Political Irony › One of the best political ads is not from any campaign

(hat tip: Gene Spafford)

Eggs!

Ok, I'm a little late on this, we've been getting eggs from our chickens for a couple of weeks now. Actually, until just a couple of days ago, only one chicken was laying (Mary thinks it was Frances). But on Thursday, Mary found three (3!) eggs. Wow.

They're tiny. Very cute next to the XXL eggs we get from the farm. We waited almost two weeks to eat the first one (we made a nice scramble), but now we're eating them as fast as they come in.

Supposedly the eggs will get to be normal size in a couple of weeks, but these girls are laying early, so who knows.

The first egg - found in the corner of the run

The egg is a little bigger than a walnut

Looks like an egg! Only tiny (no walnut for scale here)

We don't normally eat 10 eggs at a time, but it was like 6 regular eggs

Obesity Is Still Not About Exercise

This guy writes about weight loss and the media. His latest post is one of many where he's noted (over and over and over again) that energy-in matters far more to obesity rates than energy-out.

Interesting reads, and it seems to make sense. In my efforts for weight loss I controlled both my eating and exercise, and while the exercise certainly helped me feel comfortable eating what I wanted, it was super easy to eat more than what I was expending. Think about it, is it easier to eat a grab bag of chips or run for an hour? The bag takes maybe 5 minutes to eat and nearly no effort. With a "normal" life where you work 8+ hours a day, it's nearly impossible to exercise enough to keep up with what you'd eat.

So... eat less folks.

Very Good Taste » blog » The Omnivore’s Hundred

Very Good Taste » The Omnivore’s Hundred

Which of these 100 things have you eaten? I've marked the ones I've eaten in bold.

The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue (in Paris no less)
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes (we're growing some right now)
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper (not a whole one...)
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters (blech, I don't understand the attraction of eating boogers)
29. Baklava (I should post my recipe, it's a potluck favorite)
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar (I doubt I'll ever smoke a cigar)
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O (I introduced Mary to Jello shots)
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects (grasshoppers in Mexico, tasted like dust)
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk (Simone drank this quite a bit)
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin (worst, sushi, ever)
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone (totally overrated)
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini (thanks to my uncle Wes)
58. Beer above 8% ABV (tasted it, ick)
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips (why carob?)
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho (I've even had white gazpacho in Spain)
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail (thanks to Cornell dining)
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor (I made it myself)
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

I've eaten 67 out of 100, does that make me worldly?

Paradise Campground (McKenzie River)

Mary, Simone and I went to Paradise campground on the McKenzie river this past weekend, we invited Nana and Grandpa - who accepted before I even finished the invite. We had a grand time.

The three of us posing at a waterfall.

Simone loves washing dishes (and herself)

Nana reading bedtime stories

Grandpa with his signature look

A cute one of Mary - one of a couple I wished I'd gotten in focus.

Mary's expert eye took this one

Simone supervising the setting up the tent

Posing for pappa

Grandpa and Nana show up, all rejoice!

Simone fell asleep on our hike to Belknap. I lay down to nap with her. We were both a bit hot (it was 100 degrees in the shade)

Mary and I, re-enacting a wedding photo. Seven years ago almost to the day were were in that same spot, taking that same photo - only with fancier clothes.

All in all, a great weekend. The campground is real pretty - we were in site 42 - which is at the end of a loop and felt real private. There are a ton of old growth trees, and either the main river, or a small stream runs by nearly all the campsites. Ours was next to the small stream.

On Saturday we hiked all the way to Belknap (3 miles?), and even though it was around 100 degrees, the shade and the occasional cool breeze from the river kept us in high spirits.

Barking Up the Wrong Tree

An interesting analysis of the Republican strategy, Anglachel's Journal: Barking Up the Wrong Tree:

The boogey-monster the Right has settled on for this electoral cycle is affirmative action. Abortion is pretty much worn out, gay rights is beginning to boomerang back on them, so they need a new angle of assault on the New Deal and the Great Society. I talked about this obliquely earlier this year and now I'll say it plainly. The Republicans have set up affirmative action challenges in key states that have been trending blue, such as Colorado and Missouri, because that is the glue that holds together their two overlapping core constituencies - whites who really are racists and whites who want to secure their economic status in the face of tougher economic times and an increasingly poor, female and non-white working class. It is also an argument that appeals to a sense of fairness - the most qualified should get the position, not someone to fill up a color quota. This is the issue chosen to counter the three key candidates the Democrats would pick from for the top of the ticket - Hillary (female and Clinton), Obama (Black and inexperienced with a lot of collateral personal baggage), and Edwards (white male, but promoting poor rights and with a bimbo problem on the side)

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Don't Talk To The Police

A defense lawyer (James Duane) makes the case for why you should never talk to the police w/out a lawyer present. He quotes several Supreme Court justices, and provides examples of how even when you say nothing but the truth can be used against you. Afterwords he gives time to a cop - who is in complete agreement Mr. Duane.

The Fifth Amendment is there (in part) to protect the innocent.





It's pretty sobering.

New McCain Ad Portrays Obama as the Anti-Christ

Nothing to add to this. Just click on through and watch.

Framing Science : New McCain Ad Portrays Obama as the Anti-Christ

What Kind Of Liberal...

I've admitted to being a liberal, so I took this quiz to see what kind.

It's not a big surprise.

My Liberal Identity:

You are a Peace Patroller, also known as an anti-war liberal or neo-hippie. You believe in putting an end to American imperial conquest, stopping wars that have already been lost, and supporting our troops by bringing them home.

Take the quiz at www.FightConservatives.com

Note: I've not read the book, and know nothing about it. I'm guessing they have a sense of humor b/c they have a "FightLiberals" web page as well.