One Last Hurrah

The semester finally ended (Yey! Only one more to go!). A few weeks from now, nothing will be the same, so we decided we want to take a final vacation that’s “just us two”.

Business before pleasure – we headed from Ithaca to the Boston area to visit people down in Cranberry Land. Why make a 6.5 hour drive to say hello? Well, when looking for a job offer, it’s always good to remind people who you are, how great you were and how perfect it would be if you worked at a company full time. And it’s always easier to communicate all of those personally than via email. This is not to say that I told anybody that I came especially for that. That would seem pathetic, or at least really desperate. (It’s still TBD whether I am that desperate).

Small side-note here on the fact that the 6.5 hour drive was actually an 8 hour drive due to stormy weather conditions. And at this point in time I’d like to say that Uri is an awesome driver.

A few tales from our time in New England:

We were there all of two nights, so we stayed over at a friend’s house in Tiverton, RI. This friend, who I met over the summer, recently bought a terrific house on the shore. It was pretty amazing waking up every morning, with the sun raising and boats going back and forth in the harbor. It was like a scene from some movie.

Food wise it was a great success: The first night we had diner in Providence, RI at a place recommended on yelp called East Side Pocket. We’ll second the recommendation – very good dolmas (stuffed grape leaves), good falafel very nice atmosphere. The owner, who seemed to be Lebanese (they were Christian Arabs) recognized our Hebrew, and spoke with us a bit in Hebrew (BeTeavon and all that). Providence is really scoring high with us on the foodie scale. If anything comes through with the cranberry folk, it might just be a serious contender for a living option.

Lunch the following day was bought at a little sandwich place in the heart of cranberry land that we discovered during the summer.

The next diner was in Boston, with our friends Ashley and Dan who have a passion for food very similar to our own (Check out the link in Dan's name, it's the blog he's writing about his experiences in culinary school). We trusted them to make the decision as to where to go, and they did not disappoint. They did say though that it was a bit stressful having that weight on their shoulders. Anyway, we went to a restaurant in Chinatown that was likely one of the most authentic that I’ve been to in the US. It’s called the Gourmet Dumpling House, though they make much more than just dumplings. Some of the dishes really had that “China Flavor” that is everywhere in China. Since Dan is very adventurous with food, and Uri never says no to food, we ordered some pretty strange stuff, including fried intestines (the most Chinese tasting dish) and a spicy fish stew for which a whole live fish was fished out of a fish tank that was near us. We had dessert at a place called Finale.

Lunch the following day was in Providence too, through technically it was on the “on the way to New York City” leg of the trip. We went to a place called Louis’ Restaurant, which Uri saw on one of his favorite food shows – Diner’s Drive-ins and Dives (you can see a the clip from the show here). It was ok, nothing more nothing less. The place certainly has a lot of character, and I could see how some locals might make it their local hang-out, just because the people seem nice and the food is American-comfort food )i.e. lots of tomatoes sauce and cheese), but the food itself is nothing to write home about, so I won’t.

Tomorrow – Part 2 of our vacation – NYC like we’ve never seen it before.

Brrr

I’m sitting at a local café called Mate Factor. Interesting group of people that I haven’t completely made my mind up about. I’m here supposedly studying for my final final. Subject: Macroeconomics and International trade.

I don’t know if it’s the subject matter, the pregnancy, the hour or what but it seems I’ve completely lost my ability to concentrate on studying for more than 30 minutes. It’s a good thing there is no free-wi-fi here, otherwise I wouldn’t have studied at all. As it is, I’m just getting around to writing a post.

Events from the past week:

(1) Winter has finally arrived. It started with a snowstorm the night between Monday and Tuesday. We woke up on Tuesday to a totally white Ithaca. However the snow melted pretty quickly because Tuesday wasn’t actually that cold. Then today, the cold arrived.

It’s amazing how I managed to forget just how cold it can actually get here. I guess it’s sort of like how women forget how painful labor was.

(2) Sunday a few friends at school through me a baby shower. It was actually a pretty big event, as showers go apparently – about 30 girls in all. It was really fun, getting everyone together, getting gifts… I didn’t realize before hand, but apparently part of the whole shower tradition is that is thrown by friends of the mother to be in honor of the woman, so she is not expected to do anything of it. In fact, it is often thrown as a surprise party. That “don’t be involved” part was a bit strange for me. I have a hard time with people doing that type of stuff for me without me helping at all. I finally convinced the organizers to let Uri make muffins, and, unknown to them, I helped him out. (pictures will be uploaded at a later time)

Events for next week:

We’re heading out of Ithaca for the week. First we’ll head to Boston, mainly so that I could have a chance to meet with some people at Ocean Spray (if any of you have forgotten, I am looking for a job for post-graduation). Then we’ll head down to NYC to visit friends, eat in some good restaurants and just generally be in a city with more than 1 high-raise.

After that we’ll head back to Ithaca and we’ll be here pretty much the entire time. I hope I’ll be able to bring myself to leave the house when in get cold.

Thanksgiving, belated

Procrastinating as usual, I put off writing a post during Thanksgiving day. I told myself that I might as well let the whole weekend pass and then put something up that covers the whole 3 days. Sure enough, I not only let the entire weekend pass, but also the entire week that followed.

Some of you might remember last year’s Thanksgiving post. It was already snowing outside and we attempted to host a Thanksgiving dinner. Uri made a beautiful big bird, as well as a ton of other food. We invited people over, but in the end almost no one came. It turned out that “Thanksgiving Dinner” is actually Thanksgiving lunch, and that if you invite people over for 6 pm, they’ll all cancel because that’s just about the time they pass out due to the enormous amounts of food they ate.

This year we decided, in the spirit of the holiday, to see how the natives do it. We accepted an invitation extended by some friends. Uri still made the bird (again it came out beautiful and delicious – thank you Alton Brown). Tamar made a cranberry coffee cake with rosemary strusel, a variation on a blueberry coffee cake from Dorie Greenspan’s Baking from my home to yours (recipe at the end).

It was a very nice and international meal. The hosts were the only Americans. Guests included: 3 Cambodians, 3 French people , 3 Japanese people and 3 Israelis.

Why 3 you ask? Well… because Eitan was here! Last time Eitan was here, Uri and him got a little crazy in the kitchen. This time, they got a little crazy in the living-room, spending a ridiculous amount of time playing with the Playstation. By the end even Uri admitted that it was a bit like being 16 and having a sleepover. All in all it was a very fun weekend.

Now, a week later, I'm done with classes, I have one final and a few papers and then - that's it! The semester will be done, and I'll be free to nest (and blog).

Last but not least - as promised, the recipe for the coffee cake

Cranberry crumb cake

Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From my home to yours

For the crumbs:

5 tbsp unsalted butter at room temp

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup light brown sugar (packed)

1/3 cup all purpose flour

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1 tsp chopped rosemary (my addition)

For the cake:

3 tps cranberry sauce (originall:1 pint (2 cups) blueberries (preferably fresh, or frozen, not thawed))

2 cups plus 2 tsp all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp freshly ground nutmeg

2/3 cup sugar

grated zest of 1/2 lemon or 1/4 orange

3/4 stick (6 tbsp) unsalted butter at room temp

2 large eggs, at room temp

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup buttermilk

preheat oven to 350. butter an 8-inch square pan and put it on a baking sheet.to make the crumbs: put all the ingredients except the nuts in a food processor and pulse, then add nuts and pulse again just until the mixture forms clumps and curds and holds together when pressed. piece of plastic wrap against the surface. refrigerate until needed. (covered well the crumb mix can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.)

to make the cake: whisk together the remaining 2 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.

working in the bowl of a stand mixer or in another large bowl, rub the sugar and zest together with your fingertips until the sugar is moist and aromatic ( I didn’t do this). add the butter and, with the paddle or whisk attachment, or with a hand mixer, beat the sugar with the butter at medium speed until light, about 3 minutes. add the eggs one by one, beating for about 1 minute after each addition, then beat in the vanilla extract. don’t be concerned if the batter looks curdled — it will soon smooth out. reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture and the buttermilk alternately, the flour in 3 parts and the buttermilk in 2 (begin and end with the dry ingredients.) you will have a thick, creamy batter. If using berries: with a rubber spatula, gently stir in the berries.

scrape the batter into the buttered pan and smooth the top gently with the spatula. Dollop cranberry sauce on batter and, using a sharp knife of toothpick, make swirls in batter. pull the crumb mix from the fridge and, with your fingertips, break it into pieces. there’s no need to try to get even pieces — these are crumbs, they’re supposed to be lumpy and bumpy and every shape and size. scatter the crumbs over the batter, pressing them down ever so slightly.

bake for 55 to 65 minutes, or until the crumbs are golden and a thin knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. transfer the cake to a rack and cool just until it is warm or until it reaches room temperature.

General Sillines

If you’ve been missing Uri’s shenanigans, here’s a taste of Uri in top form:

Note his infamous “Blue Steel” (right) as well as the less appreciate “Magnum” (bottom, left). The hat was a gift from our friends Yuval and Bella (Thank you Nusses). They also sent us Shemo’s new book. I hope I’ll have some pictures to show that soon ;)

Also, I’ve uploaded here our current go-to pick me up:

A Reece’s Moose that I picked up at the drug store. For those of you who remember our mascot from China, Moose, you know that we have an affinity to these animals, specifically when they are plush, stuffed and shorter than 12 inches. So here it is – prepared to be marginally amused:

Ode to My Dad

Strange, but true – one of the strongest memories I have of my childhood is of my dad eating breakfast. He would take 2 different yogurt flavors, and pour one into the other, creating a pretty collage. Then he would pour in cereal and mix it all up with his spoon, but his spoon motions were up and down instead of round, figure 8 motions that most people make while mixing.

I wonder why I remember it with such detail. Maybe it’s because they were so constant and so often, it was almost ritualistic.

A few days back, for whatever reason, I recalled my dad’s ritual when it was actually relevant – in the morning when I took my yogurt. I love how evoking such a memory can make a simple breakfast to much more than it actually was.

Every pot has its cover

Dear friends and family
Usually I let my wife use this form of communication, but I decided to give it a try.
For the first time in A couple of years I have a routine for each day of the week. I know exactly what I'll do and when I'll do it. It is an unusual feeling for me, though it is going to be short lived experience with the baby and all :-)Most of you know that this year I started teaching. All together it's going pretty well. The fact that I don't have to prepare them for a test at the end of the school is a blessing in that it gives me a lot of freedom to teach almost any relevant material that I find interesting. The flip side is that some students don't have any motivation to study since not all of them are curious enough. But overall, those who are interested make it worth while.

The were also two other things I was thinking of sharing with you: First of all. I saw the new Cohen Brothers movie. It is the most Jewish and the most weird movie I have ever seen. I cannot recommend it, although, if any of you are going to see it, I can say that it is a very unique experience. Please let me know what you thought. The second thing goes to a well known fact about me - that I love to cook In big quantities. Despite the fact that over the years it has been somewhat exaggerated, it is mostly true. The nice thing is that now that I'm cooking for others on a regular basis, I have the perfect excuse with cooking for other people. That gave me another excuse to do something else I love to do: I bought a new big pot. I haven't used it yet, but I am excited to try (it also has other uses as well).
This is the end of my experiment,and I hope you enjoyed it
uri

What would you do?

My Consumer Behavior class has become in and of itself an experiment in consumer behavior. About a week and a half ago the most interesting experiment took place: The professor came into class and announced that given that he thinks the majority of our final project proposals are weak and boring, he is giving us another option for a final project which involves analysis rather than research. In his mind, this second alternative better plays to our strengths as MBA students. The problem was this: that same day was the first of two possible dates to submit the first part of the original project. Moreover, in giving the new, easier alternative, he also changed the criteria for the grading of the original project: before that project’s grade was divided between 3 “mini projects”, now, the entire grade rests on the final paper submitted.
So what do you think? Put yourself in the following situation and tell me what you would have done: Your team decided to submit the first paper on that day. During the past week each of you worked 5-8 hours on researching and writing the paper. When you come to class you find out that (a) you now have an easier option, (b) the work that you did do (that you now the professor prejudges as is poor) will not count towards your grade and (c) there is part of the class that did not do that work yet and given the new option might not have to do it.



If you are an MBA student in the US, I’m sure that it’s clear to you that the answer is 3. I’ve actually seen this happen on several occasions – something related to a project is changed in a manner that makes the project easier for everyone, and those that already put in work get pissed off, completely ignoring the fact that they can benefit from the change as well.
My initial reaction was to raise a question as to the general emotion of social solidarity among my classmates. If everyone were to choose the new option those who had already handed in the first paper in the original project had a sunk cost while other didn’t. That difference was so outrageous to those who did the work that they were willing to give up the benefit of the new option, thereby putting everyone at a disadvantage.
But there is another interesting question in this scenario, even if you don’t consider the relationship between the individual and the group – the fact that to the people who had done the initial work, the sunk cost seemed so much greater than the benefit they might get from switching to the new option. On this topic, I actually found somewhat related research done by On Amir and Dan Ariely, published in the Journal of Marketing Research (Feb 2007). Their research showed that when a rule based decision mechanism is triggered a person is more likely to make an illogical decision rather than break the rule.
The researched focused on money as a cue for triggering such rule based decision mechanism, and actually showed that effort (in their study, a longer drive) does not trigger it. However, I think that this study still is relevant here. My working theory right now is that for American MBA students, there is a rule of fairness which dictates that hard work should be rewarded while slacking off is should be punished. The events in class triggered that rule and made them irrationally prefer continuing with the original project rather than choose the second option, forsaking their own benefit from switching and completely disregarding the implication to others.
It’s a working theory, still not worded perfectly, and I still this that last part (disregarding the implication to others) is a cultural thing has to do with social solidarity. I wonder what Ariely and Amir (both Israeli Professors at American MBA programs) would think.

PS - when putting in links for this blog, I noticed that this month's JMR has an article written by 2 of my professors, one of them the professor of the aforementioned CB class.

Oh - and another think, the link to Dan Ariely is a to the TED website. he has 2 talks there, both very interesting, neither very long.