Mendel, Janet — Fine Spanish Cooking

In the story of Don Quixote, the author Miguel Cervantes tells, among other things what Don Quixote ate for dinner every day of the week. This, in part became the inspiration for a book entitled “Cooking from the Heart of Spain: Food of La Mancha,” written by Janet Mendel, an American woman who has lived in Spain for approximately 40 years. This book and the name of the author ignited my spontaneous curiosity, so when Janet Mendel and I visited by phone from her home on the southern coast of Spain in June 2007, I asked about her focus and inspiration to write a cookbook centered around Don Quixote de La Mancha.


The book she recommends, not surprisingly is “Don Quixote,” by Miguel Cervantes, in the English translation by Edith Grossman.

 

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Patrick, William — Loneliness and How It Affects Us


How many of us are lonely?  What is loneliness and how does it affect us?    Approximately 25 years ago, when asked the number of friends in whom we could confide, most people in the United States said “three.”  When that question was asked recently most people said “none.”   Inquires reveal that twenty per-cent of people, — 60 million in the Untied States alone – are feeling lonely at any given moment.  And, it appears that chronic loneliness may well compete with smoking, obesity and lack of exercise as a significant health risk.

In this edition of Radio Curious we visit with William Patrick, the founding editor of The Journal of Life Sciences and co-author of “Loneliness: Human Nature and the Need for Social Connection,” along with University of Chicago psychology professor John Cacioppo.

 My conversation with William Patrick, recorded on October 13, 2008, began when I asked him to define loneliness as used in their book.

 


The book William Patrick recommends is “The Lost Gospel: The Book of Q and Christian Origins,” by Burton Mack.

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