robbalucas.com

“We have a natural tendency to assume that a remarkable chemistry between two souls is …

“We have a natural tendency to assume that a remarkable chemistry between two souls is confirmation that they are meant to be together.

In the heat of profound feelings, it seems counter-intuitive to imagine ourselves separate from our beloved. But chemistry and longevity are not necessarily bedfellows. Just because we feel earth-shatteringly alive with someone doesn’t mean they are supposed to be our life partner. They may have come for a very different reason – to awaken us, to expand us, to shatter us so wide open that we can never close again. Perhaps they were sent from afar to polish the rough diamond of our soul before vanishing into eternity. Better we surrender our expectations when the beloved comes.

(S)he may just be dropping in for a visit. Is the kettle on?

// Jeff Brown
Taken from An Uncommon Bond

“I would rather be ashes than dust …

“I would rather be ashes than dust!

I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than it should be stifled by dry-rot.

I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet.

The function of man is to live, not to exist.

I shall not waste my days trying to prolong them.

I shall use my time.”

// Jack London

American author, Journalist, & Social Activist
1876 – 1916

“If one person tells you you’re a horse…

“If one person tells you you’re a horse, they are crazy.
If three people tell you you’re a horse, There’s conspiracy afoot.
If ten people tell you you’re a horse, it’s time to buy a saddle.”

// Jack Rosenblum
Author

babaLucas filipino adobo recipe

Finally published.

My Filipino side doesn’t really make Adobo. Nor Pansit, nor Lumpia for that matter. About 10 years ago, I finally took matters into my own hands and went … where else? … Google to find authentic recipes. I came across a cookbook at a Filipino event. I watched hilarious videos on youtube.

I tried them all and made my own recipe below.

But as mentioned, finding coconut or sugar cane vinegar is KEY. White Vinegar is too strong and really sucks and just straight up isn’t authentic. Go to Ranch 99 in the Bay Area, or a local Asian / Filipino market. Pick up some frozen Shanghai lumpia too. Why not.

babaLucas clean adobo

2015-10-28 17:03:16

Serves 4

Clean version of Filipino Chicken Adobo - meaning using healthy ingredients and easy cuts of chicken.

Adobo is the national dish of the Philippines. Most warm-weather countries have through the centuries developed recipes that preserve food while flavoring it. This dish is different than many because of its strong component of vinegar. It is at once sour, salty, and drenched in garlic.

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Prep Time

20 min

Cook Time

1 hr

Total Time

1 hr 20 min

Prep Time

20 min

Cook Time

1 hr

Total Time

1 hr 20 min

Ingredients

2 lbs - Chicken, boneless skinless chicken thighs (OR add some drumsticks for bone flavor)
1 head - Garlic, coarsely chopped (yes, an entire head!)
1 - thumb-sized piece of ginger, coarsely sliced
1 cup - Organic Tamari Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce (or more to taste - or any soy sauce will do. I advise reduced sodium)
1 cup - coconut vinegar or sugar cane vinegar (this is the KEY authentic ingredient - find at Ranch 99 or other asian market)
1 cup - water
1 tsp - ground black pepper (or more to taste)
10 - black peppercorns (optional)
2 - bay leaves
2 tbl spoons - cooking oil

Instructions

1a - [optional] marinade the chicken over night. In a bowl, combine the vinegar, soy, ground black pepper, garlic, and ginger. Add the chicken OR pour over the chicken in a separate bowl and cover OR add chicken to a ziploc and pour over and seal. Let marinade in refrigerator over night.
1 - Heat the cooking oil in a large, heavy-bottomed frying pan. Lightly brown garlic and ginger over medium-low heat (about 5 minutes).
2 - Add the chicken to the frypan and brown it over medium-high heat (about 5 minutes).
3 - Add vinegar, bay leaves, both peppers, soy sauce, and water and simmer, partly covered, until the chicken is done. About 45 minutes OR as long as possible (2 hours or so) over low heat with barely a light boil.
4 - Remove the bay leaves, serve chicken over rice with a generous spooning of sauce.

Notes

You can substitute pork for the chicken, or mix the two.
In the Philippines it is the custom to marinate the meat for two days rather before simmering. To marinate the chicken.
This dish is too strongly flavored to go well with wine; try serving it with beer.

By rob balucas

rob balucas https://robbalucas.com/

Jeff Bridges Reveals The Key To A Long And Happy Marriage

Taken from a Huffington Post Article | Original Article: Click Here

Jeff Bridges has been married to his wife Susan for nearly four decades, all while working in an industry known for its failed marriages: Hollywood.

So it makes sense that Thursday, while doing a Reddit Ask Me Anything, the Academy Award winner was questioned about his secret to marital success. “I read that you’ve been married to your wife since 1977. To what do you attribute the success of your marriage in an industry notoriously hard on relationships?” the redditor asked.

In response, Bridges revealed three ways to maintain a happy, long-lasting marriage.

1. Loving someone means supporting them.

“This industry is tough on relationships. I’ve always thought that my wife should have a credit up alongside mine, because I couldn’t do what I do without her support. And like the questioner asked, or said, we’ve been married since 1977, we knew each other for 2 years before that, so she’s been able to do all these films with me and we’ve managed to get through them all together.”

2. Little things, like asking how their day was, matter.

“The toughest thing about making movies is being apart from your family. One of the things I try my best to do is call my wife every day, to keep up to speed with what’s going on in her life. And tell her what’s going on with mine. Often when you’re apart from your loved one like that for so long, your connection kind of atrophies unless you keep engaged, even if it’s small everyday kind of stuff.”

3. Above all else, love each other.

“But another aspect of keeping a marriage together, I think it’s important to – you’ll think I’m silly – but to love each other, which begs the question: “what is love?” Words that come to mind are openness, understanding, gentleness, kindness, and kind of working on those things, because everyone has a light and a dark side, I think, selfish aspects, and to kind of recognize those in each other and realize that we are going to have our own particular story at any given time, and those stories, they might not be the ultimate truth but they are certainly true for each of us, so to understand that we are each going through our particular version of reality, to respect that, and to nurture being in love, you know? To nurture that.”

Wise words from a wise man.