The Radio Said It

90% humidity at 6 in the morning? That's amazing. Gross and amazing.

In Memory, Hutchie

Two Wolves

Today my Buddhist podcast ended with a Native American story that I was able to find several places on the Internet, mostly credited as a Cherokee story, although it was occasionally mentioned as Eskimo and once as a George Bernard Shaw quote. The simplest version of it is this:

A Native American grandfather was talking to his grandson about how he felt about a tragedy. He said:
- I feel as if I have two wolves fighting in my heart. One wolf is the vengeful, angry, violent one. The other wolf is the loving, compassionate one.
The grandson asked him:
- Which wolf will win the fight in your heart?
- The one I feed, answered the grandfather.

Chicago Noises

I woke myself up at 4 this morning because of a bad dream. I managed to talk the dream into having a different outcome than it originally did, but it still took me a while to go back to sleep. As I was lying there trying to sleep I heard a group of people on the street yelling/singing at the top of their lungs the "Part of Your World" song from the Little Mermaid. It's always amazing to me how loud people are willing to be in a residential area at that time of night. After finishing that song they moved into other songs from musicals, but I had a harder time recognizing them. Eventually they dispersed, and I fell asleep and had a better dream. Another dream with a parade. This one had stilts, people on stilts, and also horses on stilts drawing carriages way up in the air.

Hitchhiker's on tv

We've been watching the episodes of the original Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy tv show. The production quality is fairly low, and some of the alien voices are a little difficult to understand. But in a lot of ways it reminds me of when I used to watch Dr. Who on tv, the production quality is about the same as that.

I really like the way they've handled doing the Guide itself. There are animations and text that come on the screen when the Guide is talking. The voice and the pictures and the words all sort of compete for your attention, but it stays very clever and amusing. The humor of the books is still present, and they've managed to include some visual gags that couldn't really happen in a book. Overall I'm very glad to get a chance to watch it, although it's not something I think I'd feel a need to own and watch again.

End of an Era

On Friday I realized that I've been wearing the same pair of Dansko sandals for the last four summers, every day. If anyone else told me they'd been wearing the same pair of shoes every day for the last four years, I'd yell at them. I decided my birthday present to myself would be a brand new pair of Dansko sandals, which would be much better for my feet and my back than what I'm wearing. On Saturday I found a pair at Marshalls that were more than 1/2 off the price of a normal pair. They're not exactly the same style, but they're still in black, and incredibly comfortable. I didn't want to set them down again once I'd found them.

So today I had to face the task of throwing away what have been my favorite shoes for the last four years. I put it off all weekend because I felt sad about it, but when I picked them up today I noticed that the foot bed is sort of peeling up. From a distance they look pretty good, but up close or wearing them you certainly notice their age. So goodbye favorite shoes, and on to the new sandals. Hopefully these ones won't develop a squeak too...

p.s. if you do check out the Dansko site, be sure to notice their "may we also suggest" icons at the bottom of the screen. Usually these are for other items to purchase similar to what you're looking for, but they seem to be making lifestyle suggestions.

Wall-E

Yesterday we took a trip up to Evanston. It only took about an hour to get there on the train. We first went to a great Indian restaurant called Mt. Everest, which had a buffet. Restaurants with a buffet are really the best way to eat Indian food, because you get to have a little bit of a lot of different things and all the different flavors work together so well. I had papadum, daal, palak paneer, cabbage and peas, veggie pakora. Also a salty lassi, and gulab jamin and rice pudding for dessert. Wonderful.

Then we went to see Wall-E, which was very good. It is a bit dark and sad for the future, but also had some hope in it for humanity's sense of responsibility toward the planet. It was also very funny, I especially enjoyed the robots in the sort of psych ward, and also the little cleaning robot "Mo."

I'm Back! And Ready to Eat...

What would you have to eat for your first day of real food after 10 days of not so much food? How about a bar sandwich: grilled cheese with pesto, tomato, roasted garlic, and fries. The fries came on the side, but I of course put them on the sandwich. I'd say that's pretty back to normal. And I feel no different (aside from having a lot more energy) than when I wasn't eating these things. Hooray!

The biggest difference was a sort of general drunken feeling, most likely being drunk on blood sugar. That's a nice change too.

With a Little Help From My Friends

Well, today's the last day of being an eating martyr, I finally get to share meals with my friends again starting tomorrow. I have noticed no change in my symptoms, either better or worse, which to me says that food is probably not the issue.

Here is the list of items I've been allowed to eat for the last 10 days: almond milk, edamame, quinoa, sweet potato, asparagus, cauliflower, string beans, spinach, tomatoes, zucchini, bananas, grapefruit, blueberries, oranges, pistachios, whey protein, cayenne, honey, sesame, maple, turmeric, cumin, and oregano. Also tuna, but I only had it two days.

What you'll notice from this list is the striking question: Where's the carbs? There's also a distinct lack of calories. Which is great and all, if you're trying to lose weight. That wasn't one of my goals with this little project, call it an unintended side effect.

I don't know how I would have gotten through this week without the insight and generousity of my friends. Mary sailed right by my "but, what about olive oil? cheese? vinegar?" conundrum, and emailed me a wonderful list of options. She instantly transformed my options by pointing out the possibilities of orange and grapefruit juice and zest to add an acid flavor to foods. She also had clever options like making pretend pasta out of julienned zucchini, making a tahini sauce for sweet potatoes, and a recipe for a delicious edamame salad.

As mentioned, ehs made me delicious popsicles using only items from the list (bananas, almond milk, and maple syrup) that have made every hot day (every day) more bearable.

And after seeing Cirque, Ian and Maria volunteered to come get take-out at our house so that I could eat in but we could still hang out.

I have learned that I love roasted cauliflower, that watered-down grapefruit juice is a little bit like lemonade, and that you can always make substitutions with what you have on hand (or are allowed to eat). I have finally put to rest my fears of having a food intolerance. Starting tomorrow it'll once again be everything in moderation. Maybe I'll get to stop dreaming about donuts...

Totoro Forest Project

Once again, Josh is on top of his links and information. This website is the home of the Totoro Forest Project. "Tonari no Totoro," or "My Neighbor Totoro," is a wonderful Japanese children's film by Hayao Miyazaki about the spirit of the forest helping some young girls find comfort in their new home. It's one of my favorite movies ever, I even have a Totoro and two Catbuses.

Now the forest where Miyazaki got the inspiration for Totoro is falling under the threat of urban development, and artists from around the world (including Studio Ghibli and Pixar Studios) have gotten together to create an amazing auction and exhibit. There's no way I'll be able to bid on these pieces, but they're amazing to see.

Donuts: Recommended

Last night we saw Superior Donuts at Steppenwolf. It's written by Tracy Letts, who recently won a Pulitzer and a Tony for his amazing show August: Osage County. I am impressed that this script feels as strong as that one. In it's funniest moments, I think it's funnier. Superior Donuts is set now in Chicago. It's filled with Chicago references, many were so current we got them, and many that only the older sections of the audience chuckled for. It felt like a hometown audience, we laughed at all the right places, and gasped together just where we were supposed to. The acting was superb and the story was engaging and moving.

And speaking of the acting, reading the program we realized that the main character was going to be played by Michael McKean. If you're like me and struggle with names, he's a staple in Christopher Guest movies, starting with playing the lead singer in This Is Spinal Tap. As ehs pointed out, some people may be more familiar with the 144 episodes of Lavernne and Shirley he was in. Either way, it was great to see him perform in person. The set is tiny, pushed right to the front of the stage. All the action is up close. You really catch the smaller moments this way, and in a lot of ways those are what this play is all about. The small choices that look big, and the power of place and memory.

If you're in Chicago, I would recommend trying to catch this production before it closes on August 24.

And last night, instead of dreaming about any of the play's themes or plotlines, I dreamt I made donuts. Boy were they delicious!

Cirque, 2

After the Cirque show was over, we started discussing our feelings about the show on the walk to the bus. It turned out that everyone else had spent at least a little time evaluating the performers for their date-ability. The choices were interesting, from the completely sequined and sparkly juggler, to the juggler's assistant who had no real demonstrated talents except dancing around, to the contortionists (all three).

But on a mental 5-minute date, it was discovered that at least the juggler wasn't a very good date. He turned out to only want to talk about himself.

I didn't see any of the performers that way. I think if I went on a date with any of them, I'd be tempted to spend the whole time lecturing them on the damage they are doing to their bodies, or asking about their personal training habits.

Cirque

On Friday we saw a new Cirque du Soleil show, Kooza, here in Chicago. It was pretty amazing, but let me just tell you, the ability to touch your head to your bottom is a fast recipe for having arthritis by the age of 25, in my opinion. Wow.

I think that part of the reason Cirque has really thrived is that it has so many elements of what originally made circuses so capitvating to audiences. The performers make really difficult things look easy, but you're also always aware of the fact that they are often in very real danger. Sure, a lot of it is controlled, and maybe there's some staged falls to get your adrenaline going. But even a safety wire doesn't make you that much safer. The audience holds its breath with hoping, and cheers more wildly the more danger it perceives for the performers.

When the guy in the stilts came out to do a back flip, I wanted not to watch. That and other times I felt too worried for their safety to really enjoy myself. Other times it just looked like so much fun. There are so many varieties of flying involved in a circus.

The audience favorite was near the end of the show. A comparatively small man, with very toned arms came out. Everyone started whispering, "Look, he's a life guard." He was wearing a white robe and was followed by a chair up on a platform that looked like one you'd see on the beach. There were more chairs (of the regular height) following him. He took off his robe and stood in basically a loin cloth. He was a strong man, holding his own body weight on his arms with no wobbling, shaking, or apparent difficulty. He did sweat a lot though. When he reached the first chair, he reached down for more. He began stacking and climbing the chairs, stopping every so often to show us more scary and impressive balancing acts. I have no idea how many chairs he finally stacked, maybe 8 or 10. The whole tent was so quiet and tense. There was no magic or surprise, the suspense was present in every move he made.

First Birthday Present of the Year

Hooray!

Today after work I was sitting on the couch with ehs. I'm doing well with the eating thing, but I do feel tired a little more than usual. He said that he had an early birthday present for me. Of course, then I had to try to find it right away. I looked in the closet downstairs, all the kitchen cabinets, and the fridge. I thought I'd looked everywhere, but he said there was still a place. I couldn't imagine what could be a present in the freezer, especially since I'm not eating a whole lot right now (sad about no ice cream).

He got me popsicle forms!! When I was a kid my mom would make popsicles out of juice, and as an adult I find popsicles the best and fastest way to cool down when I'm overheated. I've wanted to get my own popsicle forms for a while now, but I haven't sat down and looked for them, and he bought them today.

Even better, he brought them home, washed them, and MADE ME POPSICLES! He made banana, almond milk, and maple syrup popsicles, all items that are on the list. He used Mark Bittman's recipe from The Minimalist (the video is pretty funny). What a wonderful birthday present, popsicles now and popsicles for the future.

And also, the popsicles he made are wonderful. I would make them again, even when I can eat more items!

How can you trust a veggie that looks like brains?

So I have put myself on a 10-day exclusion diet to look for food intolerances based on a blood test. Hence the cauliflower, since it's on the short list of things I can actually eat right now. I roasted it like Dan suggested (with sesame oil and salt). Then I found a recipe for "Manchurian Style Cauliflower" which calls for garlic, ketchup, and cayenne. I heated up half a can of tomatoes with some maple syrup and cayenne until it bubbled and started to caramelize, then tossed the cauliflower in. Not bad.

I really can't go to restaurants for this time, it's not a long list. But I am satisfying my curiosity as to whether or not food intolerance is creating my symptoms, and I'm learning a whole new level of creativity when it comes to cooking. Two days ago I made "chili" with sweet potatoes and edamame. It's an interesting challenge.

City Life

One of the fun things about living in a city is seeing crazy things on the street that it wouldn't even occur to me to make up.

Yesterday I saw a guy biking down the street. He was holding the handlebar with one hand, and his other arm was stretched to the side and holding a parrot. A giant green and blue pirate's buddy parrot. It was impressive.

Also yesterday I accidentally shut the monster cat in my closet for 2 1/2 hours when I was out of the house... Oops. He didn't seem mad at me when I figured out where he was, although he did exit the closet quite quickly. It's always the other cat that I worry about shutting in closets, I didn't even check to see where this one was when I left.

learning to use cauliflower

Does anyone have any great uses for cauliflower? In the interest of learning to appreciate more vegetables I bought some, but haven't yet felt overly inspired by it. I tend to avoid colorless veggies, so I'm not sure if I've ever cooked this one before.

The 4th

Blogging seemed a little easier when not much was going on. Of course, it was also hard to explain that the big news going on was that we were flying to New England to surprise my Dad in honor of his retirement. It's hard to blog about a surprise...

We had a good, but busy time over the 4th. The weathr was amazing, just wonderful. We were worried it was going to rain, but it didn't until we were back in Chicago. We wore ourselves out some, lugging books, setting up tents, playing badminton, playing boccee ball, hanging out in the sun. The 7am flight this morning was a little tough on me after all the excitement and the lack of sleep.

It was great to see both sides of my family, including the 6-month-old twins we last saw when they were about 7 hours old.

I wish I'd figured out how to blog more over the weekend, then doing a wrap-up wouldn't seem so overwhelming. It was fun.

Popsicle Weather

It's a typical humid, hot, sunny, cloudy, planning to storm, popsicle-requiring day here in Chicago.

Dubious Distinction

The radio says that starting today Chicago (Cook County) claims the honor of having the highest sales tax rates in the country: 10.25%