AUG 3, 15 .. DEUCES N’ JACKS ..

I learned the above Poker game (Deuces and Jacks the Man with the Axe a pair of Natural 7s Takes All) probably sixty (60) years ago. From-time-to-time it comes to visit The Streets Of My Mind (THANK YOU SIMON FOR THAT CONCEPT!). You can Google it and up-will-come all you never wanted to know about it. By-the-way .. The Man With The Axe is the King of Diamonds.

What do I mean when I use it as a title for a post? Over any period of time I accumulate a lot of very random photos. These photos will not be enough for a complete post.  As you will see in this post .. some of them are simply one or two photos. What-To-Do with all of them? I simply put them into a post such as this post and find each of them a home-of-their-very-own.

As a title for this post I am using it to describe a Little-Bit-Of-This and a Little-Bit-Of-That. In other words some Mish-Mash. Anyway what do I mean? Over any period of time I accumulate a lot of very random photos. These photos will not be enough for a complete post.  As you will see in this post .. some of them are simply one photo. What-To-Do with all of them? I simply put them into a post such as this post and find each of them a home-of-their-very-own.

I used this title on a Post (APR 25, 13) when I was in Ooty India. For a Blast From The Past you can go back there.

https://babakaps.net/?p=4540

So here we go with Deuces N’ Jacks ..

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When I am out-of-the-country I do not .. as a rule .. like to eat a meal in a friends home for several reasons. First of all there is no way that I can repay-in-kind such a favor or honor since I am living a Spartan Lifestyle that does not lend itself to my hosting anyone in my own place let alone preparing and serving a meal. Second I have some very strong ideas about what I will eat and what I won’t eat. IF for instance you have mushrooms in your home and I know that .. I shan’t cross the threshold. WHAT’S THAT .. STOP RANTING CAPTAIN ..

Captain ! You are calling this a ‘Spartan Lifestyle’ .. There are no doubt literally a few billion people in this world that would love to be where you currently are.

As recently as a week ago I turned down a fine lunch (actually I did not even know that lunch was being served) in a friend’s home because when I got there I discovered the entree was a freshly cooked fish complete with skin and eyes looking sadly and directly at me. I do not as-a-rule like fish so I declined the offer. To be at least a little social .. I did eat a bowl of soup with some bread.

This past Saturday the 1st of August, Changer, one of my very best friends here in Ulaanbaatar invited me over for .. Ah-h-h-h-h .. a casual lunch in his home. I did my very best to talk-him-out-of-it saying that I have certain food preferences and I would hate to come for lunch and find I did not like what I was being offered. I also tried to delay our meeting-up-together so he would get hungry and eat lunch before we met. I actually thought that I had pulled-this-off gracefully and successfully.

When I got to his home I saw the below table! In the United States Marine Corps there is a saying .. “One for the Corps.” As I sat down for this casual lunch I thought silently to myself ..

“Well Captain this is a case of ‘One for the Corps.’ “

I also thought silently to myself .. “Captain you are starving because you have not had a real honest-to-goodness meal in well over a week. The question then became: Should I eat this CHINGGIS KHAAN FEAST with my hands as Chinggis himself would do or be a pseudo gentleman and use the utensils. Oh Lord God In the Heavens Above what have I done to deserve this.”

I sat at this head of the table as you see in the first photo below. The meat on my left was extremely lean and phenomenally tasty beef. Make a note of the HUGE PLATE of Pasta Salad straight ahead. And the Greek-like salad of fresh tomatoes and cucumbers and lettuce with a nice light dressing between the meat and the Pasta Salad.

Lunch prepared by Changer’s wife, Shijiree, the Master Gourment Cook of Cooks.

Below is a view of the table from the other end looking back at my above seating place. Look again at that Pasta Salad.

The below photo pretty well got-it-all. That  GREEN cell phone is being used by my host to chat with Patti. Their very sweet four-year-old joined in on the fun. Isn’t she wonderful! Most children would be grabbing for the food squealing .. “When do we eat!” That is not wine but cranberry juice in the glasses.

Take one last long look at the Pasta Salad and the Greek-like Salad because you will never again in this lifetime see one spec of either. There was also very little beef left. Several hours later I was asked if I was hungry. I said .. “Did you see how much I ate?” They had indeed noticed. I said .. “I will not be eating for at least a day or so.” CAPTAIN! THIS IS A PROGRAM OF HONESTY!

SEMPER FI Captain .. The Corps is proud of you today .. You did well ..

IF THE ONLY PRAYER YOU EVER SAY IN YOUR ENTIRE LIFE IS THANK YOU .. IT WILL BE ENOUGH .. MEISTER ECKHART

THANK YOU SO MUCH !

Shijiree and Changer. What more can I possibly add?

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Deuces N’ Jacks D’ Man With The Axe A Pair of Natural 7’s Takes All .. These two photos show you what I mean by being unique and not enough for a full post yet photos I really want to publish.

“Sir I MUST take a photo of you Sir. Atta Boy .. THANK YOU SO MUCH.”

These are just for you .. DETROIT TIGER TOM .. “That’s it my man .. Just tilt your head down toward your chest. Just a tad more. Ah-h-h that is perfect!”

SOMEBODY UP THERE SURE MUST LIKE ME .. The way I pull these things off.

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Deuces N’ Jacks D’ Man With The Axe A Pair of Natural 7’s Takes All .. SORRY TO BE SO REPETITIVE BUT I LOVE THE PHRASE ..

I wonder just how many of you will be so fortunate as to visit a home in Sukhbaatar Mongolia and get a glimpse at how a Mongolian family lives in a home they are building. I was with friends from Ulaanbaatar who were visiting their relatives up in Sukhbaatar and I was honored to visit the below home and to see how one very-real-family lives.

Real bricks not a ‘brick-like-siding’.

In the above photo note the plain concrete blocks on the right rear of the home. Below you can see a view of this work underway.

The backyard is very spacious. It is in a word .. enormous. All it needs is a GER out there for the nomadic herders and their cattle.

I believe we could arrange for a Ger to be placed in your Out-Backyard.

Let’s go inside and see one very fine comfortable home. The kitchen and dining room is below.

Will you just look at the beautiful rug!

Looking back towards the kitchen.

Below we take a peek into the entry into the room you see above on the right. It is a second bedroom or a family room or a utility room as-you-like.

A beautiful Master Bedroom! The dog on the right sure looks Husky-like to me.

That-answers-that in the necessary-room.

The best friend of the family.

A last look-back as we drove away and headed South to Ulaanbaatar.

IF THE ONLY PRAYER YOU EVER SAY IN YOUR ENTIRE LIFE IS THANK YOU .. IT WILL BE ENOUGH .. MEISTER ECKHART

THANK YOU SO MUCH !

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Deuces N’ Jacks D’ Man With The Axe A Pair of Natural 7’s Takes All .. Here is just one single photo .. What-to-do with it .. Publish it under Deuces N’ Jacks ..

IF you can relate to the below then you can ride with me anytime.

Water is precious. At the rate of from 23 to 28 drops of water per minute .. It takes about 18-hours to have a 5-Liter jug full of water that otherwise would be totally wasted. I actually seldom let it get 100% full and overflowing because I use the water as I need it to boil or to wash my hands or to wipe up my never-ending messes. I do not drink the tap water here or anywhere outside of the U.S.

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Deuces N’ Jacks D’ Man With The Axe A Pair of Natural 7’s Takes All ..

To my basic diet here in Mongolia of Peanut Butter and Apricot Jam and Dark Bread and mini-Snickers ‘food bars’ I have added Instant Noodles.

Odd that it has taken two weeks for this addition to my food plan here in Ulaanbaatar because I eat Instant Noodles several times a day in Hong Kong.

Here in Ulaanbaatar Mongolia they are either Shanghai Noodles or Kimshi Noodles (VERY SPICY).

Why has this taken me two full weeks to figure out.

I use the kettle below to boil the water for the noodles .. THANK YOU AMARAA (my neighbor) ..

I add the boiling water to the noodles and let them sit for 15-minutes (not 3-minutes) often longer. I put the saucer on them with the cup to hold the saucer down so the seal is nice and tight .. the second (empty) noodle cup helps to insulate the heat of the boiling water.

And ..

I have ..

Some of you ..

Asking me ..

“Cap what do you do all day?”

I once wrote the following: Petaluma Jerry did you say .. Cap what do you do all day?

Well for one thing ..

I MAKE MESSES .. 

This is how I began my day .. Monday the 3rd of August 2015 .. NOT as I had planned I will add! When-oh-when does it ever GET EASY?

Then I clean up the messes. The small red brush has been with me since my first trip to India 1990-91 .. I used it to ‘herd’ all of the noodles into one pile so I could then pick-them-up ..

Dish washing soap .. a dish of water and little-red-brush really cleaned up the floor nicely.

You deserve to look-proud. You all did well.

Everybody is clean and dry AND? .. 

They are ready for the next mess! Should I say they are eagerly awaiting the next mess!

Now do you see why  I call a Post like this ..

Deuces N’ Jacks D’ Man With The Axe A Pair of Natural 7’s Takes All ..

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I think that I will call it a day .. Cap ..

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