Books I've Read Recently: The Address

The Address by Fiona Davis was the first book I read this year. I started on the christmas break and finished soon after New Year's. It's a fun book to read, particularly for someone who lives and/or works in New York City. The story moves parallel in 1884 and 1985, and it was fascinating to read about the description of New York more than a hundred years ago. The story is set in the Dakota apartment building, made famous by John Lennon's murder (he lived there, and Yoko Ono still lives there), and many other celebrities having lived there. The story is a love story and a murder mystery, and it moves very comfortably between the two eras. I also learned something new about New York City history by reading the book, particularly the history of the Roosevelt Island asylum, where conditions where horrendous in the late 1800's. I liked the book so much that I have plans to read Fiona Davis' previous book, The Dollhouse, as well.

Ski Mom

We just came back from a quick weekend ski-getaway. I took the girls skiing at Camelback in Pennsylvania, which is a great place for beginners because they have a nice long bunny hill, magic carpet ride on the bunny hill, lots of lessons, and lots of beginners, so you don't have to feel intimidated or embarrassed if you fall or look a little wobbly on your skis. We skied on Friday night and all day Saturday. Sunday morning we slept a little later, then had a leisurely buffet breakfast at the hotel. We stopped at the outlets before heading back home, but I was not into shopping, and we didn't stay there that long. 

This was my after ski moment of bliss after Friday night ski. 

These girls learned so much in a day! 

Taking a little rest :-)

The only drawback is that the slopes at Camelback close at 9 p.m. which makes it hard to get there in time on Friday to get in enough ski time. We managed to ski a couple hours on Friday night though. 

Sushi Chef

It's easy to fall into a food rut and keep making the same things over and over again. I fall into that rut every six months or so, and things get pretty boring. So now I've been trying to dig myself out of that rut and come up with something more fun, and also somewhat healthy. I decided to try making sushi. The kids love it, and although it has carbs, it's otherwise quite healthy. It felt a little intimidating first, but I decided not to beat myself up if it didn't work out perfectly. So I watched a couple of youtube videos (you'd be surprised how many videos you can find on making sushi), and got to work. In preparation I had bought the bamboo mat that you use for rolling sushi, sushi rice, rice vinegar, and seaweed from a Korean market (if you're ever around Hicksville, go the the H-Mart - the place is amazing!).  From my local supermarket I bought salmon, cucumber, avocado, seaweed salad, imitation crab, and pickled ginger. 

Making sushi was fun and surprisingly easy. The rolling is easier than it looks like. The rolls didn't come out restaurant perfect, but I thought they came out good for a fist time sushi maker. The kids had fun rolling sushi too. We will definitely be making sushi again, and will experiment with different ingredients. My oldest daughter already ordered Philadelphia rolls for our next sushi dinner (salmon and cream cheese). I want to try making spicy tuna.. and a roll with the rice outside the seaweed. All in all, if you're thinking about making sushi, go for it! 

Cool Apps: Google Arts & Culture

One of the best apps I've recently encountered is Google Arts and Culture. Not only do you learn so much about art and artists, you can check your resemblance to thousands of portraits hanging in museums around the world. I discovered Italian painter Antonio Donghi this way, and love the few paintings I saw on the app. Maybe one day I'll go to Venice Italy to the Ca' Pesaro International Gallery of Modern Art to check this out IRL.

Women's March 2018

I took my daughters to the New York City Women's March today. Not only was it fun to see all the creativity people put into their signs and outfits to get their message out, but it was incredible to feel the energy, passion and feeling of togetherness. I think it's important to teach my kids that we live in a democracy where you can speak your mind and express your opinions. If anything good came out of the Trump presidency, it's the fact that it was the last drop for women, and it spurred on this huge movement for equal rights, equal pay, reproductive rights, #metoo. I feel like I'm living in a historic time and I really sincerely hope that this will change for my daughters.

This year's march had even more people than last year's, and a lot more men! And dogs! I heard the NYC march estimate was 120 000 people.

For the Love of Oranges

I am especially liking oranges this year. Probably because right before the holidays I received a get-well gift box of oranges picked and packed straight from an orchard in Florida. Those were some of the most delicious oranges I've ever eaten, and I've been on a bit of an orange kick ever since then. Not a bad craving given the large amount of vitamin c the oranges contain, and the worst flu season in  our midst in years. 

I used to think that peeling oranges was such a chore, but even that doesn't bother me anymore. Depending on orange I either cut the skin off with a knife or just peel the skin off with my fingers. I've been eating an orange a day since mid-December, and so far I've avoided the flu! Keeping my fingers crossed that I'll be able to keep it that way. I have a lot of travel coming up, and will definitely pack some oranges as a snack and a protection.