Indianapolis Colts

Turkey Day and Calories

seems like every thanksgiving holiday the food is the same with a couple minor exceptions. bad thing? nah, it's good to have some of the same things i get to eat only a couple times a year. turkey, dressing, taters, things like that are the typical fare and they usually are a hit with everyone.

seemingly everywhere i go on the tube at home i'll see a show about thanksgiving cooking and how to make things better, easier, cheaper, different, spicier, jazzier, whateverier. why change? if it's something you like then keep it the same. mind you, i'm all for trying something new but i have a good sense of what tastes good with what. there are some things i can't figure out or have no idea what they are yet i'll try them anyway. reminds me of city slickers. the two guys who owned an ice cream company and their game was mixing ice cream flavors with food. there are times i fail miserably and there are times i hit it spot on.


i saw bobby flay's tweet this am about creamed spinach and nutmeg as a side for his dinner. eww,... i don't like spinach but it just sounds like an odd combination. every once in a while i'll throw out something different or put a little dash of this or that in something and it works. i'm lucky because i love to cook. my family eats 93.2% of what i cook and the girls don't throw it against the wall. i don't see anyone slyly putting their plates under the table to feed the food to the dog and then proclaim, "daddy, i'm done. it was terrific food!!!" i don't think i've ever coooked anything yet that someone has said, "this is the best i've ever had." i've cooked a lot of good food but that one exclamation has eluded me.

one thing i like doing is just being able to throw something together. seldom do i look at a recipe book unless it's something i've used before and can't remember everything. we have a lot of recipe books and we use them occasionally. all the smallish measurements throw me off. drives me nuts. a dash here, a dollop there, do what tastes good. gramma taught me that. i most certainly cook for flavor, not health. i like good tasting food. i know what i like. i know pretty much what my family likes. i love it when they want something i make instead of spaghetti o's or something out of a box. hell, even our son likes watching cooking shows with me. i usually hear a, "daddy, that looks gooooooood!" when we see something that looks killer.

couple years ago my cousin asked me if i wanted to send in a recipe for a cookbook she was helping put together. wow! i don't thin i did just because writing down what i cook, the way I cook, would be difficult at best. i don't typically measure a lot unelss it's out of a box. i would love to put some things down for our kids to learn later on but i like the way i learned to cook; by taste. i found what i like, how i like it, and tastes change.

i lived in louisiana for several years. my tastes changed from meat & taters in the midwest to good, full of flavor, kick ass cajun and creole cooking. good down home southern comfort food. went and worked all over the world, literally, and had my tastes change and get diversified from other places; other influences. i was able to bring some of those home with me and incorporate them with what i already did and make things different. i would say change things from being bland, rather adding new or different flavors in to things.

here's one; people talk about cajun food. when i hear people mention it they usually say, "hot" in the same breath. cajun food isn't hot. it's seasoned very well. there's a difference. for example, every hot sauce, believe it or not, has a different flavor. some are hotter, some have more of a pepper taste, some more salty or more of a tomato taste, things like that. i taste cajun foods at places up here and they usually taste like shit. gumbo is not a soup; gumbo is a meal all in itself. it is not like paste and it is not to be served over minute rice. if you can't make a dark brown rouz from scratch then you don't need to be making a gumbo because you'll either burn it or you'll cheat and buy "roux in a jar." lastly, campbell's soup is good but their chicken gumbo is just a soup in a can.

experiment. enjoy. try to challenge yourself with new ideas, recipies, or flavors. i love doing that and finding i can cook different things together. bad thing is, i do something one week and it's a hit at the table, i'll forget what i did the next week when i try to make it again.

Sports

i've seen a lot of of the older sports games where the protective equipment wasn't as good as it is today (go figure) or just non-existent. take for example the helmets in football. for a while they were leather. i think before that there weren't any. put that in to perspective in today's football games and you wind up with a lot of hurt people.

same goes for shoulder pads, gloves, neck braces, mouth guards, and anything else that wasn't then that is now. i know that a lot of the players today are larger, more physical, and hit a hell of a lot harder. just watched a game yesterday that had some hellacious hits. this is like people doing 360 degree spins in the air, their heads being jolted backwards, a guy got his leg under a couple guys and broke both his tibia and fibula (lower leg boes), things like that. a lot of bells have been rung. guys having 1, 2, or more concussions in a year. it's almost like boxing and the physical torture those guys take on an every fight basis.

baseball is no different. it used to be just hats. now guys are wearing full face shields to protect themselves. 90+ mph fastballs hitting guys in the face and breaking bones, line drives doing the same thing. i can remember as a kid getting hit right in the middle of the chest during an all star game. it hurt but it wasn't too bad. i got up and continued. wonder how i'd feel if i got hit with a 90 mph fastball in the middle of the chest!

more and more people, kids included, are wearing a lot more protective equipment to help stave off injuries. bigger people are playing, they're more aggressive and physical, and the injuries give longer rehab times just because they're a lot more damaging than they used to be. i worry about kids playing in sports just because of the injuries they can easily suffer.

Winter Wonderland

just got done talking with someone here at work and we were both agreeing that winter weather stinks. yeah, the first snow is always nice and pretty but after the first couple days it gets old really quick.

i can remember when i first moved to louisiana and got to experience Christmas Day in shorts and a t-shirt. i couldn't believe it when someone told me that i would, but shortly thereafter i did. definitely a new experience!

then i began working overseas. usually i was in tropical or sub tropical areas where there really wasn't any such thing as cold weather. i typically missed half the cold winters here at home while i was at work. i'd usually come home with a tan from laying out on the helidecks and look out of place in the airport. probably the funniest was when i came home from the middle east wearing shorts and a t-shirt. i left doha when it was 100 degrees. i got to amsterdam and it was snowing and 32. that was the last time i ever went overseas without wearing pants and taking a sweatshirt or jacket with me.

the winter around here is just around the corner. got enough firewood to last the winter and already building a stock for next year. last year some of the water lines froze in the garage which ticked me off. brand new house and already that happened. ended up spending some time and money insulating a lot of pipes and floors because of that. there's not a lot to block the north and west sides of the house from the cold wind so we have to deal with what comes. and with it being unblocked it usually gets pretty windy outside which makes the wind chill even that much colder.

i usually like the thought of putting away all the winter garb and coats and getting ready for warmer temps. now is when it all gets pulled back out. mind you, i love a good fire in the fireplace, keeping warm, curling up under a blanket watching tv with the wife and kids (if they sneak out of their beds). one of the dogs likes to curl up against anyone who lays on the floor like that. she likes to keep warm and she does a terrific job of keeping someone else warm. her arthritis is getting really bad so usually she's curled up in front of the fire herself.

last winter i got to enjoy a couple moments of true tranquility. it was a saturday afternoon and the wife and kids were all gone doing something. i was in the middle of the woods cutting on a tree that fell over. all of the sudden it began to snow. the large wet flakes coming down at a vigorous pace. the wind was blocked by all the trees so the pure white snowflakes were coming straight down.

i stopped what i was doing and just stood there watching, listening, taking everything in; how peaceful it was, how quiet it was. the only things i heard were the millions and millions of snowflakes hitting the remaining brown leaves on the odd tree and the ground, already crunchy with older snow from a week prior. i looked up, down, and around just to take it all in and put the sights with the sounds and log it all in my brain for future use when i might need a peaceful reminder of how the world can be truly tranquil and beautiful.

The Economy

i used to think it odd when i'd come home my dad would say, "alan's getting ready to speak." little did i know that "alan" helped rule the economy of most of the world. cnbc was always on at the house. everyone would talk about "alan" before he spoke, after he spoke, and then talked to everyone else about what they thought or what their interpretations were of what he said. when "alan" spoke, the world listened.

i wonder how many people wish that "alan" was back in office.

all i have to do now is walk around a couple towns and see the sights of people not working. the unemployment offices are busy, the doles are huge, the lists of people wanting to work but can't are just as long. people need to work. people want to work. i know the classifieds show lots of jobs but i've been told recently that people are "too qualified" of "over qualified" for jobs they're applying for, so they get turned down.


sad when people want to work but can't because they have too much brain power or experience. guess those who are doing the hiring are worried that their jobs will be taken by the ones they hire with too much qualification.

by the way, i loved this movie. thought spacey was killer. he had a "screw it" attitude and that's what i'd like to see more people have in the world.

all the stimulus money's beginning to go out. yet even with the money being filtered to states and localities, how many jobs are actually being created? are they permanent or temporary? are they providing a useful purpose and contributing to the economy or is it someone hoarding money and padding numbers?

around me i see a lot of road work going on; roadwork for the state which doesn't need to be done. yet i've read and been told that they needed to get this money spent on projects that were "shovel ready," and not in design stages. almost like seasonal work that could begin on a moment's notice and be done just as quickly.



i go to work and talk to people who have their brothers and sisters on "the bench" at the local union halls. granted, i'm not a fan of unions but the bigger picture i see is people not working. thousands and thousands of them across the country not working. they want to work. they have to work. lots of them have bills and families to support and without work they have nothing. some halls provide pensions and plans but others do not.

i see a lot of people who are working but many more who are not. it's not just the halls. it's everywhere. when is this stimulus money going to tricle down to everyone else? i haven't seen a raise in 3 years. my company stopped giving a bonus to its employees. our insurance rates have been jacked up,... again. gas prices are higher. food prices are higher.

the stock market's going back up but those who have money are playing in it. i would but i'm without money to do it. all i can do is my wimpy 401k that got raped by the economy the last couple years. can i get it back? nope. it's my pension, if you will, and i lost a ton. many more lost everything. i guess i'm one of the lucky ones.

i'll be blunt; this shit needs to change. nobody inherited this problem. we have it and it needs to be fixed. i realize that everyone can't be pleased all the time but we all need some help. $400 or $250 one time won't do dick. it's the cost of a good night out or a couple dinners for wife and kids. so while our government pays out billions to auto companies, banks, and insurance companies, the residents of the USA are getting screwed. that money should be going to us, to help prop us up, to put US back to work. bad thing is, they gave out all that money. it has to be repaid back. by who? US

Moose Stew

was that what she liked? yummy. reminds me of scrapple, heart, tongue, and all the other wonderful things that we used to eat as kids. eh, guess i never thought too highly of some of the other things i've seen and eaten in my worldly travels.

ms. palin's making her book rounds presently. think she started up in michigan yesterday and is now in indiana. cbs news said last night that she wasn't hitting any major metro areas. i find that odd and curious why she isn't. maybe she has enough of a following in the outskirts that she wanted to boost that rating up a couple points.


i saw the lines of people waiting to see her, get their wristbands, buy her book, and get a chance to see the hottest "ex" governor of the coldest state. one woman interviewed stated she was "so inspired by her that when i turn 18 i'm going to register to vote democrat." thought that was pretty damned witty for a 17 year old.

i remember when i was a kid how if i went "rogue," i'd get my ass whooped. my thoughts and opinions usually stayed between myself and my pals.

more and more people are wondering if she'll make a run for the big chair in the next election. i'd almost put that in the same breath as having bart simpson as a principal in springfield elementary. not a whole hell of a lot of experience trying to lead a nation of job hungry people, and one with the world's largest economy. nah, not a good choice for me. i can just picture her list of advisors and who they'd be. her husband would undoubtedly be the secretary of energy since he worked on the north slope for bp in the oil patch, meghann mccain would be the press secretary, and ross perot would be the secretary of the treasury.

it's sad the way politics have changed over the decades and generations. more and more arenas are being ruined by politics. "i'll scratch your back, you scratch mine" is heard a lot. i've heard it recently in the small town i live in. a lot of "good old boys" are around and they know who they like and dislike. there are ways to manipulate what you want, how you want it, and how you get it or get it done and there are masters of all of those traits. i'm pretty good at them myself yet i have learned to not use them for my personal advantage; i use them (no bullshit) for bettering others and what they do.

if ms. palin runs for and is elected to the hot seat i think it would tell the rest of the world that our country is grasping for something, ANYTHING, that they can to make things better. this hogwash about her being a normal "hockey mom" is crap. she's learned very quickly how to play in the political arena. she's young, attractive, has a good looking family, comes from a blue collar family, and rose to the top using those ideals. she's used those things to her advantage to get what she wanted. i still don't quite understand john mccain's choice in her as a running mate with such limited, if any, experience in big time politics. just seemed really, really, strange.

i'd almost say that tina fey impersonating ms. palin could do a better job as president. she knows how to joke around as it's her job. she's an actress. if she doesn't know the answer she can either baffle with bullshit or simply not answer a questions. when katie couric interviewed ms. palin a while back it was funny to see how she answered, or didn't answer, direct questions about certain foreign policies, programs, and national concerns simply because she didn't know. she had no experience. she had not formed her own opinions and was answering based upon what limited knowledge she had of john mccain's ideals and goals. sad, truly sad. and to think that that may be our commander in chiefette? oh my Lord, what will happen to us then? third world countries will begin looking at us the way we look at them.

i just hope that when people do go to the polls and vote they do it with their brains. too many people vote for who they want, not for who's the best for the job. i see it all the time with local smaller elections. the promises, the "pal factor," the back scratching, the whatever it's called. too many people still vote a straight ticket just because they're staunch republicans or democrats. sad that they can't form their own opinions and vote on who they want instead of following party lines and live with making one or two bad choices just to keep several more in power that they want. ultimately it's those one or two bad choices that could be the death knell for us all.

think for yourself when you vote. make a wise educated decision before you vote. use your brain and see what needs to be seen and ask questions. get the answers before a vote is cast. protect yourself by who you vote for. and yes, one vote does make a difference. it's those "one votes" that add up to thousands.

It was a dark and stormy night,...

the other day i asked my wife who always began their stories with that line. told her i'd give her a gold star for the day if she could tell me. guess it helped that when i was a kid my big brother had a whole set of snoopy / charlie brown books that i read all the time.

typically the beginning of something, a preface, book cover, or something along those lines, needs to be able to grab the reader and shout to them that this is something worth reading; something chocked full of information and useful tidbits of drivel. the old adage of not judging a book by it's cover is, in my eyes, half correct. i liken it to a rusty building; you can liven it up by giving it a new coat of paint but underneath the shell of the building is still crap, still rusty, and you still have the insides which may not have been fixed up or repaired. a book or article or magazine may not have an ounce of newsworthy or compelling thoughts but if the cover or headline is catchy enough it'll bring even the most pessimistic reader to it at least for the first couple sentences or paragraphs.

well, this won't be catchy. this is nothing more than me spouting off thoughts, opinions, mindless banter that i want to talk about. daily headlines, what i see, thought, did, my opinions, who's a hot topic,... whatever strikes my fancy. i wrote a book a couple years ago that's never been published. it was like my memoir. i wanted it for our kids to read when i'm old and gray and gone. that way they, or their kids, can see who i was and possibly why i did some of the things i did. same for this.

anyway,... let the blogging begin