I Do NOT Want to Read the Ingredients

I can't imagine there's any actual "food" to be found anywhere on this label:

But hey, Box Tops for Education.

This is Really a Thing?

Couldn't believe my eyes while wandering through Ye Olde Dairy Section today when I saw this:

and the accompanying Thin Mint flavor as well.

The cookies are great -- wonderful. But the officially licensed Ice Cream was maybe going too far (as tasty as it is). The candy bars are a stretch (and, yeah, they're pretty tasty, too). But this? This is just ridiculous, girls. Rein it in, already.

(no, I resisted the siren song of Carmel Coconut/Samoa. As difficult as it was.)

Their Best Idea Since They Hired That Silly Dog...

According to food blogs like SlashFood, Taco Bell is test marketing taco shells made out of Nacho Cheese Doritos.

Let me repeat that: Nacho Cheese Dorito taco shells. I've put on 10 pounds just typing this post. Talk about stuff that dreams are made of (dreams and sessions in Eric Foreman's That 70's Basement).

I just may have to take a trip to Toledo where some of this testing is taking place.

This Past Weekend

So, this weekend I:

laughed a lot, but not as much as I hoped I would at

laughed more than I expected to and totally DID NOT cry at but there was a lot of pollen and dust in the room while I watched

celebrated her 9th birthday

got this for TLoML

tried this yummy yummy beer (Kona & Maui Brewing Companies make the best argument for relocating to the Aloha State)

spent far too much time with this guy (have just started the 5th week of P90X Doubles)

finished this good stuff

started this remember this being good in 10th Grade

watched the latest episodes of and NPH got it done on all fronts this week (tho' Segal absolutely killed, as per usual)

tried out this very, very tasty cake recipe mine didn't look quite that good. BTW, if you make it, double the KoolAid like I did (accidentally yesterday, on purpose from now on)

all in all, a good weekend. How was yours?

Lifting a Pint for Sam

Patriot Samuel Adams was born this day in 1722. Adams was one of the men behind the Boston Tea Party, was a delegate to the Continental Congress 1774-1781, signed the Declaration of Independence, and served as Governor of Massachusetts (1794-1797). When he wasn't showing more political courage, backbone and conviction than every elected person currently in Washington, D. C., he brewed beer. From what I understand, he was a far better politician than a brewer. It's in this connection that most people know about him today (I don't even want to think about how many college freshman know what the Boston Tea Party is...), his name is now attached to a very fine beer (not a great one, mind you), but one worthy of the name.

Thomas Jefferson called him the "Patriarch of Liberty," his cousin John (you may have heard of him) said:

Without the character of Samuel Adams, the true history of the American Revolution can never be written. For fifty years his pen, his tongue, his activity, were constantly exerted for his country without fee or reward.

Here's a few gems of wisdom from his pen:

If Virtue & Knowledge are diffus'd among the People, they will never be enslav'd. This will be their great Security.

If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsel or your arms. Crouch down and lick the hands of those who feed you. May your chains set lightly upon you. May posterity forget that ye were our countrymen.

It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people's minds.

The liberties of our country, the freedom of our civil Constitution, are worth defending at all hazards; and it is our duty to defend them against all attacks. We have received them as a fair inheritance from our worthy ancestors: they purchased them for us with toil and danger and expense of treasure and blood, and transmitted them to us with care and diligence. It will bring an everlasting mark of infamy on the present generation, enlightened as it is, if we should suffer them to be wrested from us by violence without a struggle, or to be cheated out of them by the artifices of false and designing men.

Were the talents and virtues which heaven has bestowed on men given merely to make them more obedient drudges, to be sacrificed to the follies and ambition of a few? Or, were not the noble gifts so equally dispensed with a divine purpose and law, that they should as nearly as possible be equally exerted, and the blessings of Providence be equally enjoyed by all?

A general dissolution of the principles and manners will more surely overthrow the liberties of America than the whole force of the common enemy.... While the people are virtuous they cannot be subdued; but once they lose their virtue, they will be ready to surrender their liberties to the first external or internal invader.... If virtue and knowledge are diffused among the people, they will never be enslaved. This will be their great security.

How strangely will the Tools of a Tyrant pervert the plain Meaning of Words!

Among the natural rights of the colonists are these: first, a right to life; secondly, to liberty; thirdly to property; together with the right to support and defend them in the best manner they can.

If men, through fear, fraud, or mistake, should in terms renounce or give up any natural right, the eternal law of reason and the grand end of society would absolutely vacate such renunciation. The right to freedom being the gift of Almighty God, it is not in the power of man to alienate this gift and voluntarily become a slave.

It is a very great mistake to imagine that the object of loyalty is the authority and interest of one individual man, however dignified by the applause or enriched by the success of popular actions.

All might be free if they valued freedom, and defended it as they should.

He therefore is the truest friend to the liberty of this country who tries most to promote its virtue, and who, so far as his power and influence extend, will not suffer a man to be chosen into any office of power and trust who is not a wise and virtuous man.

If ever a time should come, when vain and aspiring men shall possess the highest seats in Government, our country will stand in need of its experienced patriots to prevent its ruin.

Driven from every other corner of the earth, freedom of thought and the right of private judgment in matters of conscience, direct their course to this happy country as their last asylum.

Boise Beer Fest 2010

Like last year, it's taken me a lot longer than planned/expected to get around to writing up anything on Boise Beer Fest 2010.

While I enjoyed 2009's festival, I thought there was room for improvement. As did many others--including the people who put on the fest :) They got a bigger space, spread out the lines more, and got in more food vendors, and a few other improvements that were all smaller than their effect. It was as close to perfect as you can ask for (the weather helped, too). While I wouldn't call the atmosphere last year as anything approaching businesslike, it seemed a lot more laid back this year (probably because we weren't herded together into such a tight group).

and finally, some thoughts on the brews I sampled:

• Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale (Stone Brewing) - Basically, it's Arrogant Bastard with a little extra zing. Pretty good way to start the day.
  
• Devastator (Wasatch Brewery) - Nice, still had the aftertaste of Self-Righteous going on, so I'm not sure how to describe it, but I liked it and fully intend to buy some as soon as I can.
  
• Summer Ale (Crescent Brewery) - from Nampa, ID's very own new brewery, so new they don't have a website. This was fruity, sweet and totally not for me. But it was well made, could tell it was good.
  
• Georgetown Porter (Georgetown Brewery) - had this last year under its old name, 9lb Porter. Still nice, a very pleasant reunion.
  
• Great Divide Claymore Scotch Ale - very flavorful, I really like this. Will be back for more.
  
• Great Divide Yeti - I've had a few bottles of this from Brewforia, and I'll have a few more. Tastes slightly better on tap (not news, there, I know)
  
• 90 Shilling Ale (Odell Brewing) - TLomL and I both couldn't think of a better way to describe the taste than "simple." But that's not bad, it's a simple, straightforward ale. Very tasty, probably worth more than 90 shillings.
  
• Crescent Brewery ESB - another entry from the local boys...very alcoholy taste, but it pulls it off. Yummy.
  
• Black Cat Porter (Mac & Jack's Brewery) - a sweet porter (what?), tasty, tasty...a very non-porter-ish porter.
  
• Oatis Oatmeal Stout (Ninkasi Brewing) - Nothing all that distinctive, but very nice, will keep my eye open for this one. The guy working the tap gave me a hard time for taking notes, but how was I supposed to remember how to spell Ninkasi when I made it back to my seat? Phonics would be no help here.
  
• Dragonstooth Stout (Elysian Brewing) - can't describe it (my palate needs more training and/or a better vocabulary), nice stout that doesn't taste like most stouts (I realize I've described the last two similarly, but best I can do)
  
• Turbodog (Abita Beer) - this is a brown? Really? Brown Ales are typically my favorite, but this one seems very atypical (whoops, there it is again). Very nice, very flavorful.

Bring on Beer Fest 2011!

Who are You Calling a Foodie?

An old friend asked me "as a foodie," where he should eat as he's visiting Boise.

At first, I was flattered that he'd bother to seek my opinion--it's so rare that anyone cares what I think anymore, even my dog seems to have a "can take or leave it" approach to what I think. But then I focused on that qualifier, "as a foodie," and flattered turned to umbrage.

You'd think in this PC day and age, that asking something based on someone's ethnicity would be passé. Just because I have a good deal of German blood in me, I can't imagine someone in polite company asking me how to get France to surrender (answer: Show up.). I mean, come on, people, how long are we going to tolerate this kind of thinking?

And just why would a Foodie know where to eat? Just because the name sounds like the stuff you eat? It's like asking a Scot if he knows something about Scotch er, wait, bad example. Still, wouldn't it be a better bet to ask someone who's French or Italian that question?

By the way, just what country do the Foodies hale from, anyway? I'm not sure what part of the WASP-stew that is my genetic pool came from it. Maybe it's from somewhere near Croatia, I've lost track of what countries are around there lately. Does Boise even have a strong foodie presence? I know there's a lot of Basques...

Whoops. I've just been informed what a foodie is. Apparently, it's not an ethnic term, but

is someone who has a deep interest in food. In addition to being interested in food itself, foodies are also interested in the back story: the history, production, science, and industry of food. As a general rule, foodies are amateurs, rather than professionals working in some aspect of the food industry, and many of them are self-taught.

or

To be a foodie is not only to like food, but to be interested in it. Just as a good student will have a thirst for knowledge, a foodie wants to learn about food. A foodie will never answer the question "What are you eating" with "I don't know." There are some basic traits of being a foodie, as there are basic traits that come with all labels. Generally, you have to know what you like, why you like it, recognize why some foods are better than others and want to have good tasting food all or certainly most of the time. This doesn't mean that you can't eat flaming hot Cheetos every now and again, but it does mean that you don't fool yourself into thinking that it's a nutritionally balanced meal. Do you have to know the difference between a beefsteak tomato and an heirloom tomato? No, but you might be interested to find out what it is. Do you have to only shop at farmer's markets? No, but you still look for good, fresh produce. Are there some foods you just don't like or weird foods you like? That's ok - it doesn't make you any less of a foodie. Just like food, learn about food and, most importantly, eat food.

Which is a totally different ball of wax.

After some thought, I guess I might just be one after all. A rookie foodie, anyway.

Never mind.
^* Incidentally, on my recommendation, my friend went to Boise Fry Co., and he thought it was great. If you haven't been there yet, you should. Even if it involves interstate travel.

No Post for You Today

Spent all my creative energy today whipping up some Chocolate-Covered Bacon today, which I highly recommend to all my readers who aren't Muslim or Vegetarian/Vegan or Jewish (which I think disqualifies no one).

Desserts really aren't my wheelhouse, so this took far more out of me than it should've and turned my kitchen into a disaster area--like something that Loosee would have a lot of 'splainin' to do about.

Sorry for that, will try again soon. Actually not too sorry, tasted too good :)

Baked Grapefruit

Dipping my toe into the waters of Food Blogging. As I'm not much of a cook, don't expect a lot of these. This is not gonna be Hob & Julia (or Hob & Alton or even Hob & Fritz [Brenner]), never fear.^*

No, I'm not showing off the fact that I'm eating grapefruit, there was actually a little effort involved. Very little.

First off, separate the grapefruit into sections, then sprinkle 1/2 tbsp. onto each half, and then drizzle 1/2 tbsp. of honey on top of that. Bake the suckers at 350 for 12-15 minutes, or until there's a nice carmelized top on the halves. I went with 12, and think that a couple extra minutes would've helped.

The result is nice enough to make it worth the effort, just the right amount of sweetness to compliment the grapefruit. I should also add that warm grapefruit is much nicer than I'd ever have expected.

It's suggested to garnish with a little mint, but that's a tad too much trouble for me on a Monday morning, so I can't say if that helps things.

I Found this idea over at Food2.com while looking for breakfast ideas for the family, but out of mercy, I didn't try it for the whole family (that's mercy for my wife and I so we didn't have to hear all the keening and wailing the sight of the fruit would bring out in the kids).

Naturally, after I've started digesting this (rendering another photograph impossible), I see an article on food photography over at lifehacker.com. Oh well...


^* Unless, of course, we're talking some sort of sponsorship deal, 'cuz I'll sell out for peanuts. Well, make that almonds, I am trying to eat better.

Cuz I Needed Another Site to Obsess Over

I'm already spending almost as much time reading cooking/recipe sites/blogs as I do National League baseball (sorry, I'm an AL guy, what can I say?) and writing sites, and now, the beloved FoodNetwork has launched another, very helpful looking, site: Food2.com.

Full of flashy stuff, and helpful videos/tips. Check it out.





(I should also add they're giving goodies away today to random people who give 'em a shout-out on their blogs...)

Quick Dispatch from the Parenting Front

Horror of horrors, we ran out of coffee here, and didn't have enough time in the schedule yesterday to drive to a reliable source, so while at the grocery store I buy a couple of those little vacuum-packed single-serving packs of whatever little occasionally acceptable "gourmet" blend they're featuring.

This morning I'm getting the coffee ready when the Princess comes over to see what I'm doing, astonished, she gasps, "You can buy it ground already!?!"

Almost brought a tear to my eye.

Lifting a Pint for Sam

Patriot Samuel Adams was born this day in 1722. Adams was one of the men behind the Boston Tea Party, was a delegate to the Continental Congress 1774-1781, signed the Declaration of Independence, and served as Governor of Massachusetts (1794-1797). When he wasn't showing more political courage, backbone and conviction than every elected person currently in Washington, D. C., he brewed beer. From what I understand, he was a far better politician than a brewer. It's in this connection that most people know about him today (I don't even want to think about how many college freshman know what the Boston Tea Party is...), his name is now attached to a very fine beer (not a great one, mind you), but one worthy of the name.

Thomas Jefferson called him the "Patriarch of Liberty," his cousin John (you may have heard of him) said:

Without the character of Samuel Adams, the true history of the American Revolution can never be written. For fifty years his pen, his tongue, his activity, were constantly exerted for his country without fee or reward.

Here's a few gems of wisdom from his pen:

If Virtue & Knowledge are diffus'd among the People, they will never be enslav'd. This will be their great Security.

If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsel or your arms. Crouch down and lick the hands of those who feed you. May your chains set lightly upon you. May posterity forget that ye were our countrymen.

It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people's minds.

The liberties of our country, the freedom of our civil Constitution, are worth defending at all hazards; and it is our duty to defend them against all attacks. We have received them as a fair inheritance from our worthy ancestors: they purchased them for us with toil and danger and expense of treasure and blood, and transmitted them to us with care and diligence. It will bring an everlasting mark of infamy on the present generation, enlightened as it is, if we should suffer them to be wrested from us by violence without a struggle, or to be cheated out of them by the artifices of false and designing men.

Were the talents and virtues which heaven has bestowed on men given merely to make them more obedient drudges, to be sacrificed to the follies and ambition of a few? Or, were not the noble gifts so equally dispensed with a divine purpose and law, that they should as nearly as possible be equally exerted, and the blessings of Providence be equally enjoyed by all?

A general dissolution of the principles and manners will more surely overthrow the liberties of America than the whole force of the common enemy.... While the people are virtuous they cannot be subdued; but once they lose their virtue, they will be ready to surrender their liberties to the first external or internal invader.... If virtue and knowledge are diffused among the people, they will never be enslaved. This will be their great security.

How strangely will the Tools of a Tyrant pervert the plain Meaning of Words!

Among the natural rights of the colonists are these: first, a right to life; secondly, to liberty; thirdly to property; together with the right to support and defend them in the best manner they can.

If men, through fear, fraud, or mistake, should in terms renounce or give up any natural right, the eternal law of reason and the grand end of society would absolutely vacate such renunciation. The right to freedom being the gift of Almighty God, it is not in the power of man to alienate this gift and voluntarily become a slave.

It is a very great mistake to imagine that the object of loyalty is the authority and interest of one individual man, however dignified by the applause or enriched by the success of popular actions.

All might be free if they valued freedom, and defended it as they should.

He therefore is the truest friend to the liberty of this country who tries most to promote its virtue, and who, so far as his power and influence extend, will not suffer a man to be chosen into any office of power and trust who is not a wise and virtuous man.

If ever a time should come, when vain and aspiring men shall possess the highest seats in Government, our country will stand in need of its experienced patriots to prevent its ruin.

Driven from every other corner of the earth, freedom of thought and the right of private judgment in matters of conscience, direct their course to this happy country as their last asylum.

"I was Robert Downey Jr. of cookies!"

Cookie Monster, Colbert...need I say more?

Give or Take 202

No, not talking about how close a certain Senator is claiming the delegate count for nomination to be, I've got something far more serious in mind.

In 1970, a certain Mr. Owl claimed it took a-one, a-two, a-three licks to get to the center of a Tootsie Roll Tootsie Pop. But just five minutes ago, in a totally unscientific study, my son, code-named Samwise for the purposes of this blog, counted 205.

So, there you go--the latest in public service findings from those of us at White Noise: It takes 205 licks to get to the center of a Tootsie Roll Tootsie Pop.*



You're more than welcome. We're here to serve.


* +/- 202

Caffiend

The good people over at Wired recently ran an interesting piece called, "Get Smarter: 12 Hacks That Will Amp Up Your Brainpower."

Naturally, my favorite hack involved good ol' C₈H₁₀N₄O₂: "Caffeinate With Care: Small Shots Do a Brain Better Than Big Blasts." The authors describe the best way to battle adenosine with caffeine...several small portions.

To maximize alertness and minimize jitters, keep those receptors covered with frequent small doses — like a mug of low-caf tea or half a cup of joe — rather than a onetime blast. Test subjects reported that periodic small shots made them feel clearheaded and calm, both of which enhance mental performance.

Even better

add a lump of sugar or have a carbohydrate-rich snack at the same time for an extra cognitive kick. It seems that glucose and caffeine together do more to enhance cognition than either does alone.

So, put away the tall cans of Amped/Full Throttle/etc and grab a simple cup of coffee and a donut. Stick with the classics and ya can't go wrong, eh?

Some advice...

I love coffee. It is truly odd when I don't have at least a cup in a day. It's unusual if I don't have a pot a day, honestly (thankfully, the days of late Spring Term '06 are a distant memory--there was a month or so that I was doing three pots a day. Yes, three by myself). Coffee's so important to me, I wrote one (and I think only) love poem to it. I've been tempted to write more. TLomL takes her coffee almost as seriously, and we're raising three coffee-holics (Frodo's a hold-out, for some inexplicable reason).*

I don't primarily drink the stuff for the caffeine (tho' I do avoid decaf--it doesn't taste right), but I do certainly appreciate the effects of C₈H₁₀N₄O₂ (as diminished as they are for me). I drink it for the taste first and foremost--then smell, then feel of it, then heat (esp at work, where it's nearly always cold). But it's primarily about the flavor.

Which brings me to my dilemma. I work with two different people during the week. One is in recovery, and drinks/makes what another colleague calls "AA coffee"--which, in a pinch, could probably be used in place of 10W-30. We knock off our first pot in the first 1.5 hrs of our shift, the second takes the rest of the shift because he really slows down so he can sleep after work. The other person I work with maybe drinks a cup every other week--and then she pours in enough milk/creamer that it's maybe 50-40% coffee--she doesn't like the taste. But there's enough in there to almost make her jumpy.

On the nights she needs coffee--she really needs it. The problem arises if she makes it back to the coffee pot first on those nights--typically she doesn't, but twice in the last three weeks she has. As someone who doesn't like Java, she cannot make a decent pot. It just tastes weak, watery and bland. (now I know a certain man who recently relocated from Idaho to South Carolina thinks I drink mine too strong [he's wrong, incidentally], but I know he'd have issues with this stuff). Incidentally, I've become convinced that Emily Post needs to codify the maxim that only those people who drink coffee should be allowed to make it in the workplace. At my last office job, we had a gentleman who rarely drank the stuff, and couldn't make a decent pot. He'd only make it if he was going out of his way to be a help, or as a gesture of gratitude--but he realized his shortcomings and generally just asked someone to do it for him. That I could respect.

I used to suck it up and drink the stuff my partner makes, but I just can't anymore.

The aforementioned last two times she beat me to the pot, I've just gone without for the shift. (just got home from one of those shifts as you can tell from the mildly rambling nature of this and the previous post, just am not that sharp). I don't want to put up with that garbage anymore, but I'm afraid I'm coming across as rude when I don't have any--and I know I'd come across as rude if I dumped hers out after she's had her 13 fluid ounces and made something palatable. What should I do, readers? Other than redoubling my efforts at being the first one to the staff room, that is. I really don't enjoy going an 8-hr shift without drinking anything--nor do I enjoy withdrawal headaches like the I'm almost done with now. She takes criticism (constructive or otherwise) as well as a bratty, catty and semi-talented American Idol finalist, so I really don't think I can say anything, but I'm open to suggestions.

Alright, whine's over. Hopefully back soon with something else.

* worry not, we don't let the other three, particularly, Arnold drink it that often--but they are learning how to appreciate it

One of Life's Little Mysteries

Why is it that "All You Can Eat" so frequently translates into "Eating 3x What You Normally Would?"


(this is purely hypothetical, of course)

Lifting a Pint for Sam

Patriot Samuel Adams was born this day in 1722. Adams was one of the men behind the Boston Tea Party, was a delegate to the Contintental Congress 1774-1781, signed the Declaration of Independence, and served as Governor of Massachusetts (1794-1797). When he wasn't showing more political courage, backbone and conviction than every elected person currently in Washington, D. C., he brewed beer. From what I understand, he was a far better politician than a brewer. It's in this connection that most people know about him today (I don't even want to think about how many college freshman know what the Boston Tea Party is...), his name is now attached to a very fine beer (not a great one, mind you), but one worthy of the name.

Here's a few gems of wisdom from his pen:
If Virtue & Knowledge are diffus'd among the People, they will never be enslav'd. This will be their great Security.

If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsel or your arms. Crouch down and lick the hands of those who feed you. May your chains set lightly upon you. May posterity forget that ye were our countrymen.

It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people's minds.