The Oars

The weight of the oars
and my pace
yielded a perfect pain.

Behind my neck,
across my back, and straight
through to my chest.

It was clean
and honest, then slow.

My eyelids reached down, heavy,
and longed to rest upon the waves.

The sway of the boat
and the sound of the little licks
beneath and beside me,

I did not want them to go.

The oars slipped from my hands
and I slipped somewhere too,
slowly, and then
not so much.

Until it became
a story, one they'd tell later.

"...the most insanely awesome woman you've never heard of."

Time to dust off your wings, we are going to visit someone new.

Who? Erin over at Reading My Tea Leaves. Visit Erin to learn more about a woman BUST Magazine describes as "...the most insanely awesome woman you’ve never heard of."

Off you go!

Lunch @ Wexler's

Photo: Kevin Bond via Google images

Miracles do happen. Today is July 13th, technically summer, and... it actually feels like summer here in San Francisco. This does not occur often. I am filled with joy! This is cause for celebration.

On this perfect summer day, I was lucky enough to be treated to the most perfect summer lunch. We met at a new restaurant, Wexler's, located on Sacramento Street, between Montgomery and Sansome. Wexler's is a beautiful little restaurant with simple cream-colored walls and red chandeliers. A custom-made wood canopy invites you inside and then ripples above you through the entire restaurant.

The decor was cozy, and the rippling canopy interesting, but it was the food that truly caught my attention. I ordered the the trio below, starting with the cucumber soup and ordering the squid salad as my entree.

I enjoyed having my cucumber soup assembled on the table right in front of me. It was beautiful. Three petite dollops of the smoky ricotta and thin ribbons of bell pepper confit were brought out in a large shallow bowl, a perfect match for the cool and clean taste of the smooth-as-silk cucumber soup poured into the bowl from a small cast iron teapot. The server poured while I smiled and observed as the soup flowed slowly from the teapot spout, filling in the space surrounding the tiny ricotta and pepper islands.

My salad was impeccably balanced. Lightly dressed frisee, little squares of delicately fried green tomatoes, sweet supremed orange slices, tender squid, and the heat of a few thin rings of bright red pickled chilies (I adored the chilies!).

We shared the banana cream pie. A drizzle of Dulce de Leche topped with a slice of creamy pie and a few caramelized banana slices arranged neatly beside the pie--all sprinkled with just a hint of Fleur de Sel.

The combination of colors, temperatures, tastes, and textures in all three of my selections created a beautiful and delicious summer lunch. I couldn't have been happier.

Chilled Heirloom Cucumber Soup - $8
Smoked Ricotta, Bell Pepper Confit

Monterey Bay Squid Salad - $9
Fried Green Tomatoes, Pickled Fresno Chiles, Orange

Bourbon Banana Cream Pie - $6
Dulce de Leche, Fleur de Sel

Malt-O-Meal Makeover

my breakfast -- July 10, 2009

I had a wisdom tooth pulled in May and one of the things that comforted me post-surgery was a box of Malt-O-Meal. The box has been neglected since then, but today it called to me.

I prepared one serving of Malt-O-Meal as directed by box instructions (one exception, I used a whisk--it works much better than a spoon). Next I scooped a heaping tablespoon of crunchy peanut butter, my favorite type, the type that is labeled ingredients: peanuts, into my bowl. I poured the hot Malt-O-Meal over the peanut butter. I topped the Malt-O-Meal and peanut butter with a generous sprinkling of sweetened coconut flakes, a drizzle of sesame oil, and finished it off with some SRIRACHA HOT CHILI SAUCE (rooster sauce).

I dipped buttered toast (Acme's Upstairs Bread) into this fabulous dish and it was mmm mmm good.

Small confession: Another post-wisdom tooth extraction comfort was instant mashed potatoes with blue cheese crumbles. I was weak...

perception

I burned the onions,

but he didn't seem to mind.

He ate them all,
every last bit.