Random Thoughts From Marybeth

We Knew It Was a Bit Sick...

...but is it dying?

Liberalism: Can it survive?

...the cultural liberalism that emerged from the convulsions of the 1960s drove the liberal faith out of the mainstream. Its fundamental value is that society should have no fundamental values, except for a pervasive relativism that sees all values as equal. Part of the package was a militant secularism, pitched against religion, the chief source of fundamental values. Complaints about "imposing" values were also popular then, aimed at teachers and parents who worked to socialize children.

Tall or Not (I'm Not)

Compare your height to the heights of famous people.

I'm 5'2", the same height as Ann Blyth, Danielle Steel, Debbie Allen, Erma Bombeck, Eva Gabor, Irene Ryan, Joan Rivers, Marsha Clark, Paula Abdul, and Susan Lucci.

Some others I found interesting:
Alan Ladd - 5'4"
Barry Manilow - 6'
Czar Peter the Great - 6'7"
Henry VIII - 6'1"
James Dean - 5'8"
James Madison - 5'4"
Josef Stalin - 5'6"
Ghandi - 5'3"
Mao Tse Tung - 5'11"
Mary Queen of Scots - 6'
Rod Serling - 5'4"
Vladimir Lenon (sic) - 5'5"
Wyatt Earp - 6'4"

More Science Links

"Science.gov is a gateway to authoritative selected science information provided by U.S. Government agencies, including research and development results." Users can search 1700+ web sites and 30 databases and have free access to information that may not be spidered by normal search engines.

You can also register to receive free weekly email alerts when information is added to your topic(s) of interest.

A Good Start

The Ventura County Star is blogging its front page editorial decisions. They're using MT and allow comments but no trackbacks.

Two thoughts:
1. I would like to see a few others (NYT, WaPo, LAT, and the C-J) do this too.
2. While some decisions may be interesting or controversial, on a day-to-day basis it's pretty dull.

Carnival of the Recipes #28

This week's Carnival of the Recipes is up at Rocket Jones. There's a big selection of recipes this week (almost 50!).

The Carnival of the Recipes is a weekly event with postings each Friday. If you have a recipe you want to share post it in your blog and send the link to by midnight Thursday for the Carnival on the following Friday. If you don't have a blog but want to share a recipe, just send the recipe in an email to the same address and the Carnival's host that week will post it for you.

Especially those of you with good chocolate recipes. Share. Now.

Next week's Carnival - same co-ordinates, stardate 41167.0108.

Recipe List:
Grilled Cheese and Vegemite Sandwich
Gravlox
44 Proof Pop (fortified wine)
Apricot Slush
Cracker Crack Crackers
Mini-Pizzas
Spinach Balls with Mustard Sauce
Aioli (garlic mayonnaise)
mmmmMinestrone
Green Protein (review)
Canton Beef and Vegetable Soup
Dried Shrimp, Sausage and Fish Gumbo
Chicken Soup
Wagon Wheel Beef Soup
Not Even Faux Pho Soup
Vinegar-Slithered Cabbage
It's Not Exactly South Beach, Caesar
Bitterman's Sweet & Sour Vinaigrette
Venison and Sour Cherries
Larding Needle Instructions
Macklin's Magic Meatloaf
Dutch Meatloaf
Mmmmmmmmeatloaf!
Marinara Sauce
Beef & Ricotta Cannelloni
Chicken with Orange
Orange Chicken
Chicken Mushroom PAH
Chicken Pie
Chocolate Enchiladas
Vegetarian Stew
French Onion Chicken
The Jedi's Spicy Baked Mac and Cheese
My Crockpot Pork Roast
Vaugely Mediterranean Chicken
Siciliana Pasta Sauce
Spicy Bar-B-Que Pork Chops
Stewed Chicken with Lentils
Green Chicken Casserole
Jerk Chicken
Chicken Mo Fo
Simple Pilaf
Israeli Couscous
Peas and orzo with olives, tarragon, and pecans
Lemon Meringue Pie
Chocolate Kahlua Trifle's
Strawberry Balsamic Dessert Topping
Madeleines
Banana Cake

Remembering the Web

Is the Internet too young to feel nostalgia over trends that have already come and gone?

A Vernacular Web brought back memories of the early years of surfing the Internet. The section on links talks about how early web sites had lots of links. "Ten years ago every web site had a section of external links because people felt it was their personal responsibility to configure the environment and build the infrastructure." Now we use search engines or directories to find links and regular web sites may have only a few (if any) external links.

"In todays web blogs compensate for over precise search engines by delivering a constant stream of surprise links." This is one of my favorite things about blogs. I appreciate being able to find news and information, but it's the "look at the cool site/quiz/game" links that makes reading blogs fun.

Other sections cover Under Construction, Starry Night Backgrounds, Graphics Collections, MIDIs, Frames, and Tildes before user names.

Top 100 Gadgets

Mobile PC has a list of their favorite gadgets of all time.

Remember Ron Popeil and the Popeil Pocket Fisherman commercials? The Pocket Fisherman is #92 and is still being manufactured.

The Radio Shack TRS-80 Model 100 is #87.

Hasbro Lite-Brite is #77.

Mattel Magic 8-Ball is #57.

Etch-a-Sketch is #50.

Nintendo Game Boy is #25.

And their choice for #1 is the Apple Powerbook 100. (The Powerbook 500 was #22.)

This isn't a gadget (no moving parts) but it appeals to the sick, twisted part of my personality.

Magical Name Acronym Generator

Gannon Blog

Jeff Gannon may not be sitting in on any White House press conferences now but he's not staying quiet. He has a blog. My favorite post so far:

February 21, 2005

The Grey Lady's leader says he will keep on drinking. Bill Keller, the executive editor of the New York Times announced Friday that “This is not a time when editors swear off alcohol.” I'm not sure if that is what has been fuelling their coverage for the last 50 years, but it would explain a lot, especially Maureen Dowd.

Deadline Midnight

You have until midnight tonight to send your links to recipe posts to This week's Carnival is being hosted by Ted of Rocket Jones.

(Want to make your own Gmail signature image?)

Playing With Science

Fun with High Voltage sounds dangerous but isn't. It's just one of the science experiments/toys that you can find here. You can find most of what you need to build these things at home, a hardware store, or from Radio Shack.

Haven't you always wanted to build a solar marshmallow roaster?

Other fun science links for kids (and those of us who refuse to grow up):
Fun Science Gallery
Home Experiments
Bizarre Stuff You Can Make In Your Kitchen

Who Ya Gonna Call?

Paris and I have nothing in common (no surprise there). A list of 510 contacts and there's a couple that I saw that I could imagine having any desire to call (Southwest Airlines and United Airlines).

Dutch Meatloaf

Meatloaf:
1/2 c. chopped onion
1 egg, beaten
1 1/2 lb. ground beef
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. dry mustard
1/2 c. tomato sauce
Sauce:
2 Tbl. vinegar
2 tsp. dry mustard
1/2 c. tomato sauce
2 Tbl. brown sugar
1/2 c. water

Combine meatloaf ingredients and mix lightly but thoroughly with a fork. Pack lightly in a loaf pan. Mix together sauce ingredients and pour over the meatloaf.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 hours. Slice and serve.

Serves 6.

From Al Iraqiya

Terrorist claims Syrian training

This sounds like big news to me but (so far) it isn't showing up on the front page of many news services.

Iraqi state television aired a video yesterday showing what the U.S.-funded channel said was the confession of a captured Syrian officer, who said he trained Iraqi terrorists to behead people and build car bombs to attack American and Iraqi troops. He also said the terrorists practiced beheading animals to train for decapitating hostages.

Syria just better hope that PETA doesn't find out about them using animals for training.

The Allan Awards

I'm a little late in posting this link but Carnival of the Recipes #27 is up at Inside Allan's Mind. I even forgot to post a recipe last week.

If I ever start making to-do lists, I'm going to put "stop procrastinating" and "become more organized" right at the top. And I really will do that, some day.

Allan wrote this last week's Carnival as though it were an awards show. Because of my forgetfulness I can't even blog about what an honor it is just to be nominated.

Recipe list:
Lehnhoff Brewing's Weis Beer
Italian Potato Leek Soup
Quick And Dirty Miso Soup
Louisiana White Boudin (Pork and Rice Sausage)
Sensation Salad
Smoked Salmon Salad
Elotes (Mexican Corn) Salad
Donna Barton's Mexican Cole Slaw
Fire-In-The-Hole French Fries
Grandpa’s Scalloped Potatoes
Sausage and Pepper Stew
Turkey Casserole with Leftover Cheese Sauce
Frito Pie
Tempeh with broccoli
Thai Chicken With Basil
Chicken Casserole
Spam Pie
Green and Yellow Squash Latkes with Sweet Tomato Jam
Napalitos (Cactus Paddles)
A recipe for corning your own beef brisket
Tips for cooking perfect sausages
Posole
Crock Pot Macaroni, Cheese & Bacon
Banana Bread
Lemon Supreme Pound Cake

Whining

I bought a new car yesterday. The enjoyment of having a new car doesn't really start until the memory of the tedium of the sales process fades. I may take my time deciding what to buy, but once I do, I want things to move quickly. Spending three hours or more with three different people - the salesman, the sales manager, and the finance manager - isn't my idea of speedy.

I probably could have picked a better day than yesterday. The kids were off from school and had been since Thursday of last week so my patience for anything/everything was wearing a bit thin. (If you have two or more children, you will understand this. It's the bickering among themselves that's tiring to me.)

This morning our furnace quit working. I think it was jealous and wanted attention. Machines are like kids. You bring home a new one and an older one acts up.

I have a pain in my back - a different one from the normal torn disk pain. I think I have another kidney stone.

I tried telling myself, it could be worse. That wasn't much comfort because it reminded me that while things weren't as bad as they could be, there was still the potential for more things to go wrong. Considering how this week's starting, I'm not ruling out that possiblity.

I need a vacation. Considering that I'll probably only have about 75 cents left in my checking account after I pay the furnace repair bill, I guess I'll have to settle for taking a nap instead.

Naps are good.

Update: I was making steak fries to go with dinner. I've been frying french fries for about 30 years now and tonight, for the first time ever, some oil spilled and caught fire. On the positive side, I found that baking soda really does work well at putting out oil/grease fires.

Because the house was full of smoke, we opened some windows. The kids complained about the cold so I let them take a ceramic heater into the living room. That, along with every light in the room and the TV and video game console, caused a breaker to throw. When I went out to reset it I found a wild rose bush had grown next to the breaker box. Finding it in the daytime wouldn't have been so bad, finding it at night was like walking into the middle of a cat fight.

Blame Game

Anyone who has even a passing interest in butterflies probably knows that monarchs migrate from their summer homes in the U.S. and Canada to winter in Mexico. In previous years, problems with illegal logging in Mexico have affected the butterflies by reducing the area in which they can nest. Now Mexico is blaming the U.S. and Canada for a reduction in their winter visitors.

Mexico's Environment Department said on Wednesday that 75 percent fewer monarch butterflies have appeared in 2004 compared with previous years.

It blamed cold weather and intensive farming -- including genetically modified crops -- in areas of the United States and Canada, where the butterflies spend the summer and reproduce.

Monarchs lay their eggs on milkweed. This is what the caterpillers eat. Adults drink nectar from a variety of plants, including many common garden flowers (coneflower, snapdragon, zinnia, azaleas, lilacs, and butterfly bush). The reason genetically modified crops are getting part of the blame is because a study done in 1999 indicated that the pollen from transgenic corn could blow onto milkweed and kill the monarch caterpillers. More extensive follow up studies showed that the risk to the butterflies from the corn pollen was negligible. (More here.)

I don't remember last summer being unusually cool so I searched for information to support/refute Mexico's claim that this was one of the causes of the reduction in monarchs. I found that the summer of 2004 was cooler than average for much of the northern hemisphere but not enough to set any records. (There have been much cooler summers over the last 20 to 30 years.) It also wasn't outside the range of survivability for the monarchs.

Mexico says the forests in which the butterflies winter are "healthy or in full recovery". Logging of the Oyamel firs may have been stopped, trees may have been replanted, but that doesn't mean the conditions are ideal. The trees need to be mature to provide a canopy to protect the butterflies from cold and wet weather. Just providing a place for them to roost isn't enough.

Changes in the monarch population aren't unusual (there was an 80% decline in the winter of 1999) and Mexico's statement seems to be a case of "shift the blame". I do hope they elaborate on who they think is responsible for making last summer cooler than normal. Whoever it is must be asleep at the controls...lately we've had temperatures in the 70s and below freezing in the same week. I want to lodge a complaint.

Recall

Microsoft is replacing the power cords that came with some XBox consoles. "Gamers outside continental Europe with an Xbox manufactured before October 23, 2003, require a replacement cord. In Europe, owners of Xbox consoles built before January 13, 2004, need a new cord, the company says."

You can request a new power cord here. (Outside the U.S. begin here.) You will need the serial number and manufacture date. This information is on the console.

Update: The website says it may take weeks to get a replacement but I requested ours online on Sunday (2/20/05) and we received it Wednesday (2/23/05).

What's Objectionable About Cloning?

Once a week Conor (the boy who makes the most of being a middle child) goes to his school's debate club. The boy truly loves to rant and argue and I thought he would quit debate as soon as he learned he had to research his subject and follow rules. I've been pleasantly surprised, he really seems to enjoy it.

It hasn't discouraged his normal complaining though. The most recent (but justified) complaint was about researching for a debate. The school's Net Nanny blocked much of the information about cloning. No explanation, just "access denied".

I'm not familiar with the software. Anyone know what it is about cloning that is so offensive? Do the articles about it contain "illicit, obscene and other objectionable material"? Or is the software (or someone from the school district) making a moral decision?

Regardless of whether one is arguing for or against it, how can the students do so successfully without being able to research it well?

I Can Cook a Rainbow

Red and yellow and pink and green,
Purple and orange and blue...

This week's Carnival of the Recipes #26 is up at Anywhere But Here.

Recipe List:
Red Beans & Rice
Beef Stew
Broiled Salmon Steaks
Easy Cheesy Tomato Florentine Soup
Hash Brown Casserole
Laura Bush's Baked Potato Soup
Shrimp Newburg
Banana Cake
Mom's Enchilada Casserole
Pancakes
Spring Supper
Uncle Dave's Green Chili Stew
Stuffed Chicken Rolls
Byzantine Dolmathes and Spanakapita
Spinach Strawberry Salad
Mama's Famous Eggrolls
Sweet Omelet
Flour Tortillas
Mother-in-Law's Pot Roast
Soft Pretzels
Fruit Vinegar
CINNABON cinnamon rolls
Soft Coconut Macaroons
Cocoa Chocolate Chip Cookies
Molten Chocolate Cakes
Cathedral Window Cookies

There Goes Mr. Jordan

For all the people who rely only on MSM for their news, last evening's announcement of the resignation of Eason Jordan was the first they had heard of the story. Bloggers have been following the story since the end of January. One would think that traditional media would have learned that suppressing stories about their industry isn't a good idea after Dan Rather and Memogate (Memoaquiddick).

Maybe it's true that you can't teach an old dog new tricks. Now they have to explain what they haven't been reporting:

"Mr. Jordan observed that of the 60-odd journalists killed in Iraq, 12 had been targeted and killed by U.S. forces," Stephens wrote.

U.S. Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), who had shared the Davos stage with Jordan as a panelist, told the Washington Post that the CNN executive at first implied "it was official military policy to take out journalists." After other panelists challenged him, Jordan then "modified" his remarks, Frank said, but did not remove the sense that U.S. soldiers intended to harm those they knew to be journalists.

...In his farewell letter Friday, he cited many decades of close contact he had had with the military while reporting from Iraq, Afghanistan and Yugoslavia.

Would it be rude to ask whose military? (Hussein's, the Taliban's, or Milosevic's?)

Over the last week and a half I've read several accounts of what happened in Davos, Switzerland. One that stood out in my memory was a post on GayPatriot that included this:

...He could provide no evidence to buttress his claims, then "offered another anecdote: A reporter who'd been standing in a long line to get through a checkpoint at Baghdad's Green Zone had been turned back by the GI on duty. Apparently the soldier had been displeased with the reporter's dispatches, and sent him to the back of the line."

That statement filled me with awe and confusion. Awe at his ability to read the mind of the GI and know why the journalist was sent to the back of the line. Confusion over what this had to do with Jordan's claim that journalists were being targeted for torture/death by the American military.

Without any further information about this anecdote, a reasonable explanation would be that American GIs refused to give preferential treatment to journalists. Was this his real complaint - that journalists were treated like everyone else? If he had just said that American troops are refusing to grant elite status to journalists and aren't willing to stop defending themselves and the people they are there to protect based on the possibility that a journalist may be among a group of terrorists, would anyone have argued with him?

Finally the Recognition I Deserve

A virtual star on Hollywood Blvd. for having done virtually nothing.

Don't Drink the Water

Body Found in Municipal Water Tank

The body of Geetha Angara, an employee of Passaic Valley Water Commission, was found at the bottom of a water tank. It is being investigated as a homicide. A boil water order has been issued as is customary any time a foreign object is found in a water tank.

Boiling the water might make it safer but I don't think it would make it any more palatable for me. If I lived in one of the New Jersey towns in this water district, I would be stocking up on bottled water.

It's not just a "foreign object" matter. The grate covering the tank would have been difficult for her to remove herself. This would make me wonder if she caught someone tampering with the water tank.

Replacing the "-gates"

A post in Armies of Liberation suggests replacing the "-gate" suffix used for scandals with “a-QUIDDICK”.

I think this is an excellent suggestion. It seems especially appropriate for when the evidence indicates that somone has done something wrong yet there is little in the way of negative consequences for him/her.

(Link via INDC Journal.)

Soft Pretzels for Lent

This is a recipe I got from a woman at my church when I volunteered to help make the dough for an after-service pretzel making activity. The recipe is fairly easy, it skips the step of boiling the pretzels in water before baking, and is a fun activity for kids/families with tasty results.

Until about one hundred years ago, pretzels were only baked during Lent. Originally, pretzels were made using only four, water, and salt. This made them an ideal substutute for other breads since they didn't contain butter/fat, milk, or eggs (foods banned during Lent). The traditional pretzel shape is supposed to represent arms crossed in prayer.

This recipe does use egg whites to help the salt stick to the pretzels and make them shiny. You may substitute water if you prefer.

Easy Pretzels

1 pkg. dry yeast
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 Tbl. sugar
1 tsp. salt
4 - 5 cups flour
Coarse or Kosher salt
2 egg whites

Soak the yeast in the warm water. Add sugar and salt; gradually stir in flour until the dough is stiff. Knead dough until smooth.

Let dough rise until doubled or set in refrigerator to rise overnight.

Divide the dough into small pieces; roll into ropes and twist into pretzel shape. Brush with egg whites; sprinkle with salt.

Bake at 425 degrees until brown.

Google Maps

Of all the online maps I've looked at, this one has been the best at pinpointing the location of my house. Since it passed my accuracy test, I tried a different type of search.

Under "Find a business" I first tried pizza in Crestwood but didn't get any results. I tried "pizza" again with Crestwood's zipcode (40014) and got the names and locations of my local pizza restaurants.

You can also get driving directions. The maps are draggable so you don't have to wait for it to reload and (at least for me) it makes it easier to follow.

Maybe One of the Tabloids is Hiring

"I have never once in my life thought anyone from the U.S. military tried to kill a journalist. Never meant to suggest that. Obviously I wasn't as clear as I should have been on that panel." - CNN chief news executive Eason Jordon

It's a good thing he doesn't have a job that requires good communications skills or the ability to understand the difference between facts and opinion/rumors.

Improve Your Knife-Fu

Knife skills with illustrations for the left and right-handed.

Best Time to Visit

Google Best Time to Visit searches Google description tags for "best time to visit" along with the location you enter.

I searched for my home city, Louisville, Kentucky. The results said the best time to visit here is April and May. Since the Kentucky Derby is the first Saturday in May, this answer isn't a big surprise.

I tried a few other cities/states/countries and then decided to try something a bit different.

"the best time to visit prison, is between october and november"
"the best time to visit mom's home, is between july and december"
"the best time to visit marybeth, is between march and april"...just call ahead, please

At Least It's Not My Tax Money

Sir Ian Blair, the new Metropolitan Police Commissioner, has ordered that the force's motto be changed, at a cost of many thousands of pounds, because the old one featured joined-up writing that "discriminated against short-sighted people".

I'm myopic and would like to argue with him on his use of the term "short-sighted". I may not be able to see well at a distance without glasses or contact lenses but as long as I can recognize a police car, that's enough. I don't really care what the logo says (he also changed the motto from "Working for a safer London" to "Working together for a safer London") or if I can read all the print. Spending the money on this rather than on salaries, training, or anything that would actually help the officers do their jobs is what I would call "short-sighted".

I'll assume that our different uses of this term are a British/American thing but I still think it's an assinine way to spend their funds. Do you really need a change in the logo/motto to tell you that this is a police car?

(Original photo from FreeFoto.com. It has been cropped and resized for faster page download.)

Adopt a Sniper

Marquette University has stopped a group called College Republicans from raising money to support snipers deployed by the United States armed forces in Iraq and Afghanistan by providing "items that they need to get the job done better as well as things to make their lives easier while on deployment. This has been everything from the basic hygiene type items such as handy wipes to tactical products such as holsters, high speed rucksacks, new optics, rifle accessories, to mini binoculars and batteries."

The students were selling bracelets bearing the motto "1 Shot 1 Kill No Remorse I Decide." I didn't see those bracelets on the site, but there are dog tags (on backorder) with that phrase and some bracelets (also on backorder) with the name of a sniper. They also offer a coin with "Support Our Troops" on one side and "Assistance From A Distance" on the other. They also accept donations with all of the money going to purchase items for snipers.

Read more about them here.

SAG Awards

Tony Shalhoub won "Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series" for the second year in a row. In his acceptance speech he thanked the guest actors that have appeared on the show and recognized the difficulty they face coming to work with a cast and director with whom they aren't familiar.

I didn't watch any more of the awards show but I heard on the news this morning that Jerry Orbach's wife accepted his award for "Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series".

List of awards:

THEATRICAL MOTION PICTURES

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
Jamie Foxx / RAY - Ray Charles Universal Pictures

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
Hilary Swank / MILLION DOLLAR BABY - Maggie Warner Bros.

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
Morgan Freeman / MILLION DOLLAR BABY - Scrap Warner Bros.

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
Cate Blanchett / THE AVIATOR - Katharine Hepburn Miramax Films

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
SIDEWAYS Fox Searchlight Pictures
Thomas Haden Church - Jack
Paul Giamatti - Miles
Virginia Madsen - Maya
Sandra Oh - Stephanie

PRIMETIME TELEVISION

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries
Geoffrey Rush / THE LIFE AND DEATH OF PETER SELLERS - Peter Sellers HBO

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries
Glenn Close / THE LION IN WINTER - Eleanor Of Aquitaine Showtime

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series
Jerry Orbach / LAW & ORDER - Detective Lennie Briscoe NBC

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series
Jennifer Garner / ALIAS - Sydney Bristow ABC

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
Tony Shalhoub / MONK - Adrian Monk USA

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
Teri Hatcher / DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES - Susan Mayer ABC

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION CBS
Gary Dourdan - Warrick Brown
George Eads - Nick Stokes
Jorja Fox - Sara Sidle
Paul Guilfoyle - Jim Brass
Robert David Hall - Dr. Robbins
Marg Helgenberger - Catherine Willows
William Petersen - Gil Grissom
Eric Szmanda - Greg Sanders

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES ABC
Andrea Bowen - Julie Mayer
Ricardo Antonio Chavira - Carlos Solis
Marcia Cross - Bree Van De Kamp
Steven Culp - Rex Van De Kamp
James Denton - Mike Delfino
Teri Hatcher - Susan Mayer
Felicity Huffman - Lynette Scavo
Cody Kasch - Zach Young
Eva Longoria - Gabrielle Solis
Jesse Metcalfe - John the Gardener
Mark Moses - Paul Young
Nicollette Sheridan - Edie Britt
Brenda Strong - Mary Alice Young

Screen Actors Guild Awards 41st Annual Life Achievement Award
James Garner

Carnival of the Recipes #25

Carnival of the Recipes #25 is up at The Glittering Eye. I forgot to post a recipe for it this week. There's something about tending to children with a stomach virus that tends to keep me from even thinking about food.

Everyone here is better now so I can get back to cooking...and there are a lot of tasty sounding recipes from which to choose this week.

Recipe list:
Look, Ma, No Hands Meatloaf
Blanquinegro: A Mexican-Inspired Pork Stew
Sweet Onion Kielbasa
Lamb and Red Lentil Curry
Venison Steaks
Spiced Indian Kofta
Linda's One Pot Cube Steak Meal
Halmoni's Quick Kimchi, Bulgogi (Marinated Beef), Rice and Seaweed
Bacon-Wrapped Chicken
Chicken Lips
Dr Mom's Chicken Noodle Soup
Peanut Butter Chicken
Jambalaya
Garlictastic Roasted Vegetables
Tostones (Fried Plaintains)
The Best Rolled Sugar Cookies
Chocolate Fondue
Lemon Cake
Glazed Lemon Cake
Scutterbotch Pralines
Irish Cream Chocolate Cheesecake
Peach Cobbler
Hawaiian Holiday Smoothie
Grown Up Milkshake
Jello Shots
Cinnamon Scones

More Suited to Action, Not Words

"It's fun to shoot some people."

He shouldn't have said it. It's not that I disagree with it completely, but "fun" over simplifies it. I've never been in combat, never even been in the military, but I can still imagine that I would feel a sense of enjoyment over killing an enemy before he kills me, my troops, or innocent civilians.

At the vey least, it's got to be an adrenaline rush. People do all sorts of risky things to get that rush because they find it pleasurable. When your life is in danger, your adrenaline kicks in preparing you for fight or flight. (Remember this from science class?) You can't choose whether or not your body will release adrenaline, only what you do in response - panic and run or stand and fight.

Lt. Gen. James N. Mattis isn't some renegade. I haven't heard anything negative about his service record...and I believe if there were something negative the press would have ferreted it out already. All I have heard is that his record is exemplary but he tends to be outspoken. Okay, so don't use him for Marine Corps press relations, just let him do his job of developing Marine war-fighting doctrine, techniques and tactics.

War is messy. Political rhetoric will give you a whole slew of justifications for war but that doesn't change the basic reality that war means capturing or killing the enemy while trying to avoid the same happening to you. When you can do this, you're winning. Winning is fun.

It's not pretty. It's not PC. It just is. Now leave the man alone, let him get back to doing his job, and just be glad he's on our side.

I'm Being Vewy, Vewy, Quiet

I have a low-grade fever and my throat hurts so I can't talk very loudly. At least I haven't come down with the stomach virus all my kids have had. (Knock wood.) I don't even want to contemplate what that would be like combined with a sore throat.

I Don't Even Need to Watch TV to Complain About It

Last week my daughter came home from school complaining of nausea. She had the stomach virus that's going around. At least she came down with the symptoms (regular bouts of vomiting) during the day. When my younger son got it (last night), it hit him in the middle of the night. He came and woke me up again just over half an hour ago to tell me that my oldest son was sick.

This will be night number two where I get little or no sleep. I'm not complaining. I'm just trying to explain why I am again posting about a TV show. My middle-of-the-night experiences are limited (TV or barf) and my brain is numb for lack of sleep.

Actually, I'm not even watching the program I'm going to write about. (I'm getting there, just hold on a moment longer.) I noticed it when I was looking at the TV listings to see if there was anything on that would help keep me awake.

The subject of tonight's PBS show American Experience is Fidel Castro. How does that come under the heading of "American" experience? I looked at the archives of the show and didn't see any featuring other non-American leaders. The two that I saw that come closest are about the Cold War and the US/USSR arms race.

So what makes Castro more a part of the American experience than any other foreign person who has influenced America or American policy for good or bad? Maybe someone who watched it can explain.

Saying that the Left (and PBS) loves Castro doesn't count. That's a given and still doesn't explain why.

And the Winner Is...

Quick, name your favorite ten Bob Geldof songs! (You're going to have to go off the top music charts since the Boomtown Rats only had five top ten songs and his solo career hasn't produced any major hits. If you're feeling generous, I guess you could count "Do They Know It's Christmas" since he cowrote it.)

I can't name any songs he performed. Maybe his contribution to music isn't as obvious on this side of the Atlantic. Maybe I'm just too old. Whatever it is that he's done, he will receive a BRIT award for outstanding contribution to music for it.

When I think of Geldof (which doesn't happen often), I think of him as the character "Pink" in the movie Pink Floyd The Wall or his Live Aid projects. He received a knighthood for his efforts to end world hunger so it's not as though this award is making up for some oversight there.

Maybe I've seen too many musical celebrity telethons to consider it a "contribution" to music.

Past winners of this award include The Beatles, The Police, Eric Clapton, The Who, Queen, David Bowie, Elton John, and U2. Then again, other past winners are Wham and the Spice Girls.