Cute or Creepy?

Animals that act like people...

You decide...

"I'll be back."

Tante H., 80-years old, decided to pay Alder Street a visit. Wanting to avoid the delights of air travel, she chose to come by train. Her trip was, quite literally, across the entire North American continent. She arrived in fine spirits- equipped with hilarious stories about her travels- and has been making the most of Portland ever since.

Since she arrived last Thursday, she has:
(make sure to click the links below for the ultimate Tante H. in PDX experience)

• Visited the Classical Chinese Garden and had lunch at the Tea House
• Dined at Pho Van, a Vietnamese restaurant
• Toured Edgefield and had lunch at the Black Rabbit
• Became a regular at Monti's Cafe
• Had lunch at No Fish, Go Fish
  
• Had Sunday brunch at The Country Cat
• Visited the 'Old House Dahlia Farm' & the Montavilla Farmer's Market
  
• Went to the Pittock Mansion
• Bargain shopped at the Nike Employee Store, where she bought two pairs of Sportswear sneakers
  
• Went shopping at Fubonn, Asian retail paradise
• Visited The Grotto, a Catholic retreat and meditation center
• Drank at The Moon & Sixpence
• Saw 'Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull' at our neighborhood theater, 'The Academy'
  
• Dined at The Farm
• Attended a cocktail party in her honor at A & L's house
• Had a farewell dinner at Oba!
• A good-bye lunch at Wilf's, the old-school, well-appointed restaurant at the train station.

And yes, she does plan on coming out West again for a visit. Maybe not next year, but definitely the year after that...

'Cuz this old lady kicks ass.

I Heart Ramadan! But not 911...

BAD NEWS: Because of my narrow cultural POV and lefty, white-guilt, politically-correct leanings I pretty much made an ass of myself.
GOOD NEWS: Perhaps because of others' narrow world view and insufficient understanding of historical events, my social gaff went unnoticed.

You decide.

Aisha and Asya brought me my Ramadan food on Thursday. Finally. It was 9:30 pm and I was hungry. As we stood in my kitchen and I oohed and aahed over the holiday left-overs, Asya said (as if I was as ignorant of historical events as I was of Islamic holidays), "You know, today is 911."

Um, yeaaaah. My friends and I make jokes about "how the world changed" and send each other cards like this. "Yes, I've been hearing a lot about it on the radio and TV today," I say lamely. What else do you say to 2 head-scarved Paki Muslim girls?

Aisha went on describing what she remembered that day and it wasn't much. Or accurate. She told me how her cousins were flying in from Pakistan that very day and were on 'The Plane.' Luckily they were "sitting in the back" and survived the crash, because- according to Aisha- when a plane goes down the front hits first so leaving the back intact. When the cousins arrived at Aisha's house later on September 11th, 2001, her family had a big party for them. To celebrate their arrival or survival? I'm not sure...

"Wow, they were so, um, lucky..." I stammered.

She was 6 years old when this event happened and of course she only has a child's comprehension of what actually occurred. But I couldn't help speculating on what discussions (if any) took place in her home or in her private Muslim school. Then she said:

"My father wouldn't let me go outside to play after that happened."

Oh- so I guess her family did have a socio-political understanding of what was happening that day- I thought to myself.

"Well, of course your Dad wanted to keep you safe. A lot of Americans didn't understand that someone being Muslim didn't mean they had any thing to do with being a terrorist."

Aisha and Asya looked at me like I was speaking in tongues. I realized that she meant that there was so much danger- planes crashing, buildings collapsing, people dying, etc.- that her father just wanted her safely inside because America was under attack. It was beyond her her realm of understanding that her greatest threat was posed by some idiot "patriot" that saw a dark-skinned girl in a head scarf. I had the distinct impression that these girls had never heard the words 'fundamentalist', 'Islam', 'extremist' or 'terrorist' associated with the events of 911.

Am I some kinda a-hole, or what?

But our conversation quickly turned to the issue of people who have birthdays that fall around September 11th and how that must suck. I'm sure both girls went home thinking I was some American idiot rambling on about something I knew nothing about and just totally dismissed me and my inaccurate theories about Islam.

Phew.

Happy Ramadan!

Because of the work I'm in and because of my shoe size, I tend to accumulate a lot of sneakers. That may sound like an understatement to those who have seem my closet, but not to those in the footwear industry. Everyday we are literally surrounded by piles of shoes in every color and material imaginable.

About a week or so ago I mentioned to my Pakistani neighbors that I sometimes can get free shoes, and if they tell me their shoe sizes I would keep an eye out for some freebies for them. Well, the usually reserved 14-year old Aisha rang my doorbell not long after and gave a piece of paper with her, her 3 siblings and her mother's sizes.

I know a few details about the family: the 4 children and 2 parents live in a house exactly the same size as mine; the father works the nightshift at 7-Eleven; the parents did not go to school and the father speaks limited English and the mother almost none; the parents consider any grade less than an 'A' "bad" and desperately want their kids to have an education; that after the age of 10 they send their children to a private Muslim school; they don't have a car; they buy clothes and toys from local yard sales. They are by no means living in abject poverty but their lifestyle is so basic and lacking in all the extras and self-entitlement of most American families that I find the contrast to my life startling.

So, desperately trying not feel all fancy and magnanimous and charity-like, I decided I would go to the employee store and find some bargains to buy for my friends and neighbors. I found shoes for the youngest last week. They tried them on in my front yard. As Afzl tried his flashy Dunks on, (and immediately insisted they fit perfectly before he barely got his toes in...) a young guy walking his dog past said, "Those are some really cool shoes!" He and his sister clutched their boxes in arm and rode their bikes one-handed back home home after sincerely thanking me.

Tonight I gave the 12-year old and 14-year old girls their shoes- just in time, as the 1st day of school is tomorrow. I know Asya was nervous she wouldn't have a pair in time. Aisha is so polite and reserved she would never let on if she was nervous or disappointed, but since she is 14 and is starting her 1st day of high school, I think having a new pair of shoes meant more to her than any of them.

Asya (12 year old) was so earnest when I asked her to try on the shoes to make sure they fit. She didn't want to see them until tomorrow morning when she put them on for school, so she tried them on covering her eyes! I hope she isn't disappointed when she finds she got the same exact pair as her little sister Eqra. Aysha wasn't home, but her brother said he would give her pair to her. He opened the box and said with all seriousness, " Oh, these are really cute." It is so obvious he is surrounded by girls all day long.

Later this evening the doorbell rang and there I found Asya and Eqra. Eqra is a pistol- wedges herself in the door, asks a million questions simultaneously, makes strange statements her sisters have to translate, a daredevil on a bike. Asya held a plate of food.

"Today is a holiday and we had to fast all day. Because we are Muslim. But we get to eat at night. Did you eat dinner yet?" she explained setting down the dishes on the kitchen counter. "Is it Ramadan?" I asked. Her eyes widened and she just grinned, pleasantly surprised that I had any inkling of her family's traditions. They had brought me a bowl of liquid-y fruit: halved grapes, bananas, apples, tamarind. On the side was a samosa filled with a spiced meat. I have no idea what kind of animal the meat came from, only that it was a delicious animal. Aysha showed up and we talked about how it must be easier for them to go to a Muslim school during Ramadam than to attend a public school like her cousin, who has to sit in a cafeteria surrounded by food and people eating for a whole month. Aisha seemed to genuinely like her shoes and thanked me as well.

Last week after I gave the little ones their shoes they came buy with a plate of rice and some raita. The following Saturday they gave me 4 leftover pastries from 7-Eleven. Asya told me her father had about a dozen he wanted to give me but she convinced him I wouldn't be able to eat them all- thank goodness! I really hope that they don't feel they have to re-pay me in any way for the shoes. On the other hand, I love the homemade food they give me, so I guess it's OK if they feel just a little indebted... They probably think I'm this lonely, American woman heating up TV dinners and eating with my cats for company and never know the pleasures of a good, home-cooked meal.

If they only knew how wrong they are. Except for the single, American and "eating with my cat" parts...

Gazpacho

I found the perfect recipe to capture the flavor and feel of summer before it slips away. Those of you who listen to the Splendid Table on public radio may have already heard David Rosengarten describe an authentic, Andalusian gazpacho. It differs from what Americans typically call "gazpacho" as it is a smooth, pureed soup with the addition of stale bread.

Yesterday I acquired all the vegetables and the bread at the Montavilla Farmer's Market and went to In Good Taste, cooking school/kitchen supply store downtown and splurged on a $21 bottle of sherry vinegar. There was a $60 bottle that the saleswoman said "...you could pour it in a glass and drink...", which I don't doubt, but if I'm going to lay down that kind of money it would for a Châteauneuf-du-Pape.

Well, I just made a batch and it is incredible. I didn't use David Rosengarten's recipe (though I did put it in a pitcher as he recommends) but another recipe by Anya von Bremzen which can also be found on the Splendid Table website. Use the juiciest, freshest, vine-ripened tomaotes you can find, as the flavor of this cold soup utterly depends on it.

So go- now, while you can still get some good tomatoes and make this. It looks like a lot of work but it really is just some chopping and pureeing and well worth it:

Classic Andalusian Gazpacho

Adapted from The Greatest Dishes: Around the World in 80 Recipes © 2004 by Anya Von Bremzen. Published by HarperCollins.

Serves 6

A fruity Spanish olive oil, preferably from Andalusia, is important, as is a good sherry vinegar, preferably aged. Both can be found at specialty groceries or mail-ordered (see Resources). If you can spare the time, garnish the gazpacho with tiny bread croutons fried in olive oil.

• Four 1-inch-thick slices day-old coarse country bread from a round loaf, crusts removed, torn into small pieces
  
• 3 pounds ripest, most flavorful tomatoes possible, washed and quartered (do not use Beefsteak tomatoes)
  
• 4 tablespoons good-quality sherry vinegar, preferably aged
  
• 3 medium garlic cloves
  
• Small pinch of cumin seeds or ground cumin
  
• Coarse sea salt
  
• 2 firm medium-sized Kirby (pickling) cucumbers, peeled
  
• 1 medium green bell pepper, cored and seeded
  
• 1 medium red bell pepper, cored and seeded
  
• One quarter of a medium red onion, peeled
  
• 1/2 cup fragrant, fruity extra-virgin Spanish olive oil, preferably from Andalusia
  
• 1/2 cup bottled spring water, or more to taste
  
  Garnish
• 2 to 3 tablespoons each finely diced cucumbers, peeled green apples, slightly
  underripe tomatoes, and green bell peppers
  
• Slivered young basil leaves

1. Place the bread in a large bowl, and squeeze out the seeds and some of the juice from the tomatoes over it. Crumble and massage the bread with your fingers. Add 1 tablespoon of the vinegar and let it soak for 5 to 10 minutes.

2. Using a mortar and pestle, pound the garlic to a paste with the cumin and 1/2 teaspoon of salt.

3. Transfer the bread mixture to a food processor along with the garlic paste, and process until completely smooth. Leave this mixture in the food processor while preparing the next step.

4. Chop the tomatoes, cucumbers, red and green peppers, and onion into medium dice. Place the vegetables in a bowl, stir in three large pinches of salt, and let stand for 15 minutes so that the tomatoes throw off some liquid.

5. Working in three batches, process the vegetable mixture in a food processor until as smooth as possible, adding a third of the olive oil to each batch. (The first batch will be processed with the bread mixture.) Transfer each finished batch to a sieve set over a large bowl.

6. Pass the gazpacho through a sieve, pressing on it with the back of a wooden spoon. Whisk in the remaining 3 tablespoons vinegar and the water. Adjust salt to taste. Chill the gazpacho for at least 3 hours before serving. (If making the gazpacho a day ahead, add the garlic 2 to 3 hours before serving, lest it overwhelm the other flavors.) Serve in glass bowls or wine glasses, with the suggested garnishes.