CONTEMPLATING LIFE STYLE CHANGES?

Other than advising me that smoking is unhealthy and I should quit, my doctors have been diplomatic about does and don'ts. Probably because most of the people they deal with are old stubborn Cantonese folks, many from the country districts, who don't follow advice from younger people gladly, and have all kinds of bad habits. Smoking, minor amounts of alcohol, high fat foods like flaky egg tarts and streaky pork belly ( (五花肉 'ng-faa yiuk'), crustaceans, preserved meat, as well as salt consumption through the roof: soy sauce, oyster sauce, dried fish, dried shrimp and oysters, charsiu pork, and many more things which in their normal dosages are absolutely not good for the decrepit old fossils.

Especially dried fish, and shrimp paste.

[Paradise tastes like 鹹魚 ('haam yü'), 鹹蝦醬 ('haam haa jeung'), and 皮蛋 ('pei daan').
Plus 梅菜('mui choi'), 榨菜 ('jaa choi'), and 酸菜 ('suen choi').]


Well, except for the Cantonese characteristics, the country districts, and the age factor, that describes me to a 'T'.  I am not Chinese but Caucasian.
And not old at all, nor stubborn in the slightest.
Don't you dare laugh.

[American Dutch, trimmed goatee, liberal, pipe smoker.]


I am very fond of pastries and hot milk tea at bakeries in Chinatown, really enjoy steamed pork patty with dried fish and slivered ginger, consider dried oysters a lovely ingredient, and always have various condiments and salty or dessicated substances in my pantry.

And, at nearly sixty, I have a some health issues.

Which may require certain changes.



So, for the foreseeable future, I shall eat healthier and try to get more exercise. Lower my salt intake (dammit), cut back on sambal and hot sauces (urgh), and avoid alcohol.
But not the people and environments where alcohol is consumed. I am still far too social to cut that out. Drink hot water, diluted fruit juices, weak caffeinated beverages.

Increasing my vegetable consumption may be a problem, as green stuff almost demands oyster sauce etcetera.
And no, please don't give me suggestions about maximizing flavour with low salt heart healthy alternatives, as I am quite familiar with cookbooks and the internet; I can discover this brand new way of living without any know-it-all lecturing. I can read perfectly well.

I'm still going to smoke. Pipes and their smells are potent memory aides, and the appearance of old briar coupled with resinous leaves is a source of profound and thoughtful pleasure. Whereas the company of rabid non-smokers really makes me want to overturn tables and advocate mass indulgence in gluten, meat, and environmental destruction.



Oh, and as I am still sparkling, just bubbling over with of piss and vinegar, and quite unattached, I should probably also find an avid female reader half my age with whom to enjoy good food, or in whose charming presence I can occasionally step outside for a contemplative pipe smoke, but realistically that is considerably less likely than salads or other healthy habits.



Salads require anchovies.
Anchovies are fish.
Healthy!






==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================