I just got back from seeing Julie & Julia. What a fantastic movie for a foodie! In fact, the theater was packed; full of Portland foodies on a Friday afternoon, opening day for this movie here. I went with a posse of Portland foodies, organized by one of my fave foodies, Halle.
Halle knows everyone. We sit down with our gaggle of five female foodies and, WHAM! She knows someone in the row in front of us. She knows someone in the row behind us! As the movie started, I could feel excitement in the air. Was it because I’d succumbed to my junk food guilty-pleasure (Choco Raisins and a diet Coke)? Well, that and the fact that everyone in our group was rooting for the film, anticipating the imaginary tastes and smells to come.
There was a real love present for both Julia Child and Meryl Streep. We marveled at Meryl’s craft, her transformation from 5’6 to 6’2, and the way she nailed Julia’s infectious enthusiasm. We were charmed by Julia; her escapades at the Cordon Bleu in Paris (only female student and an American… sacre bleu!). We laughed at her butchering of the French language (but hey, she tried).
I grew up in the 60s, watching Julia Child on TV, but not really knowing what an icon she was. I now have a greater appreciation for her pioneering spirit. She blazed the path for the chef I’ve become and how I eat today. I take for granted the ease of ingredients and plethora of cookbooks that I benefit from everyday.
I graduated with a BSEE from USC in 1981. There were 5 female Electrical Engineering students out of my graduating class of 200. I had 6 job offers that year, female double-Es were pretty rare. I was on top of the world, enjoying the fruits of my hard work. It was years later that I learned of the women who came before me in the high-tech field; the ceiling-smashing, early engineering female pioneers and the barriers they overcame. I’m grateful to them, to Julia, and to my foodie friends.
I’m also grateful to the Red Star Tavern (SW 5th & Alder)… their Happy Hour goes late every evening… until 8! After our downtown movie, we drank nice wine, ate fun food (the jalepeno poppers wrapped in bacon were AWESOME). I really enjoyed the company of these accomplished women in the afterglow of a great foodie movie!
