The past 3 weeks have been so busy for me. Shoots, events, preproductions, meetings aside from all the planning and administrative stuff I am in charge of in school…something had to give. I had a shoot last Monday, and I had spent after work last weekend on a wild goose chase for passionfruit and fresh lychee (which I did not find), the perfect mangoes, lemons and maybe 3 other fruits. Alas, I keep skipping my Vitamin C daily and I guess my throat was the first to give. Right after that shoot, I came home, feeling sick with a migraine and a really horrible pain in my throat. Now it’s day 3 and I’ve skipped work last Tuesday…went yesterday only to find out that my fever came back with a vengeance today. So today was my Quality Alone Time…well, I wasn’t exactly alone since my dog, Jack was with me the whole day, and I was able to spend a relaxing day of reading and enjoying the light in my room. So here was what I was reading for today…my special alone day!
On Food and Cooking by Harold McGee – This is one of the Culinary Institute of America’s bibles. When I went there for continuing education a few years back, this was mentioned to us by so many people…from profs, to classmates, to people in their mess hall…this was the bible. And you can see why when you read it. Now, I know I haven’t quite finished it yet, and I read in trickles since there is just so much complex information to digest. This book is definitely for the nerds (that’s me!) , the ones who just won’t take “do this and that” and who love to ask why. This book explains everything from the molecular level. In milk, they talk of history, to uses, to reasons why raw milk gets a skin on top…to fat globules and why the cream separates from the milk…it’s just fantastic! Usually when I have a shoot or some recipe testing to do, I try to read up on it using this book…just about that particular food, because it tells you the standard, how food behaves (and believe me, this is important in food styling) the hows and whys…and the best way to execute the dish to get perfect results!
My Dog is A Genius – I found this at a second hand bookstore and I was pretty amused. I’m reading it hoping to gain a greater understanding on how to develop Jack’s full potential (as soon as I found out that Golden Retrievers are one of the most intelligent breeds of the canine world, I was hooked!) as well as a little primer on dog whispering and behavior. I like this book since it’s not too technical, and yet pretty much sums up what you need to know.
So that’s it from the food stylist with a horrible sore throat today..I’m wondering if I could go to work already tomorrow. I think I enjoyed alone time, really.
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