Colour My World - 31 March 2021 - Plague Journal Day 384

Micah 6:8 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Micah+6%3A8&version=ESV

Yes, your life matters. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy+30:19&version=ESV

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Today is National Crayon Day - I always liked the Umbers and Siennas best. Ultramarine was good too.
I was searching the web for pictures of Crayola crayon packages and found the one above. It took me back to my childhood, as that was the box I remember using for all kinds of important projects. We didn't have a lot of luxury items, that's for sure, but we did have good arts and crafts stuff. I guess that really was a pretty big part of my upbringing.

I wonder what liking tertiary colours best says about a person. I'm not big on primaries (Red, Yellow, Blue), secondaries are OK (Orange, Green, Purple), but I'm more of a tertiary guy (Browns, really). Of course I do like my purple and orange sweaters (that's two different ones), and my Detroit Express Staff shirt with the Orange and Blue stripes still hangs proudly in my closet (graced with the autograph of the trainer - Karl Glass!).

In unrelated news, here's one that Christian needs to celebrate carefully. Today is National Tater Day. I suppose if he thinks of it as home runs that's not so bad (although it's before Opening Day, so that's not likely to be the real reference), but if he wants to be able to eat anything else he'll need more than a modicum of moderation.

In even more unrelated news, there are a couple interesting birthdays today.
Johann Sebastian Bach, Saxon organist and composer was born in 1685, following René Descartes, French philosopher and mathematician (or was he Spanish, Mark?) who was born in 1596.
It's pretty cool - Descartes spoke about Creation with Mathematics, and Bach spoke to God with Mathematics. (Thanks to Poul Anderson for that quote about Bach!)

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

19 August 2020 - Plague Journal Day 159

Micah 6:8
Colossians 4:5-6
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Today is Black Cow Root Beer Float Day. One has to wonder why this particular treat gets celebrated so frequently. After all, earlier this month we had plain old Root Beer Float Day at which time I wondered whether that mightn't also called a Black Cow, and opined that it could. As it turns out, I was right (see post of August 6).

It further eventuates that today is National Potato Day - what is your favorite potato dish? With this confluence of commemorations it might be fun to make a gravy float - a glass of gravy with a scoop of mashed potatoes in it, much in the manner of a Black Cow / Boston Cooler.
I think that sounds lovely, and it reminds me of a cocktail challenge of a few years ago, when my sister challenged me to come up with a gravy-based cocktail, eventuating in the invention of the Gravy Alexander. It was very like a Brandy Alexander, but seasoned with spices normally associated with a roasted turkey and its gravy. (Hmm, maybe gravy is the mother of invention, eh, Frank? I suppose we could ask a vegetable.)

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.

31 March 2020 - Plague Journal Day 19

Well, folks, here we all are, sheltering in place.
At least that's true for those of us who aren't essential. Doesn't that make you feel special?

At any rate, I'll try to be here daily to provide some cheer, some perspective, and some snide comments (possibly even some sarcastic remarks - we shall see).

First up -
Today is very special. Not only is it National Crayon Day, it's also National Tater Day!
How, one wonders, might one combine the celebrations of this pair of commemorations?
How indeed?

Aha! Simplicity itself!
Using your trusty Crayolas, you can create some bespoke clothing for your Mister Potato Head!

Keep Calm and Stay Away.

Carnage du Jour - 06 February 2012

Ah, salmon once again. What a flavourful, yet versatile fish is our friend Salmo salar (the salmon)!

There was a nice piece of salmon fillet in the refrigerator, just calling our names, and it would have been impolite to ignore it, so - out it came.
I gave a nice dusting of Old Bay (!) and then a bit of corn meal to the flesh side and gave it a quick sear in the skillet. Then I flipped it skin side down and put the pan in the oven (400 or so, as I recall) with a nice pool of Vermouth Bianco as the liquid for a nice oven-poach.

It actually was joining some potato wedges that had been roasting for some time (with some salt, pepper and dill), so all would finish up at the same time.

Oh, but what to go with potatoes and salmon? How about some sautéed spinach? Great idea. A bit of onion sautéed up first, then in goes the spinach and some pine nuts, finishing off with a bit of alfredo sauce, just to make it nice and creamy.

Can you say delicious? I knew you could. Now I'd like to hear you play your bass.

Cheers!

Carnage du Jour - 17 Apr 10 - Guess Who Came to Dinner

Well, that was a great evening.

At our church (Grosse Pointe United Methodist), the Witness committee came up with a very fun event. Batches of folks signed up to eat together, but without knowing with whom they'd be eating, nor where, for that matter. Some of us offered to host (the others offered to guest, one supposes), the hosting responsibilities being (in general) providing the entrée and beverages and sometimes a starch.

Heidi and I hosted, and I know you're all dying to know what entrée we served. Well, after much thought, debate, and surveying of the grocery adverts, we determined that many of our hosting compatriots would be serving beef tenderloin. We briefly considered the porcine alternative (after all, there are endless possibilities there, no?), but finally rejected it for a simple recipe from our family camping history - coq au vin.

Yes, there was even bacon grease in the freezer for browning the chicken and the pearl onions and carrots and mushrooms and all that.
Once the skillet had finished its duty, all went straight into the old roaster we inherited with our house and simmered away happily for a few hours before serving time.
Oh, not being certain of the status of our meal's starch element, we also roasted some nice red and white new potatoes with a bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper, and then dressed them with freshly minced parsley at service. They were quite tasty as well.

The cleanup of the baconage was less onerous than I had expected, after seeing how splattery everything tried to be, thanks in large part to the double spatter-guard technology I employed, using both the screen type cover on the skillet and the metal shoji to create a walled garden around it as well.

All in all, the food was excellent (not just mine, but all the contributions were top rate), and the company and conversation even better.

Again, a great evening, and an event that deserves to be repeated.

Carnage du Jour - 24 August 09

Wow -
I asked Jon whether he thought the Norwegian Salmon were worth the extra cost per pound, and he answered from experience. In essence, he told me that he didn't really believe it until he tried it himself, and it's a whole different kind of salmon.
Apparently these salmon are fed in such a way to have double or triple the fat content of our domestic farm-raised types. This lends a roundness and buttery mouth feel - basically, theses are Kobe Salmon, but instead of sake, they get akvavit. (OK, I just made up that last part.)

At any rate, a quick bake / braise with a few herbs and a bit of olive oil later, and I was a convert as well. Delicious with some sour cream-laced mashed potatoes and buttery green beans. (No, not haricots verts - these were good old American green beans.)

Yum!