Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution

Our family has been watching Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution on ABC. As he has done in his British shows, Oliver gave himself a mission to get people cooking and eating healthily. In this show, produced by Ryan Seacrest and Oliver, Jamie headed to Huntington, West Virginia, one of the most unhealthy places in the US, according to a recent report.

He took a multi-pronged approach to the task of getting Huntington to start eating healthily. He took over the kitchens in two schools. In an elementary school, he started by observing what the kids were being fed: pizza (for breakfast and lunch!), french fries, chicken nuggets, and so on. Changing the menu, he was met with considerable resistance by the cook in charge of the kitchen, although other cooks were more supportive. He also got out into the classrooms, and was horrified that the children couldn't identify even the most common vegetables. A second visit yielded much better results, after a teacher took it upon herself to teach the kids about vegetables. One revealing segment showed Jamie in front of a group of children, cutting off and discarding the "good bits" of a chicken, then throwing the leftover carcass into a blender, before grinding it down and forming and cooking chicken nuggets with it. In Britain, kids had been disgusted; here, the kids, pulled faces while the preparation was taking place, but were quite happy to eat the resulting nuggets.

In a high school, he took a different approach, getting a group of students to work with him. One girl had lost her Stepfather to obesity-related heart disease. Another girl had had been told that she might not live more than seven years, unless she radically changed her diet. One boy had anger-management issues and had been in trouble a lot. Jamie and the kids took over a local restaurant for an evening, and invited the kids' parents and various local dignitaries. They thought Oliver would be cooking, but he had taught the children, and they cooked. He brought the kids out at the end of the evening to let them tell their own stories. Jamie also took over the high school kitchen, where he met with some challenges due to the USDA guidelines for school meals. While his stir-fried noodle dish containing seven vegetables did not meet the requirements, a chicken patty in a bun with french fries, and the option of a salad (the kids were steadfastly ignoring that option) did so easily. Oliver argued that the guidelines encourage the use of processed rather than healthy food for kids.

Jamie has also been working with individuals and families, teaching them to cook simple, nutritious meals from fresh ingredients. He set up a store, "Jamie's Kitchen" where the public could get free cooking lessons. A local radio DJ who started off as a very vocal opponent of Oliver, was gradually won over. Jamie bet the DJ he could get a thousand people through his kitchen learning to cook during the course of one week. The DJ was the thousandth and lost the bet.

Although the show seems a little more scripted, and more manipulative than the British equivalents, people seem to have become very emotional about it, and there has been quite a lot of discussion on Twitter, Facebook and various blogs. Will it succeed in its goal? I think that if it makes a few people want to do something about their unhealthy lifestyle, it will have helped.

Have you seen the show? What do you think?

Exercise and British Old-Time Radio

As someone who spends a lot of time sitting in front of a computer (I work from home, and most of my volunteer and other activities involve computer work), I've been very conscious recently that I'm not getting enough exercise. I recalled Stephen Fry on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross (and elsewhere) talking about how he'd lost a lot of weight and become fitter by walking. Being someone who easily got bored by exercise, he had discovered that he could cover long distances without realizing it, simply by listening to audiobooks on his MP3 player while walking. This appealed to me, so I decided to do a similar thing. I would start walking in the vicinity of my daughter's school before picking her up, listening to my MP3 player on the way.

Being a cheapskate, I thought I would try to find some free audiobooks online. After asking around on Twitter and my Facebook page, someone suggested trying The Internet Archive. This site is a vast repository of texts, audio and video in the public domain, all free to download. I discovered a lot of audiobooks, but what caught my attention was that there were also many old-time radio shows. I downloaded some and I have been listening to them on my (mostly) daily walks.

Being a good son, I usually talk to my parents on the telephone every Sunday. During a recent call, I mentioned to my Father that I had been listening to these old-time radio shows. He started talking about some of the radio shows he remembered from his youth. On a whim, while we were talking, I did a search in The Internet Archive, and found a collection of episodes of radio shows from the 1940s. These were all shows that he had loved.

ITMA, one of the most popular of these shows, starred comedian Tommy Handley. ITMA was an acronym coined by the newspapers when reporting about Hitler's activities, and stood for "It's That Man Again." Other shows in this collection included Much-Binding-in-the-Marsh, Merry-Go-Round, The Will Hay Programme, Life With The Lyons, (which featured American couple Ben Lyon and Bebe Daniels and their children), and Band Waggon, the first regular comedy series on British radio. There's an amazing array of famous comedians and actors who appeared in these shows; Tommy Handley, Arthur Askey, Kenneth Horne, Hattie Jacques, Jon Pertwee and Charlie Chester, to name a few.

Of course, there are many "in-jokes" and references to long-forgotten events that go over one's head. But a lot of this stuff is still really funny. Not only is it a great way to pass the time while exercising, but I shall also be making a CD compilation of these as a gift to bring back some memories for my Father.

I thoroughly recommend spending some time exploring The Internet Archive to rediscover an old favorite, or to find a new one! Let me know what you find, or share some memories by making a comment.

Behind You! - A Guest Post by Becky Gudgin

During our recent trip to England, we went to a theatre in Wales to see a Pantomime, that most British of theatrical events. I was going to write about it here, but then I was struck by the thought that it might be even better to get a genuine American's interpretation of the spectacle. Now, where can I get one of those? Oh, that's right, I'm married to a genuine American!

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I’ve been asked to explain British pantomime. I am not British. My husband is. But we both recently went to our first panto, Sleeping Beauty, in Swansea, Wales.

A British panto is the retelling of a classic fairytale in musical form. The lead players are usually well-known actors from TV, stage, etc. Some of the lesser characters are brought in or well known local actors. The ensemble consists of kids and adults who are local actors/theatre students. Audience participation, in the form of "boo", "yay", "awwww", etc., is encouraged. There is often a good and/or bad fairy, a simpleminded comedian who interacts with the kids in the audience and a "dame"- a guy dressed in bad drag. There is a lot of innuendo meant to go over the heads of the kids and entertain the adults, much of which comes from the dame. There are local jokes and references to the main actors' best-known roles.

This play had Sleeping Beauty, her father the King, the Prince, Silly Billy (the simpleminded comedian), a dame (Nurse Nelly), a good fairy (yay!) and fairy “Bodybag” (boo!!!). The Prince and Sleeping Beauty played the story straightforwardly. Everyone else went back and forth between moving the story along and just goofing around - improvising and entertaining the audience while the set was being changed, etc. The first act was fairly close to the plot of the fairytale. It began with Sleeping Beauty being born and the fairies lining up to give her gifts. Bodybag was not invited and thus cursed the baby to prick her finger on a spinning wheel and die before her eighteenth birthday. It ended with Sleeping Beauty pricking her finger on a spinning wheel despite the best efforts of the Prince and the King.

At some point the audience was thrown sweets (candy) and squirted with water guns. (My daughter was sorely disappointed not to get wet.) Nurse Nelly meanwhile, picked out some hapless guy from the audience and flirted with him shamelessly from the stage for the whole show. A somewhat traditional scene had Billy and Nurse Nelly baking. They were making "toad in the hole" - a British dish with sausages hidden in a kind of bready batter. Aside from the sausage innuendos, there was flour flying in Billy's face and smoke from the oven that prompted the audience to obligingly shout "Look behind you!"

The second act was a departure from the fairytale. Of course the good fairy had changed the curse from death to a sleep of 100 years. How was the Prince going to live 100 years to awaken her? She sent him flying thru time! The flying scene was fantastic with wonderful special effects. I leaned over to my daughter and said "[The Prince] is flying". She condescendingly whispered back to me that he was just on strings.

When the Prince landed, he went to Sleeping Beauty and awakened her. But Bodybag was not done. I am afraid to tell you what happened next! Being a huge fan of the actor who played the Prince, I was prepared to storm the stage but I held myself back. The bad fairy tried to steal the Prince! She hypnotized him and tried to get him to marry her! (Boo!!! Hiss!!!!) Sleeping Beauty showed up just in time and he was saved by the power of love. (Awwwww!!!!) Then Bodybag turned into DRAGON Bodybag and tried to stop them. The swashbuckling hero fought the dragon and eventually killed it. The closing scene with plenty of singing and dancing was Sleeping Beauty’s eighteenth birthday party combined with her wedding.

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Space didn't allow Becky to include all the Pantomime traditions we were treated to. Wikipedia has an excellent description of Pantomime, and how it works, if you want to find out more. And of course, we welcome your comments and questions.

Couch Potatoes: England 2010 Part 3

As I mentioned in part 1 of this series, we had a lot of snow during our recent trip to England. This was not a bad thing; we really needed a break, and these trips often result in us tearing around the country. We spent most of this visit simply relaxing with my family, watching TV and listening to music.

I generally try to keep up with the British music scene, but I'd really let things slip in recent years. Fortunately, my brother had brought a lot of recent music with him, and so I was able to catch up. A few years ago, I "discovered" Goldfrapp, a synth duo led by Alison Goldfrapp, who wear their influences (Glam Rock, 80s synthpop) on their sleeves, but La Roux, another suitably retro synthpop duo, were new to me. Anyone into early Vince Clarke should give them a listen. I'd heard a bit of Lily Allen, but really hadn't taken the time to listen to her clever lyrics. Another thing I appreciate about her two albums is how she embraces different music genres. Be warned, though; Lily, is a bit of a potty-mouth! I first heard Paloma Faith, a quirky chanteuse, on Jools Holland's New Year's Eve show, Hootenanny. Also on that show I heard Florence and the Machine. Singer Florence Welch didn't impress me much, live, but I did enjoy her album, Lungs. Although he's not a British Act, I did miss bluesman Seasick Steve on Hootenanny. He attained worldwide fame after being on the show a few years ago, and has appeared several times since. Fortunately, my Father had recorded some of his other TV appearances for me. I was also thrilled to hear about the imminent release of the movie biopic of Ian Dury, Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll, after seeing starring actor Andy Serkis (Gollum from The Lord of the Rings movies) being interviewed on TV.

Among the TV shows I watched was the second part of the Doctor Who special, The End of Time, a wonderful farewell, both to star David Tennant and writer/producer Russell T. Davies and an introduction to new star Matt Smith. After avoiding Big Brother for years, we got hooked on the final series, Celebrity Big Brother, and had to follow news about the show when we returned to the US (Cage-fighter Alex Reid, boyfriend of model/reality TV star Katie Price beat Dane Bowers, ex-boyfriend of Price!). A big fan of cooking shows, I discovered the delights of The Hairy Bikers, who motorcycle and cook around Britain. Their most recent series, Mums Know Best, feature the bikers visiting Mothers around the country, persuading them to share their favorite family recipes. Their homemade fish and chips recipe had me salivating! One thing I really miss about British TV is the wide range of great shows about wildlife, both native and around the world. Some of these make it to the US, but not nearly enough. Fortunately, my family is a big fan of these shows, so I got to see lots of them, including a Christmas special produced by Springwatch. I also enjoyed Wild at Heart, starring Hayley Mills, about a British Vet starting a game park in South Africa. Unfortunately, an American version of this show was canceled in 2008, due to poor ratings.

Do you have a favorite recent UK music act or TV show? Have I missed a gem or two? Please do share in a comment!

The Great American Heathcare Debate

Entering a clinic in the US for the first time many years ago, I was shocked to find that the very first office door that greeted me was labeled "Financial Consultant." Shocked is not too mild a word to use. I think my Wife was surprised by my reaction. I really found it offensive. She was just used to it.

Healthcare is a huge issue in the news right now, as one of the things that President Obama promised if he got into power was "universal healthcare." Because I come from a country with so-called "socialized medicine," I have been asked many times just recently about how healthcare works in Britain. This is hardly surprising, since opponents of the proposed plan have often said things like, "We don't want a system like Britain or Canada" as if this is a bad thing. Even my own Doctor, during a routine check-up, started quizzing me about whether I preferred the US or UK healthcare system. I told him that, although not perfect, the National Health Service in the UK did ensure that everyone, whether they could afford it or not, was covered. His response was that anyone in the US could get free treatment in hospital emergency rooms. I didn't get a chance to say what I really wanted to, that I thought it would be really nice if the poor didn't have to wait until it became an emergency. Those who cannot afford health insurance either put off treatment, often until it's too late, or fill emergency rooms with non-emergency cases, stretching those already overworked departments.

Criticism of the National Health Service, mostly unfounded, by American opponents of Obama's plan has had a surprising effect amongst the British. A British friend wrote to me, "4 million Brits twittered in defence of the NHS almost crashing it. The debate is happening here---Fox news found an MEP (not MP), who defended the American 'healthcare only for those who can afford it' system, to spout some hysterical rightwing piffle. It has had a dramatic effect---the conservatives have gone from a shoe in, to an even contest in a week." He was talking about the opinion polls comparing the incumbent Labour party with the Conservative Party.

Conservatives in the US have been raising a very noisy protest against the proposals. Past vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin started talking nonsense about Obama creating "death-panels" of bureaucrats who would make life or death decisions about our nearest and dearest. While Obama and his supporters have talked about 47 Million people in the US being uninsured, there are people who deny those figures, mentioning illegal immigrants (who wouldn't be included in the count anyway), Millionaires (this includes property which people would have to sell if they needed healthcare) and people who are in the process of switching insurance. The figures are probably much worse, because poor people often take a gamble on health insurance, taking it out some years and not others.

The right-wing have also gotten many ordinary working people scared that they are going to lose their choice of coverage. In the UK, if you can afford it, you can take out insurance and be treated privately. However, if you cannot afford to do this, you're still covered. This is what's being proposed in the US. In fact people will have more choice, not less.

These scare tactics take advantage, I think, of a deep-rooted "take care of yourself" ethic in the US. Another friend of mine, this time in Canada, said, "They keep saying 'I don't want to be socialized' like public health care and caring about our neighbours is a bad thing." I think that not only is universal healthcare the right thing to do, especially for the richest country in the world, but it's short-sighted for individuals to only consider their own situation right now. What happens if you get laid-off from your job, or want to start your own small business? US healthcare is big business, and that is where I believe things go wrong. The health of our people is essentially an issue of infrastucture.

Do you still think the US healthcare system works just fine now? The World Health Organization would disagree.

What do you think? I'd love to hear from you.

I Don't Get Guns, Cowboy

I'm now convinced this is an irreconcilable cultural barrier linked to "The Old West" and other historical events, but I cannot get my head around the American fascination with guns.

Mrs. Adolph Topperwein. [with gun] (LOC)

How ever many times someone says "guns don't kill people, people kill people," I have to say that if that person didn't have a gun in their hand, they probably would not be doing as much damage.



I know there has been a big problem with knife violence in Britain, but I believe there's a fundamental difference between using a knife and a gun. You use a knife, and you actually have to connect with the person you're attacking. Forgive me for putting this image in your head, but you have to feel it going in your victim. With a gun, it's almost like pushing a button - there's no connection. Plus there's all that room for "collateral damage," not to mention gun accidents.



I originally thought the guns/no guns argument was political - that Republicans were pro-gun and Democrats were anti-gun, but that's not entirely true. On a semi-related theme, I can't understand why someone can think that keeping records of gun-owners is an invasion of individual's privacy, while at the same time thinks that keeping DNA records of participants at a perfectly legal political protest is fair game. Or for that matter why so many "pro-lifers" are also pro death-penalty.



Having talked about guns, I will point out an interesting fact for the benefit of my British friends: Maybe it's just the circles I move in, but despite living in New Jersey (legendary home to mobsters and all sorts of shady characters) for more than ten years, the only people I've ever seen with a gun in real-life are cops.

Marmite - Love It or Hate It?

There are only a few British products I must have in the US. Branston Pickle is one of them (and I am sure that will be the subject of a forthcoming post here). Marmite is another. When I first moved here, I had some difficulty finding it, and so I instructed English friends coming over here to bring a jar over. I have since found it from time to time in the so-called "International aisle" at some grocery stores, and I usually make a point of picking some up if I see it in a place like that, because it can be expensive in specialist British food stores or online.

If you have never heard of Marmite or you are not certain what it is, I am not sure a description will suffice. Of course, even if you know what it is, you may be one of those in the "Hate It" camp. Marmite is a great divider. People either love it or hate it. The manufacturers of Marmite have actually exploited this characteristic of their product, and "Love It or Hate It" has become an advertising slogan. The official Marmite website even has Love It and Hate It sections. I love it. The rest of my family hates it.

So what exactly is in the characteristic glass jar that causes such a love/hate reaction? Originally a by-product of the brewing industry, the thick, salty, sticky dark-brown goo is yeast extract. It is also rich in Vitamin B complex, which helped sales of the product when vitamins were discovered in the early 20th Century. It was also given to troops suffering from beriberi (a vitamin deficiency) during World War I. The name Marmite comes from the French word for an earthenware pot, and it did originally come in an earthenware jar. You can find out more about the history of Marmite on the Marmite Wikipedia page.

It has a very strong taste. Often used as a spread on bread or toast, I recommend people to spread it very thinly, so as not to be overpowering. Many people enjoy it with cheese in a sandwich. Because spreading the thick substance often destroys soft bread, the company introduced a slightly thinner product in a "squeezy" plastic jar ideal for this purpose. Unfortunately, this has resulted in the removal of the cute 57g size jar from the product range.

Marmite is also produced in New Zealand, although it has a different flavor, being slightly sweeter than the British version. That product is available in New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific Islands. Readers may also be familiar with the Australian product Vegemite. I have always described Vegemite as "Marmite for Wimps."

What else can you do with Marmite? An English friend, Emma Bruce, recommends it spread on toast with scrambled egg on top, or in a sandwich with cucumber. Chef Gary Rhodes came up with some recipes featuring Marmite, to help celebrate the launch of the "squeezable" product. A British photographer, food blogger and host of an underground restaurant who goes by the nickname of MsMarmiteLover even came up with a special menu, which featured Marmite in each dish, for an evening at her dining establishment. It apparently went down rather well!

So where do you stand on the "Love it or Hate it" question? Do you have any favorite recipes or Marmite stories? Let me know!

British Y-Front Sales Boosted by Recession

How timely! After talking about pants/underwear/underpants/trousers in my last blog post, the latest news from the BBC is that sales of Y-fronts have increased by 35%, according to British store Debenhams. In fact, sales of Y-fronts have overtaken sales of boxer shorts for the first time since early 1990, interestingly, the last time Britain was in a recession. A spokesman from Debenhams said,"They provide a much greater sense of security than loose-fitting boxers, and perhaps, in these troubled times, that's what men need to feel."

And with that brief (hah!) newsflash, which will no doubt thrill my friend Sheila, who for some reason is fascinated by Y-fronts, I wish you a great weekend!

A Community Within a Community - Carmen's Story

I met Carmen Villadar (@digitalfemme) on Twitter a while back, when we had an impromptu brainstorming session about business start-ups in the current economic climate. It was enough to convince me that we have very similar views about many things. Then she very kindly offered to proofread my blog posts and offer comments before I published them. It's great to have a second opinion before I "go to press."

When I started wondering about how other people coped, living in a country other than the one in which they were brought up, Carmen was an obvious person from which to solicit an opinion. She was born in The Philippines, but immigrated to Canada when she was three. After spending her childhood and young adulthood in Toronto, she moved to Texas to pursue a career in nursing. She lived in Texas for eleven years.

Participating in Second Life, a popular online "virtual world," Carmen met a man from Frankfurt, Germany. Cutting a long story short, they fell in love, and Carmen moved to Frankfurt in 2007. Once she was able to get her work permit, she became a freelance business English trainer. She now works in Business development for a company that is seeking to expand into Europe.

I wondered whether she had become involved with local organizations as a way of trying to become part of her local community. Actually, Carmen has taken a slightly different path. While she has been able to meet her personal goals, it seems to me that she is not sure whether she has really succeeded in becoming part of her community yet.

Each time she has moved, it has been because of a personal connection she has made. When she moved to Texas, it was because a family member living there recommended it. Her move to Frankfurt came about because of "Second Life."

Carmen has made many of her connections online, via Social Networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. Her current job came about after a conversation on Twitter with an employee for the company and a Facebook chat with the CEO. Perhaps more importantly, these sites enable her to remain connected to friends from Toronto and Texas and to chat in English with friends around the world.

One of the biggest barriers to becoming completely comfortable in Frankfurt, where she currently lives, is not being fluent in German. What she has done to get around this is to build her own community, really a "community within a community." She has started a couple of networking groups in Frankfurt, Frankfurt Girl Geek Dinners, and Open Coffee Club Frankfurt. She feels safe within this microcommunity. Instead of breaking out into her locality, she invites people from outside to join her.

It occurs to me that Carmen could do what she is currently doing in Frankfurt in just about any part of the world. Could she be part of a new breed of "World-citizen," living in a world without borders?

I would love to hear your comments about Carmen's story. Perhaps I can persuade Carmen to stick around and answer any questions you have.

Adjusting To a New Community - Hannah's Story

A Guest Post by Hannah Katsman from A Mother in Israel.

I met Graham via Twitter and our mutual friend @leoraw from Here in Highland Park. On Twitter, Graham asked others to share the role that organizations play in cross-cultural adjustment. I offered to write about my experience immigrating to Israel from the U.S. with my husband and oldest child eighteen years ago.

Moving across the street takes a period of adjustment. Moving across cultures takes a lifetime. I went from being someone whom others consulted, to asking for help with the simplest tasks. When do the stores open? Where do I get a driver's license? How do I open a bag of milk?

Operating in a new language added another layer of difficulty. I spoke and read Hebrew. Yet I found I couldn't argue with the bank manager, or make small talk with the woman in the elevator. I could tell that the news was reporting on a sports game, but didn't catch which team won. Unless someone took pity on me, I had to ask for help or remain frustrated.

Besides my husband, who worked long hours, his aunt and uncle were the only people I knew in town. In the US I had many friends and could make new ones with confidence.Now I was an outsider, and forming new friendships took effort.Still, I made it a priority.

Humans want to feel needed, not needy. And the best way to feel needed is to become part of a community or group where you can contribute your time and skills to others. I was lucky to have a ready-made community that welcomed me.

A few days after I arrived a woman named Annie brought me to a talk at the local English-speaking chapter of a women's organization. The next time I was called about a program, I offered to make phone calls. It didn't take long for someone to invite me to join the chapter's committee where we organized meetings and fund-raisers, and had a great time. Annie and the women I met there are still my closest friends in Israel. They are my community and substitute family.

I reached another level of inclusion ten years later, after training to work as a volunteer breastfeeding counselor. Helping mothers allowed me to connect to women on a basic level and to overcome linguistic and cultural barriers. I remember when I ran into a native Israeli mother who had recently discussed her difficulties with me. She smiled warmly and held out her hand to take mine. At that moment I did not feel like an outsider.

I wish I could report that the warmth she shared remained with me until today. But after eighteen years the "Israeli" mentality can still drive me crazy. There are days I miss my family and old friends and wonder whether I will ever "belong." Then I remember that everyone feels misunderstood, displaced, or lonely at times. And I recall that through my role in local organizations I have made a difference (I hope) in the lives of others in my new, imperfect country. And that has made the difference for me.

Thank you, Graham, for giving me the chance to share my story.

You can read more about cultural adjustment, mothering, Israel and the Jewish community at my blog, A Mother in Israel. Or follow me on Twitter: @mominisrael

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For those who want to read more from Hannah, here are a few posts from her blog that I particularly recommend:

Cultural Differences

Interview: A Christian Mother in Israel

Your Daughter is Smart, But . . .

Between Two and Four

When Neglect is "Normal"

As always, I'd love to hear from you. I'll make sure that Hannah sees any comments you leave here for her. Also, I'd like to hear from others who are living in a country other than the one they were brought up in. I'm thinking of starting a little guest post and/or interview feature.

How I Got To Know My Community by Getting Involved

As I have written before, when I first moved to the United States in 1998, I was unable to work, since I was awaiting approval of my work permit. I didn't relish watching daytime soaps until I could work, so I started looking around to see what was happening in my new hometown. One day, I spotted a newspaper article about a local organization called "The Center For Community Renewal." I was intrigued, but a little wary that the group might be full of right-wing nutjobs who wanted to gentrify the town. The article included a telephone number, so I decided to call up to get a feel for the organization and what they were doing.

The person I talked to invited me to the group's next meeting, and I accepted. When I attended, I found a roomful of ordinary people, mostly involved with other local nonprofit and community groups. What they had in common was a feeling that Edison, New Jersey, along with many other places was suffering from a lack of community. Led by a Husband and Wife team, Ian Durand and April Cormaci, the group was brainstorming ideas about projects and programs that they thought might help foster a renewed sense of community.

Being part of this group led to a number of things for me. The people, in what was usually referred to just as "The Center," represented a wide range of people in the area, and I found out a lot about Edison very quickly. I made some excellent friends, people who are still friends today. It also got me involved with The Friends of the Edison Public Library, of which I am now President and my Wife is on the board. Above all, I found it an excellent way to connect to my adopted home. I would personally recommend that anyone moving into a new community try finding a local organization to join.

I would be negligent if I talked about my involvement with The Center For Community Renewal without saying a little about this unique and wonderful group and its origins.

In 1997, a friend told Ian Durand that he was not fulfilling his potential, and challenged him to come up with something completely different from anything he had done before. What Ian, a Canadian by birth but a longtime resident of Edison, came up with some months later was The Center. Many meetings with friends and family ensued. In a weird twist of fate, Ian's daughter was driving along a major road in Edison when she spotted a wallet. She stopped to pick it up and found contact details in it. The wallet was returned to its owner, a man named Dock Houk, founder of The National Heritage Foundation. In appreciation, Dock set up The Center as a non-profit under the umbrella of his organization and donated $1000 to get it started.

In Early 1999, Ian and his Wife April took a course during which they were challenged to create a major project unlike anything they had done before. Ian came up with a "Family Fun Day" in a local park. April came up with the idea of a huge book sale. That's the point at which I came in. "The Edison Book and Arts Fair" was the first of many local projects in which I became involved.

Have you joined a local organization as a way to get to know a new community? Have you found other ways to help with this process? If so, we would love to hear from you, so please leave a comment.

O'Halloran's Irish Pub, Fords, NJ - an Irish Lament

I went out last night in search of a beer or two and some adult conversation. I had planned to visit "In-Laws," which stands where O'Halloran's irish Pub used to be. I discovered it had closed down. Several bars have been and gone there since O'Halloran's closed its doors. I ended up going to The Liberty Tavern, also in Fords, NJ, which was ok, but it reminded me of how much I miss my favorite local pub. If I could write lyrics, I would probably feel inspired to write a song.

It would seem appropriate that any song about a lost, lamented Irish Pub would have to have an Irish flavor to it!

They knew how to keep their Guinness in great condition. The food was good, even though for some inexplicable reason, they made round, flat, fried potatoes instead of authentic chips. The jukebox had a great selection, and the live music was always good. The staff were always friendly.

Above all, what kept me going to O'Halloran's was the people it attracted. Intelligent, friendly folk, who enjoyed stimulating conversation as much as a good pint.

O'Halloran's Irish Pub - Gone, but not forgotten. Sadly missed.

A New Jerseyan in England

I had a very interesting conversation via Twitter, the social networking site, over the weekend. I was talking with Debra Denton, known on Twitter as @debra47, an American woman married to an Englishman and living in England. In addition to us living in each other's countries (she also comes from New Jersey) and being married to a native, we have quite a few other things in common. She is also a blogger. Her blog is Power Pop Review. We both moved to another country to get married quite late in life. We also both met our spouses over the Internet because of a mutual love of music. As I have mentioned on this blog in the past, I met my Wife on the Internet discussion group for singer-songwriter Dar Williams. Debra met her husband on the now sadly defunct music site Audiogalaxy.

Our conversation began when a comment about wine evolved into a little conversation about single malt scotch, which I adore, but cannot really afford here in the US. Debra developed a taste after a tour of a whisky distillery a while back. What became the most interesting part of our conversation started when she asked me what I missed about England, apart from fish & chips and single malt scotch. I told her I missed my local pub. Of course, I might be missing it even if I was back in England. We talked about the alarming rate at which pubs in the UK are closing (at the time of writing, six pubs are closing each day). High beer prices and a recent ban on smoking in pubs seem to have resulted in most people deciding to stay at home. There they can smoke, drink cheap supermarket booze and watch their widescreen TVs.

Debra told me that what she misses most about New Jersey is being able to find a diner, with a huge, reasonably priced menu, open 24 hours a day. She believes that she is healthier since she moved to England, because she is able to walk much more than she was able to in New Jersey. Although my particular neighborhood is pretty walkable (I told her my family had walked to a new diner just the previous day, much to her surprise), much of New Jersey is not pedestrian-friendly. People get in their cars to drive a few blocks. On recent trips back to the US, Debra noticed that many "downtown" areas (town centres) have disappeared as large superstores appear on the outskirts of towns, pretty much sucking the heart out of them.

In my adopted hometown, Edison, New Jersey, many people work elsewhere, and only come back to Edison to sleep. With their long hours, there is no time to get involved in things going on locally. This is happening in the US and in the UK. Debra suggested that perhaps this lack of community is what has drawn both of us, along with many others, into Internet-based groups. I suggested that if more companies allowed their workers to telecommute when practical, it might help restore local communities because people would be around much more, and it would help the environment. Many employers fear that if they are not standing over their workers, they will waste time. However, I have found that telecommuting, with its lack of physical distractions, often results in increased productivity.

We discovered that we were both regularly asked, "Do you prefer it over here or over there?" We have the same answer too: "There's good and bad in both." We can both honestly say that there are things we love and dislike about our countries of birth and our adopted homes. We are caught between two cultures and we get the best and the worst of each.

We also both get comments about how our accents have not changed. Debra is asked a lot if she is a Canadian. I wondered if that was perhaps because people hoped she was not American, because in the UK, Americans have often been tarred with the "Bush brush." Debra says that she has certainly experienced some anti-Americanism, but that it seems to be subsiding since the election of President Barack Obama.

I have invited Debra to write a guest post in this blog, and she has said that she would love to. I think it would make an interesting counterpoint to my own posts here.

Are you living in a country other than the one in which you were brought up? Perhaps you have a friend in this situation. Please do post a comment and share your observations.

The Trouble with Religion and Buses

A storm has been brewing in Britain, and it is starting to spread. Last month, in response to a newspaper article by comedy writer Ariane Sherine, the British Humanist Association raised £140,000 (a little over $200,000 US) and launched a poster campaign on the sides of buses. The posters read, "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life." This slogan cleverly used the same "probably" device Carlsberg beer used years ago in its "Probably the best beer in the world" campaign, avoiding litigation. The Advertising Standards Authority immediately received complaints from Christians, and a story about a Christian bus driver refusing to drive an "atheist bus" made the headlines. The driver eventually agreed to drive the bus if there was no other available, and complaints about the campaign were recently overruled.

Just a few days ago, the campaign ended, and several religious groups have stepped up with their own campaigns. The Christian Party (who are planning to run in June's European Parliamentary elections) have "There definitely is a God; so join the Christian Party and enjoy your life." They also aim to raise money by encouraging people, for a $2 fee, to text "Amen." The Trinitarian Bible Society has "The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God." (from Psalm 53.2), and the Russian Orthodox Church plans ads that read, "There IS a God, BELIEVE. Don't worry and enjoy your life." In addition, several weeks ago, the British press featured a story about a nurse in North Somerset who had offered to pray for a patient during a home visit. The patient had complained, and the nurse was suspended from duty pending a review. Atheist organization The National Secular Society supported the decision to suspend her. The nurse, who was previously asked to go on a diversity and equality course after a similar incident, was just reinstated.

Three out of four people in the world consider themselves religious. Nevertheless, atheism and agnosticism has gained ground in richer countries, especially in Europe. Some say this is a reaction to the increase in religious fanaticism and faith-inspired terrorism.

Now I see that Humanist organizations want to try the bus campaign in other countries, most notably Canada. Vancouver nixed the idea.

As I noted in my blog article about his inauguration speech, President Barack Obama mentioned non-believers together with Christians, Muslims, Jews and Hindus. Now, religious groups are angry that President Obama has been reaching out to atheists.

The issue of atheism and religion is not going away. In the USA, where the First amendment to The Constitution supports a separation of Church and State, it is notable that non-religious Presidential candidates stand little chance of being elected. Contrast this with Britain, where Tony Blair very publicly embraced Catholicism only after his term as Prime Minister had ended.

Where do you stand on this issue? Please do post your comments.

Adding locations to The Great Fish & Chip Map

Here are some detailed instructions on how to add a location to The Great Fish & Chip Map:

1. Here is a direct link to the map
2. If you are not already logged into your Google account (or you don't have one), click on the Sign In link at the top right and sign in using your Google user name and password. (If you do not have a Google account, click on the Create an account now link and follow the instructions).
3. To the left of the map, a check mark should have appeared next to The Great Fish & Chips Map. Click on the Edit button and you will be able to add to the map.
4. You can enter an address in the search box and click the Search Maps button. When you find the location, you may click the Save to My Maps link and add it to The Great Fish & Chips Map. Once you have done this, you may type the details into the area that appears and click OK.
5. You can zoom into or out of the map using the slider control. Using the "hand" cursor, you can click and drag the map wherever you like. A double click will zoom into the area where you click. (NOTE: you may have to wait a few moments until you see all the detail in a map)
6. Another way to add a location is to use the "Add a placemark" (Pushpin) icon, one of the four icons near the top left of the map. It is the second one along. Click on it, then click where you want the placemark to appear. You will then be able to type a description. You may also format your description, or add photos or links, etc., using the tools near the description box. When you have finished, click OK.
7. When you have finished editing, click the Save button, then click Done. Remember to Save what you added before clicking on the Done button, or else what you added will not be saved.
   
8. Your favorite fish & chip shop should now appear on the map.
9. If you experience any problems, please contact me using one of the methods shown in the right-hand column of this page, or post a comment to this entry.

The Great Fish & Chips Map

Some of the comments about my blog post, The Quest for Fish & Chips, led me to realize that there were probably some great places to have fish and chips in the US. I just had not found them yet. I also recalled American friends of mine who had visited Britain and told me that they had tried fish and chips while they were there, but unfortunately found a bad place to have them.

Inspired by this, I came up with The Great Fish & Chips Map, an interactive world map where you can add your own favorite places to have fish and chips or find a place to have a good example of the dish.



View Larger Map

You can center the map on a different area by clicking and dragging. You can double click to zoom in on an area or double-RIGHT click to zoom out again. The pushpin symbols are the locations of good places to have fish & chips. Click on one to get details.

If you want more control, or you want to add a location, click on the View Larger Map link underneath the map.

How to add a location - Note: you will need to have (or create) a Google account, since the map is hosted at Google Maps

If you do wish to add a location, please keep it positive. Remember, this is a map of good places. Feel free to enter any comments or other information about a location.

I would love to hear what you think of it, so please do post a comment here. Likewise, if you have any problems using it let me know, so I can perhaps make improvements.

The Quest for Fish & Chips

One of the first things I do whenever I visit my family in England is to treat everyone to fish & chips. Invariably, I am craving them weeks before we go. My parents always warn me that the local "chippy" serves huge portions and not to get too much. I still end up with loads left over, even after we all have heaping plates. The chip shop near my parents' house is not the best, but it's not bad. They're nice people and it's close, so the food stays hot. They also serve mushy peas, the smooshed up processed peas, most often consumed in the North of England, that my Wife has inexplicably developed a taste for.

Since moving to the US, I have often been "tricked" into trying meals posing as fish & chips. My Wife was very excited when a fast food joint close to where we lived changed to a branch of Arthur Treacher's Fish and Chips. The food was about as authentic as the premise that Arthur Treacher (an English character actor known for his portrayal of "The perfect English Butler" in movies of the 1930s) had anything to do with fish & chips. Encouragingly, they had malt vinegar, the best authentic condiment, on each table. However, the chips seemed to be made of extruded potato, and quite bizarrely, the meal came with hush puppies (fried cornbread balls) and coleslaw. I have frequently seen my favorite listed on menus, and just about every time I have been disappointed. The best fish and chips I tasted here were at O'Halloran's, the Irish pub I wrote about recently.

Nevertheless, the best fish & chips are British, and a little over a week ago, Chef Simon Rimmer announced the best of the best. Anstruther Fish Bar in Fife, Scotland, beat off about a thousand competitors to win the 2008 title National Fish & Chip Shop of the Year. The shop was frequented by Prince William when he was at university and has also been visited by Robert de Niro, Robert Duvall and Tom Hanks. Organizers Seafish said, "one in every £100 spent on food is in a fish and chip shop" and that chip shop profits are increasing as the economy gets worse. Chippies are caring about sourcing food responsibly too. The winner of the 21st annual award "serves ethically sourced North Sea haddock, Pittenweem prawns and Shetland organic cod from the world’s first sustainable solution to wild cod fisheries."

I'll settle for cod (or the more responsible choice, pollack) and chips at my parents' local chippy. How about you? Do you know a great place to have fish & chips? Please post a comment and let me know.

Only in America

It's like arriving late for a party, I know, but I am so naive that I've only relatively recently discovered that with a little common-sense and a bit of searching I can find (not always legitimate copies, of course) British TV shows available on the web. I was very happy to find a copy of the return of Friday Night With Jonathan Ross that aired on the BBC last week. For those who don't know, The BBC suspended Ross for three months following a stunt when he was a guest on a BBC radio show. Jonathan returned with a great line-up - and an apology for the prank. Tom Cruise, British comedian Lee Evans and one of my favorite Brits, Stephen Fry were his guests.

Stephen is always an interesting guest. He and Jonathan talked about Twitter (Fry and Ross are both Twitterholics), and how Fry had been trying to lose weight by walking long distances (his recommendation: walk while listening to audiobooks). They joked about what it would be like if Stephen had played Tom Cruise's part in Jerry Maguire: "Would you be kind enough to exhibit the money?" Perhaps the most interesting things I thought he had to say this time, however, were about America and Americans.

Fry recently made a series, Stephen Fry in America, where he visited each of the fifty states. He explained to Ross how he loved America, visiting often, and even having an apartment (flat) in New York City for a while. He said that, generally speaking, he had found Americans to be "honorable, polite, kindly, well-intentioned, thoughtful" and that any ideas of the British that Americans were a "morass of pig-ignorant fools" said much about a British superiority complex (ultimately an inferiority complex). He contrasted the American attitude, "Let's try it!" with the British attitude, "Oh, no...no...no."

I had a moment of recognition when he talked about the phrase "Only in America." He explained how in the US, the phrase was often used to describe something extraordinary happening. It's an optimistic phrase. He said that if there was a phrase "Only in Britain", it would bring to mind things like queues, rain, incompetency - "no, no you can't!" Of course, he omitted another use of the phrase "Only in America", oft used by Brits when they see some of the outrageous stories about America and Americans in the news. Things like frivolous lawsuits, someone leaving their entire estate to a cat, and so on. I find it fascinating how, depending on where it is used, one phrase can mean completely different things.

Can you think of any similar phrases that have different meanings like this? Please do post a comment and let me know.

Previous post about Stephen Fry

In Search of the Perfect Pub

English Diarist Samuel Pepys apparently wrote that the pub was England's heart, while the church was its soul. Not being much of a churchgoer, I can't say a lot about the state of religion in England, but I do know a good pub when I see it!

Pubs have been part of the British culture for hundreds of years. Most Brits are used to having a local pub within easy walking distance. We usually call this our "Local." Whenever we walk in, we know there will be someone there who knows us. We can "put the world to rights", drink to celebrate, drink to "drown our sorrows" or just be with friends. We'll meet our neighbors, old school-friends, and a selection of pub-poets, pub-politicians, and people who will help you fix your car, paint a room, or offer to get you anything you want, no questions asked.

When I first moved to the US, my dear Wife B. told me she'd spotted a place called "Polo Pub" on her way to work that might be worth checking out. I think she had visions of English gentry in jodhpurs talking about horses. Actually, the people who owned the Chinese restaurant next door also owned this particular establishment and there was even an open doorway joining the two places. It was not particularly British!

On a walk down to the nearest strip-mall (small arcade of shops), I discovered "VW's." In front, it was a liquor-store (off-license); in the back was a bar. A little rough-and-ready, it did however contain an array of regulars, and the bar-staff were very friendly. I spent quite a few evenings there. I even took my brother when he came over on a rare visit. When they stopped selling the draft beer I enjoyed there, I started going less frequently.

We moved to a different area of town and I discovered two pubs within walking distance. One was quite close but a little unfriendly, the other much friendlier but quite a hike.

Then, a wonderful thing happened - an Irish pub, "O'Halloran's", opened up within easy walking distance. Catherine, a Dubliner, ran the new pub, in what had once been a restaurant. It was a magical place. They had good live music, and the regulars were the kind of intelligent people with whom you could have interesting conversations. The food was tasty too. You could have real fish and chips with malt vinegar, or bangers and mash (sausages with mashed potatoes), for instance, and wash it down with great draught Guinness. There was rarely any trouble there.

Unfortunately, the business began to struggle financially. It's traditional in our area of New Jersey for people to go to the "shore" at the weekend during the warm months, and a quiet summer put the final nail in the coffin. Catherine, very embarrassed by the failure, said little before the closure, although a fine party took place on the last night!

The pub became a "sports bar", and encouraged the very young. I have been there a few times since O'Halloran's closed, but it's not a patch on its predecessor. There is one other place reasonably close by, and a local band I knew from O'Halloran's plays there sometimes, so I pay a visit occasionally. Now there isn't a good bar within walking distance, so these days I am content to stay in with my family on a Friday night, and they are glad that I no longer come staggering back at 3 O'clock in the morning.

Do you have or remember a favorite bar or pub? Leave me a comment and tell me a little about it.

The Myth of American Exceptionalism

I listened to a very interesting piece on the Diane Rehm radio show yesterday. Godfrey Hodgson, Associate fellow at Rothermere American Institute at Oxford University, talked with Diane about his new book The Myth of American Exceptionalism.

"Almost from the nation’s founding, Americans have thought of their country as having a unique role in the world. A British commentator explains why he believes the U.S. is not as exceptional as it often believes."

Don't think that this is simply an outsider's view. Professor Hodgson spent many years in the US, as a reporter for The Washington Post, working in 48 of the 50 US states.

The piece is long, but worth spending the time to listen to in its entirety.

Godfrey Hodgson: "The Myth of American Exceptionalism" (Yale) - Diane Rehm show, Thursday January 15, 2009

Here's a link to the book: The Myth of American Exceptionalism