Author: Annush

You are late? So what?

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I once read that Miami is where punctuality comes to die.

After about 6 years living here, I think that’s fairly accurate.   I have had to change my formerly punctual ways to assimilate to the society where I live. Here, even those who complain about other people’s tardiness, can’t manage to make it on time. Still, business gets done, kids get to school, friends find each other, and life goes on because for better or for worse tardiness is embedded in the culture.

Normally, I wouldn’t give this much thought (at least not anymore) except for the fact that I am still bent out of shape over the fact that I was locked out of my cooking class because I was 5 minutes late. FIVE MINUTES.

I often look at things from an evolutionary perspective.  It is my belief that perhaps the reason why being somewhat late is normal to the point that it’s almost expected, is that we know that we live in a city where traffic is bad, parking is a nightmare, the weather can be a bit extreme, and quite frankly, most people aren’t big on efficiency.  We accept tardiness because deep down we know that it is possible we will be late too.

I know, I shouldn’t have been late (and I wouldn’t have been late had I been able to find parking).  Still, by being so strict about punctuality, I feel like they violated our social contract; and quite frankly, I was offended by their course of action.  By not letting me enter, I felt that this business (which is neither small nor local) was judging our lifestyle.  And this is not okay.

Part of the fun of living in Miami is how laid back it is.  Even when something is urgent, it somehow doesn’t seem so pressing.  I am not justifying tardiness but by the same token, I think that those who can’t tolerate it are probably in the wrong place. It is doubtful that you’ll find many locals eager to live in a hurry just so they can make it on time…

Food Blogger Bake Sale!

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Here I am wearing my food blogger hat!

On Saturday I, along with some of Miami’s best food bloggers, will be participating in the Food Blogger Bake Sale to benefit Share Our Strength, an organization that works to help end childhood hunger.

If you are in the Miami area, I would like to personally invite you to come get some goodies at the South Miami Farmer’s Market.

If you would like, you can also make a donation here.

We are counting on your support so please help :)

[Originally posted in Annush on the Causeway]

This is what you get…

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I must be the only person in Miami who is not reveling in the afterglow of the Radiohead concert.

If luck is when preparation meets opportunity, the misfortune that I am feeling right now due to my lack of preparation is evidence that procrastinating does not pay.  I will spend the rest of the day thinking about what I did (or didn’t do), and then when I stop doing that, I am sure that someone in some social media channel will remind me of just how awesome it was that they ended the show with Karma Police, and I will go back to where I started.

That’s the beauty of Miami: things happen even when you are not paying attention.

Anyway, while everyone was at the American Airlines Arena for the concert, I was home cooking up one of my favorite dinners: Mexican fish with spring salad and candied sweet potatoes.  Thanks to the amazing vendors at the Pinecrest Farmers Market, I was able to make a dinner with ingredients that were completely seasonal, local and organic.

Many people underestimate the importance of local food.  Until recently, even I did.  Unlike states that have frozen winters and scorching hot summers, we live in a place where we can get locally grown, seasonal food all year round.  In the city of Miami alone there are multiple markets where one can pick up high quality food items often times for a fraction of the price.

Why not go try them out?

As our city grows and changes and we begin to see more people out on their bicycles and with their recyclable shopping bags, it only makes sense that we support local agriculture and locally based vendors.

Many of our local restaurants have embraced the local food movement and that is a clear indication that patrons are becoming more demanding in their tastes.  I mean, doesn’t fresh food taste better?  and don’t even get me started on the health benefits…

What are you waiting for? Try it out for yourself.

You can find a map with all the markets in our area here.

Let me know how it goes.