Heat, sun and a plenitude on the plate

How hot has it been in Daglan, I can almost hear you asking. Well, if this were The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, Ed McMahon would ask: “And how hot was it, Johnny?” And Johnny would say something like, “Well, yesterday our chickens were laying hard-boiled eggs.” And that’s how hot it’s been here in Daglan.

Late yesterday afternoon the fan in the upstairs room where my computer resides was showing 35 degrees Celsius (about 95 American). Earlier in the day, I had to park my car in full sun, because some unspeakable moron had parked in my spot, next to our home. When I eventually moved the car to its rightful place, the car’s thermometer was showing 43 degrees (109).

But of course we are surviving. And since I grew up (well, spent my adolescence) in Florida, I am pretty well used to heat and sunshine. With my Florida-boy background,  I also am a big fan of the hibiscus plant, with its bright and showy blooms. And now Jan and I have one growing in a pot on our front steps, occasionally gracing us with a sunny flower, like the one shown here:

How’s that for summer brightness?

A plate that’s over the top: Regular readers will know that I’ve often written in praise of Sawadee, the authentic Thai restaurant in Cénac, not far from Daglan. But we’ve had a couple of less-than-wonderful experiences with take-out food: On two recent occasions, the normally excellent Pad Thai was, well, off. It was much darker than usual (too much soy sauce?) but also lacking in flavour.

So when we decided to try Sawadee take-out again yesterday, we both chose the yellow curry, featuring chicken, an assortment of vegetables, and a variety of fruit, like pineapple. It was great, and here’s my plate:

Unbelievably, I ate it all.

What was a bit surprising was the size of the portions — Jan thought that each one seemed like a double portion. Was the chef just feeling generous, or rewarding us for being regular customers? Either way, we both enjoyed our lunch, although Jan couldn’t quite finish all of it. I managed.