Oasis, from Google’s word definitions search page, it means:

• a fertile tract in a desert (where the water table approaches the surface)
• haven: a shelter serving as a place of safety or sanctuary
• In geography, an oasis (plural: oases) is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source. Oases also provide habitat for animals and even humans if the area is big enough.

Oasis is also an amazing coffee house with live music right in the heart or Waltham MA!

Housed in First Presbyterian Church of Waltham, Oasis is, in their own words:

is a welcoming community where you can enjoy an evening of affordable entertainment by local, national and international performers including singer-songwriters, folk musicians, blues, jazz and other genres.

Located in the art gallery of the First Presbyterian Church of Waltham, the space is intimate, safe, inclusive and alcohol-free. This not-for-profit coffee house, run by volunteers, offers a lounge area where baked goods and fair-trade coffee and tea are available along with free wi-fi. Proceeds go to support the coffee house and its performers.

And welcoming and warm they are! When a friend and I visited Oasis for the firs time in August, we were greeted at the door by some of the nicest people we had ever met. We were welcomed in, paid our admission ($12) and took a seat. The acoustics were terrific and the group we saw that night, Gretel, was amazing. During the band break, there was plenty of people to meet and chat with.

Gretel, a local Boston area folk group, is well worth tracking down to see. They have passion, strong musical skills and excellent words. Their songs are more stories than the simple drivel served up as music today. And powerful stories they are. Songs like “Heart Shaped Heart”, moved me to tears with words of how both love and pain leave hollow spaces in our hearts…sometimes so hollow they drive us to reassess our relationship. “Wolves” was a haunting tune that forebode some terror drawing ever closer as the song moves forward. Gretel’s lead singer, Reva Willimans’ voice and strong emotional content with each song remind me of Amy Mann but far more engaged. Reva is living through her music, not singing about a topic.

Oasis Coffee House features New England and National acts, is inexpensive, is warm and friendly. What’s not to like? For some local buzz, you can’t beat their offering.

I never cease to be amazed at how good we have it in the U.S. being both citizens and transgender.   Certainly many of us are not doing as well as we could no question.  And certainly the U.S. could come further along in terms of rights and safety for those of us who are transgender.    But other countries have it far worse.

I happened on Juliet Victor Mukasa from Jay Sennett’s blog.   Juliett is transgender, works for human rights and LGBT rights and does it all in Uganda.  I can’t even imagine how hard it must be.   But maybe there really is nothing better than being who you are.   You can learn about Juliett Victor and what is going on in Ugandad by visiting the article, “On Transgender Human Rights Issues in Africa“

Well another Thanksgiving induced tryptophan coma has come and gone. At Beck’s Cafe we usually get ours by getting up at 5AM, ripping out the gizzards of our turkey, washing with cold water, season thusly and slipping our bird into a Reynolds oven bag then slide our bagged bird into our oven. Without a doubt, this is the easiest way to cook a Turkey we know.

But the fine patrons of Beck’s Cafe wanted something different this year. At 5AM I don’t do different. I do coffee. However, Mary Poppins being my idol I set out, spit spot, to determine a fresh approach for our old bird.

Google is my choice of search engine for recipes rather than going right to the Food Network, but, in typically Googley-Goodness The Food Network came up first anyway. And, surprisingly, the mad scientist of food, Alton Brown’s Roast Turkey recipe was feature. I’ve tried Alton’s recipes before in our kitchen, see my brief review coupled with a review of Laurel’s Kitchen Pancake recipe here at Beck’s Cafe at our article, Pancakes.

So about Alton’s recipe and our adventure making it.

My bird had not been frozen so I skipped the part on thawing it but in the process completely missed the brine soak that seems to a crucial part of this recipe. So we’ll have to try Alton’s brine soak next time.

The rest of Alton’s recipe was a snap to prepare. The surprising combination of apple, onion and cinnamon stick proved outstanding. Lacking sage, I bounced over to my neighbor’s and borrowed her Poultry Seasoning. Poultry Seasoning? “Well, Becki, it has Sage in it afterall” my neighbor explained to me. While it was the last ingredient in the list it did indeed have Sage in it. I also missed liberally coating the outside of our turkey with canola oil. Guess I needed more coffee or a Bloody Mary. Roasting the bird at 500 F for the first 30 minutes s was key to locking in the flavor and in creating ultra yummy skin (for which my neighbor felt was outstandingly good).

Beck’s Cafe recommends Alton Brown’s Roast Turkey recipe as a winner not a turkey. Your taste buds and noses will be delighted with your results.