Not so epicurean tonight...

OK, I have to admit - tonight was a not so epicurean night for me. I had Costco Ravioli. Yes, Costco - that giant store which is the antithesis of anything artisan. And no, I do not have a Costco membership. My roommate does. I would never join the insanity - it stresses me out every time I am there... Anyway, back to the grub. At least it was whole wheat, but yikes, the amount of cheese per ravioli was so very skewed, I had one and felt like I had eaten enough cheese to feed all of Dublin (that is, Dublin my current residence, not Dublin, Ireland). The saving grace was the tomato-eggplant-celery stew I made to go over the ravioli.

My dining companion and I ate without comment on the food - we skirted around the issue by talking about how Kikkoman's Organic Soy Sauce tastes much less potent than other non-organic soy sauces. I should do some research on how many lbs of soy beans produce how many liters of soy sauce for the various companies. That must be one of the most measurable ways to determine if a bottle of soy sauce is likely to be flavorful or not.

I am reading "The Man Who Ate Everything" by Jeffrey Steingarten, and it is SOOOO good! It is so good that I chose to get on the funny elliptical machines at the gym instead of doing my favorite - running - because I could read a few more pages while I fit my workout in! It is SOOOO good that I am even thinking about skipping judo practice tomorrow night to go read my book at the gym! There is a very similarly themed Japanese novel series by Sadao Shoji, which I read and re-read and re-read and re-read. It's refreshing to see that there is writing of equal obsessive love and affection for food here in the US. I always thought (and actually, still do) think that the Japanese are one of the most food-obsessed people in the world. Well, maybe the French also provide competition to the Japanese for that No. 1 title...

...which is why I am going to France on Friday!!! I can't wait to devour freshly baked croissants and shower myself silly with rich hot chocolate. I've worked out three times today to prepare enough calorie deficit to enjoy a truly gluttonous vacation of epicurean debauchery. Maybe then, my title will actually reflect my posting...