18 May, 2009
I was feeling 80% physically the day before and during the 60th Birthday Party we hosted a few nights ago plus our cook had just left for a two week annual vacation… so putting together a sit-down dinner for 12 was much more daunting than usual. Instead of experimenting with something new, I…
17 May, 2009
I know it’s a Sunday. I should have more patience for stupidity. Or should I? There should be a special category in the after-life for folks who knowingly insist on creating stupid rules. And worse, forcing their subordinates to apply them regardless of the consequences. Worse, when they are…
16 May, 2009
The day after the “big birthday dinner,” we had three guests over for some hearty salads and a roast beef hash (recipe of that coming up in the days ahead). It was a far more casual gathering, with tables stripped of linens. But as the dinner discussion turned markedly adult-boring, the Teen…
15 May, 2009
No, I have never taken a course. I think you just learn by doing. You take notice of what others do. And you learn over time what things might work better than others. For the dinner table, I like to have very intense small arrangements that are nearly all flowers,…
15 May, 2009
The occasion was a friend’s surprise 60th birthday party. We were asked if we would host a dozen guests for a sit-down dinner in our home and of course we agreed. This had to a be a super special dinner and the table had to be dressed appropriately for the event. …
14 May, 2009
A quick semi-contrite apology to all of you abroad and without access to tropical fruit… IT’S DUHAT TIME. :) I LOVE duhat. And when I lived in the West, I think I went 12 or 13 years without that astringent, mouth-drying experience followed by the juicy sweet and sour fruit, often enjoyed…
13 May, 2009
We often overlook lamb as a choice for a casual dinner with friends. Lamb isn’t a huge favorite among Filipinos, but our family likes it a LOT. What others associate as a gamey, grassy, strong flavor, we consider unique and delicious. For my parents generation, lamb conjured up bad memories of…
13 May, 2009
Two things in the past week have really raised the hairs on my neck and made me fall into the “glass is half full” frame of mind. The first issue is the taxation of imported books, a separate post soon. The second issue, subject of a recent dinner conversation with friends, is…