cheese blog

What a beautiful day in Edinburgh. The sun is out, the people are out, and it's about 40 degrees out. I had a very enjoyable morning and early afternoon. First, I went to my environmental politics tutorial. This past week, we were asked to observe the ways in which the media shape our understanding of environmental issues. So, I chose a piece from a 2007 New York Times series about China and the environment called "Choking on Growth". My partner, a girl from Evanston, Illinois (who interestingly attends northEASTERN), approved this selection, then promptly forgot about the assignment. I showed up 20 minutes before class to discuss our presentation plans, but she didn't show up until 5 minutes into class. She apologized to the professor, who remarked, "it's ok. you keep getting here earlier and earlier every week!" which is true. So, I gave our brief presentation all by my lonesome. It turned out to be fine. No big deal at all. While other groups were presenting, I wrote down notes about the article so my partner could get up to speed. Anyway, boring story, right? I'll add some details that might improve it. First off, my partner came into the room and promptly tripped over another student. She nearly fell down, but managed to catch herself by sprinting forward until she regained balance. For this maneuver, she needed to use the entire center space of our seminar room like a runway. I hope you can picture this, as it was very funny, then instantly very uncomfortable for the whole class. So, she sat next to me and said something like, "hey. so, i've pretty much screwed you over. i haven't even read the article. i thought today was yesterday." I wonder what she did yesterday.



Last night I made a plan for today so that I would be sure not to waste it. So, after tutorial, I marched up the royal mile and stopped at a cafe called "Always Sunday" (this is the one that I have been meaning to go to). I had a slice of banana bread with cranberries and a cappuccino. The cappuccino was separate from the banana bread. I staked out a window seat and watched people walk up and down the street. There were three red phone booths outside the window, and I enjoyed observing people taking pictures of them. I also recognized those people who clearly wanted to take pictures of them, but who were too concerned about looking touristy. They basically all take the same route. They approach the booth, slow down, look around and make a face as if they are thinking really hard about something, sometimes stop completely, then continue on as if they had figured out what they were thinking about. I know this technique because I invented it.

http://www.alwayssunday.co.uk/

After about 30 minutes in the cafe, I kept going west along high st. until I reached some other street. So, I took a left. Then I turned right onto Victoria and sniffed my way into I J Mellis, Cheesemonger. This was my main goal for the day. The two gentlemen who were working today were very helpful and up for a chat. One was a local in his mid-twenties, and the other was from Mississippi originally, had lived in Portland for seven years, and was probably in his mid-thirties. I was the only person in the shop for most of my twenty minute stay. I read a review about the place that said that the employees insist that you try everything, and when you're the only one there, that's definitely true. So, we talked about SCUBA diving while they gave me the tour of the shop. Right off the bat, I told them that I had 10 pounds to spend on cheese, and I think that took the vendor-consumer tension out of the equation. They set me up with three cheeses. The first is the younger cheesemonger's favorite of all time. It's called Strathdon, and it's a creamy blue from Scotland that I am very excited about. The second is called Clava Brie, and it is also from Scotland. Ben (the cheesemonger) recommended that I wait a few days to let this one mature a little more. Of course. What else would I do? Did he think I was going to eat it now, while it's clearly still so immature? Yeah right. Psh. Uh, and the last one is an Irish cheese from western Cork, I think. It's called Ardrahan, and it's apparently cold smoked. I don't know what that does, but who cares, it was hecka good! It's soft and rich, and the inside is a little bit chalky. I love the texture of this one the best, and I predict that it will be my favorite of the three. So, like we do with the Cheeseboard in Berkeley, I asked Ben to write the names of the cheeses on their wrappers, and I will continue to sample whatever I can while I'm here. Hey family, maybe bring a list of these cheeses to the Cheeseboard and see if they've got any. Who knows, right?