Tonight's Who I Am Is Brought To You By...

It bothers me slightly that the only response I got to my Who I Am column last week was from the young lady it was about. No, her response didn't bother me. What bothers me is that it was left up to me to choose who I put on the pedestal this week. Who do I hold up to the light this week for all to see?

I'd like to have someone that I know in person as the focus to my writing this week, as I find that it's quite a bit easier. It's not that I mind the research necessary to do this for an internet-only or internet-mostly friend, in fact I enjoy the research because I get to find out that much more about my friend. It's simply that I don't have the time, today, to do all that research. Had I been given the task a week ago, I would be in a good place, all ready to go.

So, I have made a decision. I'm going to tell you, later this day, about my wonderful girlfriend Maria. I'll tell you the changes she's wrought on my life. The good and the bad that I see in her, and so much more. I know her better than I know most people, since we have lived together for over four years now, and been together for more than six, so it will probably be a long yet interesting column.

Just wanted to share with you all, though, that if I don't get a response or two this week with volunteers, I will be picking someone from my list of readers. I'm just evil like that.

Spaghetti Squash and the Life Lessons It Teaches Us

I've been mucking about with healthy alternatives for different edible items for a while now, and one of my favorite dishes is spaghetti squash. I've found that I love the squash itself, in a small amount, and have been trying to find a topping that went well with it.

Now, I've gone to all sorts of websites, and asked many friends, for a good recipe to go with spaghetti squash, and what I normally get is some kind of parmesan/butter mix with a few extra spices added in. While the result is definately edible, I would say that it doesn't normally quite suite my palette.

So, today I made up a nice four pound squash, and searched the kitchen for something to slather it in. I tried a little of the red sauce that I made over the weekend, and thought it wasn't bad, but the sauce definately overpowered what I like about spaghetti squash, and I ended up with a plate of crunchy spaghetti. I moved on to something else, and travelled through the kitchen, trying to find something at least decent, if not good.

I tasted the squash one more time, letting its flavors roll over my tongue, and I noticed something that I had known was there, but never quite registered on a concious level: The squash was sweet. I swept into action, knowing immediately that the perfect additive was at my fingertips. Well, okay, in the refrigerator!

I sit here eating the perfect combination of spaghetti squash, and maple syrup. By choosing something that complimented the dish as opposed to contrasting with it, I have hit upon the perfect solution for this thing that has bothered me for some time. Harmony, not dissonance.

Hitting upon this solution did more than simply make my taste buds happy. It also went through my mind that, perhaps, this was the solution to a problem that's been going on much longer than the squash topping issue. Perhaps, indeed, this was the answer I was looking for.

With this in mind, I have decided to try a new path in my work life. Instead of looking for a job where I match the qualifications, I am going to try and find a way to work as my own boss. This could mean from home, or as the store manager of the store I've always wanted to start.

Being my own boss would be the ideal job for me, since I've done it before, and I know that I can make myself do it again. I know that I don't have the business savvy that some people have, and in this highly-competitive market this concerns me slightly, but I know that there are definately things I could do to help my chances, and I'm willing to do them.

I realize that there is a lot of hard work involved, and that it's not going to be a very easy road, but if the payoff is anything like spaghetti squash and maple syrup, I'm willing to put my everything into it.