Of Sushi and Half Birthdays

"I went to graduate school to learn to help people live meaningfully,
But it was my daughters that taught me the meaning to life"

 

So there I was.
I was sitting with my daughter eating a sushi roll called The Scooby Doo. There was a time when I, raw fish and vinegar rice were not tablemates.
But things have changed.
I’m going to share one recipe and three sushi restaurant reviews with you. Except this recipe is about relationships. It’s kind of how I got to be here with my girl and the Scooby Doo. And don’t worry, this recipe comes free.
In fact, I’m saving you about $100.00 that I might otherwise charge you if we were meeting at the office.

The One Recipe
Wherever we went, we were a crowd. Numerically, we counted as six. But factor in 4 daughters with larger than life personalities, their friends and a trail of bemused boys and you’d swear we were a mini metropolis. Add to that my wife’s family who number 8 in siblings and you’d need a calculator to keep count at our get togethers. Understandably, our celebrations could be loud and large. Sometimes vice versa.
Funny isn’t it, though? Even in the middle of crowds of adoring relatives, individuals can feel a little lost. Have you been there? Inherent within us, there still seems to be an itch for one-on-one time with the important people in our lives that larger group contact doesn’t scratch.
Well, when our girls were little, my wife and I discovered a recipe for relationships that foster the celebration of the individual; a special event that scratches at that itch for one on one time.
It’s called Half Birthdays.

Here’s the concept. Since birthdays, graduations, etc. were all such big people events for us, we designed one day a year where each daughter had Dad all to herself. A special father-daughter day celebration that was all hers. We called it their half-birthday and celebrated it 6 months after their birthday; sometimes 6 months before. We’d go shopping, to the movies, or bake, sometimes road trips. Did I say shopping? We did a lot of that. And our adventures always included sharing a meal out. Our meals were a time to talk; to bond. A type of breaking bread together. It was our time to laugh, sometimes cry. It was our time to plan and a time to be frivolous. A time to hear hopes; it was a time to dream.
And their half birthdays were an opportunity for me to fan the flames of their esteem. To tell them genuinely great things about themselves.
The celebration of the individual.

So that’s how I came to be sitting, eating a sushi roll called The Scooby Doo with my daughter; one of my four little girls, now with two children of her own. We, still celebrating (when we can) a recipe for relationships, that thing we call half birthdays.
Now that you have an extra $100.00 in your pocket, go spend some of it on your kids, why don’t you? There’s no age restriction on your child. And if you don’t have any, invite a nephew or niece. Remember, kids of all ages need one on one time.
Go, celebrate your individual.
Go explore!


The 3 Restaurant Reviews
I love sushi. I didn’t always. In fact I used to be a little weird about it. But as they have done in so many ways, my four daughters have broadened my horizons in many ways including food. They helped to introduce me to this fabulous Japanese cuisine. Sushi is a specific style of Japanese fare that combines vinegar seasoned rice with a variety of seafood and vegetables. The word "sushi" actually means "vinegar rice." And like all artists, a sushi cook can create so many unique dishes; each a melody that plays to our eyes and our palate.
Here are three places that I have been to with my daughters. You would be mad to miss these great Half-Birthday opportunities.
These are some of their signature sushi rolls. All eaten by yours truly. Bon appétit, or as they say in Japanese:
Itadakimasu!

Oshima Sushi and Fugu Lounge
2071 Natomas Crossing Drive, Sacramento, CA 95834 /Tel. 916.515.1958
• The Scooby Doo – Oh my! I love this one. Spicy mayo sauce on top. A crunchy bite from the tempura.
Inside: albacore, hamachi, cream cheese - top: spicy salmon, green onion, tobiko, lightly tempura, with Oshima Special Sauce, Spicy Mayo Sauce/ $12.50
• The FNB - Inside: avocado, snow crab - top: tuna, albacore, avocado, green onion, tobiko, with Oshima Special Sauce, Spicy Mayo Sauce/ $11.50
• The Dynamite - Inside: shrimp tempura -top: albacore, unagi, avocado, green onion, tobiko, with Oshima Special Sauce, Spicy Mayo Sauce and Hot Sauce/$12.50

Sushi of Naples Japanese Restaurant
5470 East 2nd St., Long Beach, CA 90803/Tel. 562.434.1122
• The Albacore Dream – We ordered this twice! It’s got spice, it’s got sass and it’s got crunch. Spicy tuna roll topped with avocado, seared albacore and House dressing.
• The Naples Roll - Tuna, yellowtail, salmon, shrimp, masago, avocado, wrapped with soy paper
• The Philadelphia Roll - Salmon, cream cheese, cucumbers, sprouts. Cream cheese is my friend.

Fuji Sushi Boat & Buffet
213 G St / Davis, CA 95616/ Tel. 530.753.3888
Sit down for a second in case you go faint. Dinner here is $17.95 for all the sushi and sashimi you can eat. The price also includes tea and soft drinks. This is rare in the world of sushi restaurants. This price alone stands against what you might pay just for individual orders of sushi elsewhere. Their seating includes a bar where you can sit while little boats float around. Each boat carries its cargo of sushi delights where you can simply grab whatever appeals to you and bring it home to port. Eat up! Alternative options include soup, pot stickers, wontons, fried shrimp, etc. And if you don’t see your favorite sushi roll, tell the chefs what you crave and they will try to deliver.