Tuesday Takes 1

How is everyone out there? I hope you all are staying safe and healthy. It’s been over a month since the stay at home order began here in California and I like to think I’ve adapted to this “new normal”. It’s lonely at times but I’m doing ok. I still have a job, I’m healthy, and I made it up to Round 59 of TextTwist 2! I’m well aware of how fortunate I am. Anyway, one of my goals for the next month or so is to bring some consistency to this blog! To facilitate this, I’m starting “Tuesday Takes” which will be a collection of random “takes” on things from the past week. Without further adieu, let’s jump in!

Rewatching Sense8. I don’t normally go back and rewatch shows but now felt like a good time to rewatch Sense8. To put it simply, the show is about 8 people who are mentally and emotionally connected. The characters are very well developed and relatable. The show does a great job of portraying everything it means to be human. In this time, the feeling of community and connection has taken on greater importance. Sense8 reminds us that we’re more similar than we are different. At the same time, it reminds us that each person is unique and has their own set of gifts to offer. I highly recommend it! One caveat: Sense8 does not shy away from sex and there are 3 orgies in the series. Those scenes are done in a way that isn’t trashy but if you’re averse to sex scenes, you’ll want to fast-forward through those. If you’re watching the series finale, it’s easy. Just stop watching about 10 or so minutes before the end of the movie!

Risoni. I had seen this in Trader Joe’s many times but I would always pass on it. When I saw it in the store about 10 days ago, I decided that it was time to give it a try. Risoni is a grain alternative made from chickpea and red lentil flours. The box specifically compares it to rice but I think it’s more like orzo. The flavor and texture are similar to those of red lentil and chickpea pasta. I made my weekly salad with Risoni last week and I’m very happy with that decision. I used it again for this week’s salad. It’s a nice change from the usual quinoa! In general, I think it will work really well in recipes that call for orzo.

On ordering take out. I’ve ordered takeout a total of three times since the stay at home order began. Two out of the three times, I ordered from a national or multi-state chain. With those places, I’m familiar with the food and I know what to expect from them. With the “local” places, I don’t know because I haven’t had much of a chance to try them and find my favorites. Trying a new restaurant is a gamble in the best of times. Doing so during this time is a bit anxiety-provoking. In the early days of this, anxiety was high so I was unwilling to risk trying a new restaurant. That unknown was too fraught for me at that time. This weekend, though, I wanted sushi and there aren’t any familiar restaurants for that. I was ready to gamble at that point so I looked for a place with decent post-quarantine reviews. I ordered and it was fine. All this is to say that while it’s important to support local businesses, people have their reasons for gravitating towards the well-known chains. They may take comfort in knowing what they are getting or eating their old favorites. It may be the only thing their kids are willing to eat from outside the home. In general, I think empathy and respect for certain choices are important at any time but they’re especially important at this time..

Wine notes. I tried the wine club Winc last month because they had a special. Four wines for $29. The wine pictured is Passarola White Blend from Portugal. I wasn’t that fond of it. The tasting notes on the Winc website say apple, honeysuckle, wet stone, and white peach. The label says notes of lemon, grapefruit and white peach. I got citrus, citrus, and oh yea, citrus! This particular wine didn’t have grape varietals listed so I’m not sure. The citrus makes me think there’s some pinot grigio in there but it’s from Portugal so I don’t know. It’s a light to medium body wine I think. Tasting notes are funny things. Sometimes, I get a wine that matches up with them perfectly. Other times, I get one where the tasting notes are way off. I’d say my wine experience level is intermediate but I still feel like a moron sometimes if I don’t pick up the aromas listed in the tasting notes. It could also be a sign that my palette needs more training which means more wine! Also, the food pairings don’t always work out either! I opened this to have with sushi but the pairing did nothing for me.

Insecure. I’m calling it now! Issa and Lawrence will rekindle their relationship by season’s end. Condola who? The ending song, Mya’s Case of the Ex (Whatcha Gonna Do), was right on the nose if you remove the “don’t have no mutual friends” line! Condola even made a comment about how Issa and Lawrence have the same friends! Anyway, I find myself unhappy with Molly right now. She might have a point about Issa’s friendship with Condola having issues because of Lawrence but she’s been so negative about the block party. It doesn’t seem like she’s that supportive. Jealousy seems to be driving Molly’s attitude towards Issa more than anything right now. Their friendship may not outright end but it’s going to have a major shift. It’s gotten to a point where they need to reevaluate as they’re heading in different directions. We already know that they’re not on speaking terms post-block party. It’s just a matter of how they got there.

Randomness. My mask makes me look like a character from Mortal Kombat. Speaking of Mortal Kombat, if Coronavirus was spreading in that universe, Scorpion’s signature battle phrase would be “Stay Over There!” instead of “Get Over Here!”. I’m probably one of 17 people who didn’t watch Tiger King. The Honest Trailer was enough for me. I didn’t like BlackAF very much. I guess satire isn’t my thing. I’m patiently waiting for the trailer for the final season of The 100! I’m excited to see it and to come up with mostly wrong theories. 🙂

That’s all for now! More next week.