Month: November 2011

Sign of the Times

Because nothing says “prosperity” like pallet upon pallet of ramen. Smells like college.

So here’s a couple of ramen recipes for you:

Tuna Ramen Casserole

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add frozen mixed veggies, then when the water boils again, add the ramen. When the ramen is done, pour off the water. Combine with canned tuna, diced onion, and the spices of your choice.

Asian Ham with Noodles

Start your water boiling. Put oil in a hot wok, then start to saute some onions and bell peppers. Add garlic, soy sauce, sriracha or red pepper flakes (if you like it spicy), and a half pound of frozen stir fry veggies. Add 1 pound cubed ham. When it’s hot, drain and set aside. By now your water should be ready! Cook 2 packages of ramen until it’s almost but not quite done, then drain. Bring the wok back up to medium heat with a little oil and soy sauce, put the ramen in and give it a good stir. Put the meat and veggies in there, mix completely, and serve.

Feel free to add your own recipes in comments.

 

And Now for Something Completely Different: A “Life Well Lived” Special Post

Ok, I know this isn’t what most of my readers are used to. If it isn’t your cup of tea, I bet you can find the “In Closing” bits in their usual location at the end.

I’ve been asked by the nice people at BlogHer (see that banner ad over there? Great!) to write a post on “How do you care for your hair in the colder, drier months?” If you would like, go take a look at the official tips first. Back yet? Great. Add your comments here for a chance to win $250.

So what do I do about my hair? The sad truth is “not much”:

  • I make sure I don’t go too long between hair appointments. A lot of bad hair days are caused by split ends and growing out of a good trim. I know it’s tempting for a lady to grow hair out over the winter, but that’s only a good idea if you love ponytails… Every. Single. Day.
  • I already live in Vegas, where it’s “drier” most of the time. There is no substitute year round for a quality everyday conditioner, and perhaps a weekly deep condition. My hairdresser insists I need a leave-in, and I admit that helps on days where my hair is fighting all efforts to be combed.
  • Again, this is one I can only get away with because I live in Vegas. Never ever do this if you live someplace it freezes in winter. I am lousy with a hair dryer, so I just don’t use one! I just “gel, scrunch, and go.” As a result, I don’t have to deal with heat damage.

So no, I don’t do a lot special on my hair in winter. My skin is another story! I get very dry skin, and I have a strategy to deal with it. Of course, it involves a moisturizing sunscreen on my face. It also involves a good quality moisturizer on my hands and legs. But there’s more: my daily supplements include fish oil and Vitamin D (which I’m not getting through sun exposure); and quality anti-aging products selected with the help of a physician.

In Closing: yeah, we’ve really made things better for Afghan women, not! (I particularly like the line about “Shockingly” this is common!); using “facts and logic” — I  know the bumper sticker says that should confuse a liberal like myself — to prove CRA didn’t cause the housing bubble; How to talk to people at Thanksgiving who are likely to have read “How to talk to a Liberal, if you must” and other family members; the new poor; maybe they liked the scenery; the banks finally stole too much; police bust down the door and kill the dogs… over a stolen Xbox that wasn’t even there (ya know, I bet Microsoft would have gladly told cops what IP address it was on!); as usual, Dave Johnson is long-winded but correct (I’d add “water and sewer” to his list); Grayson is hilarious (and knows the Bible); and Shatner on Turkey.

Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!

It worked out so well for King Saul

 

Making sure a Convent’s mortgage bill is paid off? That’s a worthy mission from God. Getting food and medical supplies to kids in a war zone? That’s a worthy mission from God. Disaster relief? Worthy mission from God. Providing medical care to kids with cancer or congenital defects? Worthy mission from God. Charity work in general? A worthy mission from God.

Becoming — arguably — the most powerful man in the world? NOT a worthy mission from God!

Let’s make this perfectly clear. God doesn’t send those kind of messages anymore. He hasn’t since John the Baptist, and that didn’t work out so well either. We don’t do “Divine Right of Kings” in the United States of America. The very existence of the United States of America denies the concept of Divine Right of Kings. The idea that someone is actually running for President and saying in public that it’s because God wants him to should scare the hell out of all of us, whether we believe God exists or no.

Only dangerous men and madmen claim that God wants them to seize power. I’ve even heard preachers say that from the pulpit.

Way back in 2007 I pointed out that even a divinely appointed government can be corrupt, and it seems clear that Herman Cain is somewhat less than a paragon of virtue.

Listen, Herman. You want to make this country better? Go back to creating jobs making crappy pizzas. The only industry you will help as President will be comedy writers.

In Closing: if “global climate change” is a hoax, why is every big company preparing for it? [or, “Not without my bourbon!”]; loss of faith; never give up; tyranny of pr0-“life”; Child Rape in an Infotainment World; I guess I gotta hold my nose to vote; in summary; banks will just lie to follow new rules; and “Oh F***, the Internet is here!”

Down And Out on Paradise

Sticklers for detail will notice this is the Strip and not actually Paradise, a few blocks East.

Things are tough all over.

I do hope nobody is surprised to learn that poverty in the United States is even higher than expected. After all, some 15% of our population is on food stamps — and that’s according to the freaking Wall Street Journal! And it is worse than average here in Vegas, where the “recovery” you lucky souls in other parts of the nation have been experiencing the last 2 years has passed us by like some angry Santa:

There’s a newer version of this chart right here. Add to that the fact that Vegas is still the reigning foreclosure capital of the nation, and it shouldn’t be any shock that we have a problem with homelessness and “food security” — a fancy term for “no food and/or no money for food.” Please remember that no matter what you may think of the work ethic of people in these situations, some of the people effected are children. There are mighty few jobs available to children that will pay the family’s bills, and most of them are worse than mere hunger.

Maybe if Wall Street didn’t sell us a pack of lies about how we can run our economy on lattes and cheap imports, we could change things. Even Starbucks is trying to create jobs outside the Latte Economy.

In Closing: is police use of a GPS really different from tailing them (uh, yeah); whites use more drugs, but blacks get sent to prison more (huh, could the War on Drugs possibly be racist??); even a broken clock is right twice a day; Americans would rather have government bureaucrats than insurance company bureaucrats (who could know these things?); amen; and right on, Rick.