You can take the girl out of Southern California...

and it turns out, she'll learn A LOT.

Initially I was going to put a disclaimer on this. However, it's my blog and I'm not going to.  What I am going to do is warn you that this entry will be long, it will contain things not everyone will agree with.  I will say that you should read it.  You might learn some things.  I sure did.

If you know anything about the entertainment industry in CA, it is basically hemorrhaging business to other states. Despite assurances that I'd always find work in my occupation, I've had troubles finding employment. In October I was offered a job on a movie and in less than 24 hours I had packed up and left my life in SoCal and was in Greenwood, MS.

Perhaps you've never heard of Greenwood, MS. Don't worry, most people haven't. It's about 90 minutes outside of Jackson, MS. The Help was filmed there. Check out this link for a little more about it.

I was excited.  Not only was this the first Distant Feature I was working on, it had some pretty well known actors in it.  As I talked with the agent from the rental car agency, I spoke animatedly about my time living in KY and how I thought it would be much like that. He quickly advised me it probably would NOT be like that. He told me I'd be driving through one of the poorest parts of the nation. How I should NOT stop my car. How I should remember I was in the South now. Um ok? (This is 2014 isn't it?)

This is a hard blog to write. I expected to be away from home for maybe 6 weeks.  I've been away for two and a half months. I have spent the past several years looking at and finding the positives in situations.  I'm pretty broken right now. Honestly, I don't think I'm even focused enough to be writing this, but with events happening as they are, I couldn't in good conscience not put it out there. So what to do? Two writing styles? Two blog entries? Those of you who know me will know how to narrate this.  Those of you who stumble across this I guess I'll seem pretty lost and all over the place.  Maybe that is just the way to be, as that is exactly how I've come through it all. Lost, found and all over the place.

I loved Greenwood.  Despite being a total culture shock to this big city girl, it is a beautiful place. It is a very Mom and Pop town. I met wonderful people. I discovered the most amazing house I have ever seen. If I could figure out a way to buy it and make it work, I'd honestly buy it and live there. Every job has their ups and downs and the same was true of this one, but man, when I tell you I miss the people I met on this show every day, I mean it!

 

Goofing around. Who doesn't love frog jammies with a frog on the drop butt?!

 

Soft Shell Crab Mmmm!

 

I like to call this my librarian look

 

Mexican food comes with homemade kettle chips. =/

 

The most awesome Production Clerk EVER!

 

Jenny, M.E., myself and Adrianne and the wrap party

 

Oh ya know, just hanging with Woody

 

Walking through set

 

This is obvious

 

KERMIE!!!

 

Have you guys ever picked actual cotton?

 

It is amazingly soft!

I had all kinds of adventures. As I said, I met AMAZING people. A single mom, raising two girls, working full time, while going to school. A doctor mourning the loss of a parent while going through a divorce. A wife navigating a long distance purchase of a home. And then the flip side of that...silly, naive girls who made asinine comments like "People from Mississippi can't read." Are you kidding me?! 

For the first time in my life I was in a situation where I was the minority. It was humbling. It made me think, it made me check myself, it made me open my damned eyes. As I stated before, I try to look at and bring the positive to life, but I REALLY tried to be appreciative to what I had and who I was when in MS. It was AWAKENING. I have A LOT, and THANK YOU for that. 

One of the girls I befriended informed me that a restaurant I'd dined in with a few other girls was known for being racist.  I was appalled.  Not only that I hadn't known, but that in this day and age that would still be happening. I was mad as hell that I'd dined there too, because if I'd known, they sure as hell wouldn't have gotten my patronage. She told me about a documentary on Netflix, Bookers Place which had some of it's history. I made a point to watch it. When I told her a few days later that I had, she said that out of all the people she'd told in the office, I was the only one who had made the effort to watch. That made me both sad and mad. Why isn't this important to anyone else?! For the record they mention that Booker's Place still stands vacant in Greenwood.

Well, I made a point to drive by.

Unbeknownst to me, Halloween weekend would be my last with this group. We'd decided to make a trip to New Orleans, LA for a girls weekend.

 

Festive right?

 

When your boss lets the whole office leave, except for you.

 

You finally arrive in NOLA at  11:30pm on Halloween. At 2:30am you find the infamous Peanut Butter Burger your friend has been raving about. It is repulsive.

 

Turtle Soup at Commanders Palace.

 

Bread Pudding Soufle

 

Cafe du Monde Menu

 

Beignets and Cafe au Lait

 

Football Jesus as I've found it's fondly called

 

Seriously guys, Turtle Soup.  YOU MUST TRY IT!

 

Guess who's here

 

Dream come true!

 

The awesomeness runs in the family

 

This girls is AWESOME!

When I got back to MS, I got a call from a friend of Jenny's we'd met with in New Orleans.  She needed a Payroll Accountant. The next weekend I was on my way to a new project that would take me through Christmas Eve. A whole extra month and a half away from home. B and the kids were amazingly gracious as was the project I was leaving who agreed to let me wrap out remotely for the last two weeks. Sure there were some bumps in the road, but man did I miss those guys.

NOLA brought it's own set of challenges. New people, new studio, new environment. I was able to fly home for a few days which was amazing, but also very hard. I missed everyone like crazy. I got sick. Doctors advised me not to work which I disregarded and worked anyways. (When only one person does the job, what choice do you have?) 

I offered B the option of presents or a trip to New Orleans as a Christmas present.  He opted for the trip. Sadly, I wasn't able to do half of what I would have liked to do, but he was a sport and said he had a great time. (Or at least he faked it well.) We did a little exploring, a lot of eating. Dooky Chase, Commanders Palace, Waffle House. ;) I don't know what exactly moved me to do it, but I suddenly decided to explore the lower ninth ward.

I'm going to be honest. I didn't pay attention nine years ago until after Katrina hit. Until the city had flooded and the damage had been done. Then I did. I remember watching and thinking "Why isn't anyone doing anything? Why aren't they helping those people?!" I remember when I visited New Orleans during Halloween weekend we had driven over something that I had seen on some news report where people had been waiting to be rescued and I'd gotten shivers. I remember flashing back to watching that and wondering why people had been stranded and no one had helped and why where there people just stranded there where people were not supposed to be and holy shit I'd just driven over that same spot. Driving into the lower ninth ward, I knew a lot of it has been razed. I knew that a lot has been rebuilt. A lot of it is just vacant open lots. What you don't know is that some buildings are still there. Like raw, open wounds that remind you of what happened. I found that very, very important and especially moving. So moving I started bawling. Like I pulled the car over and cried.

Now here's where I hope I don't lose a lot of you. For a long time I've tried to figure out why I feel so much.  People chalk it up to my Astrological sign (Cancer) the fact I'm a mom, weird past life dreams, the fact I'm just who I am. I've had people tell me I have "gifts", I've had people tell other people I have gifts, I've struggled with wondering why I'm so "hippy dippy." Only just recently did the word "empath" come into my realm of knowledge. Whatever the case, I seem to feel things a lot more than the average person and being in New Orleans has been especially draining for me.

I don't know why no one helped those thousands of people for so long.  I don't know why families were split up and shipped across the country and still aren't reunited.  I don't know why thousands died. It is, was and will always be disgusting to me. Maybe you won't have the chance to see it for yourself.  Maybe you won't feel it like I do. I want to say that's ok, but it's really not.  See, I learned more than I ever thought I would on my journey away from home and I can't go back to my sheltered way of thinking. Excuse me for being frank here, but I realized something. I lived a very sheltered life and I needed to wake the fuq up! I live in Burbank, CA. Next to a major film studio. Do you think for a second that if flooding happened where I lived they wouldn't come save my lily white ass? Of course they would! And that is sadly both reassuring and unfair.

I read a blog recently about ten black mothers. Those ten black mothers told the story about how they educated their sons how to behave when stopped and confronted by police. I cried when I read that blog.  You know why? Because as a white mother I never for one second have had to give my son "the talk" about how to behave when stopped by police. I don't even think about my son being stopped by police.  My son isn't even of an age where I would consider him being stopped by police, but those moms don't ever get that choice. That's sad. That's unfair. That opened my eyes. I might have been one of the people who fought once that #alllivesmatter You know what ALL lives DO matter.  However pointing that out just goes to show how little you know about what those fighting for #blacklivesmatter means 

Open your damn eyes people, you never know what you might see.

Best Christmas Present Ever!

My son has asked for a cell phone for a couple years now. I always told him he was too young. After he showed maturity and got a fantastic report from his teacher, I decided to surprise him at Christmas. What I never expected was his reaction...

http://youtu.be/s1BrkBcorLM

Be Mine

A while back, Fiancé and I were interviewed about our geek love life.

I thought it'd be nice if I posted the article here in honor of Valentines Day.

http://fandomania.com/fandomanual-social-love-lives-of-geeks/

Happy Birthday Mr. Hiddleston

Let's take a few minutes to reflect on how perfect Tom is.  We don't really need a reason, but we'll say it's in honour of his birthday!

In Glasses:

 (why yes, I can fit my mouth around your banana)

Teaching us about Delayed Gratification with Cookie Monster:

 (We know what's behind that smile Tom, making me Cookie, wait like that)

I wonder if he's still got Kermit on his mind:

(How many times do I have to tell you Tom?  Miss Piggy is a BITCH, don't even worry about it!  Kermit forgives!)

How ridiculous is this movie going to be?!

(Are you shitting me?  A BLOOD popsicle?!)

(OK then)

Late Night, MAUDElin Street

Last night, the Fiance and I were one of a fortuitous few who were able to secure a reservation during previews at Maude, Curtis Stone's new restaurant.  It officially opens February 1st.

I've decided to break this review down into two parts.  The first, to honor the food and the Chef.  The second, a few thoughts I had on a personal level as it's my blog.  With that, here we go!

We arrived at Maude which is so nondescript and tucked in between its neighbors, you could blink and miss it.

We had an early reservation and it seemed as if we were the first to be seated.  (Another couple arrived about 5 minutes after us.)  The place is tiny. When Curtis says it's "intimate" he is spot on.  It really does appear as if he is cooking for you in his own home, albeit he may have installed a commercial kitchen.  You are both comforted by its warmth and overwhelmed by its beauty.  Impressed by the bottles that line the wall yet transported back to your childhood with the plates, cutlery and various serving pieces placed throughout, you swear to yourself your grandmother had that exact thing in her home.  Maude is named after Curtis' own grandmother who taught him how to cook. (I'm not going to touch much more on that, but please go explore the Maude website for some back story.)

The staff is cheerful.  We are told we are fortunate to be involved in the preview dinners at the restaurant.   We will be indulging in a tasting menu focusing on Citrus and to sit back and leave ourselves in the Chef's hands.  We are presented with a list of beer and wine or offered the pairing for $55 per person.  Neither the Fiance nor I are wine people, we decide to go for it and let the experts guide us.

The first plate is brought out.  It is a Lime Sorbet with tiny bits of orange.  Just a few cool, fresh bites that awaken your palate.  It was gone before either of us thought to take a picture of it and my tongue had never felt so alive!  Just as quick, that plate is gone and Oysters & Caviar are brought out.

When I was a girl, my dad took me to one of his company parties.  I thought I was so grown up.  My dad, so handsome in his suit, someone loaned me a fancy coat to wear, I had kitten heels.  I tried caviar.  I would have told you I rivaled Cinderella.  Well kids, after last night, I might as well have been back in the pumpkin patch at dad's party because the oyster and caviar at Maude were delectable! Just the slightest hint of citrus as it goes down.  Sigh!  I had been really worried about the Fiance going into this.  He likens oysters to something you'd cough up and never, ever eats anything that comes out of the sea.  He did promise to eat everything, yet as he tossed it back I swore I saw a slight heaving motion.  However, I am happy to report he says "The oyster was quite good.  All the flavors worked well together and it was much better than I was expecting considering how much I dislike shellfish."

Next up was the Onion Bhaji. Crispy and packed such a punch. 

This was followed by a single bite Gougere which featured an artichoke puree and can only be described as a little bite of heaven.  It was so fluffy, warm and creamy, ones eyes tended to roll back into their head.

The final part of our first pairing was Crispy Mussel sitting on an orange aoli.  All of these had been complemented by H. Goutourbe "Cuvee Prestige" Champagne, France N.V

The Garden Salad showcased pickled pearl onion, buttermilk, and nasturtium.  We were told that something had come from Chefs own garden, but drat, I didn't catch what it actually was!  Leave it to this culinary master to get me to crave onions of all things.  Paired with George Skouras Moscofilero Peolponnese, Greece 2012

At this point the Fiance started leaving part of things on his plate.  He was worried he'd get full.  I have no shame, plus there was no way, the food was too good.  Carrot Soup was brought out.  Smoked parsnip, orange, and serrano ham.  He took his ham in one bite, I told him to break it up.  It was much better to savor it over several bites.  Paired with Les Vine de Vienne Viognier France 2012

Lobster with crimson turnip, radish and brioche was to follow.  I don't like turnips or radishes. Can't say that anymore, can I?  Paired with Hitori Musume JunmaiNigori Ibaraki, Japan

Chicken Terrine, Pain Perdu, and Mustard Ice Cream  These were to be eaten together.  If you thought mustard ice cream sounded gross, let me tell you that you are WRONG.  Fiance could eat that all day.  He left a few bites of the Terrine, but he all but lapped up the ice cream.  Paired with Breton "Les Perreries" Bourgueil, France 2009

"Duck, Duck, Goose"  Duck Egg, Smoked Goose Fat, Swiss Chard Inside the ravioli was duck, finger lime, beurre blanc sauce and grated cured duck egg yolk on top.

Snake River Farm's Beef Beef Cheek, Broccoli, Rosti   Have you ever had beef cheek that just melted in your mouth?  If you are lucky enough to dine here you will!  Both dishes were paired with Emilio Morro Tinto Fino Ribeira del Duero, Spain 2009

Abbaye de Belloc Mostarda, Semolina Crackers  Made from Sheeps milk by Benedictine Monks (que Enigma) we spread the mostarda across it and I actually got mad at Fiance when he wanted me to try a bite of the cheese on its own. 

Madeleine's with Salted Caramel  All madelaines should taste like these!

 Lemon Curd, Dulcey Cremeux, Yuzu Sorbet, Hempseed  If I heard correctly part of this contained a recipe from the namesake's own recipe collection!  They brought out a plate with a variety of things I've forgotten.  I think I hit food coma status.  These had been paired with Isole e Olena Vin Santo Tuscany, Italy 2004

By this point I was bursting.  It had all been so good.  If you died and went to heaven this is what the food would taste like. You don't want it to end, but you don't think you can find room for more. 

Find out for yourself and try to get a reservation!  Each month Chef Stone will celebrate a specific ingredient.
$75 Per Person




Cute little note:  Fiance made a trip to the restroom and was impressed.  He told me that I had to check the womens as he'd been impressed with the mens.  It wasn't until this morning I found out why.  The ladies was nice, had a little chair, some lotion, nice towels.

The mens?  Vintage Playboy's.

Ready for the 2nd part I mentioned?

I've been a fan of Curtis for several years now.  I wasn't when he was on Celebrity Apprentice.  I don't know why, but I found him annoying.  However, because of my job, I ended up watching America's Next Great Restaurant.  My opinion of him changed.  I met him briefly when he did a cooking demo at The Grove.  I went back and watched Take Home Chef.  Again because of work, I had a connection with Around the World in 80 Plates and Top Chef Masters.  I met him again when he did a signing at The Grove.  He is a nice guy.

Since I've been with Fiance, I've become a bit of a Foodie.  We've been to two Bouchon locations.  He's been to Culinary school.  I get spoiled with his cooking.  There's still that nagging doubt tho, that "OMG which fork do I use?" The fear that I'll get the side eye from the staff.  Why is the chubby girl in here?  Altho admittedly I am much less chubby nowadays, I still feel like a sham.  Those fears creeped in last night.

I have this thing about eating around people I like.  I've long since gotten over it with Fiance, but when we started dating it was a huge issue.  When I heard Curtis was opening a restaurant I knew I wanted to go.  When I heard they were taking reservations I knew I wanted in.  When I heard there was a chance at previews I knew I was doing it.  When I actually got a reservation I thought I had won the lottery.  All this week I was having pep talks with myself about eating at the restaurant of a celebrity chef who I adore.  By last night I thought I had it somewhat under control. 

Fiance spotted him in the kitchen before I did.  It was kind of surreal seeing him right there, doing his thing.  Focused.  We'd joked over the past few weeks as I'd seen pictures that he has been sporting a beard.  He looked like a lumber jack.  In person it's more trimmed.  Very handsome.  I'm not a beard person.  He can rock it. 

I think one of the tables knew him.  Or maybe they didn't.  He's just that personable.  He served that table dishes twice.  He served the couple at the counter.  He posed for photos.  He served the couple that came in right after us.  You could hear him communicating with all of his staff.  It wasn't ever barking orders like Chef Ramsey style, if anything it was firm, commanding and caring.  I watched him focus his attention on each and every dish and table in the restaurant. 

Except ours.

I'm never going to own my own restaurant or cook foods that taste anywhere close to the creations that this man can prepare.  I'm not going to have that level of pressure on me.  Godspeed to him.  I hope Maude is a huge sucess! 

I did feel sad that there were 11 of us in the restaurant last night and 9 were served personally by Chef Stone at least once.  Realistically, I probably would have just thrown up on his shoe.

;)