Global humans, Is warming to blame?

Fellow saw a classified ad "Sea Cruise $100". So, he called the company, and was assured it was legit, and forked over the hundred bucks for a reservation. When he arrived at point of embarkation the morning of his cruise, he was given a pair of oars, and a blue painted rowboat with a beach umbrella bearing cruise companies logo. Attendant shoved him off with "Bon Voyage" and so he rowed around a few hours. He wished he wasn't feeling so foolish and angry, but there was nothing he could think to do about it except row. Eventually he saw another blue rowboat sporting the same company umbrella. He rowed mightily over within hailing distance. It was now noon. He hollered at the other boat, "Do they serve lunch on this cruise?" The other cruiser grinned, waved enthusiastically, and yelled back, "They did last year!"

 

Those shoes were pretty ratty but oh well. Jess and I went out for about a year when she was maybe 19 and again for a couple years when she was about 30. That picture was taken about 5 years ago. She's married now and on a lot of antidepressants, hubby's on antianxiety medication. They are both great people but I'm positive they got along a lot better before they got married. They will tell you they are doing great. "Oh honey where are my pills ?" Ive seen it a million times, the strained faces with the stress peaking through. I'll never get married. I wouldn't do that to the woman I love.

I live with one of my best friends and we love each other in an oddball kinda way. But its not what you might think. I typically burn through a new girl about once every few years at this point although once upon a time it was about every other month. Good times and a lot of fond memories but now its time to focus on saving money and getting this boat thing rolling. I want out of this one horse town. I suppose I've always had long term somethings going on, even now. But again its not what you might think of as any kinda traditional thing. I'm just not that way, never sure if I ever will be either. This latest has gone on for about 6 or 7 years. But its nothing like being married. We take each other out and do each other favors. No strings, just best of friends.

Maybe someday I'll meet someone who changes everything but I've seen others fall into that trap over and over, only to have it end in disaster. I kinda got my eye on my next but she's a slippery one and although we hang out pretty regularly she's playing hard to get. No worries, you win some, you loose some. You never know till you try, but the key as far as I can tell is to be honest about it, open up some, and let that light shine in both directions.

 

Hoo Wee.

 

I think I detect a trend there! Better start a new boat build quick before it all goes South . . .

 

riiiiiiight

thats me, heading down that dark path of no return.

 

Well for a change in direction I too have been learning and listening to some great ideas http://www.abc.net.au/tv/bigideas/ downloadable as podcasts or direct... I am listening here now... http://www.abc.net.au/tv/bigideas/stories/2011/11/22/3372156.htm "Alexander McCall Smith: Society is Broken",
- - with this as a text intro, it could prove quite challenging and controversial? - - Here goes..........
"Mockery and contempt for others, unleashed in the name of free speech, are creating a toxic environment where respect and decency are unlamented relics of the past. We have ignored the ‘dumbing down’ of education and abandoned parts of our cities to drugs, alcohol and violence.

As long as they remain insulated in middle class ghettos, our politicians can ignore this, says bestselling novelist Alexander McCall Smith. But we can’t afford to give up the ideal of a more civilised and equal society. To live together in healthy communities we need to put a stop to the culture of alcohol, aggression and the glorification of violence.

McCall Smith is known for his geniality. But here at the Festival of Dangerous Ideas he gives voice to some very strong views on the current state of the West, particularly Britain. He argues that our society has become profoundly sick and its culture permeated by scorn and disdain. Strong views from such a mild-mannered man.

This session was chaired by Mark Colvin and was part of the 2011 Festival of Dangerous Ideas at the Sydney Opera House.

Alexander McCall Smith is one of the world’s most prolific and popular authors. His career has been varied. For many years he was a professor of Medical Law. After the publication of his highly successful “No 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency” series, he devoted his time to the writing of fiction and has seen his various series of books translated into over forty languages and become bestsellers around the world. McCall Smith is also the author of collections of short stories, academic works, and over thirty books for children. He has received numerous awards for his writing, including the British Book Awards Author of the Year Award in 2004 and a CBE for service to literature in 2007.

Mark Colvin is the presenter of ABC Radio's current affairs program PM. An award-winning journalist, he first joined ABC radio news as a cadet after graduating from Oxford University with a B.A (Hons) in English. He began to work in television and in 1980, at the age of 28, he was appointed London correspondent, travelling to cover such major stories as the American hostage crisis in Tehran and the rise of Solidarity in Poland. From 1988 to 1992, he was a reporter for Four Corners. In 1994, after a visit to Rwanda and Zaire, Mark was taken ill with a rare disease of the bloodstream, which nearly took his life."

Look at the <home page> and browse, there are heaps of "big ideas" that are sure to interest some... For a big picture - this is interesting to me - how about you? http://www.abc.net.au/tv/bigideas/stories/2010/10/19/3041128.htm and a good articulate speaker... I am half way through and will come bact to the initial point later when it has downloaded..... things slowed down for some reason...

 

Too boring, Mas.
Get hold of the Xmas special of ManLab

Learn how to fell a tree by using a collar of explosives.

Decorate it (without risk of falling off a step ladder) by using a mortar-like device to fire baubles and tinsel.

Wrap presents using vaccuum-packaging.

Military-precision cooking with a Sgt-Major handling logistics.

Troy might to try like the vaporiser method with bourbon.

 

Oooowaaah, I was hoping to bore everyone to sleep, and have a peaceful time of it until well after crass XMAS period, which seems to mean nothing more than buying and giving heaps of unwelcome, useless and difficult to otherwise dispose of "ethically", - - trinkets and stuff which does little but improve the balance of payments in China...

1 - I have run/cooked in a Seargeants/Officers mess - Enough already,
2 - Blown eardrums and tinitis (cicadas screaming 24/7), from same - no desire to blast anything skywards with a bang....
3 - I have fallen off a stepladder (whilst building the boat)... Never again I sincerely hope.... (16 to 18 weeks to recover is a lesson well learnt...)
4 - See 2 - will stick to pulling it out/over as per that silly 4x4 ad on TV a while ago ('cept I do not have a 4 x 4)

What is a Xmas Special ManLab?

This one is a little better http://www.abc.net.au/tv/bigideas/stories/2011/03/29/3175876.htm or this one ? http://www.abc.net.au/iview/?series=3328908#/view/869146

 

Part 1 of 5
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sRvElHZUaI

Others are available on YouTube

 

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, James Mays Man Lab - Christmas Special having consumed a couple too many happy/mad pills (the pink ones?)...

Ere hang on a bit, I dont like turkey - Never gobbles for me? - - an all I got are some frozen meat pies - That will ave to do won-tit....

 

what kinda meat pies? Pasties?

 

They make pasties in Mexico, and call them pastes but they're different. No turnip or potato in the filling. Just meat and onion. It's one of a very few dishes here that isn't made with chiles. I like pastes, but prefer welsh pasties.

 

Christmas can be fun if you celebrate it traditional. When christianity reached europe, the natives celebrated the yule tide. Actually a pagan fertility fiesta during winter solstice. The tree and wreaths (originally decorated wagon wheels hung inside house on walls to protect them till spring) represented male and female.
Church officials were frustrated cause the europeans wouldn't give up Yule. So, if you can't beat em, join em. Christmass was created to absorb and convert Yule. Actually Jesus must of been born in spring or early summer. Shepherds were tending flocks in the fields. Ain't no grass in winter. Just hay that was cut and stored. Okay, it's a boring story. But celebrate the original Yule with the drinking, carousing, and orgies, might be more fun. Also lasted 12 days, more or less, as long as the yule log burned. A whole tree trunk shoved inch by inche into fire untill completely consumed.

 

I used to make some mean empanadas. There's supposed to be a squiggle above the 'n' in that word, but it's well past my bedtime already. I don't have the time or ambition to figure out how to put it there...

I lost the recipe years ago. But the filling was basically highly seasoned, spicy ground beef with peppers, onions and chopped raisins. The wrap was a pretty basic pie dough, cut into rounds using a coffee can. I'd put a few spoonfuls of filling on each round, fold it over and pinch the edges with a little cold water and a fork, then deep-fry them. Tried baking them one time, and wasn't impressed.

But if I had left-over dough I made cherry turnovers by filling the rounds with cherry pie filling, folding them and brushing them with melted butter, then sprinkling them with sugar. Those I did bake, and with the sugar and butter they came out fine.

 

My wife makes them with masa (tortilla) flour. actually, it's a mixture mostly fineley ground white cornmeal, a little all purpose wheat flour, and powdered lime (like used in making cement). She fries em just a few minutes in half inch of very hot oil in a black iron skillet.
She has an aluminum tortilla press to make the circles. She rolls up a plum size ball of very stiff dough, places it inside a gallon sized ziplock bag that she cut all the sides off except the bottom for a hinge. The plastic can open flat if wanted. Anyway, sticks the ball in plastic in the press, leans on the lever handle that multiplies pressure on upper plate. Voila! a raw tortilla!