A small reward: Thai take-out

For the past week, I've been helping Georgene launch her new site, Yavapai Central. She, in turn, is helping me come to terms with the Stuff Problem. (After all, she is the author of the best selling Complete Idiot's Guide to Organizing your Life -- that counts for a lot more expertise than I bring as a blog consultant!) What has this to do with these pictures? Simply that after clearing one small heap of clutter, I decided that a reward was in order this evening. Thai takeout. Good food. No cooking. No dishes to do.

Such a tiny little hole in the wall over at the Goodwin Street Plaza. Many, many years ago, an equally tiny coffee shop occupied the space, run by an interesting chap named Jason, who collected a fine following of opinionated locals. Unfortunately, he left long ago to follow his muse.

Tonight my dinner was a mild pineapple rice curry; I've forgotten what the noodle dish below was called. In any event, 'twas yummy.

The owner (right) and her young niece, only in this country for four years. The owner, in the states since 1975, has run the little take-out for five years.

A seated Buddha high in one corner presides over the premise. According to the niece, the Buddha has seven positions, one for each day of the week; her particular Buddha, determined by the day of her birth, is in a reclining position. Further, she said that the fat, smiling statues one sees are not the Buddha, but simply monks of one variety or another.

As for these fellows -- they are borrowed from the Chinese to bring good luck to a business. I trust that they are looking out for Tai Foon.

Linkables: What about a list of words and cliches, newly coined in 2008, that we can do without? Top of the list is my most unfavorite -- staycation, a marketing man's word if ever I heard one. Yuck! Speaking of words, Meggie laments the lost art of letter-writing. A newspaper article lets us know that house concerts are growing in popularity; it's a trend I heartily endorse. Over in some parts of Germany, Christmas celebrations include Three Kings Day; Steve has pictures, while BoxElder offers a splendid collection of frosty images to close out the holiday season. Finally, the new Festival of the Trees has been posted.