Garlic moonshine

 

Garlic infused vodka, our entry for tonight's garlic fest.

More signs of Spring

Shirts vs Skins in the park

Signs of Spring

Duck boats

Acappellooza was aca awesome

Choices

Everyday we are faced with choices. Chicken or Fish? March Madness or a Book? Pundits on TV discussing the probability of super natural powers taking over a lost airplane, or a root canal? A few days ago we stopped by the Paramount Theatre to inquire about an upcoming a cappella performance. We bought tickets, but noticed the variety of shows upcoming. One caught our eye, and was free. A talk entitled transforming pain into power, by Daniel Beaty. 

On the night of the show (last tuesday) the crowd was enormous and diverse. Boston blue bloods, College kids, and people just like us. We had not heard of Daniel Beaty and after a few opening acts he came to the stage. One of his first numbers was a rendition of act one of his play Emergency (about an oxymoronic setting of a slave ship stopping at the Statue of Liberty), in which he is the sole actor playing 43 parts, each with a different voice. I am not a play person, but my mouth was gaping open, I have never seen such a talented person. His next act was a recital of one of his poems Knock Knock. I was not in the right line when they were handing out genes for poetry appreciation. This poem was a fusion of rap/opera/Edgar Allan Poe. It was more sung than spoken. Everyone stood up to loud applause after the 5 minute recital. We made good choices, venturing out to an unknown performer, and will be back for more.

I will leave you with the last stanza from the Robert Frost poem The Road Not Taken

...

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Library flags @ half staff

In honor of the fallen firemen.
#BostonStrong

Boston Strong

A typical response from one of our favorite local restaurants.

Pork belly hash

What all hash aspires to be.

To the market

Walked over to the market this morning, amazing colors.
Two items you don't normally see, persimmons and a box of habanero peppers.

Spotlight: Post 390

4 minutes by foot from Nemo is Post 390, self described as an urban tavern, but with a large indoor fire place and rough hewn cherry planking it's more like an aspen lodge.
This gem is deceptively large with several kitchens and bars. Downstairs is tavern food, upstairs the menu is more involved. It is restaurant week in Boston, usually a dining mistake as that's when restaurants are filled with bloggers and foodies and reservations are hard to get.
We dined off the regular menu not the specials for the week. C had deviled duck eggs, and I had crab cakes. Both outstanding. A slaw made with apples and jicama made an outstanding side. For dinner C had salmon, with roasted brussel sprouts, and I had a grilled whole red fish. Because the chef had to remove some of the sauce as it had dairy, he came over with an extra dish of roasted veggies and fingerling potatoes cooked in duck fat. I am a sucker for whole fish, and this was perhaps the best piece of fish I've ever eaten.
We stopped and talked to the chef on our way out. The fish was caught that morning and was one of only 7 he could get for the day. He told us about some house made prosciutto from a farm in Iowa that will be on the menu next week. He visits all the farmers before using their food.
Simple and memorable, hopefully we can return sometime.
Love,
t&c

Bacon Jam

If you don't like the flavors of bacon, bourbon or maple syrup, check yourself into a local clinic cause you are missing a chromosome.
Bacon jam from Martha Stewart contains all these and is held together not by pectin but cold bacon fat. A little goes a long way. Here is "out of control" deviled eggs. Each one has a hidden base of bacon jam, and topped with a drop of sriracha sauce.
I think they would do well on top of oysters. The recipe can be found online, but contains bacon, brown sugar, onions, vinegar, chili powder, ginger powder (I used fresh), mustard powder (left out), bourbon (compensated more for the lack of mustard powder), and maple syrup. Its an exotic taste, next time I will use less ginger and more bourbon.

The only way

Green vegetables should be enjoyed.

Fort Point Bridge

Here is an old photo (courtesy library of congress), of the Summer Street bridge (blog post yesterday). The bridge is one of five in the country that is a retractile bridge. Diagonal sections extent into the channel leaving a space for tall ships to pass through. Walking over its clear the sections are supported by train wheels which are guided out by track.

Bucket List Venue

The cute building here is a gastro pub (that's code for a bar hired a professional chef instead of the bar tender cooking your chicken wings), that apparently has sessions where you sit at tables and paint while enjoying your favorite libation. Every table had a small easel set up with patrons painting the same scene.

Walk to the Garden Show

The journey was more memorable than the destination. We had never been to the this section of the city. A beautiful day. 

This picture was taken looking back on the city from Fort Point. The site of the Boston Tea Party is still being disputed, and it has most likely been filled in, but this area is where it is currently celebrated.

The Waterfront area of Boston is being expanded in every direction. Cranes are building up and out. 

We did purchase a new flagpole for the Casa, and the show special included a discount and an extra flag of our choice. Go Sox!

Happy pi day

Next year at 9:26 am there will be a moment of silence.

Gadget hound

Ratcheting pineapple slicer. Easily makes slices from a fresh pineapple. And you have a great container for your next Mai Tai. Nemo approved.

Oh Happy Day!

It's easy to forget we are a coastal town. Busting blue skies and people eating outside!

Guard cat

Juxtaposition of philosophies

At the same store. Sort of ying/yang of ideas which define Americans

3d printers

Still looking for a problem for which this is the solution, but a detailed model of a church being printed is over the top.

Bamboo bikes

Do you need to water them?