Conversations and starters

I've been making a conscious effort in the past months to not say "like" in every sentence. To me, having that kind of sentence reflects a style of thought that is repetitive and hard to escape. Every sentence sounds more of a comparison than that of the meat. "It's like..." "She's like...". It's hard to just say "It was amazing to see..." or "She seemed so shocked" or "It looks good" without inserting a superfluous comparison...I even remember in high school, I tallied each time this one girl in English class said the L word (Scott pilgrim, anyone?) and in contrast, the teacher completely omitted it when she spoke. It makes all the difference.

I'm not sure when I started having a problem with it, but it had become a habit to start a sentence with "It's like". And I know I'm not completely infallible with my goal -- it's difficult to just change your way of talking! I imagine myself in 10, 15 years hopefully practicing medicine in a clinic, and I absolutely don't want to sound like a little girl. Ah! I did it again.

To work on a more mature conversation. More expressive, authoritative, and heavy. To think differently about how to convey the thought. Consider it a mental floss exercise.

Anyway, I've been dabbling with cracker appetizers. They are the Western version of sushi-- colorful, full of different textures and flavors, but filling. I made a sweet breakfast one with Carr's crackers, and I am en amor. It is a bit heavy on lactose, but I ate 5 and I was full.

Peach and honey
Layer 1: Carr's cheese melt crackers. It is aromatic with some peppers and the cheese flavor is very subtle.
Layer 2: A thin spread of honey butter. It's more honey than butter, and it complements cheese so well.
Layer 3: A slice of brie -- my favorite cheese.
Layer 4: A spoon of natural peach reserves.
+ a sprinkle of salt to fully engage the flavors.


Salmon Avocado
Layer 1: Waterwheel Australian Crisp Bread (from Central Market)
Layer 2: a thick spread of Boursin Garlic & Herb Cheese (amazingly creamy and flavorful)
Layer 3: avocado
Layer 4: smoked salmon (also from Central Market)
I also tried it with bleu cheese -- mon dieu! it was strong but complemented the salmon so well.