I had forgotton how much of a great film Annie Hall is. I remember may years ago after a tumultious break up with a gilrfriend I had of a few years, one of my best friends came over to my apartment with Chinese takeout, a case of beer and a rented copy Annie Hall on videotape. It was good medicine. I like these quotes, like (Annie Hall ) "Alvy, you're incapable of enjoying life, you know that? I mean you're like New York City. You're just this person. You're like this island unto yourself."
(Alvy Singer) "I can't enjoy anything unless everybody is. If one guy is starving someplace, that puts a crimp in my evening." I truely enjoyed re-watching it again. Here's the entire screenplay. The ending voice-over of Alvy, "After that it got pretty late. And we both hadda go, but it was great seeing Annie again, right? I realized what a terrific person she was and-and how much fun it was just knowing her and I-I thought of that old joke, you know, this- this-this guy goes to a psychiatrist and says, "Doc, uh, my brother's crazy. He thinks he's a chicken." And, uh, the doctor says, "Well, why don't you turn him in?" And the guy says, "I would, but I need the eggs." Well, I guess that's pretty much how how I feet about relationships. You know, they're totally irrational and crazy and absurd and ... but, uh, I guess we keep goin' through it because, uh, most of us need the eggs."

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Mowed the lawn today. It's a fun chore. And good excersize especially using a push mower - even if it is auto driven. It's also an odd art form. Not that I made crop circles in the lawn, but it's like giving the grass a haircut. one week it's diagonal, the next it's curvy or straight. Something strangely gratifying when you finish. Although I dread doing it in the middle of summer when it's like 100 degrees and 60% humidity. But the smell of a freshly cut lawn is always memorable...like the smell of rain about to come. The smell of rain on hot asphalt.

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(setting up a new blog, don't change the channel....)

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Started a semi-new blog as another side project - a collaborative thingy with a few friends - writing n such. Humor will be key, just fair warning - there will be some Rated R material. I just need to figure out how create user accounts with user passwords for my fellow contributors (to be able to deligate contributions, editing, et al). And time to make a new template and such. This may be a weekly blog, not a daily blog. Still in the process of development.

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I was reminiscing with my Dad tonight about how when I was a young kid, while on a road trip with my parents, my brothers and I totally cracked up about a radio skit my dad had recited from his own childhood. Some sort of Buster Brown commercial or something; "Plunk your magic twanger, Froggy!!" followed by a really comical guitar twang sound. As a kid..just hearing my dad go "boooiiiinnnggggggg!!!!" cracked us up. We'd say, "do it again, dad!" After a single Google search, I found a boatload of info on this, including the actual Plunk your magic twanger, Froggy!!" sound and website devoted to the subject, in addition to pictures of the actual hand made instrument with a (CBS logo) used to make that funny Boooiiinnnggg! sound. He was laughing so hard. I think I made my Father's day.

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It poured rain today - cats, dogs, elephants and sloths. Didn't stop. No latitude to take a long bike ride after work. I decided against my better Atkin's/Carb-free-Miami-Diet Meledy a-go-go dietary wardrobe malfunction, if I cannot bike, I'd better cook.

So, I shook out the Spring rain off the umbrella and put on my apron and the new Limp Bizkit CD (or was it Puddle of Mudd?)

Nothing comes fresher than fresh fish (see yesterday's blog), I present without further adu:

Tilapia braised com ginger, Scallions com um sauce de Chardonnay do cogumelo de Shitake
(Braised Tilapia with Ginger, Scallions with a Shitake Mushroom Chardonnay sauce)

2.5lb-3lb Tilapia (head off, cleaned or 2.5lb with no bone)
3tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp rice wine vinegar
1.5tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp honey
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp sesame oil
5 large cloves fresh garlic
1/4-1/2 cup thinly sliced fresh ginger
4 medium scallions, sliced diagonally thin
1/4 cup fresh cilantro or Italian Parsley, chopped
6 medium freeze dried shitake mushrooms, rehydrated & sliced thin (see below)
1/2 cup Chardonnay
1/2 cup chicken broth
salt and cracked pepper to taste

Before you begin, you must merenade the fish first, and rehydrate the shitake mushrooms:

Merenade for Tilapia: In a large mixing bowl, combine soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, honey and sesame oil. Wisk so that honey is well mixed in. Clean Tilapia, pat dry and put in merenade for 10 minutes on each side.

To rehydrate shitake mushrooms, combine 1/2 of warm chicken broth , and 1/2 of Chardonnay and all 6 shitake mushrooms in a small bowl to soak for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, slice up shitake mushrooms and save the Chardonnay-broth mixture for later.

In a large flat saucepan (with lid), add 2tbsp olive oil, heat on high and saute 1/2 of the chopped garlic and scallions for one minute. Turn heat down to medium and slowly lay the Tilapia into the pan on an angle (to avoid any hot splatter) and quickly move it around the pan to partially brown for 1 minute on each side. Lay the ginger slices on the bottom of the pan and lay the fish on top and pour the rest of the merenade over the top of the fish. Toss the rest of the garlic, scallions, cilantro/parsley, shitake mushrooms and Chardonnay/broth mixture into pan and cover. Let braise for 4 minutes or until Tilapia is flakey and no longer pink.

To Plate: Serve on a wide plate and dish with fresh sprigs of cilantro and lemon wedges. Drizzle the sauce over whole fish. Serve similar dry Chardonnay. Nice complementary dishes: Spicey Cold Sesame Noodles and Garlic Infused Spinach with Baby Bok Choy with Arrugulla.

Bon Apetit!

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I decided to add a silly Feedback/Comments form to my blog. Oh what the heck...more stuff to play with. Be careful what you enter, I may not be able to delete the entries. Today was Easter. Raining. No will to bike in rain. Ran a bunch of errands instead - not much open - but got most done. Mundane errands, except the asian market that I go to. I want to get a few items for the next week or two. They have the freshest (and most exotic) produce, groceries, and seafood. Today I got a whole Tilapia. Talk about fresh. I pointed to it in the tank. The elderly asian fishmonger behind the seafood counter fished him out of the huge tank with a net, the thing was flopping around while he motioned to me if this one was big enough. I said yes....he placed into a clear bag, put it on the scale.....weighed it.....then gestured to a sign that showed pictures as to how it should be cleaned/cut/gutted/fileted, etc. I held up four fingers (for #4, head off, split & cleaned). He handed the bag to one of his colleagues who did something to it behind the counter...I mean kill it...and then in a minute..I had the fish in a bag, labled for checkout. Gotta love that.

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