Mmmm...Grilled Peaches

A while back I posted that I would share ideas and recipes. Here's something I threw together for tonight. The meal itself took all of 20 minutes to prepare. It looks and sounds complicated, but it took longer to preheat the grill than it did to actually make it. Dessert? Usually not. But since it's a nice long holiday weekend, Slick is baking something she saw in Cooking Light.

Grilled Blackened Salmon & Grilled Peach Salad
w/ Grilled Pita Bread

Grilled Salmon
- Salmon
- Blackened Old Bay Seasoning
- Cooking Spray
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
The salmon is easy. Just coat it with Blackened Old Bay seasoning & olive oil spray. Grilled on med-high for about 3-4 min a side. I poured a little of the really good olive oil on it to serve.

Peach Salad
- Peach (barely ripe)
- Field Greens
- Peppers
- Onions
- Diced Ham (or Bacon/Prosciutto)
- Crumbled Blue Cheese
- Olive Oil
- Balsamic Vinegar
To make the salad take a barely ripe peach, cut it into slices, spray with cooking spray and grill for about 3 min a side. Flip carefully with tongs to preserve grill marks. Toss field greens & vegetables with the olive oil & vinegar. Place warm peaches on top and "season" with the blue cheese & bacon. (I used leftover bits from a BBQ ham-steak.)

Grilled Pita
Coat Pita with cooking spray & season with garlic powered. Grill!

Spider Plant Babies

Today, we "rescued" a few of our plants from various corners of the house. They were out of sight out of mind. I re-potted several of them for Slick. We then moved all these forgotten plants to a nice sunny spot in the greatroom where we will hopefully notice them more. We had one "fatality." A fern my mother gave us when we got married. I carefully pruned and re-potted the good sections in fresh soil, but I fear it's not long for this world.

The big surprise was the vine which we named Bernie (long story.) It was bursting at it's pot. I literally had to destroy the pot to re-plant it. That plant has been with us since our apartment 10 years ago.

The other thing we did was to take about 6 more babies off the spider plant. Damn thing doesn't look like a plant anymore, just a baby factory. You can see the recently potted baby and most of the six other babies in water hopefully getting their roots. The tradition is to give most of them away once they are potted, so hopefully we'll find a good home for them all.

I'm seriously considering getting some kind of shelf (like a baker's rack) and putting it in front of the window so we can make a nice indoor garden.

McVP

Newly featured on the McCain Dollar menu is McVP. Pobble expressed her general enthusiasms about the historic nature of these elections. And she's right to call people to task about this being a "stunt" by the McCain camp. Of course the selection of both VP candidates is about political manuvering. And no, I don't think this is a knee-jerk reaction or a shake-up. Repeat: It's not a "stunt." No, this is shrewd politics. And say what you will but the Republican party has cornered that market for the last decade or so. It's not about right or wrong it's about winning.

For whatever reason, there appears (and not just because the media tells us) to be a large block of Clinton supporters who don't want to vote for Obama. Is it a gender thing? A race thing? Not sure. Still, make no mistake. This is a direct shot at the Democratic base & the undecided Clinton supporters.

As for the VP candidates themselves, I'm completely and honestly unimpressed with both of them. Rarely* have I seen a VP who's so completely worthless that they can't handle the position of back-up QB & deadlock-vote maker.

Growing up in Philly, my opinion of Biden has basically always been that he's got diarrhea of the mouth. Sure his politics are spot on, but he's also been around long enough to put his foot in his mouth a few times. I'm glad he's not actually running for president. I've already been forced to pull the lever for Kerry and we all know how that turned out.

Palin's another matter. I didn't know squat about her. The news broke and I really did ask, "WHO?" Thankfully, the news told me she's Alaska's Govenor. Whew! What I do know is that her experience makes Obama look like a seasoned veteran. Sure, Alaska's big, but who the hell lives there? She's anti-abortion & a card-carrying member of the NRA. These two facts are the ones that should be repeated to any and all of your liberal friends. And this is no shot on hunters. I have family who hunts. I love venison! The press has already spoken about her using terms that I find derogatory. Don't believe me? Read this quote from MSNBC:

She was described by the Anchorage Press as "a small-town, angel-faced mother of four, an avid hunter and a fisher with a killer smile who wears designer glasses and heels, and hair like modern sculpture, who's taking it to the boys ever so softly."

Yes, because heels are an excellent accessory to an Orange vest & a huntin' rifle.

Sigh! We finally have a woman this close to the White House, she's a fucking conservative and the press is telling me about her heels. But America is doing well?

Canada anyone? Anyone?

Please win Mr Obama! Please!

*Note: Rare exceptions include Darth Cheney & Aaron "Deadshot" Burr.

A Dozen You Say?

This is a special post for my sister Cats & her Hubby to commemorate Monday, September 1st. What better way to celebrate than with a movie marathon? So, go grab a dozen donuts & a pair of six-packs and settle in.

Cheaper by the Dozen (2003) - Start with this family flick just in case you haven't yet pawned the kids off on Mom & Dad. Why yes, it sucked. But it fits the theme! Seriously, I would have snipped something off after the first 4 or 5. Oy!

The Dirty Dozen (1967) - Now we're talkin'. Remember this movie makes grown men cry.*

12 Angry Men (1957) - You've watched a bad family flick & a good old-fashioned war movie. Now it's time for serious. And who's more serious than Juror #8 (Henry Fonda?)

Ocean's Twelve (2004) - Maybe not as good as Ocean's 11, but who cares. It's got Brad Pitt & Catherine Zeta-Jones. Something for everyone!

Twelfth Night (1996) - Cross dressing & Shakespeare? Don't worry, it's a comedy. Someone's got to be alive at the end. ;-)

Twelve Monkeys (1995) - No, I'm not crazy! If you can survive 12 years of marriage and this movie marathon, clearly you can handle a mentally insane guy from the future. Granted you've only been eating donuts and drinking beer all day. Oh well...

* From Sleepless In Seattle:
Sam Baldwin: Well I'm not looking for a mail-order bride! I just want somebody I can have a decent conversation with over dinner. Without it falling down into weepy tears over some movie!
Greg: She's, as you just saw, very emotional.
Sam Baldwin: Although I cried at the end of "the Dirty Dozen."
Greg: Who didn't?
Sam Baldwin: Jim Brown was throwing these hand grenades down these airshafts. And Richard Jaeckel and Lee Marvin
[Begins to cry]
Sam Baldwin: were sitting on top of this armored personnel carrier, dressed up like Nazis...
Greg: [Crying too] Stop, stop!
Sam Baldwin: And Trini Lopez...
Greg: Yes, Trini Lopez!
Sam Baldwin: He busted his neck while they were parachuting down behind the Nazi lines...
Greg: Stop.
Sam Baldwin: And Richard Jaeckel - at the beginning he had on this shiny helmet...
Greg: [Crying harder] Please no more. Oh God! I loved that movie.

GAAAAHHHHHH NOOOOOO!!!!

Sorry, perhaps the title is a bit excessive, but the little snorkel rod from the foam maker on the espresso machine flew into the air, bounced end over end TWICE and slid down the ventilation shaft in the kitchen. Poof! Gone! Also, the inside of the duct work in the kitchen is disgusting. But more importantly, it's gone! What do I do?!? I am not sticking my arm in there! Maybe if Slick brings home rubber gloves from work and I put on an old long-sleeved t-shirt.

At least it happened AFTER I frothed the milk for my cafe'.

So very sad! I wanted to cry. Thankfully, the comical nature of the bounce & the pregnant moment when I thought "NOooooo!!!" made me laugh at myself. Because, life is better in slow-mo.

Appaloosa

A few weeks ago, I picked up a book at the library called "Resolution" by Robert B Parker. It was on the new fiction shelf and looked like a fast read. It's a western. I've never read a western, but I love watching them.

The book itself read fast. I cut into it in one evening. The shooting, swearing & whiskey sipping all starts in chapter one. The characters were unabashedly crude and the backdrop included strong stereotyping of the American Frontier and the people in it. The effect of this over-play of the racism, sexism & general lack of morality was potent. Instead of forcing me to recoil in disgust, I felt drawn to the characters.

The protagonist, a gun-fighter named Everett Hitch, kills a man early and does so to establish order in a bar. Soon, he's joined by his friend and mentor, Virgil Cole. Together they wrestle with a town and fight just about everyone in it. Yes, I know, completely unoriginal plot. Who cares? I'm here for the gun fight!

Throughout the book, they hark back to a place called Appaloosa. Appaloosa was the town of their first adventures together. That night, after finishing the book, I was online at a movie trailer site and noticed that Appaloosa is being made into a movie. I watched the trailer with Ed Harris (Virgil) & Viggo Mortensen (Everett) and was pleased by how quickly the characters in my head melded into them. The next day, I went to the library and got a copy of Appaloosa (the book.)

It was equally as fun as Resolution and read equally as fast. I'm surprised at how much I enjoyed both. You can feel Ed Harris as Virgil already. This made the character come alive for me.

If the movie adaptation equals the book, then it'll be a great western. And in case you're wondering, here's three examples of what I consider to be great westerns:

Silverado (1985) - Best Western ever and one of my favorite movies of all time. With Kevin Kline, Scott Glenn, Danny Glover & a very young Kevin Costner.

Unforgiven (1992) - Dark and gritty cowboy movie. Did for westerns what Dark Knight may have done for superhero movies. With Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman & Morgan Freeman

Rio Bravo (1959) - Classic John Wayne western. Essentially redone as El Dorado (1966) also with John Wayne. Not sure which I liked more. With John Wayne, Dean Martin, Ricky Nelson (yes really) and Angie Dickinson

Hey McCain, Roll Initiative!

This was reported to me today by my friend Avouz. Apparently, "McCainite" Michael Goldfarb said,

It may be typical of the pro-Obama Dungeons & Dragons crowd to disparage a fellow countryman's memory of war from the comfort of mom's basement, but most Americans have the humility and gratitude to respect and learn from the memories of men who suffered on behalf of others.

You can check out more by clicking +2 for Hope and following some of the links. My friends and I are somewhat insulted but mostly amused by the whole thing. Gamers are some of the most open-minded and diverse groups of people I know. I personally am very respectful of McCain's military service and have studied a bit about it.

Besides, my mom's basement is over 500 miles away & kinda musty.

A Good Week

I'm declaring this a good week. I know there's 2 days left and a lot can happen, but screw it. It's been a good week. I've been "fog" free & my body aches have all been manageable. I've been accomplishing stuff including that big HVAC repair in my attic on Tuesday. And my recovery time from such projects has been great. On Tuesday, we even walked the mile into town and had dinner.

And Now A Few Words About The Works of Jason Statham

The other day my sister and I admitted to being unwitting victims of a Jason Statham movie. We laughed at our misfortune, bad taste & the overwhelming horror of Mr Statham's career. Why? How? What idiot keeps making these films? (Well, Lionsgate is the usual culprit.) With the imminent release of Death Race (Remake of the cult-classic Death Race 2000) I thought it was my duty to do a public service announcement. I implore you to avoid Jason Statham movies!

Our trouble began with a small 2002 hit known as the Transporter. It was a fun ride with great stunts, fun (but formulaic) plot & a Hong Kong action feel. Statham was perfect. He exuded strength, sexuality, and presence onscreen. He had a British Bruce Willis feel.

The Transporter was followed up by a role in the 2003 remake of the Italian Job. He was perfectly type-cast as Handsome Rob the getaway driver & lady's man. The movie was good, fun & was one big minicooper ad.

Statham, unfortunately, had arrived. He's made several movies since. And most are in the running for the worst film I've ever seen. I appeal to you to avoid his movies (except the for the ones above) at all costs. Do not be sucked in by Crank or In the Name of the King. These films blow the most amazing chunks that they make Highlander 2 (which I actively forget exists) look like academy award material. Statham's fall may make the collective works of Jean-Claude Van Damme look like masterpiece theater. And Van Damme made Street Fighter! Street Fighter!

Avoid Statham. Think of the Children!

Suppostions of Faith vs Scientific Theory

Everyday after exercising, I take time to scan a variety of news sources. This morning I saw the following video link, No Credit for Creationism. The crux of it is that Christian colleges are teaching religious elements in their science classrooms and California isn't accepting those credits state-wide. One of the interviewed students commented that they are being taught the range of theories including intelligent design & evolution. The news story painted a picture of these colleges & their students as victims of the rules. Sigh! So much for objective journalism. (Not that it really exists.)

I admit bias in this situation. I admit that I find it difficult to look upon the purveyors of Creationism as anything but perversion of the Christian ideal & of rational scientific methodology. But then, this is my blog. But, I digress...

Creationism & it's twisted-sister known as intelligent design are disagreeable theology at best. The moment someone, for whatever reason, points at something and says, "God did that!" it is no longer science. Faith is a wonderful and beautiful thing. It's not science.

I do not believe in Evolution. Rather, I consider it the current scientific theory that best answers the scientific question of life on earth. Any argument that survival of the fittest or evolutionary divergence points to or away from God is a matter of faith and not science.

Science is not immoral. Science is amoral. There are those who would have you believe that this is not true. We all know the argument against Evolution. It does not point to God. It can be used as an argument against God's existence. It does not conform to a strict interpretation of the Bible. Intelligent design is the insidious response. Life is too amazing to have been an accident, therefore it points to a designer. We are told to "believe" that this is science. Rational thought? Perhaps. A matter of faith? Most definitely.

I believe, as a matter of faith, the core concept. God did make us. Evolution, creation, everything belongs to God. That may be it's most insidious part. Reasonable people of faith can not disagree with the core concept. When I attack - as I am now - Intelligent Design, it's supporters can call me anti-Christian. When I say that it has no place in a science classroom, it's supporters can also call me bias. And so, I become sad and embarrassed.

I am sad because both the faith I love & the science I studied are both being subverted. I'm embarrassed because it's not happening in some communist country or some oppressive middle-east nation, but here in our supposedly great nation.

Exactly

John Kovalic author of the web-comic Dork Tower has successfully explained Olympic fever.

Dork Tower for Wed, Aug 13th

And yes, I'm still "suffering" from it. I even have the end of the women's individual all-around gymnastics final on my DVR. I just have to not look at any news until I have a chance to watch it.

And Now A Sports-gasm

At this moment, I'm watching video streaming of Germany vs Spain in Men's Olympic Basketball, Phillies vs Dodgers on MLB.com & using my tuner-card to watch the NBC prime-time Olympic coverage. I'm doing this all on one computer. The audio from 3 sporting events is less overwhelming than you might think. There's also not a lot screen space. Don't believe me? I've got a picture!

I was certain the system would crash when I loaded this picture from the camera. It didn't, but I think my brain is getting a bit overloaded.

Catching Up On XKCD After Vacation

Always remember to use the "prev" function on XKCD when you come home from vacation. Otherwise, you can miss great moments of blasphemy.

XKCD, it's not just a web comic, it's cathartic.

FYI - Hawaii is in the USA

Hawaii is our 50th State! It's not some foreign country. When someone grows up in Hawaii or lives in Hawaii or vacations in Hawaii, they do so in the United States of America and thus have American "roots." Yes, it's a beautiful place. Yeah, it's in the middle of the ocean. It's still American soil!

Are we clear? I could totally go on about the inherent racism, jingoism & all around stupidity of people...You know what, forget it! The heads of all the Native American Tribes called. They want their land back. Everyone pack up you shit and go "home."

I hear I might be a distant relation to the chancellor of Germany. Think she'd let me sleep on the couch?

Signal Boost

I returned home this week to a horrendous case of Olympic fever. The only problem was that I was having problems with the reception to our NBC station. Digital signals are interesting. They don't get fuzzy like analog. Instead they have 3 phases: Perfect, Spotty & None. Due to a number of factors (mostly distance & antenna location) I deal with a lot of spotty signal performance. So, I did a bunch of research yesterday to determine if I could boost my reception OR if it was time to admit that I needed an outdoor antenna.

The short of the story is that I dramatically improved the reception to all 10 of my local stations by simply moving my little indoor antenna into the attic. I used the existing hole for my network cable. I can tap into my existing CATV cabling at some point if I want to make it pretty.

Fun w/ Captions

- Nothing to see here! Move along!
- Charlie, Our Mysterious Benefactor!
- Is that Wilson?

No, no...the man hiding behind the napkin is "Uncle." I caught him snacking. Apparently, Cape Cod chips taste good w/ salsa & a glass of white wine.

Addition:

- Pay no attention to the napkin! I am the great and powerful Oz!

Pool Sharks

Einstein & Jesus Walk into a Pool Hall...

Proof that my family has an odd sense of humor. Princess Kitty (and her parents...you know...the pastors!) bought this for Uncle (AKA iDad's little brother, AKA the biggest Sixers fan in the world.) Who won the great pool game? There are some questions best left unanswered!

Sunset

I am home. The sun has set on another family vacation in OBX. It was great. I miss my niece already. OK, I miss them all, but "Princess Kitty" is my excuse to play mini-golf, eat ice cream and watch Disney Movies.

Sunset over "our" pond with the Currituck Sound in the background
You can almost see the North Carolina coast behind it

The Internets Pipe Is Clogged

So, the Internet connection here at the rental house is down. The guy from the rental agency came out Sunday and unlocked the electronics room, but all he knew how to do was recycle the power. So, my uncle called me downstairs to help. The television feed is running, but the Internet light is not and we still haven't gotten it fixed.

iDad started wandering around looking for WiFi signals with his iPhone. (Which was OMG funny!) Other members of my family kept asking me "What will we do?" Perhaps it's denial, but I just shrugged and went back to my mystery book. (Note: the wife did it!) Then when that was done, I moved on to my Obama book. I - gasp - explored the outdoors. I - oh the horror - swam in the pool & walked on the nature trail. By Monday however, the inmates became restless.

That's when iDad found a faint connection to another WiFi signal when standing in the corner of one room on the third floor. Pandemonium ensued! Followed by begging! I lugged my old laptop (which I almost didn't bring) up to the room and set it up in the corner. Since my nephew wanders in and out of the room, I can't just leave my laptop sitting on the floor. Instead, I've had to unpack it a few times for people to read email and blah blah blah...

Anyway, that's what's going on. I had intended to supply random photos of OBX everyday. But frankly, it's better this way. So, don't expect anymore posts this week. I'm having fun, playing with the kids, wearing plenty of sunscreen, and generally making an obnoxious pain of myself whenever possible. Ah vacation!

That One More Thing & Then Off to OBX

Whew, I think I've done everything I need to do before leaving for the annual family vacation. From experience, it's important to empty the kitchen trash & clean that last dish before a week away from home. Trust me on this one! I've got about an hour before I need to run some last-minute errands (return some books to the library, stop at the bank...) then grab Slick at work and begin our trip.

We're off to the Outer Banks of North Carolina. It's become a family tradition.

It's a 9-hour trip and yet we don't leave the state. It's just that we live in the SW corner and we're driving to the NE corner & up a barrier island. We leave now and stop in a hotel so we can get there ahead of the traffic. If we don't hit Kittyhawk by noon, the drive can be extended by an hour or two. There are few things worse than driving for 8+ hours and be in sight of the last bridge only to get stuck in snarled traffic.

Well, you could be my sister. She spent 10+ hours in the car last year only to hit the traffic and have the AC go out in her Blazer. And last year we had the heat wave. So, the inside of her SUV must have been insane.

I've got the laptop packed and might blog a little. Still, the goal is to drink my fill of family (especially my niece & nephew) to the point where I can't stand any of them. ;-)