Happy New Year!

Here's a passage Umami is thinking about, from Just Kids, Patti Smith's memoir and remembrance of Robert Mapplethorpe . . . here, she's talking about the scene surrounding Janis Joplin:

Janis was the queen of the radiating wheel, sitting in her easy chair, with a bottle of Southern Comfort, even in the afternoon.  Michael Pollard was usually by her side.  They were like adoring twins, both with the same speech patterns, punctuating each sentence with man.  I sat on the floor as Kris Kristofferson sang her "Me and Bobby McGee," Janis joining in the chorus.  I was there for these moments, but so young and preoccupied with my thoughts that I hardly recognized them as moments.

Preoccupation being not the sole province of the young, Umami wishes everyone, the young and the old and everyone in between, the time to recognize the moments when they happen.

Have a happy, and safe, new year, and we'll see you in 2011!