Spam Musubi

Have you noticed that it's next to impossible to walk into any store like Target, Walmart, or a traditional grocery store without dropping a minimum of $100? And that for some reason the magic price for big ticket items like flat panel televisions or pieces of furniture is a minimum of $1,500? And that's if you are shopping at a discount / off-brand location.

I went to one of the wholesale shopping clubs today. I don't go very often. I'm not really sure I can justifiy the $50 membership for only going once a quarter. I am a single person, do I really need to buy 24 rolls of toilet paper at one time simply to save money?

Speaking of money, recently I decided to invest in one of those robotic kitty litter boxes. I love the fact that I don't have to walk my cats - especially when it's pissing down rain - but I seriously HATE the litter box. Ever since the automatic cleaning boxes came out, I've been skeptical...but I was going to have to buy a new box regardless, and then when the pet store told me I could return it (I know, ew) if the boys didn't like it, I bought it.

Well, who knew the Terrorist was such a baby! He was so scared of the box that I couldn't even get him to go in it! Schmoopie didn't really care one way or the other but the damn thing was a nightmare. Worse than a regular box the mechanism was constantly stopping / starting, not working when it should, getting caught up...I was dealing more with fricking poo with the automatic box than I was before! So this past Saturday, I got rid of the damn thing. What a relief to go back to the regular pooper scooper.

When GJB was visiting, we found a "new" restaurant (I say "new" with quotes as I have no idea how long it's really been there, it's just new to me) called Ohana, Hawaiian BBQ. I've lived in Hawaii. Granted I was 9 and 10 years old, but I have lived there. I wasn't aware Hawaiians had a particular style of BBQ, other than perhaps the big huge pigs they roast during a tourist luau. So clearly we had to try it.

The menu is an odd combination of many Asian dishes, such as your usual Chinese General Tso's, Pad Thai and crab rangoon. Then, comes the weirdness that is Hawaii, the use of Spam. I've never understood Hawaiian's love for the squidgy salty faux meat that is Spam. Everyone used to eat it when we lived there and from what I understand, Hawaiians eat over 60% of the world's Spam. So, in looking at the menu, there is an item called Spam Musubi. Musubi is a type of sushi - usually a large piece of fish is put on top of a bed of rice with seaweed or nori just wrapped in the middle - larger than your average roll or traditional piece of sushi. Clearly, it was a moral imperative that GJB and I try this Spam Musubi (see photo).

Keep in mind, GJB and I lived in Japan for 3 years. We are pretty well traveled and have eaten our fare share of nasty crap. So, we were not expecting to like Spam Musubi, but we wanted the bragging rights to say we ate it. It is now my favorite thing to eat. I LOVE Spam Musubi! Then! I see it on the Today Show on Saturday morning because one of the major cooking magazines is showcasing strange regional dishes such as Kool-pickles (that's right, dill pickles soaked in Kool-aid) and there is Spam Musubi! You can read more about Hawaii's obsession with Spam and Spam Musubi at http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/Spam.htm.