It's been truly a horrible work-from-home day.

I battled the VPN all morning, trying to work around a "configuration not authorized" error message, and then the Comcast guy showed up and took three and a half hours to get my CableCards working.

It was doubtful that I would be able to even get to half of what I was supposed to get done today, so lunch was very late and, accordingly, had to be very quick.

Today's lunch for Thursday, February 21 is Fried Rice.

Cold rice (white, brown, basmati, jasmine, it doesn't matter so long as it's COLD)
2Tbs oil
2 Eggs, beaten
Garlic, chopped fine
Ginger, chopped fine
Soy sauce
Sesame Oil

Heat a thin layer of oil in a wok or a nonstick pan (woks work best, but a frying pan will do).

When the oil is hot, pour the beaten eggs into the pan and act like it's last Thursday and you're making an omelet. When the eggs are set, roll them up and transfer them to a plate (they need not look neat, you're going to mash them up later anyway).

Add some more oil to the pan and wait for it to heat. Add the chopped garlic and ginger and fry it up until the garlic is golden and someone sticks their head into your kitchen and says, "What smells like a Chinese restaurant?"

Add the rice to the pan and use something to break up the grains so that they are all separate. Feel free to add oil here and there - this is fried rice, after all.

When the rice is good and hot, pour a couple of Tbs of soy sauce into the pan and mix. If you like it darker, add more. When you are happy with the level of brown, add a small tipping of sesame oil and mix well.

Add the eggs to the rice, mashing them up so that they distribute evenly.

Taste for salt and pepper, eat. Get back to work.