Paris in Summertime

Sometimes you have to live a fantasy to enjoy what is real.  Spending seven days in Paris, alone, was my version of "Eat, Pray, Love".

Upon arrival I made my way to the 12th for a special tasting lunch prepared by Miss Lunch.  Nine of us gathered in her loft and enjoyed the 5 course menu.  Miss Lunch prepares a "Lunch in the Loft" and I highly recommend this unique experience in Paris, especially if you are a foodie.

Marche Aligre

The first course was a white gazpacho that was comprised of white grapes, almonds, and pine nuts. We enjoyed this cold soup surrounded by beautiful contemporary art with a glass of Prosecco.  The second course was a trout gelee that had finely diced cucumber, tomato coulis, and caviar.  The home-made gelee was veal-based, and its clarity was superb.

We ventured to the third course of home-made duck breast prosciutto (thinly-sliced and air dried duck breast) with white beans cooked with a bit of orange zest and onions.  The warm soft beans paired with the duck breast went perfectly.

Course number four was a ravioli stuffed with goat cheese and a melange of mushrooms.  It sat on top of a fresh tomato sauce that was both light and summer-perfect.

Finally, we concluded our lunch with a Belgian waffle in a perfect star shape, hand whipped fresh cream, but the absolute delight was homemade mint ice cream in a vanilla base with fresh mint leaves and a dusting of Szechuan peppercorns.  Your tongue would be numbed by the peppercorns and then cooled by the ice cream.

The meal was followed by a thorough discussion of each plate and she shared favorite products like Premiere Pression Provence a first pressing of olive oil that is divine.

A walk around the 12th to the Bastille followed lunch and it was a truly exceptional start to a wonderful week.

More Paris highlights to come, but the fantasy did not disappoint.

Go to Sleep You Little Baby

I sometimes wonder if the gut feeling you have about something that may manifest is more correct than not.  I really do feel that I have a good gut instinct and about right now I am viewing a made for TV movie in my head.

The dramatic moments of a lover's quarrel, a soap opera cat fight, or pent up rage has all the elements of pain and sorrow.  Something we work really hard to have less than more in our life, but a persistent cloud remains.  Take it in then breathe it out--ujjayi breathing for parents.  This breath helps build energy, while clearing toxins out of the body.  Sit with the pain; the sorrow; the anger; the sadness - but then let the damn thing go.

Repeated scripts of abuse and remorse were at one theoretical, not anecdotal.  Anticipatory loss were scenes from movies or in novels, not in our daily bread at the kitchen table.  But as the girl becomes a woman and the boy becomes a man the loss of the child is sometimes grieved by those who love them.  By no means am I comparing the physical loss of a child (a death, a gun shot, or a self-inflicted accident) to the loss of innocence.  But sometimes loss is loss.

My son has experienced loss from the time he entered the world.  It keeps rolling up onto him as both a gentle wave and a crashing surf.  He has found both salvation and preservation when there were no words available.  But I wonder if the rubber-band that holds it all together will snap?  And if it does . . . . what happens next?

May the love that he has found bring him peace and know that the love he is my ever-loving baby.

Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be.
Whisper words of wisdom, let it be.

Post #7c: Independence Day, Part III

Great Moments in Independence and
the Food that Goes Along
Part III

A note for this post.  There will be no mention of the tween.  This goes out to all those who have sought and found independence.  His independence will come soon enough . . .

July 4th - Independence Day
My father was born on July 4, 1930 and this year will turn 80.  As a child I truly believed that the fireworks I saw were in celebration of him.  Doesn't every spoiled, only-child think this of her daddy?  He has had his share of independence.  He left home as a young teen and ran across the country to attend high school in Los Angeles.  After the school discovered he had no parents or guardians, they sent him back to St. Paul.

He was forcibly made independent when my mother passed away 8 years ago this July 8th.  I called her mom, but after she died, he portrayed her as Mother Teresa. I am sure she could walk on water in his eyes.  This independence forced him to learn how to be on his own and to make his way through the rest of his life without her.  I honor his independence with his favorite dessert, banana cream pie.

Ingredients

Crust:
1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted

Filling:
1 (4 serving size) package vanilla pudding mix, prepared
3 medium bananas, sliced

To serve: Whipped cream or whipped topping

Directions

For the crust:
Mix all the ingredients well and press firmly into the bottom and sides of a 9-inch pie plate.
Chill 1 hour.

For the filling:
Prepare the pudding mix as directed on the package.

Pour the pudding over the bananas.
Refrigerate for 4 hours or more.
When ready to serve, top with whipped cream or whipped topping.
Serve chilled.

Enjoy your independence day and remember that the concept of "independence" can be seen through many lenses.  We do!