The holidays will be here before we know it and this year I will give gifts that are used in the kitchen. It seems more and more people are cooking meals at home rather than going out to eat. This can be difficult for a cook who is not equipped with the right essentials.

Since I have been cooking for umpteen years, I have found some equipment that I cannot do without. Hopefully, this list will give you some ideas for those on your gift list. You can find many of these items in discount stores, or on sale, and even better on line. Searching the web gives you more opportunity to compare prices and many vendors offer free shipping.  Read more...

“This Is It” is an unforgettable documentary showing Michael Jackson in rehearsal for the show he was planning on taking on tour before his untimely death. Whether you are a fan of Michael’s or not, you will get to see the talent, genius, and dedication he had for his fans, his staff, and the talented young people who were chosen to appear with him on stage for a World tour of 50 shows entitled “This Is It”! Their devotion to him as well truly comes across in this film.  Read more...

It gives me great pleasure to post a film review by my son John:

Films based on children’s books can be a tricky proposition. Often kids’ books don’t contain enough plot to sustain a feature-length film. What works well on the page can translate poorly to the big screen. All the digital effects in Hollywood cannot make up for a thin plot that may otherwise work in short, illustrated book-form. Did we really need a big-budget version of The Cat in the Hat? For a children’s film to stand on its own merits, there has to be a journey that the audience is willing to take.  Read more...

ATTENTION ALL COOKS (beginners, intermediates, and experts)! A truly enjoyable movie based on a true story was released this weekend, Julie & Julia, which is well worth seeing, A+. It’s based on the lives of two women, Julia Child a legendary world-renowned chef, author, and television personality and Julie Powell, who wrote the original story.  Read more...

Recently, I was introduced to the Flip Video Camcorder by a friend who videoed me doing a cooking lesson. The Flip was impressive; particularly in its ease of operation and its convenient compact size. I was still a little skeptical about the ease to edit video.  After searching online for all the information about the Flip and reading the reviews, I decided to purchase the Flip Mino HD. I chose this model because it has a rechargeable lithium battery and 60 minutes recording time, which was perfect for recording my cooking videos. I’m limited to a maximum of 10 minutes for videos I upload to YouTube.com, so 60 minutes is more than enough.  Read more...

With summer comes wearing less clothing such as, shorts, sleeveless dresses and yes, a bathing suit. I have been in this predicament more times than I would like to recall. Out come the diet books, out come the magazines that offer the quick fix to dieting and losing ten pounds in a week, and again a gym membership, that I hope to use this time.  Read more...

Again I will be showing my age when I mention that I am from a generation of handwriting devotees who wrote and sent their own notes, letters, and thank you cards for every occasion. These notes and cards were written with a great deal of thought and sentiment and meant so much joy to those who received them. In fact, we were taught letter writing in school and how to compose and express our thanks, sentiment, and sympathy.  Read more...

What a show and what a refreshing, lively group of young singers and dancers! This is the 10th anniversary tour of Footloose the musical. This musical debuted at the Richard Rogers Theater on Broadway in October, 1998 and closed in July, 2000. It was nominated for four Tony Awards and was revised for this tour in Connecticut in December, 2008.

I had seen the original Broadway show ten years ago and fell in love with it. It’s a lively production with great choreography and show stopping tunes. The story is about a high school senior, Ren, from Chicago who goes to live in a small town in the Bible Belt with his Mother. To his surprise, this is a town with strict and unusual local laws and a ban on dancing.  Read more...

While viewing the road show company of a recent Broadway musical comedy called “Legally Blonde”, I began to realize that as a young New Yorker, I was fortunate to grow up during an era of great musical theater; Rodgers & Hammerstein, Lerner & Lowe, Kander & Ebb, Webber & Rice. All of whom were titans of the musical art form and wrote incomparable scores and lyrics. They followed greats like Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin, George Gershwin, Cole Porter, and Rodgers & Hart. I guess I’m spoiled, because when intermission came during “Legally Blonde”, my husband and I decided to leave. I was hoping to be entertained but instead was thoroughly disappointed.  Read more...

As long as I can remember, I have been interested in cooking.  I started cooking at nine years of age and it all started with watching my Mother and Aunts who were excellent cooks. Our home, and theirs, always had something cooking on the stove or baking in the oven. The aromas of bread baking and tomato sauce simmering beat any room freshener you can buy today! I was also very fortunate to have Home Economics taught in my middle school. All the girls were required to take this course, while the boys took Woodshop. I’m glad I was learning to make fudge versus building a birdhouse!  Read more...