania) and transported to the Auschwitz concentration camp, and then to Buchenwald. Separated from his mother and sisters, Wiesel and his father managed to stay together for eight months, before his father died in January, 1945. Three months later in April, 1945 the camp was liberated and Elie Wiesel began the journey of “one who has emerged from the Kingdom of Night…” Read more
How ’bout a Date?
Several years ago while living in Switzerland, a friend gave my family a tray of dried fruits – figs, dates, and apricots – from the Middle-East where he often traveled. The jumbo sized dates formed my idea of what a date should be: sweet, moist, creamy and delicious. Unfortunately, the standard date available at grocery stores (and even Whole Foods) does not live up to the dates from lands far away, which led me to look for for a high quality date in the US. My search led me to a Indio, California which is about 23 miles southeast of Palm Springs, where Shields Date Garden is a major draw for locals and tourists alike. Read more
The Sili Squeeze
When Kristin Ahmer couldn’t find an easy way to feed her children pureed foods and smoothies, she decided to create her own patent-pending spill-proof design that keeps food in their mouths and not all over their clothes or surroundings. By combining the best attributes of a bottle and a disposable food pouch, Ahmer came up with the Sili Squeeze: a reusable pouch (made from 100% food grade silicone) that can be filled with purée, smoothies, and any ready-made snack like yogurt or applesauce. Read more
Dave’s Killer Bread: What the East Coast Needs
Every time I travel to the west coast, I make a point of buying Dave’s Killer Bread, painstakingly packing the loaves in my suitcase and bringing them back to the east coast to enjoy. Made in Milwaukie, Oregon, Dave’s Killer Bread is available in nearly 4,000 grocery stores in 17 western and central states (and Guam, if you can imagine)…but not on the east coast (hint, hint Dave…we want your bread on the east coast). Read more
“Glow”
It is October 31. Halloween. I have long lost my love of masks and phantoms.
So says, 26-year old Amelia “Mia” J. McGee, a woman of Cherokee and Scotch-Irish descent, and a writer for the NAACP and WEB in Washington, DC who has returned to Hopewell County, Georgia to find her missing 11-year old daughter, E.F. “Ella” McGee. Three days prior a rock had been thrown through the McGee’s window with a note that said “The next one won’t be a rock.” Fearing for her daughter’s life, Mia put Ella on a bus to Georgia and arranges for her brother, Buddy to pick up the child at the bus station. But when Ella doesn’t make it, Mia decides to vacate her plans to march in the largest picket in Washington, D.C.’s history on October 31, 1941 and return to her childhood home to find the little girl she named after Elizabeth Freeman, “the great suffragist and speaker.” Read more
Quin Candy
Located in downtown Portland is Quin – a candy shoppe featuring handmade gumdrops, lollipops, caramels, sours, and marshmallows by the foot. Owner and chief candy maker, Jami Curl never outgrew her passion for sweets which drove her to use high quality locally sourced ingredients to create traditional types of candy without artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives. Made in small batches by hand, Quin relies on sugar, fruit purée, gelatin, butter, heavy cream, vanilla beans, natural flavors and extracts, lemon zest, and more to make a delicious modern interpretation of old world favorites:
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