In the spirit of my thoughts about meat, yesterday, and inspired by my success with some leftovers last week, I decided to get creative in my kitchen area. In a couple tablespoons of olive oil, I fried a chopped-up small onion, a generous scoop of minced garlic (which you can buy in tubs from convenience stores in Korea), some sesame seeds, some roasted salted peanuts, and half of a an apple, finely chopped. I added a pinch of red pepper and a tablespoon of curry powder. When things were browned, I added the remains of my cooked red beans (about 2 cups, which had been cooked with red pepper, soy sauce, etc, a few weeks back). I added a cup of cooked rice, and voila, apple-onion-bean-rice-curry-stuff. Totally delicious. Very nutritious. And completely vegan.
The attitude barometer, episode 5:
* Number of times I've opened my resignation letter and edited it: 4
* Barrier-surpassing moments of Korean-language usage (outside of work only): 3
* Spirit-destroying moments of Korean-language communication breakdown (outside of work only): 1
* Number of students that have said something to the effect of "teacher, you're so funny" while fighting off an apoplectic fit of giggles: 1
* Number of times I've told someone that I am "much happier than when I was in L.A.": 1
* Number of times I really meant it (as opposed to the "fake it till I make it" approach I'm fond of): 0
* Days I was late to work this week: 0
* Total number of minutes I was late, minus total number of minutes I showed up early: 0 (plus, I worked Saturday, again, for a few hours)
soundtrack:
Minnesota Public Radio ("the current" streaming)
Silvio Rodriguez
The Go Team
Aly & AJ
Proyecto Uno (Nuyorican rap / hip hop)
Big Bang (k-pop)
The Cure
Kray Van Kirk (really!)
Gordon Lightfoot