Thursday, February 29, 2024
Monday, February 26, 2024
Sunday, February 25, 2024
Call Miss Cleo Now
Miss Cleo was an advertiser for psychic readings in the early 2000s. I enjoyed watching her commercials. They were over the top ridiculous. She spoke with a Jamaican accent that I thought was authentic. But later I learned that she was not Jamaican. I don't think she ever even visited Jamaica. She claimed to be a shaman from Jamaica. I read later that she had written a play in 1998 called For Women Only, and played a character that was a Jamaican woman named Miss Cleo.
I just loved Miss Cleo and thought she was a scream, not even realizing what a fake she was. I actually believed she was Jamaican. I didn't think she knew the future, and one night I was watching TV with Jim and turned to him to make fun of Miss Cleo. Suddenly the words tripped out of my mouth, "There is about to be a great earthquake." This disturbed me, since I felt that I am no prophet and have no business making prophesies. However, immediately after saying this I had the sickening certainty it was true. The next day, December 26, 2004, there was a 9.1 earthquake off the coast of Sumatra. The first news report was that there were no injuries. I scoffed, and said, "There will be a lot of people killed!" to Jim. And the earthquake caused the Indonesian tsunami that killed 225,000 people. All of this frightened Jim, and it also unnerved me. I was just a little bit spooky.
In the days since then I came to learn that Miss Cleo had died, in 2016 at the age of 53, of cancer.
Saturday, February 24, 2024
Friday, February 23, 2024
Thursday, February 22, 2024
Tuesday, February 20, 2024
A Nice Sunshiny Day in Paradise
What do the angels do on Tuesday afternoon? Usually go to their hair stylist.
So that's today in Paradise.
Monday, February 19, 2024
Sunday, February 18, 2024
Saturday, February 17, 2024
Friday, February 16, 2024
Thursday, February 15, 2024
Pretty Please With Sugar On Top
This is the real life parcel thief. I put a note on the door, and they went to the trouble to document it when they made this delivery. I didn't get my delivery though. Even though I had put up a sign that clearly said to please put the parcels on the shelf at the back door, this is the front door. Even though I said the dog was taking the parcels, they left the parcels right next to the dog!! I put one of the torn up parcel envelopes I found in a cow pasture under the sign for dramatic effect.
OK. That didn't work. So I said, "Pretty please with sugar on top...."
Tuesday, February 13, 2024
My Little Great Pyrennes
Little Spot came here as a stray. I suppose someone threw him out near the house. He is a big dog, but still a puppy. Yikes. He's already the size of a calf.
Spot has had his problems. After he came here there was a severe storm and the temperature started reaching -5ยบ F. I had no way to accommodate him, because I was already snowed in so there was no way to provide, and he was too large to get under the house. So, good luck Spot. I wondered how he managed.
Little Spot had taken up at David's house. David had provided his dog with a heated doghouse. Spot was too large to even squeeze into the doghouse, but he laid in front of the door and squeaked by with some heat. And David even fed him. I also put out Purina Dog Chow for him, but he liked the food over at David's better. David said he didn't think it was the better food. Little Spot likes the way David is outside all the time.
Spot has one giant flaw. He has been tearing up parcels both at my house and at David's house. David called me to warn me that the UPS truck had showed up at my house. Too late. Spot sits around just waiting for the UPS truck to come. By the time I went outside, the parcels were all over the place, some of them in a cow pasture. David is not happy about the parcel problem either.
I have a closet at the back steps with a shelf, so I put a note on the door asking UPS to leave parcels on this shelf. There has been some confusion around here about where to leave parcels, so I also explained that the dog has parcel issues. Then I also taped one of the shredded plastic envelopes on the door. Maybe this will solve the problem.
Aside from that, Spot is an intelligent and interesting dog, as far as dogs go. I told David he's had some obedience training, and will sit, shake hands, and lie down. Should someone get angry with him, he starts trying to make nice by sitting and offering his paw. And David surprised me by mentioning that he knows how to herd cows. He thinks he's had some training in that, too. I suppose it just comes naturally to him, the way that terriers dig big holes in the yard. David has a herd of cows, so it was of interest to him to see this doggie herding his cows.
What other interests does Spot have? Spot likes to make piles of twigs and rocks. That's a new one for me. He also likes to terrify stray cats.
So Spot is a nice dog, but he's going to have to quit damaging parcels. David ominously mentioned "the graveyard solution."
This photo will give some idea of Spot's size.
Another unusual feature of Little Spot - two dew claws. This is typical of the Great Pyrennes.
The first time I saw Spot, I thought, "Wow, what if I could train him to walk with me, and wear a harness with a handle on top that I could use as a cane?"
Monday, February 12, 2024
Ghost Peppers.
www.britannica.com/plant/ghost-pepper
ghost pepper
Ghost pepper, (Capsicum chinense), small-fruited pepper in the nightshade family (Solanaceae), one of the hottest chili peppers in the world. The ghost pepper is a cultivar of Capsicum chinense, as are spicy Scotch bonnet and habanero peppers.
The ghost pepper has an average of about 1 million Scoville Heat Units (SHU), compared to a jalapeรฑo with around 8,000 SHU or a habanero with up to 350,000 SHU. It was formally recognized as the world’s hottest chili pepper in 2007, though it was later superseded by the Carolina Reaper (with up to 2.2 million SHU) and other ultra spicy peppers.
The ghost pepper fruit is up to 8 cm (3 inches) in length, with a slight taper, and ripens from green to red. The texture of the skin is wrinkled and pocked. Given its superlative strength, the ghost pepper is not widely used in cooking, but it can be used fresh or as a spice made by drying and grinding the fruits. Like other chili peppers, it derives its piquant flavour from capsaicin and other capsaicinoids.
Ring of Fire Cayenne
Little Spot has not learned his lesson. Damages today to parcels. $35. Oh, mistake. I found this parcel undamaged. A nice surprise.
Sriracha sauce is around 2200 on the Scoville scale. That didn't send a big enough message. OK doggie. We'll see. Next...tabasco sauce and or cayenne treated parcels. Around 4000 to 30,000 Scoville heat units.
I guess Spot thinks, "She's usually a nice, reasonable person. She must have mistaken me for a skunk or something."
Sunday, February 11, 2024
In the Doghouse
Little Spot is in the doghouse. He's completely mystified about it. Am I mad at him? Whatever for?
Because he takes parcels when they are delivered and rips them up and scatters them around the yard. I bought a large plastic bottle of allspice. Probably a lifetime supply. It's all chewed up and slobbered on. One parcel has disappeared even though I searched high and low for it. He took a parcel over to David's last week containing vitamins. But the real outrage was a necklace I bought for a Valentine's gift for Mom. Spot may not have been the culprit. It may have been a mistake with Amazon. I called David to ask him to be on the alert for a missing parcel. He said Spot has taken some of their parcels too. Oh no. Oh no.
Spot saw me wandering around the yard searching for the parcel. It wasn't very long before he realized that I seemed to be angry at him. But why?? Well, I'll show you why doggie.
Two of the parcels had come in plastic envelopes, so I covered them with sriracha sauce. I opened a can of Vienna sausages and covered them with sriracha sauce and put them inside the envelope. One of these envelopes he had already torn open earlier. Then I put them on the bench outside where the delivery people leave parcels. Go ahead doggie! Play with those parcels! He actually ate one of the sausages before the whole nightmarish reality set in in his mouth.
Has he been able to think about what he did and make the connection? Doubtful.
Saturday, February 10, 2024
Friday, February 9, 2024
I Made the Mayo
Oh yummy. I made the mayo. I mixed things up a little, and slightly changed the recipe. 1 1/4 cup avocado oil, 3/4 cup MCT oil, 1 tsp salt, 2 Tbsp vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar), 2 eggs, and the juice of a whole lemon. I said a prayer that God would let it emulsify and blended it with a stick blender. Yay! Success! I tasted my extra lemon juice mayo. Oh yum.
Thursday, February 8, 2024
Once Upon a Time An Elderly Man in a Nursing Home Lived on Eggs
I once read a true story about an elderly man in a nursing home who would eat almost nothing but eggs. He ate 24 eggs a day. Every now and then he would have a pear or some other some other serving amount of food. This diet was dreadfully upsetting to the staff, who warned him of the dire consequences of his ill conceived diet. Finally, they ran a whole battery of tests on him to convince him he was headed for extreme health consequences if he kept this up. All that cholesterol must have sent his cholesterol levels through the roof. And that was obviously going to have dire effects on his health. He'd probably have a stroke any day now.
His tests came back with no arteriosclerosis at all. His nutrient levels were all great. His cholesterol and triglycerides were normal. Mysteriously, all his tests came back normal. Weight normal. Why why why?
The more I know about eggs, the more I am surprised by the wisdom of his choices. His usual calories: about 1920 per day. His carbs: about 15. His vitamins and minerals were well supplied by his diet, since the egg has to sustain a chick for its first steps into life, and must furnish a lot of nutrients. The protein found in an egg is 49% bioavailable. How bioavailable is the protein in a ribeye steak? 33%. In whey and legumes? 17%. In fact, the only food that rivals or surpasses eggs in terms of the nutrient values and the bioavailability of the protein, and only by a fraction of a percent, is human breast milk. Cow milk is not nearly as bioavailable, although I suppose many have jumped to the conclusion that it was "the perfect food." What say I? I would say the egg is as close as possible to the perfect food.
So, would I recommend eating 24 eggs a day? I think under his particular circumstances this man made a remarkably astute choice of diet. The nursing home food is notoriously unpleasant and cause for concern. It's likely to be too low in protein, just when one needs it most. Besides not being health food or rich in vitamins and minerals, it is likely to be too high in carbs. Maybe the calories are kept in line. I think I might do this under similar circumstances. Maybe more like 15 or 18 eggs a day, an adjustment for being female. The inevitable question arises, "Where would anyone get so many eggs?" Well, once I was in the hospital, and they brought me a menu in the evening to select what I would like to eat the following day. Among other things, when selecting eggs, I requested six hard boiled eggs. And the next day there they were. You can order all sorts of things. My roommate and I looked at the menu and decided to order everything on the menu, and also several Danishes. We really hit the jackpot the next day. I don't know how many eggs or Danishes you would have to order to hit the limits of what institutions will bring you tomorrow.
In more normal situations, I would just say, "Don't overlook the health benefits of eating eggs."
May I just add another thought? Suppose one had wondered what they would or should do to protect themselves in the event of a food supply disruption? Don't neglect finding a way of having a supply of eggs.
Burning Boxes
Today I finally burned the boxes. I've been putting it off for several days. But as the boxes burned I realized it was a windy day. Kind of like March. Well, I had my hose turned on and ready. There were no events.
Besides that, I have hard boiled six dozen eggs. Then what? Pickled eggs. Around three gallons I guess. I still have another five dozen I need to hard boil. Maybe four dozen. Four and a half dozen?
How many pickled eggs do I plan to make? Fifty gallons. What? Well, they last a long time. I'll never be hungry again! But when was the last time I was hungry due to lack of food? Well, I don't remember. But I don't want it to happen. Noooo!
Oh, it's been a fun day.
Monday, February 5, 2024
My Fried Chicken
I don't often eat fried chicken. It just has too many carbs. But sometimes I enjoy fried chicken anyway. I've made fried chicken before but it didn't turn out very well. Therefore I felt that I should learn how to do it.
I watched Youtube videos on frying chicken. Finally I decided to act. The chicken had been sitting in the refrigerator for almost a week, and I had to admit I was afraid to try frying again. I thought of roasting the chicken, but finally resigned myself to trying to fry chicken again.
First I looked at my list of Youtube videos on the subject. I wanted to know what I should dip the chicken in, the ingredients for the batter, what type of oil, what temperature to fry at, how long to fry, and what the temperature should be of the chicken when it was done.
One video recommended pressure frying in a pressure cooker. But not just any pressure cooker. The whole video was about pressure cookers, and when he got to the part about frying chicken, he declared that this was not a recipe video. He did say to be sure to purchase a fire extinguisher for frying chicken. Another video seemed to be about taste testing KFC vs pan fried vs pressure cooking in oil. According to this video, beef tallow makes exquisite fried chicken. They promised. Then the next video went ahead and spoke of the ingredients for the batter, but carefully left out any measurements, just ingredients. After that there was one about making KFC fried chicken. They did give the quantities and a list of ingredients. But I'm not very interested in the eleven herbs and spices. Every one of these videos was made by men, which is OK, except that they weren't covering the areas I needed to know about. All of them made a point of using tongs to put the chicken into the oil, and take it out. Problem. For some reason, probably grip strength, I couldn't do it. No amount of trying to pull chicken out with tongs was working. Anyway, the smart way to do it, should you ever need to, is to use a long two pronged meat fork. No one mentioned the temperature to fry chicken. One said to take chop sticks and when you stick one into the oil and see bubbles, it's right. Oh yes, and you absolutely must marinade for 24 hours. So frying chicken was beginning to be undoable.
Finally, I gave up on the Youtube videos. I used two cups of flour, two tablespoons of salt, and one tablespoon of black pepper. I dipped the chicken in egg. I decided to heat the oil to 340ยบ F, and fried the chicken for twenty minutes, turning the pieces over in the middle of cooking. I checked the temperature of the chicken - 165ยบ F. The chicken turned out OK. I couldn't have told you the difference in the chicken I fried, and any other that I've eaten. Unless to say it was better than some. Why can't anyone tell you how to fry chicken? It was like a maze.
Sunday, February 4, 2024
Manta Ray vs Stingray
Manta Ray Vs Stingray: 9 Key Differences Explained
Here’s a good article by Patrick Sather for A-Z Animals on the difference between manta rays and stingrays. Our manta ray snorkel tours offers a wonderful experience to get up close and personal with these graceful creatures.
The 9 Key Differences Between Manta Rays and Stingrays
Manta Ray vs Stingray: Taxonomy
Manta rays and stingrays belong to the order Myliobatiformes, one of the four groups belonging to the superorder Batoidea. While they contain similar attributes, including flattened, boneless bodies and enlarged pectoral fins, the two belong to different families. Manta rays belong to the family Mobulidae. For years, many scientists considered Mobulidae a subfamily of Myliobatidae or the eagle ray family. However, most scientists now identify it as a distinct family separate from the eagle rays. Meanwhile, stingrays belong to eight respective families. They include Hexatrygonidae (sixgill stingrays), Plesiobatidae (deepwater stingrays), Urolophidae (stingarees), Urotrygonidae (round rays), Dasyatidae (whiptail stingrays), Potamotrygonidae (river stingrays), Gymnuridae (butterfly rays), and the previously mentioned Myliobatidae.
Manta Ray vs Stingray: Size
Depending on the species of stingray, manta rays and stingrays can vary wildly in terms of size. The giant oceanic ray is the largest ray in the world and can reach lengths up to 23 feet wide and weigh nearly 2,980 pounds. Right behind these giants ranks the reef manta ray, which can reach up to 18 feet wide. On the other hand, stingrays range from the size of a dinner plate to massive specimens only slightly smaller than a manta ray. For example, the Atlantic stingray typically only measures 10 inches wide and weighs a mere five pounds. Yet, the short-tail stingray can reach up to 6.9 feet wide and weigh over 770 pounds. Similarly, giant freshwater stingrays can grow up to 8 feet wide and weigh up to 800 pounds.
Manta Ray vs Stingray: Distribution
Manta rays typically either live in the open ocean or along reefs near the coastline. They range as far north as North Carolina and as far south as northern New Zealand. Overall, they prefer warm temperate, subtropical, and tropical waters. Meanwhile, stingrays enjoy a much wider distribution and live in more varied habitats. They live in the open ocean, along the seafloor, near reefs, and also in freshwater rivers. That said, they still mainly congregate in warmer subtropical and tropical waters.
Manta Ray vs Stingray: Tail
Aside from their size, one of the most significant differences separating a manta ray vs stingray is their tails. The tail on a manta ray does not contain a barb, which effectively makes them harmless to humans. Meanwhile, most stingray species possess one to serrated venomous spines at the base of their tail. They rarely use their spines as weapons but will lash out with their whip-like tail when threatened. Although the venom in stingray spines rarely proves fatal to humans, the barbs themselves can deliver a nasty and painful sting. Generally, soaking the affected area in hot water will relieve the pain and kill any lingering stingray venom.
Manta Ray vs Stingray: Diet and Feeding Behavior
Of the many species of ray, only manta and devil rays evolved into filter feeders. This explains why, unlike most rays, the mouth of a manta ray is located at the front of its body rather than underneath its head. As they swim near the ocean’s surface, their mouths filter zooplankton from the water, including shrimp, krill, and planktonic crabs. In addition, manta rays exhibit advanced hunting behaviors. At deeper depths, a ray will group small fish into tight balls before dashing through and sucking up the fish with a wide-open mouth. On the opposite end of the spectrum, most stingrays operate as bottom feeders. Many species swim near the bottom of oceans or rivers, guiding prey into their mouths. They possess specialized jaws that allow them to crush the shells of mollusks, and their diet consists primarily of clams, worms, oysters, mussels, and shrimp. However, some benthic or deep-sea stingrays adapted as ambush hunters. These stingrays bury their bodies in the sand and dart out to consume small fish or squid that swim too close.
Manta Ray vs Stingray: Lifespan
Another key difference that distinguishes a manta ray vs stingray concerns their lifespan. In the wild, manta rays frequently live up to 40 years old. Furthermore, some scientists estimate that the oldest manta rays reach 50 years of age. Meanwhile, most stingrays only live between 15 to 25 years. While the lifespan of a stingray is by no means short, it measures only half that of a manta ray.
Manta Ray vs Stingray: Intelligence
Manta rays and stingrays have both garnered a reputation for their high levels of intelligence. In particular, manta rays rank among the most intelligent animals on the planet. They possess the largest brains as well as the largest brain-to-body ratio of any fish. Manta rays can pass the mirror test, which is a basic test to determine an animal’s ability of self-recognition. Only a few other species can attest to the same, including bottlenose dolphins, elephants, and some apes. Stingrays, on the other hand, exhibit more low-key intelligence. They can manipulate objects to get food and will engage in playful behavior just for their amusement.
Manta Ray vs Stingray: Temperament
Despite their enormous size, manta rays are gentle giants. Due to their eating behavior and lack of stinger, they possess little threat to humans. On the contrary, they tend to act curious around people and eagerly investigate objects that pique their interest. In addition, they partake in fastidious cleaning rituals by allowing smaller fish to remove parasites from their bodies. Meanwhile, the temperament of most stingrays is more muddled and harder to pin down. Typically, stingrays pose little threat to humans. Thanks to their high intelligence and shy nature, they tend to avoid contact but tolerate touching when necessary in environments such as aquariums. While they can act playfully at times, they can also turn aggressive when cornered. This is how the famous wildlife expert, Steve Irwin, died when he got too close to a short-tail stingray. The stingray pierced his thoracic while with its barbed tail, killing him almost instantly.
Manta Ray vs Stingray: Mating Rituals
Manta rays and stingrays each partake in unique mating rituals that differ drastically from one another. When manta rays mate, a female will attract a group of potential males. She will then put the males through a series of acrobatic twists and turns. The males follow the female as she weaves this intricate dance, with the female picking her favorite prospect from the available suitors. Compared to manta rays, the mating ritual of stingrays is much less romantic. During courtship, a male stingray will bite a female on the back or her fins. While females appear to struggle during courtship, they cease struggling once they consent to the male’s advances.