Z's BLOG

A Patriot's History of the United States -- excerpts and comments

2010-06-30T14:31:00.008-04:00

I'm reading the book "A Patriot's History of the United States", a much researched and footnoted book written by Larry Schweikart and Michael Allen. Between them they have "close to sixty years" of teaching American History. I highly recommend everyone read it.

What I hope to do is post some of the things in the book that are important to me and that I think people should know.

In the introduction of the book the authors ask the questions "Is America's past a tale of racism, sexism, and bigotry? Is it the story of the conquest and rape of a continent? Is U. S. history the story of white slave owners who perverted the electoral process for their own interests? Did America start with Columbus's killing all the Indians, leap to Jim Crow laws and Rockefeller crushing the workers, then finally save itself with Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal? The answers, of course, are no, no, no, and NO."

Unfortunately it appears that that is what has been taught, and is being taught, in the classrooms of America. The authors further say in the intro that history speaks for itself, and, if told honestly "America's past is a bright and shining light. America was and is, the city on the hill, the fountain of hope, the beacon of liberty. We utterly reject 'My country right or wrong' -- what scholar wouldn't? But in the last thirty years, academics have taken an equally destructive approach: 'My country, always wrong!' We reject that too." I gotta tell ya, I'm with the authors of this book all the way with that.

It looks like the authors set out to set the record straight on America's history. What I've read so far I remember being taught throughout my school years over 45 years ago. (Yes, I am that old so shut up.) But things about America's past that I have been hearing lately on the TV and reading about don't add up to what I remembered. Now I am glad to know it ain't me.

I'm not to far along in the book yet, but as I go along and come across some things I think interesting, I'll post them here and comment.

In my next post I want to comment on some things about church and state. I have read some interesting things in this book about why this nation was born.

The Second Jewel

2010-05-15T12:03:00.003-04:00

Today's Stuff
Gonna be watching the Preakness today. New slogan -- "Get your Preak on!" I guess that includes partaking of the popular beverage known as the "Black-eyed Susan". The recipe calls for Bourbon, vodka (or rum), sweet and sour mix, orange juice, and ice. I'm not going to use the ice, but instead will be using frozen oranges and strawberries. As I mentioned in previous post, this keeps the drink from becoming watered down. You can't have things like that bringing down your good time. We need to enjoy life as much as we can while we still can.

This is just a short post to keep in the groove. I have read "Glen Beck's Common Sense" and am now reading "A Patriots History of the United States", and will be posting some excerpts from them and commenting on them. It will be interesting to come back here a year from now and see what I posted. If not for anyone else, at least for me.

On a Sad note, I lost a very dear friend recently who was also my first cousin. He will be sadly missed, but always remembered.

How time flies

2010-05-06T17:25:00.007-04:00

Bless me lord, my last post was a year ago. Damn, that almost sounds like what we used to say to start our confession to the priest. Anyway, I have just been having to much fun to sit down long enough to type something. Now, I am still having fun, but I have a cause. I am worried. I am worried that our future is looking more and more bleak. I would like to put it all on Obama, but this direction we are now going in started many years ago.

I just finished reading the book Glen Beck's Common Sense. I have put together some things that he says in the book that I was just not aware of. That worries me too. Why wasn't I aware of these things. I'm 62 years old. I should have seen these things happening 30 years ago.

Anyway, here is what concerns me that Beck brought out:

Excerpts from the book, Glen Beck's Common Sense:

"The Progressives view the Constitution as a living organism that evolves with time and changes depending on circumstances. Both the Progressives and the Founding Fathers view the Constitution as a set of handcuffs--but the difference is that our Founders believed that it was the power of the State that was to be cuffed, while Progressives believed it was the individuals who were cuffed to the greater good of the group."

"a few key issues that Progressives are using to drive their agenda forward: the environment, gun control, education, and religion."

"consider how our leaders have bypassed the idea of massive, overnight change in favor of reshaping our opinions slowly over time -- a concept that James Madison warned us about well before Progressivism had even been given a name:

I believe there are more instances of the abridgement of freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpation.

Further on in the next section -

"During an inauguration celebration for President Obama, Gore spoke to a group of thirteen- to seventeen-year-old honor students. He explained to them that current day anti-global warming sentiments are a lot like racist sentiments were decades ago. He told them, Look, there's a lot of things you understand instinctively but your parents don't understand those things because they're just to trapped in old thinking."

How can he say things like that? Who died and left him as God? He stereo typed every parent in America as "trapped in old thinking". Is not Gore and all the politicians trapped in the old political way of thinking.

Further on in the book-

"Like Gore, Roosevelt didn't just use words, he demanded action. He limited personal freedom and ignored states' rights by giving government more power over water and grazing rights, creating over fifty bird preserves through executive order, and, with the stroke of a pen establishing more than twenty national forest. It didn't matter to him that businesses, individuals, and states were negatively impacted by each of these decisions or that their rights to those previously public areas were taken away., Roosevelt argued that, as he put it, 'The new nationalism', he said, 'puts the national need before sectional or personal advantage.' We hear the same arguments today."

"In the 1970's, Progressives used 'global cooling' as their call for action. That call included, naturally, increased government control. In the 1980's, as science refuted claims of global cooling, Progressives argued for more government power and control to fight 'global warming' instead. Today, desperate to explain long periods of cooler temperatures, increased ice formations at the southern polar cap, and other inconvenient 'global warming' truths, Progressives now tell us that government must have the power, resources, and money to fight "climate change' -- whatever direction that change might be."

The lies are so obvious, and they are causing the loss of our liberties because to many voters are falling for them and realizing it to late.

Further down the page-

"We don't trust the political class because they no longer find shame in their own hypocrisy."

And, I must say further, we don't trust them because they tell bold face lies. We have to change the change.

One last quote. Its number 9 of the 9 Principals listed in Becks 9.12 Project:

"The government works for me. I do not answer to them; they answer to me."

Remember to vote your heart and conscious using simple common sense come November, 2010.

Long time, no post.

2009-05-22T08:22:00.004-04:00

Random stuff:
WOW, I can't believe its been so long since I posted something. I have but one excuse and that is I have been to busy. The life of a house husband can be very hectic. That's right, house husband. I do all the cooking, cleaning, and housekeeping, while also, looking for a job, working out in the gym for health reasons, grocery shopping, vehicle maintenance, and all the budgeting, banking, investing, and bookkeeping. While I am not employed, I devote myself to seeing to it that my wife, who is employed, wants for nothing, is comfortable, happy, and healthy. Above all, happy. Of coarse, I do not want to be unemployed but its very difficult to get someone to hire an old fart 62 years old. I'm currently working on forming a corporation and opening a small business. Also, I am exploiting the idea of making money on the Internet. Most of the work-at-home sites I have visited have been frauds and scams. There is a ton of info out there to be researched. If anyone has any ideas for an Internet enterprise or small business, please comment.

Recipe: Here is a little recipe you might want to try.

1 Zucchini
1 squash
1 half onion
1 quarter pound or less of fresh baby portobello mushrooms. Should be about 10 to 15. Note that the regular portobello mushrooms are flat and long and brown. The baby portobellos are shaped like regular white mushrooms, but are brown.
1 quarter bell pepper
1 stalk of celery
6 to 10 cloves of garlic
1 portion of pickled ginger root to taste. It comes already peeled and sliced.
1 tablespoon of olive oil
salt and black pepper to taste

Slice the celery, zucchini and squash diagonally in pieces about 1/16 th of an inch thick. Cut onion into rings and the bell pepper long ways into long quarter inch wide slivers. Quarter the mushrooms and half the garlic cloves.

Heat the oil in a frying pan and throw in the celery and garlic. Saute for 5 minutes then throw in the bell pepper and onions. Saute for another 5 minutes and then put in the Zucchini, squash, baby portobellos, and ginger. Salt and pepper to taste while sauteing until Zucchini and squash are tender. Enjoy.

I served this as a side dish to some chicken thighs I had pan fried. It would probably go good with pork also.

Humor:

Secretary of State Thibodeaux was visiting President Boudreaux. Secretary of State Thibodeaux noticed President Boudreaux had acquired two new dogs, and asked him what their names were. President Boudreaux responded by saying that one was named Rolex and one was named Timex. Secretary of State Thibodeaux said, "Whoever heard of someone naming dogs like that?" Whereupon President Boudreaux responded, "Mais, what else you gonna name watch dogs, anh?"

Complements of the http://www.cajuncrawfish.com/ website.

Cccccccccccccccccccccccya

New recipe

2009-04-14T07:54:00.013-04:00

TODAY'S RECIPE:

I made up the following dish Sunday from some stuff my wife had left over from something she was preparing to bring to work on Monday. Its really tasty and it burns like hell.

JEFF Z’S RED HOT CHICKEN

1 pack skinless, boneless chicken thighs (Note: About 7 or 8 thighs. I used thighs because that's what I had. Substitute if you like.)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
? salt and black pepper (Note: salt and pepper to your taste. I don't know how much I used.)
2 jalapeno peppers about 3 or 4 inches long (Sliced in rings.)
1 bunch of shallots (Green onions sliced in rings.)
1 Whole bulb of garlic (Peel the garlic and slice the big ones in half.)
½ medium size onion (Chopped fine.)
1 cup pace piquant sauce (You can use a cup of tomato sauce, whole tomatoes, or Rotel tomato's. It don't matter whether you use Mild, Medium, or hot. Those two peppers are gonna give you all the hell you can handle.)

Brown the chicken in the olive oil on a medium high setting in a 12 inch frying pan. This allows the chicken to cook through and through, and brown slowly. While browning, chop the veggies keeping the garlic separate. When the chicken begins to get slightly golden brown, add the garlic. Continue browning for about 5 to 10 minutes or until the chicken is a dark golden brown. Then add the rest of the veggies. When the veggies begin to soften, add the piquant sauce or tomato sauce. Continue to cook until the veggies attain the consistency you like and you have established a good blend.

“CAUTION…….IT IS HOT!” I ate some with eggs the next morning, OOOOOOIE dat open my eye.

A LITTLE MORE ON EMOTIONAL FREEDOM TECHNIQUES (EFT):

In my last post I wrote about EFT. I have not tried the techniques with any regularity, so I cannot speak to the effectiveness as yet. However, if you are curious about this form of "Energy" therapy, I suggest that you not only read up on it at Gary Craig's site, but you should also google "Emotional Freedom Techniques scam" to look at the other side of the coin. There is a good post on the subject at the blog "http://quackfiles.blogspot.com/2005/01/skeptics-of-energy-therapies.html". In part, the article says the EFT is a spin off of "Thought Field Therapy (TFT). According to the article, TFT was Trademarked and popularized in the early 1980s by California psychologist Roger J. Callahan, PhD. I can see how professional therapist and doctors have concerns about the use of energy therapy, but if it works, what the hell.

A LITTLE CAJUN HUMOR:

Boudreaux and Thibodeaux were once again spending Saturday night at the City Bar, and after several hours of steady drinking, Thibodeaux suddenly fell backwards off of the bar stool and onto the floor, passed out cold. Boudreaux looks at Thib, looks up at the bartender, and remarks, "Dat's what I like about Thibodeaux. He knows when he done had enough to drink."

Dat's all fo today, podnas.

Ccccccccccccccccccya

Emotional Freedom Techniques

2009-04-08T18:41:00.002-04:00

I have been looking into EFT and downloaded the free manual and will be trying it in the days to come. Gary Craig claims to be the founder of EFT and has a website at the following link: http://www.emofree.com/

I will post my results after I read the manual and try this.

My friend, who happens to be my first cousin, sent me the following email which peeked my interest. Here's the email:

Hey Hoss---Sorry to not have sent you some stuff----and thanx for all the cool shit you sent:)I have been buried in art work from Paul and taking care of Nan is beginning to tax my available time.This EFT thing is getting really interesting. The entire premise of the EFT practice is that all physical ailments appear because of a disruption in the body's energy system. In simpler terms--- it is Acupuncture without the needles. The body is held together by 14 electrical meridians. When there is a blockage of electrical transfer in any of those lines----a physical symptom will appear. Blockages consist of emotional disturbances. Example: A woman came to an EFT practitioner with 3rd stage ovarian cancer. She came with MRI results showing the tumors around her ovaries. She worked with the EFT person for two days prior to a scheduled surgery to remove the tumors. Of course, there was a certainty that at this stage(3), there would be a massive spreading from the infected area.When the surgical team opened her up---there were NO tumors! And----there was no evidence that the cancer had spread anywhere. The amazing part is that the EFT practitioner had been able to discover, for this woman, that the root cause of her tumors was a popsicle. It seems that when she was three years old, her mother took her and her older sister out to the park and bought a treat for the sister but would not give her one until she learned to eat all her nutritious food at home. Her mother was trying to do a good thing in trying to get the 3 year old to eat better since she was prone to eating only sweet treats. To the three year old, it was devastating. She thought her mother did not love her and she carried that emotional scar all of her life and was not even aware of it. That would be no big deal for a grown up child----but it was the end of the world for a three year-old!That emotional upset blocked some of her meridians and would not allow the proper transfers of electrical energy to the affected organs. It would have taken a physichiatrist years and years to find the root cause---to identify the scenario which caused the emotional blockage---even if either one of them could ever have suspected a popsicle! EFT found it in less than a day and relieved it the next day.The magic of this is that just by tapping the meridians and bringing the attention of both hemispheres of the brain to the problem, hidden emotions begin to surface and can be quickly discarded. The body heals almost instantly after the blockage is found and understood.I have not discovered who was the original author of this method, but it is evident that the guy understood quantum physics. Since Einstien figured out E=mc squared---the real bright guys knew that matter does not really exist. It never has and it will not ever. Albert could not say that he knew back in the day. If he had, he would have been relegated to the looney bin:). It was the same for the early QP guys. How could you tell someone that they really did not exist as a body of matter in a finite universe? How could you back up the fact that they discoverd? That fact was that the "Observed cannot be separated from the observer". In layman's terms---it means that you create your own reality.Even with the knowlege we are all pretty much aware of----does it make sense to you that the life you think you live is only a recollection? Does the statement---"You are always one step removed from actual reality by your description of the world", make any sense to you?Well--might as well give you some more shit to make your brow wrinkle:) The way you experience the world is called the "Experiential Loop". It comes in four parts. 1)Your waking consciousness, 2) the brain and the other two computers of the body which comprise the ego, 3) the 'subconscious'(for purposes of discussion only), 4) Super conscious.Here is how it works----The computers in your body retain all your memories of your life thus far----every action you think you ever took, every belief you ever had. They comb the past and provide you with a scenario for you to project into what you think is your future, all based on the limited past. Your waking conscious accesses the scenario in the form of images provided by the body. Now the brain hands the scenario over to the subconscious which is imprinted with your conscious mind's beliefs or filters. The subconscious applies all the filters, taps the super conscious for the power to create it in what you think is your solid reality,(seemingly outside of you) then creates the images according to your beliefs, for you to experience.Now, the Super conscious, your real self, keeps sending what is actually real through the subconscious, not what the ego/body/computers are showing you---and you occasionally receive those things as hunches/urges/wants. That is, when you are not busy with the illusion the body is showing you.So Hoss---what you see everyday you are awake is an illusion. You choose it because of the beliefs ABOUT reality that you have developed through the teachings of teachers, parents and priests----and the influence of the ego.Your conscious mind is not aware of the super conscious which lends the power of creation through the subconscious. It believes the ego(computers) compilation of images out of your past which suggest a future, thereby eliminating the "Now", which is where real reality actually exists----where you have real power.We have all developed a description of the world, at the suggestion of the ego, which is handed off to the subconscious to produce an illusion of the world for you to see. Your conscious mind is always in charge and it really believes in the computer's bullshit.Everything you see is subjective. Simply a product of your acquired beliefs. The ego has convinced you of limitations so that its function can remain alive. Know this---Mind = conscious + subconscious. The ego has inserted itself in between. without it, you can see the real world which you chose when you decided to be born into the space-time environment. the real path is right below the illusion. I think that EFT is the shortcut to fuck the ego out of it's illusional domain.OK---I have burnt your ears and your mind. Take a look and ask some questions---or say fuck dat---and we will leave it alone. what I think is that you have an excellent brain---not to mention the spectacular brain of your wonderful spouse. Brain is mechanical---not mental.Mental is of another realm. It is your native realm.

A Salty Russian Dawg and A Tequilla Sunrise

2009-03-26T13:20:00.000-04:00

The next time your feeling healthy and picking up fruit in the store grab an extra orange and grapefruit. When you get home peel the orange and grapefruit so that all the skin is gone and just the meat is showing. With a sharp knife, core the fruit. A fillet knife is best. With the same very sharp knife, slice into the meat at the dividers on either side of the wedges until you have removed all the membrane holding the meat. Wow, naked fruit. Place the fruit wedges in a plastic bag. One bag for the orange and one for the grapefruit and place the bags in the freezer. Then one day when you remember you put them there, you can try this little treat.

Pour one and a half or more ounces of vodka into a drink glass rimmed with margarita salt. Add approximately four or more ounces of grapefruit juice. Do not add ice. Add two or three slices of the frozen grapefruit wedges and sprinkle in a little margarita salt. Man, you talk about good.

Use the same formula with the orange slices. However, substitute the vodka with tequila and the grapefruit juice with orange juice. Then add a teaspoon of grenadine or cheery juice for the best tequila sunrise this side of the border.

Random stuff

2009-03-19T07:50:00.002-04:00

After reading the following, I am amazed that we are still one nation under god and not under the rising sun. Although, that may not be to far off.

THINGS GW BUSH SAID:

My plan reduces the national debt, and fast. So fast, in fact, that economists worry that we’re going to run out of debt to retire. – George W. Bush, radio address, Feb. 24, 2001.

WHAT?!?!

I’m hopeful. I know there is a lot of ambition in Washington, obviously. But I hope the ambitious realize that they are more likely to succeed with success as opposed to failure. - George W. Bush, Jan. 2001

THIS IS TRUE.

But I also made it clear to [Vladimir Putin] that it’s important to think beyond the old days of when we had the concept that if we blew each other up, the world would be safe. - George W. Bush, May 1, 2001.

THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN TRUE IF BUSH AND PUTIN WOULD HAVE BLOWN EACH OTHER UP.

AND FINALLY…. This is what Bush said when asked to clarify his Social Security plan.

Because the — all which is on the table begins to address the big cost drivers. For example, how benefits are calculate, for example, is on the table; whether or not benefits rise based upon wage increases or price increases. There’s a series of parts of the formula that are being considered. And when you couple that, those different cost drivers, affecting those — changing those with personal accounts, the idea is to get what has been promised more likely to be — or closer delivered to what has been promised. Does that make any sense to you? It’s kind of muddled. Look, there’s a series of things that cause the — like, for example, benefits are calculated based upon the increase of wages, as opposed to the increase of prices. Some have suggested that we calculate — the benefits will rise based upon inflation, as opposed to wage increases. There is a reform that would help solve the red if that were put into effect. In other words, how fast benefits grow, how fast the promised benefits grow, if those — if that growth is affected, it will help on the red. - George W. Bush, when asked to clarify his Social Security plan, 2005.

OH. NOW I UNDERSTAND.

RECIPES:

I have another recipe I would like to share. The first one is my variation of the second. The second one I got off the web. Enjoy.

PORK POT ROAST A LA JZ

2 lbs. boneless pork Boston shoulder roast
1 table spoon of olive oil1 teaspoon dried thyme, or sprinkle on to taste
SaltBlack Pepper
Beer1 ½ cups apple juice or cider1 tbsp. cider vinegar1 large or 2 small potatoes, pared and quartered or rings 1 inch thick½ of 12 oz. bag of small peeled carrots 2 six inch stalks celery, cut in 1 inch pieces
1 clove of garlic1 lg. or 2 small onions, cut in wedges1 med. apple, pared and cut in wedges

Brown roast in olive oil in a large stew pot. Sprinkle roast with thyme, salt, and pepper while browning. After the roast is golden brown, pour some beer in the pot to pick up the roast’s juices. Add apple cider/juice and vinegar to the pot and bring to a boil. Cover, then reduce the heat to a simmer and simmer for 1 hour. Add potatoes, carrots, celery, garlic, and onion to the pot. Return to boil. Cover, and then reduce the heat to a simmer and simmer until pork and vegetables are tender, about 30 to 40 minutes. Check every 5 to 10 minutes for consistency and tenderness. Add apple wedges to the pot when you feel you have about 15 to 20 minutes left to cooking.

ORININAL PORK POT ROAST A LA WILLIAM TELL

4 lbs. boneless pork Boston shoulder roast1 tsp. dried thyme2 c. apple juice or cider1 tbsp. cider vinegar3 med. potatoes, pared and quartered3 med. carrots, cut in 1/2 inch pieces2 stalks celery, cut in 1 inch pieces1 lg. onion, cut in wedges1 med. apple, pared and cut in wedgesSaltPepper

Sprinkle roast with thyme; place in 4 quart Dutch oven. Add apple juice and vinegar to roast. Bring to boiling. Cover; reduce heat and simmer for 1 1/2 hours. Add potatoes, carrots, celery and onion to roast. Return to boiling. Cover; reduce heat and simmer until pork and vegetables are tender, about 1 hour. Add apple wedges to roast during last 15 minutes of cooking.

CAJUN HUMOR: (Yes, I am a coonass.)

This is from the website http://www.louisiana101.com/cajun.html.
Boudreaux spotted Thibodeaux walking down the levee the other day, carrying a sack over his shoulder. Well, of course, curiosity got the best of Boudreaux, and he asked Thibodeaux, "Hey, Mon Homme, what you got in dat sack ?" Thibodeaux said, "Mais, I got me some chickens in dat sack." Boudreaux asked, "If I can guess how many chickens you got in dat sack, can I have one of dem?"Thibodeaux replied, "Mais, my fren, if you can guess how many I got, you can have both of dem!"

Random stuff

2009-03-11T15:01:00.000-04:00

Observations of a Newcomer:

I just finished reading comments on the AOL news article about Burlington Coat Factory (BCF). It seems BCF got caught doing some label switching. Most of the comments followed the same trend. There is a lot of dishonesty in the sale of American goods, and what fuels it is the gullible people who fall for all the sales antics.

I also noticed that the thread of the conversation moved from a discussion of retail fraud to a more political one. Some of the posts were obviously mean, others were snotty, a lot were good info from experienced people, and I noticed only one, of course I didn't read them all, that called upon us to realize these are the "End Days" and that God should have mercy on us all. Oh well, I am new to these posted conversations (Only just arriving on this planet a couple of months ago.) and will have to visit other blogs and forums to see what is going on in this universe.

There are a lot of different opinions around.

Cajun Humor: (Yes, I am a coonass.)

An eight year old boy was riding his bicycle in Lancaster, Texas, when he saw his friend being attacked by a large pit bull. The boy jumped off his bike, ran and jumped on the dog's back. After prying the vicious animals teeth from his young friend's body, he put the dog in a choke hold and held on until the dog was dead.

The local newspaper editor happened to witness this feat and after calling for an ambulance on his cell phone, ran over to the young hero and said, "Son, that was one of the bravest things I have ever seen. You're going to make tomorrow's headlines. It will read: 'Dallas Cowboy Fan is Hero--Risks His Life & Saves Young Friend From Vicious Pit Bull Attack."

The youngster said, "That's nice, but I'm not a Cowboy fan."

The editor said "O.K., then it will read 'Texas Tech fan saves young friend's life in pit-bull attack."

The young man said, "But I'm not a Texas Tech fan."

The editor thought for a moment and then replied, "Oh OK, it will read 'Aggie fan saves
friend's life."

Once again the young man interrupted saying, "I'm not an Aggie fan either."

The editor becoming somewhat irritated asked, "Then who is your favorite team?"

The kid replied with a big smile, "L.S.U." (Louisiana State University)

The next morning the local newspaper headlines read: "BELOVED FAMILY PET MURDERED BY LITTLE CAJUN COONASS BOY"!!!!

Recipe:

J Z’s fry pan tomato meat sauce

March 13, 2009

1 pound ground beef or pork
1 medium onion or ½ large
½ bell pepper
1 small clove of garlic
1 stalk of celery
1 can of stewed tomatoes
1 can of black olives
1 cup of fresh mushrooms (Preferably shitake and/or Portobello)
1 tablespoon of olive oil

Heat oil in fry pan and add ground meat. Allow to brown for about 5 minutes, then add garlic and celery. Brown for 2 to 3 more minutes then add onion and bell pepper. Allow onion to start clarifying and bell pepper to begin to soften. It should take about 5 more minutes, but about 2 to 3 minutes after adding onion and bell pepper add stewed tomatoes and black olives. Simmer for 2 to 3 minutes, then add mushrooms. Blend for about 3 to 5 minutes.

Eat it as is, serve over pasta, or on garlic toast.
Deeeeeelicious

That's all for today yall.

News Media - Very little news, mostly speculation.

2009-03-06T10:14:00.000-05:00

I've been around a while and have seen the news being broadcast for a long time. If you remember John Cameron Swayze, the Huntley-Brinkley Report, and the CBS Evening news with Walter Cronkite, you know what I mean. If your to young to remember those folks, look them up on Wikipedia. Also, if your to young to remember them, you have never been subject to what was meant by "REPORTING" the news.

What got me going this morning was while I was watching the "News" I realized that there was very little "news" being reported as compared to the amount of speculation and fortune telling that was going on. For example, the anchor person reports that the Dow dropped over $281.00 yesterday. Which is news fact. Which everybody already new any way. Then he is joined by an "expert" to discuss how this will effect us all and proceeds to warn us all to be prepared. Further, they then proceed to tell us what we should do. This is all ratings related and has nothing to do with reporting the news. The media tries to be all things to all people. It's almost like they are talking down to us. Like they can predict the future. Who made them all-knowing?

I find this insulting to the intelligence of the human race.

Chicken thighs and drumsticks, pan fried.

2009-03-03T14:30:00.000-05:00

This is my second post and I wanted to share something with whoever may read this. The thing I like to do most is eat, so I chose to share two versions of the same method to pan fry chicken. One is my Mother's method and the other is the way I modified it, with the help my best friend, who happens to be my wife. Both are delicious. Enjoy.

Mother's: (I love the simplicity.)

Chicken parts
Granola oil
Onion
Garlic
Salt & pepper

Salt & pepper chicken. Brown chicken in oil about 30 to 45 min. Add veggies and simmer until veggies and chicken are done to your taste. Add water for gravy. Serve over rice.

My alterations: (I love the gravy and rice, but Mom's method didn't make enough gravy.)

Chicken parts (Drumsticks and thighs)
Granola oil and/or butter
Chicken broth
Beer
Onion
Garlic (Fresh clove)
Salt & pepper.

Salt & pepper chicken. Brown chicken on medium to medium-low heat in oil and/or butter about 30 to 45 minutes, turning pieces about every 4 to 6 minutes. Add beer as needed to steam flavor chicken, to pick up browning glaze, and keep chicken from sticking. Add veggies just before chicken has reached the desired color and simmer until veggies are done to your taste. Add chicken broth for gravy if desired. I have used beer and water to pick up the tasty brown stuff on the bottom of the pan for a gravy and added the chicken broth.

Serve over rice.

Taste tip - sprinkle a drop or two of vinegar pepper, or Tabasco sauce on a spoonful of the rice and gravy every now and then as you are having your meal. Also, cucumbers soaked in white vinegar, salt, and pepper are good as a side. Green beans are a good side also.

My first entry.

2009-03-03T10:03:00.000-05:00

This is my first post. I'm not sure if I will like this but....what the hell...lets give it a try.