There is little joy in an extended bout of whatever. I am convinced a one day bout is a luxury to be permitted of oneself and sleep is generally the best cure. But the principle is not to be extended - meaning five days of raw lungs is just a drag. Through it does remind me that in Poland the only recourse one had to the same disorder, caused by the coal dust filled air, was smoking menthol.
That being said, there are indulgences that can fill a weekend along with bottles of foul but effective Buckley's decongestent goo. A real winner for me anytime is a book about eats and drinks you can get elsewhere, in the same vein as the works of Lew Bryson and the recent addition to the genre by Andy Crouch. While I discovered them through their regular spot on NPR's The Splendid Table, Jane and Michael Stern are writers and write, among other things, a reasonably regularly updated book called Roadfood which - like Lew - has a accompanying website which provides even more reasonably regular updates as well as a means to contribute. The resulting Roadfood mediaplex is a great way to find what is good to eat pretty much wherever you go in the US.
But Two For The Road is a slightly different thing. It is autobiography, an overview of the national palate as well as a hotbed of anecdote about their best and worst diner and motel experiences over 35 years of chewing. There is a certain pace as you have to get used, due to the principle that, when on the road, working these folk eat 12 meals a day. Plus you have to get used to the fact that, while they have their limits which include vinegar steamed pig intestines, they do pretty much eat anything seeking the particular good in it. Best of all is how the book illustrates the notion I have come to note that the US is still incredibly localized even as it becomes more and more homogenized omnitopically - a political as well as culinary fact to be grappled with. A good read.
Comments
Alan - May 29, 2006 9:00 am
Note to self: authentic frozen custard near Portland Maine.
cm - May 29, 2006 9:44 am
Speaking of frozen desserts, I stopped at a Kawartha Dairies shop in Uxbridge on Saturday. I had a small cone of raspberry ripple - their small is 3 scoops!
gr - May 29, 2006 12:18 pm
Visiting the upper midwest this week. 104 degrees yesterday, which is about 5 billion celsius. Therefore had TWO ice creams yesterday and more for breakfast. One must cope....
Alan - May 29, 2006 12:40 pm
Where? I cen send you hints from the book - though they do tend towards the carnivore.
cm - May 29, 2006 12:57 pm
Ice cream for breakfast - it's a tough life, eh gr?
gr - May 29, 2006 5:24 pm
I am in Lake Woebegone Territory and spent yesterday (did i mention it was 104?) watching my nephew, a minor league ballplayer, and their team won 11-10 in the 11th inning. Fantastic fun.
cm-Life is indeed tough. I have just discovered chilled turtle cheesecake. Yes, chocolate, nuts covered in caramel. Again, if it is hot, one must cope. It is more normal warm now, 84 mebbe, but I hear this hot stuff is headed straight for ya'll.
Alan - May 29, 2006 5:30 pm
Good gig being a pig potter - how come my high school guidance counsellors did not mention it?
gr - May 29, 2006 5:30 pm
Oh, as for popular foods hereabouts, there is 'tater tot hotdish'. Take a casserole dish and toss in tater tots, add meat, a vegetable, and cream of mushroom soup. Bake for awhile. As a veg, I might substitute fake meat, and I see no reason why it couldn't be topped liberally with cheese. They also have a winery here making BLUEBERRY wine. Jello is also popular. Who wouldn't love a tater tot hot dish though?
Flea - May 29, 2006 6:42 pm
Mmm. Ice cream.
Time for an expedition to this place in the Beaches (forget its name) that sells a Creme Brule ice cream.
cm - May 29, 2006 6:51 pm
I stuck the gin in the freezer and can't decide between gin and Fresca and ice cream.
Bake for how long? I require specifics when it comes to cooking, even if it is a tater tot hotdish.
Alan - May 29, 2006 8:20 pm
How is the cheese out there?
gr - May 29, 2006 8:36 pm
well, cm, I am told that it is best to crisp the tater tots per their directions first, and as for length of time, I am told 'it is so easy to make!' That would translate to me as bake 30 mins at 350. IT IS TOTALLY DELICIOUS. Just ate a lot of it. Feel like I am gonna explode.
Alan, the cheese is profuse, but, ahem, lacking in variety. You got your orange cheddar or your (shudder) 'American', processed cheese food. if only my hosts weren't teetotalers....
cm - May 29, 2006 8:52 pm
Teetotalers drink gin. A lesson I learned from the Great Detective. Funny how some things stick with you.
gr - May 30, 2006 1:04 am
Had a dozen gin and tonics once in my youth and lost my cookies. Not my favorite cool drink, cm.