Why am I blogging so infrequently? My original plan had been to write fresh content once a week, but sometimes, my work gets just too hectic to take the time. This week, however, I’ve been spending literally hours with T-Mobile tech support, beginning Sunday afternoon, trying to get my Palm Tungsten E2 PDA to connect with the bluetooth from my Motorola Razr cell phone so I can get e-mail and Internet Access from my PDA. This way, I can go on short business trips and not take my laptop.

I depend on my handheld as my datebook and directory — I love it because it’s so light and easy to transport. I’ve had a PDA for years, updating each time to a newer models with richer features. The Tungsten is my fifth PDA, and I thought it would be the answer to all my technical dreams. [more…]

When my mother was a young, she worked as a clerk in a grocery store. All the goods were stacked behind the counter and the customers handed her a shopping list. My mom gathered the items, rang up the sale, then had the groceries delivered.

We grew up in the age of supermarkets. Mom, armed with her weekly shopping list, was only too happy to push the grocery cart through the aisles and pick up what she wanted, instead of having to wait for someone to get it for her. And the supermarket offered tremendous variety, unheard of in the grocery stores of her youth.

Today, the supermarket is only one of the many places we purchase food. The options for the consumer are staggering, with more types of stores selling food every day creating a battle for market share and the need for each type of retailer to stay on top of their game. [more…]

Food is about culture, nourishment, politics, science, nutrition, craft, art, society, geography, science, economics, health, emotion…there are so many aspects to food, sometimes we forget that food can simply be fun. Here are ways to play with your food.

Set the Japanese Table
My cousin Lori who lives in Hawaii e-mails me fun food links from time to time. Here’s a quick game with silly music and very cute graphics that will make you smile. The game is called Put the Dishes on the Table. Memorize the location of each dish, click on the “memorized” button next to the time clock (the long oval button to the right containing Japanese characters) and put the dishes back in their places.

The Iron Chef — in LEGO Land
Whose cuisine reigns supreme? For a wacky spoof on TV’s cult Japanese hit, Iron Chef, check out this six-minute video that captures the music, sounds and flavor of the original — all with LEGOS — called LEGO Chef. With LEGO people outfitted in toques and smocks and LEGO judges including the classic characters (the giggly starlet and the fortune teller), it’s a hoot. The actor on the judging panel is “Sean Connery.” This is the brainchild of Steve Iervolino and is distributed by IFILM. Be patient — you have to view the commercial before you can get to the production. [more…]