Free is not always better

Blasphemy you say! Time is money, yada yada yada, there is no such thing as a free lunch, etc. Ok, ok, I hear you. Although I do gain much joy out of finding a good and especially free deal, some of them are a risk. I was bitten by a trip to the Shedd Aquarium, my favorite museum, when on a free day the wait just to get inside was several hours (no, I did not wait). It was a good lesson and reminds me to think a little bit harder when I see the word FREE.

On the brighter side, I had a wonderful free lunch last week at the all you can eat Brazilian steak house Fogo De Chao. A salad bar that alone I could have made 5 different meals from plus unlimited amounts of 16 cuts of meat. I believe I sampled every cut with my favorite being picanha, the best part of the sirloin. Other notable mentions were beef ancho and bacon wrapped filet mignon. Even though the food is great, I give a mild recommendation since the price is steep and it would be difficult to eat your money's worth.

Colombia is a neighbor to Brazil and also boasts delicioso meat dishes. We recently hosted a birthday party for a friend at a very festive Colombian restaurant Pueblocito Viejo. The fact that you have to make a reservation in Spanish speaks to the authenticity of the place. Not

only do you get many authentic dishes like carne asada, arepas, and platanos, but the jungle like atmosphere will place you on a house patio in Bogotá. Salsa and dance music kicks in around 9 and you can dance your meal off till 3 am.

Wyatt and I love Ethiopian food and have found many people aren't exposed to this unique cuisine. Chicago has several options for Ethiopian, but we have declared the creme de la creme to go to Ethiopian Diamond after many thorough tastings. We love to sit at traditional or basket tables and split a platter of several meats and veggie stew-like dishes. The unique part of the meal is your utensil, injera. This crepe-like bread is quite sour if made right since it is fermented for 4 days. If its your first time definitely get the spice tea and a sample platter of several dishes.

To end this eclectic blog I want to share a tip I found out by accident this week. I recently discovered that the special weekend rate for Avis kicks in at 9 am on Thurs. So by booking 30 min later than I wanted I went from a rate of $161 for the weekend to $90. Play around with the hours when you book cars and flights and you just might get a super deal. This will come in handy as we plan several upcoming adventures to Seattle, Las Vegas, Grand Canyon and Iowa!

Thought for the day: A free lunch is only found in mousetraps?

Dicern Your Food

I primarily shop in one aisle of the supermarket, fresh produce and meat. My local Jewel consists of about 90% processed food and 10% fresh food. I'm not on a diet nor do I want to be, but I have decided to become more food conscience. One couple at our young marrieds class at church reminisced about how they knew the honeymoon was over when 3 months in they were 20 pounds heavier and realized its time to cut back on the three course gourmet meals every night.

Every now and again my Time mag has an article worth reading. What the World Eats was fascinating, see the pictorial here. The photo essay pictures 16 families from around the world and what they eat. The essay outlines how much each family spends weekly on food. Not surprisingly, an African family only spend $1.50 a week for a food budget. A German family came out on top spending over $500 a week. The most appealing layouts to me where Japanese and Mexican food diets. Japanese of course for the fresh fish and sushi, although Wyatt and I found ourselves worn out on sushi after 2 weeks in Japan. I still cannot eat Udon since getting back. Mexico seems to sport the most fresh veggies and fruits and I am of late a chili fanatic.

The article in Time had some interesting observations. I will relay a few for you. Tomatoes didn't come to Italy until Columbus brought them back from US. Japan got chopsticks from China and tempura from Portugul. Food's purpose is to keep us alive, but something we rarely think about. Africa is one place where this reality can be see. Meat is a luxury in many areas and last year the starvation in Niger spoke to the great need for the basic necessities for this continent.

In closing I will plug an upcoming food movie I am soo excited to see, Ratatouille! From my favorite movie company, Pixar, makers of Finding Nemo and Monsters Inc, comes this animated feature of a mouse in Paris with a knack for the culinary arts. France, food, and furry animals, sounds like a winner to me.

Let me know which country food appeals to you and why.

Thought for the day: Vegetables are a must on a diet. I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread, and pumpkin pie. ~Jim Davis

Two Sweet Freebies!

Two excellent freebies, you should download and listen! Christianaudio.com has a free monthly download and this month its an audio book on the best of Jonathan Edwards Sermons, $15 value. Download here and use code provided. I just downloaded it, so I will let you know what I think once I get to listen. It includes his most famous sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God...good stuff.

Secondly, the New Attitude conference from two weeks ago is up for free at Sovereign Grace Ministries. The conference is on discernment and features great speakers like John Piper, Mark Dever, and Joshua Harris. Still working my way through the seven part conference, but so far its great.

Thats all for now, I should be back soon : )

Food and Wine Introspective

I have been trying to eliminate TV from my daily routine, but the Food Network and Travel Channel are making that hard. I do enjoy the simple tips from Rachel Ray like grating garlic into your marinade or exploring delicacies of half born chicken eggs or halo halo with Andrew Zimmerman. Today I will simply post on a few meals that have had some inspiration from TV shows, some from podcasts, and some from my curiosity of mixing interesting ingredients.

This is just a glimpse into a few dishes I have done recently. I try to keep them affordable, healthy and tasty (also maximizing a very small kitchen space). I'm still working on portion control . Yesterday I marinated a chicken breast in several spices with an emphasis on cayenne and paprika and grilled it (on an indoor grill). I broiled a vegetable kabob of baby bella, red onion, and yellow pepper. Amazingly, heirloom tomatoes were the cheapest in the store, so I simply prepared them with salt and pepper. Oh, I can't leave out my new found love, quinoa! It looks like cous cous and is an Incan organic grain that contains the most high quality protein of any grain. I paired it with a Pouilly Fuisse, an exquisite chardonnay from Burgundy.

Wyatt likes pork, I'm not a big fan. As a compromise, I made him a center cut pork chop and myself a pork cutlet dredged in lemon and Parmesan. I oven roasted asparagus with lemon zest and made a side of angel hair pasta with fresh tomato sauce and baby bellas in marsala. Normally I wouldn't recommend a Malbec with pork, but I didn't mind overpowering the dish : ) Malbec is very fruit foward and a great value wine out of Argentina.


After a trip to Mitsuwa, I was stocked up on Asian goodies. We love making miso soup from fresh miso paste. It tastes just as good as the sushi restaurants and is very healthy. Miso paste is a great ingredient to add to marinades or sauces and has an unbeatable shelf life of six months, now thats value! Asian stores often have marinated meat, so we grilled a nice helping of bulgoki, alongside fresh shitake mushrooms. No Asian meal is complete without a side of kimchi, fermented spicy cabbage. Wine pairing for this is an Anderzon Cote de Rhone, which is a Syrah. Very bold and flavorful, again probably not the best choice for spicy food, but we drink what we like and enjoy trying things out for ourselves!



Thought for the Day: You gotta have fresh intestines for chittlins~Andrew Zimmerman

Keeping Austin Weird

In anticipation of our trip to Austin, I decided to watch David Linklater's Slacker to get a feel for Austin. The movie was one character after another and had little cowboy hats or country. I then found out that the motto for Austin is Keep Austin Weird. So at that point, I didn't know what to expect. Luckily Rachel Ray had made several trips to Austin and reassured us that we were in for some culinary treats.

The BBQ was phenomenal in the Austin area. We enjoyed ribs, brisket, and turkey at Stubb's in downtown Austin. The sushi scene was great too. Lonely Planet gave us the tip to head to award winning Uchi. Foie gras and fatty toro on the same menu, now thats my kind of place. Of course we hit the coffee houses, which boasted many unique and yes weird spots, ala Spider House and Ruta Maya International Headquarters. The common theme amongst the food and drink joints in Austin is a stage and live music, it is the live music capitol of the world.

Wyatt soon discovered my passion for Goodwill as Austin or Texas, for that matter, appears to be the thrift store capitol of the world. He was very patient and even found a beautiful triple X beaver cowboy hat and leather cowboy boots.

We enjoyed two stepping and the rodeo at Cowboy's Dance Hall in San Antonio. Riding a bull for eight seconds takes a very brave individual. The Broken Spoke was reminiscent of Station Inn, our favorite spot in Nashville. With cowboy hats and boots, I'm sure we blended right in with the locals.

If you have any suggestions for locations that have a great two stepping or country dancing scene, let us know while we still have the bug.




Thought for the Day: I got gaps; you got gaps; we fill each other's gaps. Rocky

Happy Birthday to My New Husband!

Week in Pictures

Nearly to my wedding and art and eating are preoccupying my time : ) I made delicious Alaskan king crab legs with Irish butter (sans garlic for Wyatt). I experimented with a papaya, red cabbage, and sprout salad with lemon dill dressing, which was very pretty and actually tasty. I cooked a brunch for 10 today that turned out wonderfully, but I forgot to take pictures : ( We spent one night coloring boxes with pastels that will be sent to refugee kids in Angola. Finally a picture of my fired pot!

Don't Waste Your Life

If you've had a conversation me for any length, chances are I have dropped the name John Piper. If you have yet to read anything by him, listen to a message or read his short articles, you have no excuse now because he is putting out a vodcast series (think YouTube) of short clips around themes from his excellent book Don't Waste Your Life.

The Don't Waste Your Life site is awesome, check it out. I must recommend that you watch the Podcast (Vodcast) series. If you only have a few minutes watch Risk, Treasures on Earth, and The Shell.
Treasures on Earth simply displays a nice house being crushed in a matter of seconds with overlaying text Matthew 6:20. The Shell is a blip about this couple who retire to Punta Gorda, FL and spend the rest of their life collecting shells, which Piper aptly calls a tragedy.

I started a book group reading Don't Waste Your Life (If any of you are in it, I promise we will get back to it after my wedding!) A chapter you must read from this book is Risk is Right (The entire book is free to read online!). Piper defines risk as an action that can expose you to the possibility of loss or injury. I cannot even begin to expound to this chapter as I found myself underlining and writing all over it...it is that good!

Yesterday as I was reading Tozer's The Knowledge of the Holy on the Self Existence of God I was reminded of a quote from the Risk is Right chapter which I think gets at the heart of the matter of why we don't risk as we should--Without Christ, we are all legalist or lechers at heart-wanting to do our own thing or wanting to do God's thing in our way to prove our own ability.

In closing, I want to highlight a talk Piper gave at Texas A & M this week called Radical Effects of the Resurrection. Piper makes the claim that America is the most dangerous place in the world to raise a kid. He states--Jesus did not say its hard for a missionary kid to get into heaven, its hard for someone in Somalia to get into heaven, he said its hard for a rich man to get into heaven.

Thought for the day: Jesus isn't into giving you lists or prescriptions, he's into shocking the hell out of you.

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Thank You!

My wonderful friends surprised me by driving quite a distance to come to my shower!


What a great idea for a shower, painting pottery! Thanks to my friends for finding this, I highly recommend it.


I decided to go for a stained glass look for a semi-bowl-dish, I still don't know what to call it. We had 2.5 hours to paint and I was definitely needed every minute. Here is the before, come back next week for the finished fired product hopefully in bright primary colors. So much fun!

Free Dunkin Donuts Coffee March 21st!

Celebrate the first day of spring by making the inaugural switch from hot to cold coffee! On March 21st, the first day of spring, Dunkin' will "put winter on ice" with their first ever Free Iced Coffee Day. All day long, Dunkin' Donuts locations all over the US will be giving away free 16-ounce iced coffees.

The company reports that iced coffees are their second most popular menu item after hot coffees and that they sold over 150 million cups last year alone!

In my opinion Dunkin' Donuts coffee is far superior to Starbucks in both taste and value. Yes, you cannot sit and feel the vibe of being ultra hip sitting at a coffee house, but I still believe coffee is for drinking and not sitting.

On a complete tangent, isn't that the cutest turtle you have ever

seen : )

Suprised by Chef!

It's not everyday you are listening to a podcast about food and get a wonderful testimony! I like all things food...looking at food pictures, reading about food, watching food on TV, listening to a podcast on food, and especially eating food : )

A podcast for Hungry Magazine popped up in my window when I did a search for food pocasts a few months back. To my delight, the host is a Chicago native and captures stories of local restaurants and chefs, which are among some of the top culinary experts in the world.

You might have seen him whipping up a risotto on iron chef, launching a cookbook in your local B&N, or leading your child in the local church youth group? Rick Tramonto is among the leading chefs in the world. He started at Wendy's and worked his way up through Tavern on the Green, Charlie Trotters, Trio, and Tru.

In the egocentric world of chefs, you would expect him to tout his James Beard award, his appearance on Oprah, or his world famed restaurant Tru. Yes he does mention a few of those things, but the emphasis that comes through is his relationship with Christ.

I was impressed by the transformation his life has gone through and the direction it is going.
At the pinnacle of his culinary career, he wants to go to seminary school and be a youth pastor. From having a parent who was in prison himself, he now is very active in the Angel Tree ministry, which actively ministers to families of those in prison.

While working for Charlie Trotter, he remembers this daily statement from him--What one thing can you do better today than you did yesterday, now multiply that times the 50 employees we have working here and you have 50 things that are better than yesterday. Tramanto has carried that value into his own kitchens now and emphasis the importance of working at something with all you heart.

Ending the podcast, the interviewer asks Rick what people he would have to a dinner out of anyone in the world. Rick exclaims Jesus with a passion and remarks he would cook fish, definitely fish because Jesus ate a lot of fish.

Bon Appetit: Culinary Podcast

Thought for the day: Man should not live on bread alone, but on every Word that proceeds from the mouth of God. Duet 8:3

Do you want to be a Buff Bride?

This is actually the campaign being run at my gym right now. The phenomenon of women trying to loose weight for a wedding never crossed my mind before, but now I find myself even telling Wyatt how I plan to lose a few pounds. I get the feeling that many women look at getting married as starting off with a new slate, kind of like starting off a new year...or at least marketers believe that.

So this blog is about deals and weddings. We really don't belong to a gym, but are sampling a free membership of 21 days at a posh Gold Coast gym. I kid you not, membership here is around $120 a month ($80 with my corporate discount)! To join or not to join, that is the question.

Many gyms will give you a month trial free if you just go in and talk to them. If anything, its a nice perk to beat the winter blues and also a nice way to break a routine if you are stuck in a rut. And yes, join right before your wedding and loose those pounds! I've even found it to be a bit of a sociological experiment.

People in the city take working out very seriously. Wyatt and I get as many noodles as we can and float down the lap lane like its a lazy river. Those in speedos and swim caps find us mildly annoying and to them I say have a little fun with your workout!

Every machine in the gym has its own TV! Fahrenheit 451 here we come. I tried watching the TV one time working out without headphones and was amazed at the number of commercials! 30 minutes of news and all I learned was--Dick Chaney has a blood clot. So I've decided that the stair machine will provide a great time to catch up on podcasts. I'm listening to a fascinating series called Cults and Sects, look for a blog soon : )

The last if not largest portion of my workout consists of sitting in the hot tub, sauna, and steam room (eucalyptus steam!). I have always enjoyed the spa, but after experiencing the sento in Japan I have a deep affection for it. Wyatt and I semi-joke that we will put in a Japanese bath in our house or at least the Japanese sitting shower. I can't believe the number of women who just go the gym to run on a treadmill and pass up this glorious experience. The spa just hasn't caught on America. Its unfortunate because after watching many an average Joe train like hes in the decathlon at the Olympics, he could use a little relaxation.

In closing, pick up a noodle in the pool, play a game of horse, cha cha like there's no tomorrow and by all means have fun when you exercise!

Thought for the Day: If it weren't for the fact that the TV set and the refrigerator are so far apart, some of us wouldn't get any exercise at all.

Staying Married is Not about Staying in Love

What do you tell someone who is getting married? Good luck, best of luck, better luck next time... Marriage is a mystery, thats for sure. Lately I've been thinking about marriage mostly because I'm getting married.

Sitting at a wedding a few months before your own big day is quite an experience. If you manage not to pass out, you may learn a few things. After listening to John Piper, all I could think was Christ and the Church, Christ and the church, Christ and the church...and then nearly passed out.

The symbolism is truly remarkable. The bride or church is put on this pedestal and dressed in pure white and praised and honored as the highlight of the day. Anyone who helped in planning the wedding, is probably thinking that woman is crazy...she doesn't deserve this (aka bridezilla)!! The groom also realizing this woman is crazy gladly accepts her and takes her as his own.

The idea of marriage being about Christ and the Church is sinking in the more and more I think about it. Wyatt and I each had to write a word which sums up marriage for a workbook we are doing...I wrote selflessness and he wrote sanctification. Loving someone else is all about doing stuff for them they don't deserve because lets face it we've all got issues and when you get married you now have multiplied your issues by two.

I don't think I've heard anything explaining marriage nearly as poignant as the series John Piper is currently doing on marriage called Staying in Married is Not about Staying in Love (Listen now!). Frankly, its the opposite of what the majority of people will tell you marriage is. Marriage is all about love isn't it, its about marrying your best friend right?

He starts with the assumption that "our own sin and selfishness and cultural bondage makes it almost impossible to feel the wonder of God’s purpose for marriage between a man and a woman." He hopes to "set you free from small, worldly, culturally contaminated, self-centered, Christ-ignoring, God-neglecting, romance-intoxicated, unbiblical views of marriage." I definitely needed that! You will not regret listening to this podcast : )

He even unveils the mystery of marriage near the end of it, which I don't want to spoil, but will hopefully encourage you to listen. Listen to the whole series if you get a chance and let me know what you think!

Thought for the day: And I have to speculate that God himself did make us into corresponding shapes like puzzle pieces from the clay ~Iron and Wine

Japan in a Nutshell

I have not been able to share as much about Japan in this blog as I have wanted. My lovely fiance has uploaded a selection of pictures from the Kansai region: Kyoto

Unfortunately, I will not have time to write about all our adventures, but you might get some idea from the shots. Here is a snapshot of Tokyo.

If you like the cuisine you see, you can get a taste of a large portion of it at a Japanese store near Schaumburg, Mitsuwa. The food court there feels like a little piece of Tokyo.

Next up, San Antonio and Austin. We love cultural travel and it doesn't get much better than the country of Texas!

Thought for the day: Good-bye, Japan! I'll miss you Kentucky Fried Chicken and your sparkling, whale-free seas. ~Bart Simpson

Are you getting married or getting a new lifestyle?

Materialism at its finest. I'm not even talking about the Cartier, Vera Wang, and Beverly Hills Hotel weddings you see the celebrities have. I'm talking about the Zales, David's Bridal, and Marriott weddings taking place across the country.

Where to begin, there's so much I can say from being in the world of brides for the last few months. Lets begin where it all begins...the engagement. I was looking at rings on amazon.com yesterday, they have a great selection! You can get the traditional solitaire on Amazon for $7.99 (see here)! And yet, I hear the stories about not being able to make monthly payments on an engagement ring or postponing an engagement for almost a year so the man can use his work bonus to buy an ginormous ring.

Yes, David's Bridal is the Costco of wedding attire, but from my price surveying and many visits there I would say the average person walks out of there spending $1000 plus on a dress they will wear once, a veil-again wear it once, and associated must have accessories. Tradition is definitely a good thing and is wonderful to preserve, but when did having a white dress for marriage turn into a designer event?

Last, but not least, lets tackle the wedding reception. I like a good deal, so I shopped around a bit to see what the usual reception places had to offer. Most hotels and banquet halls offered a special package for weddings. Let me translate, special package = $$$. Quite frankly, its almost criminal to charge people getting married twice as much as they would a business organization. Our pastoral counselor said he's been to many weddings where you see about $15,000 worth of food in the trash a few hours after the reception.

Ok, I have to talk about registries since its been on my mind recently. Wyatt and I are hoping to reduce our lifestyle and really don't need that much to furnish a 0-1 bedroom apartment. We went to register at Bed, Bath, and Beyond and the wedding consultant gives you a list of literally 1000 things that you must have to get married and should use as a checklist, just so you don't miss anything. Call me crazy, but I just don't think I need to have matching fine flatware that matches perfectly with my fine china and my fine stemware.

To end this long rant, my main point is that we live in a materialistic culture that tells you everything you need and constantly pushes you to increase your standard of living. Pretty soon you'll find yourself living in a $500,000 house with 4 cars, a TV for each room and wonder how you are just barely getting by.

Stay tuned for a blog on a podcast that has a perspective on marriage everyone should know.

Thought for the day: Subscribe to my blog, see the bottom of this page!

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Norwegian Film at its Finest!

They're packed and ready for the greatest adventure of their lives. All they have to do is get out of the house. I simply have to put a plug in for this movie because its not everyday you find a gem in a Blockbuster.

I don't have any insightful truths to push on you from this movie, but only a guarantee you will feel good after watching this movie. The characters are still vivid in my mind as I reminisce on this film.

Here is the plot:
When his mother, who has sheltered him his entire 40 years, dies, Elling, a sensitive, would-be poet, is sent to live in a state institution. There he meets Kjell Bjarne, a gentle giant and female-obsessed virgin in his 40s. After two years, the men are released and provided with a state-funded apartment and stipend with the hope they will be able to live on their own. Initially, the simple act of going around the corner for groceries is a challenge. Through a friendship born of desperate dependence, the skittish Elling and the boisterous, would-be lover of women, Kjell Bjarne, discover they can not only survive on the outside, they can thrive. But as their courage grows, the two find oddball ways to cope with society, striking up the most peculiar friendships in the most unlikely places.

I will leave you with a snippet of the script:

[Elling is about to order two train tickets to Oslo]
Train ticket salesman: Yes?
Elling: Yes!
Train ticket salesman: You're going to?
Elling: Yes, we! Kjell Bjarne and I are going to Oslo of course.
Train ticket salesman: One way?
Elling: There are more ways?

---

[Ticket ordering continued]
Train ticket salesman: That'll be 130 kroner per ticket.
Elling: 130 kroner? The last time mother and I took the train to Larvik the ticket cost 25.
Train ticket salesman: That must have been about 30 years ago.
Elling: Yes

Thought for the Day: Seize the day!

I Eat, Therefore I Am

One of the best deals in the city are the ethnic grocery stores. Some ingredients may seem intimidating, but not knowing what it is, is half the fun! Yesterday I was shopping up at Argyle in Chicago (essentially Vietnam-town).

I came home with a large loot all under $20 that will feed me for a few weeks. Ingredients like mushrooms, herbs, fruits, spices are typically 3 to 5 times cheaper at ethnic stores than the large markets like Jewel.

Lately, I have been trying to mimic some of the dishes I had in Japan. A very simple and tasty cuisine in Japan is Yakitori. In Japan, yakitori is essentially bar/pub food, but in the USA I have only seen it at upscale Japanese restaurants. To do it yourself you can use a broiler or grill pan if you don't have an outdoor grill. My favorites are asparagus, okra, or tomato wrapped in pork (bacon). Eringi and Shitake mushrooms (pictured above) are also delicious. Simply skewer the food and grill for 2-5 min a side. Be sure to salt the mushrooms after grilling and lightly dose with lemon. (Note: I tried lime today, but it just doesn't work as well)

Another Thai delight is Tom Yum soup. I do several varieties on this soup by adding some Thai and some Vietnamese ingredients (a la pho). I thought to add Thai Chili today, thinking they would be similar to Serrano chilies since they look very similar. I was wrong! My mouth and fingers are still burning from these peppers! After looking on the Internet, I found out the chili I used are some of the hottest in the world. The soup pictured here is very simple and starts with a pho broth (from cube), chili oil, fresh rice stick noodle, shitake mushroom, lime, and cilantro. You can add lemongrass, shrimps, duck, chicken, Thai chili and the list goes on...

In Chicago, Argyle, Chinatown, and Devon (India-town) all host excellent stores and are conveniently located off public transportation. Let me know if you have other great deals in the Chicago area!

Thought for the day: No amount of experimentation can ever prove me right; a single experiment can prove me wrong.

Killer Salon Deals in Chicago

So I am currently looking for a salon to get color treatment. Today while searching for coupons, I stumbled across this amazing site: CHICAGO BEAUTY

It has tons of Chicago's best salons listed and if you click on one, it gives you several coupons!

If anyone has a recommendation for a place to get coloring that is in this list and has a coupon let me know!

Thought for the day: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Wedding Planning 2007

My blogs might switch gears as I plan a wedding for April 2007. Above is a snippet of the invitations in the works. Right now I only have time to post a little detail of the swirling ideas...more to come I hope.....