What does Ann Arbor MI have to offer?

When I arrived, although optimistic, I couldn't see past how really cold and snowy it was in mid March. I had left New York at 7:20am ( I left for the airport at 4:30am and arrived in Detroit at 11:30am. Getting out of the airport was simple and there wasn't any waiting really. I emerged at baggage claim/ground transportation to a group of people holding signs and one of them said my name (on an iPad, no less). He grabbed my little bag and we walked briskly towards his car. Once we left the airport, I was very excited to see what all the talk was about Detroit but to my surprise, there was nothing..nothing..nothing at all to see. We drove about 30 minutes West and entered into Ann Arbor which was also a bit lack luster, it reminded me a bit of Buffalo, New York. The grey blustery weather, people walking really quickly bundled up. Because of this, by midday I had not really been able to look around so the view from my room was all I could see of the place. Room service from the Victor's at Dahlmann Campus Inn was normal (mediocre) except for these surprise superior Beer battered onion rings..so so far Ann Arbor has good onion rings! Hope this gets better soon.

Buttermilk Battered Onion Rings (excellent!)

Classic Caesar Salad (with a few onion rings on the side)

As the day went on my anxiety levels rose and my level of concentration reduced drastically, I was tired and nervous about the dense schedule I had upcoming, all the new people I had to meet in the next 48 hours or so and my ability to confidently present my work to a crowd of harsh critics (we all know how architects can be when in the presence of their peers). I decided to try to run through my presentation and outline what exactly how I wanted to frame the work. I took a moment to call home and speak to my kids which turned out to be a bad idea because it got me completely wound up so I just decided to just take a nap. On a side note, I remember I had CNN on and fell asleep to the sound of Anderson Cooper and Chris Cuomo trying to maintain a conversation while they uncomfortably waited for the smoke to reveal whether or not a Pope had been chosen. I ended up waking up to ringing bells both on TV and in Ann Arbor, I thought I was dreaming but sure enough the headline said "Habemus papam"..

I got up to take a shower and get my self together both physically and mentally for the dinner date I had with two members of the faculty. I was nervous and really wanted to get out and get some air but also got the feeling I often get, the feeling of flight! I felt compelled to flee, but not from there from my current life, its a larger commentary on my life and the way I have made some decisions in my adult life, the idea of leaving a place, the new clean slate...its a curious thought since we never really have a tabula rasa. But as I headed down to the lobby, I thought about how life could be truly different, moving to a town where I knew no one, starting anew, teaching at an enormous institution. I love collegiality, I miss that from Graduate school. I walked and breathed the cool air, it had stopped  snowing, people were out walking and I  looked down the street at the vast see of brick buildings. 
Dinner was great and I even got an evening tour of a very lively night scene in this little town. I would have snapped some shots but didn't want to seem like an uncool tourist type so I just made sure I was able to keep the conversation going and not make a strange joke that only me and my husband might find funny.  I arrived back at the hotel and thought I would procrastinate even further by sitting at the hotel bar and having a martini while I made some calls. The martini was great! 

The next morning, I was met by an extremely punctual gentle man from the faculty for breakfast, it was a good start to the day because he was extremely kind and forthcoming, quirky and smart. He was easy to talk to and very helpful. We talked about about his work and his seven sons, I told him a bit about my life and what I hoped to do. He helped me to his extremely small car to put my suitcase down and we took a walk. A campus tour. It was brisk but sunny and we walked across campus to the "Diag" which is a diagonal path the traverses the entire central campus and the location of the brass "M". As we stood over it, he told me about the tradition which says that anyone who steps there will be destined to stay. I stepped on it and we laughed, I would now tell the folks I had an interview with in a hour or so that I had stepped on it..case closed!  We ended the tour by walking the outside edge of campus and back to the car and off to the North campus.

The North campus was smaller, quaint from what I could tell, located about 2 miles maybe from the central campus. We entered the Architecture building and it looked a bit morbid but Architecture schools often do for some reason. Anyway, we looked around and then walked back out to see the rest of the campus which really was nice. There were a few notable buildings, nice in between spaces (outdoors) and this great bell tower at the middle. The library was really nice as well, I also notices the have numerous cafes in each building which is great because access to good coffee is important.

By the end of the walk, I stopped looking at this like a visitor and began imagining myself here everyday, this would be my place, where would I sit and have coffee? I was also able to enjoy the day a bit without feeling completely overwhelmed by the meetings coming up. Suddenly, time seemed to speed up and the next few hours were really intense going from one activity to the next, I gave my presentation, answered questions, met a lot of people had lunch, met with the Chair of the department and even having some downtime which wasn't so great because I began to meltdown, I was unoccupied and getting eager to go home. I found my way back to one of the cafes I had seen, grabbed a coffee and back to the faculty lounge (which was really cool too). I sat and just relaxed.

I think if I were single, I would be already packing to go, I don't mind change and have never allowed myself to become attached to places. And unexpectedly, Ann Arbor seems to have the thing I was looking for but which I couldn't seem to explain, its small, quaint and active with good schools and a short commute to work. It would provide the income and flexibility I desire, so why am I trying to sabotage opportunity, I thought? I didn't want to admit it but I knew in my heart that I was doing this to avoid disappointment, not from being denied the position but for having to once again turn down an opportunity because I don't want to be responsible for my husband having to look for a new job in a new place. It been a real bone of contention in the past. I understand the anxiety he may feel over having to find something new, he doesn't want to take that risk and I don't want to be responsible for anything that may go wrong. I now am feeling like its inevitable that we will have to live like I did growing up, which was the kids with mom in a place (which changed every so often until college) and the dad flying in every few months to see them. I grew up only seeing my father a few times a year for varying periods of time from a few weeks at a time to several months. The semesters are 16 weeks long and 4 months off in the summer, we'd move to New York in the summer..suddenly, I realize its time to be a guest critic so I spring up and head to the gallery space. The students were unprepared but we ended up having a good conversation and after a quick bathroom break, I was whisked out the backdoor to my metrocar and within twenty minutes I was  back at DTW airport.  

My flight was at 8:30pm so I had to wait 2 hours ( I was too early..which never happens to me) then flew to Philadelphia, waited another hours to fly to Newark. We landed at 11:55pm and by the time I found my car and headed off I was relieved. I got home at 1:30am and couldn't resist waking up the family..complained about how messy the kitchen was and how the husband hadn't made lunch for my daughter for the next day and all was back to normal...

Herbed Quinoa and Red Rice with Kale and Cranberries

As I continue to try to cook new and healthy meals for my kids, I have found that they like quinoa which is a grain ( really a seed) which is high in protein and can be used in place of rice in most dishes. Since Arielle will select plain white rice on almost every given chance, I was desperate to find something she will eat that has a higher nutritional value. I have only served it this way twice and although she will eat it, the vegetable seem to drive her way. Maybe I'll serve it plain and see what she thinks because of all the grains, its one that actually tastes great on its own.

Ingredients:

2 cups quinoa

2 cups red rice (I used Texmati rice)

1 packet dried cranberries

1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted

1 large yellow onion, diced

2 celery stalks, diced

1 bunch kale (about 8 oz., stems removed and leaves thinly sliced)

1 Tbs. chopped fresh oregano

1 cup chicken stock, warmed (I used vegetable stock instead)

3 1/4 cups water

Kosher salt, to taste

Pepper

Unsalted butter for baking dish, plus 3 Tbs.

Spices to taste..I used a bit of garlic, oregano..

Zest of 1 lemon

Shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese for serving (optional)

Directions:

In a saucepan, combine the quinoa and red rice with the water and salt lightly. Set over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until most of the water is absorbed and the grains are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Set aside. Preheat an oven to 375°F. Butter a 13-by-9-inch baking dish. In a large sauté pan over medium heat, melt the 3 Tbs. butter. Add the onion and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 6 to 8 minutes, adding the kale during the last 2 minutes of cooking. Add the oregano and spices and season with salt. Cook, stirring, until the mixture is fragrant, about 1 minute. Transfer the onion mixture to a large bowl. Add the quinoa and red rice, cranberries, pine nuts, lemon zest and stock and stir until well combined. Transfer mix to the prepared baking dish and bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes, then garnish with cheese and serve. Serves 8 to10.

and if you bake it..it looks like this. Enjoy

adapted from William Sonoma recipe.

Italy Series: Rome: Saint Peter's Square

Set up for Papal Audience - Vatican Rome

With Pope Benedict XVI about to celebrate his last mass as Pope, I recall my visit to the Vatican. It is vast, massive, beautifully detailed, extremely captivating and very intimidating. As you approach it depending on your location, your perception of the piazza is different. If you approach from Via della Conciliazione which is a street roughly 500 metres (1,600 ft) in length,which connects Saint Peter's Square to the Castel Sant'Angelo and is the primary access to the square, you will immediately see the immense collanade that flank the Basilica but will not feel the full size of the piazza until you reach the end of the road and actually enter the Piazza. I visited St. Peters Square about four times while we were in Italy and each time I felt more captivated by the magnitude of the Architecture, the crowds ( not your average tourists, the intensity of the space. It was probably the most profound and contested public space in the world. Although I never actually participated in a Papal Audience, I did get to witness the preparations for it one morning. 

I visited the Vatican three times in the four months we lived in Rome and each time it still remained dynamic both experientially and phenomenally.

Evalie Anaïs' Baptism

We finally got ourselves together and Baptized Evalie this weekend. Unlike with Arielle, we knew we would do it but we were just really slow to get to it. A few years ago, we Baptized Arie at the age of 2 1/2 which was strange but because we were not sure as parents what religion we would teach and how to go about it. We are now both pretty sure we will try to expose the kids to both ( as opposed to non, which was our original strategy) and hope they benefit from the ideals that religion can instill in a child but remain open to either or even to select a religion that fits their beliefs when they are older. The Catholic church does require its members to maintain "membership" by keeping up with ones Sacraments and Baptism is the first of them. Evalie did very well was very cranky really because the ceremony was at 11:30 which is her nap time. She cried and squeals throughout and screamed when the Priest poured water over her head. She batted his hand out of the way each time he tried to bless her and basically was not letting him (or anyone) near her. So I suppose in hindsight, doing this with a much older child is easier. Anyway, our families gathered and we celebrated with good food, treats and a beautiful cake made by my favorite patisserie (she's made cakes for us since Arielle's first birthday.

The ceremony was quick and some people were late and missed the entire thing but I was fine with it. When it was our turn to come to the basin, we all gathered and my sister held Evalie over it. Arielle was just tall enough to see over the rim and she stood there watching cautiously to see her sister get baptized. It was actually really cute to see how worried she looked when Evalie started screaming from being startled by the water streaming down her face. Once that was done, we sat down and my brother did the candle lighting and brought it over to Evalie, she starred at it and then tried to grab it. He gave her the box and she started eating that!...By the end, at 12:30 she was so hungry and tired I had to immediately feed her to calm her down and by the time we got home ( 5 minuted away, she was sleeping so I put her to bed.

The day before, I had taken off from work so I could shop and do some little things around the house to prepare. I cooked some food, made cupcakes and favors, Austin and Arie cleaned the house and we were ready to have a great party. I really liked the idea of a white dessert table so I set that up basically with a centerpiece of spray painted branches. The cake, cupcakes and favors were also on that table along with white chocolate covered pretzels, almonds, cream puffs, Sfogliatelle and powdered donuts. 

We had some antipasto platters, chicken wings, sushi platter, chips and dip, dried fruit etc for appetizers while everyone settled in.