This was emailed to me with the comment “Get me some drawn butter (and the NECRONOMICON!)”
Archive for the ‘Food and Drink’ Category
Happy Fhtagnsgiving
Thursday, November 27th, 2014I suppose I can consider myself lucky
Friday, October 24th, 2014Because I fixed breakfast at home today, I found a problem in time to handle it fairly cleanly.
When I eat breakfast at home, I take my vitamins. One bottle was empty, so I went into the basement to get a replacement. Smelling something unpleasant, and knowing that the cats’ litter box had been dealt with last night because trash gets picked up this morning, I looked around and noticed a wet spot at one corner of the freezer. When I opened the door, I found this:
The cookie dough on the top shelf I wasn’t concerned about. Everything on the next shelf down and in the door was defrosted. Items on the bottom two shelves were still frozen solid. I took about fifty pounds of meat that had been defrosted for who knows how long out to the trash. It might have still been ok, but I’d rather not chance it – I lost 15 pounds of weight after I got sick in Bulgaria, and I wasn’t keen on losing any more that rapidly.
I say I’m lucky because I discovered it before the trash pickup came; I’d not have liked to have it hanging around for another week. Now, I’ll be looking for a chest freezer – I’ve had to prop weight against the freezer door to keep it closed.
Plumb and Plumber
Monday, July 28th, 2014Saturday was a slightly worrisome day. I was trying a new bagel recipe, and the dough was stiff enough that my stand mixer (a 6-quart KitchenAid) quit while kneading. I called Marion to let her know that these would likely be the most expensive bagels she’d ever had. I then went online to look for troubleshooting and repair information.
Luckily, it was only a thermal cutout to prevent damage from overheating. Half an hour later, the mixer worked without problems.
The other problem was that one of my cats decided to start disassembling the toilet in the ground floor bathroom. Nothing serious, but whichever cat it was (and I have my suspicions) had removed one of the caps that cover the bolts that hold the toilet in place, and had been batting it around as a toy. Idiot beast.
Nothing quite like a good meal
Monday, May 26th, 2014I had Marion and my daughter over for dinner this evening. I’d marinated some Copper River salmon in an oriental-themed marinade, then grilled it on a cedar plank. We had grilled asparagus and spinach-quinoa cakes as side dishes, and chocolate brownies for dessert. All very nice.
With dinner, I had a beer that a friend brought back from his recent trip to Germany. It worked quite well with the meal.
Had dinner with my daughter this evening
Wednesday, May 21st, 2014We tried the Kokopelli Beer Company, which is fairly new in the neighborhood. A bit noisy for my taste, but it was a good meal. They have a small “pizza and sandwiches” menu. The pizzas we had were tasty, and the drinks were good. I had an IPA (good) and a pineapple cider (not much flavor, I thought), and Cheryl had a regular cider (good) and a raspberry/chocolate stout (she liked it; I didn’t). I prefer the IPA at the Yak and Yeti, but I’m more than willing to go back to Kokopelli, as is she.
Miscellany 24
Wednesday, March 19th, 2014Big roundup here of things that have been hanging around (non-political version).
It’s war! The ants are coming for our chocolate. The article is actually much wider-ranging, and quite interesting.
Need a handy reference for musical intervals? This may help.
Planning to record some audio at home? This may help.
How to take excellent notes and be productive with paper. I can always use the help.
This looks like an interesting resource for computer science.
I’ll want to spend some time reminiscing at this site.
Two scary economic charts, billed as documenting the demise of the American Dream.
An interesting list of Google Easter eggs.
I like these thoughts on the Starship Troopers movie. I didn’t much care for it myself; I’ve usually referred to it as “Paul Verhoeven’s rebuttal to Robert Heinlein’s Starship Troopers.”
Google makes an emulator in Chrome for the Amiga 500. I still have two Amiga 2000s in my basement, although I’ve only got one monitor for them, and the hard drive on one needs to be reformatted. It’s too bad there was never a widely-available Ethernet board for them.
Men’s Health says these are the best over-the-counter medications.
The Smithsonian says these vitamins and supplements are worth taking.
Continuing on the subject of health, how old is your heart?
Here are photos of various famous locations. There are two photos of each location: one showing the normally-presented view, and one showing surroundings that aren’t normally seen unless you’re there. I’ve been to the pyramids of Giza, and it’s startling how close development has come to them.
Wanna learn something? Try here.
You can find over 22,000 comics that are out of copyright here. Via.
Man sublets his apartment, comes home to find a plus-sized orgy going on. Then he loses his apartment, because his lease doesn’t allow him to sublet.
Do incorrect and inappropriate use’s of quotes (like that one) bother you? Best stay away from this site, then.
I’ve seen the movie Head, but it was many years ago. There’s a link to the movie in this article.
It looks like there’s some good information in this gardening thread at Ace of Spades HQ.
They’ve found more Dead Sea scrolls.
Interesting art. I’ve seen similar things, but it’s still cool. Now, imagine the following in a Cockney accent: “That’s not a bird, that’s a bird!” Via.
Speaking of birds, but not really …
And not speaking of birds, but really! Rogue Chihuahuas overrunning a town?
I like this guy’s obituary. He’d have been fun to know.
What if the Winter Olympics had been held on Hoth?
I’m not surprised that this happened in Japan.
In 1731, King Frederick I of Sweden gave a lion to a taxidermist who had never seen one. Some of the comments are hilarious, also. I particularly like the first reply to this one.
Information you can use: 7 Myths About Storing Beer.
More Information you can use: Picking a lock with a hairpin.
Some people believe that this is the best newspaper correction ever. I’m not so certain of that, but I don’t have any other suggestions handy.
As a European, this is how I imagine Americans have breakfast. Via Protein Wisdom. The comments at both locations are good, too.
Looking for back issues of Starlog magazine?
Why do we do some of the things we do at weddings?
An interesting clock presentation.
These are impressive tattoos. Not that I’d ever get one, but …
Some carbon fiber musical instruments. I’ve played a Blackbird tenor ukulele and liked it, and I have a friend who is trying to set himself up producing carbon fiber soprano ukes.
I knew people drank more in the past, but damn! That’s a lot of booze!
How to make a sling from woven paracord. The site is often NSFW, but this post isn’t (unless your company employs extreme hoplophobes).
On the same website: If you ever feel stupid …
Remember the warehouse scene at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark? It might not have been too unbelievable.
Figure skaters caught in mid-spin. They look much more graceful and elegant when you don’t catch all the details.
When it goes, it all goes at once.
Giant desert art project in Egypt.
Sarah Hoyt is a local science fiction author. I met her at a party at a mutual friend’s place a couple years ago. This post on her history with SFWA is absolutely hilarious.
There may still be time to apply for this job – it’s got to be hard work. Then again, a lot of people like swords.
Were you aware that France was still conduction executions by guillotine as recently as 1977? Were you aware that the actor Christopher Lee attended the last one?
I wasn’t able to find an update on his recovery, but the fact that he survived going through a wood chipper is amazing. When I was in the Navy, if you were going to work on anything that could be dangerous if it were turned on during the process, you’d attach a red tag to the power switch. I wonder if they’ll implement a system like that for the wood chipper?
Boy, the Aussies don’t hold back with their PSAs, do they?
I have a friend who photographs most of his restaurant meals. I should send him to this site.
I think that’s about enough for now. I may do another one (with older accumulated links) later.
Correct me if I’m wrong …
Saturday, March 8th, 2014… but wouldn’t the garlic be the organic component here (click photo for larger)?
Some things are not meant to be seen
Thursday, December 12th, 2013Where I work, we’re planning a small Christmas celebration. The company is small enough, and business is tough enough, that we’re not going out to a restaurant for dinner. We are planning, however, to bring in lunch from a local restaurant.
We have a number of restaurant menus available, but the boss wanted to make certain that we had an up-to-date one from the local restaurant we’d decided to use.
Unfortunately, our ISP’s content filter prevented us from accessing the restaurant’s website. The reason given was “Forbidden category: Alcohol/Tobacco.” Really? You can get a drink with a meal? What horror!
Whose decision was this? We have to be prevented from finding out anything about the restaurant because they have a liquor license? I suppose next year I’ll see “Forbidden category: Serving size/Transfat.” Or “Forbidden category: Drink refills.” The way things are going, it may not be long before I’ll see “Forbidden category: Politically incorrect.”
Fortunately, there was a workaround. I downloaded the menu to my cellphone, then sent it as an email attachment to my work email address, from which I could print it. There was a minor glitch there, as the only two menu choices my phone gives me for attachments are “Attach Picture” and “Attach Video.” Fortunately (again), selecting “Attach Picture” gives me the option of attaching any file.
I’ve submitted a request to recategorize the website on the grounds that the current categorization is ridiculous. We’ll see (in about a week) if it has any effect.
A nice day
Sunday, November 24th, 2013Spent a few hours volunteering mid-day, helping pass out food packages. Worked in the kitchen preparing dinner this afternoon – beef rib roast, roasted vegetables (sweet potatoes, onions, carrots, garlic, and chestnuts), Yorkshire pudding, and shallot gravy. It was a special dinner for my daughter, whose birthday is coming up. She also picked up her combination birthday/Christmas present: the Designer’s Edition of Ogre, which I backed on Kickstarter.
I don’t game, but she does, and she loved her present. She knew it was coming – it was supposed to be her present last year, but it took longer than expected to get everything nailed down for the release. Worth it, though. It’s an impressive package.
Cooking is great. It’s a wonderful excuse …
Sunday, November 3rd, 2013for playing with knives and fire.
I have a button that says that. I do enjoy cooking and baking, but the toys can get awfully pricey. I don’t have really good knives, but I do have reasonable ones, and I do try to keep them sharp and take care of them – I own an assortment of sharpening stones from 200 to 6000 grit, as well as two or three books on sharpening and use of knives and other edged implements.
I ran across a mention of Japanese Binchotan charcoal the other day and got curious, so I searched on the web. Most of the sites I found were merely descriptive, but I did find one that sold a few varieties of it. It also sells a number of Japanese-made knives. I believe that this one one is the most expensive knife they sell. Note that they charge 50% more for left-handed versions.
It’s a bit rich for my tastes. I can’t justify a $300 knife to myself, let alone something like that. I also don’t have need for such a specialized knife. That being said, I can dream, can’t I?