I'd like to think it takes someone confident in his own manhood to take pleasure in such simple and seemingly epicene activities. I'll spare you the dullness (to outsiders) of numbers 1 and 2. And 4 is hitting you full-on as you read. As to #3 - what local canteen of well-repute did the Q visit tonight? If you guessed De Bamboo Express, then all I can say is...you MUST know Banga Mary!
Tonight, I make it official. This is one of the very tippiest top places in all of Northeastern Flatbush. And tonight, I finally ordered what I've been leading up to for years: The House Special Fried Rice. For the HSFR they throw in the kitchen sink - pork, chicken, shrimp...it's a mountain of food, cooked to that crazy Sino-Trini tune of de-frickin-licious.
Why did Chinese food get mashed with West Indian food in the first place? The horrible truth is that many Chinese were kidnapped or tricked into coming and forced into slavery during the 19th century. While this is not the original textbook definition of "shanghai'ing someone," it sure sounds like it ought to be. The great irony is that the reason there was a shortage of labor was, of course, because blacks had finally begun to win their freedom. Apparently the thinking at the time was that the right price to pay someone for their labor was...NOTHING.
Not to get all political, but...ah, heck, it's my blog, and I feel like getting political. I honestly can't believe that what with all workers have been through throughout history, we're now living in a time when a near-majority of citizens (most of whom are WORKERS too) now want to curtail their ability to band together and negotiate with their bosses. Are people really that foolish? And do they (and now I'm talking about those Tea Party types) really think that once we tear apart government spending that employers are suddenly going to start looking after their interests BETTER than their government?
Perhaps we should shanghai the whole lot of them and send them to...Shanghai, where we'll actually pay them the prevailing wages of the locals, and we'll see if that shuts them up. I'll talk to my friend the merchant Marine and see what he can do...we'll call it an "Enlightenment Cruise." Bon Voyage, Mr. Beck!!
2 comments:
I thought they were Jamaican-Chinese (like Naomi Campbell, but without the anger management issues, in my experience). In any case, you haven't lived until you've had jerk chicken chow mein (note: what Jamaicans call chow mein is what's usually called lo mein in Chinese restaurants). You can even buy the uncooked noodles like pasta in local stores, marked chow mein noodles.
Y'know, I've heard of (and eaten) "Chino-Latino" but I never really noticed "West Indian Style Chinese". Will give it a try. Faux-haut Chino-Latino had a moment in the 80s; maybe Chino-Caribbean is next?
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