venta

Well, as I rather expected, my bento didn't make it into the 20 finalists of the competition :)

The winners and finalists are pretty impressive, though, so I don't exactly feel like I was robbed. If you're the sort of person who likes looking at pretty lunches, then they're asking people to vote for their favourite finalists to determine the ranking order.

Nutritionally speaking, I think I prefer mine over some of the finalists' - there's one that seems to be made of nothing but pasta. At least one (the cherry blossom one, if you're looking) is so artistically impressive that I can't imagine daring to eat it. Some of them are awesome, though, and look both pretty and delicious. I think maybe I'll stick to trying to cook tasty food, and sod the appearance :)

#2 in a highly intermittent series: Things You Can or Cannot Grind in a Meat Grinder

Cannelini beans and beetroot? ( Yes! )

( Unlooked-for bonus, useful for film-makers )

So, tell me about foods you don't like.

What do you mean when you say "I don't like <food>"? Let's leave aside for the moment allergies, intolerances, things that bring on funny tummies, and so on, and think just about preferences.

( I don't *like* it )

A couple of people have asked of late whether I'm still doing my bento lunches, which I am. I just thought that perhaps I shouldn't tell you about my lunch every day.

Anyway, this post is primarily aimed at ebee, who was watching me making some bits for it last night and expressed interest.

( Today's bento )

Informercial...

I'm considering placing an order with Bento&co. They're in the US, and the shipping is $13 minimum, or $27 if you want any form of tracking/insurance.

I was just wondering whether anyone to whom I can conveniently convey goods wishes to join in my order and split the shipping.

Edit I assume you will all assume this, but I have now placed my order and thus this offer is closed ;)

Continuing the relentless ongoing series of lunch-based posts...

( Weird, wobbly food )

How does one use google again?

Specifically, how does one use it locate real, physical shops that one can really, physically visit? Obviously it's easy to answer (say) "where is the nearest branch of Smiths?", but it I want to answer "where is the nearest shop which will sell me a specific, but faintly obscure, item?", how do I go about doing that?

I'm sure there must be a perfectly simple, obvious solution, but I appear to be missing it. All I can turn up is online stores. Yellow pages seemed like a good guess, but unless you can phrase your question sufficiently broadly, you don't get any sense out of it.

( What is it you want to buy? )

Bloody mice with flipcharts. Honestly.

( Planning: not all it's cracked up to be )

( Bento 7 )

Well, it's Monday and I'm committing to another week of making myself bento boxes. Now with even more planning...

( I've got a list and everything )

( Bento 5 )

For most of my working life, I've taken lunch rather than buying it in. I still instinctively call my lunch "bait", which mostly confuses people. I shall attempt to use the word lunch throughout this. I rarely take sandwiches; usually my approach is to pick a box, put into it random things I find in the fridge, and call it lunch. So, the question I've been pondering of late... this whole bento box plan. Other than the rather Japanese theme of the contents, what makes my lunch bento-y? Why did what I was formerly doing not add up to the same thing, modulo presentation?

( Ooh, lunch! )

( Bento 3 )