Monday, March 15

Coffee and Pie Days

So, what irrational things did you do to celebrate Pi Day?
(not including irrational things you would have done anyway)

On the 12th ...
Shortly after my previous post, I heard about the "The Coffee Party", which at first I thought was just a "meet your neighbors and socialize" type event.  I did some research, got interested, and decided to go.

That night, Lisa and I got carry-out from MCL (I had some wonderful beef stew, wonderful "Harvard" beets and decent mac 'n' cheese) and we got pie that we didn't actually eat that the next night. (I got apple) [pie #1]

On the 13th I drove Lisa to some meeting, then went to the Coffee Party event, turned out they barely knew what to do, but still it looks promising ["coffee" #1, even if I didn't drink anything]. Afterwards I drove Lisa to some job half an hour away.  By then it was lunch time, so we went to a little diner called KJ's.

Well, the coffee and strawberry rhubarb pie were very good [coffee #2, pie #2]

That night we ate pie #1.

Today (March 14th aka 3.14 aka Pi Day), we ate pizza at Dewey's (1/2 Green lantern, 1/2 Killer Veggie) [pie #3] and on the way home stopped at DLM and got 1/2 a Cherry Cheesecake Pie [pie #4].  It was all good stuff.

disclaimers:
1) we don't usually go out to eat this often
2) we don't usually eat this much pie, either
3) "pie" #1 and 2 were each just a slice
4) more coffee was prepared at home, but I'm not counting any of that.
5) Sheesh! You would think that at least one place would have a Pi Day special ...Oh well, maybe next year.

Off to bed and to dream of garlic ...

PS
 

Friday, March 12

qk cfe pst

A Quick Coffee Post

A) There is a new new blog I just heard about:  Popular Coffee News

B) I am drinking coffee from my favorite company: New England Coffee , I especially like the Breakfast Blend, but this morning I have Mint Mocha.

C) Oatmeal - some people like it sweet, some people like it salty
Toast - some people have it sweet, some people have it salty
Potato Latkes - some people prefer it sweet, some people prefer it salty
Margaritas - are frequently served with salt or sugar on the rim of the glass
Watermelon - if you've never had it with salt you are seriously missing out
Coffee - some people have it sweet ... so why not .... (not that I want to try it,but I still wonder)

D) You know those sliced almonds you can buy? (of course you do)  I wonder if they can do that with coffee beans, and how coffee would be brewed from sliced beans.

R

Wednesday, March 10

Been There, Done That

What good is a blog without recommendations?   I feel obligated to give some now.

Do you like to read?  Well, you must if you are here.  How about books though?

I recommend a book I just finished,  The 
  City & The City by China Mieville.

It is a murder mystery that takes place in two city-states that physically occupy the same space.  One house in this city, perhaps the next two in the other, some streets are shared by both, some areas are exclusively in one or the other.  However citizens are taught to "unsee" anything in, or of, the other city (or else).  Was the victim killed in this city?  Or was it a crime of Breach?  (besides the usual Whodunnit, and why)

I heard about it from (on?) a web comic by and about librarians called Unshelved.   Besides their week-daily strip, on Sundays they have a special book recommendation strip.  Here is the one for this book.  One of the two authors of the comic also co-authors Not Invented Here, a comic about software development (also recommended).

Behind each great piece of software is a talented, concientious team of hardworking individuals dedicated to producing the highest quality product using internationally accepted best practices and industry standards. And then there are these guys.


Now I'm reading "The Fires Of Heaven", the 5th book in the The Wheel Of Time series by Robert Jordan.
If you read it you MUST start with the prequel New Spring, which was written 14 years after, but takes place 20 years before book #1: The Eye of the World.


Since you're still with me, let me also recommend a great source for Getting Books For Free PaperBackSwap.com - Book Club to Swap, Trade & Exchange Books for Free. ...

Here's how it works:

- You join the "club" (ie sign up)

- You list any books you have (in good condition)

- When you've posted your first 10 books, you get 2 "welcome" credits

- You list any books you want

- Any requested book that is available is offered to you for the cost of 1 credit

- You are notified if any of your listed books are requested by other "club members"

- You can print off a pdf of a wrapper with the mailing label

- You send off the book/s (you pay postage, the only part that costs you money), and you get 1 credit for each book sent.


There is more to it, and more options to spend money (eg to buy credits or mechandise), but those are the basics.

There are also two sister sites that work pretty much the same, and you can transfer credits between all three:

  and  

And if you say you were recommended by m5rammy when you sign up, I'll get an extra credit. But even if you don't do that, you should still sign up.

This short post took way too long with all the links and stuff. Hmm, next time it will be different. I don't know, somehow.

Sunday, March 7

.more about mE

(yes, sometimes I do things backwards)

As for this blog, I am trying not to think things ahead too much.  "What" I want to say, but not exactly "how" I want to say it, so it'll come out more the way I talk. (so I may ramble some) (just a bit)

As I said I am somewhat of a foodie and I have odd ideas.  Some of the ideas are about food.  So some of what I write will be about that.

I often have ideas about putting different foods together that (afaik) have yet to be combined.  Sometimes I try it, but often it will stay as a thought experiment.  But almost always I will Google it, and maybe be somewhat disappointed if I find that not only have other people thought of it, but there are recipes galore to be found.  But that can also be a good thing.

Ex 1: I like lasagna and experiment with: add-ins, roasted veggies instead of (some) noodles, etc.  One day I thought "I've never heard of a fish lasagna ... not that I would want one but still ..."
Well, turns out ... if you Google it ...

Ex 2: Sometimes the idea will come from seeing something in the pantry or fridge.  Like putting peanut butter together with mayonnaise (not bad actually, and also out there on the web)

Some things seem like good concepts to me, but I haven't figured out an implementation worth trying yet

Ex 3: Are you familiar with the Turducken? A boneless duck stuffed into chicken inside a turkey?  Well how about a veggie version ...  a pea (just one) in a brussel sprout in a portabella mushroom in a potato skin in an acorn squash?  (think of a set of nested mixing bowls) What would be a good name? what would hold them together?  What would be a better line-up?

My latest idea was

Ex 4: We have to start by assuming canned spaghetti rings are a good (enough) food item.  So in what recipe that would normally use tomato sauce could we instead "csr"?   Anyone?
Oh well.  Some ideas might best stay just as ideas.

One last thing.  R U ready 4 π day?

R

Friday, March 5

"First Post" - What to Expect

This blog will be various odd things that I think of.  The title is a good example.

What Is The Peterson Model?
I had a dream a few nights ago, I don't remember the exact details, but there was some new device that was at "the Peterson Model" stage.  First you have an idea, then at some point you make a prototype to see if it is at all practical.  A little later you would have the Beta Phase, where a wider audience tries it out and give you feedback. Then, in my dream, you make the Peterson Model, which is like a test version of the final product.

I don't know why I called it that.  That's just the way dreams are.

Anyway.  I don't plan to have any specific schedule of updates.  Whenever I have new ideas, or decide to write about old ones.  That's enough for this intro.  See y'all later.

R