Shopping in Pacific Palisades

I spent election day in Los Angeles, and that night watching the election results.  What an emotional rollercoaster.  To relieve some of the stress on Tuesday, my mom and I drove out to Pacific Palisades, for a little shopping and lunch at  Palisades Village , a small mall developed by Rick Caruso (The Grove), right in the heart of the Palisades.  It looks like a beautiful New England village on the outside, and the interior walking and eating areas have a park like feel.

If you shop there, bring your checkbook.  All the stores are very high end, mostly independent shops.  The restaurants are, too.  The only chain stores were LuLu Lemon and Amazon Books.  It's a great place for window shopping, and very dog friendly.  Dogs, dogs, everywhere.  There's a community seating area in one part of the mall, and several nice restaurant choices.  We opted for Edo, a coffee bar with fabulous sandwiches, salads and desserts.  Edo is part of the e. baldi restauarant group.  E. Baldi is a fine Italian restaurant in Beverly Hills, and Edo, although just a small coffee bar and light lunch choices, is outstanding.  My mom had avocado toast with a poached egg and roasted tomatoes on top.  It was delicious.  I had a chopped chicken salad with quinoa and avocado, also outstanding.

Sometimes you don't feel like navigating a huge mall like Century City or UTC.  Although the choices are not the same, Palisades Village is a pleasant way to spend a few hours walking, window shopping and talking over a good cup of coffee.  If you're in the area, it's worth a stop.

Creating The Carolinas

I was playing  pickleball one day with one of my British friends from Ocean Hills, and out of nowhere, she asks me, "Why is there a North Carolina and a South Carolina, instead of just one Carolina?"  I had no answer, not a clue.  Of course I told her I would find out and get back to her.  Here's what I found.

During the 1600's while England was trying to colonize the New World, mother England experienced the greatest turmoil in her history.  After the brutal dictatorship of Oliver Cromwell, Charles 11 returned to the British throne in 1660.  The colonies that were created during his rule were known as Restoration Colonies.  It was in this environment that the Carolinas were created.

The southern part of Carolina served first as support for the British West Indies.  Soon the slave economy of the sugar plantations reached the shores of Carolina.  Plantations producing sugar, rice and other crops became profitable, as slaves in the tens of thousands soon inhabited Carolina.  Charles Town, later known as Charleston.  African slaves became the majority of the population  

In the northern area of the Carolina colony, the earliest inhabitants were displaced former indentured small tobacco farms.  Slavery existed here, but in smaller numbers than in the neighboring regions.  Northern Carolina, like Rhode Island in the North, drew the region's discontented masses.  

As the two locales evolved separately and as their differing geographies and inhabitants followed different courses, calls for a formal split emerged.  In 1712 North Carolina and South Carolina became distinct colonies..  It was a peaceful divorce.

We're All In This Together

 In times of war, pandemic or economic recession, Americans pull together.  We all do what we should for the good of us all.  Think back to WW11 and restrictions that were imposed on Americans to keep us safe.  One such edict was the use of black out shades.  It was required to keep black out shades shut in case of enemy attack.  The same thing was done in the United Kingdom.  No one complained that their civil rights were being impinged upon.  Of course people didn't like these restrictions, but everyone followed orders to keep us all safe.

In times of war, many restrictions were put in place.  Most of them were rations on things like gas, electricity, meat, etc.  Everything went into the war effort, and people were happy to help.  The government needed aluminum during WW11 and had a drive to collect aluminum pots and pans from citizens.  Everyone chipped in to help.  No one said their rights were being taken away.  Americans wanted to help each other and win the war.  

Fast forward to 2020, and here we are, faced with the pandemic.  How do we beat this virus?  The single best way is by using safe practices, encouraged by the scientists.  Hand washing, social distancing, and wearing a mask will help keep us safe.  Since when did wearing a mask to keep yourself and your fellow Americans safe become the loss of individual liberty?  We're all in this together, and the best way to stay safe is to follow safety practices.  Wearing a mask is the single best thing we can do to prevent infection.  It's not a matter of individual liberty being denied.  It's a matter of keeping people safe.

Whether it's turning the lights out to keep safe during war, observing curfews in times of street violence, or wearing a mask to keep safe during a pandemic, we must all do our part.

Are We Headed Toward Authoritarian Rule?

 We've heard it before.  It looks like we're headed toward authoritarian or fascist rule.  Many poo poo it, saying "Oh, that could never happen in America."  I remember years ago when I used to listen to  Robert Kennedy Jr.'s radio show,  Line of Fire.  It was during the era of George Bush Jr, and he would talk about the ten signs of fascism, and check off all the signs that had already taken place.

Now here we are 15 years later, and fascism is again raising it's ugly head.  You see our rights and traditional American values being slowly chipped away.  Here is a checklist of what to look for in an authoritarian regime.

An Authoritarian Checklist

1. Taking sides with a foreign power against domestic opposition.
2. Detention of journalists.
3. Loss of press access to the White House.
4. Made-up charges against those who disagree with the government.
5. Use of governmental power to target individual citizens for retribution.
6. Use of a terrorist or other incident to take away civil liberties.
7. Persecution of an ethnic or religious minority, either by the Administration or its supporters.
8. Removal of civil service employees for insufficient loyalty or membership in a suspect group.
9. Use of the Presidency to incite popular violence against individuals or organizations.
10. Defying the orders of courts, including the Supreme Court.

Holiday Gift Giving

40 years ago I discovered the delicious results of making homemade liqueurs.  Take a clean, sterilized jar, add fruit (raspberries, strawberries and oranges are great), add sugar, and a quart of vodka.  Put the jar in a dark place for about 3 months, turning the bottle frequently.  You can actually shake it as the fruit disintegrates.  After 3 months, strain the liquid, preferable through a coffee filter, to remove all fruit particles.  You are left with a sweet, after dinner, liqueur.  It is so delicious, but it takes time, not enough time this year to make for gifts.  But, here's an alternative that you can have ready in about a week.

Try infused alcohol.  You can do it with vodka, gin, rum or tequila.  Just take a large sterilized glass jar and put in your ingredients.  Wait 3-7 days, strain it, removing all the fruit and spices.  You are left with delicious infused alcohol, that can be used in mixed drinks, cooking or just enjoying as is.  Here are a few combinations you might enjoy.

1.  Cinnamon cranberry orange whiskey

2.  Pineapple infused rum

3.  jalapeno lime infused tequila

4.  lemon ginger cardomom gin

5.  strawberry vanilla bean vodka

These combinations are just some of the many you might enjoy.  Infused alcohol makes a great hostess gift, holdiday or birthday gift.  I hope you enjoy.

  

Lead, Follow, or Get Out Of The Way

 This is a quote attributed to Thomas Paine, from the 1700's.  It was later modified by General George Patton, who said, "Lead me, follow me, or get out of my way."

I can't think of a more fitting quote to describe how Joe Biden should proceed with his desire to get the Coronovirus under control.  President Trump is definitely not leading on this urgent matter.  He's not following either, because there's no policy to follow.  So, Mr. President, get out of the way and let the president elect, Joe Biden, lead us out of the abyss.  

At a time when over 172,000 new positive cases were identified in early November and over 115,000 Americans are DYING everyday, we need a strategy, a well ordered plan, to get more aggressive testing and tracing going, a distribution plan ready to go when the vaccine is ready, and a national plan that all can follow.  We CAN do this if everyone cooperates.  We have had no clear leadership on the virus for the past 8 months.  Joe Biden desperately wants to beat this virus.  Let him do his job.

Why is the Trump administration blocking the duly elected president's efforts to work towards a peaceful transition of power, and a seamless transfer of duties by those working on the virus?  It makes no sense to me.  He clearly knows he will not be president on January 20, 2021.  So, please Mr. President, get out of the way and let the new administration do their job, so they are ready and able to crush this virus as soon as possible after they take office.

So When Did Starting A Sentence With The Word "So" Become The Thing To Do?

 Have you noticed how often people start a sentence with the word "so"?  When did this happen?  I watch a lot of talk show/political shows and listen to a lot of podcasts.  It's the same on both.  When someone is asked a question by the moderator, chances are the answer is going to begin with the word "so."  It has nothing to do with race, class, or education.  Everyone does it.  Just pay attention to interviews in particular, and you will see how often "so" begins the answer.  

Is it even correct grammar to start a sentence with the word so?  Starting a sentence with a conjunction can be totally acceptable.  I researched this, and it turns out that "so" isn't used now anymore than it was 50 or 100 years ago, to start a sentence.  I don't know why it bothers me, but it seems like the person is trying to stall, to figure out how to answer the question.  Actually, so is used at the beginning of a sentence to invite discourse.  Human beings need a way to initiate talk.  If "so" keeps us talking, I'm all for it.

My Thoughts

 This is not a political blog, and I was never much interested in politics until the days of George W. Bush.  As the years went by, I got more and more involved, watching a lot of political news and working for candidates.  I have been glued to the TV for several years now, but I think that is coming to an end.

Over the past 4 years, Ron and I were both very involved in politics, and were very upset when Hillary lost.  What I have felt during the past almost 4 years in indescribable.  My level of anxiety has been so high.  I would never know what crazy or dangerous thing would happen next.  I am heartened by the fact that more people wanted to end this craziness than not.  But, over 70 million people voted for Donald Trump, which means Joe Biden has one hell of a job ahead of him.

Joe Biden will be a steady hand, a calm leader, one who relies on facts and science to guide him.  His first job will be to try to get the pandemic under control.  Who knows how it will be raging by January?  I hope people don't expect everything to get fixed at once.  It will take time, but he will have good, strong leaders to get us where we need to be.  He will work on healing our divisions.  He is the man to do it.  He knows everyone, and is a deal maker.  Most importantly, I can go to sleep with a clear mind, and wake up and not have to feel I have to turn on the TV.  I have confidence that Joe Biden will lead us back to "Normal." 

I Will Miss Alex Trebek

 After 37 seasons, and over 8,200 episodes of Jeopardy, it's longtime host, Alex Trebek, has died.  In March, 2019, Trebek announced to the world that he had stage four pancreatic cancer.  He passed away peacefully at home on Sunday morning.

Alex Trebek was born in Canada, and proud of it.  He mentioned it often on the show. He  began is career as a reporter for the Canadian Broadcasting Corp.  In 1966, while still in his 20's, he switched from journalism to hosting game shows.  It wasn't until 1984 that Trebek landed his big break, when Merv Griffin chose him to emcee the revival of Jeopardy.  Jeopardy was paired with Wheel of Fortune, and the two shows became a formidable block in the hour leading up to prime time.  Trebek won five daytime Emmy Awards.

His longevity was reflected in a personal milestone, passing Bob Barker's appearances on The Price is Right, and becoming the person who had hosted the most game show episodes, in the Guiness Book of Records.

Trebek loved that Jeopardy popularized intelligence.  Himself a very bright man, he was hands on when it came to clues.  He reviewed every clue for each show.  

For years, Ron and I watched Jeopardy religiously at night, often competing to see who could answer the most questions.  Perhaps the most exciting period on Jeopardy was when Ken Jennings was on.  People tuned in every night just to see if he'd win again.  Alex Trebek always developed a rapport with the contestants, whether they were there for one night or 100 nights.  Whoever thought it could be exciting to was nerds answer questions, most of which most people don't know the answers to?

Well, Alex Trebek made it interesting and exciting, and he will be missed.  He was 80 years old.

There's A New Drink In Town

Going down the beverage aisles of any supermarket is overwhelming.  Water of all types, tea, sports drinks and sodas.  Well, there's a new beverage in town.  It's called Hoptonic tea, and although I haven't actually tasted it yet, I can't wait to do so.  

Hoptonic was designed to fit into an active lifestyle.  The beverage was developed by several young entrepreneurs from the food and beverage industry.  They all liked to drink craft beer, but they wanted something non alcoholic to drink after a beer or two.  Thus, hoptonic tea was invented.  

The ingredients in each flavor are simple:  carbonated water, organic tea (black tea, chamomile or green jasmine), and hops.  Depending on the flavor of the tea, rose petals or lavender or other floral scents might be added.

At this time Hoptonic Tea is only available in the Bay Area.  Their goal is to expand into Southern California and across the country.  You can go to their website, hoptonictea.com to find out where this product can be purchased or how to buy it on line.

At the moment there are several flavors available.  Sparkling Chamomile Tea with Lavender, Sparkling Jasmine Tea, and Sparkling Early Grey Tea.

As if there aren't enough beverage choices in the market now, here's another.  I can't wait to try it.

Orzo With Spinach and Feta

 Have you read the New York Times lately?  It has changed.  Alot.  They must realize that many people are home now, and responding by having many food articles and recipes, crafts and projects and puzzles, in the paper everyday.  There used to be a food section once a week, but lately there are food articles and recipes in the Times every day.

Here is a recent recipe, which I made for myself one night, that was delicious.  The best thing about it is that it can either be the main course, or served as  a side dish with meat, fish or chicken.

                                        One Pan Orzo With Spinach and Feta

2 T. unsalted butter

4 large scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced, 

2 large garlic cloves, minced

8 ounces baby spinach leaves, coarsely chopped

1 tsp. kosher salt

1 3/4 c. low sodium chicken or vegetable stock

1 tsp grated lemon zest

3/4 c. crumbled feta

1/2 c frozen peas, optional

1 c. chopped fresh dill or parsley or cilantro

Heat medium skillet, add butter, scallions and garlic and cook for a few minutes.  Stir in chopped spinach and salt.  Cook until spinach softens, then stir in stock and bring to a simmer.  Add orzo, lemon zest, and the remaining salt.  Cover and simmer until orzo is cooked throug, about 10-14 minutes.  I had to add additional stock.  Stir in cheese and peas and dill, cover and cook for another minute.  Sprinkle each dish with more cheese and the reserved scallions.

This is simple, delicious, and vegetarian, which I really like.  I had a nice glass of red wine with it, and a plate of sliced tomatoes.  Enjoy.

New Openings in North County San Diego

I never thought I would be writing about new business openings, mostly restaurant openings, during the height of the pandemic.  Restaurants are closing!!  How on earth are restaurants opening at this time, and is does this make good business sense?

Nicks, one of my favorite restaurants in San Clemente  and several other Orange County locations, finally opened in October, in One Paseo, in Del Mar.  Although I didn't have the best meal when I was there for dinner in October, I will definitely give it another try.  I think I ordered the wrong thing.  I strayed from my favorite choice, the prime rib sandwich or the steak salad.  I went for the fried chicken and mashed potatoes, which was over salted to me. The restaurant itself is beautiful, and has lots of open air dining.

In Cardiff by the Sea, a new restaurant called Waverly, has taken over where Rimel's failed.  I have not been there personally, but it's on my list of places to try.

Around the Lumberyard in Encinitas, lots is changing.  On the west side of Coast Highway Brixton, a men's clothing line is opening.  On the east side of the street, a new Himalayan restaurant is opening.  I don't know if this is the same owners as Himalayan Kitchen in Encinitas, because there is no name posted yet, but I look forward to trying it.  A gourmet ice cream sandwich shop is also soon to opening in the Lumberyard.  Also around the Lumberyard, Prager bakery has been open for about six months now, and is doing a fantastic business.  There's a line of about 10 people waiting to get into the store every time I pass it.  

On Convoy, you might want to try Famous Waffle Sandwich, a popular sweet and savory waffle shop from Asia.  

In La Jolla on Prospect, you can now find Spiros, a Mediterranean restaurant.  They have another location in Coronado.  The La Jolla location has lots of outdoor seating, and is a good choice for those that want to eat outside.

So, if you're feeling safe in doing so, here are some new restaurant choices.  I have several that I will try in the next few months.