kitchen Angst!

That’s right! This boy is going on a vacation!!! not from the “Angst” though, from my everyday boring life!! I’m going to Croatia!! NO SHIT!! I just have to get out of the U.S. for a while, not for good yet, just for a couple of weeks!

I will travelling to Zagreb, Croatia on May 21st and I can’t wait!! I will be there ( or in that area) for 16 days!!!! I want to write about my time abroad on line in many places, “Today” being only one !! I will also post my daily experience’s on Facebook, Myspace, Livejournal, Tweeter, etc… I will be using each to their fullest, and for their own reason!!

Today- ( Kitchen Angst ) will be mainly for the Culinary expereinces I have. If you wish to follow the other aspects of my trip I will have links to my other sites. You can read there as well!  I am going to try to post every day while I’m gone. If I don’t achieve this goal please forgive me in advance!! I will do my best!!!! I am on Vacation after all!!!!

I’m starting this now because I feel that your vacation begins with the booking of your tickets, and I bought mine last week!!! I don’t want to hear any greif about travailing abroad in this economy, My boyfriend ( in Croatia) sent me the money for the ticket!!

Plus I want to talk about getting ready for a major trip. I have a little understanding in this area… I have not only lived all over the United States, But I have moved to the U.S.V.I. and lived on St. John, but I have Travelled to Austria, And Europe! I may not see myself as a “well traveled” Man, but I have traveled enough to understand how to do it well!!

First word of advice is to buy your ticket early!!! Get the best deal you can by planning ahead. Figure out where you want to go and do the research,..What do you want to see, Why do you want to go?,  Festivals? scenery? actitives? History(knowledge)?  I’m not saying you have to buy your ticket months in advance… just decide when you want to go based on where you want to go when you want to be there!! ( don’t let your time off determine when you plan a trip, Plan your trip and then you will know when your time off will be!). I did just this in the fact I want to see Croatia in the summer first! I love snow but If I’m thinking of moving there ( which I am ) I want to see it at It’s best first!I know what snow looks like so I want to see the green side!!

I also want to go through the “packing” side of things, remember if your coming home you don’t have to take everything!!!! Pack only what you need!!!!!!

I will continue this soon!!

James

I’m finding it hard to see the silver lining these days! I have not lost my job, yet! I can almost pay all my monthly bills, and I am healthy!! However I am finding it difficult to be optimistic about the future. I know I’m not alone in this… I just wish We all could come together and find a solution to this mess we’re in!

I don’t want to be a “gloomy gus” but I feel I need to understand a problem, before I can fix it, I don’t understand this one!!!

Trillions of dollars are being spent and nothing is getting fixed!? If the mortgage thing is the issue than fix it! don’t spend the money on “roads to nowhere” or other things, give the money to those who are loosing there homes! If Our economy is based on capitalism, then let the chips fall! I live in California” one of the highest in unemployment” but I’m not whining about it. I am suffering yes, but I understand I have to cut back, and maybe even take on another job to make my rent. If the BIG THREE aren’t making cars people want to buy that’s not my problem.. I don’t see why I’m paying for their bad decisions. I do feel for all those employed by them, but again I think we as a nation can support the workers, without bailing out a dead company. The billions we are giving these dead companies, We could give directly to the worker, and be better off! The fat cat has had it too easy for too long!!

The money the government is expecting me to pay for their mistakes is too much!! I want justice! I want change! I want to be able to say I live in the best country ever! I can’t right now!!

The plan to give me back 30 dollars a month in tax’s is stupid! I’m in debt… that wont help, It wont even cover the intrest! I can’t buy any more with that!! My current budget allows me 5 dollars a day for my cigarettes, nothing more!! If I had to pay for food I couldn’t smoke! A year ago, I could afford a trip to Europe by this time!!

Homeland sucurity is a joke!, these wars were in are a joke!, take care of us first, not someone else!

My rant!!!

James

Besides getting several “concerned” e-mails, and only one response to my post, I have today seen something that disturbed me greatly!

A friend of mine on Facebook posted an article today about a 10 year old in Chicago, that committed suicide at school. I honestly can’t tell you how I feel about this. I read the article and got no answers. He was found on the floor, but He hanged himself? Some other kids said they pulled him down, before the Janitor tried to revive Him.  The mother was quoted as sending her son off that morning “In good spirits”.  I don’t know what happened in that bathroom, however I do know that as a pre-teen I was often abused by my peers! I also did things on a dare ( to gain acceptance ), that now, I would never do!

I am in no way trying to undermine this tragedy. On the contrary I’m trying to understand it.  My own Mother spoke to me about “ending it all” when she was suffering with M.S. because she knew I had struggled with the concept myself! However, We were both adults, not 10 year old children! We could rationalize, and look forward! How can someone so young deal with such a harsh subject alone? If this really was a suicide ( and not a prank gone bad ) How do we (as a community) insure it won’t repeat itself?

I will say this… lets not look for blame, but solutions! I don’t care why this horrible tragedy happened, as long as we learn from it, and don’t let it happen again! Otherwise it was for not!

Honor this young life and make a difference, Get involved, learn how to mentor kids, give back to the community that gave to you! We are a village!!

It takes us all!!

Young, Old , or in between. You can make a difference in someones life… Just Do It!!!

P.S. I am no longer getting paid per post, so if you like what I am saying pass it on, If not… It doesn’t matter!!

I am speaking my mind, and saying how I feel!! that’s it!!!

James

Whenever It’s slow at the restaurant, and I get board, I turn to my interest of making up a new dish or improving on an old staple. The staff loves these days…I cook a lot, and they eat it all!

Today it was national drop it in the fryer day!! Thats always a big hit!!

This time I focused on the all American breakfast, I fried bacon in a pancake batter, Oh yea!!

Then I fried Chicken apple sausage links on sticks like mini breakfast corn dogs, even better!!

After this I turned to the more ambitious ideas bouncing around in my head like deep fried eggs? I first soft boiled the eggs so only the whites were cooked, then chilled them down, peeled them, dusted them with flour, and battered them again with a pancake batter and into the fryer they went!! When they came out the batter was a golden brown, and the yolk was still a bit runny, not my best idea but very interesting!! I think if I poached the egg first then battered it, I might like it more! Next time…

Next came the toast! After toasting my bread I slathered it with jam and you guessed it…It got dredged in batter and into the oil It went!!! This was a winner all around, crispy, sweet loveliness!!

The hash was a bit tricky at first. I wanted to make deep fried potato hash, not potato fritters! It took a while, but I soon got the amount of hash-to-batter ratio down I think! Forming them into patties helped create the illusion as well!

Well there you have it, My “new way to die happy”! A fully deep fried breakfast! I your ever hungover, and not afraid of dying from congestive heart failure, look me up, and I’ll be more than happy to fix you a Deep Fried Country Breakfast… With all the trimmings of course!

All I ask is that you don’t give your doctor my name!!

James

For those of you that know me, you know I have two “myspace” accounts, one “Facebook” account, and I’m on skype, twitter, and many other sites that I try to keep up with as much as I can!

I have found it difficult to keep up with all of my online activities lately! My blog has really taken a blow, so much so that I am no longer getting paid my “per post” rate anymore! I know I ‘m not alone in this downgrade, however it has made me consider giving it up all together! My favorite blog cohorts have also been hit hard and I feel It is just to much to try and keep plugging my way through with little or no results! I love writing, that’s not the issue, It’s just trying to keep up my numbers ( U. V.s ) is a tough thing in these times! I have to pay my rent not serf the net, and some days I just don’t feel motivated to write about my life! I know I have a great and loyal fan base, but according to the powers that be that’s not enough! I may understand the business end of it, but I feel they have lost the community aspect of it! “It takes a village” and I thought this was just that… a village, not a competition! Some of my friends have also lost there standing here, and feel as I that it is getting too hard to please everyone else first! My friends on Facebook just read me the riot act about not writing more! My response to them was that I was no longer getting out of it, what I started it for! They responded… you started it for the wrong reasons then!!

I think I get it now, I may have started this as a money making venture, but it has turned into something much more!! I may not like that, but it is the truth! I may never make another dime… but I promise to keep writing! If not here, somewhere! For now the Angst will continue!! I will do my best to write daily again, about things you want to read, or know! please if you have any ideas or suggestions for me let me know!!

I will follow any lead you give me!!

James

I have always enjoyed growing my own herbs, tomatoes, and even vegetables at times, even for the restaurant. I have often designed my specials around what I harvested that day! While I was working in Minneapolis, MN. at the Loring cafe I grew my own purple potatoes right out front in our outdoor seating area! I also had my little herb garden there as well. Every day I would go out and take 10 minutes weeding, tending to the garden and thinking about what I wanted to fix for a special. I would dig up enough potatoes for the night, clip my herbs and answer all the questions asked of me by the patrons sitting near by! There were always a lot of questions, people found it oddly amazing that I grew my own potatoes, and most of them were intrigued enough to return for dinner and enjoy my creation, bragging to their friends that they had seen me dig the potatoes out of the ground just hours ago! This was dinner as theater, at it’s finest!! I did hate it when they would request me at the table, I always tried to pretend I was to busy, but the server  would usually insist I go! My S.A.D. really doesn’t kick in as bad when I’m in my cooking costume so I could manage okay, but I still hated going out in the dinning room!

Now to my leading question! I had someone recently make a snide comment about how chefs all grow their own herbs and veggies, like it was some kind of social statement that we were better than the average man!

I said: No, we just like fresh produce and love seeing the dish through from start to finish!

They replied: sounds pompous to me! The herbs in the market aren’t fresh enough for you?

No, I responded: There too expensive! Herbs are nothing more than tasty weeds, why not grow your own?

As you can see I didn’t make a friend that day, however I just might have put someone in their place on proper etiquette.

In this day and age anything we can do to save some money is well worth the time and effort I say! Grow your own and save that money for something else!

Frugal Wins!!!

James

Most people don’t think that using a different hand, changes anything. Well I’m here to tell you IT DOES!

I really didn’t understand it myself, until I had the opportunity to work in a “left-handed” kitchen! Yes I worked in a kitchen totally set up for a south paw!!!! My boss and the owner was lefty as well so He set it up the way He wanted and didn’t care if a person how was right-handed came in and had a hard time!

It was His kitchen, so they would have to deal for a change!!!

I loved it, I couldn’t believe how much easier my life was! Everything I had always struggled with in the past was a breeze here. It sounds odd but even the placement of the refrigerators, or how the doors open, make a HUGE difference and most can be adjusted for those of us using the wrong hand. The can opener was in the right place for me, I no longer hit my knuckles on the wall while using it. The stove was positioned so that I could get to everything and still have my cutting board on the left side of my station!! I was in Heaven!

From that point on it was our joke that you had to not only have tattoo’s to work in our kitchen, you had to be left-handed as well! We pulled it off for a while, I think we were in business for just over a year before we got our first right-handed cook. And boy was it fun to watch him struggle… He kept bitching…Why can’t we move this?, why is that there?, I hate this set up, this kitchen is all ass-backwards!! I hate you guys!!!!! We would just laugh and say “get over it, we did for years!”

Now to go a bit deeper into the whole thing. I have a few knives that have left-handed handles, but their hard to find.  however when you hone your blade, the hand you hold it in determines which side is going to be more sharp! If a right-handed chef picks up my knife and tries to use it they will think it’s dull, I love this, It keeps them from ever grabbing my tools! Even after I show them that when I use it, it is as sharp as theirs they have a hard time believing that it makes such a difference.

Now days you can find just about anything made for us lefties, but as I said they are not always easy to come across! Most stores just don’t stock them!

I found this great site that offers a wide range of things for all of us south paws! ( You will also find other links to more sites on there )!

Well I hope I’ve opened your eyes a bit wider, and maybe taught you something.

I really just wanted to rant about being back in a right-handed kitchen!!

James

I’m sure it hasn’t gone unnoticed that I have been slacking off! I had a perfect post last month, and only missed one day in October. Now, in what is supposed to be the happiest time of the year, I find myself  fighting just to keep my head above water. I have missed more days than I’ve written,  That may be a blessing to some, but I feel I have to get back in the saddle and write on… I have several great post’s in my head, and need to start putting them into this “black box”!

I didn’t think this year would be any different from past Decembers, however, I have found it to be the hardest to date! I think I actually broke the straps off my boots pulling so hard! It’s that damn broken toe! Not to mention, this recession were now in, I am losing more hours each week, with no end in site. I’m afraid I will be ringing in the “New Year” looking for a “New Job”.

Oh well that’s what change is all about, start fresh, and move forward! who knows maybe I’ll try something new this year!

James

I’m just quickly trying to get ready, and post this so I can go enjoy myself!

Last year the party was pretty lame, even though I did get my drink on! I hear this year is going to be better. I am taking my camera, so I can post some shots later, I found my cord, which means as soon as I can find the time I can also add the ones from Thanksgiving! I promise it will happen this week sometime.

I also want to put a call out to anyone who has any food allergies, I want to do a series on them and how a professional kitchen deals with the issue. I just want to go on the record and say I personally have never caused anyone to have a reaction ( that I am aware of anyway ).

I gotta run, I will put the shots up as soon as I can!

James

No kidding here!

I acually broke it on Tuesday at work somehow, but I only realized it after I had gotten home! Now what? I don’t even know how I did it so workmans comp. isn’t going to pick it up, and I can’t afford to miss work for a boo-boo on my big toe , what a joke that would be!

Even though it only seems to be a fracture, It is still swolen, four different colors ( pretty ), and VERY TENDER!!! I can’t worry about it now, like spilt milk… It’s done, so I have to hobble on. Thank god for drugs! I have always loved drugs, and now… I have an excuse to do them at work! With everything else that is going on in this Country today, I count myself one of the lucky ones, I have a job, no morgage, no car, or credit card debt. Yes, student loans are sucking me dry,  but me and my purple, yellow, red and green toe are going to be just fine!

James