As a long time worker of the service industry, I have worked with several chefs of varying talents and eccentricities. I have also been a long time boycotter of reality television. But reality TV has finally found my weakness: the reality of the culinary arts. The only thing that disappoints me is that those in the reality televsion business have focused strictly on chefs and ignored the rest of the service industry.
But shows like Top Chef and Iron Chef America: The Next Iron Chef, the drone-like world of reality TV has finally sucked me in. The atmosphere that is created in a kitchen is a perfect forum for a drama-laden reality show. Emotions are flowing, egos are boiling over and the expletives are flying faster than the chopping knives. Not only to you get a glimpse into the lives of chefs, who are truly their own breed, but we get to witness the creation of some the best (& worst) looking dishes some of the finest chefs in the country have to offer.
As much as I hate to be a slave to TV, most notably reality TV, shows like Top Chef and Iron Chef America keep me wanting more. The shows boil down to one main thing, the most important thing in the culinary world. Whose food reigns supreme?
Monday, December 10, 2007
Keeping Hippies Alive
Every so often, I make a pilgrimage to Half Priced Books and "splurge". I did this one Saturday afternoon a couple of weeks ago. For a mere $27, I was able to purchase 2 T.C. Boyle's (Drop City and Talk Talk), a Dostoevsky (Devils) 3 Vonnegtus and a book of shorts. Quite the steal in my opinion.
Having read Vonnegut over and over, as well as being in a rut with just reading short stories, I decided to start with "Drop City" by T.C. Boyle. I have read "Budding Prospects" by T.C. Boyle so I already knew I liked his writing style and in the midst of school, I just wasn't ready to commit to anything by Dostoevsky.
Drop City tells the story of a commune in California in 1970 that due several mishaps and government run-ins, moves to Alaska to start fresh. To really get back to nature. The book moves quickly transitioning easily from several differnt point of view characters. We see life through the eyes of Star, a girl in her early 20's embracing the ideals of the hippie movement. Pan, a friend of Star's from back home who wrestles with issues of jealousy and actually embracing the idea of brother and sisterhood. And it all couldn't happen without the "leader" of Drop City, Norm. A portly fellow who inherited a fortune and started Drop City.
The novel chronicles their lives as well the lives of several members of Drop City as they struggle with the ideals of going back to nature, full heartedly embracing brother and sisterhood all the while just trying to stay alive in the unforgiving country of Alaska.
Having read Vonnegut over and over, as well as being in a rut with just reading short stories, I decided to start with "Drop City" by T.C. Boyle. I have read "Budding Prospects" by T.C. Boyle so I already knew I liked his writing style and in the midst of school, I just wasn't ready to commit to anything by Dostoevsky.
Drop City tells the story of a commune in California in 1970 that due several mishaps and government run-ins, moves to Alaska to start fresh. To really get back to nature. The book moves quickly transitioning easily from several differnt point of view characters. We see life through the eyes of Star, a girl in her early 20's embracing the ideals of the hippie movement. Pan, a friend of Star's from back home who wrestles with issues of jealousy and actually embracing the idea of brother and sisterhood. And it all couldn't happen without the "leader" of Drop City, Norm. A portly fellow who inherited a fortune and started Drop City.
The novel chronicles their lives as well the lives of several members of Drop City as they struggle with the ideals of going back to nature, full heartedly embracing brother and sisterhood all the while just trying to stay alive in the unforgiving country of Alaska.
A Country for "No Country"
"No Country for Old Men", the gritty and sometimes disturbing adaptation of the Cormac McCarthy novel, is being heralded as one of the best films of the year. It is easy to see why. Directed by the legendary Coen brothers, this film offers unforgettable acting by an A-list: Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin and Woody Harrelson. Set in southern Texas in the early 1980's, the film leaves the viewer enthralled.
For the majority of the moview, the film follows the everyday Texan Llewelyn Moss after he finds 2 million dollars at the site of a drug deal gone wrong. But with every gift of that magnitude comes a curse, and in "No Country, this curse comes in the form of Anton Chigurh. Chigurh is a ruthless, emotionless killer whose weapon of choice is a pressurized device used for killing cattle. While Chigurh hunts Moss and his money, he is being tracked by small town sheriff Ed Tom Bell who is unable to make sense of the carnage left in the wake of Chigurh.
The intentionally slow pace of the film mixed with the lack of mood-cuing music, "No Country" leaves the viewer wandering what this country is really coming to. With a brilliant attention to technical deatil by the Coen brothers and Oscar worthy performances from Josh Brolin, Tommy Lee Jones and especially Javier Bardem, "No Country for Old Men" is easily on the best movies in years.
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