Posts Tagged ‘#jazz’
Good OL’ . . .
. . . Thirsty Thursday again,
BUT this time
it ties in with a marketing event —
Cheeseburger In Paradise.
So enjoy the food, booze and entertainment.
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There’s an inmate here
who obviously is
the sap in the family tree.
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Kansas City Links
Memories of Two States
By Sandy Katz
KANSAS CITY, Mo. —- Famous mice, presidents, cartoonists, jazz artists, and shopping-mall entrepreneurs mix and mingle through the history of this border-straddling metropolis that sprouted out of a trading post just east of the Kansas border on a bend of the Missouri River.
The first bridge to span the mighty Missouri was built here shortly after the Civic War, boosting business in the cattle industry as the railroad spread west.
Then, J. C. Nichols imported millions of dollars worth of century-old statuary to Kansas City and created the Spanish-style Country Club Plaza in 1922 amidst pig farms on the city’s outskirts. It was the first shopping center in the world designed to accommodate shoppers arriving by automobile. The 1914 Union Station, the nation’s second-largest train station, retrieved its elegance with a $250 million restoration begun a couple of dozen years ago.
Kansas City’s allure is best described by Rogers and Hammerstein in their song from the musical “Oklahoma:” “Everything is up to date in Kansas City.”
Getting up to date with Kansas City can be an enlightening tour.
For example, Walt Disney, who graduated from Kansas City Art Institute, fed a small mouse while at work in his Laugh-O-Gram studio. The little critter was the inspiration for the renowned Mickey Mouse.
A couple of museums in the 18th and Vine Historic District house memorials to and memorabilia from jazz and baseball “Who’s Who” who gathered there, including Charlie Parker, Count Basie, Lester Young, Satchel Paige, James “Cool Papa” Bell, and Josh Gibson.
From the Roaring ’20s to early ’40s, it was an entertainment center with no equal as more than 100 nightclubs, dance halls and vaudeville houses featured jazz.
A trip to neighboring Independence, M0, is a must to visit The Truman Presidential Museum and Library, which follows the history of the 33rd U.S. President, Harry S. Truman, who grew up and retired here.
Among the exhibits in a scale model of the Oval Office is his famous sign, “The Buck Stops Here.” Written on the other side is “I’m From Missouri.”
Just up the road a piece on the Kansas side of the border in Leavenworth, more widely known for its “Big House,” the first U.S. federal penitentiary
Jazz Aficionados . . .
. . . can hang around the dining room
after the buffet and
applaud the South Valley Junior High jazz quartet
OR
head to the free
Chandler Center of the Arts POP concert
if the bus isn’t full.
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Wonders Down Under
Begin in Kiwi Country
By Tom Morrow
For Mature Life Features
AUCKLAND —- Stopping over in this North Island metropolis laced with waterways is an excellent way to acclimatize yourself to the more leisurely pace of living in this part of the world as well as stretch your way through jet lag.
Landing in this island country’s biggest city that’s home to about one-third of its population also gave us the opportunity to become accustomed to driving on the left side of the road.
Dominating its waterfront profile is the Sky City Tower that pokes up some 1,066 feet. It’s a small city unto itself with two casinos, a hotel and a theater, several shops, banks, and 10 restaurants and as many bars.
Because we didn’t have much time here, we decided to seek out the best of what the Kiwis – the locals call themselves this in honor of the odd-looking long-beaked nocturnal bird found only here – prepare best: lamb
Even if you don’t care for lamb, you must try it here. This country has just under 4 million people but more than 70 million sheep. Most of the “good lamb meat,” we were told, is exported to America, Britain, Mexico, and South America. “We’re left with the rubbish,” one hotel chef told me. “My wife works for a giant meat exporter and she says you Yanks get all our best meat.”
Still, what they serve here is superb. Here’s an example of a dish you can prepare at home. It’s a Moroccan sauce recipe from a suburban hotel’s sous chef that can be used for either beef or lamb.
Slow cook roast-beef and lamb bones with vegetables, such as leeks, onions, and celery, with bay leaves, peppercorns, and rosemary for 24 hours. Strain and cook the sauce until it is reduced by half. Add a bit of red wine and some tomato sauce. Mix to taste. Slow roast your lamb as normal, then serve the lamb (or beef) with this wonderful sauce.
You’ll be a hit at your table.
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Mature Life Features 