Archive for the ‘Bitch & Complain’ Category
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How does one become an extremist. First they need to find their alleged passion and then the real problems can begin. It may just be me but I feel that in the last fifty years extremism has become the newest and most dangerous fad ever created by man.
Of course it all started with the ever so popular and murderous religions that exist on this planet. How many millions of hapless souls have been sacrificed for their supposed God. It’s not good enough that you believe in God but it must be done only THEIR way. The crusades should have taught everyone a valuable lesson but they didn’t. Cities were burned, whole populations murdered, and for what? Both sides were responsible for that horrendous slaughter and we learned nothing. March and die for Jesus or Mohammed, cut off a few heads, murder some children, what’s the real difference? There is none.
Religion has turned us against each other time and time again. Now extremism has slowly worked it’s way into the fabric of our society. Everyone insists that everything they do or believe is the absolute right way. Anyone that disagrees the least little bit becomes an enemy and must be dealt with. I’m sure many of you would disagree but let’s look a little deeper to prove my point.
This example is a minor bit of extremism called Veganism. Vegans are militant about how their life style is the only and best way to live. Tell a Vegan you don’t agree with them and your looked at suspiciously and become a non-believer. It’s a mild extremism that is a little annoying but no one will kill me over it (YET).
Next in line are the environmentalists who believe that the earth is their newly found god or goddess. It has morphed into a pseudo-religion that has produced a small band of terrorists who’ve murdered for their cause for years and continue to do so. Who hasn’t heard about ecoterrorism?
Of course we always have those fun loving extremist crazies at PETA to listen to. They’ve successfully made themselves into a laughingstock with their lame antics of blood throwing and other nonsense. All terrorists consider themselves complete failures if they can’t get a five minute mention on the nightly news.
What’s next? Just take a moment and think of the dumbest thing you can imagine. I’m sure that at some point two assholes will put their heads together and have some sort of an epiphany, maybe talk with their God, and begin a movement to convince the rest of the world to change and believe and think as they do. If you don’t believe you could become ostracized or maybe your life could become forfeit.
Unfortunately for civilization and society most of the really over-the-top extremists cannot be convinced of anything. It makes dealing with them next to impossible as we’ve all come to find out over the last few decades.
It appears that the human race in it’s infinite wisdom can’t find common ground with anyone about anything. Scientists are constantly talking about the coming “Singularity”. That’s supposedly the tipping point when machines become so intelligent they’re able to get rid of the human race entirely. Honestly I don’t think we really need their help. We’ll eventually destroy ourselves by arguing over all of the so-called important differences we have rather that celebrating our many similarities.
It’s a side state of affairs and I see no why of fixing any of it. Maybe I should pray to God for help. Shit, which one should I talk to, there are so many choices.
I’ve had the pleasure over the years of listening to and sometimes enjoying many styles of music. I have eclectic tastes ranging from opera to blues to jazz but by far many of my most favorite singers have been the balladeers such as Gordon Lightfoot, Harry Chapin, and of course, Jim Croce.
Both Harry Chapin and Jim Croce died before their time which was a great loss to me and remains so to this day. It’s been 43 years sine Croce was killed in a plane crash in Louisiana and 35 years since Chapin died in 1981 in a car accident.
Here’s a short blurb on Croce’s death. He’ll always remain on my IPod and continue to make me smile when I listen to his music.
“On Thursday, September 20, 1973, during Croce’s Life and Times tour and the day before his ABC single “I Got a Name” was released, Croce, Muehleisen, and five others died when their chartered Beechcraft E18S crashed into a tree, while taking off from the Natchitoches Regional Airport in Natchitoches, Louisiana. Others killed in the crash were pilot Robert N. Elliott, musician Maury Muehleisen, comedian George Stevens, manager and booking agent Kenneth D. Cortose, and road manager Dennis Rast. Croce had just completed a concert at Northwestern State University’s Prather Coliseum in Natchitoches and was flying to Sherman, Texas, for a concert at Austin College. The plane crashed an hour after the concert. Jim Croce was 30 years old.”
R.I.P. JIM
YOU’RE STILL MISSED
This will be the last of the New Orleans postings. It’s been a lot of fun reviewing the pictures and writing about all of our little adventures. As you can tell I really love the place and plan on returning as often as possible in the future. Todays post will be nothing more than a few random pictures of the French Quarter that I failed to use this week. You must remember that between my better-half and I we took more than a thousand photographs in our six day visit.
A balcony used by the bead throwers.
Artists displaying their wares in Jackson Square.
Everyone needs a little Voodoo in their life.
St. Mark’s Cathedral
How about a little truth in advertising.
And some Day of the Dead skeletons.
And finally a stop at Café Du Monde for cafe’ au lait and beignets. Absolutely delicious!
So ends my reminiscences of a truly wonderful vacation. I should mention that on my last night in the Quarter I made my way to a local tattoo parlor and purchased one as a memento of our trip. I was going to post a picture of it but my better-half thought that might be a little to much information. Just let it be said that I brought some permanent New Orleans voodoo home with me.
I hope any of you who would love to visit there get the opportunity to do so.
YOU WON’T REGRET IT
Day two began with a walk through the French Quarter to the Toulouse Docks where the steamboat Natchez was moored. My better-half has always wanted to ride the Mississippi River in an old steamship and we made that happen. We signed up for a three hour river cruise (hopefully better than Gilligan’s) that would take up south on the river through the busy port of NO. It was a brunch cruise and we had a great meal sitting on the main deck with a fantastic view of NO and the river.. It had been fully restored and was just like you would expect it to be minus the gambling tables and card cheats.
One of the m0ost interesting sights was the massive amount of damage caused by Katrina. There were huge section of docks and buildings that had been totally destroyed in the storm and had yet to be repaired or replaced.
On the upper deck we checked out the gift shop and of course the bar. Their specialty drink was the Jazz Punch which was delicious and wickedly alcoholic. I wanted to have a second one but wasn’t sure I could off the boat without injury. The views were incredible.
We made a U-turn an hour later and proceeded back north to NO which was a sight to behold from the middle of the river.
Another great day of relaxation to help us prepare for day three of the vacation. Day three was on the top of my wish list and it meant an airboat and trip into the bayou’s.
HOPING FOR LOTS OF GREAT PHOTO’S
The first day in NO was coming to an end and we decided to just hit the streets and roam around to get a better feel for things. It was just getting dark and we were both starving. That airline food really is a joke. We stumbled on a place on the north end of the French Quarter called Coops. It’s one of those places with a questionable first impression and it was filled with mostly local residents some of which were way out there. Of course we immediately went in to sample some good old Cajun food and we weren’t sorry.
My rule #1 for eating in NO. Go local!
I ordered my usual ice cold Chardonnay while my better-half discovered a new love. She ordered a Big Easy IPA that’s brewed locally. She fell in love with the brew which meant I would have a few more of them on my credit card in the coming days. . . AND I DID! She ordered some sort of shrimp dish while I stepped outside the box once again. I dined on rabbit and alligator sausage jambalaya. I hate to say this about the rabbit but if cooked properly it tastes just like chicken. No eye rolling please. We were finally cooled down by the air conditioning and decided to continue our walking tour. Temps were still in the low nineties at dusk.
We stopped at a number of small shops when we saw something interesting and to use their air conditioning. I’d already sweat through my clothes and would do so many more times during our stay.
NO is known as an artist colony and one of the reasons I love this place so much. We saw murals and sculptures just about everywhere we went. Here are two samples from our first night.
We spent a lot of time looking at art work displayed in galleries and also on the street in Jackson Square. Some of it was really good, some just OK, and others that were unbelievably bad. To each their own I guess. We continued our walk into Jackson Square where the line of horse drawn carriages were waiting for customers.
We were at the end of a very long day and headed back to our hotel for the night. That little pool in the courtyard I posted about earlier was the best thing that happened to us the entire day. Off with the clothes, into the swim suits, and into all of that lovely cool water. We chatted with some new friends from Germany at the pool, finished our drinks and went off to bed. Our room felt like a refrigerator and thank god for that.
MORE TO COME
With the Summer more than half over our garden time is more about canning, drying, and storing the results of our efforts than anything else. I’ve been asked in the past how I can get so much production from such a small garden. There’s really no simple answer. An old adage immediately comes to mind: “Plan the work, then work the plan.” Test your soil and keep it fresh, season to season, with compost. Plant your plants near compatible plants. Pull the weeds and kill the bugs. Easy peasy!
The following picture was taken this morning of my small herb garden. The total square footage is 60 ft. which isn’t all that much. I’ve noted the herbs planted there and while they are jammed tightly into the small space they are flourishing.
This small patch has been supplying us with fresh and dried herbs for more than seven years and will hopefully continue to do so. We’ve had so much luck with our herbs growing that next year we’re converting another 100 square feet of garden space for a much larger herb selection. This little patch will continue as is but the new area will be loaded with every herb I can find that we can dry and store. With a larger and more diverse collection I can begin harvesting herbs to create my own mixes for picking, canning, home brewing, and cooking.
Growing more herbs has a number of advantages over vegetables because none of Mother Nature’s little critters seem to like the herbs. That doesn’t include neighborhood felines who find fresh catnip rather interesting. That will allow me to remove some of the fencing I have in place and eliminate my current problems of ripping my clothing on the fence or constantly falling on my butt trying to climb over it. My better-half claims that I’m the clumsiest person on the planet but I dispute that. I’m just unlucky is all.
I will try to post as usual but our upcoming vacation may make it difficult. I’ll attempt to post from New Orleans if I can but after all it is a vacation. I’ll have plenty to post about upon our return.
ENJOY THE REST OF YOUR SUMMER
If you follow this blog you already know I love all forms of salsa and make many versions of my own. One of my favorites has always been Roasted Corn & Black Bean made with varying degrees of heat. I love getting feedback on what I make especially from my son-in-law who loves salsa.
I made a batch a few months back and for the first time he made a request for the next batch. He said it was delicious and hot but it needed more corn and more beans. Many people feel that putting beans in a salsa is just wrong. It may be wrong but I do it anyway because it tastes so damn good. Yesterday was once again salsa day with many more beans and a lot more roasted corn.
I first collect the canning lids and rims and the jars and heat them up in a hot water bath.
If you decide to try this be sure to wear a thick pair of kitchen gloves to save yourself a lot of pain from the hot peppers. Plain latex gloves are too thin unless you double them up. Add your ingredients into the pot and cook for approximately 15 minutes and then it’s time to fill the jars and return them to the water bath.
Looks good and tastes even better.
After a nice boiling hot bath for fifteen minutes they’re removed from the pot and allowed to cool for a few hours. I always recommend waiting at least a week or two before eating. It’s been my experience that over time the salsa gets a little hotter and a little thicker. Then it’s corn chips (Yellow) all around the table for a sensational Mexican pig-out. Top it off with everyone’s favorite beer or wine and you’re good to go.
MY MOUTH’S WATERING AND BURNING AT THE SAME TIME
I LOVE IT!
Fresh and delicious shrimp.
Do these shrimp look good to you? They were just as delicious as you might think or so says my better-half. She’s a shrimp junkie going back many years and considers herself an expert. I tried just one and really couldn’t disagree.
Summer time meals are something special around here and are to be enjoyed and relished whenever possible. While I’m not a big fan of shrimp or lobster I do love just about everything else that the ocean has too offer. I experiment when possible to come up with new flavors and textures with my seafood. This week we picked up those shrimp and a large haddock fillet just for me.
To make things a little more interesting I poached the fillet in habanero wine. I made this wine a few years back and it carries with it a delicious flavor and heat. Once the poaching was completed the fillets were dropped onto the grill to give them a little crispiness.
Just sooooo good.
Then it’s off to the table with a side of fresh corn-on-the-cob and a glass of Chardonnay. Cherry tomatoes picked just before the meal and chilled are a perfect addition. That beer in the picture belongs to my better-half. She considers any beer she drinks as her Chardonnay.
The garden continues to flourish now that we’ve had a few days of rain to help perk things up. I picked this collection of hot peppers (Serrano, Fresno, jalapeno, and Anaheim’s) today because tomorrow is salsa day and I want them as fresh and hot as I can get.
I’ll be slicing and dicing all of the other salsa ingredients this evening in preparation for tomorrow. This is the best part of Summer for me without a doubt.
OLE!
Mother Nature is normally not my friend.
We celebrated yesterday because it finally rained. Not like the dozen or so sprinkles we’ve received in recent weeks but an honest-to-god rain shower. The rain cooled things off overnight but ten minutes after the sun came out this morning the temperature zoomed back to 90 degrees.
I should be happy . . right? Not very. We need a good five or six days of rain just to get the water levels back where they belong. Early this morning at 5am both my better-half and I were awaken by the sounds of tree branches cracking. Just outside our bedroom window a rather large tree branch snapped and barely missing the house. This portion of the tree was obviously dead and we knew it was only a matter of time before it fell. I once attempted to climb the tree with a chain saw to cut it down but it was just too dangerous.
The house is just a few feet to the right of the photograph.
How it missed the house is a mystery but thank god it did. That’s the second time in the last year a tree has fallen close to the house and missed it completely. We must have a guardian angel keeping an eye on things.
Mother Nature isn’t usually this kind. I remember a time in Massachusetts that we had a storm that dropped a 100 foot tall oak tree onto our backyard and took the corner of my house with it. At the same time a giant pine tree fell on my car in the driveway and crushed it completely. I count my blessings any time she chooses to leave me alone. Today was one of those days.
MOTHER NATURE IS NOT NICE
I have to say that the last week of weather has been as good as it can get for Maine in August. Temperatures during the day have been in the mid-80’s and dropping into the mid-50’s at night. Just perfect. Since it’s been so nice we decided to take our visitors for a day trip to Portland. A hot and sunny Sunday in August means lots of tourist and thousands of people to watch. Finding parking is usually a problem but we got lucky, parked the car, and headed down Commercial Street into the Old Port.
Commercial Street runs right along the length of the harbor and always has some nice shots available of the boats.
The ladies were in and out of a dozen shops and buying, buying, and buying. I spent most of that time people watching and taking a few pictures for future use.
We returned home tired and hungry and began the preparation of our dinner. Shish-kabobs, salads, pies, cakes, and a growler full of Goat Island Light beer. Since it was my birthday my better-half bought me the only beer I like. and it was wonderful. After dinner we made our way to the beach located in Scarborough, Maine. A cool breeze was blowing and the water was perfect for wading and relaxing.
The clouds just kept getting darker and darker but it never rained.
It didn’t take long to tire us all out and we returned home to relax for the rest of the night. Another great day and an even better birthday.
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