While Rome Burns

A three-part blog post in which I pretend that the world isn’t going to hell in a handbasket and that my anxiety over the upcoming election isn’t getting the best of me…

Part I: Music

In 1982 Elvis Costello released Imperial Bedroom, and I marched out and bought it on vinyl (what with CDs not having been invented yet, nor MP3s). I could tell right away it was pure genius, and I proceeded to listen to it all day, every day. (For the youngs: You could set your turntable to keep playing Side A of a record over and over again, until you finally got up and flipped it, and then it would play Side B over and over again. All day, every day.) True story: The following summer, the kid who had had the dorm room next to mine sent me a postcard saying something to the effect of “I had to go out and buy that damn Elvis Costello album because apparently I had gotten used to hearing it all day, every day…”

And then what happened? I don’t know, but at some point I forgot about it. It was probably during the big switchover to CDs of the late 1980s that it somehow fell through the cracks. I really don’t remember. But I’ve been exploring Spotify lately, and a couple of weeks ago I pulled it up and was blown away. I mean, I could almost feel stuff happening inside my brain—I remembered every word, every note of that shrieking he does along with frenetic guitar between songs. It was exhilarating. I was thoroughly loving “Tears Before Bedtime,” and then my brain just about seized up when “Shabby Doll” came on next. (Anyone who remembers vinyl will know what I’m talking about here: Whenever I hear any song that I first got to know on vinyl, as soon as it ends, I anticipate the notes of the next song starting up before it actually does.)

Anyhow, I am soooo happy to be reunited with this album and have been playing it all day, every day, just like way back when.

Part II: Food

A couple of weeks ago Andy and I had our 32nd anniversary! That’s a big number, huh? To celebrate in style, I made crispy duck legs from an old Mark Bittman recipe. I had been planning to do a whole duck but couldn’t find one that wasn’t frozen, and I’d completely forgotten about this recipe. It came out splendid (and was also pretty much foolproof), and I’ll definitely be making it again soon.

When the pandemic started, I went into full-on survival mode and immediately placed a huge order of … booze. When it was delivered, I realized that a $15 bottle of wine I’d ordered had been replaced with a $55 bottle from the same vineyard (and I had been charged accordingly). I emailed and was told that I’d get a refund but could keep the bottle! (They also accidentally delivered a 12-pack of Sam Adams that I didn’t order—or pay for—so all in all it turned out to be one of the best ordering experiences I’ve ever had.) I put a post-it note on the bottle that said SPECIAL OCCASION just so we wouldn’t accidentally drink it with hot dogs some random Tuesday night. We finally pulled it out to have with our duck, and it was excellent.

Part III: Books

Here are some of the books I edited in the last year or so.

As always, it's a mix of cookbooks, books about food, and self-help/lifestyle books. I feel very lucky to have my job! I get paid to read really cool books and help make them better.

Comments

[Margaret]

I like this post and needed to read about how others are coping and what kinds of joy we're finding along the way. Because some days it's just so d*mn hard to be hopeful.

[Karen]

It's really, really hard. It feels like the world as we know it is ending.
As I mentioned in a previous post, every night I try to think of something good that happened to me that day, and some days I can't think of anything at all; same for a good deed I did that day. But I can always think of three things I'm grateful for, and that does help.
Sending hugs!

[Sharon]

I think some Elvis Costello might brighten up this stormy day! Maybe even distract me briefly from the chaos circling us right now. Hell in a hand basket for sure!

[Karen]

It's worth a try! I've also been listening to a lot of Squeeze. Happy stuff.
(And if you like duck—and wine!—that will DEFINITELY help too!)