eG Foodblog: Lady T - Meals of a traveling minstrel...

[NeroW]

You're moving to Evanston?

[maggiethecat]

You're moving to Evanston?

She really liked that dinner at Trio!

[Lady T]

[bergerka]

WHY, when Chicago has a massive 3,700 seat opera house, does Lyric Opera's management insist on casting voices that can only adequately fill a thousand-seat hall?!  The voices are beautiful, the diction is frequently crisp and eloquent, and the interpretations are mostly elegant and intelligent -- but we can't hear them distinctly.

WHY, when Lyric Opera has a superb professional orchestra capable of observing the entire dynamic scale from barely-thinking-loud quiet to blow-the-roof-off-earsplitting loud, do conductors (that was you, last night, Sir Andrew Oblivious!) insist on leaning on the loud end of the meter and forcing singers to shout to be heard at all -- warping voices out of pitch in the process?  (In the case of Ildebrando D'Arcangelo, last night's Figaro, it may have been what blew him out entirely: his cover had to do the last act for him!)

WHY, when a singer indicates throughout the rehearsal period that they need a slightly faster tempo in order to carry a long elegant line without needing an oxygen tank, do conductors ignore the need and drag the line into extinction?  (That one's to your address, too, Sir Andrew, specifically in "Dove sono", where to my ear, you virtually sabotaged Ruth Ann Swenson's beautifully thought-out hard work.)  What were you thinking?!?

DAMMITALL!!

There.  Thank you.  I feel much better.  We now return to erudite and civilized discussions of the world's cuisines.

I have to think the volume problem was the conductor's fault...unless the Lyric's acoustics are abominable (and I hear they're excellent, never seen a show there), we usually don't have any trouble hearing D'arcangelo (who, in addition to a lovely voice, has the coolest name in opera now that Fiamma Izzo d'Amico has disappeared without a trace) at the Met, unless, oh, Simone Young is conducting (more on that at another time). SHAME on Sir Oblivious for covering the singers like that. Shame, I say. Shame. No excuse for it, whatsoever.

It's OT, but would you mind elaborating on RAS' Countess? Maybe privately? I like her, see.

And just to keep this on food...mmm, perfectly crisp bacon!

K

[Lady T]

Nero: Yep. Bought a condo a couple of blocks from downtown Evanston. Moving the zillions of books, on my schedule, is gonna be a 24-karat b*tch and a half. I need a manager. Or a housekeeper. Or possibly a spouse.

Maggie notes correctly, however: I'm going to be living barely a half mile from Trio. Oh, my aching Visa card...I have a reeeeeeal strong hunch about where The Travelling Riot is going to want to hold its holiday revel, and it ain't a-gonna be about my cooking!

And Bergerka: the fact that RAS is doing the Countess at all, after her own years of Susannas, is something I find curious, but welcome considering the sweetness of the voice -- which adds a lovely nuance to the character. "Dove sono" (and "Porgi amor" near the top of Act I, for that matter) had a beautiful float I associate with lyric sopranos, but still enough point to punch through and hold her place in the big ensemble work at the end. I wonder if she's angling for Rosenkavalier nobility next; wouldn't that be a Marschallin to relish, the way the instrument is developing?

Lunch? Oh. Right. Food. There was some, wasn't there, back around 1 p.m...a sort of B-flat chicken salad sandwich, as I recall, but actually I'm thinking about the mushroom dobladitas at Prairie Joe's up on Central Street not far from tonight's church gig.

And it's 5:09 now, and the train's at 5:45. Gotta go now, folks...

[snowangel]

Nero:  Yep.  Bought a condo a couple of blocks from downtown Evanston.  Moving the zillions of books, on my schedule, is gonna be a 24-karat b*tch and a half.  I need a manager.  Or a housekeeper.  Or possibly a spouse.

You need a wife

[Toliver]

Nero:  Yep.  Bought a condo a couple of blocks from downtown Evanston.  Moving the zillions of books, on my schedule, is gonna be a 24-karat b*tch and a half.  I need a manager.  Or a housekeeper.  Or possibly a spouse.

You need a wife

I wonder if Evanston has a "Rent a Yenta" to help you move in and unpack?

[SethG]

Thank you, thank you for your wonderful description of the Berghoff, the very first restaurant I ever dined at in Chicago. 

I miss the Berghoff. It's been many years. Thanks for reminding me of it.

Edited September 26, 2003 by SethG (log)

[Schneier]

Your bosses spend the extra $ for that?  Lucky man, and lucky colleagues too!

It's part of the Silicon Valley bargain. They do the work of two ordinary employees, and we feed them.

Bruce

[Suzy]

You could just pack the books and send them to me :)

[Lady T]

Rent-A-Yenta...I may check into that. If they're appropriately insured and bonded, that may be a worthwhile investment, actually. Just to have someone who could take delivery at the condo of sundry things I purchase -- rather than for me to have to lug them home and then lug them personally to Evanston -- would be a mighty time/labor/money saver. I think R-A-Y does have a Chicago area outlet, too. Thanks for the idea, Toliver!

Food. Ah yes: I got the 5:45 up to Evanston last night, only to arrive at Prairie Joe's at 6:05 to learn that my beloved mushroom dobladitas weren't on the menu. Nuts. (None of those either.) But with bergerka's remark about crisp bacon lurking in the back of my mind, well -- I ordered a burger. Cheeseburger, actually. With crisp bacon. Prairie Joe's does 'em pretty well, too, along with fine brown crisp fries, all served piping hot.

Who says eGullet doesn't have an impact?

Wonderfully, we observe the civilized custom of Friday Morning Food at our office: we all take turns making/bringing/buying breakfast for the firm. Breakfast today, therefore, is a selection of walnut or prune pastries; I had a piece of each with my tea, and I am content.

[Lady T]

Ahh lunch: hot broccoli and cheese soup, small salad, and Diet Pepsi. More substantial than lunch might otherwise be, since the choir call for Erev Rosh Hashonah is 6 p.m. for the 7:30 service, and it's just about going to take that long to get from the office at 5 p.m. to the shul,, door-to-door, between intermittent rain and Cubs traffic.

(O Almighty and Eternal, You Who Wear Light As A Garment: Don't you dare rain the Cubs out before they win! Thank you kindly. Omeyn.)

Ain't no dinner tonight, not until homecoming at 9:30 or 10 p.m., by which time my stomach will be too tired to growl and I will simply rearrange the tunes in the book for tomorrow's half-day singfest and crawl into bed.

Do I owe you guys Saturday and Sunday too, by the way, or does the shift change after five days? Somebody let me know...

L'shanah tovah to all who celebrate at this time!

[maggiethecat]

(O Almighty and Eternal, You Who Wear Light As A Garment:  Don't you dare rain the Cubs out before they win!  Thank you kindly.  Omeyn.)

Word.

It's seven days, Babe. No rest for the wicked.

[ronnie_suburban]

Sorry to hear about the lack of mushroom dobladitas at Prairie Joe's.

I really love it there. Julie and I have had some fun times at PJ's. As SethG said, thanks for reminding me of it.

=R=

[Lady T]

It's seven days, Babe.  No rest for the wicked.

Well, dagnab it, being wicked ought to be less exhausting, then...

Friday night fell out about precisely the way I conjectured: arrived at synagogue minus dinner -- in pelting rain, barely on time but most of singing colleagues even later! -- to watch conductor's well-planned rehearsal get disrupted utterly by well-meaning hazzan (cantor) wanting to go over his stuff, change selections which then needed woodshedding to ensure quality in the service, all that sort of thing. Gah.

Service went off with barely a hitch; go figure. There must be a corps of guardian angels whose sole occupation at this time of year is to keep occasions like this one out of the merde in which they actually deserve to land.

Saturday morning's outing started with an inhaled carton of yogurt at 7 a.m and continued through the first Rosh Day service (our segment of which ended about 1:30). After this, I crawled a short distance away along Sheridan Road to Leona's, where I was spoiled rotten by kindly waitstaff in the process of ordering a 12" traditional thin-crust pizza (green peppers, sausage, mushrooms, onions, massive quantities of garlic, extra cheese), eating half of it, and drinking two glasses of decent Ruffino Chianti therewith.

Much better.

On Sunday I arrived at IHOP around 7:50 a.m. for breakfast with my choral colleagues, which turned into an unscheduled seminar on real estate acquisition and improvement. Education is where it happens, I guess...and I got it virtually free, over my two eggs over easy, large orange juice, crisp bacon (still thinking of you, bergerka!), and hash browns. Coffee was a must. It was a long service, but went well -- our angel was apparently working weekend overtime.

At home that afternoon, after a nap and some downtime watching NASCAR and chatting on the phone with longtime friends, I poured a King Estate Pinot Noir and prepared a plate of whole wheat spaghettini, just with fresh-ground pepper, grated 3-year Parmesan, and a nubbin of butter. With this I cut up a tomato or so over which I fluffed a chiffonade of basil.

This I followed with the last of the now very off-season asparagus as a salad course -- some knitting-needle-thin specimens I'd gotten for a horrifying price at Whole Foods the previous week because I hadn't been able to resist -- with home-made balsamico vinaigrette. The fridge and kitchen shelves are emptying out nicely prior to the upcoming move to Evanston, and I look forward to doing a bit of nest-feathering once the keys to the new condo are in my hands at the closing this coming Friday. I may not have chairs to sit in or a bed to sleep in next Saturday, but by damn I will have my pasta and my favorite Carnaroli rice on the shelves and a fridge full of fresh herbs in glasses of water, unsalted butter and organic produce!

Gad. Am I an eGulleteer or what?

Here endeth Lady T's week, on Monday where it started.

Who's next?

[jackal10]

Why do I find the combination of bacon and Shul confusing?

May you be inscibed and sealed for a good year..

[Lady T]

Why do I find the combination of bacon and Shul confusing?

Thoroughly trayf rather than confusing, I'd say. But very tasty, and a comfort to my Episcopal spirit on a hard-working day.

And I did brush my teeth before going from IHOP to the shul, so that I wouldn't offend the observant with the smell of pork on my breath on a yontif.

A sweet year to you too, jackal10, full of good health, happiness, and prosperity.

Edited September 29, 2003 by Lady T (log)

[Schneier]

L'shanah Tovah.

Bruce

[maggiethecat]

Lady T:

Thak you for your exhausting glimpse into the life of a singer-for-hire. And of course, your lapidary meal reviews.

So who's nect? I nominate Bruce.

[Schneier]

Yipes!

Um, okay, er, well.

I guess I can do this. It'll be complicated....

Bruce

[fifi]

Finally... We snag one of "the guys"!

Not to put any pressure on you but you DO know that you are setting the standard for all of your gender to follow, don't you?

[Schneier]

Not to put any pressure on you but you DO know that you are setting the standard for all of your gender to follow, don't you?

I've done that before. I can do it again.

Bruce

[ronnie_suburban]

Not to put any pressure on you but you DO know that you are setting the standard for all of your gender to follow, don't you?

I've done that before. I can do it again.

Bruce

Help us Obi-Wan err, Bruce...you're our only hope

=R=