“Training is everything. The peach was once a bitter almond; cauliflower is nothing but Cabbage with a College Education.”
From my den window I can see a deep blue sky and branches from the tallest pine being tossed by the wind. Today is warmish at 40Λ but the wind is making it feel just a bit chillier. I have no plans for today. Peapod, my cleaning couple and Skip, my factotum, are all coming today. One panel of the fence has fallen so Skip needs to pick it up and try to reconnect it to the rest of the fence. Henry didn’t notice. Gracie would have jumped over the fallen fence and taken off. She was cunning. He is still a bit nervous.
Looking at some foods, I figure the first person to taste them was either foolish or brave or forced at the point of a weapon. The artichoke, for example, is ugly and almost looks lethal. One of those leaves might have done some damage yet some brave fool took the time to figure out how to eat the thing. I’m not an artichoke fan so if it had been me facing the artichoke, I wouldn’t have made the attempt: today, no artichokes. The same thing with lychees. I just wonder how many brave souls lost their lives trying to extend our palates.
One of the vegetables I really enjoyed when I was in Ghana was called the garden egg. It had the same shape as an egg and was only slightly bigger. I mostly had it in stews, and it was delicious. Come to find out, it is related to the eggplant, sort of a little sister, but it is white or yellow.
I used to feed my cat in Ghana tins of mackerels in tomato sauce. It was gross looking and smelled too fishy, but that was about as close as I could get to cat food, and he, my cat, loved it. My students were a bit taken aback that I would buy food for my cat. Their cats were not pets and mostly ate whatever was left over. When I brought my cat home, it took a while before he would eat cat food. I think he missed the tomato sauce.
Henry still jumps up and barks when a bell rings on TV. He howls at the sound of car doors closing. He barks at the UPS man but sticks his nose out the door when I open it to take the package. Sometimes I can’t find the reason for his barking. I have told him about the boy who cried wolf, but he doesn’t seem impressed.
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November 29, 2018 at 10:43 am
Hi Kat,
I figure the first person to taste odd vegetables was probably a woman. They were the gatherers so it was their job to find new foods and medicines.
And, if you pick the artichoke bud in its very early stage, it’s not as daunting. You can cook and eat it pretty much as is. I don’t know about lychees. Snails have been on the diet for 10,000 years at least. Personally, I like escargot but it’s probably mostly because of the butter and garlic. π
Good for Henry for being cautious. My dogs would’ve been over that fence and gone, too. Though they might have paused a bit when they noticed I wasn’t with them but that’s not a sure thing either.
There are slashes of blue in the sky up here. The wind is blowing so I’m pretty sure that temperature of 41ΒΊF probably feels quite a bit colder.
Enjoy the day.
November 29, 2018 at 3:49 pm
Hi Caryn,
I might add men figured if the food was dangerous better a woman taste it than a man.
I’d probably never buy an artichoke. The only one I’ve had was too much work. My sister makes an artichoke dip which is quite tasty.
I also like escargot but you’re right about the butter and garlic. Not many places around here have them on the menu. I think it was in England when I last had them.
I suspect that as Henry gets more and more comfortable he’d be less cautious. Gracie used to run away from me. She’d get close then run. I can open the front door and Henry sticks his nose out but stays put.
We had sun and blue skies the whole day, but it did feel cold, and now, in the late afternoon, it is even colder.
Have a great evening!
November 29, 2018 at 3:26 pm
A good bark is exactly why Henry is paid the big bucks and frankly there is nothing quite like airing it out every now and again
The skies are dark, there are flurries in the air and today is Christmas Decoration Eve.
November 29, 2018 at 3:53 pm
My Dear Hedley,
Henry’s bark is so good he sometimes howls. Half the time there is no one there so I don’t know what triggered the barking. This morning he went crazy barking so I checked. It was Peapod early. Henry is a great barker!
November 29, 2018 at 4:37 pm
Yet another sunny day with warm temperatures. Weβre looking for temperatures over the weekend in the upper 70s.
Many vegetables probably had to wait for the invention of tools before anyone tried to eat the innards. Youβre correct about the artichoke. Who would have thought that the good part was buired in the stem.
People eat all kind of different dishes around the world. The Pacific Islanders eat breadfruit in the form of poi. Some cultures eat fried insects. Did the first person to discover the milk and flush of the coconut discover them after the fruit actually hit them on the head after falling from palm tree. π
While on vacation in the Cancun Mexico several years ago, the breakfast buffet at the resort offered Tamales wrapped in banana leaves. While filling my plate a British guest asked me what I was taking. I replied Tamales and that they were good. He took one and sat down at a table nearby and started cutting the banana leaf with a knife and fork with great difficulty. After I let him struggle for a few minutes, I walked over and showed him how to unwrap the Tamale from the banana leaf. π
Al least Henry has fiqured out that a doorbell means barking. Too bad he only relates that to TV. π
November 29, 2018 at 5:20 pm
Bob,
Chillier than the temperature today because of the wind. There was a lot of sun but it didn’t do much.
I suppose banging a vegetable against a rock or using a rock as a tool opened most vegetables. I wonder how many grew wild way back when.
Locust are considered a delicacy in parts of Africa. I am not a fan of poi. Ghana has a similar dish, kenkey, which I didn’t like either. Because of all the traveling I’ve done, I’ve eaten some interesting and even strange food in other countries. I often don’t ask because I’d rather taste first as sometimes knowing what it is makes me say no thanks.
He may not have known how to eat the tamale but I give him credit for being willing to try it.
Henry also barks at knocks on the door and the real doorbell. He barks at hearing people outside or car doors shutting. He alerts me to UPS. Henry is an excellent watcher.
November 29, 2018 at 7:35 pm
Why watching TV can be educational. The final Jeopardy question tonight had to do with start of Advent being the beginning of the liturgy year and which saint was involved. It was St. Andrew. π
November 29, 2018 at 8:10 pm
I would always agree with TV being educational. Look at all the stations dedicated art, literature and so much more. Then there’s always syfy, Disney and all those Hallmark stations.
November 30, 2018 at 7:48 am
Albin and Henry is very much alike in many ways when it comes to barking π π
I guess hunger drove many people to try things they normally wouldn’t think of eating, perhaps some slightly insane people did too π π There they were starving and suddenly they found them selves eating what we now think is luxury food π π
Mackerel in tomato sauce is delicious and I can fully understand why that cat took some time to learn how to eat cat food π π
I think I’ll open up a jar with preserved lychees now, they are truly delicious π
Have a great day!
Christer.