Confessions Of A Splenda Stealer

Last night I met up with a few girlfriends for a movie night in Bryant Park. Overall, it was just a great picnicking session, something I have wanted to do ever since I started to work in NYC. Sitting on the lawn, it almost felt surreal. Sure, you’re in a park, so in your immediate view you see much greenery, but then you look up above the trees and see these skyscrapers. Within that one park that takes up two blocks, sitting on the lawn, watching the movie and drinking wine with friends, you forget that the city is still very busily going on around you. I can’t wait to go again.

Last night’s film was 1963’s HUD with Paul Newman, but I hate to say that all of our collective ADDs kicked in and we couldn’t really pay attention to the film that was heavy on dialog and cowboy scenes, and my favorite, car rides that were so obviously shot with a screen behind the car.

But film aside, the highlight of the evening was Ria’s picnic backpack–filled with Belgian chocolates, chocolate biscuits, Margon cheese covered in rosemary, cheddar cheese and crackers, and almonds, all neatly tucked into a backpack that was even packed with a cutting board and cheese knife and dinnerware—a kit which she got for free!! She snagged the picnic kit after helping to produce/organize a tv segment focused on picnic gear. Boy did we luck out. It was enough to satiate four starving Splenda stealers. I love my friends in high places. And with two big bottles of wine that Red bought from Traders Joe’s that were only $6.99 a pop, it was a very economical meal.

Next week it’s The Man Who Came To Dinner, then Failsafe, then Arsenic and Old Lace, then The Apartment. I just love the city in the summer when there’s so many free events!

Side note: perfect time to people watch. There were people on awkward picnic dates, a few loud bums, a woman who ate her burrito bol from Chipotle without a fork, and some crazy, decked out picnic gear like neon orange pop up chairs. Good old fashioned fun. Just make sure to bring an umbrella, as we endured a few showers while waiting for the sun to go down. Quick thinking Ria and Ms. Ball O’Sunshine whipped out the umbrellas while I neatly wrapped the cheese up in napkins. Figures I would save the food before saving my own hair.

On a delightful note, I am happy to post yet another installment of my FREE COFFEE finds. Usually, on a morning where I awake on the couch/floor of a friend’s apartment in the city, the Au Bon Pain in Port Authority has increasingly become my go-to for really good coffee on a Saturday or Sunday morning. Last week, I even bought a muffin as a treat and I think, no, I know—I’m in love.

There is an Au Bon Pain about one block east, and one block south of my office, yet, I never go because by the time I trek all the way across 40th st. to get to my office, I refuse to walk any further for my coffee. Why don’t I just buy my coffee from the Au Bon Pain in Port Authority, you ask? Because it would be lukewarm by the time I got to my desk, silly. Timing is everything.

Moving along. I was alerted that there is a free coffee deal today from 2pm til closing at all Au Bon Pain locations. Sheer joy. I walk across 39th and see a really, realllllly long line and I begin to get pouty. I had made peace with the fact that there may be a wait of some sort, but this was nuts. And why do they all have luggage? And hats? And…oh wait–it was the line for the Hamptons Jitney. THANK GOD.

I get in–no line or anything. It seems that most of the customers already in there have no idea. I spy a girl my age sort of looking around, like me, for the iced coffee dispenser, or counter. It is clear we have never been in there before, and we become friends over our love of free coffee. It was a short term friendship, but a fruitful one—we figured out that the iced coffee was right by the fountain soda and you have to drink the iced coffee out of the same cups as you would fountain soda. Odd. That’s not how Cafe Metro does it, or DD. Well, they are French.

Need less to say, back in the office, I am elated. I am,

…sick??

Today’s train of thought was inspired by the Google reader that I just set up, thanks to my friend Ria. She brought my attention to the RSS feeder because I am always hopelessly doing things the old school way, i.e., haivng about a million open tabs. I feel that there are so many short-cuts in the world, at least when it comes to computers and tech-stuff that I just have no idea about. I still keep numbers and addresses written down in my Filofax. Bluetooth what? Smart phone what??

Anyway, as I sat down excited to check my Google reader and all the new hits that await for me to take note of, I just started recently reading another sister site of Apartment Therapy that I really like, called The Kitchn. Today’s wisdom comes from The Kitchn’s posting called Good Quote: On Tasting Everything.

In the introduction to his book, 101 Wines: Guaranteed to Inspire, Delight, and Bring Thunder to Your World, Gary Vaynerchuk gives one of the most compelling arguments on taste that we’ve heard:

The best way I’ve found to exercise your palate is to taste everything, and I mean everything–not just wine…There is nothing in this world I won’t eat. So, when you see me on WLTV or Conan O’Brien chomping cigars or sucking wet rocks, it’s no gimmick. These really are the things that I’ve done to train my palate. You need to explore every exotic fruit, imported candy, farm stand jam, animal, vegetable, and mineral, because by a miracle of nature, all these flavors can appear in a glass of wine.

I would have to say that I completely agree with this. Now, I’m not neccessailry going to order an entire plate of a foreign taste, but I will try a bite of something at least once, so it’s good for me to have at least adventurious eaters around me. But besides from tasting at the table, it made me think back to when I was little, like really young, when you almost have that animalist instinct to put everything in your mouth out of sheer curiousity. There is so much of that curiousity that we lose when we get older, so I think that Vaynerchuk has a great point. Even if we don’t like the taste of something, it is still knowledge. I learned at a very young age that I do not like the taste of crepe paper, the green rug in my bedroom, and my Pooh bear’s nose. I don’t think that this knowledge will nessarily make me a great sommelier, but it’s something to think about.

Sometimes I fear that my palate is dulled by peanut butter and oatmeal overload. And coffee. I also do love my crushed red pepper flakes…not all together, obviously. I would not have to taste that combination to know that would not be a good one.

What have you tasted today?

While I think that cheapassfood.com is resourceful and funny, this idea to save money on booze I’m not so sure about, unless you really know what you are doing. From the site:

Absinthe – The Green Goddess Homemade

INGREDIENTS:

INSTRUCTIONS:

COSTS:

By the way, if you ever have wormwood listed on your grocery list, please take me with you when you go shopping. I would not want to miss that.