Birthday Treat
Evangelist Billy Graham is 98 today, November 7th. No great public celebration is planned said son Franklin. Franklin went on to say that Billy has hearing and vision problems, but that if he does hear what you said, his response will show that he "got it."
Billy and his wife were married for 64 years and apparently obeying God's directive - "Go forth and multiply" - they did with five children, 19 grandkids and "numerous" great-grandchildren. As Billy is said to have reached 215 million people in 185 countries, this could be considered rather remarkable as in when the hell was he home?
The interviewer asked Franklin about the birthday dinner and was told it would be out of cans - Vienna sausages and cold pork and beans. Franklin said those were the great treats of his childhood. Additionally, he will receive his favorite birthday cake - "one of those cheap supermarket cakes with lard icing."
Personally, I think God could have rewarded such a faithful parishioner with a little better than that, but God knows what He's doing.
Celebrities Leaving if Trump Is Elected
I have always loved it when actors get involved in politics because they make such asses of themselves. They have day jobs (most of the time) but that's not enough for them. Hold your breath no longer, this is who says we'll be waving "Bye bye" to as they scuttle off to distant shores.
Cher - the planet Jupiter
Jon Stewart - a new planet (please let NASA know if there is one)
Chelsea Handler to Spain; Amy Schumer said she wants to be her neighbor there. Heads up, Spanish realtors!
Barbra Streisand - Australia
George Lopez - Mexico (no immigration jokes, please)
Ruth Bader Ginsberg, esteemed (until now) Supreme Court judge to New Zealand
The Reverend Al Sharpton who fears deportation of Trump gets in. If for no other reason at all, if Sharpton isn't lying (occupational hazard) then Go Donald!
Monday, November 7, 2016
Saturday, November 5, 2016
Match the National Mood - Go Crabs!
One way or another, much of America seems to be in a bad mood. Some might describe it as "crabby." Well, dust your hands together and let's make lemonade - we've got lemon temperaments ...
Richie grew up on Long Island where his brother and two nephews are all Bay Men, harvesting clams and lobsters for sale as far away as Japan. True! When they bring their catches in, the buyer is waiting for them with a panel truck and cash. From the harbor to a KAL jet and gone.
The crab of choice on the East Coast is blue; on the West Coast they are Dungeness. In the seafood sections of our supermarkets as well as Chicken of the Sea brand (who knew they push crab?) their Coast is not mentioned, probably because the container holds something of a mix of crab parts.
Be that all as it may. Richie makes a very good crab cake, not from an old family recipe but from the recipe on the crab container! There is, however, a secret ingredient and that's the substitution of panko for bread crumbs. Panko is much airier than bread crumbs and using them gives the cake a necessary lightness of being.
CRAB CAKES A LA RICHIE AND CHICKEN OF THE SEA
Set aside 1 8 oz. container crab meat and 3/4 cup panko We'll get to you in a minute.
Meanwhile: beat together
1/2 beaten egg which is a real Zen puzzle to me "What is the sound of one-half egg..." Either use a whole egg or forget the egg thing altogether.
1 T mayo
1/2 teas. mustard (Colman's)
1/2 teas. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teas. dry mustard or use a full teas. Colman's mustard instead
1/2 teas Old Bay Seasoning*
dash of lemon juice
Now add the panko and crab, mix well, form round patties like a golf ball or flat cakes like a pancake - however you want the finished product.
*The Old Bay people suggest dusting French fries, corn on the cob, steamed veggies or popcorn with their fine product.
Richie grew up on Long Island where his brother and two nephews are all Bay Men, harvesting clams and lobsters for sale as far away as Japan. True! When they bring their catches in, the buyer is waiting for them with a panel truck and cash. From the harbor to a KAL jet and gone.
The crab of choice on the East Coast is blue; on the West Coast they are Dungeness. In the seafood sections of our supermarkets as well as Chicken of the Sea brand (who knew they push crab?) their Coast is not mentioned, probably because the container holds something of a mix of crab parts.
Be that all as it may. Richie makes a very good crab cake, not from an old family recipe but from the recipe on the crab container! There is, however, a secret ingredient and that's the substitution of panko for bread crumbs. Panko is much airier than bread crumbs and using them gives the cake a necessary lightness of being.
CRAB CAKES A LA RICHIE AND CHICKEN OF THE SEA
Set aside 1 8 oz. container crab meat and 3/4 cup panko We'll get to you in a minute.
Meanwhile: beat together
1/2 beaten egg which is a real Zen puzzle to me "What is the sound of one-half egg..." Either use a whole egg or forget the egg thing altogether.
1 T mayo
1/2 teas. mustard (Colman's)
1/2 teas. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teas. dry mustard or use a full teas. Colman's mustard instead
1/2 teas Old Bay Seasoning*
dash of lemon juice
Now add the panko and crab, mix well, form round patties like a golf ball or flat cakes like a pancake - however you want the finished product.
*The Old Bay people suggest dusting French fries, corn on the cob, steamed veggies or popcorn with their fine product.
Friday, November 4, 2016
Italians Up In Arms - Mayor Proclaims Turin "Meat-free" City
Chiara Appendino, 32, is the 20th Mayor of Turin and is promoting her fiefdom as a "meat-free city."
If you've booked to include Turin on a tour of Italy, don't panic yet as it hasn't fully happened although the meat vendors of their local stock are not exactly pleased. Meaning that you can still buy a salume (and bread) for a picnic without having to cross a picket line or be exposed to incoming fire from disgruntled carnivores.
Appendino's five year plan has not yet been fully explained, but it is thought to contain educating school children on the horrors of a meatball as well as putting out a vegetarian-friendly tourist map for visiting veggie enthusiasts. No decision on which day will be declared "meat free" nor even if it will be a once a week/month/year event.
Feelings are running high. Vegan enthusiasts are happy, meat eaters are horrified that a centuries old diet that includes various salume may be lost. (No more pepperoni) Some scoff that it is merely a fad among the young; others have remarked that they have seen the aged going vegetarian for health reasons.
And you thought our Presidential election means something. I can imagine bumper stickers there "You'll rip this mortadella out of my cold dead hands!" That's serious. No prosciutto indeed.
If you've booked to include Turin on a tour of Italy, don't panic yet as it hasn't fully happened although the meat vendors of their local stock are not exactly pleased. Meaning that you can still buy a salume (and bread) for a picnic without having to cross a picket line or be exposed to incoming fire from disgruntled carnivores.
Appendino's five year plan has not yet been fully explained, but it is thought to contain educating school children on the horrors of a meatball as well as putting out a vegetarian-friendly tourist map for visiting veggie enthusiasts. No decision on which day will be declared "meat free" nor even if it will be a once a week/month/year event.
Feelings are running high. Vegan enthusiasts are happy, meat eaters are horrified that a centuries old diet that includes various salume may be lost. (No more pepperoni) Some scoff that it is merely a fad among the young; others have remarked that they have seen the aged going vegetarian for health reasons.
And you thought our Presidential election means something. I can imagine bumper stickers there "You'll rip this mortadella out of my cold dead hands!" That's serious. No prosciutto indeed.
Thursday, November 3, 2016
If You Can't Change It, You Might as Well LaughI
I am referring to the political candidate fervor, slung accusations, denied wrongdoing and all that seems to be going into a modern Presidential election. Reality TV has a lot to answer for and so does the Internet with its full permission to say any damned scurrilous thing the writer wants to say in complete anonymity.
We who might wish to change this sad situation cannot - we're vastly outnumbered. So ... in the spirit of having a smile instead of a tantrum against what we cannot change ...
The MSM is biased for one candidate and show it daily. Comfort yourself: "It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." Hamlet, Act 5 (I think.)
A comment on the Clinton Foundation, under investigation for the past year: "I didn't know the Clintons were Catholics. Apparently, while she was Secretary of State, the Clinton Foundation sold favors like the Italian Popes of long ago."
Rudy Giuliani weighed in with a remark that if Hillary had an Italian last name, she'd be in jail."
Another comment from a chiding defender, "Oooo, you're on the rocket sled to hell!" I kind of like that one - the visual.
To make it through until November 9th, stay calm by using breathing exercises, do not read newspapers or listen to the news anchors but do read the Comments on various sites for a laugh. Remind yourself that America has survived WW1, WW2, Korea, Viet Nam and the Great Depression. We're still here. We've earned these laughs and we deserve them.
We who might wish to change this sad situation cannot - we're vastly outnumbered. So ... in the spirit of having a smile instead of a tantrum against what we cannot change ...
The MSM is biased for one candidate and show it daily. Comfort yourself: "It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." Hamlet, Act 5 (I think.)
A comment on the Clinton Foundation, under investigation for the past year: "I didn't know the Clintons were Catholics. Apparently, while she was Secretary of State, the Clinton Foundation sold favors like the Italian Popes of long ago."
Rudy Giuliani weighed in with a remark that if Hillary had an Italian last name, she'd be in jail."
Another comment from a chiding defender, "Oooo, you're on the rocket sled to hell!" I kind of like that one - the visual.
To make it through until November 9th, stay calm by using breathing exercises, do not read newspapers or listen to the news anchors but do read the Comments on various sites for a laugh. Remind yourself that America has survived WW1, WW2, Korea, Viet Nam and the Great Depression. We're still here. We've earned these laughs and we deserve them.
Wednesday, November 2, 2016
Comments on The Third Inning ...
From Shropshire Sheila - When I lived your side, it was the only American game I could understand. Football (even with the help of vodka) was a complete blur. I was so happy to hear the 2 minute buzzer until it took 2 bloody hours to finish. Basketball has more rules than a Kardashian has shoes and I am a major sports fan. From what you say though, the organ would drive me nuts.
Doug V. - Very interesting and quite funny! The organ music at a baseball game can, without question, be irritating; however, I think it may be better than some of those little five-piece ensembles that appear at some NFL teams' games. You can't really hear them, but you can tell they're doing something because your tympanic membranes are vibrating.
And then there is that infernal cathedral bell that NFL teams ring when the visiting team has a third down and the home defense is being encouraged to clobber them.
Finally, there are those NBA announcers who can extend the name Jones to make it sound like a 24-syllable word. It is sports in our modern world.
Doug V. - Very interesting and quite funny! The organ music at a baseball game can, without question, be irritating; however, I think it may be better than some of those little five-piece ensembles that appear at some NFL teams' games. You can't really hear them, but you can tell they're doing something because your tympanic membranes are vibrating.
And then there is that infernal cathedral bell that NFL teams ring when the visiting team has a third down and the home defense is being encouraged to clobber them.
Finally, there are those NBA announcers who can extend the name Jones to make it sound like a 24-syllable word. It is sports in our modern world.
Tuesday, November 1, 2016
It Was the 3rd Inning...
And as I drifted in to the kitchen for a glass of Riesling, I heard the announcer say "Seven to One, Cubs."
"Richie - what inning?" I cried.
"Third" he replied.
"So, everybody can go home now, right?" (Eager dog look - begging for a treat.)
I received a sneering, dismissive glance that might have felled a lesser woman, but, c'mon - 35 years together? You really think that was the first time?
I hate baseball. For years it has been as exciting as watching grass grow or paint dry or an illiterate checker give you change when the cash register computers are down.
I ruminated on what it is that I find so absolutely abhorrent about TV baseball games and the other night it dawned on me. I was about to start tearing my hair out (while reading a book) because I kept hearing that ghastly "Doodelee-oop-de-doo..." one key up, "Doodelee oop de doo" always on the next higher note. Bats were falling out of the avocado tree, writhing in agony. No less I on the living room couch. The wheeze is as unattractive in organ ditties as it is in an old folks home.
As it is not my wont (not misspelled) to whine without offering a solution ... join me in this. We start saving up airline miles (Do it - winter's coming on - BUY that floor-length mink!) and transferring cash around like a Mafia accountant so that just before the season begins, we can be assigned territories nearest our home bases (don't waste miles) and personally go to every stadium that has an organ and offers televised baseball games. We will, of course, have looked up the organist performing in "our" stadium so as to know the best bribe likely to keep them off of the organ bench for an entire season. With minimal cost, of course.
This may sound like an odd scheme coming from a woman whose mother played the organ in church, BUT she was playing Bach and Handel ... and not at a baseball game!
We'll be ready for sign ups soon. Keep watching this space.
"Richie - what inning?" I cried.
"Third" he replied.
"So, everybody can go home now, right?" (Eager dog look - begging for a treat.)
I received a sneering, dismissive glance that might have felled a lesser woman, but, c'mon - 35 years together? You really think that was the first time?
I hate baseball. For years it has been as exciting as watching grass grow or paint dry or an illiterate checker give you change when the cash register computers are down.
I ruminated on what it is that I find so absolutely abhorrent about TV baseball games and the other night it dawned on me. I was about to start tearing my hair out (while reading a book) because I kept hearing that ghastly "Doodelee-oop-de-doo..." one key up, "Doodelee oop de doo" always on the next higher note. Bats were falling out of the avocado tree, writhing in agony. No less I on the living room couch. The wheeze is as unattractive in organ ditties as it is in an old folks home.
As it is not my wont (not misspelled) to whine without offering a solution ... join me in this. We start saving up airline miles (Do it - winter's coming on - BUY that floor-length mink!) and transferring cash around like a Mafia accountant so that just before the season begins, we can be assigned territories nearest our home bases (don't waste miles) and personally go to every stadium that has an organ and offers televised baseball games. We will, of course, have looked up the organist performing in "our" stadium so as to know the best bribe likely to keep them off of the organ bench for an entire season. With minimal cost, of course.
This may sound like an odd scheme coming from a woman whose mother played the organ in church, BUT she was playing Bach and Handel ... and not at a baseball game!
We'll be ready for sign ups soon. Keep watching this space.
Looking at Both Sides Now ...
My brother-in-law on Long Island remarked that everyone he's talked to there is longing for November 9th. I think many of us across the broad swathe of America ending at the Pacific Ocean would agree. We've been, largely, beaten to our knees by this reality show, snarkfest, fastest liar to open their mouth presently called "a Presidential election."
Which brings me back to the headline above:
Hubris - excessive pride or self-confidence which is synonymous with arrogance, conceit, and defiance which often leads to:
Nemesis - a downfall caused by hubris.
Both candidates are undeniably guilty of hubris; now let's see what happens when nemesis enters the fray.
I don't think it will be pastoral.
Which brings me back to the headline above:
Hubris - excessive pride or self-confidence which is synonymous with arrogance, conceit, and defiance which often leads to:
Nemesis - a downfall caused by hubris.
Both candidates are undeniably guilty of hubris; now let's see what happens when nemesis enters the fray.
I don't think it will be pastoral.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
