discipline

You’ve probably noticed my discipline of blogging everyday has fallen by the wayside. This is not necessarily to say that I’ve been living an undisciplined life.  Brandon, Mitchell, Laurie, et al will attest to the fact that my mid-morning breve habit is alive and well.

In the run-up to Lent I figure it’s time to get back on the wagon, so to speak.

In addition to posting – maybe not daily, but at least weekly – I’m giving up television.  Though I gave up the small screen about ten years ago without the influence of religious peer pressure, since living in the cultural mecca of Southwest Florida I’ve become somewhat obsessed with my shows.  They’re all of a type: reality competitions that reward originality, risk, and vision. Think: Chopped, Top Chef, Tabatha’s Salon Takeover, American Idol, Kitchen Nightmares, Kitchen Impossible.  It’s a long list.

The other night we staged a homemade version of Chopped – the Food Network show that asks chefs to create a dish using unassociated ingredients.  Contestants will have to make dessert out of blueberries, bread & butter pickles, saffron, and Fruit Loops, for instance. I created a main course from pork shoulder, chipotle, malanga, and pistachios.

I think my dish ended up being far more edible than any version of that pickle, fruit loop travesty.  Of course, I started from a better place too.

And in the future when I miss staring at strangers and remarking at how ignorant they are, I’ll just head to the kitchen and put my skills and knowledge to the test.

The Starbucks morning crew gets to hear more than enough of my impotent knowledge; I don’t need to spew it at television screens too.