Hot Stuff

There are some questions in life that people would do well to answer. Well the question that I'm setting out to answer today is "can sushi be eaten hot?"
Well, I'm about to find out - I'll get back to you with the results shortly.

Well the results are in, and here's how Hot Sushi has fared...
NO
Sushi just isn't designed for the microwave - things tend to fall apart when heat is applied.
Oh yeah, and sushi is not designed for spinach.

On yer bike

If you believe what you read in the paper, then you'll know that environmentally speaking, our world is in pretty bad shape. And it seems that there's nothing to slow us down on this path. Everyone seems to be looking for that one big solution - the answer that will solve our problem and allow us to keep living our selfish thoughtless self-gratifying lives.

Here's my stone to solve 2 great epidemics plaguing modern-day Australian (and more generally, Western) society. We seem to have an 2 energy crises in our country. Firstly we are going through non-renewable energy sources at an alarming rate, that most likely will not be sustained. Secondly, we are a growing nation - not just in population, but also in girth. All this "stored energy" (fat) which is beginning to envelope more and more individuals, including many children, is becoming a health risk for many in our community.
My suggestion? Put everyone on exercise bikes that are hooked up to generators. This way we will not be using the precious stores of fossil fuels that are rapidly being depleted, but rather using the abundance of energy carried around by large minority of the population. It means that energy production will not have harmful byproducts like carbon dioxide or the toxic carbon monoxide, but rather harmless (if not more pungent) byproducts like body odour. It also means that these individuals would be getting much needed exercise and alleviating them from a plethora of medical conditions, easing the burden on the medical system.

While we're at it, let's make good use of the methane being generated by our landfills. Surely if we could harness the gas as our waste material breaks down, we could once again capitalise on the wasted energy potentially at our disposal. And methane would be a much better alternative from a chemical point of view. Because it has a carbon chain of 1, methane is the most efficient burning fuel, ensuring a more complete combustion which means byproducts consisting almost entirely of carbon dioxide and water.

Stairway to injury

Well it appears that my gross unco-ordination and clutziness is manifesting itself once again. After the near full-recovery of my fingers from last weekend (despite lotsa guitaring this weekend) I've managed to turn my right big-toe a deep purple colour. I like to mention that I was helping my sister move and that I blackened my toe all in the same sentence, but unfortunately those two incidents are unrelated. My toe is the result of an unsuccessful attempt to run up the stairs. Accursed stairs!

Fatigued Fingers

My fingers have been copping a lot of abuse this weekend.

I spent about 5 hours on Saturday playing guitar and/or bass, which included a mad bass riff that required a fair bit of slapping and popping. It was awesome to play again, but the price was various fingers on both hands have worn thin in various areas, the net result being an unhappy Richie.

On Sunday I went bowling, and despite bowling an unassisted 110 (ie. no bumper bowling) I walked away with a thumb that felt sorer than I'd like.

In the evening, I was on keyboard for church and playing it like an American singer-songwriter who relocated to Melbourne. I've always liked having a guitarist playing, especially in the absence of a decent keyboardist, but that nite I think we managed to pull it off. Unfortunately, in the process I made it a lot easier to pull off part of my finger-nail. My inspiration spurred by Ben Folds means that I have the nasty habit of slamming my fingers straight into the keys - and physics dictates that something's gotta give, which in most cases, is my finger nail. It's at that uncomfortable stage where the bit which has snapped off is still holding on to a bit of flesh - so it's loose enough to move every time you tap your finger (and you can feel it pull everytime it moves) but still clinging on stubbornly so that it will take a half-decent tug to separate it from the rest of me.

With old battered hands like this, how am I meant to do my job? Well, I think this entry proves that although typing is a little awkward, it's still possible.
I need to start playing a low-impact instrument.

Not the Japanese Parliament

As of the beginning of thsi month (or there's abouts) I've been on a self-imposed diet (I wanna be fit enough to keep up with the kids at Cowra in January). Now I've never really been one to eat really heathily, but I think what really gets me is ths snacking (ok, the lack of exercise has it's place too).

So for my self-imposed diet, I've restricted myself to three meals a day. No snacks, no morning or afternoon tea, no supper. This is the only rule. You can eat whatever, as long as it is part of a meal.
For example, I got to the end of dinner one night, and I was still hungry, so I found a bag of corn chips. Normally I'd sit on the couch and eat them with salsa in front of the TV. But that night, it became part of my meal. So I ate it at the table. Or if you feel like eating ice-cream, go to the freezer, get it out and eat your dessert.
As long as what you are eating is part of a meal, then it's OK to eat.

As to how effective this will be? Well, I guess time will tell.

Not Happy, Jan

I just noticed this morning that someone backed into my car - probably a 4WD because the bonnet's been crumpled but the rest of the car is unscathed. And as tempting as it is to whinge and complain and have a good cry, I realise that I'm being a bit of an idiot. I mean, how many people have a car? How many people know how to drive a car? How many people can afford to get their car fixed?

While I might initially think "lots of people", it dawns on me that there are "lots more people" who aren't in that situation. I have it good. I have it very good. And this has been a timely reminder and warning - the more you have, the more you have to lose.
I guess that's something to remember for this life, especially with regards to the next.

World Egg Day

8th October, 2004
World Egg Day

Man, I feel like a...

A friend of mine was commenting on my DVD collection yesterday. He keenly spotted that I owned the Red Curtain trilogy (for those of you who aren't aware of what this is, it's Baz Luhrmann's three directorial triumphs: Strictly Ballroom, Romeo + Juliet, and Moulin Rouge).
A look of confusion and horror* covered my friend's face as he discovered that my collection extended to such cinematic masterpieces as The Sound of Music and Singing in the Rain. (I thought it prudent to not mention the My Fair Lady and West Side Story soundtracks in my CD collection - both of which were gifts).

Words were exchanged, questions were raised, and pride would have been hurt*, if it weren't for the fact that neither of us really cared about what we were talking about.
But the question has been put out there - are movies involving singing and/or dancing an indication of a lack of masculinity?

Can I dismiss my friend's words as the rantings of a misguided and sheltered man? Or can I justify my appreciation of the arts?
Now, in my time of desparation I ask you: guys, help me rebuild my shattered self-image and reaffirm my masculinity.

* some dramatic licence may have been taken in the recounting of these events

The Journey

When faced with a 7 hour break between church services, what does one normally do? Hang around after the first church service to talk to people. Fix a friend's computer just before the second service. And go for a 4.5 hour drive. OK, it was more like 4 hours if you take into account a couple of macca's breaks.
The hardest part has to be deciding where to go. For me, the decision was between seeing how far down the M5 I could get, and heading out to Blackheath to purchase some of the exquisite apple juice sold from Logan Brae Apple Orchard.
Despite my desire to explore the mysteries held by mysterious M5, and with the prospect of delicious apple juice, I decided on Blackheath, only to be greeted with a locked gate and a sign informing me that I had missed the 1-hour window of opportunity (11am-12pm) to make purchases that day. Seeing that I had left home at 12:30, I was quick to resent the lack of information about the orchard on the internet.

Yet despite all this, I still came back feeling more refreshed than I have in a long time, as I managed to achieve what I had set out to do. Enjoy time alone. Enjoying my time. Cruising down the highway with the wind rushing through my hair and sun shining on my face, the music disturbed only by the revving of my engine and the soulful strains of my own voice.
Despite the apparent fruitlessness of my journey, I realised that sometimes the advertising campaigns of airlines get it right - it's not where you're going, it's how you get there. It's the journey. This isn't true for all things, but it certainly was in this case.
I think I'll have to visit that orchard again.