The Prettiest Girl in Book Club
I do this thing where I like to pigeon-hole my friends into categories. It makes me feel somehow in charge of all these relationships. There's Jill, my most brilliant friend. Whenever I mention her I say 'Oh, she is brilliant.' This is to people who haven't met Jill. The ones who've met her already know, it's so obvious.
There's Marnie, a judge, another incredibly astute woman, who I never would have met except for my brief marriage to her brother. Our lasting friendship was worth that 3 year debacle. Then Allen, sweet and sensitive, my kindest most loyal Allen. Walter, a true spiritual guide, he sees right through all the bullshit. Karen, like a sister...like a mirror into my deepest heart. Jack, my funniest friend. He dishes out his wit with a straight face, which makes it even better. Tom, so handsome and urbane. When I met him I thought I could surely convince him to marry me even though he's gay. He's the only man I ever met that I wanted to introduce to my family. I thought they would be impressed by his sophistication. I figured if Elaine did it on Seinfeld I could too. Speaking of Seinfeld, there's my friend Carla, who was a great agent of mine for years selling my paintings, until she married the man who had directed Seinfeld for its first 6 years. I only see her now and then since he moved her up to a sprawling ranch in Northern California. She keeps inviting me to visit, but you know I just can't get on a plane. Carla is my most creative friend. You should see these photographs she takes of birds.
So I have a life full of special people, and really I could be out every night if I wanted to, but my favorite thing to do is nothing, and to do that alone, at home. Yes, there are several cats, so it's not really alone, but there's no talking involved. That's important. I should explain, it isn't exactly nothing that I do. I read. I read all the time. This is probably why I agreed to join the Book Club in the first place. It was the ex sister-in-law judge who invited me to join, and it was all women who were smart like her. Now that I think about it, they were all lawyers, doctors, judges, all worldly clever people. But there are different kinds of smart and worldly, and these were grown-ups with houses and families, and things they did at a desk that they got paid a lot for. In other words, very different from me. I, who will always rent (who needs the responsibility) and never had kids (who needs the responsibility), and never had a job that lasted more than a year. You get it now. So these groups met once a month on Friday nights, and they were all coming from work, and I'd be coming from a nap. They wanted smarty-pants repartee along with lots of wine. You know by now I don't drink, but being around drinkers never bothers me, so that wasn't a problem. It was the chatter...and not so much about the books, but about the families, and the marriages, and the kids, and sometimes even about sports. Sports! They were witty and quick and I felt like a 12 year old interloper in a group of her parent's friends. I even felt physically small...or maybe I was just shrinking in my chair realizing I had not one thing to say, and that NEVER HAPPENS!
But I continued attending for some reason, maybe because it was a 'club' and I had never been a member of a club of any kind, and I liked saying 'My book club' the way I used to like saying 'my husband' even though it was a trying relationship which I got out of as soon as I could. About 6 months into this club a new member arrived, Cynthia, a friend of one of the judges who she knew from her political activities. Here was a woman who lived alone with some cats, didn't go to a job and sit at a desk, but rather did things like saving monarch butterflies in her bathroom, and organizing a community garden in the neighborhood. Oh, and she was beautiful. She doesn't see it, but if you met her you would agree that she was a flawless beauty. She had everything going for her...great genes, compassion, charisma, that beauty of hers, and yet she had lots of problems and anxieties. I LOVED that about her. Give me a friend with free-floating fears and never-ending issues. Finally I liked the book club. When we met there would always be a dinner, and it would reflect the book. For instance, I chose 'The Power and the Glory', by the great Graham Greene. That night I made pollo adobado, black beans and rice, a jicama orange salad. When it came to be Cynthia's turn she chose a book entitled 'Rhubarb', which I'm sure she chose since she was growing a bunch of it in her garden. The book was disjointed and strange. I think I was the only one who liked it since it was about a woman who lived alone with cats. She made a strawberry rhubarb crumble and served it over vanilla almond milk 'frozen dessert'. Cynthia was strictly vegan of course, but there's nothing like real ice cream, even though I know it's mean to the cows. If you ever get some rhubarb be warned. It is a strange vegetable, bitter and fibrous, so you have to perform some voodoo to make it good. Most people add a lot of sugar and make it into dessert, but there are other things you can do. Don't let your free-floating fears hold you back.
Roasted Rhubarb Chutney
2 cups diced fresh rhubarb stalks (about 5 stalks)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
½ diced yellow onion
½ cup dried cranberries
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1/3 cup diced toasted pecans
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Juice of 1 orange
Juice of one lime
¼ teaspoon cumin
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
pinch cayenne
pinch salt
Place diced rhubarb in a ceramic casserole dish and place in a 400 degree pre-heated oven.
At the same time place the diced onion in another similar dish, which you have oiled, and place alongside rhubarb
After about 15 minutes stir both, and roast for another 5-10 minutes, until rhubarb is soft, and onions are translucent and a bit brown around the edges.
Let cool on counter for 10 minutes, and then add all other ingredients, and stir.
This is a chutney that improves after 24 hours in the refrigerator and the flavors marry. It has a tart edge and some heat because of the cayenne. This is perfect for chicken or lamb or use as a topping on plain rice or other simple grains.