grace

at the lakehouse over the fourth of july holiday, i read this peom by jake adam york in the editor's notes of southern living magazine.  not my first reading choice, as i had already read all of mom's us weekly's and people mags, but i ended up dog-earing this poem and a recipe or two.  this poem made me feel nostalgic (not sure if that's the right word but it's the only one i can think of that comes close).  i am proud to be southern and i love food, especially food prepared by my family and particularly if it's a recipe that generations of my family have enjoyed.  it made me proud that i make my great-uncle pete's old army pancake recipe for my boys every weekend.  it made me miss my mawmaw and want more than anything to hug her neck and taste her peach cobbler and fried chicken again.  it made me miss my pop who would use a slice of white bread as a utensil to sop the brown gravy from nanan's smothered chicken off of his plate.  it made me think of paw-paw to whom no meal is complete with out either a fresh sliced onion or tomato or both.  this poem got me.  i hope you like it, too.

Grace

Because my grandmother made me

the breakfast her mother made her,

when I crack the eggs, pat the butter

on the toast, and remember the bacon

to cast iron, to fork, to plate, to tongue,

my great grandmother moves my hands

to whisk, to spatula, to biscuit ring,

and I move her hands too, making

her mess, so the syllable of batter

I’ll find tomorrow beneath the fridge

and the strew of salt and oil are all

memorials, like the pan-fried chicken

that whistles in the grease in the voice

of my best friend’s grandmother

like a midnight mockingbird,

and the smoke from the grill

is the smell of my father coming home

from the furnace and the tang

of vinegar and char is the smell

of Birmingham, the smell

of coming home, of history, redolent

as the salt of black-and-white film

when I unwrap the sandwich

from the wax-paper the wax-paper

crackling like the cold grass

along the Selma to Montgomery road,

like the foil that held

Medgar’s last meal, a square of tin

that is just the ghost of that barbecue

I can imagine to my tongue

when I stand at the pit with my brother

and think of all the hands and mouths

and breaths of air that sharpened

this flavor and handed it down to us,

I feel all those hands inside

my hands when it’s time to spread

the table linen or lift a coffin rail

and when the smoke billows from the pit

I think of my uncle, I think of my uncle

rising, not falling, when I raise

the buttermilk and the cornmeal to the light

before giving them to the skillet

and sometimes I say the recipe

to the air and sometimes I say his name

or her name or her name

and sometimes I just set the table

because meals are memorials

that teach us how to move,

history moves in us as we raise

our voices and then our glasses

to pour a little out for those

who poured out everything for us,

we pour ourselves for them,

so they can eat again.

****
speaking of fourth of july and eating too much, we went to the lakehouse and had the most amazing time despite the jet-ski breaking down, a nasty wasp sting, rogue fireworks, and lake levels too low to get the boat out.  here's a peek:

how was your fourth?

xoxoxo,
coco

random bits

a few things are on my mind this monday morning:

1) blackboard wars.  does anyone watch this show?  it is all about teachers trying to turn around one of the worst high schools in new orleans.  it's a reality show on own.  i cry like a baby each episode (leave it up to oprah!).  it's so strange how it can make me want to sprint back to the classroom and want to never, never teach again all at the same time. (oh and one of the most wonderful/cringe-worthy parts of this show is how perfectly they portray how awful your first year of teaching can be.  i remember crying in the classroom.....ugh.)

2) stevie nicks.  i have always loved her and watching her on own last night just confirms it.  did anyone see it?  have you seen fleetwood mac's behind the music?  best. one. ever.

3) these songs made my commute this morning:

this sing-a-long oldie but goodie (which makes me want to run away to an island somewhere),

and this brand new-to-me goodie.

4) i walked into the office this morning and found these.  i have since eaten half of the damn tub and had to physically remove them from the room before i eat the whole thing.  oh my word, delicious.  crunchy and salty are the two criteria for a food to qualify as my favorite.  have you had them before?

well, that's all i had on my mind.  off to do some real work (or eat okra snax, whatevs).

good eats: big d

my sweetheart would be perfectly content eating his turkey sandwich, carrots, apple and yogurt every day for lunch.  i would rather pull every hair out of my head.  variety is the spice of life, am i right?

as you know, i am an east dallas girl.  it's unlikely that i will drive the boys across town for lunch during the week (unless we have a date with daddy).  close to home, our lunch options are limited.  and i'll be damned if we eat chick-fil-a every day of our lives.  our choices are (for now) limited to schlotzsky's, jake's burgers, sonic and subway.  while there is nothing wrong with these fine establishments, i get bored easily.

enter benny's grill, garland rd.'s newest resident.  it is housed in an old arby's, so don't expect the classiest joint.  but outside of our neighborhood darling, goodfriend, this is the only place in the hood you can find a feta-stuffed lamb burger or a balsamic chicken flatbread, and the like.  pictured below is my mediterranean panini, complete with gouda, feta, kalmata olives, roasted red peppers, and spinach.  yuuuuuum.  at goodfriend, this would run you twelve bucks, not to mention the couple of craft beers you need to wash it all down.  at benny's, i got this and fries and a drink for less than seven bucks.  damn straight.

oh, and it's run by members of the lover's pizza family.  just doing our part to keep it local, y'all.

i work on the other side of town, where the lunch options are more diverse.  there are a million little joints i could rave about, but one of our favorites is cosmic cafe, an all vegetarian restaurant.

work can be nuts, but here lunch is zen.  water is served in metal cups, so it's icy, icy cold.  the food is delicious.  the lentil soup is spicy.  the atmosphere is relaxing.  it smells like hippies (clean ones).  and it makes you want to do yoga.  actually, i think there is a yoga studio on the premesis.  no joke.

pictured below: lentil soup, garden salad and naan.

ohmmmmmmmm.

what are some of your favorite lunch places?  i am always up for trying something new.

acl awards 2012

it's that time of year again.

the austin city limits music festival came and went, proving once again to be one of my most favorite ways to soak in my friends and music.  

it nourishes my soul.

cheesy?  yes.  true?  absolutely.

last year i created my own acl festival awards featuring the highlights of the weekend.

and this year i will do the same.

i just know you are all on the edge of your seats.

best pre-festival grub: 

giant burgers at casino el camino.  it served as a good sponge for the dozen or so beers we were about to consume at the festival.

best mudfinder:

marcy.  every. time.  on friday, zilker park was dry as a bone except for maybe one spot where someone probably dumped a cooler.  and if anyone is going to accidentally step in a puddle of mud (causing her friends to pee from laughter), marcy will.

(this is a big one....drumroll, please)

best in show:

hands down, florence and the machine.  here's the deal, i liked her songs on the radio but never bought an album. well, let me tell you, she is an amazing preformer.  i have been doing this festival thing for a while now and i can easily say that i have never seen someone command an audience like florence.  we were putty in her hands.  and because of that, i am a fan for life.

  

best way to spend a rainy day:

with these guys.

we skipped the festival on saturday (i know, i know, spare me the lecture) due to some pop-up thunderstorms.  having some of your best friends drive into town to hang out with you makes it really difficult to leave them to go stand in a field of mud.  i would rather see them than jack white anyday.

best impression of a 21 year old:

these fools.  and i love them for it.

the hostess with the mostest award goes to: 

the blond beauty in the pink dress.  becky didn't go to the festival, however she stayed up and waited for us to get home, she cooked us breakfast (which included these), she provided us with unlimited coffee, snacks and stories about suzy.  she delivered these all with warmth and kindness.  this is her blog debut!  say hello to becky!

best hangover helper:

watermelon agua fresca.  i required a gallon of it. 

most creative outfit:

it is a 40-way tie. every year, the acl festival is an education in what "kids" are wearing these days.  and by "kids" i mean the twelve year olds they now accept into universities.  current trends: fanny packs, high-waisted cut-off jean shorts, shiny spandex bodysuits, and apparently capes.  hmph.   

{the people-watching is out-of-this-world}

my favorite show:

the avett brothers.  florence may have stolen my heart but the avett brothers had me at hello.  they are so much fun to see live.  they put on a foot-stomping, twirl-yourself-silly kind of show.  true love.

disappointments: missing the lumineers and the alabama shakes due to insane crowds.  boo.

other highlights:

trampled by turtles (i am currently obsessed with their latest album)

ben howard

gary clark, jr.