SO I've been watching the latest round of political ads here in Oregon, where the only really truly contested race is Gordon Smith (R) vs. Jeff Merkley (D) for US Senate.
I'm not the biggest Gordon Smith fan, and BOTH sides' ads are particularly negative, but here's the part that has struck me as interesting:
Every pro-Smith ad, and all but ONE anti-Merkley ad, that I've seen, has been accompanied by the now cliche, "I'm Gordon Smith, and I approve of this ad". But EVERY ad I've seen promoting Merkley or attacking Smith has been the responsibility of, and sponsored by, one liberal PAC or another -- SEIU, the Oregon Democratic Party. Not ONCE have I heard from my TV, "I'm Jeff Merkley, and I approve of this ad".
Which is interesting, because the ads approve of HIM. Pity the man doesn't have the balls to speak for himself.
UPDATE 8/21:
It's about time. I finally saw one of the pro-Merkley ads today, one that was originally either a DSCC or SEIU-COPE ad, that is now ending with, "I'm Jeff Merkley, and I approve of this ad". I guess I'm not the only one who commented on this.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Qoute of the Week
"And just talking about "the least of these" at Rick Warren's church just makes it worse; you're for the little guy? Well, they don't come any littler. "
-- Reader Noel at Ace of Spades HQ, regarding Obama's stance on the Born Alive Bill.
-- Reader Noel at Ace of Spades HQ, regarding Obama's stance on the Born Alive Bill.
Long Week
I quit my job last Thursday. I won't go into details except to say that I'd had enough.
I called the winery back last week, they said call me back when I have a car. I've quite afew apps and resumes out, including to the U and the local hospital. Meanwhile, I'll be splitting my time between job hunting and being househusband, a job I tolerate at best.
I called the winery back last week, they said call me back when I have a car. I've quite afew apps and resumes out, including to the U and the local hospital. Meanwhile, I'll be splitting my time between job hunting and being househusband, a job I tolerate at best.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Guyology 101
A Tip of the Toque to The Ministry of Minor Perfidy via the Max Leader at Naked Villainy.
The Periodic Table of Awesoments.
The Periodic Table of Awesoments.
Smallholder Must Be Pleased
Because White people are icky and owe everyone else a better life.
A Tip of the Toque to Ace of Spades.
A Tip of the Toque to Ace of Spades.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Quote of the Day
A Tip of the Toque to George Will via The Maximum Leader:
"Not since the Nazi’s 1934 Nuremberg rally, which Leni Riefenstahl turned into the film “Triumph of the Will,” has tyranny been so brazenly tarted up as art."
"Not since the Nazi’s 1934 Nuremberg rally, which Leni Riefenstahl turned into the film “Triumph of the Will,” has tyranny been so brazenly tarted up as art."
Friday, August 08, 2008
Thursday, August 07, 2008
Tragedy
Oregon has lost some of its heroes.
This was on the local news here tonight. The pilot and six of the firefighters were from tiny Merlin, Oregon, outside Grants Pass.
Wildland firefighters are justifiably adored here in the west -- I'm sure they're admired everywhere, but wildland fires are a particularly prevalent threat here, between the brush of Southern California and the timberlands of the Northwest. And when the sh**, or in this case thesparks, hit the fan, everyone who can lends a hand to fight the fires -- from local volunteers crews all the way up to National Guardsmen. But those who make a career out of facing the red devil -- particularly elite units like Hotshots, smokejumpers, and Helitack crews are out heroes. Fighting wildland fire is like fighting a war against an enemy that never surrenders, always fights to the death.
So when we lose one, it's a tragedy. But when we lose NINE? It's devastating -- even if you have never met them. And my heart goes out tonight especially to the family of the men lost and to the town of Merlin -- they knew these men personally, had social and business contact with them daily (and in a small town in the Northwest, business contact IS social contact). They didn't just lose heroes, they lost friends.
According to the local news, there was an incredibly heroic act after the crash -- there were four survivors, and eyewitnesses report that the third survivor went back into the burning helo to retrieve the fourth.
Keep everyone involved in your prayers. This is the first crash of a helicopter owned by this particular company in its entire history. The survivors, their associates who weren't involved, their friends, their families, and the people of the Northwest whom they served have all suffered a great loss.
This was on the local news here tonight. The pilot and six of the firefighters were from tiny Merlin, Oregon, outside Grants Pass.
Wildland firefighters are justifiably adored here in the west -- I'm sure they're admired everywhere, but wildland fires are a particularly prevalent threat here, between the brush of Southern California and the timberlands of the Northwest. And when the sh**, or in this case thesparks, hit the fan, everyone who can lends a hand to fight the fires -- from local volunteers crews all the way up to National Guardsmen. But those who make a career out of facing the red devil -- particularly elite units like Hotshots, smokejumpers, and Helitack crews are out heroes. Fighting wildland fire is like fighting a war against an enemy that never surrenders, always fights to the death.
So when we lose one, it's a tragedy. But when we lose NINE? It's devastating -- even if you have never met them. And my heart goes out tonight especially to the family of the men lost and to the town of Merlin -- they knew these men personally, had social and business contact with them daily (and in a small town in the Northwest, business contact IS social contact). They didn't just lose heroes, they lost friends.
According to the local news, there was an incredibly heroic act after the crash -- there were four survivors, and eyewitnesses report that the third survivor went back into the burning helo to retrieve the fourth.
Keep everyone involved in your prayers. This is the first crash of a helicopter owned by this particular company in its entire history. The survivors, their associates who weren't involved, their friends, their families, and the people of the Northwest whom they served have all suffered a great loss.
Tuesday, August 05, 2008
People Skills Advice for Front of the House Folks
If you're an opener and have open tabs when you clock out, is understandable that you'd be upset if the closers don't tip you out of those tabs. However, if you also happen to be the bartender least prone to tipping out the back of the house, bitching to the cook about the closers probably isn't going to garner you the sympathetic response you hoped for.
Monday, August 04, 2008
Musical Geography Trivia Question of the Day
Vic gets a Bye on this one, and is ineligible to answer, because I know he knows it. For second place:
If your country told you there's work to be done, so they gave you a tin hat and gave you a gun, to where did they send you?
If your country told you there's work to be done, so they gave you a tin hat and gave you a gun, to where did they send you?
That Rhytmic Thudding You Hear Is My Head Hitting the Desk
I just got off the phone with the sous chef at the restaurant at King Estate. I responded to a job posting, and found out via the phone call that it was them. This is the second time they've called me, once was back in the srping, that time it was the executive chef. The place is amazing -- the winery, the land, the restaurant. It's elegant, it's high quality, everything about it is wonderful, and it's damned well close to perfect in terms of the kind of work I want to do.
The problem is, it's 23 miles from where I live, and TFR and I share one car -- a car which, by the by, would burn over 2 gallons of gas per day to get me to work and back if I got a job at K.E.
I explained all of this to the sous chef -- the job is a dream job for me, but I just can't consider it until my transportation situation changes. He was disappointed, but understanding, and encouraged me to give him a call if and when my situation changes. I was close to tears when I got off the phone. I want so badly to be working in a real restaurant, cooking good food for people who aren't eating merely to help absorb some of the copious amounts of alcohol they're consuming. The place where I'm working now has provided some... ahem... interesting work experience, but I don't feel challenged, I find it hard to take pride in the product, even doing my best, just because of the "quality" of product being used. The owner's wife is a controlling harridan who is constantly meddling in the kitchen, despite having NO experience as a cook or chef, and on several occasions has scolded (and given her tone, that's the best word I can think of) me for failing to follow procedures that I was never informed of in the first place, or for doing things in a certain way, when that is the way I was trained by the existing staff. And to top it all off, despite repeatedly telling them that I need more hours, they're still only scheduling me 15-20 hours per week. I can't continue that -- I need a full time job. And now, when I have a shot at one I'd love, I can't take it. I'm going to keep on trying for a better position, but it kills me that I have to let this one pass me by.
The problem is, it's 23 miles from where I live, and TFR and I share one car -- a car which, by the by, would burn over 2 gallons of gas per day to get me to work and back if I got a job at K.E.
I explained all of this to the sous chef -- the job is a dream job for me, but I just can't consider it until my transportation situation changes. He was disappointed, but understanding, and encouraged me to give him a call if and when my situation changes. I was close to tears when I got off the phone. I want so badly to be working in a real restaurant, cooking good food for people who aren't eating merely to help absorb some of the copious amounts of alcohol they're consuming. The place where I'm working now has provided some... ahem... interesting work experience, but I don't feel challenged, I find it hard to take pride in the product, even doing my best, just because of the "quality" of product being used. The owner's wife is a controlling harridan who is constantly meddling in the kitchen, despite having NO experience as a cook or chef, and on several occasions has scolded (and given her tone, that's the best word I can think of) me for failing to follow procedures that I was never informed of in the first place, or for doing things in a certain way, when that is the way I was trained by the existing staff. And to top it all off, despite repeatedly telling them that I need more hours, they're still only scheduling me 15-20 hours per week. I can't continue that -- I need a full time job. And now, when I have a shot at one I'd love, I can't take it. I'm going to keep on trying for a better position, but it kills me that I have to let this one pass me by.
Friday, August 01, 2008
Kitchen Staff... er... Distaff...
Poor TFR gets pretty frustrated at times -- with my passion for cuisine and territoriality in the kitchen, she seldom gets a chance to express her own culinary creativity. But earlier this week, on her days off (Sunday, Monday and Tuesday), she asserted herself, and the results were damned tasty.
Monday she made shish kebabs with cubed sirloin, peppers, and onions. She took a "Mediterranean" style salad dressing mix, and instead of may, mixed it with lime juice and olive oil, and used it as the marinade. We had pitas and hummus on the side, and paired it with a Chardonnay. Then on Tuesday she made a delicious vegetable beef soup from scratch.
Then I took over again. I love her, and she's a great cook, but the kitchen is, for me, what the woodshop or the den or the underside of an old car being restored in the garage is to some men.
Wednedsay it was sea scallops wrapped in bacon and glazed with Berryaki.
Last night it was homemade carne asada tacos.
Tonight I'm trying a riff on tina fish sandwiches. I'm starting with fresh-caught wild albacore from the Oregon coast. I'm going to give it a quick sear and then slice it thin, carpaccio-style. I'll lay it on sourdough crostini, then drizzle it with a dijon-balsamic vinaigrette, and serve it with home-cooked krinkle potato chips.
Monday she made shish kebabs with cubed sirloin, peppers, and onions. She took a "Mediterranean" style salad dressing mix, and instead of may, mixed it with lime juice and olive oil, and used it as the marinade. We had pitas and hummus on the side, and paired it with a Chardonnay. Then on Tuesday she made a delicious vegetable beef soup from scratch.
Then I took over again. I love her, and she's a great cook, but the kitchen is, for me, what the woodshop or the den or the underside of an old car being restored in the garage is to some men.
Wednedsay it was sea scallops wrapped in bacon and glazed with Berryaki.
Last night it was homemade carne asada tacos.
Tonight I'm trying a riff on tina fish sandwiches. I'm starting with fresh-caught wild albacore from the Oregon coast. I'm going to give it a quick sear and then slice it thin, carpaccio-style. I'll lay it on sourdough crostini, then drizzle it with a dijon-balsamic vinaigrette, and serve it with home-cooked krinkle potato chips.
My Word!
Your Vocabulary Score: A |
 Congratulations on your multifarious vocabulary! You must be quite an erudite person. |
Monday, July 28, 2008
Ich Bin Ein Elitist
A Tip of the Toque to Glenn Beck.
Apparently, not long after Michelle Obama was proud of her country for the first time, Barack Obama is embarassed by it.
So his pastor says God Damn America.
His wife was never proud of America until this year.
And now he's embarassed by America.
Way to be a citizen of the world, Barry. Remind us again why that qualifies you to be President of the United States of America? Or why you'd even want to, considering how embarassed we make you?
Apparently, not long after Michelle Obama was proud of her country for the first time, Barack Obama is embarassed by it.
So his pastor says God Damn America.
His wife was never proud of America until this year.
And now he's embarassed by America.
Way to be a citizen of the world, Barry. Remind us again why that qualifies you to be President of the United States of America? Or why you'd even want to, considering how embarassed we make you?
Sunday, July 27, 2008
The Northwest Has Been Berry Good to Me
I don't suppose that anyone who has read my blog for very long would be surprised that my most recent culinary experiment (from the ground up, not refining previous efforts) would be a Northwest variation on a theme from elsewhere. But this time, I decided to foray into Northwest-Asian fusion. We do, after all, share the Pacific Rim with Asia, and in fact the U of O is home to the Center for Asian and Pacific studies, and for a city of less than 200,000 Eugene has an amazing number of Asian restaurants -- mostly Chinese, followed by Thai and then Japanese and fusion.
I decided that I'd get into the fusion mood in a big way, and so the name of my dish reflects not only the fusion of Northwest and Asian cuisine, but also a fusion of my love of cuisine and really really atricious puns. With that in mind, I present to you:
Rasperryaki Glaze
1 1/2 cups red raspberry syrup
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. ginger paste
1 tsp. Sriracha chili sauce
1 Tbsp. honey
Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan. Head to simmering, reduce by 1/4. Use as a glaze on meat, etc.
The other day when I did my hazelnut encrusted salmon, I'd purchased the sockeye whole and busted it down into fillets myself. Last night I fired up the grill and tried my glaze on the rest of that salmon, served it with grilled corn again, and paired it with a King Estate '07 Pinot Gris. I was quite pleased with the results. The glaze does have a hint of berry flavor, enough to give it some distinction, but not so overpowering that it loses the terriyaki influence, and the saltiness of the soy prevents the syrup from being cloying (a real danger with a sweet fish like salmon).
I decided that I'd get into the fusion mood in a big way, and so the name of my dish reflects not only the fusion of Northwest and Asian cuisine, but also a fusion of my love of cuisine and really really atricious puns. With that in mind, I present to you:
Rasperryaki Glaze
1 1/2 cups red raspberry syrup
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. ginger paste
1 tsp. Sriracha chili sauce
1 Tbsp. honey
Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan. Head to simmering, reduce by 1/4. Use as a glaze on meat, etc.
The other day when I did my hazelnut encrusted salmon, I'd purchased the sockeye whole and busted it down into fillets myself. Last night I fired up the grill and tried my glaze on the rest of that salmon, served it with grilled corn again, and paired it with a King Estate '07 Pinot Gris. I was quite pleased with the results. The glaze does have a hint of berry flavor, enough to give it some distinction, but not so overpowering that it loses the terriyaki influence, and the saltiness of the soy prevents the syrup from being cloying (a real danger with a sweet fish like salmon).
The Only Constant is Change
A while back I blogged on a recipe I developed on the fly, and then on my efforts to refine the recipe.
Well, despite my pleasure with those results, I continue to refine it, and here are the latest refinements:
1. 86 the cranberries
2. shallots instead of onions
3. roasted filberts, not raw
4. fewer filberts, more rosemary
5. deglaze with bourbon, not wine, and add apple juice before reducing
I served it with garlic mashed yukon golds and sauteed green beans this time.
Well, despite my pleasure with those results, I continue to refine it, and here are the latest refinements:
1. 86 the cranberries
2. shallots instead of onions
3. roasted filberts, not raw
4. fewer filberts, more rosemary
5. deglaze with bourbon, not wine, and add apple juice before reducing
I served it with garlic mashed yukon golds and sauteed green beans this time.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Musical Geography Trivia Question of the Day
If King George commands, where specifically do we obey?
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