Cathy Burnham Martin's Blog, page 114

“Having a vision for your life allows you to live out of hope, rather than out of your fears.”

— Stedman Graham (1951 –  )

American educator, author, and businessman

(Image by Gerd Altmann)

Okay! It’s Friday… Date Night! For us that has often meant a trip to Home Depot, where we find ourselves so often, the staff calls us by our first names. We can do better for a Date Night…. For example, even when we must go to Home Depot, we can plan a little out-do-dinner stop afterward… or even just grab an ice cream cone.

Why not plan an actual date? Remember movies and popcorn? Even when we are not going “out,” we can go out for a date with our mate without leaving home. Movies and popcorn! Or a multi-course dinner. Or simply sitting out on the deck with a glass of wine for happy hour. You don’t need to hop on a cruise ship or plan an expensive night out. Sometimes all we need to do is deliberately be less busy. Or do a little something just for your mate. Make them feel special.

For me, it’s all about using our minds. (Those are our biggest sex organs.) Remember how fun it was to be dating? We’d look forward to the event with such wonderful anticipation! We’d plan where we’d go and what we’d do with great glee! It truly matters little what we do or what we wear or how our hair looks. To me, it matters most that we focus on each other. Time together. Joy shared. Letting each other know that we actually LIKE each other.

Especially after being with someone for many years, it becomes easy to take each other for granted. We can all very easily get caught up in being busy, busy, busy. We might lack patience with our mate. We might no longer truly listen when they share. We may not always use a particularly fond, nor respectful tone when speaking to them. We may demand, rather than politely asking for their assistance. Flames flicker… they sometimes burn high and sometimes burn low. If you sense the fire has gone out, re-ignite it!

So, I like thinking of National Date Your Mate Month as a time to reflect on everything that made our mate someone we liked dating. No one expects that butterflies-in-the-stomach feeling, and that’s okay. There’s something very wonderful about total comfortability with our lover and best friend. Try to remember what was most special about each other in that “wowza,” falling in love stage. There is no need for expense. Just focus on romance. And smile. You are both worth it.

(Image by Bingo Naranjo)

“Before you can be creative, you must be courageous. Creativity is the destination, but courage is the journey.”

— Joey Reiman (1953 – )

American businessman; Chairman, Brand New World Studios, NYC

(Photo by Camilo Goes)

“Adding more bull to bull yields bigger bull.”

― Cathy Burnham Martin

in “The Bimbo Has Brains: And Other Freaky Facts,” 2017

“Whenever a fellow tells me he is bipartisan, I know he’s going to vote against me.”

— Harry S. Truman (1884 – 1972)

33rd President of the United States

I simply think that one thing that is worse than not having an opinion on an important issue is not encouraging and supporting differing opinions. This is how we learn. We need not always agree, but embracing the right to hold differing thoughts is foundational to freedom in a nation.

(Photo by Miltiadis Fragkidis)

This is a day to celebrate brunch’s favorite adult beverage… a simple drink made from equal parts of champagne and orange juice. While variations abound, it was named “Mimosa” as the color closely resembles the flowers of the plant bearing the same name. I liked a Mimosa… UNTIL I tasted Italy’s counterpart.

In theory, sparkling white wine can only be called Champagne if it comes from the Champagne region of France. Italy’s delightful counterpart is called Prosecco.

If a true Bellini has not floated blissfully across your tastebuds, it may be a great day to give it a go. The Bellini has become vogue in U.S. restaurants and bars over the past couple of decades. You can find dozens of recipes online, too. However, not all bartenders, nor recipes, are created equal. As with the Mimosa, gazillions of variations appear everywhere. While virtually all include Prosecco, many basic recipes include peach juice (or a vast array of other juices), lemon juice, sugar, and even simple syrup. I have been served a crystal-clear cocktail as a Bellini, but only in the U.S. That simple bar version uses Champagne and Peachtree liquor. Don’t do that and think that you have tasted a Bellini. In truth, if Champagne is used, rather than Prosecco, the cocktail is called a Bellini Royal. Let me step back a bit.

The Bellini was created in 1948 by Giuseppe Cipriani at the famous 1930s haunt known as Harry’s Bar in Venice, Italy. He named the drink for Venice’s Renaissance artist, Giovanni Bellini. The cocktail’s recipe is a simple combination of 2-parts Prosecco Spumante and 1-part white peach puree. (“Back in the day” one full-time employee’s sole task was pureeing the white peaches!) Plus, they add one SECRET ingredient: a touch of raspberry puree (sans seeds). This imparts a luscious rosy glow to the cocktail AND balances out what can be varying degrees of sweetness in the peaches. (In a pinch, my Super Simple substitute for raspberry puree is a tablespoon of raspberry sorbet.) The Bellini at Harry’s Bar became a favorite cocktail of many celebrities, including American novelist Ernest Hemingway.

While historically elegant, there is nothing fancy about Harry’s Bar in Venice. And the straight, almost water-glass style of the glass in which they serve a Bellini parallels the bar’s no-nonsense style. (But the prices of everything there are outrageously high… and that was true well before Covid!) Cipriani also created Carpaccio in 1950 to suit the dietary needs of an Italian countess who was not eating cooked meat. Cipriani cut a beef fillet into paper-thin slices and drizzled his special sauce (mayo, Worcestershire, lemon, milk, salt & pepper) abstractly over the slices. He named the creation Carpaccio in honor of the Venetian painter, Vittore Carpaccio. Let me share one other historic tidbit with you….  Just before World War II began, Giuseppe Cipriani became upset by the fascist regime’s Racial Laws, requiring restaurants to post a sign prohibiting Jewish people from entering. In protest, he boldly posted the sign outside the kitchen door, rather than at the front. Reacting with wrath to the insult, Harry’s Bar was seized for the exclusive use of the military. Rather than being forced to serve them, Cipriani and his staff walked away… and carried on Harry’s Bar (unofficially) in a farmhouse. (Sounds rather like an Italian Speakeasy!)

Love the history; love the true Bellini. On my first trip to Italy, I knew I was not going to miss out on getting to Harry’s Bar. We did and enjoyed a Bellini, of course! Now we make and serve them regularly… in stemware and even flowing from a fountain! Thank you, Venice & Harry’s Bar!

“Confidence doesn’t come out of nowhere.  It’s a result of something… hours and days and weeks and years of constant work and dedication.”

— Roger Staubach (1942 –  )

American football player

“Begin each day with a fresh breath of air and a renewed attitude of positive possibilities.”

— Cathy Burnham Martin – American author, voiceover artist & dedicated foodie

(Photo by Joel Henry)

“We judge ourselves by what we feel capable of doing, while others judge us by what we have already done.”

— Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807 – 1882)

American poet

(Image by Gerd Altmann)

“We are all role models. Our only choice is to be a good or bad one.”

— Cathy Burnham Martin – American author, voiceover artist & dedicated foodie

That is a theme that I’ve used for dozens of presentations to young people for a great many years on the business and public speaking circuits. So often we humans get thinking that only movie stars, politicians, and professional athletes should be held to a higher standard. (Oh, yeah… some celebs forget to think about that little detail.) I simply believe that we all must hold ourselves to a higher standard, for the sake of our souls and the world around us, and because someone impressionable and vulnerable is watching, even if we don’t think we are worthy of such influence.

(Photo by Jose M.)