Manatees are still prevalent in Blue Spring

We took a ride up to Blue Spring in Orange City this weekend to see the manatees.  We were not disappointed!  There were around 80 manatees in the spring on the cold Sunday afternoon, and the park was quite full.  In fact, we had to park in the auxillery parking lot and fight crowds to see the majestic sea cows.

Most of the manatees were at the river-end of the run, but there were some of them in the boil itself and along the run.  Most of them had deep scars, and there were a few young ones too. 

We took Lilly to see them (who is 4)…she was excited to see them and had many questions.  I hope she will be able to see them when she grows up.

One manatee in particular was very curious about us and very friendly.  He was marked “A6″.  I don’t know what that marking refers to or who is tracking the animal.  Perhaps it cross-references to a name and point of origin. 

Baked Fish in Banana Leaves

Want to impress your guests?  Then make the South American version of “Fish En Papillote.”  But in this case, it is not fish baked in parchment paper…it is fish baked on a savory bed of plantain sofrito in banana leaves.

Here how it is done, and I apologize for the lack of pictures. 

• 4 – 6oz. filets of cod (bacalao)
• 2 large fresh banana leaves, cleaned with a sponge
• 5-6 very green plantains
• 1 yellow onion
• 1/2 jalapeño pepper
• 2 medium sized tomatoes
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1 bunch cilantro
• 2 tbsp achiote seeds
• 4 tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 cup smooth creamy peanut butter
• 2 pkt. Sazon goya w/cilantro and achiote
• Fresh ground black pepper (white preferred)

Make the sofrito.  Finely chop the yellow onion, jalapeño (to taste), tomato, garlic and cilantro, add to a medium saucepan.  Add the goya and pepper.  Cook over medium – low heat until the mixture resembles cooked salsa and the onions are tender. 

Make the achiote oil.  Add achiote seeds to a small pan and saute in the olive oil until the oil becomes deep red.  Strain out and discard the seeds, reserving the oil. 

Grate the plantains.  Finely grate the plantains on a box grater using the super-fine teeth side.  The result will look like a paste.  You do not want any chunks.  Be careful as you can easily grate your fingers. 

Make the “filling”.  In a medium sized bowl, fully incorporate the grated plantain paste, the achiote oil and the sofrito.  Mix in the peanut butter.  Set aside.  The mixture will be soupy.

Prep the pan.  Cut the banana leaves to 14 inch lengths.  Turn one stove burner to the High setting and gently heat each cleaned banana leaf over the heated burner.  When the leaves start to turn a shiny color, remove them from the heat and place in a 9 x 13 cake pan that has been lined with aluminum foil.  The step of heating the leaves seals them and prevents the leaves from breaking down during cooking.  Line the pan with banana leaves and reserve enough leaves for the top. 

Assemble the fish.  Add 1/2 of the plantain-sofrito mixture to the bottom of the pan on top of the banana leaves.  Gently lay the raw fish fillets on the plantain mixture.  Top with the remainder of the sofito mixture and cover with banana leaves.  Cover the entire pan with aluminum foil and seal it shut. 

Bake.   Place the pan in a 350 degree oven and cook for 60-90 minutes, checking at the 60 minute mark.  When done, the plantain mixture will become fairly dense, almost like a tamale.  Serve each person one fish fillet and its accompanying filling.  Serves 4.

Why won’t I use Twitter

Let me be up-front.  I hate Twitter, Tweeting, Twitoris, Twitterific, and all other word forms and permutations of Twitter, both noun and verb.  The word Twitter to me conjures up images of Michael J. Fox lurching through corridors, being eaten out by Parkinson’s disease until he collapses into a gelatinous mess on the floor.  It is an invasion of privacy, an evil Internet form of the perverted peeping tom, the nosey New Yorker who wants to know who, what, when, where and how you are scracthing your ass in the darkness of your closet.  The guy across the street with a multitude iof kids, no job, and the time to tell you that you need to mix your primer with the topcoat to save a setp.    An insidious tool that satisfies Lady Gaga’s (Gags?) Papparazi within.  It’s a commie / socialist tracking tool…a built in traffic camera into your inner life.  An excuse for being social.  A cheapskates dream. 

The one thing I hate the most about Twitter is that the proverbial “everyone”…meaning all personas and/or un-named sources around the water-cooler (which office can afford a water cooler these days??)  are all trying to push me to use this juvenile app.  I don’t want to use it.  I will not conform. 

I already blogged on why I hate Twitter and why I won’t Tweet, Chirp or Sing like a farukin songbird.  But this is my blog and I reserve the right to bitch and moan about something.  So there.  I hate Twitter.  I hate Macs.  I hate Mac fanboys.  I hate Twittering Mac fanboys that Tweet about how Windows 7 will derail them or how their a-e-i-o-u (emphasize the IOU part) vowelMac will save humanity in 2012.  Ok, got it?

Why is everyone getting a Win 7 discount except me?

Every time I turn around, I run into someone who has gotten the Windows 7 upgrade for pennies on the dollar.

My company is in the Employee Purchase Plan at Microsoft.  However, since the organization I work for was acquired by the parent company, my email address differs from the company email address.  Hence, I am not eligible for the EPP discount.

I have a stepdaughter who attends an Orange County Public School.  However, according to the program rules, unless she has a valid school email address (only teachers would have this), she is not eligible on www.win741.com. 

Microsoft’s Ultimate Steal website only allows colleges and universities.

I guess I will have to pay the nearly $200 fee for Win 7 Pro upgrade.

Honey Toasted versus Honey Roasted Peanuts

While on a recent flight, I was handed some Southwest Honey Roasted Peanuts.  In my carry-on bag, I had some other snacks, including a sleeve of Lance Honey Toasted Peanuts.  Naturally, that led me to this discussion, which is all about the difference between Honey Roasted and Honey Toasted.

First, let’s talk about Honey Roasted.  Roasting is a cooking method that uses dry heat.  Roasting using a dry heat source usually results in a Malliard reaction, or a form of non-enzymatic browning typically referred to as caramelization.  Dry roasted nuts are typically browned without the additional of oil.  But honey roasted refers to a cooking method in which butter and honey are mixed and applied to the surface area of the item that is to be dry roasted.  So, in effect, honey roasted peanuts are tossed in a butter-honey slurry and baked in an oven.

Honey Toasting is a slightly different process but it yields the same result, though the nuts will be browner.  Toasted nuts are usually toasted using a direct heat source, such as adding them to a skillet and stir frying them in hot oil.  However, many proprietors use “honey toasted” as a selling point against “honey roasted”, claiming that honey toasted nuts use less oil, and have less fat, less saturated fat, less sodium and fewer calories than regular roasted nuts.  In the end, the roasted nuts are probably better in that they come in less contact with saturated fats or cooking oils. 

Looking at the Lance packaging, I was surprised to see it say “Fresh roasted peanuts with a golden honey glaze.”  I was happy to see Honey as an actual ingredient, whereas the Southwest ingredient list read like this: Peanuts, Dry Roasted with Salt, Honey and Tapioca Dextrin.  The ingredient list of the Lance honey toasted peanuts is a bit longer overall: Peanuts, Sugar, Peanut Oil and/or Cottonseed Oil, Dextrose, Salt, Honey, Modified Wheat Starch, Soy Lecithin, Molasses, Guar Gum, Artificial Flavoring.

From this ingredient listing, you can see the difference in roasted versus toasted.  With roasted, the peanuts are put in an oven and allowed to dry out & lightly brown.  With toasted, the peanuts are fried in peanut and/or cottonseed oil until much browner. 

What about Tapioca Dextrin?  Tapioca dextrin is created by the breakdown of tapioca starch.  It is a filler.

In conclusion – I think Honey Roasted nuts edge out Honey Toasted in terms of health.  For flavor, toasted is the way to go, provided the oil used for toasting was fresh.

Who else thinks there is something fishy about the Norway Spiral

Check out these pics:

Now check out this video.  And this one.

The official word is that this is an out of control Russian rocket.  However, I have heard “official” statements before that just didn’t equate with reality.

As I initially suspected, Richard Hoagland already came up with a theory about the wayward missile.  You guessed it…hyperdimensional. 

I guess I sit somewhere in the middle of these extemes.  I do not believe that it was a failed launch attempt.  I do not believe it was hyperdimensional, but I do concur that it was a display of power.  Do I believe the EISCAT Ramfjordmoen facility and/or HAARP was involved?  Yeah, I do.  But what can be done.  The point has been made, which is “hey, look what we can do using our HAARP facility.”  Exactly why that particular point was made, I do not know, nor do I really want to know for my own health purposes.  Just make your own conclusions.  Think about the timing and who was “there” at the time.

Shameless Plug

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Top Ten Things I Hate About Air Travel

I travel fairly frequently, mostly within the continental US.  Here is a listing of 10 things that really get my goat about air travel:

1. Unruly children.  We have all seen them.  Kids running amok in the airport, disturbing other passengers, screaming, hollering and otherwise acting out of control.  On my last trip, I watched in horror as one 8 year old child kept slamming the airport terminal window with an umbrella.  His mother then gave him a 64 ounce gutbuster coke which he consumed over the next 20 minutes.  By the time we were ready to depart, the kid was uncontrollable and the mother was demanding the flight crew to set aside federal law so he could go to the restroom on takeoff.
2. Drunks.  The airport is no place to get wasted.  However, that doesn’t stop the fat bellied rednecks that like to saturate themselves internally and externally with alcohol prior to flying.  Then they act like imbiciles on the plane.
3. Drinking a 64 ounce gutbuster soda prior to flying.  I touched on it in item #1.  What is the point of drinking all that sugar and carbonated water, then getting in a tizzy when the single working lavatory is in use, or the fasten seatbelts sign is lit?
4. Reclining your seat.  Let’s face it.  On flights such as Southwest, if you recline your seat, you mess up the poor SOB behind you who then has a seat in their face and no room to maneuver.  Consideration is obviously a thing of the past for these mindless slugs.
5. Last minute people.  I get to the airport at least 1 hour early, if not more.  Why hold everyone up while you make a mad last second dash to the gate?
6. Carry on bag size.  I saw a woman bring on a 26″ upright which was overpacked.  She tried to stuff it in the overhead, partially crushing my bag in the process.  The flight attendant actually took her side, and proceeded to partially crush my stuff.  Check your bags you sorry, lazy dopes!
7. That annoying person who talks too loud or too much.  On a 9:20PM flight home, I don’t want to hear some stupid dork taking at the top of their lungs for 4+ hours, nor do I want to hear them laughing with an annoying laugh for hours on end.  Consideration.  What the hell happened to it?
8. Lack of Info.  Some pilots provide useful information.  Some simply say “Welcome to XYZ”.  I prefer some information along the way, such as “we now have 850 miles to go…”
9. Guilty until proven innocent.  I recently forgot I had a water bottle in my carry-on bag.  You would think the world had ended…the amount of grief they gave me. 
10. Shrinking cabin sizes.  I am getting bigger, yes.  But the seats, leg room and overhead bin space is shrinking too. 

What has he been doing?

It has been a month since my last…um…BLOG.  here’s the deal.

About a month ago, my boss approached and asked me if I “wanted” to go support one of my colleagues.  He said “it will be a week, no big deal, just help him with what he needs.”  So I said yes.  Then, another instance came up and I was in the computer lab and one of the customers approached me.  He said “can you support a one week thing out in Kansas?”  I said…Yes.

So first up was a short fuse trip to Kansas City, MO for work done at Ft. Leavenworth, KS.  Let me just sum it up by saying that I had little to no internet connectivity, forgot my laptop charger, and was generally working longer hours than I ever intended. 

After that week, the second trip came up to “help” my buddy.  Turns out he was at the National Training Center, or Fort Irwin, CA.  It was a 7+ hour flight to reach him, and there was a psycho wench on the plane.  Enough said.  Holiday Inn…high desert…ice cold temps.  Then there was Fort Irwin.  I thought I would be in a building or something.  No.  I was supposed to help this guy in a series of tents resting on the desert floor.  And it was 37F out in the morning and 60F in the afternoon.   As a result, I got sick.  Very bad cold, which moved south into my chest.  I am still recovering.

Now…I am on my third trip of the month…back in Kansas City for an ill-planned concept session.  Somehow all of the horrors of the first trip provided me sufficient karma to get a very nice hotel this time, plus a primo rental car.  At least I am living in style here in KCMO.

So that’s my excuse.  Oh wait, I almost forgot.  My wife threatened me with divorce and/or death if we did not move, so I signed an intent to vacate my current apartment, and we were house hunting in between trips, a busy work schedule, and everything else.  But we found one, and I move on 18 December.

Ok, so that is my excuse for not being around much.  I can’t believe I just compressed 31 days of grief into a single, short blog!  I will try to catch up over the next week.

I’m back…

Sorry…I have been unable to blog for a while.

It all started when I got a mandoline slicer.  You see, I always find myself prepping vegetables.  The wife was watching TV and she flipped to ShopNBC.  And there was a mandoline on sale.  I bought it. 

We were making salchipapas…the Ecuadorian version of this is to pan sear some thin flank marinated beef, then serve it on top of a bed of homemade french fries.  You then top that with thin sliced tomatoes, specially processed red onions and lettuce.  Finally, you top that with either ketchup or mayo, or a combination of both.  Yummy.

My first thought was that the mandoline would be ideal for this meal.  I used it to zip through the onions, making ultra thin slices.  I then made paper thin slices of tomato.  I used it to make perfectly shaped french fries.  Lastly, I wanted to shred the lettuce.  Since the head of lettuce was so big, I didn’t think the protective shield would be needed.  So I started shredding it (with the appropriate razor sharp attachment), sans protective guard. 

In an instant, I sliced my pinky finger.  The pain didn’t register at first, and I rushed to the bathroom to gauge the damage.  It was serious.  My wife pretty much passed out at the carnage that was unfolding..blood everywhere.  The tip of my finger dangling.  I wrapped that bad boy as good as I could and got in the car.  Off to the ER.

The ER was not crowded, thankfully.  Some mother and her slutty 13 year old were in there…and some woman who looked fine but was convinced she had the flu of swine.  I went right back.

The attending doctor told me to elevate my hand above my head for 15 minutes, while applying direct pressure to the wound.  He was hoping the bleeding would stop.  it did not.  While my arms were elevated (and this hurt…try elevating your arm for 15m!)…some stupid tart nurse who was more interested in talking to ger beau on her cellphone wanted to simultaneously take my temp, read my BP and pulse and ask me a litany of questions.  Ugh!

After 15m, the doc returned and took a look.  “Wow, that is not good” were his words.  He said I took out a major chunk of tissue, and as such, he would need to perform a risky procedure of emplacing a high tension suture to pinch my fingertip together. 

The fun began with three shots.  One on the posterior of my pinky.  One on the anterior.  And one right down the middle of the cut.  OUCH!  After that, the finger got huge…the swelling subsided in 15m, and the finger was ready.  It was bleeding fiercely, and he sanitized the finger and began sewing.  After that, another nurse appeared and jabbed my deltoid with a Tetanus/Dp shot.  So much for consent.

That night was bad.  I had trouble sleeping…and everyone somehow got wind of my issue and was calling me nonstop.  Hmmm….who wants to talk when their finger is in throbbing pain?

The next day, the finger was in serious pain, but that didn’t stop me from having to go back to work.  I was stuck all week in a lab, with no internet access.  What fun.  My wife and kid did not seem to understand that I was in pain, and as such, they overbooked me with all sorts of fun stuff.

Now…several days later, the finger still hurts like the dickens (who or what are the dickens?)  And yes, I am still overbooked and overworked…so it probably won’t heal properly, even if I don’t get an infection!  But I am remaining positive and happy it was not worse.  In 2 weeks, the stitches come out…and I will be on the road to recovery.