Spring Rain (Masaoka Shiki)

 




spring rain:
browsing underan umbrella
at thepicture-book store

La Chansonette

        Planning anything, with the sole, small, chance exception of total confusion, was impossible.  

        Idea kleptomania and virtual murder seethed from the third and fourth floors.

        Pigs I like enormously.  For that reason, I won't say the malefactors were "raised in a sty." 

        I'm trying to communicate clearly here in order to avoid total confusion, which I abhor in the same way nature abhors a vacuum.

Key:

1. Eugène Atget, Impasse de la Baudorie, Rue de Venise, Paris, 1890. Vintage albumen print, 22.2 x 17.9 cms.

2. Eugène Atget, Ancien Hotel de Jumilhac 12, rue de l'Abbe Gregoire, 1905. Vintage albumen print, 21.8 x 17.5 cms

3.  La Chansonette -- Yves Montand performance at l'Olympia, Paris (Link)

 

Independence Dependence (July 4th Pancakes)

Maine lake and piney woods

        Jane was only home from Cambridge a few days before leavingfor summer camp in Maine.  She’s never been tosleep-away camp before and wanted to try it out.   Some other local girls attend this camp,which looks like a splendid place for our energetic, athletic daughter and,apart from the satisfaction I hope to take in making this further contributionto her development as an adolescent and independent person, Caroline and I willtravel to Maine to visit her mid-way through her summer, which will benice. 

State of Maine -- Admited to Union in 1820;  Capitol city is Augusta

        Despite the long planning that preceded her departure, itstill seemed sudden and rushed to me, with a lot of loose ends dangling, includingthe sizeable amount of unused pancake batter Jane left in the refrigerator.  Caroline, who has been suffering with adreadful flu-like illness that we suspect Jane brought back from the UK, discoveredit when she finally rose from her sick-bed yesterday looking for something to eat.

Chocolate-chip pancakes

       As a child (despite her budding maturity and rich andsophisticated sense of sarcasm, THE age-appropriate attitude and rhetorical device), Jane likes to make chocolate chip pancakes,something most adults do not prepare for themselves.  Recently, she has progressed from using theBisquick packaged pancake preparation (which is extremely good) to the traditional basic Joy ofCooking recipe.  It was this batter Janeleft behind, but with the key difference that her recipe this time included aquantity of excellent cut-up, locally grown Pennsylvania  strawberries. 

Maine blueberries

        Seeing Jane’s bequest, and also spying some unused, stillfresh local blueberries adjacent to them, Caroline combined that fruit intothe batter and prepared a remarkable, original (to us, at least) breakfast, onethat combined various dark, light, sweet and bitter notes.  After nourishing herself and retreating tobed, I tried the what remained of the pancakes while clearing the kitchen and formed the same, stillunspoken and not-yet-shared thought that she had  – that this would be a very good summerdessert recipe combined with some vanilla ice cream.  

 
Glorious strawberries

        When we actually spoke about our telepathic menu union, wefound that although we were basically on the same page (we both agreed, forinstance, that the quantity of dark chocolate chips needed to be reduced fromJane’s generous levels), there was one salient difference between us.  Caroline thinks we should stick with the Joyof Cooking recipe, but I think a lighter, “French-ier” crepe recipe would bebetter for dessert purposes.

French-style crepes

        We have been married for so long (and happily) that we areextremely familiar with each other’s personalities.  Therefore, on many occasions I have found that there are really nosubjects that are too trivial to argue about, so this discussion went on for a while.   Finally, we agreed totry both recipes (with chocolate chip and fruit quantitiesremaining approximate; really, that’s a question of personal taste) to see which version works best.  Should any reader care to essay for themselves this comparison/taste test, please let me know which preparation you prefer.  Given the red, white and blue elements in the dish, I would definitely say that this is fare suitable for July 4th celebrations.

Charles de Gaulle, President of France and First Lady of the United States, Jacqueline Kennedy, Paris, June 1961

        I’m distraught and somewhat despondent not having my daughter around,but I am doing the best I can to cope. Everywhere I visit, people ask about her.  It has become extremely clear that I have faded into the generalwoodwork of my own life. When I’m around Jane, I feel like President Kennedy must have felt when he said:  "I am the man who accompanied Jacqueline Kennedy to Paris",  as he began his June 2, 1961 press conference in Paris.  

Maine summer camp waterfront

        We’ll be visiting Jane in Maine toward the end of themonth.  Based on a couple of Maine visitsduring the past decade – the first since my own dreadful summer camping youth –Bob Dylan must have had me in mind when he wrote "I Shall Be Released"  -- I’m looking forward to the trip. Maine is really beautiful.

Recipes:

[1]   Basic Pancake Recipe:  This Mark Bittman pancake recipe, which was published in the New York Times, is very close to the Joy of Cooking recipe.  I've chosen to use it here because Bittman's recipes are generally excellent and extremely clear:

An important thing to remember about the cooking part is this -- that you have to preheat the skillet or griddle, or the first batch will be nearly worthless.   To determine when the pan is hot enough to take the batter, heat it over medium heat until a few drops of water skid across the surface before evaporating.  A well-seasoned cast iron pan will need little or no butter or oil, but if you choose stainless steel or aluminum pans, use plenty of butter, the net result will be that the pancakes will taste better.

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon of sugar, optional

2 eggs 

1 1/2 to 2 cups of milk

2 tablespoons melted and cooled butter (optional) plus unmelted butter for cooking, or use neutral oil.

Method

Heat a griddle or large skillet over medium-low heat.  In a bowl, mix together dry ingredients. Beat eggs into 1 1/2 cups milk, then stir in 2 tablespoons melted cooled butter, if using it.  Gently stir this mixture into dry ingredients, mixing only enough to moisten flour, don't worry about a few lumps.  If the batter seems thick, add a little more milk.

Place a teaspoon or two of butter or oil on griddle or skillet.  When butter foam subsides or oil shimmers, ladle batter onto griddle or skillet, making pancakes any size you like.  Adjust heat as necessary, usually first batch will require higher heat than subsequent batches. Flip pancakes after bubbles rise to surface and bottoms brown, after 2-4 minutes.

Cook until second side is lightly browned. Serve or hold on an ovenproof plate in a 200-degree oven for up to 15 minutes.

Yield: 4-6 servings

Time: 20 minutes

[2] Basic Crepes Recipe (from Bon Appetit)

Ingredients 

2 large eggs

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup unbleached all-purpose flout

1 1/4 cups (or more) milk (do not use low-fat or non-fat)

Melted butter 

Method

Whisk eggs and salt in a large bowl.  Gradually whisk in flour, then 1 1/4 cups milk.  Strain into medium bowl.  Let stand 1 hour.

If necessary, add more milk by tablespoonfuls to batter to thin to consistency of heavy whipping cream.  Heat 8-inch diameter non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.  Brush with melted butter.  Pour 3 tablespoons batter into skillet and swirl to coat bottom evenly.  Cook until top appears dray, loosening sides of crepe with spatula, about 45 seconds.  Turn and cook until brown spots appear on second side, about 30 seconds.  Turn crepe out onto plate.  Repeat with remaining batter, brushing skillet with butter and stacking crepes onto plate.

Makes 8 crepes

Note:  Although this piece is clearly drafted in a slightly "misty" (as Maynard G. Krebs would say) mood, I live in expectation of Jane's return, showing her how to make crepes and then standing aside as she masters the skill and begins, as I know she will, to surpass the great masters of the art.  She's very good at this sort of thing.  I will also tell her about my father, who was something of a crepes suzette king, a talent, other difficulties notwithstanding, that lands clearly on the credit side of the ledger.

Credit side of the ledger (and its "other"). 

Preparing crepes suzette at Restaurant Laserre, Paris

With Jane Avril (La Melinite) At The Moulin Rouge

Unknown photographer, Jane Avril at the Moulin Rouge, c.1892. Musée Montmartre, Paris.

          Nicknamed La Mélinite after a powerful form of explosive, the dancer Jane Avril  (1868-1943) was one of the stars of the Moulin Rouge in the 1890s. Known for her alluring style and exotic persona, her fame was assured by a series of dazzlingly inventive posters designed by the artist  Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864-1901).

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Jane Avril poster, 1899

           An exhibition, Toulouse-Lautrec and Jane Avril: Beyond the Moulin Rouge, will be on view at The Courtauld Gallery in London from 16 June to 18 September.  

      Jane Avril became an emblematic figure in Lautrec’s world of dancers, cabaret singers, musicians and prostitutes. However, she was also a close friend of the artist and he painted a series of striking portraits of her, which contrast starkly with his exuberant posters.

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Portrait of Jane Avril, 1892

 
           In contrast to Toulouse-Lautrec, who was a member of one of France’s oldest noble families, Jane Avril was the daughter of a courtesan. Born Jeanne Beaudon, she suffered an abusive childhood and, aged thirteen, ran away from home. The following year she entered the formidable Salpêtrière Hospital in Paris to be treated for a nervous disorder popularly known as St Vitus’ Dance.

16th century reliquary bust of St. Vitus

          It was at one of the bal des folles, the fancy dress balls which the hospital organised for its patients, that she took her first dance steps and found both her cure and her vocation.   New research undertaken for the Courtauld exhibition examines the connections between her eccentric movements, described by one observer as an ‘orchid in a frenzy’, and contemporary medical theories of  female hysteria. Her experiences helped shape her public persona and, as a performer, she was not only known as La Mélinite but also as L’Etrange ("the Strange One") and Jane La Folle ("Crazy Jane").

This person had good reason to be hysterical

             Although she also sang, Jane Avril’s true vocation was as a solo dancer and she devised her own choreographic routines and dress. Combining sensuality and ethereal detachment, her remarkable performances captured the imagination of artists and writers alike.

       Lautrec's  friend, Paul Leclercq, described the scene:

          ‘In the midst of the crowd, there was a stir, and a line of people started to form: Jane Avril was dancing, twirling, gracefully, lightly, a little madly; pale, skinny, thoroughbred, she twirled and reversed, weightless, fed on flowers; Lautrec was shouting out his admiration.’ 

Nadar, Photograph of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec posed in Jane Avril's clothes, 1892

       

Melinite (picric acid) explosion, June 22, 1887 at the Roberts, Dale and Company plant in Cornbrook, England resulting in the destruction of the factory and the death of one worker.  

Photo: TUC Library Collections, London Metropolitan University.



Reader Note:  The remarkable photograph in first position above (which I had never seen before) of Jane Avril in action prompted this post.  It reminded me (I need constant reminding) that history is real.  (I will not essay an opinion about what reality is.) Based on the picture, I find it very easy to imagine speaking to Jane Avril in the same way that reading Oscar Wilde's letters makes him seem like a person you might very well speak to, and speak to easily, fluently and enjoyably, today.  

Much of the text here is borrowed from the Cortauld press release announcing this very worthy exhibition, which I would like to see, but probably will not.  The photo of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec by Nadar is another image I had never seen before.  It's surprising, but sweet, I think. 

The melinite explosion at Cornbrook is tragic, but more proof that history is real, like the photo I posted Here two days ago of the June 16, 1915 battle on the farm in Hooge, which I discovered, to my great surprise,  by accident on its anniversary date. 

50 cc air de Paris

“You’re really like an art object because people pass below and see you,” said the host as he poured us real glasses of Champagne.

The coup de grâce, fat slices of chocolate-chestnut cake with gingerbread ice cream, had most of us bursting from our shirts. I felt like a puffer fish in a Japanese aquarium.