The Paradox

Last month I was overwhelmed with house guests, conferences, work and fun. I had a lot to blog about but either lacked time or energy. This month life has returned to normal and I've got time and energy and not much to blog about.

Sure, I could toss up another picture of a donabe and yakisoba and you'd show polite (and perhaps genuine) interest. However, I must admit my own creative inspiration needs a little more to work with than, 'look! yakisoba! yummy!'

So, nostalgia!


The Blackirby B & B hosted the young Kitchen Gnome for another visit, and at the same time the Aunt from Santa Cruz came down for some fun.


We overcame a combination of laziness and weariness of the Los Angeles Freeway system and made it out to Pasadena and the Gamble House.


I'd been there before, years ago. I don't rave over everything Arts and Crafts, but I admire it. The houses in the neighborhood I grew up in were beautiful, turn of the century bungalows of a similar asthetic. Sometimes I miss them.

All the polished wood, the carvings, the carefully chosed furniture, made me want to run home, tear down the apartment building, and start over. For now, I'll settle on continuing to work on the parts of my apartment that I can change (more on that someday...).

(I advised Tech Support that this would be a fun place to take his Mom.)


After the Gamble House we went over to the Huntington and had lunch. We wandered through the exhibits, finding even a little more Green & Green for my Aunt's inexhaustible appetite. We then went out and sweltered with the plants (it was a hot day).


And then we were done. (Except for some traffic, but we're being nostalgic and have already forgotten about it).

And for just five dollars more...

As promised, the night before last, Tech Support came home to curry yakisoba.


I'd planned on saving some for lunch the next day, but wound up finishing it off instead.

Then, last night we did the Kurobuta Bulgogi.


That too was delicious. Both dishes were too easy to make, requiring only a little sauteing, piling everything up and putting the lid on top for a few minutes. I feel like I'm cheating, or part of an infomercial for obscure Japanese clay pots.

Entering My Experimental Phase

I've been reading Naoko's blog for at least two years. Who knows where she gets the energy to work hard, make dinner, and then blog about it almost every day, but I'm grateful. Over the past year or so she's started using and importing Japanese Donabe, clay pots. She makes it look good.

I wanted one.

I had a birthday.

Tech Support is a wonderful boyfriend.


And in return for being so, he gets a large share of smoked salmon and asparagus. Tonight he's getting curry yakisoba, and later this week he'll get kurobuta pork bulgogi.