What's That On My Plate?

I had a very interesting dinner last night. I had sweetbreads!
They are the thymus gland - responsible for regulating your immune system. Doesn't sound too appetizing, but they are definitely delish and are considered somewhat of a delicacy. When I first saw them, I'll admit I was concerned. One bite and I was fine. Yum.
Here's a word or two on how to prepare them:
Before being cooked, sweetbreads must be soaked in several changes of acidulated water and their outer membrane removed. Some recipes call for the glands to be blanched to firm them, and refrigerated until ready for use. Sweetbreads can be prepared in a variety of ways including poaching, sautéing and braising.
They are also sometimes used in pâtés and soufflés.
Guess I should let you know that I also like liver, beets and brussels sprouts; all of the things that I hated as a kid. I don't know when I turned the corner, or went over to the Dark Side as some of you must be thinking, but love them I do. Sweetbreads have been added to the list of things I am no longer afraid of. Today's lesson is "Make friends with your food".

Nam June Paik

So I was looking for a picture of Daniel Striped Tiger from Mr. Roger's Neighborhood, and somehow came across the news that Nam June Paik, famed video and performance artist, had died in January. The Internet is such a weird thing, the results that it produces for you are sometimes as disconnected as a night of bad dream imagery. The only things these two have in common are that I liked them both very much and now they're gone.


Magnet TV, 1965. Television and magnet; black-and-white, silent; variable dimensions. Whitney Museum of American Art, New York

Another Great Cartoonist

is Roz Chast who drew the "Three Certainties of Life"; Death, Taxes, Bobo. She always seems to know what's on my mind. Yikes!

"In the 80's and afterward, the cartoons tended to loosen up and grow freewheeling, branching out from ingenious visual jokes and the light comedy of upper-middle-class manners into more idiosyncratic terrain. Roz Chast's 1981 three-panel piece titled ''The Three Certainties'' begins with a faux-naif skull and crossbones, ''Death.'' A check made out to the I.R.S. and surrounded by disembodied angels' wings signifies ''Taxes.'' The final panel shows a clown in a curly wig and a ruffed collar -- ''Bobo.'' Get it? Of course you don't. Such humor can't be gotten, in the old sense, only inexplicably chuckled at. Chast and her quirky contemporary counterparts practice a sort of comic expressionism that depends for its effects on the reader's ability to recognize, identify with and mysteriously anticipate the habitual, signature movements of individual artists' minds. The most one can say of a good Chast cartoon is that it's deeply Chast-like. And that's sufficient." (Walter Kirn - NYT Book Review)

We're Back.....Sort Of

Still experiencing a bit of instability with the server, but just enough time to share a cartoon from my favorite cartoonist, Bruce Eric Kaplan.

Pardon Our Lack of New Content

We are experiencing technical difficulties.......
Back as soon as the server stops misbehaving.

The Eyes Have It - My Weekend From Hell

Wow. It's been a beautiful sunny weekend in Seattle, but I've spent the last 36 hours in bed; when I haven't been hunched over the toilet puking like there's no tomorrow. All because of an eye exam on Friday. The culprit; Atropine, a medication that's used to dilate your pupils so that the doc can get a really good look into the "windows of your soul". Well, my soul is sick to the point of exhaustion. My eyes are however, 100% healthy. Yea for me. I couldn't help but reference the only "Eyeball Band" in the world in this post. The Residents from San Francisco.
Back in the early 90's, I actually met The Residents sans costumes when they were shopping in a clothing store I managed in Chicago. I knew they were playing in town, but hadn't gotten tickets. They came in, adults and children looking like a large extended family, and a couple of the kids were wearing Residents t-shirts. I commented to one that I knew they were in town for the weekend and how I was a big fan. He looked at me and said, "We are, too" with a funny little smile and that's when I realized it was them, pawing through the "Final Days-Store Closing" clothes, alongside suburban Chicago housewives. The Residents are just people, too. In search of a bargain like everybody else.
"The Residents are now entering its fourth decade as faceless anti-stars, existing in the dim outskirts of mainstream awareness. During that entire time, they've consciously kept their origins and personal lives shrouded in mystery. The creation of this obviously contrived "mystery" was one of the first decisions they reached after realizing that they had become a group - something they define as an organism with a mind, will and direction of its own. The essence of this decision was to aggressively create a separation between their personal and professional lives. Anonymity was, and is, their only rule. They live by it to this day." (Rikksreviews.com)

Virtual Sun Maid Girl- Just Plain Creepy

Have you seen the new Sun Maid Raisin commercials? Yikes. Their new campaign (did they ever have an "old" campaign?) makes me vaguely uncomfortable. Remember people, it's "just grapes and sun". C r e e p y.
The Sun-Maid Girl
Many people want to know if a real person was the original "Sun-Maid girl." The answer is "Yes," and her name was Lorraine Collett Petersen. In May 1915, she was discovered drying her black hair curls in the sunny backyard of her parents’ home in Fresno, California. She was then asked to pose for a painting while holding a basket tray of fresh grapes. This striking image was first applied to packages of Sun-Maid raisins in 1916. Over the years, this image has been seen on millions and millions of packages and has been taken into homes throughout the world.

Squid Alert!

I am intrigued by people like Clyde Roper, the guy who's been tracking the elusive giant squid for most of his adult life. I became aware of Mr. Roper and his passion while watching Errol Morris interview him on "First Person". Eyes as large as dinner plates. Wow.
From a review of the "First Person" dvd set which came out this year:
Errol Morris talks to giant squid hunter Clyde Roper, a real-life Steve Zissou, who wonders what it would be like to match eyeballs with the largest eyeball existing in nature. "An obsession interfering with your health might cost you your life," says Morris of Roper's heart problems. "Let's not blame the giant squid," Roper replies.
This is a really cool Canadian stamp, commemorating the Kraken, or giant squid.

While we're on the subject of "wretched excess"...

132 Pounds Removed In Marathon Tummy Tuck
Surgeons in Spain used cranes and ropes in 9-hour operation

MADRID, Spain - Spanish surgeons using cranes and ropes removed a 132-pound mass of fat and liquid from the abdomen of a middle-aged woman in the procedure known as a tummy tuck.
Francisco Javier Gabilondo, chief of plastic surgery at Hospital Cruces near
the Basque city of Bilbao, said Friday the operation was "more spectacular than it was difficult." The nine-hour procedure was performed last week, and the name of the patient was not released. She is in her 50s. Gabilondo said she suffered from morbid obesity and until now had to sleep with the fatty mass — known as an abdominal apron — placed beside her on a table. The medical team had to use cranes to lift the mass and give doctors access to the rest of her body so it could be cut away, Gabilondo told reporters. The woman's total body weight was not given.

The Story Of St. Patrick - According To Me

St Patrick's Day is a day that a lot of people devote to drinking. If you drink too much, like really in excess, you might get the D.T.s and you might even hallucinate things like snakes comin' at ya. One day, everybody in Ireland went on a huge bender and the snakes were flying fast and thick. Patrick was the only person who was sober enough to wield a big stick and chase all of the snakes (real or imagined) away. He drove them right into the water. That night everybody slept it off and tomorrow was a brighter day for all. Later the Pope, no stranger to enjoying a bit of the spirits himself, made Patrick a saint because he appreciated what a valuable skill Patrick possessed. The End.

Gas Up The Car....STAT!

The "quality of life" is unsurpassed in Normal. We are often recognized by national publications for that quality of life and the standard of living that we enjoy here. We hope that you, too, find out what a great pleasure it is to stay here, whether it be for a day, a week or a lifetime!

"Normal" bin ich nicht!

Normal bin ich nicht! Mit diesem coolen "nutCase" Gehäuseaufkleber können Sie Ihren PC verschönern. Im Zusammenspiel mit einer UV-Beleuchtung entfaltet der Aufkleber seine ganze Pracht. Er kann sowohl auf das Gehäuse als auch auf ein Gehäusefenster geklebt werden. Das Aufbringen gestaltet sich, dank im Lieferumfang enthaltener Anleitung, sehr einfach. Der Aufkleber ist blau und leuchtet einzigartig unter UV-Licht.
Lieferumfang: Aufkleber "nutCase", Rakel, Klebeanleitung
Farbe: UV-blauMaße: 5 x 19cm (Länge x Breite)
I'm not sure, but I think this is a bumper sticker. After enduring the last 24 hours, I wish I could make a small child's (me) wish come true by having both the funds and the time to purchase and mount one of these on the bumper of the car of every person who lives here. "Here" being of course, kRAZy tOwn.
I need to lie down now.

The Moscow Cats Theater

20 CATS! 2 DOGS! 8 CLOWNS!
WALKING TIGHTROPES! DEATH DEFYING BALANCING ACTS!
JUMPING! DANCING! ACROBATICS!

"WORLD'S ONLY CATS THEATRE"

The Moscow Cat Circus, according to Yuri Kuchlakev:

"The cats are the stars of this show – they walk tightropes, balance balls on their noses, do paw-stands, jump from great heights, and unerringly negotiate complex mazes", says Kuklachev. "We glorify them and that's why we provide the cats with a traveling entourage including a vet, kitty caretakers and personal stylists to tend to the needs of our feline superstars."

Kuklachev's love for performing with cats runs in the family. His principal assistant and co-creator of the show is his son, Dimitri who is the leading expert on Russian TV in staging stunts with cats for commercials. Dimitri is also currently shooting a "How to…" - special about training and handling cats for a major Russian TV channel.

Yuri Kuklachev is a national institution, having performed in over 80 countries and received many prestigious international awards and accolades, including The People's Artist in Russia, Honorary Member of the American Clown Association, the Silver Clown Award in Monte Carlo, the Golden Clown Crown in Canada, the Golden Oscar in Japan, a San Marino postage stamp, and in France a chapter in their national grammar book titled "Lessons in Kindness".

Beauty Is A Duty

Time to get ready for another fabulous year!

Happy Birthday To Me

Several people share my birthday; Liza Minelli, James Taylor, Jack Kerouac. I'll let you make your own joke about "wretched excess". Here's what the stars have in store for me this go-round:

IF MARCH 12 IS YOUR BIRTHDAY: Singer, actress, performer Liza Minnelli (1946) shares your birthday. You have style! You're bold, daring and original. You don't do things halfway. Furthermore, you have the courage to take a risk. These qualities make you attractive to others. (Actually, you amaze them.) Always trust your enthusiastic impulses. You might experience a change in this coming year.

IF MARCH 12 IS YOUR BIRTHDAY: It's a year of wonders. Your curiosity is sparked at every turn, driving you to discover more and more. Your hometown is like a foreign land for all the new things you learn between now and June. Give in to the direction work leads you. Committing to the task at hand opens doors. The positive influence of Scorpio and Leo is remarkable. Your lucky numbers are 6, 8, 46, 33 and 23.

You'll Always Be A Winner

Damn. Can't believe that Santino lost on PR2.
This was one of his designs from an earlier competition. Sure he was responsible for the "Deer In The Headlights" lingerie and that god-awful ice skating outfit, but he made it to the final three. He "matured" as a designer and got to see his mom.
Thanks Santino. See you on the runway.

On The Street Where I Work

Here's another shot from Windows Live. This is the heart of downtown Seattle.

Let's Go For A Walk

It's Windows Live (Local) from Microsoft. This is the street in front of my building.
Did they CGI the blue sky?

Calling Walter Monheit!

We're less than 24 hours away from the 78th Annual Academy Awards. Does anyone besides me remember the film critic from Spy Magazine whose critiques frequently were simply expressed as "Ooof"?( especially when referencing the performance of any particularly attractive no-talent actress). I searched all over the Internet for a picture of Mr. Monheit - no luck. The closest thing I could find is Mr. Monopoly. Here he is in Paris.

Endurance - The Film

"In a vision out of a Coleridge poem or an opium dream, the wooden ship stands erect, caught fast in a world of whiteness, a thing out of place and now out of time."

Impossible? Don't Know The Meaning Of The Word!

Since I have a link to McSweeney's on my blog, it's pretty safe to say that whatever they think-I think. Poking around their site this morning after a Saturday, yes SATURDAY, morning conference call at home, I came across this T-shirt. Did I order one? Why yes, yes I did......

I Predict The Winner of Project Runway

I really think Santino is going to pull it off. This after a season of totally hating him. Hey, I'm growing as a person.

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!

Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened.

Theodore Geisel was born on March 2nd, 1904

Am I the only person in the world who didn't know this quote until yesterday? I turned over
another page of my Mary Engelbreit calendar to March and there it was.