GOOD THINGS TO STICK IN YOUR MOUTH

A commenter underneath an essay a few years ago remarked angrily that there was nothing here anymore that catered to his particular political and spiritual interests, all I posted about was good things to stick in my mouth (food, beverages, and pipe tobaccos). Quite true. Largely that was due to the nasty things people in his group said about me. As well as the fact that many people with whom I once shared the same ideas seemed to have lost their minds and were no longer as open as they once had been.
There had been an attempt to dox me, whereupon I scrubbed that FB page of everything, just like I did elsewhere when someone there said something impossibly vile.
I have become a sensitive man. As well as sensible.
And not nearly as social as before.

By the way: If you remove the FB post, all the comments -- and there were very many, some of which were vicious -- disappear. Including the dox attempt. It's something to keep in mind.


AND NOW FOR SOMETHING DIFFERENT!

A meeting with the nutritionist at the hospital three years ago concluded with an agreement that dietary change would start with baby steps: fewer cookies. I had mentioned to her that often there were cookies in the teevee room where my and my apartment mate's computers were. This was after I had detailed all the wonderful things to eat within two or three blocks of her office, right before her lunch time. She may have been weak and green afterwards. Roast duck, roast pork, baked porkchops on a bed of spaghetti covered in melted cheese, steamed pork patty with salt fish, mui choi kau yiuk, black bean spare ribs, preserved egg in a flaky pastry crust, steamed barbecue pork buns, lo po bing, egg tarts, cake ....

[Roast duck: 火鴨 ('fo ngaap'). Roast pork: 燒肉 ('siu yiuk'). Baked porkchops spaghetti: 焗豬扒意粉 ('guk chü baa yi fan'). Steamed pork patty with salt fish: (鹹魚蒸肉餅 'haam yü jing yiuk beng'). Mui choi kau yiuk: 梅菜扣肉. Black bean spare ribs: 豉汁蒸排骨 ('si jap jing paai gwat'). Preserved egg in a flaky crust: 鹹蛋酥 ('haam daan sou'). Steamed barbecue pork buns: 蒸叉燒飽 ('jing chaa siu baau'). Lo po beng: 老婆餅. Egg tarts: 蛋撻 ('daan taat'). Cake: 蛋糕 ('daan gou').]

My test results came back recently. My blood pressure is back to normal, cholesterol level is very good. So naturally I am thinking of something nice to eat which would be celebratory.
As well as spectacularly ill-advised.

The Hokkien Oyster Omelette (蚵仔煎). Which, sadly, cannot be had in Chinatown, because it's not part of the Cantonese culinary world. They don't do that. But they should.
It's chockfull of yummy cholesterol.

It's something I know how to make, and I'm a pretty good cook. But I don't want to go to the trouble, I'd rather someone else did. An oyster omelette with rice, hot sauce or sambal, and strong milk tea would be lovely for lunch, or any of the meals throughout the day (breakfast, lunch, dinner, midnight eaties).

The social environments in which it can mostly be found outside of Fujian and Taiwan are Manila, Jakarta, Surabaya, Medan, Semarang, Singapore, and Penang. These are all places where I am presently not, and the climate in those cities no longer suits me. I find it impossible to move when the temperature is in the nineties.

I think my doctor is pleased that I won't go there.
As well as the nutritionist I saw once.

South East Asia is stuffed with bad things to eat.
Tempting, yummilicious bad things.
Mmmmmmmmm.



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