Dreary Dopey Dumpy and Damp

The four new dwarfs for today: Dreary Dopey Dumpy and Damp. Wait, Dopey was a dwarf already, right? Oh, well...Just goes to show you how well my brain is working! It's totally blech here today. Rainy, misty, overcast and VERY uninspiring!

So, you know what's really good? Thai food. My husband has a half-brother, or as they say it, he is my husband's "brotha froma notha motha!" Anyway, he is a fabulous kid, 16 years old and is basically my husband's "mini-me!" He's totally smart, funny, clever and just all-around great! I adore him (the brother and the husband!)! Let''s call him S for the sake of this here post!

A few weeks ago we were over at their house having Sunday dinner - this is a tradition now. Almost every Sunday we have dinner with them. S and I were cooking dinner together - S had a school project for his Spanish class and was tasked to cook a Spanish-inspired dinner. So he made a curry shrimp appetizer (not very Spanish, but oh, well!) and a chicken dish with lots of citrus and garlic and such. It was good!

That night we decided the two of us would cook Sunday dinners for everyone! So last night we did! We made a Thai feast! And you know what I discovered? I really really REALLY like rice noodles. Or rice stick as they call it on the package. We made the recipe on the back of the rice noodle package - including veggies like water chestnut and peapods with a tomato-paste-based sauce which didn't sound very good, but it was! I also added garlic and more soy and teriyaki sauce and shrimp to the dish. That was our side dish (which I am eating for lunch today!). The main dinner was a dish called Chicken Satay. But it's not what you think...It's chicken marinated in garlic, lemon zest, ginger, fish sauce and white wine. Sounds revolting, right? MAN! It's sooooo good!

Anyway, you saute the chicken after it's marinated for at least 3 or 4 hours. Cut it into chunks and then it is served in a lettuce wrap with coconut-jasmine rice, shredded carrots and then topped with cilantro and a homemade peanut sauce. I also serve it with Thai sweet red chili sauce for some kick. It is heaven. It's delicious, filling and VERY healthy. You don't feel yucky after eating this type of food!

Here's one all made up:
Why does food always look so gross in photographs? That looks all slimy and gross! Sure tasted good, though!

In other world news, my back is still spasming (OY VAY!) and I believe I have found out a huge thing about myself. I am 99 and 9/10ths sure that I am allergic to wheat. WHEAT. As in pasta, pizza and bread. My favorite three food groups! hee hee!

I will spare you the gory details as to how I came to believe that I had IBS and what are the two most common causes of IBS, you ask? They are wheat and dairy. Now, if you told me I could not have cheese for the rest of my life, I'd just curl up in a corner and whimper a lot. Wheat? Well, there is rice, rice flour and rice noodles and potatoes and oats and those sorts of starchy things to give me my much-needed carbo fix, but there is no good fake cheese!

So, I decided I'd try cutting wheat out from my diet for a few days to see what happened. The change was nothing less than miraculous! It was literally overnight that I felt SO much better and didn't have to visit the loo a million times a day. The first night we had miso soup and loads of sushi for dinner. Yumm! The second night we had dinner with friends and I had 4 french fries, a few mussels, gazpacho, carrots & celery with hummus, and then salmon over coconut rice for dinner. Yummmm! Last night was the third day of my no-wheat diet and I'm feeling great (aside from being tired from lack of sleep due to my stupid back!)

Anyway, if you feel you may have IBS, I can't stress to you enough how much better you might feel if you can find out what's causing it! Click HERE to learn more.

That is my service announcement for today!

Lastly, I'm obSESSED with THIS SONG It SO reminds me of the songs I used to dance to in college - the video is even all 80s! Get a load of her makeup and outfits - totally David Bowie, right? Anyway, this song is so catchy and I find myself humming it ALL THE TIME! I dare you not to tap your foot or bob your head in time with this music. I DARE YOU! It's catchy as all get out isn't it?

You're welcome.