The First Burst Pipe of Hanukkah

Well, even though my builders didn't bother to insulate anything in the guest suite bath, and even though there's a clear pathway for outdoor air to come in and play around its water pipes, it took the last few days' incredibly cold weather and stiff western breeze to finally let the water come out to play.
The bathroom, positioned just over our front door, sprayed a glorious fountain of freezing water down our front steps. These photos don't really do it justice, as this is after a couple of hours of cleanup and knocking down most of the icicles.

Both hot and cold water pipes had burst, knocking a hole in the wall between the guest suite bathtub and toilet. The cold water faucet's compression fitting had also blown off, so there was a secondary eruption underneath the sink. To my builders -- nice job on that compression fitting.
We had sheets of water in the guest bedroom, in the entryway on the first floor and into NDM's office, and of course in the basement. Water was coursing down through the vents, through the light fixtures, and through my evil smoke alarm system. The system's humidity sensor had them all screaming at a mile a minute the whole time.

I'm just glad all parental units were close by to help out with our water garden. I hate to think how much fun this would have been by ourselves -- or worse, coming home to it after a vacation.

Hope everyone else is having a dry week!

Prop 8 The Musical (Reblog)

It isn't fantastically clever, but it's got rhythm.

Here's another take on our old buddy Leviticus from Liberated Christians.

Phew!

Well, I apparently owe NDM $5. And it was totally worth it. Congratulations to the United States of America!

Plantation Pie?

My grandmother is pining for a '40's confection which she remembers as "Plantation Pie" -- two chocolate-covered graham crackers with marshmallow between. My father remembers the next generation of the cookies as "Marshmallow Shockabsorbers". What the heck are these things?

As far as I can tell, plantation pie can refer to almost any type of actual pie, sweet or savory, with little linking the recipes together. I could find no trace of Plantation Pie as a trade name for a cookie.

A search on marshmallow shock absorber, on the other hand, basically turns up bras.
Is it as simple as the venerable Moon Pie? It is a marshmallow sandwich. It has graham cracker cookies. It is dipped in chocolate. There are both normal cookie-sized versions and hockey puck versions. It was invented around 1917, so was definitely around in the '40's. It tends to have a third interior cookie, but I think that is a later addition.
There aren't many other possibilities. Nabisco used to make a "marshmallow sandwich", but I think it is post-War origin.

If it is actually a Moon Pie, there are recipes available online. But they should also be at every supermarket and convenience store in California.

Painting

Recognize this? It is a section of our "turtle room" which is in the process of being transformed into an actual formal (and presumably generally dog-free) living room. To keep busy during his visit, my dad and I knocked off a bunch of things I've been pushing away. We kitted out our library, painted an accent wall in the living room and stuck up some molding, did some micro soldering on the canopy unit in my Subaru to fix a separated resistor, painted the downstairs bathroom some shades of blue and finally permanently affixed its seahorse handle which I got for NDM last Christmas, got the Altima running again, blah blah blah. I was too lazy to take pictures of the most exciting stuff (i.e. the micro soldering of a tight, partially obscured half-millimeter joint with a shaved copper wire).

Thanks, dad!

Weary Dog (Pets)

My parents' visit was exhausting for the dogs. Besides the excitement of different people, 'Dolon was on high alert during all of the cooking and baking we did. There are risks associated with close inspection of my wife's endeavors in the kitchen, however, as you can see above.
After almost a week of fun 'Dolon has become a passive and unresisting pillow.

Visit Vittles (Chow)

The parents came for a visit last week and gave us an excuse to cook a few things we haven't for a while. The first night we made a deep-dish pizza with spinach and zucchini. It might look a little Abby-normal because of how the real buffalo mozzarella melts. Unfortunately, I went a bit overboard saucing it during construction so it was a little messy to eat.
After LEM left for California, leaving only seafood lovers in the house, NDM made fantastic fish 'n' chips out of some tilapia fillets. These are as good as any fried fish I've ever had.
We finished up with some seafood gumbo made with scallops, shrimp, krill, mussels, clams, and tilapia.
For desert one night NDM whipped up some cashew brittle. This is the second time she's made it and she has it down pat -- delicious.
To welcome LEM back at the end of the visit we made some household-first caramel corn. First NDM threw about a half cup of popcorn kernels in a covered bowl and microwaved it for about 4 minutes on high until they were almost all popped. Then she made a caramel sauce on the stove out of brown sugar, butter, and corn syrup and brought it to the soft crack stage. The sauce and popcorn went on a baking tray in the oven for an hour, allowing the sauce to bubble and cover all of the popcorn. I'm not one for caramel corn myself, but it was certainly the best I've ever had.

Fox Populi (Reblog)

Can you believe we live in a country where it is considered appropriate for members of our news media to refer to a presidential candidate as Barack "Hussein" Obama? Indeed, it may actually be a winning strategy for John "McCarthy" McCain. In my opinion, anyone who endorses that kind of election behavior, as McCain has implicitly and his campaign has explicitly done, is not fit to serve our country in any role.

Flood Puppies (Pets)

EQ sent us some photos from a few weeks ago when the retention area in her back yard was flooded and we took the puppies over for a play date. Above Daisy and our dogs are in the shallows -- that water stretches another couple hundred feet and gets as deep as their withers.
Líle exuberantly speed-bunny-hopped back and forth. In order to keep up her speed in the deeper water she couldn't use a normal gait -- every move had to be a leap.
Running through water has to be pretty exhausting, but even though the north margin of the yard was above water they still preferred the flood. Here's a rare snap of Líle on moist land.

Puppy Snacks (Pets)

So today we discovered something else our puppies like to eat: DAP DryDex spackle. It is like candy, and they lick it right off of the wall. Thanks to the ASPCA's Animal Poison Control Center, we know that dogs usually eat this stuff by the cupful, so for the teaspoon or so our crazies consumed we just had to squeeze some milk through them. Alas, no discount for having worked with PCC on their medical records and case management software!

I guess we should have been more alert after 'Dolon ate the sanding sponge on the way home.

Mustard Verdict (Chow)

I finally got around to making a small loaf of fresh bread so we could try my first stab at mustard. The verdict is in, and NDM and I both give it a thumbs up. I was afraid from the aroma after preparation that this would be far too vinegary, and maybe a little thin as well -- but neither fear was realized. The Frankenrecipe I created from trolling 100 different online mustard recipe resources produced a well-balanced, slightly sweet, moderately spicy mustard with a deep complexity of flavors. Mmm! I think I have my basis from which I can eventually manufacture any number of weird mustards.

Just to be sure, I'm going to take the jar up to my parents this weekend and see what they think.

A Ribbon Runs Through It (Pets)

Líle can make a toy out of anything. Once, anyway, as she grants it the sweet release of death. This ribbon entertained her for several days before meeting its end -- she may have been experimenting to see if each remnant would eventually grow into an adult ribbon.

The Hammock's Last Hurrah

NDM managed to get a lot of good studying done in the hammock this year. A huge amount of studying if she was dreaming about zoo boards. But the hammock isn't just about work; it is also Líle's rocking magical licking cradle and puppy gas emporium.
Until next year, hammock!

Mustard Theory (Chow)

So I figured I'd take a stab at home-made mustard. Google suggests there are just a few simple stages to making a mustard, once you forgo the addition of eggs in a double-boiler.

1. The soak. Whole mustard seeds soak in rougley equal parts of cold water or a 1:1 vinegar and wine mixture for at least 3 hours and as long as "overnight".
2. Optionally, the boil. In water, vinegar, or vinegar and wine boil down some dry mustard, salt, any sugars or honey, and whatever other flavors you want -- garlic, tarragon, allspice, peppers, etc. Usually this is strained so that only its liquid moves forward to the next stage.
3. The blend. The soaked mustard and all of its liquid, together with everything else, gets pulsed in the blender into the requisite degree of coarseness.
4. The sit. Into the refrigerator it goes until the next day.

So keeping it simple, and the recipe size small...

My soak, which I refrigerated for two days, because my wife is a slave-driver:

• 2T of Morton & Bassett's brown mustard seed.
• 1T of Colman's double superfine yellow mustard flour.
• 2T of white wine vinegar.
• 2T of 2006 Smoking Loon California merlot.

My boil, which I simmered until it was reduced by half:

• ½t allspice.
• ¼t mixed peppercorns.
  
• ½t ground sumac berries.
  
• ¼t turmeric.
• 1t kosher salt.
  
• 1T brown sugar.
  
• 2T water.

I didn't actually strain my boil, since the only solids it contained were peppercorns, easily ground up with the mustard seed. The results? Won't know until tomorrow, or the next time I bake bread, whichever comes last.

My Wife, The Diplomat

Congratulations to NDM, DVM, MS, Dipl ACZM!

World Day Against Software Patents (Reblog)

Today is World Day Against Software Patents. The website contains some resources for informing your elected officials of your opinion, which they will circular file when they realize that your comments do not come attached to campaign contributions. I admit I feel less optimistic about issues like this than ever, preparing as I am to pay rich executives out of my own pocket for bankrupting their companies robbing people.

Someone needs to clout Bernanke in the back of the head for me.

Large Hadron Rap (Reblog)

Good rap but poor quality video.

Googlefox (Reblog)

Google has finally announced some specifics about the browser they are developing -- and they've done so with a comic made by Scott McLeod, the author of Understanding Comics. It is a pretty cool read packing a lot of technical information in to a form really easy for a non-technical reader to digest, and for me it really highlighted how totally lousy almost all technology journalism is.

(Updated with this official Google link to the comic.)

Flow Of History (Recommendation)

My ancient history teacher has brought his cause-and-effect teachings to the web at The Flow of History. Although there is a lot of simplification involved, I always loved the contextualization his flowcharts provided to whatever nugget of technology, social movement, or political operation we were trying to digest. It is nice to see that he's made all of his hard work available; imagine a world where all our teachers invested this much time and energy in their students.

Omnivore's 100 (Reblog)

From the Very Good Taste blog... Italics are mine. The only things I struck out are things I've already eaten :-) Well, and the cigar.

---

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment at www.verygoodtaste.co.uk linking to your results.

The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding (I've had it and would never consider eating it again.)
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart (I guess I haven't eaten from a lot of street carts.)
16. Epoisses (Mmm, stinky cheese!)
17. Black truffle (Unless black truffle oil counts...)
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese (I'd need a compelling reason to reconsume this.)
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea (Although I've had all the ingredients, separately, in the right country.)
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal (How could I not know what this is?)
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut (Nothing special. Why the fuss?)
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi (Got some in the fridge right now...)
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal (Don't judge me!)
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine (This doesn't really look up my alley, but I'd eat it.)
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads (Thymus isn't my thing, but it isn't horrible. Not like natto.)
63. Kaolin (Well, who knows? I've eaten dirt without detailed analysis as to its composition.)
64. Currywurst
65. Durian (I've been dying to try this for years.)
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho (I almost struck this out, too. That much cold tomato is almost too much for me.)
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost (In the fridge, too -- won't go with the umeboshi though.)
75. Roadkill (I'm assuming the venison sausage SB made was killed with a gun.)
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong (I've had smoked Chinese tea, but not sure about exact provenance.)
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant. (Worse, no meals at any at all.)
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate (But sign me up!)
91. Spam (Eurrghhh...)
92. Soft shell crab (Spider roll ga oishii desu ne!)
93. Rose harissa (Not sure what rose harissa is? Harissa is made with chilis.)
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

Belgian Ale Night

Last night we had AM, ALS & RWM over for fish tacos and a sampling of Belgian ales. NDM sucked down a fruity lambic while the rest of us worked our way through 5 bottles of ale.

• The first, and still my favorite, Chimay Grande Reserve. I don't think anything can beat this dark, sweet, malty, creamy elixir. I wouldn't normally have started out with this one, but all the others needed some time in an ice bath to reach the proper temperature.
• Next we hit the Slaapmutske Triple Nightcap. Creamy like one expects from a corked Belgian, but much lighter than the Chimay. Despite a nice bitterness I found this beer a little short on character.
• Third was the Caracole, whose snail label I really liked. (I'd assumed this beer was named after dressage before I noticed the snail.) This beer was close kin to the Slaapmutske, with some more Christmasy aromas of cloves and allspice.
• Finally another winner with the Koningshoeven quadrupel! You can tell where my tastes lie; this was a much darker, deeper brew than the preceding ales. Harsher and less creamy than the Chimay, it was still an excellent beer.
• We finished off with another lighter ale, the Chouffe. At the end of the night whatever faculties I use to judge beer are mostly spent; this was an acceptable version of the light Belgian ale.
  

Besides the great food (NDM even made corn tortillas and refried beans from scratch to go with her usual fantastic fish; my only contribution was a hot slaw for the tacos) and beer I had an opportunity to learn all about chlamydia's effect on koala population decline from RWM, an expert in the field. Beer and education, what more could you ask for?

Garden Miscellany

My final miscellany post of the day... Starting off with the first frog we've seen in our yard since moving here.
NDM's favorite squirrel, which helped us dispose of a pound of walnuts and hazelnuts that have been lingering on since winter. The little tree-rat showed absolutely no fear -- I think NDM took this photograph at a distance of about 2 feet.
The wife hasn't been as industrious as normal this year, what with studying for boards every waking moment, but she still managed to cast some concrete planters. This one was destined to be filled with opuntia and sedum.
Finally, I've given up posting photos of Molpe's garden kills. For a while it looked like they'd petered out with the arrival of the new puppy, but she's in fine form again. She's even done three in a single day now. I'm afraid if I keep documenting that it will eventually be used as evidence in a war crimes tribunal, so here's a picture of a cute, fuzzy, harmless kitten.

Leftover Food Photographs (chow)

Looks like I've been tardy with some recipe action. Here are a few things we've cooked and eaten that never made it off the hard drive... First up, a zucchini parmesan. Oh lordy have we had some zucchini this year. Feel free to drop by if you want some.
A little bok choy stir fry...
I made a coconut curry with some fresh coconut. Apparently I didn't photograph the actual meal, but was pretty pleased with myself for splitting the coconut into perfect halves. After scooping out the coconut I gave the halves to the puppies, who had a field day.
Oh man, was this good. Gnocci with fried real buffalo mozzarella slices together with a spicy red sauce.
NDM's production here -- her always fabulous hot and sour soup.
This was a delicious made-up whatnot that I threw together when my parents were visiting. A warm salad of roasted celeriac with fennel and olives.
A cold side-dish of spicy cabbage to eat with stir fries.
A zucchini boat. This was in fact the first dish that I ever cooked for the wife, way back when she was a pre-wife, a decade or so ago. Scooped out the zucchini and cooked it with pasta, cheese, and sundries before throwing the mixture back in the zuke for baking in the oven.

Dogorama (Pets)

Here's a mess of random puppy snaps, mostly from the last month. This lead photo, however, is from the distant past when we still had a microLíle. She's bigger than 'Dolon now.
'Dolon won't get on the hammock, although he's happy to jam his head through the ropes to get his licks in. Líle isn't worried about unstable footing at all, though -- especially if there's a person around to jam a paw into.
Here the dogs give thanks for the bounty they are about to receive.
Another puppy-Líle, sitting on her divan. She's three or four times that volume now.
Here's a current Líle -- although her hugeness is of course dwarfed in this photograph my Cylcopean might. This is her Cute Death Ray posture.
'Dolon was ecstatic to get another visit from my parents. He totally crushes on my father.
These are the kind of puppy kisses I try to avoid.
Nothing is more fun than a kong in a pool of cool, clean water...
Relaxing in their twin beds after a long day.
Farewell, puppies! Until next month!