Does Chinese Food Leave You Empty?

You know what they say about eating Chinese food?  That you'll be hungry an hour later.  Well, this is an actual fortune from a Chinese fortune cookie.  I'd say someone had quite the sense of humor.

Alastair Atkinson Photography

But seriously, haven't you wondered why?  You eat and eat until you can't stuff any more in, and in a short time you are feeling munchy again. 

Here are several theories regarding this widely experienced phenomenon.

• MSG acts as an appetite stimulate, so you may feel hungry shortly after eating.

• Carbs, especially those with a high glycemic index, makes you feel full but they digest faster than vegetables and do not keep you full as long.

• Chinese meals tend to be less rich in fat than what our bodies consider the norm.  Since it takes fats longer to move through the digestive system than carbs, a less fatty meal will leave you feeling hungry sooner. 

Do any of these theories hold water, or are we just programmed by years of hearing the phrase "you will be hungry again in one hour", leaving us with that expectation?

Does this happen to you?  What are some of your favorite Chinese dishes?

Old Faithful

We're not half way through winter and we’ve already had three snows, one of which was on Christmas Day.  Every time it snows, I dig out my trusty, old boots.  They’re like a faithful old friend, always there to keep my feet warm and dry.  They have great heart and soul…well actually great soles.  I never slip or slide, and they keep me going through sleet, snow and freezing rain...no, that's the mailman.  At any rate, they've seen me through long walks in the woods, up and down icy steps, and hours of sledding and snowman building.

So what sparked a post about my snow boots, you ask?  It's like this.  I have had these boots for well over 30 years, (I probably got them in high school), and I mentioned them in a comment to my friend Cardiogirl, who's new boots have been possessed by the dreaded sock-twisting monster.  (She has since professed her love for her new boots despite the twisted lump of sock beneath her left foot. )

She was amazed that I’d had the same pair of boots for that long, and wanted to see a picture and hear more about this phenomenon of 30-plus year old boots.  To start with, they are not fancy, slick or shiny.

They are brown suede with a furry/fuzzy lining.  They lace up the front which makes them much easier to get on over your jeans, and at just under 12 inches, they have plowed through snow deeper than they are tall.  Yes...even in the South!  I absolutely adore my boots, and may have them another 30 years.

The label shows they came from JC Penney, and I guess I paid around $10 for them – a good price even then.  They also have the distinction of being made in the U.S.A.  Sadly, not something you see so much today.

Quote of the Week

Kevin's Flower Garden

Let us be grateful to people who make us happy, they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.  - Marcel Proust

This week my quote is personal...our best friends will be moving soon.  They must continue on the journey which life has placed before them.  Their journey takes them to the far away land of Pennsylvania, the home town of one of our forefathers, Benjamin Franklin, and the resting place of the Liberty Bell, a symbol our freedom.  Instead of being sorrowful because they must leave, I should be grateful for the nearly three years we have had together in the same city.

My friends, I shall miss you desperately...but I will come visit in the summer!   Long may your garden grow.

Detergent Bottle: Fail

Does this ever happen to you?  Here you are about to tackle that mountain of laundry for which you would sacrifice your first born…a week’s worth of wine if you didn’t have to do it.   

Your washer is filling as you reach for the detergent…you just opened a new one last week…and you open the bottle and start to pour the detergent into the measuring cap.   

But wait…there’s no spout.  That’s funny, I could’ve sworn these bottles have pour spouts.  Anyway, you go ahead and pour because you’ve got to get the laundry started so you can get back to your wine go walk the dog.   

Remember to pour carefully because, you know, there’s no spout.   

And that’s when you see it!  Floating in the detergent…inside the bottle...is the missing spout. 

OK, this bottle is defective.  It happens sometimes.

Did I say sometimes?  Try around a half dozen bottles over the last year.  At first I thought ALL was using crappy bottles.  Then my next bottle of WISK did the same thing.

Dear ALL and WISK,

I think you need to have a little one-to-one with your bottle supplier because consumers are getting tired of looking at this in the bottom of their bottle.   

That’s where the worm is supposed to be.   

Oops - wrong bottle…

More Snow in the South

It's always news when snow hits the South.  Whether we get a lot or a little, the effects are usually the same.  Schools close, businesses open late, church services aren't held, and there are a bunch of wrecks.  While all that is the same time after time, the sights to behold are as different as the snowflakes themselves.

This is what our street looked like when I went out for the paper.  Our paper carriers, bless their hearts, are dedicated to service.  I shudder to think of all they have to deal with just to deliver our morning newspaper each day.

We went for a short walk yesterday, about an hour before dark, to snap a few pictures of our latest snow event.  This was one of the "little" ones, only measuring an inch, so landscape photos were not so special. 

However Man and Nature joined forces to make these interesting spots on the pavement.  I'd seen an oil delivery truck in the neighborhood earlier, and wondered if it had a leak.  The oil, mixed with the melting snow, created a rainbow effect on the street.  Don't they look like eyes?

This neighborhood has a number of small lakes or ponds, and was actually named for one of the lakes.  That lake, though, has long since been drained and houses built in it's place.  Bummer, I know.

Anyway here is one of the larger lakes, and Mother Nature made some interesting designs in the ice.  There are round patches where the ice looks thinner and appears to be cracking from the center outward.  I think maybe these lakes are fed from underground springs, and maybe the comparatively warmer water is causing these spots.  Anyone have an idea?

On another lake, three ducks were swimming on the unfrozen part of the lake.  The overflow runs down a large cement pipe at the edge of the lake, which you'll see in the next picture.

Here is an interesting fellow.  I don't know what kind of duck he is, but he didn't seem to mind me snapping a few shots.  In this one he even turned to look over his back at me...or maybe he was just settling down for a nap.  Notice the water running over the pipe.

At this point my hands were numb, the light was fading and it was time to head home and make dinner.