Seasons Greetings Everyone!
12/02

I hope this holiday season is cozy and full of love for you, your friends, and your family.

For some of you, this will be the first time you receive my holiday letter. I usually only send it to distant friends and relatives who I think want the update, because I think some people dislike these things, and some of you know what I'm up to during the year. But, since I'm out of work (more on that later) and on a budget, I made an all-in-one card for everyone. If you would like to keep receiving the letters in the future, let me know and I'll add you to the "letter" list.

2002 has been a unique year, but all-in-all a good one.

Work ­ I lost my job at the tiny PR agency at the end of April. You know what they say about having a few big eggs in one basket, especially in this economy. One of the two accounts I worked on, Frontier Natural Brand's Simply Organic boxed dinners, closed their Boulder office. But, while I supported them, I was able to do some really fun food-related work. I worked on taste tests against competitors like Kraft and Lipton. Even more fun, was the recipe development I did for them. I'd love to do that for a living! You can find my recipes and chef's suggestions on the sides of their packaging (available at natural foods stores and some supermarkets.)

I took three months off to play and travel, then realized how terrible the job market was and buckled down in August. But, now I'm getting really nervous because my unemployment runs out at the end of December and the Colorado job market is really awful. I had one close call for a job and have had a handful of other interviews.

I've kept myself pretty busy though. I've done plenty of household organizing and painting. I also did a short contract job, developing recipes for White Wave's Sun Soy brand soymilk (you should see my recipes on their new packaging soon.) But, the most fun was starting my own side business. In August, I began putting together Sushi Hound, a sushi-making "catertainment" service. I bring everything into the host's home and teach the party guests how to make various types of sushi. I've enjoyed developing the business, getting the supplies and equipment and especially checking out sushi bars and practicing at home -and writing it all off. I'm still waiting for my first gig though...tough times for this sort of thing.

Coal has appreciated me being home so often. He's grown into a very happy, healthy kitty. He's the best buddy and is a great cat, although a bit mischievous.

Vacations and Trips ­ In February, I went to Estes Park with 12 women, most of whom I used to work with, for a snowshoe weekend. We stayed in a nice condo with a hot tub, and did the bonding thing. We had a beautiful day snowshoeing in Rocky Mountain National Park.

In February, I flew to Barbara and Ned's in Salt Lake City for the Olympics. Wow, what a wonderful experience! It was like being in a multinational Disneyland with thousands of happy people having a great time for days-on-end. The fun started Thursday, on the flight out, when I met two Swedish guys on the plane.

Friday morning, I didn't go to an event, but to the zoo with Barbara and the kids....saw Donny Osmond there. Ned and I spent the rest of the day exploring the Olympic village. We went to a glass sculpture exhibit and a glass blowing exhibit. Later, we watched a band play on an outdoor stage and watched a hockey match on a big screen in a park. We picked up a ticket from scalper so I could join Ned and his friend, Ed, the next morning at the men's combined ski jumping. I had to buy some pins, since they are all the rage at the Olympics. People collect them, trade them, wear them on their hats and on their coats.

On the way to the ski jumping Saturday, we won tickets to go to the awards ceremony and concert the next night. How it happened is a long, silly story, but includes requesting a radio station to play Who Let the Dogs Out?, finding the on-site studio, and singing the song for the DJ. The ski jumping was amazing. Finland won, Austria got the silver and we won the bronze. That night we all went to men's and women's short track speed skating. This was the most exciting event of my Olympic experience. We screamed as the Korean slid into Apolo Anton Ohno, causing him to crash as he neared the finish line, knocking him out of first place, leaving the Ausie to win the gold and U.S.A.'s Apolo to capture the silver, after pushing himself over the finishline.

On Sunday, Barb, her mom and I shopped a bit. That night, we watched the Swedish hockey team play the Czechs. I actually saw the guys from the plane in the crowd and went to visit during a break. It was a great game, with the Swedes winning two to one. That night, we went to the awards ceremony with our won tickets. We were right up front. So close, that I caught a rose when one one of the winning athletes tossed a bouquet into the crowd. The concert was Train. I didn't realize I knew so many of their songs or liked them so much.

Monday morning, Barbara and I went to the women's biathlon. We sat front and center with tickets her boss gave her. German's won, Norwegian's took silver and Russians the bronze. Amazingly, I (with another American) caught another winner's bouquet and split it. There was actually a little skirmish when the Russian man next to me tried to steal it from us. That night, I went out for drinks with Barb. Tuesday, I flew home and had a post-Olympic let-down later in the week. Barb called, and said she did too. What an amazingly uplifting experience it was.

In March, I went to the Expo that I used to help produce. It was weird being there as an attendee. Believe it or not, I met Apolo Anton Ohno at an exhibitor's booth. I told him how exciting it was for me to watch his race. I also helped a client put on a party in conjunction with a Doobie Brothers concert and got to meet the Doobies at the pre party event.

In May, I went to Vienna to visit Anna and Walter. There were so many wonderful times, I'll just have to pick some highlights. My overnight flight arrived in Heathrow the day that the whole air traffic control system in the UK went down. So I hung out in the bar all day with guys from Ireland, Scotland and Australia, then arrived in Vienna at 4:00a.m on Saturday morning. They lost my luggage, so I borrowed some clothes from Anna, slept a few hours, then took the train to Budapest later that day.

We rented a lovely, two-bedroom apartment on the Pest side of the city for $56/night. Everything there, except the clothes I had to buy, was so cheap. We had some lovely meals. One dinner, including appetizer, a fois gras entree, dessert and wine cost me $10!

Sunday, we visited the beautiful St. Stephen's Basilica and had drinks on a boat restaurant on the Danube. Then we walked over the Chain Bridge to the Buda side, took the funicular up the hill, and walked through a pitch black labyrinth of ancient underground caves, using a miner's lamp to light the way. Then, we had a drink at the gorgeous Fisherman's Bastion, overlooking the Danube.

Monday, we went to Varosliget, or City Park, which was filled with amazing castle-like buildings. Next we went to the posh Hotel Gellert so I could fulfill my goal-to experience one of Budapest's many thermal baths. Loved it! After that, we took the train back to Vienna that night where I was reunited with my suitcase, which had been accepted by a neighbor.

Tuesday, I was on my own and did touristy stuff: Stephansdom Cathedral, the Hofburg complex, Augustinerkirche, the Burggarten and some other lovely spots.

Wednesday, Anna and I started at Karlskirsche, where we took a temporary elevator up to the top/inside of the church's dome to see the restoration. It was so cool, I could even touch the frescos. Later we went to the Naschmarkt to buy some food for lunch. I fell in love with pumpkin seed oil that day. We did some shopping, walked the Ringstrasse around the city center then headed home.

Thursday, Anna and I went to see the Lipizzaner stallions, watched the famous Anker clock move while eating cheese-filled sausage, then visited the Freud Museum. Next came the highlight of my trip, and it's not even a tourist attraction. I've always had a recurring nightmare about elevators that went sideways and didn't have doors on them. Anna brought me into a university building and showed me a paternoster, which is an old-style lift consisting of two parallel elevator shafts. The cars move continuously, up one shaft, over the top (sideways!) then down the other and under the bottom (sideways again!) They have no doors and they don't stop....you jump on while it moves past your floor. Cool!

On Friday, Anna and I spent the day at Schonbrunn, which was the summer residence of the imperial family. There were so many things to see there. That night, Anna and I dressed up and went to the gorgeous Vienna opera house to see Sleeping Beauty, the ballet. Spectacular!

Saturday, Walter drove us into the Wachau valley area, west of Vienna (along the Danube.) It was beautiful, with castles and abbeys perched on hilltops, overlooking quaint little villages on the river. We spent some time at Ruine Aggstein, the castle where Anna and Walter are going to get married next year...and, I'm going back to be in the wedding. On the way home, we stopped at a hueriger. Huerige are small privately owned wineries and there are many of them in that area.

By Sunday it was all over. I got up at the crack of dawn and flew home. What a wonderful trip.

In June, I stayed overnight in Denver with a bunch of women for Kathe's bachelorette party and wedding shower. Saturday we did dinner, a limo, and disco dancing. Then Sunday we had tea at the Brown Palace Hotel. Later that month, Kathe took the wedding party to 10,000 Waves spa in Santa Fe for the weekend. What an amazing treat! We all had spa services, dinner and a night on the town, as well as a private chef-catered dinner in our lodge at the spa.

Visitors ­ Mom came to visit in May. We went to the movies, visited my friend's goat cheese farm and saw a Midnight Oil concert at E-Town (a live, taped national radio show). Dad and Armelde visited over the Fourth of July weekend. We skipped the fireworks, since so many were cancelled due to fire danger. We spent a day at the Cherry Creek Arts Festival, and went to see Cirque du Soleil, which I think is one of the most interesting performance arts out there. We enjoyed a tour of the back lot courtesy of Cirque's kitchen manager, who I had met at a Slow Food event earlier that week. We also had a picnic potluck in the mountains with some of my friends.

Georgina and Pierre flew out in July for Ray's raft trip down the Colorado River. We also spent a day in Evergreen, hanging out at a lake and with a herd of elk on the golf course, then dancing at the Little Bear, a really fun mountain bar. Another day, we did a gorgeous hike to Brainard and Isabelle lakes, in the mountains just outside of Boulder.

Anna and Walter came to Boulder in August. They originally met at CU. Walter knew Anna had always regretted missing her CU graduation ceremony, while living in Vienna several years ago. So he set up a surprise graduation ceremony for her and I helped organize a picnic in the mountains afterward. He's such a great guy, he set it up for her to join the commencement ceremony for this year's class: cap, gown and all. Boy, was she surprised!

Culture ­ Only a few concerts this year: As mentioned, Train at the Olympics and Midnight Oil at E-Town. I also saw Jorma Kaukonen and Danielle Howe at another E-Town. And, I went to a choral concert that my friend, Bill, was in and a free Bluegrass concert at a lake by Lisa's house. A few local bands played on Boulder's Pearl Street pedestrian mall on summer evenings. One night, Lisa and I went to Ft. Collins to my friend Sue's art opening. Then later, Sue came down for our annual Art Open Studios tour. Last month, I went to a local production of Cinderella with my new friend Bridgette.

Parties and Holidays ­ I didn't go home for Christmas last year since it was too soon after 9/11. But, Steph had a cookie party and I had Christmas Eve dinner at Lisa's with John L. Betsy and the gang. Christmas Day supper was at Susan and Lonnie's and New Year's Eve was at Marty's, which was pretty low key.

Steph had two baby showers, one for the women and one for families. Peter and Kathe's engagement party was at Alice and Alan's in January. Mike's had his birthday dinner at a sushi bar. I spent Rosh Hashana and Passover at Susan and Loni's and Easter with Rocky and Pennie.

Peter and Kathe's wedding was at their ranch in Glenwood Springs in June, and I was Kathe's attendant. She bought me the most incredible Paris couture dress for the occasion. I felt like Grace Kelly. The wedding almost got burned out-they had to evacuate the ranch the week before as the big Glenwood Springs fire inched closer. It was a beautiful and unique wedding, with a bear at the rehearsal dinner, busses four-wheeling people through woods to an aspen grove where they said their vows, and a huge party tent in a large field with a great dance band and an incredible dinner. Needless to say, they didn't have a ranch party this year...since the wedding was like ten of them rolled into one.

Christiann put on a 50th birthday party for Lance. I went to a few Red Wine Monday's and had a couple riverside picnics with my friend John E. There were two housewarmings, one at Terry and Jeff's and one at Liz and Mark's.

In May I went to my first of many parties put on by two groups of people that call themselves the International Wine society and the International Dine society. Just a bunch of really nice people who get together over food and wine a couple times a month. I've met some really nice people through these parties, including a wonderful new friend, Bridgette, who I mentioned before. She's a photographer and took the great photos of Coal and me on the front and back of the card. In October, I organized one of the dinners at a Nepalese restaurant. 40 people showed up and and it was a hit.

I went to two Thanksgiving dinners. Oink! The first was at Pennie and Rocky's and the second at the John L. and Betsy's. They were both wonderful. I wondered though, if my presence was a curse. Pennie's oven broke halfway through the turkey (neighbors to the rescue) and Betsy woke up sick in bed (but felt better by dinnertime.) I just celebrated my birthday this weekend. Friday night, Gye, Felipe and I stopped by Susan and Lonnie's for Chanukah dinner appetizers then went to Denver for sushi and dancing. Saturday night, I had some friends over my house for drinks and appetizers then we all went over to a huge annual Sagittarius party with a great band and danced all night.

Other Fun Events ­ Lisa and I spent an evening at a mountain bar in Jamestown, watching a band with a few members I knew. I had a couple picnics up at Peter's amazing property overlooking the Boulder valley- which he has since sold...bummer. I spent a day roaming the Ethiopian markets in Denver with my chef friend, James, then took up that cuisine as my new favorite food to cook. Ann and I went to a great air show in July; I just love the sound of those fighter jets as they zoom by overhead-except when I see them over my house, which I've seen this past month...it's scary.

One Saturday, I took John L.'s son, Hans, to Eliches Six Flags Amusement Park. I now have a new rollercoaster buddy. Rocky and I ate our way around a Denver neighborhood one night this fall for the Uptown Sampler. Betsy and I went to Channel 9News' Hidden Treasures event (like Antiques Roadshow), where I had the set of Roseville vases I bought for $3 appraised for $250! A craving I had for lobster turned into a dinner for a large group when Peter, Kathe and I cooked lobster stew and other goodies for two days. In September, I took Gye to Denver for her birthday, eating at a unique country Japanese restaurant and buying moon cakes to celebrate Zhong Qui Jie (Moon Cake Day). Unfortunately, we couldn't find the moon behind all the clouds, but we ate the mooncakes anyway. (Your supposed to gaze at the moon when eating them.)

I'm still doing restaurant reviews with John, my friend the restaurant critic for the Rocky Mountain News. I'm so spoiled! This year I joined him on 16 reviews. It's really a treat to be able to still eat at nice restaurants when I'm out of work and on a budget.

Sports and The Like ­ I did very little of this sort of thing this year. Took a few local hikes with friends in the foothills. Went to one Rockies game with Mozelle in August. Didn't ski at all in 2002, but hope to in early 2003 and worked out just a handful of times. That's it. And, without all that, I lost 8 pounds. Weird, huh?

Volunteering ­ The Slow Food group I belong to (a movement out of Italy) had several events this year. Our Boulder group did a Spring Dinner at a restaurant in April and a dinner at a lovely organic flower and herb farm this summer. We also had an ice cream tasting and a Harvest Dinner at an Italian deli in the cute little town of Niwot.

I went to some events put on by the Denver group too. In June, they did an herb and wine dinner, where I met Jean-Francois, Cirque du Soleil's kitchen manager, mentioned before. In August, there was a ranch hamper picnic at Matt's beautiful log home in Sedalia, in the mountains outside of Denver. Everyone brought veggies and fruit to cook together in huge pots. Cattail Bob took us on an edible plant walk where we ate wild onions, cat tail and mustard grains and learned to identify the most poisonous plant in the States-Water Hemlock. It looks a like Queen Anne's Lace, so don't ever try to eat that stuff, just in case.

In June, during the height of the Colorado wildfires, I volunteered to feed firefighters with the Salvation Army. My first station was in Sedalia, beyond the roadblocks and down the road from Matt's log home. I asked the firefighters if there would still be a ranch to have the party at in August. It was pretty weird to deliver food to ghostly evacuated towns beyond roadblocks.

I'm really excited, because the benefit I've worked on for so many years, the Taste of the Nation, is back on track. A woman who used to chair it years ago came back. We didn't have the event last year, but I'm gearing up for 2003 as we speak.

Etc. ­ One terrible thing happened this year. On January 29th, A woman in the office below mine died. Someone burst into our office yelling "Does anyone know CPR?" This time, thank God, I did-thanks to the class we put together after the experience at ranch party a few years ago. One of my bosses and I ran down and tried to resuscitate her, but to no avail. She had an aneurism and there's nothing we could have done.

On a much lighter note, I started a salt collection this year. I know it's weird. But it started when I found a smoked salt made from an ancient Viking recipe. I owned a few unique salts before that, but this was the one that inspired me to begin collecting. On a summer afternoon, I tried to resurrect my artistic ability and brought my easel to a friend's house and worked with some pastels. And, last month, I ran into an old junior high and high school friend, Carla, who lives in Boulder now.

So, that's the story for 2002. Have a great 2003!

Laura