Off Topic - Knocked Up

So last Sunday, we were all hanging out at the Marrieds for brunch when Married Boy mentioned that he and Married girl went to see Knocked Up. Like most of the North America, the Marrieds really enjoyed Knocked Up. There's been quite a bit of chatter online about Knocked Up.

Both rapturous:

http://pandagon.net/2007/06/03/movie-review-knocked-up/#more-5492

http://ultratart.typepad.com/

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/knocked_up/

http://dancerindc.blogspot.com/


And critical:

http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/reviews/la-et-knocked1jun01,0,3575880.story

http://stevethepenguin.blogspot.com/2007/05/law-fairy-says-it-best.html

http://notesfromahack.blogspot.com/

Knowing it was made by Judd Apatow, I am sure it was well written and well acted and damn entertaining. Nevertheless, without seeing the movie, it still chafes my chaps. It probably makes me a fundamentalist feminazi to dismiss something without actually SEEING it but I still can't deal with the premise no matter how wonderfully executed. This totally makes me a hypocrite because I loved Bringing Down the House, that cheesy, cliche-ridden spectacle of Steve Martin clearly trying to earn a paycheck. But I went into howls of laughter at the black person helps whitep erson find his groove movie. And I can understand how people can love Knocked Up for transcending the cliches on which it is based. But I can't get past that. On the Stevethepenguin blog a commenter put it far, far better than I.

Anonymous said...

Bianca, I don't have a blog, but I am a professional writer - and I was cruising the internet when I saw "Knocked up" and I thought, is there anyone else that sees something wrong with this picture, literally?

Even the premise. The guy is not a diamond in the rough. Is this movie brought to us or funded by some conservative organization who think that getting mom to keep the baby and marry the baby is going to hold the fabric of society together? Clearly this is the fantasy of a shlubby guy as well? But where is the woman's happy ending, I ask again?

If you think that guy is "cute" and "kewl," imagine that in short order in that scenerio, you become the nag, the mother, the keeper of order and bills and all unfun things in the house, and chief fun killer, while the guy makes cameo appearances at parenting: the adorable holding asleep on the couch while the baby takes a nap, the crawling into an undersized house or jungle gym -- comedy ensues.

What possible outcome are we serving up to all the date-movie goers? Why is this fun for the kiddies? You become Marge Simpson. That wife on everyone loves Ramond.

The guy gets to have fun, not diet, be himself, a load of laughs to have a beer with, while you become the drudge. The woman grinds her teeth and becomes The one that pays the taxes, gets the kids up, goes to work regardless. When you get to be older, what do you do when you really fall in love with someone compatible, or does your sex drive and desire for compatible compansionship even count in this? Is that why women need a "starter marriage" to get the adorable fuff out of her system?

I ask you, what sort of success would a movie be if the roles were reversed. A chubby, stubbly young girl who is not the brightest bulb who shulbs around in a t-shirt and jeans gets knocked up with a shapely smart A-lister hottie (insert name here)? Would it be a happy ending that the guy commits her? Would it seem natural for that to be a best-ever date movie for all the male reviewers?

Are women allowed to be natural? Fumbling? Just okay? Just funny? And still get the "great" guy?

Or do we all have to be Marge Simpson? The mommy? The stern good girl that secretly grins at the loveable foof, but she cannot be as free herself. She has to sort of keep her girdle on, be the good girl, be the parent.

The message of this movie: Give it up girls, you're natural role is to deny, deny, deny yourself and be a mommy. It is god-ordained for you to be the mommy. And not just to a baby, but a man-child.

How many young women say to themselves: "I aspire to have a life like the wife on the Family Guy?" or "I aspire to be Marge Simpson, that is the happy ending for me." This movie is how that life starts. It's a great deal for the guy...

I really can't let this movie pass without comment. Never mind violence on tv or smokers in the movies, what are we teaching the youngsters here? What are we telling young women about what to expect and ask for in life?

Because I will not stop talking about my fabulous CSA

Ah, going beyond the salad days of summer to the collard greens and kale days of good intentions. On our first two CSA shares, we've been able to mow through them because you could just make a salad and gotten rid of all of your share. And with the herbs we've been picking, we just either make an herb dip or grind it all up as pesto. But with the collard greens, kale and swiss chard, you have to make an actual DISH out of them. The thing about greens as opposed to salads is that they are actually pretty filling. Halfway through the week, we need to figure out what to do with all the greens.

Auntie Em came over Saturday and we brainstormed some ideas for what to do with what's left in your CSA vegetable bin. And really, what's left in the bin is the green because I made croutons Sunday and ate salad every day this week. I do need to make a trip to Whole Foods and get champagne and sherry vinegar because my vinaigrettes are getting boring. As a change I've been thinning my dill dip with lemon juice to turn it into a salad dressing. Here's list of things that you can use up your CSA share on:

Omelettes
Quiches
Stews
Curries
Stir Fries

So three weeks in to the CSA program here's what's been a hit:

Arugula
Frisee
Bok Choy
Turnips
Carrots
Dill
Cilantro
Scallions
Garlic Scapes
Parsley

Here are the misses:

Kale
Collard Greens
Swiss Chard
Marjoram

Overall we've eaten everything in our share so far and this is where the rubber hits the road - figuring out what to do with the greens.

Season 3 of the Next Food Network Star

This will be a season of Next food Network Star (NFNS) recaplets because my god is this series getting to be blecherous. You remember in the first two seasons where this seemed to be an actual job interview to become the host of a Food Network show? So the challenges seem to relate to creating interesting recipes, developing show concepts, and appearing in front of the camera? While none of the personalities of either season seemed to be memorable (either in the charming Nigella way or the horrifying Sandra Lee way), the process seemed to make a modicum of sense.

This season, the NFNS producers decided to put on a bastardized Top Chef complete with a bullshit catering challenge. Not only that, they've appeared to ratchet up the drama so that anyone personality that might be likable is now subjected to Top Chef style backstabbing and bus throwing. How are we as the audience supposed to get behind ANYONE as a host after they are all bitchy with each other?

Here's my thoughts on the contestants:

The Frontrunners

Amy - the mom. Fairly even keeled personality who knows when not to go overboard. Witness her understated, chandelier themed wedding cake. Witness her brilliance at choosing ALL the caterers for the team challenge.

Michael - As long as he stops with the Salmon, as in the fish, schtick, he's a front runner. He seems fairly personable and with his culinary experience, he has the chops. But yet another white dude wining NFNS?

Adrien - hosts his own cooking show. Has a fairly easy charm that harks to Tyler Florence. I would say that he really let the stress of the catering challenge get to him.

On the Fence

Nikki - A caterer to the stars? Sounds like the second coming of Deborah. She broke the rule of reality shows when she denigrated her own dessert during the catering challenge. Another one who is way too intense.

Paul - Wasn't irritating until chicken-broth-gate when he crowed about the other team screwing up their vegetarian polenta by adding chicken broth. Even worse, he crowed about it during judging. It made him look petty and mean. And really, he was doing fairly well up until then.

Rory - Who? Nuff said. Except that awful Texas sunset cake.

Blech!

Colombe - Does it seem like every season has a dishy blonde that is essentially roadkill? She seemed to make every wrong decision possible on the catering challenge.

Tom - Knowing the Food Network, this guy is gonna win. Totally over the top personality complete with ever-present stogie. Unfortunately the Food Network execs seem to eat that crap up. I hated his behavior on the catering challenge. He never owned up to his own incompetence.

Josh (aka JAG) - The judges were right, this guy's TV personality is MEAN. I liked his ability to improvise on the catering challenge but I so don't want to watch him week after week telling me how to cook.

Roadkill

Vivian - Enough with the salads!

Patrick - It felt like he was on Top Chef than NFNS. Still nowhere near as mean as JAG

This will be a hard season to slog through. I don't have the stomach for full recaps but definitely will want to sound off on what will be a trainwreck of a season.

The Long Awaited Mango Mousse Tart

Ok. It's been a while but it's been that kind of week that required me to COMMUTE to Tyson's Corner from the other side of the DC diamond. I've never been so exhausted in my life. How do people do it? Because seriously, I was having a nervous breakdown every evening for the two days I had to make the 7 am commute.

Anyway, I said I would post the mango mousse tart recipe. This comes from Martha Stewart Living. The recipe calls for either eight round molds (like they use to plate things in restaurants or an 8-inch springform pan. I ended up using a 10-inch tart pan. It worked perfectly fine.

For the crust:
1 ounce salted, dry-roasted macadamia nuts (1/4 cup)
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

For the mousse
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1 envelope unflavored gelatin (1 scant tablespoon)
- Whole Foods did not have any unflavored gelatin so I substituted 2 tablespoons of organic orange jello and it worked perfectly fine.
2 firm but ripe mangoes
(each 1 pound)
1/2 cup of sugar
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup powdered sugar

1. Preheat over to 250 degrees. Lightly coat ring molds or pan with cooking spray. Place on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
2. Make the crust: pulse macadamia nuts and sugar in a food processor until finely ground. In a bowl, combine nuts, flour and butter with a fork until mixture resembles a coarse meal. Press into pan or molds. Bake for 12 minutes until golden brown. Let cool.
3. Make the mousse: Pour orange juice into a small saucepan. Sprinkle with gelatin and let stand until softened, about 5 minutes. Heat over low heat, stirring until dissolved. Remove from heat.
4. Cut 1/4 of the mango into 1/4 inch thick slices for garnish (halve large slices). Coarsely chop remaining mangoes. In a blender, puree chopped mangoes, sugar, and lemon juice until smooth. With machine running, add gelatin mixture in a slow and steady stream until combined. Transfer to a bowl.
5. Beat cream until soft peaks form. Add powdered sugar and beat until soft peaks return. Whisk 1/3 of the whipped cream into the mango mixture. Gently fold the remaining whipped cream.
6. Pour into molds/pan until 3/4 full and cover with plastic wrap. Freeze until firm (at least 4 hours and up to a week).
7. While the recipe says to let stand at room temperature for 5 minutes before serving. I found it's soft enough to serve straight from the freezer.

Receive accolades with a degree of modesty. Inwardly exult.

CSA Bounty

Ya want food porn, ya got food porn! Here's the many lovely things we got from our CSA.

 

Ok I'm a convert. These turnips have a spicy arugula flavor when raw but are sweet like Vidalia onions when cooked. The greens form the turnips are delicious stir fried.

 

 

Pretty, aren't they?

Gettin' Fresh

So last Tuesday we went to the farm and pick up our CSA share. It was a gorgeous (if warm) spring day and we got a nice bounty of fresh veggies that we gorged on later that night. Our share of food contained:

3 scallions
1/2 pound of (choose any - arugula, spinach, kale, and collard greens)
We opted for the arugula and spinach since they seemed like spring greens
1 small head of Boston lettuce
1/2 pound of carrots
1 pint of strawberries (which were teeny weeny)
3 turnips

We got to pick: Onion chives, garlic chives, sweet marjoram, oregano, parsley, lavender, mint, tarragon
- We ended up picking LOTS of the garlic chive blossoms, oregano, and lavender along with a WHOLE QUART of strawberries!!! (many of which ended up in our tummies before we even got to he car)

As an added bonus we picked the most brilliant red poppy that was hanging out in a fallow field.

When we got home I made the most Martha Stewarty arrangement of herbs. The purple blossoms of the garlic chives were surrounded by the oregano and tarragon. We did put the vegetables to more than aesthetic use. I made a salad of the arugula and spinach and turnip with a lemon vinaigrette. All of the little strawberries were screaming to be eaten. J pureed his with coconut sorbet while I whipped some cream with a little vanilla and powdered sugar.

Last night I made biscuits with the chopped chives. Tonight I am planning on doing a stir fry with the carrots, turnips, turnip greens, and garlic chive blossoms.

J took many many pictures of our bounty and he better post them!

Weekend 'o fun Part 3

Before I begin with the final installment of the weekend 'o fun. Momma D admonished me to include one of the best part of Saturday night's meal - the cheese plate. J and I went to Whole Foods and got an incredible array of cheeses: a light cheddar with lemon zest, one laced with peppadews, a soft chevre, and a goat's milk gouda. J arranged these with an array of fruit including mango, pears, and apples. The fruit and cheese went really well with the freshness of the whole meal.

So for the Sunday of Mother's Day, J made reservations to go to Michel Richard's Citronelle. We were late in the game and it was one of the few places still taking reservations for brunch. For those of you who may forget, the Sunday of Mother's Day was gorgeous. A little chilly but blissfully sunny. It made wearing a suit on the weekend almost bearable. While I didn't necessarily need the tie to conform with Citronelle's jacket required policy, I thought "in for the penny."

What amazed me about the Citronelle space was how unpretentious it was. It was stylish but not that crazy over the top decor that many restaurants of that cailber are. The staff was friendly and fluent in French. We were seated at a table next to the entrance and what was intersting was that there were exactly enough place setting and chairs for your party. No more and no less. We splurged and ordered Mimosas for J and I and sparkling water for Momma D. The mimosa was delicious. Whatever champagne they used was utter perfection. Crisp without being metallic and complemented the acidity and sweetness of the orange juice perfectly. Then I saw the sommelier with his big ol' top sommelier medallion and realized that the yummyness of the mimosa was no accident.

Michel Richard was right there at the buffet line greeting people and thanking them for coming. I broke out in a goofy smile as I got to bathe in the Santa Claus happy aura that Michel Richard radiates. He looked genuinely happy people were eating his food. Considering a chef of his statue is usually off starting restaurants and signing books, Michel Richard seemed totally human presiding over the buffet line. It's a interesting statement about our society when chefs have become celebrities unto themselves. I'm all for it since people who have had to work their asses off for 18 hour days schlepping bags of flour and getting yelled at to pay their dues certainly should have their props. I was all smiley and tongue-tied but J had his wits aobut him and congratulated Michele Richard on his well-earned James Beard award. J was rewarded with a smile and a pat on the back from Richard.

The other thing that was interesting was that Richard's family came for brunch and they sat at the center table. It was a motley group with older people who only spoke French to slouchy teenagers to a turned out young lesbian in a natty tie. Momma D chatted them up in the buffet line and found out they came to Citronelle ALL THE TIME! I am so jealous.

So what about the brunch? Don't come expecting culinary "innovation." There was primarily traditional brunch food perpared to perfection. I've never seen the dinner menu so I wouldn't know whether the brunch is Richard's A game but the brunch was a back to basics kind of thing, smoked salmon, fishes with sauce, roast chicken, etc. But oh what basics! The humble shrimp with cocktail sauce was sent to new heights with shrimp that was tender, moist and flavorful. The smoked salmon was delightful, delicate and not overpowering pair with the traditional accoutrements of chopped onions, chopped egg whites (separate from the chopped egg yolks), capers and tomatoes.

The potato crust salmon sent me into paroxysms of delight. The potato crust added a buttery texture to the savory salmon. The halibut with saffron sauce was similarly excellent. And as wonderful as the seafood was, the meat was even better. The roast chicken had a aroma of lemon. It didn't hit your tongue, it just wafted up to your nose.

The desserts truly showed off Michel Richard's start as a pastry chef. They were all excellent with the exception of the cocoa dusted grape which tasted weird. But really all of that is obliterated by the THE EGG!!!!! We love the dessert egg with a fiery passion. It's a bit of whimsy that just made our day. Basically it's a hollowed out egg filled with a smooth sugary meringue the consistency of whipped cream and just when you think that is the egg, you get the surprise filling of lemon curd as the egg yolk. FREAKING BRILLIANT!!!!

As you can tell, a good time was had by all. This was not cheap by any means but it was a special occasion place and Momma D's visit is a special ocassion.

Weekend o' Food - Part 2

Saturday night I put together the most coherent menu I've ever made. Momma D requested that we make a meal for her and she belongs to a Gourmet club at her retirement community so the bar was set high. J and I wanted to make a meal that was over the top. It all started with the mango mousse recipe in Martha Stewart Living (the color issue). With a mango mousse and a macadamia nut crust, this was THE recipe. Light, refreshing and indulgent. It lived up to its promise of being extremely easy to make and crazy good. I am giving it its own entry but rest assured, its amazing. I decided to class it up a notch by making Nigella Lawson's macadamia nut brittle. This brittle is so easy I didn't use a recipe, I just roughly chopped macadamia nuts, melted sugar until it became a light amber and poured the sugar on top of the chopped nuts sitting on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Don't worry about using a candy thermometer or any such nonsense, just melt the sugar and watch it like a hawk. If I were to do proportions it would be 1/2 cup of macadamia nuts to 1 cup of sugar.

So with the mango mousse tart as the centerpiece, I built a menu around that. With a tropical theme, I went Iron Chefish with macadamia nut crusted chicken breast with a mango-pineapple salsa. As a side dish, I would make a napa cabbage slaw with a sesame dressing. I got my inspiration from Cafe Asia's divine Asian coleslaw. And in a huge bit of inspiration from Kylie Kwong, I made Asian brined cucumber. The true fun of the evening was actually PLATING the meal. I am fairly indifferent about presentation but Saturday night, I went all out. I used our nice square Asian plates and matching napkins. For once, the food looked as good as it tasted.

Here's the recipes:

Macadamia Crusted Chicken with Pineapple-Mango salsa
6 Chicken breasts pounded (you can find pre-pounded ones at Whole Foods)
2 cups of homemade breadcrumbs (it makes for a coarser crumb)
1 cup ground macadamia nuts
2 eggs

Mix breadcrumbs and ground nuts in a bowl. Dredge chicken breasts in the egg and then dredge in the breadcrumb mixture. Let site for 5 minutes. Heat up a skillet with thin layer of vegetable oil. When the oil is hot, pan fry the chicken for 3 minutes a side. Don't worry about not cooking it through. Place the cooked chicken on a greased baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.

Pineapple mango salsa
1 cup of chopped FRESH pineapple (I have to be a purist about that)
1 cup of chopped fresh mango
2 finely diced jalepeno
1 scallion finely chopped
1 tablespoon of fish sauce
Juice of 1 lime
Pinch of sugar
1/2 teaspoon Chinese chili paste
1 clove of garlic, minced

Throw everything into a bowl and mix. Let sit for at least a half an hour.

Asian Salad with Sesame Dressing

1 head of Napa cabbage finely shredded
2 large carrots, grated
1 scallion, chopped

For the dressing
1/2 cup of tahini
1/4 cup of peanut butter
1/2 cup of rice wine vinegar (or lime juice)
2 tablespoons sweet Thai Chili Sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce or fish sauce
1 teaspoon of sesame oil
1/4 cup of vegetable or peanut oil
1/4 cup of water
2 tablespoons of chopped ginger
3 cloves of garlic

Throw everything into a blender and blend until smooth. Add more water if the texture is too thick. Toss with the vegetables.

Asian Brined Cucumber
1 English hothouse cucumber with the seeds scooped out (just a preference as I hate seeds), thinly sliced
1 teaspoon of salt
2 tablespoons of sugar
2 tablespoons of rice wine

Throw everything into a bowl and toss together until sugar and salt dissolves. Let sit for at least 15 minutes and then pour out the liquid (actually the liquid with some peanut oil is a great salad dressing)

A Weekend of Food - Part 1

So this past weekend was my birthday where I turned a year older than dirty whore (flirty jive?). With the confluence of my birthday and Mother's Day on the same weekend, my mother-in-law, Momma D flew in from Texas to join in the festivities.

It turned out to be a weekend of food. Friday started off with a dinner for 15 at Malaysia Kopitam. There's been mixed reviews about this place but they were wonderfully flexible about accommodating our large and unwieldy group. Say what you want about reheated entrees, Malaysia Kopitam really knows their rice noodles. Not only that, they serve this sticky rice in a banana leaf packet that is to die for. This was a theme for me that night as I ordered their salmon cooked in a banana leaf as well. This was firm but wonderfully tender. The flavor of the salmon was exceptional. Other standouts included the greasy, street food quality roti.

At my insistence, we took a contingent to the Black Cat to dance. I have been itching to go out dancing for months as I talked with the Timily's and realized the ONLY time any of us danced as at weddings. I talked with Slim and Married Boy who both have extensive knowledge of the DC nightlife and charged them to find a place where I could dance in my running shoes that played music that I could sing along to. They recommended the backstage room of the Black Cat that had a small dance floor and access to the bar and pool area for the non-dancers. We arrived at the scandalously early time of 10:30 pm and were rewarded by having the entire dance floor to ourselves. We love the DJ as he seemed determined to play fun remixes of 80's B-side songs. Among the quasi hits were songs from New Edition (!), The Cure, and Madonna. By 11:45 pm, the dance floor was full of people dancing their hearts out. Apparently, this DJ plays the first Friday of every month so count me in for June!!!!

Eastern Market - A Friend In Need

Eastern Market - A Friend In Need

Time and time again, I am reminded of the powerful connection between food and community. We eat together to celebrate, to mourn, to comfort, to nourish. We eat to catch up with an old friend, to celebrate the arrival of a guest visiting from many miles away and to just make it through another day when we need sustenance. We do eat alone, but often we use a meal together to connect to and enjoy one another.

Community presents an opportunity to build tiny or tremendous connections. It's where we have the great opportunity to become students of our interactions with many different teachers, to become part of something bigger than ourselves.

Eastern Market has for years been the best of food and community for me. Not flawless, not without challenge or evidently controversy, but, at its core, a unique place of escape from the work-weary world of modern life and whizzing digital input.

Here, my friends and neighbors have shared in the beauty of food, the excitement of a delicious bargain, a new taste or a reliable standby. From quick hellos to conversations that drag a bit too long, we run into each other and make exchanges great and small. But it all roots us. Some would argue that it all nourishes us.

Monday morning, I walked into the office to a disturbing "Did you hear?" Never a good sign. An hour later, I stood before a battered and burnt Eastern Market, one of many customers, neighbors, and friends coming by to pay our respects. I had to see for myself. It was worse than I imagined.

Hadn't I just been there on Sunday? My freezer and refrigerator were full from my trip. Many words came to mind once I stored everything away: fresh, quality, delicious. What would I make tonight?

Eastern Market has provided my family with wonderful food and a sense of community for more than 8 years. Until recently, we lived just a few blocks away. What a treasure to be able to take a nice walk on a crisp morning and come back with a few bags of fresh produce, meats, fish, and the occasional cookie or three.

Fresh cut flowers, a wrapped up sandwich from the Market Lunch, a container of baba ghanouj.

For the life of me I can't recall bringing anything home that I did not think was first rate. A huge bag of stunning Valencia oranges, freshly peeled garlic, a bag of magic lettuce that would somehow keep for nearly two weeks.

And I usually saw a colleague, a parent of a friend, a business owner I knew, someone I just met at a meeting, an artist I admired.

I stood there and worked over the entire horrible situation. Was everyone ok? What on earth were all these wonderful people going to do without their shops and the friends and neighbors who were in some way their families? After all, they have had a hand in preparing our tables for some of the great occasions of our lives, the delicious stolen moments when Washingtonians stop living their heads long enough to prepare a dinner party for people we enjoy, the quick fly-by snack when we're pushing the stroller or walking the dog.

Flowers to brighten the house when an out of town guest visits or just because. A cake for that last minute staff celebration. Thick, smoky bacon that makes breakfast with the newspaper an experience and makes the weekend real. An artichoke to eat or to pose on the still life plate.

The people are paying their respects. Those who know the vendors offer hugs and assurances. We are here for you. We must rebuild.

24 hours later the press conference begins and I see more vendors from the South Hall, community leaders, neighbors who have been eating food from the Market for ten, twenty, thirty years. People who gave up their cars because they could walk to the market. People who rarely enter a chain grocery store. We are hanging on the words of the Mayor, our Councilmember, the Fire Chief.

The sign says we will rebuild. The Mayor agrees. The community speaks too. The media. We are left with hope and the feeling that we must come together even more deliberately than our Market trips. We must be vigilant in supporting this community and using our best ideas and abilities to lessen the impact.

Eastern Market matters to us. It's not just where we buy food. And that should be enough. But it's more than that for the neighborhood and for those who love it. It's a beautiful reminder of the power and the possibility of human connection. It's family business given the best opportunity to thrive. It's a community saying we value all of this.

There are so few spaces in public life where we can all be together, greet our neighbors, get to know the people who grow our food. We need these moments, and those of us who have come to love it need Eastern Market. There is a simple but vital interdependency here that I cherish.

We want our friends and neighbors who have taken care of us for so many years to be taken care of. In some small way, in spite of all the cynicism in the world and all the exciting and challenging back-and-forth that happens in the halls of the great buildings nearby, many of us know these vendors as family. At the very least we are grateful for what they do and what they produce.

Eastern Market will be back and we will be there. Republicans and Democrats, politicians and nonprofit workers, artists and farmers, parents and children, tourists who visit occasionally and neighbors who visit daily.

We just aren't going to give that up.

How can you help?

1. Many of the vendors lost an incredible amount of food and equipment in the fire. Most have lost their livelihood. The Capitol Hill Community Foundation has set up a fund for the merchants and their employees. http://www.capitolhillcommunityfoundation.org

2. There will be a fundraiser at 6:00 p.m., Wednesday night (5/2) at Marty's, 527 8th St SE (zip is 20003).

3. Come to Market Day on Sunday. This is an all-day festival with great bands and entertainment. It's always a great time and a huge turnout would be wonderful.

4. Do not forget to visit the other shops and restaurants in the area. Petite Gourmet, The Forecast, The Village, Montmartre, Fairy Godmother, Tortilla Cafe (also owned by the Canales family that ran several stands in the South Hall), Blue Iris Flowers, Murky Coffee, Uncle Brutha's, Bread and Chocolate, Ben and Jerry's, Dawn Price Baby, Marvelous Market, and more. These places will surely be affected by loss of foot traffic and offer some great food and gifts!

5. Keep the story alive. There will be a lot of attention at first, but let's visit the market, shops, and vendors in the coming months. If it really takes two years, it is going to take some serious effort and promotion to keep these shop doors open. Keep bringing out of town guests.

Here's to Eastern Market and all it represents!