I sampled a bit of this yellow-orange treasure a couple of weeks ago at Kata Robata, my favorite local Japanese restaurant.  Chef Hori introduced the uni, which is apparently quite popular in Japan recently, as uni that has not been preserved with the usual alum additive, but instead soaked only in a 3% (as I remember it) sea salt water solution.  The resulting uni (sea urchin roe for those who haven’t a clue what this is about), is like no other uni I have ever tasted.  While I enjoy the usual uni, alum and all, the ensui uni has a much milder, sweeter flavor that is heavenly.  It also seems to maintain it’s firmness a little better, which allows you to appreciate the texture of each tiny bead of roe as it falls apart against your tongue.  If I am getting a little porny with my description it’s because it IS that good.

With this in mind, I have to back up for a moment and describe my experience with uni up to this point.  I was 12 years old the first time I tried uni.  I was on a trip to San Francisco with my dad when we ventured into a run-of-the-mill Japanese restaurant as we were prone to do when travelling, as Japanese cuisine, and sushi in particular,  has been a favorite of mine ever since my dad thought it would be fun to see if he could get his 7 year-old to try a taste of his tekka maki at the old Tokyo Gardens.  He would go on to remind me constantly into my adulthood how he regretted creating that monster.

I digress.  So we ordered some uni at this San Francisco sushi joint.  Neither of us had ever tried uni before even though my Dad had spent some time in Japan, and we were regulars at the few sushi spots that I was aware of in Houston in the 80s.  Uni was not readily available in Houston at the time as far as I can remember, and if it was it was off my 12-year-old radar.  Ever the adventurous eater, perhaps in spite of my age, I was eager to try it.  However, when it arrived, my dad and I both noted its resemblance to cat poop both in smell and appearance.  After tasting it, I imagined it must also taste like cat poop, though I could not confirm that for obvious reasons.  It made such an impression on me that I did not taste a bit of uni until one of Randy Rucker’s tenacity dinners last year, which had a delicious uni and cauliflower puree.  I have since seen the error of my ways and learned that I should not assume that my tastes are the same as they were when I was 12.  I also assume that the uni I tried then was utter crap, thus ruining my taste for it for over 20 years.

What a strange turn of events.  Until sometime last year I consistently listed uni as one of things I would not likely eat ever, and now I have found bliss in its unadulterated form.  Go figure.

If you love flavors of the ocean, seek out some ensui uni, and please don’t be a stubborn idiot like me and miss out on something wonderful for 20 years.  I will admit that uni is not for everyone, and its strong flavor is off-putting to many, but even if you think you don’t like uni you might love ensui uni.

There is not a lot of information about ensui uni around the interwebs, but this Japanese site has some nice photos and a little text that can be translated with google (why must websites use images for text? ugh).

For your viewing pleasure, some other dishes we enjoyed at Kata Robata:

After a long weekend at SCaLE 8x with some of my favorite people, Linux Journal’s Kyle Rankin, Bill Childers and Shawn Powers, I have officially become a huge fan of the annual Southern California Linux Expo. Shawn, Kyle and I had the opportunity to give talks at the conference, and were able to talk with many readers and meet lots of fellow open source enthusiasts. It is always gratifying to hear positive feedback from so many readers in person, and it is fun to see people all over the conference kicking back with a Linux Journal in hand.

Read the rest of my post over at Linux Journal.

While at SCaLE I had the opportunity to give a talk about being a one woman web team for Linux Journal, and my slides are below.  I thoroughly enjoyed the chance to not only share what I do, but also to get feedback and field questions on issues that I may not have given much thought to.  This is incredibly valuable, and I am very glad to have had the benefit of the Women In Open Source conference audience to engage in conversation.

I’d like to personally thank Gareth Greenaway, one of the conference organizers, for encouraging me to submit a talk.  Additionally, I must also say that I was very impressed with the event as a whole, and Gareth, Ilan Rabinovitch, and everyone else involved deserve a big thanks!

Also, Wil Wheaton and John Scalzi blogged about Shawn’s fire.  They have far greater reach than most of us, and I am so glad they also know how awesome Shawn is.

UPDATE: Here’s a status update from Shawn’s blog. http://www.brainofshawn.com/2010/01/17/an-update-on-our-house/

Today, Shawn Powers, one of the best people know, lost his house and pets to a fire.  My heart is broken for him, his wonderful wife Donna and their three daughters.  I can’t imagine how they feel right now, but can only hope that it will get better soon.

Shawn has brought a lot of joy to me and to everyone at Linux Journal as well as the tens of thousands of people enjoy his work.  To that end, his friends have created this chipin page to help his family in the near term.  We are all waiting for details, but we can assume it will take a while for insurance claims to be filed, necessities to be replaced, and for their life to be rebuilt.  At the very least this should make things a little easier over the next few days.

Read more here: http://www.linuxjournal.com/content/urgent-help-shawn-powers-family

In case anyone needs to be reminded why we all love Shawn (though I have no idea why that would be the case):

Marianne Masculino

Angie Byron

Liza Kindred

Maria Webster

Carlie Fairchild

Marla Trevino

Carrie Pacini

All of these women are building things, making noise, improving the world and kicking ass, so go check them out.  If you have the opportunity to meet them, do it.

There are so many other women I’d also like to list here, but I’ll have to save a few for next year’s post.

P.S. You get to hear him sing at the end

This is Tech Tip Video Contest Week (March 9 – 13) at LinuxJournal.com!

Want a free 1-year digital subscription to Linux Journal? This is your lucky week. Watch the daily Tech Tip videos this week and collect the secret letters hosts Shawn Powers and/or Mitch Frazier announce during the videos each day. Come this Friday, unscramble the letters to reveal the secret word(s). Everyone with the correct answer who responds by 11:59:59PM U.S. Eastern Standard Time March, Friday 13th, 2009 wins a free digital subscription to Linux Journal — it’s that easy!

Follow this link for further contest details, and good luck!

I don’t normally get so excited about my own cooking (ok, except for the tenderloin, but I digress), but this chili was SO good I have to share.

I found the recipe on this random Texas Chili site, but made a couple modifications based on the ingredients I had.  So here goes:

Instead of a fresh jalapeno, I just added a couple of sliced jalapenos out of a can.  I used one 2lb+ package of chili meat and just under a pound of stew meat that I chopped up into smaller pieces (because that’s what was in the fridge), and oddly enough the presence of two different sizes/textures of meat was kind of serendipitous.  I skipped MSG because – who has that in their pantry anymore anyway?  Instead I added a couple generous dashes of  Worcestershire sauce (Umami and whatnot).  Since the recipe doesn’t specify, I added the tomato sauce can full of water, so about 8oz.  Note also that a bouillon cube= a teaspoon of granules.  I believe I also forgot the black pepper, but didn’t miss it.  The rest is as-is, and I garnished it with more sliced jalapenos, shredded cheese, chopped onions and tortilla chips (skipped the beans).  YUM!  BTW, this is total man food, so feed it to a dude and he’ll be all kinds of happy.

1984 Texas State Men’s Chili Cookoff Winner

sent by Richard Bull
6 Servings

Winner of the 1984 Texas State Men’s Chili Cookoff. Also won the 1988
Chocolate Bayou Chili Cookoff, York, PA. (Unfortunately, the CBCC has
gone the way of all great ideas that are not left alone.)

Ingredients:
3 pounds cubed beef
2 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons boullion, Beef granules
1 teaspoon boullion, Chicken granules
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
4 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons MSG
6 tablespoons chili powder
1 split jalapeno chili pepper

Briefly sear meat and then add chili pepper tied in cheese cloth sack, paprika,
onion powder, cayanne pepper, boullion granules, tomato sauce and water to
cover. Simmer, covered, for 1-1/2 hours or so. Add cumin, garlic powder, MSG,
black pepper, and chili powder. Cook for another 30 minutes or until meat is tender.
Remove cheese cloth sack with jalapeno pepper and serve.
Beans, ( I have found pintos to be best) prepared and served on the side to be
added after serving. Same with cheese, onions, or what have you.

From: http://www.g6csy.net/chile/recipes/1984%20Texas%20State%20Men%27s%20Chili%20Cookoff%20Winner.txt

The extra-funny thing is that I got this from a random British guy’s site that includes various coverage of Ham radios, fossils, guns and chili peppers.  Go figure, a Texan getting a Texas Chili recipe from a Brit. 

I must preface this information with the acknowledgment that I do feel like I am somewhat more careful about my online vs. off-line information sharing than others may be, and yet I still left myself a little too vulnerable, or so it would appear.  I am a web geek, so it is my nature to have a very “connected” existence.  I put a lot of my life online, and I feel like I am reasonably responsible when it comes to maintaining a healthy amount of distance and restraint in order to protect myself to some extent.  Services like Twitter, Brightkite, Dopplr and others make it too easy to expose yourself to unwanted threats, but if you try to be smart about your information stream then I do feel like you can avoid TOO much drama.

Like many Houstonians involved in technology and marketing, I have gotten to know a lot of new people through Twitter, and have participated in meetups and made a lot of good friends.  The flip side of this is that I have also become a target for someone who clearly has the intent to harm me and potentially others in our community.  I am posting the contents of two emails I received several moths ago.  I know who sent them to me, but I will let you all draw your own conclusions.  My hope is really just that people learn to be more careful with their on and off-line interactions.  Trust your gut instincts about people, but above all, don’t take crap from anyone!  I am not going to let this person interfere with my life, and I hope others will be able to do the same

In the interest of privacy I have removed some personal details about a third party mentioned in the email who was quite viciously targeted.  The intent was to humiliate this person as well as attack me, my husband and our marriage.  Nice try.

Keep in mind that this email was sent to my email address at work.

>On Tue, Jul 8, 2008 at 7:58 PM, anonymous.4b3bb6182f <
>anonymous.4b3bb6182f@anonymousspeech.com> wrote:
>
>> Let me start with. You are one of the nicest people around. Kind hearted
>> and a real trip to be around. I am sending this not to hurt you, but to let
>> you know what has been noticed in public places.
>>
>> Have you noticed a certain twitter “friend” who pays an [unusual] amount
>> of attention to you and your husband’s activities? Finds a way to nuzzle his
>> ear in public all for a “photo opportunity” The way she brushed her breasts
>> up against him at the @carolineco opening. Pretty close for a stranger. I
>> saw the way she looked at him there.
>>
>> Everything about her is all about her. She is in love with your husband.
>> She says so in her blog. Maybe you should read her blog. Pay special
>> attention to her pictures. [link and blog details removed]
>>
>> You know what your husband looks like naked. Does that naked man in her
>> pictures look familiar.
>>
>> [personal details removed referencing a specific "tweetup" with only about 20 people in attendance] ever notice that
>> smell in your home before? How about the day you commented that your
>> husband’s car smelled like Armour All or something. She was with him. She
>> was in his car.
>>
>> Just think about what will happen while you are out of town!

I sent the following reply:

>Does the reply work? So seriously? You think this is my husband? Why?

This was the the response:

I’ve been out of the country and am just now reading your reply.

Did you see her blog?

You KNOW it is your husband. It is him with that [adjective removed] whore. I see you have been out of town as well. Look around your home. I would be willing to wager that there is [adjective removed] hair there somewhere. The guest room? On the floor next to your bed? In the kitchen? Better yet try the shower or bath drains.

I’m sure all the beds will have fresh linens!

You are a dear sweet wonderful person. Your husband is a nice chap. He just has very poor taste in his choice of daliance. Maybe we’ll “run into” her at the happy hour @CC? Maybe at BarCamp? Wait, she is ignorant and knows nothing about computers.

I hope your trip was as enjoyable and as productive as mine was.

To the person who sent these: steer clear of me.  I won’t always be polite.

Finally, take some advice from one of the smartest women I know:

You get to set limits on and make decisions about constructing your Social (Media) Life™. This applies to both individuals and groups.

Trust your instincts. They work online and In Real Life.

- AskDrDing.com

Read the full post. Seriously.

Obama Win Causes Obsessive Supporters To Realize How Empty Their Lives Are

Once again, the fine folks at The Onion make my day a little more fun.