MCII by Mikal Cronin is a good album with some great songs. The difficulty resides in how to articulate what it is that makes some of these songs great. I have been listening to the MCII continually for a month now in an attempt to find those words. From the opening song, “Weight” the album builds into a roller coaster ride of sounds, and indeed this first song serves as a template for the album which mixes dynamics, starting quiet, as in “Weight” with a solitary piano that is soon joined by vocals and then fuzzed guitar, then breaking back down to acoustic guitar and building up again and then fading out. And throughout, Cronin’s infectious vocals and the complex production create a highly textured music, where as in “Am I Wrong” an overdriven lead guitar is counterbalanced with a subtle tink tink piano. It is these moments when instruments rise in the mix to add another dimension to the sound that the songs are elevated beyond being just good tunes to songs tinged with greatness.
Also, MCII is one of those albums that has a back glow of references to predecessor artists in a way that is not homage nor derivative but allusive in the richest manner; for instance, there are hints of Big Star (which show most evidently in songs like “Peace Of Mind” or “Don’t Let Me Go”) and also West Coast garage rock ( in songs such as “Turn Away” or “See It My Way”). But to each of these Cronin adds his own touch, making the familiarity no more than a component, almost as if a genome that remains in the musical DNA, a part of it but less than the whole new sound. One of my favorite things in listening to MCII is how Cronin has incorporated strings into the songs, violin weaving in and out of “Peace Of Mind” or the fuller strings that rise from discordant sounds in the bridge/outro on “Change”. With the way Cronin’s vocals soar at points and mixed in such elegance with the overdriven guitars, this music would in a perfect world be what arena rock is all about. And if the complex beauty of songs such as the final song, “Piano Mantra”, is any indication of what is to come, then maybe such a perfect world is not too far off because songs such as this, with their big sound, cry out for a big stage and all that attends it.
We are a Babyganics household, as I’ve mentioned before, so when I was offered a complimentary sample of the new BabyGanics Fine & Handy, Hand and Face Wipes to try out and review, I was, as always, happy to test them out. Now that we are finally a diaper-free household, we no longer have a real need to purchase wipes for traditional purposes, but we have a real need for them in oh so many ways. I actually gave away a full case of wipes as soon as my daughter was officially potty trained and immediately regretted it. Not having any wipes for an endless stream of messy messes and yucky whatnots that landed all around & on me in the house, in the car, at school was not the best idea I’d ever had. And almost as I thought that, staring at my icky, sticky and goo-coverd 3 year old, I remembered that my sample of the Fine & Handy wipes was just waiting for a test run.
First of all, I love BabyGanics for what they don’t have- chlorine, parabens, sulfates, phalates or toxins. I love that they are formulated with lovely plant based ingredients, not yucky chemicals. I love that BabyGanics products are safe, effective and still easy to find. And most of all I love that no matter what BabyGanics product I try, it always works. And this one in no exception. The Fine & Handy Wipes are just that, super handy and do a fine job of tacking our daily messes. The package is conveniently sized to carry with you anywhere or to easily stow in a convenient spot at home. The wipes themselves are biodegradable plus fragrance, SLS, bleach and paraben free with special skin conditioners and emollients that clean effectively with protecting and nourishing skin.
BabyGanics Fine & Handy, Hand and Face Wipe are a great edition to your post-baby arsenal when toddler messes really start kicking in or a handy yet gentle helper for when you’re out and about with even your littlest baby. Please visit the Babyganics site for more details.
Here’s my fourth mini-review from my Influenster VoxBox, samples were, again, provided by Influenster for my to test out and review or not as I please:
Dickinson’s Witch Hazel Oil Controlling Towelettes- I’m a big fan of Witch Hazel. Really. It is something we alway shave in the house and use on a daily basis. Great for both skin care & first aid, witch hazel is always good to have around and is great when you have sensitive skin. Dickinsons’s has just launched a new witch hazel based skin care line with a slew of products. These towelettes are a lovely way to take the freshening powers of witch hazel on the road. You can clean or freshen your skin anywhere without any yuckiness thrown in. It does say oil controlling, but these towelettes are suitable & safe for all skin types and contain only 3 ingredients (All Natural Witch Hazel (containing Natural Alcohol 14% and Witch Hazel Extract), Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Sodium Benzoate), no added fragrance, parabens etc, etc. Visit the site to see the full line and read more about the many uses of with hazel.
Before anything
I do
I do these
push-ups,
I give them,
there’s more than a hundred
of them,
I give
to my back
so there’s no pain,
each one
is like writing a poem
each one
like eating something
that’s not always pleasant
every day
that will keep you alive,
in a silent construction
built between me
and the floor,
moving up and down
the poverty of my desire
hunts down a reward
in flesh
deciding
I want you
purring,
purring into my chest,
your tongue in my eye, your
heels
stabbing the ceiling.
Our house is currently for sale, which has been causing no end of distracting events, mostly relating to the house(s) we have been trying to buy. House 1 disappeared on us suddenly (not literally of course) and finding house 2 has put a rather big wrench in the works. It’s been all I can manage to deal with for what seems like 2 years, but is actually just about a week I think. Anyway, I’m trying really hard right now to wrench my brain back out of that and back into this. I’m starting with a transitional attempt, a mini-intervention of sorts. Thinking about the house, but working on the website at the same time. We’ll see how it goes. I’ve been meaning to run through the house anyway and here it goes, not how I meant to start off, but it seems to be an easy way in for my over-taxed brain.
After my father died of crazy and exsanguination
from self-inflicted cuts to his arms and legs
my mother married an ass-hole from Birmingham, Alabama
with a name that rings of
everything
black magic about that place:
James Kirkman Jackson, Jr.
My stepfather was an evil wizard that we all feared
like a dragon.
The birds singing in the woods all around us
I watched him
hold our dog by the throat,
he slammed the dog’s back down onto a rock,
punched the stupid animal in the face
looked
at me, blaming me
because there was shit
on or near
the white shag rug,
I watched him
smash his VW Bug
one night
for breaking down
between the train station
and the carport
so he dented the hood, the door and broke the windshield
with his briefcase,
playing a game of soccer with his friends
I beat him down the line,
I watched him
step on my calf to break the ankle
and brag about it
driving home,
I watched him
hit my half-sister
with a switch,
made her stand in a corner,
sick shit
for crayons on the wall,
with a headless wooden lacrosse stick next to my bed
I slept lightly
waiting for the yelling in the bedroom
over my head
to go wrong –
he was fear and I wanted to kill him more than I have ever wanted anything,
my fantasies of murder
constant.
The rock where he punched the dog named “Shoes”
is where he broke his back:
the landlord wanted him to help
clear some vines
from around the mouth of the chimney
so on Saturday Mr. Louth
held the two-storey ladder
as Kirkman grabbed some ropey green vine
shaking up a clay gray mottled nest
that put a wasp
between the inside of his glasses
and his eyeball,
he jerked
back,
broke the landlord’s nose
and the rock
the size of a VW’s hood
made him soft and easy.
After walking home in the dark from an all-day soccer practice I heard that he screamed and was sorry I missed that.
When he came back
the wizard conjured an eighties convergence of cocaine,
he said it helped the pain
and Uncle Billy had it in spades,
mom’s friend rubbed it on his sores
after tennis,
everyone did it with him:
friends from high school,
cops came by,
detectives came by
things got shadier, sketchier,
he stopped paying taxes one year,
double-downed on bad ideas
wrapped up in weird rich people shit,
his sister sent a fur coat from Paris
to our house,
some tax scam,
I had to be home after school on Friday
for UPS
until six
and at six
Holly Riehl stopped at my house
and I’ll never know why
the hottest chick in high school
pulled into my driveway
but it was six,
mom was nervous when I got back,
wouldn’t look at me and gave me the slip
the UPS man left in our mailbox
at Holly fifteen O’clock,
Kirkman had on his pinstripes, braces and wingtips,
the monkeysuit he wore
when he fucked around on mom,
his black hair slicked back
like a real evil punk
and said to me
you really crapped in your mess kit now, boy,
I let nine years of sitting on top of id go:
I threw a chair at him,
slammed the door to my room
and waited,
I had worked on the farm that year,
I had worked
lifting, throwing
fifty, sixty pound bales of hay,
pushed Oxen in the mud,
ate while walking or half asleep,
worked my
ass off
so I’d be strong enough
for the dragon,
mom tried to stop him
on the way to me,
he slapped her to the side, stepped on her
and did his thing:
grabbed my throat,
squeezed,
violence allowed things
to slow down,
my
green blue eyes
had the time to grab
his
black brown
eyes
and I,
full of Holly,
full of uphill farmwork
made room enough
to shift my neck
under his grip
so I could say,
“You’ve broken your back, Kirkman,
don’t forget I can hurt you.”
(The third of my mini-reviews of the complimentary samples received in my Influenster VoxBox)
Vaseline Spray & Go Moisturizer- This is a fabulous idea, spray on moisturizer, but first thing I always wonder is, will I make a mess? I’m often product challenged and not detail oriented enough to not miss my leg while spraying, therefore covering the floor with all sorts of slippery mess. However, this one is different. Vaseline Spray & Go Moisturizer is very accurate directionally (even for the challenged like me). it goes on smoothly, feels not a bit tacky and there was not one bit of slippity mess on my floor. I tested it out over the kitchen tile floor, just to see how slippery it would be in a high traffic ares & where at any second my 3 year old was bound to rush through, ignoring the no running rules and go head over heels (didn’t think it all the way though until she was running at me), but the floor was fine and she sailed right on through without so much as a slip. I was very impressed. Smooth moisturized legs & arms quickly with no muss of any kind. Pretty cool. I tested the Total Moisture version, which contains pure oat extract. The other 2 versions contain Aloe & Coco Butter
We are currently bogged down in a far-too-distracting-trying-to-buy-a-house-that-is-driving-us-stark-raving-mad mess, so this is what I’ve got for today: a few of my very favorite Sesame Street songs. I am old enough to have loved Sesame Street from the very beginning, “Rubber Ducky” was the first “real” song I memorized on my own and I have in fact met, Rubber Ducky, Big Bird and Bob (while I was living here in Maplewood as a child). Somehow in my over-taxed brain this seems more than appropriate for today.
This is an unusually busy week here at home. Our house was just listed and we’ve spent hours upon hours having to just stay out of the way. So, I’ve gotten almost nothing done on this site all week. Hopefully, next week all will start to return to normal. I have tons of posts written in the Notes app on my phone that I just need to load up, edit, add photos and post.
1 whole chicken, about to about 4 1/2 pounds or equal amount of chicken parts
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
Fresh ginger, 3 inches long, peeled and roughly chopped
1 fennel bulb, cleaned, roughly chopped
Stems from 1 bunch of fresh cilantro, cleaned,roughly chopped, leaves and tender stems reserved for garnish
1 bunch of Cavolo Nero (also called Lacinato kale) or similar kale, washed, leaves removed and reserved, stems roughly chopped
6 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
1 red chili or jalapeño pepper, ribs & seeds removed and roughly chopped,
4 whole star anise pods
2 tablespoons whole coriander seeds
4 black or green cardamon pods
4 whole cloves
3/4 to 1 pound of shiitake mushrooms or mushrooms of your choice. Brush clean and remove stems, reserve tops for garnish
Fish sauce:
Extra-virgin olive oil
Whole black peppercorns, about 1 tablespoon
Unsalted butter
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Garnishes:
3/4 lb dried rice noodles
Reserved shiitake mushrooms,
Several green onions, sliced on the diagonal about 1/2” long
Reserved leaves from Cavolo Nero
Bean sprouts, about 2 cups
Reserved cilantro leaves and tender stems
Red onion, thinly sliced or shaved, about 1/2 cup
2-4 limes, cut into wedges
Hoisin sauce
Sriracha hot sauce
Method:
Spices:
Heat a dry sauté or frying pan over medium heat. Add the star anise, cloves coriander seeds and cardamom pods and heat until toasted and fragrant, about 2 to 4 minutes. Stir or shake the pan occasionally and immediately remove the spices from the pan to avoid burning. Set them aside.
Broth and Chicken:
In a large stockpot add the chicken, cover with water and bring to a boil. Continue to boil for about 5 minutes. Remove the foam that comes to the top of the pot. Drain and rinse the chicken. Wash the pot and return to the stove. Add several tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Then add the onion, ginger, fennel, cilantro stems and kale stems. Add a pinch of salt and continue to sweat the vegetables until they are soft and translucent, but not browned, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and red chili, stir and continue to cook for about 1 minute. Add the star anise, coriander, cardamom and cloves, stir and cook for an additional 1 minute.
Then add the chicken and cover with cold water, about 4 quarts. Cover the pot and bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Partially open the top of the pot and continue to simmer for about 1 hour and 30 minutes (about 20 minutes per pound of chicken). Skim any impurities off the top of the soup about every 15 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning with additional pepper or fish sauce if needed.
Remove the chicken and set aside. When it is cool enough to handle, remove the meat and shred it. Strain the broth through a fine strainer or a chinois and set aside. At this point you can let the broth and chicken cool, stirring the broth occasionally, up to 2 hours and refrigerate. The chicken and broth should be combined and covered. They can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. This will help develop the flavor and make it easier to remove any remaining fat from the broth. Or you can prepare the garnishes and let the soup and chicken sit at room temperature until you are ready to serve the soup, up to 1 hour. In either case, reheat the broth and the shredded chicken, together for several minutes before serving. Taste and add additional, pepper and fish sauce if necessary.
Garnishes:
Rice Noodles:
Cook the rice noodles in a pot of salted boiling water until al dente, according to the timing instructions on the package, generally about 4 to 6 minutes. Quickly drain and rinse under cold water and drain again. Add to the your soup bowls if you are ready to serve the soup. The noodles can also be cooked several hours in advance. Drained and rinsed in the same way and kept in a bowl until ready to serve. Just before serving, reheat by dunking them briefly in a pot of simmering water, then draining. It is easier if you use a strainer to hold the noodles in the water. Divide among the serving bowls
Mushrooms:
Thinly slice the shiitake mushrooms. Heat a sauté or fry pan, large enough to hold the mushrooms in one layer (or prepare in batches) over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add enough oil to coat the bottom and add the mushrooms. Stir or toss the mushrooms in the oil and add a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms release their liquid and start to develop some color, about 5 minutes. Add a bit more olive oil if the mixture becomes too dry. Then add a tablespoon of butter and stir the mushrooms. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Next add about 1/2 cup of the warm soup or chicken stock and continue to cook for several minutes until the broth has evaporated and the mushrooms are nicely browned and tender. Remove and set aside.
The mushrooms can be prepared up to 1 hour in advance and reheated in the soup with the chicken for a few minutes before serving.
Kale:
Wash and drain the leaves. Stack the leaves and slice into 1 inch pieces. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter over medium-high heat in a pan large enough to hold the kale (or prepare in batches). Add several tablespoons of water, the kale and a pinch of salt. Cook and stir for one minute. Cover the pan and steam until the kale is wilted and tender, about 3 to 5 minutes. Stir occasionally. Transfer to a bowl and cover to keep warm.
The kale can be prepared up to 1 hour in advance and reheated in the soup with the chicken and mushrooms before serving.
Serving:
Divide the rice noodles among the soup bowls. Ladle in the hot soup and add the shredded chicken, mushrooms and kale. Then let your guests add the shaved red onion, cilantro leaves, bean sprouts, green onions and a squeeze of lime juice, as they choose. You might also add a few drops of Sriracha sauce or some hoisin sauce. Serve with chopsticks for the noodles and spoons for the soup.
Pho Ga is a delicate, yet incredibly complex and flavorful, clear broth made by poaching chicken with a mixture of aromatic ingredients such as ginger, onion, coriander, fennel, cloves, star anise, cardamom and fish sauce. The chicken broth is strained and served with the shredded chicken, rice noodles and perhaps some shiitake mushrooms, kale, bean sprouts, cilantro, shaved red onion, hoisin sauce or Sriracha. The soup can also be made with beef or with just vegetables and can be easily customized to make it your own.
There are a number of regional variations in Vietnam, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pho and many other countries as well. This particular recipe comes from a friend in France and while it varies a bit from the traditional method of making Pho Ga, it is still quite fantastic.
Serves 6
Ingredients:
Broth:
1 whole chicken, about to about 4 1/2 pounds or equal amount of chicken parts
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
Fresh ginger, 3 inches long, peeled and roughly chopped
1 fennel bulb, cleaned, roughly chopped
Stems from 1 bunch of fresh cilantro, cleaned,roughly chopped, leaves and tender stems reserved for garnish
1 bunch of Cavolo Nero (also called Lacinato kale) or similar kale, washed, leaves removed and reserved, stems roughly chopped
6 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
1 red chili or jalapeño pepper, ribs & seeds removed and roughly chopped,
4 whole star anise pods
2 tablespoons whole coriander seeds
4 black or green cardamon pods
4 whole cloves
3/4 to 1 pound of shiitake mushrooms or mushrooms of your choice. Brush clean and remove stems, reserve tops for garnish
Fish sauce:
Extra-virgin olive oil
Whole black peppercorns, about 1 tablespoon
Unsalted butter
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Garnishes:
3/4 lb dried rice noodles
Reserved shiitake mushrooms,
Several green onions, sliced on the diagonal about 1/2” long
Reserved leaves from Cavolo Nero
Bean sprouts, about 2 cups
Reserved cilantro leaves and tender stems
Red onion, thinly sliced or shaved, about 1/2 cup
2-4 limes, cut into wedges
Hoisin sauce
Sriracha hot sauce
Method:
Spices:
Heat a dry sauté or frying pan over medium heat. Add the star anise, cloves coriander seeds and cardamom pods and heat until toasted and fragrant, about 2 to 4 minutes. Stir or shake the pan occasionally and immediately remove the spices from the pan to avoid burning. Set them aside.
Broth and Chicken:
In a large stockpot add the chicken, cover with water and bring to a boil. Continue to boil for about 5 minutes. Remove the foam that comes to the top of the pot. Drain and rinse the chicken. Wash the pot and return to the stove. Add several tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Then add the onion, ginger, fennel, cilantro stems and kale stems. Add a pinch of salt and continue to sweat the vegetables until they are soft and translucent, but not browned, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and red chili, stir and continue to cook for about 1 minute. Add the star anise, coriander, cardamom and cloves, stir and cook for an additional 1 minute.
Then add the chicken and cover with cold water, about 4 quarts. Cover the pot and bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Partially open the top of the pot and continue to simmer for about 1 hour and 30 minutes (about 20 minutes per pound of chicken). Skim any impurities off the top of the soup about every 15 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning with additional pepper or fish sauce if needed.
Remove the chicken and set aside. When it is cool enough to handle, remove the meat and shred it. Strain the broth through a fine strainer or a chinois and set aside. At this point you can let the broth and chicken cool, stirring the broth occasionally, up to 2 hours and refrigerate. The chicken and broth should be combined and covered. They can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. This will help develop the flavor and make it easier to remove any remaining fat from the broth. Or you can prepare the garnishes and let the soup and chicken sit at room temperature until you are ready to serve the soup, up to 1 hour. In either case, reheat the broth and the shredded chicken, together for several minutes before serving. Taste and add additional, pepper and fish sauce if necessary.
Garnishes:
Rice Noodles:
Cook the rice noodles in a pot of salted boiling water until al dente, according to the timing instructions on the package, generally about 4 to 6 minutes. Quickly drain and rinse under cold water and drain again. Add to the your soup bowls if you are ready to serve the soup. The noodles can also be cooked several hours in advance. Drained and rinsed in the same way and kept in a bowl until ready to serve. Just before serving, reheat by dunking them briefly in a pot of simmering water, then draining. It is easier if you use a strainer to hold the noodles in the water. Divide among the serving bowls
Mushrooms:
Thinly slice the shiitake mushrooms. Heat a sauté or fry pan, large enough to hold the mushrooms in one layer (or prepare in batches) over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add enough oil to coat the bottom and add the mushrooms. Stir or toss the mushrooms in the oil and add a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms release their liquid and start to develop some color, about 5 minutes. Add a bit more olive oil if the mixture becomes too dry. Then add a tablespoon of butter and stir the mushrooms. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Next add about 1/2 cup of the warm soup or chicken stock and continue to cook for several minutes until the broth has evaporated and the mushrooms are nicely browned and tender. Remove and set aside.
The mushrooms can be prepared up to 1 hour in advance and reheated in the soup with the chicken for a few minutes before serving.
Kale:
Wash and drain the leaves. Stack the leaves and slice into 1 inch pieces. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter over medium-high heat in a pan large enough to hold the kale (or prepare in batches). Add several tablespoons of water, the kale and a pinch of salt. Cook and stir for one minute. Cover the pan and steam until the kale is wilted and tender, about 3 to 5 minutes. Stir occasionally. Transfer to a bowl and cover to keep warm.
The kale can be prepared up to 1 hour in advance and reheated in the soup with the chicken and mushrooms before serving.
Serving:
Divide the rice noodles among the soup bowls. Ladle in the hot soup and add the shredded chicken, mushrooms and kale. Then let your guests add the shaved red onion, cilantro leaves, bean sprouts, green onions and a squeeze of lime juice, as they choose. You might also add a few drops of Sriracha sauce or some hoisin sauce. Serve with chopsticks for the noodles and spoons for the soup.
the size of a landscape painting
almost the length of my two arms
extended out
like a tee
a Rhode Island mirror
at the foot of the bed
tells me
I have no character,
that there’s nothing
in my face
worth keeping,
I am cheap,
a pathetic little criminal
smuggling the same
fables
over and over,
I slide into desire:
become a decadent morsel
for her lips to cherish,
a deathlike love that lasts a moment,
that leaves the taste
of a very ordinary fruit,
easily replaced
a half a million times,
a sentimental meal,
the dry hotel air
all around me,
the windows only open
half an inch,
cracking my beard
when I press my face
into it
the cold glass of the mirror
feels like a
sleeping cheek.
