Blah-Blah-Blahg: Food For Nought

Jump for joy! Leap year is hopping on a calendar near you. Thanks to the fact that the Earth does not orbit the Sun in a neat 365 days(but rather 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 45 seconds) us humans have to make a minor adjustment in our schedules every four years. We add a day to February.

When Julius Caesar rose to power, those Romans were still using an inferior 10 month calendar; that resulted in a disastrous addition of up to 80 days every calendar year! Eventually, the Romans caught on and did as the Egyptians do - that is - they adopted a 12 month calendar. So Caesar named July after himself. Then, along came Augustus, who just had to have his own month as well - the height of narcissism if you ask me (but that's Greek mythology). So good old Augustus named August after himself and, in a real show of arrogance, stole a day from February to make his month as long as Julius'. We've all heard of penis envy but... ?

Instead of footprints, he left behind quotation marks

"I want to love you EVEN"
Isn't that what we all want and are too afraid to grab at?
Not to be offered the last bite
but to be well-fucked in bed
kicked on the shins on occasion and answered with a smirk instead of an apology

My love
living without weather report
to trace the lines of eachother's hands until perhaps dust or sleep comes

No welcome mat of roses
rather, coming home to unmade bed
stinking of affection that's had a good time
Knowing the light in the other room is you waiting without knowing you're waiting

Looked at with yearning
that's constantly, constantly, constantly chasing learning
Saying the same words
over
and
over
seeing eachother's selves as UNpromised land
charmed visitors - returned
because the words we say are sometimes meant and the feelings we feel felt

by Cristina Paul

Cowboy Salad

gets its name from a curious German named Lars who observed me and a friend enjoying this bean salad on a camping trip

Serves 4

Ingredients:
1 cup freshly chopped basil
1 (15oz) can of drained red kidney beans
1 (15oz) can of drained garbanzo beans
1 (15oz) can of drained black beans
4 oz of chopped baby broccoli (regular variety may be substituted)
6 oz of cherry tomatoes cut in half
2 shallots very thinly sliced
1/4 cup of red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Directions:
1. Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Refrigerate for at least three hours so that the flavors can marry. Serve alone, with broken pieces of tostadas, or paired with a yummy condiment like homemade hummus or pesto. Yee-haw!

*Toasted nuts, feta cheese, sundried tomatoes, or avocados are great additions to this salad as well.

Recipe by Cristina Paul

Blah-Blah-Blahg: Food For Nought

Recent sightings that have made me strangely happy:
* a man in a turban driving a truck
* a curly-haired girl getting strapped into her car-seat, giggling "I love to laugh"
* a man riding a bicycle that was over six feet tall
* a very virile squirrel falling from a palm frond and agitatedly checking to see if his mammalian friends saw his embarrassing face plant

Opinion

Halfway to work and Merriman already has told me

What he thinks about the balanced budget, the Mets'

Lack of spring starting pitching, the dangers of displaced

Soviet nuclear engineers, soy products, and diesel cars.

I look out the window and hope I'll see a swan.

I hear they're bad-tempered but I love their necks

And how they glide along so sovereignly.

I never take the time to drive to a pond

And spend an hour watching swans. What

Would happen if I heeded the admonitions of beauty?

When I look over at Merriman, he's telling Driscoll

That the President doesn't know what he's doing

With China. "China," I say out loud but softly.

I go back to the window. It's started snowing.

by Baron Wormser

Crispy Mustard Chicken

Serves 2

Ingredients:

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

3 Tbsp Dijon mustard

2 Tbsp minced shallots

1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves

1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper

1/4 tsp crushed red-pepper flakes

1 tsp coarse salt

2 Tbsp melted butter

1 1/2 tsp vegetable oil

3/4 cup Panko (japanese bread crumbs)

1/2 cup bread crumbs

Directions:

1. Heat broiler. Place chicken breasts on a baking sheet under the broiler. Cook 5 minutes, then flip the chicken using tongs. Broil 3 more minutes.

2. In a small bowl, combine the mustard, shallots, thyme, peppers, and salt. Stir in the butter and oil until well combined.

3. Place the bread crumbs in a shallow dish. Put the chicken breasts in the mustard mixture and coat. Then roll the chicken breasts in the bread crumbs until they are completely coated. Pat on the excess crumbs that may fall off the breasts to insure a thick coat.

4. Place coated chicken breasts on a baking sheet, reduce oven heat to 450, and return to the oven. Cook until evenly browned, about 10 minutes - until the juices run clear when you pierce the breasts with a knife. You may have to tent the breasts with foil if they begin to brown too quickly. Remove from the oven and enjoy!

Recipe by Cristina Paul

Blah-Blah-Blahg: Food For Nought

During the Jacobean Era, mattresses were secured to bed frames by ropes. Pulling on the ropes made for a firmer mattress. Hence the phrase: "Goodnight, sleep tight."