It's my birthday too. Mookie must be very cool , special, smart, funny and sexy too.

You keep telling me. I promise to add it to my calendar.

pretty sure I only bring it up once a year, so you can be forgiven.

Happy birthday you second class Mook. <3

You guys know this is like totally illegal right? So I've been away a bit. I kinda got married on April 11th and am moving to Japan around late July when the visa goes through. I think my birthday is like the 15th of May, but I barely remember what age I am these days. I'll be based in Tokyo if you guys are around. I've been meaning to post more. I aged a pig leg, been growing mushrooms, and dicking around with 3-D printing (battletech models mostly - hmu if you want any STLs)

I've been posting these for years, even after having quit social media/SE (kinda social media?), and NOW you finally tell me? Ok, hence forth SE Squeezing Out lilmookieesquire Day shall be May 15th.

Still, congratulations, man. I sincerely wish you well with all your big life changes.

Thank you Midden! I firmly believe it should be a national holiday.

Okay, I assumed "aged a pig leg" was a euphemism for got old, but since I'd never heard it before I asked Google.

And now I want to know if you literally aged a leg of pig.

https://i.imgur.com/rUpa9qu.jpeg

It looks aged, alright. Is it cooked?

Nope. Aged for 2 years. Got it from a butcher in Santa Cruz. (Edit: make sure to squeeze the blood out of the arteries and washed it with salt and water. Then…) Put it in a tub of salt for like a month. I smeared it with fat and pepper. Then hung it in a humidity / temperature controlled freezer for… two years. It was a bit humid in there so I hung a salt block to absorb the humidity as well as let the dehumidifier run.

I had an inkbird humidity controller hooked up to a humidifier and dehumidifier. I had a small fan blowing air 24/7 and had a inkbird temp controller that would turn the condenser on when it got too hot. It hung in there for two years.

I had a small maybe-mold issue at the beginning but I wiped the spot with vinegar. Never had a problem after that. I think it was probably salt accumulation on the skin.

For the record any bit of skin was super gross but the meat itself was quite nice. The only issue is, once you cut into it, you have about a month or so to eat an insane amount of ham. But like, I ended up vacuum sealing and freezing a lot of it. Kind of ducked up the texture, but was still tasty enough.

It’s way easier/cheaper to just pick one up at Costco - but it was an extremely fun learning experience, a great conversation starter, and no one died (except the pig. Sorry piggo.)

As long as you had fun.

Is this the Mookie (of the lil sort)?

THE, indeed. Esq. even.

How does a lawyer find the time to run a restaurant?

I may have misunderstood your question, missing the tone of voice in plaintext. Today is, indeed, lllmookieesqure's birthday. As to whether or not OUR mookie is in any way involved with the deli in Cary, North Carolina, I have no information. Their logo does fit nicely with today's commemoration, however.

I think that's the wrong coast, actually.

And for some reason I thought his BD was yesterday.

From the horses mouth, it looks like you are correct. I've been posting these on the wrong day for years.

I also formally accept the 16th!

ohhhh got it. thank you.

I was the sashimi guy in a Japanese fusion tapas place. I'd never go anywhere where there's a white guy behind the sushi counter. Ew. that said, it's a pretty brutal line of work. The entire staff has rotated a few times in the past couple years.

In Osaka we went to one place where at least half the staff were gaijin. I think it was a fish-related restaurant. The SO thought it was pretty good.

My condolences :)

Mook: many happy returns!
Cary, NC: Containment Area for Relocated Yankees

Hey big thanks! Got married and moving to Japan. I need to live in a walkable city. If this keeps up I’m gonna have to remove the “lil” moniker. Heyooooo.