Pretty themes for Firefox, mac only.

Is Whole Foods Wholesome? - The dark secrets of the organic-food movement. By Field Maloney

Is Whole Foods Wholesome? - The dark secrets of the organic-food movement. By Field Maloney: "Wal-Mart, with its simple "More for Less" credo, might do far more to democratize the nation's food supply than Whole Foods. The organic-food movement is in danger of exacerbating the growing gap between rich and poor in this country by contributing to a two-tiered national food supply, with healthy food for the rich. Could Wal-Mart's populist strategy prove to be more "sustainable" than Whole Foods?" (In general, I agree. My biggest complaint with whole foods is also in this piece: that it privileges this "organic" nonsense over local food in season.)

NPR : Study: Statin Drug Reverses Coronary Artery Disease

NPR : Study: Statin Drug Reverses Coronary Artery Disease: "Researchers at eight U.S. hospitals say they've been able to remove artery deposits with a high dose of a statin drug that cut 'bad cholesterol' levels by half and raised 'good cholesterol' more than any other study has shown. But more research is needed to see if patients suffer fewer heart attacks or deaths."

Independent Online Edition > Science & Technology

How Islamic inventors changed the world
Exhibit site.

Party Like It's 1994 - New York Times

Party Like It's 1994 - New York Times: "It's true that the Democrats have been vowing to retake Congress every two years, while the Republican majority merely waxes and wanes. But 2006 feels different."

Defenders of the Faith - New York Times

Defenders of the Faith - New York Times: "Fundamentalists do what they perceive as good deeds in order to fulfill God's will and to earn salvation; atheists do them simply because it is the right thing to do. Is this also not our most elementary experience of morality? When I do a good deed, I do so not with an eye toward gaining God's favor; I do it because if I did not, I could not look at myself in the mirror. A moral deed is by definition its own reward. David Hume, a believer, made this point in a very poignant way, when he wrote that the only way to show true respect for God is to act morally while ignoring God's existence."

The Physics of Friendship

The Physics of Friendship: "By comparing people to mobile particles randomly bouncing off each other, scientists have developed a new model for social networks. The model fits with empirical data to naturally reproduce the community structure, clustering and evolution of general acquaintances and even sexual contacts."
The paper. (PDF)

The Way We Eat: Rabbit Is Rich - New York Times

The Way We Eat: Rabbit Is Rich - New York Times: "In St. Louis last fall, I finally tracked down some fryers (or young rabbits) at the old Soulard Farmer's Market, and the purveyors, whose stall also included a box of skinned coons and a fresh beaver tail that looked like a prehistoric fish, seemed surprised that I had actually shown up after phoning."

Spanish Architecture - Why does one country seem to have all the coolest buildings?

Spanish Architecture - Why does one country seem to have all the coolest buildings?: "How did modern architecture in Spain get so good?"

Family Fuse - Why the rules about gay parenting are changing under your nose. By Dahlia Lithwick

Family Fuse - Why the rules about gay parenting are changing under your nose. By Dahlia Lithwick: "To defend the current adoption and custody regimes, then, you need to subordinate the practical and emotional interests of these children to the moral preferences of lawmakers. That is precisely what family law prohibits."

CNN.com - New animal resembles furry lobster - Mar 8, 2006

CNN.com - New animal resembles furry lobster - Mar 8, 2006

Many Couples Must Negotiate Terms of 'Brokeback' Marriages - New York Times

Many Couples Must Negotiate Terms of 'Brokeback' Marriages - New York Times

Study: In-flight cell calls pose risk to planes

Study: In-flight cell calls pose risk to planes: "In the past, the FAA has found nothing to indicate that the use of passive devices like laptops or game-playing electronics poses a threat to the aircraft. However, the CMU study concluded otherwise. While the researchers looked primarily at cell phone use, they also discovered that emissions from other portable devices proved 'problematic.'"

Dictionary.com/Word of the Day Archive/doula

Dictionary.com/Word of the Day Archive/doula: "Doula derives from Greek doula, 'servant-woman, slave.'"

Visualizing black holes

A Thrill Ride to 'the Other Side of Infinity' - New York Times: "The show is built on the crunching of numbers that even a black hole might envy: some segments produced by the National Center for Supercomputing Applications at the University of Illinois required 90 hours of supercomputer calculation for each second on screen."

The Underfinanced Production Company - Joyce Wadler - Satire - Movies - New York Times

The Underfinanced Production Company - Joyce Wadler - Satire - Movies - New York Times: "We need firm, thick ice on which to raise our young and show exemplary, self-sacrificing family values in such a way as to attract the Christian right."

The Underfinanced Production Company - Joyce Wadler - Satire - Movies - New York Times

The Underfinanced Production Company - Joyce Wadler - Satire - Movies - New York Times: "Then Jake kinda melts away and you step up to the audience and say, 'And I'm not even gay. But tonight everybody's gay in Hollywood.' I forgot to mention, you're wearing a holster and six shooter. And you shoot at the ceiling and these posters come down. LIBERACE! ROCK HUDSON! MONTOGOMERY CLIFT! MICKEY MOUSE! Big gasp from the audience. You say, 'What's the matter, you didn't believe me?' Mickey comes out, dressed like the cowboy from the Village People. He says, high pitched little mouse voice, 'I leave you alone one minute, you're messing around with that slut Jake???'"

NPR : American Accent Undergoing Great Vowel Shift

NPR : American Accent Undergoing Great Vowel Shift

cooking with monkey!

I probably laughed at all of this way more than I should have.

In Turin, Chocolate's the Champion - New York Times

In Turin, Chocolate's the Champion - New York Times: "The flavor of roasted hazelnuts comes through every bite, with the fruity high notes of fine Central American chocolate in the city's best. The depth of the hazelnuts balances the fruit of the chocolate, and anchors an experience that with the vinification of chocolate has become all too ethereal."

How To Watch the Winter Olympics - I am the ballistic starfruit. By Dana Stevens and Seth Stevenson

How To Watch the Winter Olympics - I am the ballistic starfruit. By Dana Stevens and Seth Stevenson: "China was the one with the most egregious endorsement deal. Their athletes sported an Adidas logo so gigantic, it looked like a monster truck had left tire tracks across their heads. "

On the Matter of Size - The inexact science of penis measurement. By Kent Sepkowitz

On the Matter of Size - The inexact science of penis measurement. By Kent Sepkowitz: "But in case you're still wondering, here is what we know: When self-measured, the median length of a stretched flaccid penis is about 5.1 inches. For an erect penis, most studies come in at 5.5 to 6 inches. The average flaccid penis is in the 3.5- to 4-inch range. If someone else is doing the measuring, well, the numbers come out lower. But go ahead, add a little extra. After all, it's Valentine's Day."

Boycott the Olympics

Boycott the Olympics - Why the United States should skip the Salt Lake City games. By David Plotz: "Curling combines the worst of shuffleboard and housekeeping. " (Recycled, but hilarious.)

At Churches Nationwide, Good Words for Evolution - New York Times

At Churches Nationwide, Good Words for Evolution - New York Times: "'There was a growing need to demonstrate that the loud, shrill voices of fundamentalists claiming that Christians had to choose between modern science and religion were presenting a false dichotomy,' said Michael Zimmerman, dean of the College of Letters and Sciences at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh and the major organizer of the letter project."

OmniNerd - Articles: Extended iTunes Rating

: This turns out to be true, and ratings that are set for any value, even unlucky 13, will be stored by iTunes as that value.

OmniNerd - Articles: Extended iTunes Rating

: This turns out to be true, and ratings that are set for any value, even unlucky 13, will be stored by iTunes as that value.

food

• falafel and mouhamara
• polenta and "shamelessly blue" Texas goat cheese
• chili
• broiled salmon of one sort or another

Doing the Martin Shuffle (with your iPod)

Doing the Martin Shuffle (with your iPod): "Now on your iPod, suppose you want to find something. To make it concrete, suppose you want to find Something. First you listen to the current song long enough to identify it. If it is alphabeticly close (say, Someone to Watch Over Me or Summertime) you press the 'next' or 'previous' song button in sequential (non-shuffle) mode until you arrive at your target. If the current song is far away (say, Funkytown) you go into shuffle mode and hit the 'next' button (thereby randomly jumping to another song) until you do get close; then switch to non-shuffle mode."

NPR : Violinist Roman Totenberg at 95

NPR : Violinist Roman Totenberg at 95. Nina Totenberg's father. has a canary. named Toten-bird.

foodlist

• potato-chorizo soup; salad; bread.
• tortilla española, salad
• jambalaya with soulard spice shop andouille and texas gulf shrimp
• tofu, green beans, black pepper sauce
• cinnamon rolls (breakfast wednesday or thursday)
• macaroni and cheese

Apple launches new 1 GB iPod nano - Tech News & Reviews - MSNBC.com

Apple launches new 1 GB iPod nano - Tech News & Reviews - MSNBC.com: "NEW YORK - Apple Computer Inc. Tuesday cut the price of its cheapest digital music player, the iPod shuffle, and launched a smaller-capacity version of its mid-priced iPod nano, sending its shares up as much as 3 percent."
Also, discussion on /.

A joke no more, quite sadly

Fuck Everything, We're Doing Five Blades | The Onion - America's Finest News Source: "What part of this don't you understand? If two blades is good, and three blades is better, obviously five blades would make us the best fucking razor that ever existed. Comprende? We didn't claw our way to the top of the razor game by clinging to the two-blade industry standard. We got here by taking chances. Well, five blades is the biggest chance of all."

Super Bowl Special - The best and worst ads this year. By Seth Stevenson

Super Bowl Special - The best and worst ads this year. By Seth Stevenson: "What if, say, a bisexual mom explained to her kid that—just as the car runs on two kinds of fuel—she's attracted to both men and women? Now, that's the kind of boundary pushing that a Brokeback-loving, hybrid-buying America wants to see."

The New York Review of Books: An Affair to Remember

The New York Review of Books: An Affair to Remember: "Had this been the story of, say, the love between two closeted interior decorators living in New York City in the 1970s, you suspect that there wouldn't be full-page ads in the major papers trumpeting its 'universal' themes."

Listen all the way to the end!

NPR : A Symphony of Truck Horns: "One musical act that didn't make the halftime show at this past weekend's Super Bowl was Alexander Pollack's truck horn symphony."

The Price of Motherhood / Instrumental Variables

The Price of Motherhood - Ready to have a baby? You'll earn 10 percent more if you wait a year. By Steven E. Landsburg
Crooked Timer discussion of same.

How Much for That Kidney Stone? - Can patients keep their excised parts? By David Goldenberg

How Much for That Kidney Stone? - Can patients keep their excised parts? By David Goldenberg: "Generally, yes. Many hospitals are willing to return everything from tonsils to kneecaps."

UroToday

UroToday: "Education and objective methods of penile size evaluation are the best way to remedy this problem."

ugh indeed! hehe

Questions for Daniel C. Dennett - Interview by Deborah Solomon - New York Times: "Ugh. I certainly don't believe in the soul as an enduring entity. Our brains are made of neurons, and nothing else. Nerve cells are very complicated mechanical systems. You take enough of those, and you put them together, and you get a soul."

The New Yorker: The Critics: On Television

The New Yorker: The Critics: On Television: "In an episode a couple of months ago, Brian got a job at The New Yorker. On his first day, he found out that there were no toilets in the bathrooms; the people who worked there, he was told, didn’t need them, because they didn’t have anuses. Later that day, Brian was fired when the editor discovered that he hadn’t graduated from college. We’re all terribly sorry that Brian had such a bad experience, and we’d like him to know that he can come back anytime. There will always be a toilet here for him."

nick paumgarten always makes me smile

The New Yorker: The Talk of the Town:

"Czelusniak explained the frog’s appeal with a statement that sounded like a little poem:
“People are amazed / To see a frog / In a pond / In an office.”"

foodlist

• orzo with chicken ras-el-hanout; romaine and radicchio with blood orange olive oil
• tofu piccata, salad, and ciabatta
• tortilla española with chorizo and more ciabatta
• chile-rubbed red snapper over roasted sweet potatoes; mixed vegtables with tequila-cream sauce; undisclosed chocolate dessert (Birthday dinner for a friend)
• either stir-fried beef with leeks or leek soup and steak fajitas

NPR : Frog in a Can

NPR : Frog in a Can: "In Thailand, a woman is convinced that frog in a can is the next best thing."

The kind of parent I will be.

Generation Pad Thai - New York Times: "Who craves Ho Hos when they've had Scharffen Berger?"

The Bread Is Famously Good, but It Killed McDonald's - New York Times

The Bread Is Famously Good, but It Killed McDonald's - New York Times: "'What took place was a small war between us and McDonald's,' said Onofrio Pepe, a retired journalist who founded an association here devoted to local delicacies. 'Our bullets were focaccia. And sausage. And bread. It was a peaceful war, without any spilling of blood.'"

Federated Is Seeking Buyer for Lord & Taylor Stores - New York Times

Federated Is Seeking Buyer for Lord & Taylor Stores - New York Times: "Moreover, Lord & Taylor's traditional customers are more affluent and contemporary than the typical Macy's shopper, yet not nearly as well-heeled and trendy as Bloomingdale's devotees. Since they do not fit neatly into the demographic groups that Federated is concentrating on, many retail analysts viewed a Lord & Taylor sale as inevitable."

NPR : Trying, and Failing, to Love Lutfisk

NPR : Trying, and Failing, to Love Lutfisk

NPR : Tailor-Made Cartography with Google Maps

NPR : Tailor-Made Cartography with Google Maps: "Some are clearly designed to be useful for everyday life: New York pizza places, Washington, D.C., home prices, and Chicago crime locations. Others are more for fun: find the nearest pub or brewery, peek in on Webcams, or look for a convenient jogging route."

This definitely applies to Scott, I think

CNN.com - Study: Waking up like being drunk - Jan 11, 2006: "'For a short period, at least, the effects of sleep inertia may be as bad as or worse than being legally drunk,' said researcher Kenneth Wright of the University of Colorado at Boulder."

The Media's Crush on Apple

The Media's Crush on Apple: "Half the fun in covering Apple is covering the coverage of Apple. The argument has been made that we in the press are a little nuts about Apple. It's a fact. The highs and lows of Jobs & Co. are so dramatic that the erudite prose practically writes itself. And I can't help but think something is wrong with that."

Non-alternatives to grad school for me:

Bitter Brew - I opened a charming neighborhood coffee shop. Then it destroyed my life. By Michael Idov: "The failure of a small cafe is not a question of competence. It is a sad given."

In Oregon, Thinking Local - New York Times

In Oregon, Thinking Local - New York Times: "Urbanites are just as concerned about open spaces and healthy rural communities as people who live there. When ranchers get to the city, they realize rural areas don't have a corner on values. I think that's what we are most excited about.'"

Down with the fucking realtors association!

Owners' Web Site Gives Realtors Run for Money - New York Times: "'It may be an extension of the 1960's, when we stuck it to the man by protesting the war,' said Mayor David J. Cieslewicz, who notices all the FsboMadison signs around town. 'These days we stick it to the man by selling our own home - and pocketing the 6 percent.'"

Those Weird College Ads - If you like our football team, you'll love our chem labs full of Asian students. By Mike DeBonis

Those Weird College Ads - If you like our football team, you'll love our chem labs full of Asian students. By Mike DeBonis: "To snag applicants who might be worried that Gainesville, Fla., isn't cosmopolitan, the University of Florida plays up its global reach. Florida's ad culminates with a professor arriving at an unnamed Asian airport. As he walks out of the gate, a man shouts to him; the subtitle says, 'Go Gators!' "

Why I'm Happy I Evolved - New York Times

Why I'm Happy I Evolved - New York Times: "More than that, I find that in viewing ourselves as one species out of hundreds of millions, we become more remarkable, not less so. No other animal that I have heard of can live so peaceably in such close quarters with so many individuals that are unrelated. No other animal routinely bothers to help the sick and the dying, or tries to save those hurt in an earthquake or flood."

Gale Gand's Very Red Velvet Cupcakes

recipe stolen from marshall fields

Gale Gand's very red velvet cupcakes

Ingredients

• 1 cup shortening 2 eggs
• 1½ cups sugar
• 2 Tbsp cocoa powder
• 2 oz red food coloring
• 2½ cups cake flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp red or white wine vinegar

Method

Heat oven to 350°. Grease and flour inside of cupcake pan.

Cream the shortening, eggs, and sugar until fluffy. Whisk cocoa and food coloring into a paste and add to other mix.

Sift together dry ingredients. Combine buttermilk, vanilla, and vinegar in a bowl. Alternate adding these and the dry ingredients to the stuff in the mixer.

Fill cups ¾ full and bake until firm to the touch in the center, about 15–20min. Cool in pan, frost, and enjoy.

La sardine!

Ina turned Scott on to La Sardine, a charming French restaurant directly across from Harpo Studios. It's renowned for its unusual Tuesday prix fixe, where instead of a menu of the chef's choosing, you can choose any appetizer, entrée, and dessert for $25. Here's what I had, all from the carte of specials.

• Sautéed frog legs, tomato concassé, potato risotto, garlic butter
• Saddle of rabbit, couscous, julienne of winter vegetables, thyme jus
• Tarte aux pommes with frangipane, caramel sauce, and caramel ice cream

Don we now our gay apparel, falalalala-lalalafel

Scott and I had a lovely gay xmas, which means we shopped the sales at Nordstrom, Saks, and Fields (among others) for ourselves, together.
Here's what we got: Scott | Mike

It's true.

A Brighter View Astern Than Over the Bow - New York Times: "But Mr. Brandhurst, along with plenty of cooks in Baton Rouge and New Orleans, will tell you that what comes from Louisiana waters is the sweetest of all the Gulf shrimp."

And finally he got $2,450 from the Carmel, Calif., chapter of the culinary organization Slow Food. That happened after Poppy Tooker, who runs the Slow Food chapter in New Orleans, saw a newspaper photograph of Mr. Brandhurst trying to save his boat at the same time Gabriela Forte, who runs the Carmel chapter, was looking for a family to help with proceeds from a gumbo fund-raiser.

The Brandhursts, though still puzzled about what Slow Food might be, are in awe of that simple gesture of transcontinental generosity. Without that cash, to repair an engine, they would have missed much of the post-hurricane harvest.

focaccia

We needed a quick bread to go with the cassoulet that Steve and Shane make as their traditional Christmakkah meal. The recipe below makes a 1lb dough.

Focaccia

Ingredients

• 3 cups unbleached flour (tipo 00 if you have it, but not bread flour)
• 1 packet yeast
• pinch sugar
• 1.5 tsp salt
• 1 cup warm water
• herbs (fresh or dried rosemary, thyme, sage, oregano.. all good)

Method

Combine water, sugar, and yeast and let proof 5–10min. Combine flour and salt in a bowl. Pour foamy yeast into flour and mix. Knead for 5 minutes, incorporating the optional herbs. Add any extra flour very, very sparingly – the dough should threaten to stick to the work surface.

Oil a baking sheet with olive oil. Press the dough into a oval / rectangle. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise about 45 minutes at room temperature.

Preheat oven to 425° Dimple the dough with your fingers, spaced about an inch or so apart. Drizzle olive oil and spread gently with your hand. Cover and let rise additional 30 minutes at room temperature.

Sprinkle with coarse or kosher salt. Bake 15–20 minutes. Devour.

MilkandCookies - Chappelle's Show Starring Sarah Silverman

MilkandCookies - Chappelle's Show Starring Sarah Silverman

food

• Quiche with bacon and spinach
• Lamb shoulder roast, marinated in yogurt and herbs
• Jambalaya with Soulard spice shop andouille, chicken, and texas shrimp
• Tortilla española and salad
• Potato-chorizo soup

about my own fair city!

The New Yorker: The Critics: Musical Events: David Robertson lifts up the St. Louis Symphony.

Katherine Boo

I remember being tremendously impressed by some article or another by the writer Katherine Boo (senior fellow at the New Yorker) a while ago – it might have been The Marriage Cure, which won a national magazine award – and in her most recent piece, Shelter and the Storm, I again found myself re-reading several simply perfect turns of phrase:
"Some evacuees saw a liability in what had been their lives’ great expenditure – glittering gold-capped teeth – and began to cover their mouth when they smiled."
"Terrebonne’s predicament was an intensified version of a classic American dilemma: the belief that ghettoizing a disadvantaged population is morally wrong, joined to the conviction that the disadvantaged population might be a lot happier in the next county."

Two Bike Stories from Slate

Thanks to Alex.
The Bicycle Diaries - Is it possible to live in America without a car? Uh, sort of. By Bill Gifford: "As I approached the Kmart cash registers in this early visit, metal cleats clicking on the linoleum tile, the cashier girls stopped comparing their incarcerated boyfriends and stared. Then they looked away. One studied her nails, while the other concentrated on scanning the plunger and counting change. This, I'd come to recognize, was The Silence, the awkward, get-this-over-with tension that often accompanied transactions where one party is clad head-to-toe in stretch synthetics that might not smell so great. I paid, grabbed the plunger, and click-clacked out the automatic sliding doors, to everyone's relief. And as I pedaled away, I realized that bike clothes aren't merely ugly, to normal people: They're transgressive."
Nobody Bikes in L.A. - But they'd be a lot happier if they did. By Andy Bowers:: "Although I had actually been a bike commuter in other cities (most notably during three years in London), it never occurred to me to try it when I returned to L.A. (this despite the fact that there may be no major city in the world with a climate as perfect for bike commuting as ours—warm winters; moderate, dry summers; alarmingly little rain). Since cycling to work is such an aberration here, I found the idea both exhilarating and pleasingly subversive."

Four pizze

• Mozzarella and arugula with sliced sungold and sun-dried tomatoes
• Bacon and dates over besciamella, with drunken goat and midnight moon
• Grayson with shallots and garlic
• Very blue — Valdeón from Spain, gorgonzola piccante from Italy, goatsbeard blue from Missouri!

The New Yorker: Fact

The New Yorker: Fact: "Chery’s early strategy—gleaning useful information from the wreckage of troubled automakers—culminated in a tiny vehicle called the QQ. In 2002, General Motors acquired a controlling interest in Daewoo Motors, the South Korean company, which had gone bankrupt. G.M. took the platform of a Daewoo minicar known as the Matiz, repackaged it under the name Chevrolet Spark, and prepared to start production in China. In June of 2003, half a year before the Spark went on the market, Chery unveiled the QQ. It looked almost exactly like G.M.’s car but retailed for a quarter less: about six thousand dollars. Chery also introduced a sedan that appeared suspiciously similar to the Daewoo Magnus. Chery named that car the Son of the Orient."

MAKE: Blog: Laser etched Powerbook!

Wow, that is so fucking cool.

Dining in Puebla, Mexico - New York Times

Dining in Puebla, Mexico - New York Times: "That nothing quite replaced my memory of my own mole poblano is a testament to the prowess of the cookbook writer Kennedy and to my narcissism. Or it may simply be that a little more time must elapse since my recent visit to Puebla. Like its birthplace, mole poblano is a curious blend of the familiar and the exotic, of the immediate and the delayed reaction. It's a dream - and if a dream is powerful enough, it only expands in the memory."

The Winner Is. . . Only Acting Gay - New York Times

The Winner Is. . . Only Acting Gay - New York Times: "There has been an explosion of Oscar-baiting performances in which straight actors play gay, transvestite or transgender characters. Philip Seymour Hoffman melts into the role of the gay title character in 'Capote,' while Cillian Murphy plays a transvestite in 1970's Ireland in Neil Jordan's witty, endearing 'Breakfast on Pluto.' Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger play lovers in 'Brokeback Mountain' (set to open Dec. 9), already better known as 'the gay cowboy movie' and already a Letterman joke."

The Pilgrims Didn't Brine - New York Times

The Pilgrims Didn't Brine - New York Times: "No one remembers the turkey unless it is bad."

Goodnight Reality - Put Back the Smoke in Clement Hurd's Hand - Yes or No?

Goodnight Reality - Put Back the Smoke in Clement Hurd's Hand - Yes or No?: "In a single stroke, Harper Collins has changed our collective history, and created an alternate reality in which Clement Hurd does not smoke. It calls to mind a censorship tactic most famously associated with Joseph Stalin, who falsified the archival record of the Soviet Union by literally removing images of his political enemies from photographs in an effort to recreate history in his own image."

train dinner

Train dinner is usually quite a production for me. With about six hours to fill, why not spend the better part of one of them enjoying things I love (that is, cheese)? I discovered pita in the freezer so I'm using that and did not go to Companion today for bread.

• Castello (mild, cow's milk blue)
• A mild, young, California cheddar
• (both of which to go with rather bland but nicely textured local Fuji apples)
• Valdeon, a cabrales-like but younger (creamier) cow-goat blue from Spain
• A few slices each of jamón Serrano and prosciutto di Parma, to compare and more intimately understand both.
• Sungold cherry tomatoes (the last of them for months! They are generally not commercially available because like satsumas they are very easily damaged once picked.)
• peanut butter cookies I made the other day
• And of course, australian wine in a can!

I have found a blazer for me, yes.

soon to be mine!

At Center of a Clash, Rowdy Children in Coffee Shops - New York Times

At Center of a Clash, Rowdy Children in Coffee Shops - New York Times: "'Whenever a hostess asks me 'smoking or non-smoking?' I respond, 'No kids!' ' "

a short week's food

before heading to chicago on Thursday afternoon (yay!)

• carne enchilada (chile-crusted skirt steak), sweet potato roasted and mashed with bacon and shallots.
• orzo with chicken, onion, and zucchini
• whole wheat pasta with meatless balls (it tastes the same – if you close your eyes)
• curry fried rice (nasi goreng if I serve with a fried egg)

yay for transnational activism :P

Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | Bush feels hand of God as poll ratings slump: "The keynote was struck by football star Diego Maradona, who wore a 'Stop Bush' T-shirt to attend an anti-Bush 'counter-summit' that drew some 4,000 protesters from around the world and easily eclipsed the official summit in the public's attention. 'I'm proud as an Argentine to repudiate the presence of this human trash, George Bush,' said Maradona."

Lentil soup / zuppa di lenticcie

I thought for sure I had posted this previously, but I seem to have been wrong. This is one of my favorite soups, especially with a nice crusty bread like ciabatta or a baguette. The first time I made it, I thought it would just be ok – nothing to invite someone over to share, just a nice rustic meal for myself. I was quite wrong and now have shared it several times, and everyone else has quite enjoyed it. Unfortunately, this is a vegan recipe so I am always sure to use at least some chicken stock. Fuck vegans!

Lentil soup

From the excellent cookbook Italia in Cucina from McRae books srl.

Ingredients

• 1½ cups lentils (I use the big green kind, but any, from French green to brown to red would do nicely. Experiement!)
• 1 medium onion, chopped finely
• 2 small carrots, diced
• 2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 cloves garlic, whole or finely chopped
• A few fresh sage leaves, chopped
• A heap of chopped fresh rosemary
• salt and pepper to taste
• olive oil

Method

Put the lentils in a bowl and cover with cold water to about 1¼ in above the lentils. Soak for an hour or two. Drain the lentils and place in a saucepan with the onion, carrots, celer;y, bay leaf, and garlic. Add enough cold water and chicken stock to cover to about 2 in above the level of the lentils. Cover, and cook over low heat for about 45 minutes.

Discard the bay leaf, add the sage and rosemary, and continue cooking, still covered and over low heat, for another 5–10 minutes. At this point, the lentils should be very soft and will begin to disintegrate. add salt and pepper to taste, drizzle with the oil, and serve.

aww, how nice!

Scott's parents sent an anniversary card!

as of 3 Nov, Scott and I have been together for six years! :)

blah, blah, blah

10 Ways to Please Us, the Customers - New York Times: "II. Thou shalt hire native English speakers to translate thine instruction manual. 'When the camera focus is not so possible, hold the shutter button vaguely until the beeping tone is heard.' Is that really how your company wants to address customers?"

Menu

As usual, in no order.

• chicken paprikás
• spicy asian greens with baked tofu
• macaroni and cheese with garlic sausage
• beans and tomatoes
• tofu marsala and mashed purple potatoes

Recipe: Mouhamara

Mouhamara is a persian sauce of red peppers, ground walnuts, and pomegranate molasses. At restaurants, I've had a couple variations on it, including a thinner one in which a chicken breast was cooked. Scott and I learned of it from our friend Rania in undergrad; her mother made far and away the best persian food I've ever had including baked and raw kibbe. I make tabbouleh by her recipe quite often (heavy on both mint and lemon).

Mouhamara

Ingredients

All amounts are quite variable, these are just a rough guide.

• 2–4 red peppers, raw or roasted/peeled
• ½ cup plain breadcrumbs
• ¾ cup walnuts, chopped fine
• ¼ cup pomegranate molasses
• 1/3 cup tahini
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• Juice of at least half a lemon
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper paste (mix powder with water before adding)

Method

Combine everything in a bowl and mix well. Add some water for a thinner consistency.

Gizmodo - The Toy

Gizmodo - The Toy: "a Bluetooth vibrator called The Toy that, incidentally, is linked to your cellphone and controlled by SMS messages. "

The New Yorker: The Critics: Musical Events

The New Yorker: The Critics: Musical Events: "Fiona Apple’s new album."

why pretend there is "balance" to be sought?

Seeing Creation and Evolution in Grand Canyon - New York Times

I should menu so I don't forget what to make

• Still have the makings of butternut squash ravioli
• Risotto with chicken and summer squashes
• Chorizo and red pepper quiche
• Figs and bacon and salad and bread
• Teriyaki chicken and bok choy

the pathetic fun that can be had with game theory...

an excerpt from my homework:

Here ε denotes the proportion of mutants with a better strategy – that is, one that will yield the Pareto-EES-u* payoff of (3,3). Consider, in turn, each possible matchings of these mutants in the population:

1. σ* : σ. A σ*-playing sender meets an attractive receiving σ player at a bar. Still, σ* (sending m₁ or m₂ depending on type) is no worse than being a σ and sending m₃.
2. σ : σ*. A σ sender picks up a cute σ*. Back at the σ*'s place, σ says, ``So do you wanna m₃?" The σ* receiver happily takes action C. Neither is worse off than if they'd both been σs.
3. σ* : σ*. A σ* catches another σ*'s glance across the dance floor. The sender signals his type, and the receiver follows the appropriate σ* action. They end up with (3,3).

NPR : After the Miers Nomination: What Next?

NPR : After the Miers Nomination: What Next?: "Lee Epstein, author of Advice and Consent: The Politics of Judicial Appointments, discusses the Supreme Court nomination of Harriet Miers with Renee Montagne. Epstein says that the next few days will bring a lot of digging into the background of this relatively unknown nominee."

so, so pretty.

Sometimes since I use it all the time and it just sort of does its job for me, I forget what a gorgeous piece of machinery my espresso machine is. Cleaning it is a pain, because backflushing requires it be hot, and polishing that it be cold. So after I polished it today I thought I'd share a picture of it being pretty, before it looks grungy again.

chicken soup and matzo balls

A commenter formally posted a request, and some friends have informally asked for, occasional recipes if I'm going to post tantilizing menus. Here's my chicken soup, which is better than your jewish grandmother's (maybe great-grandma has me beat, I'll concede. But even Bubbe probably uses that nasty box-mix for matzo balls).

My chicken soup is adapted from David Rosengarten in the Dean & DeLuca Cookbook, which is a fantastic resource that I strongly recommend for its detailed treatment of "classics" and information about various ingredients. The matzo balls are almost exactly Rosengarten's

Goyische Chicken Soup

Ingredients

• 1 whole chicken — see note below
• 3 quarts water
• 1 onion
• 1 turnip
• 5 ish carrots
• 4 stalks celery
• 3 parsnips
• 3 cloves garlic
• 5 sprigs fresh dill
• 1 bunch fresh parsley
• some salt and lots of pepper

Method

Note on planning ahead: you need to make the matzo ball mix a few hours ahead or the night before. Most crucially, you must skin the entire chicken and render its fat. One chicken produces just slightly more than enough schmaltz for one batch of matzo balls, whose recipe follows

On to the soup. Bring the chicken and water to a boil, skimming the foam of connective tissue from the top, lest your soup be cloudy. While it's on its way to boiling, chop all the vegetables. Leave the herbs whole, and simply peel/smash the garlic. Add everything else to the pot and simmer, partially covered, until the chicken is cooked.

Remove the chicken and let it cool just enough to take it off the bone. Save the meat, and return the bones to the pot for another hour or so.

The soup is done. It can be refrigerated now, if you like, and you can eat it tomorrow, or you can remove the bones and add the chopped meat back in, and have a satisfyingly restorative dinner.

Matzo Balls for soup above

• 3 Tbsp schmaltz
• 3 Tbsp club soda
• 2 eggs
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ cup (generous) matzo meal

Freshly rendered schmaltz – chicken fat – is absolutely critical. If you're going to substitute vegetable oil, or kosher-market jar schmaltz, please save yourself the hassle of matzo balls entirely and just add pasta to your soup.

How to render chicken fat: take all the fat from your chicken, put it in a saucepan with ½–1 cup water over medium heat. Boil all the water away and you're left with tasty chicken fat. Pour through a strainer. Why my matzo balls bring all the boys to the yard: I also add fresh herbs to this mix. A sprig or two of rosemary, or thyme, imparts a delicate and fleeting perfume to each bite of the final result.

Beat the eggs well with a fork, add the water, salt, pepper, and schmaltz; stir in the matzo meal. Let sit 4–14 hours in the refrigerator.

To make the matzo balls, it helps to at least parboil them in a separate pan, rather than trying to let the soup cook them. It just takes too long. So in a pan of salted boiling water, drop walnut-sized balls of dough until they are cooked. Then transfer and serve in the soup.

I find myself just sputtering out of hatred.

Bush Urges Conservation as Retail Gas Prices Rise - New York Times: "'We can all pitch in by being better conservers,' Mr. Bush said after being briefed on the hurricanes' impact on the energy industry at the Energy Department. 'People just need to recognize that these storms have caused disruptions.' In addition to urging consumers to cut back to ease the pain of the current supply shortages, he said federal employees should use carpool and public transport and not take non-essential trips."

David Pogue (NYT) gushes over the beautiful iPod Nano.

IPod's Law: The Impossible Is Possible - New York Times: "So are the analysts right that the sun will soon set on the iPod Age? The truth is, the iPod has faced stiff competition from some of the industry's best-known companies since the day it was introduced. Yet even after four years, all of Dell's horses and all Sony's men haven't made a dent in the iPod's dominance. And with the introduction of gorgeous, functional and elegant iPod Nano, that's not about to change."

And by "beautiful" in the title here I mean, "hotter than a whole team of shirtless boys playing soccer outside my building." Well, maybe not strictly hotter. But equal.

My annoyance for the semester

Epstein-Barr Virus: "Symptoms of infectious mononucleosis are fever, sore throat, and swollen lymph glands. "

I blame filthy undergrads spitting in water fountains or something. Universities are, after all, cesspools of disease. The incubation period of 4–6 weeks would coincide with when I was back in St Louis and I definitely did not have "intimate contact with the saliva of an infected person" a month ago.

My symptoms are extremely mild. It's really just been an inconvenience: my throat is a bit swollen, hurts to swallow (sometimes) and I've had a fever off and on for a few days. I'm not excessively tired. The net effect of this seems to be to make me a better student this semester, since I can't drink alcohol or go to the gym for a month or so.

Excellent Savage article

When cleverness crosses the line into smugness...

As too often it does for game theorists, we arrive at such contrivances as this gem from Aumann and Hart's (2003) "Long Cheap Talk" (Econometrica 71: 1619–1660) (they weren't kidding about its being bloody long). Not only are row and column players named "Rowena" and "Colin", but we also have

Footnote 5: Rowena's message is thus "two B" or "not two B."

menu for the week

It helps me to post menu plans, or at least write them down, so I don't end up throwing away any of the tasty fresh food I buy at the market.

I went this week to the Central West End Green Market, the one Hilary's friend Julia runs. I was planning on going to Soulard, but didn't want to take the highway because there is some strange one-laneness... Anyway, the CWE one was great! Not huge, but all of the farmers were really friendly, as was Julia herself, and two other sort of in-charge people, Dee and Sue. Dee is, with my consultation, bringing panzanella to some function she said she'd bring salad to tomorrow night.

• Butternut squash ravioli
• Falafel and mouhamara
• Tomato and arugula salad (maybe some stale bread too – panzanella is yummy!)
• Something tasty with pork chops
• Lots of fresh or caramelized peaches
• Ma po tofu (with red pepper, scallions, and minced pork)

expressions lost on foreigners

Guillermo asked me to create an email list for our regression class, because it's easier that way to send stuff like homework to all of us, or lecture notes. I mentioned that I knew artsci ran an instance of listserv and I know pretty well how to make listserv do what it's supposed to.

So I made a list titled, "Regression for dummies (political science grad students)," because it's funny.

Mike, Thanks very much for putting the list together. I do object to the title of the list, but I requested you to be the listmaster and must accept your choice.
Just make sure that nobody takes offense at the title.
Thanks also for the great R cheat sheet, it's very helpful.
Best,
Guillermo.

There is no way, really, to explain that "for dummies" isn't offensive because of the wildly successful books on everything from sex to mortgages to probably blogging... he just doesn't understand because he's from Mexico. Oh well. I changed it to just "Regression".

funny ad

So the point of this ad from the top of a sourceforge page is like "we make online meetings easy," but they thought they would show this using equations... How sad is it that I thought at seeing the first one, "That's not complicated, it's just the sample variance, duh"

more gay animals

...and I'm an Aries too.

my new bike!

Here's an IM transcript of my bike story because I'm a lazy mofo:

i have to tell you my bike story
which might be ongoing!
so my bike was stolen last month
it was in the basement the whole time i was gone
so i was here for like 3 days, meetings, returning books, etc
and there were some of my flaky landlord's minions erecting a scaffold at 9am one morning
when i go down at 10, no bike
so i'm certain they made off with it
anyway
i scour craigslist for the last month
then i run across this woman selling a 58cm fr aluminum road bike
for $400.
right. so i bought it yesterday
i went out to creve coeur; rode it down the street, wrote the ho a check, and was on my way i thought it was yours she was selling
i get a call this morning, let it go to voicemail, obviously
no i had a not-great bike, definitely not this thing!
so she calls me this morning
and starts like half-crying on the phone about how it was a gift from her boyfriend and could i find it in my heart to cancel what has been done
i ignore, of course.
this afternoon, another voicemail
...from
her mother
saying "we'd really like to get the bike back, i'd be willing to add something extra buy it back from you"
at this point
i'm like all whitney, helllllll to the naw
because something extra would have to be the almost $500 extra to buy an equiv bike!
this shit new would be MIN $850
so i'm not sure whether to call and be like no
or just ignore it and go about my business
because she had PLENTY of time to reconsider the offer to sell
we have been in contact via at least 3 emails and 2 phone calls and I was at her house you could call and tell her it was a gift and you gave it away already
ANY TIME up until i rode off with it on my car, would have been possible to back out
so how funny is that
wait till you see it
it's HOT

specs:

• 54cm 7005 Aluminum Frame, Butted Down Tube, Replacable Der. Hanger and Compact Road Geometry, Shimano 27 Speed Drivetrain, Shimano 105 rear der., Shimano Tiagra Hubs, 14g Spokes, Alex DA-28 Rims, Michelin Axial Kevlar 700 X 23c Tires