Charcuterie: Mmm and Nom Nom

Posted by random olio

A few of my co-workers and I were talking about the rise of the term “charcuterie” in restaurants and food carts. Charcuterie: the art of making sausages and other cured, smoked, and preserved meats. I am seeing quite a list of newer places in Portland that have the main focus of charcuterie, bread, and cheese. To name a few: Olympic Provisions, Chop Butchery, Portland Meat Collective, and a new food cart called: Cheese & Crack.

Chris and I have been exploring the world of charcuterie for a while. But, before I tell you about that, can I just tell you for a second that I never announced we were having charcuterie, because I never knew cured and smoked meats with our cheese and crackers was charcuterie! Nor did I not have the slightest idea how to pronounce it. We even had fun (during the work conversation I mentioned above) trying to pronounce it correctly. Maybe I will just call it cheese & crack. Now that I can remember!

last night’s charcuterie with cheese

We often on the weekend relax around plates of different types of cheeses, crackers, charcuterie, and fruit and enjoy the multitude of flavors. What I love about it is that a little actually goes a long way. It is the strong and different flavors that make this meal so amazingly enticing. For me it is also the best of both worlds – salty and sweet. A sliced pear, on top of a slice of smoked gouda on a salty cracker. Mmm and Nom Nom. A perfect way to end a day of exercise, adventures, sun, and play. It is how we often end a full day.

What about you? Do you dabble in charcuterie?

A Message to Todd Akin

Posted by random olio

I do not even know where to start on this debate. If I were in a cartoon I would have fire coming out my ears, and fireworks coming out of my mouth. I would be censored left and right. I just am flabbergasted by this politician’s comments. Seriously? There must not be a woman in his life that has ever been raped. Either that or he just has no respect for women. If he did he would eat his words.

What I am talking about pertains to Republican Senate Nominee, Todd Akin. Akin discussed his opposition to abortion rights “even in case of rape with a claim that victims of ‘legitimate rape’ have unnamed biological defenses that prevent pregnancy.” This quote was from this article about the TV interview with Akin on Sunday. In his interview, Akin said the following:

“First of all, from what I understand from doctors [pregnancy from rape] is really rare. If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down.

OMG. I am speechless. But only speechless because all of the words I want to say just are not nice. I am working on speaking up with clear, direct words, that are not @#$#%#$@$. The article states that rape is not “rare” and that “32,101 pregnancies result from rape each year.” Maybe Akin should go through a simulation of what it is like for a woman to be raped, and then tell him he has to carry the baby he is now pregnant with – oh yeah, and Akin, remember you never consented to the sex you have just been forced into.

Why do men and politicians feel that they have any say in what a woman does with her body? What woman should ever be forced to have a baby, after being raped? Then be reminded that they must have that man’s baby in their body for 9 months and then raise it? How is that bringing a child into this world with all the love, happiness, and consensual desire to raise a child? Maybe Akin would think differently if he had to grow a baby in his belly after nine months, and then raise it. BY. HIMSELF.

I would love for someone, anyone to tell me how to look at this from another view, because right now I am just livid. I cannot seem to find any silver lining in this debate at all. I really do not like to talk about politics at all, but this is more than politics. This a woman who has been forced to have sex against her will. Oh yeah, and in Akin’s words: “If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down.” Seriously? Akin, what part of the female body has a way to shut the whole damn thing down?

Please tell me.

Two Favorite Apps + Two New Tips

Posted by random olio

I am someone who likes to share a good thing. When I find an amazing local bakery, I cannot help but share and tell others. If a great company gives stellar customer service, I tell others. I will also warn others about bad customer service. I apologize in advance that the rest of this post is going to be app/iPhone-centric. I do not know if these apps are available for non iOS devices, but they might be.

incredibooth photo

My newest favorite app is called: IncrediBooth. It is a 99 cent app, that lets you take four different pictures and puts it together in a photo booth style photo. There is something about the nostalgia of photo booths. There used to be a toy store in Portland that had an old-fashioned photo booth that gave you a black and white photo. I love the fun and spontaneity of these booths. Now I can do it right from my phone!

Wunderlist. A free app. It creates lists that you can update online or from your iPhone or iPad. Chris and I keep our lists of weekend To-Do’s, movies or TV shows we want to watch, restaurants we want to check out, etc. I could add an item to a grocery list from home and Chris could sync the list when he gets to the store to find my additions without having to call or text me.

Ready for some tips now? I have had my iPhone for a few years now, and I just learned two things last week. Someone at work told me how to close out of your apps (I always thought I had been when I got out of them). Only to find out that they are still open in the background taking up battery life. To close them, double-click the home button and all open apps will show in the bottom bar. Hold down on one of the apps to get them into close mode and they will all show up with a red X. Then close the apps you no longer want open.

My second thing I learned last week is that you can set up a more complex password on your iPhone than just the traditional four numbers. I had no idea! If you want to make it more complex, go to Settings, General, then Passcode Lock. You will have to enter your current Passcode, then turn “Simple Passcode” to Off and your iPhone will prompt you for a longer, more complex Passcode.

What other random iPhone or iPad tips do you know? What apps have been your recent favorites?

A Recipe For Longevity

Posted by random olio

I just finished reading: “How Georgia Became O’Keeffe: Lessons on the Art of Living” by Karen Karbo. It was an interesting book, and I learned an amazing amount about Georgia O’Keeffe. She was more of a badass than I ever knew. It was inspiring to learn that she did her own thing in life, she did not follow mainstream thought and went about things in her own way. One of the quotes I appreciated near the end of the book talks about Chanel, Hepburn, and O’Keeffe and how they each lived long lives:

“O’Keeffe never lost her spunk, or her conviction that what she was up to at any given moment was somehow less important because she was older. This was also true of her fellow extreme seniors Katharine Hepburn and Coco Chanel. Hepburn lived to be ninety-six; Chanel, who smoked, died young at eight-eight. Like O’Keeffe, they were skinny, busy, and irritated until they declined a bit, then died. They were active, didn’t eat a lot, and followed their interests. They never let anyone tell them what to do. They were always a bit pissed-off. I can only assume that this is the real recipe for longevity.” page 214

My favorite line: “They were active, didn’t eat a lot, and followed their interests. They never let anyone tell them what to do. They were always a bit pissed-off. I can only assume that this is the real recipe for longevity.” That inspires me. I do not like to be told what to do, and I can be easily pissed off. Does that mean I will live a long, full life?

Georgia is an inspiration for pushing the envelope in regards to the art she made. Whether she meant to or not, she definitely was one of the first modern woman painters, well before her time. I have added visiting the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe to the life list. If you have any interest in women, modern art, and badasses, then read Karen’s book.

Little Green Monsters

Posted by random olio

Back in February, I posted a blog about Green Smoothies. For the past few years I have started my day with a green smoothie.

Last week a Facebook friend posted a link to a blog about kids and green smoothies. I had to watch the video included in the blog a few times. Specifically I loved watching the little boy and his intense desire to have his green smoothie. He looks like a little gentleman in a toddler’s body. I hope my kids are as enamored with green smoothies as these two precious little ones. You will also want to try the “Green Monster Chocolate Smoothie” recipe posted at the above blog link. We made it yesterday morning and this morning and are enjoying it. It gives us another option to our usual green/fruit smoothie. It consists of spinach, kale, peanut butter, chocolate almond milk, ice, and a banana. (We did not have any kale so we doubled the amount of spinach).

For background click the above link, and here is a direct view of the video:

A note about green smoothies. Buy a Vita-Mix. We literally went through about 10 blenders in a short amount of time (all that eventually died through electrical smoking) and we finally dropped the money for a Vita-Mix. It is worth every penny.