Baby Crumpet

Oktoberfest 2009

2009-12-02T09:37:00.001-08:00

We hosted our annual Oktoberfest (unofficially, I think this is our 18th or 19th year)

Seattle had a rare sunny October day, so we were able to host the party in our backyard.

Main features were - of course - brats, sauerkrauts, curry ketchup, sweet mustard & spaetzel.

Thanks to everyone who brought more awesome stuff!
- Gracie/Carl for the red cabbage salad
- Don McQuinn for homemade bread
- Desiree for the German cake
- Todd for the Bavarian hat & cowbell

Oh, and lots of lots of beer - ein prosit!

Puyallup Fair 2009

2009-12-02T09:29:00.000-08:00

Baby Crumpets & her buds Lily (and Braden) had fun at the Puyallup Fair - a big regional state fair just south of Seattle that takes place every year in September.

What could go wrong with cotton candy, turkey leg, caramel apples & balloon unicorn?

Yellowstone - Animals

2009-09-28T15:54:00.001-07:00

Yellowstone National Park is so big I'm breaking up the posts in parts - this one features the animals.

Bison was everything.

Within minutes of our arrival, in the middle of setting up our tent, a family of bisons calmly walked by yards away (3rd photo) (momma bison, dad, 2 kids + 1 teenager). Setting the tone for the rest of the trip when we'd see bison pretty much all day, everyday. From a lone bison at the side of the road to herds of hundreds in the beautiful Hayden Valley (first photo)

We were lucky to see 3 bears. At least one was a black bear. All 3 were far away so while we could see them clearly through the binoculars we couldn't see clearly enough to figure out the type.

Other sightings included plenty of elk, pronghorn sheep, bald eagles and a giant river otter (Adrian is now scared to go into a river)

We searched in vein to spot wolves & moose.

Coolest thing we saw were herds of bison crossing a river (4th photo)

Yellowstone - Geothermal features

2009-09-28T15:42:00.001-07:00

Yellowstone National Park is so big I'm breaking down the post into parts - this is about the geothermal features.

Yellowstone sits on top of a Caldera - which is a fancy word for ''big ass volcano that can blow at any time''

This underground volcano mixes with water and fissures in the ground to create all kinds of fun stuff.

The most famous are the ''geyers'', but there are thousands of them, more than just Old Faithful. As you drive/walk around the park the geyers are all over the place.

My favorite were the ''mud pots'' and ''hot springs''. Often deep holes with brilliant aquamarine or turqouis colors caused by bacteria interacting with minerals, these hot springs are just beautiful.

One of our favorite place was ''Minerva's Steps'' (2nd photo down) as minerals washing down the mountains created a beautiful cascading effect.

Another favorite was ''Roaring Mountain'' as heat escaping from air vents inside a mountain caused the entire area to ''roar''.

We went swimming in Madison River and it was warm to the touch due to the volcanic activities.

Pony Day

2009-09-28T15:35:00.001-07:00

Princess Mia enjoys her day with the ponies

A tea party for princess

2009-08-13T19:55:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet & her BFF Lily enjoy a nice tea time with Fone Bone.

Tea Party - Book Club

2009-08-13T18:31:00.000-07:00

Our book club celebrated our latest read with a garden tea party.

Everyone came with their ''Sunday racing'' best. The wonderful dresses & costumes were matched by the great menu - homemade tea sandwiches, scones + clotted cream, tea & Harrod's marmalades/lemon curds.

The book was Michael Ondaatje's family memoir RUNNING IN THE FAMILY.

The book chronicles Ondaatje's Dutch heritage during Ceylon's early 1900s. The book is full of humor and vivid images - highly recommended.

Chowda!

2009-06-07T18:57:00.000-07:00

When our beloved Truffles went to kitty heaven, we decided to get a new cat. Specifically a young male (so he'd both get along with Rosemary + get used to Mia)

After stopping by several animal rescue places without success, we finally went to the place with Don McQuinn's granddaughter works & she hooked us up with a funnest cat I've met - a white cat with black spots that we immediately named Chowder.

Chowder & Mia became best mates instantly. They play together all day. Chowder sleeps with Mia & Mia enjoys grabbing Chowder under the arm pits & carry him around the house (whether Chowder actually enjoys it is highly unlikely).

Mia has also successfully (no, really) trained Chowder to be on a leash. We tied the leash to the extension cords so he has a wide range. In fact as I'm typing this Chowder is off in the backyard chasing bugs while tied to the cords.

Rosemary was initially, er, very cool - ok - hostile to Chowder. But after a few weeks she has definitely grown to at least accept Chowder, and we've even occasionally seen the two playing together. I guess giving hold Rosey a young male to play with was the right thing to do.

We love Chowder & welcome him to our family.

The Butter Lion

2009-06-07T18:50:00.000-07:00

Following a recipe from grandma, Baby Crumpet makes a Lion from Butter.

While the kids hunted easter eggs, the grown-ups ate.
The menu:
- Grilled leg of lamb (with sage & rosemary)
- Tuscan white bean soup with kale
- Mashed Desiree potatoes
- Red lettuce salad with chesnut & shallots-viniagrette
- Sauteed Jerusalem artichokes, leeks & asparagus

Grown-ups at the party: Gracie, Carl, Braden, Tiffany, Jim, Jenni, Angie, Kim, Blane
- Adrian made cherry & guinness breads
- Butter Lion

Easter Egg Hunt 2009

2009-06-07T18:45:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet hosted our first ever Easter Egg Hunt

Sharing the fun were her friends Kai, Nathan, Madeline, Dante, Issac & Lily.

Not sure what was more fun - coloring the eggs or finding them!

Dog Show

2009-05-06T20:19:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet took us to the annual Seattle Dog Show with Don McQuinn.

Always one of our favorite events, the real dog show is every bit as fun & goofy as the movie Best in Show - down to the frantic back area where trainers groom their pets & the nervous looking handlers.

Visits with Dante, Carl & Gracie

2009-05-06T20:17:00.000-07:00

Upper photo - Baby Crumpet visiting her friend & neighbor Dante with some appropriate silliness during breakfast.

Bottom photo - Baby Crumpet entertains guests Carl & Gracie as they come over for dinner

New bike!

2009-05-06T20:13:00.001-07:00

Baby Crumpet very excited to check out her new ''hello kitty'' bike that we picked up for $5 at a Church sale.

The Big Easy 2009

2009-05-06T20:04:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet took us with Gracie, Kate, John, Kerry & Sean to New Orleans for St. Patrick's Day.

Photo album here on Facebook.

We did it all! Audobon Zoo. Crawfish at French Market Cafe. Oysters at Acme. Beignets at Cafe du Monde. Pimm's Cup at Napoleon House. Muffalettas at Central Grocery. Dinner at Jacque-mos. Po'boys at Johnnys. St Patricks Day Parade. Charles Street Car. Pies at Camelias' Grill.

I know I left a lot out - but pretty sure we had 13 meals in 2 1/2 days. The group is already planning our next visit.

Mardi Gras 2009

2009-03-02T12:36:00.000-08:00

Mardi Gras 2009 was a resounding success.

Thanks to Ewan, Leya & Leo for the pear tart.

Gracie for the bread pudding & bourbon whipped cream and beads

Don & Carol McQuinn for the homemade pralines

Braden & Lily for the French wine

We made:
- Gumbo with chicken & bacon
- Jambalaya with andouille & smoked ham
- Crab & shrimp bisque
- Roasted garlic dip

Aaron Neville, Louis Armstrong, Nina Simone & Armand were among the soundtracks

Gracie & I proudly wore out Tabasco shirts

Next - a trip to New Orleans on the 11th!

New videos from birthday party 3.0 & Mardi Gras

2009-03-02T12:32:00.000-08:00

(Mia, Lily & Leo at the Mardi Gras party)

(Video 1 from Mia's 3 years old birthday party with Lily, Nathan, Leo, Kai & Dante)

(Video 2 from the birthday bash)

Baby Crumpet 3.0

2009-02-22T18:55:00.000-08:00

Mia's 3 years old birthday party!

We made Asian food since Lunar New Year was 2 days later.
Yakisoba with prawns
Singaporean curry with chicken
Ma Po Tofu with pork
Thai jasmine rice

Gracie & Adrian made cupcakes

I had special Jones Soda made up with a photo of Mia & Adrian on the bottle at My Jones Soda.

Thanks to everyone for coming!
Ewan, Leya, Leo, Jenn, Lily, Gracie, John, Cathy, Maya, Jenni, Jim, Nathan, Kim, Dante, Angie & Kai.

Somehow we survied the party without any major mishap, although we did lose Leo inside the fireplace for awhile (not like there was a fire or anything)

Mia had a FANTASTIC time.

Info dump - 2009 so far

2009-02-22T18:35:00.000-08:00

The photo here was actually taken late last year & it came from a sleep test. Basically, they stick little nodes all over your body, stick tubes up your nose, then measure things like toe movements & heart rate while you sleep. The conclusion was I have very severe sleep apnea (I knew that already, but wanted a medical solution) so I now sleep with one of those sleep machines where tubes force air into my pipes. Quite fun really. I call it my darth vader mask.

First week of January went to Tokyo for a week. Hijinks ensue. Highlight was visiting Kiddy World in Harajuku - it's this 5 stories + basement behemonth retail store full of Hello Kitty stuff. Shopped like mad for Mia.

Quick trip down to San Diego & LA. Had dinner with cousins Lisa & Jeremy at El Bizcocho. Superb 7-course tasting menu paired with wine; but the highlight was definitely the dessert - an ice cream made from scratch at tableside! In a big silver bowl the waiter mixed guava juices, malibu rum, grand marnier & liquid nitrogen, mix & serve with freeze dried marshmellow. Wow.

Quick trip down to Portland, OR. Lots of great meals & good friends. Cocktail party at Brett Warnock who made margaritas with jalapeno peppers; dinners at La Calaca Comelona with Martens, Thea & Christine; pastrami at Kenny & Zukes; karaoke at The Ambassador with Jeremy; organic wild boar ribs at BBQ joint owned by Koreans with Rich. Only letdown was the Potato Champ was closed so I didn't get my poutine fix.

Attended NY Comic Con. 4 days of craziness ensue as I spend time with 77,000 of my close friends dressed as Chewbacca. Had an aswesome time. Evening highlights included bulgogi & norebang in K-town with Juyoun, Kurt & Tania; dinner at Sorella with Bernadette, Gretchen & their crazy clients; NY Noodle Town with Katherine & Nathan. Again, only snag was could not get to Joe's Shanghai (actually tried but line was too long)

Crumpet 3.0 pre-party

2009-02-01T17:15:00.000-08:00

Because we're holding her ''official'' party on the weekend, on her actual birthday (Monday Jan. 19th) we had a private dinner with Gracie to celebrate Baby Crumpet turning 3.

She got bunches of great presents from Gracie including an all-new princess outfit, wand & tiara.

From her parents she got a new rocking horse (from Goodwill) and a number of goodies from Japan including a Hello Kitty bistro set, Hello Kitty purse, Hello Kitty umbrella & Hello Kitty doll in a cow suit (nope, no theme at all here).

Ku 4.0

2009-02-01T17:12:00.000-08:00

Yup, turned 40 this year.

Celebrated by having a bunch of friend over for lunch - Sam, Ian, Alex, Desiree, Masa, Nathan, Jim, Jenni, Cathy, John, Maya & Gracie. Thanks all!

Menu:
- Lamb tagine with preserved lemon
- Rice with saffron & cherry
- Chicken pastilla
- Apple upside cake with molasses

Visiting the Allens

2009-02-01T17:03:00.000-08:00

The highlight of every trip to New England is a visit to the Allens - Kate, John, Sophia, Amelia, Olive & Sabine (the last 2 are cats)

The girls had a great time dressing up & generally run around the house.

The adults, with the aid of a baby-sitter, went to Blue Ginger - Ming Tsai's restaurant out in Wellesley

We had a gorgeous with dishes like foie gras-shittake shumai in sauternes-shallot sauce, sake-miso marinated Alaska butterfish, lamb osso buco claypot with herb-poblano pesto and seared Georges bank scallops with carrot-ginger sauce.

Can we go back there now?

Abby & Mia

2009-02-01T16:59:00.000-08:00

Baby Crumpet & her cousin Abby - who are only 6 days apart - make quite a team.

One can only imagine the trouble these two will cause together once they grow up.

Holiday in Boston

2009-02-01T16:48:00.000-08:00

Christmas at our family in Bedford, MA (with grandma Dot as special guest, seen here consulting Mia on a complex puzzle)

We ate like mad people facing the end of the world. The moment we arrived at the house there was already roast leg of lamb waiting in the oven. From there on it was 10 days of non-stop feasting.

Baby Crumpet got a lot of loot including a doll house + plenty of old toys that used to belong to Adrian (barbie, horse...etc)

Happy Birthday Abby!

2009-01-23T19:41:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Abby Wood from Baby Crumpet!

2008 Year Book

2009-01-01T09:54:00.000-08:00

January
- Crumpet turned two on the 19th. Dinner party with ''Italian'' theme
- Chris Rhodes visits from Texas - spent New Year's Eve playing cards; later visits Mt Baker
- Visits Portland, Baltimore, New York & Philadelphia
- Book club book: Eat, Pray, Love
- Goes to Vegas with Crumpet & Adrian; sees Beattles LOVE and Richard Cheese live

February
- Superbowl party at Gracie
- Visits Tokyo & Seoul on business; visits Osaka & Kyoto to see my friend Mutsumi
- Sold condo in Queen Anne
- Cleaned crawl space & re-installed insulation
- Visits Ann Arbor

March
- Goes to Seattle Dog Show with Crumpet & Adrian
- Visits Baltimore
- Homemade corned beef/krauts & sheppard's pie for St Patrick's Day party
- Scott & Evan visits; goes snowboarding in Baker
- Attended Nathan's birthday party
- Chinese New Year party at Cathy
- Took Crumpet to Minneapolis to visit Amy Brown; also saw Ron Lundquist
- Book club: the Man who ate everything

April
- Visits Justine/Nico and Lipovsky/Cristina in London; Anne-Lise & Simon in Stonehenge
- Visit Portland with Gracie. Crumpet & Adrian
- Adrian visits Colleen in NY
- Visit Toronto

May
- Visit Crystal in Atlanta; eat at Fat Matt's Rib Shack
- Adrian & Crumpet goes to grandma Mary's funeral in Oakland
- Visits Baltimore & LA
- Attend Seattle Cheese Festival
- Book club: Like water for chocolate

June
- Visit NY
- Goes to Deming Log Show with Crumpet & Adrian
- Starts family vacation in France & Swiss Alps; visits Ion-Marc & Sonia/Serge in Geneva

July
- Continues family vacation in Italy & Amsterdam
- Visit NY, San Diego
- Goes to Int'l District Festival with Crumpet & Adrian
- Goes to Lynden Raspberry Festival with Adrian & Crumpet
- Josh visits Seattle
- Family vacation in Montana

August
- Pig roast at Adrian's birthday party
- Ivan, Heather & Abby visits Seattle
- Visits Baltimore & Portland
- Family vacation to Vancouver, BC
- Attends Lynden Fair with Crumpet, Adrian, Jim & Nathan
- Gracie's birthday party

September
- Visits Portland, NY & LA
- Attends Big Green Egg Festival with John, Cathy, Maya & Crumpet
- Anniversary dinner with Adrian at Rovers

October
- Attend cousin Clifton's wedding in Seoul
- Attend grandpa Percy's funeral in Oakland with Adrian & Crumpet
- Book club: My life in France by Julia Child
- Visits Frankfurt & Baltimore

November
- Visits mom & grandma in China with Crumpet
- Lily & Kai's birthday parties
- Book club: Heat
- Grandma Dot's birthday party in Menlo Park with Crumpet & Adrian

December
- Ku's birthday party with ''Moroccan'' theme
- Visits Toronto, Baltimore & SF
- Family vacation in New England
- Katherine & Nathan visits Seattle

These are a few of my favorite things in 2008

2009-01-01T09:38:00.000-08:00

Favorite books:
- Heat
- MY life in France by Julia Child
- The man who ate everything
- Ugly americans & Rigged by Ben Mezrich
- COBRA II: the inside story of the invasion & occupation of Iraq
- Calculating risk
- Outlier by Malcolm Gladwell
- Eat, pray, love
-War reporting is hell

Guilty pleasure (airplane) readings:
- Books by James Rollins, David Baldacci, Vince Flynn, Christopher Reich & Steve Berry.

Favorite movies:
- Tropic Thunder
- Iron Man
- The Bank Job
- It was a good year
- Flawless

Favorite music:
- Killers
- Kanye West
- Rhianna
- Girl Talk
- Usher

Favorite activities:
- Sledding
- Cooking book club
- Crepe breakfast on weekends
- Taking the bus to the farmers' market on Saturdays
- Singing & dancing with Mia
- Finding old friends thru Facebook
- Fantasy football
- Sitting on our deck during the summer
- Dim sum
- Cooking for family & friends

Best acquisitions:
- Blackberry
- Fish spatula (super-wide)

Favorite moments:
- Going to Italy, Switzerland, France & Amsterdam with Adrian & Mia
- Going to Montana with Adrian & Mia
- Going to New England with Adrian & Mia for the holidays
- Going to China with Mia to visit my mom & grandma
- Being silly with Mia & Adrian (anytime, all the time)

Seattle Snow Storm 2008

2009-01-01T09:28:00.000-08:00

Over several days in December Seattle was shut down by about 8 inches of snow. Before folks from real winter cities go WTF note that Seattle rarely gets any snow & is totally unprepared for it. The entire city has only 27 snow removing vehicles (Boston, a city the exact size, has 700). We have no sanders and by policy do not salt the streets. The local airline Alaska ran out of de-icing fluids & airport concessions ran out of food as the supply trucks could not get to the airport.

Our street was closed by the time 1 1/2 inches had fallen. Adrian & Crumpet each missed 3 days of work & school. We put the chains on our Prius and that was lots of fun, we felt like we were driving a tank when we took Gracie to the airport.

The benefit of our street covered in unplowed snow (we live on a hill) was that it made for great sledding which we did muuitple times each day, including nighttime (with Crumpet leading way via headlamp). The few days of winter wonderland made we (briefly) wished we live in a place where snow happens all the time. Then the moment passed.

Our cats were far less unimpressed by the snow. They would each venture out for a few minutes then dash back inside for he comfort of heat, food & iTunes.

Christmas 2008

2009-01-01T09:25:00.000-08:00

Baby Crumpet helps to decorate our tree, which the cats love.

Didn't do a holiday party this year because we're spending it in Boston. We did listen to a lot of music (love Aimee Mann's Christmas album, wish Tom Waits & Nick Cave would each do one).

Did go to Gracie's holiday party - ate & drank like kings & queens as usual.

Ku 4.0

2009-01-01T09:19:00.000-08:00

Turned 40 on December 2nd. Decided to invite friends over for a Moroccan themed party complete with music & robes.

Menu:
- Lamb tagine with preserved lemon
- Chicken pastilla with harissa
- Roast beets salad

Guests: Sam, Ian, Alex, Gracie, Nathan, Jenni, Jim, Masa, Desiree, Cathy, John, Maya

The McQuinns couldn't make it due to ice in their driveway; and Collins had to bail because it was opening day on the mountains

Thanks to everyone for coming, especially for participating in our annual food drive for the needy.

Vancouver Ho

2008-12-13T18:21:00.000-08:00

Baby Crumpet took us for a weekend trip to Vancouver B.C.

Highlights included attending the Taiwan Festival (lots of food & music); lots of Chinese food everywhere; brunch at the Granville Island market; picnic at Stanley Park.

We're big fans of Vancouver. Just 2 1/2 hours driving from Seattle, it has the perfect vibe that is part San Francisco, part Hong Kong while retaining the beauty of the Pacific Northwest. We also go there to get our Chinese food fix.

We visited the Capilano Suspension Bridge Park for the first time. Less than 20 minutes outside of the city, the main attraction is a suspension bridge (pictured) originally built in 1889 and stretches 450 feet and 230 feet above ground. They've recently added seven new suspension bridges each 100 feet above ground and circulate the entire park around tall trees. All of us had a great time and we have a lovely picnic with goodies from the Granville Island Market.

Oregon ho

2008-12-13T18:14:00.000-08:00

Quick trip down to Portland, OR and dinner with Tomoko - who is a freshman at the Willamette College.

Always love visiting my favorite spots in Portland - Kenny & Zuke's for pastrami; Stumptown for cappucchino; Powells for the used books; Ace Hotel for the lime rosemary soda; Mustang Cafe for brunch with the Top Shelf boys; The Brew with the Dark Horse gang; Potato Champ for late-night poutines with rosemary ketchup.

Drving home to Seattle was looking forward to a meal at another favorite - The Rib Eye off I-5 but dismayed to find the restaurant gutted. Apparently the place has closed but the landlord is trying to find another person to run it. Bummer!

Fence

2008-12-13T18:13:00.000-08:00

Baby Crumpet helping to paint the backyard fence.

Big Green Egg & Ribs

2008-12-13T18:03:00.000-08:00

Baby Crumpet took me to the 2nd annual Pacific Northwest Evergreen EggFest with Cathy, John & Maya.

For those not in the know, the Big Green Egg is a Japanese BBQ grill that's shaped like, well, a big green egg. The owners (such as John) swear by its superior cooking ability. Don McQuinn told me every officer had one when he was stationed off Okinawa in the 50s.

The ''eggfest'' is a ridiculous event where owner haul their Big Green Egg down to the park and proceed to cook all-day their own secret recipes - ribs, pizza, sliders, cake, sausages. The event is ALL YOU CAN EAT and FREE. The cooks are here for the love of cooking as well as networking (a lot of recipe & technique sharing going on) or simply just to show off.

It wasn't enough to convince me to buy a Big Green Egg because I enjoy the instant gratification of my trust Weber Silver II but I sure love this festival and of course, can visit John's house anytime for his famous 12-hour Boston Butt.

This & that

2008-12-04T19:33:00.000-08:00

quick trip down to san francisco & berkeley: highlight: cheese puff @ Tartine Bakery in Mission. interesting experience: having my car towed at said bakery - amazed at the efficiency of the chinese woman at the downtown impound for taking my money & returning my car - I swear the whole process took less than 5 minutes

Baby Crumpet has decided she wants to be a ''Princess Sheep'' when she grows up.

Attended Lily's 5 years old birthday party at Jen Risko's downtown condo. Yummy lasagna lots of wine + a Max & Ruby cake.

Thanksgiving at the Gaynors. Jim made awesome turkey using a brine recipe from Alton Brown (and I normally don't like turkey). Everyone potlucked. Nathan teached Baby Crumpet how to play Wii.

The auto industry wants $34 billion in loans & line of credit from the federal government. Why can't they get that from banks? or why can't they file for bankruptcy & re-organize like the airlines?

I'm sick to my stomach with what happened in Mumbai.

The political crisis in Ottawa & Bangkok is, ridiculous.

I'm finally on Twitter - under kliang.

Making holiday plans for Boston - looking forward to seeing family, Eva & the Allens.

Next book club pick: How to Cook a Wolf by M.F.K. Fisher

Bay Area ho

2008-12-04T19:20:00.000-08:00

Baby Crumpet took us to Menlo Park, CA for her great-grandma Dot's 90th birthday party + her twin uncles' 65th birthday party. Lots of playing with cousins & eating cakes en sue.

Visited our good friends Sona & Paul & their lovely daughter Sharika (pictured with Crumpet). Sona's mother was visiting from Minnesota. She was originally from Kashmir so she told us many wonderful stories - here is one of my favorite: while shopping in Delhi she overhears a shopkeeper overcharge people while conversing in Kashmiri, thinking the hindu speaking crowd does not understand. She chides them in kashmiri, at which point the shopkeer exclaims ''my sister! if you had only told me sooner you were here! come in! come in! look around my shop! tell me what you like and I will give you the best deal! here, have some tea.'' an hour later Sona's mom leaves the shop with a couple items purchased. The moral of the story? The shopkeeper turned an embarassing situation into a sales opportunity. Genius.

Walked around Burlingame Ave which was my old high school hang out. I barely recognize it. Gone are the old jewish restaurants & cheap-o delis. In are trendy middle-east grills & upscale baby boutiques where dresses for girls cost upward to $475. Oh and we saw a Lamborghini, a Ferrari and a few Porches. Stumbled onto a farmers' market, laughed at all the people wearing parkas & sweaters (seriously, it was 65 degrees, people in Seattle would be wearing shorts). LOVED the food vendors especially the guy with the garlic-mint humus & mexican soda.

One of grandma's friend Maggie tells me of a new Shanghai restaurant on 25th ave in San Mateo. I try in vain but could not convince anyone to go with me - next time....

China ho!

2008-11-17T23:54:00.000-08:00

Baby Crumpet took me to China (Shenzhen & Hong Kong) visit mom, grandma & my brother. We ate well and visited a theme park that re-creates all the world's famous monuments (see pictures)

The really interesting story was - we were there on the night that Obama won.

With the time difference it was Wed. morning in China when the polls started to close on the east coast. I initially had a hard time finding coverage because the Chinese news channels treated it as an important - but only as frequent updates - news rather than wall to wall coverage. I finally found a station in Hong Kong that was covering it full-time plus it took in the ABC feeds from time to time so I was able to follow the whole thing and knew Obama had won before lunch.

So what was China thinking?

The media was overwhelmingly fascinated by Obama. They could not get over the fact that ''non-black'' people would vote for him. All the live coverage of the polls had a reporter breathlessly point out ''look, there are white & brown people voting for Obama - not just black people!''. Keep in mind this is a country that has never had an election in its 5,000 years history. The media never mentioned McCain. Not once. To them this was about Obama.

I spoke to as many people I could about the election - family, friends, cab drivers, waitresses. They all supported Obama - which is not usual because the Chinese normally supports Republicans because they see the Democrats as anti-trade. In this instance they didn't like McCain because they thought he was too old and too much a war monger, which is bad for business. Plus they thought Palin was an idiot.

But it was really all about Obama. The people on the street were otterly amazed that a black person could win the US Presidency. They're shocked. It breaks every pre-conceived notion that had about America - that it was racist, elitist and everything pre-arranged by power brokers. The fact that people of all colors & background supported Obama and his victory was truly from people's will seem to have stunned the average Chinese I spoke to. On a simplistic level more than one person told - if a black person can win then a Chinese person can be the US President. But most saw it as a transforming event, a new world leader they can respect.

There was a downside too. Many people thought that for sure Obama will be assassinated, they simply do not believe the white Americans will allow a black person to be president. Others thought what happend in the US didn't matter to China at all, that they control their own destiny and America's time is fading. This is not to say they're hostile to America - in fact in all my life I've never met a single person in China who hates America - they just think America no longer matters, like, say Greece.

It was an exciting day. On one hand I wished I was back home in Seattle and share the excitement (I heard people were dancing in the streets). On the other hand I was grateful to witness history from a deeply important ''other'' culture. I wish I could have been in both places at once + a third - an Arab country - say Lebannon or Syria and talk to the people about it. What a fabulous time we live in.

Crumpet Video

2008-11-17T23:50:00.000-08:00

Girly Crumpet

2008-11-11T03:48:00.000-08:00

Baby Crumpet getting her toenails painted at Chez Spa Adrian while getting ready to go to Maya's birthday party.

Julia Child's MY LIFE IN FRANCE

2008-11-11T03:35:00.000-08:00

Baby Crumpet conducted our food book club meeting: MY LIFE IN FRANCE - the memoir by Julia Child about the years she lived in France right after WWII.

The book is a compelling read as it captured Child's passion for life, curiosity, sense of adventure and also her quirky use of words. It is impossible to not want to go out to explore & eat after reading this book. You discover a person who grew up in a middle class California family who has never had real French food or even had wine at lunch! You see through her eyes as she bit by bit discovers the joy of enjoying life through good food, wine & friendship. The entire 2nd half of the book is devoted to the backstory behind the creation of the seminal book MASTERING THE ART OF FRENCH COOKING as well as the early filmings of the legendary PBS cooking series.

The Meal: Gracie prepared a potato leek soup (one of Julia's favorite) while Shelley (suspiciously not drinking - later confirmed she was pregnant. The ''not drinking'' test has never failed) delivered fabulous homemade desserts including a berry pie. It was my turn to do the main dishes and I prepared Sole Meuniere in honor of Julia Child's first ever meal in France; and a duck roasted in port-cherry sauce (roast duck as normal, then baste it in a sauce of butter, port, shallots & red cherries). I have to say the sauce was stunning (try not to think about the whole stick of butter I used). Wine flowed freely as usual.

Next book: HEAT by Bill Buford.

Grandpa Percy's funeral

2008-11-11T03:24:00.000-08:00

On October 11th 2008 we attended the funeral of Adrian's paternal grandfather, Percy Wood, as we laid him to rest next to his beloved Mary at a cemetery in Oakland.

Family & friends gathered from all over the globe as we turned the occasion into a joyous affair of remembrance of a great man and a greater life lived.

Photoed were the 4 sons - Adrian's dad Tony & his brothers Rich, Ken & Rob.

Halloween

2008-11-11T03:20:00.000-08:00

Baby Crumpet & mom were woodland fairies

Baby Crumpet info dump

2008-10-25T17:02:00.000-07:00

It's long overdue for an update on the life & times of Baby Crumpet so here it is.

She will be three years old on Jan 19th next year

She is now potty trained (gummy bears did the trick)

She is an Elite level traveler on Northwest Airlines - having been to Mexico (twice), Vancouver (3 times), Boston (twice), San Francisco (3 times), New York, Las Vegas, China (once, but going again next week), Italy, Amsterdam, Geneva, France & the Alps.

She is a very polite girl.

She is a good eater. Favorite food include: risotto, salmon, dover sole, salami, rice, miso soup & cheese. Sucks down dim sum like there is no tomorrow. Plan to introduce sushi soon.

Morning ritual: warm milk with her favorite blanket while sitting on mommy/or daddy's lap in the rocking chair

She helps to set the dinner table & takes in the garbage

She is very good with her alphabets & is better than her dad (me) in puzzles

Loves movies - favorites are Shrek and Max & Ruby (did not like Finding Nemo - thought it was too scary. Says she likes ''happy'' movies

Loves books - favorites series are Martha Speaks, Max & Ruby, Captain Raptor, Pinkerton, Angelina Ballerina

She is a good swimmer. Loves dogs. Still can't get our own cats to pay attention to her.

Loves dressing up as ballet dancer and/or fairy (with wings). Likes to dance ballet and knows 3 moves.

When throwing a tantrum she loses her ability to speak and is known to crumple to the floor & pound with her feet while her cynical parents (us) tries hard not to laugh.

Hello Kitty rules.

Whole hog!

2008-10-25T16:54:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet prepared a whole roasted pig for A's birthday party.

We picked up the 50 lbs piglet from Kau Kau restaurant in Seattle. They roast it Chinese style with crispy skin & a touch of soy sauce. An outdoor bar completed the festive setting.

Thanks for all of our good friends who joined us for the good time: Collins, The Gaynors, Jen Risko, Lily, Braden, the Brings, Greg & Astrid Bear, Fleetwood, Pierce, Tomoko & Desiree, Gracie & Justin, Leah, the Beidlers. A's brother Ivan & his wife Heather & kid Abby (who lives in Boston) also joined us right after the family reunion in Montana.

Leah's boyfriend - who is in a punk band - took home the pig's head planning to bite it during a concert the next night.

Would love to roast my own piglet someday.

Log Show

2008-10-25T16:43:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet took us to the Deming Log Show.

Seen: lots of shirts about bass fishing and the American flag. A comedy skit involving the shooting of a spotted owl.

Not seen: Obama signs.

Great fun. Log rolling. Speed climbing. Family relays (including a pregnant mom handling the chain saws; lots of teenage boys cutting stuff in baggy shorts & no shoes).

My favorite event: log truck backing up contest - a race to see which truck driver can back up the truck the fastest & straightest.

Yummy outdoor BBQ - next to a hog raffle - where you win the pig.

Now where did I put my gun?

Crumpet @ Pike Place Market

2008-10-25T16:24:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet enjoying chicken adobo at our favorite Filipino restaurant in the market

Baby Crumpet took us to the Pike Place Market Cheese Festival (we ran into Don McQuinn). Always the annual event for me to pick up Cougar Gold cheese.

Montana 2

2008-10-25T16:07:00.000-07:00

The story is this - uncle Lynn & aunt Paula has had a vacation home in Montana for a few years. They loved it so much they kept building additions, including a massive compound just finished this summer so they invited everywhere for a family reunion.

We were there, as were A's parents, brother Ivan, his wife Heather & Mia's cousin Abby. Grandma Dot + host of other uncles, cousins....etc.

It made for a boisterous time with all the kids & dogs running around and the adult lounging around drinking wine or enjoying the host's $4,000 espresso maker (you press a button and it does everything for you including foaming the milk).

We volunteered to cook a few meals including cedar plank salmon & halibut & baby back ribs.

One day we went off to the country club for some outdoor BBQ, swimming, croquet and a hayride pulled by Clydesdales. Another time I went with A's dad in search of ''jerky'' and found exactly what I was hoping to find - a roadside shack with a dude in white wife beaters who claim to have been making jerky in this spot for 33 years. After we purchased some wonderfully smokey buffalo jerky & summer sausage he gave us some moose bones for the dogs. I think I'm the dog's new best friend.

Eating, drinking, shooting, riding, swimming, hanging around outdoors. Leisure life in Montana can be very addictive.

Montana 1

2008-10-25T15:56:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet took us to the Bitteroot Valley in Montana to visit uncle Lynn & aunt Paula.

We spent plenty of time on one of their 7 ATVs + one Yamaha Rhino (sort of a Jeep ATV). These things can go anywhere. We had a ton of fun crashing through the forest and going up & down into ditches & rivers.

We also shot clay pigeons using a variety of shotguns. I had never done it before but clearly had beginners' luck as I connected on 4 out of my first 5 shots at which point I quickly retired to protect my reputation.

Bow shooting with compound bows were also a lot of fun. We shot at a multitude of targets including a wooden deer. I had no idea how heavy these bows were.

A went off with another crew to go fly fishing & was the winner with 4 trouts caught.

For a few brief shining moments we city folks can pretend to be outdoor people. I think the Crumpet had a lot of fun riding the ATVs.

It has been a good Summer....

2008-09-10T03:56:00.000-07:00

SPIN

2008-09-04T19:01:00.000-07:00

Gotta hand it to Karl Rove & the Republicans for spinning a story about a high school kid getting knocked up into an uplifting example about the sanctity of life.

I stand up and applaud.

Stonehenge ho!

2008-09-01T16:45:00.000-07:00

While visiting my good friend Anne-Lise I decided to drop by & see Stonehenge since she lived just minutes from it and she had never been to it either (it's just like I never visited Empire State Building and the Statue of Liberty despite living 13 years in New York).

In fact we didn't really know how to get there. Following the map we headed west, just when we thought we were lost we noticed a pile of rocks to the side of the road. ''hey, is that Stonehenge?''. They are a lot smaller than I imagined. Also unexpected were the sheeps roaming around it. Who are these mysterious sheep? Are they the eternal guardians? Have any archeologist interviewed these sheep? Have we noticed any strange sheep formation during full moons? As a total coincidence (or, is it?) the cover story on National Geography screamed the headline ''Secrets of Stonehenge revealed''! I eagerly bought a copy only to be disappointed to learn that we have no more idea why these pile of rocks are here than why people support Bush.

Back to my original purpose for the trip which was to visit Anne-Lise & her husband Simon in the woods. When I say woods I meant WOODS. They live in an area called New Forest which is a large area created way back then by William the Conquerer for hunting. Anne-Lise & Simon had just moved into a new house which had no address, when writing them you're suppose to just write their names and New Forest. For you see very few people live out here. There are tons of deer, hare, tens of thousands of phesants (which Simon leads groups to shoot) and wild horses. Right, wild horses. On our way out of the forest to the pub we had to repeatedly dodge wild horses because they don't seem to follow traffic laws.

Simon, who is actually a Scotsman, is straight from central casting as a British gentleman farmer. Complete with tweed vest, leather cap, boots, pipe and a dog from a long blood line of champion retrievers (he showed me the family tree). Simon is a one-man machine of self sufficiency from building his own house to slaughtering his own pig to make bacon (showed me the paperwork he had to get approved from the wonderfully named Dept of Moving of Pigs). Simon promised to take me hunting hares the next morning but unfortunately we stayed up all night drinking whiskey and the hares lived to see another day.

Meeting Tori Amos

2008-09-01T16:38:00.000-07:00

Had a chance to meet Tori Amos at San Diego Comic-Con (I took the picture with my friends Tiffany & Sam from Amazon). Tori was at the convention to promote her new book COMIC BOOK TATTOO - which is a 480 pages behemoth with 50+ artist interpreting her songs. It is the most impressive art/comic book I've seen so far this year.

The first time I heard Tori Amos was when she performed her acapella version of a Nivarna song on the local Seattle radio station. She was on the show to promote her concert that evening. By her famous strutting the piano style is well known & well copied, but back then (this was probably 17 years ago) I had never seen anything like it and immediately fell in love with both her music and especially her live performances. In the ensuing years I've seen her many times, including the legendary Radio Music Hall nights. I've also collected most of her bootlegs covers (it is her habit to cover artists such as Bonnie Tyler and Aerosmith during encores). ANYWAY - check out the book - it's mucho fabulous.

Rian the little boozehound

2008-09-01T16:35:00.000-07:00

Father Hayes sez ''it's not what it looks like''

Atlanta Ho!

2008-09-01T16:15:00.000-07:00

Down in Atlanta for a few days. Got a chance to hang out with one of my favorite person on the planet - Crystal. She is an indie rock mom extraordinaire and a fine hair stylist to boot. We caught up on old times while checking down Atlanta's young & drunkeness scenes.

Then it was off to visit my other ''favorite'' person in the world - Matt at Fat Matt's Rib Shack. For under $10 you get a full plate of ribs slowed cooked all-day by a 300 pounds African-American. Comes with baked beans & white bread + sweet tea. The cashier had no teeth. The tender & aromatic meat falls off the bones at the slightest touch and the flavor lingers in your mouth. The homemade sauce is tangy and just a hint of spiciness. This is why I don't eat BBQ north of the Mason-dixon line & west of the Mississippi. Only in the south.

Baby Crumpet does Swiss Alps

2008-08-05T17:22:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet took us to visit the Swiss Alps - specifically the town of Murren - which is only accessible by cable & sits on a dramatic cliff and faces the three biggest peaks in Europe - Eiger, Monch & Jungfrau (Ogre, Monk & Maiden). Murren sits in the Bernese Oberland region (home to Bernese mountain dog) - full of wonderfully named towns such as Grimmelwald, Schilthorn and Wegen.

Yes we ran into many cows (with cowbells) blocking the road (see photo). Yes we ate a lot of cheese fondue (photo). Yes Crumpet played at a playground 13,000 feet high (photo). Yes we saw fields of flowers (Alpine meadow). Yes we saw Alpine cottages. Yes we sang songs (but did not know how to yodel).

The view is spectacular, the food is rich (cheese & meat). Walking around the village it is easy to forget there is another world out there. Better have another cheese fondue.

Baby Crumpet does Amsterdam

2008-08-05T17:16:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet took us to visit Amsterdam.

Inspired by the Red-light district she immediately decided to go topless. Later we took a boat tour (hop on, hop off) of the canals which was definitely a highlight. We also went to the flower market and bought tulip bulbs & had Dutch pancakes for dinner.

Amsterdam is one of my favorite city. The canals reminds you of Venice, the lively scene feels like New Orleans and the charming brick lanes & bike riders can be Prague or Salzburg. It's also home to the wonderful Van Gogh Museum and the Hennken factory. Go Orange!

Baby Crumpet does France

2008-08-05T17:07:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet took us to France to visit our uncle Lyman & his wife Doris - who has done a house exchange with a professor in Geneva.

The house is located in Collonge sous Saleve - a beautiful little hamlet just minutes from the Swiss border and featured a massive mountain cliff that's heavily visited by para-gliders.

We spent 4 days here. Every morning begin with a walk into town's bakery to buy breakfast, then we don't leave the porch the rest of the day as we enjoy wine, sausages, cheese and more wine. Occasionally we'd go into ''town'' to eat some snails.

Baby Crumpet does Pimonte/Itlay

2008-08-05T16:56:00.000-07:00

Photos of Baby Crumpet eating prosciutto in Val D'Aosta, doing a wine tasting in Barolo and eating Targine pasta in Asti.

Baby Crumpet took us to the Pimonte region of Italy. This northwest area borders with France & Switzerland and it is known for wine & pesto.

We arrived at the region from France by driving thru the famed Mont Blanc Tunnel and stayed in a small town in-between Savigliano (a lovely medieval town with the liveliest square that I have ever seen) and Bra (birth place of the Slow Food movement). Map in hand we (meaning Adrian as I don't know how to drive a stick) drove around the region for 3 days drinking wine and eating stupendous Italian food.

Highlights includes visiting the outdoor market in Asti (as in Asti Spumante), wine-tasting and a 4 hour meal in Barolo (as in the wine) and visiting a wine cellar in Cannelli. Oh, and we ate gelato everyday too.

Baby Crumpet does Geneva

2008-08-05T16:44:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet took us to visit Geneva - the home of Swiss Army knife, expensive watches, chocolate & numbered accounts.

Also home to some of our very good friends.

We had dinner (take-out Thai) with Ion-Marc, his wife Krsytel and son Julia.n (top photo) at their apartment just north of Lake Geneva. Ion was my neighbor in Seattle, briefly a roommate in New York and now a successful private banker. If you need a numbered account he is your guy.

We then spent a lovely afternoon out in the backyard of Sonia & Sergui and their twins, Maya & Gala (middle & bottom photos). I had originally met Sonia - who is from Madrid - in Seattle when she was working as a translator for Microsoft. Now she and her husband (formally a Red Army translator) both work for the U.N. Their twins were born in NY and we had attended their Baptism. It was wonderful to catch up with old friends and now we're all parents!

We also spent a few days just walking around downtown Geneva as well as around the lake. Geneva felt like an European version of Seattle - medium size (800,000 people), cosmopolitan with a love of outdoors. The only difference were the watches advertised in the shop windows that cost more than our car(s).

Happiness

2008-06-22T07:17:00.000-07:00

Happiness is running around in a park on a warm sunny day

We're off to the Swiss/French/Italian Alps for 2 weeks. Much to report when we're back, including photos from recent trips to Atlanta & England.

Winter & Spring

2008-06-22T07:12:00.000-07:00

Weather has been CRAZY.

Snow in the mountains (Miss Crumpet in her pink snowsuit''

Nice in the city (sitting by Greenlake contemplating the meaning of it all)

Emerald City Con

2008-06-22T07:08:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet took me to Emerald City Comic Con (here she is sitting with Jeremy from Dark Horse while eating a pocky)

Fun time. Scored lots of free plush. Saw tons of friends, including Jeremy & Dirk from Dark Horse, whose booth were next to The Suicide Girls. Unfortunately it seems they have sent the B team and it was more ''suicide'' and less ''girl''

Food in Japan

2008-06-22T06:48:00.000-07:00

Eating fubu (blowfish) in Osaka.

While having an Omakase dinner in Osaka with my friend Mutsumi, I gave across this wonderfully grilled fish that is both delicate and intensly flavorful. I was told it was fubu. You know, the fish we hear about in the west that can kill you. I made Mustumi take a picture of me since it might be my last moment on earth. She laughed, as did the chef and waitress. What's so funny, I asked? ''We eat fubu all the time, what's the big deal'' said Mustumi. Oh well, yet another myth broken.

The other Osaka delicacy is Tako. Little grilled octopus balls with various sauces & mayo on top. I used to eat it all the time while living in the East Village, but nothing compared to the real deal. The little Octo balls melted in your mouth in a jumbo of flavors and bits of shellfish. Incredible.

While taking the train from Tokyo I happened to be reading a chapter about Kyoto cuisine in the book ''The Man Who Ate Everything''. The author talks about the cult of ''clear soup'' with a basis of ''dashi'' as the litmus test for the skills of a Japanese chef. Dashi is simply a broth made from kombu (giant seawood off the Hokkaido island) and bonito (dried, shaved bonito fish flakes). If done right the result is an aromatic broth that yields layers & layers of flavor. I immediately made Mustumi take me to a food store so I can buy bags of giant seawood leaves and dried fish shavings and I've been making it ever since.

In the Japanese cooking show Iron Chef they use to talk about the rigors of apprenticeship in Japanese cooking, how a young cook will spend the first 2 years of his working life just learning how to make rice, and how a tempura cook may spend up to 30 years perfecting that singular craft. I think I met one of those guy. While having a fabulous lunch with a client at an opulent hotel near the imperial gardens in Tokyo, I encountered the best tempura of my life. Fluffy yet meaty, light yet full of flavor. These tempura made the soggy stuff you get in the States taste like stale corndog. You don't even get t dip them in the ''tempura sauce'', instead you get a little plate of salt. Because the sauce makes the batter ''soggy'' (a-ha!) while the salt intensifies the sweetness of the shrimp meat. Knowing from experience that clean oil produces the best fried halibut, I asked how often do they change the oil. Every 15 minutes. Gulp. In the States it would be lucky if a restaurant changed their frying oil once a week. 15 minutes. That pretty much sums up Japanese cooking and their devotion to perfection.

Shift scenes to an Izakaya bar in Shibuya and we're dining with the affable head of Japanese Tower Records, a man with the improbable name of Ima-T. We seat in in the basement and work on the menu on an electronic touch-screen on the table, moments later waitress brings down the morsel along with Kirin beer in ''frosted'' mugs. I can get used to this.

Back to Kyoto. There is an entire street devoted to home-made sweets, usually rice cakes with black sesame fillings. I buy 6 boxes. There are also pickle shops that lure you in with the promise of free tea and a store that makes tofu skin (that's right, tofu ''skin'') by hand.

I can go on but I'm getting hungry, gotta go.

Baby Crumpet loves Bacon

2008-06-07T08:37:00.000-07:00

Japan Ho!

2008-06-07T07:59:00.000-07:00

Went to Japan for 2 days on a quick biz-ness jaunt (with a brief stop in Seoul, ate too much & drank too much, but did have a massage from a blind person for the first time)

Highlight was visiting Kyoto with my friend Mutsumi.
I took the bullet train down from Tokyo, in between got a clear-eyed view of Mt Fuji for the first time so that was great fun. In Kyoto she took to visit the various castles once occupied by the Shoguns. My favorite was the Nin Nin Castle (middle picture) where the Last Shogun presided. Aside from having extraordinary, original artwork, two facts really interested me: 1) only females were allowed in the inner court, including body guards; 2) the floor was engineered in a special way that nobody how lightly you walked it gave way to a sing-song noise thus it was called the Sparrow Floor (so you knew if an assassin was creeping in).

The food. The FOOD! It's so good I'm going to have to save it for another posting.

In Osaka I went to a public bath frequently visited by the Yakuza, and just like that, I'm sitting next to a buck-naked Japanese man with a single tattoo of the Buddha on his back and he was brushing his teeth.

One cool feature of this particular bath was the ''electric pool'' which is exactly what it sounds like, a pool with electric currents. It numbs your hand & feet and is really an unque sensation.

Portland ho!

2008-06-07T07:41:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet took us & Grace/Justin down to Portland, OR for the weekend.

Our first stop was Seattle's int'l district where we got loaded with chinese food and Pocki, then a pleasant drive into the City of Roses.

The highlight was the weekend was easily The Saturday Market - a massive outdoor event with shops, food stalls and street performers. Crumpet got a balloon-rabbit that she later used it to play soccer. Mom got some ''survival'' kit fire starter. Dad got some west African grub. All is well.

The food experience in Portland just keeps getting better and better. Each meal we had was inventive and delicious with such choices as Halibut hash for breakfast and Korubuta pork belly braised with sour cabbage. Yum. Of course we couldn't leave Portland without sampling lots of Stumptown coffee and Jack & Zeke's corned beef.

On our way back we stopped by the Stumptown Comic Festival - a premiere event for indie & underground comics. Crumpet wowed the crowd with her knowledge of arcane insight to the works of Crumb and scored some plush toys in the process.

We love Portland, will be back soon.

Maya & Mia

2008-06-02T20:23:00.000-07:00

Team Mia went over to Cathy & John's house for a post-chinese new year dinner.

The 2 ''hybrid'' girls got a lot of playing time together.

Spring time has arrived

2008-05-12T13:16:00.000-07:00

Music is in the air as spring time finally arrives in the northwest.

The Crumpet celebrated by, well, running around in the yard, what else?

VIDEO here

Spring also means Salmon/Halibut season and farmers market.

Went to the opening of the Capital Hills farmers' market yesterday. Selections still pretty meager but should get better. Met a guy who grows his own ''popiano mushrooms'' that should be fun. Been cooking salmon & halibut as often as I can. Experimenting with various techniques & sauces. More on this later.

Crumpet does Dog Show

2008-05-11T12:25:00.000-07:00

Baby Crumpet took us to the Seattle Kennel Club Dog Show.

Comparisons to Christopher Guest's movie BEST IN SHOW is a cliche but so true nonetheless. Teams of ''handlers'' pamper over 100 breeds of pooche.

Highlight was the ''agility competition'' where fuzz butts slalom through an obstacle course. The show had to be postponed at one point because one contestant got stage fright and, hm, peed on the cross-bridge. Video here.

My other favorite ammenitiy was the doggie bathroom - which were fenced in areas filled with hay lined around the walls of the convention center where anxious handlers tries to coax their beloved (and expensive) poodles and pugs to relieve themselves before and after the competitions. Best in show indeed!

Crumpet news round-up

2008-05-01T11:58:00.000-07:00

It's been almost 4 weeks since I posted any news - so here is a round-up

First, proof that Crumpet DOES have nice cloth (the beautiful dress is a gift from Kaoru)

BIG NEWS - this week we started SERIOUSLY potty-training. Meaning the Crumpet is now wearing little-girl underwear as opposed to diapers. Adventures ahead...

Big A recently went to NY by herself (!) to visit friends and left me alone with Ms Crumpet. We spent our time at coffee shops and went to a Seattle nightclub (during the day) with Gracie, Nathan & Jim in something called Kids Love Disco - a nationwide program with DJs spinning toons for kids & family at hot spots. Ms Crumpet was a little shy and miffed why no boys asked her to dance

Crumpet & her mom are going down to Oakland this weekend to visit family while I'm off to Atlanta for work (Fat Matt's Rib Shack here I come!)

We didn't make it to the Tulips Festival this year because, well, it snowed & HAILED in Seattle early this month. Good news is our tulips are doing just fine in the backyard.

Our quest to get Crumpet a kitten continues....

Fashion victim

2008-04-09T16:58:00.001-07:00

this is what happens when they dress themselves

Crumpet does Minnesota

2008-04-09T16:48:00.001-07:00

Baby Crumpet & dad (me) took a trip to Minneapolis (without mom!) to visit our good friends Amy, Eric, Frances & Louise.

Here you can see the Crumpet having a grand time slumber party style with Frances & Lou.

Here is a video of the girls in action.

Amy runs the fabulous Chowgirls Killer Catering while Eric is, well, a rockstar.

We tried out a new back-pack for the Crumpet. It worked out well but she walked so much at the Minneapolis airport she ended up getting blisters on her toes. Now that's putting her to work!

OPK: Calvin

2008-04-09T16:43:00.001-07:00

Calvin Breen Ankenman.

Proud owner of our deal friend Amanda.

Joined us on April 5th 2008.

OPK: Sharika

2008-04-09T16:37:00.000-07:00

OPK (other people's kid). This is Sharika, owner of our dear friends Paul & Sona.

Cinco Nathan

2008-04-06T18:20:00.001-07:00

Baby Crumpet was invited to her friend Nathan's five years old birthday, so she took us with her.

It was at this place where they have ginormous inflated slides & party rooms, where the kids gorged on cupcakes & other yummy treats.

Afterwards King Nathan sat in his throne and received gifts from his royal subjects. A grand time was had by all. Here is a video of the birthday party.

St. Paddys 2008

2008-04-06T18:06:00.001-07:00

Baby Crumpet hosted our annual St Patricks Day bash.

On the menu this year were:

Corned beef cooked for 9 hours in beer (wanted to cook for 10 - and could have used that last hour) and loads of fancy peppercorn & mulling spices, then finished in the oven with a mustard & honey glaze.

Instead of cabbage I used fresh sauerkraut then sauteed with purple cabbage (for color), back bacon and homemade chicken stock.

This year's version of Sheppard's Pie was made with a blend of chorizo and mild italian sausage.

As usual Gracie brought her signature Irish soda bread (served with Kerrygold Irish butter).

Merry time was had by all, highlighted by Don in a hat and Justin in an utilikilt.

Thanks to all in attendence: Don & Carol, Jim, Jenni & Nathan, Desiree, Chris, Gracie & Justin, Darcy, Leah and Fleetwood.

Springtime for Crumpet

2008-03-30T20:24:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago we got some unseasonably nice weather (it has since decided to snow) so Crumpet & mom spent some quality time on the back porch.

In totally unrelated news - here is a video of Crumpet doing water painting.

Bringing down the house

2008-03-30T20:21:00.001-07:00

Baby Crumpet teaches everyone the game Mexican dominoes

Mr Hatfill visits Crumpet

2008-03-30T19:43:00.001-07:00

Scott & his son Evan visited Baby Crumpet at her home in Seattle and was treated to cedar plank halibut.

They spent the next 3 days up in Mount Baker where they snowboarded to deep, deep powder.

Book reviews

2008-03-02T11:08:00.001-08:00

SEE NO EVIL: Memoir of Robert Baer, retired CIA field officer. George Clooney's character in SYRIANA is loosely based on his life. A fascinating look inside a man's life dedicated to protecting our nation's security. In the book Baer clearly recounts what his #1 mission was - to turn the enemy into informants, or, as he puts it, to ask another man to commit treason against his/her own country. What follows is a memoir of extraordinary history as he spends 20+ years in Europe, Russia, Iraq, Asia and the Middle-east. Of particular interest the author left all the CIA edited areas in the book (you can see specific passages, dates, location & names blacked out by the CIA). Towards the end Baer was disillusioned by Washington politics and our reliance on technology rather than human assets. The book was written before the current Iraq war but the author offers a damning critique where he was essentially told to come up with evidence that fit Bush's war plans. Baer, a hero to this nation, left the CIA in disgust and bitter (note: author was also very critical of Bill Clinton, he is clearly a conservative)

CONFESSIONS OF AN ECONOMIC HIT-MAN by John Perkins: A very fun read, but perhaps scary if the stories told inside are true. Perkins speaks about being recruited by the CIA to work as a ''contractor economist'' who would go and advice nations to produce outcomes favorable to the US. Example - Perkins would go to a 3rd world country, say, Panama. He would produce a fake ''economic'' report that concludes Panama's GDP would go up & sustain at certain % if only they would build certain hydro-electric power dams. Once Panama is convinced, wheels would be set in motion with loans from the US-controlled IMF and World Bank and contracts steered toward US corporations such as Bechtel and Haliburton. The said dams would be built at the cost of billions and, voila, does noting to Panama's economy. Panama would eventually default on their loan, and all of a sudden the benevolent US government would send in the ''economic hit-man'' to extract their pound of flesh such as to pressure Panama into allowing a US military base (to be built with more contracts to Haliburton) and/or a secret consent to vote a certain way at the UN. This book documents countless stories like this over 20 years and many administrations left & right alike. The government has come out & denied everything in this book, calling the author a fraud. Interesting side note: author went to the same alma matter of Adrian - Middlebury College in Vermont.

I highly recommend both books if you like political history without any idealogical bent (common theme is both authors hate Washington politicians)

Mr Rhodes comes to town

2008-03-02T10:56:00.001-08:00

Our good friend (and Adrian's bride's man at our wedding) Chris Rhodes came to town for a few days to visit (from Texas).

His grandmother + aunts drove up from Oregon for brunch at sunny Pike Place Market (a refreshing meal French bistro Maximillan)

We then jetted up to Mount Baker for some snow shoeing, sledding and fish tacos. Here is a VIDEO of Crumpet sledding with mom.

Crumpet turns two!

2008-03-02T10:42:00.000-08:00

On January 19th Baby Crumpet turned two! We celebrated with a rousing dinner party. Pictures of the cake event with pals Lilly and Nathan.

The theme was ''Italy'' and I made a few dishes from Marcella Hazan's bible Essential Italian Cooking: Roast crown pork rib chops (garlic, lemon, orange juice, cardoman, peppercorn, cumin & caynne); Roast tomatoes ragu with chorizo and mild italian sausage; salad of cremini mushroom, shaved parmessan, celery with truffle oil; smoked salmon foam (smoked salmon folded into whipped cream). Desserts were lemon tart + apple pie (Adrian). McQuinn provided a homemade rosemary bread.

This also doubled as our annual food fund-raiser. Thanks to everyone's contributions were we able to deliver 5 full bags of dry food to the local food shelter.

Party guests were: Desiree, Masa, Don, Carol, Pierce, Braden, Lilly, Leah, Nathan, Jim, Jenni, Mei Chi, Noel and Sylvia.

Here is a VIDEO of the event

Crumpet does Vegas

2008-03-02T09:33:00.001-08:00

As As our plane descend into Las Vegas, the pilot tells us to look outside the left side window where we could see the Monte Carlo burning. Wow. Quite a fiery start to an exciting trip!

Our primary goal in Vegas is to try as many buffets as possible for, er, scientific purposes. On our previous trips we had tried Bellagio (favorite), Paris (2nd favorite), Ceasars, New York New York and Ballys. On this trip my personal favorite was Rio - a stupendous array of selections. A's favortie was the Wynn, who may had the best quality. Palm wasn't bad. Stratosphere, not so much.

Rio stood out for me because of the number of selections plus some creativity in buffeting. For example at their Asian noodle bar you get to choose from a selection of noodles (udon, vermicelli, lo-mein...etc.), soup stock (pho, tom yum, ramen...etc.), toppings (fish balls. mushroom...) and seasonings. Two elderly Chinese women were behind me and asked in a loud voice ''can you please make it very spicy?''

We saw two shows that capitalizes on our appetitie for nostalgia but at the same time craving for ''newness''

The first was Cirque de Solei's paen to Beattles LOVE at the Mirage. A departure from the more acrobatic and multi-cultural shows of the past, LOVE very specifically recalls 60s and 70s London fashion and design. The show was essentially 20+ set pieces to showcase each song and we loved every minute of it. Our viewing/lisenting experience were enhanced by a gaggle of young Paris Hilton look-alikes sitting in front of us and 3, quite drunk, middle-age women who knew all the words and occasionally sloshing their cocktails around. Highly recommended.

The 2nd show was a concert by Richard Cheese which was being filmed for a live concert film at the Hard Rock Cafe. We discovered Mr. Cheese years ago through John & Kate, who in turns discovered this ''punk rock lounge singer'' while going to Vanessa's wedding. The schtick is simple - lounge versions of popular songs such as Beastie Boys, Radiohead and Dead Kennedys. It works because Richard Cheese is a terrific performer who nails each song perfectly. Highlight of the concert included an audience participation of Sponge Bob Square Pants and Cheese doing an imitation of Pussycat Dolls as Bob Dylan, Bjork and Michael MacDonald (it made sense if you were there). The filming for the concert added a certain sense of a moment in history, but it also meant the show was more staged and it slowed the actions down. If Cheese is coming to your town definitely go see them!

Experience only in Vegas #1: I had some business outside of the strip so I decided to take the local bus. This adventure was immediately met by a kid peeing in the back of the bus and the 300 lbs+ Samoan driver going Hulk, then resolved because an Hispanic women who just happens to be a hotel cleaning lady (stereotype alert!) and she had an entire bag of cleaning supplies with her.

Only in Vegas #2: Walking by a sign advertising a restaurant that said ''Italian food so authentic it's like it came from New York''

Crumpet & cats

2008-02-04T17:04:00.001-08:00

Crumpet loves cats. In fact we've been thinking about getting her a kitten and spent the weekend visiting shelters (only to find the ''perfect'' cat when we had dinner with Terry & Judine Brooks this week & met their new cat - Yoda - so name because the share the same ears. Yoda is like the coolest cat EVER. Wish he belonged to Crumpet).

For proof here is a video of Crumpet's daily ritual feeding our cats

Holiday in Mass/Maine

2008-02-04T16:49:00.001-08:00

Team Mia spent a whirling holiday tour of New England. Here are the highlights.

Family in Bedford. Grand-parents + great-grandma Dot. Ivan, Heather + cousin Abby. Many great meals including a few we cooked - bouilebasse and lamb tagine. Went to Wholefoods on Christmas Eve. Wow that was an experience. Store was so crowded they ran out of shopping carts.

Went to party at Becky & Peter's in Bedford (Adrian's childhood friends). Caught up with many others including Kate.

Visited John, Kate, Sophia & Amelia in Mansfield. As usual John prepared a fantastic meal (smoked chicken + spreads). Received news Kate's sister Chris is expecting.

Visited Jeff & Vanessa up in Rockland, Maine. Had wonderful time + visited their house. They recently got married in St. Lucia. The photo album looked STUNNING.

All is all a fun, packed trip that covered a lot of friends & family. The deep ice & snow however reminded us why we live on the west coast.

SuperBowl Sunday

2008-02-04T16:43:00.000-08:00

Gracie hosted a SuperBowl party. Great food as usual. Chocolate-chai brownies. Homemade pigs-in-a-blanket. Full on guac, cheese & salami spread. We contributed crab dip and roasted tomatoes. Dave & Shelley were also there.

Big A was the lone Patriots supporter as the rest of us relished seeing Brady ''the golden boy'' getting knocked around by the thuggish Giants front 4.

Overall we thought the commercials were very weak. Few were mildly clever - Bud / Clydesdale, Dorito/Rat, Fedex/Pigeons. Most were hideous. The salesgenie.com was very offensive. All the car ads were a snooze. Careerbuilder was disgusting. Pepsi Max was close to being creepy. Everyone of those ad agencies should be fired.

Tom Petty looked old, but was good (of course). Consensus was a stage like SuperBowl need something with far more energy, like Poison (Shakira?)

Thanks to Gracie for letting us trash her place.

Postcard from Europe

2008-01-19T08:07:00.001-08:00

Ion-Marc & his son Julian on the Alps

Can you guys please look less French?

Holiday in Morocco

2008-01-19T07:48:00.001-08:00

Team Mia hosted our annual Holiday Party and this year's theme was ''Morocco''. Gracie & I trotted out our Djalleba robes for this festive occasion. It was great to see everyone - Desiree, Tomoko, Masa, Jim, Jenni, Nathan, Todd, Jaime, Autumn, Aidan, Wendy, Nancy, John, Cathy, Maya, Don, Carol, Leah, Rochelle, Scott, Jen & Darcy.

The food, ah, the food.

Main dish was the tagine. I used an Australian leg of lamb, chopped it up and stewed it with saffron, lamb shank, tomatoes, red & russet potatoes & summer squash. I normally used preserved lemon but my local wholefood were sold out so I used caperberry & cipolini onions - well - the results were not as good but the lamb turned out very tender & juicy.

The real crowd pleaser was the Pastilla which involved making a mixture of roasted chicken (in Morocco they use pigeon), almond, onion & spices then roll in several layers of philo dough, bake, then serve with powdered sugar. Wow this was a hit. Thanks to Darcy for the assistance.

Baked onions w/t cream & rosemary

Carrot salad w/t garlice, parsley & olive oil

Rice with raisins & almonds

Great time was had by all - thanks for coming!

Christmas

2007-12-28T20:06:00.001-08:00

Baby Crumpet helping to put up the tree. She put all the ornaments on one branch, roughly 1 feet from the ground.

The cats love drinking the water from the tree well. I'm going to invent a cat drinking fountain that looks like Christmas Tress and make millions.

For Christmas the cats got a new three-sided scratch post. Much happiness follows.

We're spending the holidays in Boston & Maine. Much new pictures & stories to follow (also our annual holiday party in Seattle).

Art

2007-12-28T20:04:00.001-08:00

Mom teaching Baby Crumpet how to paint

Doesn't her smocks make her look like a Hogwarts student?

SALT

2007-12-28T19:49:00.001-08:00

The 2nd book of our culinary book club was SALT: A World History by Mark Kurlanky. Members: Gracie, Darcy, David, Shelley, Big A & Ku.

First, the meal. Then, the book.

We start at David & Shelley's house with a multiple courses of cured meats (i.e. mini flank steak) and crudites with cocktails.

Then moving to our house for the main course - a vertical tasting of grilled pork chops brined and rubbed with different salt - kosher, sea salt and himalayan pink salt. All the pork were cooked the exactly same way and it was amazing you can really tell the different flavors of each salt and how it was brined and rubbed. Even better there were no consensus on which salt/style were the best, proving there is no one way to do things but truly what you prefer.

THE BOOK is a classic example of cultural history where there is no central storyline or thesis, the author simply loosely follows a chronological order in telling a parallel topic - how salts are made and how it affected world & human history.

The parts on historical impact was the most interesting. Tidbits includes how salt played a major part in the American Civil War (without salt you can not preserve and therefor can not feed an army), changed the fishing industry from Cape Cod to Itlay to England and how salt were once so important it was a form of a currency (the word soldier referred to paying the army in salt; or the phrase worth his salt; the word salary).

The part on how to make salt through the ages were more uneven. The best part included interesting personalities (i.e. the founders of Tabasco sauce started out as salt miners on Avery Island in Louisana - which is pure rock salt). But otherwise you can only read so many chapters about the different ways the Chinese or the Roman created new ways to evaporate brines.

Verdict: highly recommended if you're quick to skip the selected boring parts.

Note: Kurlanki has written many other notable cultural history books including titles on Cod and the Basque people. I also enjoyed his book 1968 which chronicles the student movement through out the year happening in that fateful year.

Stu

2007-12-28T19:47:00.000-08:00

Uncle Stuart drops by to visit Baby Crumpet.

Menu: cedar-plank salmon, roasted asparagus & sweet potatoes

Crumpet news round-up

2007-12-28T19:38:00.001-08:00

T-minus 3 weeks to two-year birthday (Jan. 19th)

Bought her a real bed. Retired the pack 'n play. Much rejoice and jumping on the bed with occasional rolling off in the middle of the night and crying.

Knows her ABCs - can do the whole song.

Can count to 10 in English on her own. Spanish & Chinese with help.

Food festish. For awhile loved cheese. Then ditched cheese and can't get enough of olives. Recently it has been fish and now it's apricot. Really, really, really likes chocolate.

Favorite book - the Dinosaur series from Jane Yolen

Favorite thing to do with daddy - going to Jamba Juice

Favorite thing to do with mommy - going to Starbucks

Favorite video #1 - video podcast from Sesame Street ''word of the day''

#2 - YouTube - anything with dogs or cute animals

All videos are named ''Elmo''

Welcome Nathan!

2007-12-28T19:25:00.001-08:00

Team Mia welcomes Nathan - son of Regina & David!

LARC

2007-12-05T10:03:00.001-08:00

Many of you wanted to know more about the land-sea vehicle to took to get to Deer Island

More info here

The LARC-5 (Lighter Amphibious Resupply Cargo) is an Army amphibious vehicle originally used in the 1960's to ferry supplies from ships to shore. Its total possible load is 5 tons (hence the five after LARC). Although no longer manufactured, all three sizes LARC-5, LARC-15, and LARC-60's still see service both within and outside the military.

Postcard from Mazatlan

2007-12-02T17:23:00.000-08:00

Keeping up with our tradition of ''no shoes on Thanksgiving'', Baby Crumpet took her parents & grandparents to Mazatlan for a week long vacation.

Mazatlan is in the Mexican state of Sinaloa and boost the largest fishing fleet of the Pacific coast. It is especially well known for sports fishing (marlin, sailfish, billfish). The town is relatively young, the original tourist zone were set up in the 50s and it is quiet compared to the mega resorts of Cancun & Puerto Vallerta. Its key features include the Vieja (old town), the Malecon (ocean sidewalk) and two beautiful islands (Stone Island and Deer Island).

Naturally the first thing we do is eat. Mom & Dad found a place called Panama that quickly became our favorite. A chain of 3 locations Panama is especially popular with Mexican tourists & locals (we saw virtually no foreigners the entire week) and features a large menu with fun combinations. Their tortilla soup was outstanding and the chocolate flan should be declared an illegal substance.

Another favorite was Taco Martin. None of the staff spoke English so we simply ordered one each of their 8 kinds of tacos. Some were the usual - carne asada, y pastor...etc. But others, as we later found out, were more, er, adventurous (brain, eye, cheeks + one called head we still not sure what that meant). Taco Martin also served a ''soupy'' guacamole as well as whole beans cooked with bacon that were delicious.

Feeling tough, we tried another local, Mexican-only joint Taco La Carreta. The placed served just 4 kinds of tacos - carne asada, y pastor, lengua (tongue) and tripa. The taco man could easily get a job in Vegas as Blackjack dealer as his hands flew at incredible speed in turning out tacos (see video here). These tacos were AMAZING. Did I mention they cost 70 cents each? We ate, a-hem, 25 tacos in 20 minutes. They also served a ridiculously good horchata (rice milk w/t cinnamon) and tamarind drink.

Another local favorite was the central market, where they sell everything from whole slaughtered cows to jewelry & dresses, often right next to each other. The top of the market were little restaurant stalls that served a simple & wonderful fresh cuisine with dishes like camarone mojo de ajo (shrimp in garlic sauce), fish baked in tin foil & cream sauce and grilled pork chops with lime. You sit outside on a patio and watch the busy city traffic go by. The kitchen was small & the old ladies cooking & serving were all smiles. You feel like you're eating at her house even as you compete with pigeons & bees for your food.

OK taking a break from food. We took two trips out. First was to Stone Island on a Catamaran called - seriously - Titanik. Skipper said it's ok because it's spelled with a K. Riiiiight. We got picked up at our hotel by a truck, who also picked up tourists at other hotels but also made some mysterious stops for seemingly no reason (running drugs?). You take the boat out to the island where for the next 4 hours you can do anything you want. Mom & Dad wrote the ''banana boat''. Adrian & I did horse back riding near the beach while we all did a lot of sitting around and drinking from coconuts.

The Deer Island transport was a used US Army sea-land transport that had been painted to look like a shark (see photo). This alone would have been worth the price of admission but it got better. During the trip we discovered the skipper were also reading bible stories. Not making this up. We did the ''turistico el cheapo''. Basically the ''shark'' dropped us off at the island and promised to pick us up 2 hours later. You can see the other ''turistico el richo'' arriving via catamarans, tents, volleyball nets & servers with coolers full of booze. Anyway, we had a great time snorkeling & building sand castles with Baby Crumpet. The beauty of these islands really lie in the fact that there is nothing to do (not even a single restaurant on them)

An ubiquitous site around Mazatlan is Senor Frogs (any of you ever been to South Beach or Cancun knows it well). Just between our hotel and the town we saw 7 of them. It turns out it is owned by Grupo Anderson, the Mexican business that also owns other vacation-themed fun bars such as Carlos & Charlie and got their start nearly 50 years ago in Mazatlan with a restaurant called El Shrimp Bucket which still stands today.

There are 2 main ways to travel around town, bus or open-air taxis called Pulmonias. Buses are, well, buses. They're made more exciting by the fact that the bus driver are often watching football on TV while driving. The open-air Pulmonias are just awesome. A cross between the tuk-tuk from Thailand with golf chart and a gas lawn mower, they offer a quick & scenic way to travel around town and each driver have their own music taste, from Mexican ballads to reggae.

The weather were sunny & 86 degrees, everyday. General depression settled in when one day the temp dipped to 84 degrees but it was quickly resolved by some shrimp cocktails and a trip to the swim up bar. Life is good, and that is how Baby Crumpet likes it.

More Photos Here.

It's easy being Green

2007-11-15T09:27:00.000-08:00

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL - not exactly a bastion of liberal ideas, recently ran a special report on ways each individual can help the environment so we here would like to share our own tidbits.

Adrian drives a Prius and get's 50 miles per gallon not to mention zero emissions.

I barely drive at all. I work from home. Imagine if more Americans were allowed to work from home how much gasoline we would save, how much time we would save, how much better the air would be.

We use energy efficient light bulbs

We compost

We close doors to empty rooms to keep energy cost down. We use curtains & are looking into new, energy efficient windows.

We bring our own bags to buy grocery

We pay our utility company to supply us only with power from clean energy (wind, solar, hydro)

We don't wash our cats (would you?)

It just makes sense to save money, not shoot harmful chemicals into the air we breath and help to reduce global warming. It would be really nice if Baby Crumpet can grow up in a cleaner world.

I can Has Cheezburger?

2007-11-14T21:51:00.001-08:00

moar funny pictures

This n' That

2007-11-14T21:06:00.001-08:00

Crumpet turns 22 months old in a few days. Can't wait to shed this ''month'' thing and move into ''Years''

Potty training is in full force. Sometimes a nice surprise is a, ur, surprise.

Quick trip two weeks ago to Nashville. Visited Karen's new digs & re-visited her cats Frances & Faye. Had BBQ at Jack's. Learned how to play Beer Pong.

Quick trip last week to New York. Crashed at La Gringa's pad and spent endless hours surfing funny cat blogs. At least this time we didn't burst into singing Sweeney Todd. Yummy dinner at Flors Kitchen.

Fabu dinner in Seattle with Gracie at Tilth, a lovely restaurant nestled in the corner in Wallingford. Organic, fresh & creative. Highlights include mini duck burger, rabbit rillet and smoked gnocchi w/t lemon preserves & kale.

Going to Mazatlan next week..no shoes on Thanksgiving Day....

Looking ahead to Crumpet turning two - thinking about doing it in Vegas. The booze, gambling & showgirls. Seems appropriate.

Good movie: Hoax starring Richard Gere (no, really)

Great movie: Borat (does not suggest watching on your personal DVD player on an air plane)

Bad movie: Spider-Man 3 (boring....)

Downloaded tons of new music but have not listened to them all yet: new Duran Duran, Queen live album, Jay-Z, Annie Lennox, Seal, Shaggy, Trisha Yearwood.

The new Robert Plant/Alison Krause album is STUNNING

Crumpet's favorite new book: How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight (she goes to bed right after reading this book. Wow.)

Ribs in Boston

2007-11-14T20:55:00.001-08:00

Baby Crumpet took us to Boston to visit the Allens (John, Kate, Sophia, Amelia, Sabine & Olive)

John whipped out a gorgeous meal with smoked chicken & st louis style ribs. The two older girls were eager to show Crumpet around their world. Sophia is the original ''baby bok-choy'' and was the first baby among us 30-something crowds and gets credit for proving that, hey - kids can be fun & awesome! This moment of clarity was later enforced with the arrival of Amelia, a hurricane of a personality & one of the greatest kid I've ever met. The Crumpet would do well to be in their company. Back room deals are made for a joint-family operation in a warm place somewhere in the near future

Master Blaster

2007-11-14T20:47:00.001-08:00

Baby Crumpet meets Cormac (Master Blaster) DeJean.

The scene: CosmoGirl's wedding
The place: post-wedding snack tent
The verdict: Crumpet does not wish to share her snack

For more on Master Blaster check out his old man's brilliant blog TonerLow