Lingbo Li
Facebooking & eating for a living – my first day of work
It’s 9am, and I’m beginning work as a social media consultant for Crabtree’s Kittle House, a progressive American restaurant in Chappaqua with an award-winning wine cellar and a hot new chef who’s done time at Per Se. Never would I have thought that what I do in my spare time – Tweeting, blogging, and stalking high school alums on Facebook – would come in handy.
Well, never is an exaggeration. But not so soon!
I’m set up on a beautifully set dining room table with my laptop, a saucer of blueberries and granola, a white china cup of coffee, and a place setting of juniper fronds and berries, brushing up on social media marketing. And I’m also looking forward to plenty of excellent food, learning all aspects of the restaurant biz, and hopefully (if I’m lucky), dinner with a big deal food critic.
A new year, a new look
Just like Madonna’s hair color is as variable as the seasons, I figured this blog was long overdue for a TLC-approved makeover. Stacy and Clinton, what do you think?
An extreme makeover before and after
But this isn’t just some pretty new face! No! All content is now sorted into roughly 4 super-categories – food, travel, life, and how-to. I have spent many long hours combing through and categorizing every post by location and cuisine, so if you are seeking ideas for where to eat in Allston or if you’re hankering for Chinese, the process should be much easier. The “offal” section is entirely penis, testicles, blood, etc, if you’re into that sort of thing.
It’s also easier than ever to be my fake Internet friend (see side column notepad), stalk me via Twitter, or unearth videos of me eating a big hunk of wasabi. Enjoy.
A love letter to poached eggs – brunch at Zaftig’s Delicatessen
I’m a sucker for poached eggs. Piercing the yolks with your knife. Sliding down the plate like the ooze of a lazy, ruptured sun. Top it with even more yolk in the form of Hollandaise, slide a velvety slice of smoked salmon underneath. Cut, and at the bottom is a fried potato pancake. A bit of green from spinach leaves, a side of good hash browns, prettified by a round of pale orange cantaloupe. The menu calls its Empire Eggs.
It’s even better if you split the chocolate french toast with your friend, so you have something sweet at the same time. The raspberry sauce clings to the skin in fuchsia strips. Drown it in syrup. It’s good.
An anthropological view of beauty pageants
Once upon a time, I was a contestant in Miss New York USA 2010, and I blogged a lot about it. And posted photos of my experience.
If you read coverage, you’ll find that I had a positive experience overall. I also noted in my paper that my dieting/exercising/obsessing was probably more appropriate for someone competing on the national level – so my stress level was definitely more elevated than many other contestants.
I ended up not only blogging about the experience, but writing a 24 page paper on it. The paper was written in about two days… and the class was on the anthropology of consumerism, which explains why I focused on beauty as a commodity.
Here’s an excerpt, the conclusion, which has been edited for general blog-y consumption.
- A beauty pageant is actually a very democratic competition. Anyone can enter, as long as they cough up the entrance fee an pay for their wardrobe. Contestants are treated fairly and equally – we all wear numbers, receive the same gift bags, and sleep in the same dorm rooms. There are no height or weight requirements.
But the fact remains that there’s only one girl who gets the crown.
Some of the contestants are models. Many of the top 20 had done at least some modeling work in their lives, and the girl who eventually ended up winning, Davina Reeves, is signed to a modeling agency. But the vast majority were fairly normal girls. Many were short, heavy, plain, and did not have expensive dresses. Some were pretty, but not tall, slender, or striking enough to have careers as models. Some wanted to be actresses or astronauts, some ran businesses, many were students.
I was confused at first why so many of these girls were entering a pageant. It was an expensive and time-consuming task. Did they actually think they had a shot at the title? (more…)
The most important meal of the day
One of the nicest breakfasts I’ve had recently. Note the robin egg’s blue cup of espresso.
Lana Lingbo Li
I'm a world traveler / enthusiastic eater who's now blogging and producing videos over at HelloLana.com. Visit me there!
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