This is a FANTASTIC book. I found it hiding in a corner of the Torgie’s basement, and pulled it out for something to read, and maybe to look for some recipes.

Wow.

This is not really a cookbook. Well, it is, but in the same way that…well, maybe the Bible is a manual for priests? That’s probably not going too over the top: the author spends the entire first chapter discussing cutting onions, and the true nature of onion-ness down to the cellular and spiritual level.

Turns out the author has been an Episcopal parish priest and written a ton of other books.

So, the guiding principle of this book is Lamb for Eight People, Four Times.

One of the main themes is festal vs. ferial (which is a fancy way of saying festive vs. non-festive) eating. How festal eating is usually characterized by rich people dining on unadorned meat cooked in its “pure” form, and ferial eating is characterized by poor people “stretching” meat in the forms of gravy, stews, casseroles, etc.

In talking about Lamb for Eight People, Four Times, it is explained how to take such meat and enjoy it for four full meals, prepared in such a way that eight people are satisfied each time.

The writing of this book is superb. Any true foodie or chef will enjoy phrases like “always use stock or liquor rather than water unless physically prevented from doing so”. There are many such gems. To good effect: I recently took this to heart after using sherry in the making of some beef chili that turned out delicious.

So, the principles of cooking and of entertaining are covered. Directions for men and women and their approach to cooking. How to have a dinner party, and how 8 people is the magic number.

The last third of the book even has some very good recipes, extending from mere mentions in the first part.

Highly recommended. Anyone that reads their cookbooks like a novel will enjoying reading this novel and see it transform into a cookbook.

This is a very, very funny book. Not only does it have two stories in it—one on one side of the book, then you flip it over and read it the other way around for the second story—but it also contains pirates and a lot of ham.

The pirate captain is called Pirate Captain, and he can never remember the names of his crew, so they have descriptions like “the pirate with the scarf” or “the pirate who flirts a lot”.

Also, the entire pirate crew loves ham. Basically, they eat lots of really big, honey glazed hams a lot, as well as drinking grog. They also pack a supply of limes, so they don’t get scurvy.

It’s kind of a kids book, but basically just humourous—recommended for fun, light reading.

I discovered this yoghurt and really like it as a dessert snack that isn’t too bad for you and is delicious. It is very creamy, and not too sweet. Here’s the description from the website:

This family, exclusive to Liberté has brought a whole new type of food lovers to yogurt. Méditerranée is n° 1 amongst gourmets! Méditerranée yogurt is made with pure milk, without any type of sugar substitutes or gelatin in it. Despite its purity, it is amazingly thick and creamy but contains only 8.5% milk fat. Instead of using ice cream, why don’t you succumb to a sin without guilt with the Méditerrannée family?

Lemon is my favourite flavour.

I thought I was in for a “girl movie”, and that’s kind of why Kate picked it. It ended up being a great movie—lots of funny/comedic bits, with a nice, non-sappy romance, sprinkled with more “dramedy” bits.

Close to the end of the movie is a very long roadtrip with a custom made map and custom CD mixes for every stage of the trip. It definitely made me want to get out on the road, and it I could sense Kate looking on with envy for the custom roadtrip, wanting the same thing.

A great movie to watch.

The entire album has some great “hooks” in it that are making me crave a couple of the tracks.

I’ve really been liking the samples of snippets of spanish/english phrases with fun accents on ‘Que Onda Guero’, as well as the stops/starts in the entire song.

‘Hell Yes’ mixes accented female voices with robots. Disembodied chick voices and robots++!—“I like your bass, your bass is nice” – robot: “Hell Yes”. Nice…

This is the third book I’ve gotten from Travis and Susie. I don’t usually comment on books part way through, but I can already tell from the preface alone that I’m going to like it.

As companies design for more usability and understanding, they will discover a competitive edge, for these principles save customers time and money while increasing morale. As this message spreads, more and more customers will reject the products that are unusable or that lead to frequent error and frustration.

Basically, I read that, and I immediately think “Apple Mac”, or perhaps “iPod”. It’s also a warning to anyone that is involved in crafting things that are meant to be used by people.

Alex gave me a bunch of meat-related food items, from rubs to sauces. You’ll be able to see them here as I consume them, or view the via:alexsamuel tag to find them all.

Thanks, Alex!

I actually enjoy duck feet better. The webbing between the toes really soaks up the yummy sauce they are cooked in.

This was a very strange movie. I was expecting a “quirky” British film—it’s listed as a comedy—but it strays from black humour too often to be really funny. That is, there isn’t much funny about people being killed in IRA explosions or assassinations.

The whole thing was a bit like watching a train wreck, with one horrendous or ridiculous thing happening after another, as we follow Patrick, aka Patricia Kitten, a cross-dressing Irish orphan who turns out to have been fathered by a priest.

I wouldn’t go watch this in the theater, but perhaps if you’re in a strange mood sitting around with a few other people as you comment on the series of events. Probably worth it just to hear the dulcet tones of Billy Hatchet and the Mohawks.

I got addicted to lattes at one point. But the milk got to be too much. So, now it’s all about the Americano Misto. Try it—less milky, more coffee goodness. For extra bonus points, order it annoyingly as something like “a tall skinny Americano Misto”.