Will Work for Pork & A Birth Announcement

Pictured here is the newest arrival at Deep Roots Ranch, a little calf named Calvin. If you click the picture, you will see an extra-large version: I wanted everyone to be able to see his underbite. Calvin's mother, the unfortunately named Paris Hilton (Jean and Bob didn't name her), rejected little Calvin at birth (celebrity mothers!). This is not as terrible as you think: he's bottle-fed three times a day, and it makes it easier to milk Paris without separating her from her offspring.

Meanwhile, he tags along after Roy, constantly frustrated in his attempts to find Roy's udders. Roy is patient and forebearing. Life is good.

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ANNOUNCEMENT: to the woman who left the comment that Justin Severino is destined for Saveur magazine, asking where the heck the website is...Justin got down on one knee and proposed to me.

Kidding. He did formally ask me this week to design his website, and that is now a Work in Progress.

I realize that, to some people, if I continue to write rhapsodically about this guy's work, whom I think is one of the most talented chefs I've ever met, I could be perceived as being his shill. That, of course, is stupid and illogical: I only work for people whose products or services are top notch. I'm not paid to rave, it just comes naturally.

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This week is WONDERFUL: i received my Press Pass to the Eco-Farm conference in Pacific Grove, and I spent the day there yesterday. Gosh, what a wonderful family reunion. The workshops I attended were "The Radical Restaurateur" and "Farms on the Menu."

I saw (and/or visited with): farmers Geoff Palla, Thom Broz, Jasmine Roohani, Amy Courtney, Jim Cochran, Jamie Collins, Jerry Thomas, Jim Dunlop, Deborah Walton, Michael Irving and his girlfriend, Teresa Kurtak, David Little, Gary Romano, Bob Thorson, Annabelle Lenderlink, and Julia Wiley. Julia did a brilliant job facilitating the "Farms on the Menu" workshop—brilliant.

That workshop featured chefs Russell Moore from Chez Panisse, and Phil West from Range. Also on the panel were farmers Annabelle Lenderlink and a Ventura farmer, Phil McGrath. The room was packed with curious farmers and foodies—the purpose was to brainstorm ways to help farmers and restaurants connect. One gentleman from Italy had traveled from Umbria to share his own ideas—guess who he invited to visit? (I heard there were farms in Italy.)

I am used to serendipity in my life, but I never tire of it. At this particular workshop, the nametag on a young woman sitting two seats away from me temporarily confused me. I saw "Tamar Adler" and mistakenly thought I was seeing a young woman I know at an online forum. I tapped her shoulder and asked if she was that other young woman. Now she looked confused, but we quickly cleared up the mystery. She was none other than the chef at Farm 255 (talk about a FABULOUS website) in Athens, Georgia, for whom I had designed the menu for the Oustanding in the Field dinner this past summer. She even had photographs of the dinner with her, including one of my menu perched in front of some plates. She's going to be working at Chez Panisse for a few months: this is a seriously talented, VERY committed young woman. Awesome, even.

In the evening, there was a wine reception, and the joint was PACKED. About twenty wineries offered samples of some delicious wines—and I got to hug John Williams at Frog's Leap. Then I ran into Degge Hays, the gardener at Frog's Leap, whom I had visited in May of 2005. Sometimes in my work, I wonder if people like what I've written about them—I'd never heard back from Degge after I sent a CD of my photos, so of course I insecurely thought I must have rolled a gutterball. Well, that was not the case: he eagerly told me about some of the new developments at the winery, and invited me back for a visit.

I got to introduce Tamar to Deborah Walton, who also hosted a farm dinner—up in Tomales in November. One of the prettiest places I ever saw, Canvas Ranch in the Two Rocks Valley of Petaluma. Gorgeous. Stay tuned.

I'll be going back to Eco-Farm this afternoon to meet with a new client, Claire Hope Cummings, who is an environmental writer and lawyer. She's often on radio programs in the Bay area—we met on last year's Eco-Farm bus tour. She is a beautiful woman, with a huge expanse of knowledge in organic farming. I look forward to introducing her website to you in some weeks to come. (You can Google her if you want to know more.)

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That's all for now...busy, busy, busy!

EDIT: I forgot to put in a plug for my friend, Matt Armendariz, whose food blog, MattBites, has been nominated for Best Food Blog of the Year in the all-important Bloggies. Go vote for him! 

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: “They say that God is everywhere, and yet we always think of Him as somewhat of a recluse.” —Emily Dickinson

(Apropos of nothing in particular: I just liked it.)

Thanks for visiting.

Comments

[Tierra Santa]

Calvin is cute!!! By the way, what did you expected from Paris?? :P

[Michele]

Tana - thanks for forwarding your picture of that incredibly sexy porkfat, er, butter! Wow! I want me some o' that. Also adore this little calf with his underbite - we used to have a rabbit with an underbite, had to get those canines trimmed for her to chew. Incredibly cute.
xo

[Kim McCabe]

I am just finishing my thesis at the University of Guelph in Landscape Architecture. It is on Urban Agriculture. May I use some of your lovely colourful photos in my presentation? There is not much growing here now and not much colour. Please let me know either way. It is not for profit... just education...mine