Sunshine Shoeshine

Reunion

A reunion on Saturday with friends, Myron and Betty, that we have not seen in..yikes...30 years. The time together was filled with great, as you might imagine, great memories. In addition to that, I must say, also with awe at all that has taken place over the years including Myron's biking across the country. I failed to ask but got the impression this jaunt was not all THAT long ago. Could be the fact that Myron had biked some obscene amount of miles only the morning of our lunch together that left me with this belief.

We actually knew Myron's father, Leo, when he was about Myron's age. When we met him, Leo was up on a ladder picking fruit. We, so much younger at the time and burdened with the erroneous impressions of age that relative youth possess, we concerned that he might fall. Ha! the genes in this family are phenomenal! Myron is 80 and, like Leo, way ahead of us all in brilliance and physical prowess!

...you didnt want a new sports car?

Parents take note...

Maybe you have seen this sign. I just came across it in the pet store around the corner ~

Children left unattended will receive an espresso and a puppy.

STREET WISDOM

It is all in the inflection...

Street sage, cheery, well oiled, addressing a traffic jam in downtown San Francisco ~

When you get there, you'll be THERE.

( implication, what are you going then about THAT?)

Super Chef

We have a Saturday morning Slanted Door - After -The- Ferry -Building -Market habit.

This Saturday we were fortunate enough to meet and chat a bit with Justine Kelly, the executive chef.

Justine has been with Slanted Door as far back as the time this wonderful and hugely popular restaurant was on Valencia Street in the mission....some years and some moves ago on the part of Slanted Door. This doesn't seem quite possible because she looks so young but young and beautiful though she is, she is, indeed, the one behind the scenes making great food happen. And she is doing it with fluency in Vietnamese, Spanish and two dialects of Chinese in addition to her culinary skills.

Above you see the asparagus and ribs that we ordered last Saturday . The ribs, we were told, are pressure steamed and flavored in a way that in no sense resembles southern ribs or, really, any other. We got onto them by sitting next to customers, restaurant owners themselves, who swore they were the world's best. T. would have no problem with the same oath. I think he orders them every single Saturday.

The asparagus, my order, are cut small and on the diagonal, cooked with poppolini mushrooms in chicken broth, a bit of fish sauce and a tiny, tiny bit of sugar. So simple, so super. Yeah, I know, the poppolinis are not going to be on just every grocery shelf but I do think asparagus cooked this way is outsstanding and something to try. Or, if you can, get thee straight away to Slanted Door for the real thing cooked by a super chef.

Dancing Babies...

...happy, healthy and on their way very soon to SINGAPORE!

Cat in the Curtain

These between projects times are, I keep telling myself, mulching periods, a time for the kernel of something great to take hold. In the meantime, as mentioned below...cats, a bridge and a bay.

The Silver Bay

OK, so Edward Weston had cats, I have cats and a bridge....and twilight with a silver bay.