"British actor Michael Caine has observed that Superman is how America sees itself, and Batman is how the rest of the world sees America."
Hmmm.....
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Yippee...I think
The White House said on Tuesday that Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's high-profile visit to Iraq may have been a "distraction for many" but not for President George W. Bush.
True enough. He's busily working on a reason why he, as a Man of Peace, just has to attack Iran....and do so in a way that locks us into staying in that region for decades. He's thinking hard.
Meanwhile, Cheney's already issued the mobilization orders. Don't tell the President, he mutters.....
True enough. He's busily working on a reason why he, as a Man of Peace, just has to attack Iran....and do so in a way that locks us into staying in that region for decades. He's thinking hard.
Meanwhile, Cheney's already issued the mobilization orders. Don't tell the President, he mutters.....
Feminists
I think that feminism is a good thing, and I value what I learn from it. But I had to give up on Feministe.
I rarely enjoyed reading it, but I continued because I thought it had something important to say to me. Okay, I'd have to filter out the gratuitious vulgarities, as I do with other sites that think fucking is a suitable modifying adverb and adjective, but I'd read the rest. From it, I'd get at least a sense of what the world looks like from the other side of Gender Gulch. Not all the answers or the right attitudes are on my side. Sometimes, none of them are.
Then I read this, in an article there about the death of Estelle Getty, of The Golden Girls:
Where else have you seen a popular sitcom (or any show) that revolves around women who actually kind of look like average women, who aren’t young and fabulous and beautiful, who have interests other than finding male companionship, who put their female friendships first, and who have sex after menopause?
...and I thought wait a minute.... Because, turn that sentence around and see how it sounds. Where else have you seen a popular sitcom (or any show) that revolves around men who actually kind of look like average men , who aren’t young and fabulous and handsome, who have interests other than finding female companionship, who put their male friendships first, and who have sex after menopause? Okay, the menopause reference doesn't fit. But the rest? If a guy had said it, the concept would have come across as stupid, even arrogant. Put their female friendships first? Its only one clause in the sentence, but it grated on me. Added to the vulgarities (and I'm not a prig, honest), I thought: I don't need this.
So I ditched it. I'll have to get my feminism elsewhere, I guess.
I rarely enjoyed reading it, but I continued because I thought it had something important to say to me. Okay, I'd have to filter out the gratuitious vulgarities, as I do with other sites that think fucking is a suitable modifying adverb and adjective, but I'd read the rest. From it, I'd get at least a sense of what the world looks like from the other side of Gender Gulch. Not all the answers or the right attitudes are on my side. Sometimes, none of them are.
Then I read this, in an article there about the death of Estelle Getty, of The Golden Girls:
Where else have you seen a popular sitcom (or any show) that revolves around women who actually kind of look like average women, who aren’t young and fabulous and beautiful, who have interests other than finding male companionship, who put their female friendships first, and who have sex after menopause?
...and I thought wait a minute.... Because, turn that sentence around and see how it sounds. Where else have you seen a popular sitcom (or any show) that revolves around men who actually kind of look like average men , who aren’t young and fabulous and handsome, who have interests other than finding female companionship, who put their male friendships first, and who have sex after menopause? Okay, the menopause reference doesn't fit. But the rest? If a guy had said it, the concept would have come across as stupid, even arrogant. Put their female friendships first? Its only one clause in the sentence, but it grated on me. Added to the vulgarities (and I'm not a prig, honest), I thought: I don't need this.
So I ditched it. I'll have to get my feminism elsewhere, I guess.
Flight
I would imagine that the guy on the left is thinking that he does not want to be the person who broke Stephen Hawking....
Monday, July 21, 2008
The Next Big Thing. Actually, Several.
I don't know Paul Graham from Graham Crackers, but I gather that he's involved with something like a venture capital firm. On this page, he lists several conceptual areas where he would be interested in funding projects -- if the projects were truly worthwhile, and not just a quick flash for some cash. (Like that? I just made it up.) It's worth looking at. More than once, I found myself nodding, saying yeah, we DO need that....
Exercise
I'm not much of an exercise person, but I do a little bit. (In a book called The Wanting of Levine, a character is asked if he knows anything about sailing. The character replies 'A little bit', and is told that to a sailor, 'a little bit' means that you've crewed in an ocean race. Otherwise, the answer is 'not much'. So I suppose I should say that I do 'not much'.) My wife's company is offering to supplement money paid into our health insurance fund if we watch a series of videos on multiple health-related topics. They're not too horrible, and the packet for each topic lasts perhaps fifteen minutes, so I do. And tonight I learned something.
Exercise trainers are sadists.
They showed a woman who was described by the trainer as being 'very fit' as she prepared to do an exercise. She made an offhand remark about the beginning being really easy, and the trainer crisply replied 'Thats as easy as its going to get'.
Boy, sure motivated me to get right out there and pump some iron!
Exercise trainers are sadists.
They showed a woman who was described by the trainer as being 'very fit' as she prepared to do an exercise. She made an offhand remark about the beginning being really easy, and the trainer crisply replied 'Thats as easy as its going to get'.
Boy, sure motivated me to get right out there and pump some iron!
Get a Grip
Should I conclude from this Flickr photograph that perhaps the honeymoon isn't going to be as much fun as first thought?
Its Five Days Away
I have once again committed to a meal that I probably won't like.
I am not a fish eater. Though I have tried (really, though not very often), I just can't get past the taste. I think my taste buds were formed in Kansas or some other center of meal-eating. But I'm going to try again. A service that I subscribe to, ArcaMax, sends recipes (and ads); I usually look only at the ones that have keywords like Cookies, Cake, Hamburger...but this week, it showed a recipe for grilled tuna steak, and I thought hmmm.... After all, it says steak, right? And my scale is telling me that I really, really need to start paying attention to what I eat. (Though I think I have a reason for why I've been gaining weight - one that has nothing to do with eating -- it doesn't erase the effects.) So my wife and I are going to give it a try. On Saturday.
Hey, thats five days from now. A lot could happen.
I am not a fish eater. Though I have tried (really, though not very often), I just can't get past the taste. I think my taste buds were formed in Kansas or some other center of meal-eating. But I'm going to try again. A service that I subscribe to, ArcaMax, sends recipes (and ads); I usually look only at the ones that have keywords like Cookies, Cake, Hamburger...but this week, it showed a recipe for grilled tuna steak, and I thought hmmm.... After all, it says steak, right? And my scale is telling me that I really, really need to start paying attention to what I eat. (Though I think I have a reason for why I've been gaining weight - one that has nothing to do with eating -- it doesn't erase the effects.) So my wife and I are going to give it a try. On Saturday.
Hey, thats five days from now. A lot could happen.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
I Didn't Say This
I came across Nice Critic today, which says that you can select general statements that you'd like to tell someone without them knowing who said it, and the site will email them anonymously. Most are what you'd expect -- please keep your voice down, you might want to get a new muffler for your car, that lawn could use some attention, please refill the coffee pot if you take the last cup -- but two got my attention:
This is a problem?
You don't release your hugs in a timely manner.
You squeeze too hard when you hug.
You squeeze too hard when you hug.
This is a problem?
Dough Dodo
The Great Dough Experiment is underway.
Four chunks of dough, sliced from one original chunk, each about twelve ounces. Two in the oven with the light on, two in the microwave. One of each has a damp towel over it. Timer has forty minutes to go.
If they don't rise, I'll give them more time until they do. And if they don't after about three hours, I'll make another batch and do the 'heated oven' test.
============
Update after 1 hour:
The two chunks in the oven expanded marginally more than the two in the microwave. The two chunks with a damp cloth are still pliable, whereas the two without have dried out a bit.
I've now got all four in the oven, light on, covered with a damp cloth. We'll see what happens.
=============
Update after 3 hours:
While we were out, the dough did double in each of the containers. The dough which had been without a cover originally is just a tad dryer, but moist, unlike before when we took it out of the oven or the microwave. So my conclusion (I know, I didn't do the 'preheat the oven') is that the dough will rise, but that it will take significantly longer than anticipated.
So I've learned something.
Four chunks of dough, sliced from one original chunk, each about twelve ounces. Two in the oven with the light on, two in the microwave. One of each has a damp towel over it. Timer has forty minutes to go.
If they don't rise, I'll give them more time until they do. And if they don't after about three hours, I'll make another batch and do the 'heated oven' test.
============
Update after 1 hour:
The two chunks in the oven expanded marginally more than the two in the microwave. The two chunks with a damp cloth are still pliable, whereas the two without have dried out a bit.
I've now got all four in the oven, light on, covered with a damp cloth. We'll see what happens.
=============
Update after 3 hours:
While we were out, the dough did double in each of the containers. The dough which had been without a cover originally is just a tad dryer, but moist, unlike before when we took it out of the oven or the microwave. So my conclusion (I know, I didn't do the 'preheat the oven') is that the dough will rise, but that it will take significantly longer than anticipated.
So I've learned something.
Munchies
I realized two things this morning.
First, my wife's family reunion is coming up in about a month. That's the one that they hold during a very hot period, in an open air pavillion with no cooling, and where I complained a few years ago that they had no munchies whatsoever, let alone, decent food. Sorry, I don't consider pork tenderloin and ham hocks to be picnic food. They need cake, brownies, hamburgers. Second, in the freezer downstairs, we have a) a frozen unfrosted cake I made, b) a frozen half tray of brownies my wife made, and c) the mix for about fifteen rich chocolate chip cookies. I think that addresses the munchie question, hmm?
Today, the bread.
We just went for a walk before it gets too hot. Its around 80 now, slightly humid. By 2 it'll be around 94 and humid. We thought about going to a movie, but the only one I wanted to see, we've already seen. There are a couple I'm willing to see -- Hancock, for example -- but I don't feel the need. I am curious about Sex and the City, but not enough to pay to see it. I'll wait for Netflix to handle it.
First, my wife's family reunion is coming up in about a month. That's the one that they hold during a very hot period, in an open air pavillion with no cooling, and where I complained a few years ago that they had no munchies whatsoever, let alone, decent food. Sorry, I don't consider pork tenderloin and ham hocks to be picnic food. They need cake, brownies, hamburgers. Second, in the freezer downstairs, we have a) a frozen unfrosted cake I made, b) a frozen half tray of brownies my wife made, and c) the mix for about fifteen rich chocolate chip cookies. I think that addresses the munchie question, hmm?
Today, the bread.
We just went for a walk before it gets too hot. Its around 80 now, slightly humid. By 2 it'll be around 94 and humid. We thought about going to a movie, but the only one I wanted to see, we've already seen. There are a couple I'm willing to see -- Hancock, for example -- but I don't feel the need. I am curious about Sex and the City, but not enough to pay to see it. I'll wait for Netflix to handle it.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Stretch
Multiple kinds, today.
First off, it's been a stretch just to get anything done that I'd planned on. Seems like each thing that I wanted to do would take more time than I thought, be more of a hassle than I thought, or just generally screamed out don't do me! I don't have a reason as to why. Certainly, it's hot out, and I don't particularly care for hot, but heck, we're indoors, and the cool machine is on, so whats the deal? Don't know.
Second, I didn't do the bread, mostly for the reasons cited above. I'm going to, though. I even went out and bought cheap flour, just so I wouldn't feel so guilty about making dough just for the experience of making dough. I know, thats a little extreme, but I've been paranoid about monies lately. It came as a surprise to realize that if we'd been handling things just fine on two salaries, using each to pay part of the expenses and bills, and trimming off the excess paycheck to go into savings and whatnot, then going to one paycheck must necessarily mean undoing some of that trimming. I know: I just figured this out? Sometimes, I can be dumb.
Third, I was tired most of today, and this afternoon got a wicked headache -- the kind you get after being out in the ballpark under the blazing sun. Except that somehow I managed to do it while mostly indoors, except for when I was out mowing the lawn this morning, and going to the grocery store. Go figger.
Fourth, my hip has been really, really stiff, last couple of days. No idea why. I'm going to try some stretching exercises I found. And I've been gaining weight like crazy. No idea why there, either -- but it ticks me off to no end.
So, whats going on.... Well, I see where Jesse Jackson is being castigated for 'having used the N-word'. I really don't understand that. The N-word? That would be the one that black people can say with impunity, white people can't? Only now, it appears, maybe they can't, either? Seems to me I recall a mighty furor, a few months back, wherein Responsible Black Leadership said that they would push people not to do that anymore. Guess it didn't take. Fortunately, theres more to worry about than this. For one thing, there's Bush, saying all is well, all is fine, just Take A Deep Breath.... He can't be that stupid. He just can't be. Of course, speaking of stupid, I saw a web site fiercely advocating the election of McCain because hey, he was shot down, which clearly proves leadership ability, and besides, his name sounds like John McClain, the hero of the Die Hard movies, so what else do you need to know? I realize it sounds like I'm making that up. I'm not.
I came up with something interesting for dinner, then got the headache and my wife ended up making it. We haven't had this particular dish for a while, possibly because it, ahem, takes about 90 minutes of actual effort to make it. Awfully suspicious timing, that headache...
And thats it for now.
First off, it's been a stretch just to get anything done that I'd planned on. Seems like each thing that I wanted to do would take more time than I thought, be more of a hassle than I thought, or just generally screamed out don't do me! I don't have a reason as to why. Certainly, it's hot out, and I don't particularly care for hot, but heck, we're indoors, and the cool machine is on, so whats the deal? Don't know.
Second, I didn't do the bread, mostly for the reasons cited above. I'm going to, though. I even went out and bought cheap flour, just so I wouldn't feel so guilty about making dough just for the experience of making dough. I know, thats a little extreme, but I've been paranoid about monies lately. It came as a surprise to realize that if we'd been handling things just fine on two salaries, using each to pay part of the expenses and bills, and trimming off the excess paycheck to go into savings and whatnot, then going to one paycheck must necessarily mean undoing some of that trimming. I know: I just figured this out? Sometimes, I can be dumb.
Third, I was tired most of today, and this afternoon got a wicked headache -- the kind you get after being out in the ballpark under the blazing sun. Except that somehow I managed to do it while mostly indoors, except for when I was out mowing the lawn this morning, and going to the grocery store. Go figger.
Fourth, my hip has been really, really stiff, last couple of days. No idea why. I'm going to try some stretching exercises I found. And I've been gaining weight like crazy. No idea why there, either -- but it ticks me off to no end.
So, whats going on.... Well, I see where Jesse Jackson is being castigated for 'having used the N-word'. I really don't understand that. The N-word? That would be the one that black people can say with impunity, white people can't? Only now, it appears, maybe they can't, either? Seems to me I recall a mighty furor, a few months back, wherein Responsible Black Leadership said that they would push people not to do that anymore. Guess it didn't take. Fortunately, theres more to worry about than this. For one thing, there's Bush, saying all is well, all is fine, just Take A Deep Breath.... He can't be that stupid. He just can't be. Of course, speaking of stupid, I saw a web site fiercely advocating the election of McCain because hey, he was shot down, which clearly proves leadership ability, and besides, his name sounds like John McClain, the hero of the Die Hard movies, so what else do you need to know? I realize it sounds like I'm making that up. I'm not.
I came up with something interesting for dinner, then got the headache and my wife ended up making it. We haven't had this particular dish for a while, possibly because it, ahem, takes about 90 minutes of actual effort to make it. Awfully suspicious timing, that headache...
And thats it for now.
Stimulated
When we paid our taxes, we used the savings/checking account that I still have from working at EDS. That's the one that we told them to use to send the stimulus money. We noticed a few days ago, wondering when we were going to get this money, that it had actually arrived in May, and has been sitting in that account since then. Guess we didn't get all that stimulated!
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Uh, Nance?
" But Pelosi's comments come as a new Gallup poll registers the lowest level of congressional approval among Americans in the polling organization's 30-year history of conducting that survey.That poll showed that its approval rating had reached an anemic 14 percent, while more than 70 percent of those polled said they disapproved of the job Congress is doing. The House speaker said she doesn't consider those numbers a negative referendum on the Democrats in charge, saying she thinks they stem largely from Congress' failure to end the war in Iraq."
a) Failure to get out of Iraq (or even just come to a conclusion about what to do)
b) Failure to adequately regulate the financial markets
c) Failure to hold the line on FISA
d) Failure to reject torture of any kind as an accepted practice
e) Failure to respond to the gas price problem -- which doesn't mean cutting the price temporarily
f) Failure to define acceptable use of the phrase 'executive privilege'
g) Failure to pass and enforce contempt of Congress actions on multiple deserving people
Not just Iraq, Nance. You guys were elected to clean up Bush's and the Republicans' messes. You don't seem to be doing that.
a) Failure to get out of Iraq (or even just come to a conclusion about what to do)
b) Failure to adequately regulate the financial markets
c) Failure to hold the line on FISA
d) Failure to reject torture of any kind as an accepted practice
e) Failure to respond to the gas price problem -- which doesn't mean cutting the price temporarily
f) Failure to define acceptable use of the phrase 'executive privilege'
g) Failure to pass and enforce contempt of Congress actions on multiple deserving people
Not just Iraq, Nance. You guys were elected to clean up Bush's and the Republicans' messes. You don't seem to be doing that.
Doughboy
Okay, tomorrow I'm going to Figure It Out. Or at least make a valiant effort.
I am going to make one large batch of dough, and separate it into six small batches. Prior to making the dough, the yeast will be tested with the 'warm sugared water' test. One batch will be placed in each of these locations:
In a greased bowl in the oven with the oven light on.
In a greased bowl covered with a damp towel in the oven with the oven light on.
In a greased bowl in the oven that's been heated and turned off.
In a greased bowl covered with a damp towel in the oven that's been heated and turned off
In a greased bowl in the microwave.
In a greased bowl covered with a damp towel in the microwave.
They will be allowed to rise for two hours. And then we gonna see if any of them have doubled in size. And if this doesn't work, we'll try something else.
I am going to make one large batch of dough, and separate it into six small batches. Prior to making the dough, the yeast will be tested with the 'warm sugared water' test. One batch will be placed in each of these locations:
In a greased bowl in the oven with the oven light on.
In a greased bowl covered with a damp towel in the oven with the oven light on.
In a greased bowl in the oven that's been heated and turned off.
In a greased bowl covered with a damp towel in the oven that's been heated and turned off
In a greased bowl in the microwave.
In a greased bowl covered with a damp towel in the microwave.
They will be allowed to rise for two hours. And then we gonna see if any of them have doubled in size. And if this doesn't work, we'll try something else.
Giving
I don't know this guy. I'm not from Kansas, and I don't know anyone in Kansas (though my neighbor used to live there). But I just gave him money for his campaign, because anyone cool enough to use XKCD as his role model is okay by me.
And besides, he has some damn good ideas.
And besides, he has some damn good ideas.
Changes
I was reading a blog the other day wherein a woman mentioned that she was sorry for having wasted her youth. Apparently, she was quite pretty then, and took it for granted; now, she isn't at that stellar level. From the blog, she's clearly an intelligent and interesting person, and she wasn't saying that she should be pitied. She was just stating the way things were.
It made me think a little about my life, and whether there was anything that I was sorry for. Certainly, there were things that I could have done differently, and better -- my performance in high school; my experience in the military -- yet I can't honestly say that I'd change anything. My performance in high school led me to go into the military the first time; that led me to being willing to go back in after college; the people I met in the military the second time led me to apply for a job at EDS, which is where I met my wife, who still, almost thirty years later, delights me. Any change in any of those first things would possibly affect the last one, and though I suppose I might have met someone who was prettier, or richer, or (fill in the desirable quality)-ier, I can't believe that, because she is so right for me. And, of course, without her, specifically, I wouldn't have had this daughter, who is also delightful, for all that she's a typical teen.
I have occasionally wondered what its like to be one of the pretty/handsome well-regarded people, and certainly I'd have liked to be one, but you know? My life's been pretty good.
It made me think a little about my life, and whether there was anything that I was sorry for. Certainly, there were things that I could have done differently, and better -- my performance in high school; my experience in the military -- yet I can't honestly say that I'd change anything. My performance in high school led me to go into the military the first time; that led me to being willing to go back in after college; the people I met in the military the second time led me to apply for a job at EDS, which is where I met my wife, who still, almost thirty years later, delights me. Any change in any of those first things would possibly affect the last one, and though I suppose I might have met someone who was prettier, or richer, or (fill in the desirable quality)-ier, I can't believe that, because she is so right for me. And, of course, without her, specifically, I wouldn't have had this daughter, who is also delightful, for all that she's a typical teen.
I have occasionally wondered what its like to be one of the pretty/handsome well-regarded people, and certainly I'd have liked to be one, but you know? My life's been pretty good.
Analogy
Is it a fair analogy to say that Bush's attitude toward what's coverable by executive privilege is similar to Hitler's attitude toward what land ought to belong to Germany? It seems to me, yes. Hitler could have been stopped -- painfully -- several times, but each time it was easier to give in, to assume that 'this was as far as it would go'. I think that Bush's arrogance for the use of executive privilege has the same basis, and, if not resisted, will have the same result.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Cupcakes
I like cupcakes. Not the incredibly ornate Louis XVI Versailles specials that people in cupcake stores make, but simple ones. They should be about two to three - no more - mouthfuls, with a simple frosting -- and the frosting is optional. The texture should be soft but not crumbly.
There's just one thing. I can't do it. I have made cupcakes, but they never seem right to me. Part of it is that the process of pouring them into cupcake containers seems weird to me, and fraught with peril. I use paper cupcake sleeves, and that seems wasteful -- just to hold the cake, and then immediately throw away? How American. But if I don't, then I have to spray the hell out of the cups to make sure they'll come out, later. And it also irritates the hell out of me when I spill the batter between cups -- and I always do.
But thats just the mechanics of it. More important, they a) aren't big enough, and b) don't taste right. I can't quantify that. They taste ok... just not right. I think I want their flavor to be richer, deeper... tastier.
I'll keep trying. Someday, maybe, I'll be as good as Joy the Baker. Bill the Baker? Can he bake it? Yes, he -- well, hang on a sec.....
There's just one thing. I can't do it. I have made cupcakes, but they never seem right to me. Part of it is that the process of pouring them into cupcake containers seems weird to me, and fraught with peril. I use paper cupcake sleeves, and that seems wasteful -- just to hold the cake, and then immediately throw away? How American. But if I don't, then I have to spray the hell out of the cups to make sure they'll come out, later. And it also irritates the hell out of me when I spill the batter between cups -- and I always do.
But thats just the mechanics of it. More important, they a) aren't big enough, and b) don't taste right. I can't quantify that. They taste ok... just not right. I think I want their flavor to be richer, deeper... tastier.
I'll keep trying. Someday, maybe, I'll be as good as Joy the Baker. Bill the Baker? Can he bake it? Yes, he -- well, hang on a sec.....
Good/Bad
Good news: Maybe we can reduce troop strength in Iraq.
Bad news: So that we can transfer them to Afghanistan.
Holy hell.
Bad news: So that we can transfer them to Afghanistan.
Holy hell.
Chipper
Yesterday, I made these chocolate chip cookies. I'd found the recipe in the New York Times; it was yet another of the ultimate chocolate chip recipes, the sort that bring cookbook writers to the edge of a shivering paroxym of lust. I thought it wasn't bad.
Time: 45 minutes (for 1 6-cookie batch), plus at least 24 hours’ chilling
2 cups minus 2 tablespoons (8 1/2 ounces) cake flour
1 2/3 cups (8 1/2 ounces) bread flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 1/2 sticks (1 1/4 cups) unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) light brown sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (8 ounces) granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons natural vanilla extract
1 1/4 pounds bittersweet chocolate disks or fèves, at least 60 percent cacao content
Sea salt.
1. Sift flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Set aside.
2. Using a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars together until very light, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla. Reduce speed to low, add dry ingredients and mix until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds. Drop chocolate pieces in and incorporate them without breaking them. Press plastic wrap against dough and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. Dough may be used in batches, and can be refrigerated for up to 72 hours.
3. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat. Set aside.
4. Scoop 6 3 1/2-ounce mounds of dough (the size of generous golf balls) onto baking sheet, making sure to turn horizontally any chocolate pieces that are poking up; it will make for a more attractive cookie. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt and bake until golden brown but still soft, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer sheet to a wire rack for 10 minutes, then slip cookies onto another rack to cool a bit more. Repeat with remaining dough, or reserve dough, refrigerated, for baking remaining batches the next day. Eat warm, with a big napkin.
There are a couple of amazing things about this recipe. One is the flour -- it uses a combination of cake flour and bread flour; another is the chocolate, which is high-end stuff. (I used Ghiradelli.) Yet a third is how long it takes to make -- at least twenty four hours in a refrigerator for the flavors to develop. And the sea salt. Sea salt? Yup.
And then there's the size. Despite the large amount of flour and chocolate, the recipe makes very few cookies -- but they're big - 3.5 ounces. I made one that size, and three that were smaller, but still quite hefty -- 2.0 ounces. Other than that the smaller ones were firm while the larger was relatively soft in the middle, they tasted the same. Sorry to say, I did not not taste any of the grace notes that the recipe and accompanying article would lead one to expect. Perhaps I simply don't have an educated palate.
Here's the result.
Time: 45 minutes (for 1 6-cookie batch), plus at least 24 hours’ chilling
2 cups minus 2 tablespoons (8 1/2 ounces) cake flour
1 2/3 cups (8 1/2 ounces) bread flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 1/2 sticks (1 1/4 cups) unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) light brown sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (8 ounces) granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons natural vanilla extract
1 1/4 pounds bittersweet chocolate disks or fèves, at least 60 percent cacao content
Sea salt.
1. Sift flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Set aside.
2. Using a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars together until very light, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla. Reduce speed to low, add dry ingredients and mix until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds. Drop chocolate pieces in and incorporate them without breaking them. Press plastic wrap against dough and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. Dough may be used in batches, and can be refrigerated for up to 72 hours.
3. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat. Set aside.
4. Scoop 6 3 1/2-ounce mounds of dough (the size of generous golf balls) onto baking sheet, making sure to turn horizontally any chocolate pieces that are poking up; it will make for a more attractive cookie. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt and bake until golden brown but still soft, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer sheet to a wire rack for 10 minutes, then slip cookies onto another rack to cool a bit more. Repeat with remaining dough, or reserve dough, refrigerated, for baking remaining batches the next day. Eat warm, with a big napkin.
There are a couple of amazing things about this recipe. One is the flour -- it uses a combination of cake flour and bread flour; another is the chocolate, which is high-end stuff. (I used Ghiradelli.) Yet a third is how long it takes to make -- at least twenty four hours in a refrigerator for the flavors to develop. And the sea salt. Sea salt? Yup.
And then there's the size. Despite the large amount of flour and chocolate, the recipe makes very few cookies -- but they're big - 3.5 ounces. I made one that size, and three that were smaller, but still quite hefty -- 2.0 ounces. Other than that the smaller ones were firm while the larger was relatively soft in the middle, they tasted the same. Sorry to say, I did not not taste any of the grace notes that the recipe and accompanying article would lead one to expect. Perhaps I simply don't have an educated palate.
Here's the result.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
WCN
A couple of interesting articles from the White Coat Notes web site.
One is a report of a study wherein discharged hospital patients were surveyed to determine how incident-free their stay had been. Come to find out that they reported twice as many complications as appeared in the official hospital record. The good news is, life-threatening or serious complications did appear in the records; the bad news is, hospitals thought that was the only source of useful information regarding outcomes, and were judging their effectiveness accordingly.
The other reports the surprising conclusion that breast self-exams might not actually do all that much good. They're not going so far as to recommend not doing it, but the finding is that BSEs tend to lead to a increase in the number of benign biopsies without a corresponding reduction in the cancer rate - and its possible that the biopsies, themselves, are actually harmful (though, compared to the cancer, at a significantly lower level).
One is a report of a study wherein discharged hospital patients were surveyed to determine how incident-free their stay had been. Come to find out that they reported twice as many complications as appeared in the official hospital record. The good news is, life-threatening or serious complications did appear in the records; the bad news is, hospitals thought that was the only source of useful information regarding outcomes, and were judging their effectiveness accordingly.
The other reports the surprising conclusion that breast self-exams might not actually do all that much good. They're not going so far as to recommend not doing it, but the finding is that BSEs tend to lead to a increase in the number of benign biopsies without a corresponding reduction in the cancer rate - and its possible that the biopsies, themselves, are actually harmful (though, compared to the cancer, at a significantly lower level).
Taps
One of my daughter's two guinea pigs died this afternoon.
More accurately, we had it euthanized after it had a relapse. My daughter brought her into my room this afternoon in a panic, saying Look!, which I did, expecting to see another sign of improvement -- she'd been giving it medicines and hand-feeding -- though now, it turns out, not quite as much as she should have been. Instead, what I saw was the guinea pig falling over on her side. I picked her up and looked at her, and one side of her face was pushed in, as if she'd been lying that way for quite some time. We got her to the vet, but the conclusion was, no dice. From what the vet said, she'd essentially just shut down. Although I didn't tell my daughter this, I wasn't willing to do heroic measures -- though, like anyone, when the light of your life, your only daughter, looks at you that way....yeah, I might have. But, as it happens, she was already thinking about euthanasia, so that's what we did.
Not a whole bunch of sadness here. Perhaps a little. We're guessing, one to two weeks before she asks to get a replacement. Which, incidentally, we won't do.
More accurately, we had it euthanized after it had a relapse. My daughter brought her into my room this afternoon in a panic, saying Look!, which I did, expecting to see another sign of improvement -- she'd been giving it medicines and hand-feeding -- though now, it turns out, not quite as much as she should have been. Instead, what I saw was the guinea pig falling over on her side. I picked her up and looked at her, and one side of her face was pushed in, as if she'd been lying that way for quite some time. We got her to the vet, but the conclusion was, no dice. From what the vet said, she'd essentially just shut down. Although I didn't tell my daughter this, I wasn't willing to do heroic measures -- though, like anyone, when the light of your life, your only daughter, looks at you that way....yeah, I might have. But, as it happens, she was already thinking about euthanasia, so that's what we did.
Not a whole bunch of sadness here. Perhaps a little. We're guessing, one to two weeks before she asks to get a replacement. Which, incidentally, we won't do.
ShoNuff Dumb
My daughter wants to subscribe for two years to a magazine called Shonen Jump. Its a manga magazine. The blowout card had a special price on it. We lost the card, so I called the vendor. Oh no, they said. Without that card, we can't give you the special price.
What, did the Pope personally bless that one?
What, did the Pope personally bless that one?
Just Good Clean Fun
From the New Yorker's response to the Obama cover flap:
"The burning flag, the nationalist-radical and Islamic outfits, the fist-bump, the portrait on the wall? All of them echo one attack or another. Satire is part of what we do, and it is meant to bring things out into the open, to hold up a mirror to prejudice, the hateful, and the absurd. And that's the spirit of this cover," a New Yorker spokesman said in a written statement.
The thing is, they probably did mean it satirically. What this shows, to me, is the gulf between the sophisticated, nay, elite tastes of some, and the mainstream. On this one, I'll count myself in with the mainstream. aka Get a clue, guys....
"The burning flag, the nationalist-radical and Islamic outfits, the fist-bump, the portrait on the wall? All of them echo one attack or another. Satire is part of what we do, and it is meant to bring things out into the open, to hold up a mirror to prejudice, the hateful, and the absurd. And that's the spirit of this cover," a New Yorker spokesman said in a written statement.
The thing is, they probably did mean it satirically. What this shows, to me, is the gulf between the sophisticated, nay, elite tastes of some, and the mainstream. On this one, I'll count myself in with the mainstream. aka Get a clue, guys....
Being Patient
I've mentioned on occasion how non-impressed I am with many, perhaps most, doctor's offices. So much so that as I sit here, I think Surely there must be some you like. One? But none come to mind.
Anyway, last night I read this blog post by a fellow who's going into med school, and for the first time in his life, he was seriously ill. I won't spoil the post, but I think it's worth reading -- by every damn doctor out there.
Anyway, last night I read this blog post by a fellow who's going into med school, and for the first time in his life, he was seriously ill. I won't spoil the post, but I think it's worth reading -- by every damn doctor out there.
Monday, July 14, 2008
Conversations
I had an interesting conversation with my wife this evening. It was a little unsettling, and more than a little serious. I guess thats to be expected, since what we were talking about was money, and illness, and death.
She's really concerned that something seriously and non-correctably wrong is going to turn up with my mother. Over the past six months, she's gotten weaker -- almost feeble at times. She has surges where she is almost normal, but then she drops back down again. I get a little uncomfortable when I realize that my wife worries about this more than I do. (Each of us has sheepishly admitted that there are times when my mother can be quite a pain -- not as bad as many, from what I've heard, but bad enough -- the analogy my wife uses is that its like taking care of a two year old -- but she's better at being empathic with the situation.) I just get irritated. I think that I don't like the reminder it gives me that some day I'll be old, too, and feeble. I really hate that image, and being reminded of it -- going to yet another doctor, hearing her move around with her walker -- irritates me. I know how foul that sounds. It sounds foul to me. I told her that although I didn't want anything to happen to my mother, at some point something would happen -- and if I had to choose between death and continued declining health for her, I know which I'd choose. I know how that sounds, too.
When we were walking today, she asked me if, should the opportunity arise, if I'd be a techie again, and I said that I would, given the opportunity. Its not because I liked being a techie, though I did, and would do it again just for fun. Its because I'm worried about money. Now, if you knew how much we had, you'd say that we have nothing to worry about. We're not rich, but we are comfortably well off. We've had extraordinary expenses this year -- things that would not normally occur. The timing was poor, too -- if we'd suspected what the market would do, we'd have delayed at least one of them. ( My dental work, probably not. Thats a whole different train wreck. And the front steps really needed to be repaired. ) But the effect of that has been noticable, and I realized that the money that we have flowing into our various accounts from my wife's paycheck isn't enough to meet our normal monthly expenses, let alone these extraordinary ones. The good news is, we're aware of it. But now we have to think about how we'll fix it. We do have alternatives, we do have resources. I’m not panicking. But thinking about it? Yeah.
This all sounds very dire, I know, and it isn't, really. I just worry, sometimes. And when I start to worry about one thing, it propagates to others, pretty quickly. This appears to be one of those times.
She's really concerned that something seriously and non-correctably wrong is going to turn up with my mother. Over the past six months, she's gotten weaker -- almost feeble at times. She has surges where she is almost normal, but then she drops back down again. I get a little uncomfortable when I realize that my wife worries about this more than I do. (Each of us has sheepishly admitted that there are times when my mother can be quite a pain -- not as bad as many, from what I've heard, but bad enough -- the analogy my wife uses is that its like taking care of a two year old -- but she's better at being empathic with the situation.) I just get irritated. I think that I don't like the reminder it gives me that some day I'll be old, too, and feeble. I really hate that image, and being reminded of it -- going to yet another doctor, hearing her move around with her walker -- irritates me. I know how foul that sounds. It sounds foul to me. I told her that although I didn't want anything to happen to my mother, at some point something would happen -- and if I had to choose between death and continued declining health for her, I know which I'd choose. I know how that sounds, too.
When we were walking today, she asked me if, should the opportunity arise, if I'd be a techie again, and I said that I would, given the opportunity. Its not because I liked being a techie, though I did, and would do it again just for fun. Its because I'm worried about money. Now, if you knew how much we had, you'd say that we have nothing to worry about. We're not rich, but we are comfortably well off. We've had extraordinary expenses this year -- things that would not normally occur. The timing was poor, too -- if we'd suspected what the market would do, we'd have delayed at least one of them. ( My dental work, probably not. Thats a whole different train wreck. And the front steps really needed to be repaired. ) But the effect of that has been noticable, and I realized that the money that we have flowing into our various accounts from my wife's paycheck isn't enough to meet our normal monthly expenses, let alone these extraordinary ones. The good news is, we're aware of it. But now we have to think about how we'll fix it. We do have alternatives, we do have resources. I’m not panicking. But thinking about it? Yeah.
This all sounds very dire, I know, and it isn't, really. I just worry, sometimes. And when I start to worry about one thing, it propagates to others, pretty quickly. This appears to be one of those times.
Really
There's an interesting (and short) article here at Ed Boyden's MIT blog on the question of real-world, real-time applications of school classwork.
In a nutshell, he says that once you're satisfactorily grounded in the theoretical underpinnings of a subject, and you begin to do practical applications of that theory (practical as in 'show me how to use this theory'), you could just as easily be applying those underpinnings toward the resolution of real problems -- things that you'd be doing if you were out of school and in the real world. The benefit is twofold: you see what it would be like to do this for real, and, every so often, your naive (in a good way) approach to problem resolution will come up with insights not available to those who do it for a living.
Its an interesting article.
In a nutshell, he says that once you're satisfactorily grounded in the theoretical underpinnings of a subject, and you begin to do practical applications of that theory (practical as in 'show me how to use this theory'), you could just as easily be applying those underpinnings toward the resolution of real problems -- things that you'd be doing if you were out of school and in the real world. The benefit is twofold: you see what it would be like to do this for real, and, every so often, your naive (in a good way) approach to problem resolution will come up with insights not available to those who do it for a living.
Its an interesting article.
Stray Thoughts...
...upon finally getting home after bringing my mother to a hospital for a blood test.
If living a long time means getting old and feeble, I can't see where its that good a deal. We think 'getting old' means being one of the photo shoot models for the retirement communities -- the guy is grinning, full head of lightly grey hair, holding a putter or tennis racquet, the woman is grinning, brilliantly grey hair, in a relaxed, cosmopolitan setting. They never show walkers, wheelchairs, breathers, any of that.
When you go to leave a comment on a web site where there's already fifty or so, do you read any of them? Do you read all of them? I do the first, not the second. So, why do we comment? Is it the acceptable equivilent of graffitti? CeruleanBill Waz Here!!! Might be helpful to have a 'composite' comment -- The general sense of these comments is.....with most people saying the following things. I bet that would be difficult to program.
Reading an article in Time magazine -- I had a lot of time at the hospital -- about crossbreeds of design teams and business people coming up with new, fast, edgy, insightful (insert gasp-inducing damn-I-gotta-have-that adjective here) ways of getting to market, I wonder: is it for real? Or is it like the reason that things getting written up, usually -- it isn't common, its novel, lets write about it. Not to say its not useful, but how do you get it to the mainstream without losing the touch of magic that made it remarkable?
If living a long time means getting old and feeble, I can't see where its that good a deal. We think 'getting old' means being one of the photo shoot models for the retirement communities -- the guy is grinning, full head of lightly grey hair, holding a putter or tennis racquet, the woman is grinning, brilliantly grey hair, in a relaxed, cosmopolitan setting. They never show walkers, wheelchairs, breathers, any of that.
When you go to leave a comment on a web site where there's already fifty or so, do you read any of them? Do you read all of them? I do the first, not the second. So, why do we comment? Is it the acceptable equivilent of graffitti? CeruleanBill Waz Here!!! Might be helpful to have a 'composite' comment -- The general sense of these comments is.....with most people saying the following things. I bet that would be difficult to program.
Reading an article in Time magazine -- I had a lot of time at the hospital -- about crossbreeds of design teams and business people coming up with new, fast, edgy, insightful (insert gasp-inducing damn-I-gotta-have-that adjective here) ways of getting to market, I wonder: is it for real? Or is it like the reason that things getting written up, usually -- it isn't common, its novel, lets write about it. Not to say its not useful, but how do you get it to the mainstream without losing the touch of magic that made it remarkable?
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Putting the Oh No in Sony
How many computer programmers does it take to figure out why some Netflix DVDs don't play on our Sony SLV--D300P DVD/VHS player? Apparently, two.
Some, indeed most, played. Some would say Loading.... and then PLAY....and then nothing. No ABORT, no FAIL, no YOU THOUGHT YOU WERE GOING TO WATCH THIS DVD...THINK AGAIN. Sometimes, flicking the player off and on again would make it work, usually not. We got an error at one point, when we tried to go into SETUP, saying that we couldn't do that when the DVD was playing, and we thought but the DVD ISN"T playing.... so, being programmers, we 'thought like the machine'.
Hmmm....it thinks its playing. Maybe it is, or at least trying to, and something's blocking it. What could that be? And we thought Parental Controls. Turns out the DVD that would not play was non-rated. You would think that a nonrated DVD would just go -- as, indeed, they all should, since we did not have controls turned on -- but what if the player was stupid, and if it couldn't verify the rating, it just would not play? So we turned on parental controls, made up a passcode, said 'this code allows you to play anything', got out of setup, hit PLAY.
It worked.
Man.
Some, indeed most, played. Some would say Loading.... and then PLAY....and then nothing. No ABORT, no FAIL, no YOU THOUGHT YOU WERE GOING TO WATCH THIS DVD...THINK AGAIN. Sometimes, flicking the player off and on again would make it work, usually not. We got an error at one point, when we tried to go into SETUP, saying that we couldn't do that when the DVD was playing, and we thought but the DVD ISN"T playing.... so, being programmers, we 'thought like the machine'.
Hmmm....it thinks its playing. Maybe it is, or at least trying to, and something's blocking it. What could that be? And we thought Parental Controls. Turns out the DVD that would not play was non-rated. You would think that a nonrated DVD would just go -- as, indeed, they all should, since we did not have controls turned on -- but what if the player was stupid, and if it couldn't verify the rating, it just would not play? So we turned on parental controls, made up a passcode, said 'this code allows you to play anything', got out of setup, hit PLAY.
It worked.
Man.
Socked
I have difficulty putting my left sock on -- literally have to do about two minutes of stretches before I can get limber enough to bend over far enough to get it on. There are days that I go out without socks, just because it can be such a pain. I've told my wife I'm considering having a sock painted on my foot, or buying a waterproof one, so that once it's on, its by-god on for a week or so of showering and whatnot. She says that if I go around with just one sock, I can tell people that I'm saving money by only wearing one sock.
Also, I learned today that the preferred term is 'teenager'. 'Young people' or 'youth' is despised. Make a note.
Also, I learned today that the preferred term is 'teenager'. 'Young people' or 'youth' is despised. Make a note.
Canada
I have mentioned on occasion what a good image I have of Canada. This article has, if anything, enhanced it.
Joke
From a coworker of my wife, who got it from his son, who has ADD:
How many ADD kids does it take to change a lightbulb?
Hey, you want to go play basketball?
How many ADD kids does it take to change a lightbulb?
Hey, you want to go play basketball?
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Bet Me
One of the articles that I've had bookmarked for a while - I really should get around to finishing that -- is this one, about a fellow at Wharton, an economist, who studies prediction markets. It's not particularly long, I just kept finding other things I wanted to read, too. But today I finally did -- the bookmark list was getting unmanagable - though did you see this article about making soft pretzels? -- and upon reading it, I ended up with a question.
Here's the relevant part of the article:
He takes a sip of red wine and asks his guest, “Would you bet me five dollars I’m wearing red underwear? No, you wouldn’t. Why not? Because you know I have better information than you do.” His point is that smart people with good information are attracted to markets by the existence of ignorant bettors.
I think what does it matter if you have knowledge of the state of the thing that you're offering a bet on, and I don't? Its possible that the state encourages the offering of the bet -- ie, if I know something is so unlikely to engender a bet, I just won't offer it -- and maybe knowledge affects the size of the bet -- I'll bet you ten thousand dollars vs I'll bet you ten cents -- but other than that, whats the point? I could still bet even if I was sure you knew what color underwear you're wearing. I'm not betting on your knowledge, I'm betting on the likelihood of the event, or on my ability to guess.
Got to admit, this feels like the Monte Hall question, which I still don't agree with. So maybe -- am I missing something here?
Here's the relevant part of the article:
He takes a sip of red wine and asks his guest, “Would you bet me five dollars I’m wearing red underwear? No, you wouldn’t. Why not? Because you know I have better information than you do.” His point is that smart people with good information are attracted to markets by the existence of ignorant bettors.
I think what does it matter if you have knowledge of the state of the thing that you're offering a bet on, and I don't? Its possible that the state encourages the offering of the bet -- ie, if I know something is so unlikely to engender a bet, I just won't offer it -- and maybe knowledge affects the size of the bet -- I'll bet you ten thousand dollars vs I'll bet you ten cents -- but other than that, whats the point? I could still bet even if I was sure you knew what color underwear you're wearing. I'm not betting on your knowledge, I'm betting on the likelihood of the event, or on my ability to guess.
Got to admit, this feels like the Monte Hall question, which I still don't agree with. So maybe -- am I missing something here?
Hey, Cookie
This is an old article, but I just found it. Reading it, I felt a little queasy. I'm not sure why, but I think its because it doesn't match my image of the way that girl scouts sell cookies. It just seems -- I don't know, wrong. Perhaps I'm just behind the times. It has been known to happen. But I think of these kids in the article, selling by the case -- by the case! -- and I think of my daughter, back when she did it, pitching to family and neighbors, lucky to sell two or three dozen boxes....
Maybe I'm just jealous. That's been known to happen, too.
Maybe I'm just jealous. That's been known to happen, too.
Bake, She Said
I was not planning on baking cookies tomorrow. I just thought it'd be interesting to read a New York Times article about Chocolate Chip Cookies. Then I started getting into it. Salt? Strata, not chips? Chilling the dough for thirty six hours?
Hmmm.......
Or I could just buy these... which I do dearly love.
Hmmm.......
Or I could just buy these... which I do dearly love.
Blog Log Bog
I hate being told that I have to sign in in order to leave a comment on a blog. I know why people do it, I just hate it, and I'll frequently say 'Ah, the heck with it". But this picture is so nice, I wanted to tell the person who put it there -- Hey, nice picture!
So if the author comes by -- now he knows.
So if the author comes by -- now he knows.
Dinnah
A simple dinner tonight -- Taco Salad and some wine....
This recipe was found on the quite excellent How To Cook Like Your Grandmother site.
1 pound ground beef
1 can (12 ounces) plain tomato sauce
1/4 cup chili powder (or taco seasoning)
3 cloves garlic (optional)
Salad:
1 head iceberg lettuce
1/2 pound sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 large onion (about 1/2 cup diced)
4 Roma tomatoes (about 1/2 cup diced)
1-1/2 cups thousand island dressing
5 ounces (about half a medium bag) corn chips
Directions
Brown the ground beef in a frying pan with some salt, breaking the beef up as much as possible.
Add the garlic and chili powder (or taco seasoning) and the tomato sauce.
Cook until everything is heated through, then remove from heat and allow to cool
Prepare the salad:
This requires a LARGE bowl.
Dice the onion.
Cut the tomatoes into quarters and remove the seeds.
Slice the meaty part lengthwise into thin strips, then finish dicing the tomatoes.
Core and chop the lettuce.
Shred the cheese
Add the tomato and onion
Toss everything together a little, then add the thousand island dressing.
Toss the salad until it is well coated with the dressing.
Then add the corn chips.
Add the taco meat and stir to combine. (You want to do the corn chips and taco meat last. Otherwise the chips will get soggy, and the warm meat will melt the cheese. If you're not going to be serving this right away, let the meat cool all the way before adding it, and don't include the chips. Bring the salad in a zip-top bag or a bowl with a tight lid, and add the chips when you're ready to serve.)
This recipe was found on the quite excellent How To Cook Like Your Grandmother site.
Taco Salad
Taco meat:1 pound ground beef
1 can (12 ounces) plain tomato sauce
1/4 cup chili powder (or taco seasoning)
3 cloves garlic (optional)
Salad:
1 head iceberg lettuce
1/2 pound sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 large onion (about 1/2 cup diced)
4 Roma tomatoes (about 1/2 cup diced)
1-1/2 cups thousand island dressing
5 ounces (about half a medium bag) corn chips
Directions
Brown the ground beef in a frying pan with some salt, breaking the beef up as much as possible.
Add the garlic and chili powder (or taco seasoning) and the tomato sauce.
Cook until everything is heated through, then remove from heat and allow to cool
Prepare the salad:
This requires a LARGE bowl.
Dice the onion.
Cut the tomatoes into quarters and remove the seeds.
Slice the meaty part lengthwise into thin strips, then finish dicing the tomatoes.
Core and chop the lettuce.
Shred the cheese
Add the tomato and onion
Toss everything together a little, then add the thousand island dressing.
Toss the salad until it is well coated with the dressing.
Then add the corn chips.
Add the taco meat and stir to combine. (You want to do the corn chips and taco meat last. Otherwise the chips will get soggy, and the warm meat will melt the cheese. If you're not going to be serving this right away, let the meat cool all the way before adding it, and don't include the chips. Bring the salad in a zip-top bag or a bowl with a tight lid, and add the chips when you're ready to serve.)
MoneyGrubber
I'm not, not really. But I find that I'm aware of money these days -- the combination of not earning any, and prices, and the stock market. I am not fixated on it -- I just think about the subject.
It surprises me to realize that though neither of us was a spendthrift -- I recall reading once of a woman who said they saved money where they could, such as buying at CostCo, but the last time they were there, the store had this excellent price on plasma TVs, so..... -- we did tend to buy things that we wanted, pretty much when we saw them. Nothing expensive, but we'd do it. Now, we don't. The other day, we were poking around in Wegman's, and I saw a KitchenAid hand mixer for sale for about $50. It was exactly the one I'd been thinking about getting. My wife said that I should get it, and I thought about it -- which is the difference; before, I wouldn't have -- ended up not getting it. (My life was a misery afterwards, though... I had to use the stand mixer, or do it by hand... oh, the agony).
So I was pleased when, apropos of something I'd read, it occurred to me that our auto insurance policy cost was partially factored on how much we drove -- and these days, I drive a lot less than I used to. I dropped a line to our insurance people, they said 'go here and tell us how much you drive now', and next thing we knew, we got a note that our insurance cost per year was going down by $150.
Wonder if that mixer is still available?
It surprises me to realize that though neither of us was a spendthrift -- I recall reading once of a woman who said they saved money where they could, such as buying at CostCo, but the last time they were there, the store had this excellent price on plasma TVs, so..... -- we did tend to buy things that we wanted, pretty much when we saw them. Nothing expensive, but we'd do it. Now, we don't. The other day, we were poking around in Wegman's, and I saw a KitchenAid hand mixer for sale for about $50. It was exactly the one I'd been thinking about getting. My wife said that I should get it, and I thought about it -- which is the difference; before, I wouldn't have -- ended up not getting it. (My life was a misery afterwards, though... I had to use the stand mixer, or do it by hand... oh, the agony).
So I was pleased when, apropos of something I'd read, it occurred to me that our auto insurance policy cost was partially factored on how much we drove -- and these days, I drive a lot less than I used to. I dropped a line to our insurance people, they said 'go here and tell us how much you drive now', and next thing we knew, we got a note that our insurance cost per year was going down by $150.
Wonder if that mixer is still available?
Friday, July 11, 2008
Tanker
If the site English Russia is correct, this is a World War II veteran unexpectedly finding the tank he rode through the war, on display in a small town as a war memorial. I hope it is true. The idea moves me.
Blue Ocean Diving
I've been reading Blue Ocean Strategy. Its an interesting book. In a way, it has the same problem any management book has -- those earlier management books, they were on the right track, but they stopped too soon/made bad assumptions/were sadly mistaken -- but WE have the answer -- however, its worthwhile in spite of that.
Basically, the idea is that competitors exist within a generally accepted space of doing business. In this space, the assumptions are generally accepted, the goals and methods pretty uniform. You succeed by raising the bar, and your success is taken away from the other competitors shares -- and theirs from yours. Success is a matter of small increments. The book calls this 'the red ocean', sometimes 'the bloody red ocean'. By contrast, the 'blue ocean' is uncharted territory with few or no competitors, because the service/product that you provide is unique. They mention Southwest Airlines in the short haul/quick turnaround market; Cirque de Soleil in the circus/entertainment/theater market, [Yellowtail] in the wine/beverage market. Each applied in their own way the same technique - classification of the key points in the delivery of a service -- the things by which the customer or the company defined the service -- and then dropped the importance of some, increased the importance of others, and occasionally added new ones. Southwest dropped the idea of reserved seats and boosted the idea of cheap seats -- and oh by the way, onsite ticketing. Cirque dropped the animal acts and the headliners, not to mention vendors strolling the aisles selling high-priced snacks, and boosted the idea of artistry and grace in motion -- the circus as theater. [Yellowtail] dropped wine aficionado classifications and multiple variants of wine for two or three types, bold graphics, and simple statements about the wine. Each defined a new industry that took part of the existing, and part of others, sometimes grafting on whole new concepts not seen elsewhere.
Its very easy to get swept away by the book's authors' hyperbole -- and we alone knew the answer! -- and sometimes, I do. I make myself slow down then, asking myself what made this approach obvious to the people doing the analysis. Yes, its wonderful that they came up with their successful approach, but from where? How much of this analysis is backing into it -- these companies are successful, lets analyze them and extract common denominators --- and how much is something that anyone can do with their own business. I'm only about a fifth of the way into the book, so there's still hope. Perhaps this book really does have The Answer.
But I won't bet on it.
Basically, the idea is that competitors exist within a generally accepted space of doing business. In this space, the assumptions are generally accepted, the goals and methods pretty uniform. You succeed by raising the bar, and your success is taken away from the other competitors shares -- and theirs from yours. Success is a matter of small increments. The book calls this 'the red ocean', sometimes 'the bloody red ocean'. By contrast, the 'blue ocean' is uncharted territory with few or no competitors, because the service/product that you provide is unique. They mention Southwest Airlines in the short haul/quick turnaround market; Cirque de Soleil in the circus/entertainment/theater market, [Yellowtail] in the wine/beverage market. Each applied in their own way the same technique - classification of the key points in the delivery of a service -- the things by which the customer or the company defined the service -- and then dropped the importance of some, increased the importance of others, and occasionally added new ones. Southwest dropped the idea of reserved seats and boosted the idea of cheap seats -- and oh by the way, onsite ticketing. Cirque dropped the animal acts and the headliners, not to mention vendors strolling the aisles selling high-priced snacks, and boosted the idea of artistry and grace in motion -- the circus as theater. [Yellowtail] dropped wine aficionado classifications and multiple variants of wine for two or three types, bold graphics, and simple statements about the wine. Each defined a new industry that took part of the existing, and part of others, sometimes grafting on whole new concepts not seen elsewhere.
Its very easy to get swept away by the book's authors' hyperbole -- and we alone knew the answer! -- and sometimes, I do. I make myself slow down then, asking myself what made this approach obvious to the people doing the analysis. Yes, its wonderful that they came up with their successful approach, but from where? How much of this analysis is backing into it -- these companies are successful, lets analyze them and extract common denominators --- and how much is something that anyone can do with their own business. I'm only about a fifth of the way into the book, so there's still hope. Perhaps this book really does have The Answer.
But I won't bet on it.
Encrypted
Marriages have code phrases. One of the ones we've picked up is 'Cut the red wire, but first cut the blue wire'. Its a reference to people defusing a bomb getting instructions from someone who's not too well organized.
This morning, we used it again, referring to a doctor's office. Seems like its usually a doctors office. Once again, they wanted something, but they weren't prepared to tell us what; then, when they were, they weren't prepared to tell us when; then when they did that (after we called back twice), they mentioned that this thing that was finally scheduled? For three days from now? It needs a different test in a different place both before and after. Its almost as if they're trying to come up with a reason not to do the thing that was scheduled. Surely, we're not the first to come up against this. Surely we're not the first.
But it doesn't matter. Because they're not affected by their incompetence. In fact, they may well think of themselves as quite competent. Hey, we get the bills out every week, we get paid every week, whats not to like?
Cut the red -- no, the blue wire. No, wait....
This morning, we used it again, referring to a doctor's office. Seems like its usually a doctors office. Once again, they wanted something, but they weren't prepared to tell us what; then, when they were, they weren't prepared to tell us when; then when they did that (after we called back twice), they mentioned that this thing that was finally scheduled? For three days from now? It needs a different test in a different place both before and after. Its almost as if they're trying to come up with a reason not to do the thing that was scheduled. Surely, we're not the first to come up against this. Surely we're not the first.
But it doesn't matter. Because they're not affected by their incompetence. In fact, they may well think of themselves as quite competent. Hey, we get the bills out every week, we get paid every week, whats not to like?
Cut the red -- no, the blue wire. No, wait....
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Weird
I just IM'd my wife to ask when she'd be home, and in her reply she said 'Thats my plan'. And the first thing I thought of was, thats what my friend who died two years ago said in an email about her intention to survive. A shiver ran down.....
Weasel Alert
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Karl Rove, President Bush's longtime political guru, refused to obey an order to testify before a House Judiciary Committee hearing Thursday. Rove's lawyer asserted that Rove was "immune" from the subpoena the committee had issued, arguing that the committee could not compel him to testify due to "executive privilege."
Anyone want to bet that the House will fulminate and bluster but essentially say 'Oh, well....'?
The SS Said So
From the Denver Post --
As political dissent goes, Carol Kreck's "McCain = Bush" sign was pretty innocuous. But that's not the point. As run-ins with the law go, her trespassing citation was relatively mild. Yet that isn't the point either. At the Secret Service's urging, Denver police deemed it necessary to oust Kreck — a 60-year-old student and librarian — from a public space Monday before John McCain's town-hall meeting in Denver. Not for shouting anything. And not for getting in anyone's face. Kreck was merely holding a sign that, for what it's worth, plenty of folks would consider a compliment to the GOP candidate. As it happens, the outdoor galleria where she was standing at the Denver Performing Arts Complex was the subject of a federal ruling proclaiming it a "non-public forum" or no-protest zone. Never mind that the property is owned by the city. Never mind that McCain himself declared his meeting an open forum......
(More at the Post site)
As political dissent goes, Carol Kreck's "McCain = Bush" sign was pretty innocuous. But that's not the point. As run-ins with the law go, her trespassing citation was relatively mild. Yet that isn't the point either. At the Secret Service's urging, Denver police deemed it necessary to oust Kreck — a 60-year-old student and librarian — from a public space Monday before John McCain's town-hall meeting in Denver. Not for shouting anything. And not for getting in anyone's face. Kreck was merely holding a sign that, for what it's worth, plenty of folks would consider a compliment to the GOP candidate. As it happens, the outdoor galleria where she was standing at the Denver Performing Arts Complex was the subject of a federal ruling proclaiming it a "non-public forum" or no-protest zone. Never mind that the property is owned by the city. Never mind that McCain himself declared his meeting an open forum......
(More at the Post site)
Gesundheit!
Here's the Choux recipe (found on the Baking Bites site), and result:
Choux Pastry
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup water
3 1/2 tbsp butter (1.75 ounces), melted
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup flour
2 eggs
1 egg yolk + 1 tbsp water (for egg wash)
1. Heat oven to 400F.
2. Combine milk, water, butter, sugar and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat.
3. Add the flour all at once, stirring vigorously until dough comes together in a ball.
4. Continue to cook and stir for one additional minute.
5. Transfer dough to mixer or clean bowl and let mix at a low speed for 2 minutes until slightly cooled.
6. Add eggs one at a time, waiting until each egg is fully incorporated to add the next one.
7. Increase mixer speed to make batter smooth.
8. Using a spoon, drop 8 heaping tablespoonfuls onto a lined baking sheet.
9. If there is batter leftover, evenly distribute it.
10. Lightly stir together egg yolk and water to creat an egg wash.
11. Brush pastry with egg wash.
12. Bake for 40 minutes, until well browned and dry.
Set aside to cool completely.
I think that next time, I'll try to make the soft dough rounder.....
Choux Pastry
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup water
3 1/2 tbsp butter (1.75 ounces), melted
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup flour
2 eggs
1 egg yolk + 1 tbsp water (for egg wash)
1. Heat oven to 400F.
2. Combine milk, water, butter, sugar and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat.
3. Add the flour all at once, stirring vigorously until dough comes together in a ball.
4. Continue to cook and stir for one additional minute.
5. Transfer dough to mixer or clean bowl and let mix at a low speed for 2 minutes until slightly cooled.
6. Add eggs one at a time, waiting until each egg is fully incorporated to add the next one.
7. Increase mixer speed to make batter smooth.
8. Using a spoon, drop 8 heaping tablespoonfuls onto a lined baking sheet.
9. If there is batter leftover, evenly distribute it.
10. Lightly stir together egg yolk and water to creat an egg wash.
11. Brush pastry with egg wash.
12. Bake for 40 minutes, until well browned and dry.
Set aside to cool completely.
I think that next time, I'll try to make the soft dough rounder.....
A Choux!
Not pronounced choox, but shoo -- a kind of pastry dough. I'm going to give it a try today. Never done it before. The New York Times had a little article about it, this past weekend, noting cheerily that even people who do it all the time have problems with it. Oh, boy, sounds like fun!
While we were walking this morning -- bright sunshine, temp in the high 70s, no humidity -- and talking about this and that, we got onto talking about Things To Do With The House -- which is when my, ahem, brilliant idea occurred to me. We both like the idea of putting an elevator onto the house, but differ as to where -- I'd like it at the far end of the garage, where it will not block the view from the kitchen extension, and my wife would like it along the right side of the house, where it would not feed directly into our bedroom. Both solutions assume building a bedroom above the garage, and turning our existing bedroom into a combination elevator access and closet-room. We've talked more than once about putting the elevator in various places in the house, but none seemed quite right, which is what led us to thinking about putting on an 'arcade' to house the elevator. Well, I thought abruptly, the bedroom has an open room just below it -- the storage room, formerly the garage. What about putting the elevator inside the house, in the former bedroom, going down to the storage room? No extra arcade, cheaper to do! We both like that idea. I'm sure something will occur to me that we'll have to mull over, but for now, thats The Solution.
Okay, having mown the lawn, I'm now going to read for a while. Oh, this retired life is so strenuous!
While we were walking this morning -- bright sunshine, temp in the high 70s, no humidity -- and talking about this and that, we got onto talking about Things To Do With The House -- which is when my, ahem, brilliant idea occurred to me. We both like the idea of putting an elevator onto the house, but differ as to where -- I'd like it at the far end of the garage, where it will not block the view from the kitchen extension, and my wife would like it along the right side of the house, where it would not feed directly into our bedroom. Both solutions assume building a bedroom above the garage, and turning our existing bedroom into a combination elevator access and closet-room. We've talked more than once about putting the elevator in various places in the house, but none seemed quite right, which is what led us to thinking about putting on an 'arcade' to house the elevator. Well, I thought abruptly, the bedroom has an open room just below it -- the storage room, formerly the garage. What about putting the elevator inside the house, in the former bedroom, going down to the storage room? No extra arcade, cheaper to do! We both like that idea. I'm sure something will occur to me that we'll have to mull over, but for now, thats The Solution.
Okay, having mown the lawn, I'm now going to read for a while. Oh, this retired life is so strenuous!
Wednesday, July 09, 2008
Dough, Ho?
I haven't baked anything for a while, and though I'm not a baking freak, I do like to do it every so often. Last week I mentioned to my wife how nice it was to pull premade honey wheat dough from the frizzer and make our own pizza on the grill -- the dough thawed in less than an hour, and it was just a lot of fun. I'd forgotten about that, and then today comes an ad from King Arthur flour advertising dough for baking pizza on a grill. Of course, I'd make my own (did that sound snobbish? Hope not), but its sparked the thought again.
What I'd really like to do, though, is make some bread. I mentioned that orange bread; that could be fun. Or maybe some English muffins -- I know we had them in London, but I don't recall if they called them that or something else, like damned American impertinence muffins. I've only made them once or twice, but I enjoyed it each time. They're amazingly easy to make. The tough part was finding something to hold the dough while it baked, and I just saved a couple of 32 ounce cans from tomato puree -- lids cut off on both ends, of course. Worked like a charm, and the price was right.
Speaking of price, I mentioned a few days ago about streaming video from the PC to the TV. Well, turns out that theres about to be this device called Slingcatcher.... Don't know the price, exactly, but one article estimated it around $200, which would normally not be a problem, but in my current fiscal austerity mood.... But maybe for Christmas?
What I'd really like to do, though, is make some bread. I mentioned that orange bread; that could be fun. Or maybe some English muffins -- I know we had them in London, but I don't recall if they called them that or something else, like damned American impertinence muffins. I've only made them once or twice, but I enjoyed it each time. They're amazingly easy to make. The tough part was finding something to hold the dough while it baked, and I just saved a couple of 32 ounce cans from tomato puree -- lids cut off on both ends, of course. Worked like a charm, and the price was right.
Speaking of price, I mentioned a few days ago about streaming video from the PC to the TV. Well, turns out that theres about to be this device called Slingcatcher.... Don't know the price, exactly, but one article estimated it around $200, which would normally not be a problem, but in my current fiscal austerity mood.... But maybe for Christmas?
Random Thoughts
The caterer for the family reunion brought some pastries and breads. The pastries were fairly standard stuff -- you can imagine them being delivered in batches of five hundred, packed in a six by six wooden crate, from a van marked Moms Home Pastries, A Division of General Universal Food Products, A Soylent Green Company -- but the breads weren't bad. One that my wife particularly liked was an orange quick bread. Some months ago, she and my daughter were on an orange kick, and before they were all gone I thought to grab some of the discarded peels and zest them. I'm pretty sure the container -- I got about half a cup, I think - is still in the freezer. As I've not made any bread in a while, I thought I'd give this a try.
I noted with dismay Obama's actions regarding the FISA bill. I would have bet money -- not serious money, but money nonetheless -- that he would have opposed that -- and indeed, he did at one time. Now he's The Presumptive Candidate, and trying to appeal to the masses, not to mention, the Republicans and the big companies( and their checkbooks) that back them, which is, I assume, why he's backed off on that original stance. It would still take some doing for me to prefer McCain over him, but actions like this make it a little easier. It makes him more Just Another Politician. I know thats harsh (Michelle called me, almost in tears, over that characterization), but I think that its justified.
I finished reading Twilight last night. You know, its probably a bad idea as a rule to stay up late to finish a book -- screws up your sleep cycle -- but when the book ends with an excerpt from the next one, and that ends with the heroine lying on some shattered glass, bleeding, while several suddenly interested vampires look at her -- well, it leads to interesting dreams. Much more vivid than, say, what I'm getting from Blue Ocean Strategy -- which is not at all bad, though I'm still in its early pages.
I noted with dismay Obama's actions regarding the FISA bill. I would have bet money -- not serious money, but money nonetheless -- that he would have opposed that -- and indeed, he did at one time. Now he's The Presumptive Candidate, and trying to appeal to the masses, not to mention, the Republicans and the big companies( and their checkbooks) that back them, which is, I assume, why he's backed off on that original stance. It would still take some doing for me to prefer McCain over him, but actions like this make it a little easier. It makes him more Just Another Politician. I know thats harsh (Michelle called me, almost in tears, over that characterization), but I think that its justified.
I finished reading Twilight last night. You know, its probably a bad idea as a rule to stay up late to finish a book -- screws up your sleep cycle -- but when the book ends with an excerpt from the next one, and that ends with the heroine lying on some shattered glass, bleeding, while several suddenly interested vampires look at her -- well, it leads to interesting dreams. Much more vivid than, say, what I'm getting from Blue Ocean Strategy -- which is not at all bad, though I'm still in its early pages.
You Gotta Problem wit Dat?
I'm not a particularly argumentative person. But if you're looking for an argument, on just about any topic, this would appear to be the place to go. The only thing that puzzles me is why having references to all those diverse opinions in one place didn't cause their server to self-destruct.
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
Netflux
We're not dumping Netflix, but we're going to back down a skosh.
Instead of getting 3 movies at a time, we'll choose the option that gets us one at a time, as many times per month that we want. (Though, given that Netflix tracks these things, I'll bet sending it back the very next day, every time, gets you bumped down their priority list.) The one at a time, unlimited number per month plan is half the cost of the 3 at a time, unlimited per month that we have now, and twice the cost of the cheapest, which is one at a time, max of two per month. We're looking to save a little money, so this will work.
Truth to tell, the Netflix is really just for me, and I tend to take a while to get around to watching what arrives -- The Golden Compass has been sitting on the player -- on, not in -- downstairs, for about two weeks -- so its not a big deal to back down. We'll see how it goes.
Which reminds me: one of these days, I want to find out what it takes to stream video from the PC to the TV, just in case that disc player dies on us.
Instead of getting 3 movies at a time, we'll choose the option that gets us one at a time, as many times per month that we want. (Though, given that Netflix tracks these things, I'll bet sending it back the very next day, every time, gets you bumped down their priority list.) The one at a time, unlimited number per month plan is half the cost of the 3 at a time, unlimited per month that we have now, and twice the cost of the cheapest, which is one at a time, max of two per month. We're looking to save a little money, so this will work.
Truth to tell, the Netflix is really just for me, and I tend to take a while to get around to watching what arrives -- The Golden Compass has been sitting on the player -- on, not in -- downstairs, for about two weeks -- so its not a big deal to back down. We'll see how it goes.
Which reminds me: one of these days, I want to find out what it takes to stream video from the PC to the TV, just in case that disc player dies on us.
Monday, July 07, 2008
Quiet
This has been a quiet day. Intentionally quiet, as a couple of things have stressed me in the last two days.
I'm moderately irritated to learn that I still cannot use the dental appliance to chew. I had expected some kind of limitation, but not to still have a complete one. Still, I've lived with this for the last four months, I can live with it for another four. Its bred a certain fatalism. And then there's the stock market, which is pretty depressing. I updated a financial spreadsheet, and was shocked to learn that we'd lost twice as much as I had thought. We're not in trouble, and its not unbearable, its just a bit of a shock to think 'well, we have this much money' and come to find out, ah....not quite. More like 85% or so. Maybe a bit less. My wife reminds me that we're in this for the long haul, and that stock markets do recover. I need to focus on that. (Investment people say that, too, but her, I believe. And not just because her long haul is going to be longer than mine.)
One or two other things, too.
So I thought well, today I'm not going to do much. I'll read -- finish one book that's been lingering for a while (Debatable Space), which is now done -- I liked it, but I can see why someone would not -- and work on another (Twilight), which I also like, though its beginning to drag just a little bit. Not so much an urgency to find out what happens next as a feeling of okay, get on with it. What amazes me is that this is the first book of a trilogy (at least); I have no idea how the author can sustain this plot level. And, to be honest, I'm starting to get just a little antsy about the main character. She's way calmer about finding out something astonishing than I would be.
In a little bit, I'll start cooking dinner, and tonight, I hope, we'll go for a walk. I need the exercise. Despite my vow, I did weigh myself last night, and -- well, it wasn't pretty. Better today, but I need to keep it in mind (and not think of, say, that tray of uneaten brownies that we brought back from the reunion, or the two cake layers that I made over the weekend, now frozen in the downstairs freezer, or the strawberry and blueberry cake we made, brought to the reunion, and then brought back, only a quarter eaten, or the rolls, or ...). Exercise is a good thing. I need to work on strengthening my leg some more -- I still cannot easily get to my feet from a kneeling position unless I brace myself against a wall.
But for now, a little quiet is a good thing.
I'm moderately irritated to learn that I still cannot use the dental appliance to chew. I had expected some kind of limitation, but not to still have a complete one. Still, I've lived with this for the last four months, I can live with it for another four. Its bred a certain fatalism. And then there's the stock market, which is pretty depressing. I updated a financial spreadsheet, and was shocked to learn that we'd lost twice as much as I had thought. We're not in trouble, and its not unbearable, its just a bit of a shock to think 'well, we have this much money' and come to find out, ah....not quite. More like 85% or so. Maybe a bit less. My wife reminds me that we're in this for the long haul, and that stock markets do recover. I need to focus on that. (Investment people say that, too, but her, I believe. And not just because her long haul is going to be longer than mine.)
One or two other things, too.
So I thought well, today I'm not going to do much. I'll read -- finish one book that's been lingering for a while (Debatable Space), which is now done -- I liked it, but I can see why someone would not -- and work on another (Twilight), which I also like, though its beginning to drag just a little bit. Not so much an urgency to find out what happens next as a feeling of okay, get on with it. What amazes me is that this is the first book of a trilogy (at least); I have no idea how the author can sustain this plot level. And, to be honest, I'm starting to get just a little antsy about the main character. She's way calmer about finding out something astonishing than I would be.
In a little bit, I'll start cooking dinner, and tonight, I hope, we'll go for a walk. I need the exercise. Despite my vow, I did weigh myself last night, and -- well, it wasn't pretty. Better today, but I need to keep it in mind (and not think of, say, that tray of uneaten brownies that we brought back from the reunion, or the two cake layers that I made over the weekend, now frozen in the downstairs freezer, or the strawberry and blueberry cake we made, brought to the reunion, and then brought back, only a quarter eaten, or the rolls, or ...). Exercise is a good thing. I need to work on strengthening my leg some more -- I still cannot easily get to my feet from a kneeling position unless I brace myself against a wall.
But for now, a little quiet is a good thing.
That's Not What I Meant, Either
I special-order a fair number of books from the local library. They contact the library that's got it, get it shipped, and call me when its in. Occasionally, I think You know, this service is worth something to me...they should charge for it, or have a subscription, or something...
Which is why its weird that when I read the following, from the Not Always Right site, I thought What! They Can't Do THAT! Ah, consistancy....
=================
Which is why its weird that when I read the following, from the Not Always Right site, I thought What! They Can't Do THAT! Ah, consistancy....
=================
Library patron: “I’ve donated a lot of books over the years. So, from now on I’d like all my requests for free, please.”
(Requests to transfer books from one library branch to another cost $1 per time.)
Me: “I’m sorry. We don’t have any policy to do that.”
Library patron: “I’ve donated so many books over the years I think this is a special case! I should be given free requests and fines.”
Me: “I’m sorry, that’s not something you’ll be able to do. A lot of people donate books and we don’t give them free requests and fines.”
Library patron: “But I’ve been supporting the library with all these donations I’ve been giving. I deserve something in return!”
Me: “I’m sorry, but the word donation implies you expect nothing in return… otherwise, it’s not a donation.”
Library patron: *lightbulb goes on* “Oh…”
Do Not Discard!!!
I've learned that when an envelope comes with Do Not Discard!!! on it, it's trashable. I do open it -- every so often, it really is something to keep -- but I do it walking over to the trash bin. Same thing with Important! My insurance company sends material about the policies in an envelope marked Important Insurance Papers, but they've also taken to making some of their marketing literature the same way. I subscribe to the Kiplinger Personal Finance magazine; every so often, I'll get a letter marked (usually in red) FINAL ISSUE -- only it turns out that it's referring to the freebie that's enclosed, meaning that this will be the only one I get unless I subscribe. And, of course, anything -- anything -- marked as PERSONAL CONFIDENTIAL and POSTMASTER INSTRUCTIONS can be tossed without looking at it.
Everything so often, you hear about elderly people thinking that these are bills that they have to pay. My mother was kind of that way, but she would ask us. Virtually every time, we'd tell her she could pitch it. Maybe I should save it, she'd say, and we'd say Here, let us toss it for you. Sometimes they really ARE bills, but even they don't necessarily have to be paid -- like the initial bill from her hospital stay, which did not note that the insurance people hadn't been asked to pay yet, so this was really just a first cut. I shudder to think how long they'd keep her money before refunding it -- or whether the money would get refunded to the insurance people, instead.
Okay, you can discard this now.
Everything so often, you hear about elderly people thinking that these are bills that they have to pay. My mother was kind of that way, but she would ask us. Virtually every time, we'd tell her she could pitch it. Maybe I should save it, she'd say, and we'd say Here, let us toss it for you. Sometimes they really ARE bills, but even they don't necessarily have to be paid -- like the initial bill from her hospital stay, which did not note that the insurance people hadn't been asked to pay yet, so this was really just a first cut. I shudder to think how long they'd keep her money before refunding it -- or whether the money would get refunded to the insurance people, instead.
Okay, you can discard this now.
Shaker
This is a business-related story, but I like it. It encapsulates an attitude that I wish businesses routinely had, but rarely do.
Sunday, July 06, 2008
Snap THAT
This video article, about photography at Union Station in DC, is funny -- but not really. It points out what happens when zealous security bots are sent out with black and white views of what's permissible that happen to be -- completely wrong.
Miscellania
I feel like I've eaten a ton of stuff. I haven't, but I did eat way more dessert-type stuff than I normally do. Little Italian pastries to big Ghiradelli brownies, I had some. I am so not getting on a scale for a while.
I was just looking at a blog written by a woman who lives in the South, and I found myself wondering if people who live in the South think of us as 'the North'. I've always kind of liked the image of the South, personally. I would imagine that after living two thirds of my life in the Northeast, there'd be a lot of things that would drive me crazy, from the pace of life to the local stores (Piggly-Wiggly??? What the hell is that?), but the image I have is of people who pretty much like their lives. I like the image of Southern food, too, which is odd, because I'm not a foodie, and the idea of yams this and sweet potato that and biscuits and gravy just freaks me out. Why you would want to ruin a perfectly good biscuit.... but the image appeals to me. I don't know why.
I have a lot to read, but I'm tired, so it can wait.
Tomorrow I go to see the oral surgeon for a status check on these implants. I am betting that he will say they look good, and that I can use the appliance to chew if I want to.... occasionally. A little bit. But, you know, not too much. However, if he says anything more tense than that, I am going to seriously not be a happy camper.
I was just looking at a blog written by a woman who lives in the South, and I found myself wondering if people who live in the South think of us as 'the North'. I've always kind of liked the image of the South, personally. I would imagine that after living two thirds of my life in the Northeast, there'd be a lot of things that would drive me crazy, from the pace of life to the local stores (Piggly-Wiggly??? What the hell is that?), but the image I have is of people who pretty much like their lives. I like the image of Southern food, too, which is odd, because I'm not a foodie, and the idea of yams this and sweet potato that and biscuits and gravy just freaks me out. Why you would want to ruin a perfectly good biscuit.... but the image appeals to me. I don't know why.
I have a lot to read, but I'm tired, so it can wait.
Tomorrow I go to see the oral surgeon for a status check on these implants. I am betting that he will say they look good, and that I can use the appliance to chew if I want to.... occasionally. A little bit. But, you know, not too much. However, if he says anything more tense than that, I am going to seriously not be a happy camper.
Thats Not What I Meant
Regarding his remarks about departure from Iraq, Obama's
a) adding clarity, detail, and precision
b) fuzzing his remarks to avoid ticking off some people now while gaining others
c) graying his remarks to give himself more wiggle room for if and when he has to actually act on them
d) all of the above
As eloquent as he is, he's still a politician, and politicians tend to like broad oratorical flourishes that don't play out well when you're in the Oval Office and you have to actually make it work. He's made broad oratorical statements, and now it begins to look like maybe he might have to deliver on them, so he's backing, just a bit. Maybe more than just a bit. He's recognizing that he can't still stand for 'we're going to leave thirty minutes after I get sworn in', because people are going to hold him to that. Some of them will be for him, some against, some neutral, but they'll have this in common: the phrase but you SAID...
Some would call that waffling, which isn't inherently bad, but I don't think its what he's doing. But he can't do it very much, or he begins to look sneaky. Shaky. Political.
a) adding clarity, detail, and precision
b) fuzzing his remarks to avoid ticking off some people now while gaining others
c) graying his remarks to give himself more wiggle room for if and when he has to actually act on them
d) all of the above
As eloquent as he is, he's still a politician, and politicians tend to like broad oratorical flourishes that don't play out well when you're in the Oval Office and you have to actually make it work. He's made broad oratorical statements, and now it begins to look like maybe he might have to deliver on them, so he's backing, just a bit. Maybe more than just a bit. He's recognizing that he can't still stand for 'we're going to leave thirty minutes after I get sworn in', because people are going to hold him to that. Some of them will be for him, some against, some neutral, but they'll have this in common: the phrase but you SAID...
Some would call that waffling, which isn't inherently bad, but I don't think its what he's doing. But he can't do it very much, or he begins to look sneaky. Shaky. Political.
Saturday, July 05, 2008
Awd Thought
I mentioned being startled to receive a comment that started with 'Fuck you', then went on to make some decent points. How should one make the emphatic point that the person to whom you're writing is an idiot, and here's why? I suppose you could just say that, but is there a non-obscene way of seizing the reader's collar that has the same impact as the obscenity?
Course not, Bill....thats why people USE them.
Course not, Bill....thats why people USE them.
Houses
When we were at my in-laws house today for the family reunion, I looked at it with a new eye, thinking 'what features of this house would I like if we were building', and which were nice but not necessary. It was not a revelation, but I realized that I didn't necessarily want a large house -- which to me is one over about 2200 square feet. (By comparison, our present house is about 2300 or so; if we add on the new bedroom as we talk, that'd probably put it around 3000 with the elevator and such).
Not that their house is huge; it's probably bigger than ours by ten percent or so, but it's laid out differently downstairs, with a galley kitchen (we have a full room, about
fifteen by twenty feet), and four moderately large rooms -- one's a living room, one a sunroom, one a dining room, and one a -- well, I guess its sort of a library. The house is quite nicely done, but it's not to my taste. I realized that I don't really like the big spaces so much as spaces that feel usable, that welcome you. I can't quantify that. This picture has a little bit of the feeling that I want, though it's more formal that we'd like. The colors are cheerful, and the layout just looks good to me.
Outside, their home is on the somewhat magnificient side; its atop a hill, and you can easily see for thirty miles in most directions. They've done some work in landscaping that I like, especially some stonework on a patio area. The best way I can describe it is that patio would fit in nicely with the home of an uncle of my wife; he's a self-made multi-millionaire, and his home really is on the grand side, inside and out. This patio is just nice. In an odd way, it's welcoming, just like that room. You can see yourself sitting there on a warm day, reading, watching the clouds scud by.
But the water source, if its a well, can be problematic. Turns out, if you have about thirty people over to your house for a reunion, and you have a well, you can run out of water, causing certain bathroom problems. Not cool.
Not that their house is huge; it's probably bigger than ours by ten percent or so, but it's laid out differently downstairs, with a galley kitchen (we have a full room, about
fifteen by twenty feet), and four moderately large rooms -- one's a living room, one a sunroom, one a dining room, and one a -- well, I guess its sort of a library. The house is quite nicely done, but it's not to my taste. I realized that I don't really like the big spaces so much as spaces that feel usable, that welcome you. I can't quantify that. This picture has a little bit of the feeling that I want, though it's more formal that we'd like. The colors are cheerful, and the layout just looks good to me.Outside, their home is on the somewhat magnificient side; its atop a hill, and you can easily see for thirty miles in most directions. They've done some work in landscaping that I like, especially some stonework on a patio area. The best way I can describe it is that patio would fit in nicely with the home of an uncle of my wife; he's a self-made multi-millionaire, and his home really is on the grand side, inside and out. This patio is just nice. In an odd way, it's welcoming, just like that room. You can see yourself sitting there on a warm day, reading, watching the clouds scud by.
But the water source, if its a well, can be problematic. Turns out, if you have about thirty people over to your house for a reunion, and you have a well, you can run out of water, causing certain bathroom problems. Not cool.
Obscenity Response
I got a bit of a surprise today -- found a 'response' from someone named 'Candy_cam' to something I'd written elsewhere, to the effect that people who say that guys are more likely to abuse kids are probably right. The comment was made in response to reading an article about sexual abuse, but this person took offense to it -- always nice to get a note from someone whose idea of a hello is to tell me 'fuck you' .
That aside, they went on to say that child abuse is not just child sexual abuse, and that if you expanded the definition, you'd find that boys are more likely to be offended against, sometimes violently so, than girls. I started to respond, but thought 'well, do I really want to get into a conversation about this with someone who thinks so little of me that they start their emails that way'. So I deleted it. Upon reflection, though, I kind of wish I hadn't, because they did make at least one good point.
Child abuse isn't just sexual abuse. I think its a liberal trait to say that anything that isn't perfect in raising children could be some form of abuse, but I got the feeling that this person was talking about no-kidding abuse -- hitting, punishing, leaving the kid to fend for themself for days. Thats not right - seriously not right. Whether its worse to be sexually abused or physically, I don't know; frankly, I think its a no-win argument. Abuse, period, is wrong. Its the act of someone who is weak, possibly someone who was warped by abuse themselves. Either way, its a scourge on our society, and a source of shame.
That aside, they went on to say that child abuse is not just child sexual abuse, and that if you expanded the definition, you'd find that boys are more likely to be offended against, sometimes violently so, than girls. I started to respond, but thought 'well, do I really want to get into a conversation about this with someone who thinks so little of me that they start their emails that way'. So I deleted it. Upon reflection, though, I kind of wish I hadn't, because they did make at least one good point.
Child abuse isn't just sexual abuse. I think its a liberal trait to say that anything that isn't perfect in raising children could be some form of abuse, but I got the feeling that this person was talking about no-kidding abuse -- hitting, punishing, leaving the kid to fend for themself for days. Thats not right - seriously not right. Whether its worse to be sexually abused or physically, I don't know; frankly, I think its a no-win argument. Abuse, period, is wrong. Its the act of someone who is weak, possibly someone who was warped by abuse themselves. Either way, its a scourge on our society, and a source of shame.
Countdown
T-minus-2 hours.
The cake is made. The richotta is made. The tent is up. The food is bought. The caterer is mobile. The tension is high, and the estrogen's flowing like Bud at a biker rally.
Game's on.
The cake is made. The richotta is made. The tent is up. The food is bought. The caterer is mobile. The tension is high, and the estrogen's flowing like Bud at a biker rally.
Game's on.
Friday, July 04, 2008
Opinion
I'm curious -- is this, from an article on the Divine Caroline site, rude?
I sort of think it is, at least in polite company, but I've been wrong about that before.....
I like natural women and don’t mind a nice bush.
I sort of think it is, at least in polite company, but I've been wrong about that before.....
Doing
Watching my wife and daughter make two pumpkin rolls, aka richotta, pronounced ri-SHAH-tah.
Making a devils food cake, baking now. Thinking about making mocha icing. Not sure.
Reading two books, one magazine, and two newspaper articles.
Listening to the dishwasher vibrate. This would be a quiet dishwasher. We build another house, the dishwasher's going to be in a separate room, I think.
Thinking about going downstairs while the cake cools and watching The Golden Compass. I liked the book.
Making a devils food cake, baking now. Thinking about making mocha icing. Not sure.
Reading two books, one magazine, and two newspaper articles.
Listening to the dishwasher vibrate. This would be a quiet dishwasher. We build another house, the dishwasher's going to be in a separate room, I think.
Thinking about going downstairs while the cake cools and watching The Golden Compass. I liked the book.
Thursday, July 03, 2008
Putting the NO in Technology
I just read a funny article in the New York Times about a fellow's battles with high technology - superhuge TV, cable, converter, dihydric plasma transference coil array. I don't need reasons not to upgrade what we have -- my inherent cheapness does quite nicely, thank you very much. But if I did? The article lists it, in spades.
Phone Home
I was thinking about phones. How long till the slick, cute flip phones are so passe? At that point, what follows? I'm thinking something thing that incorporates the phone, the way that phones incorporate cameras now. And who knows, can implantable phones be far behind?
Organizational Style
From Rolling Stone:
"When I started this campaign," Obama told them, "I wasn't sure that I was going to be the best of candidates. But what I was absolutely positive of was that there was the possibility of creating the best organization. The way great things happen is when people are willing to submerge their own egos and focus on a common task. That's my old organizing mind-set. It's not just a gimmick, it's not just a shtick. I actually believe in it."
Gotta love it.
Incidentally, the article's worth reading as a primer for organizational style. I wouldn't believe everything it says -- they veer pretty closely to 'walks on water' at times -- but in terms of what a true leader needs in order to be successful, its not at all bad.
"When I started this campaign," Obama told them, "I wasn't sure that I was going to be the best of candidates. But what I was absolutely positive of was that there was the possibility of creating the best organization. The way great things happen is when people are willing to submerge their own egos and focus on a common task. That's my old organizing mind-set. It's not just a gimmick, it's not just a shtick. I actually believe in it."
Gotta love it.
Incidentally, the article's worth reading as a primer for organizational style. I wouldn't believe everything it says -- they veer pretty closely to 'walks on water' at times -- but in terms of what a true leader needs in order to be successful, its not at all bad.
Isolation
My wife's in there talking with the daughteroid about her room. As the offspring likes to point out, it's cleaner now than it was yesterday. Yes, I think; it's even cleaner than the slopes of Mt. St. Helens shortly after the eruption. We've learned to be sensitive to the words she uses. If we ask 'is the room clean', and she replies that she's picked up the clothes that were on the floor, that should not be taken to mean that she's hung them up or put them away. More likely, they're now dumped on the big furry pillow, or atop the guinea pig cages. This sometimes leads to being excruciatingly precise in what we want her to do. I usually try not to get into a battle of words, because I know she knows what we want; grinding out individual words won't help the process. I'm not a saint --usually, I use a combination of reason and guilt, and I have learned to accept what I can get.
I came across this image on the Pixdaus site this morning. I find that I really like their approach to imagery -- giving multiple ones per page, not small thumbnails but
fairly large, and clickable to get a full-size version. Plus, somehow, what they have tends to feel fresher to me. I can't explain why. This image, for example -- I found myself thinking, yeah, guys with a flag, Iwo Jima - wait, what? And going back to look at it again. It reminded me of the delicious frisson of danger that I felt when the (really poor) movie Amerika came out, where the Russians have successfully conquered the United States, their troops are everywhere, and the US flag is replaced by the Soviet one. That could never happen, I'd think, but isn't it neat that even if it did, even in defeat, we'd still have gutsy people like Kristofferson leading the resistance. Which shows pretty much how old I was, at the time.
Today is Day Two of the preparation for the family reunion at my sister in law's house. I have to be very, very careful what I say about this, because my sister in law works for FEMA, and every time I hear of problems -- the tent was supposed to be delivered in the morning, it arrived in the afternoon, which meant they could not set up the tables, and so my wife's trip down there to assist in that was wasted -- I tend to grimace, thinking Another FEMA screwup. I don't, shall we say, have a strong image of them. Not as terrible as the people in N'awlins, of course.
I came across this image on the Pixdaus site this morning. I find that I really like their approach to imagery -- giving multiple ones per page, not small thumbnails but
fairly large, and clickable to get a full-size version. Plus, somehow, what they have tends to feel fresher to me. I can't explain why. This image, for example -- I found myself thinking, yeah, guys with a flag, Iwo Jima - wait, what? And going back to look at it again. It reminded me of the delicious frisson of danger that I felt when the (really poor) movie Amerika came out, where the Russians have successfully conquered the United States, their troops are everywhere, and the US flag is replaced by the Soviet one. That could never happen, I'd think, but isn't it neat that even if it did, even in defeat, we'd still have gutsy people like Kristofferson leading the resistance. Which shows pretty much how old I was, at the time.Today is Day Two of the preparation for the family reunion at my sister in law's house. I have to be very, very careful what I say about this, because my sister in law works for FEMA, and every time I hear of problems -- the tent was supposed to be delivered in the morning, it arrived in the afternoon, which meant they could not set up the tables, and so my wife's trip down there to assist in that was wasted -- I tend to grimace, thinking Another FEMA screwup. I don't, shall we say, have a strong image of them. Not as terrible as the people in N'awlins, of course.
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Vacation. Spelled W-O-R-K
My wife is on vacation. This means that today and tomorrow are vacation days for her. This means that she is only spending about six hours dialed into various systems to fix problems and get things moving, rather than two whole days of it.
I really, really need to be sensitive to this, because it is very easy for me to forget just what a royally demanding pain having to work can be. No matter how teary eyed and choked up Bill Gates got on his last day on the job, most folks aren't that attached to what they do for a living. They have no reason to be. They're lucky if they simply like it, sometimes.
I really, really need to be sensitive to this, because it is very easy for me to forget just what a royally demanding pain having to work can be. No matter how teary eyed and choked up Bill Gates got on his last day on the job, most folks aren't that attached to what they do for a living. They have no reason to be. They're lucky if they simply like it, sometimes.
Let There Be Cake
I am a happy camper, because today I made a decent chocolate cake. Deeply chocolate, moist as all get out. Could have been a little higher per layer -- its about half an inch, maybe a bit less -- but that could be because I scaled down the recipe to make only one layer, in a small pan. Doesn't matter. I'm happy.
I found the recipe at Smitten Kitchen, here.
I found the recipe at Smitten Kitchen, here.
Obama and Religion
Looking at this article about a secret meeting that Obama held with religious leaders, I felt a little queasy. To put it bluntly, I don't like when a political candidate feels that he has to seek out the endorsement of a cabal of religious leaders. (Which gives you a pretty good idea of my impression of the worth of most of them. Certainly, the ones that a presidential candidate would feel he needs to impress.) When he tries to keep such meetings secret, that gives me cause to worry. What deals is he making? Who else is he meeting secretly with? What agendas are being pushed but not publicized? Why?
I still strongly support Obama, and I trust him, but it's a little discouraging to see him acting like a regular politician.
I still strongly support Obama, and I trust him, but it's a little discouraging to see him acting like a regular politician.
July!
The Sunday New York Times had a very interesting article on the use (and, they suggested, abuse) of CT scans, primarily among cardiologists, but to a certain extent patients as well. The thrust of the article was that doctors are starting to view CT scans as both a normal part of evaluating a person's likelihood of cardiac disease as well as a procedure with limited risk. There appears to be strong opinion that neither is true -- that CT scans should be reserved for people who have had other indicators show a likelihood of disease, both because the scan involves a fair amount of radiation and because the scan is expensive. The first isn't as much of a consideration when you're older (how much? 60 appears to be the dividing line), because the effect over time of the radiation is less than if you'd had the scan at 30 or so). The second is always a consideration, though since Medicare and insurance companies tend to pay for them whether indicated by other tests or not, its not as much of a consideration at the personal level as it is at the insuring body's level. Very interesting and a little disturbing -- you like to think that these people have their opinions pretty much lined up, and not only is that not the case, but they all speak confidently and authoritatively while saying completely different things.
This morning, I said to my wife "Do you think I should take my life in my own hands and tell our daughter 'School starts next month, better get ready!'" She said that I could, but asked that I let her get out of the blast zone before hitting the detonator. After that, even the Enterprise's scanners likely wouldn't be able to find all of me.
This morning, I said to my wife "Do you think I should take my life in my own hands and tell our daughter 'School starts next month, better get ready!'" She said that I could, but asked that I let her get out of the blast zone before hitting the detonator. After that, even the Enterprise's scanners likely wouldn't be able to find all of me.
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
Wheeled
I rode my bike this afternoon.
Getting on was awkward, riding with the low seat uncomfortable, and getting off was damn near a controlled crash -- to paraphrase the Idaho senator, I had to adopt a 'wide stance' to straddle it getting down -- but I did it.
I'm pleased.
Getting on was awkward, riding with the low seat uncomfortable, and getting off was damn near a controlled crash -- to paraphrase the Idaho senator, I had to adopt a 'wide stance' to straddle it getting down -- but I did it.
I'm pleased.
Censor? No, Unpublish.
It's usually interesting to see people attempt to explain why what they did doesn't contravene what they say.
From the Boing Boing site:
Speaking for all the Boingers--
My golly, yes. Eleven letters in one, ten in the other, just for starters. And then there's...um....
From the Boing Boing site:
Speaking for all the Boingers--
Boing Boing has been caught in the middle of a real internet shitstorm and pile-on over the last few days. A blogger named Violet Blue noticed that we unpublished some posts related to her. Some people wanted to know why.
Bottom line is that those posts (not "more than 100 posts," as erroneously claimed elsewhere) were removed from public view a year ago. Violet behaved in a way that made us reconsider whether we wanted to lend her any credibility or associate with her. It's our blog and so we made an editorial decision, like we do every single day. We didn't attempt to silence Violet. We unpublished our own work. There's a big difference between that and censorship.
My golly, yes. Eleven letters in one, ten in the other, just for starters. And then there's...um....
Phone Home. No, Wait, Don't.
This is a Public Service Announcement, which is my way of saying that I just found out something that hadn't made sense before, so I thought I would put it here, where other people can see it, and maybe benefit. Or not.
We have three 'GoPhones'. We pay for them once (or more, depending on usage) a year. We give them $100 per phone, once a year. Due to the weird way that AT&T structures their payments, it's only good for a year. Give them less, and it only counts for 3 or 6 months. When you get to the end of the year, you give them money again. If you do that before the end of the year, or within, I think, one month after the end of the year, you get to keep the money thats in the account, and your account balance is now the amount you gave them plus whatever was in the account. If you don't, then the account balance is the amount you gave them, period. They keep the rest.
That almost makes sense. Its not what I would call a 'pay as you go', but it almost makes sense. Here's the part that I just found out today.
If you look at your account details, it lists two values -- 'Amount towards next bonus(ATNB)' and 'Amount of next refill bonus(AONRB)'. This is the part we just kind-of figured out.
The ATNB is the amount of money you have to give them in order to get the bonus. The AONRB is the amount that they'll add to your payment when you give them that money. It's based on 'level', which I don't understand. For every $100 that you give them, they add $5. This being the phone company, it doesn't work exactly that way, but that seems to be the general idea.
My daughters phone says she has $14 left, the ATNB is $60.01, and the AONRB s $10.00.
My wife's phone says she has $110, the ATNB is $0.00, and the AONRB is $15.00
My phone says I have $32, the ATNB is $0.00, and the AONRB is $15.00.
There doesn't seem to be any correlation between what your account balance is, and the ATBB. It looks like neither I nor my wife have to give them any money to get the bonus (which I assume means that any amount will do), but my daughter has to give them at least $60. And when we do get it, my wife and I will get $15, but my daughter only gets $10. My guess is that the lower the ATBN, the higher the AONRB.
Of course, it could all be based on sunspots.
We have three 'GoPhones'. We pay for them once (or more, depending on usage) a year. We give them $100 per phone, once a year. Due to the weird way that AT&T structures their payments, it's only good for a year. Give them less, and it only counts for 3 or 6 months. When you get to the end of the year, you give them money again. If you do that before the end of the year, or within, I think, one month after the end of the year, you get to keep the money thats in the account, and your account balance is now the amount you gave them plus whatever was in the account. If you don't, then the account balance is the amount you gave them, period. They keep the rest.
That almost makes sense. Its not what I would call a 'pay as you go', but it almost makes sense. Here's the part that I just found out today.
If you look at your account details, it lists two values -- 'Amount towards next bonus(ATNB)' and 'Amount of next refill bonus(AONRB)'. This is the part we just kind-of figured out.
The ATNB is the amount of money you have to give them in order to get the bonus. The AONRB is the amount that they'll add to your payment when you give them that money. It's based on 'level', which I don't understand. For every $100 that you give them, they add $5. This being the phone company, it doesn't work exactly that way, but that seems to be the general idea.
My daughters phone says she has $14 left, the ATNB is $60.01, and the AONRB s $10.00.
My wife's phone says she has $110, the ATNB is $0.00, and the AONRB is $15.00
My phone says I have $32, the ATNB is $0.00, and the AONRB is $15.00.
There doesn't seem to be any correlation between what your account balance is, and the ATBB. It looks like neither I nor my wife have to give them any money to get the bonus (which I assume means that any amount will do), but my daughter has to give them at least $60. And when we do get it, my wife and I will get $15, but my daughter only gets $10. My guess is that the lower the ATBN, the higher the AONRB.
Of course, it could all be based on sunspots.
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