T’was the day before Christmas…
…and Sagan still didn’t have all her presents wrapped. Anyone else work better under pressure too?
Actually, I can’t wrap presents. (There seems to be a trend here with my domestic difficulties… can’t cook, can’t bake, can’t wrap presents…). All of my presents for people wind up in bags or boxes so that I can avoid the disastrous results of wrapping. Not for lack of trying, of course- much wrapping paper and tissue paper has been damaged beyond repair in my efforts to swaddle my gifts in the stuff. Alas, my hand-eye coordination is hopeless, paper gets ripped, tape winds up sticking to all my clothes, and I disappear under a pile of bows and ribbons in the madness that is the few days before Christmas.
Whoever invented the gift bag is my hero. And Squawkfox is too—thank you for your fantastic ideas of how to wrap gifts!
Speaking of domestic difficulties and being unable to cook (soon there will be a book. I shall call it Sagan’s Kitchen Misadventures: How Not to Cook. Or perhaps (Don’t) Cook with Sagan. Look for it cross-listed under “Cooking Reference” and the “Horror” section in bookstores), yesterday I learned how (not) to make sushi!
I have wanted to make my own sushi for a long time now, so when I found out that my friend has the equipment to make sushi and has made it before, I dug out my sake set and we got together to drink sake and make sushi. Unfortunately I only have brown rice, which is a problem when you’re trying to make sushi. However, I succeeded in cooking the rice beautifully (I’m not even being sarcastic there; successfully cooking rice really is a huge accomplishment for me. (Don’t) Cook with Sagan indeed. Go find Jamie instead).
I burned the seaweed in the process of toasting it. Only a little, though. Then we forgot to add the rice vinegar mixture onto the rice in my first roll, oops. That roll fell apart. But it was still fairly tasty with smoked salmon, green pepper, cucumber, and asparagus. I’d bought an avocado too, but when we cut it open it wasn’t ripe at all (ever sliced right through the pit? That’s a sure sign your avocado is not ready to be eaten).
My friend forgot that the rice vinegar mixture was on the stove and it got weirdly frothy, and then when he added it to the next roll he didn’t add quite enough for it to be sticky but even so it was rather too sweet (might have been because we lost count of how many tablespoons of sugar we added—“was that 3 or 4? Oh whatever, dump some more in there, and pass me the sake while you’re at it!”).
Our last attempt was the best one yet but it still fell apart a little and once more was a bit too sweet. By then we had run out of rice so our adventures had to stop there. But it was fun and entertaining, even if it did not exactly go as planned. And nothing even got set on fire. A good experience all around!
Day 24 of the 100 Reps Challenge
There are a number of challenges to attend to the day before Christmas—cleaning the house, preparing food, trying to figure out how to answer this month’s poll, finishing up present-wrapping/bagging/boxing, scrubbing the pot that you made the rice vinegar-sugar-salt mixture in for sushi, and so on and so forth. But the fitness challenges are not to be neglected! Take a couple minutes out of your day to complete this little sequence:
25 lying external rotators (for each side)
25 back leg raises (for each side)
Do this set 4 times for a quick 100 lying external rotators and 100 back leg raises!
Fitness Tip: Keep your body aligned for the lying external rotators and move slowly to control the movement. Form is more important than pumping out 25 in a row! If you need a break, take a break. For the back leg raises, be aware of your posture and stand up as straight as possible; with shoulders relaxed and abs contracted, it will be much easier to keep your balance and carry out the exercise correctly.
Happy Christmas Sagan! I’m not sure I would have been as skilled as you after a slurp of Sake…. I woulda just stirred the rice in with some soy sauce and gone out for fish and chips….
Hope the wrapping/placing in gift bags goes well!
TA x
Girl, I haven’t wrapped my gifts either, or printed out the pictures for my mom’s gift, or finished the kids’ craft project to give to my mom, either. Yikes! I’m going to be one busy Santa’s helper today.
Your tale of wrapping woes cracked me up!!
I would like to learn to make sushi, too. Even though yours didn’t turn out, it sounds like you had fun. 🙂
Merry Christmas!!
Good luck with ‘wrapping’ things up on the last days pre-Holiday. I’m sure everyone appreciates your thought nonetheless! Merry Christmas!
I dont have my presents wrapped either! Im going to have to do them all tonight
Kelly Turner
http://www.everygymsnightmare.com
I dont have my presents wrapped either! Im going to have to do them all tonight
Kelly Turner
http://www.everygymsnightmare.com
I dont have my presents wrapped either! Im going to have to do them all tonight
Kelly Turner
http://www.everygymsnightmare.com
I dont have my presents wrapped either! Im going to have to do them all tonight
Kelly Turner
http://www.everygymsnightmare.com
I dont have my presents wrapped either! Im going to have to do them all tonight
Kelly Turner
http://www.everygymsnightmare.com
i laughed when i read the beginning of the post b/c i still have SO much to do!!!
Sushi might look easy, but it takes skills for the sushi to not fall apart. You attempts remind me of the time I tried making sushi. Needless to say, that was my one and only attempt.
Gift bags are great. But paper bags from the grocery stores are even better. Fold over the top, staple it close. Add a bow. Yep, good for the environment, good for my wallet, and good for my sanity.
Merry Christmas Sagan!
TA- Happy Christmas to you too! I actually completely forgot about soy sauce. That probably would have made it taste a little better…
Robin- so much to do, so little time… but it's all enjoyable stuff! Have fun with the kids.
Ashley- thanks muchly for the luck, I'll need it hehe.
Kelly & Loveofoats- how DID the holidays sneak up on us so fast?
Asithi- "good for my sanity"- that ones a BIG one;) Wanna get together and makedestroy sushi? 🙂
It’s the thought that counts.
Merry Christmas
we took a sushi class once – it was MESSY! I’ll pay someone to do it for me 🙂
anyway,- sending lots of holiday wishes, Sagan, plus love and hope for a great 2009!
Merry Christmas Sagan! I have a couple more things to wrap this morning then I’m good to go…
Wrapping: I cheep and use lots of extra tape or just stick it in a bag with raffia on top =) I just finished wrapping the last present and feel a huge sense of relief…ahh….
Merry Christmas Eve
I love eating sushi! I do not love making sushi:) It’s so much harder than it looks! Good luck with the present bagging! Have a great Christmas!
James & Jolene- have a happy Christmas!
Leslie- very messy! Think I'll pay for someone else to make it for me next time too:) Have a wonderful holiday!
Fitness Surfer- how about duct tape? Enjoy your relaxation time!
Charlotte- in theory making sushi is pretty simple… in practice, not so much! Merry Christmas.
Egad, you made sushi with brown rice? I think you would be arrested for that in Japan… 😉
I actually can make pretty decent sushi, but the guys at the sushi place make it so much better! In fact, that is exactly what we are having for our Christmas eve meal. When I’m done here I have to go order it. My 4 year old daughter is crazy for the stuff.
I have two more things to wrap and I’m done. I’m feeling pretty good right now. Relaxed and in the Christmas spirit.
Don’t give up on your culinary skills Sagan. The process is half the fun (same with making sushi – as you know).
Merry Christmas. Enjoy your feasting.
Adam
Making sushi without the sticky sushi rice would be tough. Sounds like you had fun with your friend though! Husband has been known to make sushi, and we even have sushi rice in the cupboard, so if you’re ever in Saint John, stop by and we’ll give it another go. 😉
Hi Sagan,
Okay, I want to visit your kitchen – just to see and experience the misadventures! I’m guessing it’s not as bad as you make it out to be! Gift-wrapping – yep, I’ll take the bag any day! And…I still have a couple to wrap – should keep me occupied ALL afternoon!
Happy holidays to you!
I did the rock the boats yesterday and they killed me! I think I’m going to have to add those to my abs routine. 🙂
Adam- I love that your 4 year old is already a sushi addict! That would be a great Christmas Eve meal. And I’ll keep trying/experimenting- it’s too fun for me to stay away very long:)
JavaChick- I’m going on a road trip out east this spring… maybe I’ll go a few provinces further to drop by for some sushi-making! Hehe.
Lance- one day I’ll film it. I should sell tickets or something; every time I enter the kitchen its quite the show;)
Running Knitter- mmm, best feeling ever, isn’t it? 😀
Making sushi at home *is* hard! So is wrapping presents. 🙂 Happy holidays to you!!!
Merry Christmas, Sagan! Loved the tale of your sake/sushi adventures!
(perhaps a little less sake next time??)
I’m feeling you on the non-gift wrapping skills. I’ll have a post up tomorrow morning about that, actually. (But my biggest problem is that I’m too lazy and just don’t want to do it! Wah!) 🙂
Very cool that you made sushi! I’ve always thought that would be fun to try.