Maru

I have a new favorite place for Bi Bim Bop: Maru. The restaurant is located where Seoul Korner used to be, at William and Thompson streets. I liked Seoul Korner--it was what I think of as decent "campus" Korean. But I really like Maru. The menu is much more varied and broad--you can get all kinds of bi bim bop, including Haecho Bibimbap (Seaweed Bibimbap) and Hoedeopbap (Raw Fish Bibimbap).

So far I have had the Dolsot Bi Bim Bop twice, once with beef and once with tofu. I don't usually order the same thing twice, but it has been wicked cold here and the weather has made me crave toasty rice.
The second time (pictured above with tofu) the stone bowl was hotter than the first and the rice on the bottom developed the perfect crunchy-chewy toastyness:

Mmm...rice therapy for winter

Brian ordered the spicy squid which was really good--it looked like it would burn a hole in his stomach, but really was more flavorful than just hot.

And I loved the banchan--those little free tasty bits that they bring to the table. Both times there was some standarad napa cabbage kimchi, a peppery bean sprout dish, and a sweet seaweed and daikon salad. The first time I went there was also a lovely turnip kimchi and a dish of chewy gluten strips. The second time I went there was one weird banchan that I left alone (pictured in the upper right corner of the first photo), bits of pickled cabbage mixed with...sliced hot dogs. It's probably some sort of family comfort food because this is a place that also has Spam in a few of the dishes on its menu.

Next time I go I plan to branch out a bit. If it is cold out, I want to try their Kimchi jjigae, which is a big bowl of kimchi, tofu and pork soup. If it is warmish (and by that I mean that my face doesn't feel like it'll fall off from the cold--I've lowered my standards for what counts as warm by this time in February) I want to order the Raw Fish Bi Bim Bop.

If you are a Democrat in Michigan, please read this

I usually try not to go on political rants here, but today is the day that, had the Michigan Democratic Party not screwed it up, I would have been able to vote for my chosen presidential candidate. As it is, I went to the polls in January and my vote counted for nothing since the Michigan delegates to the Democratic Convention won't be seated.

So today I am writing and e-mailing prominent Democrats to urge them to schedule a state caucus and to reinfranchise the Michigan Democratic voters. Yes, they do have the ability to schedule a caucus and use the results of the caucus, rather than the fiasco primary, to send legitimate candidates to the convention. The DNC wants them to do this. But guess what is getting in the way? The egos of the people who decided on the January primary in the first place.

If you'd like a little more info about this mess here are a few recommendations:

• Article by the Associate Press in the Boston Globe (may require free registration)
• The first hour of Monday, Feb 12th Diane Rehm show on NPR
• Unfortunately a good Wall Street Journal Article is now only available to paid subscribers but if you happen to be one, go here to read it.
• An "Other Voices" column in the Ann Arbor News ran today. It is a bit more anti-Hillary than I'd like since I think that the failed primary disenfranchised these voters too, but lots of sentiments and the frustration level are right on.
  

If you have other good sources of on-line info, please leave the link in the comments section and I'll try to update this list.

I've copied in the letter I intend to send below, and I urge you to copy whatever parts of the letter you like or write your own letter and send it to the prominent Democrats who could fix this problem.

These are the people to whom I'm sending this letter (contact information for each of them is listed below the letter):

Mark Brewer, Michigan Democratic Party Chairman
Governor Jennifer Granholm
US Senator Carl Levin
US Senator Debbie Stabenow
US Representative John Dingell (my rep)
State Senator Liz Brater (who is my state Senator)
State Representative Rebekah Warren (who is my state Rep.)
Howard Dean, Democratic National Committee
Debbie Dingell (an MDPC spokesperson who has been vocal in support of the failed January primary and in her assertion that she thinks Michigan's delegates from the fiasco primary will be seated at the national convention)

If you can think of anyone else I should be contacting, again, please let me know in the comments section.

And to State Senator Tupac Hunter, who has already publicly called for a Democratic Caucus to be scheduled, I plan to write a letter of thanks.


SAMPLE LETTER

Dear ____,

I am writing to you today to urge you to support scheduling a Michigan Democratic Caucus to select a presidential candidate for the Democratic Party.

The point of the January primary was to bring attention to Michigan’s unique issues from candidates. Clearly that policy backfired, with no candidate except Dennis Kucinich campaigning in our state and with the absurd predicament of 40% of voters claiming they were “uncommitted” when really the name of the candidate they supported was not on the ballot. Instead, Michigan’s Democratic primary has become a bad joke and a show of incompetence.

Recently, there have been articles in the Wall Street Journal (2/9/08), discussions on NPR’s Diane Rehm show (2/11/08), and most importantly, discussions among the Democratic voters in the state about reinfranchising the Michigan Democratic voter. Scheduling a Michigan Democratic Caucus in the coming months will serve the purpose that was initially intended by the early primary—all eyes will be on Michigan if there is a caucus, Clinton and Obama will campaign in our state and address our unique (particularly economic) issues, and Michigan could play a pivotal role in deciding the next President of the United States. I can’t think of a better way to put Michigan and our issues at center stage.

This will also eliminate what I think is an even graver issue—squabbling at the Democratic National Convention about whether or not to seat Michigan’s (and Florida’s) delegates. I believe that if this happens, it will not reflect well on our party and will present to the world the image of a party that can’t get along. This will not improve the opinion of undecided voters and could alienate loyal Democrats as well.

It will require some courage to stand up and admit that a mistake was made in holding the primary in January. I don’t think anyone likes to admit they made a wrong decision, much less prominent politicians. But I believe that the Democratic voters of this state will feel such a sense of relief that they will support any politician who has the guts to do this. I also believe that the DNC could ease this problem and allow these politicians to maintain their dignity with a show of enthusiastic support for the caucus idea and for the leaders who stand up and call for it.

I honestly don’t think it matters which candidate you support; if you support Clinton or Obama, you want your vote and your delegates to count. I think the stakes are higher for Obama supporters since his name was not even on the ballot, but I think Clinton supporters would prefer to re-vote in a caucus than to have their vote for their candidate seem illegitimate.

I have a wide circle of friends who traditionally vote Democratic and all of them have expressed frustration with our disenfranchisement in the January primary. I would be an enthusiastic caucus goer if given the opportunity, not resentful that I have to take the time to vote (again), but relieved that my vote will finally count.

I urge you to publicly support and call for a Democratic Presidential Caucus.

Sincerely,

Kate Remen-Wait
817 W Summit St
Ann Arbor MI 48103

CONTACT INFORMATION

Mark Brewer, Michigan Democratic Party Chairman
606 Townsend St.
Lansing MI 48933

Governor Jennifer Granholm
Governor's Office
P.O. Box 30013
Lansing MI 48909

US Senator Carl Levin
http://levin.senate.gov/contact/index.cfm
(because of security issues, it takes 1-2 months for a Senator to get a letter--much better to contact them by e-mail)

US Senator Debbie Stabenow
http://stabenow.senate.gov/email.cfm
(because of security issues, it takes 1-2 months for a Senator to get a letter--much better to contact them by e-mail)

US Representative John Dingell
http://www.house.gov/dingell/contact.htm
(because of security issues, it takes 1-2 months for a Representative to get a letter--much better to contact them by e-mail)

State Senator Liz Brater
P.O. Box 30036
Lansing MI 48909-7536

State Representative Rebekah Warren
House Office Building
P.O. Box 30014
Lansing MI 48909-7514

Howard Dean
Democratic National Committee
430 S. Capitol St.SE
Washington DC 20003

Debbie Dingell
19855 W. Outer Dr.
Suite 103A-E
Dearborn, MI 48124


Thank you letters can go to:
State Sen. Tupac Hunter
P.O. Box 30036
Lansing MI 48909-7536