Spicy kale!

Tonight's kale was accompanied by sauteed red onion, a few pieces of roasted red bell pepper and hot sauce that Josie left behind. Boiled in chicken broth, like last night, but a marked improvement. Still, I get why it's usually a supporting character in soups and things.

It's really a pretty interesting plant though. According to this site, kale and collards "are, in effect, primitive cabbages that have been retained through thousands of years." So it's like I'm eating a dinosaur vegetable!

The cabbagelike plants are native to the eastern Mediterranean or to Asia Minor. They have been in cultivation for so long, and have been so shifted about by prehistoric traders and migrating tribes, that it is not certain which of those two regions is the origin of the species.

So not just a dinosaur vegetable, but a mystery dinosaur vegetable!

Before the "newer knowledge" of nutrition, our experts bemoaned the poor diet of southern farmers, especially the Negroes, and were amazed to find so many of those people to be apparently well nourished. The ubiquitous collard patch on every farm, and in nearly every dooryard where there is room, is now believed to play a most important part in furnishing the necessary vitamins and minerals.

This is turning into a superhero dinosaur vegetable. So I might just buy another bunch of kale when my current one is finished. Kale loaf anyone?

Super fun morning - I got to go down to the International Spy Museum and try out an adventure experience they're putting together. Nina's in charge, so all the Sheepers got invited. Even though we just went through a very rough draft of it and stopped for little debriefing sessions after each piece, there was still a great sense of adventure. It's set to open in May of 2007, and I can't wait to see the finished product!

Since I was in the neighborhood, I got lunch at Chinatown Express, where they make their own noodles. Divine.

Sheep errands, a not-too-hard workout at Fitness First (where I'm now a member!), and home again, tired. I've had this low-level cold for a few days now. Threatening to turn into a phlegm storm, but it might just drizzle and clear up. Hydration, zinc, vitamin C, sleep... what else can you do?



The really happy news for today is that Margaret got a job at City Bikes!