Beef & Veggies (12/22/07)

Beef & Veggies (12/22/07)
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Supper for Saturday. I did some minor modifications to the original recipe. This was very tasty. Click on the photo for the recipe.

Chicken & Potatoes (12/21/07)

Chicken & Potatoes (12/21/07)
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Friday's supper. The chicken was great, but I got tired of waiting for the sauce to thicken, so used it more like a dipping sauce.

The potatoes were good, but not great.

Click on photo for the recipes.

Cube Steak & Oven Fries for Lunch (12/15/07)

Cube Steak & Oven Fries for Lunch (12/15/07)
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Two very quick things to make. All though I've always thought the process of breading something leaves too much waste. Click on the photo for the recipes.

Chicken with Olives and Spanish Potatoes (12/15/07)

Chicken with Olives and Spanish Potatoes (12/15/07)
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Saturday's dinner. The chicken was pretty easy, as were the potatoes, but the onions got a little over done. Click on the photo for the recipe on Flickr. The chicken recipe is orginally from a Frugal Gourmet cook book I have.

Christian groups slam new Kidman children's movie

Christian groups are up in arms here over a new children's film starring Nicole Kidman and based on an award-winning novel by British author Philip Pullman, accusing it of being anti-religious.

read more | digg story

That's it, drive them in hoards to see the movie. So what if it is anti-religious. If your followers are weak enough to be swayed by a children's movie to give up on God, their faith wasn't all that strong to begin with.

Dinner: Chicken in a tomato yogurt sace and black beans over rice(11/18/07)

Dinner: Chicken in a tomato yogurt sace and black beans over rice (11/18/07)
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

The chicken was from another user on Flickr. The tomato-yougurt sauce is awsome. I threw together the black beans with rice on the side. For the recipes, click on the photo.

Black Bean Lasagna (11/17/07)

Black Bean Lasagna (11/17/07)
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Tried this recipe from another person on Flickr. Mine didn't turn out looking as nice as theirs, but it still tasted good, but has room for improvement.

Click on the picture for a link to the recipe.

Pork Loin & Potatoes

Pork Loin & Potatoes
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Dinner for Saturday. First time I tried the fruit and pork combination. The apricots were great, the plums where fair. The pork loin turned out great, as did the potatoes. Click on the photo for links to the recipes.

Paprika Chicken with Rice

Paprika Chicken with Rice
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Dinner for Friday night. It was okay, but nothing great. Click on the photo for the recipe.

Meat Muffin

Meat Muffin
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

I've made this several times, with beef as well as other ground meat. The sauce is optional. Click on the picture for recipe.

October28

October28
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Sunday night dinner. The burger was a Rachel Ray recipe, the peas were my own creation.

Black Beans with Pasta

Black Beans with Pasta
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Lunch on Sunday. The black bean and barbecue mixture was too strong by itself, but with the pasta, it was great. Click on the photo for the recipe

Aloo Mutter

Aloo Mutter
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Curried potatoes with peas. Lunch for tomorrow. Click on the photo for the recipe.

Don't Mess with Monkeys

And here is why: http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/10/21/asia/AS-GEN-India-Monkey-Menace.php

Lunch1020

Lunch1020
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Saturday's lunch. Garlic Boca burger, garlic bagel chips and a pea with bacon salad.

Lahmacun

Lahmacun
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

This is a turkish "lamb pizza". This was okay, but could have been much better. My second version was better, but there is still room for improvement. Click on the picture for the recipe.

Lamb Pizza with Eggs

Lamb Pizza with Eggs
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

My second of two pizzas I made tonight. I liked this one better then the first. Click on the photo for a link to the recipe

Sausage & Potatoes

Sausage & Potatoes
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

This is what I had for dinner tonight. I used parts of two differen recipes to make this. The sausage it hot italian, and the potatoes also have a bite to them, covered with hot paprika and ground chili. Click on the photo for the recipe.

Dinner

Dinner
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

The carrots are from the Food Network web site. The potatoes and pork dish are from the original "Frugal Gormet" cook book. The pork and potatoes were very good. I messed up a bit on the carrots (too much water) but they were still tasty. Click on the photo for the recipes

Bunny Face

Bunny Face
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

I don't know why, but I really like this picture. A good shot using the "portrait" feature of my camera. It almost looks like I know what I am doing.

Chicken Pulao with Lemon and Onion (Komdicha Pulao)

Chicken Pulao with Lemon and Onion (Komdicha Pulao)
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Saturday's dinner. Very easy to make and very tasty. This is an Indian dish of chicken and basmait rice. Click on the photo for the recipe.

Sunday Lunch

Sunday Lunch
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

This was lunch for Sunday. Two different Indian dishes. I made both of them on Saturday and nuked them for lunch on sunday. You've got chicken, eggs, rice, potatoes, rice and spices. Click on the photo for the recipes.

Mussamun Curry Beef with Potatoes and Peanuts (gaeng mussamun neua)

Mussamun Curry Beef with Potatoes and Peanuts (gaeng mussamun neua)
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Sunday's dinner. Super yummy. Beeff, potatoes, onion with spices and coconut milk. Click on the photo for the recipe.

Burger with Cajun Corn and Red Beans

Burger with Cajun Corn and Red Beans
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Last Sunday's supper. Grilled the burgers on a George Foreman grill. The grill charred the top and bottom, which was a little annoying, but the insides were perfect. And very easy to cleanup afterwards.

Click on the picture for the recipes.

Kozhi Moilee and Potatoes & Peas with Cumin

Kozhi Moilee and Potatoes & Peas with Cumin
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Dinner for Saturday evening. The potatoes and peas where good, but the chicken was excellent. Click on the picture to see the recipes.

Kadhai Jhinga

Kadhai Jhinga
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

So very yummy. The only downer was the bland spainsh rice from a can.

Saturday Dinner

Saturday Dinner
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

The fish was really good. I will have to look for more recipes using the tamarind paste. The lentils were a little bland, but still good.

Nargisi Kofte

Nargisi Kofte
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Click on the picture for a link to the recipe.

This is was very good, but the novelty quickly wore off and I would only do this again on a special occasions. The lamb and spice mixture was very good and the egg was, well, an egg.

There's More to Comics then You Think

Looks like someone is going for some serious "me time". If you know what I mean.

tilapia & peas & rice

tilapia & peas & rice
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Made this on Sunday. I liked my previous try at tilapia better. Also, while I halved the recipe for the rice, I didn't adjust the cooking time (in this case in the microwave).

This is resulted in an almost solid rice puck. I was able to loosen it up by adding some more water and some peas and cooking for a couple more minutes. I was going to add the peas anyway, but I was going to just let the residual heat cook them.

Anyway, the rice tasted fine, it was just a bit clumpy.

Click on the picture for the recipe for both.

Government

"The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help.'" - Ronald Reagan

I find it funny that he said that. Especially in the context of Iran and New Orleans. And it doesn't matter if it is Republicans, Democrats or Communists, generally speaking the more the government tries to help, they more they make things worse.

Which also begs the question, why are the people who blame the government for messing everything up, generally the same people who want the government to run health care? I've seen what free health care does to people while a dependent in the military and I've heard direct stories of "free" health care like Canada has(which by the way as a much smaller population). No thanks.

I also wonder if people realize that if there is "free" health care the possibilities of large malpractice settlements will be somewhere between slim and none. And, that in a generation or two people would most likely be complaining about the quality of their doctors, much like they complain about the general quality of public school teachers today.

Number 3

P1100743FL
Originally uploaded by ElaineHudson

Yes, another monkey!

Number 2

Originally uploaded by elkost

A perfect primate photo.

Monkeying Around

Monkeying Around
Originally uploaded by christie1971

Monkey #1 for the day.

Spicy Shrimp and Penne with Puttanesca Sauce

ShrimpPenne
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

This was dinner for Saturday night. First time using anchovies. At least in this case, couldn't tell they were there. Medium to Medium-low spice. Would make this again.

Recipe is from "Rachel Ray 365: No Repeats". I've tried several things from the book, all turned out pretty good. This is the first one I've photographed.

tilapia ready to eat & monkey sightings

tilapia ready to eat
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

First time for me trying tilapia (which is actually a family of fish). This was quite good. The fish itself is mild, so the seasonings are very important. Will try variations again. Click on the recipe for more information.

Also, I've saw a monkey on a woman's shirt on Friday at Best Buy. Also saw a monkey on Saturday during a commercial for an animal show on Saturday. On Sunday I saw some monkeys on a show on the Animal Planet.

Rosemary Chicken (Inside)

Rosemary Chicken (Inside)
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

One of three stove top chicken packet recipes I tried today. They were all very good. Click on the link for the other two versions.

Dellamorte Dellamore (1994)

I watched this movie today, which in the US is called "Cemetery Man". The US title gives you little idea of the movie is really about, whereas the original title, which means "Death and Love" is more of a clue.

This is not a zombie movie. True, there are zombies in it, but this really isn't a horror movie. It is more of a look at a guys struggle to figure out what life, death and love are all about. It starts out like a zombie movie, but quickly veers away into a, at first very strange, but later, very interesting movie.

I actually liked this movie more 30 minutes after watching it, then when it was first over. The "meaning" of the movie is very open to interpretation, but I like that when well done, and this movie is.

For more information go to IMDB

Ham and Black Bean Salad on a Plate

Ham and Black Bean Salad on a Plate
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

Dinner for Saturday. A little chopping involved, but not too difficult. Tasted very good, probably better tomorrow. Click on the photo for more information.

Dreamer

Dreamer
Originally uploaded by True_Bavarian

Flipping through Flickr, when I came across this in the "200 Favorites" group. So, of course I had to mention it here.

A Plethora of Monkeys

I was reading The Comics Curmudgeon a blog where the blogger sarcastically comments about different comic strips, some of which I don't see anywhere except on his blog. Anyway, he had a link to this site which is pretty cool in itself.

But of course, I point out that there are several monkeys listed. The only monkey I had not heard of was the White-Faced Saki Monkey. Of the other animals, the Aye-aye, Dumbo Octopus, Sucker-footed Bat and the Yeti Crab are all new ones for me.

I will have to say that the Aye-aye is one weird looking animal. I thought the Yeti Crab was pretty cool looking.

Unshelved

Good thing I recently watched the first 3 episodes of Firefly, otherwise I would have no idea, much like the young lady in the strip what the other guys were talking about. Even then, I wouldn't have known that was a "Jayne hat" she was wearing. But after being told, I do understand the reference.

This is a pretty decent online comic. Not usually laugh out loud, slap your knee funny, but usually good for a grin or two. And if you like books, or work in a library (yes and no for me respectively) you'll probably get a bit more of enjoyment out of it then the average comic reader

Population 436 (and a monkey)

I watched the movie "Population 436" last night. Quite frankly, I don't remember why I put it in my Netflix queue, but I did. I was surprised to see that it was a release direct to DVD.

First, it was not a rip-off of "The Village". While I have not seen "The Lottery", I can imagine what that is about, and this isn't the same thing. It isn't a great movie, but it was decent. The acting was pretty good all around, my personal favorite being Fred Durst, from Limp Bizkit. The worst was the female lead, Kathy, who was played by Leigh Evans. Oh, David Ames (male lead) was fine.

While I don't know if this is based on actually number theory or not, it at least gave some apparent validity to the plot, instead of just, "The prophet so-and-so said...." and that is just the way it has been.

I didn't feel the movie dragged at any moment, but it was never particularly intense either. Unlike many, I felt the original ending was better then the alternative ending (also on the DVD). Overall, 6.5 out of 10.

And finally, as a bonus, there was a toy monkey on the dashboard of the pickup truck.

August 22, 2007

I don't know what it is doing there, but for some reason in this article about the US open there is a photo of an ape holding a tennis ball.

Watched the movie "Street Smart" (1987) last night. I pretty much agree with most of the reviews/comments I've since read on Netflix and IMDB. In summary: Movie was OK, but Morgan Freeman (nominated for an Oscar for this role) was great, Kathy Baker was pretty good and Christopher Reeve was not so good.

This got me to thinking how did Reeve ever become as famous as he did. He wasn't any good in any of the movies I've seen. It was okay with the Superman franchise, since he was supposed an alien. The only other movie I've seen of his was "Deathtrap" (1982) which was a very good film, but looking back, Reeve was only fair.

Who can figure the fickle finger of fame?

Monday, August 20, 2007

Okay, the whole monkey thing is a bust. Nothing for Thursday through Sunday. So, if I see a monkey I'll try and remember to report it here, just so I post here once in a while, so that no one can read it.

I did see a cartoon monkey this morning. I was wasking up to "Spongebob Square Pants" when there was a commercial for a new cartoon on Nick Jr. Something about a kid and a mind reading genie.

So what will I be reporting here, to keep my 0 readers informed of my meaningless thoughts? Don't know. Whatever grabs my fancy.

I did watch the first three episodes of "Firefly" this weekend. I somehow missed this when it came out back in 2000 on Fox. So far it is pretty good. Not as AWESOME as the die-hard fans of the show would lead you to believe, but well above average.

The story isn't all original, it has definte smackings of FarScape (fugitives on the run from an opressive government, forced to the edges of known space) but the Western bit is a nice touch.

So far, I prefer FarScape by a wide margin, but I've got 12 more shows to go.

No Monkey, Monkey

Monday was another Monkey-Free day. Which meant I had been without monkey for over 72 hours. However, I did see a monkey on Tuesday. I was reading some old "Monty" dailys online, when I ran across one that included a monkey.

So far, no monkey today.

Monkey Free Weekend

While, the streak is broken, and it really wasn't that long (14 days). So far I've gone two days (Saturday & Sunday) without seeing a monkey of any kind. Of course I think I watched a total of about 30 minutes of TV this weekend, so that probably contributed to the lack of monkeys.

Don't know if I'll see on yet today, but if I do I will record it here.

I did watch "Batman Begins" on Saturday night. I liked it better then the first Batman movie, and I see they are coming out with "Batman Begins 2" in 2008. I'm guessing The Joker will be the bad guy this time.

Monkey Sighting for August 10th, 2007

I saw a guy wearing a t-shirt that said something about coming at you like a spider monkey. He was walking the opposite way, so I can't for sure say what it said, but I do know there was a monkey on his t-shirt.

August 9th, 2007

I was watching the movie "The Sea Hawk" last night (as I'm writing this on the 10th). It a very good film from 1940 with Errol Flynn and his ever present sidekick, Alan Hale. That's right, father of Alan Hale Jr who was Skipper on "Giligan's Island".

Anyway, there was a monkey in several scences of the movie. It was a little bit of comic relief.

"The Sea Hawk" wasn't as good as "Captain Blood" (1935) but it was quite good. As with "Captiain Blood" the DVD offered a glimpse of what going to the movies used to be like with a news reel, cartoon and short from the same time period.

Cutting Edge Media Sites

A story a dot.com survivor running a business making a niche for itself in the area of TV and radio web sites.

read more | digg story

August 8th, 2007

If not for television, the chain of monkey sightings would have been broken long ago. Once again, TV came to the rescue. This time it was "The Soup" on E!. Quite the funny show in its own right, but it saved me by doing a story about how a monkey who ate less calories looked better and had more energy then a monkey who ate a higher calorie load.

This was a "best of" show, and I had seen the original story, but I hadn't seen it on the episode and besides when I first saw the clip I hadn't started keeping track.

Steak Shortage Hits NYC

A story about how beef prices are going up because corn prices are going up because corn is being used for ethanol.

read more | digg story

Not a monkey sighting

This is not a monkey sighting, but it is an article about a guy trying to smuggle a monkey into the United States.

And here is another article about monkeys from The Columbus Dispatch.

August 7th, 2007

It was around 1:30am (CDT) and I was having problems getting asleep so I was channel surfing again. I think it was the Animal Planet channel, but I'm not sure, but anyway, there were monkeys. Quest done for the day.

August 6th, 2007

Jay Leno finally served a function in my life. I was watching David Letterman, but there was a commercial, so I decided to do a little channel surfing. I went by Jay Leno to see he was doing his "Funny Headlines" bit, or whatever he calls it. Since the only time Jay is funny is when he is using newspaper clippings I stopped to watch. The last one, a picture of cartoon monkeys with a couple of monkeys who appeared to be "doing it" in the background. Even Leno can be funny if there are monkeys involved.

Monkey Sighting for August 5th, 2007

I was cleaning up and throwing away some old catalogs when I happened
to notice the cover of an a catalog from "The Oriental Trading
Company". They sell lots of stuff in the monkey genre, so of course
there was a monkey on the front cover. I believe it was around 4:30pm
(CST).

On unrelated note, here is another way that Barry Bonds
is cheating:
Barry Bonds' Home Run Record Tainted by Mechanical Device?

Now, I don't hate Barry Bonds, but I don't like him either. While it is rather obvious he has used steroids
for a considerable amount of time, it has never been proven. The
article above shows another way he is "taking advantage" of the system,
i.e. cheating.

If the elbow protector had remained the same
since the time he first wore it, I see no problem with him using it, but
because it has changed considerably, and he has no injury reason to wear it, it should not be allowed.

Monkey Sighting for August 4th, 2007

I have no idea what time it was, except for it was after 12pm and before 3pm. Anyway there were several monkey sightings at my niece's birthday party. There was also a bear and a doll that wets her diaper.

Monkey Sighting for August 3rd, 2007

The other day I had said that while I had seen several monkeys while shopping at Target, that I had not bought anything with a monkey on it. Turns out I was wrong. I was signing the card that I bought for my niece, when I turned it around to look at the back, there the monkey was. The time was 1:52pm (CDT).

Monkey (?) Sighting for August 2nd, 2007

Does a gorilla count as a monkey sighting? How about an orangutang? Why should I care since noone is reading this? I saw the gorilla as part of a National Geographic article at about 10:51am. I didn't see the orangutang until about 11:55pm. I don't remember exactly where. I think it was a commercial on TV.

Monkey Sighting for August 1st, 2007

I wasn't too worried about spoting a monkey today, since I planned on going shopping at Target after work to pick up some birthday gifts for my niece's birthday party this Saturday.

Sure enough about 3 or 4 cards in I saw a birthday card with a monkey on it. It was about 5:30 pm CST. I saw several more in different locations throughout the store. However, I did not purchase anything with a monkey on it.

Monkey Sighting for July 31st, 2007

I was reading today's Sheldon Comic when there, in the third panel. A monkey. The time was 11:51 am (CDT). Another day, another monkey.

Monkey Sighting for July 30th, 2007

I was browsing through Amazon, looking for gift ideas for my niece who is turning 6 on Friday. I was looking at a game called "Penguin Plunge" when I see the game "Tumblin' Monkeys" under the "Those Who Bought This Also Bought" section that Amazon kindly provides. The time was 12:35 pm (CDT).

Monkey Sighting for July 29, 2007

At 3:20 pm (CDT) I was scanning the Parade magazine which comes with my Sunday edition of the Wisconsin State Journal. There, on page 6 was a monkey. The story was trying to answer the question, "How Much Do Animals Really Know?"

I didn't read the article, but based on some of the questions on page 8 that Marilyn vos Savant claimed were "too funny to answer" (read stupid) the animals have to be smarter then the writers of the questions. Here's an example: "When a jack-in-the box plays "Pop Goes the Weasel," why does a clown always pop out instead?"

It is too bad vos Savant doesn't have more of a sense of humor. She could have told them anything and they would have believed it. Now that, would have been funny.

Rib Eye and Rice

Rib Eye and Rice
Originally uploaded by sweet mustache

This is what I had for supper Saturday night. Smoked the place up a bit with the pan searing of the steak. The rice was excellent, as was the rib eye.

I only ate about 2/3 of the meat. Will have the rest for lunch during the week.

Monkey Sighting for July 28th, 2007

It was about 9:40 am. I was channel surfing during a commercial break during the Tour de France. I spotted a monkey as I surfed by a local channel. It was a commercial for a kids show about animals.

In case you're wondering what this is about, a few years ago I read, I think in another blog, a claim that you see a monkey, in some form, every day. So I'm going to blog my sightings until I growed tired of doing so. Perhaps if I keep it up long enough I can apply for a government grant.

First Post

I have no idea what this will be about. I also realize this is the really geeky equivalent of talking to myself, since no one else is going to read this.

I do know that I haven't seen a monkey yet today.

I also know that cycling will never be more then a niche sport in the US and I like it that way.