FEEDING THE ROOMIES

For the past three weeks I have been "living" in my friends' living room; I'm the "guy on the couch." When the company I work for decided to uproot itself (earlier) this year to create a new home-base on the East Coast, I had to make a decision --my lease was ending May 31st. (!!!) I decided that I wouldn't renew, and one of my roommates hooked-up with another friend of ours to get a 2-BR. I, on the other hand, with less than two months to spare in SoCal, had no place to go...! But that's why I have friends whom I love. They've let me be their 'spare tenant' as I prepare for my journey Eastward.

I honestly don't know how to repay them, really. But I know one thing I can do is cook them up a feast every now and then. I finally got the free time to do so yesterday, and so I prepared them my own rendition of pork and chicken adobo, and a free-hand dish of shrimp and veggies cooked in a Thai green curry sauce.

Oh, adobo...

Shrimp & Veggies in Thai Green Curry Sauce

Adobo is adobo. iIf you're in the know, then you know what's up. The other dish was something I decided to whip up on a whim. At Trader Joe's I decided to pick up a few things: baby bok choy, yellow squash, yellow onions, haricots verts (green beans), Mexican white shrimps, TJ's Thai Green Curry Simmer Sauce, and TJ's Thai Lime and Chili cashews. I chopped up the veggies, and sauteed them in a little olive oil... adding some freshly ground pepper, white pepper powder, garlic powder, and a tablespoon of light soy sauce. I set the veggies aside after browning them a little. Then I took the thawed-out shrimps and sauteed them with the same spices/sauces. I then poured half a jar of the curry sauce into the sauce pan, and let the shrimp simmer. After a few minutes, I added the veggies. After a few stirs, I added a half cup of the cashews. A couple of stirs here and there, dinner was served - much to my roommates' delight.

Survey says: the shrimp/veggie dish will now be added to my permanent repertoire. And I've got a about a month more to share more 'food' with the roomies.

CAPTAIN STAIN-O

You probably didn't know this, but I attract stains.

Literally, I am a walking 'white shirt' welcoming all sorts of crappy and annoying stains that are the result of my utter clumsiness. The worst part is that it seems like these said stains always occur when I'm wearing something new, and/or when I'm eating or drinking something with super-staining agents: fruity desserts (with fruit syrups and/or sauces), tea, wine, tomato sauce... alcohol. I mean it's one thing to find stains after a night of debauchery. But it's a completely different scenario when staining occurs while you are absolutely lucid and sober. I tend to dance around the latter scene.

Argh!

So this morning I decided to break-in a new sweater that I got on-sale from Banana Republic (Gotta love Banana's sale items!). Wearing it was not a big deal AT ALL. It was on-sale for $19.99, which doesn't exactly scream "wear with caution." So whatever. But the fact is, just an hour into my work day I was visited by the Stain Gods as I clumsily "sipped" on a cup of tea. Somehow, I sipped too fast or something, and the tea happened to jump out of my cup and onto my sweater. No joke. (Ask me to replay the scene later, and I promise you I will.)

Thankfully, I had a water bottle close by so I was able to dab the tea droplets before they could really set in. Despite that valiant effort, I can still see the slight trace of tea stain on a part of my sweater. Sure, it could be my eyes playing tricks on me, but more than likely that is not the case. (That option is just never in the cards for me.)

At any rate, this stain-ful experience made me take a quick step back, and think of all of those times that I have faced stain-inducing instances. After recalling the 532nd occurrence, I felt called to blog about it just because I can.

Damn you, stains.
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Photo taken from http://merge.danieljthompson.com/.

GROSS & GROSS

Courthouse News Service

Marriott Guest Says Rats Swarmed on Her
By RYAN ABBOTT

WASHINGTON (CN) - A woman says she was attacked by a swarm of rats while she slept in the Marriott-owned and -operated Renaissance M Street Hotel. Her Superior Court complaint includes a horrifying account of awakening to find rats on and under her blanket, in her pajamas and tangled in her hair.

At around midnight, Carol Zamfir says, she "awakened to discover to her horror that she was amidst a swarm of rats. They were on her blanket, under her blanket, under her pajamas and tangled in her hair. As plaintiff struggled to escape the swarm, the rats bit and scratcher her on [her] face, torso, arms and legs."

Zamfir says she became "very ill," and went to an urgent care clinic, where a doctor noted "Multiple puncture sites on face, neck, extremities and torso." She also had to be treated for infectious disease.

She suffered bites to her face, neck, torso and extremities, and was treated for infectious diseases associated with rat bites. She is suing the hotel giant for $11 million, citing numerous physical and mental injuries.

She demands $10 million for pain and suffering and $1 million for loss of consortium. She is represented by Jack Maginnis.

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