Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

After dobbs, women are no longer free.

Trump makes a mockery of the legal system and cowardly judges just sit back and let him.

Not so fun when the rabbit gets the gun, is it?

Many life forms that would benefit from greater intelligence, sadly, do not have it.

This must be what justice looks like, not vengeful, just peaceful exuberance.

I did not have this on my fuck 2024 bingo card.

Republicans are radicals, not conservatives.

I might just take the rest of the day off and do even more nothing than usual.

An almost top 10,000 blog!

Authoritarian republicans are opposed to freedom for the rest of us.

Nancy smash is sick of your bullshit.

This blog will pay for itself.

In my day, never was longer.

Everything is totally normal and fine!!!

Whatever happens next week, the fight doesn’t end.

Bark louder, little dog.

🎶 Those boots were made for mockin’ 🎵

I am pretty sure Katy Tur wasn’t always such a bootlicking sycophant.

The Supreme Court is corrupt. Democrats must win in November and force court reform.

A lot of Dems talk about what the media tells them to talk about. Not helpful.

A sufficient plurality of insane, greedy people can tank any democratic system ever devised, apparently.

He wakes up lying, and he lies all day.

You come for women, you’re gonna get your ass kicked.

Oh FFS you might as well trust a 6-year-old with a flamethrower.

You are here: Home / Food & Recipes / Cooking / Yet Another Open Thread: Thursday Night Menu

Reader Interactions

124Comments

  1. 1.

    SiubhanDuinne

    Oh god, John, you’re not planning to humiliate Tunch, are you? Because I’m pretty sure he won’t thank you.

  3. 3.

    Comrade Mary

    No no no, John!

    FIRST, Tunch shits in your shoes. THEN you punish him. Don’t punish him first unless you have a shoe store within bedroom slipper range.

  10. 10.

    Annie

    @Comrade Mary:

    Did Tunch really shit in his shoes? If so, must of been a pretty good reason. Go Tunch. We are behind you….Start your own open thread and believe me, we will respond.

  15. 15.

    The Main Gauche of Mild Reason

    Claire McCaskill, complete waste of oxygen:

    “After you do one really, really big, really, really hard thing that makes everybody mad, I don’t think anybody’s excited about doing another really, really big thing that’s really, really hard that makes everybody mad,” Sen. Claire McCaskill said. “Climate fits that category.”

    http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-klein/2009/11/why_solve_problems.html

    No discussion of the moral imperative of doing something, whether it’s what your constituents want, etc. I think I know teenagers with more intellectual fortitude.

  17. 17.

    burnspbesq

    The Colorado – Oklahoma State game is absolutely unwatchable. Think Chris Wallace interviewing Michelle Bachmann. Yes, that bad.

  19. 19.

    Of Bugs and Books

    Also, I need someone with mad photoshop skills for a “big” job involving a cat and a Bengals uniform.

    They don’t make real Bengals uniforms big enough to fit Tunch?

  20. 20.

    Brian J

    Well, I didn’t want to make the obvious jokes about the pineapples, but since you went there…

    Seriously though, I added some pineapples and grapes to some blackened grilled chicken, blackened grilled asparagus, and some peanut sauce a few weeks ago. It was awesome.

  22. 22.

    ksecus

    Im ahankerin’ for some Pumpkin cookies with cinnamon glaze.
    Man, can someone PLEASE make some Punkin cookies?

  23. 23.

    Chris

    Something I never thought about…and I’d love to know what you guys think….

    I spent some time with a friend of mine. He’s a vietnam vet. As is par for the course with us, we began talking politics. He agrees that AfPak is a lost cause..but sees no urgency to get out. To him..the fact that our forces there are all volunteer (as opposed to his involutary time in s.e. asia) makes all the difference in how he views the conflict. Does the fact that our forces out there now are all volunteer change how any of you feel about it? I’m not a veteran so I dont feel qualified to speak to the issue.

    A separate (but related) idea that came to me. Admittedly this was Chris +6…..But it made sense at the time. To me, the conflict Obama sees himself waging in Afghanistan is against an enemy within the republic rather than anyone in the near east. AfPak is a war he must fight, in order to avoid the daily chorus of “cut and run!” over the next three years and avoid a possible republican recapture of the white house before they are even REMOTELY capable of governing.

  27. 27.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    @Chris:

    Does the fact that our forces out there now are all volunteer change how any of you feel about it?

    Yeah, if those folks are volunteers, it shouldn’t be costing us anything, right?

  28. 28.

    Mark S.

    @burnspbesq:

    Just about this entire weekend of college football is unwatchable. Here’s who the top three (and barring some miracle, the only teams with a shot at the national title) are playing:

    Florida vs. Florida International
    Alabama vs. Chattanooga
    Texas vs. Kansas (who have lost five straight)

  30. 30.

    Arclite

    Let us know how the plantains come out. I’ve tried cooking them before, and they always came out bland and pasty. I never understood their draw.

  31. 31.

    CynDee

    @Chris: People are dying and being maimed. Afghans want U.S. troops out.

    Who is “we”?

    Anyone who wants “us” to continue being an occupier, let them suit up and go fight. Anyone who doesn’t want to die or be shot up for politics and greed, let them come home /stay home. We have a bit of important business to conduct in our own country, such as making America a livable place again and getting tens of thousands of families off the streets and back into their homes — and keeping the rest of us in our homes.

    American presence in Afghanistan is one of the great destabilizers of this new century.

  32. 32.

    Comrade Scrutinizer

    @Chris: Chris, if being there is fucked up, it’s fucked up. Doesn’t matter whether they’re volunteers or draftees.

    I don’t think Obama is going to go down the LBJ road: “Shit, I’ve inherited this fuckup, and I can’t leave because America’s prestige and my political future are at stake, so I better send some more troops in.” I think if Obama stays, he’ll do it because he thinks it make sense from a policy standpoint, and he’ll have some kind of exit strategy. It won’t be political calculation.

  34. 34.

    Chris

    @Cyndee
    Isnt it heartbreaking that what we’re spending on our “most excellent AfPak adventure” and Iraq..we could easily cover our most of our uninsured? Or give free tuition to every high school grad who needed it? Its truly a bummer…

  35. 35.

    soonergrunt

    @Chris: Tell your friend that this vet says that my blood means as much to me as his does to him. That I’m fairly sure my wife and father wouldn’t cry less over my death in combat because I volunteered. My children wouldn’t be orphans*, they’d be orphans.
    If he doesn’t understand that or he still thinks at the end of it that he’s somehow morally superior because he was drafted and my soldiers volunteered, then he can kindly go fuck himself with a spear-tipped flagpole. He should coat it in ebola or anthrax first.

    As to your other point, I don’t Obama particularly cares what dipshit republicans think. He’s smart enough to know that they’re never going to vote for him (especially given the revelation that only 28% of them think he was elected fairly) and that the middle respects that he makes decisions on the merits after due deliberation. I don’t know what he’s going to do, but I heard on NPR either yesterday or this morning that he wasn’t going to reduce forces in Afghanistan anytime soon because a stable Afghanistan that is not ruled by a bunch of Taliban who want to export their revolution is absolutely critical to Pakistan surviving as a ‘democracy.’

  36. 36.

    Chris

    @Comrade Scrutinizer
    I think you are probably right….I was +6 when I came up with my “afpak as holding action against the repubs” theory…

  37. 37.

    trollhattan

    Holy carp, I was going to make a lame “gay pineapple” joke but of course I’m way late and way bested. The way it should be.

    “Pride apple” ftw.

    +0.5, but don’t hold that against me.

  39. 39.

    Chris

    @soonergrunt
    Great to hear your opinion..I was hoping you were lurking about. I knew you would have a well considered opinion on the matter.

  42. 42.

    HRA

    @Chris:

    My husband is a veteran. Even though he served while there was no volunteer army, he did enlist. He believes our military should all come home from all foreign countries. I believe you will get both answers as in your friend and my husband from veterans.

    Serious food question: I make 2 soups for Thanksgiving dinner. Chicken soup is never to be changed. I made cream of broccoli at our last family dinner as the other soup and we had French onion at our last family gathering at a relative’s house. I make the second soup in my crock pot. Anyone have any suggestions for the second soup?

  45. 45.

    asiangrrlMN

    @jeffreyw: You had to post that, didn’t you? I sit here with a nearly-empty fridge (too sick to go shopping), and you have to taunt me with your food pr0n!

    @JenJen: Oh, you made me snort. I wondered how Cole was gonna wrangle out of the bet. Tunchie is gonna shred him to pieces.

  48. 48.

    Fern

    @HRA: Mushrooms (including some chanterelles if you can find them), onions, celery, wild rice or barley, chicken stock, fresh dill, parsley, smoked paprika, and and some smoked fish on top of the servings (smoked whitefish, trout, or goldeye would be nice.) A little cream or sour cream if you are so inclined (I am not.) Has all my favourite fall-ish foods.

  49. 49.

    charles johnson

    Fellows: My significant other will be in town this weekend, and I want to give her a treat. Lately I’ve been hearing about offal, and specifically, getting big leg bones, cutting them into segments, and roasting that in the oven, after which scooping the roasted marrow onto toasted bread.

    Fine. Sounds enticing. But I can hardly go to Winn-Dixie and get such an item. I’m sure some people will say, ‘local butchers’, but I don’t even know what to ask for specifically when I call them. Any tips?

  50. 50.

    Violet

    @HRA:

    Anyone have any suggestions for the second soup?

    Brie and pear soup. I found this recipe, which is very much like the one I made that got rave reviews. You could do the pear part first, puree it, and then do the rest in your crock pot. It’s very easy and everyone loved it. I would think you could double or triple it pretty easily, too.

  51. 51.

    charles johnson

    “Serious food question: I make 2 soups for Thanksgiving dinner. Chicken soup is never to be changed. I made cream of broccoli at our last family dinner as the other soup and we had French onion at our last family gathering at a relative’s house. I make the second soup in my crock pot. Anyone have any suggestions for the second soup?”

    Butternut squash. I mean, duh.

  54. 54.

    Hann1bal

    OK, I have an RFI for anyone who writes. Is there any free outlining software that you really like?

    What I’ve already tried:
    Wikidpad
    Zulupad
    Evernote
    MS Word

    Anyone got any other suggestions?

    (BTW: I’m doing creative-type writing, so anything optimized for that is preferable.)

  55. 55.

    2th&nayle

    @Chris: As a Viet Nam Era Veteran having felt the full force of the draft (with a draft #22, I knew I gone on the day of the drawing) in “71, I think I can say the issue has way more to do with viable deployment than to volunteer/draft status. Sending troops into untenable conflicts is just damn bad policy, regardless.

  56. 56.

    Betsy

    @HRA:
    I have been singing the praises of Mark Bittman’s Mushroom Barley soup from his How to Cook Everything Vegetarian. SO GOOD and filling and if you have any vegetarians coming to your feast they will thank you.

  58. 58.

    jon

    @Arclite:

    It’s kind of hit-or-miss for me. I’ve had them come out pasty like that before, but sometimes they turn out really good. I think I’m doing the same thing every time- just frying in butter, it’s not rocket science. I think I just don’t know how to pick out a good plantain in the store.

  60. 60.

    Violet

    @charles johnson:
    Offal and marrow are two separate things. Not sure where to find the marrow, but try going to the best supermarket or specialty butchers in your area and just tell them what you want to do. They should know how to help you.

    Offal is definitely an acquired taste. You might want to be sure your significant other likes it before investing in it. The texture is what gets me – I’m not a big fan of it.

  61. 61.

    Fern

    @Hann1bal:
    It`s far from free – but I love love love MindManager. The mind mapping really works for me, I can draft chunks of text in MM and then export to Word for formatting and editing. I`ve used it for longish documents – 50+ pages – but mostly for business-type writing.

    I`ve looked around for free mindmapping software – and there is some, but haven`t tried it, since I have something I like.

  62. 62.

    burnspbesq

    Channel 4 in New York is reporting that Giuliani is running for Gillibrand’s Senate seat rather than for Governor.

    I think she will kick his ass, and I can’t wait for the spectacle.

  63. 63.

    gnomedad

    @Fern:
    I also love MindManager and have used it for a long time. I recently got a tablet notebook and MM has interesting pen support features.

    However, if you want something free, look into Xmind. It has some interesting map cross-linking features that even MM doesn’t have, and stores stuff in XML format. There is also internet upload/sharing support for a small monthly fee which I haven’t tried yet. Oh, and it can run off a flash drive if that’s helpful.

    I also use MindMeister on the web.

  65. 65.

    Chris

    @2th&Nayle
    I wasnt sure what the point my friend was making either..because of our “state of mind”..LOL at the time I didnt get around to asking…how one came into the job (that is being drafted or volunteered) had much bearing on the morality/usefulness/wisdom??? of the conflict. but he is an old friend and not having served myself, i didnt feel it appropriate to ask. I’m glad several of you have spoken up to let me know how you feel about it…Next time he and I crack open the barrel, I’ll question him a little more about where he was going with his point…LOL

  67. 67.

    Phoenix Woman

    John, if by chance you’re using fresh pineapples instead of the canned kind, SAVE THE RIND and use it to make this stuff:

    ————————————————

    Muy Caliente Pineapple Vinagre (Vinegar)
    Recipe #244289 | 50 min | 20 min prep

    By: SusieQusie
    Aug 3, 2007

    Finally! A use for the rind of those expensive fresh pineapples! From Daisy Cooks – “Vinagre -a condiment that gives sparkle, a citrus-fruity tinge, heat, and aroma- takes just about any dish to places it has never been before. I realize that if you don’t know about vinagre, you could probably still live a full and happy life. But once you taste it, you’ll be lost without it.”

    Ingredients

    * 2 ripe pineapple
    * 1/2 large Spanish onion, sliced thin
    * 1 tablespoon minced fresh oregano leaves
    * 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
    * 20 garlic cloves, crushed
    * 6 habanero peppers or chili peppers, of your choice, stems cut off, coarsely chopped
    * 1 tablespoon cider vinegar, as needed
    * 1/2 teaspoon salt, as needed

    Directions

    1.
    1
    Cut the tops off the pineapples and discard them.
    2.
    2
    With a big knife, cut off the rind from the pineapples with as little pineapple attached as possible.
    3.
    3
    Put the rinds in a pot large enough to hold them comfortably and pour in enough water to cover them. Bring to a boil and boil until the pineapple peel is very tender, about 30 minutes. Top off with water if necessary to keep the rinds submerged.
    4.
    4
    Meanwhile, put the onion, oregano, peppercorns, garlic, Habanero or other chili pepper, vinegar, and salt in a large jar with a tight-fitting lid.
    5.
    5
    Strain the pineapple liquid over the seasonings. If there is not enough liquid to cover the ingredients, re-cover the pineapple with water and boil for 20 minutes.
    6.
    6
    Taste and add a little salt and/or a little vinegar, if you think it needs it.
    7.
    7
    You can use it as soon as it cools, but it will get better as it sits.

  68. 68.

    nikita

    @Arclite: @jon:

    Pick yellow/brown soft but non-mushy plantains and deep fat fry in vegetable oil until dark brown. Hmmm…yum.

    The mushy ones are messier to peel/cut up, soak up more oil but turn out sweeter once fried.

  74. 74.

    Mister Colorful Analogy

    @Hann1bal:
    @Fern:
    @gnomedad:

    I’ve used FreeMind on both Linux and Windows, and have been very happy with the results. My three main use models were for general brainstorming/organizing (sounds like this might be what Hann1bal wants), project planning, and creating quick reference documentation.

    For the QR docs, I would do everything in FreeMind, and then export the outline to OpenOffice 2.x format. I could then pull it into MS Word, if necessary, via a plugin that let’s Word read OpenXML formatted files.

    Other than its obvious ability to create and edit mind maps, one thing that I really liked about FreeMind was that I could use it without using a mouse. Very nice, that.

  75. 75.

    asiangrrlMN

    @Bad Horse’s Filly: Thanks, girlfriend. I need to go shopping tomorrow (at my coop ‘coz I’m a DFH), so I will pick up some chicken soup. And garlic. And honey. No, I’m not going to mix them, but various people have said these are good things for bronchial ailments. And, apparently garlic is good for repelling fleas.

  76. 76.

    Left Coast Tom

    @asiangrrlMN:

    And, apparently garlic is good for repelling fleas.

    Does it repel media stories about Sarah Palin?

    ‘Cause if it does, I’m so there.

  77. 77.

    Mark S.

    I’m not sure how it got on my Netflix queue, but if you like “Manos: The Hands of Fate” type bad movies, you should try The Room. My God it’s horrible, but in an almost sublime way.

  78. 78.

    Original Lee

    I’m bookmarking all of these great soup recipes for later consumption. Yummmmmmmmm!!!

    On a more serious note, I was looking for a more extended clip of the Gramm-Holder interchange (for context), but all I can find is the Gramm takedown. Did Holder actually say that if we captured OBL that chain of custody and evidence wouldn’t matter because the evidence against him was so huge and decisive? I’m no lawyer, but if this is true, it sounds abysmally stupid to me. Out of context, Gramm’s comments sounded pretty good, which is why I am asking.

  79. 79.

    soonergrunt

    @Chris:

    how one came into the job (that is being drafted or volunteered) had much bearing on the morality/usefulness/wisdom???

    Ask him if he’d tell a young widow or a mother that to her face at the service.
    If he wouldn’t, then it’s probably a stupid point of little or no moral value.
    You know, I really have to question the morals and the self-esteem of anybody who says that the sacrifices of my friends are of any less value than theirs.

    Buddy Hughie’s blood was just as red as yours. He loved his son and his wife with all of his heart.
    Bill Scates was loved by his mother and his wife every bit as much as your friend’s family loves him.
    Schuyler Patch loved his parents deeply and had asked his girlfriend to marry him on leave. He never made it home.

    The same goes for people who try to hold me and mine accountable for the whole country’s policy. The Army didn’t start this war on its own for shits and giggles. Congress gave that jackass the authority to start it, and they knew at the time they were doing just that. Anybody who thinks that American Soldiers should just refuse to fight, or disobey orders they don’t agree with doesn’t really understand how this works. The Army does what it’s told by civilian authority. After the higher-ups have told that authority what can and cannot be done, and whether or not in their professional opinion it’s something that should be done, they get their orders, salute, and move out. They come tell us, and we salute and move out.
    You don’t want the people with all the best guns deciding that they should get veto power over the elected representatives of the people, even when those representatives are wrong.

  81. 81.

    jl

    The menu sounds great to me. Tunch has pretty discriminating tastes, but I think he might like some down home cooking once in awhile.

    What is Cole eating?

  82. 82.

    asiangrrlMN

    @Left Coast Tom: Ooooh, let’s try! It’s worth a shot!

    @soonergrunt: May I just tell you how much I enjoy your commentary here and over at Tbogg? I really like having an inside-the-army perspective in addition to Cole’s. Thank you for being open and honest about life in the army. We need more of this and less of the rhetoric that chickenhawks who haven’t served like to bleat.

  83. 83.

    Wile E. Quixote

    @Chris

    AfPak is a war he must fight, in order to avoid the daily chorus of “cut and run!” over the next three years and avoid a possible republican recapture of the white house before they are even REMOTELY capable of governing.

    That’s fucked up. If Obama is making that kind of calculation, and I hope he’s not, then he’s every bit as evil as Dick Cheney. Think about it. If this is the case then how many Americans will be killed in the next three years so that Obama doesn’t have to worry about being accused of “cutting and running”? What’s the acceptable level of casualties? 5,000, 10,000? Johnson made this calculation in 1964 when he falsified Gulf of Tonkin and it destroyed his presidency. He went from winning election in one of the largest landslides in presidential history to being barely able to leave the White House in four years and fucked up every other part of his legacy because of it.

    And face it, the Republicans will bitch and piss and moan about Obama regardless of what he does, he could single-handedly capture Osama bin Laden in single combat and decapitate him with a round house kick to the head and the Republicans would still bitch and whine and piss and moan.

  88. 88.

    asiangrrlMN

    @Yutsano: Yeah. FH#1 is getting over something, too. Bleah. I will take all the chicken soup you can make.

    Aw, that’s a cool story. Now I’m going to have to look up the school. Thanks! How’s the Dawg and how are you?

  89. 89.

    Yutsano

    @asiangrrlMN: Suddenly my mom being both a nurse and a great cook is turning out to be rather fortuitous. She was always quite the nurse when I was sick as a kid. Plus cooking is about the only household task she enjoys.

    It’s my Friday (woo-hoo!) gotta go get my car fixed. Nothing major, just the power window on the driver’s side is stuck open. It’s mostly closed right now, I have a friend who’s a great mechanic (does helicopters for a living, just got laid off cause the vast majority of his work is based on state revenue) who can probably get it fixed up. The Dawg is back out saving the world, in fact I’m hoping I hear from him at some point this weekend. I’m used to long silences out of him by now, so it’s all good.

  92. 92.

    asiangrrlMN

    @Yutsano: It must be hard having a Dawg as a partner. Glad that you’re used to it.

    My mom had two reasons my brother and I could stay out of school when we were young; if we had a temp or if we threw up. My base temp is 96.7, so that was out of the question. As to the second, no go. I can only throw up if I make myself. In other words, no missed school for me!

    As for cooking, someone has to enjoy it–I don’t.

  94. 94.

    asiangrrlMN

    @Yutsano: Damn right! In fact, JenJen said she would kill anyone who helped Cole cheat. Although, I am worried for his well-being if he actually tries to get a Bengals jersey on Tunchie.

  98. 98.

    Yutsano

    @ruemara: They do, however have to be cooked properly. Fried is of course traditional but if you feel adventurous you can always try the Puerto Rican casserole called pastelon. Instead of pasta sheets (like lasagna) or eggplant (as in moussaka) the layers are strips of plantain. Can’t find my recipe off the top of my head but it’s cheesy and gooey and delish!

  99. 99.

    asiangrrlMN

    @Martin: Heh heh. Heh heh.

    @Yutsano: Yup. Pretty much. Poor, poor, John Cole. Snicker.

    OK, bitchez. I am caught up on my own personal NaNoWriMo goal, and I feel doubly-shitty, so I’m calling it a night. Catch you on the flip-side.

  100. 100.

    Yutsano

    @asiangrrlMN: A good chicken soup needs a long overnight low heat soak to get truly delicious and flavorful. Here’s hoping you feel better in the morrow.

  101. 101.

    Brachiator

    This just in:

    The latest movie in vampire saga Twilight is a ‘deviant moral vacuum’, the Vatican said yesterday.
    …
    Monsignor Franco Perazzolo, of the Pontifical Council of Culture, said: ‘Men and women are transformed with horrible masks and it is once again that age-old trick or ideal formula of using extremes to make an impact at the box office.

    That’s good enough for me. I may just have to check it out this weekend.

  102. 102.

    Yutsano

    @Brachiator: I’ve seen a few of the previews, it just screams excuse for teenage eye candy to me. I think I can wait until it comes out in Redbox or something.

  103. 103.

    Brachiator

    @Yutsano:

    I’ve seen a few of the previews, it just screams excuse for teenage eye candy to me. I think I can wait until it comes out in Redbox or something.

    Yeah, you’re right. It’s just that the Vatican condemning a movie makes it almost “must see” for me.

  104. 104.

    Yutsano

    @Brachiator: Look at it this way: if you have a teen or tween age daughter who wants to see it badly imagine the consternation if you say you want to go see it with her!

  105. 105.

    Mark S.

    @Brachiator:

    Men and women are transformed with horrible masks and it is once again that age-old trick or ideal formula of using extremes to make an impact at the box office.

    Is that a bad translation or did they ask the most senile priest they could find?

    I don’t remember John Paul II spending nearly this much time offering his opinions on tween popcorn movies. Maybe Benedict could do a weekly show with Ebert, though I’m not sure his throne would fit in one of those screening rooms.

  106. 106.

    Brachiator

    @Yutsano:

    Look at it this way: if you have a teen or tween age daughter who wants to see it badly imagine the consternation if you say you want to go see it with her!

    Hah! I would offer to take my niece. Fortunately, we’re in two different states, separated by a huge hunk of territory.

  107. 107.

    Yutsano

    @Mark S.: The best part of all this of course is someone at the Vatican actually had to WATCH it in order to give a papal opinion about it. That’s gonna take a lot of Ave Marias to get right again!

    Oh and you’re right: John Paul II for the most part ignored popular culture except for when the occasion was especially egregious or blasphemous (think the Mapplethorpe artwork). I still think he was the original rock & roll pope. I can’t say the election of someone like Benedict is a huge surprise considering how John Paul came on the heels of Vatican II. A conservative backlash was building for quite a while.

  111. 111.

    Yutsano

    @freelancer: Is success now measured by the level of snark you can generate? Of course considering the ersatz earnestness these movies have generated I can’t say I’m either shocked or dismayed. Still not sure I want to see it however.

  113. 113.

    WereBear

    @Hann1bal: Freemind.

    It’s free on Mac or PC, and you can also get the compatible app Headspace for your iPhone or touch if you are so inclined.

    It’s a flow chart that can also be an outliner, and it can be exported as text.

    Frankly, there hasn’t been any good outlining software since Flow, which was for the Amiga (which tells you how long it’s been since I’ve had a good outliner, and how fussy I am.)

    For writing, there’s nothing better than Scrivener, but (ahem, flames aside) that’s only for the Mac. And won’t be for the PC. But he has some suggestions on his site for such sufferers.

  116. 116.

    R-Jud

    @HRA:

    Anyone have any suggestions for the second soup?

    You’ve probably decided already, but my vote would be: sautee peeled chopped apples and onions in butter until soft, transfer to cooker, add stock. Before serving, puree it. Garnish with crumbled blue cheese and bacon.

    Just made this for lunch and even the baby loved it. Got the idea from this Mark Bittman article. There are other good soup ideas, starting from entry #13.

  117. 117.

    soonergrunt

    @Mark S.: I would’ve thought that they’d be too busy moving pedophiles around the priesthood, figuring out how to blame gays for that even though the study they just commissioned said gays had nothing to do with clerical pedophilia, and pursuing legal strategies in various bankruptcy fora to avoid payments to their victims, and trying to return women to chattel status to spend any time on this.
    There’s a reason I stopped going to Catholic church, and my children will never set foot inside one.

  118. 118.

    Peter J

    Great news for President John McCain:

    Rasmussen Reports finds Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) clinging to a 2-point lead over a possible challenger, former Rep. J.D. Hayworth (R-Ariz.). Chris Simcox, the Minuteman Project leader who’s already in the race, scores 4 percent. All of this puts McCain, who has never been seriously challenged since he came to the Senate in 1986, below the 50 percent mark with Republicans.

    If the President gets his ass primaried out the senate does that mean he won’t be on the Sunday shows anymore or will the extra free time mean that he’ll be on them every week?

  119. 119.

    R-Jud

    @Peter J:

    will the extra free time mean that he’ll be on them every week?

    Judging by the way Republican losers are treated by the media lately, I’d say it meant his own TV show.

  121. 121.

    asiangrrlMN

    @ZIRGAR: Cole lost a bet to JenJen during the Steelers/Bengals game. As a result, he has to put a Bengals jersey on Tunchie, his very recalcitrant (and magnificent) cat. The photoshop bleg was about that. Which would be cheating on his part.

    @JenJen: Oh, you know I just want video of Cole trying to put any kind of clothing on Tunchie. And, if he could find a mini Bengals helmet…Priceless!

  122. 122.

    Brachiator

    @WereBear:

    For writing, there’s nothing better than Scrivener, but (ahem, flames aside) that’s only for the Mac. And won’t be for the PC. But he has some suggestions on his site for such sufferers.

    I can’t decide whether Scrivener looks great or is overkill. I used to do much more writing professionally, and loved WordPerfect for Windows in DOS mode. The Windows product PageFour looks kinda interesting. I’ll pass this along to a friend who is starting to work on a novel, and can use either Windows or Mac.

    Thanks a bunch.

  123. 123.

    HRA

    Thank you all for your suggestions in re: to my second soup.
    I have chosen one and am keeping the rest in reserve to make at our monthly family dinners.

  124. 124.

    Mister Colorful Analogy

    @WereBear:

    It’s always nice to see a second for a good piece of software like FreeMind. Plus, you did get to taunt the PC a bit while telling us about Scrivener (checked out their site; nice stuff, indeed). A twofer, indeed.

    MrCA

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