Wow, I’m still recovering from a double-whammy of having both my good friend Hilly and my other former Party Poker cohort Sander (and his girlfriend) in town. I think Hilly and I were well on our way to celebrating his last night in Bangkok when Sander sent me an email saying they had just checked in and were ready to get crazy. I think I may have fractured a liver.
Speaking of which, I wanted to find a creative way to promote something here so . . . My girlfriend is Thai and she looooooves spicy food. She’s not happy unless her nose is running, her eyes are watering, and she’s had to drink several liters of water to get her meal down. Anyway, she loves a certain pork dish that is not very spicy itself but they serve it with these grilled red chilies. You eat some of the pork and then eat some chili to get the spicy effect.
So last night she ordered the dish from one of the street vendors and she was chowing down on her pork as Hilly and I made our way through some noodles. I grabbed one of the chilies off of her plate and held it up. She said “Don’t! It’s very spicy.” Thais think us farangs have zero ability to eat anything spicy so they always try to warn us so her words of caution fell on deaf ears.
I put the whole chili in my mouth and ate it. It wasn’t that bad. Then my mouth started to get a little warm. Then hot. Then I was on fire. I grabbed her glass of ice water and took little sips, filling my mouth with water and swishing it around hoping that it would take away the burning. It worked but as soon as I swallowed my mouth was on fire again. I went through two bottles of water before she finally said “Don’t drink cold water. You have to drink hot water.” I shot back “Well, get me some hot water then. Until then I can’t stop drinking cold water.”
A few agonizing minutes later they brought me a tea cup with hot water and I took a couple of sips and . . . tada . . . the burning was gone.
Which reminds me . . . There’s still time to win a seat in Chili Poker’s Deep Stack Open in France plus if you make a deposit over at Chili you qualify for up to $12,000 in freerolls.
How’s that for a segue?
Should I Change From Poker to Chess?
The Red Shirts Are Coming, The Red Shirts Are Coming
Google Likes Phil Ivey / Hates Phil Hellmuth
Rush Poker at Full Tilt Poker – What Impact Will It Have on Poker?
Time Machine For Feb
Time Machine for March
Reminds me of the first time I went to Thailand and mistook a chilli for a carrot! I can still feel the burning sensation. Or the time when I ordered a burger and didn’t realize they’d put a chilli in it, before it was too late.
Sugar works better than water. So does milk or beer. At chili-pepper-eating competitions the fire extinguisher of choice is a can of ReadyWhip.