Louisville Is Lovely

Got to wave across the Ohio River at Southern Indiana. Had magnificent food, and toured fabulous houses. No, I didn’t go in the Louisville Slugger Museum (although I did see the giant bat outside the building). And, of course, it was to see people in the industry and attend awards banquets. Note: if you’re in Louisville and you want someplace to eat, go to the bar at the Seelbach Hotel (pub food, with a decent burger on the menu, absolutely decadent coconut tiramisu cake, and a really potent Old Fashioned. When we were there, the jazz combo was playing. Absolute decadence, for less than I feared it would be.).

Who knows — I might have some photos available to show after I make up for this “vacation”. I should come up for air on Wednesday. If the cats have not killed me for leaving them.

Corporations, Coffee, and Creamer

Ms Congeniality Demands Milk in Her Cuppa

Corporations do not understand coffee (even Starbuzz doesn’t). Coffee is provided free at many offices, which is civil (although the quality is usually depressing), but the corporate way is the artificial creamer way (because it doesn’t go bad) or the powdered artificial creamer way (because someone assumes we want the coffee to be pale for a visual cue, not for any particular reason, like taste). I guess if I worked for a dairy, I might be able to get milk with my rotgut cuppa. But I only get coffee the way I like it when I work from home.

I won’t be monitoring the blog for a little while. I’ll leave you with the charmer* to the right minding the space while I’m distracted by networking and other work-related stuff. Have a great week.

*Why no, she doesn’t really like the flash all that much. We try not to inflict it on the cats too often. I sometimes think, though, that I could make my point about people with insane deadlines for work… by emailing that pic back and saying, “You want it when?”

The Sock Market

…. brought to you by recent events.

Sock accrues interest

Like everyone else, I’m watching the news media closely. Every time I hear the term “Stock Market” I think “Sock Market” since it’s Socktoberfest. I’m working onsite for a client who requires that I take an hour lunch every day (bringing along work for my other clients is obviously a no-no, so I’ve brought my knitting). I ripped back the first Amazonian sock and added length on the foot and finished the toe, then started the second sock immediately. This has been very restful for my eyes, and also kind of restful in a work environment where everyone else is talking about their stocks. Spending a good bit of time wondering if the color is more like a copper-bronze color than forests and water keeps me going through that sort of discussion.

I realize I’m doing my best to avoid a Bare Market, where there aren’t any socks. (Note the bare toe — the second sock is past the cuff already. These socks are definitely engaging my interest more as I work with them.) Sock market and stock market aren’t that distant — As a knitter, I acquire yarn, and then I let it age for a while, waiting until a project comes up. I have a stash of yarn that may grow up to be something else. However, I don’t need to take out loans to acquire this capital, so that’s where the analogy fails. Well, that and the frivolity of the analogy.

So, hopefully more of my yarn will migrate into FOs in time for me to reinvest in my sock yarn (replenishing my stocks, as it were). Next project is a secret one, so I won’t be posting photos of that till it’s safely in the hands of the recipient. But after that, it’s on to birthday sock yarn from last year and choosing a pattern from the Cat Bordhi book.

Yeah, I’m in a punny mood. So, any mishearings of the media amusing you lately?

Life’s Little Ironies

… working in an office filled with people nattering on about the stock market (updates from the US markets every 5 minutes, direct from a website someone’s watching like a hawk), what their funds are doing, and how the whole world is slowly tipping into oblivion…

Luckily I get to listen to my IPod with its steady stream of Starship, Bruce Springsteen, and songs that were popular during the Crash of the late ’80s. And then the Pet Shop Boys show up with, “I Love You (You Pay My Rent)“. So close to all the conversation I was hearing behind me. Who knew Ipods on shuffle have a sense of wicked timing?

Hopefully soon I will have light to take a quick photo of the Amazonian sock, now with added toe.

A Broken Record

Today’s musing was on what would happen if lots of people spent their daily commute singing Dona Nobis Pacem. It’s a great song — more easily sung than “Give Peace a Chance” (although if you’d rather howl that song while you drive along the highways, go to it) and easily taught to kids.

These musings are less about global conflicts and more about the local world I live in, where I look at the news and can’t believe they’re congratulating themselves about an improvement in the violent death rate (in my book, that would be NO violent deaths… but me and the politicians don’t see eye-to-eye). I can’t control Wars, I can’t control what criminals do on the streets near my house, and I can’t really change the world all that much. But I CAN control what I think and what I feel. So, if you’re hoping for a more peaceful neighborhood, why not sing along like a broken record? If nothing else, the world might change to get us to shut up.

Lessons Learned

1. Jalapeno oils and smoke burn — if you’re sauteeing a red jalapeno, do not breathe in the smoke from the pan to see if it’s getting near done. I think if I end up roasting/charring the rest of the jalapenos for storage in the freezer, I will need to invest in a little breathing mask and goggles.
2. A lesson for the people working on my car — when I take it back to the shop to fix the new tire you just put on it a month ago (it went flat before I had driven 30 miles), do NOT call me to see if you can upsell your lovely fuel injection cleaning service that you did a month ago. I am so not impressed.
3. I’m impressed by the savvy investments the HVAC people tried to make (more confidence in playing the market than I have ever had). I’m learning a lot as 3 guys sweat out working on my house and discussing ways they can draw out portions of their 401Ks to save their houses, if the downturn means they don’t get as many jobs. We ALL have the same fears and frustrations. It’s what motivations we find from these hurdles that matters.

So, the jalapeno went into chili last night. My car should be done soon. There’s no tidy financial sum up, sadly, for me to offer anyone. But I guess that’s where everyone is right about now.

To any Canadian — my calendar says to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving. May there be pecans to put on your sweet potato casserole or lovely food of your choice.

Nontraditional Tofu Curry with Jalapenos

This actually works, if you’re expecting something vaguely like curry made by someone without curry spice. I began with guidance from an online coconut and tofu curry recipe found at http://vegetarian.about.com/tofurecipes/r/coconutcurry.htm.

[Sigh, sometimes lacking correct ingredients leads to some strange dishes, as do a lot of jalapenos sitting around. The guy at the farmer's market gave me 7 extras when I asked for 2. Which is nice, but unless I plan on TexMex cooking every day of the week, they're not going away anytime soon.]

1. Dice 1 jalapeno pepper, removing seeds and stem. (I think this would have stood 1-1/2 jalapenos.)
2. Mince up 4 garlic cloves.
3. Toss in a pan with a little bit of oil in it, and saute for a few minutes.
4. Add 1 Tablespoon of ginger spice (or less, if you don’t like ginger). Saute for about another minute.
5. Add a block of tofu, cut up into cube and about 1-1/2 cups of oyster mushrooms (or some other mushroom) chopped up. Saute some more.
6. Add 1 teaspoon coriander spice and thai basil (I had a few leaves left over from a plant).
7. Add one can of coconut milk (not the kind you make mixed drinks from) and about 1/2 cup water.
8. Add frozen vegetables (in my case, frozen soybeans and pea pods). This would be better with actual sliced peppers, broccoli, and/or carrots, probably.
9. Cover and simmer over medium to low heat for 20 minutes.

Serving suggestions: serve over rice or cooked kashi.

If you want to try making a curry that’s possibly a lot more traditional, then check out these links:

Vegetarian Thai Red Curry

Vegetarian Pad Thai

And I’m thinking about trying this Indonesian Rendang Curry sometime.

So, do you ever just wing a recipe, looking at the original one and then going far, far afield? I apparently cook like I knit. Sometimes the results are sweaters with three arms.

Grown Up Chocolate Fudge

… inspired by the back of an EAGLE BRAND (R) container of nonfat sweetened condensed milk. I wanted something less sweet and a little more sophisticated, and came up with this:

In a heavy saucepot, mix

• 1 can of nonfat sweetened condensed milk

with

• 2-1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 2 blocks of Baker’s unsweetened chocolate, chopped up (should be around 1/2 cup)

Melt over low heat. When milk and chocolate are totally blended together, turn off heat and add

• 1-1/2 teaspoon of Pear William (Kirschwasser might work as well)

• 1/2 cup chopped dried cherries (not maraschino)

• 1/2 cup chopped pecans

Spread mix in a wax-paper lined 9-inch pan. Put in refrigerator for an hour, until set, then slice into small squares.

This makes an insane amount of fudge for a small household. However, fudge freezes well in freezer bags, and each piece defrosts in around 2 minutes. Little bit of trivia: the original purpose of all those little tins of condensed milk was to help provide safe milk for troops during the Civil War. (Elsie becomes the best known spokes cow in 1960.)

The original recipe is here on the www.eaglebrand.com site. None of this is safe for people who can’t have sugar, alas. Any people with diabetes are outta luck when it comes to fudge, it seems. The milk being fat free may help a little, but remember there’s all that chocolate in it too. If anyone out there still plays bridge, this might be a good dessert to bring along for the sideboard (or piano bench in my childhood home) near the card tables. That way you get a taste without ALL of it going to your waist.

A Folk Singing Household

I grew up in a house that’s hard to define as part of the 60s and 70s, if you believe television’s focus on the Bandstand [the music's hopping... ] era. Mom loved folk music, even minoring in it in college. Dad loved classical. So the sounds of my childhood were filled with Brunnhild dying on a pyre, the Kingston Trio, and Peter Paul and Mary (Puff the Magic Dragon was one of my favorites). Mom was almost always in a choir, and I have fond memories of her practicing at our upright piano.

YouTube (and Nick Reynold’s promotion to the heavenly choir from his role in the Kingston Trio) is bringing back the songs Mom hummed to, while she looked wistfully at the air in front of her while washing dishes. I can even see the kitchen we had before we moved, down to the little catchall nesting bowls that had a glass lid at the top of the tower, filled with wine corks [a slow growing collection for a corkboard], rubber bands, pins, twine.

A favorite song I remember her singing is a wistful, haunting melody called “Four Strong Winds”. Here it is, sung by The Brothers Four. I look at the audience singing along, and realize how young my mother was before she even met my father. And even though she didn’t go to UCLA I couldn’t help looking for her singing along too. More audience signing for their version of 500 Miles (from the 1960s). btw, the Hooters also covered this song (1980s), and it is very different.

I’m in a choir now that’s singing socially relevant music. Kind of a modern spin on all those songs that were background during food prep or while I did my homework on the dining room table. Thanks, Nick, for the music. You really did make your light shine.

oh-mi-gawd AM

His Most Serene and Annoying Fluffybutt

This morning I got up at “oh-mi-gawd” hour to drive the Gardener to the airport. Like it always is at oh-mi-gawd hour, it was dark. No one else on the block was up. Even the construction workers hadn’t arrived to disturb the peace.

With regulations for how early check in is at the airport and the time security takes …. it wound up being 6 AM when I got behind the wheel, somewhat caffeinated. I spent most of the drive thinking, “I can’t believe they allow people to DRIVE this early at these speeds!” Like any other portion of the US near an airport, the highway was filled with trucks delivering fish/flowers/what have you to go on the airline with your luggage. There were also cars trying to break the sound barrier and thread the needle between the trucks. (I actually suspect that bad drivers are a worse hazard to national security than anything else, since they’re the thoughtless source of much fright for drivers.)

Once getting back in my home office before 8:00 AM, I was greeted by evidence of catly displeasure (otherwise known as, “hairball on the stairs”). Lucky for the probable culprit, he’s cute. See above (yes, it’s a rehash photo because the camera isn’t available).

Note: there are higher odds of seeing a juvenile peregrine falcon land in your backyard, near the birdfeeder*, when you do not have a camera. We’ve also had high winds (and some tree limbs down), with amazing shadows and bright lighting for flowers.

I regret not having any pictures, but most of the day has been eaten by a revision.

*So, I wonder if he was looking for takeout?