I keep hoping better sense will trump the American gun lobby.
but I’m not the only one.
Saturday, December 15, 2012
how grote is this?
The Grote Markt is the central square of Brussels, a grand marketplace that has been there for over 1000 years.
people.com.cn
Every year a Christmas Tree is set up in front of the Maison du Roi, the Kings House.
latimes (this year)
Sort of.
jumbo shrimp is oxymoron
Shrimp lovers of the world I’m with you, and the only thing easier than scampi is boiling and chilling them for cocktail. A pound feeds two or three, these are E-Z-peel jumbo’s from Fairway.
I always buy shrimp in the peel because they cost less and the peel is a big source of flavor. Peel the shrimp and cover the shells in cold water, about two cups. We’ll add salt and pepper, bay leaf and my secret, pickling spices, which imports a beautiful middleeastern cinnamon and allspice quality to the stock.
Simmer it down slowly to the 1 and 1/2 cups we’ll need to make the yellow rice.
Now crack a beer and gather your ingredients, I’ve used a red pepper, an orange one for color, three small red onions, a head of garlic and a lemon for its juice. Lemons with thin skins that give to your thumb are usually juicier. Except for the lemon, chop it all as you like it.
Simmer the stock for 15 minutes, then let it stand for a few. Then strain it and start the rice with it, from here on it’s a breeze. Heat olive oil and then dump the vegetables in.
Toss as stirfry, adding ½ teapsoon chile powder and ½ teaspoon oregano. A grind of fresh pepper. Not much salt.
When the vegetables soften and gently brown, turn the heat up and throw the shrimp in. Maybe a small handful of pine nuts if you’ve got them.
That’s it, toss until the shrimp are done, cut and squeeze that lemon all over and serve it on the steaming, shrimp-stock flavored rice.
It’s really good.
Friday, December 14, 2012
Thursday, December 13, 2012
now museum, now you don’t
I’m on a Stanford University mailing list discussing museum-quality artifact conservation.
It’s great. Some of the best conservationists in the world speak out each week. New York. Sydney. Leningrad.
They write offering seminars, seeking fellowships or jobs, asking conservation guidance...
“How can we get fungus out of leather?”
bbc.com
“Does anyone know where gradient shellacs are sold by the kilo and shipped overnight?
littlegeese.com
“How should I remove millennia-old rust stains from Viking cotton sails?
pollydonnellan.com
Or my favorite...how to attenuate the heat from lighting.
Expansion all day, contraction by night.
Like slow motion suicide, irreplaceable stuff tearing itself apart over the centuries.
Keeps me up at night.
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
an eye full tower
The Eiffel Tower is a ClockTower contemporary built in 1887, within a year of our own construction.
But these photos come from Tokyo.
Built in 1958, the Tokyo Tower dominates the skyline in the same way the Eiffel looms large over the City of Light.
It’s about 30 feet taller to eclipse its Gallic cousin.
Naturally, we went to the top.
The Parisian Tower wears a fashionable shade of bronze but the Tokyo version is painted electric orange for air safety regulations.
New lighting was installed in 1989.
As you move up through the levels...
...Mount Fuji comes into view.
It took us awhile to get up there but who cares with a view like this?
Would you go to Paris for the first time
and not to the top of the Eiffel?
wiki
another 89 years
until 01.01.01
Enjoy this while it lasts.
We won’t be here for the next one. :-)
tumblr
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
in case you were wondering
Statistics firm Chitika reports today that the Microsoft Surface tablet generates about 1/10th of 1% of all tablet web traffic. ouch
Google’s Nexus and Android tablets combined account for less than 1%.
Apple’s iPad is the source of almost 90% of all tablet web traffic.
The closest is Amazon’s Kindle Fire, with 4 devices online for every 100 Apple has.
The Samsung Galaxy? 2.68 for every 100 iPads.
It’s time to TAB?
Doesn’t seem so.
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