Imported foods

The term import foods conjures up images of shelves of fine wines, funny-smelling cheeses, unfamiliar chocolate and so on. There are import shops full of these hard-to-find delicacies, from Cadbury Flake to Marmite to vanilla sugar.

But what about export foods? Our biggest export is not airplanes or software, as the economists would have us believe: no, it's our popular culture, embodied in music, movies and junk food. A friend relates being stuck in a small village near Lake Victoria, enjoying a warm Coke while waiting for his ride out. A little girl approached him, and asked, "Do they have Coke where you come from?"

As an expat, there were a few familiar things I missed: tortillas (and the accompanying chips), peanut butter, and maple syrup. Twenty years later, these products are readily available overseas--for a price--in the Euro-equivalent import shops.

We are in the process of packing for another foray across the pond, to visit family and friends and even conduct a little business. One task is assembling not just the requisite number of undies and power adapters, but to gather goodies for these important people. So what do we export? Here's the list so far:

• blue Jello
• sushi nori
• Ziploc baggies
• Jelly Bellies
• peanut brittle
• cheddar popcorn
• Hershey kisses
• Land's End underwear
• How to Shear an Alpaca DVD
• Trader Joe's Vegan chocolate chip cookies

As you can see, our friends and family have eclectic tastes, from nori to chocolate chips, and could even be said to border on the eccentric (case in point, the Alpaca DVD). But lest we stand in judgment, remember that my luggage will not be empty upon my return!

Not so little anymore

When Little One was born, at the crack of dawn on a mild March morning, his big brother jumped in and cut the cord.

When he was one, he had a wobbly walk and flew on a big airplane to visit his Omama and Opapa. He loved butter sandwiches more than anything.

When he was two, Mama Duck, Papa Duck and lots of little baby ducks waddled into his life. Papa Duck drives a "chocolate"(UPS) truck, Mama Duck a super-fast mail truck, and the little baby ducks that grew up drive fire trucks. FedEx trucks are driven by dogs.

When he was four, he played with new friends in a German Waldorf School, where they built a really big snowman. He rode in a really fast train.

When he was five, he learned how to swim for real and how to write his name.

And now he is six, with a brand-new hole in his smile, a fiery disposition, and a burning desire for an electric train.

The ducks reign supreme, and we splashed with friends to celebrate. We also told funny duck jokes (Q: What does a duck eat with soup? A: Quackers!), and ate a lemon duck cake with blueberry sauce.