IT'S NOT THE COLD, IT'S THE HUMIDITY!

The insane snow flurries did not come. Instead, it rained from mid afternoon till late in the evening, and the bookseller felt under the weather (!) and begged off. This is the season for that. The weather all across the country is abysmal, in some places inhuman.
Apparently Ted Cruz has been sighted in Cancun.

We can all probably agree that inclement weather should only happen on my work days, after I've gotten there. We'd all be a lot happier if that were the case. It's a smoking environment. My apartment largely isn't. Neither are the chachantengs and bakeries where I like to hang out on my days off.


When I went out briefly at twilight, with a pipe in my mouth, it was still raining fairly heavily. One must go out everyday for a bit of exercise. It changes the body chemistry and improves the mood, benefits the circulation and digestion, and staves off cabin fever and paranoia. Just look around you; those folks in the Midwest and the Eastern Seaboard are all crazy, torpid, and constipated.

That probably accounts for all the weird things they do.

Caffeinated beverages are also good for circulation, digestion, and the chemical state of the body. It's a question of balance, especially regarding that last; just think about all the people who are zombie werewolves until they've had their morning cuppa. Everybody should start the day with a hot beverage followed by a walk with a pipe. The world would be a much better place if they did. Ted Cruz might become human again too.




LAGNIAPPE

There was a discussion of dishes that require dried oysters on a FB group yesterday. Which reminded me of steamed eggs (蒸水蛋 'jing suei daan'), versions of which are available in many restaurants that cater to a mostly Canto clientele.
I like to do it with dried oysters.

蠔豉蒸水蛋
STEAMED EGG WITH DRIED OYSTERS
['hou si jing suei daan']

Three large eggs.
One and a quarter cup of lukewarm water, or slightly more.
One dozen dried oysters, soaked 2 hours, drained, cut in half.
Two rashers bacon, chopped and slightly crisped.
Large pinch ground white pepper.
Pinch sugar.
A cautious drizzle of sesame oil.
Plenty of minced scallion for garnish.

Whisk the egg and water till smoothly blended. Incorporate the bacon and dried oysters, as well as the pinches of pepper and sugar. Pour it into a broad pyrex pie dish and steam it for ten minutes. Garnish with the scallion and a drizzle of sesame oil.



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