Friday Faves 6/19: Little Women, A Confession, Meatball Sandwiches, Grilled Scallops, and Iced Tea,
June used to be a month my family loved. It housed my dad’s birthday, my sister’s birthday, and Father’s Day. Then we added my brother in law, whose birthday is also in June. Toss in the excitement of summer, and it was the perfect month. Sadly, six years ago, my dad passed away on June 17, shifting the entire month from joyous to sad. June 7, my dad’s birthday, and Father’s Day are now somber affairs. The proximity of my sister’s birthday to June 17 and Father’s Day no doubt casts a pall over the day for her, too.
With Father’s Day coming this Sunday, I hope all the dads out there are celebrated (or just given some GOD DAMN peace and quiet.). I know I miss my old man every day. I’ll be thinking about him on Saturday evening as I finish up a round of golf at twilight - his favorite time of day to play. I’ll also be sure to go for a run this weekend in the searing June heat and leave a path of sweat droplets on the floor throughout the house.
Happy Father’s Day to all the dad’s out there.
Best Watch
A Confession - This BritBox show is a solid six episode crime show starring Martin Freeman (Bilbo Baggins, Dr. Watson, and Tim from the British office). Freeman’s character is a detective in Swindon Town, a south western town in England. When Sian goes missing, he’s in charge of tracking down the killer. However, he makes a few choices during the investigation puts him in hot water.
Little Women - The latest version of this story was very good. I enjoyed it a lot. Timothee Chalamet and Saoirse Ronan are excellent, the story is wonderful, and Amy is as obnoxious as ever. It was fun trying to identify spots in Concord, where they shot some of the movie, too. The one downside was the challenge of trying to identify what time period we were in, because it goes back and forth during the movie.
Best Read
In Praise of the Perfect Meatball Sandwich - The writer of this piece was a camp counselor with me back in the day. Kevin is a freelance writer and this one was great. I love meatball subs, and I’m intrigued by this particular meatball delight. He also wrote about his new found love of a favorite piece of quarantine footwear- the croc- for Outsideonline.com.
Best Listen
No Stupid Questions - Stephen Dubner (Freakonomics) and Angela Duckworth (Grit) combine their powers in this pod where they ask each other questions. None of them are stupid and they’re wonderful to listen to. The one below is great, as they talk about the different meanings and interpretations of happiness along with a study that shows how people’s happiness peaks at age 16 and then dips until age 47 when it rebounds. Their theories for the timing of this rebound are interesting, it’s probably because your kids are old enough to look after themselves…
Best Eat
Grilled Scallop skewers - I made my first venture to a grocery store in months this week. It was weird, but it was time. I picked up some scallops, but the mask covering my mouth meant there were fewer than I asked for (6 instead of 15…). I skewered them, then added olive oil and salt and pepper. Put them on the grill for about 3 minutes a side and enjoy. I am always terrified by scallops because they turn bad faster than a scorned Karen.
Best Drink
Strawberry Hibiscus Iced Tea (Written by my wife Tiff)- This week I have been drinking Hibiscus Tea, as though it were water. Because, well it basically is water.
Our last grocery delivery offered the Hibiscus Superflower Tea - Strawberry edition as a substitute option, and I was pleasantly surprised by the flavor! It offers a very subtle, delicate floral aroma paired with juicy strawberries — it’s summer in a glass!
With the temperature soaring into the 80s, I have been brewing the tea and allowing it to cool before adding ice. Iced Hibiscus Strawberry Tea: if you want something that tastes luxurious, but comes together with a little time and some hot water... I highly recommend you try this.
Added bonus (for imbibing adults)— you can make this refreshing cocktail with the iced hibiscus tea!
1/2 cup iced hibiscus tea
1-2 tsp simple syrup (or more for your taste)
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp fresh lime juice
2oz vodka
Shake it up with ice!
Serve over ice. For added fanciness, sugar the rim and add a lemon wedge.”
Best Plug
When Sports Becomes the Wrong Type of Distraction - The NBA is trying to come back in July. Last week it looked like a sure thing, then some players, led by Kyrie Irving and Dwight Howard, started to ask some questions about the set-up of the bubble and the optics of returning to play when the social unrest in America is so high. I wrote about the distraction that sports usually provides and the how now the return of sports could be the wrong type of distraction. Here’s the link.
Playing Every Course in Massachusetts - There are roughly 400 golf courses in the great state of Massachusetts. I’ve decided to see how long it will take me to play each course, starting completely from scratch. No rounds from the past count. It’ll no doubt take many years, but I am looking forward to checking a bunch of courses off my list this summer and getting some momentum. I played Thorny Lea with a friend on Tuesday evening to kick off this challenge. I’ll be playing on Saturday at Shaker Hills for course #2. You can visit “Golf in Mass” on this website to read about my experience playing each course. I’ll also be posting pictures on instagram and Twitter, too.