Graeter's ice cream update

I brought a pint of mocha chocolate chip (my favorite) to a meeting last night and offered some to those attending. At first they didn't believe me when I said it was the best ice cream in the world. There were comments about Starbucks coffee flavor, Ben & Jerry's, even Breyer's.

After just one taste everyone agreed -- it's remarkably fine ice cream!

I challenge you, my Seattle area readers, to pick up some of your favorite supermarket ice cream and a pint of Graeter's from your local Fred Meyer. (I heard it's available at the Totem Lake store, maybe others. Call first.) Taste them and let me know what you think. Your taste buds will be very happy you did!

Scalp mets

It was the weirdest thing. Out of nowhere, I touched my head and found blood on my fingertip. The largest scalp met was bleeding! I applied pressure and after a few minutes it stopped.

This happened on Wednesday evening. I called Dr G on Thursday morning, the nurse called back that afternoon and told me he says wait until I see him on Tuesday and he will examine my head. Of course, if it happens again and for some reason won't stop bleeding, then we call.

This largest of three mets has been changing in the past two weeks. It used to be domed, like the others. Now it's flatter on one side and a tiny bit indented. If course I can't see it myself, but to my touch it feels different. Don't know if this is chemo-related and if it is, what it might mean....

Now I am off to get my brain MRI. I get the results on Tuesday afternoon.

Nice pants.

Woo hoo! My M-spike is down just another teeny smidge to 2.4. All of my other numbers are good. This really isn't that much of a change from last month's 2.5, but I felt like posting a different photo of Bon Jovi in a short-sleeved t-shirt this time. I decided to go with something fun from the '80s:




And while I can't stop laughing at his pants, I know that, had I seen this photo in a magazine in the 1980s, I would have cut it out and hung it on my wall. And I would have called friends and told them to come over and look at it. And they would have been jealous.

beautiful eyes

That's what struck me when I met Sarah in person: she had the most beautiful deep brown eyes I had ever seen, with a lovely smile to match.

It was February 2010 and we were both in attendance at the Annual Conference for Young Women Affected by Breast Cancer. We had met online through our online community, Mothers With Cancer.

A short time after we met, Sarah found out that her breast cancer had become metastatic and she began treatment anew. A few weeks ago, she learned that the cancer had spread to her brain and she started radiation treatment. A couple of days ago, she was admitted to hospital with breathing issues. Last night, she passed away.

I won't claim to have known beautiful Sarah better than I did. But I did consider her my friend. And I will miss her.

Here are some things I knew about this remarkable woman:

She loved her three daughters very much and she was incredibly proud of them.

She was happily married.

She was a talented photographer.

She loved animals, especially dogs and horses.

She had an appreciation for good coffee.

She left this world way too soon.

Sarah, you will truly be missed. My heart goes out to your family and to all who loved you.

You can read more about Sarah at her blog, Spruce Hill. Tributes have also been posted by Jenny (cross-posted to Mothers With Cancer), Susan, Nicole, Ree and Mary Beth.

Note: Blogger was down for about 20 hours and when it came back up, this post was gone (as were the comments from my previous post). If you are seeing this twice in a row on the blog, it will be because Blogger has returned it to me.

Healthy Spirits: New Arrivals

1. Sudwerk Hefeweizen 6-packs

2. Kostritzer Schwarzbier

3. Drake's Expedition Red Ale

4. Rodenbach/Rodenbach Grand Cru glassware

5. Oud Beersel Gueuze, Kriek, and Framboise 12oz.

6. Mission Brewing Hefe and Kolsch

7. Telegraph White Ale

8. Omer glassware

9. Straffe Hendrik Bruges Tripel and Quadruppel

10. Deschutes Hop Henge

11. Alaskan Summer Ale

12. Alaskan Pilot Series Imperial IPA

13. Sierra Nevada Beer Camp Mix 12 pack

14. Sierra Nevada Summerfest

15. Samuel Adams Longshot (Homebrew Competition) Mixed 6 pack

16. Black Diamond Peak XV Imperial Porter with vanilla beans and cacao nibs

17. Grand Teton Lost Continent DIPA 4pk

18. Marin Star Brew Wheatwine

19. Moylans Orange & Black Ale

cheers,

dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610

Graeter's ice cream is in Seattle!

As an expatriate Cincinnatian, I have ordered Graeter's ice cream many times over the years. At first I would stop at the factory on the tail end of a trip home and pick up a few pints packed in dry ice. When that was no longer possible, I would order it over the telephone or, most recently, online. And of course every trip to Cincinnati included a daily stop at Graeter's for the best ice cream in the world. (Sorry, Molly Moon. Graeter's won my heart long ago.)

Mocha chocolate chip!

Imagine my glee when I was shopping at the Fred Meyer on Seattle's Lake City Way. While looking for the coupon special, suddenly several flavors of Graeter's were staring me in the face! I practically danced up and down the frozen food aisle while piling my cart with black raspberry chip, chocolate chocolate chip, vanilla and vanilla chocolate chip. coconut chocolate chip and the quintessential mocha chocolate chip. (Mint chocolate chip is not my thing, but it was there.) 


Graeter's makes its ice cream with a traditional French Pot process, just two gallons at a time. As the website says, 

"Our secret recipe of fresh cream and egg custard is gently swirled along the chilled sides of a slowly spinning French Pot Freezer. As the creamy blend thickens, a blade softly scrapes the sides of the pot, folding the ice cream into itself. Then we add the fresh ingredients to complete our unique flavors.

The gentle folding process prevents air from whipping into our ice cream and accounts for the extremely dense and creamy consistency. Where a typical pint of ice cream can weigh as little as 8 ounces, a Graeter’s pint weighs nearly a full pound! Graeter’s ice cream is so rich and creamy that we have to pack every pint by hand."

(Are you drooling yet?)

I was once told the secret to the chocolate chip flavors is adding the chocolate in liquid form before the ice cream is frozen. As the ice cream churn, the chocolate freezes into uneven sizes and shapes. It's possible to find a "chip" the size of the first joint of your thumb or larger! No other chocolate chip ice cream can compete.

For those who don't believe me, try your own ice cream taste-off. Pick up a pint or two at Fred Meyer. (Graeter's may also be available at QFC, but Freddy's on Lake City is where I bought it today.) Compare it to any ice cream you choose. I am willing to bet that Graeter's will blow your mind, especially any flavor with chocolate chips. And it's kosher under the Vaad Haoier of Cincinnati.

taller than i

My beautiful first born turned 13 yesterday. The cliche is true - it happens in the blink of an eye. He's a good person - smart, creative, caring and funny. We are so proud of the man he is becoming.