It's safe to say that the presence of the internet has seriously cut down on the amount of actual day-to-day, paper and ink, reading that goes down. Which is a shame, certainly. But among the silver linings to this proverbial cloud is the vastly increased exposure we now have to such little nuggets of wonderment as this short clip, a painstakingly detailed work that would have gone largely unseen in the days before broadband. We watch as the novel Going West, by New Zealand author Maurice Gee, is almost literally brought to life as the pages themselves spring into the third dimension and give form to the actions described therein. This particular silver lining happens to be especially lustrous, as the video is in fact among the New Zealand Book Council's admirable efforts to inspire people to read, and specifically to promote the stories and storytellers of New Zealand. Which, incidentally, makes for our second New Zealand themed post this week.

Inca Trail Finalists: Announcement Coming Soon!

As we gear up to announce the first round of finalists for our Inca Trail Trek, we figured it would be nice to revisit the play-by-play, and let you know how it will all shake out.

Ultimately, we will have only one Pathfinder and only one Guest Chef. Let the game begin! Stay tuned for the big announcement - who will make the cut?

Round One: December 15th

• As you know by now, the process for selecting our Pathfinder involves a random drawing. Ten names will be chosen, and will subsequently go through an interview process with our team. Three semi-finalists will be selected to come to Firestone Winery in Los Olivos to participate in the final selection process.
• Simultaneously, ten chefs will be chosen from our Guest Chef applicant videos on the Firestone Discoveries YouTube Channel. We will select the ten chefs who have the highest number of unique video views. Those ten chefs will also go through an interview process with our team. Three semi-finalists will be selected to participate in the final selection process, a live cook-off at Firestone Winery.

Santa Ynez: January 10th

• The three Pathfinder semi-finalists, plus three Guest Chef semi-finalists will be flown to Santa Barbara, to convene at Firestone Vineyards for the final round.

The Cook-off: January 11th

• Guest Chef semi-finalists will prepare a signature dish live at the Crossroads Barn, Firestone Vineyards. Chefs will be judged by the Firestone staff and a panel of esteemed culinary judges on the following criteria: enthusiasm and credibility toward the Firestone Discoveries program and Firestone Wines (25% factor); verbal communication skills and charisma (25% factor); and presentation and taste of the dish prepared in the cook-off (50% factor).
• Pathfinder semi-finalists will attend and simultaneously blog about the cook-off. They will be judged on how they interact with the chefs, winemaking staff and guests of the winery as well as their writing and reporting skills.
• The official winner announcements will take place at the cook-off!

Homeward Bound: January 12th

The Trek! April 17th - 25th

• Our Pathfinder winner will join us for an all-expense paid four-day trek along the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, Peru, accompanied by skilled guides, journal while on the journey, take video and snapshots of the view, discover an ancient civilization and make $1000. In addition, post-trip, the Firestone Pathfinder will file reports on the Firestone Discoveries website, including Firestone wine pairings with favorite dishes from the Inca Trail trek. A minimum of 15 blog posts will be required to fulfill the obligations of the position.
• The winning Guest Chef will also join us on the trek, all expenses paid, for the culinary experience of a lifetime. He or she will work alongside Peruvian cooks, drawing up menus, shopping at local farmers markets, and cooking gourmet meals trailside. After the trip, he or she will work with the Firestone Pathfinder on recipe pairings and blog posts

Featured Photographer: David Burdeny

For the first week or so of brisk, wintry weather, I often find myself ill-prepared to fend off the chill. Wasn't it just yesterday that I was breezin' right along, with a smile and a song, short-sleeved and feeling fine. Can it really be scarf and glove time already? But when this rosy-glassed outlook is at odds with the reality of the thermometer, and you find yourself scurrying home, breathing into your cupped hands, a bare neck seeking shelter in shrugged shoulders, there really is nothing quite like that first wave of warmth as you come through the front door of your cozy abode. Even if you soon realize that the thermostat is a good ten degrees below truly warm, that initial contrast between the arctic outside and the toasty interior can make all the difference. But since it's highly impractical to run outside every few hours just to experience that blissful juxtaposition, why not check out some of David Burdeny's beautifully austere photographs of icebergs in Greenland and Antarctica? The winner of the International Photography Awards Nature Photographer of the Year in 2008, Burdeny's frigid shots are guaranteed to make you feel just a bit warmer by comparison.
 

One From the Vault: Ken Nordine's Colors

Have you heard the big news? Magenta has her own gossip column! Finally, the inside scoop on the ins and outs of the entire color spectrum from that nosiest of colors. Of course, if you doubt that the secret lives of colors are really all that exciting in the first place, just ask Ken Nordine. A legendary Chicagoland radio DJ and voiceover man in the 50s and 60s, Nordine had a huge hit with a series of ads for Fuller Paint in which he waxed poetic on the company's various shades and hues. The ads were so popular, in fact, that the station was flooded with requests for them to be re-aired. Instead, Ken Nordine did the only logical thing. He recorded a entire album of such pieces, 34 tracks in all, on which he coolly holds forth on the vices and virtues of Turquoise, the obscurity of Nutria, and the foolishness of Russet. It's an album as almost-overwhelmingly bizarre as it is inescapably fascinating. As a veteran voice-actor, Nordine surely had ample experience imbuing drab copywriting with vim and vigor, and when he applies these same masterful skills to his thoroughly well-imagined color universe, the results are simply stunning. You'll listen in wide-eyed, jaw-dropped astonishment as he casually introduces the supporting members of the Group Called Oop, with Yellow Ocher on bari sax and Burnt Umber, recently paroled, on drums, before finally, excitedly, calling to the stage the star of the show: Sepia! You'll witness the dramatic irony of Olive's somber self-pity, while, elsewhere, "those with the nose for the new (the passionate few)," are about to name Olive the color of the year! And to think, without the insightful insights of Mr. Nordine, you'd have no clue/ of the greenest of greens, and the bluest of blues/ of the ongoing goings on/ of every color, shade, tint, and hue.

Incidentally, the antics of Ken's colors seem to have provided ample inspiration for aspiring animators, including what appears to be multiple class project built around his pieces, one featuring animated paper cut-outs, and another utilizing kinetic typography.

Drinks: Mexican Hot Chocolate

There are few things that capture the richness and beauty of a culture the way chocolate does. Every culture has its own interpretation. Whether melted, frosted, whipped into a souffle, or formed into a sensuous bar, chocolate is an expressive medium of regionality. Nothing stirs our souls more than the coming chill of winter, the warm glow of our fireplace and nice cup of Hot Chocolate made with Mexican Chocolate. This is a primordial chocolate experience, tasting much the same as when it was first made by the ancient Aztec civilization. So revered by the Aztecs, chocolate was used as both food and currency. The botanical name for Chocolate is Theobroma, or “food of the Gods," and was one of the many culinary delicacies brought back to Europe by the Spanish. Mexican chocolate typically comes in tablet form and is somewhat dark, coarsely ground and mixed with an array of spices (think cinnamon, allspice, even cayenne). To make our Mexican Hot Chocolate, we go for Ibarra brand chocolate and take our cues from Rick Bayless, chef-restauranteur-author and master of Mexican cuisine, in his cookbook Authentic Mexican. Pretty simple, and really delicious!

Serves 2-3

2 ½ cups milk (or water)

3.3 ounce tablet Mexican Chocolate, roughly chopped

1. Simmering. In a medium sized saucepan, simmer the milk with the chocolate for a few minutes over medium low heat, stirring constantly to dissolve the chocolate.

2. Beating. Either pour into a pitcher and beat well with whisk or pour into a blender. Regardless, you’ll wind up with a nicely frothy drink. Serve at once.

*Photo is taken from Vegetarian Times magazine

High Tea in a Tree

Combining fine dining and tree houses seems like a great idea no matter how you slice it, but in the land that famously portrayed Middle Earth in the Lord of the Rings movies, it's absolutely inspired. Especially considering that the structure in question, which resembles an enormous chrysalis on the verge of producing a pterodactyl-sized butterfly, could easily pass for some sort of magical elven diner.


The Yellow Treehouse, which was built as part of a promotion for the directory service Yellow, was unfortunately only in operation as a restaurant for a few short months, but luckily for anyone in need of a majestic setting for a classy event, the tree house is currently available as a venue for hire. Anyone for a wedding reception in the trees?

The Interview Project from David Lynch

Filmmaker David Lynch set out on a roadtrip across the country with no real destination in mind; no real parameters or agenda. The only objective was to find people and talk to them: people driving down the road, walking on the sidewalk, mowing their lawns, sitting in bars, you name it. Traveling 20,000 miles over a period of 70 days, the team amassed 121 interviews, which are being released every three days via the Interview Project website. Through the Interview Project, Lynch, in his own unique way, nudges us to meet our neighbors, know our hometowns, to listen and simply let people tell their own story in their own way. From Jess in Needles, California to Arthur in Keene, New Hampshire, prepare to meet a diverse string of characters, and step into their world for a few minutes. Now playing, Episode 062, featuring Cynthia Truesdell from South Kortright, New York.