Culinary Adventures: Fish Tacos

A few weeks ago I received the newest issue of Women's Health in the mail. This month they had a section of easy summer recipes. One that immediately jumped out at me was fish tacos. I've never eaten a whole lot of fish besides tuna sandwiches, but have started broadening my horizons and thought that it sounded like a very tasty recipe.

It was on my mind for several weeks until I finally got to Whole Foods to purchase some fish on Tuesday. Because of my limited knowledge on such things I asked the man behind the counter. He suggested a sole or halibut. Although the sole was slightly more pricey, I went for it because it looked appetizing. All in all, for the two of us it really didn't cost very much.

My foresight was a little short, so I did not have all the ingredients the recipe called for, but that has never really stopped me from trying my best. This is how it went.

I used olive oil, salt, pepper, and cumin to saute the fish. I bought a half a pound for the two of us (we could have eaten more.) I kept the heat high and stirred to break the fish up into pieces until it was opaque and looked done. (Because this was my first time cooking fish, I had no real idea what done was.)

We at the fish on corn tortillas with cabbages and sour cream. Ryan added tomatoes and hot sauce, and I will probably add the hot sauce in the future as well.

The recipe called for red onion and a squeeze of lime, which I believe will be a good addition. I also plan on adding more cumin next time as it could do with a little more kick.

The fish was tender and tasty, the cabbage gave the taco a nice crunch. My corn tortillas left a lot to be desired, I need to work on a more effective was to heat them up (the microwave does not cut it.)

All in all it was a good experiment and one that I can improve upon. Fast, easy, and tasty.

Progress

I continue to progress on getting better. I'm talking baby steps, but it's wonderful.

Yesterday I went shopping at Pier 1 and bought new curtains for our bedroom along with a real curtain rod, as opposed to the white spring loaded ones we have now. I feel pretty class and I will take a picture of them when they get hung.

I also had several appointments, went to the grocery store, made dinner, and did dishes. I was exhausted last night and today, but it was worth it. Did some more dishes today and hope to be more active tomorrow.

I took pictures of dinner and plan on blogging about it soon.

Distractions

Lately I've found it necessary to distract myself from my current situation in life. I'm not incredibly ill anymore like I have been. In fact I'm just well enough to want to a do a list of things that I'm not yet capable of doing. I still do not have the sufficient energy to attempt working, nor do I have the mental capabilities to consider going back to school.

Last week I thought I might be able to do both. I had the opportunity to work on a freelance writing job and I was very excited about it. But when it came time to complete the actual work, I couldn't accomplish anything. Partly this was personal, as I tend to be a procrastinator, but also the fatigue and headaches I've been dealing with on a daily basis really made it impossible.

I hate this. I want to be a productive human being. I'm smart, I'm moderately motivated (I'm not going to fool you if I said I was extremely motivated, you all know I'm some what of a slacker) and I enjoy being active and around people. It is extremely hard to not be able to do the things I love.

What makes it even more difficult is that to look at me I look EXTREMELY healthy. I've lost weight due to the change in my diet. My finger nails are growing wonderfully. I'm a delightful color (not as tan as I once enjoyed being, I've decided staying out of the sun is super healthy and I'd rather be pale). No one can see what my head feels like, constantly like it's going to implode, like a vice is gripping it from all angles. Or that my jaw is sore sore it's hard to chew, or swallow, or talk. No one sees the hours I spend in bed, because when I come in contact with others I'm out and about and trying to enjoy life as much as possible.

It's all so frustrating. But I have enjoyed my distractions. I enjoy watching tv and reading. I keep up to date on my favorite people, friends, tv shows. I love twitter. And occasionally I read the news. But it's mostly sad and I don't need any more negative feelings in my life. I have to keep myself in check however, I do not want to get so distracted that I lose focus on my goal of becoming healthy and active again. It's not easy and there is a balance to be made, and perhaps I'm still working on it. But I hope while I am, you enjoy my entertainment recommendations and observations on the world in general.

Coming Friday

This show begins the second half of the third season friday on Syfy (formally SciFi, they rebranded).
It's a silly, fun, heart warming show about a small town full of geniuses. Check it out.

Accents

I am constantly amazed by actors and actresses. I really enjoy television and movies and the way that someone can completely be consumed by a role (or at least good actors anyways.) One of the things I enjoy most is when people take on characters that are from a different place than they are and therefore assume and accent of this place.

I am not an actress. I think at times I can be entertaining, and I sometimes can mimic movements or the pace of someone's speech. But I can not assume any kind of accent than what I originally have (and who knows what that is.)

I read a lot of websites and blogs about the entertainment industry and E! Online has a really great survey and photo gallery called Sham Yankees. It gives some of the most notable performances and asks you to vote on whether they are Apple Pie or Crumpets. I'm not sure exactly what they are asking for, as crumpets I would assume refers to England but it doesn't actually say that. And furthermore not all of the comparisons are between England and the US. It's entertaining none the less. And you may learn a few things about the actors from your favorite shows. Check it out!