Happy International Sushi Day!

It's International Sushi Day! When it comes to sushi, I long to be an honorary Asian. (I'd be totally willing to swap genealogies with someone hailing from Japan or Korea who longs to tip back a pint on St. Patrick's day...)

The first time I had sushi, it was a business lunch. I was a brand new attorney, anxious to look like I had my stuff together. I didn't, so this made for some stressful days. I gulped down California rolls and sashimi and a giant clump of fish eggs wrapped in seaweed. I was so proud of myself, this Irish girl from Maine (who'd never even had Chinese food until she was almost in high school), gamely using my chopsticks to stab bits of fish and rice and cheerfully choking them down. I have almost no recollection of what any of it tasted like going down, because I was so busy trying not to make a fool of myself. But I remember quite vividly what it tasted like coming back up...

I spent that whole afternoon throwing up: at the office, on the sidewalk, back at my apartment. When it was over I thought sushi was the toughest weight-loss plan I'd ever encountered.

Two days later I woke up in the middle of the night craving Nigiri Sake (a slice of raw salmon on rice) and I've loved it ever since. Bizarre, but true. I think the not throwing up afterward has a lot to do with it, along with putting an early end to my law career. My stomach couldn't handle both law and sushi, so a choice had to be made. I'm pretty happy with how that's turned out :)

Tonight: celebration sushi style!