Girlfriend Weekends
Every year or so, I leave my husband and daughter (and the animals) for a long weekend with a group of girlfriends from college. The planning of the event starts a year ahead of time with primary consideration given to our geographic locations (Washington, Virginia, Florida, New York, Connecticut, and Massachusetts) and the ease of travel to the destination chosen. We all enjoy the outdoors and are drawn to places that offer hiking, walking, and sunshine – the Adirondacks in upstate New York, Tucson, Arizona, Newport, Rhode Island, and most recently, Portland, Oregon. Read more 
Getting To Know Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon is famously known for bikes, breweries, and babes (not in that order) but after a recent visit, Portland seems to be about so much more including farmer’s markets, hazelnuts, apples, bakeries, books, and outdoor sports. A small city that people live and work in, Portland is not a landscape of skyscrapers but rather a city of interesting buildings, greenery, bridges, and roads that are easy to maneuver.
Explore the Farmer’s Market, take a bike tour, spend a few hours at the largest independent bookstore in the country (Powell’s), indulge in the many bakeries (20+), breweries (40+), chocolate shops (10+), restaurants (dozens), visit a museum (more than a dozen), and enjoy the parks and gardens. Read more
Muirhead Pecan Pumpkin Butter
Muirhead Pumpkin Butter is a delicious jam like spread that can be used on breads and cheeses or to make baked goods including a pumpkin pecan bread. Made by Muirhead Foods of Ringoes, New Jersey (about 20 miles north of Trenton), the pumpkin butter contains five ingredients: pumpkin, sugar, lemon juice, pecans, and spices. Despite the name “butter” in its name, there is no butter or even a trace of fat in this product which always surprises me because the taste is so rich. Read more
ROAD ID
One sunny day while walking my corgi, Daisy my friend, Nancy (whose corgi, Molly is Daisy’s BFF) told me I needed to get a ROAD ID bracelet like her husband, Lamar’s: a purple band that looked like a fashionable ID bracelet. For those who participate in outdoor sports and activities, the ROAD ID is an important accessory for both men, women and children because it speaks for the wearer in the event of an accident. Read more
“In One Person”
OH, THE WINDS OF change; they do not blow gently into the small towns of northern New England.
John Irving‘s newest novel In One Person is the fictional story of one man’s journey on a road less traveled. Written in the first person from the perspective of the main character – William (“Bill”) Francis Dean, Jr. – the story begins in late 2010. Bill is nearly 70 years old and looks back upon his life as a bisexual man trying to come to terms with who he is in a world reluctant to accept those that are different. Growing up in the 1950’s and early 1960’s in a small town in Vermont where conventional norms prevail, Bill struggles to understand his passions, his crushes, and his family. When he is introduced rather late – at age 13 – to literature by his newly acquired stepfather, Richard and the local town librarian, Miss Frost, he starts to better understand he is not alone. Read more
The Philly Soft Pretzel
In the culinary world, Philadelphia is known for the Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich (sliced beef and melted cheese on a soft Italian roll), Italian Ice (frozen flavored ice) and the Philly Soft Pretzel: a soft tan-colored pretzel that is usually connected to another pretzel in the baking process (to ensure the softness of the sides) . Believed to have been brought over by the Germans and re-created by the Pennsylvania Dutch, the Philly soft pretzel was popularized by the Italians in the south end of the city, where most of the pretzel bakeries are located. Made throughout the night and distributed early in the morning to street vendors, shops, and bakeries, the Philly soft pretzel is found on virtually every street corner in Philadelphia and in more recent years through on-line vendors. Read more
The Coconut Macaroon
Most people have strong feelings about coconut and for those who possess a deep passion for this tropical fruit, there is the coconut macaroon cookie. Different than a typical sugar or butter based cookie, the coconut macaroon is both crunchy (on the outside) and chewy (on the inside) with a moist creamy texture. Read more
How Luke Found Me
There are two things in this world that I have deep compassion for: children and animals. Both are vulnerable to the neglect and abuses the world hands out to them and require a lot of love and understanding. Three years ago, my daughter went to a summer camp outside Binghamton, New York but when I received a phone call from the nurse at the camp saying my daughter had the swine flu and was quite ill, I went to her. Upon learning she was being given cough medicine to help her sleep and suppress a cough (not a good medication to give an asthmatic) and that she was vomiting in her sleep without waking up, I packed up her things and decided to take her home to recuperate. Read more
“Mortality”
Christopher Hitchens was diagnosed with Stage 4 metastatic esophageal cancer in June of 2010 while on a book tour promoting his most recent memoir – Hitch 22 – (Hitch being his nickname). As Hitchens eloquently points out in one of his many essays on being a cancer patient, “there is no Stage 5” and so he set out to write as much as he could before he passed away. Read more
Pulled Pork For A Crowd
Processed and packaged foods are not often on my grocery list but every once in a while, I find a product worth buying and writing about. Williams-Sonoma, the kitchen supply/cooking/baking store sells a product under their label called Pulled Pork Starter that makes a saucy, slightly sweet and smokey southern style pulled pork that is always a hit with a big crowd – especially men (what is it about a pulled pork sandwich?).
A 26-ounce jar, Pulled Pork Starter’s ingredients include apple cider vinegar, water, brown sugar, spicy brown mustard, ketchup, tomato paste, natural hickory smoked flavor, organic black strap molasses, chicken demi-glace, chicken broth, black pepper, garlic powder, salt, crushed red pepper, and cayenne powder. Read more
Paddock Post 