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You are here: Home / Open Threads / Another Open Thread

Another Open Thread

by Betty Cracker|  December 29, 201312:21 pm| 140 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads

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I’ve got some sort of stomach bug, so I’m just piled up on the sofa taking it easy. My youngster is cruelly forcing me to watch a Sasquatch hunter marathon on television.

The Sasquatch people have their own special vocabulary: for example, “squatching” means looking for yetis. I’m definitely going to have to wrest back control of the remote prior to football.

My mother-in-law gave me an ancient waffle iron that has cannoli plates. Have you ever heard of such a thing? I was going to attempt homemade cannoli, but I feel too queasy at the moment.

What are y’all up to? Have you ever made cannoli?

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Reader Interactions

140Comments

  1. 1.

    Chyron HR

    December 29, 2013 at 12:22 pm

    The NSA is bugging our stomachs now?!

    THANKS OBAMA

  2. 2.

    schrodinger's cat

    December 29, 2013 at 12:22 pm

    No I have never made cannolis, yesterday I made some turnovers with a sweet coconut filling. They were awesome.

  3. 3.

    schrodinger's cat

    December 29, 2013 at 12:23 pm

    @Chyron HR: NSA, in the belly of the beast!

    ETA: Just kidding Betty Cracker, I hope you feel better soon!

  4. 4.

    aimai

    December 29, 2013 at 12:23 pm

    Basically isn’t a cannoli just a pizzele minus the waffle weave? How had can it be? People used to have to make them with minimal machine help, just using hand held presses held over an open flame, didn’t they? I’m pretty sure you can do it.

  5. 5.

    Violet

    December 29, 2013 at 12:26 pm

    Sorry you’re feeling ill. Take a lot of probiotics. That helps the good bugs begin to outnumber the bad bugs that are causing you the problems. Send someone to the drugstore to get some probiotics if you don’t have any. There’s research to support it working and a Canadian hospital is running a trial on it with kids who have stomach bugs. It worked for someone in my household who was as sick with a stomach bug as I’ve ever seen anyone. Best of luck and I hope you feel better soon!

  6. 6.

    Villago Delenda Est

    December 29, 2013 at 12:28 pm

    Leave the gun, take the cannoli.

  7. 7.

    Betty Cracker

    December 29, 2013 at 12:29 pm

    @aimai: This waffle iron came with the original manual and instructions (my in-laws are extraordinarily organized). There’s also directions for making pizzelles, which I’d never heard of until today.

  8. 8.

    BGinCHI

    December 29, 2013 at 12:36 pm

    @Villago Delenda Est: Leave the Sasquatch, take he cannoli.

  9. 9.

    jeffreyw

    December 29, 2013 at 12:37 pm

    We bought some stainless tubes made for wrapping the dough for frying. It was fun.

  10. 10.

    BGinCHI

    December 29, 2013 at 12:37 pm

    @Betty Cracker: Make pizzelles, let them cool, then use to make ice cream sandwiches.

  11. 11.

    MomSense

    December 29, 2013 at 12:39 pm

    @Betty Cracker:

    @aimai:

    Now I am craving both cannolis and pizzelles and there is not a decent place to get them anywhere near me.

    Pizzelles are delicious, Betty. Try them! And if you come up with a good recipe–please share!

  12. 12.

    Suffern ACE

    December 29, 2013 at 12:40 pm

    I can handle the Sasquatch scholars. It’s those ghost hunters that drive me batty.

  13. 13.

    schrodinger's cat

    December 29, 2013 at 12:43 pm

    @jeffreyw: How is your new kitteh?

  14. 14.

    StringOnAStick

    December 29, 2013 at 12:44 pm

    @Betty Cracker: Given your cookie making skills, you definitely need to become acquainted with pizzelles! They are wonderful.

    I’m trying to decide if I need to exit the internet entirely in order to not spend the remaining years of my life in depression about, well, everything. The Guardian had a story last week about the recently retired BP oil reserves specialist and his presentation in Britain about oil being gone and economies collapsing because of it, starting in 2030, and the true end in 2050. Yay, I turn 72 in 2030! Followed by today’s long AP article about the world-wide retirement crisis that makes it clear the golden age of humanity is over and life is about to get a lot more poverty-stricken for anyone not in the 1% (as planned, I suppose). Toss in climate change and what that has to hold, and damn, I wonder why I bother to do anything other than stockpile an easy way to end it all when things get that ugly. Obviously it’s time to get back on the anti-depressants I used to take, but the knowledge that has been gained isn’t going away.

  15. 15.

    Suffern ACE

    December 29, 2013 at 12:46 pm

    The birthday party I was supposed to go to has been cancelled. I got nothing to do and a bottle of bourbon that was supposed to be a present. Hmmmm.

  16. 16.

    ? Martin

    December 29, 2013 at 12:46 pm

    My daughter is fascinated by the bigfoot hunter shows as well. No idea why…

  17. 17.

    BGinCHI

    December 29, 2013 at 12:47 pm

    @StringOnAStick: You left out the fresh water crisis.

  18. 18.

    Betty Cracker

    December 29, 2013 at 12:48 pm

    @Suffern ACE: I’m finding them very similar: Both feature people bumbling around with a full camera crew and claiming to see and hear things that are miraculously never captured on camera.

  19. 19.

    schrodinger's cat

    December 29, 2013 at 12:49 pm

    @? Martin: They look cuddly?

  20. 20.

    Old Dan and Little Ann

    December 29, 2013 at 12:49 pm

    Here’s to the atom bomb
    May everyone find a way to get on
    -Smashing Pumpkins
    In any event, Go Steelers!

  21. 21.

    Comrade Mary

    December 29, 2013 at 12:50 pm

    @Betty Cracker: Pizzelles are tasty! Try using anise flavouring: it’s unusual and lovely. Here’s some other ideas.

    But for now, my sympathies on your unruly stomach. Flat ginger ale might help.

  22. 22.

    noodler

    December 29, 2013 at 12:50 pm

    the dough is easy, you can fry them or use the waffle iron, but need to mold them quickly after taking them off of the iron. if you fry them, then they are wrapped around a metal tube while frying. the filling, that’s where you really can experiment! i like mine with sambuca, ricotta, marscapone, pistaccio and fine chocolate.

  23. 23.

    schrodinger's cat

    December 29, 2013 at 12:52 pm

    Open thread needs Vulcan Caturday Kittehs

  24. 24.

    Keith P

    December 29, 2013 at 12:53 pm

    My mother-in-law gave me an ancient waffle iron that has cannoli plates. Have you ever heard of such a thing?

    I’d be happy just to find a waffle iron with both regular and Belgian waffle plates. It’s like the manufacturers insist on either choosing one or the other, or buy two irons.

  25. 25.

    HRA

    December 29, 2013 at 12:53 pm

    I made cannolis first with wooden tubes and later with stainless steel ones. I gave all the tubes to the daughter with the most love of baking and cooking a few decades ago. I still have my pizzelle iron. I make pizzelles each year for Christmas and for Easter. My recipe is with vanilla flavoring and a much different one than my late MIL’s recipe. Her recipe made them heavier. My recipe comes out with a lighter version.

  26. 26.

    gelfling545

    December 29, 2013 at 12:54 pm

    I make pizelles & roll them into cannoli shells all the time & they are super easy.

  27. 27.

    Betty Cracker

    December 29, 2013 at 12:54 pm

    @StringOnAStick: It is overwhelming if you think about all the shit that could happen. I keep despair at bay by remembering that most predictions are wildly inaccurate — there are just so many variables that can come into play. Plus, there’s no point in worrying about stuff you can’t control. But you know all of this. I hope you feel better. I’d send you a cannoli if I could. :-)

  28. 28.

    MBL

    December 29, 2013 at 12:56 pm

    Fun fact: the famous “…take the cannoli” line from The Godfather was an ad-lib.

    …yeah, I got nothing else over here.

  29. 29.

    Dead Ernest (Thought Wrangler)

    December 29, 2013 at 12:58 pm

    Interesting. I think if someone told me they were Sasquatching …I would not think ‘Oh, they’re looking for Yetis.’

    Now, however, if someone says, I have to stop for a haircut, I might think ‘Oh, they’re going to look for a Yeti.’

    /everything I know I learned from Car Talk.

  30. 30.

    jeffreyw

    December 29, 2013 at 1:00 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: He’s learned some dirty jokes from Homer and is trying them out on Annie.

  31. 31.

    Mike E

    December 29, 2013 at 1:00 pm

    @BGinCHI: FSM, pizelles are teh awesome! My adopted (appropriated is prolly moar accurate) Italian family had an iron and cranked them out every Xmas. Yum.

  32. 32.

    GHayduke (formerly lojasmo)

    December 29, 2013 at 1:03 pm

    If anybody ever wondered how the fuck drug manufacturers come up with drug names

    , here’s a wiki page. It actually kind of makes sense (at least the generic names).

    And this describes why manufacturers choose certain sounding brand names.

  33. 33.

    ? Martin

    December 29, 2013 at 1:03 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: They don’t look like anything. It’s a bunch of guys wandering around hollering in the woods like idiots at 1AM.

  34. 34.

    Bill E Pilgrim

    December 29, 2013 at 1:03 pm

    I thought Bigfoot was a large, hairless creature living in West Virginia who appears only occasionally to “bigfoot” someone’s post, thus the nickname. They say he keeps a collection of small animals to feed on. *Shiver*. Personally, I think he’s a myth.

  35. 35.

    Josie

    December 29, 2013 at 1:04 pm

    @jeffreyw: Annie looks concerned.

  36. 36.

    MomSense

    December 29, 2013 at 1:04 pm

    @BGinCHI:

    And colony collapse.

  37. 37.

    schrodinger's cat

    December 29, 2013 at 1:05 pm

    @jeffreyw: He is a handsome boy. How is Homer kitteh, up to no good, or is he behaving?

  38. 38.

    jeffreyw

    December 29, 2013 at 1:05 pm

    @Josie: Scandalized!

  39. 39.

    Mike E

    December 29, 2013 at 1:07 pm

    @HRA: @Comrade Mary: Anise is traditional, & the only way I remember them when my friend’s family made them.

  40. 40.

    Socoolsofresh

    December 29, 2013 at 1:07 pm

    NSA secretly back dooring equipment from major tech companies:

    http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/catalog-reveals-nsa-has-back-doors-for-numerous-devices-a-940994.html

    So, almost all servers, computer equipment has been compromised. But you know, its just a dudebro problem. What about poverty?

  41. 41.

    jeffreyw

    December 29, 2013 at 1:07 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: He spends his time either pestering me to break out the laser pointer or stalking Ginger.

  42. 42.

    Mike E

    December 29, 2013 at 1:09 pm

    @Bill E Pilgrim: Find Bigfoot, and you’ll find his mustard.

  43. 43.

    Botsplainer

    December 29, 2013 at 1:15 pm

    I’ve got some sort of stomach bug, so I’m just piled up on the sofa taking it easy.

    Keep a superclean toilet, flush a couple of times each use, just to be sure.

    You never know when you’re going to hit the double.

  44. 44.

    donnah

    December 29, 2013 at 1:20 pm

    Aw, Betty, sorry to hear you’re sick. Our entire family has the flu. We’ve been sick since Thursday, with coughs, fevers, body aches, headaches, and snotty noses. No, we did not get flu shots this year. bummer.

  45. 45.

    GHayduke (formerly lojasmo)

    December 29, 2013 at 1:21 pm

    @Socoolsofresh:

    its just a dudebro problem. What about poverty?

    The most cogent thing you’ve ever written here. Good job!

  46. 46.

    Corner Stone

    December 29, 2013 at 1:24 pm

    And Schaub completes another 6 yard slant pass! Who could’ve guessed?!

  47. 47.

    Corner Stone

    December 29, 2013 at 1:25 pm

    Jonathan “Lundergan” Grimes for his first NFL rushing TD!

  48. 48.

    TaMara (BHF)

    December 29, 2013 at 1:27 pm

    @jeffreyw: You beat me to it, I was going to tout your cannoli making skills.

  49. 49.

    Corner Stone

    December 29, 2013 at 1:27 pm

    @Mike E:

    Find Bigfoot, and you’ll find his mustard.

    Legend holds that it’s the lost mustard that drives his unceasing pursuit across the intertubes each night, wailing his pitiable screeching vocalizations.

  50. 50.

    TaMara (BHF)

    December 29, 2013 at 1:28 pm

    @Comrade Mary: I think we may have our recipe thread for this Friday.

  51. 51.

    Corner Stone

    December 29, 2013 at 1:29 pm

    I think the announcer just said that “3rd & 14” is the situation this Texans offense was built to capitalize on.
    Say what now?

  52. 52.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    December 29, 2013 at 1:30 pm

    THis week’s Michael Scott Self-Awareness Award goes to Fat Timmy Dolan, the Milwaukee Laundryman

    “This pope has successfully, finally shattered the caricature of the church that his predecessors have tried hard to do,” Dolan said on ABC’s “This Week.” “What’s that caricature? That the church is kind of mean and dour and always saying no and always telling us what we can’t do and always telling us why we should be excluded.

  53. 53.

    schrodinger's cat

    December 29, 2013 at 1:32 pm

    @Mike E: You mean BigPaw don’t you?

  54. 54.

    JPL

    December 29, 2013 at 1:33 pm

    Atlanta is winning. Can we end the game now?

  55. 55.

    WereBear

    December 29, 2013 at 1:33 pm

    Betty, my go-tos for fluttery tum are ginger tea (forget the ginger ale, there’s hardly any ginger in it!) or dill pickles.

    Dill is what they used to give babies for colic. Just throw some on your tongue and wash it down, it does wonders. But most people don’t have the herb in the house.

  56. 56.

    Villago Delenda Est

    December 29, 2013 at 1:35 pm

    @? Martin:

    It’s all that fabulous Pacific NW scenery.

  57. 57.

    WereBear

    December 29, 2013 at 1:35 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: You need some Father Ted:

    Father Ted: Fascists dress in black and go around telling people what to do, whereas priests… more drink!

  58. 58.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    December 29, 2013 at 1:38 pm

    I bought this hat pattern at a yarn store in San Luis Obispo while we were on our road trip last month and finished knitting it last night, so now I have to block it. I’m not usually a beret person, but something about it called to me. Next I’m going to try and make matching hats for my niece and her new American Girl doll. (She saved up for it for months and was SUPER excited to be able to get it at Christmas.)

    Also, I was able to catch the Junipero Serra exhibition at the Huntington Library before it closes and it was pretty fascinating. I didn’t grow up in California, so I never learned about the missions or built one in the 4th grade. I thought they did a pretty balanced job of pointing out the pros and cons of the mission system (yes, there were some pros — the local Indians were generally better treated by the Franciscans than they were by the local soldiers, and the Franciscans were willing to stand up to the soldiers and insist that the Indians be paid a wage instead of being used as slave labor).

    They also made a good point of showing that the local Indian tribes still exist and are not part of California’s long-dead past like the Franciscans are. I’m sure there are still critiques to be made that could help them do even better in the future, but what they had seemed pretty good.

  59. 59.

    Mike E

    December 29, 2013 at 1:39 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: BigPaw in the Sky, givin’ FSM a run for the money.

  60. 60.

    Elizabelle

    December 29, 2013 at 1:41 pm

    Betty: sorry you’re not feeling great.

    OTOH: thanks for reminding me to get my flu shot today.

  61. 61.

    rikyrah

    December 29, 2013 at 1:43 pm

    Yesterday was 50 degrees.

    Today?

    My fingers nearly froze taking the groceries out of the car. It’s that bone chilling cold.

    Tomorrow, I’m going to have to break out my Eskimo coat….sigh…

    I’ve decided to make some beef stew.

  62. 62.

    Elizabelle

    December 29, 2013 at 1:45 pm

    Turner Classic Movies: it’s remember Joan Fontaine and Peter O’Toole day:

    Fontaine:

    Ivanhoe now
    2 p Eastern The Constant Nymph
    4 p Suspicion
    5:45 p Rebecca

    O’Toole

    8 p Eastern Lawrence of Arabia
    midnight TCM special from 2012
    1:00 a Goodbye Mr. Chips
    3:45 a My Favorite Year

  63. 63.

    jayboat

    December 29, 2013 at 1:46 pm

    I gain weight just thinking about sweet, sweet cannoli…

    Thanks, Obama.

  64. 64.

    schrodinger's cat

    December 29, 2013 at 1:46 pm

    @rikyrah: Is it floor length? My neighbor’s new winter coat is and she pairs it with a Mad Bomber type hat. I think she could hunt in the Tundra with that outfit.

  65. 65.

    WereBear

    December 29, 2013 at 1:46 pm

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): How lovely. It has a twenties look to it; they had such clever hats then.

  66. 66.

    schrodinger's cat

    December 29, 2013 at 1:47 pm

    @Mike E: BigPaw wins Paws down! Not a fair competition, at all.

  67. 67.

    WereBear

    December 29, 2013 at 1:48 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: And more Father Ted:

    Father Ted: It’s not as if everyone’s going to go off and join some mad religious cult just because we go off for a picnic for a couple of hours.
    Father Dougal: God, Ted, I heard about those cults. Everyone dressing in black and saying our Lord’s gonna come back and judge us all!
    Father Ted: No… No, Dougal, that’s us. That’s Catholicism.

  68. 68.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    December 29, 2013 at 1:50 pm

    @WereBear: Heh. I’ve heard of that show but never seen it. This line makes me a bit curious

    Father Jack Hackett: Drink! Feck! Arse! Girls!

  69. 69.

    max

    December 29, 2013 at 1:50 pm

    @Corner Stone: Legend holds that it’s the lost mustard that drives his unceasing pursuit across the intertubes each night, wailing his pitiable screeching vocalizations.

    Come summer time, some old farmer is gonna ask some guy to ‘get that goddamned wagon out of my field’ so the guy will go out there and look inside, take a big sniff and go, ‘Whoa. Smells like mustard in here.’

    Then he will be attacked by a pit bull.

    max
    [‘Luckily, he’ll be saved by a Yeti.’]

  70. 70.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    December 29, 2013 at 1:53 pm

    on topic, sort of, if there is one, Bigfeet and Yetis and Nessie, like witches and ghosts and other supernatural stuff, are things I wish I believed in, because the world would be more interesting with them in it, to paraphrase Dr Lecter. Zombies, now, flesh-eating throngs and herds of zombies, I’m content to not have around.

  71. 71.

    WereBear

    December 29, 2013 at 1:53 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: It has the best absurdist British comedy flavors, only turned up to 11. If that sounds like your cuppa tea, go for it!

  72. 72.

    gene108

    December 29, 2013 at 1:54 pm

    On a political note, we seem to be approaching something that should be considered significant but what it means about America, as a whole I do no know.

    When I was growing up, Democrats controlled the House and the Republicans controlled the Presidency (Nixon, Ford, Reagan and Bush, Sr, with a four year interruption by Carter).

    Now it seems to have flipped. Democrats control the Presidency, with Republicans only winning the popular vote in 2004, since Clinton took office, while Republicans have controlled the House for 14 of those 20 years.

    I grew up with Democrats in charge of the House, so I still feel Republican control of the House is an aberration, but it doesn’t seem to be. They’ve been entrenched there for the better part of a generation.

  73. 73.

    Tommy

    December 29, 2013 at 1:54 pm

    LOL about big foot show. I watched one and all I kept thinking was what executive greenlighted that show where adults were running around in the woods looking for something that they will never find.

  74. 74.

    ruemara

    December 29, 2013 at 1:58 pm

    @Socoolsofresh: If you were ever really poor, you’d find your little jest quite repellent.

    Doing a lot of camera work lately, don’t know why. Got the very annoying roommate kitty I am watching to be interesting for a bit. She’s not a bad kitty, she just doesn’t like: playing, feathers, string, balls, laps, chase, being alone, anyone besides her human. So she cries, mostly. And seeks comfort. But if you give her scritches, it’s 50/50 if her desire for comfort will stay true or if she’ll turn on a dime and claw you. Which means she and I are not buddies, which is odd, since I’m a pet magnet. In this case, I’d like to repel her to just leaving me aloooone. Tired of dodging her claws.

    Other than that, the local wildlife are far more engaging than kitty. Unfortunately, the local water preserves are either dried up or way smaller. The waterbirds I’m used to seeing at this time are nearly non-existent. I think I’ll try to get out with our wildlife expert and start working on my world water day 2014 project. I did manage to find a few unwilling subjects, though. Still many songbirds active.

  75. 75.

    ruemara

    December 29, 2013 at 1:59 pm

    Boo, in moderation! Dammit, up the link count to 4!

  76. 76.

    Jennie

    December 29, 2013 at 1:59 pm

    Might be a krumkake iron: http://scandinavianfood.about.com/od/cookierecipes/r/krumkake.htm

  77. 77.

    Corner Stone

    December 29, 2013 at 2:02 pm

    Antonio Smith just tried to knock Fitzpat into next season.

  78. 78.

    StringOnAStick

    December 29, 2013 at 2:02 pm

    @Betty Cracker: Thanks, Betty. Time to go get some mood-improving sun….

  79. 79.

    WereBear

    December 29, 2013 at 2:03 pm

    @Tommy: It’s the new “hot” in television; instead of scripting people making fools of themselves, they just seek out natural talent.

    However, it seems like real television still lives on, with high-tier cable channels like HBO and on the net with Hulu and Amazon creating their own shows.

    Broadcast and lower-tier channels don’t think much of their audience; so they don’t give them much. I can’t believe the commercial/show ratio lately. Soon, it will be half and half.

  80. 80.

    ThresherK

    December 29, 2013 at 2:04 pm

    At The Grey Lady, it is noted that Tesla “provided endless drama as…Elon Mush swatted back” at nameless, sourceless, passive-voiced “naysayers”.

    Cute stuff. Love the phrasing.

    Now accepting nominations for “Professional automobile writer who doesn’t dream of reliving or rewriting his (or her) high-school days in a Mustang”. Really, the whole lot of them seem to be pretty damned inbred.

  81. 81.

    Tommy

    December 29, 2013 at 2:08 pm

    @WereBear: Speaking of good TV, check out The Returned on the Sundance channel. I watched like all 12 hours of it last weekend. In French with subtitles, but well worth the effort.I find there are a lot of terrible shows on, but if you look and get like every cable channel there is also some pretty amazing stuff on.

  82. 82.

    cmorenc

    December 29, 2013 at 2:09 pm

    @Suffern ACE:

    I can handle the Sasquatch scholars. It’s those ghost hunters that drive me batty.

    Did you hear that? And what’s that shape over there in that shadow? See it? It’s really hard to get the camera to pick that up, even on infrared, but there’s something there…and did you feel something just a bit chilly pass by you a moment ago?

  83. 83.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    December 29, 2013 at 2:11 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    “That would be an ecumenical matter.”

    It’s especially funny if you were raised Catholic, but people of all religious backgrounds can enjoy it.

  84. 84.

    MomSense

    December 29, 2013 at 2:11 pm

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone):

    I’ve been on a never not knitting kick lately.

    Made these two this year for gifts.

    https://botanicalknits.com/pattern.php?id=forest_floor

    https://botanicalknits.com/pattern.php?id=pressed_leaves

  85. 85.

    Tommy

    December 29, 2013 at 2:12 pm

    @cmorenc: They all seem to have the same format. A couple that are “true believers” and then the skeptic thrown in to make it “real.” That is the job I want. All I’d have to so is call somebody an idiot every few minutes, job done :).

  86. 86.

    WereBear

    December 29, 2013 at 2:13 pm

    @cmorenc: SNL nailed it with this Hugh Laurie sketch:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GwWDZGKe9c

  87. 87.

    Cervantes

    December 29, 2013 at 2:14 pm

    “Cannoli” is the plural form. “Cannolu” is singular in the original Sicilian.

    “Cannolis” is ungrammatical but no less delicious for that.

  88. 88.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    December 29, 2013 at 2:16 pm

    @MomSense:

    I bought the “Botanical Knits” hard copy book through her website, which also came with a free eBook version and two free patterns from her Ravelry collection, so it ended up being a really good deal.

    I really like that so many knitting books and magazines are available as PDFs now since my shelf space is limited and I often end up making scans of the patterns anyway so I can carry them on my iPhone or iPad.

  89. 89.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    December 29, 2013 at 2:19 pm

    @Cervantes:

    But who eats only one of a plate of cannoli? May as well pluralize it for gluttony honesty.

  90. 90.

    ? Martin

    December 29, 2013 at 2:20 pm

    300 college apps read:

    15% parents went bankrupt, lost the home, were homeless/moved to some shitty neighborhood.
    10% dad beats up mom/sibling/me/all of us, with traces of the above, and tales of how older brother’s job is to hide all of the kitchen knives and/or ammo so dad doesn’t kill mom/sibling/me/all of us.
    10% mom/dad/both are alcoholics/drug abusers/gamblers, with traces of both of the above along with waking up to find dad dead and mom unconscious, foster homes, shuffling off to other relatives, and generally just hating the family they were born to.

    I shudder to think of what’s going on with the students that didn’t bother applying to college.

  91. 91.

    MomSense

    December 29, 2013 at 2:24 pm

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone):

    I bought the ebook version of that book, too. Her patterns are well written. My ravelry shelf would be very heavy if not virtual.

  92. 92.

    IowaOldLady

    December 29, 2013 at 2:29 pm

    Sorry about the vomity, Betty.

    The thought of home-made cannoli is making me drool on my keyboard.

  93. 93.

    JGabriel

    December 29, 2013 at 2:31 pm

    Betty Cracker @ Top:

    My youngster is cruelly forcing me to watch a Sasquatch hunter marathon on television.

    It could be worse. You could be watching Ancient Aliens, the show that famously told us, “Ancient Egyptians did not have the wheel when they were building the pyramids, therefore they must have had anti-gravitation technology given to them by ancient aliens!”

  94. 94.

    WereBear

    December 29, 2013 at 2:32 pm

    @? Martin: Most of them become the working poor and get reviled by Republicans?

  95. 95.

    Tommy

    December 29, 2013 at 2:32 pm

    I am reading all the stuff related to NYT Benghazi Report. I can’t find the darn article from a few months ago, think it was in Outside Magazine, but one of Stevens bodyguards was with him the entire time, until they got separated in the fire. He lived and went on the record (not using his actual name). That yahoo on 60 Minutes got all this coverage but that one article is the only one I’ve seen this guy tell what happened. You know he was actually there. It was horrifying. He never said it directly, but clearly he doesn’t believe what Fox Nosie and the Republican believe.

  96. 96.

    Villago Delenda Est

    December 29, 2013 at 2:32 pm

    Noisemax reports that Peter King feels a need to renew his “I’m a fetid sack of douchecanoe Rethuglican shit” license:

    Peter King, House GOP Slam NYT Benghazi Story

  97. 97.

    Villago Delenda Est

    December 29, 2013 at 2:34 pm

    @Tommy:

    Well, you know, he was actually there. How could he possibly know the truth as reported by Darrel Issa and Faux Noise?

  98. 98.

    Cervantes

    December 29, 2013 at 2:38 pm

    @? Martin: Yikes.

  99. 99.

    Tommy

    December 29, 2013 at 2:41 pm

    @Villago Delenda Est: Actually three folks where there and got out alive, but I never hear anything from them. The guy I mentioned plus two others, that went to a more secure area and watched most of it on the security cameras.They feel pretty guilty they couldn’t do anything. But as I read the story I thought this wasn’t a Rambo movie, and they felt they needed to try and get help. Running out and getting killed in a few second didn’t make a lot of sense.

  100. 100.

    Baud

    December 29, 2013 at 2:43 pm

    Make or break for the Saints this afternoon after what had started out as a promising season.

    I won’t be watching.

  101. 101.

    Comrade Mary

    December 29, 2013 at 2:53 pm

    @TaMara (BHF): Flat ginger ale? Um, OK …

  102. 102.

    ? Martin

    December 29, 2013 at 2:54 pm

    Someone needs to check if Cole died. No Steelers thread? Maybe he just doesn’t consider playing against the Browns ‘sporting’.

  103. 103.

    opiejeanne

    December 29, 2013 at 2:56 pm

    On our way to visit Yutsano In the hospital; taking along a picnic basket with sliced standing rib and various mustards, and some Christmas cookies. Watching the Seahawks game with him and whoever shows up. Not sure how much they will tolerate from the 12th Man. Probably get thrown out by the nurses for noise.

  104. 104.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    December 29, 2013 at 2:57 pm

    I flipped over to an MSNBC rerun of Meet The Press during halftime, where for some reason Elliot Abrams, a man whose criminality is eclipsed by his deadly stupidity, was being given a platform to comment on Obama’s foreign policy. I made a phone call and when I next looked up at the muted TV screen, I was for some unknown reason being shown a video about Billy Graham and his vile racist son Franklin. I’ve been a political junkie in various levels of addiction for about twenty years now, and I can recall no occasion in which Billy Graham wasn’t already a slightly embarrassing anachronism. I wonder if David Gregory had even been born the last time Billy Graham actually mattered.

  105. 105.

    WereBear

    December 29, 2013 at 2:58 pm

    @opiejeanne: Probably get thrown out by the nurses for noise.

    Bribe them with goodies. Hi to Yutsy!

  106. 106.

    drkrick

    December 29, 2013 at 3:01 pm

    The Giants are pretty lucky to be playing the only team in the League who wouldn’t be at least three touchdowns ahead of them by now.

  107. 107.

    schrodinger's cat

    December 29, 2013 at 3:03 pm

    @? Martin: Never seen that. No has cable. Guess I am not missing much!

  108. 108.

    Tommy

    December 29, 2013 at 3:05 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: It shouldn’t stun me the folks they have on these shows but it still does. I mean I am some random dude in Southern IL and I can seem to fact check their guests better then they can, and they have dozens of staffers and basically unlimited resources.

    Maybe I am “old school” but if I had a TV show and folks came on it and lied, well they wouldn’t be invited back.

  109. 109.

    jeffreyw

    December 29, 2013 at 3:08 pm

    @opiejeanne: Behave!

  110. 110.

    cckids

    December 29, 2013 at 3:08 pm

    Hey, Betty, I feel your pain/nausea. That bug hit me Christmas Eve, it was thoroughly miserable. The worst part is that there was/is all these fabulous goodies around, and they still make me queasy. Dammit.

  111. 111.

    Gretchen

    December 29, 2013 at 3:09 pm

    I got a waffle/pizzelle/cannoli iron for a wedding present 36 years ago. Never made anything but waffles on it, and have long since lost the box and instructions. Let me guess: Is it avocado green like mine is? Or is it harvest gold?

  112. 112.

    SarahT

    December 29, 2013 at 3:10 pm

    @WereBear: Drink ! Feck ! Arse ! Girls !

  113. 113.

    Mike in NC

    December 29, 2013 at 3:12 pm

    @Tommy:

    Maybe I am “old school” but if I had a TV show and folks came on it and lied, well they wouldn’t be invited back.

    But then what would John McCain have to do for a living?

  114. 114.

    cckids

    December 29, 2013 at 3:12 pm

    @Violet:

    Take a lot of probiotics. That helps the good bugs begin to outnumber the bad bugs that are causing you the problems

    Yes! I’ve been wanting to thank you via comment for this advice, I’ve seen it from you several times. My son had the same bug & was horribly sick for 48 hours. I started taking the PB’s within 4 hours & stopped with the puking & (as my mom delicately puts it ) “other symptoms” within 8 hours. I had to watch what I ate for several days, but wow, the difference those pills made. Thanks!

  115. 115.

    ruemara

    December 29, 2013 at 3:12 pm

    @opiejeanne: Tell Yutsy we said hi!

    And, Betty, get me out of moderation and … well, I really have no bargaining chips here. somethingsomethingsomething.

  116. 116.

    SarahT

    December 29, 2013 at 3:15 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: Go on, go on, go on, go on, go on…

  117. 117.

    nancy graham

    December 29, 2013 at 3:22 pm

    Betty, I have made cannoli. It is sorta like making a crêpe. Not a big mystery.

    Someone mentioned taking probiotics. I now have a source for farm-fresh milk and cream. I made butter yesterday and the buttermilk is supposed to be rich in probiotics. Buttermilk from churning is not like the store bought cultured buttermilk. It is a little tart for my taste so I have decided to use it to make béchamel sauce and freeze it for later. Any better ideas for using it out there?

  118. 118.

    Karen in GA

    December 29, 2013 at 3:24 pm

    @WereBear: Women’s knickers!

  119. 119.

    max

    December 29, 2013 at 3:30 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: I flipped over to an MSNBC rerun of Meet The Press during halftime, where for some reason Elliot Abrams, a man whose criminality is eclipsed by his deadly stupidity, was being given a platform to comment on Obama’s foreign policy.

    Well, Elliot Abrams probably is the smartest neo-con (which is a lot like telling a basketball recruiter that you’re the tallest midget on an island of dwarfs), so there is that.

    But that definitely seems like symptom on the checklist that indicates that our elites, as a group, are basically horrible and stupid.

    max
    [‘srv linked a FoxNews vid of Ralph Peters last night, and I was, ‘Oh. That moron! Boy, not gonna watch that.”]

  120. 120.

    Mr Stagger Lee

    December 29, 2013 at 3:34 pm

    @? Martin: Well I had enough of the Browns stinking up the joint, at least the Bengals-Ravens are entertaining. Big what will I do for streaming? 49ers vs Cardinals, Bears-Packers or Seahawks-Rams? (I gave up cable and doing Serious Sports TV streaming)

  121. 121.

    Corner Stone

    December 29, 2013 at 3:35 pm

    3rd & goal from the 5, you can not throw a 3 yard post.

  122. 122.

    FlipYrWhig

    December 29, 2013 at 3:39 pm

    @Corner Stone: local boy done good!

  123. 123.

    cckids

    December 29, 2013 at 3:42 pm

    @nancy graham: Fresh buttermilk makes amazing pancakes, also chocolate cake or Irish Soda bread.

  124. 124.

    Yatsuno

    December 29, 2013 at 3:43 pm

    @opiejeanne: They’ve had kids running all over the place and don’t seem to mind them. You will have to watch me do a few stupid human tricks, but I might finagle it so that I don’t have to leave the room for some of them. In fact, I might drag youse guys up to the parallel bars just so I can have independent verification of the walking skillz.

  125. 125.

    Corner Stone

    December 29, 2013 at 3:43 pm

    Wow. Matt Schaub. Really?

  126. 126.

    opiejeanne

    December 29, 2013 at 3:51 pm

    @Yatsuno: ok.

    We are heading south on 5 near the 520 off ramp. Should be there soon.

  127. 127.

    Gene108

    December 29, 2013 at 4:06 pm

    @max:

    Eliot Abrams broke the law to help expand the fight against and thus hasten the end of the Global Communist threat, much like MLK, Jr hastening the end of segregation.

    Which I guess is why Bush 43 appointed him to the National Security Council office of Democracy and Human Rights.

  128. 128.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    December 29, 2013 at 4:15 pm

    Feel better Betty.

  129. 129.

    Betty Cracker

    December 29, 2013 at 4:19 pm

    I’m feeling better. Made the canolli, and they turned out well.

    @ruemara: Looks like WP ate your comment — nothing’s in moderation. Sorry!

  130. 130.

    rikyrah

    December 29, 2013 at 4:26 pm

    @? Martin:

    So sad, Martin.

    So sad.

  131. 131.

    opiejeanne

    December 29, 2013 at 4:27 pm

    We are with Yutsano now, game’s about to start, picnic basket in hand.

    (He looks pretty good)

  132. 132.

    Betty Cracker

    December 29, 2013 at 5:07 pm

    @opiejeanne: Yutsano! I’m rooting for the Seachickens in his honor!

  133. 133.

    Chris

    December 29, 2013 at 5:26 pm

    @? Martin: Damn Martin..just sent off my son’s common app to a couple schools…and I read his essay in it and thought he overshared abit about being bullied. I feel much better now…LOL

  134. 134.

    tybee

    December 29, 2013 at 5:29 pm

    @JPL:

    and it was a “perfect” ending to a perfectly horrible season.

    just wait til next year….

  135. 135.

    Comrade Mary

    December 29, 2013 at 6:11 pm

    /waves madly at Yutsy

  136. 136.

    opiejeanne

    December 29, 2013 at 6:22 pm

    @Betty Cracker: get well soon. I fighting an allergy that’s making me cough and wheeze, but nothing serious.

    Yutsano was a charming host despite being in some pain, and we watched the first half of the game with him. He had a little PT while we were there. I think he’s doing very well but was getting a little tired so we left him to get some rest.

  137. 137.

    Violet

    December 29, 2013 at 7:13 pm

    @cckids: You are so welcome! I’m so glad it worked! I’ve seen research on it, but the fact it’s in clinical trials with kids is really exciting. I think it’s a great new discovery that can really help people, doesn’t have terrible side effects and isn’t that expensive. So glad it worked for you!

  138. 138.

    Ruckus

    December 29, 2013 at 7:48 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:
    There were no living creatures the last time, or the first time, Billy Graham mattered.

  139. 139.

    ? Martin

    December 29, 2013 at 8:34 pm

    @Chris: I’ll add that about 5% of kids had a parent deported during elementary school. Not many during middle/HS – so either the policy change is real, or they just aren’t sharing that bit. The kids weren’t deported – our DREAM pool is larger than ever.

    Lots of nice stories about heading down the gang path in middle school and getting turned around. Lots of refugees too – more than I ever remember – most from Africa. Their test scores are so-so, but they landed in the US and started getting A’s from day one, while homeless or in shelters. Makes the white kids from 6 figure households with B’s look like complete slackers.

    Most of America is invisible.

  140. 140.

    Betsy

    December 29, 2013 at 9:52 pm

    @nancy graham: cornbread, spoon bread

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