11.22.2008


Isn't She Lovely?, originally uploaded by jimturbert.

Marleen and I participated in the Snoor Parade at de Kunsthal today. She fooled them with this silly disguise. She's a crafty one. Snoor means mustache by the way.
I ate another olie ball today. I am not sick of them yet. I don't have anything of substance to share with you, so I will go now.

Best,
Jim


Snow Tracks, originally uploaded by jimturbert.

It's freaking snowing in Rotterdam. Shit is crazy.

Reporting live,
Jim Turbert

11.20.2008

things are progressing nicely at our place.  it's still messy after the arrival of our stuff, but it gets better and better everyday.  
i just want to tell you about olie ballen.  olie ballen (literally oil balls) are balls of dough fried, often with raisins, that have been deep fried and covered with powdered sugar.  sounds kind of like a doughnut, right?  well, marleen tells me that olie ballen were the inspiration for our (we, the americans) doughnuts.  i believe it, but i've never had a doughnut that tastes like this.  the oil ball is much denser and chewier.  i'm not going to say it's better than a doughnut, but it is a lot different, and given the fact that i am accustomed to the american doughnut, this is exotic and special for me.  i'm told that all of the olie ballen i've had so far, are of average quality.  i am very anxious to eat an exceptional one.  
also, i've been eating dutch goat cheese.  it takes the same form factor as normal dutch cheese, and it seems to be treated in the same way.  the only difference in its preparation is that goat milk is used instead of cow milk.  i must tell you that i love it.  like the doughnut versus olie ballen, it's not a matter of one being better than the other.  it's that they are similar yet different in so many ways.  i wish i could fully explain why this is.  i suppose the goat cheese is smoother.  it has a sweeter flavor, and the texture is finer than normal dutch cheeses.  the great thing is that this is not a specialty item.  you can buy it in the supermarket.  i've seen two varieties, jong (young) and belegen which means aged.  i've come to accept belegen as sharpness.  as a citizen of flavor country, i always choose belegen, but i'm sure the softer jong cheese is also incredibly delicious.  maybe i'll buy some today.

until next time, 
jim 

11.06.2008

My goddamned stuff finally arrived this past Tuesday (56 days later). The boat actually arrived in the Netherlands on October 17, but due to the chronic ass sucking of the moving company (more of a broker actually), it just arrived this week. Do not ever, under any circumstances, use a company called Global Ocean Freight for any sort of moving. They are unreliable and uncommunicative. The only thing they are good at is making sure you have paid them. If you would like more info, feel free to e-mail me about them.
I just thought I'd post a little something from the glorious moving day. I'm really excited to have my bicycles, and it's great to have a couch. I will not miss the inflatable air mattress we were using for seating, and I will not miss the lawn chairs we were using for dining furniture. A new day is dawning. A day that includes my stuff. It is awesome. As awesome as it is, it takes a long ass time to set up. Listening to music through decent speakers makes unpacking better, but things are still chaotic and crappy. That said, it gets better every hour. Here's a little video of my motorcycle coming off the truck.


Tot ziens,
jim

11.01.2008

"Delicious on Bread"


Hot Dogs in a Can, originally uploaded by jimturbert.

I was in the supermarket earlier today, and I saw hot dogs in a can. The idea of hot dogs in a can is not a pleasant one for me. I understand that hotdogs are a pretty low-brow food in general, but there are some examples of non-schwaggy wieners out there. When I was growing up in CT, my parents used to buy Mucke's, and they were really good. Boston has Pearl and Kayem, not to mention a wide assortment of national (and maybe international) brands that make an equally high-quality product (Hebrew National, Maple Leaf). Hot dogs don't need to be nasty mystery meat that was going to get tossed out anyway. The better ones are made from fine cuts of beef or a mixture of beef and pork. It's true that there is a lot of cartilage, fat and other ingredients that I don't care to discuss in most varieties of the hot dog, but I'd like to let everyone know that quality dogs do exist. Of course, the existence of hot dogs in a can does not help my case. Putting any meat in a can does not inspire folks to say things like, "Now this is good stuff!" Meat in a can is historically undesirable. Think of Spam, or anything made by Dinty More. Having canned hot dogs bearing the label "According to the original American recipe" on the shelf of Dutch supermarkets just reinforces the stereotype that Americans are a classless people with no culture or cuisine. I love eating hot dogs, and I love eating hamburgers. It appears to me that bastardized versions of delightful foodstuffs (like canned hot dogs and MacDonald's hamburgers) ruin an otherwise glorious thing for the rest of the world. Read my words. Tell your friends. Let everybody know.

Sincerely,
Jim Turbert