Inspired to Bake

I had a choice about a month ago. Either buy a new work bowl for my food processor or buy a new one. The new work bowl with shipping was more than I wanted to spend, and besides I had seen a much larger food processor at Williams Sonoma website, and it looked like it could turn out bread dough and it has multiple work bowls that nest inside each other. There was a month wait to get it (but I waited, and waited) and finally, I went to the store and picked it up.

It is amazing to me how a new appliance inspires me to bake. First I had to try out a Challah for Rosh Hashona. What was so great is that I have trouble kneading dough, it really hurts my fingers. This did all the kneading for me. The loaves were great! It has been a while since I did a bread other than one in the bread machine. And, for me that isn't quite the same as an oven baked bread, especially a Challah which I love to braid.

Sunday I was really tired, but wanted to bake again. I went to the store and saw a huge display of apples. So, instead of bread it was apple pie. Now, it has been years and years since I made my own crust. I have relied on the not so good Pillsbury unroll from the package crust. But, the food processor had a recipe, and just to be sure I went to www.foodnetwork.com and checked out Alton Brown's take on a pie crust. His version was almost identical, but what was great was that his video showed me exactly how to work the dough in the food processor, how to tell when ready to chill, and some good hints on rolling it out. I also like the fact he doesn't do anything fancy to the top of the crust. I will tell you that it was the best crust I have probably ever made in terms of texture, flakiness, and so forth. (I am eating a piece while writing this). He starts out by baking the pie on the floor of the oven (of course on a cookie sheet), and then movies it up into the lower part of the oven on a rack. This really browns the bottom crust. And the other tip was I have always used lemon juice in my apple pie. He used Lime Juice! And, it was so much better!

What fun to be inspired by something mechanical. My other inspiration this week was potato pancakes (with a small zucchini in them for flavor). They grate so nicely in the processor.

DHI Show Photos and Show Wrapup

Nothing like traveling to make a person tired, and the best laid plans of updating my blog on Friday just don't work out. The second day of the show was similar to the first. Lots of presenters telling us how to run our companies better, what to do when the economy recovers, and way too many pie charts as to what distributors and manufacturers think of how things are being run in the industry.

We then returned to the trade show floor for more walking and talking. We took a little time out in-between events to shoot some photos around the hotel and convention center. I found out that the facility is about 4-5 years old.

The convention center was opulent with beautiful decorations.

One part of the hotel atrium was called Key West and featured this "scenery" complete with a fish restaurant. The food was very good, but over priced, even for a hotel.

What a welcoming site as you walk into the main part of the convention center.

The hotel atrium even had an area full of alligators!

Todd, from Karpen Steel, and myself at the Hollow Metal Manufacturer's Show Booth.

So, with my eternal optimism, I did sign up to exhibit at next year's show in Chicago.

Once the show ended, we took a cab ride over to Disney Downtown and ate dinner at Wolfgang Pucks (very good), walked and walked around, and then desert at Planet Hollywood. I was surprised to see that the Virgin Megastore is closed down. The whole area was very busy, and the restaurants were certainly busy, but the stores not as busy. We had a good trip home on Friday and in the end felt that the trip was worth making, but also knowing that we were correct in not exhibiting this year.

Food and Family

Today was a family day. Various family members were in town for Rosh Hashona and we all had lunch together. This included my mom, two brothers and two sister-in-laws, a cousin, a nephew and his wife, and of course my dear husband. We were boisterous (so fortunately the restaurant wasn't too busy inside) but had a wonderful time together. Telling stories, talking about our current lives, checking up on the status of other family members and touching base. For some reason, even though the restaurant service was not up to par, I had a wonderful time. Sometimes being with a lot of family members can be stressful, but this was one of those times where I just took it for what it was.

I was still a little tired from my trip to Orlando (got in last night about 9:00 pm), so afterward I unwound a little (but did not unpack) and went for a swim in the pool to finish the unwinding process. I love to travel, but it is so exhausting. It was so nice to be in my own bed last night.

Supper tonight was another one put together from visiting a farmer's market. We had trout cakes (made by the trout people), turnips braised with carrots and biale's for our bread. I knew I wouldn't feel much like cooking but it was all delicious. Especially the fresh sliced tomatoes. I don't think I have ever cooked turnips before. Found a simple recipe on the internet and they were delicious. Will have to buy them again! Unfortunately I got to the market a little late as we had gone to an Art Show in Weaverville before I headed out to the market. So, my choices were not as great as some weeks, but still a nice selection. Now that I have discovered the Saturday Farmers Market I have expanded my horizons with different choices.

DHI Trade Show Orlando

For the first time in many years, I decided not to have my company exhibit at the annual Door and Hardware trade show, even though it is near (in Orlando). The cost was just too great, and a survey of customers seemed like about a quarter of the typical crowd would be coming. But, I decided to attend to help staff a trade association booth, be a co-presenter on technical hollow metal programs, and attend some industry classes. And to take our customer service coordinator with me.

Was it a good decision?

First day here we had a committee meeting and made plans for technical presentations for the next day. The mood of most manufacturers that we met and talked to was somber. Too many people being laid off, not enough work, bringing out new products in hope of generating some interest. And everyone wondering if tomorrow would bring distributors to the show to see the new products, and to try to drum up some sales.

Good parts of today included flights arriving early into their destinations, pretty smooth flights, and a really nice dinner at a Japanese restaurant with a group of 6 people total. The hotel I am booked at was at one time really nice, but the guest rooms are showing some wear. The lobby and public places have been renovated and kept up. At one time this was probably a really nice resort. Now, it is just OK.

The convention center at Gaylord however is another story. Very opulent. A smaller version of the Opryland Hotel in Nashville.

First day of Show - Industry Marketplace

Our committee was pleasantly surprised at the attendance at our sessions. First session had only about 14 people, (too early), but then we went up to 22, 24 and finally 29 at the final session. Since some of the industry marketplaces had only 4-5 people at their sessions, then ours was a rousing success. I had really good 'face time' in front of distributors, and this alone made my visit here worth while. Especially since later on in the day, a number of the attendees stopped to thank me for the presentation, and the obvious work that went into it.

First day of Show - Forum for the Future

Let's say I am not into writing really depressing blogs. The economist was an excellent speaker, with humour and good stories, but in between those parts were graphs upon graphs upon graphs, and the trends were not cause for rejoicing. But we can also say that the food was good. The attendance was close to 1000 people by my estimates. Give us free food, and we will come!!

Trade Show - from the view of a "Non Exhibiting Manufacturer" *Brown Badge*

Not being an exhibitor means there is no "home plate" to return to after talking to people, no place where people know they can find you and so forth. That being said, not exhibiting has given me a lot more time to talk to the vendors that provide product to our company, and search out new products that might be of use to us.

There were not a lot of distributors on the show floor, but those that were there really wanted to talk, to learn and to get information. It made me sad that we didn't have a booth when I saw all of our competitors booth, but I still know that it was the right decision. Today, I will be signing up for a booth in Chicago - a great convention venue. My only question is whether I will get cold feet again next year and pull out. There are a lot of empty booth spaces on the show floor. Many manufacturers are missing in action. Will this keep distributors from returning next year?

More later and I should have a few pictures to post after I return to home base.

Dog Care While Traveling

I absolutely love my dogs -- Panda and Athena. They were both rescue dogs and they have brought me a lot of smiles, especially when they are stealing toys from each other, or demanding to be pet, or just running around being crazy. But, the thing I don't like is figuring out dog care when we go on a trip. It makes spontaneity a lot harder (such as on Friday saying "lets go away for the weekend"). Through the years we have used a kennel (where you had to pay extra if you brought your own food, and extra for daily walks in the woods), and house sitters (one ended up having a baby nine months later), to bringing to a person who had cabins just for dogs, and they had cable TV, and each cabin area had its own fenced in yard. (But then she moved to TN). And she didn't charge extra for walks! So, due to circumstances our current house/dog sitter is no longer available and I try to figure this out all over again. Standard kennels just won't do for these wonderful rescue dogs. Athena, the older one, just gets too strung out. (Panda is shown in the picture).

So, today I visited a lady with a fenced in yard, and a dog friendly house, and the dogs get the run of the house and the yard (sounds like here). Her rates are reasonable, not too far away from the house, and she had a good recommendation. Well, my dogs had a blast in her yard and house, were OK with her dogs, and we ended up sitting and visiting together for longer than I thought. Now, I can breathe easier and know that at least for my next few family trips I have dog care figured out. I mean, it is like hiring a sitter, not just anyone will do. Yeah, one problem solved.

09-09-09

Yesterday was my day! Look at the numbers that my birthday fell on! I invited some friends to lunch that did not know each other, but had all known me for somewhere between 12 and 20 years. And Dana who knew them all also came. I started out by telling the story of how I met each one of them. It brought some laughs, and reminded us of good times quite a while ago. And most of all, my friends got a chance to make some new acquaintenances.

Work was fun in a different way. We are having a 09 special during September in celebration of my birthday. About a dozen or so customers remembered the e-mail and the reason for the celebration and sent faxes and e-mails, and even sang happy birthday into my voice mail. Plus, at break they had a surprise for me -- big platters of fresh fruit (because everyone knows I am eating healthier foods now!), and a helium balloon to decorate my desk.

We had a simple dinner at home. I bought tuna at the Weaverville Farmers Market, Dana made some salsa with mixed cherry tomatoes (yellow and red) and jalapeno, and onion, from the market to go with the tuna and I pan fried some Okra with an easy new recipe I've discovered. The meal was great and a good prelude to the real event of the evening. We went to an "educational" wine tasting at a local wine shop. It was a blast. You know they say you should never stop learning, so the Wine 101 class was perfect. We learned about something we have always really enjoyed -- good wines. The presenter was excellent, and we liked 2 out of six (or was it seven) of the wines enough to buy them.

Today I had lunch with a friend who couldn't come yesterday. And, she had me tell her the story of how I met each person!  One of my presents to myself, is making time to stay connected to people.

All, in all, a great way to celebrate. Friends, Food and Wine!

Packing for Trips

I love to travel. I hate to pack. I know have all my toiletries ready to go, so no worries there. Packing for family trips is fine. Figure number of day and pack accordingly. I know whether it is shorts, or jeans, throw in a jacket, and ready to go. But business trips are another story especially when the trip involves a convention.

There are classes (informal), trade show time (business), social hours (business casual), traveling, down time and if we are exhibiting clothes to set up and tear down the show booth. One time I figured I needed 3 changes of clothing to get through just one day. Yes, I know all the tricks. I have black, and dark grey pants, I know to layer, and so forth and so on. But, it is the actual decisions of what I will bring that cause the problem. San Antonio was supposed to be warm, but it was cold, and even 3 layers couldn't seem to warm us up. And, I want to look just right, I am representing my company. So, which of my logo shirts will I bring? And which events will be in clothes without the company logo?

You can tell when I've had trouble with decisions. My suitcase gets heavier. With the new weight rules, that has stopped some of my over packing. So, I pack, and I make a list by day and event as to what I am going to wear. And, I pack the list on top. It does help, but it doesn't alleviate the stress. Need jewelry, need dress up shoes, need my charger and i-pod and lap-top, and like Alex books to read. And, I made it to the library book sale this past weekend, and bought a lot of books for only $1 or $2 each. If they are only fair, I give them to flight attendants when I am done with them. Need my notebook full of reservations, and schedules, and event details.

Yet, somehow I manage to always make the plane on time, pull it together, and look good. And only occasionally have to buy something extra that was forgotten. This weekend I pack for a convention in Orlando. I don't leave until Sept 15th, but I am already trying to figure out my wardrobe. The good news is that I cut back on the number of days I'll be gone, and the number of events I am committed to attending. I know every day this week when I dress for work I'll think, hmmmmm do I need this for the trip? If so, I better not wear it today. So, that is what is top and foremost on my mind this week. As well as getting through 2 weeks worth of work in one week, so I leave my desk looking clean and organized and have assigned jobs to be done to everyone else.

And, lastly, I have to figure out how to order healthier smaller portions in restaurants. I am getting better at it, but it is tough! And, why do the restaurants think healthy has to be bland (but that is probably another post all together). Any on the road eating tips would certainly be appreciated!

My Grandfather's Blog

My grandfather Robinson (shown in a picture from 1913) was what I now know to be a "blogger" with different technology. He had six children. So, to keep in touch, he wrote out his thoughts, and had his secretary type them into a letter with carbon copies - one for each of his children! When I was in college, my mother then mailed her copy of the letter to me to read. His letters were about his hikes, what different family members were doing, his work, and his life in Asheville, NC. Now, when I think back on these letters, I realize in essence he was blogging. Not just writing a diary for only himself to read (but there are volumes of his diaries that we still have), but his life to be shared to people that meant a lot to him. My only question in thinking back on this -- how was it decided who got the original, and who got the bottom carbon copy? Because, the bottom of 6 was always pretty light!

Oh why did I do this?

I have been enjoying AAA: Alex's Adventures in Asia and Nancy K Sews blogs for the past year. So, I thought today, I would set up my own blog. Now, I am wondering why? There are so many decisions to make -- style was the easiest, and then there are multiple choices to make that I have no idea how to answer. So, I did the best I could, I'll write a bit and then see how it all looks.

I was thinking that next summer I would start a blog about the Weaverville Tailgate Market. How, I go, find what looks appealing to me at that moment, and then create a meal around it. One of my favorite farmers, Paul, is always interested each week in hearing what I have made from the farmers bounty. But, that is for the summer of 2010. So why now?

I guess it will be a way to put down my comments as I travel. Lots of trips coming up, Orlando for a convention, then New York City to see Broadway Shows, then Chicago for a meeting, then Orlando for a family vacation, and next summer, Bryce and Zion Parks, and then Las Vegas for a family vacation. And who knows what else will go in between as my business and personal travel plans unfold.