I grow old . . . I grow old . . .I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled.Shall I part my hair behind? Do I dare to eat a peach?I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach.I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each.These lines from T.S. Eliot's The Love-Song of J. Alfred Prufrock come to mind whenever I bite into the first peach of the summer. Food is memory, is love, is comfort. The peach evokes summers past, Augusts at the beach, the steady thrum of the sea like the beating of my own heart. Only one of these will go on forever. With age comes introspection, but I sometimes wonder these days if solitude of mind at any age has now become a willful act. There is so much stimulus around us, everywhere at least one screen conveying essential information at all times. With the touch of a finger we are connected to thousands of people, opinions, conversations, comments. Is there any escaping this feeling that we are missing out if we aren't constantly checking in, tweeting, reporting, connecting? My old college pal Bill Powers has written an eloquent book, Hamlet's Blackberry, that looks to great thinkers of the past—Plato, Shakespeare, Thoreau—for ways to approach the digital dilemma and, ultimately, to disconnect. But there really is no way back; Pandora's box is open. And out of it, along with the demons, have emerged wonderful tools to enhance our lives.

Between writing for clients, writing my novel and writing this blog—not to mention cooking, gardening, yoga, ballet, hiking and spending time with loved ones—my life is extremely full and there is never, ever enough time. On top of everything, there is an endless series of rabbit holes down which I seem to tumble every time I go online. I am constantly discovering new blogs, shops and resources of all kinds. There are so many people out there engaged in such interesting, vital and creative endeavors, it's truly inspiring and sometimes overwhelming. I encourage you to check these out, when you can find the time...hungryghostfoodandtravel - Photographer Andrea Gentl's extraordinary images and lyrical musings will make you swoon.edibleselby - Photographer Todd Selby, who began by shooting cool creative types in their homes, has branched out and now documents some very interesting contributors to the modern food world.onmyplate - Former fashion insider Melissa Skoog Dunagan has a stylish and refreshing take on eating and entertaining, and features interesting guest posts from some of her old cronies.bestmadeprojects - This blog is an offshoot of my pal Peter Buchanan-Smith's fabulous brand for the urban (and not) outdoorsman (and woman), and is a constant reminder of all the ways we can connect with nature and admire it from afar.opensky - The future of retail is going to look very different thanks to sites like this, where "interesting people" (celebrities and regular folks) curate selections. I "follow" Michael Ruhlman, Tom Colicchio and Dorie Greenspan among others, and have gotten great deals on things like wood chips for smoking and dill pollen.generalstore - I also love to shop for gifts online; saves tons of time and effort and you can find so many unique things. I like the handmade, organic feel of many of the objects on this site.kinfolkmag - I adore this new magazine, all about small gatherings. It's beautifully photographed and written. I hope to have a gluttonforlife feature on there someday.Happy exploring and have a wonderful weekend!