Maru's Mun Journal

Irish Carbomb Cupcakes, as per this recipe bitchy_brat posted to collected_fudz.

This is a very fascinating article, showing 15 families from all around the world with their food for a week.

Some things aren't a surprise -- the desperately meagre ration of a starving African family, or the cheap, plentiful processed food of the US families.

Two points I find really fascinating: a) the UK and the German family manage to spend much more on their food than anybody else, and it's not that much more (or classier) food as such. I suspect that between EU regulations and subventions, and the precious free market (i.e. right to sue competitors over small silly things), food gets really expensive in the urban areas of the 'rich' EU countries. The price contrast between Munich and Ljubljana (both € zone!) is already remarkable, and the food you buy in Ljubljana is OMG so much better, too. I might mount an expedition there for some weekend in autumn for the sole purpose of buying a box of pumpkin seed oil, the most striking example of that 'down price, up quality' effect.

What really strikes me is b) the plentiful fresh vegetables the Polish, Mexican and Egyptian families eat. Seems the lifestyle of a threshold country or emerging economy (of one description or another) means that there is finally enough food, but not yet highly processed stuff from colourful bags and boxes all that much. Oh, that Mexican family drinks Cola as if there was no tomorrow, and I would wish the Egyptians had a bit more meat per week, but all in all, I like those pyramids of fruit and veg.-

ETA: Now with actual link! **blushes**

Ahh it was a good day, and there was so much, and I am so pleasantly tired from it, I can just enumerate it all quickly:

• Woke up early, had good thread with the Nocturnal Americans
• Yay plot is really coalescing and getting underway -- to think this was started as a mere stopgap measure!
• Cats majorly cute!
• Eeeeeeee Supernatural! But why is heaven's waiting room so rococo? Also, WTG, Bobby!
• Left on time, came to the station, no trains -- people somewhere on the rails! Gah, why didn't they just flatten the idiots, they were ASKING for a Darwin Award!
• Caught a tram to the Underground station, texted the Nazgul I was coming
• Caught the Underground, where there is no net
• Was majorly late, but when I arrived at the cinema, my ticket was waiting for me at the box office where the Nazgul had deposited it (clever Nazgul!) as I hoped she would
• Went in, found the Nazgul
• Watched the last commercial, then the movie started
• Loved the movie -- review under spoiler cut to follow tomorrow!
• EEEEEEEE Hikaru Sulu's collapsible katana was the coolest thing EVAH! And against a Romulan with an honest-to-god  battle axe!
• Trains ran again when I went home
• Bought mozzarella, made me the most luscious mozza-tomato-basil salad for dinner
• Had more nice thread, including Captain Jack Harkness
• Cats still majorly cute
• More tomorrow!

Good night!

vikytickytembo was right, a whole long year ago.

Soy latte is good!

Especially if it's vanilla soy milk, and it and the coffee are both really cruelly cold.

Yum!!

Ouch!!

Kimchee ramen is really, really hot...

Why are both LJs that I need to reply on for the discworld_rpg in "write-only-mode" just now, huh? Both Jocasta's and Beth's! Arghh!!

RL journals seem to work fine; I just replied to both Supi and Vee. Slowly, though. LJ's under terrible strain from all the Americans wanting to post about The Debate.

At least people are politically aware this time around.

Now for something entirely different: sweet potatoes are really sweet! I bought some today and baked them in the microwave, the way I do with regular ones; they became soggy inside and dripped a clear, quite sugary syrup. They're like sugar beet, it seems. It would be interesting to experiment on them a bit. The weekend before last, nazgul_nr_5 fed me sweet potatoes with garlic butter, and I really wanted to repeat that experience. That's why.