Weeks 13 to 17

From a book my cousin sent me.

A Latin Thursday

Some days I just marvel at the diversity of Metro Detroit.

I know, I know... people who lived in New York or Boston would scoff at that, but there's really a lot to experience here. And I, for one, don't take it for granted.

Take today for instance: Patrick and I had a lovely lunch in Mexicantown, and I was reminded of all the restaurants, shops and bakeries there we have yet to visit. We ended the evening with our very first Salsa lesson at a dance studio in nearby Wyandotte. (My awesome parents surprised us by paying for the lessons we had signed up for as an anniversary gift.)

But it's not just the Salsa lessons or even bright, thriving Mexicantown that has me appreciating the diversity.

I recently signed up for a Saturday class on how to make Polish Pierogis at the local community college, and I was struck by some of the offerings. I had a really tough time choosing between that and "Taste of Greece," "Cook a Delicious Lebanese Lunch," "Polish Specialties" and other offerings.

Detroit may not be the first place people think of as a hip place to live, and yes, the metro area is stunningly segregated, but I love the diversity of the place. And I just find myself thrilled with all the cuisines, cultures, dances and music we have yet to experience.

Now, if I could only get myself to sign up for that Spanish class I've always wanted to take...

Baby's first trip to the apple farm...

Celebrate today!

Happy Anniversary to us!

Mmm. We just finished a fantastic dinner at the Vietnamese restaurant we love in Dearborn. What I love most is that the server (who is actually one of the owners, I believe) always remembers us and what we ordered the last time and where we sat. It always feels very home-y whenever we go there.

As usual, we started with spring rolls and then each had our usual entrees: southern style Vietnamese coconut chicken curry for me and beef tenderloin with tomato rice for Patrick. We were going to save dessert for home (because we bought a little cake) but our server treated us to a bowl of coconut ice cream for our special day. (See remnants in photo above.)

It's hard to believe it's been a year since we've been married. It went so quickly, and a lot has happened. We got new jobs, moved to Michigan, sold our house (finally!), settled in and now we're about 12 weeks pregnant.

I can gladly say that each of the ten years we've been together has been better than the one before it! And there's so much more to come...

Ready to ride...

We found a wonderful bike trail this weekend that was pretty close to the apple farm I wanted to visit. The Paint Creek Trail follows a little creek, winds past lots of trees, runs alongside a few tiny waterfalls and passes some cool downtowns.

We did about four miles of it (eight miles there and back) and had a nice middle-of-the-trail stop in Rochester, Mich. As you can see below, what better way to recharge in the midst of a bike ride than by having a beer. (Well, Patrick had a beer. I'm all-water-all-the-time.)

Our new Bell bike rack was such a huge success that we'll likely take it to Bellaire, Mich. for our big anniversary outing this weekend.

A stop on our bike trail

Well, the trail is eight miles. We needed a rest.

A trip to the farm.

We might have been a little early for apple-picking, but I just couldn't wait. I love trips to the u-pick farms. I was just sorry that we were so early in the year that there was only one type of apple to chose from -- the Transparent apple. (Anyway, we were told it was a Transparent, but I'm having trouble finding info on a red and yellow Transparent, like the ones we had. I can only seem to locate info on the yellow ones.)

Anyway, all that is beside the point. We filled a giant $10 bag which I think amounted to about 60-70 apples or so. They were sweet with a nice tart finish and extremely fragrant. I figured they'd be wonderful for apple crisp, and I was right.

After our afternoon picnic, apple-picking excursion, bike ride and beer stop in Rochester, we came home and I roped my mom into peeling and coring apples at 10 p.m. By 11 p.m., we had a steaming dish of cinnamon-y apple crisp that was the quintessential taste of fall. (Yes people, it's almost fall, and I love it.)

I got the wonderful recipe off Cooks.com. Go pick some apples at a local farm and try it out...

APPLE CRISP

4 cups apple slices, peeled
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup oats, rolled (raw)
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup butter

Put apples in shell baking dish and sprinkle with lemon juice. Combine dry ingredients, add melted butter and mix until crumbly. Sprinkle crumb mixture over apples. Bake at 375°F for 30 minutes or until apples are tender. Makes six servings.
Serving Size: 1

Submitted By: Dolores Campbell

How 'bout them apples?

Finally...a book I don't hate!

In fact, this book is utterly fascinating.

City view

World's cutest baby lamp!

Don't be alarmed.

If you recall, I changed the color of my blog back when we were bursting with spring. But as you can see by the black-eyed Susans in the above photo, we're nearing the end of the summer growing season so I'm taking on this muted tone.

I'll tell ya... I love black-eyed Susans. Every year when our garden was nearing its end and the leaves on our hostas were wilted, and the last of the tiger lily petals had curled up on their long stalks, up would sprout those happy bushes of black-eyed Susans.

God, I was torn seeing them. I absolutely loved the burst of color they'd provide against our browning lawn, but they also signified the near end of my beloved garden for the season. Yes, fall is around the corner. Pretty soon, we'll be bringing out the scarves and the mid-length fall jackets. We'll trim back the lilies and the hostas, and we'll yank the tomato and cucumber plants.

I'd be worried about all this just by spotting those black-eyed Susans in front of Barnes and Noble if not for two wee facts: I adore those spunky yellow flowers, and I really love the fall.

Can I take a moment ...

... To celebrate tomatoes straight from the garden?

Stay away...

...from Goya's Ghosts, people. If ever a movie jumped the shark, it was this one. Whenever an actor or actress appears twice in a movie as two different people, you should always be suspect.

Instead, go see some artwork by Goya or heck, read about him.


Wikipedia says:

Goya was a court painter to the Spanish Crown and a chronicler of history. He has been regarded both as the last of the Old Masters and as the first of the moderns.

In the 1814 painting (above), The Third of May 1808: The Execution of the Defenders of Madrid, Goya depicts a scene from the Spanish war of liberation when many innocent citizens were shot by Napoleon's troops the morning following a popular uprising in Madrid.

Patrick and I learned about this painting during a lecture we attended at the DIA. Wikipedia sums it up nicely:

Both the night and symmetrical composition of the subjects stress the drama: the faces of those about to be shot are filled with feeling, while the soldiers are shown from behind, their humanity erased and their being reduced to mere components in the implacable machinery of death. The positioning of the soldiers and the man with arms upraised is both a conscious reversal of the poses of the main characters in Jacques-Louis David's Oath of the Horatii and a reminder of the crucifixion of Christ.

The white of the victim's shirt represents the innocence and purity of the some 5,000 Spanish civilians who were executed between May 2 and May 3. The central hero's deeply suntanned appearance and clothing unmistakably indicates that he is an outdoors worker - an ordinary anonymous man at the centre of this great unfolding tragedy. He alone looks straight at the faceless enemy. Though on his knees he is a giant who towers above all at the very moment before his death.

Ahh, I feel like I've done a little work to wash off the distaste from that awful, awful movie.

What are the best burgers in the nation?

editor's note: Two, count 'em TWO, are in Metro Detroit. One is in my very own Dearborn, Michigan.

The 20 Hamburgers You Must Eat Before You Die

Alan Richman traveled 23,750 miles and consumed more than 150,000 calories while taking the measure of 162 burgers across the country—with one goal: to find you the best damned assemblage of ground beef and buns this country serves up.

The hamburger is a symbol of everything that makes America great. Straightforward, egalitarian, substantial, and good-natured, it is also a little bloody at times.

It may come big and ungarnished, the East Coast ideal, tender and untroubled by bones or gristle, everything you look for in a filet mignon but seldom find. It may be the West Coast model, swelling with vegetation, brimming with health and well-being, piled high with all that a seed catalog can provide. A great burger, regardless of regional differences, instills a sense of optimism and fulfillment, that all is right at the table or the counter or the woodgrain, screwed-to-the-floor, fast-food booth.

At its best, it eliminates the need for conversation or the urge to glance up at the TV over the bar. If you find yourself eating silently, eyes closed, ignoring everything around you, even the unavoidable burger-joint din, you have come upon a burger that can be pronounced a success.

Here are the 20 best burgers in America

20. Hamburger Sandwich
Louis' Lunch
New Haven, CT

19. Our Famous Burger
Sidetrack Bar and Grill
Ypsilanti, MI

18. Hamburger
Poag Mahone's Carvery and Ale House
Chicago

17. Double Bacon Deluxe with Cheese
Red Mill Burgers
Seattle

16. Hamburger & Fries
Burger Joint
San Francisco

15. Build Your Own Burger
The Counter
Santa Monica

14. Hamburger
J. G. Melon
New York City

13. Cheeseburger
White Manna
Hackensack, NJ

12. Hamburger
Bobcat Bite
Sante Fe

11. Grilled Bistro Burger
Bistro Don Giovanni
Napa, CA

10. Number Five
Keller's Drive-in
Dallas

9. Cheeseburger
Burger Joint, le Parker Meridien Hotel
New York City

8. Hamburger
Miller's Bar
Dearborn, MI

7. Buckhorn Burger
Buckhorn
San Antonio, NM

6. California Burger
Houston's
Santa Monica

5. Kobe Sliders
Barclay Prime
Philadelphia

4. Rouge Burger
Rouge
Philadelphia

3. Not Just a Burger
Spiced Pear Restaurant at the Chanler Hotel
Newport, RI

2. Luger Burger
Peter Luger Steak House
Brooklyn

1. Sirloin Burger
Le Tub
Hollywood, FL

Source: GQ

But the question is: Should Cincinnati's City View Tavern be on there? Or Foran's in Detroit? Hmmm. This is a tough call. I think GQ missed a few.

Ypsilanti, Mich.

Here's a quick shot of the Depot Town area of Ypsilanti, where we stopped after eating a burger at Sidetrack Bar and Grill, which GQ said has one of the best burgers in the nation.

I would have to agree. My Sidetrack Famous Burger Deluxe with gorgonzola cheese and a side of sweet potato fries with some sort of horseradish aioli were out of this world! (I actually sent two pictures of the burger from my mobile blogging device but they won't post. I'm beginning to think my blog might be vegetarian!)

Anyway, Patrick had a yummy Edmund Fitzgerald Porter from the Great Lakes Brewing Company, which he said tasted like a chocolate milkshake with alcohol. Mmm. After that, I made him try the Darkhorse Raspberry Ale from the Darkhorse Brewing Company in Marshall, Michigan.

He said it was the type of fruity wheat beer that Gina might like. I'm not sure what that meant, Gina, but feel free to answer that snarky comment in the posts section.

:)

Refreshing.

Nothing like a tall glass of lemonade after a bike ride.

Whoo hoooo!

What? It's only August 11?

C'mon August, getta move on. We have a vacation planned to this lovely B&B in Bellaire, MI Labor Day weekend. One of those balconies is ours, and I want to get out there.

Here's a shock, it's been almost one year since we got married. Our anniversary is Aug. 27, so we'll be celebrating our nuptials in lovely Northern Michigan. It's not quite the UP, but it's up there. (Oh yeah, don't forget to send cards!)

I'm pretty excited because I haven't really been to Northern Michigan since I was kid. It's beautiful up there -- reminiscent of scenic upstate New York. I'm just sorry I can't be hitting the Michigan wineries, but hopefully they'll have all sorts of cherry tarts and other delicacies for me to try. I can justify them, too, because I gained a mere pound since my last doctor's visit, and the doctor said it's normal to gain about 2-4 pounds in the first trimester. Cherry pie, here I come.

For those of you who don't know, Michigan is known for its cherry crops and has a big Cherry Festival in Traverse City every year with a cherry pit spit contest, a cherry queen and all sorts of other quirky cherry-related celebrations.


Anyway, we'll be pretty close to Lake Michigan, as you see from the map, so I can't wait to enjoy the area. Should we bring our bikes? Hmmm. There's a thought. Patrick will likely be taking in some Michigan brews, too. There's a nifty nearby brewery -- Shorts Brewing Co. -- that I'm excited for him to try.

Some of the brews awaitin':
Huma-Lupa-Licious IPA
Pandemonium Pale Ale
Pontius Road Pilsner
The Local's Lager
The Bellaire Brown

So August can't zoom by quick enough for me. I'm ready to get outta the heat and enjoy some Northern Michigan breezes, scenic roads, lakeside views and cherries galore. I hope they still have some waiting for me in a few weeks.

Rooooaaaarrrr!

In the battle of the big cats, the Lions emerge victorious.

Lions 27, Bengals 26

Sorry, Bengals. But I still love your helmets.

Fred Astaire bringing SexyBack!

My brother's idea of worthwhile entertainment

Houston, we have a heartbeat!

Went to the baby doctor today and what a worthwhile appointment it was!

For some quick background, I appear to be anywhere from 10 to 11-and-a-half-weeks along. Thanks to some possible over-estimating on my part, I had to confess to the nurse that I might only be ten weeks.

She then had to confess to me that we might not be able to hear the heartbeat, as planned, because that's kind of early in the process. But she didn't want to disappoint, and the gleaming heartbeat monitor was already sitting on the counter so she said she'd give it a try. (Though, she warned us we might not hear anything and we shouldn't be disappointed.)

With the clear jelly slopped all over my belly, she moved the little monitor back and forth. We heard lots of static, some gurgles and then whooooshh, whooooshh, whooooshh. Patrick and I were quite excited as our ears tuned in and we both sat up in our seats, but the nurse informed us that was just my stomach making noises. "It picks up everything, especially if you didn't eat lunch yet," she said. "The baby's heartbeat is much faster."

Stupid stomach noises, I thought, and then I said aloud, "C'mon baby!"

After a few more false alarms (and a little disappointment) the nurse and I suddenly picked up a faint shh-shh-shh-shhh-shh-shhh-shh in quick succession. She lost the sound and then picked it up again, and we were like, "There it is again." I was beaming, but Patrick still couldn't hear it. So he got really close and the determined nurse hunted around again until we could all pick up the distinct, spunky shh-shh-shh-shhh-shh-shh-shh-shhh of our growing baby and its wee heart.

Patrick beamed, too, leaning in and said, "Settle down, little baby." Heh heh. Apparently, babies at this stage have super quick heartbeats. I think the count was 166 or thereabouts.

Needless to say, we were both overjoyed.

Anticipation

Enjoying Motown in Motown.

We're on our way to see The Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit’s hit play Now That I Can Dance at the Detroit Film Theater.

I can't wait. It may seem corny, but I really do love my Motown music, and this seems like a great way to hear some of my favorite songs.

From the DIA's Web site:

It's "the dramatic real-life story of the Marvelettes, five teenagers from Inkster, Mich. who went on to perform Motown Record’s first number one song, Please Mr. Postman. The play also follows the early stories of Diana Ross and Florence Ballard of the Supremes, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, the Vandellas, and the Contours."

"Now That I Can Dance was written by Mosaic founder Rick Sperling, based on interviews with many of the performers portrayed in the play. The main source for the script was the original Marvelette Katherine Anderson Shaffner, whose character serves as the narrator for the play. The show’s cast includes members of the community and Mosaic alumni performing side-by-side with Mosaic Youth Ensemble members."

Can't wait!

Mmm.

Just got back from a tres delicieux lunch at Cuisine, a French restaurant in lovely Detroit.

I'm supposed to be off today, despite having to write a story this morning, and had planned a big day with my mum. The big day so far has consisted of lunch since we got pushed so far back, but it was worth the wait.

As I noted in the comments of this blog, I had the potato gnocchi amandine with asparagus. My mum had tomato bisque with tiny Brie sandwiches. We topped off lunch with a pineapple tarte tatin for dessert.

We drove all the way to the restaurant playing my new Edith Piaf CD, which I bought after watching the tres excellent movie La Vie En Rose, a bio of her tortured life.

I told my mom to pretend we were in France again, which was fun. We had a couple of wonderful trips there, touring not only Paris but Champagne and even Brussels. Some of the highlights included a tour of champagne houses including the famous Champagne Mumm.


In fact, just the other day, we were laughing about when my mom took a spill, so to speak, in front of a bunch of outdoor cafes near the Centre Pompidou. I laughed so hard I couldn't help her get up because all the French people who saw the fall said in a loud chorus, "Ouuufff!" It was like a comedic film.


My crazy mom didn't mention that she really hurt her knee as we traversed all across Paris over the next few days, climbing up and down the steps of the Notre Dame cathedral and the ones leading up to Montmartre, where we had rented a little apartment.

When we got home, the poor little lady had to have knee surgery. I'm apparently a terrible daughter, but we still had a terrific time.

:)

My new best friend

After drinking a virgin bloody mary this weekend (long story), I have fallen in love with V8. Only 70 calories plus carrots, celery, beets, parsley and more.

Finally!

It's official. I'm about to be inducted into the cool kids' club.