Reversy Percy

Just when I stopped expecting further innovation on the M&S Percy Pig, further deliciousness appears.

Reversy Percy may even be better than the original.

Daiwa Katsu Day!

It is entirely possible that I'm the only one who wonders if the food is better at the subsidized cafeterias of other investment banks. If not, please feel free to read on.

While out a few weeks ago, a friend raved about the chicken katsu curry available in the Daiwa Bank Cafeteria.
Of course I had to ask if I could drop by and have the Daiwa Katsu experience, and he kindly said yes.

Daiwa Katsu Day was scheduled, marked on the calendar, and after much anticipation, arrived today.

I arrived at Daiwa's offices on King William Street, right in time to snap the picture above.

After signing in and obtaining a visitor's pass, it was time to feast...and feast we did!


For starters, while their cafeteria is tiny, this chicken katsu was huge. The rice was sticky, the chicken's coating was crunchy, and I chowed my way right into a food coma that I might not have emerged from were it not for the walk back to my office.

As office food goes, this is totally an A+.

ありがとうございます Daiwa!

The Most Delicious Grilled Cheese, Ever

Behold the most delicious grilled cheese, ever!

It, too, can be yours at Borough Market.










There's a raclette & grilled cheese stand near the courtyard gate on the south side of Southwark Cathedral.
(It receives a strong endorsement from Vera!)

My Fake Sun

So, winter has been dragging along here, and as I've been without Passport, leaving for sunnier places hasn't been an option.

To indulge a sun-deprived tangent...
I think a lot of people think that a UK winter is sunless because it is constantly raining here, but this is untrue! The culprit is latitude.

For example, today, 22 February:
London 51°30′N
Day length: 10h27m 3s Sunrise/ Set: 7:01, 17:28

New York 40°47′N
Day length: 10h58m41s Sunrise/Set: 6:40, 17:39

Now, I know what all you New Yorkers are thinking... it's just as dark in NYC!

Today, yes, but what about two months ago?
Let's look at 21 December, the shortest day of the year:
London: 7h 49m 41s with sunset at 15:53
New York: 9h 15m 04s with sunset at 16:31

Now do you feel a shred of pity?
Lights out before four is rough, especially when it's colder than rainier than usual.

Enter My Fake Sun, aka Philips goLITE, which I purchased 2 weeks ago, in a desperate moment. I decided it was far less expensive than the holidays I wasn't taking, and the reviews it received on Amazon were extremely good.

Does it work?

I think it does. I wouldn't say I feel happier, but getting out of bed in the morning is much less challenging. I noticed a difference within 5 days of use. Whether it works or not, I definitely like sitting near it.

The GoLite/FakeSun also works as an alarm clock, so rather than waking up to the cruel song my Blackberry plays (Calypso, if you wanted to know), I can wake up to the eerie blue glow of My Fake Sun and an audible alert.

I often eat my breakfast with it on, and I've found that the twigs I eat for breakfast look even less appealing in blue light. I suppose I can only expect so much.

**Day Length, Sunrise, & Sunset sourced from www.timeanddate.com

M&S Percy Pig Cupcakes

I really haven't devoted enough effort to my love of the M&S Percy Pig here. I've always expected that there would be plenty of time for me to craft an ode worthy of the best gummy candy on this island.

I may have been mistaken. You'll have to just imagine the magnitude of my affection based on my ownership of both a Percy Pig mug and Egg Cup.

Not expecting any developments in this area, this pink box on the coffee table a few nights ago came as a surprise.

Percy Pig Cupcakes?

Let me get this straight...
Marks and Spencer, which I already know can make a fine, fine cake, is now selling a vanilla cupcake with pink frosting, adorned with my favorite M&S candy?

The idea initially leaves me feeling a bit conflicted.
How can I be expected to beat my train home when there are cupcakes such as these to be eaten?
How can I do anything but take the box and vanish into my lair like an predator having claimed victory over its prey?

Two days later, I've had 3 of the four cupcakes. I'll eat the last one for breakfast tomorrow. They're every bit as good as I hoped.

If I ever leave England, M&S food is among the things I'll really miss.

Le Bistro

I acquired the beloved Le Bistro from the SkyMall/ Hammacher Schlemmer catalogue last year, and it represents one of the best uses of $70 in my home.

I bought this bowl to eliminate the need for people to come by and feed my cat, Oscar, at certain times while I was travelling. Rather, it meant that whomever was kindly checking in on him could just stop in when it was convenient with no worries of being mauled by a starving housecat upon their inevitable entry to my apartment.

Le Bistro accomplished all that and *more*. It stopped my mammoth cat from eating his food too quickly and then depositing it somewhere I'd not enourage, such as my bed, gymbag, or bedroom slippers. Most importantly, it has taught Oscar that food comes from the magic bowl and not from humans.

Each morning, the cat wakes up at around 5am. Just as he starts to wonder where food is (5:01a), Le Bistro springs into action, raining down down the morning's first meal like mana from the heavens. Kitty eats and then goes back to sleep, allowing peace to remain in our time.

The magic also happens at 13:oo and 22:15. During the time leading up to the big event, (which pre Le Bistro would have meant being followed by a determined, mewing cat), he just sits and stares at the bowl, trying to will a culinary deluge. The staring for dinner, as documented to the right, traditionally begins around 20:15. I sometimes wonder if he thinks he can stare the food out of it.

Occasionally, Oscar will try to gnaw on Le Bistro's sturdy silo. He has never achieved entry.

24 Days of Joy: My Advent Calendar

As I have done for the last 23 mornings, I turned off the alarm clock and staggered into the living room to my Advent calendar. Bleary-eyed, disoriented, and often tripping over the cat, I have eventually found the applicable drawer, and welcomed the day's start with a festive sugar rush.

Sometimes, I cheat and eat ahead. When I do, I make sure to leave a treat behind, as often there are two in each drawer. Waking up to an empty drawer might leave me inconsolable, and I can't go to work lke that.

Tomorrow is the 24th, which means I get to wake up to the contents of the big (opened) drawer at the bottom and then retire the Advent calendar for another year.

This strikes me as wholly disappointing. Surely there's something I'm always counting down to. Why not count down to everything with treats in little drawers?