My Ode to Trader Joe's

Good food has lousy shelf life. That means to cook fresh food and drink wine at home regularly means you have to go shopping a lot. Even if -- like me -- you think going to stores is not recreation, but a big pain in the butt. To cope, I think of my shopping excursions as conversations between me and the market. "Hey, this looks good," or "Here's a good deal for you," it tells me. "Whatever," I yawn.

Hence, I offer this question: If Whole Foods and Trader Joe's were people, who would you want to hang out with?

My answer is Trader Joe's, hands down. I think that place is made for non-shoppers like me who love a bargain and a story. It's the only chain in these parts that is almost as interesting as my favorite neighborhood markets.

Why? They screen what they offer me, to weed out the crap (First-rate fish, peanut butter, bananas, chocolate, etc.) And they make it easy and cheap to eat healthy -- without lecturing or scaring me about bad ingredients. Plus the wine selection gives us tons of choice for everyday Porch wine, including tasty, local brands. Pity they don't have a tasting room.

In all, Trader Joe's feels like a worldly, practical, witty pal. While Whole Foods, in contrast, seems a bit snobby, judgmental, humorless -- more of a friend to upscale nesters rather than to scrappy explorers.

With exercise, the trick is to find something you love to do and do it often. Same with stores, I guess. Your favorites?

Now, if TJ's was only within bike distance from my home......

Cycling, Coffee and Being Cool

The pretty holiday lights are long gone -- but the cold remains. Ahhh winter.

This month my chilly thoughts have turned to bicycles and social revolution. Between rainstorms we can still cycle, despite the frost and fog. And the more of us who ride our bikes to the corner store, the sooner we can start a revolution away from oversized autos and from what I call the "One Syndrome." One person, one mile, one auto. Even worse is if the one-mile trip is to the gym, where we pay money to pump our legs indoors.

But I'm just ranting now.

Anyway, about bikes. I'm hoping I'm riding a trend. Last year outdoor bike coffee bars popped up in New York, including Rapha's (closed during winter --the snow thing). Every Wednesday evening Rapha's showed classic cycling movies. Around the world there is even more bike action; some even say it's a global trend for 2011.....http://popupcity.net/2011/01/trend-7-the-reinvention-of-the-wheel/

Another cool development is that folding bikes are finally becoming mainstream. Years back Hubby and I bought red folding bikes on eBay. They were for weekend jaunts because they fit so nicely in a car trunk or in a small plane. Of course they look foolish with their tiny wheels, so we fondly call them our "clown bikes." Those little bikes have had some adventures, chained outside pubs and diners all over the West. Now folding bikes are cheaper, less than $200, and they come in cloth packs you can carry over your shoulder. Very smart, really. Citizen Bikes are a good example.....http://www.citizenbike.com/about.asp

So bikes are making me hopeful about the New Year. As the politicos fight in the background -- in the foreground we can save gas and keep our healthcare costs down, just by cycling around. And if your bikes are as goofy looking as mine, you'll also have plenty of change to smile at curious passers-by. Smiles are nice in the cold.

cheers, Joan

Holiday Smarts: Walk faster, Eat slower

It's the holidays. No snow in these parts. but frosty cold day and night -- with loads of twinkling lights in all the shops and cafes. Too bad our schedules are so darn tight, it's hard to find time to enjoy them.

In that vein, here are some short takes.

Brisk walks will make you happier, fitter, but we knew that. Turns out they also make you smarter. Which can come in very handy.

http://daol.aol.com/articles/walking-boosts-the-brain?ncid=webmail

How to work at home and not get fat. Have you noticed how many people with normal traditional jobs work at home? Home office pros know a few tricks about staying in shape. Such as nourishing quick soups instead of chips. And fruit is healthy, but it's not a meal.

For more:

http://www.openforum.com/idea-hub/topics/lifestyle/article/how-to-work-from-home-and-not-get-fat-jean-chatzky

So, I officially vow to mix Chistmas shopping with peppy window-shopping walks and to concoct simple lunches of low-salt broth, veggies, beans and turkey. My reward is wine -- a spicy, old-vine Zinfandel at quitting time.

cheers to all,

Joan

Breakfast for Dinner

Let's just say I'm not a morning person. They say creative types -- artists, writers, musicians and such -- are usually night people, but I'm surrounded by those types and they almost all are morning people, so there's another myth for you. Consequently I'm generally swimming upstream, so I've had to adapt.

One habit is to make time at sunset for my main outdoor exercise: powerwalking, cycling, washing the squirming dog. The light is usually beautiful and my energy level is buzzing.

Second, I've come to love breakfast for dinner. Nice, healthy meals with eggs, potatoes, lean ham, onions, avocados, hearty toast, grainy cereals, fruit or yogurt...or all of them. No way can we night people deal with substantial food before noon -- but breafast-for-dinner reminds me of 1920s flappers who lived for parties and started the day when the sun went down.

But there is the matter of wine. If you want to stir things up and try nighttime breakfasts, I've found that champagne is a charming complement (remember the flappers). Or else wait till the end of the meal and have a glass of port with your finishing fruit -- particularly if it's cataloupe or pineapple.

There are probably tons of ideas of things to eat and do when you consider turning the day upside down. Oh yeah, big, fat banana pancakes, I forgot to mention....Anyway, what are your clever thoughts?

Social Media or Social Critters

I think I'll name my next kitty "Twitter" and my next pooch "YouTube". Say it: "Hey, YuuuuTuuuube."
What pet should be called "Google"? Maybe the goldfish.
If you can't name a pet after it, maybe it's not a good name for a tech product.
(Lots of dogs I know should be called "Napster") "Blogger's" not bad either, but "WordPress" has no zing.
Go ahead and add your own, (I've gotta go feed Twitter.)

--Joan

Health and the Future of Business

I ran across this description of an unknown company and just had to share. It was cut out of a long business article I wrote back in 2008, and has a fun twist at the end:

"Farmed in the Amazon rainforest and vacuum packed for freshness just outside the forest, Amazonia’s range of natural forest fruits, plants and herbs has taken the worldwide market by storm. Americans appreciate that their purchases help preserve one of the earth’s last remaining ecosystems, but they plunk down their cash mainly because researchers at the Mayo-Harvard Clinic have proven that consuming the products can lengthen your life span.

Amazonia is the first company to elect a CEO by consumer voting in 2011 and the company has ten customers on its board that it rotates every six months. Amazonia co-develops new product lines with its customer base, taking on millions of suggestions annually and sharing revenue with the creators of the best ideas.

Amazonia sponsors all the health shows on the Discovery Broadcasting Corporation (DBC), including in-transit broadcasts on worldwide commuter networks. People watching the shows can buy Amazonia’s products and services using their embedded personal electronic device. The company sponsors the Global Elderly Games in North Korea, which plan to attract 20,000 athletes over the age of 70 competing in sports events including over 30 types of physical video games."

As you guessed, Amazonia is fictional. It comes from the fertile imagination of Ed Cotton, director of strategy at marketing agency Butler, Shine, Stern & Partners, best known for its Mini Cooper ads.

You know, back in 2008 Amazonia sounded wildly futuristic. Today, I bet you thought for minute that it might be real. Next year, it probably will be.

What a world.

---Joan

Drowning in Garden Tomatoes

Is it possible to have too many homegrown tomatoes? The answer is yes, and the condition is contagious.
Thanks to a summer that was slow to get out of bed (hot days didn't hit until late August) the green tomatoes hanging on the plants around here didn't turn red until, well, about 5 minutes ago. And they are all red right now, just when everybody is so busy with the wine harvest that they are never home.

As a result, when anyone has a get-together, all the guests bring tomato dishes -- and boy, are they inventive. At a BBQ this weekend, we had spicy Mexican salsa; black beans, tomatoes and onions; a chutney made exclusively with the sweetest tiny tomatoes; and a cabbage slaw with a dressing made with crushed tomatoes.
We're even going retro-- a neighbor reports she's baking them with breadcrumbs just like her mom did back in the '50s.
One BBQer said she has a plan: eat as many garden tomatoes as she possibly can during the season and then totally avoid the store-bought version the rest of the year. Call it tomato bingeing.

In case the tomato glut has hit your kitchen, check out these clever recipes. Do you have a favorite?
Let's binge away!

Fresh Tomato Pie
http://busycooks.about.com/od/savorypierecipes/r/tomatopie.htm ;

Fire and Fruit Yellow Tomato Salsa
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1898440

Italian Bread Salad
http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/mid-summer-italian-bread-salad/Detail.aspx