We absolutely love this song by Heywood Banks. Check it out and see if it cracks you up too. You'll never look at toast the same again.

I got the chance to use my Stacking Bento Boxes at the park a couple of weeks ago. I used it for lunch, and it's really kinda big....so I decided it would be ideal to use to take snack to the park. It was so easy to throw in nori rice crackers, dried bing cherries, freeze-dried strawberries into the 3-section layer, grapes in the next layer, and mini corn muffins and pita bread in the bottom layer. I thought I maybe brought too much as usual....but 5 hungry children proved otherwise.

Yum yum. Try these oven-baked fries from the May 2007 Bon Appétit. The key is a spice that is sprinkled on - shichimi togarashi. It is a Japanese table seasoning that has dried chiles, black sesame seeds, roasted orange peel, seaweed and ginger. I found it very easily in the Japanese food section at Berkeley Bowl. You also add some salt and sugar to the shichimi.......I repeat.......YUM. I looked for the recipe on Epicurious but it's not yet there so here you go:

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3 large baking potatoes (about 2 1/2 lbs) peeled, cut lengthwise into 1/2-inch-wide planks, each plank cut lengthwise into 1/2-inch-wide strips

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon sea salt (actually-I would cut this in half-use 1/2 teaspoon)

1 teaspoon shichimi togarashi

1 teaspoon sugar

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Place rack in top third of oven and preheat to 400 degrees. Place potato strips on rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil; toss to coat. Roast 25 minutes. Using spatula, turn fries over. Roast until tender and golden brown around edges, about 25 minutes longer.

Mix salt, shichimi, and sugar in small bowl. Sprinkle over fries.

In Memory of Ursula Guidry

I went to the memorial service for Ursula today, whose children have gone through the same school as Ry and Si. No one should have to experience a loss like this - she was 41 years old and died as a result of breast cancer. She leaves behind 3- and 5-year-old boys, a husband, and more family and friends than you can possibly imagine. What really touched me was her unbelievable breadth of friendships. From her fellow cardiologists to her mom's group, she just seemed to enjoy people. Hug your loved ones today, and be thankful for one more day on this earth.

And now a musical interlude from 1971 for your viewing pleasure.



Happy Saturday!

Once a month or so we all head down to Rasputin in Berkeley and we each get to pick one new CD to introduce to the rest of the family. Here's our little hippie chick listening to one of her options. It's a great place to go - all you need to do is scan the bar code of any CD, and it will play excerpts of most tracks on the CD. The selection is unbelievable. Si mostly chooses from the Hawaiian or Polynesian section, while Ry is rock and roll all the way. We've brought home the Tianjin Buddhist Music Ensemble, Ravi Shankur, Ky-mani Marley, the Monkees, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Pink Martini, Crazy Frog, Arab pop songs, AC DC, and so much more. We love Rasputin!

MY EGGS ARE HERE! MY EGGS ARE HERE! Like Paul Revere on his historical (though not historically acurately told) ride through the streets of Boston and onward, I believe it is my duty and honor to spread the word of my fresh eggs. See my Sept. 19 and 25 posts for some background on my quest. These are the chickens from whence the eggs came. We went to Deer Hill Ranch today and fed the chickens and got our first dozen eggs. We immediately came home and feasted on Scott's famous arugula salad topped with grilled asparagus, fried bread crumbs, goat cheese and all topped off with farm fresh poached eggs. There is a mix of different kinds of eggs from different kinds of chickens....the only name I remember is Pullet.....but they are definitely sweeter and richer tasting. I also love that they're different colors and sizes all mixed in. I'm still waiting on the milk cow share, so if you know anyone who knows anyone, let me know.

It's Little League fundraiser time again! The Sand Gnats need your help. Prepare yourselves for the phone call from slugger Ryan asking for your generous donation for the upcoming Bat-A-Thon. For your early perusal, here is a link to information in the Bat-A-Thon Letter.