VIEWING
RELIGION AND LAW
Grantchester (PBS Masterpiece)
Season 5 of Grantchester is now airing on PBS, and it’s the second season with Will Davenport as the vicar replacing Sydney. If you are Grantchester addicted, like we are, you can binge watch the whole season on PBS Passport. Which is exactly what we did this week!
Initially, I wondered if vicar Will and cop Geordie would have the same kind of rapport as that of Geordie and Sydney. It’s different, but it’s there and they too make a fascinating pair—the somewhat hardbitten, but softer at the core than is apparent Geordie, and the kind, endowed with heartfelt sentiment Will.
There are deaths and murders, but this season is all about relationships, relationships challenged and sometimes gone wrong. Will’s stuttering relationship with reporter Ellie and his contentious encounters with his mother; Geordie’s wife Cathy’s conflicted relations with her mother; Leonard’s painful relationship with his father; and Mrs. C’s awakening to her husband’s past. It’s a packed season and I wish there were more episodes right away.
HUMANE MEDICINE
Lenox Hill (Netflix)
Medical TV shows are a special breed; the doctors are bursting with ego, staff fall in love with each other, and surgical crises are skillfully resolved. Lenox Hill is different. A documentary about an historic hospital in Manhattan of the same name, it focuses on four physicians and some of the patients they treat. And it’s an intimate look at these doctors: their ideals, their frustrations, the care they provide, and their personal lives. They are the chair and vice-chair of neurosurgery, the chief resident for OB-GYN, and an emergency room physician. Two white men, one black woman and one Latina.
Their patients come from the city and from afar to have babies, to be treated in the emergency room before returning to a shelter, and to receive cutting edge brain surgery. It’s a tribute to their courage that these individuals allowed so much unfettered access while vulnerable. There are eight episodes and I am not quite to the end. The medical procedures are graphic, the emotions high, and I was moved to tears and joy. Highly recommended!
EATING
TASTE OF MAINE
Mermaid Pies
Normally, I only eat lobster rolls in Maine. I’ve been disappointed too many times in other venues. But, thanks to the urging of our friend Sue, we finally ordered two lobster rolls from Mermaid Pies, a small “bakery” on Cortez Road. The owner is from Maine which gave his offering some untasted credibility.
The rolls are packed for takeout and the roll, dressed lobster meat, and a side of cole slaw are each in its own container. The lobster portion is generous, the right kind of split bun is toasted and buttered, and the cole slaw is nicely vinegary. Yum! Perhaps the lobster wasn’t quite as sweet as on the coast of Maine, but that’s a quibble. I see more Florida lobster rolls in our future!
Note: Header photo of Sarasota Bay from sunnysarasotahomes.com
