Caution Democracy

I couldn’t help but smile at the poor translation, but it’s also an indication of what “democracy” means in our country nowadays.

We are essentially a two-party system even though there are other parties that have been trying to get their foot in the door. They just simply cannot get enough votes to make a difference. Their voters are accused of throwing away their votes by voting for a third party. Just consider the flawed logic. There is no guarantee which way they’ll vote if all third parties are eliminated. Be careful what you wish for!

Recent immigrants and older refugees have a tendency to lean towards the Republican party. They are not blind or stupid. Many have come or escaped from totalitarian regimes. They know what it’s like to live under such regimes. They just don’t trust the government to do what’s best for them.

Many Conservatives are also mistaken that a government that takes care of its people is a Socialist government. They feel the Democratic Party is giving away freebies to those who haven’t earned the privilege. They equate Socialism with Communism. Of course it doesn’t help that many communist regimes call themselves socialist!

The Left is equally at fault. There is no attempt at understanding why people are angry. Conservatives do not want more government oversight, which they feel intrude on their rights. It gets to a point where people parrot the lies, whether they really believe them or not. They feel they need to take care of themselves, not rely on the government. The Left has not done enough to placate their fears.

Our current climate has become a personality cult. Blind loyalty to a political party leads many to vote against their own interest. They’d rather hang on to the little power they have left than consider what is best for the people. They would rather hide behind the lies than face the harm they’re doing to our country.

This is true of the two major parties: too many personal attacks and not enough contemplation; too many lies in trying to hold on to power; too many sycophants and hangers-on willing to commit crimes for their party; too many power-hungry individuals who think the rules don’t apply to them.

So, reader, I am asking for your thoughts about the state of our democracy.

As always, please keep it civil and relevant. I promise I will refrain from commenting on your experience, but I might be curious enough to ask questions to better understand your story.

Lamb and Beef Skewers over Rice

So, the other day, I wanted kebabs, and I realized the only Armenian restaurant in Chicago had reopened. So I ordered lamb and beef skewers with rice. I then realized there are other variations from other cuisines, so here we are!

Friend bbq

(Xin Jiang)

BBQ Xin Jiang Special Lamb 新疆大羊

BBQ Beef Back Straps 烤牛板筋

Egg Fried Rice 蛋炒饭

Happy Lamb Hot Pot

(Mongolia)

Lamb Skewer 羊肉串
Beef Skewer 牛肉串
Steamed White Rice 白米饭

Jibek Jolu

(Central Asia)

Shashlik Beef (Beef cubes with red onion and red sauce)

 Shashlik Lamb (Lamb cubes with red onion and red sauce)

Steamed Rice

Noon-o-Kabab

(Persia)

Chenjeh (Tender choice rib eye steak)

Lamb Kabab (Boneless leg of lamb cubed, marinated and charbroiled)

White Rice

Salam Restaurant

(Middle East)

Skewer of Lamb Kabob (Grilled pieces of marinated and spiced tender lamb)
Skewer of Beef Kabab (Grilled pieces of marinated and spiced tender beef)
Homemade Basmati Rice
With Shatah (hot sauce) and Tahini

Sayat Nova

(Armenia)

beef kebab (cubed beef filet, spices, herbs)

 shish kebab (cubed lamb, spices, herbs)

rice (rice pilaf)

Serai and Kapitan

(Malaysia)

Cumin Lamb Skewers 孜然羊肉串

(Szechuan style BBQ lamb skewers topped with cumin) from Serai

Satay Beef 沙爹牛肉

(Beef marinated overnight with spices, skewed to satay and grilled) from Kapitan

Side of chicken rice 鸡饭

Tan lu 探炉
(I’m not sure what kind of cuisine it actually is. Their website doesn’t say, and their Google entry just says “regional Chinese cooking.” I detect cumin, so it’s likely towards Western China/Central Asia.)

Lamb Skewers 羊肉串
Beef Skewers 牛肉串 
Rice 米饭

Tiba Restaurant

(Mediterranean)

Lamb Kabab Plate (grilled pieces of lamb marinated and spiced) with rice and extra side of shish kabab (grilled pieces of beef marinated and spiced)

Xi’an Cuisine

(Xi’an)

Lamb Skewer 羊肉串

Beef Skewer 牛肉串

White Rice

This is going to be updated whenever I get lamb and beef skewers with rice from different restaurants just to show the similarities. I know there are many other cuisines that have skewers. The only thing is, I want to show lamb and beef skewers with/over rice only.

So, reader, I am asking for your food stories. Are you fascinated by similarities among different cuisines?

As always, please keep it civil and relevant. I promise I will refrain from commenting on your experience, but I might be curious enough to ask questions to better understand your story.

Italian Beef, Chicago-Style Hot Dog, Tavern-style Pizza

I’d been out of town for more than a week and really really missed Chicago food.

I don’t even like sandwiches, but I really really wanted an Italian beef, so of course my first meal back in Chicago was a dipped with hot AND sweet peppers from Al’s.

My next meal back home was a Double Dog, Chicago-style, from Dog House Grill.

In case you don’t know, a Chicago-style hot dog is an all-beef frankfurter on a poppy seed bun, topped with yellow mustard, bright green relish, fresh chopped onions, two tomato wedges, a kosher-style pickle spear, sport peppers and a dash of celery salt.

I had to get my fill of real Chicago food after my trip. I did Italian Beef and Chicago-style hotdog already, so the next one was pizza. 

I don’t eat pizza that much, but when I do, it’s thin crust, tavern-style. That’s what locals eat. We don’t do deep dish or stuffed; those are for tourists. I generally don’t like meat on my pizza, so this one from Pat’s Pizzeria has artichoke, mushrooms, tomatoes, and spinach.

So, reader, I am asking for your food stories. What foods do you miss when you’re not home?.

As always, please keep it civil and relevant. I promise I will refrain from commenting on your experience, but I might be curious enough to ask questions to better understand your story.

Unexpected Road Trip

When in Vegas, get a Chicago-style hot dog, because why not: I ordered one Windy City Style Hot Dog (footlong hotdog topped with yellow mustard, chopped white onions, sweet pickle relish, tomato slices, pickled sport peppers and a dash of celery salt on a warm griddled bun). What I got was two plain footlong dogs on warm buns (not poppy seed buns) with diced onion and sweet relish on the side with a lot of mustard and ketchup packages, no tomato, no sport peppers, no pickle spear, and definitely no celery salt. On what planet were they “Windy City Style” hot dogs?

Well!

My sis and I went on a mini vacation while I attended a convention. Once we got there, she started getting a scratchy throat. We are both fully vaccinated and boostered. We thought nothing of it, and then it got worse. She decided to take a rapid COVID test the day before we were supposed to leave. Lo and behold, she tested positive. I’m fine.

We did the right thing and informed the hotel even though we had one night left. They moved us to a different hotel to isolate. They didn’t charge me for the last night, and the county picked up the tab for transportation by ambulance to the other hotel (designated for the quarantine program), hotel stay for as long as we needed, and all meals while we were there. 

Instead of taking our scheduled flight back, we decided to cancel our flight and rent a car to drive home. It actually worked out because there had been a lot of flight delays and cancellations. The rental car actually cost less than the return flight, which was of course not refunded but we could use as credit for another trip. So, an unexpected mini road trip!

On the other hand, we ate quite well otherwise. And I got some beer to pass my last night: a 6-pack from the store cost less than one beer at the hotel bar.

Probably the most exciting thing on the road trip (no, that’s not my car)

Not the supermoon yet but close enough

We did have a proper meal on the way, in Iowa:

Beef with Vegetables Soup

Hot Beef Sandwich (slow cooked pot roast sandwiched between white bread, served with real mashed potatoes, covered with brown gravy)

So, reader, how would you have felt and what would you have done if you had been on a trip and tested positive?

As always, please keep it civil and relevant. I promise I will refrain from commenting on your experience, but I might be curious enough to ask questions to better understand your story.