Detroit, Lowdown on Motown

This is the home of Motown. It's located in the city known as Motor City. It's also the place the Detroit Tigers call home, with a lavish stadium known as Comerica Park complete with massive concrete-cast tigers perched for the kill. It's the city that is desperately trying to change its image. We know a little about that in Erie, also being plagued with the stigma of a worn-out old Rustbelt town.
  I attended the National Society of Newspaper Columnists conference in Detroit. I was perky with anticipation because I have never been there and it is one of those brick and mortar American cities, like Chicago, that I wanted to explore. Detroit is where my husband worked and lived for the decade of the 80s, leaving with a hearty love of the gritty city and a Red Wings jersey.
   The stories I heard from him, however, were of a different time and a different town. Detroit had a population of 1.6 million when he worked there. The circulation of the Detroit News was 850,000. The Big Three auto manufacturers were fat, dumb and happy. And while there was always crime and always poverty, the robust health of the city overshadowed the bad. Those were its salad days. Today, Detroit has lost more than half its population, and is down to 700,000.
   It was an impressive four days. The tours that the coordinator and host of the event planned carried us past daunting Comerica Park to the stately Whitney Mansion for dinner, the breathtaking Detroit Institute of Arts, and a funky outdoor art project that spanned several city blocks known as the Heidelberg Project. We then entered the inner sanctum of Quicken Loans for an orchestrated tour and rallying speeches about the revival of the big D's downtown. Quicken has already purchased and is renovating a building and will import an additional 1600 employees. There was also a visit to the educational think tank for entrepreneurs and start ups, called Tech Town, Detroit’s research and technology park. It was a lot to see and a lot to absorb.
   And a lot of tap dancing. In the old days when dinosaurs roamed the earth, that was the phrase we broadcast reporters used to use to describe when someone we interviewed would avoid the question by blabbering on and on about something else. Reporters, by nature, are a cynical lot. It's an occupational hazard. At times during all the touring and speeches about how great Detroit is going to be again, I felt like I did when we were touring Cairo and our guide wanted us to look beyond the sewage, abject poverty and clear evidence of an oppressive regime and see all the pretty pyramids.
   To be fair, Detroit is a great city. There are some impressive attractions. Yes, it has block after block of empty and rundown buildings, systemic crime, poor schools, poverty and a list of crippling problems that will take more than just enthusiasm to fix. But I like the city. And I would have appreciated a more honest view, a holistic approach to our host town.   
   But in the long run, face it, it benefits Erie directly if Detroit can clean up its act. After all, we are currently the recipients of the worst of Detroit. Rtes. 80 and 90 have become the mule road for Detroit's exportation of drugs and thugs. Any positive change affected there is sure to have a spillover effect here.

Motown Lowdown

If Erie had a big brother, it would be Detroit. Coming from the same dysfunctional parental lineage as Erie--big industry--Detroit has suffered at the hands of its inconsistent parents. It was spoiled as a child and given everything it wanted with no real thought of the future and then was abruptly kicked out of the house and forced to live on its own.  Neglect, I am told, is even worse than abuse. Now an aging adult, it needs to look at itself with the insight that only comes with age, hard knocks and hopefully a little wisdom.
   Never having been there before, I was curious about this city that has one of those unshakeable bad reputations which folks who live there claim is just simply unfair. (Actually, I think the better word is stigma.) We in Erie know what that feels like.
   The plain truth is that Detroit, like Erie, has to find a better way to shed itself of the bad rep it has developed. Spending the last four days in the Motor City at a newspaper columnists conference, I have had a look at Detroit, not just from the eyes of those who "sponsored" this event, but from my own. My thoughts will be chronicled here in the next few days.

Blackberry basil martini, anyone?

This recipe comes from a friend and colleague, Marian Gagnon, a professor at Johnson & Wales in Rhode Island and film director with her own company, Goodnight Irene Productions. She and I met when she asked me to be in her documentary about Ida Lewis, the 19th century lighthouse keeper who saved 25 people. But that's another story.
  Marian makes a mean blackberry basil martini, the recipe of which she kindly shares here.

Blackberry-Basil Martini


Put several fresh leaves of basil into a shaker and muddle with a pestle. Add 4 or 5 fresh blackberries and muddle again. Add ice, a splash of simple syrup, two jiggers of quality vodka and shake vigorously.
Pour contents through the strainer of the shaker into a martini glass and pop in a few blackberries for good measure. Serve and enjoy. Celebrate herbs!

What's for dinner tonight?

One of the perks about the Westfield Farmer's Market is that the information table not only has everything you need to know about the region, it also provides recipes for the produce that you can purchase in season.
I am reprinting here the recipe that was featured this past weekend which inspired me to purchase the beautiful asparagus I found. It's genius marketing really.

Lemony Risotto with Asparagus and Shrimp

3 cups reduced sodium chicken or vegetable broth
2 cups water
3/4 lb. asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 small onion finely chopped
4 Tbl. butter
1 1/4 cups Arborio rice
1/4 cup dry white wine
3/4 lb. medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 Tbl. lemon zest
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 Tbl. parsley, chopped
fresh ground pepper

Bring broth and water to a boil in a medium saucepan.
Add asparagus and simmer, uncovered, until tender and transfer to ice bath.
Saute onion in butter until softened. Add rice and cook, stirring for about 1 minute.
Add wine and simmer, stirring until absorbed. Stir in 1/2 cup broth and stir until absorbed. Continue adding broth 1/2 cup at a time. Add until desired consistency...it should have consistency of thick soup. Stir in shrimp and cook for 2 to 30 minutes. Stir in asparagus, zest, remaining butter, Parmesan, parsley and pepper to taste.

My recipe for Lamb Curry

I am a big one for working with several recipes to create one that I like. Hence how this recipe came to be. I suggest you also play with the ingredients, adding more of what you like and lessening that which you don't. I wouldn't suggest adding more curry, however, as it has a tendency to make the dish a tad bitter, especially since its heated and when you heat spices, it releases the oils which makes them more powerful. Bon appetit!

Ground Lamb Curry with Vegetables

8-16 oz. ground lamb
2 large potatoes (peeled and diced into small cubes)
1 green pepper (diced or sliced thin)
1 red pepper (diced or sliced thin)
2 large carrots (sliced thin or diced small)
1 small onion, diced (Vidalia)
1 cup of frozen peas
1 small cooking onion
2 large cloves garlic
2 Tbl. pickled ginger or ginger root

Combine the following dry ingredients:
1 tsp turmeric
1 Tbl. Curry
1 tsp. cinnamon
¾ tsp salt
1 tsp. cumin
1 Tbl. brown sugar

½ cup vegetable broth (or more if necessary)
1 cup orange juice (or pineapple)
1 can of canned coconut milk (light preferred)
1 Tbl. oil (canola)

This is a two part process.

Part One: The curry sauce
1) Puree ginger, onion and garlic in food processor until liquid
2) Sauté mixture in heated oil in a large sauté pan or quart sized pot for about 3 minutes
3) Lower heat to medium and add the dry powdered mixture and the vegetable broth.
4) Stir and heat until bubbling.
5) Lower heat to simmer. Add the juice and coconut milk.
6) Bring to simmer for a minute or two until thickened to a soupy consistency.
7) Turn off heat.

Part Two: The meat and vegetables

1) Saute the ground lamb until half way cooked
2) Add carrots, potatoes and onions and let cook with meat until starting to soften.
3) Add peas and peppers. Let simmer until heated through.
A few minutes before you eat, heat the sauce and add the meat and vegetable mixture. Stir well and heat all the way through. Serve hot over rice (jasmine preferred). You can accompany this dish with sides of raisins, Spanish peanuts, coconut and chutney that can be sprinkled on top of the curry.

Leonard Pitts and I agree

I am on the same page with  syndicated columnist Leonard Pitts. Well, not literally. His column runs on the op-ed page and mine runs on the front page of the Lifestyles section. But when it comes to this whole issue of men in the public limelight exposing themselves to scandal by letting their nether bits rule, he and I are in agreement.
  As he points out in his most recent column, "men rule when it comes to sleaze in politics." This isn't meant to be a gender slur....but when was the last time a women in the political arena was caught with her pants down, so to speak?
  As Pitts points out, and I heartily agree, this isn't about morality, it's about judgement. And I will go one step further and conject that it's about another problem that seems to come hand-in-glove with being in the public spotlight: inflated ego and narcissism, which I believe is at the crux of this rash of cheating and outrageous behavior. These men believe, truly believe, that the rules of decorum do not apply to them. It's as if something switches off (or on) in their brains.
  When I covered politics at the state level I watched this happen to even the most innocent of the neophyte elected legislators. Over time, as they got comfortable in their offices and used to being courted by lobbyists and voters alike, they began to breathe rarefied air. That air inflated their egos and skewed their perspective, often times causing these otherwise straight-thinking men to make very stupid decisions.
   I guess the question to ask is, if Weiner or Edwards or Spitzer never ran for public office and just plodded through their lives like the rest of us average Joes, would they have fallen prey to their egos?

Is sexting cheating?

I was asked this question recently, and found myself baffled. Not by the question, but by the fact that I was asked it. Was this really a question? The answer seems about as obvious as wondering if wearing a habit denotes a person is a nun.
   This isn't about morality as much as it is about stupidity. Has the advancement in technology drained our brains of common sense? It kills me when someone blames advances in this arena for their complete lapse of judgment and goofball, juvenile behavior. Our cell phones' ability to instantaneously transmit digital photos and messages is not the problem.
   The problem lies within those who are dumb enough to believe that they can do whatever lame-brained thing they like and cross boundaries that used to be protected by decorum and manners--and dare I say it?--gentility. Some men, because most of the examples as of late are men, who for some reason have lost their minds, feel completely at ease and believe they are well within their rights to take photos of their nether-bits and send them to women.
   Imagine you go to your mailbox, pull out a packet, and stuffed inside are several photos of some man's groin. You call the police and file a complaint because clearly some pervert is on the loose.
  Or imagine walking down the street, and a man in a trench coat whips it open and flashes you. You scream, and call for the nearest cop to arrest him for indecent exposure.
   So why is it, all of a sudden, no longer an offense to expose yourself to someone? Does the medium make the act less onerous? I don't think so.
   The larger question isn't about whether or not sexting is cheating. It's about whether sexting should be legal, especially when the effects are just as upsetting and damaging as any other instance when a woman has to be subjected to lewd behavior against her will.

I need a commencement speech

(This was a column that originally ran this time last year when my son graduated high school.)

   The kids filling the seats of the Warner Theatre donning mortarboards and flowing gowns were the stars of the show. The pomp and circumstance was for them. The floral arrangements and diplomas were for them. And the keynote speeches were for them. As we all gathered and beamed with pride, wishing them high ideals and all the good life has to offer, we knew inherently, they are the future. It only made sense that on this milestone of graduation, they should be the recipients of all the wisdom-filled speeches laid out before them. 

   But after sitting through my son’s high school graduation, I have come to the conclusion that commencement addresses are largely wasted on the young. While these bright kids have their entire futures lying at their feet, how can they possibly grasp that? I suspect, like my son, many of them are looking about as far down the road as September when many of them will start college. The idea that their lives are being shaped by the decisions they are now making is just too immense to wrap their minds around. Most of them live solely in the moment, which is how it should be.

   I have yet to meet a teenager who doesn’t think he or she will live forever. I have yet to meet a teenager who doesn’t know everything. That, along with invincibility and shortsightedness, comes hand in glove with being young. As I listened to the keynote speakers that night, I couldn’t help but wonder if their words impacted those young, naive minds as much as they did mine.

    It dawned on me during his graduation that it’s not my son who needs a graduation speech; it’s me and my generation. Let’s face it. For some of us, the Golden Rule has lost its luster. We are the ones sitting in the audience who need to be reminded that life is a marathon, not a sprint. We are the ones who often lose site of the eventual successes guaranteed by hard work, turning the other cheek and taking the high road. We are the ones who doubt whether it will all work out in the end. For unlike our children, we are old enough to know we aren’t going to live forever. We realize all too well we are vulnerable. We are obsessed with the long term and refer often to this vague thing called the future. We have to struggle to stay in the present.

    Yes, we are the ones who need commencement speeches. They drape the tapestry of the bigger picture in front of us that sometimes gets lost by our own tunnel vision. They give perspective like our parents did, reminding us in adages and handy, bit-sized bits of wisdom that nothing is a bad as it seems.

   While the young are the ones who will eventually inherit the earth, the truth is we oldsters own it now. And as its stewards, we’re expected to troubleshoot its myriad problems. Given that hefty responsibility, where is our pep talk?  Check out my Erie Times-News blog.