Subdeacon Joe

On the subject of dessert: Peel and core some apples, something like pippin or granny smith. If you have a mandolin run them through the julienne blade, if not, then either grate them on the large side of your box grater or julienne them by hand. Melt some butter in a pan, add the apples, some sugar (brown sugar is really nice), some cinnamon, nutmeg, maybe some cloves, maybe some ginger either powdered or fresh grated. Finely diced crystalized ginger is nice too. Saute' for a few minutes to get the flavors to blend. Get out your spring roll wrappers, or similar (you see where this is going? ) and put about 1 1/2 to to TBS on the wrapper, do the usual spring roll roll up. Get some oil going in a pan, maybe 3/4 of an inch deep. Place 3 or 4 in the pan, let them brown on one side, then flip and brown on the other. Remove to paper towels and dust with cinnamon and sugar to taste. GREAT served with vanilla bean ice cream.

Heh! As I'm typing an appetizer Hardpan is posting dessert!

Another that initially looks harder than it is. It is somewhat time consuming, what with dishing and browning the meatballs, but the of it are idiot simple. Dr. Pepper Meatballs For the Meatballs 1 lb. ground beef 1/2 c. breadcrumbs 1 Egg, lightly beaten 1 tsp. garlic powder 1/2 tsp. paprika kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper 1 tbsp. olive oil parsley, for garnish FOR THE SAUCE 2 c. ketchup 2 cans Dr. Pepper 2 tbsp. tomato paste 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce 1 tsp. onion powder kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper DIRECTIONS In a large bowl, mix together beef, breadcrumbs, egg, garlic powder and paprika. Season with salt and pepper and mix until combined. Form into small ping-pong ball sized meatballs (use a #50 disher). In another large bowl, whisk together ketchup, Dr. Pepper, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce and onion powder. Season with salt and pepper. In a large skillet over medium heat, heat oil. Add meatballs to the pan and brown on all sides. When meatballs are browned, add the sauce to the skillet and bring to a simmer. Let simmer, basting the meatballs sporadically with a spoon, until sauce has reduced by half and meatballs are cooked through, 8-10 minutes. Garnish with parsley and serve. You could also, after browning the meatballs, dump everything into a slow cooker. A hint on recipes: When I find recipes I like I usually copy them, paste them in Notepad to remove formatting and do some editing. Then I copy and paste into Word. I usually then use Times New Roman for the font, put the title into 24 point, and try to keep the ingredients and directions in 16 point. I then put the ingredients into two columns, this makes it easy to see where the ingredients end and the instructions start. If it goes to three pages I'll reduce the font size to 14, and sometimes even 12 to try to keep it to two pages, but I like the larger font for ease of reading. If there are several parts, as in this, the main I keep plain, then the next will be in italics for both the ingredients and the directions. A third might get underlined or bold. Why do all that? It gives me visual clues. I use a magnet and put it on the hood over the stove. A large font lets me read it from several feet away. Using italics, underline, etc. lets me quickly see where I need to be reading from several feet away.

I had posted this in Facebook seven years ago. I wonder how many different languages it went through, and which ones, to get to this: Esoteric pay off indeed.

Every time I see things like this posted on other social media there is sure to be someone who will trot out a line like, "Well, it isn't really ad bad as it looks. The foreshortening from the big lens just makes it seem like that." Sorry, any time that a plane lands cocked close to 45 degrees from the line of the runway there isn't any "foreshortening" that will account for it. Yeah, maybe it wasn't something that happened in the last half mile, and they had been fighting it for five or six miles, but to be able to tame that beast is impressive.

Sunk by their own depth charge? I find that theory reasonable. Especially when coupled with that fitting that may have been broken from the blast. Endless speculation and we will never know for sure.

Might I suggest "Cold Lake Codger?" Means about the same, but flows trippingly off the tongue, and with the first syllable of the last word echoing the starting sound of the first, somewhat alliterative.

Great little series, isn't it? A fun way of getting some real history across without pounding it in. Of course, knowing what is and what isn't actual history in that series can be interesting. I take it you would be one of "Harry's guys."

Found on Facebook: $5.37! That's what the kid behind the counter at Taco Bell said to me. I dug into my pocket and pulled out some lint and two dimes and something that used to be a Jolly Rancher. Having already handed the kid a five-spot, I started to head back out to the truck to grab some change when the kid with the Elmo hairdo said the hardest thing anyone has ever said to me. He said, "It's OK. I'll just give you the senior citizen discount." I turned to see who he was talking to and then heard the sound of change hitting the counter in front of me. "Only $4.68" he said cheerfully. I stood there stupefied. I am 56, not even 60 yet? A mere child! Senior citizen? I took my burrito and walked out to the truck wondering what was wrong with Elmo. Was he blind? As I sat in the truck, my blood began to boil. Old? Me? I'll show him, I thought. I opened the door and headed back inside. I strode to the counter, and there he was waiting with a smile. Before I could say a word, he held up something and jingled it in front of me, like I could be that easily distracted! What am I now? A toddler? "Dude! Can't get too far without your car keys, eh?" I stared with utter disdain at the keys. I began to rationalize in my mind! "Leaving keys behind hardly makes a man elderly! It could happen to anyone!" I turned and headed back to the truck. I slipped the key into the ignition, but it wouldn't turn. What now? I checked my keys and tried another. Still nothing. That's when I noticed the purple beads hanging from my rear view mirror. I had no purple beads hanging from my rear view mirror. Then, a few other objects came into focus: The car seat in the back seat. Happy Meal toys spread all over the floorboard. A partially eaten dough nut on the dashboard. Faster than you can say ginkgo biloba, I flew out of the alien vehicle. Moments later I was speeding out of the parking lot, relieved to finally be leaving this nightmarish stop in my life. That is when I felt it, deep in the bowels of my stomach: hunger! My stomach growled and churned, and I reached to grab my burrito, only it was nowhere to be found. I swung the truck around, gathered my courage, and strode back into the restaurant one final time. There Elmo stood, draped in youth and black nail polish. All I could think was, "What is the world coming to?" All I could say was, "Did I leave my food and drink in here"? At this point I was ready to ask a Boy Scout to help me back to my vehicle, and then go straight home and apply for Social Security benefits. Elmo had no clue. I walked back out to the truck, and suddenly a young lad came up and tugged on my jeans to get my attention. He was holding up a drink and a bag. His mother explained, "I think you left this in my truck by mistake." I took the food and drink from the little boy and sheepishly apologized. She offered these kind words: "It's OK. My grandfather does stuff like this all the time." All of this is to explain how I got a ticket doing 85 in a 40 mph zone. Yessss, I was racing some punk kid in a Toyota Prius. And no, I told the officer, I'm not too old to be driving this fast. As I walked in the front door, my wife met me halfway down the hall. I handed her a bag of cold food and a $300 speeding ticket. I promptly sat in my rocking chair and covered up my legs with a blankey. The good news was that I had successfully found my way home. Pass this on to the other "old fogies" on your list (so they can have fun laughing, too). Notice the larger type? That's for those of us who have trouble reading. P.S. Save the earth...... It's the only planet with chocolate!!!!! Oops, did I send this to you already?

In terms of vessels ratio of 1:1. In terms of men the ratio is 1:21 ( I think).

Noted. Title edited.

You mean this? Being, in part, thus:

"Does the wind always blow like this here?" "No, Ma'am. Sometimes it comes from the East." I had an uncle that had a little cabin up in Jackass Gulch Jawbone Canyon. Little airstrip near it. Can't remember the name of the ranch it was on. Took about an hour to get from there to Weldon going out Jawbone Canyon Road (I just drove it, I didn't read the street signs ). Then over 175 to Lake Isabella, down the Havilah-Bodfish Road to some property one of my brothers had on the east side of Breckenridge Mtn, overlooking Walker Basin.

https://www.history.navy.mil/research/underwater-archaeology/sites-and-projects/ship-wrecksites/hl-hunley.html https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/new-clues-about-why-confederate-submarine-hl-hunley-sank-180969724/

(with apologies to any "Docs" out there)

Amazing technological breakthrough. https://thumbs.gfycat.com/CleverAshamedEasternnewt-mobile.mp4

Luke 11:9 Amazing they could hit anything in the few seconds they had. Especially as encumbered as they were:

This is one of those discussions were everyone is right and everyone is wrong. We, I think, have all seen the family photo - studio, reunion, family vacation, wedding, whatever - of a lineup of people with what are easily discerned as fake "Smile for the camera!" grins pasted on. We have also all seen people with toothy grins that look perfectly natural.

This one looks more complicated than it is. If you know your way around a kitchen it is maybe 25 minutes to make. That's if you take your time about it. I've done it in about 15 minutes. Kind of a take on Chicken Piccata and a Putanesca sauce. Chicken Piccanesca 2 Large Chicken Breasts, cut into about ¼ to 1/3 inch strips. 4 Green Onions, Chopped ½ Cup Kalamata Olives, coarsely chopped 2 TBS. Capers, roughly chopped 2 or 3 Roasted Red Peppers, chopped Juice of 1 Lemon 1 Cup Dry White Wine ¼ Cup Dessert Wine, such as late harvest Gewurztraminer 1 Cup Flour, seasoned with about a TBS Kosher Salt and ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper. Olive Oil Butter (optional) Do all your prep – chop the Green Onions and put them aside. Chop the Olives, Capers, and Red Peppers and put them in a bowl, set aside. Mix the flour, salt, and pepper in a cake or pie pan. Slice the Chicken Breasts and set aside. In a large skillet heat about 2 TBS of Olive Oil over medium high heat, when it is hot, add about 1 TBS Butter (if using). Add the Green Onions, sauté for a minute or two, remove from pan, set aside. Working quickly, dredge the Chicken Breast strips in the seasoned flour and lay in the pan. You will likely need to do this in two batches. When lightly browned, flip and brown the second side, about 3 minutes per side. Remove from pan, set aside. Cook the rest of the Chicken, remove from pan. Add back the Green Onions, then add the chopped Olives, Capers, and Red Peppers. Sauté briefly, then add back the Chicken. Remove pan from the heat and add the Wine, return pan to heat. Add the lemon juice. Stir around some to coat the Chicken. Let reduce slightly. Transfer Chicken to serving platter and pour the sauce over the Chicken. Serve immediately.

More towards Chaucer than Elizabethan. Or Church Slavonic to modern Russian.