So, The Stig is actually......

Michael Schumacher (BBC) ? Hmmm.... Why am I not convinced?

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If Anything...

If anything, I commend the upcoming presidential election hustle bustle for the discourse in economy that currently runs rampant. We don't get that very often. At least, we are exposed to something more substantial than just candidate imaging-marketing stunts.

Too bad, though… some campaign teams dumb down the by-play by dismissing us, voters, as mere “laypersons,” unqualified to question the practices and policies we have endured.

Do we really need foreigners to spell out what’s been going on?

 

There is a very wealthy class here and it is growing, but so is the gap between rich and poor.

While the top 2% are swanning around the brand name stores, more than half the country's workforce earn hardly enough to feed themselves.

(“Falling down Indonesia's social ladder,” by former BBC Indonesia correspondent Claire Bolderson.)

 

I recalled a conversation my brother and I had when he drove me to work at 5.20 am, a year ago. We went pass couple of morning markets that were so lively in the wee hours.

bro, “There's got to be something wrong about our economy...”

moi, quoting the Murphy's Law, “... if anything can go wrong, it will...”

bro, “Look at these, I challenge whoever says our people are lazy to come and see these, and think again!… They are hard workers. They are just being denied opportunities and systematically impoverished.”

Hmm…

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Broccoli vs. Cauliflowers: Sibling Rivalry?

It all started with a cooking book of 30+ recipees that fashion vegetables into friendlier and palatable feast. Most of them use broccoli. And Granma wondered, "why not cauliflowers?"

"Why bother?" I was amused by her protest.

"Broccoli has more reputation because it's used a lot in western cuisine. So It's considered classier. But broccoli and cauliflower taste, more or less, the same and share, more or less, the same nutritional contribution," she said. "Cauliflower, you know, is more in line with commoners. It's cheaper and easily available in traditional markets."

whoa!... into food politics aren't we, dear?

Well. I have never thought of it that way. I've always thought broccolli dan cauliflower were interchangeable and I am using them interchangeably. The mixed-meatballs, a quickie dish I often made, for example, would still do well with either broccoli or cauliflower. However, Granma's comment prompted me to take a closer look at food I ate out and the cooking shows on TV.

So far, I do find cauliflower almost a non-existence in cooking shows on TV. Last time I skimmed cooking books in bookshop (err... read them and took notes on the spot to save money), cauliflower seldom appears, a stark contrast to broccoli's prominent presence. When I recently had a pizza fest with friends, granma's remarks may have been vindicated.

Now I do wonder why.

I can't help but agree with some of granma's points, though broccoli's nutritional value is a bit better. Additionally, broccoli might have been more favourable, in media and on plates, because of its livelier flashier colour.

Hmm... then again, why bother?

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