Blog Archives

For the bread .. Pour le pain

2/1/2015

FRESH BAGUETTE AND FRENCH CHEESE ON KAUAI

Today I went to Living Foods Market to purchase fresh baguette and a wedge of Henri Hutin triple crème Belletoile to smear liberally over the bread. I couldn't get back to our office fast enough to enjoy the treat, even forgetting to grab a plastic knife in my haste. As "good cheese fortune" would have it, the Belletoile was soft enough to "slather" with a spoon.

Let the French Feast on Kauai begin.

First bite ..

yielding crust followed by wondrous texture ..

Someone knows how to "craft" a baguette .. right here on Kauai !

Then the cheese .. soft, elegant, flavorful ..

rich beyond imagination.

Nothing can compare .. in my mind this is the perfect marriage of creativity borne by need .. basic sustenance taken to the highest level of refined simplicity. And, as always, a poignant reminder of France .. half a world away.

Look Out !

Here they come again ..

visions and memories of French life ..

stimulated by the taste, the feel, the experience of a well crafted baguette ..

the elegance of a superlative Belletoile.

With that first bite, I was reminded of an enjoyable meal preparation at the apartment in France last September and my mind began wallowing in that self pitying place of "wish I was there"..

Until

I looked outside our office window and watched happy visitors from around the globe as they inhaled and feasted on the beauty of this magnificent island.

Flowers, ocean ..

swaying palms & backdrop of emerald green ..

enhanced by temperatures inviting shorts and sandals only ..

January 31st ..

Winter.

____

For the record

I hereby file a formal complaint:

Living Foods Market in Kukuiula Village Shopping Center - Poipu, Kauai, Hawaii ..

How dare you hire a Master who studied under an Austrian bread maker in Australia !

What audacity .. such nerve .. complete and total disregard for those of us who believe

Incredible Loaves can only be attained elsewhere.

To allow such a wonderful product being placed before us ..

To display no shame or remorse whatsoever for creating melancholy amongst us ..

Blatant plagiarism .. re-creation of ancient art ..

Causing us to revive wondrous thoughts of places where

Bread

Continues to be a revered entity.

Have you no heart?

Who is this Maestro?

How dare he cause me to think I may be in Paris !

But ..

I may have need of another loaf ..

just to be certain my critique is well founded ...

____

My wonderful Daughter-in-Law responded to a statement I made this week ..

I stated:

"So many places ... So little time"

Her response:

"But the best place is the one where we are ..

and I'm living it to the fullest ..

enjoying every bit!"

With the wisdom of that reminder ..

I will continue to recall a special afternoon of meal preparation south of Versailles last September, but with a newfound base of enjoyment for that as a memory and rejuvenated thankfulness for the present.

However

Living Foods Market in Kukuiula Village Shopping Center - Poipu, Kauai, Hawaii ..

I put you on notice!

Should you ever even remotely consider letting loose

that young Master who studied under an Austrian bread maker in Australia ..

you shall suffer a strong verbal admonishment from this camp.

Please understand ...

I may want to dream of France again tomorrow ..

with fresh baguette and a wedge of Henri Hutin triple crème Belletoile ..

making it the best day ..

right where I am ..

from Kauai to Paris .. and all places between
____

Merci and Mahalo to Bread Makers Everywhere!

Bill

IN THE KITCHEN .. LAST SEPTEMBER .. SOUTH OF VERSAILLES

13 Comments

Writers Dream

1/24/2015

14 Comments

Writers Dream

What if they die ..

those picture machines?

no buttons to push ..

no photos and screens?

Image contrived

by manual means ..

humanly crafted

falsified dreams.

Will panic erupt

in agonized screams

when laziness challenges fate?

When reality is "return to script"

.. my senses cannot wait

Create your canvas

by each new thought

of mind's pure crafted themes ..

then

relish the day of returning words ..

New life !

without photos and screens

Facker
January 24, 2015

14 Comments

Mindshield Wipers

1/17/2015

14 Comments

Pu'u Road on Kauai is my therapist, my health guru, my place of inspiration, my perfect muse.   Pu'u Road is my walk.   What a blessing it is to wander from the front door of our home into the beauty of this island on a daily basis. Many times I have exclaimed to visitors I am one of the luckiest 67,091 people on the face of Earth .. this being the current population of Paradise.

Of course, living in paradise does not automatically create the perfect existence .. this is our individual calling .. happiness being within.  I'm certain there are happy people living in the least hospitable of places and unhappy folks right here on the Garden Island .. C'est la vie.

I want to be happy and the walks on Pu'u contribute greatly to that goal.  A typical pace keeps me on the trail for one hour and forty five minutes each day .. one hour and forty five minutes to contemplate and process the current state of life. These hours of  trekking around Pu'u have provided many "aha" moments over the years .. nature's gift of peace in solitude, causing me to constantly be aware  I am indeed a fortunate man.

This morning I walked, and ran, and jogged, and thought.

Possibly you've had this same mental rumination ..

Asked for guidance .. got guidance ..

Loudly .. Clearly

"Quit Asking! .. you are equipped with everything you need ..

just turn on your Mindshield Wipers ..

let the light in"

I didn't hear "knucklehead" or "dumbass" at the end ..

but ...

_____

Wishing each of you your own Pu'u Road ..
and great Mindshield Wipers

from Kauai to Paris .. and all places between

Aloha,
Bill

14 Comments

Blood on the Floor

1/15/2015

10 Comments

I stand on Kauai

Marvel of nature

Calming .. soothing .. healing ..

Cleansed by the rains of Wai'ale'ale

__

Brilliant colors kiss her

Rainbows adorn her

And the ocean

The ocean

__

She soothes

Invigorates my soul

Provides serenity

Simply by being

__

Sun balanced breezes

Music of water with sand

The great creation

Absolute perfection

__

Mother

Declare your beauty

Sweet aromas

Soft flowers of life

__

Kiss them

Remind them in Paris

Your tears will wash away

Blood on the Floor

Facker
January 14, 2015

10 Comments

Masterpiece

1/10/2015

16 Comments

She breaths,
inhaling essence of each residing soul ..
She breaths,
exhaling brilliant flashes of creativity.

Paris,
kaleidoscope of humanity ..
higher and lower than imagined ..
darker and brighter than perceived.

She continues,
physical embodiment of our gifts ..
champion of illumination
piercing through darkness.

City of Light ..
stimulator of higher thinking ..
validator of progress ..
Masterpiece.

Facker
January 10, 2015

Crying for Her

wielding my pen for enlightenment ...

from Kauai to Paris .. and all places between

16 Comments

The Greatest Invention

1/5/2015

6 Comments

October 4th, 2014

Relinquished my car at Charles de Gaulle's rental area and made my way to

Novotel Paris CDG Roissy Hotel ..

Sadly

~

I was leaving the next day .. despondent as usual pending departing ..

Anxious to get in my room for a hot healing

Shower

~

The room was attractive .. comfortable .. acceptable

The shower large and tile covered

Inviting

~

I entered the capsule of liquid solace

It was good

Hot

~

And then ..

Like a tiny mosquito blessed with the unyielding gift of perseverance, it appeared. One of the hundreds of holes in my shower head was mal-functioning .. only one .. but to a degree only Satan could have orchestrated. Try as I did, there was no remedy for the tiny stream of water shooting over the glass wall of my shower stall onto the bathroom floor. The shower head was "fixed" .. not able to turn left or right .. and the tilt function did not allow enough motion to keep that "Little Squirt" from acquiring freedom over the wall. The best I could do was arrange a wash cloth in such a manner to suppress the stream. This remedial action created an irritating dynamic of water dripping oddly from the shower. Frustration of unwanted "drippage" plagued me again the following morning. That miniscule orifice destroyed my greatest pleasure.

~

The only thing I really care about in a hotel is a wonderful shower

I can't sleep .. the joy of travel is only achieved by

hot water

~

Paris to Los Angeles is eleven hours and forty minutes in the air. I spend one night in LA to refresh, recharge, and prepare for the flight home to Kauai the next day.

~

October 5th 2014

I enter my room at the lovely Sheraton Gateway LAX Hotel

Carrying angst from the "Little Squirt" in Paris

Ready to shower

~

The water was hot .. the showerhead flawless

All was in alignment for perfection

The drain backed up

damn

~

I shall remember that trip

~

October 6th, 2014

My world exploded in joy

hot water washed over me in waves

no "drippage" .. no "Little Squirts"

no scummy soap filled pool creeping up my legs

only

The Greatest Invention ..

Home

And that's how it is ... enjoy your shower

from Kauai to Paris .. and all places between

Mahalo et Merci,
Bill

6 Comments

For the bread .. Pour le pain

Writers Dream

Mindshield Wipers

Blood on the Floor

Masterpiece

The Greatest Invention

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