Howard Stern, lately, has done some good interviews. I don’t fault Ben Affleck for doing the show. I do fault him for letting himself be drawn into a conversation about his famous (and popular) ex wife and his children. Talk frankly about anything else - just not that. He has plenty of ground to cover without bringing…

I actually think my statement is the essence of what he wanted to say. 

I think because they think they are being genuine, the public will get that. Your friends, family and loved ones might get that. THE PUBLIC is a different beast. Every word is important. Get a script, make changes so that it expresses what you want to convey (without moving into controversial territory) and then…

Not a Houstonian, but I visited there a lot when my mother was undergoing treatment. We always stayed in the Montrose area. La Guadalupana was my go-to for breakfast. Amazing! La Mexicana was horrible, really bad. Hugo’s was good for their happy hour menu. Chapultepec Lupita was solid Tex-Mex with really hot salsa. I…

PR person here: “I was unhappy, and I didn’t know why. I had great kids and a great wife and a great career. It was inconceivable to me that I was unhappy given all I had. I fell into a crisis of self-doubt, self-destruction and alcohol. I’ve learned since that THIS is what depression and addiction feel like. Since…

Dear Taco Bell,

I look around every time I walk my dog. I found a big bunch of heavy marble decorative balls? Along with some other very nice decorative items. Went back for my car and picked them up for our Humane Society thrift store. They sold immediately. I also pick up those heavy plastic zippered bags that new linens come in -…

I am not a coffee fan - except Vietnamese coffee! I must confess I buy the instant mix packets from the Asian grocery store. It’s not the same, of course, but it satisfies the odd craving and those little packets are perfect for traveling. When my mother was in the hospital, I brought the packets in as a break room…

Roasted cubed beets (you can buy these already roasted in the produce department and just cut them up....you can even use jarred pickled beets), roasted sweet potato cubes (you gotta roast those yourself), dollops of herbed goat cheese, spring lettuce mix, thinly sliced fennel (optional), diced red onion, sliced…

We did grill some with garlic and parsley compound butter. But this time of year, they are so good raw, that we ate more raw than grilled!

The recipe is pretty straightforward: soak the salt cod overnight (draining a few times), then boil it and shred/chop it. Boil potatoes in salted water until they are tender but not falling apart. Mix up a lot of minced garlic, dill and parsley and soak that in more olive oil than you think you need. Taste the salt…

Beer is totally a course. Or a meal. And dessert.

I wish we had a “must have.” But my mother wasn’t a great cook. And we are pescatarian. And our family had dwindled to four and hopefully seven when our extended family can visit from Australia. So, now it’s a free for all! We can eat whatever the fuck we want! For Thanksgiving, SIL insisted upon a green bean…

We’ve shucked a ton of oysters (had a box full at Thanksgiving this year), and over the years we’ve only had a couple batches with pea crabs.  Rare as pearls, I’d say. Food for the dogs or gods? Both will eat anything, I hear. 

Every time I pass our local hospital, I look at a small vacant building nearby and think, why doesn’t someone open a bar called “The Waiting Room”?

I’m more of a beer kind of gal, but the nicest bar I’ve ever been too is Cocktail Trading Company in London/Shoreditch. Super inventive cocktails, very friendly atmosphere - nice but not stuffy.

I go to my favorite Asian market and pick up things I know my friends and family would like to try. But they don’t really have as much experience in such markets as I do. Kewpie products are always a favorite - Kewpie mayo, Kewpie Yuzu Kosho dressing (mix the mayo and the yuzo kosho together and you get the most…

The worst with the large/complicated order in drive thru is Sonic. It’s fucking crazy for a soccer mom with a large group of kids to hit the drive thru for six different ice cream drinks, when you can PARK and order from your car and they will BRING IT TO YOU! There’s no reason at all to hog the drive thru for 15…

Or if you are going to hack - go INSIDE the restaurant to order and be patient. Don’t clog up the drive-thru with a complicated order.

I do like brunch, somewhat. Our group of friends meet at a local spot on occasion early on a Sunday, before the church crowd gets out. It’s usually the only day that all six of us have time on our hands. We don’t do bottomless mimosas; that’s asking for trouble and not worth the trouble. We each order our own one or…