Iberico Ham

I recently had the pleasure of tasting Iberico Ham. If you're a big foodie then you've heard of this stuff. It's from Spain, hard to find & exorbitantly expensive. I'm talking $90+ per lb! That's 3-4 X the price of high end Italian prosciutto! Plus, that's the low end version...the type I tried was the high end...$150.00 per lb for ham! Well it's not quite just ham. As a matter of fact it has its own unique texture & taste. Must be the acorns they feed these black footed pigs... The good thing is can buy less the 1/4 lb at Despana & they slice it ultra thin.

Eat it right off the plate (or wax paper as we did) with nothing on it...it needs absolutely nothing. It is incredibly flavorful & buttery. I would highly recommend trying it. For the record...I'm not a Kobe Beef fan...I think it's totally & grossly over-priced & prefer a good Fillet or Sirloin. This stuff on the other hand is worth trying & like nothing you've ever tasted before.

Shark Attack on Long Beach!!!/Shark Week

OK...it wasn't exactly a shark attack, it was a shark sighting on the beach yesterday & the life guards did get everyone out of the water & closed off the area for an hour. What really surprised me was how calmly everyone got out of the water when the Lifeguard yelled "SHARK...get out of the water!!!" My theory is this...neither I or anyone else saw a dorsal fin skimming through the water. I'm fairly sure if people did they would have freaked out & panicked...but since they didn't they just listened to the Lifeguard. Which when you think of it is kinda odd...I mean if you can't see the shark but the lifeguards spotted one isn't that scarier then actually seeing where it is???

Which ties in with it's SHARK WEEK on the Discovery Channel...in HD! I love Shark Week. If you love the ocean watch shark week...it's brutal..but fascinating. Plus...when you understand the ocean & what's in it...if a Lifeguard tells you to get out of the water...for any reason you will listen without question.

Furthermore...kudo's to the Lifeguards working at Long Beach. Those guys & girls do a great job. Aside from the shark the water was rough with a strong pull & some rips. They had areas flagged for where to swim & where not, they got in the water & did a great job of crowd control to make sure no one got pulled out. They almost had to pull a guy in. Maybe the IDIOT listening to his ipod at Rockaway Beach the DAY AFTER SOMEONE DROWNED can sit with these professionals & see how it done.

SpicyGreenTurkeyDeluxe sandwich/Mint CCCIC sandwich

Just created a new variation on the basic Turkey & cheese sandwich & thought I would share it with you...

Ciabatta Bread... my personal favorite for most sandwiches
Turkey - I went Hickory smoked
Cheese - Cheddar
Heirloom tomatoes - I used a green zebra
Aioli - garlic mayonnaise
pickles - stumbled unto Habanero Dill pickles at a small green-market
Maldon Sea Salt & ground pepper

Spread the aioli on both sides of the bread, layer first the tomatoes & sprinkle w/salt & pepper, followed by the turkey, then the cheddar, topped with the habanero pickles....freaking awesome!

Mint Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice cream sandwich...

This is quite simply all about the ingredients...simply take mint ice cream (I use Adirondack Whiteface Mint Chip) & sandwich it between mint chocolate chip cookies (I use Dean & Deluca's) For a summer treat...this is about as yummy & refreshing as it gets...without a pool & alcohol that is...

Bangkok Haunts

Sorry to break your hearts but NO this is not a guide to haunted brothels on Patpong Road in Bangkok... it's a recommendation for the fiction of John Burdett. He writes murder mystery thrillers set in Bangkok, Thailand & does an amazing job of wrapping various elements of Thai culture into them. The murders are always gruesome(cobra's, Bobett's, snuff) & everything from Buddhism, prostitution, the drug trade, Jade trade, Katoeys, farang, corrupt cops, corrupt military, FBI, CIA, terrorism & the supernatural via an Eastern perspective are weaved into these tales.

What make these stories so enjoyable is that they are told from an eastern perspective....so their views on prostitution, ghosts, etc... are quite different the our Western concepts...

The protagonist Sonchai Jitpleecheep is possibly the only non-corrupt cop in Bangkok. He is half Thai-half farang(Farang (Thai: ฝรั่ง) is the generic Thai word for a foreigner of European ancestry). His father is a GI he never met while his Mother was a high-end prostitute who now runs a brothel on Soi Cowboy where he works part-time. He's connected to his corrupt police chief Vikrom & his partner Lek is a katoey. His pregnant wife, an ex-prostitute is carrying he believes the reincarnated soul of his best friend...

All 3 books in the series have been great & his latest is the best....read them all....

HealthCare Reform

I'll make this real easy for you...instead of going into what is being addressed, what is NOT being addressed (ie...tort reform) & what "mis-information" (read lies) are being presented...simply answer the following question...

I Would Like My HealthCare Administered by the DMV.... YES or NO...

Now that you have answered the above question...(regardless of your current political affiliation & feelings on the current administration) you have a clearer understanding of how you really feel about the proposed HealthCare reforms...feel free to thank me later...

Love Stinks...

Yeah...yeah...but not like you think. For I have witnessed true love recently. We all have our views/thoughts/fantasy's over what love is...I have heard friends say that they thought they knew what true love was when they met their wives...but found an even deeper love the first time they saw their first and then subsequent children...(names are not mentioned to save them from the wraith of their loving wives...who probably feel the same) but recently I saw it taken a step further... On South Padre Island with the temperature in the late 90's (before 9am) and the heat sapping our energy like a solar vampire my friend Terry's daughter wanted out of her carriage and it was because she made poop-a-doodles in her diapers...well Terry picked up Jazzy and put her and her steaming diaper full of shit on his shoulders and walked her back to the condo...now that my friends is "true love" and it doesn't smell like roses, candy or perfume...it smells like...