Warning: No…ahem, littering

In defense of my upstanding moral character, here is my experience:

When the woman in uniform approached and asked if I had been urinating in the privacy of the cedar tree I’d just cleared, I admitted that yes, I had. To be clear, there was no chance of indecent exposure because I was using what I affectionately refer to as my “big, six-incher”; the only thing possibly visible would have been a tiny pink, plastic spout. She saw me put something back in my pocket and did not attempt to confiscate it. (That might well have started a war.) She informed me that she would have to report me to the campus police. She was a Police Aide stationed in a nearby pick up, positioned so as to not be visible in the driver’s seat. (A stakeout? You decide.)

The three policemen, in two cars, arrived shortly afterward and parked between myself and nine cycling friends.  I sat down, figuring I would be there a while. Three seemed like an awful lot, maybe they called backup out of concern that I would draw my prosthetic funnel and attempt to use it as a weapon. Or maybe the possibility of arresting a woman for urinating in public was the most interesting thing going on around campus that morning. I didn’t expect the riding group, most of whom were now feigning complete dissociation from me, to wait, even though their 7:30 ride was now ten minutes late.

Cop number one took my driver’s license, called me in, then explained to me that I was “littering” and I could be arrested for it. I defensively replied that the bathrooms at the student union — where I normally litter — were locked; so was the engineering building. (Coincidence? Who knows?)

I don’t reckon the campus police give a rip how they do it (litter, that is) in China, Laos, Vietnam or Cambodia, and I didn’t think describing my past four months in the wilderness of Southeast Asia would help my situation. After all, that’s why we have sewers here, right? That’s what cop number one said. He also chided me for not knowing where the next nearest public bathroom was. (Answer: The Circle K, about a quarter mile away — I don’t normally patronize them because most Circle Ks don’t have facilities.)

Though frustrated, I contritely said I had never littered there before and would not do it again. I instantly regretted the exasperated “Okay?” I tacked onto the end. It could have easily been misconstrued as sarcasm. (Note to self: in future situations, take off cycling eyewear.)

He handed my ID back as his colleagues looked on with disappointment. I rode toward the group with a look that my husband later wished he could have laughed at.

If they were targeting the Saturday morning shootout, the campus police unfortunately missed, but they did want me to pass along to my cycling friends that “littering”, in public, is inappropriate. Consider yourself warned.

So, how many campus police does it take to nab a litterer? Watch this space for a reissue of Alice’s Restaurant, coming soon.  (Collaborators welcome.)

Warmly,

Tinkles

For those of you interested in Asian Adventure bike touring:

Claire and her husband Bob Rogers will give a program on their tandem bicycle journey In Search of Shangri-la. They pedaled from Chengdu, China, over the Tibetan Plateau, into Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand.

This is not your grandfathers slide show! They’ve ridden their tandem more than 40,000 miles, fully loaded, all over the world, and have given tens of presentations about their adventures. Crossing passes nearing 16,000 feet and getting lost in the anti-personnel bomb infested jungles of Laos are just two of the stories they have to tell.

Sunday March 28 at 7pm

The program will be in the central clubhouse at Far Horizons Tucson Village, 555 N. Pantano. Turn north at the stoplight on 5th between Speedway and Broadway. The gate will be open until 7:30

Claire and I were honored to be able to fly on a vintage B 24 and B 17, with members of the Womens Air Service Pilots, WASPs, from Phoenix to Tucson. They were a delight to be around and it is a memory we will cherish. The story ran in the Desert Leaf, a Tucson monthly.

Today about 200 surviving WASPs were presented with the Congressional Gold Medal. About time! We hope all our friends were there.

Hai Van Pass in Vietnam

This view is probably familiar to many in my generation who served in Vietnam in the 1960’s and 1970’s. It was taken, looking north, from a headland jutting out into the South China Sea, forming a barrier to weather, and no doubt troop movements, between South Vietnam and North Vietnam. The two Vietnams are now officially one country, but we found, as we pedaled from the DMZ south, two fairly distinct cultures. In Hue, the former Saigon where Claire was born, is called Ho Chi Minh City, south of Hue it is still called Saigon, even on train schedules.

The Vietnamese people are increasingly  entering the world economy, and will challenge many other Asian economies in coming years. They are incredibly industrious, and highly intelligent. Economists should keep their focus on China, but watch Vietnam out of the corner of your eye. They are not far behind.

Oriental Stir Fry from Italian Leftovers

This is a second healthy meal using the purposefully created leftovers from a Mediterranean meal, minus the pasta.

Ingredients: leftover vegetables and chicken saute (two days old, max) extra virgin olive oil, 1/3 cup coconut milk, 1/2 orange, 1 tbsp fish oil, 1 tbsp red curry paste, 1/4 cup dry whole grain basmati rice, cashews.

Pour the cook a glass of wine.

Preparation: cook rice 35 minutes in salted water, drain and cover to finish; stir fry rice in olive oil, curry paste and fish oil; add leftovers to mix with coconut milk and heat; squeeze 1/4 orange into wok and stir.

Serve on 8″  plates with 1/4 orange and chopsticks.

Serve with a hearty white wine.

Ingredients:  two boneless skinless chicken breasts, Trader Joe’s 21 Salute and garlic powder, 1/4 cup whole wheat penne, one large onion, one red pepper, three medium zucchini, sheep cheese, pepitas, 8 cloves garlic, tarragon, black pepper, marjoram, extra virgin olive oil.

Pour the cook a glass of wine.

Preparation: fry chicken breasts coated with Trader Joe’s21 Salute and garlic powder in lots of olive oil, chop vegetables large pieces, cook penne al dente while you fry the vegetables in lots of olive oil with tarragon and marjoram; add cubed fried chicken. Drain pasta and cover 1/2 of an 8″ plate, add vegetable/chicken breast mix, top with sheep cheese, pepitas and ground black pepper.

Serve with your favorite hearty white or light red wine.

There will be leftovers of the vegetable/chicken mix. Reserve for tomorrow nights meal!

Good Luck?

A few years ago Claire and I traveled the Silk Road from Beijing to Istanbul on our tandem bicycle, a train, an airplane, and one Lada.

In a small town in Azerbaijan, we saw this door sill with three horseshoes attached, pointing to the street. In the U.S. some people attach a horseshoe over their front door, pointed up, for good luck, and/or prosperity. We were, as usual ignorant in the local language, and unable to ask what this means. Not knowing is sometimes more interesting than knowing. But I wouldn’t mind if someone from the Caucasus area would tell us.

Simple dinner built around Claire's many grained bread

Ingredients: extra virgin olive oil, fresh asparagus, pack of cards size serving of wild salmon, Claire’s many grained bread, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, 4 cloves garlic pressed, tarragon, Trader Joe’s 21 Salute, sea salt, ground pepper.

Pour the cook a glass of wine.

Preparation: Claire bakes her no knead many grained bread; I can’t be more specific because she makes it differently each time, which is part of the adventure! Steam the asparagus while frying the salmon in extra virgin olive oil, sprinkled with tarragon and fresh pressed garlic. Make dipping oil/vinegar mix adding Trader Joe’s 21 Salute and pepper. Arrange on an 8″ plate, sprinkle asparagus with sea salt and serve with wine. Dip the bread liberally in the olive oil/balsamic.

This is simple, quick and healthy nutritious. If you’re in a motorhome you probably don’t want to bake bread, but even Wal*Mart has some good artisan breads. Don’t be tempted by the white stuff!

If you haven’t noticed, these recipes are all very healthy. Don’t let that put you off. This kind of eating is much more satisfying than processed foods, white flour, sugar, bad fats, and the 8″ plate will soon seem plenty big; the pounds will melt away, the cholesterol numbers go down, and you’ll avoid type 2 diabetes. Enough preaching. Enjoy.

Why are these Vietnamese schoolgirls wearing masks

Vietnamese school girls, in the hot Mekong delta, ride their bicycles to and from school. They wear these beautiful pant/dress outfits, and large face masks. We learned that they wear the masks mainly to protect their skin from the sun and air pollution, not so much their lungs. It is the same reason they wear full covering clothing in such a hot climate. In much of Asia, class is shown by lightness of skin: if you have clear white skin it means you are from the upper classes, not from the working classes.

Supposedly classless Communist Vietnam, was more complex than we had imagined.

Photo by Claire Rogers from the back of our tandem Zippy on our In Search of Shangri-la journey throughout SW China and SE Asia.

Ingredients:

Leftover cooked chicken breast, 1 cup broccoli, 2 smallish zucchini, half an onion, 1/2 red pepper, five cloves garlic, 1/2 cup whole wheat penne pasta, tree nuts of choice, crated sheep cheese, one egg, olive oil, seasoning of your choice (be creative).

Pour a glass of wine for the cook.

Preparation:

Dice vegetables in large pieces, cube cooked chicken breasts; fry vegetables in lots of olive oil, adding pressed garlic, spices and cubed chicken near the end. Cook pasta al dente, drain but reserve 1 cup, add 3 tbsp of pasta water to bowl, one egg, 1/4 cup grated cheese and stir until a sauce. Reduce over heat if necessary. (Claire’s sauce) Mix pasta back into sauce. Place vegetable chicken mixture and pasta on 8″ plate, cover with sauce, sprinkle nuts and add pepper or salt if you like. Have with wine and your sweetie.