Happy New Year, everyone! Today, I am kicking off a new feature. The Best Thing is our new weekly discussion thread where we share the one thing that we read, listened to, watched, did, or otherwise enjoyed recently.
My best thing is a blast from the past, The West Wing.
Over the holidays, HLN marathoned the entire series. I caught episodes from time to time and it reminded me of how good this show was. From the acting to the writing to the production, this was and still is one of my favorite shows. Some episodes hold up while others show how unrealistically idealistic the scripts are, but it’s all still good. This show was also pivotal in my life. When it first aired, I was prepping for college and very much thought I wanted to be C.J. Cregg. This show led me to look at schools in DC and to double major in Media Studies and Politics. While my life did not go that route (thankfully), without this show, I’m not sure I would have met my wonderful friends and husband.
Okay, I'll bite — in this case Oatmeal Cookie Dough Bites. My wife has a long plane ride on Friday, so I made a batch (recipe: https://nutritionfacts.org/recipe/oatmeal-cookie-dough-bites/) for her to take with her. They're an interesting contrast to most manufactured snacks. From a manufacturer's POV "satiating" is a design flaw, so most manufactured snacks are delicious but not filling. These little bites, in contrast, are quite filling (and also very tasty).
This is a best thing because I like making food. Today I also started a batch of chickpea-and-rye tempeh (which will ferment for three days) and got a very interesting recipe for a beet and garlic ferment. (I am currently enjoying a recent batch of Beets & Leeks, a ferment I've made a few times. I made up the recipe just because I liked the name, and it turns out to be delicious.)
Micro Four Thirds…specifically the Panasonic LUMIX GX7. As an amateur photographer, I have quite a collection of great Nikon, Minolta and Hasselblad cameras and lenses. But they are heavy. A few years ago, I switched to M4/3. Best thing ever for my back. Equipment is much lighter but can still shoot 12MP digital images and video.
Lens maker Leica makes great (small and lightweight) lenses for this format.
When I want more than my iPhone delivers camera-wise, I pick up a M4/3 camera and lens.
I took the pictures on our Christmas card with it and I bring it on vacations. And I look forward to getting a great picture of Abby with “Zach and Zelda.” :-)
Ha, the West Wing figured into my college trajectory in a different way: I double-majored in English and poli sci, intending to be Josh, but realized that more so than wanting to do politics, I was drawn to the show’s writing and narrative, so I focused on English.
When my son was little 20 years ago, I was a struggling single Mom and we had to make every dollar count. My Mom told be to buy Cream of Wheat because a little goes a long way and it's healthier than a lot of processed cereal back then (especially if you cook it with milk).
About two years ago I picked up the instant packets of the brown sugar flavor and I ended up giving it away because the taste was really gross to me.
I decided to give it another try this week only, I bought the kind without flavoring added and you cook on the stove. I added a bit of salt, butter and brown sugar and instantly (pun intended) was brought back to when my baby boy was a small child.
The West Wing is my mother's favorite show. I have never seen it. I find politics -- even fictional politics -- too upsetting. I tried to watch Veep and it stressed me out, so I never made it past the second season.
My best thing is a podcast by Amanda Montell, who wrote the linguistics book Cultish. The podcast is called Sounds Like A Cult. Her co-host is a comedian named Isa Medina. It's very funny and fascinating, and the two hosts have a great rapport.
Okay, I'll bite — in this case Oatmeal Cookie Dough Bites. My wife has a long plane ride on Friday, so I made a batch (recipe: https://nutritionfacts.org/recipe/oatmeal-cookie-dough-bites/) for her to take with her. They're an interesting contrast to most manufactured snacks. From a manufacturer's POV "satiating" is a design flaw, so most manufactured snacks are delicious but not filling. These little bites, in contrast, are quite filling (and also very tasty).
This is a best thing because I like making food. Today I also started a batch of chickpea-and-rye tempeh (which will ferment for three days) and got a very interesting recipe for a beet and garlic ferment. (I am currently enjoying a recent batch of Beets & Leeks, a ferment I've made a few times. I made up the recipe just because I liked the name, and it turns out to be delicious.)
Micro Four Thirds…specifically the Panasonic LUMIX GX7. As an amateur photographer, I have quite a collection of great Nikon, Minolta and Hasselblad cameras and lenses. But they are heavy. A few years ago, I switched to M4/3. Best thing ever for my back. Equipment is much lighter but can still shoot 12MP digital images and video.
Lens maker Leica makes great (small and lightweight) lenses for this format.
When I want more than my iPhone delivers camera-wise, I pick up a M4/3 camera and lens.
I took the pictures on our Christmas card with it and I bring it on vacations. And I look forward to getting a great picture of Abby with “Zach and Zelda.” :-)
Ha, the West Wing figured into my college trajectory in a different way: I double-majored in English and poli sci, intending to be Josh, but realized that more so than wanting to do politics, I was drawn to the show’s writing and narrative, so I focused on English.
When my son was little 20 years ago, I was a struggling single Mom and we had to make every dollar count. My Mom told be to buy Cream of Wheat because a little goes a long way and it's healthier than a lot of processed cereal back then (especially if you cook it with milk).
About two years ago I picked up the instant packets of the brown sugar flavor and I ended up giving it away because the taste was really gross to me.
I decided to give it another try this week only, I bought the kind without flavoring added and you cook on the stove. I added a bit of salt, butter and brown sugar and instantly (pun intended) was brought back to when my baby boy was a small child.
The West Wing is my mother's favorite show. I have never seen it. I find politics -- even fictional politics -- too upsetting. I tried to watch Veep and it stressed me out, so I never made it past the second season.
My best thing is a podcast by Amanda Montell, who wrote the linguistics book Cultish. The podcast is called Sounds Like A Cult. Her co-host is a comedian named Isa Medina. It's very funny and fascinating, and the two hosts have a great rapport.