Money Matters

Given my propensity for extreme frugality, it probably comes as no surprise that I like to check my accounts daily. First thing in the morning. Compulsively. I think I got it from my dad, who used to endure occasional ribbing from my mom about how often he "massaged" his money. I just like to know that no errant charges have made it onto my account, and I derive a certain comfort from knowing exactly what I have (or don't have).

However, given how many different student loan and investment accounts I have, checking them all is quite the chore. And although I have put together numerous spreadsheets over the years attempting to summarize my situation, I never felt like I had a complete grasp on it. That is, until I found Mint.com.

Now I didn't exactly find it on my own. I'd read about it, I'd heard about it, and then Marissa told me that she loved it. So finally, finally I gave it a try. And as promised, it is genius.

All you do is enter your username and password for all of your online accounts. Bank accounts, mutual funds, mortgages, 401(k)s, student loans...this site can do it all. For the vast majority of financial institutions and investment vehicles, Mint can connect to their server, thereby automatically updating your balances and consolidating all of your financial data into a readable form.

I initially loved this site for its summary page. I look at it every day and know with absolute certainty what my net worth is (depressing as that number may be, I feel better knowing it than not). And the ancillary features are great...I get emails when a bill is due, when my bank balance is running low or when some sort of financial catastrophe is imminent. And I could, if I didn't pay for so many things with cash, keep track of what I'm spending my money on, and compare those amounts to a budget I had set, to last month's spending in given categories, and to the spending patterns of the average American.

But what I think I appreciate most about this site is the utter sense of calm it has brought me. It is almost as if I have a hyper-organized assistant working for me to monitor my financial matters. No accounts are forgotten, nothing slips by unnoticed, no calculations are incorrect, and everything is paid on time. All of this with a soothing color scheme in the background. No stress, no alarm, just the facts.

And while I'm on the topic of helpful financial websites, let me throw out a few more. I've already mentioned Get Rich Slowly, a helpful blog written by a newly frugal, previously indebted man. But let me add Billshrink.com to the list (I think I'm late to the party on this one as well, but hey, it shows you how to save money on, you guessed it, bills!), as well as The Consumerist: Shoppers Bite Back, which is a site owned by Consumer Reports that exposes various nefarious practices by big business as it relates to their customers and also dispenses useful tips. And my latest discovery (it was actually featured on The Consumerist) which I am loving is called Credit Karma. I've always been curious about what my credit score is, but have been somewhat loathe to pay for it. With Credit Karma it's free (at least your score from TransUnion is), and they give you a customized report card with tips on how to raise your score. Always good info to have, and very excited to get it gratis!

Art For The Masses

I love the idea of filling my walls with art.  Or rather, I love the idea of filling the walls of a lovely loft or townhouse that I fantasize will one day be mine with art.  As much as I appreciate the big windows and high ceilings in my apartment now, I'm not sure that a real work of art would feel at home with my parquet tile floors and fake chrome bathroom fixtures.  But then I discovered Jen Bekman's site 20 x 200, a site that democratizes art, selling pieces that range in price from $20 to $2,000.  Now a $20 or $50 piece would most certainly feel at home in my apartment, and in most others I would imagine.

For quite some time, each bi-weekly email that I received from her showcased works that I related to, that I could absolutely see buying, and I looked forward to seeing what she would come up with each time.  But then a fallow period came, and I became somewhat less addicted to browsing the site.

However, today the clouds lifted.  Not only did she have some charming prints that were new to the site, but some of my favorites which had previously sold out are back!

Christian Chaize fulfills my longing for the beach very effectively with these two photos for which I yearned for quite some time.

Perhaps now that they are back I should buy the pair to hang above my bed?

And I spent a month being completely enamored with this photo by Beth Dow

but couldn't justify the purchase since I wasn't sure where on earth I would put it.  And then when it quite predictably sold out, I was devastated.  But today I saw that it is back!  Apparently the photo is featured in the July issue of Martha Stewart, which I imagine made for quite a compelling reason to restock the print.  Whatever the reason, I am overjoyed by its return.

So get yourself over to the site...you have no excuse for barren white walls any longer (nor do I)!

The Blog Omnibus

After consuming the majority of Paul's Bourbon Creme cookies [English version of chocolate Vienna Fingers, in case you were wondering] while he was in Dubai, I made Deb from Smitten Kitchen's chocolate wafers as a replacement. They were twenty times better than what I was replacing!

Dorie Greenspan gives us a wonderful non-coffee warm morning [or all day] drink option.

Michael Ruhlman debuts his rather revolutionary book Ratio, and shows us how it works here.

Hollister Hovey slays me with a source for fabulous and well priced glasses (perfect timing, since I am in need of a new pair, and can't bring myself to pay $400 for the frames that my eye doctor carries). I'm leaning towards these in tortoise...thoughts?

Emma from emmas design blog has found the most perfect dining room ever.

Jen Bekman at 20 x 200 has found yet another piece of art that I am inexplicably obsessed with.

Ulla inspires us all to go to Iceland.

Pithy and Cleaver recommend an affordable source for good vanilla beans (at last!).

The Intellectual Type

I recently came across a blog written by the pastry chef at Le Bernadin, Michael Laiskonis, called Notes From The Kitchen and I have to say that I'm finding it totally compelling.

                                                                                                             photo: Gourmet Magazine

Maybe it's because I just finished reading The Reach of the Chef, which provides a look at some of the most exacting kitchens in the country, but I am suddenly fascinated by what happens behind the scenes at high end restaurants, and this very sophisticated blog satisfies this fascination of mine extraordinarily well.  

Mr. Laiskonis seems to be quite the intellectual, so his anecdotes have a distinctly philosophical bent, which is a wonderful departure from the normal you-have-no-idea-how-hot/fast/stressful/glamorous/amazing-a restaurant-kitchen-is that you often get in restaurant-related writing.  His musings cover everything from how he conceives of his phenomenally innovative dishes (his "egg" is a prime example) to how to manage up and coming chefs.  

And if you're looking for recipes, check out his website Workbook, where he generously posts them.  I'm a little obsessed with the idea of his Earl Gray ganache.  Well I'm generally obsessed with Earl Gray, especially after my Earl Gray cocktail at the Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong last year, which was possibly the best drink I've ever had.  And his bacon brittle sounds unbelievable.  Possibly even better than the chocolate covered bacon from Roni-Sue's.  Or actually, most probably, no offense to the lovely Miss Roni-Sue.  I mean this is Le Bernadin we're talking about here.

Cute

Brodie is a friend of mine who is quite simply, very cool.  He's from Pennsylvania but has a distinctly Berkeley vibe about him, he has played in various bands (and from what I understand these are actually good bands...he was on TRL once) and is kind, considerate and smart to boot.  He was one of the great surprises that business school offered.  Not the kind of person I thought I'd meet there, but the kind I had hoped to meet.

When I met his wife, Claudia, I realized that in addition to all of his other good qualities, he also had great taste in women.  She is cool as well, in the same down to earth way that Brodie is.  A real woman's woman, she's just a very comfortable, fun, smart person to be around.

So I guess I shouldn't have been surprised to find out that their four year old daughter Margot is also cool.  My main recollection of this kid is of watching her run around a vast expanse of lawn in back of a professor's house on the Main Line and thinking that her outfit was way hipper than the hippest outfit I have ever put together.  With her Italian soccer jacket and frilly skirt over pants, she was straight out of Williamsburg, but in a good way.  

Now I'll admit I'm picky when it comes to children.  Many of them are annoying.  A few of them are cute.  She's one of the cute ones.  Very cute.

Although I've known Brodie and Claudia for a few years, I only just realized a month or so ago that Claudia has been writing a blog called Mothering Mini about their little family (mostly about Margot) for the past three years.  The things you find out about people.

Anyway, I just spent a very enjoyable Saturday afternoon on the couch in the sun perusing her archives and the exercise has left me with quite the warm fuzzy feeling.     

Brodie with Margot, the early years:

I love this because this is how my dad used to carry my sister and I around when we were little, so it brings back some nice memories.  But our backpack was lime green, and it mostly was used in national parks, not so much for everyday stuff.

Here's Margot looking like a little oracle:

And here she is all grown up.

Beautiful, no?

Just when you've had it with bratty kids (I think I go to the Whole Foods in Tribeca too much...there is a particularly high instance of brat in that place) you can bring yourself back from the brink with a glimpse into the Ruland household, where the kid is bright and precocious yet well behaved, and the parents are just great people who love each other and their child.  A valuable resource indeed.   

A Kindred Soul

I'm not sure if I've mentioned it before, but I am totally obsessed with Bravo.  It's anti-intellectual of me, but I love every single one of their reality shows.  Top Chef, Project Runway, Rachel Zoe, Flipping Out, Millionaire Matchmaker...and the crown jewel that is the Real Housewives series.  Orange County, New York and Atlanta.  I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that overall I prefer New York, 

but I love Orange County for the fake boobs, 

and Atlanta for the wigs.

Through my Housewives obsession, I came across a hysterical blog called Scented Glossy Magazines that, at least lately, is devoted entirely to witty commentary on the Housewives episodes.  The woman who writes it is just...witty I guess is the best way to explain it...equally as good as the Fug Girls, which is really saying something as they are the queens of the snarky and yet sympathetic comment (my favorite kind).  She belittles the evil women, calling them out for what they are, spares the sympathetic, generally good women while poking a little good natured fun at them.

Now you likely will not find this site particularly relevant if you don't follow the Housewives on a regular basis (I'm not sure why anyone wouldn't, but it does take all kinds), but if you do, Scented Glossy Magazines will have you in stitches.  

Current Obsession

I would like to live in this house please.

English Gardens in L.A.

Despite the fact that my own home decor is closer to run-of-the-mill than outrageously stylish (I think the only defining feature of our apartment is an extraordinary number of plants...I could do with getting rid of one or two but Paul refuses to leave them out on the curb to "die a horrible death"), I have always been a little obsessed with design.  I love Elle Decor, Domino, Dwell, Maison Francaise, and now that I have discovered the world of design blogs, I am able to obsess on a daily, rather than monthly, basis.

My latest love is a blog called A Bloomsbury Life, which I came to through another fantastic blog, Habitually Chic.

Bloomsbury is written by a very cosmopolitan woman who, by way of Europe, New York and London, ended up in L.A.  She and her husband apparently bought their house a year or so ago and have been decorating it ever since, and from what I can tell, the woman has more style in her pinky finger than me and my twenty closest friends possess collectively.

Her very sexy yet smart dining room (how amazing is the wallpaper?):

I love that the kitchen looks classic but somehow avoids that Restoration Hardware trap (i.e. looking like every catalogue kitchen)...plus I'm absolutely obsessed with Aga stoves:

I think the sheep is hysterical and that bench is so hip and unexpected with that wallpaper: 

And the piece that really made me fall in love?

I find these to be so wonderfully morbid yet whimsical.

Anyway, turns out that she not only has excellent taste in all matters aesthetic, but she also has the most interesting taste in books.  A woman after my heart.

Another Demise of Whatever?

Jason Epstein's latest musings on The Daily Beast are provoking my thoughts today. He argues that the internet will save the book industry, that the physical book will be a thing of the past. I find it so interesting that the publishing, music and movie industries all seem to have fallen prey to the same problem (over-reliance on blockbusters, and not enough attention to the smaller, less immediately profitable, more artistically challenging projects), and in a way are moving towards the same solution. Larger inventory/booklist/catalogue, of the type that used to be available, and now is newly available through iTunes/Amazon, taking the place of the small but commercially popular "hit lists".

The record/tape/CD has become a thing of the past, the DVD seems to be on its way out...does this mean that the book will follow?

I for one, hope not. I don't know what my excuse would be for carrying a giant purse if I had no book to stuff in it!

Ah, La France

Did you see this article in the Times Magazine this weekend about street style photoblogs? They mentioned my (newly) beloved The Sartorialist, but also turned me on to the most wonderful Parisian blog Garance Dore. Unlike The Sartorialist, Garance also posts photos of faces in addition to full body shots, which, as a lover of portrait photography, is a nice variation for me.

As the Times rightly points out, this blog is further evidence that the French have a more evolved sense of style than us poor, simple Americans. I mean, look at this girl.

So beautiful, so casually chic. She looks like she doesn't care enough to comb her hair...perhaps because she's so stylish it is not necessary? And yet at the same time she looks totally put together. How do they do it?!!

Vicarious Hotels Stays

I absolutely love to travel. I grew up taking family car trips throughout the American West. Name a small crappy town in any state west of the Rockies, I've been there. Bend, Oregon? Oh sure, we had ice cream sundaes in that dust bowl. Buttonwillow, Arizona? Uh huh. We were planning to stop there for lunch but then found that the entire town consisted of one rock shop. I am not exagerating. One building. But I've been to virtually every National Park in the west, and love them...they are breathtaking.

There were also the odd exotic highlights...Costa Rica when I was thirteen (well before it became the tourist mecca that it is today)...OK I was just about to write Canada as the other exotic travel highlight of my childhood which I guess means that Costa Rica really is about it.

Once I went away to college I got a little more adventurous...visiting tiny towns via local buses in Mexico with my sister, wandering around Florence, again with my sister. After college came Istanbul (sister again), France (and again) Slovenia (yep, you guessed it), England (my family and later, Paul), Belgium (with Paul), the Czech Republic (Paul again) and Spain (entire family).

And grad school offered the perfect opportunity to go on a plethora of wonderful trips that I couldn't afford. Argentina, China, Brazil, Dominican Republic...all good times with fantastic friends.  By the way, if I could split my time between Rio, Sao Paulo, Buenos Aires, San Francisco and New York I would be the happiest person alive.  Oh and Paris.

Now as a relatively frugal person, I tend to travel very cheaply. There are wonderful little places that can be had for quite a bargain in many cities (I think my two favorites in this category are a bed and breakfast in Florence that was housed in a 15th century townhouse...$75 per night or thereabouts, and an absolutely fantastic bed and breakfast in Salvador, Brazil that was housed in two perfectly appointed homes, maybe $100 per night if I remember correctly for a giant, virtually full floor room with a view of the ocean).

And the cheapest I went, and I do mean cheap, was in a youth hostel in Paris that made you rent towels and had the showers on a timer so you couldn't use up more than forty-five seconds worth of hot water.  I think during my entire week-long visit I spent a total of $400 on everything including accommodations and food.

But despite my cheapskate tendencies, I do like a bit of luxury. So on pretty much every trip I go on, I make a point to hang out in very nice hotels for at least some period of time. Whether it's coffee in the Four Seasons in Istanbul, afternoon wine at the Emiliano in Sao Paulo, or afternoon tea at the Peninsula in Hong Kong, I require these little respites from my responsibly frugal existence.

But where to get your fancy hotel fix when you are chained to a desk rather than galavanting freely over 15th century cobblestone streets?  Dahhhling, you simply must visit Tablet Hotels.  Although not quite as fun as getting buzzed at inappropriate times of the day in fancy lobbies, Tablet Hotels' descriptions and reviews of some of the world's most wonderful hotels do let you fantasize about beautiful vacations in exotic locales in exquisite accommodations.

I love the site's top ten lists, mostly because I feel like you don't end up with the usual suspects.  There's a great mix of venerable fancy-pants hotels, hip hotels, and hidden gems.  And best of all?  There's a pretty good range of price points.  For example, Tablet Hotels users recommend hotels such as Hotel des Academies et des Arts, which I am currently obsessed with (and rates are as low at 150 euros per night right now!):

And are you kidding with these views, La Mineretta?  I want to go to Sorrento...

...and rates are as low as 180 euros at the moment!  This would totally be my splurge spot at the end of a long Italian trip.

Beyond all of the simple hotel-oogling, Tablet Hotels has some quite fun features to explore, my favorite of which is TabletStars, which is a list of celebrities that have offered up their opinions on accommodations in various cities.  The celebrities tend towards architects (Richard Meier, Thom Mayne) and designers (Derek Lam, Christian Liaigre) so the picks are quite cool, but these are people who are already fairly established, so you don't run into the problem of too many annoyingly hip or gimmicky choices.  

Perhaps with the exception of Richard Meier's choice of the Delano in Miami.  I mean sure, beautiful hotel, but for the love of god the music in the lobby?  Blech.  But then in the interest of full disclosure, I hate the vast majority of hotels with music playing the lobby.  Hotels should envelop you in luxury and serenity.  Techno music in the lobby is neither luxurious nor serene.  

Interestingly enough, my tastes seem to be most in synch with those of Ben Kingsley.  I don't what this says about me...he is a sixty-something man and I am a twenty-something woman...seems like a bit of a disconnect but then I've always been a bit of an old soul (i.e. I can be more crochety than actual crochety old people are).

Anyway, when the news is getting you down, when your potentially disappearing job is getting you down, treat yourself to a little online vacation, however fleeting it may be.  Go ahead, you deserve it.  

Christmas Shopping...

I've written before about my affection for UGallery, an online art gallery for students.  Well, I'm happy to report (actually, Habitually Chic reported it, but I'm passing the info along) that the site is having a sale.  20% off the entire collection until Sunday, December 21st.  Perfect for that art snob friend of yours who's seen it all before.

Food Blogs Galore

If any of you are into food blogs, you must must must check out Bon Appetit's Blog Envy Slideshow. They describe, and feature a recipe from, about twenty sites, about 70% of which I'd never heard of. I'm already obsessed with Dorie Greenspan, Blue Kitchen and Food Junta. And I have long been obsessed with Chocolate and Zucchini (her tarte tatin with salted butter caramel is ridiculous). So go forth, explore.

Vegetarians, Avert Your Eyes

I have a bit of an obsession with Michael Ruhlman. He's sort of an undercover food celebrity (is that an oxymoron?) who also happens to be a fantastic writer. He's co-written all of the Thomas Keller cookbooks (French Laundry, Bouchon, Under Pressure), a few of his own food themed books (The Making of a Chef, The Elements of Cooking, among others), and a few non food books (I particularly enjoyed House: A Memoir). He also happens to be Anthony Bourdain's occasional partner in crime.

In fact, I think the first time I saw him in action was on an episode of Bourdain's No Reservations that featured the cuisine of Cleveland (Ruhlman's hometown). The two of them bought an entire pig and proceeded to butcher it quite expertly in Ruhlman's kitchen, producing, among other things, a beautiful cassoulet. I found it totally fascinating. There are so many parts to a pig! And so much to be done with each part, as Ruhlman details so well in his book Charcuterie.

But based on my reaction to whole chickens, I'm not sure how great a job I'd do of disassembling a whole pig. Plus which I don't think my two feet of drainboard space (non-contiguous) would really be sufficient for the task.

However, I continue to dream about at least trying. And with Ruhlman's most recent blog post, I can dream in just a little bit more detail. Just think...pork belly, pork chops, bacon, sausages...all forged with one's own hands from a gorgeous healthy pig from Flying Pigs Farm! I don't know if there's been an uptick in news stories about horrible slaughter houses or industrial agriculture lately, but something about knowing with absolute certainty where my food is coming from is very appealing to me these days.

And how great is this photograph that his wife (a fantastic photographer by the looks of the images on his website) took?

The pig almost looks content...maybe beautific? I believe he must have had a happy life with a face like that.

Goopy Problems

My sick fascination with Gwyneth Paltrow's awkard website continues...The Daily Beast sums up the source of my uncertainty quite brilliantly here.

Obsessed

I am totally obsessed with this sweater.

And with this website.

Cover Your Walls With Art

I was browsing in the design section at McNally Robinson a while back, and came across the massive Vogue Living:  Houses, Gardens, People tome.  I turned to the first image in the book and gasped.  The kitchen pictured is my ideal kitchen.  Ideal.  I scoured the internet for an image to show you, but unfortunately one does not seem to exist.  But let me describe as best as I can.  

It's a true open kitchen...it essentially exists in the corner of a real, old school loft with the highest ceilings I've ever seen in a residence.  There's a vaguely industrial looking refrigerator that looks like actual chefs might use it, which I support over the Sub Zero behemoths that are popping up in every new condo building in New York.  Perpendicular to the refrigerator wall is a long wooden countertop, with open wooden shelves and various appliances below.  It all just looks very earthy and functional and yet totally stylish, in that eccentric yet tasteful old money way.  

But the thing that really makes the room is the massive painting above said wooden counter (that, and the absurdly beautiful woman stirring something in a bowl while wearing a Chanel miniskirt).  Turns out that this is the kitchen of Julian Schnabel (obviously the art was his as well), and his beautiful wife Olatz 

is the one stirring in the skirt.  Talk about an odd couple:

I guess he must be very brilliant.  And talented.  And witty.  At least I hope.

Anyway, my point is that major art can really make a space amazing.  I have constant apartment fantasies about my imaginary giant loft with massive canvases adorning the walls.  Ideally I would know lots of dazzling young artists who would give them to me for free.  

But, given that I know absolutely no visual artists other than the odd photographer, I will be very thankful for UGallery.com when (hopefully not if) I am in reality adorning vast expanses of wall.

This site is essentially a space for young artists to show and sell their work.  The quality of the art varies quite widely, but there are some very impressive pieces to be had if you proceed with patience and check back frequently.

Whitney Babin, The University of the Arts

Sunil Gangadharan, Pennsylvania State University

Brian Whiteley, Ball State University

The pieces range in price from $100 up to several thousand (I think $4,500 is the highest I've seen on the site).  Sadly, my favorites always seem to be towards the high end of the range.  But if you wish to avoid temptation, sort by the price appropriate for your budget.

Beauty and the Beast

Although I know absolutely nothing about Tina Brown other than what I read and hear, I have a soft spot for her.  Despite the fact that every friend of mine who works in the media industry seems to have unkind things to say when her name comes up, I don't know, something about her I just find sort of compelling.  Plus I loved, in a semi-guilty way, her biography of Princess Diana (and her very glamazon book jacket photo).

She seemed to me to be one of those people who peaked extremely early in her career and for a long time after that peak was searching around for something worthwhile to do.  From the looks of it, she's found it at her (sort of) new website, The Daily Beast.  

The Daily Beast is a cross between The New York Times, The New York Post, and Vanity Fair.  There is legitimate news coverage (the "cheat sheet" serves essentially as a front page for news), and they did a nice job on covering the various aspects of the Mumbai attacks in a more in depth article here.  

Like The Post, the website covers gossip, although The Daily Beast makes it seem more high brow than it might otherwise be because the writing is good, and is done by legitimate people in the literary/cultural/news world (see "Is Adrien Grenier A Good Enough Actor To Play A Bad One?" by Toure).  

And like Vanity Fair there are features on current events ("The People's Panic", by Michael Lewis) that are generally worth a read.  Although I have to admit that I am a bit mystified by the thought process behind commissioning the article titled "A Warning From Reagon's Economist"...is anyone other than John McCain all that concerned with the Reagan years at this point?  

A nice, somewhat novel feature is The Buzz Board:  Smart People Recommend, which is essentially what it says.  Prominent people from all walks of life, from Bobbi Brown to Mort Zuckerman to Ivanka Trump to Bill Maher to Sherron Watkins to Bill Richardson, discuss books, restaurants, websites, articles, places and products that they like.  Very refreshing to see these kinds of short, informative comments from serious people rather than the ranting lunatics who seem to frequent comment boards on other websites.  

So there you go.  Hours of perfectly good work time will be wasted surfing this informative, entertaining site.

Love the Fug

Like most vaguely snarky, slightly jaded big city dwellers, I have a profound love for the Fug Girls.  And the fact that they share my sometimes like it/often hate it/love to make fun of it attitude towards Gwyneth's website (which by the way, supposedly will have the archives posted soon so you can catch up on any fun and fabulous tips you might have missed) makes me love them even more.  Check out their comically superior take on it here.

Old McDonald

As a resident of lower Manhattan, I am, sadly, quite familiar with the South Street Seaport.  For those who have not had the pleasure, the Seaport is a historic district that, until a few years ago, was home to the Fulton Fish Market.  In fact, my grandma tells me that my great great grandfather, who was a fishmonger in Jersey City way back when, used to bring a fish cart (I'm actually not sure if there is such a thing, but let's use our imagination here) over each day to buy his store's stock for the day.

The Fish Market was relocated to the Bronx in 2005, an event that has been a bit of a boon to the area.  The Gap no longer smells like old fish, and I do not trip over abandoned branzino on my way to early morning dentist appointments (this has actually happened to me...twice...it's a distinctly depressing way to start your day).  Cobblestone streets have been restored, merchants are coming in, and some fairly decent restaurants have actually taken up residence in the area.  The one remaining blight in the area is the collection of middle market retailers in the horrendously ugly mall on Pier 17.  The owner of this bastion of mediocrity, General Growth Properties, thankfully wants to upgrade the place and from what I understand, wants to turn it into some sort of a market.  So to this end, one weekend this past June, GGP hosted a sort of farmer's market next to Pier 17, just under the FDR.

I thought the event was a massive success.  Sullivan Street Bakery, which bakes what I consider to be the best bread in New York (the lemon confit and olive bread will change your life) was there, Saxelby Cheesemonger and the chef of Peasant both attended, along with various produce purveyors and, I'm told, even some representatives of Marks & Spencer were there to show support on behalf of London's Borough Market.  But the highlight of the day for me was easily my introduction to St. Brigid's Farm.  

I was having a bit of a domestic moment at the time, and was sort of obsessed by the idea of making various kinds of stocks and freezing them for later use.  I think I had just read this book and was inspired by Colin Cowie's absurdly organized and well-stocked kitchen.  Anyway, I was on the lookout for soup bones, and came across this lovely stand...

 ...run by this lovely man.

Given all of the gorgeous roasts and unusual organ meats they had for sale, I think they were a bit taken aback that I wanted something as pedestrian as bones, but they were happy to comply.

When I got home I was pleasantly surprise at how much they had given me for my piddling $5.  I had an entire veal femur and loads of neck bones, both with a generous amount of meat still attached.  I don't have a pot big enough to accommodate a whole femur so the knobby end ended up sticking out of the simmering liquid...it was very Fred Flintstone.  Or Hannibal Lecter, depending on your point of view I suppose.  And yes, I'm aware that the bone should have been cracked to as to get the benefit of the marrow flavor, but I really do cut the line at sawing away on a leg bone on my kitchen floor.  

Despite the uncracked bone, the stock was deeply flavorful, so much so in fact, that I felt compelled to email Robert Fry, one of the proprietors of this wonderful farm, to tell them exactly how much I loved their product.

We struck up a bit of an email conversation, he assumed from my email address that I lived in Philadelphia, so invited me down to Maryland to visit the farm, I expressed my regrets that I had moved to New York, etc.  Anyway, now I'm on his email list so I am the happy recipient of his occasional blog posts  about the farm.

I've always had a secret desire to go work on a farm (for like a week, not long term) and make artisanal cheese or something.  I don't see this happening anytime soon, so in the meantime Mr. Fry's seasonal updates about the fields, the cows and the weather will have to sate this want of mine.

A bucolic field during autumn grazing:

The happy cows in said bucolic field:

Said happy cows grazing:

I love that my fantasy that I'm eating blissfully happy animals has born out!  Unfortunately St. Brigid's doesn't have any retail outlets in New York (they sell mostly to restaurants in the area instead), but once my stash of stock begins to dwindle I fully intend to order some bones by mail.