10.09.06
Just Because
I havent been the model husband nor father as of late. Even so, I wanted to let my wife know that I love her vary much and am proud to have her and the two wonderful children that she has goven me.
I love you babe!
Archive for October, 2006
Living On The Edge
Some of you may know that I like knives and swords. A short while ago I got a nice sword. Not a stainless steel wall hanger but a hand forged, folded piece with over 2000 layers. I decided to take it in and get is sharpened. I took it to a place in town called The Knife Shop. It is one of those places in the malls here that sell cutlery of all kinds. They said they would do it as they send it out to a “professional”. A few days later I got it back and while at the store I took it part way out to see the edge. Things looked well at that point so I went home. The next day I took it out to polish it and I noticed that near the tip was a spot that was all scratched up. I could tell that this person used a grinder and it slipped and dug in to the blade a bit. I took the katana back in and showed it to the person behind the counter and she said that because she did not see it that she would not honor having it fixed.
She stated that it might not be able to be repaired by them as she was worried that it would do more damage if they tried. At that point, she turned to another customer and refused to further talk with me. Needless to say, I was mad. All it needs is a good polish and it will bring the blemishes out as they are nothing more than surface issues. They do not polish there so I would have to look on my own. Do you have any idea how much a traditional polish costs for a katana? They start at $800, that’s the least expensive I could find. I am so mad that it isn’t funny now. I have a sword that I paid over 250,000 yen for and now I have to shell out $800 US to get it back to its original condition.
That’s 10 times what I paid to get it sharpened. My advice, buy elsewhere and never let The Knife Shop touch your stuff.
Pasta Lavista
I have a problem. My problem is that I like pasta. I am not a pasta freak by any means but I do enjoy it fairly often. The down side is that I can’t eat the recommended serving size and so I completely blow my caloric intake. I mean, 2oz dry pasta is about 200 calories and I know I double or triple that and that is with no sauce on it. Don’t get me going on Alfredo to top it off. I think I have found my saving grace. I had been doing some reading on various flavors of pasta and was looking for an alternative to the “white” forms. I had been using whole wheat pasta because it is more nutritionally sound than the processed versions and yet I was still unhappy with the calories that were involved.
Sure the fiber and whatnot were great but it still limited my toppings and other items I could have for that meal so I wouldn’t kill my intake for the day. Now, you know I do not eat low carb, I just don’t eat processed carbs. Well, that is kind of a lie, lately I have been slipping a bit but I do limit them whenever I can. Anyway, back to my story. So, I happened to be reading about a Japanese noodle called Shirataki. They say it has no calories and about three grams of soluble fiber per serving. It is just glucomannan and water, 96% water and 4% glucomannan (the fiber). I decided to give them a try and headed off to the local Asian market to get some.
My first impressions, they are packed in water and are almost clear. More of a see through white. I opened the package and there was a slight odor to them, not overpowering though and it goes away after rinsing them in hot water for a bit. My first dish with them was a spicy Korean pork dish. I tried one as is and it had no taste of it’s own but in the dish it soaked up all of the flavor of the dish I was making. I suggest that you cook it in the same pan as the meat you are making to impart that flavor in to the noodles. Now, they aren’t perfect in that they are a bit chewy, I like to think of them as the calamari of the pasta family. You don’t notice after a bite or two anyway.
Since then I have also made spaghetti, cook it in your sauce for best results. Cooking in water makes them watery in my opinion. I have also made a Cajun dish with crawfish that was outstanding. If you can’t find it under Shirataki you should be able to locate it under Konyaku instead. I can eat a ton of this stuff but you need to remember that it is fiber and too much can cause trouble. A company called House Foods also makes it with tofu in it. There are all kinds of styles you can get from the angel hair or spaghetti sized noodle to fettuccine and lasagna. Even a brick that looks like a tofu brick and even some with seaweed in it. I have even seen rigatoni, penne and linguine. There is a shape for almost any pasta style you need.
You can store these for a year but don’t freeze them; they don’t take well to that. If you have blood sugar problems then this is the way for you to get your pasta and have no side effects. Dare I say, it’s almost perfect.
It’s Been A While
I can’t believe it has been almost six months since I have posted last. Many things have happened in this time. You see, I had always believed that if one isn’t happy then those around them will not be either. I hadn’t been happy and I did everything I could to try and make myself happy. The down side was that I didn’t care how it affected those around me. Well, life came along and kicked me in the seat of my pants. My whole world was turned upside down and I almost lost everything that was dear to me. I won’t go in to details but let’s just say that everything became one huge mess.
I now understand that, while my happiness is important, I need to be aware of how my decisions affect those around me as well. I am trying to change and yet I still find myself slipping back to my old ways at times. When I see it, I try and correct what I am doing but it is a hard path to follow. To those I have hurt along the way, I am sorry. I am trying to make things right so please have patience and give me some time.