Monday, December 8, 2008
Comments (more) welcome (now)
I figured out that I was not allowing people to comment anonymously. Since anyone reading what I am writing probably also would want to hide their identity, I have fixed that. Comment your heart out, Anonymous!
Friday, December 5, 2008
Thanking the Yous
It was only a few days ago that I mentioned Leslie Harpold and her advice on creating a Thanksgiving feast for many. If you liked that, you should love this one. Her old writing spot The Morning News just reran her even more popular and useful piece about writing Thank You notes, so I thought I would mention it too. If you have ever received a gift, Leslie offers simple rules to follow to get that all important note out quickly.
'Tis the season, after all.
'Tis the season, after all.
Death and the Morning Commute
I'm sitting on a train on my way to work. I got a jump on the day due to an earlier-than-usual crying baby which brought me to an earlier-than-usual train. All advantages of that jump disappeared when the announcement came over the PA that there had been an "incident" with a "trespasser" and we would be delayed indefinitely, which is defined as 20 minutes to an hour. I don't know what I expect them to say when the train hits a person but the judgement in specifying them as a "trespasser" (which is standard) always seems a little crass.
The train got the go ahead to move closer and closer to the incident closer to the 20 min mark than the 2hr mark. We must have been the next train down because we had to stop to pick up the passengers of train 210 the one that hit the guy. Just before that we passed all the sheriffs milling about near the yellow tarp that almost covered the body. The passengers that we picked up are the regular commuting crowd and a whole lot of high school kids (damn, they are small) all on their cellphones telling friends and parents that "their train ran over a guy". I bet those kids will be the talk of the school for a few hours anyway until the story gets boring.
Weird morning all around. Weirder still when we passed the body and I mentioned it and said to the 60ish Portoguese (maybe) woman in the next seat that the day could be worse. She agreed and said "Yes, it could be raining".
The train got the go ahead to move closer and closer to the incident closer to the 20 min mark than the 2hr mark. We must have been the next train down because we had to stop to pick up the passengers of train 210 the one that hit the guy. Just before that we passed all the sheriffs milling about near the yellow tarp that almost covered the body. The passengers that we picked up are the regular commuting crowd and a whole lot of high school kids (damn, they are small) all on their cellphones telling friends and parents that "their train ran over a guy". I bet those kids will be the talk of the school for a few hours anyway until the story gets boring.
Weird morning all around. Weirder still when we passed the body and I mentioned it and said to the 60ish Portoguese (maybe) woman in the next seat that the day could be worse. She agreed and said "Yes, it could be raining".
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Post of Thanksgiving Past
I just ran across this post from Leslie Harpold in 2003. She was an amazing person that Jenn and I were just getting to know when she passed away suddenly in early December 2006. Her writing always makes me smile and if you have never read this one, today is the perfect day. If you like it, she wrote lots more and lots more was written about her because many people loved her.
http://www.themorningnews.org/archives/how_to/how_to_cook_thanksgiving_dinner.php
Happy Thanksgiving!
http://www.themorningnews.org/archives/how_to/how_to_cook_thanksgiving_dinner.php
Happy Thanksgiving!
Monday, November 24, 2008
Haiku-ing
A really good excuse for my lack of blogging has been the amount of work piled on me at home. This is not the typical husbandly duties like garbage removal service or protecting the family from dangerous flying insects (mostly moths) but the writing duties that I am assigned by the taskmaster at 13creative (who I married...on purpose). I am often asked to write some form of copy for Jenn's invites and projects. Today's (and Yesterday's) task was to write some copy for Sara Remington (our favorite photographer who did our engagement, wedding and Grace pictures)holiday mailer that will include fabulous food pictures and some chocolates in a box (it will look much cooler than I describe but I was not hired to write this description...yet). My solution was to go haiku as they wanted words that evoke emotional connection with food and obscure Japanese art form that I remember from 4th grade was the best I could do on short notice. I think they turned out ok...
Remember the food
Melting, sweet and delicious
The best of our lives
----------------------
Brown from the fire
Marshmallow melts chocolate
This night sticks for days
----------------------
The heat of the summer
Softening ice cream on cones
You have to lick fast
----------------------
Berries are lovely
Picked like perfect ripe moments
To squish with your tongue
----------------------
Warm smell of apples
Steams out of crust as it cools
Dinner please hurry
----------------------
Brownies are baking
My finger searches the bowl
For one final taste
----------------------
Both taskmaster and photographer went wild for them. In fact, Sara thanked me by giving me one back:
Remember the food
Melting, sweet and delicious
The best of our lives
----------------------
Brown from the fire
Marshmallow melts chocolate
This night sticks for days
----------------------
The heat of the summer
Softening ice cream on cones
You have to lick fast
----------------------
Berries are lovely
Picked like perfect ripe moments
To squish with your tongue
----------------------
Warm smell of apples
Steams out of crust as it cools
Dinner please hurry
----------------------
Brownies are baking
My finger searches the bowl
For one final taste
----------------------
Both taskmaster and photographer went wild for them. In fact, Sara thanked me by giving me one back:
Grace is really cuteIt's funny, because it's true.
She makes the dinosaur screech
Watch out, she may barf
Oh, yeah...blogging
I was reminded of a couple things recently that are tenuously related like most of the things in my life.
The first reminder was from my sister. We had a family gathering and she casually mentioned that I hadn't been doing much with the blog since China. So I was reminded that I am a slacker. I'm a slacker with enough ambition to create a blog, enough confidence to announce to anyone that cares to listen that I am going to write things about my life, my world and my thoughts and then just enough slacker to allow weeks to go by with nothing said. Sorry, Christie...I am back on it now...
The other remindering was this morning. On my drive in NPR had a story about lobster and Thanksgiving that reminded me about my Thanksgivings past. My family was never, collectively, a huge fan of turkey (probably the amount of work + the amount of ceremony + the slim margin of error to get it right) but we do like our lobster. For many years, my family would spend our Thanksgivings out to dinner with the Duivens at a restaurant that served lobster and almost everyone would order one (Dad would often as not go for lamb because Mom won't cook it at home). Eventually, lobster became our turkey-of-the-sea and even when we would cook at home for the holiday, lobster would take center stage. Eventually, Thanksgiving moved from my parents house and the lobster tradition moved from eating them in November to dressing like them in October (see gratuitous Grace picture) and most of my parent's friends created a horse track Thanksgiving that is much less work and many more trifectas.
Even though it is now a ghost of traditions-past, I have always thought of lobster as a modern Topliff (ok, and Duiven) Thanksgiving tradition. Now that the all-knowing NPR points out that it was on the menu in 1621 at the First Thanksgiving alongside Wild Turkey and delicious eagle (which eventually beat out the Turkey to be the national bird and left our menus forever), I have to wonder if this tradition is genetic. While there were no Topliffs at the first Thanksgiving (on either side of the table), as far as I know, they did show up about 14 years later and settled in Dorchester Massachusetts so maybe our habits stretch back that far. Before Grace came along, I spent some time tracing the family tree, so I will have to look and hopefully get some of that down here. If someone reminds me...
The first reminder was from my sister. We had a family gathering and she casually mentioned that I hadn't been doing much with the blog since China. So I was reminded that I am a slacker. I'm a slacker with enough ambition to create a blog, enough confidence to announce to anyone that cares to listen that I am going to write things about my life, my world and my thoughts and then just enough slacker to allow weeks to go by with nothing said. Sorry, Christie...I am back on it now...
The other remindering was this morning. On my drive in NPR had a story about lobster and Thanksgiving that reminded me about my Thanksgivings past. My family was never, collectively, a huge fan of turkey (probably the amount of work + the amount of ceremony + the slim margin of error to get it right) but we do like our lobster. For many years, my family would spend our Thanksgivings out to dinner with the Duivens at a restaurant that served lobster and almost everyone would order one (Dad would often as not go for lamb because Mom won't cook it at home). Eventually, lobster became our turkey-of-the-sea and even when we would cook at home for the holiday, lobster would take center stage. Eventually, Thanksgiving moved from my parents house and the lobster tradition moved from eating them in November to dressing like them in October (see gratuitous Grace picture) and most of my parent's friends created a horse track Thanksgiving that is much less work and many more trifectas.
Even though it is now a ghost of traditions-past, I have always thought of lobster as a modern Topliff (ok, and Duiven) Thanksgiving tradition. Now that the all-knowing NPR points out that it was on the menu in 1621 at the First Thanksgiving alongside Wild Turkey and delicious eagle (which eventually beat out the Turkey to be the national bird and left our menus forever), I have to wonder if this tradition is genetic. While there were no Topliffs at the first Thanksgiving (on either side of the table), as far as I know, they did show up about 14 years later and settled in Dorchester Massachusetts so maybe our habits stretch back that far. Before Grace came along, I spent some time tracing the family tree, so I will have to look and hopefully get some of that down here. If someone reminds me...
Friday, November 7, 2008
Half proof of a half marathon
The picture below only really proves that I made it most of the way through the US Half Marathon on Sunday. I am clearly on the bridge and I imagine by the thinning crowds behind me that this is the trip BACK towards the finish. I actually did make it, though I was moving none too fast for the last couple miles.
I remember consciously fighting the pained look from my face when I knew there would be a photographer but I was not always successful.
I am very happy to have made it and happy to take a week or two off from running. In the future, I will probably stick to more manageable 10Ks to avoid walking around like the recently vasectomized for days after.
I remember consciously fighting the pained look from my face when I knew there would be a photographer but I was not always successful.
I am very happy to have made it and happy to take a week or two off from running. In the future, I will probably stick to more manageable 10Ks to avoid walking around like the recently vasectomized for days after.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Nega, please!
The chinese word for 'yeah' like 'yeah, yeah, yeah' in agreement is 'nega' so everyone here says 'nega nega nega' a lot...sounds really funny in a way that would get one quickly beat up in oakland.
bye bye bejing
It has been a long 10 days and I am finally heading home.
I can honestly say the have the best (and worst) duck feet I will likely ever try. Last night we had the best meal yet, partially because no one handed me a menu and made me choose the least weird-sounding thing. We had the famous and delicious "Peking Duck" (Beijing is the town formerly known as Peking) served in a formal, multi-course process. They are famous enough that they issue certificates for each duck. We ate #944579 and 80, though I am not sure if and how that is an audited since they opened in the late 1800's. We can just assume nearly a million ducks served. Maybe they should find the millionth duck and set it free.
I'm blogging on my blackberry on the way to the airport so I can't see the pictures that I put in below but they should be shots of the tourist highlights that we saw over the weekend.
In there you will see the Emporer's Summer Palace which is a beautiful spot on a lake that couldn't help but include JetSkis in the US. There is also the Great Wall that sufficiently lived up to its name and included a mile long slide to get down.
I can honestly say the have the best (and worst) duck feet I will likely ever try. Last night we had the best meal yet, partially because no one handed me a menu and made me choose the least weird-sounding thing. We had the famous and delicious "Peking Duck" (Beijing is the town formerly known as Peking) served in a formal, multi-course process. They are famous enough that they issue certificates for each duck. We ate #944579 and 80, though I am not sure if and how that is an audited since they opened in the late 1800's. We can just assume nearly a million ducks served. Maybe they should find the millionth duck and set it free.
I'm blogging on my blackberry on the way to the airport so I can't see the pictures that I put in below but they should be shots of the tourist highlights that we saw over the weekend.
In there you will see the Emporer's Summer Palace which is a beautiful spot on a lake that couldn't help but include JetSkis in the US. There is also the Great Wall that sufficiently lived up to its name and included a mile long slide to get down.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Remember pull tabs?
I remember them from my parents' beer circa 1978 (not drinking of course, but I was trained to get them from the fridge and open them). After breaking off the tab on this can, I watched our waitress try to pry out the remaining part with her finger. Fortunately our frantic arm waves stopped her before she sliced the finger and caused the other thing I remember from the 70's....stitches.
Monday, October 27, 2008
The birds and the bees
When she was a little girl and first learned of the birds and the bees, my wife probably said "Eeew!" or something to that effect. I'm sure that was nothing compared to the reaction she gave when I told her about some of the restaurants our hosts have shown us in Beijing. At home, the dish in the first picture would have launched 1000 lawsuits in a KFC, here in China it's what's for dinner...with a side order of baby bees.
When we went on one of our excursions last weekend, our friends passed the time by explaining how the people in the Guangdong Province eat really weird stuff. Stuff that would make baby bees look like popcorn (and taste like chicken). Fortunately that place is 1200 miles away...
People here loooove to take us to "fancy" Chinese restaurants so I spend time with a lot of menus full of scary pictures and strangely worded descriptions. As far as I can tell, there does not seem to be anything called "Sweet and Sour Pork" in China and "Kung Pao" is not a type of chicken familiar to any waiter I have met. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind a little adventure in my food and the likelihood of me ending up vegetarian for even one meal is completely trumped by the same denial powers that allow me to enjoy hotdogs at home. Eyes, beaks and heads (either in whole or in half), however, are Kryptonite to these powers and I really don't need to see what my meal was thinking when it crossed the road for the final time.
When we went on one of our excursions last weekend, our friends passed the time by explaining how the people in the Guangdong Province eat really weird stuff. Stuff that would make baby bees look like popcorn (and taste like chicken). Fortunately that place is 1200 miles away...
People here loooove to take us to "fancy" Chinese restaurants so I spend time with a lot of menus full of scary pictures and strangely worded descriptions. As far as I can tell, there does not seem to be anything called "Sweet and Sour Pork" in China and "Kung Pao" is not a type of chicken familiar to any waiter I have met. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind a little adventure in my food and the likelihood of me ending up vegetarian for even one meal is completely trumped by the same denial powers that allow me to enjoy hotdogs at home. Eyes, beaks and heads (either in whole or in half), however, are Kryptonite to these powers and I really don't need to see what my meal was thinking when it crossed the road for the final time.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Welcome (me) to China
I'm in Beijing for business until next week. It's big, kind of grey and I don't understand what anyone is saying. Dining involves a lot of pointing, smiling and hope. For instance, I hope that was calamari last night.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
First Post - Who is Frank?
The title of this post is the first lie of this blog. It is obviously not my first post here. The first one was a nod to my wonderful wife. Just as she often "suggests" what I wear when I venture outside of the house (because one apparently shouldn't wear horizontal and vertical stripes together), she desperately wants this place to look presentable. We will keep working on that.
The title of the blog is a nod to my entire family that collectively have said this particular phrase countless times. The whole phrase is actually "T, as in Tom...O...P, as in Paul...L...I...F, as in Frank, F, as in Frank. No, not 'S'. Two F's. Frank...Frank". Passed down from generations of Topliffs, I have now subjected my wife to it and we will begin teaching the phrase on Grace as soon as she learns how to order things from the Pottery Barn catalog. Unlike her mother, Grace has the chance at parole if she can manage to marry someone with simpler name, but that is many years of frustration (on all of our parts) away.
The purpose of this place is to give me a spot to write about things that do not belong in Grace's baby book. Many people that have enjoyed reading about Grace have asked for more from me, this is my attempt at making them eat their words.
Enjoy!
-Brad
The title of the blog is a nod to my entire family that collectively have said this particular phrase countless times. The whole phrase is actually "T, as in Tom...O...P, as in Paul...L...I...F, as in Frank, F, as in Frank. No, not 'S'. Two F's. Frank...Frank". Passed down from generations of Topliffs, I have now subjected my wife to it and we will begin teaching the phrase on Grace as soon as she learns how to order things from the Pottery Barn catalog. Unlike her mother, Grace has the chance at parole if she can manage to marry someone with simpler name, but that is many years of frustration (on all of our parts) away.
The purpose of this place is to give me a spot to write about things that do not belong in Grace's baby book. Many people that have enjoyed reading about Grace have asked for more from me, this is my attempt at making them eat their words.
Enjoy!
-Brad
Good intentions, little time and same old wrong me.
So I am starting this new blog and I wanted to get my posts up while I am traveling. Before I left for China I got into several minor battles with my beautiful designer wife over the look of the site. She even suggested that I just create one like I had with Grace's blog and switch it over later. NONSENSE! I can figure this out and make it look great!
Well, time ran out, the buzzer rang and I had to get on a plane bound for Beijing having totally failed to make a nice looking blog. Furthermore, I am jet-lagged enough that Jenn's idea now sounds like sheer genius. I can make a blog here and change it over to another place when I have more time to figure it out. The words will be just as poorly thought out in either place. Sorry honey...you were...what's the word..."right"
Well, time ran out, the buzzer rang and I had to get on a plane bound for Beijing having totally failed to make a nice looking blog. Furthermore, I am jet-lagged enough that Jenn's idea now sounds like sheer genius. I can make a blog here and change it over to another place when I have more time to figure it out. The words will be just as poorly thought out in either place. Sorry honey...you were...what's the word..."right"
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