So this is what our Pom (Lucy, or Sadie, or Granny…still) looks like, nearly identical to this one. Same colors. Same foxy look, no pun intended. She is getting more territorial, rather than less, and barks whenever I leave the house – even just to step outside. Barking also directed towards the cats, now. They have no idea what to make of it all, and just look at me like I’ve completely lost my mind.
Maybe they are on to something. 
In the “Lemons. Lemonade” post there was a bad link to epluribus and the video for “My Name is Lisa.” It had one too many “http://’s” in it and was not working. Fixed it.
In case anyone tried to get there and failed, here’s the corrected link to My Name is Lisa and a discussion on Alzheimers.
Here’s the link from that page to Jim Downey’s Communion of Dreams section on being a caregiver for an Alz patient. It’s truly moving and fascinating. As the daughter of someone who suffers from “sundowning” syndrome, I found this theory interesting:
“There’s a phenomenon familiar to those who deal with Alzheimer’s. It’s called “sundowning“. There are a lot of theories about why it happens, my own pet one is that someone with this disease works damned hard all day long to try and make sense of the world around them (which is scrambled to their perceptions and understanding), and by late in the afternoon or early evening, they’re just worn out. You know how you feel at the end of a long day at work? Same thing.”
Usually I don’t like these, because 9 out of 10 times they turn out tough. But I found a recipe and improvised it a bit for Braised BBQ Country Style Ribs, and they turn out quite tender this way. Try it. Country style ribs, boned or boneless, are usually cheaply had this time of year.
4-5 lbs country style ribs
1 big can beer of your choice (dark ale works well)
5-6 smaller vidalia onions, peeled and quartered
5 cloves of garlic, sliced or minced
BBQ sauce of your choice
Brown ribs in skillet (approximately 7 minutes total time). Place in Dutch Oven or roaster with cover (or use foil to cover). Scatter onions and garlic. Pour beer over all, cover and cook 2.5 hours at 300.
Remove from oven, drain beer. Drench in your favorite bbq sauce and cook, uncovered, for 20-40 minutes more.
Very good
Just saw a comment on the blog from Thomas Miller, director of One Bad Cat, the audience award winner at this year’s Cleveland International Film Festival. A native Clevelander, Miller was a joy to interview this year and wanted to let me know he and One Bad Cat are returning to Cleveland in September for a special one-week screening at The Cedar Lee.
Miller’s also revamped the film’s website to include posters and dvds for sale, and he’s traveling around the country with the film.
I’m looking forward to seeing him again in September, and seeing One Bad Cat on the big screen.
As for one small good doggie, we rescued a Pomeranian this week from a kennel. She’s long past her breeding days – estimated at 12 years old – and has the most awful teeth known to mankind. They’re a Godforsaken moss green. We’re not sure if we’ll be keeping her or not, because she is awfully territorial (with me, scaring off my other pets of nearly 10 years) and may need much more work than we can afford to provide.
She is, however, utterly adorable.
I never thought I’d be one of those Paris Hilton wannabe types with a toy dog tucked into a Gucci (well, Gucci knock-off, in my case) bag. And I won’t. But there is something winning and alluring about Pomeranians.
She and Marlon are the exact same colors, so even if there will be twice the amount of hair around the house, it will all match.
Stay tuned to see if (we’ve named her several things, none of them have stuck so….) Pomegranate (“Granny”)/Lucy/Sadie/Loretta Lynn becomes a permanent part of our household.
In the meantime, mark your calendars for One Bad Cat at The Cedar Lee in September. It’s a really fascinating look at a complex, interesting artist and man.
Written by Markos Moulitsas Zuniga, aka Kos, the founder of Daily Kos, Taking on the System will hit bookshelves on August 20. Obviously, I’m a long-time reader and fan of Daily Kos – mostly sitting on the sidelines, just reading. This plug seemed too good to pass, though. Along the way I’ve seen the tactics work for netroots politics and was very much personally involved in the process at one time. Not so much, anymore, but I’m still a big fan.
James Woolcott of Vanity Fair says this about the upcoming release:
“A guerrilla manual for political insurgency, a motivational guide to personal action, Markos Moulitsas Zuniga’s Taking on the System lays out the map on how to transform social networks into a power grid and send the funeral directors of our archaic institutions packing. Written with the high-velocity enthusiasm for a healthy shellacking that has made Daily Kos the Battlestar Galactica of the blogosphere, Taking on the System, studded with practical tips and inspirational tales, teaches and preaches how to turn your voice into a force-multiplier without losing your soul in the process. This is a book that conservatives could learn from too, if they could tear themselves away from Rush Limbaugh long enough to take a jab at something new.”
–James Wolcott, Vanity Fair columnist and author of Attack Poodles (Miramax)
Guerillas in the midst? Well, maybe. But nobody at Kos takes themselves too seriously in the process. Most people who read and write there are just average folks who got fed-up with the system over the past eight years and decided to look for like-minded others online.
And the Battlestar Gallactica line is priceless.
A wee bit early, this recipe arrives courtesy of the stewed zucchini. Which got us thinking about our favorite fall dish, eggplant parmesan casserole. This was the first thing I ever made with Catharine, and the first thing the girls and I ever made together (well, mostly Chris and I, at that time Bean was too young). Lots of fond memories associated with this, although it’s labor-intensive.
Eggplant Parmesan
2-3 large eggplant, cut into circles
1 can plain breadcrumbs (or Italian, if you prefer)
3-4 eggs, whisked
2 cups flour
salt and pepper
1 jar parmesan cheese
2-4 cups moz cheese
Your favorite spaghetti sauce – homemade or canned
4-6 cloves of garlic, minced or sliced very thin
large bottle of canola oil
flour, egg and bread crumb the eggplant to coat it. Fry in single layer in oil (as much as needed to fill pan at least halfway full). Drain on paper towels, sprinkling with salt and pepper if desired. Continue frying until all eggplant is browned.
Place layer of sauce on bottom of Dutch oven or roaster. In single layer, line eggplant. Top with parmesan, mozzarella cheese and slices or minced garlic. Add sauce dollops atop eggplant (I use minimal amounts but put as much or as little sauce as you desire). Continue layering eggplant, sauce, cheeses and garlic until you run out of eggplant.
Bake, covered, in 350 degree oven for 1.5 hours. Uncover for final 20-30 minutes to let cheese get bubbly. Cool and serve. Makes a boatload.
Found this informative diary at Daily Kos from Jeph about the Iraqi film My Country, My Country. It came out about a year ago:
“Filmmaker Laura Poitras traveled to Iraq , with the goal of filming everyday Iraqis. While seeking interviews at Abu Ghraib prison, she ran into Dr. Riyadh, a Baghdad physician and Sunni party candidate. At the time, the January 2005 elections were six months away, and Riyadh became the perfect subject for her man-on-the-street project. My Country, My Country presents the rarely seen viewpoint of regular Iraqi citizens coping with the pain, frustration and chaos of American occupation. Along with gripping documentaries like Gunner Palace, The War Tapes and The Ground Truth, it helps fill in the gigantic gaps left by corporate-owned mass media reporting.
Told mostly from the Iraqi perspective, Riyadh ’s story allows Poitras access to areas neglected by many western journalists. From his overrun and under supplied medical clinic to a meeting of Iraqi Islamic Party members, the doctor emerges as a dedicated and thoughtful man who is deeply critical of U.S. motives and intentions, yet firmly believes Sunnis must participate in the upcoming election. In particular, he wants to see his party involved in drafting the nation’s first-ever constitution.
Without editorializing, Poitras paints a portrait of chaos, isolation and disorientation. There’s no water or electricity, and gunfire and explosions echo down the streets. Residents hole up in tiny apartments and houses, watching news about their country, their city and even their own neighborhood on television. Still, the members of Riyadh ’s large family crack jokes and mercilessly tease each other (his wife and daughters are particularly caustic).”
Sounds worth catching.
And worth signing, this petition from Hawaii for protection of the Marine Monument set aside two years ago for preservation and now threatened.
Another Kossack, Fish Out of Water, put together a beautiful diary on the marine life in Northwestern Hawaii at the Marine Monument. What an amazing group of photos.
Anyone interested or impacted by caregiving for a person suffering from age-related dementia might find this blog entry and video short of interest: My Name is Lisa.
Two years ago my mom was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and our family was nearly turned upside-down overnight. It’s just that kind of disease; nobody close to it walks away unscathed. Because of its vicious, capricious nature, sometimes we forget that Alzheimer’s can also bring out some facets of a personality that are unexpectedly lovely.
With my mom, it’s her laugh.
Always very serious and austere, mom was never much for displays of affection or laughter. Until now, that is. As her granddaughter noted (and I’m paraphrasing), “Grandma is sometimes more fun now that she’s gone crazy.”
It’s true. Sad, but true. Along with language that could make sailors blush, the first vestiges of this unspeakable disease that we watched claim her mother over the years has uncovered in my mother, temporarily anyway, a light, bubbly, childlike side that isn’t really unpleasant — except when you realize where it’s leading.
It’s hard to find anything good to say about an illness that eventually and completely robs a person of themselves. Maybe it’s not even decorous to attempt it. Still, I have to agree with my daughter – seeing this side of my mother come out is a tiny ray of sunlight in an otherwise darkened cave. Her vulnerability and softness also makes her – and our – new reality somehow even harder to take, at the same time.
The short film captures just a bit of the sorrow, chaos and, yes, unexpected positive moments – few and far between though they are – that come with caring for an Alzheimer’s patient.
According to the film’s written synopsis, approximately 250,000 children between the ages of 8-18 are caring for a victim of Alzheimer’s. Here’s hoping they find moments of unplanned happiness amid the all too frequent horror.
Not to be outdone, my other favorite new show, Pushing Daisies, is nominated for 12 Emmy awards, including Best Actor (Lee Pace) and Best Supporting Actress (Kristin Chenoweth). Cut short by the writer’s strike, Daisies had an impressive first season, nevertheless. Like Tim Burton meets David Lynch, or Tim Burton writing Lassie, Daisies is touching, surreal, smart, irreverent and possessing one of the warmest Prime Time hearts to come along in several years.
While not a huge tv fan, I have my pet shows; nearly every year one or two come along to capture the heart and imagination. Sharing them with the uninitiated is such a joy. Beyond that, speculation on what they mean for their respective networks is a dabbling hobby – and for AMC, winning big accolades for Mad Men is unprecedented. HBO passed on The Sopranos writer’s sophomore offering. They’re probably firing whomever red-lighted the project, even as I type. AMC, once known only for its evening fare of repeated Hitchcock or Selznick movies, may see Mad Men as their opportunity to create a niche in true quality, original episodic fare. Breaking Bad, their other original series, also earned some Emmy nods.
ABC, with its Daisies nods, might try adding more shows that push the envelope, creatively. Bryan Fuller, Daisies’ creator, is known for some of the most offbeat television, usually reserved for cable: Dead Like Me and WonderFalls. Instead of being tucked away on Showtime and rerun on Sci-Fi, Fuller’s productions might become network household names in the future.
Regardless of what this bodes for television’s future, it’s heartening to see such niche shows find critical acclaim and, with any luck, better ratings for their respective second seasons. They’re worth watching, and now we know that the Emmy voters are tuning-in and recognizing this fact.
Next Sunday marks the starting of a second season of Mad Men; in honor of that, AMC is currently running a marathon of the entire first season (and we’re watching it).
For the uninitiated, Mad Men is an hour-long original series by Matthew Weiner, creator of The Sopranos. However, two shows couldn’t be more different: Mad Men, about the early creative talents on Madison Avenue in the 60’s, features very little cussing or violence, but it’s equally character-driven. And what characters they are –
Don Draper, the quintessentially American man, reinventing himself from whole cloth. . .smarmy Peter Campbell, banking on his family name and his almost over-the-top need to get ahead. . .Don’s wife Betty, coming unglued or finding herself, or both. . .
I can’t say enough good about Mad Men. As soon as it caught my eye last year I knew it was something special — and the Emmys backed that up the other day , with a record 16 nods for its first summer season. It trails only 30 Rock in nominations, including Best Series. Last year, it won two Globes and a prestigious Peabody. Earlier this weekend, the nation’s TV critics gave the period drama about advertising execs the program of the year, the outstanding new program and the year’s best drama awards.
Sumptuous to look at, involving, Mad Men is a thought-provoking, provocative look at a world before most of our time — a world where drinking, smoking ad execs ruled everything they surveyed.
Catch it on Sunday nights on AMC. You’ll be glad you did.
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