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A blind date and a Russian wedding

The internet may well be ruthlessly fragmenting society, pushing our interests into narrow RSS-feed-delimited boxes. But here on Washington Island it did serve to bring two people together. Faithful commenter S. turned up the other day from Chicago, after cyberstalking me all summer, and invited me over for dinner at her fab chalet-moderne house overlooking … Continued

Watermelon salad

  Chop watermelon radish red onion   Toast pine nuts   Shred basil   Crumble feta   Dress. Toss. Serve. Yum.

Why I will never make it as a fiction writer

Other people’s words are just much more interesting than my own. Here’s some more from the archives: [me] “So, what do you think about the changes on the island in the last few years–the wheat farming and everything?” [other person] “I think it’s pretty much the best of both worlds right now.  We went from … Continued

Blogs and block

My friend G. pointed me toward this post at Merlin Mann‘s 43 Folders, on the makings of a good blog. I don’t know if I qualify as “trying” so much lately, but earlier this summer I did work hard on meeting the “good blogs are in paragraphs” criteria. And I’m definitely obsessed (and probably weird), … Continued

Meet the chef, part 2

“Chef, you know what situation I’d hate to see you in? When you’re going toward a stop light that’s changing and have to decide whether to go or stop.”–T., line cook, 7/21/07 “No, that’s an easy decision for me. I don’t even see yellow.”–L.C.

Meet the chef, part 1

“The reason I am the way I am is because when I was 12 I lived for six months in a Peninsula Hotel in Hong Kong. Breakfast was a perfect soft-boiled egg in a little silver cup. I never recovered.”–Leah Caplan, 7/21/07

Moonshine and Lamb Candy

The moon last night was so stupid big and bright that as it was rising I squinted at this weird glow through the trees and panicked, thinking the field across the way was on fire. Seriously. It’s sweater weather up here already, at least after dark. But it’s also a new kind of gorgeous. At … Continued

Street frites!

French fries on wheels. I have been talking about this–my fantasy new career–for a year now, and it’s finally happening. In New York. Come on Chicago, step it up! Or, give me a small business loan. [Toronto is hip to this as well, only in Canadian they’re called chip trucks.]