Chocolate Wafers on White Pillows

I was away on a trip for a while. Now I'm back. I think bloggers should be blog-exempt while they travel, if it suits them. I still wrote; it's just that none of you folks saw what I wrote, because I was away and not wanting to sit at a computer. That's part of the reason to take trips, in my view--get away from the trappings of your day-to-day activitives and taste the real flavor of the world.

Plus I was busy. I went to a food writers' smposium at The Greenbrier in West Virginia. I can't say enough glowing things about the Greenbrier--first off, their scholarship made it possible for me to attend the symposium. And they put me up in style. I'm not used to staying at such lodgings, places where mints grace the pillows at turndown and staff emembers at every level take the time to greet you with a smile. As a service industry worker, I'm used to being the person who creates the hospitality. Being on the reciving end felt great!

I'm glad to be back home, though. It's nice to be able to eat a plain old apple when the fancy strikes you. The food at the Greenbrier was demandingly equisite in that it was fine and rich. My system was not pleased. I may have put on a few pounds. Before and after the Greenbrier I stayed at my loving parents', and that meant more food. What is there to do at home but eat? Sheesh.

Speaking of food--when am I not, I suppose--here's a link to a story about organics that makes a few points I am right behind. It's not about the dark side of organics as much as it is the gray areas. Today I need to go buy a ton of groceries at a few markets, since my dear husband cooked not one bite while I was gone and our food supply is lean and wilted. Off to Berkeley lala land I go!