Five More Things About Me

Those food lovers and photographers extraordinare, Husband and Wife over at My Husband Cooks, tagged me for this meme. I was tagged before but I was certain I could come up with five things to say, especially if they are related to kitchens or to France.

(1) The first time I made brownies, I put peanuts in them. The problem was, I didn't chop the peanuts, so the brownies fell apart. My father, who liked food jokes more than anything, roared at my folly. I never heard the end of "Whole Peanut Brownie" jokes.

(2) When I cannot fall sleep at night, I read anything written by MFK Fisher. She has a writing style that somehow relaxes me. My favorites, of course, are her memories of living in Aix-en-Provence and of visiting other places in Provence. She has written so wonderfully about Le Train Bleu at Paris' Gare de Lyon. I intend to dine there in May.

(3) One of my favorite things to do on Saturdays is go out to lunch, usually at a brew pub sort of place, and then come home and make homemade pizza. My diet relaxes a bit on weekends — I eat a few things that may not be so good for me (in moderation). One of the best Saturdays in my memory was a warm March day a few years ago when we went to a local hamburger bar — you know, the kind that cheers for local high-school teams — for burgers and beer.

(4) My friend Sylvie shares both my passion for food and France. Born in the Province of Quebec, she has also lived in the American southwest. She recently started a travel blog called Queen of Cheap Travel.

(5) I have always collected kitchen things, old utensils, mortar-and-pestle sets, egg cups and garlic jars. Everything I like somehow relates to food and kitchens. I should have read the signs long ago. My career would have been very different.