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In Haruki Murakami’s novel, a boy wrapped a fresh cucumber by seaweed and snaped it. That sound and fresh smell made his Dad in his hospital bed woke up nicely.
Cucumber is one of my fridge regulars. It has vitamin A, B , mineral such as potassium, dietary fiber and phytochemical, contains lot of water, makes body cool down. Summer vege.
Cucumber is also my regulars in salad, cool noodles, stir-fries, eaten in various way. I eat half of piece and by the other half make light pickles for breakfast.
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Light pickles
Cut a cucumber into one bite size. Sprinkle a tsp salt . Wait about one hour in room temprature.
Put half tsp Kelp tea (right side) into glass container. Add boiled water 30cc . Add vegetable and dried chili. if the water doesn’t cover the vege, add more water.
Afterl cool down, keep in fridge for several hours or over night. When the cucumber gets salty and soft, squeeze it and place on a tiny plate.
Other veges, like radish, white radish, carrot, Chinese cabbage are lovely too.
Simple and fresh pickles. Sound strange?
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Kelp tea – Kobu cha
It is made from the same kelp for making clear soup, contaning salt, sugar, kelp powder and amino acid. It is drunk for health in Japan, also used in cooking like powder soup stock.
It is sold at Paragon and Fuji-super market at Sukhumvit soi 33/1.
Buddha realized spiritual enlightment under a linden tree.
Its evergreen leaf is heart-shaped. Stem connects one point. From the starting point it glows widely more than sideways, curve upwards, extends towards the very point.
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Meditate in a linden leaf.
The starting point is at the perineum.
Inhale, breathe in there. Breath fill and broden the body, moves up towards the third eye, the very point.
Exhale, from the third eye breath flow down to the perineum with absorbing the life energy.
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Mind is relaxed like wide width. Mind is sharp like the very point in the same time.
The third eye looks down the starting point, where we come.
Red sweet tomato is a very image of summer.
Tomato makes body cool down, has various of vitamins, potassium and phytochemical. In Thailand small ones are rather sweet for salad. I cook big fresh tomatos often.
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Tomoto soup
Make shallow cross cuts at the top and bottom sides of tomato.
Boil water in a pot over high flame. Add tomato. Cook until skin got loos. Remove to cold water. Peel the skin. Cut into pieces.
Put tomoto, Balsamic vinegar,salt, pepper and chili olive oil (garlic and chili in the oil too) in food processor. Grind until smooth.
Keep in fridge more than 30 min. Serve in a cup. Place herb and cream on top.
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Tomoto avocado pasta
Put avocado, yogurt, salt and pepper in food processor. Grind until smooth.
Boil Angel hair pasta in boiling water with some salt and olive oil. Put in cold water and drain.
Place pasta. Pour avocado cream and tomato soup, herbs, fried garlic over.
Sprinkle olive oil or chili olive oil.
Chili olive oil (in photo bottle on right side)
Stir fry a lot of sliced garlic in olive oil over medium flame. Add cut dried chili. Fry until garlic turns into golden color.
Put chili powder in a glass bottle. Pour fried chili and oil in it. Add some new virgin oil until the oil covers the garlic. Stir and wait until cool down.
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They say in hot weather we need to eat cool down food. In the same time eat some heat up food for making balance. Tomato is for cool down. Chili is for heat up.
Make good balance in body and taste!
In the hottest season afteroon, I come home, turn the air-con on.
When the room get cool down, I prepare Gao-shan tea. It is Wu long cha, comes from mountain area in southern Taiwan. Tea leaf looks like tiny ball. When it meets with 80 degree water, it blooms into green leaf, extending pure fregrance.
With toy-like tiny pot, I make tea like ritural. With toy-like tiny cup, I drink up one cup in one sip. Smooth tea running down though the throat. Feel tea fregrance in exhale.
Make tea again. Then one more sip. Exhale.
Make tea again. Then one more sip. Exhale.
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Thirst and hotness walk away. In cool shade everything is quiet and calm.
Macrobiotic says eat seasonal vege, which is produced where we are.
In Japan eggplant is vege from summer to fall, purple color. It contains lots of water and dietary fiber, makes body cool down. Purple color has antioxidant, Nasunin and Anthocyanin.
In Thailand there are various colors and shapes of eggplants. Long green and small white ones are sweet. Others are rather bitter, nice accent in Thai dishes.
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I love eggplants, often cook stair-fried with olive oil or sesame oil simply. Or without oil.
Baked eggplant
Heat non-stick-frying pan over low flame.Place eggplant and cover it.
Change the side sometimes. When the skin turns to black and hard, remove to a plate.
- Wait for a while. By pointy stick, tear and remove the skin and tear the inside.Cut off the calyx.
Serve on a plate. Pour a bit soy sauce. Sprinkle Katsuo-bushi (finely shaved dried bonito) or grinded ginger as topping.
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Last week I invite my friends for lunch. Sweet spicy purple eggplant is everyone’s favorate.
Sweet spicy purple eggplant
Purple eggplants 1pack, sesame oil, Konbu-dried kelp 5cm squre water 300cc, A (Japanese soy sauce 2Tbs. Mirin-sweet sake, 3Tbs.), spice (dried red chili or grinded ginger)
Cut off the fringe of eggplant’s calyx and cut half on longer direction. Make many parallel diagonal cuts on skin for let absorb the soup.
Heat a frying pan until hot. Add oil. Fry the eggplant on both sides.
Make clear soup. (See Protain issue 3 without Miso)
Pour over eggplants. Add A and spice. Cook until the sauce is 1/3 amount.
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Have sweet cool down in hottest season.
Drisiti is eye-focus point. Each yoga pose has its Drisiti. Where and how we watch have big influence to body and mind.
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One who keeps chin up, looks upward and wandering in the air, wonders other things. Indifference.
One who keeps tuck chin too much and look down, worries some things. Fear.
One who keeps gazing like sucking object by eyes, forgets oneself. Greed.
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Les teaches watch not on part of body, watch over Drisiti-infinity.
Japanese zen monk teaches Drisiti is on the floor about a meter away with eyes ajar.
Ven. Metino Bhikku teachs Drisiti is behind the back with eyes closed.
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Body upright. Keep chin at right angles to spine. Eyes are on Drisiti.
Bring inner Drisiti at the bottom of brain.
With exhale, travel along spinal cord towards pelvic floor.
Stay there, where Kundalini-coiling snake is sleeping.
With inhale, travel towards Sahasrara-crown of head.
Watch ourself. That is Drisiti.
I like starting my class with ‘Savasana’ dead-body pose, adjust people’s body into symmetry.
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I hold ankles and wait for a while. The legs get relaxed and roll out naturally.
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Sometimes I meet tensed legs, which are felt like steel rods, no-relax.
The owners don’t know their tense, but ask me advice for their health problems often.
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Once gets into tense without aware, need to learn how to unwind.
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Words are not enough.
Body awareness is effective.
Warmth of palms is excellent.
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In some serious situation, there is no words to say. Place the palms on your friend gently. That brings wormth from the bottom of our heart.
Releasing both of us.
Japanese way of diet says ‘Eat 30 kinds of food eveyday’. Count grain, veges, fishes, everything, including seasonings.
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That is the reason Japanese dishes have a lots of small side dishes. Many kinds of food with many colors, in various way of cooking is not for only taste and beauty, but also for nutrition balance.
Even they say it is good for us, if eat only a kind of food a lot, lead into imbalance. Eating various food brings better balance and lower risk. Explore greetings from the Season and the Earth.
Give a daily pleasure to our body and soul. Eat up!
‘Yoga Nidra’ is yogic sleep, staying in between awake and asleep without dreaming. It brings complete relax, calm and positive state of mind.
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I asked my doctor for permission to go into surgery with my ipod. I believe the good state of mind brings good result, even in unconscious.
I laid down on surgery bed with ears plugged. I listened Yoga Nidra, which my friend recorded for me. My consciousness was shatted down with gentle guide to calm state of mind.
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Yoga Nidra is done in passive pose, like dead-body pose. Listen the guidance without any movement. Guide calls names of body-parts one by one, for releaseing muscles and mind. Sometimes with visualizations, with making own resolution.
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Making resulution is seeding in mind. Over the times it roots into unconsciousness, grows up at the center of mind.
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My resolution is ‘My mind is calm and clear’ all the way though.
In Thai language ‘Gift from heaven’ means talent.
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Everyone got the ‘Gift’. Some got a little, some a lot. Some aware it, some not.
The person who got great Gift, creates extreme work. Beautiful and graceful.
The Gift has its nature, wants to extend out. The greater the Gift is, the more struggle and harder work the gifted person is requred. If the person can’t fill Gift’s desire, it eats the person.
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Find out own Gift. Extend it outwards. Then create goodness in this world. That is the heaven’s perpose.
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Drawing by Kamui Lim
A summer day in the city of Angels 