Month: April 2015

If You’re Decorating Your Office….

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PacificoYou might be interested in some art by Isabel Shamitz. Especially if you’re looking for some nice art to decorate an office space. If you just want to look for free, then stop by the library this month and take a look.

During April, the Thomas Crane Public Library in Quincy, has an exhibit of Shamitz’s work called A Tale of Two Cities: an exploration of Boston and Quincy images.

As I was walking around picking up some books that I had put on hold and looking at the new DVDs, I saw her paintings. The colors, texture and mood drew me right in! Because the exhibit focuses on the Quincy and Boston area, I recognized some places too.

If you’re from the area, you’ll probably have a sense of familiarity. Also, Shamitz’s style reminded me of Edward Hopper’s Nighthawks.

That feeling of looking into the private world of another by glancing into a coffee shop window and seeing strangers interact. A certain light that puts you into a nostalgic mood when you’re not even sure what you’re feeling nostalgic about. But it’s there and quite palpable.

Since my work brings me to many a different office, one of the first things that I notice is the art work on the walls. That and where is the coffee located.

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Image: Screen shot of painting by Isabel Shamitz from Thomas Crane Public Library event website.

Recipe: Single Serving Nutella S’More

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single serving nutella s'more This isn’t much of a recipe, because it’s only three ingredients and I made none of them. But Nutella is always a good place to start.

It is a recipe, if you believe that a recipe can have cake mix as an ingredient. Which I do not. But let’s just go with it for now.

If like me, you have some random graham crackers, marshmallows and Nutella, then you can make assemble this single serving snack.

It’s rather precarious and gooey. Will probably crumble apart and you’ll need to lick your fingers. But it is just one serving and you’ll be making it in the privacy of your own home, so who’s gonna judge you?

To soften up this caramel covered marshmallow, I punctured it with a wooden kabob skewer and rotated it over the flame on top of my gas stove. Some parts caught fire and got singed. No worries.

I plopped it on a graham cracker. Slathered Nutella on top. Then I ate it. Maybe it’s not a recipe, but it was fun.

Have a good weekend!

Recently Watched: Rain

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“Rain” is another DVD that I happened to find while at the library and recently watched. The movie is a coming of age story about a teenage black girl set against the beauty of the Bahamas. But the film shows its seedier side too.

Many years ago, I visited the Bahamas for a quick getaway and had the best time. This film takes us beyond the surface of what we can see on a vacation. According to an OnlineAthens article, “‘Rain’ is the first indigenous feature film produced entirely in the Bahamas.”

CCH Pounder plays a starring role and seeing her name on the credits assured me that this would be a good movie. Her character reminds me of the saying that when the student is ready the teacher will appear.

“Rain” is the title of the film and the name of the main character as well. She is a budding athlete, but needs someone to help her develop into the person that she is meant to be. The movie takes us along for the ride.

What movies have you watched recently?

Recipe: Spring Strawberry Cake

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strawberry cakeThis past week was one of the first where it was pleasant to be outside. Most of the piles of snow are gone. The sun is shining brightly. The temperatures are warming. We will have Spring after all!

Since today is Easter, I baked a cake to share with my family. One of my favorite go to recipes is Magnolia’s Vanilla Cupcakes. I just half the recipe to make a single layer cake.

This cake is a total experiment. But that’s the only way to come up with something new! For the topping, I didn’t measure anything so all these amounts are estimates.

I took 3/4 of a cup of strawberry preserves and combined in a small bowl with 1 tsp. vanilla extract and 1/2 tsp. almond extract. Then I spread the mixture over the top of the cake. I baked the cake last night, then left it in the freezer overnight and let it thaw out for a few hours this morning.

Then, I sprinkled about 2 T of powdered sugar over the the cake. I cut about eight strawberries in half, rolled them in about 1/4 cup of sweetened flaked coconut, then placed each strawberry on top of the cake. Then I put maybe 1/4 of white chocolate chips between the strawberries.

The plan is to serve the cake with some ice cream. Hopefully it will be good. My philosophy is always, “Just how bad could it be?” If you combine a bunch of stuff that you like, it can only taste so terrible.  And should taste quite excellent actually.

Happy Easter and Happy Passover to all who celebrate!

Havana Bikes: A Short Film

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Since President Obama announced that the American policy towards Cuba was changing, most of us in the United States are in favor of it, according to a new poll.

Both Cubans and Americans seem to be gearing up for travel. Airbnb tweeted out some new listings of places to stay in Cuba.

A short film that I found online called Havana Bikes by Kauri Multimedia shows the ways that Cubans have preserved old bikes and made new modes of transportation from them. Not necessarily because of love for old bikes, but out of necessity in order to get around.

As business opportunities and trading grows between the United States and Cuba, these old bikes may soon be a thing of the past.

Havana Bikes has a great soundtrack and shows some of the bicycle creations that have developed over the years. It’s a glimpse into a particular place at a particular time that is drawing from the past and present, but may look so very different in the future.