One of today's lovely moments was the piece by John Williams performed by an extraordinary quartet--Itzhak Perlman on violin, Yo Yo Ma on cello, Garbriela Montero on piano and Anthony McGill on clarinet.
Ethereal as it was, the music brought to mind...meat loaf. Years ago, Perlman shared his recipe with the New York Times, and I have enjoyed it ever since.
So thanks to Barack Obama's inauguration, here is how to make great meat loaf while listening to one of Perlman's CDs:
4 small onions or 2 large ones
1 clove garlic
4 and 1/2 pounds ground veal
ketchup, pepper, garlic salt to taste
1 or 2 cups of boiling water
8 ounces of flavored bread crumbs
1. Chop onions and sauté until translucent, adding minced garlic toward the end.
2. Put the meat (I sometimes use half or even all prime beef) into a large bowl and add onions, garlic, garlic salt, ketchup, pepper. Knead by hand, add water and bread crumbs and mix well.
3. Shape into 2 loaves in baking tins. Cook 30 to 40 minutes in pre-heated 350-degree oven. ("Stick a knife in," the maestro advises. "If it comes out warm, it's ready.")
Yields 10 to 12 servings, and makes great cold sandwiches the next day.
Bon appétit.
Showing posts with label President Obama inaugural. Show all posts
Showing posts with label President Obama inaugural. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Yes, We Did
Amid all the images, words and music of the day is the still astonishing fact that an African-American became president of the United States and reminded us that "a man whose father less than 60 years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath."
As in his campaign, Barack Obama acknowledged the past but did not dwell on it. His Inaugural Address was about the future and its challenges:
"For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act--not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.
"Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions--who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage."
To the world beyond our shores, the new president reaffirmed his intention to connect rather than conquer:
"To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West: Know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist."
At the close of the event witnessed by more people around the world than any other in history, it was 87-year-old Joseph Lowery who had the final word in his invocation and brought a smile to the face of the new president:
"Lord, in the memory of all the saints who from their labors rest, and in the joy of a new beginning, we ask you to help us work for that day when black will not be asked to get in back, when brown can stick around, when yellow will be mellow, when the red man can get ahead and when white will embrace what is right. That all those who do justice and love mercy say Amen. Say Amen"
Amen and Amen to that.
As in his campaign, Barack Obama acknowledged the past but did not dwell on it. His Inaugural Address was about the future and its challenges:
"For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act--not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.
"Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions--who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage."
To the world beyond our shores, the new president reaffirmed his intention to connect rather than conquer:
"To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West: Know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist."
At the close of the event witnessed by more people around the world than any other in history, it was 87-year-old Joseph Lowery who had the final word in his invocation and brought a smile to the face of the new president:
"Lord, in the memory of all the saints who from their labors rest, and in the joy of a new beginning, we ask you to help us work for that day when black will not be asked to get in back, when brown can stick around, when yellow will be mellow, when the red man can get ahead and when white will embrace what is right. That all those who do justice and love mercy say Amen. Say Amen"
Amen and Amen to that.
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Repossessing Patriotism
In the most important foreclosure of all, the White House will be taken back Tuesday by the majority of Americans who lost it to lawyers in 2000 and the legions who have joined them while watching in disgust as George W. Bush lowered American property values in the world neighborhood.
Our new tenants, the Obamas, are holding an open house as they move in and, although visitors won't be able to see it, the most cherished heirloom of all will be back in the people's possession, the patriotism that the Neo-Cons hijacked and tarnished for eight years.
President Obama will be wearing a flag pin in his lapel, but it was less than a year ago that he had to answer attacks on his patriotism for not doing so:
"The truth is that right after 9/11 I had a pin. Shortly after...talking about the Iraq war, that became a substitute for true patriotism, which is speaking out on issues that are of importance to our national security.
"I decided I won't wear that pin on my chest. Instead, I'm going to try to tell the American people what I believe will make this country great."
Over almost two years, they listened, heard and bought back their most precious possession on November 4th. Now Obama's talents as a community organizer will be put to the test on a global scale and, starting next week, he and his helpers will be cleaning house for us.
In the good times and bad ahead, at the very least Americans will be White House-proud again.
Our new tenants, the Obamas, are holding an open house as they move in and, although visitors won't be able to see it, the most cherished heirloom of all will be back in the people's possession, the patriotism that the Neo-Cons hijacked and tarnished for eight years.
President Obama will be wearing a flag pin in his lapel, but it was less than a year ago that he had to answer attacks on his patriotism for not doing so:
"The truth is that right after 9/11 I had a pin. Shortly after...talking about the Iraq war, that became a substitute for true patriotism, which is speaking out on issues that are of importance to our national security.
"I decided I won't wear that pin on my chest. Instead, I'm going to try to tell the American people what I believe will make this country great."
Over almost two years, they listened, heard and bought back their most precious possession on November 4th. Now Obama's talents as a community organizer will be put to the test on a global scale and, starting next week, he and his helpers will be cleaning house for us.
In the good times and bad ahead, at the very least Americans will be White House-proud again.
Friday, January 16, 2009
The Cabdriver's Inaugural Address
The moment in history is little more than a weekend away and, as Peggy Noonan writes today from Washington, "Everyone wants to be part of it."
She tells of Obama's speechwriter Jon Favreau in a taxi mentioning that he knows someone in the new administration:
"The cabdriver handed him a fully written inaugural address, and asked him to pass it on. Later, thinking of this, unbidden and for no clear reason, the words of the theme of the 1956 movie 'Friendly Persuasion' came to mind: 'Thee is mine, though I don't know many words of praise / Thee pleasures me in a hundred ways.' Jessamyn West's celebration of the Quakers of Indiana during the Civil War is a tale of a community living apart from a great drama and yet within that drama.
"And so the cabdriver, who works a shift, is up at night writing his inaugural address for Mr. Obama, knowing, this being America, the most fluid country in history, a place of unforeseen magic, that he would meet someone who knows someone. We all want to be together, to work together, we all want to be part of the history, of the time. And why not? Join in. Lightning strikes."
That feeling will swell up everywhere over the next few days, an unreasonable tide of hope and pride in the darkest of days, overwhelming everything we know and fear to move us to tears.
We are all living in a Frank Capra movie now--"Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," "Meet John Doe," "It's a Wonderful Life"--and we don't want to hear that it's all fantasy, that the houselights will come up and send us out into a cold, dark night of reality.
I can't wait to learn what Barack Obama and Jon Favreau have written for Tuesday, but I wish I could hear the cabdriver's inaugural address, too.
She tells of Obama's speechwriter Jon Favreau in a taxi mentioning that he knows someone in the new administration:
"The cabdriver handed him a fully written inaugural address, and asked him to pass it on. Later, thinking of this, unbidden and for no clear reason, the words of the theme of the 1956 movie 'Friendly Persuasion' came to mind: 'Thee is mine, though I don't know many words of praise / Thee pleasures me in a hundred ways.' Jessamyn West's celebration of the Quakers of Indiana during the Civil War is a tale of a community living apart from a great drama and yet within that drama.
"And so the cabdriver, who works a shift, is up at night writing his inaugural address for Mr. Obama, knowing, this being America, the most fluid country in history, a place of unforeseen magic, that he would meet someone who knows someone. We all want to be together, to work together, we all want to be part of the history, of the time. And why not? Join in. Lightning strikes."
That feeling will swell up everywhere over the next few days, an unreasonable tide of hope and pride in the darkest of days, overwhelming everything we know and fear to move us to tears.
We are all living in a Frank Capra movie now--"Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," "Meet John Doe," "It's a Wonderful Life"--and we don't want to hear that it's all fantasy, that the houselights will come up and send us out into a cold, dark night of reality.
I can't wait to learn what Barack Obama and Jon Favreau have written for Tuesday, but I wish I could hear the cabdriver's inaugural address, too.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Rick Warren's Blessing and Obama's
The furor over the minister selected to deliver the invocation at the Inaugural is a measure of how the traditional separation of church and state for more than two centuries has broken down in American life over the past eight years.
In decades of acting out his informal role as the "President's pastor," Billy Graham affirmed the values of Christianity without applying them to political issues and without suggesting a state-sponsored religion at the expense of those with other beliefs or none. No President would have welcomed him to the White House if he had.
Now we have Obama defending his choice of Rick Warren on the grounds that the best-selling minister is tolerant of the President-Elect's political views:
"I would note that a couple of years ago, I was invited to Rick Warren's church to speak, despite his awareness that I held views that were entirely contrary to his when it came to gay and lesbian rights, when it came to issues like abortion...
"And that dialogue, I think, is part of what my campaign's been all about: That we're not going to agree on every single issue, but what we have to do is to be able to create an atmosphere...where we can disagree without being disagreeable and then focus on those things that we hold in common as Americans."
Barack Obama did not go to Warren's church to discuss politics, but Warren's invitation to offer a blessing at the Inaugural, by his activism on political issues, inevitably is seen as tolerance for if not approval of that commingling of church and state.
The new president has promised Change from what George W. Bush brought to the White House. This, sad to say, looks like more of the same.
In decades of acting out his informal role as the "President's pastor," Billy Graham affirmed the values of Christianity without applying them to political issues and without suggesting a state-sponsored religion at the expense of those with other beliefs or none. No President would have welcomed him to the White House if he had.
Now we have Obama defending his choice of Rick Warren on the grounds that the best-selling minister is tolerant of the President-Elect's political views:
"I would note that a couple of years ago, I was invited to Rick Warren's church to speak, despite his awareness that I held views that were entirely contrary to his when it came to gay and lesbian rights, when it came to issues like abortion...
"And that dialogue, I think, is part of what my campaign's been all about: That we're not going to agree on every single issue, but what we have to do is to be able to create an atmosphere...where we can disagree without being disagreeable and then focus on those things that we hold in common as Americans."
Barack Obama did not go to Warren's church to discuss politics, but Warren's invitation to offer a blessing at the Inaugural, by his activism on political issues, inevitably is seen as tolerance for if not approval of that commingling of church and state.
The new president has promised Change from what George W. Bush brought to the White House. This, sad to say, looks like more of the same.
Thursday, December 04, 2008
Ambivalence Over Obama's Inaugural
January 20th will be a dicey day. It represents a joyous celebration of Change but also a reminder of how much we have suffered in the last eight years and the pain that now has to be eased.
Such uncertainty has clouded the triumph of Barack Obama, starting with Election Night when he cancelled a fireworks display in Grant Park as inappropriate. As he takes office, what's the right balance of celebration and dedication, of raising hopes and calming fears, of soaring rhetoric and sad reality for this American moment?
As Inaugural planners brace themselves for an estimated 3 million or more attendees, spokeswoman Linda Douglass acknowledges, "These are tough times, and certainly we are mindful of the struggles that Americans are going through in their own lives right now."
At a time when unprecedented numbers of Americans are losing their homes, the Obamas will be moving into the White House as the Bushes relocate to their new $2 million hideaway in Dallas. Obama and his administration will be assuming their new jobs as millions across the country are losing theirs.
"A Birth of New Freedom" is the official inauguration theme, taken from the Gettysburg Address, expressing Lincoln's hope that sacrifice would lead to "a new birth of freedom," coupled with an appeal in his inaugural address to "the better angels of our nature."
Balancing the solemnity of the times with Washington's penchant for glitz and glamour won't be easy for Obama.
He has the dubious example of Jimmy Carter, who tried to show his earthiness by passing up a limousine and walking a freezing mile and a half from his swearing-in to the White House and insisted on serving pretzels and peanuts at the inaugural balls.
Barack Obama is too sophisticated for that kind of cornball symbolism, but he will have to find his own tone for a January 20th filled with ambivalence.
Such uncertainty has clouded the triumph of Barack Obama, starting with Election Night when he cancelled a fireworks display in Grant Park as inappropriate. As he takes office, what's the right balance of celebration and dedication, of raising hopes and calming fears, of soaring rhetoric and sad reality for this American moment?
As Inaugural planners brace themselves for an estimated 3 million or more attendees, spokeswoman Linda Douglass acknowledges, "These are tough times, and certainly we are mindful of the struggles that Americans are going through in their own lives right now."
At a time when unprecedented numbers of Americans are losing their homes, the Obamas will be moving into the White House as the Bushes relocate to their new $2 million hideaway in Dallas. Obama and his administration will be assuming their new jobs as millions across the country are losing theirs.
"A Birth of New Freedom" is the official inauguration theme, taken from the Gettysburg Address, expressing Lincoln's hope that sacrifice would lead to "a new birth of freedom," coupled with an appeal in his inaugural address to "the better angels of our nature."
Balancing the solemnity of the times with Washington's penchant for glitz and glamour won't be easy for Obama.
He has the dubious example of Jimmy Carter, who tried to show his earthiness by passing up a limousine and walking a freezing mile and a half from his swearing-in to the White House and insisted on serving pretzels and peanuts at the inaugural balls.
Barack Obama is too sophisticated for that kind of cornball symbolism, but he will have to find his own tone for a January 20th filled with ambivalence.
Sunday, June 01, 2008
Mission Accomplished, Again?
Only the most churlish opponents of the war would want to minimize the low Iraq casualty figures for May or even argue over the Washington Post editorial contention today that "the US-backed government and army may be winning the war."
Any hope of bringing our troops home sooner than later is welcome but, under the circumstances, it would be just as unseemly to claim that this turn of events means John McCain has been right about the war and should be elected to the White House.
If anything, the beginning of the end in Iraq--if that's what it really is--should only deepen our sadness at the loss of more than 4000 American lives, millions of dead and displaced Iraqis, and the US' moral standing in the world.
"If the positive trends continue," the Post editorial observes, "proponents of withdrawing most US troops, such as Mr. Obama, might be able to responsibly carry out further pullouts next year. Still, the likely Democratic nominee needs a plan for Iraq based on sustaining an improving situation, rather than abandoning a failed enterprise."
Call it what they will, but let's start ending the nightmare. If it would get our men and women home safely any sooner, start making plans for President Obama to be inaugurated on an aircraft carrier in front of a banner than reads "Mission Accomplished."
In this case, words don't matter. Lives do.
Any hope of bringing our troops home sooner than later is welcome but, under the circumstances, it would be just as unseemly to claim that this turn of events means John McCain has been right about the war and should be elected to the White House.
If anything, the beginning of the end in Iraq--if that's what it really is--should only deepen our sadness at the loss of more than 4000 American lives, millions of dead and displaced Iraqis, and the US' moral standing in the world.
"If the positive trends continue," the Post editorial observes, "proponents of withdrawing most US troops, such as Mr. Obama, might be able to responsibly carry out further pullouts next year. Still, the likely Democratic nominee needs a plan for Iraq based on sustaining an improving situation, rather than abandoning a failed enterprise."
Call it what they will, but let's start ending the nightmare. If it would get our men and women home safely any sooner, start making plans for President Obama to be inaugurated on an aircraft carrier in front of a banner than reads "Mission Accomplished."
In this case, words don't matter. Lives do.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)