As much as I’d love to provide an elaborate, exotic excuse for not blogging in two months (”I was in Brazil directing the new Gnarls Barkley video”) the truth is that I’ve been inundated with work, exhausted and…well frankly…pretty freakin’ lazy.
Blogging is obviously not as physically grueling as an advanced pilates class and I truly love to write, but each day at the Watershed Media underground command center seems to stretch an hour longer than the last and I’ve just not had the energy. When the day finally ends I either dive headlong into that first fabulously numbing Tangueray Rangpur and tonic or seek refuge in my garden. Cuddling up with my Macbook as adorable as it may be and authoring even more copy does not strike me as “me time.”
This is the time of year that I’ve been longing for, the fleeting season of outdoor entertaining, cooking, lounging, cocktails, eating…you get the idea. My waking hours away from the desk are spent almost exclusively on these pursuits, none of which require wireless access or Photoshop. Most of our design projects at work include copywriting so even “casual writing” lately has had zero appeal and feels increasingly like a task, thus my embarrassing hiatus.
Okay, I’m done with the symbolic “falling on my pen”, I’m back, somewhat energized and ready to blow the dust off my laptop. Thank god for spellcheck, my keyboard is not the only thing that has accumulated dust.
No hiatus is without it’s benefits. I’ve had time to catch up on some reading recently and I just finished Anthony Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential which I could not have enjoyed more. As I approached the final chapter I noticed that the Travel Channel was replaying Bourdain’s No Reservations in anticipation of the new season premiere on July 7th. One of the episodes this past week had Tony back as a line cook at Les Halles. It was interesting to see the book come alive as Bourdain worked a double shift in his old kitchen.
Earlier in the week I received a package that I had been expecting from the Food Network. A month ago I had won an essay contest of sorts on Tammy’s Boston Food & Whine blog. The contest centered around Food Network’s The Next Food Network Star and the prize package included Bobby Flay’s Grill It cookbook and some other Food Network swag. (Hey Food Network, what’s with the large t-shirt? Large? Who the hell wears a large shirt these “supersized” days?)
I’ve been a Food Network zealot for longer than I care to admit so submitting a slightly off-color winning essay was a piece of cake (truth be told there was hardly any competition). But I’ve noticed lately that the network has seemingly lost a step or two. Rachel Ray elicits more media backlash than Hillary Clinton, Paula Deen had long ago reached the limits of butter-infused southern-fried death vittles, even my favorite Bobby Flay is one “PB&J Throwdown” away from reaching the end of his rope. And has anyone carved out a cushier gig biting into pulled pork sandwiches and staining his shirt every week like Guy Fieri?
Flay, Mario Batali, Iron Chef America and Ace of Cakes are the only programs that keep me coming back to the Food Network. Even Giada DeLaurentiis in my opinion has lost her smoldering Tuscan hotness with her bitchy performances on NFNS. When as a network executive you can see the merit of showing how Shedd’s Spread Country Crock Margarine is created on Unwrapped you know it’s time to retool.
In Bourdain’s book he mentions the amazing line cooks he’s had the pleasure of working with, the majority of which were Latino. As I watch the Food Network’s current lineup and annual search for that “next big thing” I see only a token attempt to extend their ethnic reach. I know, I know, they tried with Jag before that whole “serving in Afghanistan” fisaco. And no, the recently jettisoned Nipa and her “add curry to everything” doesn’t cut it.
Granted, the Food Network is looking for someone with more camera appeal than kitchen chops ala Rachel Ray or god forbid, Sandra Lee and her tastefully matching hors d’oeuvre and party decorations. Yet I wonder if they truly care about finding more Latin flavored programming and on-air talent or if they’re just going to keep ramming the likes of a greased-up Paula Deen down our throats?
