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Month: March 2017

Friday Musings: The Negative Space

Friday Musings: The Negative Space

I’m just finishing up a book called Tell the Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt, in which a teenage girl deals with the loss of her uncle to AIDS. He was an artist and much of the story revolves around a final portrait that he painted of the narrator, June, and her sister. One of the great poignancies of this novel is that June thinks she knew and loved her uncle best in the world, only to learn in the aftermath of his death that there was so much she didn’t know about him, or about herself. There’s a brief conversation in the

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Let’s have a cocktail dinner party!

Let’s have a cocktail dinner party!

My original impression of the cocktail party goes back to the 1950s when couples would gather together to have drinks like Manhattens, Martinis, and Screwdrivers, served alongside a tray of cheese and Ritz crackers and a bowl of nuts. At least that’s how it was depicted in books like Revolutionary Road and TV shows like Madmen. On what seemed like a magical night last June, I had a cocktail party that was more like a wine dinner, but where each course was paired with a certain drink, rather than a different glass of

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Zodiac Cocktail #1: Seeing Red

Zodiac Cocktail #1: Seeing Red

I’m very excited to introduce a new series of cocktails that I’ll be posting on Wednesdays based on the signs of the zodiac! We’re currently in Aries which runs from March 21 to April 20, an appropriate place to start since it’s considered the first astrological sign. It’s symbolized by the  golden ram of mythology whose fleece was sought after by many, and eventually found by Jason and the Argonuats. Who knew?? I’ll bet the Aries out there, who like to think they know everything I might add, were unaware that their ram was so

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Happy National Black Forest Cake Day!

Happy National Black Forest Cake Day!

Even after I’ve typed the title of this post and I’ve looked at it several times, I can’t help but smile. Some of these national holidays are downright silly, I realize that, but when the occasion being celebrated involves chocolate and cherry flavors, that’s enough of a reason to make a cocktail! For those of you who’ve never had it, Black Forest cake is a delectable combination of chocolate cake layers, cherries, and whipped cream. It is originally from Germany where Kirschwasser, a clear spirit made from sour cherries, is added to the

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Monday Classics: The Golden Dawn Cocktail

Monday Classics: The Golden Dawn Cocktail

The very first international cocktail competition took place in London in 1930, while the United States was still in the grip of Prohibition. It was won by a man named Tom Buttery, a bartender at the very upscale Berkeley Hotel, and it’s speculated that Buttery’s name for the drink reflected the optimism that’s typically felt of the beginning of a new decade in history. His original recipe contained gin, orange juice, apricot brandy, and Calvados apple brandy, all in equal parts, with a dash of grenadine added in. There are many

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