Thursday, September 22, 2011

Pull Up A Comfy Chair!

We haven't had an open thread yet; this seems like a good time to dip our toe in the open thread water!

So, what's on your mind?

Ladies of the Kitchen


Menfolk of the Kitchen

81 comments:

  1. I was shocked when I got home today and the stock market had lost another 400 points. Yikes! That's a 700 point drop in two days!

    And speaking of shocking...did you all see this? Yeah, I'm gossiping, but egads!

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  2. That's very bright. That belt would have been smashing as an accent for a black dress, too.

    I'm not particularly shocked about the stock market, I figure we're going down. But, on the bright side, everyone else is going down, too. So the whole world will suck together.

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  3. You know what excites me? It's the season for baking with pumpkin. God, I love pumpkin baking. But I don't love it any other season. It doesn't taste good in spring.

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  4. I love baking in the fall and winter! Homemade pumpkin pie is one of life's greatest pleasures...mmmmmm!

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  5. lady red - I bought a mini-pie maker at Williams-Sonoma, and we now live on homemade pot pies. I was always a pot-pie afficionado, but homemade? They are proof that Jesus loves me.

    And it's just SO EASY to make them with that maker. My 13 year old rolls out the dough in the morning, and I put everything together in the evening, and we're all so happy...

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  6. Noah really enjoys pot pies. Is this the pie maker you have? The little pies are too cute, and they look delicious! :)

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  7. YES!!! I love them. It makes them perfectly. We make other pies, too, but pot pies are one of the universe's perfect foods. You take all the things you love to eat, and put it in a crust.

    *perfection*

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  8. I used to make pot pies very often. I had (stll have, packed away with all my good kitchen stuff) little ceramic baking dishes with a hanle on the side, just perfect for pot pie making. Gus loved them, too.

    Now, at least once per week, I go and buy a fresh chicken pot pie at the Giant Eagle 2 blocks from work, for lunch.

    It has a crispy, puffy crust that I eat seperately, then a very nice chicken stew with LOTS of meat, that is perfect after adding a bit of black pepper.

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  9. That mini-pie maker looks great. A bit out of my price range for now.

    My recent raise has definitely not brought me back to parity with inflation.

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  10. Yes, it's a bit out of our budget right now too, but I may have to splurge. Pot pies are such a wonderful cold weather dish, and an excellent way to utilize leftovers.

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  11. Congratulations on the raise! I know what you mean about inflation; I get sticker shock every time I walk in the grocery store. I can't believe how high food prices are right now!

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  12. AFW-have you tried freezing and reheating the pies?

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  13. We made chocolate chip cookies on Sunday. I love them, but I cannot eat a million of them at one sitting as I used to.

    AFW, if you have an extra pumpkin pie you can send my way, I will be sure it will not go to waste.

    One thing related to the markets is that the Canadian dollar went down today. Made it a good time to take some money out of my U.S. money account.

    Have you heard about all the "outrage" of the guy in Georgia yesterday? Eyewitness testimony went a long way in the conviction, and the anti-capital punishment crowd has been making a great deal over how eye witnesses can be mistaken. They conveniently forget to mention that some of the eyewitnesses knew the guy when he did it. They were not total strangers who were identifying someone the police just happened to put in front of them.

    Also yesterday Texas executed one of the guys who dragged the black guy to death in Waco years ago. Notice not many people seem to be complaining about that one.

    I grieve for neither. Good riddance.

    I remember a story Paul Harvey did years go: You know how some people are on death row for 18 years before being executed? Well, the state of Texas (just) executed someone who had been on death row for 18 months. His victims were attorneys.

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  14. BTW, the ladies are as lovely as ever.

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  15. Matt makes a comment on a thread rife with pot pie comments and doesn't mention mine....

    Hmm, must be losing my touch ;;)

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  16. Matt, speaking of the cop-killer, did you see the twitter slugfest between Michelle Malkin and Alec Baldwin?

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  17. I use the Barefoot Contessa's chicken pot pie recipe. Best cpp EVAH!

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  18. Fay's pot pie has a terrific power over me so I thought it would be best to remain silent ;)

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  19. lady red - they hold up well to freezing and reheating.

    The death penalty thing: Catholics are supposed to be anti-death penalty. Given the fact that there are people I feel I could off personally (and I don't mean people like my mother-in-law), I'm a bad Catholic in that regard.

    Is it a hinky subject? Yes. Because when someone's life is at stake, it is incumbent upon us to be thorough and make sure that there is no doubt. But if there is no doubt - how is the world a better place for keeping people like that in it? How is it better when there is little consequence for taking the life of another? And I do consider a life prison sentence for murder little consequence (although I think it is a huge consequence for other crimes - everything is relative).

    Another thing: I'm sick of the "eye for an eye makes the whole world blind" shit. MLK and Gandhi (whatever their other faults) were both practitioners of non-violence, and they were violently assassinated. The fact is that there will ALWAYS be people willing to resort to violence, and often the only language they understand is that others are willing to visit the same upon them.

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  20. Lady Red, I heard about Baldwin's rant. I have more important things to do -- such as watching my nails grow -- than to listen to what that idiot has to say.

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  21. Also - I'd like to point out that I'm perfectly aware that I'm a mere armchair warrior when it comes to statements like "people I think I could off myself." I haven't been put to the test on that one, and I have no idea how I'd really react in that situation.

    I need to look up the Barefoot Contessa's recipe for CPP!

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  22. "Another thing: I'm sick of the "eye for an eye makes the whole world blind" shit."

    Jeez I wish you'd stop pussy footing around and tell us how you really feel..,

    L
    M
    A
    O

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  23. You had me at the heavy cream in that.

    *swoon*

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  24. Okay lr, I wanna know which of the kitchen menfolk has blue hair?

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  25. AFW, I agree with you on the death penalty.

    We need to be sure. Many of the cases that people protest have "questions." But these "questions" have been clearly and emphatically answered. Just because the protestors ask the same question 100 times does not mean it has not been answered. All they are trying to do is plant seeds of doubt in the minds of the public. Look at the Mumia case. TO hear the Mumia supporters, you would think the Philadelphia Police Department said, "Hmmm, we can actually go get the guy who killed a brother officer or we can railroad a minor pain in the butt from the local NPR station." Uh huh. The supporters ask many "questions," all of which were answered in the trial.

    There is another side to the issue, though. I know this will come news to you, but I like Dragnet. Sometimes I listen to a radio episode from the '50's. There is one episode where an older man with a hot temper kills his wife in a fit of rage. He is executed. I can't help but ask, "Why?" It is extremely unlikely that he would ever harm anyone again. Was society really spared anything? Sure, throw the book at him Put him in prison for life, but why execute him? I do not see how a greater good is served.

    But the guy in Georgia? He had already killed one person. The Texas case was so heinous that the death penalty was called for. Rape and kill a child? I'll pull the switch. For some reason the Left just does not believe in defending oneself. They will make excuses for those who are a danger, but will condemn those who actually try and protect the common good. I do not understand why. They are either extremely naive at best or subversive at worst. In either case, I don't plan on sacrificing myself on the altar of their stupidity.

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  26. Okay lr, I wanna know which of the kitchen menfolk has blue hair?

    Why, aridog of course!

    =))

    (Sorry aridog, I couldn't resist!)

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  27. Okay lr, I wanna know which of the kitchen menfolk has blue hair?

    Which of the kitchen menfolk still has hair is more like it.

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  28. Wow, that recipe looks very rich and yummy!

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  29. The death penalty, chicken pot pies, and blue hair...all in one thread. We are GOOD! :D

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  30. Matt, you had me standing and clapping at 27 and then lmao at 29.

    Awesome way to spend an evening. :)

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  31. We're watching the debate. That Huntsman guy is a smarmy bastard, isn't he? Ick.

    Newt's hitting it out of the park again. Santorum is scoring points. Perry seems really nervous. Cain just got a rousing round of applause for his tax plan.

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  32. It's been very entertaining. Perry and Romney need to lace on boxing gloves; they're trading some vicious jabs. Bam! Bam! Bam!

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  33. img:"http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y113/phasewest/002-1.jpg"

    SBJ's baby brother William - first day of school. Don't ya just want to sweep him up and kiss and tickle him into a fit of falling down giggles...

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  34. What a handsome lad! He's as cute as a button!

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  35. BEAUTIFUL child!

    If I didn't think so, I'd say, "Look how nicely that little one is dressed! Precious!"

    I can't believe he's SO OLD already!

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  36. Perry is getting annihilated by Mitt and Santorum, Also, the crowd just booed Perry's stance on educating illegals on the taxpayer's dime.

    He's toast.

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  37. Since we are going to sit here and chat, did anyone remember to bring the chips?

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  38. Hmmm...no chips, but I'll share the trail mix I'm munching on. Raisins, peanuts, dates, almonds, cashews, and M&Ms. Yum!

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  39. "Which of the kitchen menfolk still has hair is more like it."

    Hey, we have plenty of hair.


    It's just, uh, differently located.

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  40. LOL Alphie!

    I keep meaning to buy Matt one of those ear, nose, and eyebrow trimmers for Christmas :)

    ...just kidding baby :))

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  41. Alphie, LMAO! Fay, maybe Noah will lend Matt his fancy ear/nose/eyebrow trimming device...otherwise known as a weed-whacker. 18 volts baybee! Haha!

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  42. That's part of his school uniform afw, together with grey dress pants and a royal blue sweater with the school's name on it.

    img:"http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y113/phasewest/005-1.jpg"

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  43. Fay, he's adorable! A young prince!

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  44. : )

    That's part of his school uniform afw, together with grey dress pants and a royal blue sweater with the school's name on it.

    Fay, for a minute I thought you were referring to Matt. I wasn't sure if I should be seriously impressed or somewhat concerned. I'm lucky if I have time to change out of my stinky work clothes before class. The first day of class (it's a night class) I ended up parking about a half mile away and running (uphill) to class. The classroom was tiny, hot, and had no air movement at all.

    Needless to say, the out-of-breath, dripping with sweat, old guy made no friends in class that day.

    The next week was pretty much a re-enactment of the first.

    BtW- congrats to DWT for scoring a raise!

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  45. Best one-liner of the debate came from Gary Johnson: "My neighbor's dog has created more shovel-ready jobs than this administration."

    :))

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  46. I would not be offended at all if Mrs. Alphie got me one of those trimmers. Actually, that's something a father should get his son for his 16th birthday. "Trust me, son, you'll need this someday. Just put it in the back of a drawer for the next 20 or so years. You'll thank me."

    You know how they show school kids those little drawings with the black triangles in the places they'll be "noticing some changes" in the next few years. They need something like that for middle-aged guys. Just to give them a fair warning. I think it'd be much better than the shock of waking up one day, looking in the mirror and seeing a big ol' hair sticking out of your ear.
    Followed by the realization that It's no just a random stray...

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  47. Sorry for the confusion Alphie, Matt and I are LOLing at your comment!

    Matt doesn't have a uniform for school but he does have a white lab coat that we took to the mall last weekend and had his name embroidered over the top pocket.

    Very smooth.

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  48. LOL at your number 54 Alphie. Women need the same thing to warn them of the chin hairs.

    Chin hairs, shudder!!!

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  49. Best one-liner of the debate...

    LOL. That's a good one, lr. I didn't watch any of the debates, but have read plenty of the re-caps. It's nice to hear one of them criticizing the JEM and not each other for once.

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  50. LOL lady red!

    Now, everyone stop being funny please...I'm almost out of my LOL quota.

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  51. @54 Alphie and @56 Fay

    LMAO!

    AFG is absolutely mortified at his hair proliferation.

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  52. AFG is absolutely mortified at his hair proliferation.

    Perhaps we can form an online support group here at TCKT. We can all be mortified together.

    Last week, after seeing a commercial on TV, my 7yo turned to me, patted my head and said "Dad, do you want to try the Bosley Method for Hair Restoration?" Mrs. Alphie had to quick cover her smirk and leave the room.

    Kids.


    BTW- thanks for the fun- and quite funny- thread.

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  53. So lovely to see you here Alphie, hope night school gets better!

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  54. img:"http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y113/phasewest/autumn-leaf-620_2005965i.jpg"

    Autumn in England

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  55. Too funny... #28, #54, #56... thread-winners all...

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  56. The problem with the stock market now is that it opens... and when it does, people sell... Asia was down all day, Europe opened higher and is now falling back out of bed; S&P futures were spotted up 10 points, now down a bunch.

    Interesting thesis I heard regarding gold (if anyone cares)... a couple weeks ago the Swiss National Bank (the "Fed" of Switzerland) announced that it would create arbitrary amounts of Swiss Franks to buy Euros at 1.2 Franks per Euro. This radically weakened the Swiss Frank; people who had sought safety in the Swiss Frank were crushed. Folks speculate on currency on margin, typically. Meaning, gambling on borrowed money. They thought the Swiss Franc was a _sure thing_. I mean come on, it's the Swiss Franc fer cryin out loud. They got _very_ crushed.

    These same people tend to buy gold. This means they had to sell gold in order to cover their losses on the Swiss Franks.

    Gold will get liquidated along with everything else in a meltdown. If gold touches it's 200 day exponential moving average, I'll be tempted to buy more. GLD below about 160 looks attractive. The last time in the last 5 years that it broke the 200 day EMA was in the crisis in '08.

    I heartily recommend people ignore my so called "market commentary" with regard to their own investment decisions. At best, one factor out of many, and lightly weighted at that.

    Oh and PS major end of summer clearance sale on the Canadian dollar. Going on now.

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  57. Well, that explains why gold and silver are down. I wondered. I haven't had time to follow the tangled weave of world-wide financial maneuvering. Thanks lewy!

    This roller coaster is making everyone edgy. I hope it resolves soon, but I'm not holding my breath.

    Noah and I have no clue what to do with what's left of our money. It's currently parked in a savings account. We're not making money, but we're not losing it either.

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  58. Fay, you pic of autumn in England is really beautiful. The leaves are already beginning to turn here too; we finally received some precip, but it may be too late to salvage our normal spectacular display of color. We're still hoping for the best. :)

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  59. I have had a bit of gold for a year or two. Normally I would not have done it, but the JEM is not normal.

    In 1980 I started to read the morning gold fix when it came in at about 4 AM. IIRC gold topped out at about 832 an ounce. I doubt the stock market was 1200 at the time. Gold has been 1700-1800. Even if the stock market tanked it would be at what, 7000? So in the long, long term which is better? Now gold has certainly been better than the stock market in the past couple of years. However, I believe that will change once we get a grown-up in the White House again.

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  60. Netanyahu was incredible at the UN today.

    Just thought I'd say.

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  61. Netanyahu is incredible full stop.

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  62. AirForceWife,

    I miss pumpkin. Hard to find them here. those ladies illustration so nice with summery dresses. Here it is already hat and glove season.

    Busy household here, with the new business getting going. One day we will get office space. For now meetings are held in our living room. So knock on wood that our company will soar and we'll remember these times when my cats would jump on our sales directors lap as he takes notes.

    The economy here in Finland is not as bad as the rest of the EU, and lots of head shaking in disbelief over what is happening in the states.

    There are rumors that Finland along with a couple of other EU countries are printing out their own currency, and supporting infrastructure, as a contingent should the EU totally crash. Weather it is true or not, I'd like to think that it is a no brainer scenario taken into consideration.

    Owning your own company sure opens the eyes at taxation. I look at California, and am thankful we did not start there. California used to be as competitive as most European countries, my how they've fallen.

    All in all, cats keeping me busy and laughing, and grateful for friends and the internet connection that keeps us in touch. Grateful to be here at the table, anyone want some fresh lingonberry muffins?

    Time to put the kettle on for tea.

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  63. Did I miss something? What is your business? You don't mean to tell me you are one of those capitalistic pigs who thinks he or she should actually keep some of the money you earn, are you? ;)

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  64. Matt, we have a start up IT business, my hubby is a Spreadsheet specialist, did his thesis on it and his programs are intuitive. Our website will be up and running soon, and just started a twitter acct.


    Funny how it works that when you become a homeowner or a business owner you don't see socialism in the same light ever again!


    and I miss Pot pies, i need someone to get me one of those mini pot pie makers and make my own here.

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  65. A new business! How exciting! I'm glad you're in Finland rather than here. We're cheering for you Pamela! :)

    And yes. Netanyahu is a rock.

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  66. am I allowed to say what our company twitter acct is?

    Thanks Lady Red, our marriage has been very rough, but things are looking up. Having some success breeds more success. Plus what a wonder a great Bosch dishwasher does for a marriage! LOL!

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  67. am I allowed to say what our company twitter acct is?

    Of course!

    I'm delighted that things are going so well for you and your hubby. (Psst..I love my Bosch dishwasher too!)

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  68. we are @SpreadsoftOy

    Oy is the Finnish term for incorporated. I wanted to say something with some flavor in the bio, but hubby wanted to keep it simple for now.

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  69. I'm glad you explained that, or I would have thought you worked on spreadsheets for people who hated spreadsheets.

    "Spreadsheets.! Oy!"

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  70. Well, I think I may have finally gotten the hang of the 'Bookworm' game.

    I just played the same round for three+ hours, getting to Level 47, and 2,233,934 points before finally 'losing'.

    Toward the end, I kept hoping for more and more flaming tiles, and it finally granted my wish.

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  71. Going to try roasting fresh chestnuts, this year, for the first time in my life. Just picked up a bunch from the ground that had dropped from our neighbors tree over the last few days.

    I got about 2 pounds of ripe ones, and probably really ticked off the squirrels, also.

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