by Valerie Lee

When I was a kid, every time we grilled out, my grandpa would make homemade BBQ sauce. We had many recipes and used most every one. It wasn't until I was a teenager that I realized this was unusual. Most families, of course, bought their sauce. That being said, never have I ever met anyone in my family or anywhere else, who made their own ketchup. The thought never would have occurred to me had I not run across this random ketchup recipe. I've just finished my very first batch. I must say...it is way better than any store bought brand I've tried. I don't see myself making it again, however, unless I decided to experiment with the recipe by adding some flavor...like bacon. That sounds really good. Homemade bacon ketchup. I'll be sure to let you know how that turns out if it happens. For now, I challenge you to give this pretty basic ketchup recipe a shot. 

Ingredients:
28 oz whole tomatoes in puree
1 medium onion, chopped
2 Tbl olive oil
1 Tbl tomato paste
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup vinegar 
1/4 tsp allspice, ground
1/2 tsp salt

Directions:
Blend pureed tomatoes in a blender until smooth. In a heavy 4 qt saucepan, cook onion in olive oil until soft, about 8 minutes. Add purred tomatoes, paste, brown sugar, vinegar, allspice, and salt. Simmer, uncovered, stirring frequently until very thick, about an hour. Puree mixture in a blender until smooth. Chill, covered, for 2 hours before serving.
Enjoy!

by Chandler Demidovich
opening paragraph by Valerie Lee



While going through some old papers last night, I came across the following summary. It was  written by my son, Chandler. It made me giggle and made me wonder what teacher he wrote it for. There are a couple of "cuss" words in there, which is something I'd never have gotten away with in junior high! So I called him and asked what grade he was in at the time and who did he turn this interesting piece of homework to? He said, "Mom...Dude...You made me write that!" Ha! He said it was when he was about 15 years old and we were having trouble transferring schools. I didn't want him to fall behind. Here's what he wrote:

Summary of Beowulf

The book starts out with a king (Harrathhor) ... he builds a bad ass meal hall for his men ... they end up getting drunk and they wake up to a demon beast thing. The thing rips them up   arms flying all over...ew.

Beowulf gets news about the attacks. He orders a fleet of ships across the sea to go whoop ass. When he gets there the king questions him. Here is the conversation translated in modern tongue.

King: Who the hell are you:
Wulf: I'm Beowulf.
King: Oh! Really? You are a bad ass. Welcome.
Beowulf: cool. Thanks.

Anyway, Beowulf beats the monster's ass. Rips off his arm. Then the monster's mom gets pissed, so he beats her ass too.

Then Beowulf is showered with thanks and gifts. He sails back home and then his king dies, as did the king's son. Beowulf takes the throne and then has to fight a dragon. 

He ends up beating the dragon's ass, but he was bitten. The poison killed him.

Bummer.

by Chandler Demidovich

EW’s art represents an amalgamation of Expressionism and Urban Folk Art dealing with contemporary issues along with personal statements and observations.

Heart and Tongue is titled after an Arabic story: Luqman the Wise was told to bring the best part of the sheep. He brought back the heart and tongue. The next day he was told to bring back the worst part of the sheep. Once again he returned with the heart and tongue. He was asked why did you bring the same thing for the good and the worst part? He stated, “The tongue and the heart are the sweetest parts if they are good, and nothing can be worse than these if they are wicked.”

EW’s art attracts the viewer in with playful images that, on closer inspection, express a thoughtful critique of the current political climate. Utilizing the style of Folk Artists, such as working on found substrates with latex house paint, and also incorporating found objects as collage elements, the work has a strong Expressionistic aesthetic, but is still very American.

The pieces on display are political, social, humorous, subversive, and subliminal views of the sweetest and wickedest aspects of our society. The paintings, collages, and installations span 7 years. The art was created in Milwaukee, San Diego, Atlanta, Birmingham and Los Angeles. EW feels that living in Los Angeles (Leimert Park) was like going to the School of Hard Knocks as an artist. The main lessons taught were to be himself, and understand that art and opportunities are subjective. The highlight of EW’s California experience was having his video shown at the Los Angeles Museum of Art (LACMA) before a Norman Lear talk.

A closing reception will be held on Sunday, Feb. 27th from 1PM to 4PM.

For information about the exhibition click below:

by Valerie Lee


The lineup for the Euphonious 2 Music Festival, which made it successful debut last year, has been announced. Better than Ezra, Colbie Caillat, and Collective Soul will headline the 3 day rain or shine event. Each day will offer 3 performances at the Henley Park Lawn at the Birmingham Zoo. Part of the proceeds will go to United Ability, a non-profit organization which provides services to developmentally challenged adults and children. 

Don't worry. The music will not affect the animals at the zoo. The Henley Park Lawn was created as part of a renovation in 2017  with the animals wellbeing and safety in mind. Normal convert volume will have zero impact on them. 

Tickets are, of course, available online. The types of tickets offered include general admission for about 2000 attendees, VIP passes with porch seating and other perks, and a limited number of 10 foot by 10 foot lawn party squares for groups of up to 8 who prefer a more relaxed concert experience. 

Come out and enjoy a good time and some great music. You will be supporting our local zoo as well as a very worthy charity. I hope to see you there.