tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46098490573741161652024-02-08T04:37:21.821+00:00A keen grasp of the obviousFakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.comBlogger58125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-5729837415320437592022-09-13T01:26:00.001+01:002022-09-13T01:55:40.735+01:00Italian Apple Cake<p> In response to popular demand (one person asked), here's my apple cake recipe.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLKbwvfhnnvq_hm0QtX_zSg6Ifhh-CEnOp-2DHdUQBRR7pzpcgpOGmEGektwmuPG_hM_aVBTe6isJZpdTPhny0DVbATNcCY9vKSwNcbE1ue0HZ81mQ1T_GyZTM0NaxrnB589Em4i4aK_D_hnQ0wCBhXfRHU42roQEq5sG6JbUkbPFDlqWD8RdUDQ/s3088/20220912_173853.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="3060" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLKbwvfhnnvq_hm0QtX_zSg6Ifhh-CEnOp-2DHdUQBRR7pzpcgpOGmEGektwmuPG_hM_aVBTe6isJZpdTPhny0DVbATNcCY9vKSwNcbE1ue0HZ81mQ1T_GyZTM0NaxrnB589Em4i4aK_D_hnQ0wCBhXfRHU42roQEq5sG6JbUkbPFDlqWD8RdUDQ/s320/20220912_173853.jpg" width="317" /></a></div><br /><p><b><span></span></b></p><a name='more'></a><b>Ingredients</b><p></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>1 lemon</li><li>4 apples (should be about 1 1/4 lb)</li><li>1/2 cup unsalted butter</li><li>1/3 cup white sugar</li><li>1 cup flour</li><li>1 1/2 tsp baking powder</li><li>1 tsp salt (omit if using salted butter)</li><li>2 eggs</li><li>1 tsp vanilla</li><li>Powdered sugar</li></ul><div><b>Instructions</b></div><div><ol style="text-align: left;"><li>Preheat oven to 375F</li><li>Line the bottom of a 10" springform pan with parchment paper. Butter the inside of the pan or the cake will stick</li><li>Melt the butter</li><li>Juice and zest the lemon</li><li>Peel, core, and slice the apples. Cut the slices of three of them into quarters, put in a bowl and mix with the lemon juice. Cut the slices of the 4th into halves and set aside</li><li>Sift flour, baking powder and salt together (optional but improves the texture)</li><li>Put the sugar in a large bowl and beat in the melted butter</li><li>Beat in the eggs</li><li>Stir in the vanilla, lemon zest, and the flour mixture to make a batter</li><li>Stir in the three apples. There will be barely enough batter to bind the apple pieces</li><li>Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and even it out</li><li>Arrange the slices of the 4th apple decoratively on top</li><li>Bake for about 30 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean</li><li>Remove from the oven.</li><li>After it cools and you take it out of the pan, sprinkle with powdered sugar</li></ol><div><b>Optional stuff</b></div></div><div><br /></div><div>Add 1/2 cup of chopped pecans or walnuts to the batter before baking</div><div><br /></div><div>Use 1 lb of cherries instead of apples. They can be watery particularly if frozen so you might want to drain off the juice, boil it down, and add that to the batter</div><div><br /></div><div>Adapted from <a href="https://www.thebakingfairy.net/2016/04/italian-apple-cake/" target="_blank">this recipe</a></div><p></p>Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-62926581486601459762021-03-19T18:30:00.001+00:002021-03-19T18:30:28.497+00:00New Hope for the Dead<p> My father got an e-mail from Chase Bank encouraging him to check his credit score. Since I have all his passwords, I logged in and took a look.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMl06Gt-ZzZZSAKx7KJQBAk2bvEpQ2wTGi-RaSDjlcXds1uZU2J7DCoNRd2qtGDWoIc58r4BUUAY0SHswbSJ_3mHAi5lXcdaBEm8plmYXFYPBT8A8nu0QGvxeYdm117etVrqEHFG36xw/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1175" data-original-width="991" height="459" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMl06Gt-ZzZZSAKx7KJQBAk2bvEpQ2wTGi-RaSDjlcXds1uZU2J7DCoNRd2qtGDWoIc58r4BUUAY0SHswbSJ_3mHAi5lXcdaBEm8plmYXFYPBT8A8nu0QGvxeYdm117etVrqEHFG36xw/w386-h459/image.png" width="386" /></a></div>As you can see, his credit is pretty good. You may ask, why do I have all of his passwords? Because he's been dead for two years.<p></p><p>But with a credit score like that, he clearly needs some new credit cards.</p><p><br /><br /></p>Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-17892809638202458842018-12-21T03:45:00.000+00:002018-12-21T03:45:11.238+00:00My high security debit cardSquare Cash is a personal payment app from Squareup, the people who make those iPad credit card terminals ubiquitous at coffee shops and farmers markets. Once you've signed up for the Cash app, you can ask them for a debit card, so you can pay people who don't use the app and they can of course pay merchant processing fees and Square can encourage you to leave money in your account to fund the debit card.<br />
I applied for the card, and as part of the process their web site gives you a rectangle in which you're supposed to write something with your finger, I suppose a signature or something. I don't want people messing with my card in case I lose it, so I wrote this:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWY-LO7mFSY0xidAW9TH-dXZxoq3xkyw3vcxFjIXTVJafbp6K10fDP8j7v_COjHfC3nj2j8P_F0Y8H41ellmz5AEvny0EL1oyxhMR_QpQBH4a9g98YtwppKhwKJGN8kEQFIUFKk1LHcA/s1600/IMG_20181220_214618093.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWY-LO7mFSY0xidAW9TH-dXZxoq3xkyw3vcxFjIXTVJafbp6K10fDP8j7v_COjHfC3nj2j8P_F0Y8H41ellmz5AEvny0EL1oyxhMR_QpQBH4a9g98YtwppKhwKJGN8kEQFIUFKk1LHcA/s400/IMG_20181220_214618093.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
We'll see how it works.Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-27023842550165356682018-05-06T04:08:00.002+01:002018-05-06T04:08:34.413+01:00Derby DayWe didn't have a chance to enjoy the rain, the mud, and the 7.80:2 odds on the winner, but we did have a suitable beverage.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUhmticupHxAOTsH81nC5csugZzKAzKsDnW1p4qktutCOtQPkeOfq6uAgFhYKUJ0Gdej39JvHYSJuCV8EdLRl4HtIIWGlNDXyhVWPjg73Plimrzv5xHtEt6Lr6THn58fiZGD2tI5hdjg/s1600/IMG_20180505_175821461_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUhmticupHxAOTsH81nC5csugZzKAzKsDnW1p4qktutCOtQPkeOfq6uAgFhYKUJ0Gdej39JvHYSJuCV8EdLRl4HtIIWGlNDXyhVWPjg73Plimrzv5xHtEt6Lr6THn58fiZGD2tI5hdjg/s320/IMG_20180505_175821461_HDR.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-3111503997841003992018-02-15T17:10:00.005+00:002018-02-15T17:10:54.407+00:00This is so wrong<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Found in today's junk mail.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3uAldgiSmhCnuHfiq9waPN3EjCmxftTikh4VjjBd4riXrrQd1T1Erd8_NoY7d-GoI37d_cZM5kWCUli0lzVTaRZZ0TtRAiyZk6ta4AmHLe1Y26LOlB6lkRy_4o2CVovM5u6x_cPRGMA/s1600/mammogram.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="465" data-original-width="794" height="374" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3uAldgiSmhCnuHfiq9waPN3EjCmxftTikh4VjjBd4riXrrQd1T1Erd8_NoY7d-GoI37d_cZM5kWCUli0lzVTaRZZ0TtRAiyZk6ta4AmHLe1Y26LOlB6lkRy_4o2CVovM5u6x_cPRGMA/s640/mammogram.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-5072053156285625922018-01-25T11:40:00.004+00:002018-01-25T11:40:33.996+00:00The Financial Times in an article on water theft<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Stuart Orchard, an ex-Surrey police detective employed by the company, said: </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“We’re not out to get people, but it’s against the law to dig up the road, find our water mains and illegally connect to our network."</blockquote>
See https://www.ft.com/content/e8cc9670-00f4-11e8-9650-9c0ad2d7c5b5Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-52222215298961480262017-08-21T20:03:00.002+01:002017-09-11T17:58:41.783+01:00Live from the collander-camIn our yard in upstate New York<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS6Ygfv3XYDqOCw2YLX7RyhOHFRcWerpoR8a6NN8k7vSHdtQkyCDoUtohmwrH2ysjKBJiLuD23N7qr4b7xXVr_ZaZ83pZBq4YLxtHEYtCH-wXc_vk237ndmezRpINPIl5bB6cVsViHLA/s1600/IMG_20170821_143316918.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1201" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS6Ygfv3XYDqOCw2YLX7RyhOHFRcWerpoR8a6NN8k7vSHdtQkyCDoUtohmwrH2ysjKBJiLuD23N7qr4b7xXVr_ZaZ83pZBq4YLxtHEYtCH-wXc_vk237ndmezRpINPIl5bB6cVsViHLA/s320/IMG_20170821_143316918.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4v4GPMFUgtqRvszzckYf_B0dBTiimYb9_HCxQCIx3xlGjmhtjvZ4hfY1xh2usJD9FFACiUIdLsnGdetWwnrWLiQhvC6nv5R0jM75eLkyHPJFAtGT6DcTfqe7T_8fogzrJmQtlbeyH5w/s1600/IMG_20170821_143803227_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1201" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4v4GPMFUgtqRvszzckYf_B0dBTiimYb9_HCxQCIx3xlGjmhtjvZ4hfY1xh2usJD9FFACiUIdLsnGdetWwnrWLiQhvC6nv5R0jM75eLkyHPJFAtGT6DcTfqe7T_8fogzrJmQtlbeyH5w/s640/IMG_20170821_143803227_HDR.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-21802798274608305332016-05-27T18:08:00.001+01:002016-05-27T18:09:23.265+01:00A little musical history<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRE3-jp8PMOsR0THVw-aJF8fXWVXYb2sSjqQEhVOT0uGu4rWmnlBBH6tUcINNQrjwaNNbwHom1-gH5ucw-8uCggKHx_fLy5q4Y1-zJdy_sZ1FfXPuydctnq3yAa3SZoI4xttUY6iDK0Q/s1600/IMG_20160527_113621117.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRE3-jp8PMOsR0THVw-aJF8fXWVXYb2sSjqQEhVOT0uGu4rWmnlBBH6tUcINNQrjwaNNbwHom1-gH5ucw-8uCggKHx_fLy5q4Y1-zJdy_sZ1FfXPuydctnq3yAa3SZoI4xttUY6iDK0Q/s400/IMG_20160527_113621117.jpg" title="" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our new historic sign</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I live in Trumansburg NY, a small village in the Finger Lakes, just north of Ithaca where Cornell University is. Bob Moog was a Cornell engineering PhD with an interest in electronic music. He'd been making Theremins, the original electronic musical instrument from the 1920s, but was constantly experimenting with other instruments. After he graduated, in a storefront here in Trumansburg he built modular synthesizers played from a keyboard, which were a lot more versatile than a single-voice Theremin.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
A few years later Walter Carlos (later Wendy Carlos) produced an album of familiar Bach works played on a Moog Modular, called <b><i>Switched on Bach</i></b>. It was huge and unexpected hit, both for its novelty and its musicianship. Almost 50 years later, it still sounds great. Listen <a href="https://archive.org/details/SwitchedOnBach2" target="_blank">to a copy at the Internet Archive.</a><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF7_T2Sk-DSw1EH7FrutiJtuyHc81KIhozG6-jwSCb06PaYpd0tVyLcVu7jbnZkA1MP9tgsfjK9ekPpKBO1j2NwQNDCv4NTlI0XZBE4nglJIrjd_ERfrOi82zfNyHdAhf-CRvVNIAkRw/s1600/IMG_20160527_113636581_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF7_T2Sk-DSw1EH7FrutiJtuyHc81KIhozG6-jwSCb06PaYpd0tVyLcVu7jbnZkA1MP9tgsfjK9ekPpKBO1j2NwQNDCv4NTlI0XZBE4nglJIrjd_ERfrOi82zfNyHdAhf-CRvVNIAkRw/s320/IMG_20160527_113636581_HDR.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pretty good pizza</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The storefront has gone through many tenants since Moog moved on and is now a pizza place. Everyone in town knows that it was the location of Moog's shop, but few people anywhere else did. Now, at least anyone driving through town can find out.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
</div>
Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-83392639559732310052016-04-24T16:49:00.000+01:002016-04-24T16:49:03.829+01:00Boris for PresidentI presume everyone's heard that President Obama made some surprisingly direct comments in London saying that the UK should stay in the EU, and outgoing Mayor of London Boris Johnson, the most prominent proponent of Brexit, wrote a humdinger of a response in The Sun, mentioning among other things "the part-Kenyan president’s ancestral dislike of the British Empire."<br />
<br />
It occurs to me that Boris is answer to the Republicans' ongoing primary disaster. Boris for President. Let's look at the facts:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>He's been a very successful Mayor of London. If you like Mike B., you'll love Boris.</li>
<li>He shares the Reps' visceral dislike of Obama, but his rhetoric is several notches up, since it is at least somewhat consistent with reality. (The colonial government in Kenya really did torture Obama's grandfather.)</li>
<li>He's never been elected to anything in the US, so there's no pesky Senate non-career to explain away.</li>
<li>Plummy English accent makes him a shoo-in to win debates.</li>
<li>Natural born US citizen, unlike Cruz</li>
<li>Much better hair than Trump.</li>
</ul>
Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-25048728493364505722015-06-24T17:40:00.001+01:002015-06-24T17:40:39.042+01:00Caption contestSeen in a hotel in Buenos Aires. What does it mean?<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJeXJwmCcZho4BKDvZ26l_bdsEW0DSsR-9iWyxbqr98QrAl1erYemCQD3Few4M8RBPKocUeuEXQHNRWOY7M4OO3opckillH-7Ynxc8qjyHtfDVtPKICksww7bd3t9Yx9d6o6BB6AITwQ/s1600/IMG_20150624_113015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJeXJwmCcZho4BKDvZ26l_bdsEW0DSsR-9iWyxbqr98QrAl1erYemCQD3Few4M8RBPKocUeuEXQHNRWOY7M4OO3opckillH-7Ynxc8qjyHtfDVtPKICksww7bd3t9Yx9d6o6BB6AITwQ/s320/IMG_20150624_113015.jpg" /></a></div>
Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-66009960207501923862015-06-02T21:55:00.001+01:002015-06-02T21:55:53.031+01:00Much, much too true<div class="tumblr-post" data-href="https://embed.tumblr.com/embed/post/3FdG7EAQwCxnxc9Xczp99A/119671568358" data-did="f558b01219d0c6937cd617e2d30e6ea8464075ff"><a href="http://dnsreactions.tumblr.com/post/119671568358/90-of-the-posts-on-any-random-ietf-group">http://dnsreactions.tumblr.com/post/119671568358/90-of-the-posts-on-any-random-ietf-group</a></div><script async src="https://secure.assets.tumblr.com/post.js"></script>Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-56430271892567570292015-02-25T22:49:00.000+00:002015-02-26T02:53:57.999+00:00CrustyI made another tourtière using the rendered lard. Turned out OK. The lovely yellow tint is an egg wash.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoimSUZ3JZFzCRSufpWraPCpd1au-7q-L4X3BiHuUU25qm8-QjVtmnZhzONbcB5c7PCNyl00nyrDaznkScY5s6qL6eSSXLZ6p5LKAp2l9IGUX4y4wrp7Pc67pK1MNySNsL5P8Nt6gHHQ/s1600/IMG_20150225_173709134.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoimSUZ3JZFzCRSufpWraPCpd1au-7q-L4X3BiHuUU25qm8-QjVtmnZhzONbcB5c7PCNyl00nyrDaznkScY5s6qL6eSSXLZ6p5LKAp2l9IGUX4y4wrp7Pc67pK1MNySNsL5P8Nt6gHHQ/s1600/IMG_20150225_173709134.jpg" height="320" width="296" /></a></div>
For the culturally backward, the maple leaf, telephone, and airplanes are an obvious reference to Alexander Graham Bell.Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-49056835187128277632015-02-04T04:38:00.001+00:002015-02-04T04:38:42.266+00:00Render thisWe bought half a pig, all nicely cut up and stashed in the freezer. That includes a fair amount of lard, which the butcher gave us in its original form:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_4Yh4cB746YuK9-SZ3BLPqVESAfbazUJJTsVDZkKcoMH7wei33BlaG9anf1qjXcLTI0LcH8l0PFPfYIQGq-asDGRAPU7tVtvRriVFlW47kbed1GHbP4kbVNxQy__UxcZ94H5bB43NSQ/s1600/lard1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_4Yh4cB746YuK9-SZ3BLPqVESAfbazUJJTsVDZkKcoMH7wei33BlaG9anf1qjXcLTI0LcH8l0PFPfYIQGq-asDGRAPU7tVtvRriVFlW47kbed1GHbP4kbVNxQy__UxcZ94H5bB43NSQ/s1600/lard1.png" height="227" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Before one can make it into tasty baked goods (see the Tourtiere from a few years back), you have to render it. So first you grind it into tiny shreds:</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpeV1qkADBcLkDV_WnuCPgDZuyP7Weq4Xj9P_J7sNK_6OICMGHWGPXtFrJthynRhIxr_GLmYUTuSy4F4zQ_ZVcM53E38YIp2-vrXj2SzKsgsI07XhD1sdiBuqMq5qw1p7zNssWbV42Jw/s1600/lard2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpeV1qkADBcLkDV_WnuCPgDZuyP7Weq4Xj9P_J7sNK_6OICMGHWGPXtFrJthynRhIxr_GLmYUTuSy4F4zQ_ZVcM53E38YIp2-vrXj2SzKsgsI07XhD1sdiBuqMq5qw1p7zNssWbV42Jw/s1600/lard2.png" height="270" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Then you put the tiny shreds in a heavy pan in the oven at very low heat, like 275 F, for a few hours. The recipe said to stir it to keep it from scorching, but with the heat that low in a convection oven with no heating element under the pan, that didn't seem to be a problem. The fat quickly melted, and started bubbling as the water boiled away. Eventually the bubbling stopped and the cracklings sank to the bottom.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
So I took the pan out of the oven and poured off and strained the liquid fat, leaving the cracklings, which focused our dog's attention like nothing ever has before.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtLVIELW3lQBQytYLW2IozFUswtM6Nu0frsSXZ146rtfxkRILpAXOWGwP1BEPOgkVUOEdD7FKyTCoj7V5NfZ6sOk2QdDC9qsNp20_coFkTF6r257-Q1GdJJFX_EDsl2twa_g4A-fZbpw/s1600/lard3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtLVIELW3lQBQytYLW2IozFUswtM6Nu0frsSXZ146rtfxkRILpAXOWGwP1BEPOgkVUOEdD7FKyTCoj7V5NfZ6sOk2QdDC9qsNp20_coFkTF6r257-Q1GdJJFX_EDsl2twa_g4A-fZbpw/s1600/lard3.png" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The liquid lard was fairly yellow, but they promised it would turn white after it cooled in the fridge.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDRuPlbXtCwpWbdmcDHEX_1L51AU-j9EfAgEzQVf7h0hiefgKJkrX_sdU3jybUXK9gYE2E0jqAYMdaK0jr-zI9w7kkb0kLEAuZvUVyeHzz4sKO9qtGzHg6QNjzRUBkNX4xoGRf1vDlDw/s1600/lard4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDRuPlbXtCwpWbdmcDHEX_1L51AU-j9EfAgEzQVf7h0hiefgKJkrX_sdU3jybUXK9gYE2E0jqAYMdaK0jr-zI9w7kkb0kLEAuZvUVyeHzz4sKO9qtGzHg6QNjzRUBkNX4xoGRf1vDlDw/s1600/lard4.png" height="140" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Once it's chilled overnight, I'll see how it works in a pie crust.</div>
Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-33391646569099196012014-12-06T05:59:00.001+00:002014-12-06T05:59:31.389+00:00In keeping with the theme of this blog<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
We noticed this sign in Lawrenceville NJ last week.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrqUIOJgSrHi5-C59J1kOd-zHiQ3Zq-1AgTsrrVsbqErprsIq3Nv1BrYTiGsq2e4jnyAZ9MakqxgLpHhlYp0uecFJMQ2WYnSb38D6aHmdrU63klac1IxRwdv1IcBseLFB_sPH1MjjtbQ/s1600/IMG_20141130_100154.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrqUIOJgSrHi5-C59J1kOd-zHiQ3Zq-1AgTsrrVsbqErprsIq3Nv1BrYTiGsq2e4jnyAZ9MakqxgLpHhlYp0uecFJMQ2WYnSb38D6aHmdrU63klac1IxRwdv1IcBseLFB_sPH1MjjtbQ/s1600/IMG_20141130_100154.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-86646586764303932802014-09-18T14:12:00.001+01:002014-09-18T14:12:43.267+01:00Progress in e-mailThe Atlantic Monthly published a fine article <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/08/why-email-will-never-die/375973/2/" target="_blank">Email is Still the Best Thing on the Internet</a>, laying out all the reasons why e-mail, no matter how often people have claimed it's dead, is still thriving.<br />
<br />
On page 2 of the article is a picture of what mail looked like in the 1990s, pointing out how much it's advanced since then. By golly he's right. Here's his picture of 1990s mail, and a screen shot of the mail program I use every day:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKevMz_W2QyyCw_bk7R203B_D4V5QFWJUO8i8rA6QX4evrl2-oKiP5TZutqFRB7dZH4OAY4rPqr6iRvy2bGwfCPwRDMCEZHp3r7UtGafz0iNC4F-3fKzytfLs_9OHGrR_jxandJ8HhIw/s1600/mail-before.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKevMz_W2QyyCw_bk7R203B_D4V5QFWJUO8i8rA6QX4evrl2-oKiP5TZutqFRB7dZH4OAY4rPqr6iRvy2bGwfCPwRDMCEZHp3r7UtGafz0iNC4F-3fKzytfLs_9OHGrR_jxandJ8HhIw/s1600/mail-before.png" height="260" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV9syMde9Up5li4bOEkxP5w5r1iw1uPIsOpMbXgrWfAhjfARXMaYdSW0fNdZ-o2ome6ixzH2o1yuzpV7RoofPhCmqWqCyblRFF3ZURmtgasFJNYZ2tODChAK7FKEQGHm5Ra4AiS3CACg/s1600/mail-after.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV9syMde9Up5li4bOEkxP5w5r1iw1uPIsOpMbXgrWfAhjfARXMaYdSW0fNdZ-o2ome6ixzH2o1yuzpV7RoofPhCmqWqCyblRFF3ZURmtgasFJNYZ2tODChAK7FKEQGHm5Ra4AiS3CACg/s1600/mail-after.png" height="207" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-27680058631121924062014-07-04T16:48:00.004+01:002014-07-04T16:48:53.476+01:00Applying the Hobby Lobby decisionA friend notes:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The company simply does not want to be forced to pay for something to which it objects.</blockquote>
Since it's the Supreme Court, other courts have to apply this ruling in future cases. So here's a few:<br />
<div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>I'm a Christian Scientist, and believe that all conventional medicine is wrong. Does my company have to pay for any of my employees' healthcare?</li>
<li>I'm a fundamentalist Mormon who rejects Spencer W. Kimball's 1978 revelation and believes that black people are cursed with the mark of Cain. I don't like EEO law, but understand that my company has to hire qualified black people. Does it have to pay for their healthcare?</li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-35617503651499087532013-12-22T17:48:00.002+00:002013-12-22T17:48:48.848+00:00At least they're warm bloodedSeen in Slate, the online magazine:<br />
<br />
<i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Correction, Dec. 10, 2013</b>: This article originally misidentified penguins as mammals. They are birds.</i><br />
<i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></i>
(The <a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/life/holidays/2013/12/santa_claus_an_old_white_man_not_anymore_meet_santa_the_penguin_a_new_christmas.html" target="_blank">article</a> isn't bad, though.)Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-89094253138251870672013-10-11T22:22:00.002+01:002013-10-11T22:25:01.717+01:00The Velikovsky Rule<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immanuel_Velikovsky" target="_blank">Immanuel Velikovsky</a> wrote a 1950 best seller called "Worlds in Collision." In it he argued that legendary events such as the parting of the Red Sea were due to close encounters by the earth with other planets. These theories were, to put it mildly, highly contentious.<br />
<br />
Velikovsky lived in Princeton NJ, which at the time was a small town where everyone knew everyone else, at least in passing. The head of the Princeton University astronomy department told me that one time he was talking to an anthropologist and Velikovsky's book came up.<br />
<br />
"The astronomy is nonsense, of course," said the astronomer, "but the anthropology is really interesting."<br />
<br />
"What a coincidence," replied the anthropologist. "The anthropology is nonsense, but we think the astronomy is really interesting."<br />
<br />
<br />Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-33458077105142621932013-09-25T23:36:00.001+01:002013-09-25T23:37:57.208+01:00Nobody's perfectFrom page 8 of Friday's <i>Financial Times:</i><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Correction:</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<ul>
<li>The chief executive of Cathay Pacific was misquoted as saying "overseas parrot" instead of "overseas parent" in an article on September 16. </li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-15171384387959726362013-07-16T00:19:00.000+01:002013-07-16T00:53:45.912+01:00Better have big pockets if you want your bank account to be secureMy bank is very concerned about the security of my online accounts, so it sent me these security doozits. They are all real, and each one gives me access to some of my accounts. (Well except the one at the upper right, which is just a key fob.) They would have sent me a fifth one, but for those accounts I had the option of using doozit-like software on my Android device.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm4ATrcpYJ0dRw76TH8GX2m9Ym5v0Pj5vhpTxhlFd3Gvb1uzMopfN5jKWQtuP4IoyYSokhpjOhA7uNB8gl10k_Evxr9ypvGwb83WyB4Ndk9HQhvO0SITBY60nNpTEICTbqBCqMDtblIQ/s1600/dongle-chain2-500.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm4ATrcpYJ0dRw76TH8GX2m9Ym5v0Pj5vhpTxhlFd3Gvb1uzMopfN5jKWQtuP4IoyYSokhpjOhA7uNB8gl10k_Evxr9ypvGwb83WyB4Ndk9HQhvO0SITBY60nNpTEICTbqBCqMDtblIQ/s320/dongle-chain2-500.jpeg" width="285" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A lot of security</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-20952257873914690472013-04-29T03:43:00.000+01:002013-04-29T03:45:18.821+01:00On corporate charityA friend sees press reports that Target has promised to give away a billion dollars to support schools. If they can afford to do that, why not just lower their prices or raise their dividend instead? Why don't competitors like Walmart, K-Mart, Safeway (to the extent that Target sells groceries), etc., undercut Target on prices by NOT spending money on charitable programs?<br />
<br />
<div>
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div>
<div>
Actually, Walmart gives away a lot more than Target does. Target's promised $1B over three years, Walmart gives away $1B every year to hunger charities, about 1/3 cash, 2/3 goods. The Chronicle of Philanthropy says Walmart is the #1 corporate donor in the US, ahead of Goldman Sachs, Exxon Mobil, Wells Fargo, and so forth. Target is #8 by amount donated, giving away 4.7% of pretax profit in 2011, ahead percentage-wise of Walmart's 4.1% and way ahead of the rest of the top ten.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I agree it would be better overall if the US provided enough direct funding to schools to run them well like, you know, Finland and all those other EU countries. (The outstanding results in Finland turn out to be due to making all the schools equal, not to rewarding exceptional performance, by the way.) But one of the effects of our decentralized education system is that some districts are a lot richer than others, and different districts have very different priorities, foreign languages vs. football, say. In the absence of more coherent education funding, corporate philanthropy fills part of the gap.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The US is also unusual in that we provide a lot of services through private charities, e.g. soup kitchens run by churches rather than by the government. Corporate giving has always been a part of that, and if you look back before the Reagan "greed is good" era, corporations were generally expected to behave in socially responsible ways, including corporate charity. One of the advantages of living in a rich country is that we can afford to be economically inefficient. Absolute economic efficiency is pretty cruel, the least productive people with below subsistence pay so you have starving beggars in the street, injured people who can't pay for medical treatment die, and so forth. Minimum wages and medical insurance are inefficient and expensive, but they also make a country a much more pleasant place to live. Corporate charity is part of that inefficiency.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Be careful what you wish for. In this case I don't think you'd like it.</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-61382677283169694512013-03-30T21:58:00.000+00:002013-03-30T21:58:01.859+00:00Spring is hereWe are pleased to announce the pre-availability of Old No. 24 maple syrup, vintage 2013.<br />
Unlike conventional products, this is not just single region, not just single varietal, not just single vineyard, but single tree hyper-premium syrup. Pricing has not yet been determined but frankly, if you have to ask, ...<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5FOgjfWdmhvAsaLZ6iNRSNaLToQ97ciJJXBC47apj3ghIFzebUBh8bwbGUHQQ3kABqCT6O8dj2YE8SAimEnnhyphenhyphenzF63UfaYzgVxH8Jex2QL9ZjjDtV_N-x0D1uOZxpPFwXbhXJzPsc1Q/s1600/oldno24-600.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5FOgjfWdmhvAsaLZ6iNRSNaLToQ97ciJJXBC47apj3ghIFzebUBh8bwbGUHQQ3kABqCT6O8dj2YE8SAimEnnhyphenhyphenzF63UfaYzgVxH8Jex2QL9ZjjDtV_N-x0D1uOZxpPFwXbhXJzPsc1Q/s1600/oldno24-600.jpeg" /></a></div>
<br />Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-17015475046361004712013-02-14T02:03:00.000+00:002013-02-14T02:04:09.539+00:00There must be an opportunity hereI was buying airline tickets, and was wondering how expensive it would be to change them.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: #dce8ec; font-family: monospace; font-size: 13px;"> CHANGES</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: #dce8ec; font-family: monospace; font-size: 13px;"> </span><span style="background-color: #dce8ec; font-family: monospace; font-size: 13px;"> ANY TIME</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: #dce8ec; font-family: monospace; font-size: 13px;"> CHARGE USD 250.00 FOR REISSUE.</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: #dce8ec; font-family: monospace; font-size: 13px;"> </span><span style="background-color: #dce8ec; font-family: monospace; font-size: 13px;">WAIVED FOR DEATH OF PASSENGER.</span></blockquote>
Hmmn.Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-16693583900887289182013-02-11T04:27:00.002+00:002013-02-11T04:29:20.101+00:00Calling Dick Tracy<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9YE03smZ9nuUbLjqLAQClUEP_HG-FeDxvL-CzVHVv3y6wOwUPx0R2rD56mFHz8EvUE9NlUaQHheLpbOi6Zmva1sQgQhCIy2LiriEnwg6DwOYyxwy6GB8S_PuN5NivvXfU46qzjdMHfg/s1600/wrist-phone2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9YE03smZ9nuUbLjqLAQClUEP_HG-FeDxvL-CzVHVv3y6wOwUPx0R2rD56mFHz8EvUE9NlUaQHheLpbOi6Zmva1sQgQhCIy2LiriEnwg6DwOYyxwy6GB8S_PuN5NivvXfU46qzjdMHfg/s400/wrist-phone2.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
This is my wrist, and that item on it is a GSM cell phone. It really works. It even has a camera and a bluetooth adapter so I can use an earpiece and not have to whisper into my shirt cuff.Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4609849057374116165.post-41744511930014270292013-01-02T14:19:00.000+00:002013-01-02T14:50:42.749+00:00Frontiers in cuisineOverheard while having dinner at a Cuban restaurant in Chokoloskee FL.<br />
<br />
Chef stomps out, saying "Where's the guy who says he doesn't like my paella"?<br />
<br />
Guy, mildly: "I never had paella made with spaghetti before."<br />
<br />Fakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07047958636445283255noreply@blogger.com0