molly yeh

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where mustard belongs


this is a menu from a brat restaurant in hong kong.
notice how their are no mustards under "condiments,"
but rather they are in an elite little group 
under a separate title. 
oh boy this really cheers a girl up on a drizzly day.
...
i have been lacking in the mustard department of my life.
which is not as bad as, say, lacking in the family or the work
department. but everyone needs balance, you know?
my 94% vegetarianism has made a comeback since returning
from hk, and the 6% is strictly devoted to taste testing
soup dumplings for a story i am writing about them.
{i know, i lied when i said i was never going to eat dumplings
again. i am a dirty liar. there are 30 freshly made dumplings
in my kitchen right now.} and i'll be the first to admit that
dumplings and my lunches of brown rice and veggies are not
a mustard's best friend, unless it's the spicy chinese one.
...
and even before that, i found myself continuously returning
to the same mustard. i felt bad, like i was choosing a favorite
child. but it became a comfort mustard and i stuck with it.
i wonder what it means.
i think your girl needs mustard therapy.

-yeh