9 hours to Iftar

Last day

2011-08-30T11:27:01+03:00

So this is the 30th day. I'm dissapointed to myself that didn't manage to arrange a party. Was planning to do that on Friday, but then another friend was faster. Anyway I'm now planning to invite instantly some people to restaurant. For example there's one lebanese restaurant that would be classy. I think I have to skip being vegan today since otherwise it gets almost impossible to have proper hari raya today. Maybe I'll skip the wine glas anyway since for sure there will be one tomorrow and also in the weekend.

Somehow I feel quilty going back to my old bad habits, but for sure I'm gonna eat less sweets in September than in July. Being vegan has been social suicide, but at least had delicious meals at home (yesterday was making rye chapatas with sri lanka style coconut sambol). And in the last days it felt ridiculous to say I can't eat this or that because I'm a "vegan".

god is teasing

2011-08-29T11:41:01+03:00

One of the recent topics to talk about have been first impressions. It has happened more than once that I have sort of disliked somebody who has later come a good friend. And it's even more interesting considering how many people give to me negative first impression. I was now looking some old photos in facebook trying to track some people who have later come closer. It has been hilarious to find some people from same events with me without even remembering that they were present. For example I still don't have any idea where did I meet for the first time one guy that has come quite close friend during last year.

This seems to be one of the essential spiritual things that happen: always everything seems to happen the other way you're expecting and hoping. Maybe have to start to dream about getting pregnant.

Play the "Paranoid"

2011-08-26T11:33:01+03:00

Now it happened what I was afraid of. I was trying to look for a particular chinese restaurant that should have vegan food, but cause was not able to find it, chose another place thinking I can easily avoid such things as milk, eggs and oyster sauce. I asked whether they have vegan food and after green light was given, I happily ordered a portion. In the middle of eating I realised that it's containing fried egg with vegetables. I was so angry to myself to not ask more carefully what the food is actually containing, I should have also realised that noodles most likely also contain eggs. But this was important lesson: vegan has to be always paranoid in order to avoid animal products. Because of that it would be quite troublesome to travel in countries where you don't know the local language.

6 days left

2011-08-25T11:35:01+03:00

I participated to fish dinner and mostly ate my own deep fried tempeh. We were talking about Ramadan and one of the guests asked did I gain weight. I heard that actually that is not at all uncommon phenomenon in Muslim countries since it's common to eat something fatty and sweet and as it's not possible to do normally exercise in the daytime, surely the outcome is not as positive as you would expect while starving. But anyway my Ramadan is highly Scandinavian and orthorexic: mostly I eat oat porridge, fruits and nuts before going to sleep.

There is less than one week left and actually I feel sad to leave vegan diet because of social reasons, but there are somethings I'm looking forward to taste: weird Norwegian cheese my friend bought and chocolate covered bacon they offered in the Restaurant day.

From supermarket

2011-08-24T11:33:01+03:00

I get positive feedpack at work, but once in a while something happens that makes me to understand those who have burn out. For example yesterday I went to help to the emergency where was a chaos developing. There was some older lady that had ailment that has been last 30 years and also been evaluated for many times in hospital. Since I was feeling energetic I was listening to her and even doing consultation even though I knew that most likely it will be a boomerang. Somebody else in my position would have been much more rude and it was suprise in the first place why she was accepted to the list. Well, after I told my information: I'm not gonna send her to hospital emergency since she doesn't have any illness that would need operation in next few days and cause general condition is good. After that she snaps: "Oh I should have known. This place is nothing more than a guess centre."

In Finnish language "health" and "guess" rhyme and that's why it has come somekind of insulting term to heath center used in situation when the patient doesn't get what they want (usually it's antibiotics or some examination that would be mindless to do) and is as close to its literal meaning as "gay", "fuck you" and "hijo de puta". Staff in the guess centre again use term "supermarket" to refer this type of patient who knows better.

Ketosis?

2011-08-23T11:35:01+03:00

This is the second morning it tastes slightly acetone in my mouth, so good that there's just one week left.

I have now truly found non-culinaristic enjoyments starting to study Japanese again. I'm studying through "Japanese for busy people" and there are many grammatical issues that I know already, but it's good to rehearse a bit and practise. Studying Japanese is good equivalent for intellectual masturbations: for sure I'm never gonna need it in my career, but the grammar is so fascinating. For example one simple example is how to ask lost umbrella from bar. "As far as the thing of losing umbrella is concerned, was is not here?" It feels as posh as my Italian shoes that are too uncomfortable to walk with and because of what they look and smell brand new even though they are 2 years old.

Ima wa, daidokoro ni ikimasu. Kaigi ga arun desu.

Sugar 1 Outi 0

2011-08-22T11:35:01+03:00

It seems glucose is as addictive as heroine. My friend was cooking on Friday and cause she made vegan cake just for me, I had to taste one small slice just not to be rude. Next evening I went to eat in "raw food- sausage stand" and since I know from the blog of the chef that the pies they make can't be really classified as sweet bakery, cause they contain so small amount of sugar and coconut oil, I tasted the apple pie, that actually didn't taste that healthy (at least more agave syrup than in the recipes I have cooked). On Sunday I again bought one piece of raw chocolate and later in the evening was eating some thai-sweet and was not even sure was it 100% egg-free.

So 3 days in the row I broke my rule. Following 9 days it will be no for everything, even dried fruits and berries.

The restaurant day again proved how big role sweets play in Western culture. No matter how ortorexic the diet is in itself (as it is in raw foodism easily since it's almost impossible to eat outside, for example when in interview somebody asked from the famous raw food bloggist what's best restaurant in Helsinki, she replied that there's not any and instead she prefers the things she and her other famous bloggist cooks, even though's there's at least Silvoplee), it's for sure that there has to be a dessert at least 1-2 times a week. When I was looking for a cooking book for my friend as a present, I found two books concerning raw foodism: one normal and other one to make sweets. And actually it's logical from capitalistic point of view, since there's limited amount proper food people can eat, but despite that there's always extra space for cake, ice cream and candies.

If I talk about this, usually the comments are that there have to be enjoyments in life and that I'm skinny. But the point here is that in Finnish adult population there are more than 50% overweight people and I bet majority of that is not explained by the muscles. So I consider there are few things to be fixed in our sugarlistic society.

Digesting junk

2011-08-19T11:35:01+03:00

Yesterday was the sinful day since I had plenty of vegan junk food (including vegan kebab, non-alcoholic beer and bar-nuts). My friend asked can there really exist such a thing as vegan junk food. Maybe pitabread with seitan isn't the most unhealthy thing you can eat, but it's anyway white bread and seitan is less rich source of protein than for example soy based products. Here is anyway suggestion how to get much energy and salt and not so much vitamins etc:

-white bread, sweet bakery without eggs and dairy products (here are plenty of options), soft drinks, candy; crisps, salty nuts and other snacks, flavoured soy yogurt (it's so sweet and addictive)

After starving nearly 24h on Wednesday I broke my fast literally on time since when I opened my soda, as a reflex I put it on my lips and just afterwards was devastated did I break the fast few minutes too early. This is actually thing I have been mostly afraid of: that I see some food on a tray and taste it before I remember that I have Ramadan.

On Sunday there will be Restaurant Day in Helsinki. That means that practically anyone can set up a restaurant for one day to their homes, parks or anywhere else. It has come more and more popular as it will be now for the second day. At least I'm happy with the vegan options, but the negative part is that most of them is closing by 18:00. There will be also okonomiyaki-place, which I was dreaming of establishing. :)

God lives in every grape of wineyard

2011-08-18T11:29:01+03:00

In the western countries the religion doesn't play a significant role in our lives, but there are two things that are good substitutes: free markets and wine.

I was yesterday sitting in terrace with my friends and fasting almost 24h hours (I drank pint of Pepsimax after 20:00) as I saw some girl putting icecubes to her sparkling wine. Even though the thing they sell in Willi Väinö may not be Dom Perignon, as an alumnus of academic wine society the eyes were coming out from my eyes as if I had Basedown disease. "What an uncivilized low-educated bitch" was my first reaction. Afterwards I was wondering how is it possible that me, who is otherwise breaking the rules constantly in the kitchen in purpose, can have such a conservative view about drinking alcohol.

In the old days and of course also now especially in France the philosophy of making wine is closer to art than science. Every bottle of wine is a piece of art reflecting the piece of land where its grapes have grown and the weather conditions that were present. It's a sin to modify to mix this liquid form of art with ice, soda or other wine. It's of course common that the wine producer is mixing different grapejuices and wines with each other, but it's him, not the consumer that should decide what is the best combination. Mixing wine from Australia and Italia together? No, No and No.

They say everybody had unique taste and that everybody doesn't have to like Chateu Petrus and understand why it's dirt expensive, but there's strong opinion how the wine is best served: temperature and food that it should be combined with. Usually it's true for most of the tastes, but if you happen to like your Chardonnay sake-warm, it's a sign that you don't know anything about wine.

Even though with wines I'm a purist that thinks perfect wine should not be spoiled eating it with food that is modifying the taste, I have sometimes experimented mixing tap white wine with tap red wine, cause both were undrinkable. But of course in the future I don't want to spoil my health with that kind of crap.

Bää burp bää

2011-08-17T11:35:01+03:00

I have cooking authority, but it's highly based on curiosity and creativity, not skills. Yesterday I was trying to cook falafel, but for some reason everything dissolved to the oil. Maybe the oil was not yet enough hot (between medium and high, but maybe should have waited longer time)? Anyway had excellent hummus instead.

If we go back to the topic of optimism/pessimism, I got again new insights writing e-mails with my friend who I guess have got bad influences from his other friend who has quite pessimistic attitude and who is very neurotic about health issues (with him for example I had long debate about should "permanent side effects" be called "side effects" or something else). They have created together acronyms like "VPTK" and "VPTKTKVM". First one means "fucking shit this everything" and the other one is longer version meaning "fucking shit this everything in this whole fucking world". They have spent few months in Asia and the thing that is bothering constantly in people in that part of the world is that they respect authority, social hierarchy and copy each other's behaviour. Everytime they notice somebody fitting to that sterotype, they say "Bää!" that refers to onomatopoetic sound this "system-sheep" produces. Despite everything seems to be wrong in all the nations in Asia, both seem to be eager to hang around there and learn several languages of that continent.

After hearing how everything is wrong in my country and also abroad, life actually feels quite nice and trouble-free. Let the other people heal the world, make better society or at least shout how it should be done, I'll have another beer.