Breakfast Adventures
.
L had a friend spend the night, and I have a sore throat, so I wanted to make something soft for breakfast. I didn't want to hassle with homemade pancakes. (no box mix for me, thankyouverymuch.) So I made omelette-things. I was going for crepes, but I don't really know what exactly a crepe is. I assumed it involved eggs, cream and sugar. So I beat 6 eggs, added some milk and some heavy cream, to thin it; then I added a little bit of sugar.
I poured some of the mix in the skillet, and discovered that it sticks more than I'd like. So I cooked that up and ate it, washed the skillet, and tried it again with after melting some butter in the skillet. That worked great. I poured a thin egg pancake, let it cook a bit, then sprinkled in some parsley. I folded it in thirds and flipped it over. It seemed something was missing, so I sprinkled some coarse grain sea salt on top. Yummy!
For the friend spending the night, I did the same thing, but added cheese (he likes cheese) and used fine grain sea salt instead of coarse. I put more cheese on top.
About this time, my son came into the kitchen, so I had him try it. He did not like it at all. He thought I had ruined decently edible eggs by adding that half teaspoon of sugar.
Well, nothing to be done about it now. So I used the egg mix to make 2 more flat omelettes with cheese and salt. I even added some pepper. I gave one to my hubby and one to the friend, which left two for me.
I bit into the first one and realised that I had not made crepes at all. I'd made quiche. Crustless quiche with no veggies or meat in it.
Now I like quiche, so I ate until I was full. But nobody else cared for it.
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Voting In Missouri
.
Constitutional Amendments 2,3,6 and 7 -plus Proposition B
When you go to the polls, each issue will have a short paragraph describing the intent of the issue to be voted on. Sometimes these paragraphs are misleading, vague, or deliberately worded to confuse the voter. Don't be fooled! Read the entire amendment or proposition online at: the Secretary of State's webpage.
Amendment 2 bans human cloning. It bans the sale of embryos and eggs for the purposes of creating stem cells. Any embryo or egg used to create a stem cell line must be donated with the full written consent of the donor and without any monetary or non-monetary reward. (As an example: An couple pays for fertility treatments. The treatments result in a dozen fertilized eggs. Four eggs are implanted in the womb, the rest are frozen. The implanting results in two healthy babies. The couple decides they have enough children. If amendment 2 passes, the couple has the option of donating the remaining fertilized eggs to the research project of their choice -but only in Missouri, to Missouri researchers and companies. The donated eggs cannot be collected in Missouri and subsequently moved to a country with less lenient laws.)
In addition, Amendment 2 cannot allow any stem cell research that goes against Federal Law. Amendment 2 provides for an oversight committee, and all proposed research must be recorded and approved every year by the oversight committee. The committee would consist of researchers, physicians and common citizens. Amendment 2 clearly defines "embryo" as a zygote aged 14 days or less -not counting time frozen.
Why amendment 2 is good: It will make Missouri more attractive to research companies, bringing in more revenue and jobs. It will place restrictions on stem-cell research and use. It will provide oversight of those restrictions, and harsh penalties for abuse. It will offer stem cell therapy opportunities to those desperately seeking a cure.
Why amendment 2 is bad: It puts a lot of power in the hands of government.
Amendment 3 taxes tobacco products. The proposed tax is 4 cents per cigarette (80 cents per pack) and 20% on other tobacco products (like chewing tobacco). The tax revenues raised will be used to shore up medicaid and medicare (funding for both have been cut by our current Governor).
Even though the descriptive paragraph begins with
"Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to create a Healthy Future Trust Fund which will:
1. be used to reduce and prevent tobacco use, to increase funding for healthcare access and treatment for eligible low-income individuals and Medicaid recipients, and to cover administrative costs;"
17.5% of the revenue would be used for smoking cessation and prevention programs. That 17.5% breaks down to: 15% for community smoking reduction programs, 15% for advertising, 5% for oversight, and up to 30% for medicaid.
82.5% goes to medicaid and medicare.
Why amendment 3 is good: It will increase revenue through taxes
Why amendment 3 is bad: Low wage workers and unemployed persons are more likely to be smokers. This tax hits the addicted poor harder than anyone else, and doesn't do a damn thing to help them quit. It's taking money from the poor to pay for programs for the poor.
Amendment 6 fiddles around with the tax laws, and tries to count veterans organizations as non-profit entities for the puropses of taxation.
Good or bad: I don't honestly know. I don't know enough about out tax structure to make sense of this one.
Amendment 7 adds to a law passed in 1996 about a comission deciding wages and compensation. It's a good law. The new part reads as follows: "12. Beginning January 1, 2007, any public official subject to this provision who is convicted in any court of a felony which occurred while in office or who has been removed from office for misconduct or following impeachment shall be disqualified from receiving any pension from the state of Missouri.
13. No compensation schedule filed by the commission after the effective date of this subsection shall take effect for members of the general assembly until January 1, 2009."
Why amendment 7 is good: Currently, there is no provision for disalowing compensation. Passing amendment 7 would ensure that any elected state official, member of the general assembly, or judge, except municipal judges would not recieve a paycheck after being convicted of a felony, removed from office due to misconduct, or impeached.
Why amendment 7 is bad: I can't think of any reasons.
Proposition B raises the minimum wage to $6.50 per hour, or the Federal minimum wage -whichever is higher. Don't get your hopes up, there are lots of exceptions. Small farms, apprentices, persons employed for 6 months or less(learning period), etc. Can be paid less.
.
Constitutional Amendments 2,3,6 and 7 -plus Proposition B
When you go to the polls, each issue will have a short paragraph describing the intent of the issue to be voted on. Sometimes these paragraphs are misleading, vague, or deliberately worded to confuse the voter. Don't be fooled! Read the entire amendment or proposition online at: the Secretary of State's webpage.
Amendment 2 bans human cloning. It bans the sale of embryos and eggs for the purposes of creating stem cells. Any embryo or egg used to create a stem cell line must be donated with the full written consent of the donor and without any monetary or non-monetary reward. (As an example: An couple pays for fertility treatments. The treatments result in a dozen fertilized eggs. Four eggs are implanted in the womb, the rest are frozen. The implanting results in two healthy babies. The couple decides they have enough children. If amendment 2 passes, the couple has the option of donating the remaining fertilized eggs to the research project of their choice -but only in Missouri, to Missouri researchers and companies. The donated eggs cannot be collected in Missouri and subsequently moved to a country with less lenient laws.)
In addition, Amendment 2 cannot allow any stem cell research that goes against Federal Law. Amendment 2 provides for an oversight committee, and all proposed research must be recorded and approved every year by the oversight committee. The committee would consist of researchers, physicians and common citizens. Amendment 2 clearly defines "embryo" as a zygote aged 14 days or less -not counting time frozen.
Why amendment 2 is good: It will make Missouri more attractive to research companies, bringing in more revenue and jobs. It will place restrictions on stem-cell research and use. It will provide oversight of those restrictions, and harsh penalties for abuse. It will offer stem cell therapy opportunities to those desperately seeking a cure.
Why amendment 2 is bad: It puts a lot of power in the hands of government.
Amendment 3 taxes tobacco products. The proposed tax is 4 cents per cigarette (80 cents per pack) and 20% on other tobacco products (like chewing tobacco). The tax revenues raised will be used to shore up medicaid and medicare (funding for both have been cut by our current Governor).
Even though the descriptive paragraph begins with
"Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to create a Healthy Future Trust Fund which will:
1. be used to reduce and prevent tobacco use, to increase funding for healthcare access and treatment for eligible low-income individuals and Medicaid recipients, and to cover administrative costs;"
17.5% of the revenue would be used for smoking cessation and prevention programs. That 17.5% breaks down to: 15% for community smoking reduction programs, 15% for advertising, 5% for oversight, and up to 30% for medicaid.
82.5% goes to medicaid and medicare.
Why amendment 3 is good: It will increase revenue through taxes
Why amendment 3 is bad: Low wage workers and unemployed persons are more likely to be smokers. This tax hits the addicted poor harder than anyone else, and doesn't do a damn thing to help them quit. It's taking money from the poor to pay for programs for the poor.
Amendment 6 fiddles around with the tax laws, and tries to count veterans organizations as non-profit entities for the puropses of taxation.
Good or bad: I don't honestly know. I don't know enough about out tax structure to make sense of this one.
Amendment 7 adds to a law passed in 1996 about a comission deciding wages and compensation. It's a good law. The new part reads as follows: "12. Beginning January 1, 2007, any public official subject to this provision who is convicted in any court of a felony which occurred while in office or who has been removed from office for misconduct or following impeachment shall be disqualified from receiving any pension from the state of Missouri.
13. No compensation schedule filed by the commission after the effective date of this subsection shall take effect for members of the general assembly until January 1, 2009."
Why amendment 7 is good: Currently, there is no provision for disalowing compensation. Passing amendment 7 would ensure that any elected state official, member of the general assembly, or judge, except municipal judges would not recieve a paycheck after being convicted of a felony, removed from office due to misconduct, or impeached.
Why amendment 7 is bad: I can't think of any reasons.
Proposition B raises the minimum wage to $6.50 per hour, or the Federal minimum wage -whichever is higher. Don't get your hopes up, there are lots of exceptions. Small farms, apprentices, persons employed for 6 months or less(learning period), etc. Can be paid less.
Saturday, October 07, 2006
Tagging
.
I switched to Blogger Beta because it offers post tagging (although they call it "listing")
I immediately began tagging my past entries. I had 871 posts when I began. I've been deleting dumb or pointless posts, and posts with dead links. I wonder how many posts I'll have left after I've deleted the junk?
.
I switched to Blogger Beta because it offers post tagging (although they call it "listing")
I immediately began tagging my past entries. I had 871 posts when I began. I've been deleting dumb or pointless posts, and posts with dead links. I wonder how many posts I'll have left after I've deleted the junk?
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
And This Year...
.
*UPDATE* We are skipping the costume this year. Not because it's too difficult, but because of the cost. We could buy everything on the list, or we could buy DVD's and maybe some steak. L decided he would get more enjoyment from DVD's and steak.
...
L wants to be Roy Mustang from Full Metal Alchemist. Actually, he *really* wanted to be a knight after a battle with a dragon. Right... I spent most of the summer thinking about forging steel, how to make puncture marks from dragon teeth, where to char the suit, where to melt the suit, how to melt the suit, etc.
Last week, I gave up and suggested Roy instead. Thankfully, he jumped on the idea. Whew!
His feet are so big, that even his dad's old army boots won't fit (even if I could find them). So. After looking at all the pictures and browsing professional pattern companies; I've made a list of needed materials:
Rit dye stripper (got it)
Rit royal blue dye (got it)
Sculpey and findings to make insignia (got it)
Silver paint (got it)
Gloss black spray paint (got it)
White butcher paper to make pattern (got it)
Measuring tape and note pad (got it)
Silver or grey bias tape
Gold braid
1 pair khaki school pants (got it -see dye stripper)
3 1/2 yards heavy cotton fabric or cotton/poly blend that matches the khaki pants
Pull on rubber boots (to be painted gloss black -cheapest method I can think of)
White dress gloves
Red paint or red embroidery thread (got it)
Thread
Access to a sewing machine (got it)
Scissors (got 'em)
Yard stick (got it)
Compass for drawing curves (got it)
The 3 1/2 yards is a random number I made up based on previous costumes. I'll know how much fabric I need after drawing up the pattern. No, I won't sell it to you. I might sell the costume next year, though. And I will do my best to detail my efforts here, so that those desperate parents who find me via a search engine can replicate the costume.
.
*UPDATE* We are skipping the costume this year. Not because it's too difficult, but because of the cost. We could buy everything on the list, or we could buy DVD's and maybe some steak. L decided he would get more enjoyment from DVD's and steak.
...
L wants to be Roy Mustang from Full Metal Alchemist. Actually, he *really* wanted to be a knight after a battle with a dragon. Right... I spent most of the summer thinking about forging steel, how to make puncture marks from dragon teeth, where to char the suit, where to melt the suit, how to melt the suit, etc.
Last week, I gave up and suggested Roy instead. Thankfully, he jumped on the idea. Whew!
His feet are so big, that even his dad's old army boots won't fit (even if I could find them). So. After looking at all the pictures and browsing professional pattern companies; I've made a list of needed materials:
Rit dye stripper (got it)
Rit royal blue dye (got it)
Sculpey and findings to make insignia (got it)
Silver paint (got it)
Gloss black spray paint (got it)
White butcher paper to make pattern (got it)
Measuring tape and note pad (got it)
Silver or grey bias tape
Gold braid
1 pair khaki school pants (got it -see dye stripper)
3 1/2 yards heavy cotton fabric or cotton/poly blend that matches the khaki pants
Pull on rubber boots (to be painted gloss black -cheapest method I can think of)
White dress gloves
Red paint or red embroidery thread (got it)
Thread
Access to a sewing machine (got it)
Scissors (got 'em)
Yard stick (got it)
Compass for drawing curves (got it)
The 3 1/2 yards is a random number I made up based on previous costumes. I'll know how much fabric I need after drawing up the pattern. No, I won't sell it to you. I might sell the costume next year, though. And I will do my best to detail my efforts here, so that those desperate parents who find me via a search engine can replicate the costume.
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Ultimate Slur?
.
I'm using the computer, and CNN is providing some background noise. In other words, I'm not really listening to the news. However, a reporter was yacking about some politician making racial comments while he was in college. According to a former football team mate, he used "The ultimate racial slur". He "used the 'N' word repeatedly" during his college years.
It got me to pondering... what specifically is the "ultimate" racial slur? Wouldn't it be a subjective thing? When someone tells me they'd rather be dead than red on the head, I consider it a deliberate insult. A slur, if you will. My cousin considers it an insult if someone calls him a wetback because he has brown skin and a mild hispanic accent. I imagine anyone wearing a turban or shora would object to being called a rag-head. I would say each of these are the "ultimate" insult to the person being insulted; but that none of these are the penultimate insult on a universal scale.
Perhaps "human" or "monkey boy" is the "ultimate" insult... although I don't consider being a bipedal creature with opposable thumbs and a large brain an insult. Maybe I'll feel differently if space aliens come and make fun of me.
I can see it now... "Ha, ha. Stupid monkey being. You can't even get out of your own solar system!"
.
I'm using the computer, and CNN is providing some background noise. In other words, I'm not really listening to the news. However, a reporter was yacking about some politician making racial comments while he was in college. According to a former football team mate, he used "The ultimate racial slur". He "used the 'N' word repeatedly" during his college years.
It got me to pondering... what specifically is the "ultimate" racial slur? Wouldn't it be a subjective thing? When someone tells me they'd rather be dead than red on the head, I consider it a deliberate insult. A slur, if you will. My cousin considers it an insult if someone calls him a wetback because he has brown skin and a mild hispanic accent. I imagine anyone wearing a turban or shora would object to being called a rag-head. I would say each of these are the "ultimate" insult to the person being insulted; but that none of these are the penultimate insult on a universal scale.
Perhaps "human" or "monkey boy" is the "ultimate" insult... although I don't consider being a bipedal creature with opposable thumbs and a large brain an insult. Maybe I'll feel differently if space aliens come and make fun of me.
I can see it now... "Ha, ha. Stupid monkey being. You can't even get out of your own solar system!"
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Jury Duty
.
Heh, heh, heh. Dooty.
Um, right. So I've been called upon to fulfill my civic duty (heh, dooty.) and sit in a courtroom with a bunch of other people while lawyers ask a lot of personal questions. The purpose is to find a sub-group of people who could give the defendant a fair trial. The personal questions include ones like this: "Have you, or anyone close to you been a victim of a sex crime? When? What are the specifics? Was any legal action taken? Would any incident from your past prevent you from following the instructions of the Judge and giving a verdict of guilty or not guilty based solely on the evidence presented?"
This gives lots of opportunity for people to stand up and tell their sad stories of victimization. Whenever somebody did that, I stuck my nose in a book. Should I be chosen to sit and judge a fellow citizen, I do not want my decision colored by the stories of others. Along those lines, when I stood up to tell my own story - "I was molested by my uncle when I was 3; I was raped when I was 15, and there was some other stuff along those lines in between... But that would have no bearing on my verdict, which I would base on evidence presented, rather than my own past."
I could feel the heat of 50+ pairs of eyes, and I was a little embarrassed. I have not been embarrassed about the things that happened to me... um, ever. Shit happens. And none of my shit has anything to do with anyone else in the courtroom. They have their own shit. It's their shit I'd be listening to.
.
Heh, heh, heh. Dooty.
Um, right. So I've been called upon to fulfill my civic duty (heh, dooty.) and sit in a courtroom with a bunch of other people while lawyers ask a lot of personal questions. The purpose is to find a sub-group of people who could give the defendant a fair trial. The personal questions include ones like this: "Have you, or anyone close to you been a victim of a sex crime? When? What are the specifics? Was any legal action taken? Would any incident from your past prevent you from following the instructions of the Judge and giving a verdict of guilty or not guilty based solely on the evidence presented?"
This gives lots of opportunity for people to stand up and tell their sad stories of victimization. Whenever somebody did that, I stuck my nose in a book. Should I be chosen to sit and judge a fellow citizen, I do not want my decision colored by the stories of others. Along those lines, when I stood up to tell my own story - "I was molested by my uncle when I was 3; I was raped when I was 15, and there was some other stuff along those lines in between... But that would have no bearing on my verdict, which I would base on evidence presented, rather than my own past."
I could feel the heat of 50+ pairs of eyes, and I was a little embarrassed. I have not been embarrassed about the things that happened to me... um, ever. Shit happens. And none of my shit has anything to do with anyone else in the courtroom. They have their own shit. It's their shit I'd be listening to.
Saturday, September 16, 2006
Sun, Sales and Surprises
.
Once a year my sister's neighborhood holds a massive yard sale. To quote KDHX:
"BELLERIVE DAY IS HERE!!! Each year families on Bellerive and Dover Place hold the "mother of all garage sales" and Saturday, September 16 is it. Over 50 homes with sales, rummage sale, breakfast and BBQ lunch at the Methodist Church on the corner of Bellerive and Colorado, arts and crafts and more. Drive south on Grand and you can't miss it." (edited to remove contact info)
This year, I brought a few things from my house to (hopefully) sell. I didn't sell everything; but I did get rid of 3 skeins of yarn I'd taken a disliking to, a toddler table, a silver ring and a really nice equalizer.
I bought: A neat gold and red knitting bag ($2), A cup of lemonade (50 cents), and a wooden bumper pool table with all the accessories plus a cover that's plain table on one side and poker table on the other side ($25)
It would cost more than $100 to have our current poker table felted. This table has leather instead of felt. Woo! And it will fit right where the toddler table used to be. The table is the surprise.
It's not so surprising that I got a little sunburn. :)
.
Once a year my sister's neighborhood holds a massive yard sale. To quote KDHX:
"BELLERIVE DAY IS HERE!!! Each year families on Bellerive and Dover Place hold the "mother of all garage sales" and Saturday, September 16 is it. Over 50 homes with sales, rummage sale, breakfast and BBQ lunch at the Methodist Church on the corner of Bellerive and Colorado, arts and crafts and more. Drive south on Grand and you can't miss it." (edited to remove contact info)
This year, I brought a few things from my house to (hopefully) sell. I didn't sell everything; but I did get rid of 3 skeins of yarn I'd taken a disliking to, a toddler table, a silver ring and a really nice equalizer.
I bought: A neat gold and red knitting bag ($2), A cup of lemonade (50 cents), and a wooden bumper pool table with all the accessories plus a cover that's plain table on one side and poker table on the other side ($25)
It would cost more than $100 to have our current poker table felted. This table has leather instead of felt. Woo! And it will fit right where the toddler table used to be. The table is the surprise.
It's not so surprising that I got a little sunburn. :)
Friday, September 15, 2006
Good News, Better News
.
My mom (a real estate agent) is listing a house in her neighborhood. The owner had remodeled the kitchen, which means there was a free dishwasher up for grabs. So after 16 years of marriage, we own a mechanical dishwasher! Woo!
But wait! There's more! Installing the dishwasher required the removal of a cabinet and a set of drawers. The removal left bits of shrapnel all over the kitchen. We thought we'd gotten it all with the shopvac and a broom; but one lone screw was left behind. I stepped on it tonight.
But see, that's a good thing; because I stepped on it with the numb part of my foot -And I felt it!
Of course, I thought I'd stepped on a blunt piece of cat food rather than a sharp screw... but the important thing is that I did feel it.
.
My mom (a real estate agent) is listing a house in her neighborhood. The owner had remodeled the kitchen, which means there was a free dishwasher up for grabs. So after 16 years of marriage, we own a mechanical dishwasher! Woo!
But wait! There's more! Installing the dishwasher required the removal of a cabinet and a set of drawers. The removal left bits of shrapnel all over the kitchen. We thought we'd gotten it all with the shopvac and a broom; but one lone screw was left behind. I stepped on it tonight.
But see, that's a good thing; because I stepped on it with the numb part of my foot -And I felt it!
Of course, I thought I'd stepped on a blunt piece of cat food rather than a sharp screw... but the important thing is that I did feel it.
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
My Poor Hubby
.
I'd been sniffling and sneezing all of yesterday, and we had no sniffle medicine in the house. So, after work, he went out and got dinner and meds for me. I stayed awake long enough to listen to the President's speech (So we could make gestures at the TV together); then I took the night time sniffling/sneezing/etc. medicine and went to bed.
I was awoken briefly when the hubby-man's cell phone rang. The most important hard drive at work had crashed, and he needed to replace it before the branches opened in the morning.
He got home around sunrise. My poor guy. Fortunately, his boss understands that this means he will *not* be coming in to work today. Although I expect his cell phone to start ringing some time after noon; and he'll get up and work from home.
I've got the massage table ready. I know he will need it later tonight.
.
I'd been sniffling and sneezing all of yesterday, and we had no sniffle medicine in the house. So, after work, he went out and got dinner and meds for me. I stayed awake long enough to listen to the President's speech (So we could make gestures at the TV together); then I took the night time sniffling/sneezing/etc. medicine and went to bed.
I was awoken briefly when the hubby-man's cell phone rang. The most important hard drive at work had crashed, and he needed to replace it before the branches opened in the morning.
He got home around sunrise. My poor guy. Fortunately, his boss understands that this means he will *not* be coming in to work today. Although I expect his cell phone to start ringing some time after noon; and he'll get up and work from home.
I've got the massage table ready. I know he will need it later tonight.
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