Sighs Matter

The other day, I accidentally posted a fragment of this blog entry. With the addition of this intro, this is the version I had meant to post. Oops. Late night posting has it's risks...

I'm trying to write more, so I pick pretty something and go for it. The more I write, the more I can write. Get into the habit of waiting for he perfect subject, and you'll never get anything done. I like to write about fitness, food, and girls (although lack of girl is not as much fun...). When something runs through my head a million times, I figure I should put it down on "paper." Calling it "inspired" is a stretch, but this is the little event that inspired the thoughts and the writing.


Starbucks

The line at Starbuck's was short; only to the end of the pastry case. But, it was taking forever today. The woman behind me was sighing a lot. A lot. There were so many times when the SBuck's workers made a blunder that was pretty much obvious to everybody but them. Each blunder came with a sigh. Asking some one behind us if they could start a drink for them. "No? Okay..." then they'd move along. What about us? (sigh). Taking out the trash NOW? It's not even full (sigh) and you only think there's nothing to do; what about us? (sigh)

These people were single-tasking, at best (sigh) and she was obviously late for something.

Suddenly, it was my turn. Venti Americano. They asked my name. "Roland" is a challenge. It's comical to see what actually gets written on the cup.

Her turn. Grande Latte. I didn't catch the name.

Suddenly, it was like time had turned inside out. By the time we got to the "pickup your order here" area, the Grande Latte for Missus-X was already there. She grabbed it and headed out. A Venti Americano for "Rollon" was up, so I went for it and headed for the half and half.

On the way over, I noticed her not leaving. She was headed to a big comfy chair instead. She sat, popped the top off her latte, and settled down. She didn't even attempt a sip; just smelled it and sank down into the chair. I saw her entire body go from tense to relaxed in no time at all. I suppose she was late. Late for her latte. From that distance, there's no way I could have heard it, but there it was; the sigh. I could see it. Feel it. It was that big.


The Sigh

There's nothing like it. The soft little sound that says so much, even when it comes with no words.


One

It was a long walk back to the car through a huge parking lot. We'd walked all day and we were really ready to go. Once we were inside the car and sitting down, we looked out at the long line of red tail lights. It was the line to leave the lot. It looked like a long wait. Before I could put the key in the ignition, I felt her hand on mine; stopping me. She leaned into me, her back against my chest. I felt, saw, and heard her sigh as she relaxed against me. Mmmm... We might have been the last car to leave the lot...


Two

It was about the last day of the class. That's how long it took me back in '88, although I'm no speedier, now. We were finally talking about things that weren't photography. We had seen the same movie, Risky Business, on our first dates. Cheesecake (no toppings) was our dessert of choice. We both liked Pink Floyd and The Sugarcubes. The list went on and on, and we were laughing at all the similarities; finishing each other's sentences and calling out the answers to questions that we both knew exactly how to answer.

We were sort of slowing down as we neared our cars. The moment of truth. My moment, of course.

Hey! She stopped at my Mustang. Imagine. But, then she leaned against the other Mustang. The one I'd parked next to that morning, just to check out. The one that was virtually identical to mine, other than the color. I laughed and leaned against my Mustang.

She asked, "Is that yours?"

I nodded. "You have a blue '67."

"You have green." She paused for a moment, then she sighed. "Uh, do you need more time?"


Three

She wasn't quite awake, but the alarm was due to go off. ...soon. I didn't dare look for the clock. That would be just enough to wake her. A light sleeper this close to wake up time.

It was about dawn and it was still dark. I watched the slow changes in the room as the sun rose behind the drawn curtains. First, her dark silhouette against the even darker background. But, after a few minutes, I could see more. The mole that I loved to touch. The wild strand of hair that she brushed away like it bugged her, only I knew it really didn't. So beautiful.

The soft light from the window showing me more and more. The curve of her hip under the sheet. Her outstretched hand, resting on my leg. I watched as she woke up. Slowly. Her eyes slowly opened. After a moment, the softest, quietest little sound escaped -- "hey." Then the quietest of sighs followed. Too beautiful.

Sighs Matter, #1

There's nothing like it. The soft little sound that says so much, even when it comes with no words.


It was about the last day of the class. That's how long it took me back in '88, although I'm no speedier, now. We were finally talking about things that weren't photography. We had seen the same movie, Risky Business, on our first dates. Cheesecake (no toppings) was our dessert of choice. We both liked Pink Floyd and The Sugarcubes. The list went on and on, and we were laughing at all the similarities; finishing each other's sentences and calling out the answers to questions that we both knew exactly how to answer.

We were sort of slowing down as we neared our cars. The moment of truth. My moment, of course.

Hey! She stopped at my Mustang. Imagine. But, then she leaned against the other Mustang. The one I'd parked next to that morning, just to check out. The one that was virtually identical to mine, other than the color. I laughed and leaned against my Mustang.

She asked, "Is that yours?"

I nodded. "You have a blue '67."

"You have green." She paused for a moment, then she sighed. "Uh, do you need more time?"

High Protein Beans

I'm sure it's a complete source of all the essential amino acids, too.





Tony's pet jumping bean.

Laundry Day

Jack. Riveted...

Pretty Girl Question #138

If a pretty girl is wearing a fanny pack, is she still pretty?

Puppy < Snake

Tony, 9 years old, likes to take his pet snake for "a walk" down by the lake.

Today, Tony's fishing with me, his friend, and the friend's Dad, when he decides to go up and get the snake for a while. He brings down the snake and starts wandering around.

Tony's friend has zero interest in the snake after the first five minutes, but soon a group of 11 year old girls sees the snake and crowds around Tony. Tony lets them all touch the snake, gives them "snake lessons" or whatever, and after about five minutes, they move on. "Bye, Tony..." One comes back to touch the snake one more time.

Tony's friend watches the little group of girls walk away, head straight to his Dad, and says "Dad, I need a snake. BAD."

Saturday with the kids

The kids and I are hanging for Veteran's Day weekend.


Allie and the cats.









Tony at the fishing derby.

This is just a bad mobile phone camera...

Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

By request, a pumpkin cheesecake! Halloween is already here, but this would be good for Thanksgiving, too.

You've got two versions here. A more normal version with a cookie crust and a lower carb version with a nut crust. Both are pretty high calorie, despite the artificial sweetener instead of sugar. Beware, but eat up.


Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

Serves 8


Crust

1 cup crushed ginger snaps
1/2 cup slivered almonds, finely chopped or ground
4 tbsp melted butter

or, alternately...

1/2 cup slivered almonds, finely chopped or ground
1/2 cup pepitas, finely chopped or ground
3 packets Splenda
1/2 tsp powdered ginger
4 tbsp melted butter


Filling

2 lbs cream cheese or neufchatel cheese *
3 eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pie filling)
18 packets of Spenda and/or Equal, divided
1/2 tsp powdered ginger
1 tsp bourbon or vanilla extract

* Neufchatel cheese makes a slightly less dense cheesecake. I like it better for this particular cheesecake.


Directions

Soften cream cheese by leaving it at room temp for 30 minutes prior to mixing.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

For best results, grind the nuts and/or seeds in a food processor or clean coffee grinder. If that's not possible, chop them as finely as possible with a knife.

Mix all crust ingredients together. Press the crust mixture into the bottom of a spring pan or pie plate. Bake the crust for 10 minutes, taking care not to burn it.

Remove crust from oven and set aside to cool.

In a large bowl or using a mixer, mix cream cheese, bourbon or vanilla, 12 packets of sweetener until smooth. Add one egg at a time, mixing each in very well.

Scoop about one cup of this white cheesecake filling out and set it aside for later.

Add pumpkin, ginger, and the remaining sweetener to the filling in the mixing bowl (not to the stuff you set aside) and mix well. Carefully pour and spread the pumpkin cheesecake filling over the crust.

With a spoon, drop blobs of the reserved white cheesecake filling onto the pumpkin cheesecake filling. When all the white filling has been added, use the spoon to gently swirl the cheesecake to give it a swirled, marbled look.

Bake the cheesecake for 45-55 minutes. Just until the center of the filling has set up. Remove from oven and run a sharp knife around the edge to separate the cheesecake from the pan. Allow the cheesecake to cool before removing the pan rim. Chill for several hours or overnight before serving.

Note: You can make this in a pie plate or even small ramekins or desert bowls. If you do the ramekins or small bowls, they cook a lot faster. Start checking at 25-30 minutes. I made four mini-cheesecakes and they took about 40 minutes.


Nutrition

Assuming a serving size of 1/8th of the cheesecake. Nutrition calculated using neufchatel cheese rather than cream cheese

Cookie crust version, Calories 383, Fat 28g, Carbs 23g, Fiber 2g, Protein 11g

Nut crust version, Calories 336, Fat 29g, Carbs 8g, Fiber 2g, Protein 12g

Tilapia with Fennel and Crookneck Squash en Papillote

I learned this method of cooking, years ago. Think of it as steaming, but taking it to the next level. It has a nice presentation that people aren't used to, cleanup is easy. And, most importantly, it tastes great.

The term en papillote (meaning "in paper" or "in parchment") is a method of steaming that concentrates the flavors of foods so much more than traditional steaming does. After all, most of the typical steaming that we might do results in dumping plenty of flavor down the drain. Not so, here. With this method, we wrap the food in it's own pouch or envelope of paper and bake. It's quick and easy and, in the end, you haven't really lost any of the steaming liquid.

You may have seen fish cooked in large foil packets, turkeys in oven bags, or even those plastic bag pot roast roasters! Similar in concept. Keep the heat and moisture in. A controlled, stable cooking environment is the surest way to make sure you can actually eat the food you're cooking.

Here's what I made, tonight...


Tilapia with Fennel and Crookneck Squash en Papillote

Serves 2


Things you'll need

Parchment paper, cut into two 12" x 12" squares or aluminum foil
Kitchen twine (not needed if using foil)


Ingredients

1/2 lbs tilapia fillets
2 tsp olive oil, divided
1 tbsp orange or lemon juice
1/2 fennel bulb
1 yellow crookneck squash
1 clove pressed garlic or garlic powder *
salt to taste (kosher or course sea salt, preferred)

* I actually prefer to use garlic powder (not garlic salt) better than fresh garlic. The food will not cook for long, and fresh garlic can be very strong when steamed for only a brief time. But, if you're a stickler, eat up, stinky.

Preparation

Thinly slice the fennel bulb horizontally into slices. Bring a small saucepan of salted water to a boil. Cook the fennel in boiling water for 4 minutes and then drain it.

Thinly slice the crookneck squash into disks.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.


Cooking

It really looks nice with parchment paper and twine, but if you want to try it, it will taste the sae with foil. If you like it, you can buy the paper later.

Lay the sheets of parchment paper on the counter. In the center of each, make a gentle mound of half of the squash disks. Top the squash with a fillet of tilapia. Drizzle the fish with a tsp of olive oil. Sprinkle garlic over the top. Mound the drained fennel on top of the fish. drizzle with the juice. Salt and pepper.

Bring the four corners of the paper to the center, gather them, and tie them closed at the top with a length of twine. Tie a bow, maybe. Spread the paper a bit, so they look attractive. Note that the bundles should have plenty of air space over the food. Do not gather them tightly to the food. The bundles should be as large as possible.

Place the bundles on a cookie sheet and place them in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. They should puff up big and full. They paper will also turn a little brown. Don't worry, it looks good that way. Remove from oven and place one each on a dinner plate.

At the table, remove or cut the twine just before serving, allowing each person to actually open up his or her own packet.

I ate it with a spinach salad dressed with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.



Favorite Combinations

So, that's one simple recipe, but the combinations you can use are many. Here are a couple that I've made.

Shrimp, julienned carrots and colorful bell peppers, green onions, sliced garlic, and butter

Delicate white fish, lemon juice, julienned leaks or peppers

Chicken breast, lemon grass, kafir lime leaves, minced basil leaves, thai chilies, coconut cream.


Notes

When you cook your foods en papillote, make sure to start with quick cooking foods, cut small in quick cooking pieces. If the foods are longer cooking (like fennel, potato, etc.) you can blanch them ahead of time.

When you choose your meat, keep in mind that the meat will not brown much. Fish, pork, chicken breast, and shellfish tend to look good when cooked this way.

Err on the side of a little too much liquid in the packet. Better a little too moist than dried out.

Coconut Cream Cheesecake

Coconut Cream Cheesecake

This one might not be for everyone. Coconut cream is damned good, though.

Not everyone can envision coconut and cheesecake together. I not only envisioned it, I dreamed it. I woke up, wrote it down, and made it a few days later. And, it was good.


Crust
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1 oz shredded, unsweetened coconut
3 packets Splenda*
3 tbsp melted butter


Filling
1 lb cream cheese, brought to room temperature
2 large egg
12 packets Splenda (or the equivalent of about 3/4 cup of sugar, if using another sweetener)


Topping
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup coconut cream
6 packets Splenda (or the artificial sweetener equivalent of 6 tbsp worth of sugar)

* One Splenda packet roughly equals one tbsp of sugar, as far as sweetness goes. Use any sweetener you like. I prefer the Splenda packets because they have hardly any maltodextrin, where the Splenda Granular contains 1.5g of carbs per tbsp. Not a lot, but it's still "sugar" where I don't want it.


Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Put slivered almonds and shredded coconut in a food processor and pulse until it's finely ground. Add Splenda and melted butter and process until it looks like damp sand.

Press the mixture into a springform pan and bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and set aside.

In a mixer, cream the cream cheese, eggs, and Splenda together until smooth. Pour the mixture over the crust and return the pan to the oven. Bake for 20 minutes.

Set the cheesecake aside and raise the oven temperature to 425. After it's cooled for 15 minutes, spread the sour cream topping over the cheesecake. Bake for 20 minutes. Chill well before serving.


Per slice (1/8th of the cheesecake)
338 calories
31g fat
7g carbs
1g fiber
10g protein

Notes About Cheesecakes...

On sweeteners: Use any sweetener you like, even sugar. I see no need for sugar. I like Splenda, usually. Some adults can tell the difference, but my kids can't. They get enough sugar elsewhere...

On Splenda: One Splenda packet roughly equals one tbsp of sugar, as far as sweetness goes. Use any sweetener you like. I prefer the Splenda packets because they have hardly any maltodextrin, where the Splenda Granular contains 1.5g of carbs per tbsp. Not a lot, but it's still "sugar" where I don't want it.

On crusts: I love graham cracker crusts, but they are a dime a dozen. They are easy. If you'd like to use graham cracker crust, go for it. In any of my recipes, you can use sub the shown crust for this one...

Graham Cracker Crust Recipe

1 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 teaspoons sugar

Combine crumbs, sugar, and butter.
Press into bottom of the spring pan.


Hmmmm... prebaking the crust? Prebaking the crust does make it a bit crispier. Some like that, some don't. I'm torn. I like it both ways. I also like a thick crust that's moist. The best and most decadent crust is a doubled up graham cracker crust recipe, not prebaked.

Baking Times: Scour the internet and all your cookbooks, and you'll see a huge range of cooking times. 20 minutes to an hour! But, the temperatures and ingredients are basically the same. What gives? Don't know. I've tried mine at 50 minutes and 20 minutes. Basically the same, you just have to wait longer. What's the good news? Cheesecakes aren't picky. Especially if you top them with a sour cream topping to cover any cracking in the surface.

Water Baths: I guess if you want a tall and perfectly uncracked cheesecake, try a water bath. Also, try someone else's recipe.

Crazy Eights

RedLefty started this thing.

I doubt there will be anything stunningly important revealed.

Facts:

1. I lived a year on Borneo. Actually, it was Brunei. Everyone called the nearest city Brunei Town. That's because no one could pronounce Bandar Seri Begawan.

My family was there while my Dad worked on a big construction project. I was 7 years old. It was hot and there were lots and lots of monkeys and orangutans.

2. I love roadside rest stops. I have fond memories of them from my childhood. The whole family stopping for a picnic and a little time to explore and stretch our legs. The family used to drive a lot when I was a kid. Lot's of camping and cross county vacations.

I still stop at virtually every rest stop along the way, even when I don't really need to. Gotta check it out.

3. I love coffee. At any given time, I have about 5 or 6 different types of beans handy in my cupboards: Henry's Blend, a local store's Moka Java, Espresso beans, something mild like a breakfast blend, and some sort of decaf, just in case someone wants it.

I almost always have something new, too. Something someone recommended or something with an unusual name. I just finished off a can of French Market coffee (with Chickory). I love the idea of it more than the coffee itself. I've had a lot of fun in New Orleans, where I originally had that coffee.

To make the coffee, I have a drip machine, two French presses, two different type of espresso makers, and an ibrik.

4. I was called a metrosexual the other day. That made me happy. I'd actually like to be a little more metro.


Habits:

1. I only shave every three days (ha!). It's to look cool, not to save money. Unfortunately, grey hair isn't so cool. I used to be able to go four days...

2. When a woman walks by, I always maneuver myself to walk through her wake. I need to know how she smells. Thank God women don't smell bad. Ever. Though most are uninteresting, smell-wise. But, sometimes... amazing. (sigh...)

3. I never take notes. It's not to say that I shouldn't take them, but I don't. In meetings, I hold a pen and my pad of paper to make people feel more comfortable. No one ever says anything worth writing down.

When I study, I do take notes. But, I never look at them again. I do keep a separate little pad of paper handy. Like a study todo list, but the actual notes usually get tossed. I can't read them, anyway.

4. I read up to five books at a time. I keep one in the car, my gym bag, my nightstand, the living room, and one in my laptop bag. Sometimes months can go by with one or two of them, but I always know where I am in them.

When I was packing for Virginia, I found a book that I'd misplaced about a year ago. Cool. I picked up right where I left off.

REAL Indian Food

So, the new girl at our table is something. She's new in the 'new to job' sense. Plus, young.

We're all chatting about food, restaurants, diets, etc. Indian food comes up and she says 'How come there's no REAL Indian food?'. Blank stares. 'You know. American IndIans?'

Other than the word 'real,' we're not too ludicrous yet, right?

'I don't know if the food would be all that popular,' I say.

Look of shock. 'What?!?!' She asks.

'Have you had it?'

'Uh, hello? We all have. Every Thanksgiving...'. she reponds.

More blank stares. Only this time they were leaning toward shocked stares. Plus, there are those of us who are struggling not to laugh.

My friend, Tony, decides to play along. 'Dude (he's 25), if I could get stuffing any time of the year, sign me up!'.

'See?' she says.

She's really cute, so no guy at the table wants to mock her too much, but it's too much for John. 'What would the waitresses wear?'

'You know,' she responds, 'like squaw outfits.'

She's ABSOLUTELY serious, by the way.

'Everyone loves turkey and cornbread. Where do you think that all comes from? They saved our asses! That's where!'

Paul. 'Maybe the kid's menu could fold into a Pilgrim hat.'

Outward laughter now.

'Well,' she states, 'it's better than all those casinos!'. Pause. 'And, everyone eats, not everyone gambles.'

Everyone sort of nods.

'They could at least serve it IN the casinos,' she adds.

She's like a twenty-three year old, five foot two, blond, female Kramer. It was the 'toss your own pizza restaurant' come to life, right in front of us.

'So our Thanksgiving foods are their native foods?' I ask.

'Not EXACTLY. We brought food and they brought food.'

'I'm thankful to whoever brought those little marshmallows,' I say.

Tony. 'AND the stuffing!'

Michele, the only other woman there, asks 'was it buffet style or did they just pass the dishes around?'

The new girl shrugs. One of the many details left out of the history books, I guess. So no one knows. But, it's something to ponder.

---
Blogged via Blackberry, where backspacing is more trouble than it's worth. Please forgive any typos.

Bootcamp Challenge

The hardest 3 miles, ever. Walking ain't easy at the moment.

It's amazing how much harder you run when a drill sargeant is screaming at you and calling you a pussy.

I still sucked, though. 3 miles in 26 minutes, with an official time closer to 31! My own fault, when it comes down to it, but I started 5 minutes and 30 seconds behind the pack. Couldn't even see one of them. Luckily, I passed a lot of them up.

My feet hurt. I had to run two mles to GET to the race. Again, my own fault. Let's call it an extensive warmup. Too bad those miles weren't timed, because they were my fastest ever, I'm sure!

--
Blogged via Blackberry, where backspacing is more trouble than it's worth. Please forgive any typos.

Okay. No more boo hoo.

Bob, G, and RL, you guys will hear no more whining here. Sure, I'd rather be at the other place, but I'll take on the challenge. From the food, workout, and the fun perspective. Make the best of that Holiday Inn.

This (i.e., the last five days) has been my first break from lifting in almost a year. I was sick once, but I only missed that Wednesday's workout. Big whoop. I think I even caught up.

On Monday, I did a short workout and then took the rest of the week kinda easy. I always meant to workout. Every night, I skipped it.

Tomorrow is the 5k obstacle course at the Marine base. I was tapering...

Virginia

Sunday morning, I'm off to Leesburg, VA for a week. A solid week of color application and theory and production document workflow.

For those of you blissfully unaware of what that means, color application and theory is a fancy way of saying "knowing how to help my print shop customers get the color quality that they expect from my color laser printer." Production document workflow is basically following a "document" through it's lifecycle, from the point in which it's dreamed up, to the point in which the postman sticks it in someone's mail slot. All the steps in between are important and need to be studied and fine tuned for cost effectiveness and efficiency. I already do it. Whole freakin' studies I do. Now, I get to get all the learnin' on the aspects of it relating to color documents (vs monochrome documents such as invoices and bank statements). It will be interesting, yet boring at the same time (unlike this paragraph, which is only one of those things).

So, I'm good for learning, but I'd just mentally adjusted to the living conditions. It's not like a hotel, rental car, restaurant, room service situation. It's a campus in the boonies, where you and 1,000 others are secluded for the week. Luckily, it's got a gym. A good one. Plus, I just found out that several friends are going to be there at the same time. Cool.

Suddenly, as soon as I make my head clear and decide that this week will actually be good, I get the email. The campus has been booked solid, so I get to room at the local Holiday Inn. But, the email says, it has free WiFi, a heated pool, and fitness center! Yay!

Crap! Now, the situation goes from bad to worse. My friends are at the campus, no rental car still, shuttle service between the campus and hotel, and set times for coming and going. Plus, 45 minutes to an hour of wasted "shuttle time" every day. Not to mention that I still have to eat at the campus, as it was made very clear that no other meals will be covered. Totally pissed. Holiday Inn fitness center? Treadmill...

If they would have told me yesterday, I could have talked my way into getting some other sucker booked at the hotel instead of me, but as it's Friday tomorrow, there's no time to notify anyone else of the changes.

Fuck

Settled In

Me and them.

Things were absolutely crazy for a bit. With the ex and the kids suddenly back in town... But, we're into a rhythm now. They've got an apartment close by. Close enough so I can see the kids several times a week now. Plus, any weekends I want. Excellent!

I finally spent some time and did a major overhaul of the kids rooms. Old and too small clothes out and room for the new stuff. The place is clean and clutter-free, once again. Time to get back to fine tuning it to me.

Oh yeah. Did I mention that Jack (my kitten) has a buddy? The kids' cat (Mayo) is my cat, now. At least for the time being. Their apartment is a pet free zone. At least the cats get along, and strangely, Jack (fearless little guy) seems to be in charge.

Time to get some charity to come haul all the "extras" from the garage. Working out means pulling the car out. Not the end of the world, but if I can free up that other half, all the better.

Over the last few days, I picked up 120 lbs of plates and three db bars, clamps, and tape (for a fat bar handle). I should be snatching heavy out there in the next day or so. Just need some rubber matting to make a landing pad (burpees, knee tucks, and jumping rope are tough on concrete).

I'm back to cooking. Cooking a lot, too. Oso buco tonight, with plenty for lunch or dinner tomorrow. This weekend, I'm taking my last stab at cheesecakes (low sugar) and perfecting the one that was the best. I hope to have the recipe for Vanilla Bean Cheesecake up by Monday night. I need to perfect the sweetness, just a bit. Eating them all is a tough job. But, hey...

I need to find a farmer's market down here in South Orange County, too. I got spoiled by the great one in Torrance. Having good vegetables makes the low calorie weekdays much more pleasant. Veggies are good, good veggies are great. I'm not so into fruit, but if I can get a few good (read ripe, ripe, ripe) peaches, I'm going to be happy, come the weekend.

I've been a homebody, lately, with the exception of work and a few coffee house outings. But, tonight, I hit up the Gypsy Lounge down in Lake Forest. They had some great music! Really good stuff. And, the beer didn't hurt, either.

Sweet from the Diesel Crew

The Diesel Crew Blogged about this. Sweet, huh?

crap

My kids are back in town. For good, it seems. That's not the crap part. That's the good part.

So many questions, for which I have no answers. Where will Kim live? What will she do for work? That's the crap part.

Allow myself to introduce... myself.

I've felt a little out of touch and absent, lately. Let myself get absorbed into work, rather than think about life much. But the other day, I snapped out of it, got up, and started studying, thinking, and getting out of the house.

It was so nice to have an empty house to come back to after work. Plus, house isn't too far from work, so that's nice. But, I don't really see a lot of people here at home. Just me and the cat. I don't really want to be that sorta guy. Home alone with a cat...

Don't get me wrong, I got a lot accomplished at the house. But, after spending a few half days hitting the road early, then hitting a coffee house or bookstore for a break here and there, I got just as much accomplished AND got to talk to people. That's a big plus.

Turns out I still know people in the area. Who knew that 15 years in one community would have me knowing people?

So, the weekend's been good. CPT studying. Saw the Bourne Ultimatum. Got a couple of good workouts in. On Monday, there's a community fitness expo in Central Park. That should be entertaining. I think I'll skip the 5k, but you never know...

The Evidence Is Clear

I obviously don't have enough fruit in my diet!

Thai Curry Vegetables

Have you noticed that almost every chicken or meat recipe ends with some statement like “serve with steamed vegetables?” How simple… How boring.

Why is it that the author of the recipe concentrates on making the meat so good, and then tosses out the veggies like they eat themselves? Come on! Who doesn’t eat meat? Meat’s easy. It’s the veggies that no one wants to mess with, right?

When you swing through the drive-thru for that late night emergency meal, do you order a salad and then stress over which meat item tastes better? Nope. Burger please (and no salad, cuz that’s too hard to eat while driving…).

So put the meat on the back burner for a sec, we’ll get to it later. Meanwhile, let’s get some veggies that you’ll want to eat. Deal? Deal.

Ok. This is about the simplest little veggie dish you can make. Tastes great, too. And you can pretty much make any old meat with this and poor these over the top for a great tasting meal.

Not that you care, but did I mention the healthy ingredients? It’s get them, and one’s that you probably might not eat on a regular basis. Coconut milk, for a healthy dose of saturated fat, chili and colorful peppers for antioxidants, olive oil… You get the picture.

Thai Curry Vegetables

Servings: 4

2 chayote squash (I know. Not very Thai-like. Not authentic in the least, but who’s going to know? No one knows what they even are!)

2 bell peppers (preferably red, yellow, or orange, but green’s good, too)

1 tsp olive oil (peanut oil is probably more authentic, but who has that? Whatever…)

¼ cup water (tap is fine)

1 tbsp Thai chili paste (I know you don’t have any. Buy some. It’s good, and lasts a long time)

4 tbsp coconut milk (I freeze the rest in an ice cube tray and add it to my shakes.)

Salt to taste

Optional…

2 fresh, not dried, basil leaves (If it’s not fresh, it’s not in the recipe, okay?)

¼ cup shredded coconut, unsweetened (but if you’ve got a date over, go for the sweetened if it’s all you got!)

Seed the peppers and cut into bite size pieces.

Cut the squash in half lengthwise, then each half in half again, pretty soon, you’ll have eight long skinny pieces. Good job. Now, turn them sideways and cut them into bite size pieces. Make them similar in size to the bell pepper pieces for purely aesthetic reasons.

Heat a covered wok or large saucepan over medium high heat. Add the oil and swirl to coat the bottom.

Add the squash pieces and stir to coat. Stir periodically for 2-3 minutes, being careful not to let them burn. Add in the bell peppers and stir for an additional 1-2 minutes. Add the water and cover the pan. Let them steam for 2 minutes.

If you are using the fresh basil leaves, mince them up into very small pieces while you wait. If you’re using dried, put the jar away and don’t waste your time. Dried basil is for spaghetti sauce or something, not Thai Curry Vegetables!

Remove the lid and stir in the chili paste. Stir constantly until the paste has dissolved. Most of the water should be evaporated by now, but if it’s not, let it bubble away for another minute or two.

Pour in the coconut milk and minced basil leaves. Stir thoroughly. Remove from heat and salt to taste. Sprinkle a bit of shredded coconut over the top of each serving. It looks good.

Oh, yeah… Serve over some cooked meat.

If you don’t know how to cook meat, see below.

Cooked Meat

Servings: 4

1 pound of meat, such as boneless pork loin chops, chicken breast fillets, or shelled shrimp

2 tsp olive oil

Salt to taste

With this meat, the simpler the cooking method, the better. You can grill the meat or pan fry it. Just make it simple, since the sauce from the veggies is going to be the highlight. My grill has a burner on the side, so I can do the veggies and meat in the same place.

If you don’t want to grill the meat, use the stove and a skillet that’s large enough to cook all the meat without crowding the pan too much.

The easiest way to cook it in a pan, is to stir fry it.

If you have raw, pealed shrimp, you’re already set. I f you have chicken or pork, then cut the meat into bit size pieces. Cut against the grain, if you can see which way the grain goes. If not, as long as it’s cut…

Heat the skillet over medium high heat and add the oil. Swirl to coat. Toss in the meat and stir to coat with oil.

Now, contrary to stir fry lore, you don’t constantly stir the stir fry. Let it sit, then stir. Sit, stir. Repeat. You want to let the meat cook and get lightly browned a bit. So, keep this sit/stir thing up until it’s done cooking. Shrimp cooks really, really fast. Once the shrimp is pink and no longer translucent, it’s done. The chicken or pork needs to cook a bit longer, until it’s no longer pink. Confusing? Write it down.

Add salt, if desired.

The meat is done.

The "Mom Mix"

In the boxes, I found some of my Mom's stuff. Set aside to look at later, which I never did. Can't say never, since I looked now. There was a tape that I found in my Mom's stereo. Been listening to it. Carly Simon, James Taylor, and Carol King, mostly. I'm assuming that her husband made the tape for her, before he passed away. All the songs are songs that I remember from my childhood. I've been a little sad, listening to it. Good sad, most of the time.

One of the songs was the 59th Street Bridge Song, or Feeling Groovy. My mom used to tell me how it was my favorite song when I was two years old. I knew all the words and would ask to hear it over and over again. I still love that song.

There was another song that I've always loved, along with a special book. Winnie The Pooh is the book. I don't remember too much from that age, but I remember that book, and my parents both reading it to me.

I still have my copy, and although I've read it to my own kids, I always take my book back and hide it away. It's my copy and means a lot to me. From that book, I fell in love with the tv shows and movie that Disney made by combining those shorts into one film.

Of course, when the time came, I made sure that my own daughter's baby room was Winnie The Pooh, too. A very comforting story and great characters made for a great feeling in that room.

On the mix tape, was The House At Pooh Corner, by Loggins and Messina. I guess this Pooh stuff was important to Mom, too. I didn't know.

Anyhow, like all the rest of it, I love that song, too.

The House At Pooh Corner

Christopher Robin and I walked along
under branches lit up by the moon.
Posing our questions to owl and eeyore
as our days disappeared all too soon.
But I've wandered much further today than I should
and I can't seeem to find my way back to the wood.

So, help me if you can I've got to get
back to the house at Pooh corner by one.
You'd be surprized there's so much to be done,
count all the bees in the hive,
chase all the clouds from the sky.
Back to the days of Christopher Robin and Pooh.

Winnie the Pooh doesn't know what to do,
got a honey jar stuck on his nose.
He came to me asking help and advice
and from here no one knows where he goes.
So I sent him to ask old Owl if he's there,
how to loosen a jar from the nose of a bear

So, help me if you can I've got to get
back to the house at Pooh corner by one
You'd be surprised there's so much to be done,
count all the bees in the hive,
chase all the clouds from the sky .
Back to the days of Christopher Robin and Pooh,
back to the days of Christopher Robin,
back to the ways of Pooh

Findings

It's when you unpack that you begin to realize what's important to you. Box after box can be separated into things you just threw in versus things you cared for.

A box full of knickknacks that I really have no place for. Some are nice. Decorative in the right settings. Others now seem on the verge of tacky. What was I thinking, two years back when I tossed them into this box. I take two boxes and separate things into "junk" and "keep." Turns out I only needed one box. Junk.

A box of cookbooks. Most of which are excellent, but some of which I've outgrown. Many contain recipes that I don't dare eat anymore. But, I still spend a long time leafing through them. My first cookbook, that I bought when I left home. The same day. I bought the book, then hit the grocery store and started my life alone in good style. Mexican food. There are a lot of cookbooks. For a while, I got one or two at every birthday.

A box full of boxes. I keep keepsakes in cigar boxes. Here's the box that's full of them. Each cigar box one is full of little items.

Cigar Box #1 is full of miscellaneous things. The hospital bracelets from the kids births. My passport from going to Borneo when I was five. My passport from going to Germany when I was in college. A broken watch with my anniversary date on the back. My high school ring. A silver pen. About 50 keys to whatever.

Cigar Box #2 is full of things that I sometimes strain to remember their significance. Some are obvious. Some pictures of girls that I dated. A coffee sleeve from a date. A hotel key. A matchbook. Some shells. Some rocks. Some rings. Earrings that can't be mine. Some that are mine. Friendship bracelets. A CD of songs. A cassette tape. A note from a girl. A note to a girl that I never gave. Some greeting cards.

Cigar Box #3 is stationary. Like I'm going to write someone a note...

There's more (I have eight cigar boxes), but you get the gist.

Turns out books are important to me. I've got a few boxes of them. I plan on reading most of them again, even though they are far from classic. There's a new old stack next to bed, even now.

A box of video tapes and DVDs. Casablanca, The Notebook, Gladiator, Last of the Mohicans, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Princess Bride, Raising Arizona, and Ever After are the ones that I've rewatched in the past week or so.

A box full of things that I've written and pictures that I've taken. Mostly crap, but a few good things in there.

So, there's been a week or so of nostalgia as I unpack. It's slowed my progress, but why do I need to hurry? I live here.

a room or two "finished," touch up paint , cigars, and a ceiling fan possessed!

A Room Or Two

I got the living room, dining room, and kitchen livable. The kitchen's nothing to write home about, but here are a few shots of the other rooms.

Here's the living room, as you enter the condo...




Looking toward the mantle. It's small, so I couldn't step back too far to get a great shot.





















Here's the dining room. Yes, that's a very low table. We're a family of floor sitters. Big floor pillows and no chairs.

I have plans for an actual table, but until then, I'll just serve a lot of Chinese and Japanese food to my guests...



Touch Up Paint

The place has eight cans of paint. 6 of them are white. Each is a custom color of white. No clue which is for which room. They all look alike until you dab them on the wall to cover the spackled nail holes. Damn.

Do yourself and your future new owners a favor and write the room on the damn paint can!

The worst part is that the master bedroom has a really cool paint color. Oatmeal or Lazy Autumn Day. Some lame name like that. There are two cans of paint that are close, but no cigar. I have to paint the whole room now, because I spackled A LOT of nail holes. Like 30 of them.


Cigars

Speaking of cigars. Got my humidors out of the boxes and primed. And, now there's a major shipment on it's way! Punch Rothchilds (maduro), La Finca Coronas (natural), and Hoyo de Monterey (EMS). Can't wait.


The Possessed Ceiling Fan

This is a really boring story. Please don't read it.

I've complained about the ceiling fans before. I don't care for fans! There's on in my girl's room, and she likes it. So, it's staying. There's one in the living room, but it's high and mostly out of sight. It's okay, I guess.

The problem child is in the master bedroom. Standard height ceilings and ceiling fan over bed don't mix for me. Too close. Plus, it's just always in my line of sight. I knew that someday it was out of here.

The other night, I go into the room after watching a DVD (Firefly). The fan is on and so is it's light. Very dim, too. I didn't dim it and I didn't turn it on. The buttons on the remote won't do squat. It's stuck on. Crap. I'm tired and I need this thing turned off!

After about thirty minutes of fiddling with reprogramming other remotes and experimenting with random button presses, I finally get the thing to turn off. I don't know how. It was a random press of the "fan reverse" button that turned off the light. A press of the "program temp" button made the fan reverse. A second press and it stopped. I vowed to remove the fan the next day, and did.

I bought a replacement ceiling light for the room, pulled the fan, and installed the light. Shockingly, I find that there's no wall switch for this thing. The fan was wired up, but relied solely on the wireless remote for controls. Crap. I unhook the new light that's now "always on." Now, there's a hole.

I don't care if there's a light or not. I just don't want a hole. Not there, anyway. I'm not much of a drywaller, either. I've tried. You can totally see every patch I've ever done in a wall. Not pretty.

I head back to Lowes to ask if there's some sort of wireless remote light switch I can hook up. Nope. Only for fans (they are built in to the fans, though). I'm about ready to reinstall the light and just leave it unhooked to cover the hole. Better than a hole, I suppose. But, then I spot those lamps that are meant to be attached underneath the fans! They have pull chains. There's one that looks like a true, normal ceiling lamp. And, according to the box, it can be attached flush to the ceiling, not requiring a fan. It's even got a finial looking thing on the short pull chain. Sold.

Not perfect, but better than feeling like I'm ducking under a helicopter rotor. The previous owners must have been short. Or, at least not 6'1"

getting there...

Lots of unpacking and organizing. Then taking half the crap back down again, once I realize that I don't need that "thing" up here. I've had a lot of crap in storage, and when you look at the box, you think "yes. I need that upstairs." Only I don't. So, it's back to the garage, and in many cases going to be donated to charity.

On another note, it's been great to have a house with no junk food (or non-junk food that I'd overindulge in). I have to walk or drive for a treat, so it really makes you aware of what you're doing. I wanted ice cream all day yesterday, but I'd have to walk for it. I did get some, but it was after my workout, so that worked out well. At least it made sure I'd workout, right?

Off to work.

Later!

You Said It, Sister!

I love Indexed. Pure simplicity in blogging.

This one really hits home. I loved my house, but I'm liking having a deck (two, actually), nowadays!

I paid what to do this myself?

more and more unpacking

I now consider myself actually moved in. Lots of boxes moved. Several unpacked.

This place has more closet space than I'll ever need, but is sadly lacking in kitchen storage space. Luckily, I'm not much for dry goods, but I have a lot of cooking stuff and not so many places to put it.

The kitchen cabinets are weird. Tiny little cabinet doors, leading to deep cupboards, so you can't really see what in them. Or get to the things you put in there. Is it lame to list out what's in the damn things on some sort of inventory sheet? Seems OCD, but I see no solution to this hidden space issue.

Instead of important things, I focused on trivial things. Hung my candelabra over the table. Lit it up. Had dinner.

Found a great spot for my dart board. There's never a good place, but this place is great! I'll post pics of it when the "build out" is done. I missed my darts. I used to be really, really good (I once destroyed to OC regional champion in a singles match, knocking the ass-wipe out of the Southern California race, then going on to be destroyed myself. It was so worth it, even though I didn't even win the comp for that night.).

Lots of little things bug me. All the counter tops are cheesy. I can fix that pretty easily, but the cabinets in the kitchen are freaking ugly. And cheap laminate, so I can't just change out the doors or remove them. This will be annoying for some time... (edit: I looked more closely, the cabinets aren't anything special, but they are solid wood. I could paint them and add new doors and drawer fronts.)

Bathrooms are so basic it's ridiculous. This will be work. I'm going to build a basin stand from a dresser, I think. I'd love a pedestal, but there's simply no storage nearby. At least the toilets are nice and new.

The sliders have cheap verticals. They look okay from a distance, but I don't like verticals much, even when they are nice ones.

The previous owner loved ceiling fans. I don't. At least they are nice and simple ones. Modern, not country. I removed the one in the dining room.

I don't like brass. All brass has been removed, leaving one brass hanging lamp over the entry. Gotta replace that with an iron one. Anyone have a ladder I can borrow?

Positives...

I love the carpet and the tile, and the loft has a wood floor.

The ceilings are high.

The windows all have nice wooden blinds. Cool enough.

My wireless reaches all the way out to the lakeside, so I can sit out there if I want to.

I can walk to the store, restaurant, cigar shop, Starbucks, and the doughnut shop. I can smell them doughnuts cooking, right now! Damn.

There's a 1.1 mile path around the lake, a playground with chinup potential, and an awesome hill for sprints. There are kayaks and canoes to rent. Dollar an hour. No excuses, huh?

I love the sound of the birds when I wake up. Too bad they're mostly ducks. And geese. The Canadian variety. Why are they here in the summer? This is south for the winter for them. Oh, well. Still cool.

The Story

I got a couple of emails asking some questions, so I'll post some clarifications, just in case you don't already know the story...

• Kim and I have been separated for about two years.
• I've lived with my father, in Torrance, CA for the past two years.
• I filed for divorce a couple of months back. Just waiting now.
• Although I wasn't happy about splitting up two years ago, I'm good with it now. She's met someone else. He's nice. They're engaged. I'm happy for them. Really! I'm SO moved on...
  
• Kim moved out of the condo that we jointly own. I moved in. I'm back in my hometown of the past 15 years, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA.
• I've been swamped with work, vacation, moving, work, studying, unpacking, work. Hence the lack of blogging. But, work has settled down. All is good.

So, in a nutshell, that's it. Been busy, busy, busy the past month. But, I'm now a lot closer to work, as RSM is smack dab in the middle of the area that I cover for Xerox. So, this means less driving time and more time to do what needs doing. More home time. More study time. More writing time. More cooking time. More time, in general.

Later!

Back

I am back. I survived my 10 day kid-fest. It was really hard and I worked out a lot less that I thought I would. Imagine...

Lots of driving. Lots of getting lost. But, here I am.

After being lost, lost, and more lost yesterday, my son said "Look at the bright side. We get to spend more time with you." My little angel, who then preceded to hit his sister and get in a big fight over who's fart that wasn't. It was the pig truck in front of us, morons.

You Need A Pig To Find Truffles

Note: I found this in my storage unit. From a college write assignment. What was I thinking?

You Need A Pig To Find Truffles

by Roland Denzel
January, 1988

Martin was hungry. And, he hadn't had any luck, either. He looked down at the tin bucket that he had hanging from his belt: No mushrooms. No truffles.

It was seven o'clock on the evening after Easter Sunday. It seemed a lot like summer to Martin, as it was still light out (Martin liked summer for just that reason). Everything was dry and not particularly good for hunting mushrooms. Martin hunted anyway, but as was stated before, he was having no luck.

He was surprised at himself for enjoying this chore so much. He liked it so well that he did it daily. It was, however, according to his Mother, a stiff punishment for being so naughty. No matter what his Mother thought, though, Martin loved it (perhaps because it got him away from his Mother).

It was starting to get dark. The sun had already set, and the only light was the still lighted sky remaining to show the way. Time to get home, chore or no chore. Too bad he had not found even one mushroom to bring home in his bucket.

He walked. He soon stopped in front of the most likely spot that he had seen that day--although still an unlikely spot--and started looking. He got down on hands and knees, almost cow-towing before the hill of not very damp leaves, praying for a mushroom or two. Something to appease his Mother's wrath toward his empty bucket. But, there was nothing.

He stood up. It was getting darker. There was no getting around it, he would have to go home empty handed (was getting beaten for nothing better or worse than getting beaten for having nothing?). He hoped his Mother would let him eat tonight.

It was dim as a prison when he arrived home empty-handed. Martin flinched as he caught himself starting to put his pig away for the night: He no longer had his pig. Too bad, the pig had been great company on his truffle hunts--better even, than Martin's dog.

Last night, Easter Sunday, the family truffle hunter had been enjoyed by Martin's family (Martin hadn't eaten).

Martin's Mother had been in a wonderful mood for Easter dinner (she had even been sweet to Martin). He was shocked that his Mother could take the death of his friend so lightly. His father, however, reminded him that he had been warned about getting attached to the livestock.

Martin knew better than to think that his Mother found his pain amusing, but sometimes he found himself crying anyway.

Once again, he didn't eat. And, his Mother only lightly scolded him for finding no mushrooms (then she smiled at him and might have chuckled lightly, too).

He didn't like mushrooms, anyhow.


So, my professor really like this thing. I think she thought it was deep and mysterious.

Today's The Day

Moving back to Rancho Santa Margarita. Condo on the "lake," no furniture, no dishes, two kids for 10 days, and a shitload of fun to be had.

But, the kids don't care what's there and what's not. I'll get my stuff out of storage once they're up with their Mom. Do some decorating. Redo their rooms a bit, so they have something nice to look forward to. A mixture of old and new.

In the meantime, we'll be seeing Transformers and hitting Wild Rivers for some water slides. The beach once, and then off on a whirlwind relatives tour up the coast, until I drop them off at their new house. Should be a nice drive, and the kids are very excited that I'm going to see where they live and check out their rooms. I'm excited, too.

I talked to my Dad (my roomie) about my move (we've talked about it before...) and he was surprised. I don't like that. He just doesn't seem to comprehend things. They don't sink in. And, he's hard of hearing...

I broached the subject of his moving into a "retirement community." He was open to it. Said he'd considered it, even. Good news. Now, I just have to talk to my siblings and get their support for this. He could move to one of four locations. Santa Barbara, Albuquerque, Chicago, or Rancho (where I'm headed). His eyes lit up at Chicago and he couldn't stop singing it's praises. Gotta see how my brother feels about that...

Casino Royale

I've watched it twice in just a few days. I really liked this movie.

It falls into my favorite category of movies: Guys that aren't perfect, yet have honor and bravery. They aren't always great at the micro level, but they put the macro above themselves. Plus, they have to have passion.

Eva Green is very pretty, if a bit too thin and frail. She's fine, I suppose. I can set aside my disdain for scrawny women long enough to get into the moment of the movie. As Vesper Lynd, she is pretty, after all. And, smart. And, bold. And, sharp witted. It all adds up.

"I can't resist waking you. Every time I do you look at me as if you hadn't seen me in years. Makes me feel reborn."

-- Vesper Lynd

I love that part. That one line. She says it, but it's really him and his passion that drives it.

That's what I want: That feeling. Every man should have a woman who they find themselves looking at like that.

Every woman should be adored. And, feel it. Know it.


Only time will tell if I watch this one as much as Gladiator, Last of the Mohicans, Casablanca, and Raiders of the Lost Ark, but so far, I like it. I keep going over parts of it in my head. Great lines. Great moments. Best Bond movie in years.

But, it also seems to be a new category of Bond movies. Like Batman Begins, hopefully this one starts the movie slate clean. I'd like to see the books and stories again. Fresh and more bold, manly, and robust. James Bond started out great, years ago, then took a nose dive into campy adventure that I could easily forget, if we could move on with this new James Bond.

The combination of Daniel Craig and the writing style of this movie, brings us a grittier, bolder James Bond, who's far more flawed, vulnerable, passionate, and powerful than than the ones of the recent past. Thank God.

Of course, with power comes responsibility...

"If the only thing left of you was your smile and your little finger, you'd still be more of a man than anyone I've ever known."

"That's because you know what I can do with my little finger..."

Grease

I'm watching Grease with my kids right now. I love this movie. I must have seen it at least 30 times. That's more than Star Wars, which is good or bad, depending on who you are.

A few more sexual innuendos that I remembered, now that I'm watching it with kids. They don't seem to get them, though. That's good. They're too busy laughing at the funny names of the the characters (Doody. hehe.). Whew!

Boy, I used to have such a huge crush on Olivia Newton-John.

Guess mine is not the first heart broken,
my eyes are not the first to cry
I'm not the first to know,
there's just no gettin' over you

Hello, I'm just a fool who's willing
to sit around and wait for you
But baby can't you see, there's nothin' else for me to do
I'm hopelessly devoted to you

What a fuckin' asshole, that Danny Zucko!

Sandy, can't you see
i'm in misery
We made a start
Now we're apart
There's nothin' left for me
Love has flown
All alone I sit
And wonder whyi-yi-yi
Oh why you left me
Oh Sandy

Yeah, Danny. Big mystery. We all wonder whyi - yi -yi.

I remember seeing this at the old Whitwood Theater. You could pay a buck and stay all day. Just keep watching the two movies that were playing. I think it was Grease and Foul Play, over and over. That's a lot of sodas, I'm telling you. Good thing they had "Beauty School Dropout" right there in the middle; a built in intermission...

Lots of good songs in Grease.

I got chills.
They're multiplyin'.
And I'm losin' control.
'Cause the power
you're suplyin',
it's electrifyin'!

Yeah. I got chills, too. But, I think I preferred her before, rather than her after version. That's just me, though. Still, both were good.

Anyhow, I don't think I'd seen Grease in a few years, so it was sorta nostalgic. My daughter liked all the songs, and she seemed to know some of them (we played the tape a lot when she was a baby). I told Allie that I had the album and she wants me to look for it. That's a problem, since I don't have a turntable anymore. Gotta re buy...

If Your Seeing It, It's You're Responsibility To Help Me!

I've had a terrible problem, lately. It's the accidental swapping of "your" and "you're." It's become very frustrating to me.

Your probably not seeing it as often as I do, but believe me, it's a big point of frustration for me. Spellcheck doesn't catch it, unless your using a grammar checker, too.

When I actually write, I catch most of them. I hope. But, it's been pretty common to find the mistake when you take a look at you're email or instant messages. That's where this problem really rears it's ugly head.

So, please... Please. If you see me use the wrong "yore," point it out. Please help me.

Next time we'll discuss my subtle placement choices for my commas.

Oh, really...

So, if the guy in front of me really is/was a sniper in the Marines, why does he drive a champagne colored RAV4?




Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

The Lost Poster

Down at the beach, there are some signs posted. Poor guy lost his kite board.

The sign has a picture of the board and lots of little tear-offs down at the bottom. So you can take Klaus's number and call to say you've got his board.

First, what are the tear-offs for? You found the board? Take the poster. If you're the guy who has it, no one else needs to see the poster. Right? Just call Klaus.

Second, why are six tear-offs torn off? Did six people really find a board that looks like Klaus's board?

Blogged via Blackberry, where backspacing is more trouble than it's worth. Please forgive any typos.

Hey! Look Who Invented The Smiley? :D

The other day, I was googling for something about emoticons and found this quote.


"I often think there should exist a special typographical sign for a smile – some sort of concave mark, a supine round bracket, which I would now like to trace in reply to your question."

Vladamir Nabokov, when asked how he ranked himself amongst living writers and those of the immediate past.


Obviously old news, but I think it's interesting that this statement (from a 1969, New York Times Interview) pre-dates computer usage, and emoticons, by so many years.

Tony's First Real Read

This weekend Tony picked out a book at the bookstore. A Goosebumps book called "Deep Trouble."

He has never liked reading before. But, he started reading this in the car on the way home. And, he never put it down until he was done.

He read it more after dinner at the restaurant, in bed, when he woke up, instead of watching a dvd, instead of playing his DS, etc. He even chose the book over fishing!

It too him 46 hours of elapsed time, according to him. Pretty speedy for a boy who's never read a real book on his own.

When he was done, he opened it up to the inside front cover and wrote "To Tommy. From Dad. I love you" and asked Kim (his Mom) if she would save it for him so he could give his first book to his son, someday. He likes the name "Tommy," I guess... Who knew?

The OC You Can't See

OC is one glamorous place! Shiny and clean and filled with the most beautiful people in the State of California. I mean, they didn't make a TV show about Stockton*, did they?

I had a pretty glamorous time Friday night! On Friday, the kids' school had it's annual Beach Blanket Blast. BBB is a carnival, of sorts, with a beach theme and plenty of wet and watery activities. Good thing, too. It was 97 degrees! And, much of the BBB is held on the blacktop playground.

My kids' school, in Rancho Santa Margarita, is deep behind the "Orange Curtain," where its streets, medians, and house colors are safely protected by the strict rules and regulations of numerous Homeowners Associations. It's almost too bad. So little creativity; a blessing and a curse. But, at least it makes sure the houses are so ugly.

I don't really go back there and mingle with people much, anymore. I go to pick up the kids, hang out with a friend or two, then move on. So, it was nice to see all the people that I'd missed over the past year or so.

Lately, we hear so much about the obesity epidemic. Everyone's getting fatter! Well, not in the OC (home of the beautiful people, remember?). In the OC, things are different. In the OC, they pass the obesity plague around like a bacterial infection that's not exactly fatal. You get it, then you get better, infect someone else, then get it again. I saw so many people who'd lost weight since I saw them last. Unfortunately, I saw an equal amount who'd put on plenty of pounds.

As to glamor (again), this event was not glamorous. It was a beach themed carnival. So, I can hardly expect people to be dressed up. Instead, we see the worst of the worst when it comes to fashion. People just don't know how to dress. Board shorts? Fine. Striped Board shorts and a t-shirt? Fine. Hawaiian shirt? Not my choice, but fine enough with board shorts. But, how do you even get out of the house with blue and orange striped shorts and a green and red Hawaiian shirt? Don't you have a wife? No? Well, you're not gettin' one, either!

Okay. Two words. Fanny. Pack. What's even in that thing? Cell phone? Nope. Clipped to the belt of said fanny pack... nice touch. The carabiner is pretty cool, too.

Work and personal cell phones. I'm sorry, too. I'm also saddled with a huge work phone. A primitive, full keyboard Blackberry. But, if I want to be fashionable, I put it in my pocket. That's why God made cargo pants and shorts; for you, Mr. Two Cell phone. Granted, God also made belts. But you really shouldn't wear them for a beach party. And, if you're not wearing the belt, you really can't have two cell phones hanging off of it, either.

Sandals and socks. The socks could have been black. I'll give you that much. Good work, fella.

You know, so far I'm really just talking about one guy, by the way. But, there were plenty of them that had various aspects of this ensemble. The Omega Males. Portly, multi-hued, cell phone laden, fanny pack wearing men; slowly leading up the rear so the Alpha Males can focus on bigger, better things (I guess we can thank them?)

Just like the Omega Males, there are females in sad states, too. The bigger they are, the louder the clothes. The louder the clothes, the louder the voices, too. I don't get this. I was big once. I focused on vertical stripes or none at all. Blend in. Muted colors or black from head to toe. And, I was quiet.

People needn't be ashamed of their bodies. But, there's quite a difference between having a few to lose while wearing shorts and a t-shirt and proudly parading a huge muffin top and camel toe at a school carnival. The former is living, the latter is... wrong?

Another thing that I noticed on Friday. The larger the women were, the more overtly sexual and suggestive things flew out of their mouths. This was particularly true as the groups got larger. They seemed to feed off of one another and egged each other on and attempting to quietly and "subtley" cat call the men who walked by. Very subtle, ladies.

The thing that struck me most was the endless string of fashion faux pas. Again, it's a beach party. It seems the easier thing to dress for. But, everyone wants to kick it up a notch. Hula skirts, every loud shirt with even one flower, bad shorts, and the endless scratch-slap, scratch-slap, of rubber zorries hitting the ground were about all that I could take.

Thank God for the kids. With all the water around, the kids were staying fashionable in shorts and bathing suits. T-shirts here and there. All in all, pretty tame and pretty fashionable. I can only assume it's because kids grown out of their clothes before the fashion changes. Or, maybe they know better and refuse to leave the house "dressed like that." Who knows? But, maybe they do just know better.

Maybe that's why the kids beg to run off with friends as soon as they get to the party. Not to be alone, but to be away from all all the adult "fashion?" Something to think about as you watch your kids run off with their friends. They are laughing, right? Think about it.


* since The Big Valley, at least. Audra was pretty hot...

Where Are They, Dammit?

All my old recipes are just gone. Not that there were that many that I loved, but I was going to make Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic (everyone's got a recipe, but I liked mine).

It wasn't that hard to make. Something like this...

1 chicken, cut up
2 tablespoons olive oil
40 cloves of garlic (not peeled, but separated from the head)
1/2 cup vermouth or dry white wine
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Toss with a 2 tablespoons olive oil and brown on both sides in a wide fry pan or skillet over high heat. Remove from heat. Add vermouth and garlic cloves. Cover tightly and bake for 1 1/2 hours.

The garlic cloves are pretty good squeezed onto bread, but don't do it. Bread is the devil.


Back to my problem... So, I only noticed that this was gone because I looked for it. What other recipes are lost forever? What recipes will I never remember? Bummer.

OMG

I'm at a poetry reading. Purely by accident. I would never knowingly attend something like this.

It's got an open mic component going on. It's really horrible...

The headliner cancelled. It's all open mic, now. No one knows when to clap. These people put dramatic pauses in at innopportune times, yet never seem to end.

We've got an unusual mixture of vegans, smoking up a storm out on the patio, and talking their PETA talk. Inside, oldsters are gathered around complaining about the slow going here. It's not organized, per se. There are several, seemingly normal people here, too.

The have three "leaders" at this thing. An old skinny guy that's waaaay to educated to be rubbing it in with such big words, a modern day beatnik with a kangol rather than a beret, and a stunningly beautiful woman who must really want me (I tire of that...). Only the beatnik seems normal, like he's not taking himself too seriously.

Right now, there's a bearded lady talking at the mic. That's correct. A little white beard. Not just a few hairs. Her poem is about fruit flies mysteriously eating her cheese. Cheese flies, I'd call them.

Eli was up, just before. He spent his four minutes setting up his schtick. He has a big floppy hat, plaid pants, and a peacoat that's strangely big, yet too small to button. He sets up an amp and plays music over the speaker as he sets up. I think it's his act. The oldersters think he's taking too long to start. I think he's almost over. It's his performance art. One minute of a child crying "Mommy, I want to go home" plays. Eli apologizes for playing the wrong thing. He introduces himself and pushes a button. A song starts. Eli plays the violin along with the music. He's pretty good. Then it's over. He apologizes for being out of breath.

I'm skipping the reviews of two typical boring ones.

Freestyle White Rapper up right now. He raps about how he's a black poet rapper on the inside. That's not obvious. It must be deep inside. Trapped. That was the worst thing I ever sat through.

This is like a 90s SNL skit. You know how they were sorta funny, then didn't really have an ending? That's where I am. 1992, I think.

I'm skipping the reviews of two typical boring ones. I need more "acts" to keep my attention.

There's a bilingual one going on at the moment. It's very awkward. How is the guy breathing in that shirt? The buttons are almost popping.

In case you're wondering, I won't be doing any poety here at the coffee house.

Here at the coffee house
People are reading
This is so awkward
I'm thinking of leaving
Burma Shave

I'm about out of here. I feel bad. Is it better to mosey during a "good" one or a bad one?

Low Carb Cheesecake?

Over at JP's, Brenda suggested that I channel my cheesecake efforts into a low carb variety. I said "low carb cheesecake is like having a beautiful girlfriend that smells funny."

But, that's really a problem with taking most traditional carb-rich foods and translating them to low carb. They are never quite right. I thought I'd start from scratch, instead.

The biggest hurdle is really the crust. Cookies and crackers have no good lower carb substitution. Does it need crust at all? Maybe not. It needs something. A contrast of textures. A difference in mouth feel. Otherwise it's pudding. Pudding is not sensual. Cheesecake is.

Here's what spurred my change of heart. I've had vanilla on my mind. I'm smelling it everywhere. I imagine it. I'm dwelling on it. It's not the number one ice cream flavor for nothing. It seems basic to think about, but it's not so basic when you really smell or taste the good vanilla.

I have a small jar of Madagascar vanilla beans. I hate to open it because it's like I'm letting it all out. It smells heavenly. I can't not open it, either, because it smells heavenly.

But, with vanilla on my mind, I set to work on a cheesecake that so good that you won't care about the carbs that aren't there. A little non-traditional twist, here and there, but a cheesecake base so you know what you've got.

So, I've got a base recipe to work on, now. Whipped up a batch of filling, today. Made a crustless little number, to start. Vanilla bean cheesecake filling. Let's just say that it's a good thing I only made a little bit. I don't care how low carb it is, 1000 calories of low carb in a sitting is bad. And, this was bad. Naughty maybe. I wanted more.

Now for the contrasting element. I've got a few ideas. A few weeks of fiddling and perfecting, and you should see something good posted up here.

So, I guess it is possible, Brenda... There's hope for having a beautiful girlfriend that smells heavenly.

Speedy Quick! (Update)

The movie was the new Pirates...

We're missing the best part, I'm sure!

There really was no "best part."

I hope no one gives that DVD to my kids, they loved it and would watch it way to much for me. Like one more time.

Speedy Quick!

Wouldn't you think the goal of the concession stand guy at the movies would be to be speedy? We're missing the best part, I'm sure!

rainy day adventure

What type of person are you? You show up in a new and exciting city, New York, for instance. You're dressed and ready to go walk around and find something interesting, but you get downstairs and it's raining. Do you go back up to your hotel room and watch tv? Or, do you head out anyway, with no umbrella (California people don't use umbrellas much. I don't even have one.).

I used to choose the room, but now I'm looking forward to getting my hair wet in a strange city. A little water doesn't hurt, but leaving adventure behind does.

I've been safe and warm too long. Time to get out there and get my feet wet, literally or figuratively.

Of course, my first stop might be an umbrella stand. Or, maybe a store that sells those hats with the flaps. It's a strange city, I won't see anyone I know...

Have The Courage To Cook Simply -- Cilantro Pesto

Over the past few weeks, I've talked to quite a few people about cooking. I love to cook, always have. Lately, I've gotten the cooking bug back. Back with a vengeance, too. I'm always thinking of what I'm going to be cooking later. Always talking about it, apparently.

Some of my friends just don't cook. When I asked them why, it's obvious that they are intimidated. But, cooking is easy. They just don't know it. Grab half the cookbooks on the shelf of a bookstore and you'll see so many ingredients and steps that the newbie puts it back and heads to the drive through.

But, here's the secret. Keep it simple. Cook simply. Food is good. Fancy food isn't always better, it's just different. When in doubt, keep it simple. There are a few simple little things you can make and keep handy that make basic foods better. My number one such thing is a condiment called pesto.

Pesto means "paste" in Italian. In it's most simple and traditional form, pesto is a paste of fresh basil, garlic, olive oil, Parmesan cheese, and pine nuts. But remember, we're talking simple here. And, simple means you have to be able to find it all easily. Sometimes you can't find enough fresh basil at the supermarket to make a batch of pesto without breaking the bank. Pine nuts are expensive, too.

In Southern California, you can always find cilantro, the basic, staple herb of Mexican cooking. Sunflower seed kernels are pretty easy to find, too. Cotija cheese is a crumbly cheese in the cheese section of most grocery stores, but if you can't find it, go with Parmesan.

Finally, but most importantly, this is about you trying to impress someone, right? Lots of people have had the traditional basil pesto. The last thing you want to hear when you serve your meal is some "best pesto I ever had" story about some Italian restaurant that may or may not have been on a date...


Cilantro Pesto
2 cups of firmly packed cilantro leaves
1 large garlic clove
4 tablespoons raw or toasted sunflower seed kernels, divided
1/4 cup plus 2 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup crumbled cotija (or Parmesan) cheese plus additional for garnishing

Using food processor (or a knife or blender (see below), which is harder, but still doable), blend cilantro leaves, the garlic clove, 2 tablespoons of the seeds, the the crumbled cotija cheese, and the 1/4 cup olive oil until the mixture is smooth. Add additional oil in small amounts, if necessary, to make a smooth paste.

Knife Pesto -- you sometimes find pesto made by chopping alone in some fancy restaurants. You just chop, chop, chop the ingredients, then chop some more.

Blender Pesto -- lots of little pulses, scrape down, pulse, scrape down, repeat for what seems like forever. A food processor is so much easier...

Serving the pesto

Once you have the pesto made, there are so many ways to use it. You'll like it so much that you'll want to make extra. Down at the bottom of this blog entry, check out a few storage methods, so you don't have to make the pesto every time you want to eat it.

Use the pesto for anything, but here are a few ideas. Remember, the pesto has a strong and robust taste, keep the foods pretty simple. That's why this is easy. The chicken may be the biggest thing on the plate, but the pesto is the main ingredient.

• Top some grilled chicken with your pesto and serve with hot grilled vegetables, like zucchini, summer squash, and bell peppers
• Toss some hot pasta with a little olive oil and a few tablespoons of pesto. Throw in some diced or shredded chicken or pork for a complete meal.
• Grill some corn on the cob, straight on the barbecue or grill. Give it a light coating of pesto just before serving.
• How about some gourmet quesadillas or tacos? Nothing run of the mill about a taco that's been spread with a thin layer of pesto before you fold the tortilla around the simple steak, chicken, or shrimp filling. Or, rather than guacamole next to a quesadilla, place a large spoonful of pesto there, instead. A tiny salad of diced avocado, bell peppers, red onion, and a bit of pesto for dressing brings it all together.
• Pesto, thinned with a bit of half and half makes an excellent, creamy salad dressing, too.
• Stir pesto into tortilla soup or fresh or jarred salsa for a change of pace.

Whatever you serve, a little extra crumbled or shaved cheese and a sprinkling of sunflower seeds makes a good garnish.

Storing the extra pesto

Pesto keeps well in the refrigerator, but, it turns dark very quickly. Use the tallest, narrowest jar you can find and pack it down. Just before it goes in the refrigerator, pour just enough olive oil over the top so that air cannot come in contact with the pesto. Cover the jar and put it away for up to a week.

For longer storage of your pesto, freeze it. I like to use an old ice cube tray to make pesto cubes, then break them out into a large ziplock bag. Thaw them in the refrigerator overnight, before using them. You can use the microwave, but be careful, go slow, and don't nuke them until they are hot, just thawed. ...and never use these trays for ice cubes again!

Thank you for stopping by...

Okay, so I hope you enjoy what you can do with cilantro pesto. It's easy and unexpected. Having some handy can make a simple meal pretty good. Pesto is not something that most people expect to be served at someone's home, so you'll be in a good position. Someday, they'll regale someone else with the story of "the best pesto I ever had," so be happy that it will have been served by you.

I've been busy

And, I have virtually nothing to say...

Mahi Mahi with Red Pepper Sauce & Summer Squash

I made this for my father, just the other night. He practically licked the plate clean.


Mahi Mahi with Roasted Pepper Sauce and Summer Squash


Mahi Mahi

4 Mahi Mahi fillets
¼ cup sesame seeds
1 tbsp light olive oil
½ tsp salt


Roasted Pepper Sauce

3 large red or yellow bell peppers
1 tsp olive oil
¼ cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 fresh large basil leaves or ½ tsp dried basil
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
¼ tsp black pepper
1 cup chicken broth
½ cup cream
salt to taste
sesame seeds for garnishing

Summer Squash

4 small zucchini
4 small yellow summer squash or crookneck squash
1 red or yellow bell pepper
3 tsp light olive oil, divided
Salt and pepper to taste
2 fresh basil leaves (optional)


Directions:


Roasted Pepper Sauce

Roast peppers over open flame, on the grill, or in the broiler. Keep turning them until the surface is charred and mostly black. Immediately seal in tupperware or ziplock bag for ten to twenty minutes. Submerge them in cold water and rub the skins off with your hands. A lot of blackened spots will remain. Cut open peppers and remove seeds. Coarsely chop the peppers.

In medium saucepan over high heat, combine oil, roasted peppers, onion, garlic, basil, salt, cayenne pepper and black pepper; cook 3 minutes.

Add broth to the pepper mixture and heat to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and pour mixture into a blender jar. Let stand for 5 minutes. Blend until smooth. Add cream to blender and blend for a few seconds to mix.

Salt to taste.

If made ahead, keep the sauce warm, but do not allow it to boil.


Summer Squash

Cut zucchini and summer squash into 2 inch long pieces. Slice each segment, lengthwise, into 8 to 10 strips.

Seed the bell pepper and cut lengthwise into 2 inch strips.

Heat 1 tsp olive oil in a skillet over high heat. When oil is very hot, add half of the squash to skillet. The squash should not be crowded in the pan or it will steam. At most, you should be able to see equal amounts of squash and skillet bottom.

Stir often, but allow the squash to brown in spots. Repeat with 2nd half of the squash, then with the bell pepper. Combine vegetables and salt and pepper to taste.

Serve squash on small salad plates or bowls, garnished with finely slivered basil leaf (if you only have dry basil, then just skip it).



Mahi Mahi

Spread sesame seeds and half of the salt onto a plate. Lay filets in the seeds, coating one side only

Heat a nonstick skillet using high heat. Add olive oil and swirl. When oil begins to smoke, add the coated filets, sesame seeds down. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes on each side.

Pour ½ cup of sauce into rimmed plates or shallow flat bowls. Carefully, lay a filet onto the center of each plate, sesame seeds up. Sprinkle sauce and filets with additional sesame seeds.