talbotlucas.org: a word to the wise is sufficient

happy birthday, chez panisse

It seems fitting that we spent today, the 34th anniversary of the opening of Chez Panisse, by attending a Slow Food tour of the Hollywood Farmers' Market, followed by several hours of chopping, rolling, sauteeing, and oohing and ahhing with my fellow snails at Angeli Caffe.

Chez Panisse's celebratory menu will feature a grande bouillabaisse and will benefit the Chez Panisse Foundation. Because of the generosity of Kermit Lynch, who is underwriting the entire event, the price of the dinner ($250 per person) will benefit the Foundation. That's one hell of a birthday present.

Our menu, prepared almost entirely with ingredients from the market earlier that morning, included gazpacho garnished with croutons and avocado; gnochetti di ricotta with heirloom tomato sauce; salad of greens with almonds, ricotta salata and anchovy-mustard vinaigrette; zucchini flowers; sauteed peppers with garlic; sauteed squash with red wine vinegar, mint, and garlic sauce; sliced heirloom tomatoes with salt; and baked figs with vanilla ice cream and huckleberry compote. A feast!

The ten of us were able to contribute to the preparation of each part of the meal, compare notes about our favorite farmers' markets and resources, and were rewarded by a lovely day and many tips from Evan Kleiman (chef, owner of Angeli, Slow Food's governor of southern California, and the host of KCRW's radio show, Good Food, which is now available as a Podcast), from Kathy, her right hand at Angeli, and from Mor, Evan's niece, who is a talented young pastry chef in her own right.

Nothing was fussy. Everything was spectacular. And that's why it was a great activity for any day, really, but especially as a salut! and bon anniversaire to Chez Panisse.

We brought home the most amazing Kyoho grapes--HUGE JUICY PURPLE MONSTERS. We had a taste and couldn't resist them. Really. We had to turn around a purchase a bunch because they were unbelievably....grapey. Seascape strawberries from Harry's (the gaviotas that were there at the opening of the market were gone, completely sold out, only one hour later). Chanterelle mushrooms--gorgeous and so fragrant. We were talking with David West, the purveyor, about recent attempts by L.A. county authorities to regulate (in a clumsy and ill-conceived way) the selling of mushrooms, and I couldn't leave without buying some chanterelles for our own dinner. They called to me. Ruby carrots. Golden beets. Sweet (but not too sugary) cherry tomatoes. (We should have bought some of the variety that's come to be known as Evan's--named after Evan Kleiman--but that will be next week's errand. They are incredible, and the story behind them is fascinating, but more on them, including photos, when we have them in hand.) A variety of lettuces from Kenter Farms, including a tat soi that revealed a spectrum of tastes in a single leaf. And avocados, after we all sighed while tasting the samples the vendor had offered.

It was a good day.

doggles and boo

News of another of Wallace's relatives: Boo (more formerly known as Ch Cezanne's Red White 'N Boo NA) had recently suffered an infection in one of his eyes so serious that surgery was required. His owner's posts to Corgi-L, the corgi listserv, noted that the infection itself destroyed most of the eye and was probably initiated by a scratch or other seemingly minor damage. Boo now has a glass eye* where the infected one had been, and several weeks later is already back to his agility drills. He looks great! And the "doggles"--dog goggles--that he often wears for protection are very stylish: He's right in step with the latest Ralph Lauren/aviator-themed ad campaign!

The photos of Boo in action and sporting his doggles are here. His owner went through a lot to help Boo recover, and it's a wonderful reward to see him looking so bright.

* Actually, I'm not sure if it's glass or some other material, but you know what I mean.

it's tough, not having enough time

Just when you think you've pigeon-holed someone unfairly, this: Posh Spice (Victoria Beckham), wife of footballer David Beckham, former Spice Girl, and one of the pillars of the UK tabloid temple, admits--not with embarassment--that she's never read a book.

And this news, about Google's suspension of its book scanning program: I hate the whole opt-out mentality. I'm not as rabid a copyright defender as some--I think there are some significant kinks in the system, particularly since the extension of the U.S. copyright term (see Eldred)--but from this and other articles I get the sense that Google thinks it's fine to say, "We're going to make digital copies of your property, and we're going to use it without your permission. If you don't want us to do so, you have to specifically tell us."

So...I send a note to my neighbor saying that I get to use his very expensive and exquisitely maintained Porsche (Terrence knows the model and all the details--I just know it's an obscenely clean head-turner) unless and until I hear from him to the contrary. Right-o. To my knowledge that doesn't work with chattels and it doesn't work with intellectual property, either. You'd think Google or their attorneys would understand that, or at least understand that owners of property don't look kindly on this kind of behavior. What are they thinking?

Maybe this? (link to an eight-minutevideo--have your audio on). Kind of creepy, and not so far-fetched...

...formerly known as...

Every now and then you see this phrase, and it doesn't really merit a pause. "The artist formerly known as Prince" was common for a while, but this--the opening sentence of the second paragraph--caught my eye. From the article entitled "Reading Ratzinger" by Anthony Grafton in the 25 July issue of The New Yorker:

"At the time, Ratzinger was the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Vatican office formerly known as the Inquisition."

Not like "the Inquisition" carries with it any nasty historical connotations... Perhaps I'll see if The Name of the Rose (the self-described palimpsest starring Sean Connery) is on the tube...

For a more obvious laugh, also check out "My Dog is Tom Cruise" by Noah Baumbach in the same issue.

summer reading

I'm chomping through The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana, Umberto Eco's new novel. Not that anyone asked. But here's what others (who were asked) are reading. I don't look to these sorts of lists for suggestions (except: see Harold Bloom comment, below), but I do get a kick out of the combinations of books that people select, or how they characterize their decisions.

In this list, I like the breadth of Tom Wolfe's selections, the clash of Janet Malcolm's, and the decision by Erica Jong to read contextually. I like that a few people are wrestling with Proust, and that Frank Gehry has employed his iPod to help. And I'm intrigued by Harold Bloom's comment that "I always regularly reread a book that I wish more people would read: It is by a contemporary writer named John Crowley and it is called Little, Big. It is almost literally the most enchanting 20th-century book I know. Hmm...

you know what happens when a topic captures my attention...

Now I find (and therefore must share) a poo flag blog. "Plant your flags. And keep on saying, 'This too shall pass.'"

Love the how-to page. Just the thing to keep the kids occupied during these lazy, hazy days of summer...

There are a lot of people who don't pick up their dog's poo in our neighborhood. Do you think they would if they knew that they were providing a base for a poo flag? I am so intrigued.

are these for sale locally?

This made my day.

back from pasadena

I returned Thursday evening from three jam-packed, brain-tiring (including one brain-numbing) days at the Pasadena Center, my testing center for the bar exam. I couldn't bring a camera with me, but Terrence memorialized the day on film when he came to fetch me.

I have to say that despite the shared nervousness, everyone was fairly well behaved. No shenanigans, and everyone seemed to be reasonably polite to their fellow exam-takers. I was happy to be seated in the front third of the convention hall--I heard that the view from the back of the room was a little disconcerting because of the sea of people. One of the proctors estimated the group at 600 or so, but a quick count of the number of people of across and the number of rows yielded several hundred more than that. I was prepared with earplugs and migraine medication, but didn't need to use either. One we were given the word to begin I managed to shut off just about everything going on around me and to focus on the task in front of me.

Now the wait begins: no news until November, when the results are mailed to applicants. A number of people at the test center commented on the fact that results arrive just before Thanksgiving, which will make the holiday an occasion for even more thanks or one with a lot of explanations (but what's to explain?) and sighing. One person was even thinking of altering their holiday travel plans because he didn't think he could bear sitting around the table and being the only person who didn't pass on his first try.

My nights are still filled with bar prep dreams--last night seemed to be focused on constitutional law, criminal law, and torts--but I'm taking the position that it's out of my hands and I can't worry about it. I'll know the results when I know the results, and in the meantime I've got a lot of other things that have been waiting for my attention.

In that spirit, yes, there was celebrating over the weekend with a nice wine (Tensley's Colson Canyon Syrah) and very good cheese from The Cheese Store (TCS): (a frightfully moldy but lovely French goat, a wedge of Roaring Forties blue from Tasmania, and Etorki, a mild French basque sheep's milk cheese. Accompanied by fresh tomatoes from the Pasadena Farmer's Market, Dominick's sundried tomatoes and an assortment of olives from TCS, good friends, and a lot of sunshine.