verbatim

Just Like the Before Times

You guys, I actually went somewhere! Read on...

After covid finally caught up with me and Andy at the end of January, we have started venturing out just a wee bit—first because we felt we had the protection of some built-in immunity from having had it, and then because we are trying to re-enter the world in some small ways. So we've been out to dinner a few times, and I went back to book group, and Andy rejoined his gym, and that sort of thing. I still wear a mask every time I'm in a store or other public place like that, but I'm starting to try to not be so uptight otherwise. I definitely do not want to get it again (I know people with long covid, and it's a nightmare), and I certainly don't want to pass it to my mother or in-laws (all in their 90s), but these baby steps are feeling OK for now.

Back in spring 2020, my beloved American Copy Editors Society conference was canceled due to lockdown. It was supposed to be in Salt Lake City. Then in 2021, it was canceled again, this time in Atlanta. In 2022, a slightly abridged version was held in San Antonio; I was definitely not ready to think about travel yet—and even if I was, I certainly wouldn't have chosen Texas. (Don't get me started.) So this year was scheduled to be in Columbus, Ohio, and I went! As did 800 other editors! And it was just as glorious as ever—possibly more so, since I had so sorely missed it. I masked as much as possible, but had already decided I would be going to restaurants with my pals. Within walking distance of our hotel was a really great food hall, with stalls featuring every kind of food you can imagine—tacos, gyros, ramen, pizza, etc.—and then communal eating areas, so we all pretty much went there for lunch every day. My favorite dinner was at The Pearl—how serendipitous that our checks were presented to us slipped into hardcover books! We also had fancy-shmancy cocktails one night at Mouton. I presented my workshop on recipe editing, and it was a big success—I had never had such a huge turnout, and it was really gratifying. I saw old friends and met new ones, and all in all had a splendid time. And guess what—no one got Covid, at least that I heard of! So that was very encouraging. For me and many of my friends, this was our first time away from home since the pandemic started. Next year it's in San Diego, and I can't wait! I'm going to try to convince Andy to tag along and maybe we can tack on a few days before/after and make a mini vacay out of it.

But that's not all! I'm planning to go away again in August, to Alexandria, VA, for the Editorial Freelancers Association conference. It will be beastly hot, but I'm really looking forward to it.

Oh wait, I forgot to say that the keynote speaker at the ACES banquet was Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Connie Schultz. She was fantastic! She talked mostly about her relationships with the editors at the various newspapers she's been at (including one editor who was present!) and at her book publisher. I really wish I had recorded it but I was too busy being spellbound. I knew Schultz had written a memoir about being on the campaign trail with her husband, Senator Sherrod Brown—with the great title ...and His Lovely Wife (she took time off from journalism so as not to create any kind of conflict of interest). But I didn't know she had also written a novel, called The Daughters of Erietown, which I read as soon as I got home. In her speech, she said that a lot of the book is autobiographical—for instance, she grew up in a small working-class town in Ohio and was the first person in her family to go to college. I really liked this book. One of the reviews at Amazon nails it: "While Schultz’s compelling narrative and realistic characters will keep readers turning pages into the night, her eye and ear for real-life details set this novel apart from other domestic sagas. Part tragic love story, part powerful testament to shifting cultural norms and the evolution of the women’s movement, The Daughters of Erietown is an impressive first novel with a big heart." 

Other than that, I've been a homebody. There was work being done on the house in Maine all winter, so we haven't been up there since last fall. We don't love the crowds in the summer, but we'll go up a few times and count down the days until fall, when we will again go up for 2 weeks and have the whole beach to ourselves. Hopefully I'll remember to stop in here a few times before then!

Two Decades

Whoops, I missed my own Blogiversary! Last week this blog turned 20 years old! It's no longer a teen (although I still feel like one sometimes...). As always, I want to thank those of you who still stop by to read what I've written, and to leave a comment (here or on Facebook or Twitter or by email or telegram...). I will keep posting here for as long as anyone shows up, and I do so appreciate those of you who've been here for 2 decades (!) or even 2 minutes.

While I'm here, I'll share a really delicious recipe from Food & Wine that I made a couple of weeks ago. It's not quite authentic paella (hence the quotation marks I added to the title!) since the rice does not get brown and crunchy on the bottom to form a yummy socarrat, but it's still excellent and well worth making. As usual, I forgot to take a photo, but there's a nice one at the link. Break out a nice bottle of red for this one.

Skillet Chicken and Chorizo "Paella"

½ teaspoon saffron threads
3¼ cups lower-sodium chicken broth (This is just a few tablespoons less than two 14.5-ounce cans), divided
1 tablespoon olive oil
6 ounces dry-cured Spanish chorizo (I loooooove Palacios brand), cut into ¼-inch-thick slices
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1½-inch pieces
1½ teaspoons kosher salt, divided
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
¾ cup chopped yellow onion
1 small red bell pepper, finely chopped
4 small garlic cloves, minced
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained (I don’t love chunks of tomato, so I used a can of crushed tomatoes, and it worked out fine.)
1½ cups uncooked short-grain white rice, such as bomba or arborio
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for garnish
Lemon wedges, for serving (I didn’t use these.)

Stir together the saffron and ¼ cup of the broth in a small bowl. Let stand at room temperature for at least 15 minutes or up to 1 hour.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chorizo and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chorizo to a plate lined with paper towels; reserve the drippings in the skillet. Add the chicken, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and the pepper to the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned (it won't be fully cooked), about 7 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken to the plate with the chorizo. Do not wipe the skillet clean.

Add the onion and bell pepper to the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and smoked paprika and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes and rice and cook, stirring constantly, until the tomato liquid is almost fully absorbed, about 2 minutes. Carefully stir in the saffron mixture, remaining 3 cups broth, and remaining ½ teaspoon salt and bring to a simmer.

Return the chorizo and chicken to the skillet and stir lightly to partially cover everything with rice/tomatoes, then sprinkle the peas on top but do not stir them in. Turn the heat down to medium-low and cook, without stirring at all but rotating the skillet occasionally to evenly distribute the heat, until the chicken and rice are tender and the liquid is almost fully absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat, cover (I used a baking sheet!), and let stand until the liquid is fully absorbed, about 5 minutes. Garnish with the parsley and serve with lemon wedges.

Aphantasia

About a month ago, a friend in my editors chat group mentioned that she had only just discovered that she has aphantasia, or the inability to visualize. She said that she was stunned to discover that her husband could close his eyes and picture something, like an apple, and actually see an apple in his mind. She could not actually see an apple; she could just imagine an apple. It had never occurred to her before, and she is in her 50s. Well, guess what, here I am at age 60 and at that moment I learned that I too have aphantasia. When I close my eyes, all I see is black. I can think of an apple and imagine that it is round and green and shiny and has a stem and all that, but I don't actually see it in my mind's eye. Apparently my mind doesn't even have an eye.

I immediately fired off a text to the family and everyone replied, "Yes, when I close my eyes, I can actually see an apple." 

Then a few days ago someone on my puzzle website happened to mention it and I said that I'd just found out I had it. She said she'd only found out recently, when someone else on that site talked about it. 

Today I mentioned it in another group chat I'm in and one of those members said she'd just found out a few years ago that she has it, and another person's partner has it.

And so on. So although the experts think that less than 5% of the world's population has aphantasia, I imagine it's a much higher number because there must be people who go through their whole lives and never learn that they have it, as I might easily have done.

I found a story from Time magazine last year; the author, Nayantara Dutta, says "I hold all the projector slides and have all the information, but can’t see the actual picture." That's about how it is for me: When someone tells me to close my eyes and picture a tiger's face or a pair of jeans or a maple leaf or a pencil, I do not see those things, but I somehow know that I'm imagining them. It's hard to describe the experience. And I just sort of assumed that's how it was for everyone. 

Some people who have aphantasia also have trouble with their memory, but I've always had an excellent memory—friends and family are forever saying, "Let's ask Karen—she remembers everything." I also learned that people with aphantasia tend to have a higher than average IQ, which I do have. I've seen elsewhere that there may be a link between aphantasia and autism, which I do not have. Some people with aphantasis are reportedly less affected by scary stories since they can't visualize them, but I definitely scare easy! So there's a whole lot they don't know. And apparently there are degrees of aphantasia; a quiz called the Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire (VVIQ) has you try to visualize various scenarios and rate them on a scale from 1 to 5:

1. No image at all, I only “know” I am thinking of the object
2. Dim and vague image
3. Moderately realistic and vivid
4. Realistic and reasonably vivid
5. Perfectly realistic, as vivid as real seeing

I didn't even bother finishing since I scored a "1" (or possibly a "2") on everything.

If you are interested, there's an informative and not-too-long article over at Scientific American about aphantasia, which had been described as early as 1880 but didn't really come to the attention of neurological researchers until 2003.

Do any of you have aphantasia, or maybe someone you know?

P.S. Update about an hour later: Animated conversations are going on over on Facebook and Twitter and via email and in private chat groups about this post! Quite a few people I know are discovering that they too have some degree of aphantasia. I'm starting to think that my atrocious sense of direction might be related...

Miscellany

Greetings, friends! A little this, a little that today.

After almost 3 years, covid finally caught up with me and Andy a few weeks ago. We have been among the most cautious people we know—since March 2020 we haven't eaten in a restaurant, gone to a movie or play or concert, gone to a gathering of any size (not even just another couple), flown, etc. Really! We avoid going anywhere indoors and wear masks when we have to (doctor's appointment, grocery store, bank, etc.). So we have no idea how we got it. Andy got it first, and we tried sort of half-assedly to quarantine/isolate, but I got it 3 days later. We both took Paxlovid and were negative within 5 days. Thankfully, neither of us had any respiratory issues, nor that brutal cough so many have had. But we still had completely different symptoms, which was strange since we clearly had caught the same strain. He had fatigue (still has it, in fact), fever, body aches, etc., and I ... well, let's just say that I had a very phlegmatic experience and became a devotee of Mucinex. Anyhow, I'm counting on having at least a few weeks of immunity and am meeting a friend for lunch inside an actual restaurant this week!

A dozen or so of my editorial pals have still managed to stay covid-free, as have my in-laws, which feels miraculous because they are not as cautious as my friends! I had been planning to be a medical mystery, that one person who never caught covid, but now that that's off the books, I hope it will be one of those folks.

While I was housebound, I read an absolutely lovely book called Still Life by Sarah Winman. It moves along at a leisurely pace, but I never once tapped my foot with impatience while waiting for something to happen. It gave me the same warm feels as A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles, which you know I adored. Winman writes beautifully and with great heart, and created characters that have stayed with me. The basic story line is a chance meeting in Italy during World War II between two Brits, a young soldier and a middle-aged art historian, and then goes on for decades as their lives move on and keep threatening to intersect again. We get to know all their friends and family, and it's a truly lovable, quirky bunch. The Washington Post says: "It’s that rare, affectionate novel that makes one feel grateful to have been carried along. Unfurling with no more hurry than a Saturday night among old friends, the story celebrates the myriad ways love is expressed and families are formed." Big thumbs up from me on this one!

While editing, I came across the phrase "ludic loop" and had to google it. Apparently it was first used to describe what happens when you play slot machines, but it can be applied to any similar activity where you just keep repeating the same thing for some reward, however tiny, that urges you to do it again, until you're sort of in a tranquil trance state. I imagine we've all done this with various games on our phones—"Oh, I'll just play one more time..." Most recently I discovered an app for a card game I learned about on TikTok last year called Idiot (aka Palace). You can play online here, but I downloaded the app (same website) to my phone and play, um, kind of a lot. During the day when I reach the end of a chapter I'm editing and want to take a little break from all the freaking words but still keep my brain in gear, I play a round. Or two. Or eight. You can play against the computer or against randos who happen to be online, which is fun. If you don't know how to play, the rules are at that website, and elsewhere all over the web (including YouTube, which I found helpful). It's a much better game to play in person and with more than two players, but we takes what we gets.

When I want to take a longer break, I am still doing my beloved nonograms. Recently I've started solving them without filling in any Xs, which is very tricky and extremely satisfying when I can finish—other times I get stuck and have to go back and add some Xs, and then the key magically appears and I do the forehead smack.

I'm still on Twitter and devote a few minutes every day to being pissed off at Elmo Sunk (anagram) for taking a perfectly good thing and ruining it just for his own ego. He doesn't seem to want it, certainly has no idea how to run it, and has driven away loads of users. I know people have had lots of problems with Twitter over the years, but I had curated a very pleasant experience, with a list of bright, interesting, warm, creative editors, journalists, Democrats, foodies, Bostonians, cat lovers, puzzlers, and other like-minded folks. Anyhow, as I said, I'm still there but am not holding my breath that it will last. I've also joined all the other likely suspects—Mastodon, CounterSocial, Post, Spoutible... (I'm "wisekaren" on all of them, although my main annoyance about Mastodon is that a username is not enough there; you need a server name—I'm here.) So far none of them really scratches that Twitter itch, but I'm feeling most optimistic about Spoutible. Stay tuned...

And finally, I have done very little cooking of late, but right before we got sick I made yet another terrific recipe from Budget Bytes—as usual, it was quick, easy, and tasty (nice photo at the link):

Cheesy Sausage Pasta

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
7 ounces smoked sausage, sliced into rounds (I used half a 13-ounce package of turkey kielbasa I had in the freezer.)
1 yellow onion, diced
1 (10-ounce) can Rotel diced tomatoes with green chiles (I got this, but you could certainly just use regular diced tomatoes.)
8 ounces penne or other short pasta shape (I used our fave, Barilla mezzi rigatoni.)
2 cups chicken broth
3 cups baby spinach
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 scallion, sliced

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook until well browned. If there is excess fat in the skillet, drain it off before moving on to the next step. (I didn’t need to do this, but you might if you use pork sausage.)

Add the onion and sauté until softened, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet.

Add the tomatoes with their juices, uncooked pasta, and chicken broth and stir until combined. The pasta may not be fully submerged, but that’s okay.

Cover and bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer until the pasta is tender and only a small bit of liquid remains, about 10 minutes, stirring two or three times and re-covering the skillet each time.

Gently stir in the spinach just until it wilts.

Scatter the cheese over the top, cover again, and cook over low heat until the cheese is melted and creamy.

Sprinkle with the scallion and serve.

Read It. Watched It.

Happy New Year! Hope 2023 is off to a good start for everyone. I have lots of book and movie reviews to catch you up on.

I normally don't read suspense novels, at least in part because I'm not fond of plot twists, but I recently read two of them. The first was The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz. I absolutely loved the way this one started off. Jacob was once a promising up-and-coming writer, but after his first novel was a blockbuster and his second one barely got off the ground, he's kind of floundering. He has no ideas for a new book, so he's barely making ends meet by teaching writing at some dumpy MFA program and loathing everyone there (including himself). He has one student, though, who tells him the plot to his proposed novel, and it is a stunner. Some years later Jacob hears that the student has died and apparently never wrote the book, so what does he do ... yup. This is all info from the ad blurbs, but I won't say anymore about the plot (yes, pun fully intended, as throughout the book). The writing was terrific, the main character was perfectly portrayed, and I was just loving how clever the whole thing was. Then I got to the ending and nearly threw the book out the window. I later read a bunch of reviews online, and lots of people saw the twist coming, but not me. And I didn't like it one bit. It felt cheap. So I can't say whether I recommend this book or not. I enjoyed the first 300 pages of it so much but really hated the last 25. Has anyone else out there read it?

However, I also read The Wife and the Widow by Christian White, and this one just blew me away. It takes place in the dreary off-season on a vacation resort island in Australia. You know the main characters from the title, so I'll tell you that the widow is Kate, whose husband has just been murdered, and Abby, whose husband appears to have been caught red-handed. The chapters are told in alternating fashion between the two. The author does a great job with that—you really get a feel for both of them. And in this case the twist is AMAZING. It was all I could do not to start the book all over again from page 1 to try to figure out how the author managed it. Really, really smart writing and plot development. I'm eager to read White's earlier book, The Nowhere Child.

I've always enjoyed Tessa Hadley's short stories in The New Yorker, so I thought I'd give her latest novel, Free Love, a try. It's 1967, and Phyllis is a wife and mother living in an affluent suburb of London. She seemingly has it all. But there must be something missing, because when the twenty-something son of an old friend impulsively kisses her one evening after a dinner party, all hell breaks loose. I mostly enjoyed reading this book, which advances at a very leisurely pace, but then it just kind of ended, and I didn't feel like there was any kind of resolution to anything. I have no doubt that's the point, but I found it unsatisfying. 

Next up was The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid. The book starts off with Monique, a wanna-be journalist desperate to make her name in the world, who is mysteriously hand-picked to write the tell-all memoir of the most famous movie star of all time. Evelyn Hugo is nearly 80 by this point and willing to reveal all to Monique, not just about her seven husbands but also all the struggles and sacrifices required to make it in show biz, and the one true love no one ever knew about. This felt like a beach book, which isn't a bad thing, and I gladly read the whole thing, but it's not by any means great literature. I enjoyed my time while reading it and then promptly forgot about it. It's that kind of book. 

Finally, I just finished English Creek by Ivan Doig. It's the sequel to Dancing at the Rascal Fair, which you know I adored. Even though Doig wrote English Creek first, I'm glad I read them out of order, because it takes place after Dancing at the Rascal Fair and thus contains spoilers (particularly about some characters you might have thought would or wouldn't be dead). This has just as much gorgeous nature writing, and we really get to know our narrator, Jick and some of the other main characters. I just love the way Doig writes, so even though it's another long one, I was happy to pick it up each evening and settle in for a few chapters. If I had to say, I guess I preferred Dancing at the Rascal Fair, but maybe that's just because it was my first exposure to Doig and I was so smitten. I will most likely read the third book in the trilogy, Ride with Me, Mariah Montana, although it has not gotten quite as much praise as the first two in online reviews.

As for movies, on Christmas Eve we enjoyed our Chinese food while watching Glass Onion, the next installment in what I hope will be a full-blown Knives Out franchise. I loved the first one, so I was eager for this one. Once again we have Daniel Craig as quirky private investigator Benoit Blanc, and another star-studded cast—this time including Edward Norton, Kate Hudson, Janelle Monáe, and more—plus a dozen or so really hilariously placed celebrity cameos (from the likes of Hugh Grant, the since-departed Stephen Sondheim and Angela Lansbury, Serena Williams, Yo-Yo Ma, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, etc.—if you've seen the movie and wondered if you missed some, check out this cheat sheet). It's all great fun, and I can't imagine anyone who wouldn't get a kick out of it.

The next day, with our leftover lo mein, we watched Bullet Train. OMG I loved this! It has all the campy, bizarre, gory excitement of a Tarantino film (though it's not)—plus Brad Pitt at his most adorably self-deprecating, as a down-on-his-luck hit man on an assignment that seems to just keep getting more complicated. Two British actors I'd never heard of, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Brian Tyree Henry, as "Tangerine" and "Lemon," were both excellent. If you like comic book violence and breakneck pacing, you will find this incredibly entertaining. If you can't bear the sight of blood and are looking for Deep Meaning, maybe skip it.

I have adored Michelle Yeoh since I first saw her in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon all those years ago, and couldn't wait to see Everything Everywhere All at Once. It was incredible! From the trailer, I thought it was going to be sort of a straightforward sci-fi movie mixed with martial arts, but there was nothing straightforward about this at all. I don't even know how to explain it. Here's the tag line from IMDB: "A middle-aged Chinese immigrant is swept up in an insane adventure in which she alone can save existence by exploring other universes connecting with the lives she could have led." It was really mind-blowing. Oh, and don't forget Jamie Lee Curtis as a murderous IRS clerk! I don't know anyone who didn't love this—although, to be fair, the kinds of people who would go see it are a pretty self-selecting group.

And you, what have you read or watched lately? Comment below or on Facebook, or email me, or send me a postcard, or just pick up the phone and call me for heaven's sake.

What's Cooking

Me again, can you believe it? I thought I would show you some of the wonderful cookbooks I've edited recently. The first one I want to mention is especially near and dear to my heart, because Jacques Pépin is my absolute hero in the culinary world. I regularly watch his cooking videos on Facebook, just to hear his voice and learn from him and watch him prepare easy, beautiful, comforting dishes. I'm sure I have every one of his cookbooks, too, and I even got to meet him briefly in 2017 when he spoke at Boston University in advance of the PBS documentary about his life (which is totally worth watching, if you missed it). He was really gracious as I bent his ear about cookbooks. 

ANYHOO, I got to edit his latest cookbook, Art of the Chicken, which was a dream come true. It's filled with delightful anecdotes and memories (and of course a few recipes) about the importance of chickens throughout his life, all accompanied by his lovely, whimsical watercolor paintings of chickens! (You knew he's also an artist, right? What can't that man do?)

Really, it was such a pleasure to work on, I barely considered it work. (Oh, and I got to do his next one too, which isn't out yet—stay tuned!)

Some other fantastic cookbooks I edited or proofread are shown below. Quite a nice variety to keep me on my toes. 

 
 

It's All Greek to Me

Hey you guys, remember blogging? Apparently I forgot about it for several MONTHS. I apologize. All is well, just kind of lost track of this thing. (Maybe now that social media is imploding, blogs will make a comeback and I'll be blogging every day again...?!)

Hope everyone had a nice, um, summer, and fall. We spent some time up in Maine, particularly in the fall, which is our favorite time to be there because the crowds are gone. Like last year, we went up for two whole weeks in September, which meant sitting and reading on a mostly empty beach and getting to eat at the last few outdoor restaurants still open for the season (with heaters). (Yes, we're still not dining at indoor restaurants...)

Did you all have a nice Thanksgiving? I rely on my blog a lot at Thanksgiving when I'm cooking for 6 days straight—all my tried-and-true recipes are here! And that's another thing to be thankful for, as well as having four 90-ish-year-olds at our table this year (specifically, Andy's mom is 89, my mom is 90, and Andy's dad and aunt are 93). It was a delight to have all my kids together!

As for the title of this post, this fall I read three books in a row that I didn't realize would have a common thread of ancient Greek myth! Which you know I love (and if you do too and still haven't read Madeline Miller's Circe and The Song of Achilles, I urge you to get your hands on them right away). 

The first book was Mythos by Stephen Fry (yes, that Stephen Fry—the actor/comedian/writer). I had bought this when it first came out (2019!) and then promptly forgot about it—I think it ended up on the bottom of the pile because it has such a large trim size, and there it languished. Well, I'm so glad I unearthed it. What a delight! Fry retells just about every myth that is known (or even partially known) with his own witty, modern spin. (Sample line: "Next Gaia visited her daughter Mnemosyne, who was busy being unpronounceable.") I see that there's also an audio version, which would probably be great fun. To be honest, I can't imagine anyone reading this book straight through. Instead, leave it next to your favorite reading chair and pick it up whenever you have a few minutes. It's not like you need to keep track of the characters and plot. As Fry says in the intro, "You don't need to know anything to read this book; it starts with an empty universe." 

While I was picking my way through Mythos, I started The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles. You may recall that Towles's A Gentleman in Moscow was one of my favorite books of all time, so I was eager to read this. Here's what the Amazon synopsis says: "Set in the 1950s, The Lincoln Highway is filled with nostalgia as well as the gentle naïveté and hijinks of those who are young, optimistic, and on a mission. The story follows four boys who set out to travel the country in search of a fresh start: Emmett and Billy want to find their mother who left them when they were young, and Duchess and Woolly are on the hunt for a stashed wad of cash. Sometimes their dreams are aligned but often they are not. In other words, adventure ensues: There’s train hopping and car stealing, and with that comes the inevitability of trouble sparked from both good and bad intentions. Each of these young men is chasing his dreams, but their pasts—whether violent or sad—are never far behind." If you found A Gentleman in Moscow to be lacking somewhat in plot, that surely isn't the case here. This book takes place over 10 days (and almost 600 pages!) and is most definitely an "escapade," as one of the characters calls it. From a work camp for juveniles to a rundown old farm in Nebraska to the bright lights of Manhattan and a few places in between, these guys are on the move. Each of them has a slightly different reason for being out there, but they are all in it together. Towles writes with such warmth and heart that even when bad stuff happens, it's still not that bad. Oh, and back to the Greek theme: Billy never goes anywhere without his favorite book, a collection of 26 stories about heroes, from A (Apollo) to Z (Zorro). One of the stories is of course about Ulysses, and wouldn't you know that they meet a Ulysses along the way... Big thumbs up here for great writing, authentic characters, and a fun caper.

Next up on my TBR pile was Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr. I had really loved his Pulitzer winner, All the Light We Cannot See. That one takes place during World War II and follows the stories of a young blind girl in France and a young soldier in Germany, who we just know will meet up at some point. It's really lovely—I almost didn't read it because I've pretty much sworn off war stories, but I'm so glad I made an exception. So in Cloud Cuckoo Land, Doerr once again intertwines different characters, but in this case we also have three different time periods. In the 22nd century, a teenage girl and her parents are on a spacecraft headed toward a new world. In current-day Idaho, an old man who had fought in the Korean War is helping students stage a play at their local library, which is also frequented by a troubled teenage boy. And in 15th-century Constantinople, a young seamstress is unaware of the young shepherd outside the walls of her besieged city. WHAT?! Yes, really, and what do they all have in common? A little-known ancient Greek story by Diogenes, and that's all I'll say. It is just plain astonishing how Doerr was able to pull this whole thing off, but he did, and it's dazzling. The writing is gorgeous. 

Right now I'm reading The Plot by by Jean Hanff Korelitz and loving it. How about you?

Plants, Seafood, and Meat

Hot enough fer ya? (If you are reading this in the future, let it be known that when I typed this, it had been in the 90s all week, and over 100° elsewhere.) But I have air conditioning, so I can still cook! And so I do. I am way behind in posting recipes, but I'll share three with you today. I have no photos because I just never remember to take them. But if you go to the links you can see what these dishes look like, and those photos are surely better than any I could take anyhow.

First, for the vegans, we have a lovely tempeh taco recipe from the Washington Post. I swear you will have no idea it's tempeh—I mean, really, who is really aware of what the protein is in tacos? But you could certainly use ground beef or turkey instead (skip the oil), or even crumbled tofu. It comes together really fast.

Tempeh Tacos

3 tablespoons neutral oil
1 (8-ounce) package tempeh, grated or crumbled (I used the large holes on my trusty box grater.)
1 small yellow onion, coarsely grated (ditto)
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon taco seasoning*

*I instead used WaPo’s blend: ¾ teaspoon fine salt, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon ground cumin, ½ teaspoon paprika, ½ teaspoon ground black pepper, and ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper

In a large cast-iron skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Add the tempeh and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until starting to brown, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the tomato paste and let it toast slightly and begin to brown and coat the tempeh, about 2 minutes. Stir in the water and taco seasoning. All done!

Serve with whatever taco fixins you like: taco shells (or tortillas if you prefer burritos), shredded cheese (well, then, it won’t be vegan, or you could use a plant-based version), shredded iceberg lettuce, diced tomato, salsa, sour cream (again, not vegan), guac, hot sauce, etc. I also served Goya low-sodium yellow rice alongside.

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Now, for all you flexitarians out there, we have surprisingly yummy shrimp burgers! The recipe was for sliders, but I made full-size burgers. Leftovers were just as good the next day. They're easy to make, but be aware that they need to chill for 1 hour before you cook 'em.

Shrimp Burgers with Zingy Slaw

4 scallions, white and light green parts only, roughly chopped
½ red bell pepper, roughly chopped
½-inch piece fresh ginger, roughly chopped grated (I found that the food processor didn't break this up enough, so I will use my Microplane next time.)
2 garlic cloves, minced (Likewise, I'll probably use my garlic press next time, although I didn't notice any large bits of garlic.)
¾ cup panko, plus more for coating
6 tablespoons mayo, divided
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 pound raw shrimp, peeled and deveined (It doesn't matter what size, since they'll be chopped up.)
2 cups shredded cabbage (I used a bag of coleslaw mix, which is easier—and prettier because it has green and purple cabbage and also carrots. The 9-ounce bag from Trader Joe's measured out to a heaping 2 cups, so I used the whole thing, but weirdly the info label said the bag contained three 2-cup servings! HUH?)
1 to 3 teaspoons sriracha (I gave it a good squirt—maybe 1½ to 2 teaspoons?)
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
2 tablespoons neutral oil
8 Hawaiian rolls or slider rolls, or 4 full-size rolls, toasted (I used brioche buns)

In a food processor, pulse the scallions, bell pepper, ginger, and garlic a few times. Add the panko, 3 tablespoons of the mayo, and the soy sauce and pulse a few more times. Add the shrimp and pulse 8 or 10 times, just until they are coarsely chopped and combined—do not make a paste! You still want some chunks. Wet your hands and form the mixture into 8 small or 4 large patties. Place them on a plate lined with parchment and refrigerate for 1 hour.

In a medium bowl, toss together the cabbage, remaining 3 tablespoons mayo, sriracha, and rice vinegar until well combined. (Since I used slightly more than 2 cups cabbage, I added a little more mayo and vinegar.)

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Put some more panko in a shallow bowl and dunk each patty in it to make them super crunchy on both sides. Cook the patties until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes on each side, or maybe a little longer for full-size burgers. Serve on the toasted buns with slaw inside. I served these with french fries. No, I do not deep-fry in July, not even with central air. I did frozen Ore-Idas in the oven, and they were quite good thank you very much.

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And for the carnivores, here's a recipe for a quick and yummy noodle dish with ground pork. 

Pork and Peanut Dragon Noodles

¼ cup chili garlic sauce (This made it quite spicy! My lips were buzzing! I will likely use only 3 tablespoons next time.)
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup brown sugar
8 ounces ground pork
¼ cup unsalted peanuts, chopped
2 (3-ounce) packages ramen noodles (discard seasoning packets)
3 scallions, thinly sliced

Put a medium pot of water on to boil.

In a small bowl, whisk together the chili garlic sauce, soy sauce, and brown sugar to make your dragon sauce.

In a large skillet, cook the ground pork over medium heat, breaking up the meat with a wooden spatula until it is cooked through and browned (add a little oil if you need to; I didn't). Stir in the dragon sauce and peanuts. Simmer until the sauce is reduced by half, about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, add the ramen noodles to the boiling water and cook according to the package directions. Drain.

Add the noodles to the skillet and toss until everything is combined. Top with the scallions and serve. I made this a while back and can't remember what I served with it, but I think I sautéed some baby bok choy. That definitely sounds like something I would do.

Twofers—Books, Movies, Recipes

My friend Steve asked if I'd read 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami because he was itching to talk about it. I hadn't—so he sent it to me! All 3 volumes, almost 1200 pages! I was very skeptical at first because it is most definitely not my usual fare; although I love a bit of magic realism here and there, this is decidedly more surreal and dystopian, with parallel universes and some other sci-fi stuff I won't reveal. But I loved it! It's hard to say what it's about, but it's got love and loss and philosophy and murder and a religious cult and a lot more. The two main characters, plus a small but fascinating supporting cast, really engaged me and held my interest throughout. And although this alternate world is a crucial part of the book, most of the "action" is about everyday life—what people are eating and wearing and reading and doing and, especially, thinking. Yes, it was long, but I didn't mind one bit—I looked forward to digging in a little more each evening. I highly recommend it, even if (or maybe especially if?) you don't think it's up your alley.

I had a book on my TBR pile for a while, and then it happened to be chosen for my book group's discussion in March. It was Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb, and I loved it. It's a memoir by a therapist about being a therapist and also going to a therapist. The author has a fascinating story about how she ended up becoming a therapist—it was most definitely not a straight path—and about what happened in her life that made her feel that she ought go to therapy herself. According to the intro, she got permission from her patients and therapist to use their stories with fake names and with identifying details obscured, so the book is filled with funny anecdotes and pain and epiphany and, really, just about everything that real life is filled with. Gottlieb writes with great warmth and humor and insight, and I was really sorry to see this book come to an end. Although some parts were sad, it was overall an uplifting read.

***

Last week we watched another Safdie brothers movie (the first was Uncut Gems, reviewed here) called Good Time. It was worth watching but not a good time. As with Uncut Gems, it was quite bleak and disturbing in many ways. However, Robert Pattinson was absolutely fantastic! It's about two brothers and a botched bank robbery, and that's all I'll say. I saw that it got some rave reviews and some total pans, and I don't consider either of those extremes deserved. 

We also watched CODA, about which I have mixed emotions. On the one hand, I thought that the cast was fantastic. Emilia Jones is very appealing and has a lovely singing voice. She plays Ruby, the only hearing person in her family of Gloucester fishers. Troy Kotsur, who won Best Actor for playing her dad, was outstanding. And Marlee Matlin and Daniel Durant were also really good as the mom and brother. However, I just don't see this as a Best Picture winner. The story is about as formulaic as you can get—there is not a single surprise in the entire plot. Should Ruby follow her dream or stay loyal to her family? Take a guess. And the rest of the characters were straight out of central casting—the quirky but stalwart best friend, the popular boy who is actually a mensch, the Mean Girls, the prima donna music teacher who really cares about his students, etc. And on top of all that, the humor was almost entirely dumb sex jokes that either missed the mark or went on for too long (or both). So although I'm glad I saw it, and I'm thrilled that these Deaf actors were recognized for their work, and it was really interesting to see a story of what it might be like to be a CODA (hearing child of Deaf adults), it was just too predictable and shallow for me. YMMV as they say.

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Here's a recipe I've made a couple of times that is very quick and easy to throw together when you want something different for lunch than another turkey sandwich (who, me?). It's not terribly photogenic, but very tasty. I like to eat this on crackers; it's kind of messy to eat as a sandwich, so I recommend you stuff it in a pita if you're going that route—and do a better job mashing the chickpeas than I did.

Pesto Chickpea Salad

¼ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup basil pesto
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon seasoned salt* (This was not called for in the recipe, but I found it kind of bland otherwise—maybe the pesto I got wasn't up to par? You could obviously use any seasoning you like here, or nothing.)
⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
¼ cup finely chopped red onion
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

Stir together the mayonnaise, pesto, lemon juice, optional seasoning, and pepper in a bowl. Add the chickpeas, onion, and parsley and mix well.  You can serve this as is or slightly mash the chickpeas so it stays on the crackers better.

*I've fallen in love with Johnny's Seasoning Salt! It is yummy and has no MSG. I put it on everything now.

This next recipe was originally served as a the starchy side for roast chicken and asparagus. We loved the texture but found the flavor kind of lacking. Well, the next day I ate a wedge cold for lunch and it was excellent! The texture was even better, and it somehow even seemed more flavorful. If I make this again, I might add more seasonings, or perhaps even some chopped veg, or else I'll just plan for it to be served cold for lunch. Another day when I can skip the turkey sandwich!

Crunchy Couscous Galette

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
½ cup thinly sliced shallots
2 cups couscous
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
7 ounces Gruyère cheese, shredded (about 2 cups)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

In a large saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter. Add the shallots and cook over high heat, stirring, until softened, about 2 minutes. Add the couscous and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat. Add the broth and a pinch of salt, cover, and let stand for 5 minutes, until the liquid has been absorbed.

Fluff the couscous and scrape it into a large bowl. Let it cool for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the eggs and cheese and season with salt and pepper.

Preheat the broiler with the rack 8 inches from the heating element.

In a large oven-safe nonstick skillet, melt another 1 tablespoon butter in the oil. Spread out the couscous mixture in the skillet. Cut the remaining 1 tablespoon butter into little bits and scatter them over the top. Cook over moderately high heat until golden on the bottom, about 5 minutes. (I stuck a silicone spatula underneath and just kind of peeked. I think mine went for closer to 8 minutes.)

Stick the skillet in the oven and broil the galette for about 5 minutes, until golden and sizzling. Using oven mitts, invert a large plate over the skillet. Carefully flip the galette out onto the plate (ta-da!), cut into wedges, and serve.

Supplemental Reading

First I'm going to share a recipe, and then I'm going to do a boring old-lady post, since I'll be 60 soon! No, that is not an April Fools' Day joke. It's true.

I kept reading about Korean rice cakes, called tteokbokki, and they sounded intriguing. So I bought a pack of vacuum-sealed tubes (apparently they also come in disk shapes) on Amazon and tried them out in a recipe from the Times. They are dense and chewy and we liked them very much. 

Rice Cakes with Peanut Sauce and Hoisin (There's a photo at the link.)

RICE CAKES
2 pounds rice cake sticks or sliced rice cakes, fresh or frozen [Mine came in a 1½-pound package. Not frozen but not fresh either?]
2 tablespoons neutral oil
1 tablespoon soy sauce
8 ounces yu choy or other Asian greens, halved lengthwise [I have never even heard of yu choy, so I bought baby bok choy, which we love.]
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce, diluted with 1 teaspoon water
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon toasted white sesame seeds

PEANUT SAUCE
⅓ cup smooth peanut butter
3 tablespoons hot water
1½ teaspoons granulated sugar
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon soy sauce

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add the rice cakes and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until softened. Drain and refresh under cold water. The commenters all agreed that this was unnecessary, and in fact might make the rice cakes even gummier (hard to imagine!). So instead I soaked them in a big bowl of cold water for about a half hour and then drained them just before cooking, and it worked fine.

Meanwhile, make the peanut sauce: In a medium bowl, whisk together the peanut butter, hot water, sugar, garlic, and soy sauce. Set aside.

Heat a 12-inch nonstick skillet or wok over medium-high heat. (I happen to have a wok-shaped nonstick pan, which worked great. Some of the commenters complained that the rice cakes stuck horribly to their regular wok, so I would definitely suggest a nonstick skillet instead.) When the pan is hot, add the oil and rice cakes and toss to combine. Add the soy sauce and stir-fry for 6 to 8 minutes, until the rice cakes begin to caramelize. If more than a few clump together, add a tablespoon of water at a time and break them up with your spatula. Hoo-boy, did they ever start to clump. There's almost nothing you can do about it, but I did hack at them as best I could with two wooden spatulas. Add the yu bok choy and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes, until the greens are wilted. Turn off the heat, add the peanut sauce, and toss to coat.

To serve, drizzle with the diluted hoisin sauce, scatter the scallions on top, and garnish with the sesame seeds. Yum.

I have to admit to you that I wasn't sure the recipe would turn out OK, so I also made chicken wings. So much for meatless Monday!

OK, now on to the boring stuff, but with something interesting at the end:

I take a big handful of supplements every morning. I even broke down this year and bought one of those weekly pill containers to put them all in. I used to take them all first thing in the morning, but then I started having GI issues every morning. First I blamed the milk in my tea, so I went without and ruled that out. Then I thought maybe it was the tea itself, nope. (Interestingly, I never went back to tea! After something like 40 years of having a big cup of tea every morning—PG Tips since at least 1995—I now have nothing. Once in a great while I'll have a cup of herbal tea, but I haven't had caffeine in well over a year now. Weird.) Then I ruled out the little smudge of butter on my toast. Then I tried giving up the toast entirely! Then the half banana. Nope nope nope. Finally, out of nowhere a friend happened to mention that she got an upset stomach from her calcium supplements... And yup, that was the culprit. So now I gulp down all my pretty pills in the late morning, after my breakfast. 

Here's what I take:

Multivitamin for women over 50, sans iron: I have read that multivitamins are useless, but I figure it can't hurt just in case there happens to be some nutrient I don't get enough of in my diet. Every once in a while there will be one of those exciting "Diagnosis" stories by Dr. Lisa Sanders in the Sunday Times Magazine about someone who almost died because they didn't have enough copper in their diet or something. (Is that my favorite feature in the Magazine? YES)

Super B-complex: I can't remember why I take this, but it was recommended to me by someone somewhere at some point... I think it has to do with stress? And/or drinking wine? 

Calcium: For my aging bones. See above. I once accidentally got calcium + magnesium, and let me tell you about GI issues! (My readers of a certain age will remember those old Phillip's Milk of Magnesia TV commercials, for "occasional irregularity.") 

Cranberry concentrate: Thanks to this, I have not had a UTI in many years, possibly a couple decades.

Probiotic: In addition to one every morning, I also pop one of these anytime I have a stomach ache.

Fish oil: I buy Fisol brand, because it's enteric-coated so I don't get disgusting fishy burps while I'm eating chocolate chip cookies.

Milk thistle: As with the B vitamins, I can't remember why I take this, but I know it's for liver health so I must have read something about it being good for people who drink wine. Did I mention I drink wine?

Fatty15: This is the newest addition to my pill container. It's an essential fatty acid, the first one discovered since omega-3's. Among other things, it promises more energy, healthier skin, better heart/liver/immune health, calmer mood, deeper sleep, and less snacking. (But I like snacking! I have continued to snack.) I've only been taking it for a few weeks, so I can't comment on any of this. But I did read up on it a bunch (and not just on their website!), and it looks promising. (If you want to try it, you can use this link for 50% off your first purchase, and I'll get 20% off my next purchase. Or just order on your own—I won't be offended. I'll never even know!)

Functional mushrooms: Here's the coolest one of all. About 6 months ago I started taking these, and I really and truly have noticed two things: a much more upbeat mood overall, and better memory! Really, I kid you not. I just feel more cheerful and positive in general, and I can definitely remember things better. For instance, when I solve my beloved nonogram puzzles, it helps to remember long strings of numbers, like 1-1-3-3-1-14-6. I used to have to keep looking back, but now I can just keep them in mind! And I've been able to remember things (like people's names) from many years ago that I thought had long since exited my brain. I convinced Andy to start taking them about a month ago, and he had to (sort of sheepishly) admit that he has noticed an improvement in his memory too. There are many different brands; the one I take (or here, if you are avoiding Amazon) comes as yummy raspberry gummies, and it contains 10 different mushrooms. They are supposed to increase mental clarity, boost memory, improve mood, provide immune support, and have anti-aging and anti-inflammatory benefits too. I am really a believer.