I’m helping a local organization get the word out about an event this Thursday. I hope it’s not too late to mobilize yourself and/or anyone who might be affected by Diabetes.  The event (truly awesome. look at the flyer) will come and go, but Diabetes is is not going anywhere without a fight. I didn’t think the word diabetes meant anything to me, and then I started making a list from my own very recent experience. It’s right below this flyer (which you should also look at).

Two years ago, my wife had gestational diabetes while she was pregnant and had to check her blood sugar daily while cutting out carbs. She hated it and the doctors told her she might have diabetes for the rest of her life. Well, she doesn’t have it anymore. If/when she gets pregnant again, she’ll surely have gestational diabetes again and she’ll be told the same thing.

In December, a 20-something friend who’s also diabetic was reeling from a bad break-up. She isolated herself, started drinking too much, and didn’t monitor her blood sugar. She was found in a diabetic coma on her couch and was pronounced dead at the hospital. We had been making plans to go see the UFC at the Patriot Center in Fairfax and exchanged emails the day before they found her.

A recent issue of Style Weekly has a cover story about Tim Barry, an old friend of mine who plays music for a living. The story is a wild ride, very dark, and depressing. Near the end, he collapses on the floor. They take him to the hospital where he’s told that he’s a Type I diabetic and was days from dying. Now he’s monitoring his blood sugar and (being the hard drinking rock and roller that he is) drinking light beer exclusively.

And lastly, my 13 year old lab-mix dog has diabetes. Her blood sugar is insanely high, so we have to spend upwards of $200 month on insulin to give her shots twice a day. It’s been a couple years of that. We can’t afford the expense and it’s rapidly draining our savings. Meanwhile, she’s going blind and deaf and her body is pretty rickety. She can’t control her bodily functions, so we’re spending entirely too much time cleaning up after her. I’m seeing right before my eyes how diabetes can deteriorate a body even when the condition is closely cared for.

Here is a compilation of tweets, event listings, and blogs that really deserve further explanation.  It’s kind of a mixed bag. Something for everyone.  Let’s get down to it.

Become a Voyeur of Vegetarianism

The tofu eating contest at Cafe Gutenberg, Sat at 7. I’ll be in Emily Harry’s corner.  We used to cook the Food Not Bombs meal together. She’s listed RVAfoodie.com as her sponsoring organization.  So, obviously that makes me her one-man cheering section… unless, you decide to join me in the mayhem and soy bean debauchery. Also, what does one bring to a tofu eating contest?  Also competing, Mo Karn (a current FNBer) and Eric Burdo (an awesome Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu instructor whom I used to cook FNB with after we met on a bus, handcuffed, both arrested outside the RNC in 2000.  Yup. Richmond radicals, represent).

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I tweeted to a political opponent (who frequently asks me for restaurant recommendations): I’m sure u can imagine how frustrating it is for progressive Virginians to be to represented by their political opposites.

The story here is something we’re all experiencing to one degree or another.  The hostile political atmosphere is so polarizing, no one looks for common ground. And the economic situation dictates: fear trumps hope.  But, when I thought about how much I hate it that my state is represented by people like Eric Cantor whose political instincts seem totally contrary to my own, it made me think of all hysterical tea-partiers reacting to progressive leadership.  Sometimes, they look like I feel (and it ain’t good).  I don’t know how to mediate this political climate, except to purpose that the right and left get a beer together (a whole lot of them) and commiserate our mutual hatred.

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I tweeted: Have u heard about the forthcoming “bakers table” at Aziza’s? Let Karen “Go On and On” about it: http://bit.ly/di7N30

I’ve been on the edge of my seat about Billy’s woodburning oven and the pizzas it will produce. But, it looks like there are some additional layers to this story.  Here’s the necessary info from  I Could Go On and On.

In between eating so much good food, my server and I talked about the in-progress wood-burning pizza oven being built; in fact, I even got a tour of the back room and the partially completed oven. It’s going to be magnificent. A few more months and they’ll be serving their pizzas and I’ll wager it’s going to be much harder to find an open table at Aziza’s once that happens.  Best of all, the plan is to have a “baker’s table” back where the oven is housed. It’ll seat eight and there will only be two seatings, at 6:00 and 8:00. You’ll pay a flat fee and will be served whatever they want to serve you from that oven; you’ll hand over the decision-making to the pro. Since I’m just a lowly eater, I’m more than happy to let someone more qualified tell me what to put in my mouth. It’ll be entertainment and sustenance all rolled into one experience and, frankly, I can’t wait.  Conveniently, they plan to be up and running in May.

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Urban Farming Flash Mobs?

A flash mob is where relatively random people converge on a space to stand there being totally full of themselves. What if the cyber-networked assemblies actually rolled up their sleeves and did something valuable for a neighborhood? Picture a bunch of people showing up with shovels and turning fallow land into viable gardens on a regular basis, but unpredictable locations? It all starts n Sunday at 12, when volunteer gardeners will gather at William Byrd Community House to spend part of the day gardening.  The event is the first “Crop Mob,” and it’s open to the public.  The more the merrier.* In fact, the organizers of the event will sweeten the deal with free food:

The menu is set for Sunday: Big spaghetti dinner with homemade sauce, green salad, and a white bean and parsley salad. All vegetarian. I hope we all work up an appetite!

*I’m in a grad class and some of my classmates are helping Richmond Ground Up to get off the ground.  This is totally my kinda thing, so I’m sure I’d be touting the event’s awesomeness nonetheless. Please go in my place, cuz I’m totally booked up that day.

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I tweeted: Guess what, #RVA? Acacia cook, Collin Wagner has landed in Spain and is blogging from his new kitchen: http://bit.ly/au1K3B

After teen-cook Collin Wagner got his start at Can Can, and then propelled Acacia to the Restaurant of the Year award for 2010 (Dale Ritzer might have helped), he flew the coup for a few months of Spanish kitchen experience. Follow his adventures on his new blog. And yes, I added it to EatingRichmond.com.

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I tweeted: I love menthol-yptus scented bath products. Also, tea tree, rosemary-mint & concentrated citrus like lemon zest. Am I compensating 4 something?

Surely I’m not the only one right?

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I tweeted: In concert, Spoon really makes their sparse sounds count. But damn these speakers go to ELEVEN.

The first real rock’n'roll concert I went to in a couple years and I come away from it with old man syndrome.  This band that has such a stripped down sound was totally over the top with volume and distortion.  Even before they went on stage the venue played James Brown songs so loud many people around me were plugging their ears. So, maybe it wasn’t all Spoon’s fault.  After all, it was The National that tried valiantly to host sociopathic homophobe Buju Banton on Gay Pride Anniversary Day.  So, they’re not the most intuitive of hosts.

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I tweeted: Recently added Richmond Gastronomy to the food blog aggregator and I think you’ll be very intrigued. http://bit.ly/byCBZA

This new food blog brings a fresh perspective and I’m excited to follow it. Just thought you’d like to know that.

So, my neighbor Dave and I wound up challenging each other on Twitter: whose biscuits and gravy is better? My vegan version or his real meat variety?  I tweeted something about the superfluousness of sausage in sausage gravy and Dave responded to the contrary, saying his B&G is legendary, untouchable by any hippy-fied vegan perversion of the classic.  Okay, he wasn’t that strident about it.  Or anything. Ever.  But maybe this competition will bring it out, or the spunk will manifest on the plate. Either way, Dave, “Are you ready for a Throwdown?”

Funny that social media was the catalyst for this contest between neighbors.  While it would be easiest to just compare dishes between us, the data is best evaluated by impartial judges. We found some on Twitter in a matter of minutes.  To make things as fair as possible, and to isolate the variable at issue, we agreed to a couple rules:

• Keep it Kroger. No fancy Belmont Butchery sausage. Just accessible grocery store ingredients.
• We’ll use the same kind of biscuits.  Probably Grands or from a Pilsbury tin.  The gravy is the thing here.

You’ll have stay tuned for the results (or maybe some judges will tweet/blog the play-by-play).  We’re gonna do this thing this weekend.  Personally, I’m not ready. My B&G turns out different every time, but I love the ongoing experiment. In fact, I’m proud as a peacock about how easy and simple vegan biscuits and gravy really is. So, I’ll be armed with that, and an incredibly hectic schedule this weekend. At least I can take solace in the cooking.

To be continued…

I’ve recently discovered that I LOVE HOPPY BEER. After more than a decade since my college beer brewing days, I’ve been assuming that hoppy beer gives me a headache. It turns out that I was wrong. What I needed was tons of hops, or none at all. Yuengling Lager is our house beer. Our cheap alternative to Air Conditioning. Except for an occasional Stella Artois, I figured that I didn’t need any other beer besides Yuengling (kinda like all those PBR drinkers in RVA). However, the pine scented lemony aroma of a glass of cold hoppy beer is really impressing the shit out of me. The high alcohol content probably doesn’t hurt either. Whatever the reason, I am now crazy about the following beers (especially with a meal):

Bell’s Two Hearted Ale

Troeg’s Nugget Nectar

Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA

Avery’s Maharaja

These beers are blowing my mind, but I’m sure there are others that fit the bill. Supposedly, I’m looking for “double IPAs” (India Pale Ale). But I might need some pointers. Are beers that would fit into the list above all from the US? Where are they sold in Richmond? Who has them on tap (besides Mekong – I credit the owner, An, for my new obsession). Of course, the prominent pictures of hop flowerets on many of these labels tell me that this form of beer is pretty trendy (crowds – like the one I’ve joined – need blatant imagery to guide their purchases).  The bottles seriously look like adds in High Times magazine, if you didn’t already pick up on that.

ps: The bottle of Torpedo that I just finished has compelled me to title the piece the way I did and to tell you that I can recite the words to Dead or Alive’s “Brand New Lover.” A skill/affliction I’ve had since middle school. Here. I will type it out for you:

your sweet natured darling

it’s too hard to swallow

I’ve got the solution

I’m leaving tomorrow

and now as I stand and stare into your eyes

I see safty there.

I WANT SURPRISES

All I really need to do

is find myself a brand new lover.

One who has eyes for me

and doesn’t have them for another.

All I really need to do is

find

a

brand

new

lover.

Whooooaaaaooooo oooohhhh oohhhh.

Since the EatingRichmond food blog aggregator began in early 2009, an obvious outcome we were hoping for was a food blogger party, or any kind of face to face interaction, for that matter.  Over the past few years, there has been an explosion in the creation of personal sites that focus on kitchen and restaurant adventures in Richmond.  Some lighthearted gatherings seem like just the way for each of us to better understand the phenomenon that we’re a part of.

Most restaurateurs would probably view a bunch of food bloggers descending like a pack of vultures circling overhead.  But, not Jason Savedoff at Olio (Main and Meadow).  The gourmet shop that used to be called European Market is well equipped to satisfy the appetites of most any epicurean.  As others have stated, one of the biggest revelations here is that you can eat some tasty food there while drinking bargain imported beer. The bargain is that you are paying the retail price instead of a restaurant price. Yum.

Rather than give you a rehash of what happened at the event (kinda hazy on the details from all the cheap beer, anyhow), let’s just list all of the other bloggers who’ve done write-ups of their own and then I’ll get to some EatingRichmond business, if you’re interested:

• I met Shannon and Erin from the Richmnd Food Collective. We talked about nearly missing each in the punk rock mosh pit 15 years ago. Here’s what they had to say about the event.
• Brittany inspired the event by proclaiming her jealousy at DC food bloggers meeting up. Here’s her EatingBirdFood two cents.
• Janet from Richmond, Food for Thought came all the way from Powhatan, but you’ll know from her blog that she frequents Richmond restaurants anyhow.  It was good to finally meet.
• PJ Pink let me taste a bit of her Burgundy, and I had to admit my ignorance at it’s qualities.  She was extremely gracious though.
• Foodie power-couple, Andrew and Cristen, of One Couple’s Kitchen, got their first taste of Olio and seemed to enjoy it.
• Eugenio put down his video games to capture some images of the event for his meat-tastic blog. This includes a picture of some of the subjects and the back of my head.

Food Blogger To Do list:

• The consensus is, “we want to do this more often.”  I heard most everybody say it. Since I organized the first one, I’ll need some suggestions, and I’ll be glad to help with email addresses, etc.
• The EatingRichmond.com site needs programming help. Do you know Wordpress REALLY well?  I’m making a list of things we’re hoping to accomplish. Basically a total redesign (let’s face it, the site is kinda ugly and rudimentary, although I do love the logo) with more bells and whistles and such.
• We need to gather links to food blog and main stream reviews for Richmond’s prominent restaurants. This will go toward a restaurant index that is off to a slow start. Can y0u help?  Pick a restaurant and let me know.
• How about a Twitter widget that scrolls a specific hashtag? I’m thinking #rvafood or #rvadine, or both. What do you think?
• One for me: Delete a bunch of blogs that haven’t posted in several months and add a whole slate of new ones. Revolution!
• This is just a start. There’s more to come.  Your suggestions are encouraged.

I never frequented The Border Chophouse, but I did once go into the Texas-Wisconsin Border Cafe.  The diner/roadhouse feel was welcoming, but I never wound up inside there again… until now. A coworker of mine knows Randy O’Dell, a Mezzanine partner breaking down the Border to make way for Bellytimber Tavern (at Main and Plum). She dragged me over there recently at lunchtime to see the totally gutted shell of the Border being transformed into what will likely become Richmond’s next “it bar” (lookout, Republic). The space brims with potential, in large part thanks to the additions being made by Randy and his carpenters.

Who will be first to have their usual drink slid down the bar to their awaiting hand before they've even taken their seat?

Like the gargantuan bars at Can Can and NY Deli that attract customers like (bar)flies to honey, Bellytimber weighs in with this wooden behemoth. Up close, the thick bartop looks impressively substantial with its pronounced woodgrain. It’s almost like a majestic redwood fell over and they decided to serve beer on it right where it lay. Okay, slight exaggeration, but if you like wood with a natural finish (like I do), this bar is for you. This rustic style seems like a theme developing around the place, from booths styled by the same carpenter who did Stronghill, to the sturdy woodwork of the new entryway installed to prevent the gusts of wind that harshed Border patrons sitting near the door. If you squint at this picture taken with my phone, you can see the woodburning oven being built at the edge of the kitchen – another Pacific-Northwest-y throwback… Or, you can just scroll down to the next picture…

Not a pose. I walked in on this.

Here, Mike Marunde (also known as the drummer from RPG) is inside what is surely his prized creation, a woodburning oven where they plan to roast the same local/organic meat featured at Mezzanine . And then there’s the potential for pizza perfection that only a seriously hot oven can provide. I think it’s safe to say that this will quickly become a curiosity for gourmet types. If the Tavern can juggle the wood fired food along with the party crowd, a music venue, and a raw bar, all at once, the place will be quite an eclectic assemblage.

Picture taken from the front door/entry-way. There's booths down at the far end.

Old regulars from the Border are sure to notice the additional light pouring into the bar from the windows where Randy poked through walls previously bricked up  since the building was built in 1870. All around the windows you can see what looks like artsy decoupage, but it’s actually layers of paint and wallpaper from the previous generations of owners.  So, the history of the location will be on display in the belly of the old Border.

“Bellytimber is Victorian slang for food of all sorts,” according to the first hit that comes up on Google (also a restaurant – apparently it’s a popular name)  Personally, I think the bar looks like a giant piece of timber from the belly of a tree, but that’s just me.

Randy says he plans to have the place open by the end of March. That timeline sounds ambitious, but they were hard at work when I stopped in, so anything’s possible.  I’ll definitely have to try something from that oven and polish off a pint at the bar now that my curiosity has been peaked.  However, I’m sure the crowds of people will drive me away, and I’ll have only jaded and cynical things to say from then on.  Predictable, if you know my tastes, and not too big a deal if it means that Richmonders will have found another place to happily congregate.  So, cheers to that. Hope you enjoyed the sneek peek. I did.

My wife has posted some before and after kitchen pictures on her blog (along with her take on the budget home-makeover story). That room was the first thing we started working on when we bought the house five years ago. We painted the cabinets. Exposed the floorboards (and then painted them too). We added a lovely green color to the walls (Karen’s favorite color at the time – see old kitchen pics to see the green that lasted five years).

Not being able to afford a full kitchen renovation (nor the upheaval of juggling a baby in a construction site), we’ve satisfied ourselves with these superficial changes. I even bought a modern looking faucet from Ikea. However, it wasn’t until recently that Karen went and did something drastic. She emptied two cupboards and commanded me to take them off the wall. Then she went to work adding a black burlap type paper and showed me plans as to where I was supposed to hang some shelves. Well, that turned out to be harder than I thought (masonry bits, hammer drills, tap cons, many four letter words).

photographic emphasis on the sturdily mounted brackets

Then, one morning, Karen walked into her kitchen to find this new set of shelves (while she was sleeping, I stayed up late getting the brackets and shelves secure). We are both elated and proud. More than any of our paint jobs, this little kitchen makeover has really given us hope that we’ll one day have a totally overhauled kitchen that balances modern updates, materials to suit a 1920’s house, and lots of Karen’s crafty touches. Thank goodness for her vision on all things decor.  Now, where am I gonna stash my juicer, dehydrator, 3 gal jug of EVOO, and four different kinds of flour?

Virginians should soon be able to promote vegetarianism with a snazzy new license plate design.  The only thing keeping this from becoming a reality is a few hundred people sending in applications for their own plates.  The Veggie Plates campaign needs 350 license plate requests to make it official, and so far they only have 60 or so. Herbavores, what’s the hold up? Sure, there’s a whopping $10 application fee, but the group behind the effort will even front that to you until you get your plates, if that would help you pull the trigger (non-violently) and fill out an application.

Anything to do with the DMV is such an overwhelming endeavor.  But, folks.  This is simple. You just mail fill out an application and then sit and wait.  You can even have fun with it by throwing in an extra $10 for your own personalized six character plate.  How about SUPERB? BEERME? Or FOODIE? No, wait. CHKNBT? (as in, “what’s up? Chicken butt.”)

A handful of local Richmonders have made this plates possible. Noah Scalin at ALR Designs styled the lettering and festive looking veggies.  Vegan Action is collecting the applications and funds.  Del. Jennifer McClellan agreed to sponsor the bill that will surely sail through (once 350 vegetarians step up).  And Leslie Sanford is spearheading the effort with a website and fliers. Despite this collective effort, the campaign has been extended another year.

“So far, we only have about 60 applications,” says Sanford.  “That’s why we have extended the campaign a year. We need to get more publicity, and more people involved in spreading the word!! I’m offering a free application to anyone willing to distribute 50 fliers. We also have an ad on FaceBook, and a fan page on FaceBook.”

Reaching all the vegetarians needed to make this campaign successful takes a big promotional effort. Starting on April 1, 2010, the Veggie Plate campaign will be entered in the Pepsi Refresh Project to fund grass roots projects that improve health, education, community, etc. They’ve entered under “Health” in the $5,000 grant section. When April arrives, supporters are encouraged to vote each day in April at http://www.refresheverything.com.

If you’re even vaguely interested, click the link and read more. Got a suggestion to help kick the campaign into high gear?  Add your two cents here.