Taking a break from our Latin American tour of beans and rice, tamales, and menudo, we are visiting the other side of the world. Part of being a perfect housewife is familiarizing yourself with a variety of World cuisines.

One thing I notice about popular TV shows is that the parent network tries to mold the cast into a more politically correct group of actors. They compel the writers to add minorities in the script so that they can appease affirmative action activists or simply just increase their Nielson Ratings Demographic. Take for instance the Applewhites. Mark Cherry wanted to portray this family as Caucasians but the producers did not agree. They wanted to add some “ethnicity.” Practically, every major ethnic group has been portrayed on Desperate Housewives. You have the Hispanic Solis’ and the African American Applewhites. But I ask you. Where are the Asians!? They can live in nice houses too!

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Bree: “You don’t have to wash those. I already did them.”
Orson: “Oh, I found some streaks. So, I’m wiping them down with undiluted red wine vinegar.”
Bree: “I’ve never heard of that.”
Orson: “Oh, sure. And for tougher spots I use a fifty-fifty mix of denatured alcohol and water. And for those really intractable stains, I mean, we’re talking shower doors, I wipe on laquer thinner with a towel.”
Bree is breathing heavily and staring at Orson.
Orson: “Bree?”
Bree grabs Orson and kisses him passionately. She drags him into the bedroom. The kitchen faucet is still on.

As much as I love the beauty and simplicity glass, I hate how hard it is to clean it. Its like you have to go an extra mile to ensure that there are no streaks! Since we don’t own wineglasses at home, I can’t really try what Orson recommends. I certainly will if we ever do buy a set! I’m not sure if his suggestions can be applied to glass windows, mirrors, and tabletops. But, I already know a method of cleaning glass without streaks. It certainly won’t make your significant other horny but it will definitely get rid of your streaks! The secret is in two components, newspaper and vinegar.

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Here in the United States, we’re accustomed to the typical cuisines like Italian, Mexican, Chinese, and of course … American. There are times when I wonder what else is out there on this green earth. Every time I meet people of a different nationality, I like to inquire about their cuisine. “What is the food like in [fill in the blank]?” or “What do you normally eat at home?” Sometimes, I they tell me a tragic response like ramen noodles. Other times, I learn a treasure that I can add to my cooking repertoire.

One such instance was when I met a Brazilian ESL student in high school. This “chica,” named Rochelle, always liked to talk about her life in Brazil. I asked her about the cooking and I learned that apparently their food is very simple. It is simple to make and it tastes simple … without a rush of spices and flavors common to many worldwide dishes. At the time, my favorite food was Mexican, a very rich-tasting cuisine. To me, simple sounded more like boring and bland. How could I like Brazilian food?

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