The opinion piece written by the doctor for the NY Times says there are four types of folks who are resisting the Covid vaccine: the Watchful, the Cost-Anxious, the System Distrusters, and Covid Skeptics.* None of these describes Ula. She was fine when each of us became eligible for the vaccine and she remained below […]
The Red Baron’s Tips for Small Business & Perfect Hollandaise
“That seems like an awful lot of trouble,” Mom stands beside me chopping fresh asparagus from Barbers farm while I make the hollandaise for Sunday dinner. Hollandaise doesn’t happen without mise-en-place. A class of cold water and a plate of cold butter to reverse the egg yolks should they start to turn; butter melted, […]
The Ash Tree
“Remember when Saoirse got stuck in that tree?” Ula’s side nearly splits with laughter recalling that day: her big sister’s hubris as she scaled the giant ash, her embarrassment when she had to call for help. We are alone at the home, standing in front of the mighty ash, the tree that wrapped my daughters’ […]
Survivors’ Guilt
It takes me a second to realize it’s an eagle and a muskrat. And that I’m witnessing something profoundly beautiful. And terrible. And therefore, awesome, in the truest sense of the word. They’re in Clapper’s hayfield, the one on the way to the cafe from the farm cleaved by the meandering stream. I remember that […]
Episode 12: When, Where & How
Mise-en-place. It’s French for put in place. And it’s the Golden Rule for running a restaurant. It defines when things happen, how they happen, and precisely where. At 4 am Saturday morning, I turn on the proofing ovens. At 4:01 I lay the croissants out on trays. At 4:07 I put water on to boil. […]
Easy as a Ketchup Sandwich: Episode 11
We bought our first bottle of ketchup when we entertained guests shortly after our wedding in 2000. The second and third bottles our household has ever owned were consumed & discarded in the last two weeks. I blame the vegan sleeping in our guest bedroom. Corey (dubbed “The Kid” by the cafe customers), slips by […]
The Full Stop: Episode 10
Failure to come to a full stop. That was the reason Saoirse failed her drivers’ test last Thursday. I’ve never seen her fail to stop. She’s a stickler for rules, refusing to put the car in gear until everyone’s buckled in, lecturing her Dad about his various infractions, scrupulously adhering to every speed limit, and, […]