Nicki's Central West End Guide

Camellia, same time this year

When I planted this camellia in my small city garden almost three years ago, a few skeptics questioned the wisdom of this selection, given our sometimes harsh winters. As I don't coddle the shrub in any way---wrapping it in burlap, for instance---I too wondered if it would bloom again this Spring.

Around the 19th of March I noticed a few of its buds had opened. Just out of curiosity, I checked my archives to see when I posted the first picture of this contented shrub on my blog. To my amazement it was March 17 of last year. It turns out I could simply have copied and pasted the same paragraph I used then..."after the bitterly cold etc. etc. etc." The camellia's time clock has become, in effect, my gardening calendar---"March 17-19: Camellia in Bloom!"

In art class yesterday we were talking about the strange weather and the huge snowflakes that fell early Wednesday morning. One of my drawing friends said that KSDK's Chief Meteorologist Dave Murray forecasts another big snow in April. Another friend, who really knows gardening, added that the Farmers' Almanac says the same thing. And I've heard from other sources that the Almanac has been particularly accurate in its predictions so far this year. At this point, nothing would surprise me. Thankfully, no matter the weather, my camellia seems to be happy where it's planted.

"Passport to CWE" links great cause & great deals!

I met dynamo Bridget Kelly*, above, for coffee at Pi to learn more about the "Passport to the CWE," a fundraiser that benefits the Children's Education Alliance of Missouri, and supports local businesses too. Bridget, Community Outreach Coordinator of CEAM, is definitely the woman you want in charge of a project such as this. No stranger to the television camera (see "up close" below), Bridget has made several appearances on local stations promoting the "Passport to the CWE" wearing, in one appearance, clothing from Libby's on McPherson, and carting along other goodies from local businesses participating in the event. These included a salad from Pi, wine from The Vino Gallery, brass candlesticks from Shelton Davis, and sandwiches from Pickles. There is a link to Bridget's recent appearance on Show Me St. Louis on CEAM's website.

The Children's Education Alliance of Missouri chose the Central West End to launch its first "Passport" fundraiser because it loves the idea of bringing the neighborhood together over this worthy cause, and because their offices are at 4742a McPherson, it was pretty easy to enlist the support of surrounding businesses. CEAM is launching a program that provides financial assistance for children with special needs and parent-training programs for their families in St. Louis City and County. The Passport is only one part of a development campaign targeted to raise $122,500 to get the program through its first year. So far, they have raised $30,000 toward this goal. There are 133,000 children with special needs in the State of Missouri. In the St. Louis area alone 20% of the students have been diagnosed with a special need. Frequently parents don't know where to turn to get information as they seek better educational opportunities for their children. The Children's Education Alliance of Missouri hopes to offer 15 to 30 students scholarships to a school of the families' choice starting this September.

For $25 your "Passport to the CWE" will take you to Herbie's for a tasting of Petite Beef Wellington, Shrimp Dumpling, & Missouri Trout Pancake, $5 instead of $9; to Coffee Cartel for a free scoop of ice cream; Borough Vintage for 25% off a regularly-priced item; Lemon Spalon for $20 off a haircut;  Wolfgang's Pet Store for $10 off grooming (my cat is "kitty non grata" after she terrorized a groomer here); Jennifer Walker Jewelry for a free stamped initial charm (Update: I just picked mine up and it is about the most adorable charm you have ever seen!); Duff's for a free dessert with purchase of lunch or dinner; to Halbert's Rug Company for 20% off; to Brewington Art & Design for 15% off all accessories, and so many more wonderful discounts including 10% off a night's stay at the Chase. You can purchase your passport online and pick it up at The Vino Gallery, or purchase it directly from Vino at 4701 McPherson starting tomorrow, March 31. This Saturday, Vino is offering a special 10-wine tasting  in addition to their 10% off wine purchase special for Passport holders. The Passport is valid from Friday, April 1 through Sunday, April 10.

How nice to know that a donation of $25 will support a worthwhile charity based right here and  promote neighborhood businesses at the same time. Everyone's a winner with this one---so what are you waiting for?

Children's Education Alliance of Missouri, 4742 A McPherson, (314) 654-4544.

*Up close and personal: As Bridget said, "If your readers think they may know one of the Kellys, they probably do." Our great-grandfather, Joseph P. Kelly, was the contractor who built the Missouri History Museum; her grandfather, also Joseph P. Kelly, placed the Missouri seal over the statue of Thomas Jefferson in the Museum (he went on to become a chef). There are 11 Kelly children. Bridget and her identical twin Margaret, who develops recipes for Bissinger's, are the youngest.  Another sister, Colleen Starkloff, runs the Starkloff Disability Institute. Colleen and her late husband Max founded Paraquad, which was based in the CWE for many years.

Bridget and Margaret were hosts of "Food Talk w/ the Kelly Twins," formerly on KTRS, and "Twicebaked," formerly on CCIN and currently on Blue Highways TV.  You can also check out the talented sisters' entertaining bloopers made while filming "Twicebaked" on youtube:  http://www.youtube.com/kellytwins .

Tennessee Williams 100th Birthday Celebration benefits The Central West End Association

Join friends of the Central West End Association on Sunday, April 10 to celebrate Tennessee Williams' 100th birthday at the Gaslight Theater, home of the wonderful St. Louis Actors Studio. The benefit is the brainchild of CWEnder Lana Pepper who is also Director of the performance.

The Central West End Association is not the only organization on Lana's dance card, however. Friday night's performance is a benefit for the Actors' Studio, and Saturday's for the St. Louis Beacon, both worthwhile organizations to be sure. But Sunday evening belongs to the Central West End Association, so please support it by buying a ticket. It promises to be a very entertaining evening, and with dinner following the performance, how can you miss?

See poster, above, for ticket information.

 

 

Meet Forest Park Owlets Monica and Dalton

The response to Friday's post, featuring Junko Eccles and her fine-feathered visitor in the wee hours of the morning, has been a heartwarming experience. When Junko saw the post with her picture of the red-tailed hawk she sent it to her friends in Japan hoping it might cheer them up. Over the past couple of days there have been almost 200 hits on my blog from Japan. As anyone who blogs knows, there are days when you wonder why in the world you spend so many hours writing, in my case about life in the CWE? This serendipitous connection with Junko's friends in Japan is one of the best reasons I can think of.

Last Thursday evening Jim and I went over to Forest Park hoping to catch a glimpse of Monica and Dalton (above), the two adorable 6 to 8 week-old owlets recently named by Forest Park Owlman, Mark Glenshaw. They are the offspring of a pair of Great Horned Owls, Charles and Sarah, whom we were introduced to at the beginning of February during an Owl Prowl led by Mark. At the time Sarah was nesting, and while she sat on her eggs Charles hunted for the family. Now the owlets have fledged, meaning they left the nest and have flown haltingly, Mark reports, to a wooded area of the Park not far from their nesting tree.
photo of Monica courtesy of Mark Glenshaw

Mark has been following Charles and Sarah for the past five years, naming their various offspring as a way to tell them apart. Monica is named after his Aunty Mon, a doctor who worked in rural Zimbabwe most of her life, and Dalton, after Dalton Brownell, father of a dedicated owl watcher and friend, Barb Brownell.  Monica, who may or may not be female, is the older and  larger of the siblings. (Interestingly, owl eggs are not laid at the same time, and the female of the species is larger.)

On Thursday evening a crow spied the owlets as they perched not far from each other (see first picture). The crow repeatedly dive-bombed them, creating a lot of ruckus, until their mother (see photo below) swooped in and scared him off. Sarah is their fierce protector and full-time huntress, as they cannot yet feed themselves and won't be able to for some time.

Soon the owlets started making raspy begging noises for dinner. Mark Glenshaw said that when they are a little older they will practice hunting by picking up sticks from the ground, flying back to their perch to shake the sticks up a bit, drop the sticks and start all over again. And they will start catching some juicy bugs on their own soon.

That's the proud papa Charles (above), camouflaged in a fir tree not far from the rest of the family. Charles still hunts for Sarah, bringing her an occasional rabbit, but Sarah hunts for the owlets. Thanks to Mark for sharing his observations with us and for his wonderful pictures, which you can see on his blog.

Mark Glenshaw has graciously agreed to lead two more owl prowls on the next two Saturdays, April 2 and 9 at 6 p.m. He can take ten people at a time. If you are interested, email me through the blog and I'll communicate with The Owlman to let him now how many to expect. You'll get instructions about what to wear and what to bring. As a thank you, Mark asks that the participants send a donation to Forest Park Forever. If you decide to go, you'll be greatly rewarded.

Mark Glenshaw, The Owlman of Forest Park's blog. Owl Prowls, April 2 and April 9 at 6 p.m. Email me at nickisbuzz@gmail.com if you'd like to join either group.

Sunday, March 27

From Tuesday's balmy weather to
late Saturday afternoon, above and below

In case you missed it: Behind the scenes at Bissinger's...how yummy is that?

 

 

I decided to republish this post from last year's Easter season describing my visit to Bissinger's "factory." Recently Bissinger's on Maryland Plaza added early morning coffee and pastries, opening everyday at 6 a.m. Tomorrow morning why not dash in for coffee and pick up some Easter candy too? Not sure that the prices on the chocolates are the same on everything in this original post, but I do know that the 12 oz. solid 38% milk and 55% dark chocolate bunnies are on sale, $9 instead of $15.  

Continuing my posts on Easter goodies, I was searching for a different angle to cover the premier chocolate shop in St. Louis...Bissinger's on Maryland Plaza. Frankly, I was amazed that my request to tour the Bissinger's plant was enthusiastically accepted, and I'm thrilled to share my experience with you. 

Terry Wakefield, Chief Chocolatier at Bissinger's for the past 5 1/2 years was my tour guide. He is a food scientist/engineer who heads Research & Development at Bissinger's production facility located off Vandeventer on Gratiot. My tour began with the photo above showing the original St. Louis "plant" on McPherson, where the chocolates were made by hand in the back room to be sold out front.

The story of the Bissingers, a German chocolate-making family, began in the 1600's. At that time the family lived in Paris and made confections that were the favorite of King Louis XIV, the Sun King. Later, Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte bestowed the title: "Candy Maker of the Empire" on the family. The Bissingers left Europe in 1845 and settled in Cincinnati, continuing to make candies there. After Karl Sr. died, his widow Mary became the first female owner of a chocolate company in the United States. Karl Jr. decided to spread his wings and moved to St. Louis. He opened the store on McPherson in 1927, where it remained for the next 80 years until the move to Maryland Plaza in 2007.  
This is the kitchen where the candies are made, using recipes that are at least 200 years old. The copper pots, which are as old as the recipes, transfer heat very rapidly and are used when making cremes, truffles, fondants and caramel (see below).  
The large tray in front holds blocks of caramel that are cut into squares before being covered in chocolate. The gigantic tray in the background holds bear claws as they are cooling. From the pile of pecans on top of that tray, It was obvious that Bissingers does not skimp on ingredients.

After the caramels (these are vanilla, there are also chocolate, raspberry, etc.) are cut into squares they are put on a cold conveyor belt that coats the bottoms in chocolate as they head to the chocolate "enrober," which is made in Germany.

Here's the part of the process that makes you wish you were a caramel. Bissinger's prides itself on using only the best ingredients and that's what makes their confections stand out.
 
Donna (above) is signing the vanilla caramels by picking up a corner of wet chocolate and drawing a "v" on top. Each kind of chocolate gets a different signature. Donna is one of several "stripers" and has a distinctive "hand." Everyone in the plant can tell who is striping on a particular day.  

Little chocolate bunnies awaiting packaging---boxes of six are $11.  
The "ultimate rabbit" had just been unmolded and placed in a box ready to be shipped out. He is solid chocolate and weighs 11 pounds---known around the plant as "Harvey." The dark chocolate pattern is hand-painted in the bunny mold and left to set before milk chocolate is added. This item is in the stores, but call ahead to be sure of availability, $123.
Terry showed me a tray of business cards that a local company ordered for an event. Anything can be written in chocolate, and to illustrate his point he pulled out this white chocolate bar imprinted with a photo of Lauren Bacall. The actress is a big fan and has been a loyal customer for years.
These ladies are assembling chocolate assortments for shipment to the stores or available through Bissinger's internet catalog. The plant produces 200 products at this time of year, there are about 400 products in all.  
Ever wonder how a company such as this comes up with new products? Put samples in the employee lunchroom (there are 38 to 40 employees in the production facility) and see what gets eaten. So this year Bissinger's introduced bunny ears in milk or dark chocolate, a set of 4 is $8...why is it that the ears are the best part? Another new product is the 100 calorie chocolate bar.  
The tour ended with Eric in shipping. He packages about 600 orders a day right now. At Christmastime there are sometimes 1600 to 1800 packages shipped out of the plant each day. Terry says they will probably be hand-delivering last-minute Easter orders to the three stores around town as late as Saturday...even the Easter bunny sometimes procrastinates!

Bissinger's, 32 Maryland Plaza, Mon. to Weds. 6 a.m. -6 p.m., Thurs. 6 a.m. -10 p.m., Fri. & Sat. 6 a.m. -Midnight, Sun. 6 a.m.- 8 p.m. (314) 367-7750. Closed Easter Sunday.

Making the rounds?

 

Good morning Nicki,

 

This early morning around 3:00 a.m., there was somebody looking in my room through the window in the dark.  It really scared me at the moment, but I realized feather is wiggling.

I remember your March 7 article about young hawk (see it here) and was excited about he (she?) is resting & sleeping at my window.

I have attached the pictures from inside through screen which is not good quality, but hope you enjoy it.

 

Junko

P. S. - Junko Eccles and I became friends when she occupied a small art studio at 449 N. Euclid. If you missed my post about this wonderful, amazing woman read it here.
P. P. S. - I love that we can become connected through nature too...don't you love city living?

One day it's Spring, and the next it isn't!

On Tuesday, neighbor Aaron Williams invited me to take pictures of his magnificent four-story magnolia tree in spectacular bloom. He suggested that I ought to hurry as there was rain in the forecast and the blooms might not last. It was 80 degrees and cloudy when I took these photos that afternoon, above and below.

 

And 40 degrees today when I photographed the petals that now carpet the driveway. Alas, Spring sprang a little too soon.

A busy art weekend

Last Friday evening Craft Alliance opened a new exhibition at its UCity Gallery, "Storylines: Contemporary Embroidery." Five artists were invited to participate in the show, including an old friend, Michael Aaron McAllister, shown below. The other artists are Deborah Slabeck Baker, Diem Chau, Chris Niver, Cayce Zavaglia, and Ray Materson. If you are interested in art and needlework, this is definitely an exhibition to see. 
I was first exposed to Aaron's talent with a needle and embroidery thread when we worked for Mary Engelbreit years ago. During the lunch hour, Aaron would work on his fabulous creations; and, on occasion I would receive one of his cherished stitched invitations to his annual Oscar Night party in Soulard. He often includes a line of humor in his pieces, which depict historical and literary figures. When he isn't "hooping" he works as an Assistant Librarian at the Upper School at MICDS...a job he adores.

Aaron told me on Friday that he was quite honored to be included in "Storylines." One of the other artists in the exhibition, Ray Materson, learned to stitch when he was a prison inmate. He would unravel socks and use the thread to create his miniature works, which are collector's items, and measure a mere 2.5 x 3". The feathered stitches in his fascinating pieces are amazingly tiny. 

Two of Aaron's pieces exhibited at Craft Alliance are shown here, one of Coco Chanel and a partial shot of an embroidery of Frank Lloyd Wright. The exhibition runs through May 8.

 

 

Also last week, the Sam Fox School at Washington University hosted the 2011 International Printmaking Conference,titled "Equilibrium". More than 1200 printmakers descended on St. Louis, and several galleries in the Central West End held exhibitions featuring printmakers to coincide with the Conference. 

At the Atrium Gallery, 4728 McPherson, internationally-known printmaker Karen Kunc, standing above right, gave a Saturday morning lecture following the Friday night opening of her exhibition, "An Eden."  Carolyn Miles, Atrium Gallery's founder, is shown standing left. 

Karen Kunc is a printmaking professor at the University of Nebraska. She explained her printmaking process to an audience that included participants of the Printmaking Conference including a Japanese student from a small college in southern California who fell in love with the CWE. "An Eden" will be on exhibit until May 8.

 

 

 

 

 

Another CWE gallery participating in the printmaking conference was the Duane Reed Gallery, located across from Atrium Gallery at 4729 McPherson. The work of Eva Isaksen, a Seattle-based artist who was born in Norway, will be on exhibit until April 23. 

 

Isaksen(left) prints, draws, and cuts thin papers and then layers them endlessly to create her art, shown above and in the background to the right. (You'll have to stop by Duane Reed to get a better look.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

The back room at Duane Reed houses an exhibition of Therman Statom's glass pieces. Statom is an American Studio Glass artist whose primary medium is sheet glass, which he paints and assembles adding found objects, shown above and below, to stunning effect. 
Therman Statom's work will be also be shown at the Duane Reed Gallery until April 23. Finally, the Willam Shearburn Gallery at 4735 McPherson showed an eclectic mix of art including works on paper by Edward Ruscha and Wayne Thiebaud.

 

Governor and First Lady launch 10,000 Garden Challenge at Bowood Farms

As part of National Agriculture Week Missouri Governor and First Lady Jay and Georganne Nixon launched a "10,000 Garden Challenge" at Bowood Farms last Friday.  Before speaking to the press, the Governor, in purple tie above, and First Lady toured Bowood's hoop house and vegetable garden. Bowood's John McPheeters (right foreground) and son-in-law Dave Rickard (far left) led the tour along together with Bowood's Horticultural Specialist Ellen Barredo. 

 

Governor Nixon credited his wife, standing behind Nixon, for spearheading the gardening effort in the State of Missouri. When the charming First Lady spoke she talked about her experience developing a vegetable garden on the grounds of the Governor's Mansion in Jefferson City, and how much she enjoys giving school children a tour.  A former teacher and lawyer, the First Lady believes that by teaching children to garden, even with a plant as simple as a cherry tomato, they'll be hooked for life, especially once they've tasted what they've grown.

The "10,000 Garden Challenge" is an effort to connect gardeners with knowledge about what to plant in Missouri. Whether gardening on a patio or in a large community garden, the website offers gardening advice provided by the Challenge's sponsors, which include the Missouri Botanical Garden, Powell Gardens in Kansas City, and University of Missouri Extension.  Every 1000th registrant will get a $500 gift certificate to the Tractor Supply Company, which I discovered sells more than tractors. As of today there are 535 gardens registered, two of which are in the Central West End.

After the presentation, I understand that The First Lady saw the Governor and his entourage on their way, while she stayed behind to shop at Bowood. Can't blame her for that!