Gorilla in the Midst

Photo taken in Venice, CA.

Crazy Beach Discovery

Only in Venice? How to explain the fact that a deceased seal (or sea lion?) was dressed in clothes on the shore at Venice breakwater today? Hmmmm. We saw a lifeguard vehicle race across the sand with its siren on and we spotted several police cars parked near Windward. By the rocks, three yellow lifeguard vehicles were parked on the sand and surfers, joggers, and bikers were gathered by the graffiti wall to see what the fuss was about. This did not look good. Then the officers stopped on their way back to their cars to tell us what they found, explaining that it was a prank (and not the first time they've been victim to a prank like this). Obviously, we were all relieved to find out that no person was hurt, but the discovery that a seal was dressed in pants and a shirt left us perplexed. Who would take the time to find clothing for--and actually dress--a dead mammal?

Now, I cannot resist this: Here is Seal singing "Crazy."

Hoorah for Spring

The first day of summer is one of my favorite days of the year, but the first day of spring is almost as celebratory. Growing up on Long Island, the arrival of summer meant it was time for some fun: School's out! Let's hit the beach! But before carefree summer days, we had the warm-up. When spring came, there was always a sigh of relief. After months of freezing temps, bitter wind, and rain and snow, we were ready for a break. Come on, bring on the sunshine and warmth. Let's see some green and those flowers. The seasons are less defined in Southern California but it's still exciting to know that spring has sprung. Weeeeeeeeeeee.

The song for the day comes from Mr. Tom Waits:

Do Dip, Don't Waste

During our St. Patrick's Day feast this week, I discovered that Irish soda bread tastes even better when you dip it into the liquid goodness at the bottom of the crockpot that was used to cook the corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, and celery (no recipe to print here: just put in all in the crock pot and cook for 10 hours). I put a bowl of the juicy gravy on the table and dipped and dipped some more. My mom told me this would make my grandmother proud. My paternal grandmother (the Irish one) was the one who would make the Irish soda bread, but it was my maternal grandmother (the Italian one) who would use her bread to soak up or scoop up what remained on her plate. I remember vividly how she would use Italian bread to sop up marinara sauce on the plate or vinaigrette in her salad bowl and she would use a word we assumed to be Italian, pronounced "bon-ya" or "bahn-ya." Bonya bonya, she'd say, savoring every bite. We believed this meant to "dip" but I've been told it sounds similar to an Italian word that means "don't waste." Either way, it works. I didn't take photos of the Irish-American food from the other night, but the photo above shows a bowl that contained spaghetti and meatballs; one piece of Italian bread and that bowl would be cleaned right up.

Smilin' Irish Eyes and Sweet Irish Soda Bread

I just took my Irish soda bread out of the oven. It's my own version of my mom's version, which is a version of my grandmother's version (my sweet late grandma, Rosemary McDonald).

Irish Soda Bread

2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons caraway seeds
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/3 cups buttermilk
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 stick unsalted butter

Sift together flour, salt, and baking powder.

Stir in caraway seeds.

Cut in butter until mixture is crumbly.

Add sugar.

Combine buttermilk, egg, vanilla, and baking soda. Stir into flour mixture until just moist. Turn dough onto a floured board and knead a few times until smooth. Shape into a large ball and place in the center of a well-greased 9 inch cake pan or cast iron pan. Press down slightly. With a sharp, floured knife, make a 4-inch cross 1/4 inch deep in the center of the dough. Bake 1 hour at 350 degrees or until loaf is nicely browned. Cool on rack.

(If you don't have buttermilk, you can sour regular milk by adding 1 tablespoon of white vinegar to the milk and wait 10 or 15 minutes until the milk turns.)

Toxic Tub Report

I posted a blog entry on Care2 today on the just-released report from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, "No More Toxic Tub: Getting Contaminants Out of Children's Bath and Personal Care Products." The quick report: they found 1, 4-dioxane and formaldehyde (chemicals the EPA lists as probable carcinogens) in baby and kiddie bath products. Sad but true; happily, you can choose other products and you can take action by contacting your legislators about regulating the industry.

UPDATE: I'm proud to be a Californian today, as our kick-butt Senator Feinstein just introduced the "Ban Poisonous Substances Act of 2009." Can't wait for further action...

Graffit Wall: Sign of the Times

Photo taken in Venice, CA, at the graffiti wall.

Made It Myself: Beach Hair Spray

I have friends who "cleanse" on occasion—and when asked about why they do it they say it's to lose weight, to rid the body of toxins, or to practice self-discipline. To this I say, good for you! But I ain't gonna stop eating for nuthin'. I like my food! That said, I have embarked on a one month cleanse of my own kind, one that does not involve food. It's actually more than a month because I'm doing this for the duration of Lent. The idea came to me when I spoke to a loved one who is giving up sweets for Lent and I felt inspired to give something up as well. Not sweets—no way I'd do that. But I decided I wanted to practice the self-discipline of restraint. And I chose to give up shopping. I will, of course, purchase necessities like food and toilet paper and fuel for my car. But anything that I want and do not need will have to wait. Maybe the recession helped me with the choice, but it feels like a good one. Fashion and beauty are my biggest categories of consumption so this basically means I won't be buying clothing or cosmetics. Fashion-wise, this comes at a good time for me, as I've recently cleaned out my closet and have a new-found appreciation for what I chose to keep (sort of like when you get a good haircut and feel clean and refreshed). But I've run out of my favorite hair product, one that gives me beach hair (above, one of my favorite beaches). My only choice was to make one from pantry items—so it's all natural and didn't require me to shop for anything. I searched for DIY beach hair online and found numerous recipes and mixed and matched to come up with this one.

½ cup water
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 teaspoon coconut oil (melted)
1 drop of jasmine essential oil

Spray on, twist some tendrils, scrunch, go.

BBQ: Cookies Warmed on the Grill

These cooked were already baked, but Mr. MVP came up with the inspired idea of heating them on the grill so they'd get gooey and warm.