Innocuous scraps

Nécessité fait loi. i was about to mangle Hamlet's soliloquy (slings and arrows of micromanagement?) when i found this :-)

with so many ostensibly peaceable people at war, it's easy to imagine being in a situation where killing someone might be the best option. after all, sometimes there are no good choices. whether you are willing is one question. which is better is another.

i'm sure i've been characterized as results-oriented at some point, and i certainly have broken rules. now i self identify as process-oriented, partly because i think it's possible to be both, mostly because a mindful focus on processes can lead to better results.

metrics are situational, i.e. better is in the eye of the beholder. in my kitchen, using less water is important because i wasted so much. this shift toward conservation probably began when i stopped washing my skillet; i just remove its contents as completely as i can. during the brief period when i made French toast, the trace of curry from the previous night's dinner complemented the egg (as always) and dark maple syrup.

i own several small saucepans, because buying one is a good way to evaluate a brand. unlike the Europeans, my cheap Chinese saucepan pours without dribbling, so i always boil water in it. after steeping Sideritis scardica and Helichrysum italicum in this saucepan, i leave the spent herbs to dry overnight. the innocuous scraps that remain after i lazily wipe it clean will not be noticed when i boil water for coffee the following morning. their flavor is insignificant, and the paper filter neatly captures them.

some cooking processes are more constructive. long ago, i would make split pea soup with a bone salvaged from pork cooked earlier. a bone like this can flavor a lot of soup and pea soup gradually becomes porridge, so the next step in the process was making a bastardized version of Purée Mongole by adding canned Italian tomatoes. like my French toast, i made this soup without cream or milk. my French toast was better :-)

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