i will be there...
June 29, 2009
today's cool shit...Garrison Keillor...
what a great weekend...as usual, it was the quiet moments that were the sweetest...like sitting on a sidewalk soaking in the morning sun and reading an actual newspaper...especially this wonderful nugget from Mr. Keillor...
"Is this a terrible thing to vish for? I think not. One loves company and then one loves uncompany, just as one enjoys sunshine/darkness, summer/winter, funk/folk, b&w/color, all sorts of dichotomies. Solitude is recognized by most world religions. Hairy-legged hermits sit in prayerful contemplation in their mountain caves and nobody thinks less of them for it. So why can't you or I spend a couple of hours alone in an undisclosed location?" (click for full column)
"Is this a terrible thing to vish for? I think not. One loves company and then one loves uncompany, just as one enjoys sunshine/darkness, summer/winter, funk/folk, b&w/color, all sorts of dichotomies. Solitude is recognized by most world religions. Hairy-legged hermits sit in prayerful contemplation in their mountain caves and nobody thinks less of them for it. So why can't you or I spend a couple of hours alone in an undisclosed location?" (click for full column)
June 23, 2009
your word of the week...
viable...
adjective...capable of living...physically fitted to live...able to live and grow...vivid; real; stimulating, as to the intellect, imagination, or senses...practicable; workable...having the ability to grow, expand, develop...
adjective...capable of living...physically fitted to live...able to live and grow...vivid; real; stimulating, as to the intellect, imagination, or senses...practicable; workable...having the ability to grow, expand, develop...
June 21, 2009
June 19, 2009
today's cool shit...old NYC tv ads...
today is Stevie Wonder day...in my house at least...and i can't listen to You Are The Sunshine Of My Life without thinking about the goofy ad that used to run on television back in that day that had people bungling the lyrics...i searched and searched, but the damned internet can't help me find it...i did find these...enjoy...
i love this block...cable for $15 a month!!!Scooter shilling for The Money Store...Carvel pimping miss half pint...and Space 1999...oh my fraking God...
i'd forgotten all about Korvettes...check out the original Atari at the end...
i love this block...cable for $15 a month!!!Scooter shilling for The Money Store...Carvel pimping miss half pint...and Space 1999...oh my fraking God...
i'd forgotten all about Korvettes...check out the original Atari at the end...
June 17, 2009
dear designers of the future...very near future...
let's talk motorcycles, shall we...look at this concept...erm, product...
the zero-s...a full electric street bike...here are the numbers...
60 mile range...less than four hour charge time...top speed of 60 mph...not much better than most mopeds...not exciting....yet, it's a good start...if i had $10k (+$500 for shipping) laying around, i would probably put it in my garage...just to say I had it...
but let's talk about real world use...the charge time is decent, but bump up the range 40 more miles and if the top speed was closer to 80 mph, then you'd have something enthusiasts could get excited about...almost...
this thing looks like riding it would feel like sitting on a hobbyhorse...it needs to look more like this...
that's the italian styled Moto Guzzi Nevada Classic 750...
remember, you have to start with a rider's heart, then his head, before you can get to his pocket...
just sayin'...
the zero-s...a full electric street bike...here are the numbers...
60 mile range...less than four hour charge time...top speed of 60 mph...not much better than most mopeds...not exciting....yet, it's a good start...if i had $10k (+$500 for shipping) laying around, i would probably put it in my garage...just to say I had it...
but let's talk about real world use...the charge time is decent, but bump up the range 40 more miles and if the top speed was closer to 80 mph, then you'd have something enthusiasts could get excited about...almost...
this thing looks like riding it would feel like sitting on a hobbyhorse...it needs to look more like this...
that's the italian styled Moto Guzzi Nevada Classic 750...
remember, you have to start with a rider's heart, then his head, before you can get to his pocket...
just sayin'...
June 14, 2009
today's cool shit...
new music released last week...
Mos Def, The Ecstatic...
Busdriver, Jhelli Beam...
Thavius Beck, Urban Subsonic...
i've got a lot of work to do...
Mos Def, The Ecstatic...
Busdriver, Jhelli Beam...
Thavius Beck, Urban Subsonic...
i've got a lot of work to do...
June 12, 2009
today's cool shit...
God bless the nerds...someone turned...this...into this...and if you know a little something about right clickity, and how to change the tags...you can get this...
June 10, 2009
shameless promotional plug...
I'll be reading portions from my short story collection...previewing new work...and making a special announcement...
June 6, 2009
309-295...two beer can chicken recipies...
yesterday i made two versions of my favorite way to grill chicken...beer can chicken...
i brined the first chicken...here's the brine recipe...
start with a 12-pack of your favorite barley soda...that's the adult beverage otherwise known as beer...you don't want anything too cheap...or too fancy...remember, you're cooking, not drinking...your choice should be based primarily on what tastes good to you...bland, crappy pisswater will not bring good results, and expensive beer is just a waste of good brewing...i'm using Sammy here mostly because it's what i had on hand...and the freshness date was January...
pour the beer into a stockpot...i'm using a 9 qt here...which is just right...you'll see why later...
next, the spices...
a handful of whole cloves...
a handful of whole allspice...
and a handful of peppercorns...
add 2/3 cup of coarse salt...i'm using sea salt...because we're fancy like that around here...kosher salt works just as well...
and 1 cup dark molasses...most brines are some combination of water, salt, and sugar, and there's already plenty of sugar in the beer...in the form of alcohol...i like molasses because it brings the right touch of sweetness...
notice how the level of the beer shot up of from just below halfway to 3/4 of the way...that's from adding the salt..that's why you need a big pot...
if my chili recipe is beginner mode...this is intermediate...not because i'm using any sophisticated techniques...brining, smoking, dry rubs, grilling...these are simple things...the degree of difficulty goes up mostly because you need some non-standard equipment...then again, everyone's got a 9 quart stockpot, right...
anyway...
bring to a boil, cover and let cool to room temperature...
meanwhile...gather your tools...
this is your moisture delivery system...here's where cheap beer is okay...beer canning is about steaming the bird from the inside out...the alcohol burns off, and what you have left is water in a can...well, hopefully, a little bit more than that...
next, you need a cooler, or anything that's food safe and big enough for 5 pounds of ice, your brine, and your 3-5 lb bird...why the ice...this is not a marinade, and you do not want the chicken to cook at room temperature inside your brine...that's what would happen without the ice...so, do the right thing and avoid giving yourself and your loved ones food poisoning...
like so...that's the chicken buried under the ice there on the right...that's a lot of brine for one bird, i know...this recipe is for brining two birds, but...sometimes, in the middle of cooking, your wife calls to inform you that the meal you were planning to have ready for the grill in seven hours now needs to be ready to eat in four hours because you are now serving four people instead of two...
ah well...improvise, adapt, and overcome...the more, the merrier...
where was i...the bird is in the brine...make sure the chicken is fully immersed in the brine, and covered...one hour for every pound...that's all you need...
while we're waiting, let's dry rub and smoke the other bird...
fairly straightforward here...one clean and dry chicken, your favorite spices, and an hour in the refrigerator...
and...you can ignore the fancy grilling apparatus that's holding up the bird...they're available wherever you can find silly kitchen doodads and geegaws, but you don't really need it...unless you're paranoid about cooking a chicken with an aluminum can stuffed inside it...
did i hear you ask what spices...oh, some ginger, some paprika...and some other stuff...use what you know works for you...
when ready, put this on your grill at 300˚ for 30 minutes...this guy is kind of a dork, but he's got good advice on how to make a simple smoke device for grilling...
there should be a photo (or two) here showing you how to open the beer can with a churchkey and pour some of it out and then add two or three garlic cloves and some spices...and finally, how to put the can in the chicken...but sometimes things move too fast in the kitchen to remember the camera...so...
voila...
et, voila...
400˚ for 30 to 40 minutes on the grill or in an oven...
and super tasty delicious chicken...i promise...
i brined the first chicken...here's the brine recipe...
start with a 12-pack of your favorite barley soda...that's the adult beverage otherwise known as beer...you don't want anything too cheap...or too fancy...remember, you're cooking, not drinking...your choice should be based primarily on what tastes good to you...bland, crappy pisswater will not bring good results, and expensive beer is just a waste of good brewing...i'm using Sammy here mostly because it's what i had on hand...and the freshness date was January...
pour the beer into a stockpot...i'm using a 9 qt here...which is just right...you'll see why later...
next, the spices...
a handful of whole cloves...
a handful of whole allspice...
and a handful of peppercorns...
add 2/3 cup of coarse salt...i'm using sea salt...because we're fancy like that around here...kosher salt works just as well...
and 1 cup dark molasses...most brines are some combination of water, salt, and sugar, and there's already plenty of sugar in the beer...in the form of alcohol...i like molasses because it brings the right touch of sweetness...
notice how the level of the beer shot up of from just below halfway to 3/4 of the way...that's from adding the salt..that's why you need a big pot...
if my chili recipe is beginner mode...this is intermediate...not because i'm using any sophisticated techniques...brining, smoking, dry rubs, grilling...these are simple things...the degree of difficulty goes up mostly because you need some non-standard equipment...then again, everyone's got a 9 quart stockpot, right...
anyway...
bring to a boil, cover and let cool to room temperature...
meanwhile...gather your tools...
this is your moisture delivery system...here's where cheap beer is okay...beer canning is about steaming the bird from the inside out...the alcohol burns off, and what you have left is water in a can...well, hopefully, a little bit more than that...
next, you need a cooler, or anything that's food safe and big enough for 5 pounds of ice, your brine, and your 3-5 lb bird...why the ice...this is not a marinade, and you do not want the chicken to cook at room temperature inside your brine...that's what would happen without the ice...so, do the right thing and avoid giving yourself and your loved ones food poisoning...
like so...that's the chicken buried under the ice there on the right...that's a lot of brine for one bird, i know...this recipe is for brining two birds, but...sometimes, in the middle of cooking, your wife calls to inform you that the meal you were planning to have ready for the grill in seven hours now needs to be ready to eat in four hours because you are now serving four people instead of two...
ah well...improvise, adapt, and overcome...the more, the merrier...
where was i...the bird is in the brine...make sure the chicken is fully immersed in the brine, and covered...one hour for every pound...that's all you need...
while we're waiting, let's dry rub and smoke the other bird...
fairly straightforward here...one clean and dry chicken, your favorite spices, and an hour in the refrigerator...
and...you can ignore the fancy grilling apparatus that's holding up the bird...they're available wherever you can find silly kitchen doodads and geegaws, but you don't really need it...unless you're paranoid about cooking a chicken with an aluminum can stuffed inside it...
did i hear you ask what spices...oh, some ginger, some paprika...and some other stuff...use what you know works for you...
when ready, put this on your grill at 300˚ for 30 minutes...this guy is kind of a dork, but he's got good advice on how to make a simple smoke device for grilling...
there should be a photo (or two) here showing you how to open the beer can with a churchkey and pour some of it out and then add two or three garlic cloves and some spices...and finally, how to put the can in the chicken...but sometimes things move too fast in the kitchen to remember the camera...so...
voila...
et, voila...
400˚ for 30 to 40 minutes on the grill or in an oven...
and super tasty delicious chicken...i promise...
June 5, 2009
today's cool shit...
this is why Detroit is floundering...
42 mpg...
zero-to-60 in 6.6 seconds...
$30,000...
and sexy as hell...
Chevy? no...Ford? no...Dodge? no...it's a Volkswagen...
(via Wired)
42 mpg...
zero-to-60 in 6.6 seconds...
$30,000...
and sexy as hell...
Chevy? no...Ford? no...Dodge? no...it's a Volkswagen...
(via Wired)
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