Fair Winds and Dream Bars

Posted on February 26, 2013 by Julie-Ann Baumer

Even though I’ve packed up 8 boxes of books and stashed them in a temporary location, I still have a few idle stacks kicking about The Coop.  In one of them is an Encyclopedic Cook Book from 1950; I keep it on my night table for evenings when Mr. Sandman is late to arrive.  I don’t remember where I found this volume.  It may have been a sidewalk book sale at Carlson Turner Antiquarian Books.  Tucked inside the front cover were some Minute Rice recipes clipped from an October 20, 1963 newspaper and this recipe:

Even though I’ve looked at this recipe many times and wondered about the S.S. Laurentia and Dena Teegarden, this weekend I thought seriously about making some “Dream Bars.”  The recipe is simple enough; will unsweetened coconut ruin the flavor?  I don’t have the sweetened kind of coconut flakes.  I might need to add some chocolate chips.

I had already made an apple crisp over the snowy weekend, so I tabled the Dream Bars.  I wondered about the S.S. Laurentia and why Dena Teegarden might have been copying a recipe for Dream Bars while she traveled.  Where was she going? Was she traveling alone?  How old was she?  Did she have children?  Do her great-great grandchildren read my blog?

Thanks to the magic of the internet, I have been able to assemble a few facts about the ship, which was part of The Donaldson Line.  After WWII, this shipping line provided limited passenger service from Scotland to Canada.  Apparently, they also hauled Shetland sheep in their cargo hold, because a farm in Illinois still breeds the descendants of Flett Shetlands which were shipped to this continent on none other than the S.S. Laurentia.

I got sidetracked with some research about the “golden age” of steamship travel and how containerization assured the demise of many small shipping lines.  All of these facts tumbled around in my head yesterday and occasionally ricocheted off thoughts about the Carnival Triumph and the Love Boat.  I consider these two ships as metaphors for things that are broken in the world.  I even texted one of my friends during the day and said “greetings from the Aloha Deck.”

Dena Teegarden might be an interesting fictional creation here on the blog; she could be the Julia Child of Dream Bars.  I wonder if Dena Teegarden ever cooked any steak tips in Moxie?  If the Dream Bars are edible, I could be on to something exciting and new.

In the land of the Sandman, Shetland Sheep, and Dream Bars, there’s never enough time.

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Oscar Night at The Coop

Posted on February 25, 2013 by Julie-Ann Baumer

When I was in high school, one of my friends had an orange two-door Pinto and every few weeks we’d drive to Lewiston and go to the movies. I remember only a few of the movies we saw; when I got out of high school and went to college, I stopped going to the movies. There wasn’t a movie theater on campus and I didn’t have a car. That Pinto, dubbed “the car of the planet dying” by my brother, might have helped me get off campus more often. As it was, movies were shown at different lecture halls and auditoriums on campus. I didn’t enjoy watching movies in the same places where I’d tried to absorb mind-numbing information about Mendel’s principles of genetics, the laws of publication, and the Battle of Tours.

It was the beginning of my alienation from modern movies.

After college, I moved to Portland and started renting movies from a video store that had a large selection of “Classics.” I still didn’t go to the movies often, but I enjoyed watching black and white movies from Hollywood’s Golden Age. Some of my favorite films were Dark Victory, My Man Godfrey, Rebecca, and Stage Door. I read biographies of movie stars like Bette Davis and Cary Grant, and movie producers Louis B. Mayer and Samuel Goldwyn. I even read quasi-academic books about movies, like Jeanine Basinger’s The Star Machine.

Sunday night was the annual Academy Awards ceremony and the media world was buzzing with red carpet stories and anticipation. I can’t remember the last time I went to a movie theater for anything other than the Metropolitan Opera Live in HD. I don’t have a Tee Vee, I don’t read People magazine, and when my hair stylist says she want to fix my hair like a certain celebrity, I just smile and say “sure” even though I don’t have any idea who she is talking about.

I wonder why I don’t like going to the movies. Was I scarred by 1980’s movie clunkers like You Light Up My Life and The Blue Lagoon? Maybe it’s my general dislike of being part of a herd of people and the expectations that accompany herding. I’m also skeptical about the way information is presented. I’m uncomfortable when I hear people talking about movies as though they are objective truth.

Movies have long been used as propaganda.

Alas, since I don’t go to the movies, I can’t objectively denounce them. I know many people enjoy cinematic escapes and it’s not my job to tell people what to do. I don’t think movies are going to change the world. People may change the world, but they’re going to need to think for themselves and question some of the information that comes air-brushed and neatly wrapped in their Hollywood swag bags.

Do movies influence you?

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Resting on the Sands of Time

Posted on February 24, 2013 by Julie-Ann Baumer

This used to be my favorite summer place to rest.  I belonged to a small “gang” of people who would drag lawn chairs to the water’s edge every weekend.

Who knows why the past always seems better than today.  I’m just glad the sign hasn’t changed.

You know the drill about Sunday.

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Tossing and Turning All Night

Posted on February 22, 2013 by Julie-Ann Baumer

During my ten-year gig at The Big Corporation up north, I took part in a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test. In the late 80’s and early 90’s, it was a trendy tool for “team building.” My teammates and I found out what our “type” was and then we posted the letters outside our cubicles so there would be less friction and better team work. I liked most of my teammates, but there were one or two people who provoked skeptical thoughts. I just had a “sense” that these one or two people weren’t cut out to be my best friends in or out of the office.

I was an INFJ.

I haven’t thought about Myers-Briggs testing in a while and we haven’t done any testing at the current Big Corporation. I may very well be a person who functions primarily by my intuition and that’s why I’ve had a sense, for the last twenty-five years, that something was wrong with our food here in America. I’m sure my mother had something to do with it, too. Helen got “into” health food during the 70’s when she and her sister read Let’s Get Well by Adelle Davis.

Being an INFJ and having a sense that something is wrong sometimes keeps me from doing academic-style research on issues. Lettuce traveling in a bag from California just seems odd to me. When one of my co-workers continually asked me “Have you seen Food, Inc.?” or “Have you read “The Omnivore’s Dilemma?” I would say “No” and “thanks for the suggestion?” I had no plans to watch or read information I knew intuitively. Thanks to the magic of the internet, I can now confirm my intuitions about these books and movies by doing a quick Bing search. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a Dark Ages Luddite. I’ve also learned that it’s important to read and research things because it’s a much more powerful argument to say “I THINK” instead of “I FEEL.” I read books, articles, and blogs; I use different news aggregators to find information to support or refute the different things I might be feeling.

But enough about me and my INFJ ways.

Yesterday, this article came over the transom. The picture of a Dorito caught my attention and I started skimming the text. Why do Doritos always capture my attention?

It was a long article; too much to read on an i-phone, so I printed it off and read it carefully when I got home. Then I tossed and turned all night, trying to figure out what was the most important thing about the article and what I needed to say about it. It disturbed me to read that scientists in the employ of giant food conglomerates used their knowledge to tinker with food and make it into a dangerous and uncontrollable commodity. One market researcher, trained in mathematics and experimental psychology, was asked if he had any qualms about the work he had done to create the “crave” factor in processed food. He said “I did the best science I could. I was struggling to survive and didn’t have the luxury of being a moral creature. As a researcher, I was ahead of my time.”

This is a strange kind of Friday Pillow Talk; my face was uncomfortably mashed into my pillow all night and I slept fitfully. Although I try to avoid pontificating on this blog, I think there is something gravely flawed with our food. Much of it really isn’t even food; it’s a science experiment. Conversely, I think people have the right to eat what they want and I’m not interested in a government czar to supervise my snacks. I am not a lab rat and I am not a consumer. I am a human being and so are you.

The truth is out there and it’s still free. Find it.

Posted in Cooking and Food, Friday Pillow Talk | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

The Temporary Coop

Posted on February 21, 2013 by Julie-Ann Baumer

I’m serious about selling The Coop so I found a temporary storage space for some of my belongings.  It seemed appropriate that it’s an old chicken barn.

Temp Coop

It was scary to separate from the eight boxes of books I left there, but I’m over it now.  Next up:  my Christmas decorations and my canning jars.

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A Story about Seeds

Posted on February 20, 2013 by Julie-Ann Baumer

After two successful years growing garlic and tomatoes in Uncle Bob’s garden, some of the people in my life started thinking I was a gardening expert, or the Julia Child of gardening. Sometimes they requested certain crops to be grown; other times, they would recommend books I needed to read. One of the books my brother recommended almost every time I saw him was Ben Hewitt’s The Town That Food Saved.

Last year, I finally read the book. I thought about writing a book review for this blog but I didn’t know what to say. I had expected the book to be a “how to” guide which would provide me with a program for saving small town America, namely my own hometown of Lisbon Falls, Maine. I could see some similarities between the town that food saved, Hardwick, Vermont, and my own hometown. Hardwick had prospered from the granite under its soil until the 1920’s. As this boom was ending, Hardwick entered a second period of prosperity during the heyday of Vermont’s dairy business. This lasted until the 1960’s. Lisbon, Lisbon Center, and Lisbon Falls had prospered from their location along the Androscoggin River, with both a saw mill turned fiber board plant and a textile mill.

Like Hardwick’s granite and dairy enterprises, both of Lisbon’s economic powerhouses are long gone.

As it turned out, Mr. Hewitt’s book was not a “how to” book; it was a down-home investigative journalism piece about what was happening in Hardwick. What was happening? Hardwick, Vermont was becoming the center of a small-scale agricultural revival. There were more than four agribusinesses operating in town, including High Mowing Organic Seeds, Pete’s Greens, Highfields Center for Composting, and Vermont Soy. Something was literally growing in this little town. What was surely not happening in Hardwick was the arrival of a Wal*Mart or a Pill Mart to save the day. There was no deus ex machina.

Everyone in Hardwick was getting their hands dirty.

**********

I popped into the Aubuchon Hardware store on Route 196 in Lisbon Falls the other day and was surprised to see that they’re carrying High Mowing Seeds this year. I couldn’t help but say to the gentleman who was helping me find a padlock “I LOVE High Mowing Seeds! I’m so glad you’re carrying them this year. Everyone in Lisbon Falls should buy them!” My exuberance brought a smile to one or two of the Aubuchon staff and as I was leaving I could hear them talking about it.

“That lady says those are good seeds.”

I’m probably not going to singlehandedly save my home town. We’re all going to have to put our shoulders to the wheel and push as best we can. I admit, the twelve-year old part of me that still wants to believe in magic, signs, and symbols couldn’t help but be happy about a little part of Hardwick, Vermont arriving in Lisbon.

There are no quick and easy solutions for the economic troubles of small town America. Sure, every couple of years a new gang of charming politicians will outline a plan or a scheme which will magically solve the problems that have been festering for a long time. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve stopped trying to read their lips and have just focused on a few of the things I could do, including planting a few tomatoes and getting involved in local projects like my class reunion and The Moxie Festival. Like Ben Hewitt, I understand that making a difference in a small town involves actually living there; I’m working on that too.

Today, I’m going to end with a little wisdom from an entrepreneur who is not a farmer:

“When there is scarcity, we worry a lot about getting our fair share—what goes to him doesn’t go to me. The harvest becomes fraught with danger and competition.

When we worry more about planting, though, sharing the harvest gets a lot less complex.

Plant enough seeds and the scarcity eases. In fact, if you plant enough, you’ll never have to think twice about the harvesting.”

–Seth Godin, from Seth Godin’s Blog

P.S.
Commenter Loosehead Prop, because Wednesdays are “Tiny Steps Gardening Day” I’m sending you the complimentary Blacktail Mountain watermelon seeds I got in the mail. You are Zone 9 and I’m confident you can do it.

It’s almost seed planting time.

Posted in Cooking and Food, Farmers | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

The State of the Garlic

Posted on February 19, 2013 by Julie-Ann Baumer

I got an e-mail from my friend Janet yesterday.  She writes:

“I got notification that my CSA will start June 12th.  I am looking forward to it.  They are already starting plants.  I will look into the winter one at Heron Pond Farm next year.  You are converting me to buying local…I just learned that a lot of garlic comes from China.  Glad I will be growing my own this year…”

Janet’s note warmed my heart for a number of reasons.  First, her note prompted me to check on the state of my own garlic stash, which is still fresh with only one bulb starting to sprout.  This year, I wrapped my garlic bulbs in newspaper and stored them in a cooler part of The Coop.  I think I need to eat more garlic and give some away, because I still have a lot left.

Her note also made me smile because it reminded me of having a similar revelation about garlic.

Plus, how could I not be happy to hear that one of my friends is participating in a CSA?  If there is one thing I never tire of writing and preaching about, it’s the concept of supporting local food through farm shares, or “Community Sponsored Agriculture.”  For readers who live here in the Seacoast area, this Saturday will be CSA Day at the Winter Market, located at Wentworth Greenhouses in Rollinsford.  If eating more local food is important to you, this is a good way to meet local farmers, ask questions about their farms, and decide if a farm share makes sense.

Don’t ask me what I think you should do, because you know what I’m going to say.

CSA, CSA, CSA…    

Posted in Cooking and Food, Farmers | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

The Existential Grange Hall

Posted on February 18, 2013 by Julie-Ann Baumer

I read an apocalyptic article on an economic blog the other day.  I also read two hundred comments that followed the article.  It doesn’t matter what the article was about; the following comments could apply to any written article in any medium.  Commenter “Zen4fiatsoes” said:

“Be careful of anyone who uses more words than needed to say what they mean.”

Another commenter, “GoldenIdols” said:

“Orwell wrote a very useful essay about political writing and the dishonesties in it.  Among other things, he explains that so often the lie is in the adjective.  Be very, very careful with adjectives, and avoid them if at all possible.”

These two comments stuck in my mind and I wondered about my own writing.  I use adjectives and adverbs in my blog posts.  I wondered what “Zen4fiatsoes” would think about my post Masquerading as My Mother?  Would he or she think my post was superfluous?  Every Thursday, I create a post called “Minimalist.”  I post a picture and write very few words.  Can the picture speak for itself without my prodding?  Would “GoldenIdols” still think I was a dishonest writer in less than 100 words?

These are the questions I consider as I sit down to write in the morning.

This weekend in New England, we had another storm.  It was different; the snow didn’t fall all at once, like it did during last weekend’s “Blizzard of 2013.”  The snow started Saturday morning, spitting slowly and gradually.  At noon that day, the snow had lessened and it seemed like the sun was going to break through.  The snow picked up again at dusk and continued through the evening.  Perhaps because it was a holiday weekend and no one was in a hurry, there wasn’t much traffic on the roads.  I was motoring happily.

On Sunday morning, I took a walk.

The Damariscotta Baptist Church is a New England icon, photographed often for postcards and travel guides.  There’s even a turn off on the main road for travelers who want to pull over and take pictures of it.  One of the church’s former pastors described it as an “object of beauty.”

If I had read the church’s history Sunday morning, I might have been enticed to attend services based partly on the “cred” of the church’s founders and the building’s classical beauty.  Full of thoughts about extraneous and misleading Orwellian words, I decided instead to attend a church service in a Grange Hall.

Like any pilgrim, I am working out my salvation and my writing with fear and trembling.

Posted in Just Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Bowling Alone

Posted on February 17, 2013 by Julie-Ann Baumer

I was on a trip and decided to do a little bowling alone on Saturday night.

We have a bowling alley at home; it’s called “Good Time Lanes” which translates to “no one here bowls alone.”

No bowling today, though.  Today, I’m going to rest…in my spare time.

You rest too. 

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This Bag is Not a Toy

Posted on February 15, 2013 by Julie-Ann Baumer

There are a few songs with the word “bag” in them.  James Brown’s Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag is probably the first one that comes to mind; a much older song is Pack up Your Troubles in Your Old Kit Bag.  At Christmas, Santa’s The Man with the Bag and for the post-punk among us, Public Image Limited had a song called Bags on their 1986 album called Album.

I’m not aware of any songs called “Swag Bag.”  The website Urban Dictionary defines a swag bag as follows:

“A goodie bag that contains various useless yet irreplaceable items packed into a duffel bag, usually given at parties or by sponsors. Sometimes just useless house-hold items with a brand-name insignia on them.”

Some swag bags are better than others and while I’d never call myself a “greenie,” I don’t care much for wasting resources and giving away useless things.  I’m practical and frugal most of the time.  I’ve also received a few swag bags over the years.  None has ever come close to the epic swag bags Oscar nominees receive, but my dentist always gives me a nice little swag bag when I have my teeth cleaned (toothbrush, toothpaste, and floss).  There was a swag bag at the charity masquerade ball I went to a few weeks ago, too.

The bag itself was practical; who doesn’t need another re-useable shopping bag?  There wasn’t much in it and maybe that’s not a bad thing.  Sometimes when a group of diverse and busy people are working on a project like a charity ball, finding fillers for the swag bag are the last things anyone is thinking about.

My brilliant friend and Junior League Show House co-chairwoman Audra devised a swag bag for an event once; it included an insanely delicious individually sized flourless chocolate cake among other useful things.  No wonder she’s going to be the President of the Junior League in 2014.  Her inventive offering is just the type of swag bag I emulate; the contents assuaged hunger and yet didn’t overwhelm the recipient with useless junk and with this in mind, I’ve decided all entrants to the Moxie Recipe Contest will receive a swag bag.  I haven’t figured out everything to put in it yet, but I’ll happily consider practical, reasonable, and recipe contest-appropriate items.  Do you have something you’d like to give away?  Click on over here and send me an e-mail; let’s talk.

Swag bags are perfectly lovely, but even better are prizes for winners.  Yesterday’s mail brought glad tidings of an amazing prize from my kitchen-minded friends at Now You’re Cooking in Bath, Maine.  I think my new favorite expression is going to be “I couldn’t be happier” and I think the contest winners will be saying that too.

Check back here on occasional Fridays to find out the latest details on The Moxie Recipe Contest and the fun and prizes.  All will be revealed in good time.

Until then, keep cooking with Moxie!    

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