harp and sword

Quote of the Week

2009-07-15T09:14:00.003-07:00

goldsmith-2003-hersch

Seymore Hersch Has Spoken

From The Daily Beast.

I said what I said, they can always say what they say,” Hersh told The
Daily Beast. “The last time they said the government doesn’t torture, this time
it’s the government doesn’t assassinate.

Hersch was right about My Lai, he was right often enough that he has yet to be successfully sued for publishing any untruth.

If it comes down to whom a rational actor would believe between Hersch and Cheney the choice is simple. Grunts in Vietnam talked freely to Hersch because he was one of the very few people there who was interested in the truth. They are doing the very same thing right now.

I think that the time for Special Prosecutors has passed. I don't have enough faith left in our Justice Department's committment to the rule of law. I would prefer turning things over to the World Court at the Hague.

A fair trial and open hearing for the people who denied them to others would be the perfect way to re-assert our national ideals. Who knows? Some day we might even try to live up to them.

Random Name That Tune answer key

2009-05-01T09:51:00.002-07:00

1. Bad Guys - - - Bugsy Malone - - - composer - Paul Williams (dude I luvs ya!)
2. Odalisque - - - The Decembrists
3. When I Paint My Masterpiece - - - Dylan
4. Tom Ame's Prayer - - - Steve Earle
5. Each Coming Night - - - Iron and Wine
6. Every Grain of Sand - - - Emmylou Harris (live bootleg, me on nasty undredeemed guitar) Dylan wrote this during his Christian phase and it doesn't suck.
7. Prank Calls - - - Kelley Stoltz
8. She Came From Fort Worth - - - Kathy Mattea (live bootleg from University of Colorado, Boulder, me on guitar again)
9. Send Me To The 'Lectric Chair - - - Bessie Smith
10. Prince of Peace - - - Leon Russell (live bootleg from 92, me on nasty slide)

Friday Random Name That Tune Answer Key

2009-02-27T09:38:00.002-07:00

To the game posted at Group News Blog...

1. Oliver's Army - - - Elvis Costello
2. Someday, Someway - - - Marshall Crenshaw
3. Laughing - - - REM
4. The Book I Read - - - Talking Heads
5. Three Little Fishies - - - Andrews Sisters
6. Desafinado - - - Antonio Carlos Jobim
7. After the Gold Rush - - - Neil Young
8. Mercy, Mercy, Mercy - - - The Buckinghams
9. Moanin' Low - - - Billy Holiday
10. Don't Bring Me Down - - - The Animals

Friday Random Name That Tune. . .answer key

2008-11-14T10:27:00.002-07:00

1. Crosseyed Cat - - - Muddy Waters
2. Overjoyed - - - Stevie Wonder
3. Red Molly - - - Richard Thompson
4. Small Change - - - Tom Waits
5. Death Letter - - - Son House
6. You Can't Take That Away From Me - - - Fred Astaire
7. For Love Of You - - - Isley Brothers
8. In My Hour of Darkness - - - Emmylou Harris
9. Dear Abby - - - John Prine
10. Streets of Bakersfield - - - Dwight Yoakum

Random Name That Tune answer key

2008-11-12T10:33:00.003-07:00

1. Christine Kane - (No Such Thing As) Girls Like That

2. Bing Crosby - Swinging On A Star

3. Jefferson Airplane - Triad

4. Donna Summer - On The Radio

5. Nanci Griffith & Guy Clark - Do Re Mi

6. Merle Haggard - Hungry Eyes

7. The Stonemans - Wreck Of The Old '97

8. John Prine - Ain't Hurtin' Nobody

9. Lyle Lovett - Here I Am

10. The Youngbloods - Willie & The Hand Jive

Here's that great Christine Kane song. Good stuff yo.

Friday Random Name That Tune. . .answer key

2008-11-07T10:05:00.002-07:00

1. Take It Easy, Greasy - - - Li'l Johnson
2. Before the Deluge - - - Jackson Browne
3. Have You Met Miss Jones? - - - Ella Fitzgerald
4. When the Man Comes Around - - - Johnny Cash
5. Tumblin' Dice - - - Linda Ronstadt (live bootleg, me on a very nasty bottleneck guitar)
6. Tipitina - - - Professor Longhair
7. I'm Sick of Ya'll - - - Otis Redding
8. All Through The Night - - - Cyndi Lauper (me on guitar, live bootleg from Paris)
9. Gumboots - - - Paul Simon
10. Every Grain of Sand - - - Emmylou Harris (live bootleg, me on guitar)

Friday Random Name That Tune. . .answer key

2008-10-31T07:42:00.002-07:00

This week's game is courtesy of The Littlest Gator.

She sent me the top ten bubble up off her Japan based iPod and off we go.

1. Landslide - - - Fleetwood mac

2. Fidelity - - -regina spector

3. Galelio - indigo girls

4. Afternoons & Coffeespoons - - - crash test dummies

5. when two and two are five - - - The story

6. Walking On Sunshine - - - Katrina & The Waves

7. 27 Jennifers - - - Mike Doughty

8. A case of you- - - Jonie Mitchell

9. You Know I'm No Good- - - amy winehouse

10. Winter- - - tori amos

Friday Random Name That Tune. . .answer key

2008-10-24T09:42:00.001-07:00

1. Parchman Farm Blues - - - Bukka White
2. Bitch - - - Meredith Brooks
3. Punk Rock Girl - - - Dead Milkmen
4. Away, You Rio - - - Stan Rogers
5. Ma, He's Making Eyes At Me - - - Pearl Baily
6. I Talk To The Wind - - - King Crimson
7. No Diamonds in the Mine - - - Leonard Cohen
8. End of the Line - - - Traveling Wilburys
9. A Chicken Ain't Nothing But A Bird - - - Cab Calloway
10. The Obvious Child - - - Paul Simon

Bonus:

Garden Song - - - Dave Mallett

Friday Random Name That Tune. . .answer key

2008-10-17T10:13:00.002-07:00

1. Helmethead - - - Great Big Sea
2. Magnificat - - - Linda Ronstadt (live bootleg from Tucson, me on the harp)
3. Roots Radical - - - Rancid
4. La Mer - - - Charles Trenet
5. Mona Lisas & Mad Hatters - - - Elton John
6. Accidently, Like a Martyr - - - Linda Ronstadt again same show, but this time I'm on yolectric guitar
7. Under African Skies - - - Paul Simon
8. The Wreck of the Barbie Ferrari - - - John Hiatt
9. California Uber Alles - - - Dead Kennedys
10. I'm sorry this one was so unfair, it's a demo side of a song I wrote called "Valium."

Friday Random Name That Tune. . .answer key

2008-09-26T09:33:00.003-07:00

For those wanting to play, you can find the game at

Group News Blog

1. Mary Don't You Weep, Don't You Moan - - - Bruce Springsteen
2. Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burnin' - - - The Reverend Gary Davis
3. Sub-mission - - - Sex Pistols
4. You Came a Long Way From Saint Louis - - - Peggy Lee
5. Zombie Jamboree - - - Harry Belafonte
6. A Mean Kind of Justice - - - Carrie Newcomer
7. Leaving Louisana in the Broad Daylight - - - Oak Ridge Boys
8. I Don't Care - - - The Ramones
9. For You - - - Bruce Springsteen
10. Gospel Plow - - - Sweet Honey in the Rock

Bonus track: what's on right now

High Time - - - Joe Cocker

Friday Random Name That Tune. . .answer key

2008-09-12T09:56:00.002-07:00

As usual the game is posted up at Group News Blog.

1. Galway Girl - Sharon Shannon & Steve Earle
2. If I Had My Way - The Reverend Gary Davis
3. Barflies at the Beach - - - Louis Prima
4. Bullfrog Blues - - - David Bromberg
5. She - - - Emmylou Harris
6. Small Fry - - - Hoagy Charmicheal
7. Fuck Me Pumps - - - Amy Winehouse
8. Stag O'Lee - - - Mississippi John Hurt
9. This Is A Rebel Song - - - Sinead O'Connor
10. Nightrider's Lament - - - Jerry Jeff Walker

If you came here to cheat so I'd post the YouTube on GNB, don't bother. Here it is

Friday Random Name That Tune. . .answer key

2008-09-05T09:33:00.002-07:00

The first four lines of the lyrics are up at GNB

if you want to play

1. Terraplane Blues - - - Robert Johnson
2. 'Deed I Do - - - Ella Fitzgerald
3. Jolie Blon - - - Doug Kershaw
4. No Such Thing - - - John Mayer
5. Jesus, The Missing Years - - - John Prine
6. Guitar Town - - - Steve Earle
7. Poncho's Lament - - - Tom Waits
8. Trenchtown Rock - - - Bob Marley
9. Blistered - - - Johnny Cash
10. Down By the Glenside - - - Tommy Makem

Bonus Track (what's playing right now)

Skylark - - - Hoagy Charmicheal

Friday Random Ten (name that tune answer key)

2008-08-29T08:29:00.004-07:00

Here we go again. Another Friday, another random ten.

At Last - - - Joni Mitchell
New Paint - - - Louden Wainwright III
Living In The Future - - - John Prine
Sweet Thing - - - Rufus
Dead Love - - - Little Milton
Summer Wages - - - Ian Tyson
Feelin' the Same Way - - - Norah Jones
There She Goes - - - Sixpence None the Richer
Hard Times (Come Again No More) - - - Emmylou Harris (live bootleg me on bass vocals)
Lo Siento Mi Vida - - - Linda Ronstadt (live bootleg, me on harp from last year's benefit for The Tucson Boy's Choir)

Friday Random Name That Tune. . .

2008-08-22T09:34:00.002-07:00

The Game, is up at Group News Blog

If you want to play. . .the first four lines of the songs are posted, you guess the tune. . .

Here's the key. I'm off to San Diego to play the next two nights.

Jugband Song - - - David Bromberg
Anarchy in the UK - - - Sex Pistols
Holding On - - - Stevie Winwood
Coat of Many Colors - - - Dolly Parton
My Brain is Hanging Upside Down - - - Ramones
Born at the Right Time - - - Paul Simon
Cakewalk Into Town - - - Taj Mahal
Ay Te Dejo en San Antonio - - - Flaco Jimenez
Dying Crapshooter Blues - - - Blind Willie McTell

Friday Random Ten - Name That Tune Edition

2008-08-15T09:57:00.001-07:00

Up at Group News Blog

come and play!!

Friday Random Ten

2008-08-08T08:58:00.002-07:00

if it's friday, there must be a soundtrack. . .

Castles Made of Sand - - - Jimi Hendrix
Steppin' Out - - - Fred Astaire
Tangled Up In Blue - - - Bob Dylan (live bootleg)
The River Runs - - - Sliad Cleves
Fishin' Blues - - -Taj Mahal
Bridge of Sighs - - - Robin Trower
The Joker - - - Steve Miller (live bootleg)
Ain't Nuthin' But a Bird - - - Cab Calloway
Lover, Come Back To Me - - - Billie Holiday
Stop That Dancin' Up There! - - - Harry "The Hipster" Gibson (live, me on guitar, Da on bass)

Bonus: Playing right now:

Stroke 75 - - - Tower of Power

Coyote Story

2008-08-03T10:30:00.002-07:00

Coyote Steals the Sun's Tobacco

Over at Group News Blog.

From Now On

2008-08-03T08:49:00.003-07:00

I will be posting links to my Group News Blog pieces. Although I heartily endorse the fellow writers there. Especially LowerManhattanite and Sara Robinson.

Still, I understand and will keep this going for that reason alone.

Friday Random Ten

2008-08-01T08:50:00.003-07:00

You may have noticed that my main concentration anymore is my writing at Group News Blog. I will keep this site going as an archive and repository for more personal ramblings, more along a talking to myself line.

Nothing much going on at the ranch today. I'm doing some on-line research to come up with another coyote story for GNB come sunday. Other than that, I'm pretty indolent.

Here's the soundtrack of indolence:

Missa Laude Sion - - - Palestrina
One Winter's Night - - - Strength in Numbers
June Bug - - - Leo Kottke
How About You? - - - Sinatra
Love Me Do - - - the Beatles
Never Too Much - - - Luther Vandross
We Can Work It Out - - - Stevie Wonder
The Wind - - - Yussef Islam (Cat Stevens)
Frank's Wild Years - - - Tom Waits
The Living - - - Natalie Merchant

Bonus Track Playing Right Now:

Upside Down - - - Jack Johnson

Friday Random Ten

2008-07-25T08:57:00.002-07:00

Ah, Friday. Time to take a break from the new gig at GNB, putter around the house, dream up something marvelous to cook and in general, celebrate indolence.

Soundtrack:

Nocturne in Cm - - - Chopin
Greasy Greens - - - Pink Anderson
Wimoweh - - - The Weavers
Under The Boardwalk - - - The Drifters
Born At The Right Time - - - Paul Simon
Juanita - - - Gram Parsons
Great Big Idol With the Golden Head - - - David Bromberg
This is a Rebel Song - - - Sinead O'connor
If I Should Fall From Grace With God - - - Flogging Molly (live bootleg, me sitting in on guitar)
You Came a Long Way From St. Louis - - - Rosie Clooney

Bonus (playing right now)

She's a Bad Mama Jama (She's built, She's Stacked) - - - Carl Carlton

My First Post as a Writer For Group News Blog

2008-07-22T15:18:00.004-07:00

Is up.

Check it out.

If they ain't on your blogroll, or your daily reading, get it up there.

Seven For Dinner, Three Pork Chops

2008-07-21T19:56:00.012-07:00

This is what can happen when about 3 in the afternoon you find out that there have been guests invited for dinner. I'm still pretty wiped out from the four day stand at the convention. Still, folks are coming. Thing is there were only three pork chops. Seven people, three pork chops, that's some ugly arithmetic right there.

Luckily I raided the fridge and found eggs, green onions, frozen peas and carrots, I knew that there was rice in the pantry. I figured things were handled.

First things first though. My new niece was over for the afternoon while my sister and other niece did some shopping and got the senior pictures taken.

The little one said "Can you show me how you make that Peppermint Stick Ice Cream. Since I'm an old softie who cannot refuse a wonderful little girl anything I said my usual, "Whatever pleases you tickles me plumb to death darling." (if I had learned the power of phrases like that earlier on I might have been able to stay married longer)

Since clicking on Peppermint Stick, and Ice Cream will get the you recipes and the particulars I'll get straight to the pictures. . .

The peppermint candy canes being busted up.

Standing watch over the mixing. We are all truly blessed by this wonderful new addition to our family.

You can read about my new niece, Rez Drums, where she gets her Apache name, Tsa-Kalim does his Hoop Dance, Eagle Dance.

With the ice cream base chilling in the fridge it's time to get down to business. I'm making fried rice. It's a great way to stretch meat. The main trick with most Asian cuisines is prep work. Get stuff done ahead so that when you're ready to cook you get right to it.

That's the pork chops, quick pan fried, seasoned with Minstrel's Magic Stuff, then cooled and diced. Leftover corn on the cob, decobbed of course, and some cold, cooked, Cal-Rose rice.

Along with that we have some green onions, sliced fairly small, some Puerto Nuevo shrimp, peeled and deveined and quick boiled, then iced bathed, and some egg, scrambled in the wok and chopped to a little smaller than bitesize.

Big Time Cooking Tip! Always heat your wok to your cooking temperature before you add the oil. A great Chinatown chef explained it to me like this:
Wok hot. Oil cold. Food no stick. He was telling the truth.

The diced pork goes in first. You want the pork to get nice crispy edges before you

add in the green onions and the corn, then,

The rice. I guess that I should mention that while this is all going on, seasonings like chili oil, five spice mix, and soy sauce (or, if you prefer, like I do some Nouc Mam), anything you like can be added to taste. This is leftovers, not rocket science or any kind of huate cuisine.

Last, the egg and the shrimp are added, the whole thing stir fried until hot all the way through.

Looks like dinner to me. Gotta go, this boy's hungry.

BBB

Prayer While Away

2008-07-16T23:17:00.002-07:00

This is an ancient Apache prayer. Some call it "The Friendship Prayer." It was taught to me while I was a boy, my cousin and I say it to each other all the time. When he is married at the beach in a couple of weeks we will say this again.

The translations are rough. I'm sorry, but rough is about all you will be able to get with Apache. The thought processes and meanings are hard to explain. When I'm on the rez and working mostly in that language I have to make a conscious effort to purge my mind of English thoughts. They just get in the way.

This was taught to me by the great haattallii, biyi'siziini oyih (soul flyer) or, as he is better known, Silas.

si'zi' bìyì' éd yùd hiljij di' di' isza'ni' tc'ìndíi
(I dance inside a circle of men and women they say)

ìs' à'nà yáii éhd yùd á lzà tc'ìndíi
(long life inside a circle is made they say)

bìyì' éd yùd híljìj 'ìs' à' nà yái tc'ìndíi
(inside our circle dances long life they say)

yèxáidèlà gò dèyà keh'èh gòjó zeeh tsálit' tc'ìndíi
(having been prepared, he walks, friends, they say)

Á bìtct'ìd bìt'á ná ná ni sì tsòz
(underneath the blanket rests mother earth)

nùgùstst'án biìká' dé'ìi tc'òdàsdjà í
(on top of the earth our people are gathered about)

bìyá tì'jòoní bìnàltsé kè'es jòoní' bìdlùk jòoní
(their talk, good, their thoughts, good, their laughter beautiful)

bínàltzé' 'it'à'dá' jò dídòbé' óltà'gò'
(their wealth is of all kinds, good, uncountable)

yèxáidèlà gò dèyà tc'ìndíi
(having been prepared, he walks, they say)

djùnà' ái bè bì' ò' gùnòyè ì' yèh
(sun beside them, before them, forms mirage)

bi'ò gùnòyè gò' deyàh tc'ìndìi
(mirage forms before them as they walk they say)

a'iìs' à' nàyáii ke'èh gòjógò' yèxáidèlà gò dèyàh tc'ìndíi
(long life, good, is their, having been prepared, he walks, they say)

Hishash aaii diji jooni tek'eh naas aannii.
(walk in beauty my friends)

ilch'eh gont'eehi beeh noh whiich'iil
(peace be with you all)

ya'll take care. play nice.

big brass blog

Pre-Friday Random Ten

2008-07-16T18:17:00.002-07:00

I'm busy packing, got a gig at a big ass NA convention in Palm Springs, then home again long enough to pack for the beach. Beach packing is easy. A couple guitars, bag of clothes, not much else.

Sunscreen and shit.

Not much else.

Here's the soundtrack as I make my get ready push.

When the Wallflowers Wilt - - - Filthy Thieving Bastards
When a Fool Loves a Fool - - - Lee Hazelwood
Black Crow Blues - - - Townes Van Zandt (I miss you a little each day hoss)
Missing One - - - Bonny Prince Billy
Come Out Ye Black and Tans - - - Uisgie Baja
Superstition - - - Jeff Beck
Dying Crapshooter Blues - - - Keb' Mo
Tobe's Got a Drinking Problem - - - Street Dogs
Rufus is a Tit Man - - - Louden Wainwright III
Ni Mes Quitte Pas - - - Jacques Brel

Bonus track (playing right now)

Big Ol' Goofy World - - - John Prine

talk to ya'll mas tardes chicos.

Imperium

2008-07-14T08:25:00.003-07:00

This was a Roman legal concept. Consuls, Pro-Consuls acting as provincial governors, and other of the highest executive postitions like commanding generals in specific military actions, say Gaius Marius in Spain, or Scipio in Africa, were given Imperium which included freedom from all prosecution, criminal and civil.

One who held the title of Imperator was not above the law, an Imperator, was the law.

In many ways this was a practical and workable solution. The Romans believed that a governor, or commander in the field, often months away from any contact with the Senate or Rome needed the authority to do as he saw fit rather than asking for legal rulings at every step of the way. If there was an insurrection, that needed to be put down, by any means neccessary. If a property confiscation took place in the course of that action, the confiscator needed to be secure in position and not be forced to go back and forth to Rome constantly to defend those actions in court.

Thing was, when the job was over, so was the Imperium. Once the title and the position were finished, all legal bets were off. In his novel, titled "Imperium", Robert Harris tells about Marcus Tullius Cicero's prosecution of Varrus after his term as Governor of Sicily. Varrus was, by all contemporary accounts, a vicious and rapacious thug who raped, robbed and plundered his way through one of the richest provinces in the Roman Sphere. While he held the imperium, he was immune from prosecution of any kind, civil or criminal. When his term ended and he returned to Rome, all bets were off. What began as a civil suit became instead and indictment of the Senatorial class who viewed the world as their own personal playground where they could, with Imperium, indulge what ever depravities crossed their minds. Cicero tried to put a stop to that by holding men accountable for the actions they made. It worked, at least, it worked that one time.

Just like when Nixon was driven from office, all the while claiming his own type of imperium (interview with David Frost, 1974, "If the President orders it, that makes it legal.) The Romans who were on the greasy end of the retribution stick chose to learn their own lessons from the legal system of Imperium.

Many of the worst offenders simply chose to remain abroad. They would take their term of Imperium, loot blind what ever was in front of them, then retire to the eastern provinces of Cappodocia, Macedonia, Egypt, or some other oriental province where money bought luxury and ease.

One holder of Imperium, was Julius Caesar. While pro-consular Military Governor of Gaul, he unilaterally began the Gallic wars. He ordered his legions into action without approval or authority from the senate, and he kept them in the fields until he was stopped by the twin barriers of the Rhine and German resistence. He knew that he had started the war entirely to gain money. The commanding general's share of the spoils in Roman law was huge. He had the largest share of any property or treasures looted, and he had the sole ownership of all captives sold into slavery. Ceasar took on his mantle of Governor mostly broke from his runs for office, he was heavily mortgaged and deeply in cash debt, mostly to Crassus. Caesar was of noble lineage, some of the most noble of Roman Nobles, a direct descendant of both Aeneus and of Venus. Thing was, he was worse than broke, he was in deep debt.

Ten years in Gaul, and Caesar wanted to return to Rome as the richest man in the Empire (and Rome was, by this time a Republic by reputation only), except of course, Crassus. The big problem that he was was that in order to enter Rome itself, he had to lay down his Imperium. Caesar knew that if he did that, decades of lawsuits and criminal prosecutions would ensue. At best, after years of legal wrangling he would be financially ruined and have to return to the status of very noble and very broke, or at worst, banishment, expulsion, and poverty abroad as an exile. Caesar and his legal team came up with all manner of twistings and inventive interpretations of Roman Law, he would run, in absentia, for Consul, or other high office that carried its own Imperium, although the requirement for candidates to stand for office in person would have to be waived. When all of his twistings and turnings of the laws upon their very heads failed, Caesar, still with his Imperium, simply used that very power to break yet another Roman Law. His crossing of the boundary at the Rubicon set off a bitter and bloody civil war. His main goal, throughout his tenure as "Dictator" and then "Dictator for Life" was mainly about avoiding prosecutions for crimes he knew that he had committed. He wanted to avoid a reckoning and judgement. He did. Caesar won, and the Roman Republic was never again anything close to that. It became, instead, under Caesar's heir Octavian, a hereditary monarchy.

President Bush, and his advisors have been claiming their own version of roman Imperium. They have claimed that we are a nation of powerful men, unanswerable to either the people through Congress, the laws through the courts, or simple human decency. They have overturned two hundred and fifty years of checks and balances. They have conducted policy meetings in secret where maps of foriegn countries were spread out on the table and various oil companies were allowed to divvy up the promised loot like a christmas pie. They have then began wars on whims to deliver those promised spoils. They have, worst of all, against the laws of this nation, against the laws of all nations, and against simple human decency instituted a regime that has detained human beings without charges or legal recourse, many of them innocent, they have tortured "confessions" out of those innocents and so perverted any concept of right, truth, and justice that there may never be any accounting or reckoning ever possible. Jose Padilla, Khalid Mohammed, and other victims of the torture regime have been driven to the point of clinical insanity by their treatment. They are so far gone that they have lost the ability to be reliable eyewitnesses to their own lives.

Through this all, Bush and his minions are claiming "Imperium" and saying that they are above, immune, and far beyond all accountings or investigations. By demanding that immunity be granted retroactively in their offenses against the fourth amendment they have admitted that they knowingly broke the law of our land for years. Otherwise, they would not have needed that protection. Hopefully there are courts left in this country that remember the opinion brought down by John Marshall in Marbury vs. Madison which held that Congress cannot simply vote to ignore the Constitution without the cumbersome process involved with amending the Constitution first.

Like the natural result of a system of "Imperium" is someone like Caesar simply using it to seize full and total hereditary power, the swift, and always certain result of an American "Imperium" will be law breaking thugs listening to our communications without cause or warrant or oversight of any kind, snatching people off the the streets both here in our country and abroad, holding them without charge, or indictment, torturing them and then putting them on trial for their very lives using the fruits of the dungeon for evidence.

That this long list of crimes and abuses happened almost from the instant the behaviors began shows the dangers that our founders thought they had protected us against.

It may well be, that as I have said, and now echoed by legal scholars (not old and tired jingle whores, but law professors and shit like Glenn Greenwald and Jonathon Turley) are now saying, like I have said, that our own system of laws and courts might have been too debased and perverted by the rampant lawlessness of recent years and that the International Courts might have to be brought in.

Bring them in I say. I would rather live under foreign laws that the perverse twistings of Authoritarian Gangsters. I am tired of only being able to pretend to my freedoms.

BBB

Duck, Duck, Goose, Heron

2008-07-13T11:23:00.003-07:00

In the continuing "View From My Porch" series we have this one that I just now took. I was on the porch putting some truffle ganache in to set and I saw these ducks, the Mexican Black Face Goose (which apparently decided not to continue on north to Montana this year) and the Great Blue Heron.

They graciously held their positions while I put the ganache up and fetched the camera.

Thanks birds. You're much more fun than politics.

BBB

Set Your TIVOs

2008-07-11T17:08:00.002-07:00

For Sunday night. HBO is beginning its production of Evan Wright's Generation Kill.

I read his series in Rolling Stone when it was first published and later bought the book. I thought it was one of the better things I ever read about actual combat. He did not minimize what was going on, there were some truly horrible things which happened during the initial, fast paced push into Bagdhad. Thing was, you came to love these gritty Marines.

Later I also read the memior of that unit's Platoon Leader, Nathaniel Fick, who wrote the beautiful One Bullet Away: The Making of a Marine Officer.

What struck me was that reading these memoirs, written without any contact or communication between the two authors, was that the stories jived. They dovetailed perfectly. Both on the events that took place, and the effect that those events had on the Marines who were right in the middle. That speaks volumes as to the truth of the recollections. That's an amazing thing in a combat memoir. Combat can blur all perceptions. Many times there were things that I remembered vividly, things I felt had been seared into my memory, that turned out to have been seen in a totally different way by others who were also there. Memories of combat and battles is like trying to describe a party that you only saw by looking through a tube from a roll of paper towells. Vision is restricted and most of the time restricted to the very immediate front of your sight lines. This didn't happen here.

This was a light armored Marine Force Recon outfit. They were the "pointy end of the spear" in the invasion of Iraq.

This is very well worth a long look. If you don't have HBO offer to take a cake or something over to somebody who has it. Camp out. Watch this.

BBB

Friday Random Ten

2008-07-11T10:05:00.002-07:00

We're having a pretty lazy morning. My sister is driving down from the north to collect her daughter after an extended visit. There's a show that culminates the drama camp another sister was running tonight. Other than that it's about nibbling through left overs and taking it easy.

Here's the soundtrack for the morning, courtesy of "shuffle."

Where Were You? - - - Jonathan Brooke
By Myself - - - Mel Torme
Ay, Te Dejo en San Antonio - - - Flaco Jimenez
The Empty Page - - - Sonic Youth
Try It One More Time - - - Allman Brothers
Plastic, Fantastic Lover - - - Jefferson Airplane
Catch Me In The Morning - - - Doug Sahm
The Shape I'm In - - - The Band
Sugar Mountain - - - Neil Young (live, acoustic bootleg)
I've Got a Crush On You - - - Linda Ronstadt/Nelson Riddle

Bonus Track: (the one playing right now)

Mr. DJ - - - The Conquerors (very rare sixties reggae)

The Best Mexican Food In The World

2008-07-08T16:16:00.020-07:00

Is at Camacho's Place. You hear restauranteurs talking all the time about the importance of Location. Here's the truth of that. If you have a good location you can serve shit burgers and people will come once to savor the view. If there's enough traffic you will never have to worry about steady or repeat business.
If your food is exceptional, people will flock to your door.

I set out this afternoon about 12:30 to be there to pick up the order I made by calling Maria Camacho at home last night. Just making the order took about half an hour because I had to give her an update on every single one of my kids, all my sisters, promise to tell my cousin, the brilliant attorney's partner hello from Maria and her son. All that good, honest local stuff.

The first landmark on the drive is The New River, or as we locals call it, Shit Creek. This is one of the most polluted waterways in the world. One mouthfull of this water can quite literally kill you.

Coming up out of the river basin, you see Billy Hale's horse operation.

Billy has some of the most prized cutters and penning stock in the West. You can take one of his ponies into a feedlot pen looking for the mostly black one with a white splotch over its left eye and once you put that horse on the cow, that cow will be forced out of the herd, and coaxed to where ever you want it to go. All you have to do is hang the fuck on. Once one of these guys gets a bead on a cow they drop into that pea picking stance and they fucking explode at light speed in what ever direction they need to go to get the job done. Nothing like a cutting horse to show you how superfulous a rider really is on a working ranch. Billy has also been kind enough to offer a very reasonable boarding set up for my arabs come September. Stud fees from Casey are involved, I don't think Casey will mind a bit.

Next is about eight miles of this:

But don't relax too much. If you miss the turn, you'll have less than a mile before you're across the border. Chertoff's fence hasn't happened yet. Here's the thing to remember, when the pavement ends you're in Mexico. Act accordingly. Lucky for us all, there's a high voltage transmission line at the road we need to turn left on.

Before I quit drinking I still managed to miss that turn a few times.

The next landmark is Farmer Ed's feedlot. This is an old fashioned farmer's co-operative venture. Hay farmers pool their resources to have a ready market for their overages. There's some damned fine beef here. The main breed is Brangus. Regular Angus cows can't take the desert heat, Bhramas taste like shit but are hardy as hell. These aren't anywhere near as tractable as the Angus beeves, but that's why Billy's horses are such top notch masters. One of Billy's Bulldog Quarter Horses will not only make that cow do what ever you want, they will humiliate the poor horned critter too.

Right across from the feed lot they are cutting a field of Timothy.

This is a great smelling crop, normally, driving past something like this I would roll down the windows and inhale deeply. Sweet, country hay. Smells great. Since there are about 3,000 cows on the other side of the road, I just keep driving.

Back down into the New River Basin to cross Shit Creek again.

Up the bluff, past Danny Phillip's Cattle yard. Another 5,000 goddamned cattle.

Then we're here. Camacho's Place, established in 1946.

The place started out as a country store, but Maria Primera, being a tender hearted soul, began making tortas and burritos for the field hands and vaqueros. Word got out and folks started showing up for cooked food. It is pure Norteño cuisine. Poor people's, working people's food. It is wonderful stuff. The parking lot is always full. People start coming in at 7 a.m. and will eat steady until 9 p.m., except on Mondays (closed) and Sundays (they open after Mass, when ever after Mass happens)

That's the original counter from the store, those are the original reefer cases too. They still work.

That's the main dining area. Those dark brown beams are the main framing of the building, and the family houses. They started out as railroad ties, but when the Southern Pacific discontinued its runs to San Diego they left all this fine timber lying around and Tapio figured "Porque no?" There are ten consecutive years of Blue Angels portraits on the wall. It's a rite of passage for new members of the Angels to come here and taste real Mexican food.

I don't know if you can make out the headline but it's about how the Skipper of the Blue Angels was surprised by his crew. They flew from Pensacola to NAF El Centro, picked up his birthday lunch and flew back. Your tax dollars at work.

Here's the three generations who have owned and operated this fine restaurant. The fourth generation (and the third Maria) are here now.

The food comes and I drive the same road back. Once at home I spread out the goodies.

Quesadilla Especiale Take an uncooked tortilla round, stuff with cotija and jack cheese, crimp and fry. Total, gooey, lucious, goodness. Also something you won't find anywhere else. This is Norteño Pocho style. Delicioso.

Arroz, Salsa Roja, y frijoles. Each one of them exquisite.

Rolled tacos. Machaca, and cotija cheese, rolled in home made tortillas and fried to a perfect crispy but not crunchy texture. The perfect mixture of crisp and chew.
There were also some flat tacos, which are exactly the same, the machaca and the cotija are flash fried together, then shredded lettuce, diced tomatos and grated jack cheese are added. I blew the picture, sorry, they're all gone now. I only got two dozen of them. Nope, I didn't blow the picture at all, just blew the order of them. Now it's right These beauties below are the tacos. Probably the smell and the anticipation drove me temporarily insane and shit.

Every thing on the menu here is homemade, from local ingredients. It's all so very good. Especially since the folks here have been family friends forever. That makes it extra nice.

3B's

Guacamole

2008-07-07T21:54:00.009-07:00

One of the first things that you'll notice is that this is essentially a Salsa Bandera with avocado added. And yes, this wonderful stuff uses the same ingredients and techniques. Since the Salsa Bandera post covered most of the technique points I'll concentrate on the other essentials.

I'm expecting Arizona relatives to stop by for lunch on their way to San Diego. I'll be going to the world famous Camacho's Place, that legendary Mexican food restaurant in the middle of nowhere on a ditch bank between the cattle feed lot and the hay company. Expect some pictures on that sometime tomorrow. Since Camacho's is where I learned about things like Guacamole I make it myself and concentrate instead on the other fine food that they make.

For Guacamole, the first step is to halve, seed, and skin the avocados. Since there are a grip of folks stopping by, and they'll be hungry, I'm using six avocados. For a Gaucamole you want your avocados to be slightly soft to the touch. Being fussy while you choose your avocados makes all the difference with this. Be ruthless.

After you've cut the skinned halves into fairly large chunks stick them into a big bowl. This is a great time to drizzle the chunks with a good dose of lime (or lemon, depends on what fruit is better), I'm using the Mexican Limón, what a southerner would call a "Key Lime" except that the Florida Keys think that trailer parks and tourist dives are better use for the land than citrus groves, they buy the limes for their pie from Mexico. These limes are small and I used the juice from four of them for the first drizzling. This will help to keep the avocados from turning brown. (more on that whole turning brown issue later)

For proportions, figure on one tomato and one onion, diced small for every two avocados. Use the Salsa Bandera techniques for seeding and removing the pith from the chiles. I'm using fresh from the garden jalepeños. The amount you use is quite simply a matter of personal taste. I used five this time. All this gets dumped right into the bowl and the potato masher is hauled out and you work it into a nice, chunky sauce.

For extra heat, should you desire extra heat, you can always add in more jalapeño, or, grab the old Tapatio® and give it a healthy shake or two.

Keep at it with the potato masher until your Guacamole is a consistency that you prefer.

Serve as a dip, with tortilla chips (these are some blue corn chips that I just made), serve as a condiment to be put on tacos, enchiladas, chimichangas, hot dogs, hamburgers, or just about any damn thing you want.

Give it a try. You'll love it. Make sure that you play around with the proportions of the ingredients. Make this wonderful sauce your very own.

3B's

Lattice Crust Cherry Red Raspberry Pie

2008-07-06T21:31:00.001-07:00

This is one of my favorite pies. I doubt you noticed, since you're not like around me and stuff, but posts like the last two about SERE and torture take a fucking toll on me.

I needs me some big time comfort food. Ain't kidding. I about capped on some poor slob in San Diego last Friday. My nerves are frayed and my temper's short. That can be fucking dangerous for innocent bystanders. When Ranger, who stalked the same jungles as I did, notices that my language has gotten decidedly salty, it's time to calm the fuck down and shit.

INGREDIENTS

Crust:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup cake flour (when a recipe calls for pastry flour use this 2 to 1 mix)
2 tablespoons super rich butter powder, optional* (You can usually find this at a Cake decorating store and, while optional it makes a huge taste difference)
1 cup shortening (or if you're like me and don't give a fuck use Lard)
1 whole egg
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup ice water

I use the stand mixer for the initial mixing. It's easier and more thorough. First the shortening (this time it's Crisco Butter flavor) and the flour are cut into one another for a full mix.

Now, I switch to hand mixing because a lot of this goes by pure feel. This is where cooking becomes art, a lot of the texture of the crust depends on things like the barometer and relative humidity. A crust that will be flaky and crisp but still tender just has an indescribable feel when it's in the dough stage. The only way to get that feel is to make a lot of pies. Now the liquid ingredients, the egg, the ice water (ice water is important, no substitute or shortcut will do) and the salt are all working into the dough. When it is done, you will have a smooth, mostly elastic dough. It looks like this:
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V

Separate the dough into two discs and wrap one closely with plastic. Put that into the fridge and roll the other one out, put it into a pie pan.

Trim the excess crust to about 1/2", cover closely with plastic and put that in the fridge too.

Now, on to the filling.

Ingredients for Pie filling

10 ounce package of frozen red raspberries, thawed
2 cups pitted canned pie cherries in juice
1 1/4 cup baker's sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Drain the thawed raspberries, reserving the juice. Add enough juice from the cherries to make 1 cup.

In a sauce pan mix the sugar, cornstarch, salt, cherries and the cup of juice. Over a medium heat bring to a simmer and hold for 5 to six minutes. The mixture should be somewhat thick and clear. It will burn like hell itstelf if you get any on you so be carefull. You can add up to another tablespoon of cornstarch a teaspoon at a time (3 teaspoons=1 tablespoon) to thicken the mixture more according to your own preferences. If you add cornstarch be sure and simmer the mixture at least two minutes to keep that nasty library paste aftertaste from happening. When the juice returns to thick and clear, remove from the heat, stir in the butter until it is well incorporated, set aside and allow to come to room temperature.

Put that into the bottom shell and set aside. Now, take the disc in the fridge out and roll it flat and thin. Cut that into 1" strips. Lay the strips across the pie so that they are almost but not quite touching. Starting from the center, fold every other strip back halfway, lay a strip down crossways.

Repeat this until the pie has a nice, woven lattice all the way around. Trim off the excess and crimp.

Shield the edge of the crust by cutting a circle of foil enough to cover the pie, fold that in half, cut out all but about an inch and a half from the center, and shield the edge with that.

Bake on the center rack at 400° for fifteen minutes. Remove the foil, and reduce the temperature to 350°. Bake for another 40 minutes. Note: Be sure to have a foil covered cookie sheet or something beneath the pie while it's baking to catch any drips and bubble overs. When the top crust is golden brown, remove and cool completely (overnight is best, but four to six hours should do well enough).

Remember to try to pretend humility and be gracious when you accept your acclaim for serving this wonderful pie. False humility is its very own fulfulling pride.

3B's

Fourth of July Meme

2008-07-05T09:33:00.002-07:00

Blogger is still resisting the posting of photos, so the cherry/raspberry post is still languishing in the drafts.

this meme is courtesty Toast

Are you "proud to be an American"?

I have that whole "conflicted" thing happening when it comes time to be proud. I know that I've been very lucky, I grew up not only poor, but reservation poor. I'm not poor today. That happened here. Proud though? I'm not proud to be a citizen who feels more and more like a subject every day. I was proud of how right after the 9/11 the newspapers of Paris, Moscow, Tehran, Madrid, Rio, hell, all over the world stood up to be with us in our grief. Now, they hate us for what we have allowed ourselves to become. Not proud. Not lately.

Favorite Founding Father?

John Adams. He has been my favorite for a very long time. We know of Adams' faults and weaknesses because he told on himself all the time. One of the sublimest moments of sheer political courage in the service of right and justice came when he undertook the legal defense of the British soldiers from the Boston Massacre. I quote a phrase from his opening remarks all the time, especially when Bush tells yet another outrageous lie. Facts are stubborn things.

Favorite president?

George Washington. He didn't want the job, he didn't like the job, yet, when it was evident that he was really the only man for the job he took it on and did the very best he could. He tried to instill non-partisan thinking, he had a cabinet of geniuses, Jefferson, Adams, Jay, Hamilton, all volatile and powerful thinkers and personalities. He was not only essential he was damned near mandatory. Without Washington with his sheer force of reputation, honor and personality there might not have been a United States.

Biggest "Patriotic Moment"?

As the seige of Dong Ap Bai was lifted, we were greeting the helos that were carrying our wounded out and bringing water, food, ammunition, and medical supplies. Somebody noticed that the flag on our command hootch was still up. Three times during the two and a half day fight, which at one point got so bitter that I put an edge on the blade of my entrenching tool to be ready for the inevitable running out of ammo, the flag had been shot off its stand. Three times, that I saw anyway, one of us at incredible risk managed to get it back up. It was tattered, scorched, ripped, and dirty, just like us. It was dawn of the third day of Tet when the resumption of air cover and supply had turned the fight to our favor, and prevented us being overrun and annihilated. Somebody saw that little flag and started to sing the National Anthem. Pretty soon all of us were singing it. Singing it over and over while tears streamed down our faces. Singing it while tending the many wounded, who were also singing. Singing the National Anthem, at dawn, after a bitter fight that was nearly lost at many points. The song was so very real. My sense of relief, grief for the fallen, pride in our stubborn resistance, all overwhelmed me. It has never been the same for me since.

Favorite patriotic song?

The Rifleman's Song At Bennington

Why come ye hither, Redcoats,
Your minds what madness fills?
In our valleys there is danger,
And there's danger in our hills.
Oh hear ye not the ringing
Of the bugle wild and free?
Full soon you'll hear the singing
Of the rifle from the tree.

cho: For the rifle, for the rifle.
In our hands will prove no trifle.

Ye ride a goodly steed,
Ye may serve a foreign master;
Ye forward come with speed,
But ye'll learn to back much faster,
When ye meet our mountain boys
And their leader, Johnny Stark,
Lads who make but little noise,
Lads who always hit the mark!

Have ye no graves at home
Across the briny water,
That hither ye must come
Like bullocks to the slaughter?
If we the work must do,
Why the sooner 'tis begun,
If flint and trigger hold but true,
The quicker 'twill be done!

John Stark was a ringtailed motherfucker in a fight.

Favorite American cuisine?

Local ingredients, raised, prepared in the local style, by local folks. This extends to fish tacos in San Diego, to taco trucks in L.A. To clams at Ivor's in Seattle, all over the country there are wonderful little mom and pop operations. My least favorite American cuisine is anything from a fucking chain.

Happiest political moment of your life?

Hearing Barack Obama speak on race.

Best fireworks display you've ever seen?

The fucking napalm and other shit they dropped on the assualting forces at Dong Ap Bai. Shit was beautiful.

America's gift to the world?

Emma Lazarus' poem on the base of the Statue of Liberty. Even as we fail to live up to those words, the mere trying to come close is ennobling.

Favorite Bill of Rights right?

One. No goddamned explanation needed.

Favorite American Holiday?

Columbus day. It perfectly illustrates the cognitive dissonance required to be an American. Columbus, while lost at sea, was discovered, and rescued by Native Americans. Yet, to hear them talk, our history begins there. Totally fucked up, yet somehow, totally American, and kind of cool in its own way.

Favorite D.C. monument?

That. Wall. Devastating. Perfect memorial, perfect art.

Your dream for America's future?

That we have an America, and a future. It's hard to hold onto much hope.

Thanks Toast!

Big Brass Blog

Friday Random Ten

2008-07-04T08:08:00.002-07:00

Happy Independence Day!

Really. Today is the day for all good 'murricans to get themselves drunk and blow shit, and each other up. I've been leaving something an Uncle of mine, by marriage said.

dano'ah selwigoh doo iis dah do'o iindii eedihii nanah daagon'iillka'ad

(all the free men are dead or still fighting)

golah kah yeh (geronimo)

I'm going to take Mom into town, we're going to BBQ some killer tri-tips that have been marinated in citrus and Mexican spices for a week. We will also eat some Cantelope Ice Cream, and the Cherry/Red Raspberry Pie I've been trying to post for two days while Blogger frustrates my every attempt at posting photos. It's a glorious and visually stunning pie.

Here's the soundtrack:

To Ramona - - - Bob Dylan
The Man is Alive - - - Luka Bloom
Tiger Whitehead - - - Johnny Cash
Eyes of Amber - - - Buffy Sainte-Marie
The Galveston Rose - - - Hank Snow
New Ways Train, Train - - - Jeff Beck Group
Missing One - - - Bonny Prince Billy
Promised Land - - - Joel Rafael
When My Love Crosses Over - - - John Hiatt
Remember - - - Johnny Hartman & Errol Garner

Bonus (playing right now)

It Had To Be You - - - Billie Holliday

Happy Fourth Folks. Really. Many more months of this and we won't even be able to effectively pretend that we're still free.

I Started This as a Comment

2008-07-03T11:12:00.003-07:00

and it seems to have turned into a post. I'm stuck at the Mazda dealership while the ride gets some nicks in the windshield and a blinking warning light (warning of what has yet to be determined) get tracked down and fixed.

The previous post on torture and SERE training has been provoking some great responses. Thank you for your thoughts. It's good to hear from people like Mike that SERE training has evolved. It's still something that sorrows me when I realize that something that was designed to train people in resisting maltreatment has become the basis for our own behavior.

That goes against the wisdom of men like Pericles, who warned the Athenians at the beginning of the war with Sparta that if they allowed the war to change who they were as a city and a people that the Spartans would be the victors regardless of any outcomes on the battlefield.

It goes against the wisdom and actions of great leaders and generals like Grant (let 'em up easy, was his watchword with the defeated southerners), and Sherman (not many folks know that the legendary "40 acres and a mule" policy was Sherman's. He did not have the supply lines capable of dealing with former slaves, now liberated who wanted to tag along with his army sweeping through the south. Sherman's policy was to first burn the great houses, and then divide the property up among those slaves who had worked it for the profit of others. Rough justice indeed, but very just to my thinking).

Mike: so what really needs to be taught? In a combat situation folks should already be aware that there are people who will fuck with them. It wasn't so much the lessons, but the relish with which the guys in the opfor conducted them. that was the most disgusting part. Also, these lessons were given to prepare us to resist some of the vilest motherfuckers on earth. The men who did these things in Pongyang, Hanoi, Haiphong, Laos and other shitholes of despair were the pure banal face of evil. My outrage also rests with Ranger, in that these assholes are now doing this to others in our name.

Torture and mistreatment produces lies. It hardens the resolve of the enemy and ensures that any of ours who are captured will be treated with all the violence at the command of angry and wronged people. When they know that they will be raped with brooms and plumbing tools in Abu Ghraib or disappeared into a vacuum of offshore dungeons or third world battery shops no soldier with an ounce of will would ever surrender. My main lesson from SERE was that there was no fucking way in the blue eyed world that I would ever allow capture. I would not assume the passive, get along/go along stance that they tried to instill. I would fight with every loose limb, every last tooth, I would make it easier for them to fucking kill me. I would do that fast, hard, and unceasingly. That's where torture took me. Right fucking there.

Washington, by taking his stand, proved that point. During the battle of Long Island and New York, the Hessians especially, were brutal and violent to captured or wounded Continental soldiers. They tormented them with shit like heated bayonets, tying them naked across the barrels of artillery pieces which were then fired, the report of the guns would permantly deafen the unfortunates while they were horribly burned by the brass barrells. Often, a wounded soldier would be hauled to a sitting position and spiked to a tree or a wall with a bayonet and left hanging there to die painfully and slow.

Needless to say, when a Hessian surrendered, the captors often felt like they possessed a justified and reasonable agenda to give back the same treatment.

We were all, as a people and nation, lucky that among Washington's favorite books was Thucyides' The Pelopponneisian War. Washington could cite passages from that work. He could quote Pericles' warning to the Athenian Assembly. He would cite the passages that showed how the Athenians time and again ignored that advice to their own detriment and damage.

Washington issued orders forbidding the torture or mistreatment of prisoners. He established a system for the Hessians which would allow them to lay down arms and move onto the then frontier of Western Pennsylvania where there were already communities of German speaking settlers and farmers.

Word travels fast in war. When it spread among the Hessian rank and file that there was land for the asking, decent treatment and aid in establishing a new life as a property owner from the rebels, the next flogging dealt out by a drumhead court, or the next beating from a Sergeant began to weigh heavy. The Hessian privates began to ask themselves "Why should I endure these hardships for the profit of a Duke I have never met?" Hessian squads and companies began to desert en masse as units, bringing their arms and stores. Their descendants still populate the hills of Western Pennsylvania and the entire Ohio valley.

Think what might happen instead if we were to not just stop the tortures, but repudiate those who did the torturing, those who commanded the tortures be done. These people need to be hauled out of their dungeons into the light of the bar of justice. This needs to be done for all the world to see.

I doubt that it could be something done under the U.S. legal system. That might have been already too degraded and too hopelessly corrupted. Our own system of legal justice might not have any credibility left in the eyes of the world. I would suggest that the torturers and their bosses be arrested and turned over to the World Court of the Hague. Let justice prevail.

That is the only way out of this for our nation. I doubt that any among us have the moral courage, much less the will to do the dirty work of drawing the lines and taking the stands for what used to be simple human decency.

I truly grieve more than I rage. Something that was a thing of beauty and spirit has been discarded.

BBB

They Don't Even Plagarize From the Best

2008-07-02T10:24:00.005-07:00

This really isn't big fucking news. In The Torture Team, Philippe Sands explains in great detail how the current techniques of American Torture were mostly cribbed from the SERE training from the Armed Forces. As someone who went through SERE, let me speak from experience. It was sadistic bullshit run by sick fucking bullies. It was some real REMF puke sons of bitches getting their jollies off by acting like a bunch of swaggering pieces of shit. It accomplished jack fucking shit. It didn't train anybody in any kind of knowledge except that there were a lot of pissant low rent bastards who wore the same uniforms as us. Fuck SERE. Fuck their instructors. Fuck the shitheel dog breathed pissants who thought it up, fuck the horse they rode in on, the mail they carry, and the stamps they sell. It was nothing but a waste of time.

Oh, and by the way, it was developed to combat the torture leading to False Confessions that was done by the Communist Chinese, the North Koreans, and the Vietnamese.

Still, it was fucking bullshit. Worthless fucking bullshit.

Now, we find that our own Dear Leader did not take George Washington as his guide for Commander-In-Chief. Washington hated torture and absolutely forbade it. George Washington insisted that the Continental Army treat its prisoners with dignity and the honor that is due to fellow soldiers. George W. Bush didn't take MacArthur for his guide. Bush didn't model his policy toward prisoners on the policies of Grant, Lincoln, Pershing, Eisenhower, Marshall, or Patton. No, George W. Bush thinks that all those great Americans were stupid, weak pansies. He models his policy on the deeds of Mao Zedong

He doesn't even have the stones to model the best. Consider Tomás de Torquemada. Now that motherfucker knew how to fucking torture! He got folks, mostly women, or people of property that he wanted the fucking property, to confess to all kinds of beautiful stuff. Dancing with the devil in the pale moonlight, fucking demons, blowing goats just like Mickey Kause.

Tomás de Torquemada could get anybody to say anything and did. One of his most pure expressions of mercy was to promise to strangle the penitents before the fires were lit to save them from the horrors of burning and then not do that.

Who says he didn't have a wickedly sophisticated sense of humor on top of everything else?

I thought I had exceeded my limits of outrage and disgust with the current state of affairs in this country.

I. Was. Wrong.

I don't even want to know what's next.

3B's

Happy Blogversarry to Group News Blog!

2008-07-02T10:03:00.003-07:00

Group News Blog has been carrying on the spirit and mission of the late Steve Gilliard.

Gilly was one of my biggest inspirations in writing and blogging. He was a polymath who was into everything. He did so many different genres with wit, style, and most of all beauty. He was a bigtime, A-list, top of the line blogger, who took the time to respond to personal emails.

Gilly was, to use the apache, Itisgoh (he who is given honor).

Jesse Wendell, Hubris Sonic, Sara and Evan Robinson, The Littlest Gator and the absolutely brilliant and impressive LowerManhattanite have not filled Gilly's shoes. No, they have done one better. They have put on their own shoes, filled them very well, and kept up the fight.

They have been given Press Credentials for the Denver shindig. You can hit a PayPal button to help the fund this.

It would be worth a few bucks just to see what happens live blogging the Nancy Pelosi Question Time.

Please, give them a shout of encouragement. Toss some cash if you can. If you can't they will understand. Encouraging words are always welcome. Discouraging words are against the Code of the West and will not be tolerated, just like rudeness.

Big Brass Blog

Sometimes I Think That I Might Be

2008-07-01T08:18:00.002-07:00

A better commenter than blogger. It's a more immediate forum. It's quicker, sometimes, more personal. When I read something and feel compelled to comment it is often a rush of emotion, or a product of quick critical thinking.

Case in point, Lisa and Ranger Jim at Ranger Against War chose to take a comment I made and turn it into an entire post.

I was responding to a Thank You post that Jim made.

Jim and Lisa have been doing yeoman service at their blog in Florida. Jim is also a combat veteran of both special ops and Vietnam. He thinks in a very different manner than most rank and file. No wonder I like him.

Thanks for the recognition. Thanks for the notice.

Thanks for the good work ya'll are doing.

Carry on.

3B's

A Mean Kind of Justice

2008-06-30T11:37:00.004-07:00

A song by Carrie Newcomer has been running through my head.

My usual techniques for when a song gets stuck haven't had any success. When I was hard into the jingle whoring I found that if I had a song, and it happened all the time, one of those incessantly intrusive advertising jingles would climb into my head and torture me like I was an Arab from Jordan who was stupid enough to have a two year old passport stamp from Pakistan and then tried to go through US customs. The most effective technique is to play it all the way through. Then, I'd repeat that the same way I would repeat holding my breath to handle a case of hiccups.

Not lately. I read something in the paper, or the web, or catch a snippet of dialogue from the TV or radio and I hear Carrie's harsh and beautiful lyrics. I can't find a downloadable or uploadable (I get so confused sometimes anyway the upshot is that I can't fucking post the song here) version of this song. I urge you to do some looking. Give Ms. Newcomer a listen.

Here's what's been happening.

I read Preparing the Battlefield by Seymore Hersch, about how Bush and Cheney are trying to cement their legacies by starting yet another, this time bigger, and probably more disasterous war. Then I hear Carrie start singing. . .

There's a ring around the moon,
There's a chill in the air.
There's a mean kind of justice,
Coming down coming down.

Then I read about how John McCain is all butt hurt because Wes Clark questions whether or not simply getting your ass shot down and being captured is really a qualification for being President. Frankly, I've questioned the same thing. McCain always brings up his record as a Naval Officer, and with the exception of his time as a POW, it's not anything to shout about. He was an indifferent student who used family connections to get into the academy, his performance while a middie would have gotten anyone else who wasn't the son and grandson of admirals sent for a four year tour of chipping grey paint in the fleet. McCain graduated near the bottom of his class and got jets. His position of highest command was as a prisoner. I don't hold the fact that he made a "confession" or even the video tape he made under extreme duress against him, I would defy anyone to hold out as long as he did. I know, everybody breaks. His performance as a prisoner under horrific conditions shows me where his heart was. I'll give him props, sailor to sailor, he did the best he could in a situation where a great many did worse.

Does that alone qualify him to be President?

Nope.

Angels wring their hands and put ashes on their heads.
There's a mean kind of justice coming down.
It don't ever stop a thing,
An eye for eye, tic for tat.
And I've never seen nobody truly satisfied like that.
It just rolls around the head eating holes in your heart.
There's a mean kind of justice coming down.

Then I make my weekly stop at James Howard Kunstler's blog on the economy Clusterfuck Nation and read about how there's a good chance that the coming economic meltdown will make 1929 look like a bush league game.

There is a goodness on this earth
That will not die will not die.
It bears all, and seen it all, and still it survives.
I know that we have failed,

After all, Barclay's Bank is losing faith in the Federal Reserve.

But I I've seen that we can fly.
There's goodness on this earth that will not die.
Oh no, forgiveness never sleeps.
But the devil wants its due and says human life is cheap .
When we give up any hope we could ever change the past ,
Then at last. . .

Then, all it takes is to see another made-up furor in the political realm and I'm off into the chorus, repeat and fade. . .

There's a ring around the moon,
There's a chill on the breeze.
There's somebody with their hands clasped,
Down on their knees.
Angels hold their breath for what might set them free.
There's a mean kind of justice coming down

I encourage you to track this song down, drop a few pennies into Carrie's purse and get it for your own.

3B's

Cantelope Ice Cream, Freezing

2008-06-27T16:12:00.007-07:00

Use the standard, layer in the ice, shake liberally with rock salt, layer in the ice, shake liberally with rock salt method to begin the freezing. After about a half an hour you should hear the freezer beginning to slow as the ice cream inside stiffens.

As you can see, there are traces and creases left in the ice cream by the dasher, that means it's time to get the puree pulp that you reserved (chekov's gun is about to go off). Carefully wipe down the lid and top of the container to avoid any contamination by the salt and ice, remove the top and add in the reserved pulp.

Recap, and resume the freezing process until the ice cream is frozen through at the soft stage. Remove the container from the freezer and give it another quick wipe down. Take off the lid and remove the dasher.

Transfer the ice cream to appropriate freezer safe containers and freeze to set at least two more hours.

Now, serve, and enjoy.

A lot of folks have been dissing the "unity" thing between Clinton and Obama. Some of it is wickedly brilliant, like when Melissa McEwan talks about them "riding into Unity on their matching Unity Ponies. . ."

Thing is, I find myself believing that this is more than a bit sincere on Senator Clinton's part. Especially when I was working hard in the jingle game the competition was brutal, vicious and ruthless. That's how it was, there was a lot of money on the table and not a lot of time to make sure you got yourself a seat and had your long handled fork at the ready. More than once I found myself in competition with people that I liked. Most of the time, we all understood the game well enough to know that all of us would do what ever we needed to do in order to nail down the gigs we wanted. On more than one occaision I explained myself or had somebody else explain themself to me with the words "It's show business, not show friends. In the vast majority of those times as soon as the competition part of the thing was over, it was over, done, finito. Then it was time to move on, go out for tacos from the pushcart across the lot from the studio and quit being musicians and act like real human beings who possess stuff like feelings and consciences.

I imagine that politics is much the same. By the time the campaign rolls to a close I would expect that the politicians feel the same way. Who else in the world is in a position to understand what you have just been through than someone who was in the middle of it all right there with you?

I can understand how if you lose to a dickhead like George W. Bush by way of stolen Ohio votes or a Supreme Court Ruling from a court that was packed by that bastard's daddy there might be some residual hard feelings. In this case though the choice was clear. Obama won close, but he won, now it's time for Senator Clinton to make sure that we all have a friend in the White House. Good for her sez I.

3B's

Friday Random Ten

2008-06-27T08:45:00.002-07:00

I'm lazing around today. It's been a fairly hectic week, but today's schedule involves washing the car, the old inside and out type of job, and then freezing the cantelope ice cream. Other than that, the day is mine.

Here's the morning's soundtrack:

Real Live Bleeding Fingers and Broken Guitar Strings - - - Lucinda Williams
Hometown Blues - - - Steve Earle
Hawkins Country Jail - - - Hobart Smith
The Bullfrog Shuffle - - - Bela Fleck
Number One Heel - - - Buck Owens
Nel Flaherty's Drake - - - Tommy Makem
Badge - - - Cream
Whiskey Train - - - Procul Harum
My Oklamhoma Home Blowed Away - - - Pete Seeger
Small Fry - - - Louis Armstrong

Bonus Track: (what's on right now)

Up Against The Wall Redneck Mothers - - - Jerry Jeff Walker (live bootleg, me on snotty ass slide guitar)

What's on your soundtrack?

Cantelope Ice Cream

2008-06-26T21:36:00.012-07:00

So, let's recap the week so far. The 4th Amendment is on its way to being a thing of the past. Ralph Nader tries to get some attention by talking like an ignorant cracker who knows the level of blackitude that Barack Obama can demonstrate without making people feel all icky inside. President Bush insults the President of the Philipines and just about every Philipino within earshot by reminding them all that in his White House they are the fucking help. Oh, and let us not forget that maybe the North Koreans aren't evil crazy motherfuckers. At least we know that Stalinist dictatorships won't go all Muslim on us and shit.

At least Atonin Scalia and his brethern on the Supreme Court made it legal for folks in Washington D.C. to own firearms. It will come in handy should they feel like shooting themselves in shame over the shit they've pulled the last seven years.

Fuck that. Fuck them. I'm making ice cream. Right now in the deserts of Southern California we are having our crops of melon come in. One of the beautiful things about living where they grow this stuff is that when you see a field of cantelope or other melons being picked there is a great chance that there will be somebody by the side of the field selling the culls off cheap. Culls are the melons that are too vine ripened to pack and ship. They are bursting with flavor and juice and all kinds of wonderful goodness. The field workers sell them for a few cents each to raise beer money. I am glad to help. I used to spend every summer in these same fields. It was the way I could afford to buy clothes, shoes and books for the next school year. It's hard, honest work. Which is how republicans describe jobs that don't pay for shit.

INGREDIENTS

2 large, very ripe cantelopes
2 lemons, juiced
2 1/2 cups sugar
6 large eggs
4 cups heavy cream
2 cups 1/2 & 1/2
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon almond extract

Cut, seed, and slice the cantelope into chunks.

Puree this in a food processor and put into a large mixing bowl.

Halve and juice two lemons making sure that you remove all the seeds from the juice. *hint* If you roll the lemon before halving it you'll make it easier to release all the juice.

Add the lemon juice to the cantelope puree and put them both into a large strainer over a large bowl. Use a spatula to gently agitate the puree to release as much of the juice as you can.

Take the remaining pulp and put into an airtight container and refrigerate.

Set the juice aside.

Scald the cream and half & half in a heavy saucepan. While that's going on beat the eggs until lemon yellow and add in the sugar. Beat until very smooth.

Add in the extracts.

Temper in the scalded cream and half & half, adding slowly at first to avoid scrambling the eggs and ruining the consistency of the ice cream base. Then, add in the cantelope/lemon juice, put it into the freezer container for your freezer, cap and refrigerate overnight.

I'll cover the freezing process tomorrow. Think about the cantelope pulp like Chekov's gun.

big brass blog

Maple Bread Pudding

2008-06-24T22:10:00.014-07:00

This is a tried and true recipe that has been in my family for so long that nobody really knows who first started making it.

These are the ingredients, it's a very simple set. It's simple enough and flexible enough that you can play around with the balance of spice and sweet, egg and milk, bread and pudding with pretty good success.

INGREDIENTS

4 cups very stale bread, cut into cubes (for this time I'm using a mixture of old cornbread and dinner rolls. *hint* cut the bread into cubes before it goes stale)
6 eggs, beaten
4 cups milk
1 cup maple syrup (real stuff, from a goddamned tree, pretend syrup will not have a good consistency)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt (kosher or sea salt, not iodized)
touch of almond extract

Butter or use cooking spray on a ceramic or glass baking pan.

Scald the milk on top of the stove.

Put the stale bread cubes into the pan.

Beat the eggs until they are lemon yellow. Add in the dry spices while the mixer is at stir.

Before you measure the syrup spray the inside of the measuring cup with cooking spray. This will reduce the amount of leavings in your measure.

Temper the scalded milk into the egg mixture a little at a time to avoid scrambling your custard.

Pour the custard over the bread crumbs and pat down smooth. Be sure to allow the crumbs 10 to 15 minutes to soak up the custard.

I like to spread a bit more ground nutmeg over the top right before

It goes into the 350° oven for 45 minutes.

Until it looks like that.

Serve warm, with ice cream, whipped cream, or hard sauce.

3B's

A Very Strange Skill

2008-06-24T14:06:00.003-07:00

of mine that I developed in the music industry is my ability to get other people in the same business, but at different levels to tell me the truth. The fact that this is a skill you need to develop if you're going to survive in the business tells you a lot about how things inside music work.

Sometimes, I use it to satisfy my curiousity, other times I use it because I know that telling the truth to someone is not a comfortable thing for a lot of these folks. This morning I had an instance of the latter.

The setup for this phone conversation is that the producer involved is not someone I've enjoyed working with in the past. He tends to be very autocratic, not collaborative at all, and, worst case scenario for me, he tends to be very poor at communicating what he wants. He'll ask for another take endlessly and when you ask him how he wants it to be done he'll say things like You know, different."

Faster? Louder? Slower? Softer? What the fuck? Is usually my response. Since I view my main job working with a producer as one of giving them what they want, not being able to discern easily what that is can become very frustrating.

I've also totally scaled back all my work in the business since the writer's strike cooled off the jingle game. I noticed while I was doing other things, how much happier I was. I simply haven't gone back. I figure if I stay out of the arena long enough I'll soon be one of those forgotten folks who have no reliable answer to the eternal Hollywood question of "What have you done lately?

The phone rings first from my agent. Our conversation goes like this.

Agent: Feel like working?

Me: Nope, not much.

Agent: Look, kid, I owe this guy (insert name) a favor, you owe me and he asked for you.

Me: He asked for me?

Agent: By name.

Me: Why?

Agent: He's going to call in five minutes. Be polite.

Me: I'm always polite.

Agent: (sounds of coffee being blown out the nose) then click of hang up.

Five minute later the phone does ring. I do answer.

Me: Why did you call?

Asshole Producer: I really need your slide guitar sound.

Me: Why me?

Lying Motherfucker: Your sound is yours, it's unique.

Me: No, really, why me?

Motherfucker: Ry Cooder's wrapped up promoting that book/album thing, David Lindley's on tour, Pete's out of town, Bush is in Tennessee, I've called everybody I could think of and been told no.

Me: OK, I understand. Fax the charts.

No, I really don't miss the business end of things at all.

3Beez

George Carlin Dead at 71

2008-06-23T10:25:00.002-07:00

In keeping with, and in respect of Mr. Carlin's well known viewpoint of religion and his hatred of hypocrisy and euphemism, I will make do with Woody Guthrie's perfect wishes.

So long buddy, it's been good to know ya.

The Birds Have Eaten All The Crumbs

2008-06-22T10:14:00.003-07:00

Our clever, clever plan for beginning to find our way back from the disasters and incursions on our personal liberties made by the President and his minions is now come full circle.

Congress has seen fit to compromise our liberties to an extent that most of our founders would find unacceptable.

Patrick Henry said:

There is no longer any room for hope. If we wish to be free--if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending--if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which we have been so long engaged, and which we have pledged ourselves never to abandon until the glorious object of our contest shall be obtained--we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight! An appeal to arms and to the God of hosts is all that is left us! They tell us, sir, that we are weak; unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week, or the next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed, and when a British guard shall be stationed in every house? Shall we gather strength but irresolution and inaction? Shall we acquire the means of effectual resistance by lying supinely on our backs and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot? Sir, we are not weak if we make a proper use of those means which the God of nature hath placed in our power. The millions of people, armed in the holy cause of liberty, and in such a country as that which we possess, are invincible by any force which our enemy can send against us. Besides, sir, we shall not fight our battles alone. There is a just God who presides over the destinies of nations, and who will raise up friends to fight our battles for us. The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave. Besides, sir, we have no election. If we were base enough to desire it, it is now too late to retire from the contest. There is no retreat but in submission and slavery! Our chains are forged! Their clanking may be heard on the plains of Boston! The war is inevitable--and let it come! I repeat it, sir, let it come.

It is in vain, sir, to extentuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace--but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!

While Barack Obama says:

I will try to remove the immunity.

John Adams said:

There is danger from all men. The only maxim of a free government ought to be to trust no man living with power to endanger the public liberty.

(journal entry on advice he planned to give his son, John Quincy)

Senator Kit Bond said:

When the Government tells you to do something, I think you all recognize, uh, that that is something that you need to do.

I really don't know if there is a way back from this. I'm certain that, as a fashion statement, jumpsuits have always sucked. I look horrible in orange.

Pretty soon anyone with a conscience, anyone with a thirst for liberty, will be in a jumpsuit and a prisoner. I hope I have the good sense to die before I have to watch the rest of this disgusting charade.

Hope? Not much anymore.

"When I was young I walked all over this country, east and west, and saw no other people than the Apaches. After many summers I walked again and found another race of people had come to take it. How is it?"

Cochise.

3B's

Friday Random Ten

2008-06-20T07:50:00.003-07:00

The morning is shaping up nicely. Abbie is going to the groomer's, she will forgive me by tomorrow. I have some porch furniture to paint. Strawberry ice cream to freeze. Salmon to poach, asparagus to grill and top with hollandaise.

Here's the morning's soundtrack:

Lover's Prayer - - - Randy Newman
Stay a Little Longer - - - Emmylou Harris (live bootleg, me on guitar and ragged bass vocals)
Corrina, Corrina - - - Taj Mahal
Myth of Fingerprints - - - Paul Simon
Shattered Dreams - - - Johnny Hates Jazz
Living on a Thin Line - - - Kinks
While You See a Chance - - - Stevie Winwood
Waist Deep In The Big Muddy - - - Pete Seger
Leave Her Johnny, Leave Her - - - Stan Rogers
No Diamonds In The Mine - - - Leonard Cohen

Bonus - - -

Real Good Looking Boy - - - The Who

What's your soundtrack?

UPDATE

there's a great verse in the stan rogers song. it's a long haul chanty about pulling into harbor after a suck ass trip on a crappy boat. it reminds me of the bush administration:

The Skipper's bad
The mate is worse

Leave her Johnny, Leave Her!

He'll blow you down with a spike
and a curse.

And it's time for us to leave her

It's time for us to leave these guys. High time.

Dishing With the Girlz

2008-06-18T00:01:00.002-07:00

Showtime has a new series called Secret Diary of a Call Girl. The beautiful April came up with an idea for giving an insider's viewpoint of the series to check out how the accuracy thing goes.

After all, when you ask cops about cop shows, ball players about sports movies, musicians about musician movies, or warriors about war movies, the usual thing is to say "Nope, not even close." It's just the way fiction, and art work. If stuff was like real life it wouldn't be art.

The set up was for the jaw dropping gorgeous April and three of her friends from "work" to come over, I'd cook dinner and we'd all watch the show. The girls were free to call bullshit, or say what, if anything rang true.

On account of it's me, this was the menu.

Spinach Salad
Carne Asada
Arroz (a la España)
Quesedillas Especialles
lots of fresh tortillas, Salsa Bandera, Salsa Brava

For the two ladies who drink there was Bohemia and a cheeky Jaliscan Vino Tinto. The rest of us were having ice tea.

Dessert was Peach Pie a la mode (home made vanilla ice cream).

By the time dinner was finished at least two of the girls had mentioned that they now understand what it is April sees in me.

This was the first time we had been to meet on a social basis. I have seen one of the girls on campus at the J.C. where I taught strings, and I've the the other two around town. I don't know if I've ever seen them when they were working and, just like it is with April and I, those questions went unasked.

The set up for the show is that the young woman "Belle" (whose straight name is Hannah) is explaining her life.

Right off the bat the girls gave a big shout of approval for when she runs through the different names and levels of the sex trade and says, "It's just semantics and doesn't matter." Although she got some raised eyebrows when she says that one of the reasons she enjoys being a call girl is the sex. The girls here said that it's better to simply not mind the sex, that, for the most part, it is not all that memorable.

The first bullshit call was the way the business end of things is conducted. Belle says "Find out what the client wants and give it to them quickly." The way these girls work money between client and girl is never exchanged. Neither are the particulars of what's going to happen. The "agency" handles all of that. Collections are never done in cash (ask Governor Spitzer, cash is messy). By the time the client and the girl are together in person, the business is already completely handled.

As far as the time thing goes, the girls didn't call bullshit, but they said that their operation works on a very different basis. The client either has an open credit card, or a line of credit paid up in some other way. This protects both the clients and the girls. By never actually having to negotiate out loud, that little legal nicety is observed, making any kind of legal hassling harder, and the girls are never tempted to try and skim cash or otherwise cheat the agency. It's just easier all around.

The girls totally dished the small section about Belle's personal life. Especially the part where she says "I keep my business and my life separate, and never the twain shall meet." The girls say that it is impossible to separate this. Either the people in your life, boyfriends, close family, roommates, etc, all know and are in on the hustle, or things tend to get too far out of control. They all agreed that the first boyfriend shown is a douche who most likely won't last long. If he's that clueless about the woman he's hanging around with he's too clueless to hang.

The "safety" call is accurate. All the girls say that this is an important part of the job. They also said that they have a "panic" button for speed dial on their phones should anything start to make them nervous or seem like it's about to all go south.

Another subplot is that Belle meets with a first time client who is young, good looking and isn't able to get things done. Belle shows a lot of consternation. Professional Pride is big with these girls. If someobody doesn't respond in the expected way, they want to know why. At the very end, there is a message from the agency where the client wants "Hannah," the real name, instead of Belle. All the girls say that this would never happen. If a real name is given or slipped, it's the end of that client, and most likely would come from the client's end of the transaction.

The main thing these girls are selling is privacy and discretion. They would not allow this to be violated.

The girls enjoyed the show, and the dinner enough to agree to join me for the next episode. I'm at work on the menu as we speak. I'm thinking a nice Phad Thai and ginger ice cream. . .

3B's

Salsa Bandera

2008-06-13T18:17:00.013-07:00

This goes by many names, Salsa Cruda, on account of the ingredients are not cooked, or Pico De Gallo, but that's more of a Sinaloa/Chihuahua thing. Us Norteños call it Salsa Bandera because it contains the colors of the Mexican Flag.

Viva Los Norteños sez I.

You'll need

2 tomatoes
1 brown onion
2 jalepeños
1 lime
cilantro (that's dried cilantro in the plastic thing, the heat has killed all our leafies)

Take the top of the core out of the tomato, then cut a thin slice off of one side.

Dice that reasonably fine (I like about 1/4" cubes, but I likes it chunky if your own taste runs to less by all means, chop the fuck out of it)

Keep chopping until you have both tomatoes done and in your bowl. It's important to have a crockery, enamel, or otherwise non-reactive bowl lest the acids in the fruits and veggies turn stuff on you. (essentially that means no aluminum)

Peel the onion.

Chop the shit outta it.

Put it in the bowl with the chopped tomatoes.

Put on some rubber gloves now. Really. When you're handling chiles it's the best way to go. The alternative is to totally scrub your hands (which should be clean anyway) but I mean scrub with scouring powder and a rough cloth, to get the volatile oils from the chiles off your skin. It's easier and safer to use gloves.

Top and halve the chiles. Now, comes the question, to seed or not to seed? Taking the seeds and the pith from out of the chile will lessen the heat. I usually seed. Follow your own taste though. Since these add nothing but pure heat, and I like the flavor of the chiles I usually seed and use more chile.

A grapefruit spoon, with a serrated tip, works perfectly for that.

Mince the chiles, grate the lime zest into the bowl and squeeze the limes.

Mix, and dig in mis amigos.

This salsa rocks out loud for dipping, for tacos, for chilaquiles or huevos rancheros.

It's easy, and much, much better than anything you can buy.

3B's

Friday Random Ten

2008-06-13T08:50:00.002-07:00

Here's the soundtrack for the morning. The day's plans involve taking my nephew to see Kung Fu Panda and very little else.

Go Celtics! (I'm not a big Boston fan, but I'd rather see Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen get their first rings than see Kobe get his fourth)

On to the music:

If That Ain't Country - - - David Allen Coe (live bootleg from the Belly Up in Solana Beach, Steve Goodman and I are sitting in)
La Cenerentolla - - - Rossini
Macbeth - - - Verdi
Winey, Winey - - - The Kingstonians
400 Years - - - Bob Marley
The Liberty Bell March - - - John Phillip Sousa (performed by the Marine Band)
Baba O'Reilly - - - The Who
Think! - - - Aretha Franklin
The Pill - - - Loretta Lynn
Lady Midnight - - - Leonard Cohen

Bonus Track:

Grandma's Hands - - - Bill Withers

I expect to have the Salsa Bandera recipe up sometime later today. My nephew ate me out of fresh chips and salsa yesterday. He wants more. We'll make more.

Tortilla Chips and French Fries

2008-06-12T16:03:00.008-07:00

My nephew (12) is spending the day with me. He's a normal kid. He loves stuff that crunches and crisps. He is also a walking appetite. I found him rummaging through my pantry and asked if he was looking for anything in particular. He said he wanted to find some chips to clean up the last of the Salsa Bandera I made for breakfast. I told him I didn't have any chips in the house but that it was an easy thing to do. I asked if he liked french fries, and of course, being a twelve year old boy, he said yes. I then asked if he was ready to go to work.

We got our stuff out.

The first thing is to get the oil ready. Use plenty of oil. I am in the process of rotating some of the things in my pantry and one of the items was a tub of Crisco Buttery Flavor Shortening. That stuff is great for pie crusts, but, there was an unopened tub behind this one, and I wasn't sure how long it had been there, so I figured "Perfect use."

If using a solid type of fat, I recommend doubling the melted volume of the shortening, or prepared french fryer goop with something lighter and able to withstand higher temperatures like peanut oil. You want to bring it to 375°.

While the oil is coming up to temp cut your tortillas into wedges of eight to a disc.

Scrub your potatoes, and cut them lengthwise into strips. I'm not fanatical about even sizings here, as a matter of fact, I enjoy the contrasts provided in texture and crunch by mixing up thickness and length.

When the oil is hot enough, we went for the chips first.

Get them into the oil, without splashing yourself. Notice that I'm using a pot that is nearly twice as big as the volume of oil. This makes things a bit safer, and when mixing things like boiling oil and twelve year olds, safer is always the way to go. They will float up and start to brown, when they are a uniform, light golden brown transfer to a paper towel lined bowl, salt lightly with kosher salt and go to town. These are much less greasy, far more crisp than commercially made chips. These are food, they taste like food. (note: I just did a quick search of my archives for a salsa bandera recipe and couldn't find one, I promise to post that very soon.)

Now it's time for the potatoes. This is a two step process. The first dunking in oil is done until the outside faces of the fries begin to skin up, and the edges are turning lightly brown. Remove from the oil and drain throroughly.

Then, after they have drained and cooled put them back into the fry to crisp and brown. This is the secret to making your own french fries. The first frying will cook them through completely, the second frying will bring them to that crispy outside texture which contains the wonderful potato stuff inside.

Again, dust lightly with kosher salt and enjoy with your favorite dipping sauce. (Being a traditional kid, the nephew went for ketchup, while I went with a 1/2 and 1/2 mixture of ketchup and tapatio). If you want the classic Pommes Frite Parisien you can toss them with sea salt, parsley flakes and crumbled bleu cheese.

Summer's here folks! It's a wonderful time to be in the kitchen with kids.

3B's

I Win a Quick Hundred Bucks at Breakfast

2008-06-12T08:27:00.002-07:00

My filthy rich republican uncle and my aunt stopped by for coffee and cinnamon buns on their way up to Idaho for the summer. My sister, who is a high school teacher, was here too. She has been studying the No Child Left Behind legislation. She is very concerned with the ramifications for local schools. Essentially she believes that the standards set are impossible to meet. Judging special education kids, recent arrivals who haven't been able to meet language standards, and the fact that there are simply some kids who hate school and won't be able to pass the test, which, by the way, requires 100% pass rates.

If a school fails to meet these impossible standards they are subject to "management companies" coming in to take over the entire school system. Things like academic tenure, length of service, in short, all the protections of a union workplace would cease to exist.

She says the language of the bill is confusing, hard to parse, often done with pretty slovenly grammar.

As she was explaining the way things are set up I started thinking. Then it struck me.

I asked "So, the standards set are impossible to meet?"

She said "Yes."

I asked, "Who would be the ones to benefit by these impossible standards?"

She said "The school management companies."

I said, "Then find out who owns the school management companies and you'll have a very clear picture of who the bill was written for."

On a whim, I said "I bet Neil Bush heads one of those companies."

My uncle, who is a very successful, gifted attorney, who loves the law, and is a decent, honorable man, said "I can't buy that."

I said "Bet me."

One quick Google got me to Ignite! which is owned by, you guessed it, Neil Bush.

My uncle, who has been taking emotional hits for the last several years as republican, after republican is driven from office, indicted on tawdry scandals, sorrowfully sagged his shoulders and peeled me off a $100.00 bill.

I told him that it gave me no real pleasure to be that easily right in assuming that our government is hopelessly corrupt.

Then I offered him another cinnamon roll. That helped.

3B's

Way To Go Dennis!

2008-06-11T16:56:00.001-07:00

Les Miserables Lyrics
Do You Hear The People Sing Lyrics

Obama's Vice President Search

2008-06-10T21:16:00.002-07:00

Here are some great leads on the search.

Hannibal Lecter - should be able to steal a segment of the homicidal maniac voting block from the republicans.

Lester Maddox - you could dig his dead ass up and court the southern cracker vote.

Richard Nixon - now that's fucking bi-partisan bitchez.

Newt Gingrich - isn't dead or a fictional character but he might as well be.

Evangeline Lily - for no other reason than I would fucking watch CSpan every time she had the Senate gavel.

Emmylou Harris - because I adore her.

There you go. That list makes about as much sense as all the bullshit speculation and wishful thinking I've heard on what passes for news these days. Obama has said he won't expose this process to the the press and media. If you don't hear it from him, it's not fucking true.

Still, Emmylou would be a great choice. She could flat run stuff, and run it nicely too.

BBB

Friday Random Ten (on the road edition)

2008-06-06T08:49:00.002-07:00

We're heading back through San Diego on our way back home to the desert. It's been a hell of a week. We have a nominee. It's the one I was hoping for (actually my second choice, but I would have been Ok with Senator Clinton, not ecstatic, but Ok)

The big news this morning is that Bush and Cheney were liars about Iraq. File that under no fucking shit, I'm so happy you figured that out.

Here's the soundtrack for the morning. . .

He Can Only Hold Her - - - Amy Winehouse
Forest Lawn - - - Tom Paxton
Ain't No Sunshine - - - Buddy Guy (live bootleg with Tracy Chapman on vocals)
Tobe's Got A Drinking Problem - - - Street Dogs
Hell, Or England - - - The Men They Couldn't Hang
I Can't Get Started - - - Dinah Washington
Go To The Mardi Gras - - - Professor Longhair
Piano Concerto #2 - - - Mozart
Gumboots - - - Paul Simon
Angel Band - - - Stanley Brothers

Bonus - - - Stag O'Lee - - - Mississippi John Hurt

Back to more reasonable posting patterns soon. Thanks for your patience and support.

Bo Diddly Dies of Heart Failure

2008-06-02T10:53:00.002-07:00

Heart failure, not rock failure.

I'll miss you Bo. I'll think of you everytime we cook backstage. You did that a lot, because it reminded you of the years you spent on the road when it was illegal for you and your band to go to restaurants. Once it became legal, you still traveled with a portable kitchen, 'cause you were a better cook than most of the restaurants.

I was proud to wash your dishes Bo.

Bompchabomp chabompbomp!

Big cha brass cha brass blog

Friday Random Ten (slight rant return)

2008-05-30T08:41:00.004-07:00

Over at Welcome To Pottersville there's a post about this article from Rolling Stone on the "100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time."

Ok. Fine. I have my favorites, thing is they tend to change. It depends on my mood, the surrounding events, the company, it depends on life. Own your own favorites. Don't let a bunch of wankers sitting around a magazine tell you what's good. If it makes your hips wiggle and your face smile, it's good. My own personal favorite of me playing is something I used to do during my punkish phase in the eighties. I would take one of my tricked out self-built Strats, turn everything all the way the fuck up and play "Maleguena." Then, when I was done and my ears quit bleeding I'd say "That was 'Shake Your Booty Macho Man Maleguena Uber Alles'." I also have a fondness for listening to old jazz records and stealing trumpet, sax, and clarinet licks. When I'm feeling a little disruptive I like to play along with another guy's solo and watch his face fall when he realizes I've been matching him lick for lick using a bottleneck.

So, phooey. If it moves you, it's great. That's the only real measure of music. If it moves you in an important way once, and then has the power to take you back to that moment, that afternoon or night with her, when you're sitting in your cubicle or driving in traffic, that's even better.

Here's the morning soundtrack, courtesy of "shuffle."

Ramblin' With That Woman - - - Bumble Bee
One Way Ticket To Nowhere - - - David Allen Coe
Tout Les Jours Mon Couer Est Bleu - - - Clifton Chenier
Can't Help But Wonder Where I'm Bound - - - Nancy Griffith
Marry Me - - - Dolly Parton (live bootleg, me on 5 string banjo, finish on fiddle getting completely run over by the amazing Vassar Clemens, dude took off and I couldn't hang, finished the song standing there stupid and grinning in amazement but that was how the rest of the band, including Dolly were)
The Dirty Dozens #2 - - - Red Rooster
Co'dine - - - Buffy Sainte Marie
Bertha - - - Phil Lesh
Cal'donia - - - Son House
Grande Waltz Brilliante in Eb - - - Frederic Chopin (played by the incomperable Horowitz)

Bonus track (what's playing right now)

Grinder Man Blues - - - Memphis Slim

I got to go pack for a beach weekend. Should take about all of fifteen minutes. Minstrel's rule for beach packing is this:

Take half as many clothes and twice as much money.

Works every fucking time. Blogging will be light for the next few, after the beach I'm heading up to Laurel Canyon to hang with one of my favorite music ladies and help her get some arranging done for her next album.

Just for the hell of it, because it's so fucking great and just started a bonus bonus

Uncle Penn - - - Bill Monroe and The Bluegrass Boys

What's your soundtrack?

UPDATE: The luminously beautiful April just showed up and said I should also include my standard reply when people ask me "What's your favorite kind of music?"

I always say:

What ever they're paying me for tonight."

3B's

Scotty McClellen is a Lying Sack of Shit

2008-05-29T13:00:00.005-07:00

I'd rather hang out on the porch and watch the birds.

BigBrassBlog

Utah Phillips Dead

2008-05-27T10:53:00.002-07:00

Adios mi amigo. I rode with you. I got no complaints.

big brass blog

I Sometimes Hate to Be Right

2008-05-27T10:03:00.003-07:00

Back in November I wrote a post about The National Pretend Crisis about immigration, and the negative impacts the Homeland Security Department has been having on the economy and culture of the border down here.

One of the things I predicted was:

The laws that have made crossing the border more difficult have not even begun to stem this human tide. They have enriched the coyotes (pronounced COY-oh-tay) who smuggle them. Fees for being guided across have gone up over 300% in the last two years. The first effect of further clamping down border access will be to make these vile and vicious criminals far richer. They will also be certain to spend some of this new found wealth on bribing Customs and Border Patrol Agents. That's what the drug smugglers did, that's what the rum runners did during prohibition.

I did not feel proud, or the least bit vindicated to read this in today's New York Times.

An excerpt from the article:

When the Homeland Security Department was created in 2003, the internal affairs unit was dissolved and its functions spread among other agencies. Since the unit was reborn last year, it has grown from five investigators to a projected 200 by the end of the year.

So, they first transfered an entire department into a newly created cabinet department (the largest expansion in the size and scope of government in the history of the United States) and one of the first things they did was to dissolve the internal affairs division. In a very Stalinesque way that makes sense. If you're worried about the adverse publicity that is brought on by cases of corruption the simple fix is to not bring any cases of corruption into the light. Just like Uncle Joe said all those years ago, "Problem person? One bullet, one grave, no problem."

Sadly, it not only the brand new officers that have been sloppily recruited and rushed into service that are falling prey to the enticements of the smugglers. It is officers with 15, 16, even 25 years of service.

The increases in border security have brought about many changes. Just not any of the ones that were intended.

Heck of a job Chertoff! You Skeletor Looking Motherfucker.

3B's

I Got Nothing

2008-05-26T07:53:00.005-07:00

GRASS

by: Carl Sandburg (1878-1967)

PILE the bodies high at Austerlitz and Waterloo,
Shovel them under and let me work--
I am the grass; I cover all.

And pile them high at Gettysburg
And pile them high at Ypres and Verdun.
Shovel them under and let me work.
Two years, ten years, and passengers ask the conductor:
What place is this?
Where are we now?

I am the grass.
Let me work.

I've been trying to put together a post, something that somehow ties in the way wartime experience runs through your life like a thread. A thread that sometimes helps with the body of the cloth, sometimes it's a detriment, but it remains always there.

I got nothing. Everything I've tried to write for the last week or so has turned out to be nothing but suck. Major suck.

An old friend, it may seem strange that a dedicated skeptic like myself would number a career Navy Chaplin, among his friends, but I do. My friend, who we derisively called "Chaplin Charlie" even though his name was Jim, is very ill. He has been developing blood clots in his legs and it seems every time they do a procedure to repair the problem, things get worse. Jim was a good and decent man who found himself in a place that was in very short supply of goodness and decency. While we were talking during a visit I made last week he remembered what he says was the most significant encounter he and I had in Viet Nam. At the least most important encounter that didn't involve a poker game. That's where we spent most of our time together. We were at a point in an action with the enemy where ammunition and men fit for action were in short supply. I saw Jim, toting a rifle and wearing a helmet with his white cross insignia taking a place on the line with the rest of us. I went over to him and suggested that he would be more effective assisting the horribly overburdened medics. I told him that he was better in providing comfort and allowing us to inflict the damage. I had his rifle and I held it up and told him that in his hands the rifle was a good man making a noble gesture, but in my hands it was a list of enemy casualties. I said "You're a good man Commander, but kindness and decency aren't what we need here. Besides, the fastest reload is another weapon. Thanks." Then I went about my business and he went to go see the medics.

We probably would not have been able to withstand another assault for more than a few minutes. Luck, and a squad of Cobras turned the day. When the assaulting troops realized that the central command structure had recovered enough to begin supporting the outer bases they broke off and went back to ground like good guerrilla fighters always do. The next time I saw Jim he was at the helo pad helping to load off supplies and load in casualties, of which there were a great many. I went over to him and tried to salute to show my profound respect. We ended up hugging instead.

We've stayed in touch over the years. He and his wife retired to La Jolla and that made it very easy. I've never gotten religion, but I've been glad to have such a good man as my friend. I've played the harp when ever he's asked me for it. Two weddings of two daughters, and next week, the wedding of a granddaughter. He wanted to go over the song list for his funeral that last visit and I told him if he dies on me I'm picking the fucking songs and to expect stuff like "Louie, Louie."

The second guy on my mind is Larry, the Sergeant Major, now deployed in Afghanistan. I fear for him, for his family. When I hear John McCain talking about a hundred years of military presence I think of folks who wear the uniforms in the service of fools. A hundred years? Alexander had one of the greatest armies in history, and they were only able to sustain a continuous combat footing for ten years. McCain ain't no Alexander.

So, this Memorial Day, I don't intend to be all patriotic and shit. There won't be any public displays from me. I'm going to be thinking about my friends, probably call a couple of them and we'll try and convince each other that shit really meant something and that God's in his fucking heaven and all's right with the goddamned world.

We know better, but refuse to say it out loud.

BBB

Sophie B. Hawkins

2008-05-24T17:16:00.003-07:00

Damn, I wish I Was Your Lover.

This is the banned on MTV version.

Taken From My Porch Just Now

2008-05-24T12:44:00.004-07:00

Great Egret. These guys are elegant hunters. Fish, frogs, but also mice, lizards and other small game. They figure if it's smaller, slower, stupider than them, it's on the menu.

Fuck the stupid stuff Hillary just said. This is more interesting. I'm hosting several of my collegues from the college for a potluck get together to celebrate the end of the school term. I'm bringing the ice cream.

bbb

Friday Random Ten

2008-05-23T08:15:00.002-07:00

Here's the soundtrack for today:

Aye, Aye, Mama - - - Clifton Chenier
Rock Boogie Shout - - - Buckwheat Zydeco
Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover - - - Sophie B. Hawkins
When She Moves - - - The Bears (Rock)
Boogie Chillun' - - - John Lee Hooker (live, acoustic)
Page 43 - - - Graham Nash & David Crosby
Foggy, Foggy Dew - - - Tommy Makem (live bootleg, me on harp)
Pissin' In The Wind - - - Jerry Jeff Walker
Hazy Shade of Winter - - - The Bangles (this drummer rocks, that is all)
Cauce Corto, Aeroplano Pesado - - - Los Tigres Del Norte (Short Runway, Heavy Plane)

Bonus Track:
Super Flumina Babylonis - - - Palestrina (recorded in San Xavier Del Bac Mission by Linda Ronstadt, me on harp again)

That's my playlist for the morning. Gotta go do some rat killing in town. Dog to the groomer and other stuff. Abbie loves being clean, and she's shedding at a high rate, even for a German Shepherd right now, but she hates getting a bath. I hire that shit out because I don't have the heart.

In Da "House!"

2008-05-19T21:32:00.002-07:00

I was just kicking back, flipping through the TIVO'd finale of "House." Watching them go through the usual stuff. You know how House works. The Doctors earnestly in good faith fuck everything up until, at the last moment, in a flash of inspiration they get it right.

The right thing they got came in the 3rd act. 13, one of the doctors who works with House, is having an emotional meltdown moment. She takes refuge in the lady's room, sitting in a stall. Right over her left shoulder is a sticker that says "Vote For Change '08." Then they cut to her feet. House's sneaker comes under the stall divider and he says "Wide Stance."

That's beautiful and subversive stuff. During the conversation, taking place in a bathroom, where at least three republicans that I can think of off the top of my head met their downfalls. We are reminded which party has the bathroom lurkers. Everytime they cut to the gorgeous young actress playing 13, there it is, big as life and twice as lovely, "Vote For Change '08."

To top it off, they did this on Fox.

Sometimes I remember what it was that I loved about living and working in Hollywood.

They did this on Fox.

BBB

самиздат (Samizdat)

2008-05-19T07:46:00.004-07:00

I have just finished reading Torture Team: Rumsfeld's Memo and the Betrayal of American Values by Philippe Sands, an internationally acclaimed expert in International Law.

I was enraged. I was also heartbroken. Sands does an excellent job of making his case. He does so in excruciating lawerly detail. Part of the credibility he brings to this is that he was one of the lawyers who brought the case against Auguste Pinochet.

Step by step through the process of the degredation of principles of law and simple human decency he outlines the way American Law, the Law of Nations, and what the Apache and other native peoples would call Sacred Law, was first, weakened, then discarded entirely. He does so using the case of Detainee 063. He shows the escalation of tactics, from strictness, through bullying, and finally into plain and simple cruelty. All of which achieved nothing of any benefit to the stated goals of finding intelligence in the War on Terror.

He interviews the lawyers who drafted the memos, the cabinet officers who expanded them. He attacks the process that led us to this state of affairs.

He draws an undeniable parallel to a case at Nuremburg which was the basis for the film Judgement at Nuremburg. He goes so far as to conduct an interview with the son of one of the Nazi defendants. What made the case at Nuremburg applicable here is that the cited case was judges and lawyers who twisted legal arguments and made a case for the legality of the death camps, the slave labor system, and other Nazi war crimes. By providing the evil a cover of law, they helped to make it happen.

The name of what I'm about to do after reading this book was graciously provided by Jurassic Pork of "Welcome to Pottersville". Thanks JP!

Samizdat was the old system in the days of the iron curtain. Using typewriters with carbon paper, using duplicating and mimeograph machines, folks behid the curtain would copy works that were forbidden. They would also memorize entire books and recite them in underground salons.

What I will do next with this book is send my copy off to Melissa McEwan of Shakesville. I chose her because she is passionate and vocal in her quest for a better America. Hell, she had a brutal case of the flu and dragged her sick ass to the polls in order to vote in the last Indiana Primary. She was one of the main inspirations that got me to start my own blogging.

I am going to send her my copy of the book, with a short little inscription. She's going to read it, write about it, and pass it on to another. Just like the old Samizdat (literally: Self Publishing).

Unfortunately, the truth has become contraband in our country. That must change.

I'm looking forward to following this book's progress through Blogtopia. (Yes! Skippy coined that phrase!)

Big Brass Blog

Operation Rescue!

2008-05-18T14:04:00.008-07:00

Ha! Ha! Ha!

If you're here because you were searching for ways to fuck with women who want to exercise their still barely legal rights to health care without interference from assholes like you; or, if you're here because you want to destroy labs and other venues of science because you care about animals more than you care about people or the advance of knowledge,

Gotcha!

This isn't about cute bunnies being tortured in the lab. This isn't about being self righteous bullying assholes to young women facing a crisis in their life, this is about Chocolatissimo Nutella Bomb Ice Cream!

You're still an asshole, but who knows? Maybe if you ate more ice cream you'd be more tolerable to be around.

When I went to take the custard out of the refrigerator for its final freeze, I discovered that it had set up to a consistency that was too thick for freezing. This happens with frozen custards and is not a cause for panic or despair. It is easily remedied by adding a little more liquid, in this case, a bit more Frangelico and a bit more whole milk while it is all stirring in the stand mixer.

I don't have measurements to give you because I was working purely by eye and feel. The only way to develop that eye and that feel is to make lots of ice cream. Tough assignment to be sure, but, I'm certain you have the will and the courage to achieve it.

Put it all back into the freezer container and go through the steps in the freeze just as before. Layers of ice and of rock salt. As the ice melts keep adding more and laying on the salt with a will.

An important thing I just noticed is that you can see the mark of the fill level on the container. Note where that line is, and where the top of the ice cream is. That growth in volume during freezing is why it is important not to exceed the fill line before you freeze. That is all. Carry on.

Remove the container from the freezer unit, it's helpful to give it a quick wipe down so you don't chance contamination from rock salt or ice brine. Remove the dasher and scrape off the accumulated ice cream into the final container. Don't be all fussy about getting it all, this is one of the best times to stick the dasher into a big bowl and give every kid in the house a spoon.

I'm using the standard, green rectangular Ziplock® plastic containers to lay up ice cream for the parties of the weekend. There's always about a solid quart of overflow for my own enjoyment. In this case it's an old cottage cheese container.

Put it back into the freezer for two or three hours to firm up the consistency, and serve.

This is an intensely rich, silky smooth ice cream. Using the 72% cocoa mass bittersweet chocolate give it an amazing chocolate presence which subtly gives way to the more delicate flavors of the Nutella and Frangelico. Dark, dangerous, intriguingly complex. This stuff is absolutely incredible.

As I gave April her serving, I watched as she took her first taste of it. I watched her eyes widen with delight. I figured why waste the moment so I said "Tell me I'm a genius and you love me."

As soon as the shivers of ecstasy passed she blurted without hesitation, "You're a genius and I love you."

Hey, I takes 'em where I gets 'em. It's always nice to hear.

big brass blog

Chocolatissimo Nutella Bomb Ice Cream

2008-05-17T12:13:00.017-07:00

Originally, I intended to use the recipe, here. It's a fine recipe that includes a lot of basic techniques essential to the education of any cook.

Only thing was, that recipe is mainly a chocolate frozen custard with some nutella thrown in. I already have an incredible chocolate frozen custard recipe that I've done a bazillian (or is it brazillian?) times. Turning the one I already know backwards and forwards and have already made to great acclaim a bunch of times into a recipe that uses Nutella would not be hard at all.

Ingredients

4 cups whole milk
14 egg yolks (note the symmetry here with the angel food cake)
1/2 cup + 4 tbsp sugar
2 cups heavy cream
20 oz bittersweet chocolate, melted
1/2 cup Frangelico
1/2 cup Nutella

To melt the chocolate, break it into reasonable chunks in a microwave safe bowl
Microwave on high for 30 seconds. Stir. Repeat. Stir. Until the chocolate is around 2/3s melted. Then reduce the microwaving time to 10 seconds until the chocolate is smooth and glossy. Any little chunks still remaining will melt while you do the rest of it. If the chocolate looks like this:

You're cool.

In a stand mixer put the egg yolks and sugar together and mix well on a medium speed.

Scald the milk

Use a ladle to put the scalded milk a little at a time (this is called tempering the eggs, remember?) into the egg and sugar mixture while the mixer is running on low.

Add 1/2 cup of Frangelico

Mix well and transfer to a large saucepan over a medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. There's no substitute for the wooden spoon here. Don't even fucking try. Just use a wooden spoon.

Cook until the custard thickens and begins to coat the back of your wooden spoon.

Pour this back into the mixer's bowl through a strainer.

Use a spatula to gently force some of the curdles through. Gently.

With the mixer at a medium stirring speed, add in the melted chocolate,

the cream,

and the Nutella.

Mix at medium until smooth and glossy.

Transfer this to the freezer container for your ice cream freezer, use heavy cream, or milk, or a combination of the two to bring the level up to the full mark.

Chill for at least six hours before freezing.

This one looks totally fucking epic. I'm certain it is going to taste monsterously good when frozen.

Get your drool bibs ready for the pictures of the freezing I put up tomorrow, or late tonight. Make that late tonight. There's no way in the blue-eyed world I will be able to wait until tomorrow to get this done.

3Beez

Friday Random Ten

2008-05-16T08:46:00.002-07:00

I have ice cream on the brain. I found that recipe for chocolate nutella ice cream and have been obsessing about making it since.

The soundtrack for today features:

No Woman, No Cry - - - Sinead O'Connor (live bootleg from the Old Time Cafe me on the harp)
True To I Self - - - Ziggy Marley
The Wind That Shakes the Barley - - - Tommy Makem (live bootleg from O'Rourke's)
Lyric Pieces for Piano (7) Book 10 - - - Edvard Grieg
Rude Boy Ska - - - The Gladiators
Hard Headed Woman - - - Cat Stevens
Small Fry - - - Hoagy Carmicheal
You Came a Long Way From St. Louis - - - Peggy Lee (1962 Vegas Live performance, Da on bass)
Sugar Town - - - Nancy Sinatra
Bocetos: Coleccion de Obras Faciles - - - Enrique Granados

Bonus Track:

The Mary Ellen Carter - - - Stan Rogers

Expect ice cream, and pictures later on. What are ya'll listening too?

Angel Food Cake - With Pictures and Stuff

2008-05-15T21:33:00.030-07:00

Since the recipe I found for Chocolate Nutella Ice Cream calls for several egg yolks I figured I'd use the whites on an Angel Food cake. If Blogger continues to be well behaved I have gotten some positive and grateful feedback on the pictures with the steps stuff. So, here goes. Right out of Annie Peaches Begay's (Great Grandmother) legendary recipe box:

Measure and sift together three times

1 cup (measured sifted) cake flourand 7/8 cup sugar (3/4 cup + 2 teaspoons)

In a large mixing bowl (I'm using the bowl from my stand mixer here because of the deep sides and the handle on the side) take 14 egg whites
Notice that when I'm separating my eggs I have a small bowl in the middle to catch the whites. This is so, if a yolk should break,
it will not contaminate the other egg whites.The bowl with the one egg can go for scrambled eggs, or an omlette later, ordown for the dog, who cleans up the egg,then, the floor, and retires back to her duty station,to patiently await the next spill or minor mishap.

I always whip my egg whites for angel food cake by hand. I have Grammy Anna's trick tool, which was one of her prized tools that was passed on to me because she said I was the one who would put it to the best use. When an angel food cake, or a souflée is whipped by hand, even without any scientific explanation for it, I can tell the difference. If anybody out there can give me a scientific explanation for that I would love to hear it. Otherwise I will have to go to my grave wondering if I've been hallucinating this for all these years.

To the egg whites add 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon almond extract (you'll notice that I am using my measuring spoons here, on a recipe like this exact measurements are the rule) and have 3/4 cup sugar off to the side. Whip the egg white mixture until it is foamy and has grown in volume by half.Then whip it some more, adding in the sugar you reserved a couple tablespoons at a time, past the soft peak stage, which looks like this:until you reach stiff peaks.

Next gently fold in the flour and sugar you sifted at the beginning. Take care here, be gentle, you worked hard to get all those lovely little air bubbles into the egg whites, don't be ham handed and break them down.

Be Gentle. But also, be relentless. You need a good smooth batter here.
This gets turned into an Angel Food Cake pan. Draw a knife through the batter, give it a few sharp raps on a folded towel on the counter to release any big air pockets
Place the cake on the middle rack of a cold oven
Bake at 300° for an hour.Invert the cake on a bottle and cool upside down.

When completely cooled use a regular table knife to loosen the edges of the cake
Pop out the center section of the pan, loosen around the center postand the bottom of the pan. Invert the cake onto a cutting board,and dig the fuck in.

That's angel food cake. If you want a little bit of sublime, slather a slice of angel food cake with Nutella, slap another slice of cake on that to make a sandwich.

Decadent, sweet, delicious. Just how I like things. If politics continue to stay this stupid everywhere else but California where a Republican State Supreme Court decided that fully equal marriage is the only acceptable equality for our gay citizens, expect me to be in the kitchen a lot from now until November.

Ice Cream is on deck.

BBB

Why I Gave Up Golf

2008-05-15T09:40:00.001-07:00

My back hurt, oh, yeah, I also sucked.

Back pain is treatable, my persistent slice wasn't.

big brass blog

Peppermint Stick Ice Cream, Freezing and Serving

2008-05-13T22:46:00.005-07:00

Normally I prefer my old throwback hand crank ice cream freezer. Like with the Anglefood cake I have not a shred of evidence, scientific or otherwise to back my assertion of superior texture when things like this are done by hand. But, Goddammit, I can tell the difference. Today that didn't get to happen though. I've been dealing all day with air conditioning technicians and getting the final grades ready for the intermediate strings class. The best part is getting to tell most of them that they are more than ready to move on to private classes and up to the college's main orchestra. Anyway, with all the distractions of the day, oh yeah, I took my german shepherd to the groomer today too, I just went with the electric freezer.

You alternate layers of ice, with layers of rock salt. The objective here is a fast and smooth freeze. Check your ice and salt levels often. You want the ice coming all the way up the freezer container. When you can't crank anymore, and the kids are worn out too is the signal for a hand crank. With the electric just listen for that annoying motor sound to stop.

Remove the container from the freezer, take out the dasher (which is a great job for a couple of kids with long spoons). At this point you can also mix in things like tiny chips of peppermint candy, or chocolate chips. I have fun using the stuff that gets left over when I trim the chocolate truffles. Mostly though, for an ice cream this superb, I go with no embellishments. I usually transfer it into plastic, freezer safe containers of about a half gallon size. This recipe made three containers like this:
which go into the freezer for at least two hours to really set the ice cream.

To serve, you can top with chocolate syrup, nuts, whipped cream or:nuthin' at all.

Just exquisite, rich, silky smooth, delicately flavored ice cream.

Bon appetite. I am building up a stock of ice creams in the freezer for a couple of parties on the horizon. Expect Ginger Ice Cream to come soon.

This is way more impressive than Hillary's winning the redneck vote.

BBB

Peppermint Stick Ice Cream, With Pictures and variations

2008-05-13T13:00:00.013-07:00

I'm watching the news from West Virginia and thinking to myself Wow, Hillary Clinton has the racist, hillbilly, cousin marrying, mouth breathing, ignorant, redneck, motherfucker's vote sewed right up. Keep playing to your benighted southern cracker ass base of voters Hills. Why not go all the fucking way and name Huckabee or Trent Fucking Lott as your VP? Out west, I'm making ice cream. That's how much West Goddamned Virgina and Kentucky matter to me. Once a year when they wear silly hats, sing Stephen Foster songs and try to kill a few more young horses is the amount of time I'll spend on Kentucky.

For Peppermint Stick Ice Cream I use Great Grandmother Anna's recipe, although I'm trying some variations for this batch.

We first beat up a pound of peppermint candies. Notice the folded towels underneath the cutting board, this makes the noise of hammering the candy a bit muted. Napping critters will appreciate this little touch.

Melt the candy chunks in 2 cups 1/2 and 1/2 over a high flame, stirring constantly.

Turn off the heat and go to the stand mixer. Beat 4 large eggs until smooth and lemon yellow.

Add in 3/4 cup sugar (I'm using raw sugar that has been sitting with vanilla bean husks), and three tablespoons cake flour.

Yes, I have a fine set of measuring spoons. Sometimes I even use them. I've won money in kitchens by measuring out teaspoons, 1/2 teaspoons, and tablespoons into my cupped hand and then using the measure to prove that I had it right.

Instead of 3/4 cup Karo® syrup, I'm using a vanilla coffee syrup. It's about the same consistency, and I figure that the added flavoring will be better than just overpowering sweetness.

Instead of a can of Eagle Brand, sweetened condensed milk I'm going with a cup and a half of heavy cream.

This is all mixed until smooth. It will be a lovely pink color, although if you want a little more throw in some liquid red, or powdered food coloring.

This goes into the container for your ice cream freezer, use equal amounts heavy cream and 1/2&1/2 to bring the volume up to the full line on your container; and, with the dasher in place and capped, refrigerate until chilled and ready to freeze.

The freezing process post will happen after Hillary Clinton wins a landslide victory in West Fuckyercuzzin Virginia and I still won't fucking care who those idiot bastards want for President.

big brass Blog

Friday Random Ten (on the road edition)

2008-05-09T07:53:00.002-07:00

Heading over to San Diego today. Visiting Po the tailor and taking the four students from intermediate strings. They've been given a blank check by a local businessman/farmer to get themselves really decked out in full Mariachi splendor.

Po is just the woman to do that. Then it's on to grab a bowl of the best Pho in the Barrio (Logan).

Here's the soundtrack:

Ballerina - - - Van Morrison
The Man With the Golden Gun - - - Lulu
Mercury - - - Steve Miller (live bootleg, me on snotty slide guitar)
Small Fry - - - Hoagie Charmichael
Viper Drag - - - Fats Waller
La Dona Mobile - - - Pavarotti
Friend of Jesus - - - John Stewart
Illegal Smile - - - John Prine
Guitar Town - - - Steve Earle
Duppy Conqueror - - - Peter Tosh

Bonus - - - Next song up

Watered Down Love - - - Bob Dylan

Toodles Ya'll!

Serving the Soup

2008-05-05T22:13:00.003-07:00

The mystery of who dropped off the onions is solved. An old friend who is a farmer here has a beautiful little five year old girl. She is entranced by my harps and is always agitating to get some time to try and play them. He left the onions as a thank you. He also told me about another reason the only market for them is local. Because of the high sugar content they do not store well. You can't just get a bag of them and stick them in cold storage to wait for your sales.

We get to keep all these beauties ourselves.

To serve you take a thick crockery bowl. It has to be a bowl that will survive being under the broiler. Fill the bowls 3/4 full with hot soup, lay your croutons over the top, then lay on a layer of grated cheese. I use about a half and half mixture of grated swiss, I love the nutty flavor and the texture, mixed with an equal amount of freshly grated Parmesian Reggiano.

This goes under the broiler until it looks like this:

Exquisite.

A couple of hints. If your croutons are extremely dry they will soak up all the delicious broth. No problem, if you see that this has happened when you remove the bowls from the broiler just lay another ladle of soup over the top. Don't forget to warn your guests about the very hot bowls. A thoughtful host will always include a sharp knife to cut through the croutons if the spoon can't get through the crusts, and also for trimming the strings of cheese from the spoon.

Our performance was the hit of the night. More about that later. Right now, soup's on and stuff.

BBB

Potage d'Oignon Gratinée

2008-05-05T16:42:00.015-07:00

When I got home from doing some shopping for supplies to make Peppermint Stick Ice Cream for the Cinco de Mayo celebration tonight, I came home to find this.

Friends and lovers of food porn, that is a box of Imperial Valley Sweets. These rare, because they don't ship well at all, gems of the farmer's art are simply the finest sweet onions in the world. You can have your Vidalias, they're good, hell, they're very good, but, one has to put up with folks from Georgia to get them. Fuck that sez I. The Walla Wallas have their own cult and their own press agents. They're good too. Mauis are wonderful.

These are better. They are more versatile. They do everything onions are supposed to do and more. These are also incredibly good for eating out of hand. Or, one of my favorites, a thick slice of onion between two slices of buttered and salt and peppered bread for an onion sandwich. Another great way for these is to put a pat of butter on top of a whole peeled onion, cover with plastic and microwave three to four minutes until the onion is hot and tender, sprinkle with Pico de Gallo or Tapatio and dig in.

Since my jaw is still hurting I will go with the classic Potage d'Oignion Gratinée. Or to the unwashed and monolingual, French Onion Soup. There are several cults involved with this classic dish. I chose the one that doesn't involve small animal sacrifice.

First, you need to cut your croutons. Simply slice up a loaf of French Bread into about half inch disks. The next choice is air dry or toast? To toast the croutons brush them liberally with olive oil and bake until they are dry and crunchy but not toasted brown. To air dry simple expose them to air. I prefer the sturdier texture of the air dry. I just so happened to have these babies up on top of the fridge.

Now, it's time for the onions. These sweets are what I'm using, but any good yellow or brown onion will be just fine. The onions need to be peeled, sliced and ringed.

Do enough to fill your stockpot nearly to the top.

I used eight onions for the start. These go into the stockpot, then drizzled with olive oil (you don't need any lahdeedah EVOO, use good old pedestrian olive oil here) and cooked on a high flame, covered, until they begin to soften and wilt. Stir occaisionally. What we are wanting is for carmelization to occur. Cook these babies down.

To this:

Add in half again as many onions as you used in the first cooking, sliced and ringed as before and cook them covered until they are tender and clear. This is called staging an ingredient, this is so that there will be two levels of onion flavor and texture in the finished soup. It makes a huge difference. Remember that box of onions? Now it looks like this:

Drain the onion slices of most of the olive oil. Deglaze the pot with a quarter inch of dry sherry. Add the onions back in. Salt and pepper. Pour in equal parts beef and chicken broth. Simmer, uncovered, until volume is reduced by a full third.

Voila!

You can add in a coloring or sauce strengthener like Kitchen Bouquet® if you so desire, but, if you were patient enough with carmelizing your onions it should not be something you need to do. If you want a deep brown broth in your finished soup, by all means, go right the fuck ahead.

The assembly and serving process will follow tonight when I do it after our Cinco de Mayo fiesta. My four Mariachas from Intermediate Strings class have been invited to play tonight. They are very excited and very honored. They have invited me to sit in with them on the harp. We are going to play "La Mujera de los Dos Pistoles" which is a famous corrida from this revolution. There was a celebrated Puta (whore) near Vera Cruz who when she saw a train carrying food, armaments and 2,000 French soldiers took a group of her girls down to the train at a coal and water stop. They did their business, collected their money, but La Mujera drugged the wine she was plying the train crew with and while they were passed out she drove the train 200 miles past its intended stop. She drove it, and the French soldiers, their horses, their food and all their equipment straight into the arms of Benito Juarez. He asked her how she learned to drive a locomotive. She said "In bed." She was famous throughout the next years of revolution for her brace of revolvers, her quick use of them when anybody referred to her previous occupation or disparaged the contribution of women to the cause, and her elegant and beautiful Palomino stallion which was a gift from a grateful Juarez. It's a great song and we will kick revolutionary ass with it tonight.

BBB

Taken From My Porch Five Minutes Ago

2008-05-03T09:35:00.002-07:00

Great. Blue. Heron.

The wingspan on this guy has got to be six feet, easy. Stuff like this is what makes it easy for me to stay in my "fuck politics" mindset.

BBB

Friday Random Ten

2008-05-02T09:09:00.003-07:00

Here's the morning soundtrack. Lazy lazy day planned. Just got a new book in The Plague of Doves by Louise Erdich. Pretty much going to consume the day until opening night of my sister's high school production of "Arsenic and Old Lace."

Hitting random and taking the top ten gave me this:

Sugar Mountain - - - Neil Young
Stay a Little Longer - - - Merle Haggard
I'll Remember You Love, In My Prayers - - - Allison Krause
If He's Ever Near - - - Karla Bonoff
String Quartet #4 - - - Beethoven
Stag O'Lee - - - Mississippi John Hurt
Sugar, Sugar - - - The Archies
Willie The Pimp - - - Zappa
Blackbird - - - Crosby, Stills, Nash, Young, Merril, Lynch, Fenner & Pierce
Master of Disaster - - - John Hiatt

Bonus (what's playing right now)

Son of a Preacher Man - - - Linda Ronstadt (live bootleg me on guitar)

April's Fool

2008-04-29T20:13:00.002-07:00

With my being taken down a peg or two while recovering from my dental surgery I have truly begun to admire and appreciate the patience and love that I have been getting from April.

She's been here every spare minute. Often just being here to be around in case I might need something. She's a stalwart lass. Constant mouth pain does not bring out the best in me. Or anyone that I know. She's just here being her kind and considerate self.

When my aunt and uncle threw their big anniversary party, April, at first was declining to attend. She didn't want her presence to distract or in any way cast a shadow on the festivities. She's always pretty spooked that the whispers and sniggering will start about her work.

I told her that this was nonsense. My family likes me better when she's around. My mother adores her and she's a hero to my kids. My mother called her to see if she could talk her into coming, then my cousins, then my uncle. It was my aunt's call that tipped the balance. When the wife gave her a personal invitation she figured it was going to be alright.

Her kindess and thoughtfulness is something I truly appreciate. It took a lot for me to finally talk her into coming on the road with me for a short mini-tour last summer. She consented and became close friends with the singer/songwriter lady I was working for, and the singer's daughter and grandchildren.

Along with her sweet nature is the fact that she's absolutely gorgeous. It's not one of these things that requires a lot of work on her part. Nature's gifts alone make her stunning. I have seen her in cut-offs and flip flops, no make up or any kind of primping literally stop traffic on Palm Canyon Drive in downtown Palm Springs while she's trying to duck into a Starbucks for a coffee and newspaper. Beyond looks, it's an attitude thing. She exudes sensuality.

Since tonight is the last night of Poetry Month I will conclude with a poem I wrote for her.

listen, last night, i dreamed
i dreamed you left me by sea

aboard a ship of silver you sailed away from me
i sailed also
turning my hands i made sails and put out to sea after you

oceans i traveled while calling your name
scanning endless horizons looking for a hint or a sign
of you to lead me to the only place i wanted to be

there was a storm on my dreamsea with waves
and slashing winds and rain
i saw your ship in the distance and fought
the tides and the winds to reach you
i reached out my hand
took yours into mine
together we sailed home

then, i awakened and reached out for you
touched your skin and breathed your scent
i slept content

lady, i dreamed again
i dreamed that you left me by air
you were aboard a golden winged plane
and you flew away from me
i flew also turning my hands to the task
i made wings and took to the air to search for you
mountains, rivers, deserts and plains were beneath me
as i flew past all points of the compass
searching and calling your name

over snow and water and forests i flew
until at last i saw you standing on a distant meadow
high and far away
i reached out to take your hand in mine
and together we flew homeward
i awakened again and reached for you

you weren't there my love
and i started in panic
up and out of the bed
down the hall
room by room
looking for you all over the house

i found you in the kitchen
making tea and reading a book
i ran to take you into my arms
murmuring over and over
"thank god you're here. thank god you're here."
you were startled and uneasy
i was, after all, acting like a maniac

i tried to explain but all that came out was lame

i guess love gives you good dreams.

BBB

VoteVets Strikes Again

2008-04-29T07:34:00.002-07:00

The organization VoteVets has a campaign going on right now to try and stop the McCain version of the GI Bill while promoting the bipartisan bill being pushed by Jim Webb (D-VA) and Chuck Hagel (Depraved Cocksuckers, NE).

President Bush has vowed to veto the bill anyway. He says that the lure of a full college education would create "retention problems" greater than the retention problems already created by fighting two senseless wars half a world away.

The email sent by VoteVets contains a link to a tool that allows you to write to the editor of your local paper.

Follow This Link to Write to Your Local Paper.

It's the least we can do for these kids. Anytime you ask them about why they chose the military, the first or second reason given is "money for college." Let's deliver on that promise.

It's truly, the very least we can do.

BBB

Surviving a Liquid Diet

2008-04-26T11:09:00.002-07:00

The brutal part of my dental surgery was that they had to do some cutting into the jawbone. It's the moral equivalent of broken right now. That means even soft foods aren't in the cards for a while. What then would a dedicated epicure do?

Answer: Home made yoghurt.

You might have guessed a couple of things about me. One of which should have been that I am a total homebody. Working mostly out of the house has really spoiled me. That and being essentially a misanthrope. I don't go out much because I prefer my own company and the company of my critters. I'm into a lot of home made stuff, my bread, soft cheeses, yoghurt and such. It's much better food than what you buy.

I got into Yoghurt making a long time ago. I was on this whole "gotta cut down on sugar" kick. It would have been a lot healthier if I had quit shooting dope, but hey, first things first you know? Anyway, I am acting like a sugar cop in the store and I get a carton of plain yoghurt. When I read the label I notice that it had high fructose corn syrup in it. I'm trying to cut down on sugar and these bastards are plotting to pour karo syrup down my throat. I figure enough's enough so I start doing a little research about it.

The first thing you need is a half gallon of milk. Some people prefer skim milk, and that's fine with me. I use skim milk from time to time, but most of the time I just use what ever is in the fridge. Put this on the stove over a high medium heat. To the milk add a can of evaporated milk and 2 cups of nonfat dry milk. This increases the milk solids that are present and will improve the consistency of your end product. Heat until a covering of small bubbles is present and it is almost boiling. If it does boil it's no big deal, it just makes a horrid mess is all. The main thing you want is for the temperature to reach at least 180° for a minimum of two minutes. This kills any other bacteria that might be present and readies the milk for the introduction of the bacteria we want. Let the milk cool down to a little above body temperature (warm, not hot) and add the yoghurt starter. There might be a skin formed on top of the milk. In Poland this is called a ploika and is eaten on hunks of bread. Mine go to the dogs, if they don't get their issue they might not let me move away from the stove. For a half gallon batch, half of a small carton of plain yoghurt (and don't forget to read the label in case the syrup spies have been active in your neighborhood). The best way is to scoop some of the boiled milk over the yoghurt culture in a 2 cup measure and mix it until smooth. Stir it into the rest of the boiled milk and then transfer to a clean, airtight jar. (I like the Kerr small canning jars, single serving size) If you don't have a yoghurt maker (I love my Danvier) you can use a rack style dehydrator, or barring all of that put the stove on warm (you're going for an average temp of not less than 110° yet not more than 120° I found that the "warm" setting on the oven dial with the door slightly cracked worked just fine. If you are using the oven method you will want your jars in a bain marie which is a fancy ass french way of saying put the jars in a 12" by 8" baking pan and the add water around them. This will ensure that the yoghurt sets up evenly in your containers.

Leaving it alone for about eight hours should do the trick, but the longer you leave it in the heat the tighter your yoghurt will be. If you pick up one of your jars and it looks and feels solid in the jar, you're done.

There are some variations. In India they will take the finished yoghurt and strain out much of the liquid through a cheesecloth. It makes a cheesier, denser yoghurt. There are a lot of things to do with it from here. I substitute it for around half of the mayonaisse when making tuna or potato salads. There are lots of Turkish, Lebanese and Indian dishes that use yoghurt.

Since this isn't pasturized again there will be live culture stuff present and you'll want to make new yoghurt after two weeks in the refridgerator. Give this one a try and you'll end up hating the stuff they pawn off on you at the store as much as I do.

This was from a couple years back. I figure more people than just Konagod are reading the blog now so this might even be news to some of you.

I went through a "golden age" of yoghurt making back when I was still in Arizona. The next door neighbor had goats, the goats had milk. More milk than he could use, so he started giving me goat's milk and I started giving back yoghurt. That stuff was the bomb. Now, I'm back to out of the carton cow milk from the store. I'm casting around for some 4H kids who keep dairy cows to see if we can start trading again. I loves me some country trading.

3B's

Friday Random Ten (Fifteen Years Clean And Sober Edition)

2008-04-25T09:27:00.002-07:00

I spent my anniverary of sobriety mostly on the couch. I was watching the Kenneth Branagh version of "Hamlet" which is a lush, huge, and beautiful production. He does the entire play, without cutting scenes for the sake of time. So far, Jack Lemmon and Charlton Heston have popped up in little roles of no importance. Both of them have proven the old show business cliche of There are no small parts, only small actors. Watching Lemmon work in the role of Marcellus, and Heston as The Leading Player is watching two absolute masters take something small and turn it into something huge. Very well done.

I went to a meeting yesterday. I had to go, it was my fifteen year sobriety anniversary. I did my usual traditions, I bought a Big Book for the newest newcomer in the room, I gave a dollar a year into the collection plate, I turned in the chip I've been carrying for a year so that somebody else can use it. I had a friend explain to folks why I wasn't talking much. Then, I went home.

Sobriety has been the single best decision I've made in my life. All the other good decisions, like knuckling down to be the best single parent I could manage, or any other good thing in my life right now has sprung directly from my decision to quit doing drugs and stop drinking.

So, let's get on to the soundtrack for the morning.

No Seas Tonta Mujer - - - Flaco Jimenez
The Crave - - - Jelly Roll Morton
If I Should Fall From Grace With God - - - The Pogues
I Ain't Always Been Faithful - - - Linda Ronstadt (live bootleg me on guitar)
Childish Things - - - James McMurtry
Amsterdam - - - Jacques Brel
Sweet Georgia Brown - - - Django
Sweet Lorraine - - - Patty Griffen (me on the martin)
Our Love is Here To Stay - - - Peggy Lee
Nightrider's Lament - - - Jerry Jeff Walker

Bonus Track:

Mercy, Mercy, Mercy - - - Smokey Robinson

normally i don't crosspost random tens but this time i'll make an exception

Apology for Light Blogging Period

2008-04-23T17:26:00.002-07:00

Tuesday, I had some very major dental surgery. It was, like most dental procedures, brutal and bloody. My dentist is a compassionate man who is very good at what he does. He also knows about and respects the fact that I have 15 years clean and sober. Sometimes he respects that a little too much. He sent me home with a prescription for Motrin for the pain. Motrin didn't cut it last night. Today, since in many ways, I live in a place with a small town attitude and ethic, the dentist came over to my house and brought a new supply of pain medication.

Being in recovery, and dealing with pain medication is a whole delicate subject. After all, my body doesn't distinguish a bit between pain medication I take for legitimate conditions, and the stuff I used to do for recreation. The body doesn't know or care.

Here are some of the things I do to make sure that I keep my sobriety when I'm dealing with pain issues.

First and foremost, every physician is totally aware that they are not only dealing with somebody in recovery, they know that my main abuse was with heroin.

I also make sure that my condition is absolutely and completely legitimate. There isn't any of this "it hurts around my C4 doc. . ." bullshit. Nope, the pain that I am in right now is real. The only reason I jumped up to the major analgesics was on account of I also know that untreated severe pain can easily become more dangerous to my sobriety than the pain meds.

Here's the other thing I know. There are times when I can be following every single rule, dotting every "i" and crossing every "t" and, even though I am truly remaining as somebody clean and sober in recovery, I am under the influence of narcotics right now.

I can go to an AA meeting, and I will be going to one tomorrow. Thing is, because I will be under the influence of narcotics, I will shut the fuck up. I'll still be clean and sober, but I will, out of respect to the program that showed me how to establish this beautiful life, remain silent.

It should also apply to most blogging. Any thoughts or profound observations will easily wait until I am not swallowing opiates.

Until then, I have a stack of netflix, the basketball playoffs, and a nice collection of "mas tardes" pills. I call them that because I don't believe that there is any such thing as a pain killer. These are pain postponers. Sooner, or later, I'm going to feel all of this shit.

3B's

A Letter From Michael Moore

2008-04-21T07:13:00.003-07:00

I received this in my in-box this morning. Thought you might enjoy hearing from Michael Moore.

My Vote's for Obama (if I could vote) ...by Michael Moore

April 21st, 2008

Friends,

I don't get to vote for President this primary season. I live in Michigan. The party leaders (both here and in D.C.) couldn't get their act together, and thus our votes will not be counted.

So, if you live in Pennsylvania, can you do me a favor? Will you please cast my vote -- and yours -- on Tuesday for Senator Barack Obama?

I haven't spoken publicly 'til now as to who I would vote for, primarily for two reasons: 1) Who cares?; and 2) I (and most people I know) don't give a rat's ass whose name is on the ballot in November, as long as there's a picture of JFK and FDR riding a donkey at the top of the ballot, and the word "Democratic" next to the candidate's name.

Seriously, I know so many people who don't care if the name under the Big "D" is Dancer, Prancer, Clinton or Blitzen. It can be Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Barry Obama or the Dalai Lama.

Well, that sounded good last year, but over the past two months, the actions and words of Hillary Clinton have gone from being merely disappointing to downright disgusting. I guess the debate last week was the final straw. I've watched Senator Clinton and her husband play this game of appealing to the worst side of white people, but last Wednesday, when she hurled the name "Farrakhan" out of nowhere, well that's when the silly season came to an early end for me. She said the "F" word to scare white people, pure and simple. Of course, Obama has no connection to Farrakhan. But, according to Senator Clinton, Obama's pastor does -- AND the "church bulletin" once included a Los Angeles Times op-ed from some guy with Hamas! No, not the church bulletin!

This sleazy attempt to smear Obama was brilliantly explained the following night by Stephen Colbert. He pointed out that if Obama is supported by Ted Kennedy, who is Catholic, and the Catholic Church is led by a Pope who was in the Hitler Youth, that can mean only one thing: OBAMA LOVES HITLER!

Yes, Senator Clinton, that's how you sounded. Like you were nuts. Like you were a bigot stoking the fires of stupidity. How sad that I would ever have to write those words about you. You have devoted your life to good causes and good deeds. And now to throw it all away for an office you can't win unless you smear the black man so much that the superdelegates cry "Uncle (Tom)" and give it all to you.

But that can't happen. You cast your die when you voted to start this bloody war. When you did that you were like Moses who lost it for a moment and, because of that, was prohibited from entering the Promised Land.

How sad for a country that wanted to see the first woman elected to the White House. That day will come -- but it won't be you. We'll have to wait for the current Democratic governor of Kansas to run in 2016 (you read it here first!).

There are those who say Obama isn't ready, or he's voted wrong on this or that. But that's looking at the trees and not the forest. What we are witnessing is not just a candidate but a profound, massive public movement for change. My endorsement is more for Obama The Movement than it is for Obama the candidate.

That is not to take anything away from this exceptional man. But what's going on is bigger than him at this point, and that's a good thing for the country. Because, when he wins in November, that Obama Movement is going to have to stay alert and active. Corporate America is not going to give up their hold on our government just because we say so. President Obama is going to need a nation of millions to stand behind him.

I know some of you will say, 'Mike, what have the Democrats done to deserve our vote?' That's a damn good question. In November of '06, the country loudly sent a message that we wanted the war to end. Yet the Democrats have done nothing. So why should we be so eager to line up happily behind them?

I'll tell you why. Because I can't stand one more friggin' minute of this administration and the permanent, irreversible damage it has done to our people and to this world. I'm almost at the point where I don't care if the Democrats don't have a backbone or a kneebone or a thought in their dizzy little heads. Just as long as their name ain't "Bush" and the word "Republican" is not beside theirs on the ballot, then that's good enough for me.

I, like the majority of Americans, have been pummeled senseless for 8 long years. That's why I will join millions of citizens and stagger into the voting booth come November, like a boxer in the 12th round, all bloodied and bruised with one eye swollen shut, looking for the only thing that matters -- that big "D" on the ballot.

Don't get me wrong. I lost my rose-colored glasses a long time ago.

It's foolish to see the Democrats as anything but a nicer version of a party that exists to do the bidding of the corporate elite in this country. Any endorsement of a Democrat must be done with this acknowledgement and a hope that one day we will have a party that'll represent the people first, and laws that allow that party an equal voice.

Finally, I want to say a word about the basic decency I have seen in Mr. Obama. Mrs. Clinton continues to throw the Rev. Wright up in his face as part of her mission to keep stoking the fears of White America. Every time she does this I shout at the TV, "Say it, Obama! Say that when she and her husband were having marital difficulties regarding Monica Lewinsky, who did she and Bill bring to the White House for 'spiritual counseling?' THE REVEREND JEREMIAH WRIGHT!"

But no, Obama won't throw that at her. It wouldn't be right. It wouldn't be decent. She's been through enough hurt. And so he remains silent and takes the mud she throws in his face.

That's why the crowds who come to see him are so large. That's why he'll take us down a more decent path. That's why I would vote for him if Michigan were allowed to have an election.

But the question I keep hearing is... 'can he win? Can he win in November?' In the distance we hear the siren of the death train called the Straight Talk Express. We know it's possible to hear the words "President McCain" on January 20th. We know there are still many Americans who will never vote for a black man. Hillary knows it, too. She's counting on it.

Pennsylvania, the state that gave birth to this great country, has a chance to set things right. It has not had a moment to shine like this since 1787 when our Constitution was written there. In that Constitution, they wrote that a black man or woman was only "three fifths" human. On Tuesday, the good people of Pennsylvania have a chance for redemption.

Yours,
Michael Moore
MichaelMoore.com
email: MMFlint@aol.com

Cool thing. If you email Mr. Moore, there is a strong chance that he will answer personally.

3B's

Lemonade

2008-04-20T20:30:00.004-07:00

This is the old fashioned country way to make lemonade. At first your kids might not like it and insist on your giving them the old tried and true snotty green stuff that comes in a powder. I suggest that before you introduce this marvelous beverage that you simply empty the shelves. Force them to drink a glass. It helps if you make them very thirsty first. I recommend having them do barn chores, or work in the truck patch on a hot saturday morning.

Halve and squeeze enough lemons to make 1 cup of juice. Put the juice and the lemon halves in a large non-reactive pot.

Add 3 cups water and 2 cups sugar. I used raw sugar that had been in a jar with vanilla pods for a long time, but, use any old kind of sugar.

Bring the water, sugar, lemon juice and lemon halves to a rolling boil while stirring constantly. When you're done, it will look like this:

The boiling will release a great deal of pulp, more juice than even the best squeezer can bring out, and the volatile oils from the peel. This is the step that sets this lemonade apart from all others.

It's also the step that gets discarded when they begin to make lemonade on an industrial and commercial level.

Allow the lemon halves to steep in the resulting syrup while it cools to room temperature.

Once cooled, take the lemon halves out of the syrup and squeeze them again into your pitcher. Use a tea strainer to fish out any seeds, while returning the pulp to the syrup. Pour into a pitcher and cut with more water to your taste. Chill.

Serve in tall glasses with plenty of ice and a slice of fresh lemon for garnish.

After they've consumed an entire pitcher of this nectar your kids will start looking at you with hurt expressions if you ever serve that powdered crap again. Even better, they will start bringing their friends over if they are given a glass of the other stuff while visiting.

Keep a steady supply of this in the fridge during the summer and they'll write songs about you.

Mine did.

3B's

According to John McCain

2008-04-20T07:41:00.001-07:00

and the good folks at CNN and ABC and Fox all insurgents and folks in the resistance to the American occupation are now all to be identified with the term

Al-Qaeda.

Not, even Al-Qaeda in Mesopotamia (who, by the way, weren't even there before Bush invaded)

Just. Al-Qaeda.

Fine with me. From now on I will lump all republicans together with my own label.

From now on, whenever I use the term Depraved Cocksuckers, I'm talking about Republicans.

Good for the goose and all that shit.

BBB

Friday Random Ten

2008-04-18T09:30:00.002-07:00

I just finished a call from my new niece. I'm supposed to call my sister at the prison she works in. The funny part of the call was when, before she gave me the last four digits of the phone number she told me "It's extinction ####,"

I'm hoping the news I get from her is that she has been offered a job at the local prison down here.

Sountrack for the morning has been:

Country Fried Blues - - - Taj Mahal
Wear Sumthin Green - - - Jimmy Reed
Baby, It's You - - - John Stewart
Summerwind - - - Bobby Darin
A Hundred Thousand Angels - - - Sinead O'Connor (live bootleg)
M'Appari - - - Bellini - From "Norma"
Mistral Gagnan - - - Lara
Forty Miles of Bad Road - - - Delbert McClinton (live bootleg from "The Boarding House" in San Francisco, me on snotty ass bottleneck guitar)
Le Maintenant - - - Jacques Brel

Bonus Track: I've been having a good mix this morning. My favorite side has been:

John Law Burned Down the Liquor Store - - - Chris Thomas Clark (live bootleg, me on snotty bottleneck again)

What's on your soundtrack today?

Contest Winner!

2008-04-16T11:13:00.005-07:00

Jesse "Doc" Wendell! He wrote this comment when he thought I was being dismissive about his skill set.

You're confusing road bikes with off-road. Off-road rides ANYWHERE. Including up and down the sides of mountains.

The Wright Brothers built bicycles. If you think roads are going away, even after an oil blowoff, you're mistaken. Horses... they'll be around. Trails. All these call for bicycles, the single most efficient means of transportation ever invented. Even people who can't afford a horse, can afford a trail bike.

The WHEEL has been around forever, and there are plenty of wheels which don't require -- at all -- a rubber inner tube. There is enough other rubber in the world that in my lifetime, I'm not at all worried about running out of tires for bicycles, even if it is re-purposed use.

Again, what is going to matter isn't road bicycles, the kind the Tour de France rides on, but off-road bikes. With shock absorbers, that can go anywhere. Or the bicycles which are just for putting around, go down to the market and back, haul a load behind you back to the house. EVERYONE will have a bicycle. We are rapidly getting all of the tools to repair them right here in my home. Chelsea (daughter #2) works (when she's not in college) at the leading bicycle shop in our town) and is getting better and better at bike repair all the time. Not to mention all the various bikes I personally own.

As for being a medic, when was the last time you had someone put in a chest tube on the fly when your lung was collapsing? Made out of improvised parts? I can chest tube you or someone you love, using ordinary household goods including a glass bottle (just like those found in caning though bigger is better) successfully put in a chest tube when your lung decides to collapse due to your pulmonary edema from having smoked your whole life. I can also successfully do most minor surgery, for example, open your airway with a knife and a ballpoint pen casing. I lost count years ago of how many (100s of) c-sections I've watched, scrubbed in or passed instruments for. I'm not going to open the cranial cavity (short of drilling bore holes with a neurosurgeon talking me through it) or chest cavity, although I won't hesitate to stick a needle in your heart or do a pericardial centesis (sticking a big-ass needle in) to relieve a tamponade (a heart which is leaking into the sac around the heart.)

You should think of me as the hands and eyes of a full-blown emergency physician, who just is not likely to settle down in your town. That isn't how things are going to shake out in terms of their practice after this oil outage. But I will end up in your town. It's towns like yours which will need medics. And I can do much of the day-to-day'ness of what she (the emergency doc) can do, right now, and will learn the rest, fast. Because medics are going to be your doctors.

In the absence of oil, expect the standards of practice for medics and nurses practicing alone to change massively; we'll be allowed to radically increase our scope of practice. With a video camera and high-speed internet over my shoulder, I can hold the scalpel for a surgeon at the ivory tower medical center, whose job it now is to supervise 30 medics in the field who are performing surgeries and day-to-day primary clinical care. This is the kind of restructuring of standards-of-practice one would expect to see VERY fast in the absence of oil. It isn't that in this new community you're building I might fill in for a doc; it's that I would BE your doc, working remotely under telephone/video conferencing/supervision.

*smiles* Chemists are important. We all need medicines. But you have to be alive to use them. Worst case, you can trade for drugs with a neighboring town. When you need someone to put in a chest tube, you need them to come right fracking now. I am that NOW. And I have my own bicycle and up-to-date medical and surgical kit. *laughs*

Finally, people talk to me. With my walking stick, I am the picture of the old family doc. If we really do go back to this small-town no-oil world, what makes the difference is the internet and being connected to the outside. It won't be the dark ages. We'll have enlightened practice standards. But it will be folks like myself, and clinical nurses doing the actual surgeries and day-to-day work, under the guidance of docs in the main med centers in the metropolitan areas. Those docs -- just like Judges used to do -- will "ride circuit", once every three months, and see the worse cases, the ones which are too tricky for us to touch. But day-to-day, we're going to do all of the medical care, appendectomies, ob/gyn, routine bowel work, asthma/copd, hearts not requiring open heart work, heads not requiring surgery (bore holes okay in a pinch), and so on. We'll have say, two ICU beds locally, maybe three, one surgery and a recovery room. The autoclave for our surgical instruments if nothing else, can be fired with wood/steam.

This will work just fine. The small town will get better medical care than many people in the U.S. get now, because they'll have someone ready-to-hand who follows them from birth, who knows them all, and for whom preventative care is a must.

This is what I'm bringing to the table.

I graduated second in my class from the #1 ranked paramedic program in the United States. You can always trade for drugs. You want your doc living and working right there in town, available 24/7. Plus, um, with my own bicycle, in repair, ready to go. Heh.

*smiles*

There may be lots of rubber, but what about glues? Internet? Surely you jest. It's not because I think he's right about what skills he would be bringing. We still disagree on that. What tipped it in Jesse's favor was that he stood up for himself. That he has a sense of what he is worth, and the worth and abilities of his family. That's the spirit that will bring us through.

Here are some thoughts on courage:

The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding, go out to meet it.
Thucydides

Courage is doing what you are afraid to do. There can be no courage unless you're scared.

Eddie Rickenbacker

This is no time for ease and comfort. It is the time to dare and endure.

Winston Churchhill

The cowards never started. The weak died on the way. The strong made it through. They are the pioneers.

Willa Cather

Private Joker is silly and ignorant, but he's got guts. And guts is enough.

Gunnery Sergeant Hartman, "Full Metal Jacket"

That's why you have a chance Jesse. Guts is enough. I expect that when you were faced with a three or four mile ride to the site of the emergency, after somebody made the three or four mile ride to tell you that there was an emergency, you'd try. I imagine that when the bicycle proved to be less than useful, your daughter would figure out a way to turn into a cane crush or a pump for water. You'd stand up for yourself.

That's what we'll need. I'd probably find my way back to the White Mountains. That's where the Raven Soldiers gather in times of trouble.

Nohwi'odla nayid ntaahgoh, nhildizitigo adanizih, yexaaiidelah go deyah tc'indii

(our character has been tested, we proved strong, having been prepared we walk, all our people say this)

From The Song of the Ravens by Soulflyer, born to the Bear Clan, born for the Flute Clan

Email me your shipping information Jesse and I'll send your book.

Big Brass Blog

Thoughts On Torture

2008-04-15T13:22:00.003-07:00

There's a lot of indignation in blogtopia (and yes, skippy! coined that phrase!) about the revealations that the highest levels of this administration gathered in the White House and were literally micromanaging torture sessions. Cheney, Rice, Ashcroft, Colin Powell (for shame sir, for shame!) and others were following torture of human beings in real time.

I'm not a torture moralist. If it was an effective battlefield or intelligence tool I would probably have used it without a second thought. I'm a torture pragmatist. It. Does. Not. Fucking. Work.

Yet, after John Yoo tortures both logic and any concept of a moral law to expand the definition, then, without any chance of challenge, declares the President to be empowered to break all previous and existing laws of the United States, and the World Court. When he empowers the government with the ability to break any and all laws to the point of sadistic, ineffective and base cruelty and does so without challenge. When our government has reached a point of depravity to where John (drape them marble titties!) Ashcroft becomes the sole voice of restraint and reason, one simply must admit that things have gotten too far the fuck out of hand.

The ACLU has called for a special prosecutor. This is too far gone. This situation shows that the whole mechanism of government in this country has been debased to the point where our jurisprudence system or our own simple humanity are not to be trusted. It's time for The Hague, or some other system of law, where we can expect it to be adjudicated by rational, and moral minds.

We don't seem to have those at hand in this country anymore.

They should be brought to a bar of justice that has the respect and trust of the world. That court does not sit in an America of secret prisons, extraordinary renditions, and torture corrupting the highest levels of power. An honest court, concerned with the rule of law and operating in an open and free society is not something we can say we have anymore without bouncing the needles of the polygraph like the tassles on the tits of a Fairbanks stripper at a lumberjack birthday party.

3beez

A Great Site

2008-04-15T09:35:00.002-07:00

When politics and thinking about the future begin to wear me down, I take great comfort in being able to study the past.

I'm a big fan of Shelby Foote's three volume work The Civil War. It is a brilliantly researched work, elegantly written.

Now, however, there is an online site that will walk you through the major battles using animation. There is also a sound narration, but, after the first time, I turned it off in order to absorb the visuals without distraction.

Give it a look. Civil War Animated

3B's

Contest Update

2008-04-14T20:09:00.002-07:00

Looking good folks! So far, to my thinking, The Disgruntled Chemist is a clear front runner. Skills in chemistry would be invaluable. Especially when it comes to things like being able to sort out the various compounds that occur organicly and turn them into more focused and utilitarian products.

I can make black powder but there are more than a few times where dynamite would be called for. In a situation like this things like abandoned cities and landfills would be turned into veritable mines for getting things like wire, metal for scrap.

Sorry Jesse, but a paramedic while nice to have wouldn't be compared with somebody who might be able to synthesize morphine. Or make soap. Things like bicycles would have a very limited shelf life. Where would the materials for tires come from? What good would a bike be when there is no such thing as a road anymore? Thing is, you'd be able to put your ability to adapt and to learn to good use.

Chemist, I know how to get yeast from culture. We would start by harvesting wild yeasts from the air for sourdough and then keep refining the process down until we get yeast. It might also be something that could be gleaned from the abandoned zones and then nurtured. The yeast that wineries and breweries use had to come from somewhere.

Anybody got soap? The contest will be running for a couple more days. Let's get creative. Don't forget bribery and flattery, those will all be useful skills.

Yet Another Book Giveaway!

2008-04-13T20:17:00.002-07:00

Yes indeedy my it is about that time again.

I've just finished reading the new fiction work by James Howard Kunstler twice. It's an interesting book.

The premise is that the oil economy of the world has collapsed. Rather than get all geopolitical, much like the world would, in reaction to such an occurance, Kunstler instead focuses on one Upstate New York town. One man in particular.

It's a World Made By Hand where things that are taken so much for granted these days are either precious beyond obtaining, or simply gone, maybe forever.

People, being what we are, react all different ways. Most folks try to simply muddle through as best they can.

The events of the book cover one summer's experience. It's not a huge or daunting read, but it is a grim, yet strangely hopefull account of how things might shake loose.

Now we arrive at the contest. As with all my contests I promise that the judging criteria will be arbitrary, quite possibly unfair, and I will state at the very outset that I have been known to solicit and accept all manner of bribery and flattery.

The contest is simple. The protagonist of the book was a systems analyst in the computer industry who now makes his living as a carpenter. If the things you needed for your daily life were all of a sudden unvailable, what skills would you bring to your family and your community? I would probably find my skill and talent with horses, breeding, training and handling them to be something folks would need. My ability at the forge for shoeing the horses would be something I could use to raise my own standard of living and those of folks around me. I have excellent frontier skills in gunpowder making, again at the forge I can cast and fabricate things that would need to be made. My acoustic instruments would be in demand too. As would my library.

What would you bring? Answer in the comments please. Let's not forget the bribery part this time. I will send a copy of the book to the winner.

contest notification post at Big Brass Blog

Friday Random Ten

2008-04-11T08:43:00.002-07:00

The agenda for the day is pretty simple. Roll and dip white chocolate and white/raspberry truffles for my niece's birthday party tomorrow, use the egg whites left over from making the ganache to make an angel food cake, and settle in to accomplishing jack shit for the rest of the day.

Here's the jackshit soundtrack:

Slow Dancing in a Burning Room - - - John Mayer
Canticus Canticorum - - - Giovanni Luigi de Palestrina
Call It A Loan - - - Linda Ronstadt (live bootleg, me on harp)
John Henry - - - Blind Arvella Gray
Missa Sine Nomine - - - John Plummer
Stop Breakin' Down - - - Robert Johnson
Two More Bottles of Wine - - - Emmylou Harris
The Wreck of the Barbi Ferrari - - - John Hyatt
Get Behind The Mule - - - Tom Waits
Mathilde - - - Jaques Brelle

Bonus:

The Night Pat Murphy Died - - - Deep Blue Sea

Afternoon Moment

2008-04-10T10:52:00.004-07:00

Yesterday my sister who works as a nurse in the Tehatchipi prison was down for an interview at one of the prisons down here. It's a sad commentary that one of the main growth industries in this proud farming region is now locking up our fellow man. I have no illusions that these places hold many folks that I would absolutely want to be under lock, key, and closed armed supervision, still, I am alarmed at the rates of our incarceration.

That's neither here, nor there with this post though. She brought my beautiful new niece down with her and while she was doing her interview and house hunting I was spending a wonderful day playing the Sponge Bob board game, and exploring out by the irrigation overflow lagoon. We found a clutch of duck eggs, left them undisturbed, we found a beautiful Great Blue Heron feather which I am going to wrap and bead for her (since she's an indin now and stuff).

In the afternoon it was time for my intermediate strings class out at the local J.C. I brought her along with me, bringing her brand new 1/2 size violin. She was a big hit with the college kids. She did feel a bit of culture shock though. I have 12 students in this class and 10 of them are far more comfortable in Spanish than in English. Since I figure teaching is about being able to communicate a great deal of our class is done in Spanish. It's no big deal. Just doing the job in the easiest and most efficient manner. Thing was my darling girl was beginning to feel a little left out.

I noticed this and we talked about her coming move down to this area and I suggested to her that she start thinking about learning Spanish. I told her that she is going to be making new friends at her school and that many of these new friends will have parents that are more comfortable speaking Spanish than they are in English. I suggested to her that learning how to at least be polite and find the bathroom would be a handy tool to have. She agreed. We went over the basic greetings, please, thank you, and all the rest. Then we went over the parts of the violin. She was really getting into it. So were my students. One of them remarked that there are more than a few teachers at the college that act like it's great big fucking deal when they are called upon to use Spanish. I gave them my standard reply on why I regard being conversant as more than just a mere social skill.

Porque yo contar mejor de Custer. (because I can count better than Custer)

We had a little laugh and my neice chimed in with

"Have you ever heard him talk Apache?"

My students said that no, they had not, and the neice said:

"It sounds really strange. You know how if you're in the pool with your head under water and start talking it sounds like burps and bubbles? That's what Apache sounds like. I'm trying to learn but it's really hard. It's not easy and pretty like Spanish is."

She spent the rest of the day basking in approval and beauty. As we left she said:

Hasta la vista mis amigos nuevos."

She's going to fit in just fine.

los pelotas brassos grandes

Yeats Poem, Dedicated to the REMF God Petraeus

2008-04-09T12:45:00.002-07:00

POLITICS

HOW can I, that girl standing there,
My attention fix
On Roman or on Russian
Or on Spanish politics?
Yet here's a travelled man that knows
What he talks about,
And there's a politician
That has read and thought,
And maybe what they say is true
Of war and war's alarms,
But O that I were young again
And held her in my arms!

3beze

National Poetry Month

2008-04-09T08:53:00.002-07:00

A tip o'the hat to maurinsky at "Laughing Wild" for her response to a hat tip from Brave Sir Robin.

For national poetry month, nothing but poetry will do. One of my favorites by William Butler Yeats.

The Harp of Aengus

Edain came out of Midhir's hill, and lay
Beside young Aengus in his tower of glass,
Where time is drowned in odour-laden winds
And Druid moons, and murmuring of boughs,
And sleepy boughs, and boughs where apples made
Of opal and ruhy and pale chrysolite
Awake unsleeping fires; and wove seven strings,
Sweet with all music, out of his long hair,
Because her hands had been made wild by love.
When Midhir's wife had changed her to a fly,
He made a harp with Druid apple-wood
That she among her winds might know he wept;
And from that hour he has watched over none
But faithful lovers.

There. Beautiful poetry. It doesn't matter how it is crafted or spun. It matters how it feels. I will now go to caress my Druid-cherry wood harp I made myself. I will feel and hear the music. I will sing an old song about faithful lovers.

3B's

Home Made Potato Chips

2008-04-07T19:55:00.004-07:00

Are really too bleeding simple not to do. They are also far, far better. They taste like potatoes, they taste like food. Plus, they look like this:

Scrub your russet potatoes very well, pat them dry. Use a mandoline, or a box grater's slice tooth. A food processor will chop them up too much, a knife, even in the hands of a master will take too long. I don't peel mine, the added flavor and added texture from leaving the peels on is something I enjoy, but if you want to peel, be my guest. As soon as you get your slices made place them in an ice water bath for at least two hours. If you don't put the bath in the refrigerator, keep checking the ice and keep that baby cold. This is what will give you the total crisp texture. Drain the potato slices well, dry them thoroughly when you're ready to cook.

Heat an ample amount of oil. I use peanut oil in a cast iron saucepan, but any good light vegetable oil will do. Temperature is important, we are wanting 290°, not too hot, but certainly not a slow cook. Slow cooking will give you greezy chips. We don't want greezy.

Put the chips into the hot oil, taking care not to spalsh yourself. I have a chinese bamboo handle basket that works great for dipping them out of the hot oil when they are floating on the top and the bubbles have almost quit. You want a light, golden brown color, the chips will continue to cook after you remove them from the oil. Dust them lightly with salt, use sea or kosher salt here, after all, you've gone to the trouble of cooking your own chips, use the top line salts.

You won't need to gussy up with flavors and crap like this. The potato flavor, the brilliant texture will jump in your mouth without a lot of distraction.

Give this a try, it's easier than you think, and way better than you can imagine.

3Beez

My Favorite Charlton Heston Movie

2008-04-07T09:44:00.002-07:00

Isn't one of the big ass epics. They are pretty good but they merely demanded Heston to stand there and look good while the events and crowds swirled around him. Although it must have required some decent acting chops to look like you're buying into the cheesey special effects of "The Ten Commandments."

My favorite Heston flick is one that has been mostly unnoticed and unmentioned in the stuff flying around his death.

Will Penny (1968) is almost an "anti" western. It's about an aging cowboy who is reduced to riding the "grub line" for the winter. He takes a job riding fence up in the mountains. When he arrives at the line shack he finds that it has been occupied by a lone woman and her son who have been deserted by their guide. Unwilling to turn them out in the mountain winter and its certain death he agrees to allow them to stay until the spring thaw. Complications ensue.

From the movie:

ANSE HOWARD:
Save your money! Get you a spread of your own like me.

WILL:
It wasn't money started you in the cattle business, Anse.

ANSE:
Well, what do you think it was, Will?

WILL:
More like a long rope and a hot iron.

This well written, well produced little western is a gem. It also gives one of the more clear eyed views of what life in that era was all about. I recommend its addition to your NetFlix queue.

Forget the man's politics. Forget the man, let's celebrate a long, and respectable career in the arts. Heston was always much more of an artisan than an artist. It's an attitude and career someone like me can relate with.

What's your favorite Heston movie?

3B's

Friday Random Ten

2008-04-04T09:20:00.003-07:00

If it's Friday, there must be a soundtrack (I'm through shoveling political shit lookin' for the goddamned pony).

Mazurkas (4) For Piano - - - Chopin (Vladimir Horowitz)
Dance/Intermezzo - - - Sibelius
Rock'n'Roll - - - Dropkick Murphys
City On Down - - - O.A.R.
Los Angeles is Burning - - - Bad Religion
Ring of Fire - - - Social Distortion
She Drives Me Crazy - - - Fine Young Cannibals
Needle and the Damage Done - - - Neil Young (live bootleg, me on harp in Malibu)
Alligator Eatin' Dawg - - - Gatemouth Brown
Goodbye Easy Street - - - Jerry Jeff Walker and the Lost Gonzo Band (live bootleg)

Bonus:

Imitatin' Elvis - - - Steve Goodman

Spring Moment

2008-04-03T13:32:00.003-07:00

The Littlest Gator, blogging over at Group News Blog shows a gorgeous picture of the cherry blossoms in Japan. She asks "What does spring look like where you are?"

Gator my dear L'il one, it looks like this:

That's the morning view from my porch. It is what's right outside the window when I'm at the computer.

It's why somedays I don't get a lot of work done. Right now the wildflowers of the desert are in full on riot of color and scent. It will be gone soon, back to the various shades of brown and other browns. For now, it's wonderful.

Cheesecake (from Sardi's not nekkid pictures)

2008-04-03T09:48:00.003-07:00

This one goes out to 7th Sister, a regular reader and commenter here, along with her own blog Shimoda's Dream. She, like me, is a fan of "beyond scratch" cooking. Where as many of the ingredients in a scratch recipe are also home made.

One of her most recent projects is to make cream cheese. She said it worked out great. I remembered that on one of my New York incursions I hit the maitre-d at Sardi's up for their cheesecake recipe. While it is one of the finest examples of cheesecake I've ever experienced it is not, by itself, worth putting up with New York or New Yorkers to obtain.

Luckily Sardi's has a give it out policy with their recipe. It's like music on the intenet now anyway, if you don't give it away it will just be stolen.

So, without further ado:

BASIC NEW YORK STYLE CHEESECAKE
INGREDIENTS

Crust:
15 graham crackers, crushed fine
2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter

Filling:

16 oz cream cheese
1 1/2 cups baker's sugar
3/4 cup milk (use whole milk here, reduced fats will reduce texture)
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup cake flour
1 teaspoon lemon zest

Heat oven to 350°. Butter the bottom and sides of a springform pan generously. Mix the graham cracker crumbs and butter together and press evenly into the bottom of the springform pan.

With your stand mixer (a hand mixer might work, but it also might simply give up and start to smoke on you) cream together the cream cheese and sugar until evenly mixed and fluffy. With the mixer on "stir" add in the milk, and then the eggs, one at a time, mixing until each egg is incorporated. Add in the sour cream, cake flour, and vanilla and mix until smooth. Pour into the springform pan and sprinkle the top with the lemon zest.

Bake at 350° for 1 hour. Turn off the oven and cool the cake with the door closed for 5 to 6 hours. This will keep the top of your cake from cracking. (although, if you're a barbarian like me and enjoy your cheesecake slathered with things like citrus curds or marmalades a crack here and there won't matter at all).

Once the cake is cooled to room temperature, store covered in the refrigerator. Hint: You can find cheesecake containers at Smart & Final or any other respectable restaurant supply.

Variations: Top your cooled cheesecake with glazed strawberries, home canned peaches or any other flavoring that pleases you. Do decorative pipings with whipped cream if you so desire. You have my express permission to slap the shit out of any "purist" who tells you that is not how things are done in New York. If they are from New York, slap them before they even begin talking, just so they know who they're dealing with. Trust me, New Yorkers respond well to sudden, unprovoked violence. It reminds them of home.

For a nice chocolate flavor, put chocolate shavings over the top of the cake when you turn the oven off. Let them melt into and on top of the cheesecake as it cools.

UPDATE

Shimoda's Dream has posted her results. With pictures. I love me some food porn.

3B's