5.14.2009

Back in the saddle again...

We finally have Internet at home, but I've had an impossible time getting back into the swing of blogging there. Especially when, as was the case last night, drinking wine and watching Zoolander with Adam sounded like a lot more fun!

Luckily (or unluckily, I suppose), there are neither movies nor wine available to me during my lunch break at work. So I'm here with an eclectic mix of links, both food- and children's literature-related:
  • Sarah Miller posted a series of publishing jokes involving screwing in lightbulbs. As I mentioned to some colleagues, I found the jokes hilarious, mostly because I found each of them to be based on truth.

  • The New York Times Dining section has an article on corporate America' adoption of the term "local". Which is a good sign in that it means "locavore" has become a widespread philosophy. But I take it as more of a bad sign: the marketing teams of these companies will no doubt mar and twist and spin the word "local" until it's nearly unrecognizable from its original meaning. And mainstream America will have no idea which end is up. Just like the word "organic".

  • Slow Food NYC is now working on its answer to Alice Waters' Edible Schoolyard: Harvest Time. I'm thrilled and will be reading their blog closely.

  • Yesterday was Queens Library's annual children's/YA "Literature Meeting" (here is a recap from last year's meeting ). This year we focused on audiobooks and had the folks from Listening Library talk to our librarians: Cheryl Herman, Dan Zitt, and Rebecca Waugh. They discussed audiobooks and literacy - Cheryl shared that a child can listen to a book two grade levels above where they can actually read. Rebecca discussed the acquisitions end, and I was surprised to learn that Listening Library records books that are "library exclusives," which tend to be the more literary or classic materials that don't do so well in the retail market. Dan, who is in charge of production, shared all kinds of wonderful stories about working with the actors. He talked about the celebrity (he wouldn't give names) who asked for a hot towel promptly at 2:00 p.m....and followed by a square of chocolate! He also talked about Broadway stars who love recording audiobooks because they get to play all the characters versus playing the same single character night after night. Overall, an informative and entertaining presentation!

  • I'm in the midst of reading Hungry Monkey: A Food-Loving Father's Quest to Raise an Adventurous Eater by Matthew Amster-Burton (HMH, May 2009). Thus far, I'm really enjoying it - I wish that it had been available when Bug was a baby! Even so, there is still information in the book that I'm finding helpful with my now-7-year-old. There are some very interesting recipes so far, like Yeasted Waffles, that I'll be trying real soon. Also, there appears to be a Hungry Monkey website, but my computer won't load it - maybe you'll have better luck. Gluten-Free Girl, who is a good friend of the author, reviews Hungry Monkey here. And someone mentioned in the comments on G-F Girl that the first 3 chapters of Hungry Monkey are available on Amster-Burton's website in PDF...so clearly other people have been able to access the website. Whether you have older children, babies, are pregnant...or even thinking of having children in the future...this is a recommended read.
And as a final note, my Facebook account has been repeatedly hacked by "nefarious villians," in the words of Maurie Manning. So please disregard any messages from me. It's only hackers wearing Laura masks, trying to trick you with poisoned apples.

Eat, drink, and fight the forces of darkness and evil!

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