February 25, 2008
For Adam..
September 21, 2007
Pet Peeve(s) Of The Day
I’ll certainly never be accused of being a grammatical or spelling genius, but come on people. Why is this so hard? I can (almost) excuse the lowly masses, but when reasonably intelligent, educated and professional people repeatedly make these mistakes?
The word is MOOT people, not mute. Mute is the button you push on the remote control for the TV when you want to take a phone call, or that poor fellow with no tongue begging on the corner. Mute is not a means of describing something which is no longer relevant.
Also, why is the difference between THEN and THAN so hard?
Then: It denotes time and sequencing. One thing happen, THEN it is followed upon by another. “Hey Moron! First you put your feet into your shoes, then you tie them.”
Than: It denotes a comparison between items. One item is [insert adjective here] THAN another. “People who use mute when they mean moot are dumber than a box of rocks.”
So what gets under your skin? People who rant about their pet peeves? 😉
September 19, 2007
September 16, 2007
Eugene Levy, Big Pimpin’
Somehow or another, I stumbled upon Jill Greenberg Studios, The Manipulator. She’s does some cool portrait work, including several celebrities. I can’t direct-link to any of the categories, since the whole site is Flash based. But for a hit of pure, uncensored emotion hit her portfolio and check out the album of children crying. Or, for lighter fare, hit the “names” category and find your favorite celeb. From Alanis to the Wayans bros, there’s some cool folk. Don’t miss Clint or Eugene.
September 13, 2007
Weren’t They The Bad Guys in Star Trek 27?
I’m not talking about the Klingon or Ferengi. No, this is someone far more stealthy and menacing. Often times, nobody even knows when one is in the room. I’m talking about dirty frank the fearsome Ganglion Cyst!
Well, a couple of weeks ago I had my own Ganglion excised from the underside of my right wrist. Now I just look like some emo-tard, (remember kids, down the road). Anyhow, sorry for the lack of posting. Been sore for a bit and have avoided typing whenever possible.
Maybe I should have done a before & after, but since it’s too late for that, here’s what’s left of my little friend:
This was the first time I’ve had surgery. I can’t believe they actually put me totally under for this. I think the anesthesiologist was just looking for a few extra bucks.
August 20, 2007
Cat in the Box
For all you crazy cat people out there, I bring you
Not to be confused with whats in this box:
August 15, 2007
There is nothing wrong with your television set.
Do not attempt to adjust the picture.
I’m doing some server migration/reconfiguring, so you may experience some weirdness.
There is no gremlin on the wing, err.. in the server.
(I know, tsk tsk for mixing references to classic sci-fi shows.)
August 13, 2007
Comfort Food – For Better or Worse (long)
So, Courtney has been out of town since Thursday for a convention, and I’m home sick with the dogs (and the retarded cat). Other than some projects around the house, I didn’t have any real plans. On her way out, Courtney had offhandedly mentioned that I might try doing something with all the fruit in the house.
Lets see, pears, nectarines, and plums. I’m sick, so I’m not feeling like anything fussy that involves rolling out dough, as that seem entirely too strenuous. So clafouti it is. I found a recipe for an almond-pear clafouti that sounded pretty good. Peel, core and slice up the pears. Toss them in a bit of lemon juice. Whip up a batter of eggs, milk, butter, vanilla, etc… Throw the fruit in a pan, pour in the batter, throw some almonds on top and….
Almond Pear Clafouti
It’s tasty, but not my favorite. It turned out a bit too almondy for my liking. Oh well. That was Sunday.
Monday, home sick again. Courtney’s still gone. I’m lying in bed wondering what’s in the house for breakfast when it dawns of me: biscuits and gravy. What can possibly be more comforting for a sick boy with southern roots like me than homemade biscuits and gravy. I even have buttermilk in the house for once.
I know there isn’t any sausage for the gravy, but surely I can get by with bacon, no? And thus began the most non-comforting biscuits & gravy expedition ever. Okay, so get the bacon on the griddle while I start to work on the biscuits.
Flour, buttermilk, salt, shortening, baking soda, baking powder. Baking powder? Where is the flipping baking powder? Crap, still at my mother-in-laws house. Some quick thinking and I remember that baking powder is nothing more than baking soda, corn starch, and, and… and?! Google kindly informs me that it is Cream of Tartar, which I have. Whew, that was close.
I get the biscuits mixed and ready to roll out, when I reach for the flour to dust out my rolling area. Double crap, I’ve been using the self-rising flour all this time instead of the regular. Hmm.. I’m either going to have super-fluffy cake biscuits, or something will go terribly wrong. Oh well, no turning back now. Roll them, cut them out with my finest biscuit cutter, and throw them in the oven.
Time to get back to the gravy. The bacon is done, crumbled, and goes into a skillet, with the fat and some flour. Regular flour this time. I reach for the milk. Wha?? Buttermilk!! Where’s the… Crappity crap crap crapping crappyton. I realize at this point that I’m just not having biscuits & gravy this morning. I know it won’t work, but I go ahead and add the buttermilk to the bacon and flour simmering away in my skillet. It bubbles away for a few minutes and, as disgusting as it looks, I give it a taste. There is an underlying hint of gravy, but it is masked by greasy tartness. This is not at all like grandma used to make.
Meanwhile, the biscuits come out of the oven, and while not spectacular, they are passable. For breakfast, I have flat biscuits and honey, with a side of bacon. Oh, and one helluva mess to clean up. Why am I not feeling comforted by this?