And you're going to do all that on the quarter acre that's your backyard? I'm so impressed.

Yep, the summer doldrums are here. "S" ordered a hammock swinger and has been tracking its progress across the country from Des Moines to Kansas City. Can't wait for his updates today on its whereabouts. He's hoping it will arrive for the weekend, I have my doubts if he means this weekend.

The left-field wall will be green and very tall, no doubt.

More room for the ad, doncha know.

:-)

Joel...

"You want you visitors"

I wasn't going to say anything, but TomFan doesn't seem to be around. You might want a "your" in there.

Sneaks, are they shipping it by ox cart or something??? *L*

Mornin' all...

Not that I dislike summer, but I'm more of a fall guy (in more ways than one). I like my mornings crisp, my afternoons sunny, and my nights free of haze and filled with big sky. To me, mid-70's is more than hot enough. Humidity is anathema.

To be honest, this summer hasn't been all that bad. Ohio is usually very hot and humid this time of year, but we've been lucky. It's actually raining right now -- one of those lazy, all-day thunder rumblers.

This may be premature, but "welcome home, Mudge". Loomis was the perfect shop steward -- no radical redecorations or changes in policy. Her hands off approach worked well.

Anyway, slow week here in Handy Hippie land (which was a good thing, since I was able to get caught up on things). Got a small painting job to do today, but otherwise taking it easy.

Peace out, my friends...

[7]

I added a couple things and changed the headline. Thanks for typo help!

There are few things in life more fundamentally satisfying than staring proudly at one's vast estate and feeling the sense of validation that comes from being a Landowner.

Sadly, when said estate consists of a motley yard filled with naught but dead grass and thriving weeds some of the thrill is lost. Which leads to the phenomenon Joel describes. The sly seduction of undeveloped property. For there is great joy in sitting on one's deck with an open notebook and a cold Gewürztraminer while sketching out epic visions of landscaping splendor.

Of course, then you sober up. You start adding up the cost. You take into account the considerable Operation and Maintenance expenses, especially given the notorious unreliability of your labor supply. You ask yourself that if you have to struggle to keep a lawn alive, what hope do you have with a miniature garden of Versailles? You notice that your back still hurts from chopping that oak and remember that the living room still needs to be painted and your wife wants new carpet and there is that whole business of maybe getting your son a car.

That is the way of it, I fear. Such schemes remain fantasy for for all but the truly gifted, truly driven, truly wealthy, or the truly mad.

The rest of us go visit the National Arboretum. And dream.

http://www.usna.usda.gov/Information/arbormap.html

My wife has been buying fruit and produce at the local nursery. She found some cherries the other day that reminded me of the Ranier cherries I had bought from the back of a truck in Seattle.

Earlier this week, she brought home some corn. She boiled it for over an hour and it came out tender and delicious. I eat my corn without butter, salt, pepper, Old Bay, mustard, or foie gras. Just corn.

In China, steamed corn on the cob was being sold by vendors as a snack at the Summer Palace complex. I have a picture of me enjoying a good ear of corn on the other side of the world. The picture is not online yet, I will have to get it uploaded this weekend.

This is a really good kit.

I'm with you, Martooni. I'd be happy if the temperature never got higher than 20 C. Here on the prairies we are caught in a heat wave that just won't move; a Canadian record was set yesterday when the temperature in a small town in Manitoba reached 57 C. I've been to India and the Philippines in summer, and thought 47 was nearly beyond the limits of what humans can survive.

You'll need a shubbery to go along that stone path, maybe two, arranged to get a nice two level effect.

The spelling on this blog is bad today.

One of many possible quizzes today...

http://encarta.msn.com/quiz_271/sat_geometry_quiz.html

7/7

:-)

We were in the process of building a mini golf out on the back 40 (its really more like the back 2, but I digress). It was the kids choosen summer project. We brought in the dirt, and the kids were supposed to level it out, and then we were going to lay sod, but it sort of stopped at the kids level the dirt part. I'm fairly sure at least one of them drew plans up for it though. Maybe that was what stopped the project. All the planning was more exciting than actually doing something. Come to think of it, we see a lot of planning but never actually doing it.

And not too expensive.

Scrounging shrubberies is surely superior to cutting down the mightiest tree in the forest with a herring...

:-)

Snuke, I have better sense than to attempt *that* quiz!

Mr. T is an immediate-results kinda guy. He has never caught on that the best way to garden is to plant small plants and watch them grow, and to do different things in different years, just to mix the garden up a bit. He wants the gardens at Versailles right now!

Me, I love the evolution of the yard. Put things in, move them, take them out. Try different things in different places. I'm about to outgrow impatiens and begonias, tho. There are others that bloom just a profusely without needing so much attention.

Before I get too rhapsodic, I better go renew the water in the birdbath and water the papyrus...leaving in a little while to drive up the mountain.

Yoki, I'm with you. What happened to a sensible summer of 23, 24 degrees, with the occassional foray to close to 30? Its been so hot for so long that the last few days at 24 and 25 have been postively balmy. Its been hot so long we aren't even worrying about closing the windows on the house anymore. Its just hot. Thankfully we have the hot tub cranked down. Call me if anyone needs a dip.

I am sure that the reaction of Andrej is not unique. For there is no doubt that we treat food here with a cavalier attitude.

Now, on a rational level, there is nothing more vile about wasting food than there is about wasting energy or water or money. But food is still considered special. Few people say grace before bathing to thank the Good Lord for hot clean water. But maybe we should. For compared to many people in the world, and nearly everybody in the distant past, we live like kings.

Yello - I remember Ranier cherries fondly. They were almost as good as Ranier beer.

My family is evenly split over the salt on your corn issue. Half of my family believes that a light sprinkling of salt brings out the subtle sweetness of fresh Silver Queen.

And the other half is wrong.

Hi all... not enough time to backboodle yesterday's wisdom; I'm just here to give a few Grover waves from Santa Monica. One amazing thing here is that our hotel has no air conditioning... better yet.. we don't need it! We are three blocks from the ocean and the air is perfect in here... no conditioning needed.

Son of G and I had dinner last night at the Boodle-recommended Border Grill. You are right: the skirt steak is delicious!

We're leaving S.M. today and spending tonight in Pasadena. Having dinner with L.A. Lurker. Got a nice couple of emails from LTL-CA, who won't be able to join us tonight. Also heard from ac in sj, who also won't be able to but sends her greetings nonetheless.

Who knew the California boodlers were such a nice bunch? Oh yeah, that's right... I had figured as much!

Y'all are doing a fine job here holding down the Boodle. I'm not worried at all.

:-)

Actually, RD, I'd say we live better than kings. What with sanitation and all.

What's with the metric, Canuckis? I'll play along.

When I was in China and all the forecasts were in Celsius. Nearly every day was above 32 and some hit 35 or 36. In my mind anything over 30 is hot. My wife wants to live somewhere where it stays 23 year round.

40 is when electronics start to fry and 47 is Death Valley level. I gotta call "bullshake" on the 57. That is close to the highest temperature ever anywhere.

According to this web page, the highest temperature ever in Hot Maine was 45.

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0001375.html

4/7. In #1 a side of square C does not look like it's composed of side of A and B. It looks 2(side o' B) to me. Hey, I can run around the outside of a house and give you a good estimate of the sqft. My powers of estimation are considered 'expert' at the Assessment Review Board. So there.

a little butter on the corn is perfect.

came across this classic outtake from the carol burnett show (or mama's family?). still makes me laugh:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qqE_WmagjY

happy friday!

7/7. C'mon, give me a hard one! That is, a difficult test. What were you thinking?

Boko, I think the problem is that they drew the figures so that they don't look much like the numerical values offered in the problems. Once you have the basic geometry of the problem, you need to ignore the details of the figures, which are intentionally misleading.

Joel - That music scene blog is fun to read. I must admit my last involvement in the DC music scene involved dancing Pokemon, but it's nice to peak into a different world now and again.

Aloha, I overlooked your question from earlier this AM, but I wanted to take a moment to address it: I usually follow my heart and treat people as I would want to be treated in that situation. The Golden Rule works well for me, and not just in word, but in deed.

Joel, I'm disappointed that you didn't consider a go-kart track around your back yard.

Reposted from earlier:

Good morning, all.

*Tim, I meant to thank you for the Marine Boy reference yesterday. I hadn't thought of that show in *years*.

On an unrelated note, I see that there was a tragic accident yesterday at the Scaled Composites facility as that company is developing the engines for SpaceShip 2.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/27/AR2007072700653.html

We don't always think of rocket scientists as brave, but sometimes they are.

bc

Anyone know what a squabby cupid is?

http://www.vam.ac.uk/res_cons/research/research_reports/1993/research_dept/index.html

Following his return to the Museum in August after a period as the Henry Moore Lecturer in the History of Sculpture at the University of York, Malcolm Baker completed his study of Roubiliac's tomb sculpture...Blah, blah, blah...

Among the papers he gave to conferences and research seminars were: 'Squabby Cupids and clumsy Graces: garden sculpture as luxury in eighteenth century England' to the 'Luxury' symposium at the University of East Anglia...

Is this squabby sculpture something that Mudge would have in his backyard? Perhaps I'm thinking of swabbie? According to this website of unusual words:

squab: fat, clumsy, unfledged, newly hatched

Hey, perhaps the squabby sculptures ate the leftovers?

I've been thinking of Andrej's reply to Joel, having picked up yesterday a special order that arrived at a local big-box book retailer, a book very recently reviewed by the NYT, titled, "Shadow of the Silk Road," by British travel write Colin Thubron. I read several chapters last night.

His first chapter details a side trip, a pilgrimage to Huangling, site of the temple dedicated to Chinese inheritance with its Hall of the Founder of Human Civilization, honoring the ancient Yellow Emperor. The Chinese credit the Emperor with the invention of writing, music and mathematics. Nearby is the Emperor's actual small mountaintop grave-mound.

In the second chapter, Thubron actually sets the stage for beginning his journey, revisiting Xian, which Thubron has discovered has changed radically in the 18 years since he last roamed the streets of this formerly run-down provincial capital.

He writes:
Already he shops and hoardings are persuading you that everywhere is here: Paris, New York, London. The supermarkets are stacked with goods inaccessible even five years ago: electrical products pour in from Eastern China; food is piled up in what to older people seems a curious dream. ...On this transforming city, old people gazed as if at some heartless pageant. Dressed in their leftover Mao caps and frayed cloth slippers, they would settle by a roundabout or park and stare for hours as the changed world unfolded. It was hard to look at them unmoved. Men and women born in civil war and Japanse invasion, who had eked out their lives through famine in the Great Leap Forward and survived the Cultural Revolution, had emerged at last to find themselves redundant.

I agree with Andrej that overconsumption is a luxury, and with it, the accompanying squabbiness.

"This has been a particularly good summer in DC because we've had plenty of excellent weather, with days of low humidity, kind of like Maine without all the gift shops." Joel, I just got back from Maine. I've been to Maine many times. Many Mainers are friends of mine. Joel, D.C. is no Maine. We spent the last week on Great Chebeague Island, the newest town in Maine, having just gained its independence from the mainland town of Cumberland. Great Chebeague is the largest island in Casco Bay, being five miles long by three wide, and has only one gift shop, across the road from the clam shack, don't forget to try the lobsta rolls and if you can't stop, wave as you go by.

A think a squabby cupid may be pidgeon like. I wonder if it would poop on its own head.

Leftover squab and servings of fried squash.Mmmmmm

Great kit! I love magical thinking. In my case, I'd add the thought that surely everything could be done in just 1 weekend of working straight through. Nay, half a weekend if I really set my mind to it!

Aloha, I generally send a note expressing condolences and saying I'm open if they want to talk. Sometimes people like having at least 1 person they don't have to talk to about it (makes things seem more normal).

In the case of the pup, your friend's mileage may vary, but I've always found getting another waggy tail asap is therapeutic. You never forget the old one, it doesn't make it hurt any less, but the new brings her own joys at a time when it's difficult to find any. It's kind of a tribute.

Never heard of Triangle Inequality Theorem (or if I had I've completely forgotten it). I would be 6/7 except I cheated on #7. Didn't need a calculator for any of the problems, but for number 7 I did use paper, pencil and ruler. Sosoomee

I agree with you about the 57, but you have to understand the source. Old farmers eyes get wonky when it gets this hot. This summer its been too hot to see. Or think.

There is a very, very good chance that someone was looking at their thermometer attached to the side of their window (and they all are, usually to the kitchen or dining room window. I kid you not), and not realizing it was currently in the sun. I'd like to make a bet that that is how they saw the reading of 57.

All that said, there are records falling left right and centre up here. Its plain old stinking hot and we are not climatically adjusted to it, nor are we mentally prepared for a stretch of weather where 30 is the norm. -30, we can do no problemo. Its this whole plus thing where we just fall apart.

The On Faith link above Joel's pic on the Columns and Blogs page is a mostly uppercase yelling. YA GOTTA LOVE THOSE GUYS. or not.

yello is right; no wonder that report showed up only briefly yesterday. I'm so ashamed. Here is the official news from Environment Canada:

"No place in Canada has ever been as hot and humid as Carman, Manitoba was yesterday, at least since Environment Canada started keeping records more than 125 years ago.

The humidex reading topped out at a whopping 53 C yesterday, breaking the all-time Canadian humidex record of 52.1 C set in Windsor, Ont., in 1953.

The humidex is a Canadian invention that measures how the combination of heat and humidity feel to your body."

I'm terribly jealous of your recent trip, kguy...

*SIGHHHHHHHH*

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm... Lobstah Rolls... Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

:-)

Boiled corn for an hour, yellojkt?

My mom and, more to the point, most recipes recommend much shorter cooking times. Here's one from Epicurious.

"To boil corn: Bring large pot of water to boil; add pinch of sugar, if desired. Husk corn. Add corn to pot. Return water to boil and cook corn 4 minutes. Drain corn and serve immediately . . ."

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/232566

'Splain, please.

S'nuke, the island folks were wonderful hosts. In the course of the week we were there, no one asked me where I was from or what I did for living. I'll never get tired of listening to their incredibly strong regional accents. One day I was in the store-there's only one, and, as everywhere on Chebeague, if you can't stop, wave as you go by- and I inquired about the large spiderweb of wood taking shape in the lot next door. Ed the store owner, whose family has been on the island over 200 years, told me that his neighbor Mike was building a "fahty se'en fut lobstah boot" and that it was a four year project. Around our place, a four year project would be cleaning out the garage.

The geometry quiz doesn't work in Firefox, so I had to call up IE to do it. My son did math team competition this year and went to American Rregional Math League at Penn State. Here are the questions they used:

http://www.arml.com/2007%20Contest/ARML%202007%20Individual.pdf

And the answers (no peaking):

http://www.arml.com/2007%20Contest/ARML%202007%20Individual%20Solutions.pdf

For the record, I can't do any of them, and I'm not even sure what they are looking for in some.

One more thing, Joel; you put a gigantic tune cootie in my head with that title, because "...freedom's just another word for 'nuthin' left to lose'..."

And if these *are* the dog days for you, my friend, I'm sure you're enjoying the extensive time you have to yourself, simply because you can. Personally, I'm not that flexible.

Speaking of that DC music blog: Harrumph, no mention of the Rock 'n Roll Hotel on H street NE? I saw the Dark Romantics and garage band extraordinaire Mooney Suzuki there a couple of weeks ago. The place is a bit of a dive (can you call it a dive if it has an upstairs?), but I thought it was charming in a funky way.

bc

What other kinda boot WOULD one build on a Maine coastal island, I ask you???

*L*

Ah, memories... And the REALLY strong accents are a little fahthah DownEast, ayuh.

:-)

Andrew Sullivan has some interesting poll numbers--taken from pollster.com--re the presidential candidates.

Clinton 44%, Giuliani 50%
Clinton 47%, Thompson 45%
Obama 52%, Giuliani 43%
Obama 56%, Thompson 36%

He wonders why, given these numbers, anyone would nominate HRC. One of his readers suggests an answer along the lines of "Democrats have a death wish". See
http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/

That's a fairly ugly test, yello. I have a handle on 6 or 7 of the 8, but will not take the time to do them.

For the record, I got number 2 right on the ARML quiz. The rest were brain freezes.

Summer standards--that reminds me of summer term at college. I took a course at NYU one summer. Easy A, no work to speak of. Just show up, nod and look interested while the professor is talking. I'm sure NYU classes aren't like that during the regular school term. A few years before the NYU experience, I took a summer course at Tufts. It was Contemporary Latin American Short Fiction or something like that--I'm not sure; it was taught in Spanish and I comprehended neither the lectures nor the reading. The professor was really good-looking, though (he was from Barcelona)--overall I think it wasn't a waste of time. Not by summer standards, anyway.

Loomis, I think that book is going to have to go on the list. China is such a fascinating country.

What kind of geek test was that, not one answer was 42.

I couldn't figure out why the quiz wouldn't work. But it's because I'm in Firefox. Thanks for the heads up yellojkt. I'm going to attempt in Safari.

Loomis and dr:

Another new book re China is "China Road: A Journey in the Future of a Rising Power".

Many favorable reviews. The author, Rob Gifford, was on The Daily Show last night. Was very charming and told great stories.

http://www.amazon.com/China-Road-Journey-Future-Rising/dp/1400064678/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-7556990-7171963?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1185553024&sr=1-1

3/7. This is why I paint and am going into art history. Because I'm math-stupid. I got the number line question, but anyone who has eyes and can count the number of lines can get that one and luckily I remember how to count. Counting is the extent of my math skills.

Not a book, but video documentary, China Rises.

http://www.cbc.ca/chinarises/intro/index.html

It ran a couple times over the last year on CBC's digital channel.

That channel irks me. Its content all Canadians pay for with taxes, CBC is publicly funded, but much of what is shown on that channel airs no where else. It's part of my longstanding mini rant regarding CBC.

5/7 on the quiz which is a flippin miracle.
C'mon Scotty I need a sports quiz or fishing.

I was saddened to see that Coach Skip Prosser passed away.

I think most NFL training camps start today. I got my season tickets in the mail last week and they are ugly, but since we usually seem to win ugly I guess that is appropriate.

Thanks everyone, for the good advice with my grieving friend. I have said a lot of things that you all suggested and he knows that I'm here to talk anytime. I think that's why he called me last night to tell me about his dog and to have someone to cry with. Unfortunately, at the end of our conversation, he told me he felt bad for dumping on me (which is not how I saw this at all) and wouldn't burden me with his sadness anymore because he felt he was making me take time away from my family. I know this comes from his grief and it's part of the whole self-pity thing to a certain degree. Still, besides telling him that none of that was true, I couldn't figure out what to say to help him. He's really down and I suppose it will take time for him to make his way through this but I just don't want him to give up. There are friends where he is who will check in with him and who are there to talk as well. I'm counting on them to help, which I'm sure they will.

Sigh, it's so sad to be left behind, isn't it.

Thank you all again, you're a great bunch!

THIS ONES EASY!!
THERE ARE NO RIGHT ANSWERS SO YOU DON"T EVEN NEED A BRAIN!
http://www.quizilla.com/users/montypythonrules/quizzes/What%20Monty%20Python%20Sketch%20Character%20are%20you

I'm a philosopher, that's what I am!

Sorry! Sorry everyone. I don't know who let Gumby out but rest assured, I'll find someone to blame and sack them.
That quiz of Gumby's is very silly. No knowledge required and easy to manipulate the outcome. Unforgivable.
Now, here's a tough one. I only got 7 out of ten and I'm a genius.
http://www.quizilla.com/users/montypythonrules/quizzes/What%20Monty%20Python%20Sketch%20Character%20are%20you
Pwsst. Typical. That other quiz is a damn insult. You might as well ask a chap what his favourite colour is.
What?
No, I said blue.
WWAAUUGGHHh

I started power washing my house today and found I have lichens on the roof and two oak trees growing out of the rain spout. I guess I need to stay on top of things a little more.

I am painting this weekend instead of heading to Cooperstown. I just wanted to say Congrats to Cal and I hope all the people from Bawmer have a safe journey up 81.

Gumby, I shall faint. (SUP = secret unreq. passion). My other SUP is for Neil Young, that guitar strumming prairie Canoucki.

I just read a little bit about the Orioles' celebration for Cal Ripken Jr.'s forthcoming induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame. You know, for a guy whose fame is founded on his ability to play with consistent high quality in a silly game in which a guy hits a ball with a stick and other guys try to catch it, he sure is a class act.

I'm too smart for your own good apparently.
SCC http://www.funtrivia.com/playquiz/quiz2311761a780c8.html
Bloodly He!!

Loomis,

That Silk Road books sounds very similar to a book I was reading at BigBoxOfBooks while waiting for Harry Potter to go on sale. This book was called "China Road: A Journey into the Future of a Rising Power" by Rob Gifford. It was an NPR journalist from Britain that went from Shanghai to the far west border of China along a Route 66-like road.

It also had a lot of interesting side notes and digressions.

The problem with Sullivan's analysis and with polling in general is that the election is MORE THAN A YEAR AWAY! I'm not a wild fan of Sen. Clinton, but one thing you can be sure of- her negatives will not grow bigger. Everybody has made up their mind on HRC. Not so Obama and most of the rest. He may be in the 50's now, but when the word leaks out about (you name it, my guess would be shady contributers) six months before the election, he could drop like a stone. I think based on what little I've seen, that Richardson\Obama might be the best ticket for the Dems. Richardson has a Gore-like resume without the tons of Senate votes to explain that most of the others have, and Obama has charisma to burn but is vulnerable to the charge of inexperience. Thompson will be called a lazy dilettante for hopping in and out of politics and Guliani can't win unless he gets all his ex-wives to vote for him and maybe not even then. Too liberal! Too Nyew Yawk!

I'm the out of order Boodler seconding THS's recommendation on the China Road Book.

I'm also a Hungarian that scored 6/10 on the Python quiz. Back to Remedial Silly Walks for me.

Mmm CP. We could make beautiful brick music together.
That's a nice brain you have there.

Hi All!

I'm a long-time lurker. For some strange reason, I just need to share my corn on the cob recipe.

Before wrapping them in foil to roast on the grill, I butter the ears and sprinkle them with a little, salt, pepper and cinnamon. The cinnamon really enhances the sweetness of the corn.

Bashfully returning to lurkdom now.

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Shockingly, 7/7 on the math quiz. While calculators were allowed, I can't help but think that just would have screwed me up.

Aloha, I've had to take three of my dogs to the vet to be euthanized, and I think I know why it's so darn hard and doesn't get any easier. You plan it. You make a decision that today is the last day for your loving companion. They don't know, but you do, that you have decided when their time was going to end. Then you go to the office and you announce the purpose of your visit, carry him into the exam room and you hold your friend in your arms as he gets the injection, and feel the life ebb out of him. No matter how you rationalize this, it is tough stuff, and may bring on feelings of guilt and depression.

I'm a purist when it comes to corn preparation. Soak the ears in water, husk on, for about a half-hour. Put them on the grill, and cover the grill. Return a half-hour later. Remove corn from grill. Individual diners shuck corn when ready to eat. Experience pain as the steam escapes. Break off the stem. Experience pain from grasping hot corn and hot stem. Begin nibbling. Experience pleasure. No butter or seasoning required, although you are free to add it, if you are a Philistine. Okay, maybe some butter would be OK. Butter and salt are more acceptable if the corn is not so good.

Aloha, I've experienced something very similar to your friend.

We had to put down our cat the day after our son was stillborn.

Unfortunately, there's really nothing that will make it easier. Just to know someone is thinking of you is comforting, though.

Take care.

Moose - Thanks for that recipe! Since I have a serious love of cinnamon I am really intrigued.

Jeez Aloha | I feel like a twerp posting that silly stuff after your post. It sounds like you're taking the right tack with your friend. When I'm ill or depressed I tell everyone to leave me be. My friends ignore what I say (a fairly safe policy) and visit or call to my great relief. Except that time Bib brought the wife and kiddies to console me after the hemorrhoidectomy.

Speaking of freedom, THEY ARE LETTING ME GO FREEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm gonna get sprung about 3 p.m., so they say (which means it'll be 6 p.m. and the height of rush hour). I've got the PICC line/hemobling in my arm and will take IV antibios at home and at work for the enxt two weeks or so, but otherwise I am just about as germ-free as humanly possible.

However, as a former (many decades ago) tennis player, I am highly umbraged to learn that I am a quiche-eating, chablis-swilling effete-type person, according to one J. Achen bach. Harrumph. When I was playing tennis in the 1960s quiche hadn't even been invented and I'd never heard of Chablis. As far as wine went, there was Tiger Rose, Silver Dollar, and Manischevitz Grape Concord. Plus the stuff some churches had. Then about 1968 the "in" wine of choice if you were taking a girl out to a fancy dinner was Mateus rose. So I'll tolerate none of this chablis crapola, thank you very much, my good man. Indeed.

*stomps off in a huff*

Tim -- such ex-rated stuff you write there. Sweet corn. rhubarb in the fridge. vine-plump tomatoes. raysmom's kick$$ raspberry pie....who needs Gumby-love when we have such sacraments of summer....

Hi Moose...cinnamon? Well, I never. Perhaps will try, but CulinaryHighPriestTim would have to give us all dispensations.

Gumby999 -- meet me in Playdough-land with the secret handshake; bring good things for supper.

I'm with CulinaryTim on the corn issue.

Here's a fish quiz: http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/quiz/Quiz.aspx?QuizID=54

You're right, k'guy. It's a long time until the election, and a lot of things that could affect the outcome could (and likely will) happen before then.

But it made me happy to see those numbers anyway.

RD -- do you have a standing dispensation for cinnamon in odd places? Does He-who-is-called-Tim know this?

Mudge! Take care of that Pick-Line, as it can feel like a pick-axe if you roll over on it.

I gave up on the math quiz myself.

Once I run out of appendages to count at 21, it's over for me.

bc

Ooh wait, you said fishing, oh well, 9 out of 11

CP (and RD) -- I'd never heard of cinnamon on corn before my MIL made it. It is a family tradition I have happily adopted.

Well, I guess when they find Joel face down in a dark alley with a Jack Kramer signature model wooden racket stuck in his... ear, we'll know who to blame.

Moose, a brush of cinnamon?

Cinnamon is one of the secret inqredients in Cincy chili.

Wow--The Boodle is addictive after only a few key strokes. This could be dangerous.

Personally, I'm taking Mudge stomping off in a huff as a *good* sign.

Irascibility is the sign he's healthy, like a wet nose on a dog.

bc

Moose--"worser" addictions surely. Welcome, and pardon me, if I picture you as companion to Rocky. And the doofy but lovable voice.

And, so sorry about your son. Know about that sort of parenthood. Cat, too, oh my goodness. Sad days for your family. That you could say it here suggests, perhaps, that those losses, forever unchanged, have settled into something familiar and bearable.

He sounded healthy to me, bc! If he were still under the weather, I don't think he'd be taking such umbrage.

Nice and cool in the mountains. I just looked at the thermostat, and it reads 69. That would be F.

Heard from TBG via the backboodle, sounds like she and SonofG are having a great time.

Ah, bc, you know me so well. *hoists cold wet nose into the air, sniffing for dog treats*

Just caught up with Joel's kit/Outlook piece on leftovers and the infamous "meat block." Another writer three years ago had some interesting things to say about leftovers, at http://www.dcmilitary.com/dcmilitary_archives/stories/031004/27895-1.shtml

Gotta go pack up my stuff and get ready for the big breakout. Will be back on the Boodle in a couple of hours, most likely (though am planning on being visited by some grandkids, I hope; I'm going through severe grandkid withdrawal).

A touch of cinnamon in pascetti sauce and chili is very nice.

Moose | While lurkers pump up the Bosse's hit count we need all the help we can get out here. Add more comments, take a quiz, pull your weight, man. (that's not Mooset, right?)

Yaa! Mudge can stomp.

mudge,
It's good to see that the hospital stay hasn't diluted any of your perkiness.

Aloha,
It seems you were there to talk to your friend when they needed it. That's the best thing you can do.

THS,
I have never boiled corn for less than half an hour. I find it way too crunchy otherwise. That is just the old family recipe. But then my mother was from New England so her cooking style is suspect, taste-wise.

CP - Thank you. We are rapidly approaching the sixth anniversary (birthday). Most days are good, but not all.

Not sure if my voice is lovable, but I'm definetely doofy. I'm more Rocky-sized, too.

Oh, thanks be to Joel for coming to visit me in the hospital, and thanks to bc for various and sundry cheery phonecalls.

Boko - I'm a moosette. :o)

Welcome Moose. Good to see Cassandra today. Aloha, sounds like you are showing your aloha nui loa by being a faithful listening friend. Hope Mudge makes it out before rush hour.

I must go mow long, steamy, bug ridden grass or risk needing a machete to hack my way to the garage. From the look of things I'm going to have about 150 golf ball sized tomatoes all reaching the peak of ripeness at the same time, with no family around to help me eat them. As Frostniece#3 says "More for me!"

And a fine speller too.

Yello, have you ever tried less than an hour. I don't think you need to go the full hour to get the desired softness.

http://www.howtocookcornonthecob.com/

Personally I like to steam them, I do like crisp corn on the cob. But if there's a cookout they get grilled for sure.

LiT, yer very logical, I'm not surprised in the least.

10/11 on the fish quiz... *spouting before returning to the depths*

Moose, welcome. Beware of velly velly short man in black topcoat and fedora accompanied by velly velly tall and thin woman with speech affect, BTW.

Did we already do this food myth quiz??

http://encarta.msn.com/quiz_140/Food_Facts_and_Fallacies.html

9/12, and I didn't remember any of the questions, so...

:-)

Hi Moose, welcome!

Cinnamon sounds intriguing.

For stove top corn, I do 7 minutes from dropping into boiling water, no salt until after served. Lately we have microwaved on a plate under wrap.

Welcome back Mudge. I drove a Huff for a while, but the mileage was very poor.

The first of the tomatoes are turning. Tang-y cherry tomatoes - mmm.

Moose, yes, it's much like your experience I'm afraid (and I'm so sorry for your loss). My friend lives in a big 5 bedroom house and once the dog is gone, it will be very empty. His words to me were, *I've lost my whole family*, and it's true. First his wife and now his dog. Sigh.

K-Guy, I think putting down a pet is a very difficult and painful thing to do that can make even the hardened feel guilty. Maybe that's why I never wanted a pet, couldn't deal with losing them.

Yello - I suppose you're right, listening and being available is about all I can do right now. Still, it just doesn't seem to be enough.

Thanks for the kind words Frosti, I appreciate them.

Sorry to be such a downer. Will boodle more positive things now. Hooray for Mudge and his being sprung from the hospital! Now all will be right in the world again.

Thanks everyone!

omni,

The cooking corn web page reminds me of a college roommate that asked how to boil a hot dog. After we stopped laughing, he asked, "Seriously. Do you boil the water first and then put in the hot dog or put the hot dog in the water and then boil it?"

We don't cover the corn, so I have to spin it a few times to make sure the entire circumference gets cooked. That must be why it takes 20-30 minutes for me instead of ten for the website.

The reason the last batch cooked so long was that my wife was already boiling the corn when I got home and I went for a 40 minute bicycle ride before starting the rest of dinner. It was borderline overcooked, but not by much.

9/11 on the fishes. 10/12 on the food myths, but I'm disputing the Twinkie question.

http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/buzz/archives/003194.html

Spy Magazine years ago did all sorts of tests on Twinkies. They are nearly indestructible.

Frostbitten, did you see this one?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/27/AR2007072700037.html

As an ex-journalist, I'm appalled at the New Republic's statement [in brackets]--

_____________________
The New Republic's anonymous "Baghdad Diarist" identified himself yesterday as Scott Thomas Beauchamp, an Army private in Iraq, and disputed as "maddening" accusations that he had invented his accounts of cruelty by American soldiers. [[The magazine's editor, Franklin Foer, disclosed in an interview that Beauchamp is married to a New Republic staffer, and that is "part of the reason why we found him to be a credible writer."]]
______________________

"Oh, he couldn't possibly be falsifying anything, he's MARRIED to one of us..."

*blech*

And it's rather telling, in my view, that he continues to provide ZERO supporting evidence for his allegations.

*SIGHHHHHHHHHHHHH*

Back from a few days up northish, it has been a long time since I have ventured up where the Canadian/Precambrian Shield emerges from the earth to combine with the forests and lakes. I had forgotten the stunning beauty. Due to the reasons I was up there I got to enjoy from pre-sunrise to sunsets.

I have attempted to back boodle but am so tired that after a while I couldn't take it all in.

I believe in a good show of my Achen addition it was the first thing I went to when I got home (well it does beat doing dirty laundry).

Mudge so glad to hear you are doing better - I was very worried.

Loomis great news!

Martooni that number 7 looked great when I was scrolling through.

Off to prepare for the next trip - up to Boko/Shriek territory.

TBG glad you are having fun in LA.

10/12 on the food quiz. I agree with Yello on the twinkie question. I may have to do a shelf life test myself...

>I may have to do a shelf life test myself...

Aloha, by all means do experiment but I believe Twinkies are designed to outlive the actual shelves they rest on.

yellojkt, do you consume the cob also?

We do ours sealed in foil with a little water on the grill.
Mrs bh talks hers plain. Me with I Can't Believe It's with salt and pepper.

Error, good one!

7/11 on the fish. Thought I knew more than I did. Can anyone say Humuhumunukunukuapua`a 5 times fast?

Interesting live chat on Oscar, the death-predicting cat...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2007/07/27/DI2007072700984.html?hpid=discussions

Sure-Humuhumunukunukuapua`a Humuhumunukunukuapua`a Humuhumunukunukuapua`a Humuhumunukunukuapua`a Humuhumunukunukuapua`a. See? That wasn't so hard, was it?

It really depends on the definition of bad.

1) Stale
or
2) eat this and it will make you very sick and possibly kill you

If it's the first one the answer is false, if the second the answer is true. All the same I'm not conducting any experiments. Especially considering I don't even like twinkies.

Okay K-guy, now do it with one hand tied behind your back!

yeah, the right hand...heheh

Humuhumunukunukuapua`aHumuhumunukunukuapua`aHumuhumunukunukuapua`aHumuhumunukunukuapua`aHumuhumunukunukuapua`a- look, all it took were two fingers, to hit Apple-V for "paste". Next challenge, please.

S'nuke,

This blogging non-soldier is going to become a Kafka-esque litmus test on opinions over the war and our conduct therein. If he had evidence, it would be used in his eventual court-martial (and there is no way he is going to come out unscathed).

As the military, do you admit these things happened and throw the book at him for war crimes (if anything he claims is truly criminal) or do you go the character assassination route and destroy his life. Either way, there is going to be a lot of hypocritical teeth-gnashing.

Aaauurrgghhh I can't even say it once. Can't we do a test I can pass? Something easy, like what's my favoutite colour?

What?
No. I said red.
Wwaauuuggghhh

I just want to clarify that the book I'm reading about the Silk Road begins in China, because that's where the author starts. But Thubron actually traces the route of the ancient Silk Road, in some part, because the route really no longer exists. He travels 7,000 miles in eight months, making his way by local bus, truck, car, donkey cart and camel.

There are several detailed maps in the book. Leaving Xian, he travels south of the Gobi Desert, along the southern shores of Lake Taklamakan, and south of some Stans--Kazakh, Turkmeni, and Uzbeki--and does pass through several other Stans--Paki and Afghani, crosses northern Iran into southern Turkey, ending at Antioch.

In his Author's Note at the front of the book, he acknowledges that his journey was broken by fighting in northern Afghanistan. He made it up traveling that section the following year during the same season (he would have traveled had he not been interrupted).

The tease that drew me into the book is that along the way he meets modern-day camel traders. I think back to Jim Hale--of the recent camel breakfast--and his trip earlier this year to Dubai where he stayed for several months to learn the art of artificially inseminating camels.

Mudge, all I can say is take care of yourself. Lucky for you, it was some measly weasly little bacteria. Earlier this summer, a diabetic, with a teensy opening or sore on his leg went swimming near Houston and picked up flesh-eating bacteria. This flesh-eating bacteria is a subset of the bacteria that I believe infected you, Mudge--streptococcus bacteria. I think that the man who swam at Crystal Beach near Galveston survived but the situation was terribly serious for a time. (Same story several years ago with a guy from San Antone. Not diabetic, but lost his leg, then later his life.)

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/4985274.html

Nice to see Mudge so perky again.

I'm really starting to like this guy he's been linking too. He's almost as perky as Mudge. Almost.

yellojkt --

It's not too much to ask that the person either substantiate the events he's alleged took place or admit he's been doing some, shall we say, "historical fiction."

Thanks S'Nuke I hadn't seen the Post story on Beauchamp.

Credible or not, the New Republic fell into the PFC at the gate syndrome that so often befalls TV news. We need an "expert" opinion so let's grab someone who knows more than we do. The problem is the person in uniform knows little more than the reporter, sometimes less. Whether what Beauchamp claims to have seen is true or not, it is such a small sliver of what is going on it means diddly. I think if true it is not an indictment of the whole force, if false, it doesn't mean there aren't reprehensible things going on.

To both the left and right I say "the fog of war" doesn't just refer to the smoke and chaos of the battlefield. It is a metaphor for just how difficult it is to know what is really going on in a big operation, which this war is, even if you are right there to see it. For all the famed autonomy and responsibility of the American soldier vis-a-vis his counterparts in other armies, a Private sees very little of the big picture.

As for running over dogs on purpose with their Bradleys, I don't doubt it has happened a time or two. The difference between a lot of people-soldiers or not-and Michael Vick is a good arm.

On-Topic comment: Andrej reminds us of the bounty here, and the low cost of our food. Andrej, join us here on the boodle or commenting portion of the blog. We can stay in touch when you return to Europe. You were born just before I graduated from college; I admire your understanding and expression. JA teases us with the closing line "more to come" and I look forward to this.

Mudge, I'm so glad you're out, and on the way home. Take care.

frostbitten, it is good to be back. Tough day again, but just one more week. And thanks.

I've never heard of boiling corn for an hour. Corn doesn't require that much cooking time, does it?

It is so dry here, every day the rain passes us by. The flowers and gardens look like something from the Sahara. When referring to "dog days", those of us in the South think rain and thunder boomers, and lots, lots, of humidity. I don't care for summer weather, I like fall and winter. In winter one can put on lots of clothes, and when asked if there has been weight gain, one can always say, oh it's the clothes, they make me look, poofy. As in Ice Age. I can tell I'm reverting back to my childhood, I love those movies they make for the kids. Ice Age, Shrek, Happy Feet, and the list is endless.

frostbitten says it much more eloquently than I can. After Abu Ghraib I don't think you can categorically dismiss anything as beyond the pale as many of Beauchamp's attackers are doing. I find his anecdotes very plausible, but then again, I've wasn't there.

I truly believe most of our forces are professional and responsible. However, I grew up in a military environment and the spinning of tales is a time honored rite. Most war stories have both some patina of embellishment and a kernel of truth. How much is pearl and how much sand is hard to tell.

Bloggers are not journalists and the same burden of proof does not apply. I have no evidence I saw Foghat in 1979 and a pretty poor recollection of the event. I can still blog about what I saw without people accusing me of wholesale fabrication.

I find fascinating the bloviating of people with even less connection to the actual events about what could or couldn't have happened based on their perceptions of what they want to believe.

What is the burden of proof? He said he saw what he saw. Does he have to record every anecdote on videotape? That is exactly why the military started cracking down on personal photography post-Abu Ghraib, to prevent more embarrassing revelations like this. Media control over there is getting positively [pick your adjective: Orwellian, Kafaka-esque, Catch-22ish].

Can his detractors prove these types of incidents never happen? I think the real fear of his critics is the "truthiness" of his allegations whether they happened or not. They live in mortal fear of a My Lai level moral breaker coming to light and hence proactively squelch any hint of scandal.

Do we even know the truth yet about Pat Tillman or Jessica Lynch?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/26/AR2007072602025.html

Truth is the first casualty of war and I think Beauchamp is about to get fragged for the type of tale spinning that is endemic to the service.

Mudge, so glad you are making it out alive! Take care. BTW, I know vancomycin is a very strong drug. Glad it was available for you.

On another note there is nothing better than boiled then buttered and salted corn on the cob in the summer, along with a deep red sliced tomato. My staple in the summer.

SCC: "My Lai level morale breaker" as if Abu Ghraib shouldn't have done the job.

YJ writes about a "moral breaker" or morale breaker -- YJ, both are true. When typos are not wrong: 1000 points and 100 books of S&H green stamps.

Birdie -- I report that the aging sunflowers are hosting many Mr. and Mrs. GoldFinchies....and I am happy to not charge rent. Perhaps, rain will water all the thirsty plants today. I am hoping.

Off to the ministrations of evensong, etc. Tis, Friday, we can rejoice!

Yum, birdie, those are certainly harbingers of high summer. Now if I just dared to make homemade mayo like my mother for the tomatoes - I know how, just don't want to risk the uncooked egg.

Thanks again to Moose for a flavor combo new to me. I will try it. Reminded me of the other day on another blog, the author described slowly melting anchovies in olive oil as the base for a seafood pasta sauce. I never knew!

In the South, I think we need "cold tubs." In my younger days I would refuse to buy an air conditioner and just live with fans and open windows. Lots of fans. But temperatures would go over 95 sometimes and I would come home, fill the kiddie pool with well water which is 59º F. here in Carolina. In I would plunge. Every single time I would scream like a shark victim. But it was such sweet relief.

My landlord at the time owned an ice company. He would tell about people at various apartment swimming pools who would buy one or two hundred dollars worth of ice from him and put it in the pool for various parties or promotional stunts. He said it was never enough to make any difference at all. I did a rough calculation and figured it would take about $3000 of ice to chill a medium-sized apartment pool in the summer here.

Oh thank you College Parkian for the report. Sunflowers are so, well, sunny...and happy flowers and great for birds and pictures with children. I often get a few small sunflowers growing under the birdfeeder. The birds love to land on the stems and go to work on the very fresh seeds as they sway in the breeze. Yummy for them I guess. But give me sweet corn.

Slyness, homemade mayo--never tried it. I am sold on what used to be called Hellman's...the best!

Speaking of dogs, do you doggie-type people have any opinion on Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy surgery? On a three-year old Cairn Terrier? Are there reasonable alternatives. Like doggie crutches or something?

Also, there is an alternative surgical procedure called extra-capsular repair. Is it any good?

I'm not sure I trust my vet.

Home at last!!!! Ah, home, sweet home. My own computer, my own TV clicker, my own warm bed, my own....OK, enough. I'm home.

Loomis, you mentioned that travel fella passed through a lot of Stans--I'm wondering if he made it through Stan Laurel, Stan(ley) Kowalski, Stan Musial or Stan Lopata?

The bug this time was coag. neg. staphylococcus. The first time I had this thing three years ago, it was as you described, a bug from swimming in the Severn River near Annapolis--that one was called vibrio vulnificans, a common bug found in rivers, lakes, and oceans the world over. (The vibrio is a family of nasty buggies; one of them is an infection people get when they are bitten by sharks, because that particular strain of vibrio lives in sharks' mouths.) And yup, got both of 'em from a small crack or cut in the skin on my leg. That flesh-eating one is one scary critter.

Got 12/12 on the food myths quiz. First one I've aced, I think.

We only boil corn on the cob for about 10 minutes. When I do it on the grill, I use a tip I learned from one of my grilling books. I shuck back the husk all except the very last layer, which I leave in place. The husk that I've pulled back is gathered and tied with a piece of string; it makes a handy "handle" for the ears, and when I grill the ears they hang over the edge of the grill, out of the way of the eat. Makes them easy to turn, and you can see through that one last layer of husk to see if the corn is burnt or not, and when to rotate, etc. Plan B is to shuck them all the way, baste them with butter and some chopped parsley, basil or cilantro, and wrap them in aluminum foil.

birdie:

Your comment about corn and tomatoes reminded of a particular meal from, oh, too many years ago. I was 18 and had just returned from a summer in Europe, the first really big thing I had done on my own.

It was the end of the summer--harvest season--and my father, who was a farmer, always ate dinner late when he came in from the field.

One evening just after I returned, the friend who had been to Europe w/ me and I had dinner w/ Dad. The dinner was steak, home-made French Fries, corn on the cob, sliced tomatoes, and beer.

Pretty simple, but everything was very good --we had wonderful tomatoes back then--and I remember it to this day as a great meal. Maybe it was the combination of the good food, eating w/ my dad as a grown-up, and the new sense of myself that I had as a recently returned world traveler.

Yeah, Mudge. And your own pillow too.

Ah the comforts of home.

So glad you're home Mudge, although your posts from the hospital were very funny. Of course that's not a good enough reason to stay there.

Years ago a friend told me to microwave corn, I've done it that way ever since. Takes about 1 1/2 minutes per ear (4 ears = 6 min.). No waiting for water to boil, no big pan to wash. I cover the corn with either plastic wrap or a casserole cover to keep the moisture in and do not add water. I am talking about native corn from the local farm stand. I never buy corn on the cob from the supermarket or out of season. To me it's like tomatoes, if it isn't native, why bother. Oh, and real butter and real salt. Again, it's a limited season, I want to enjoy it with all the fixings. I have been meaning to try grilling it, maybe this weekend. My own garden corn is showing some ears. This is very exciting and I hope no critters get to them before they are ready to eat. Speaking of the garden, I wish I could fax you all some green beans, they are growing like weeds.

Aloha, so sorry about your friend. May daughter put her dog down two weeks ago, she's still mourning but is also investigating adopting a new one from a Great Dane rescue. I think just talking about a new one has helped her a bit with the grief. She spent almost 24/7 with her dog the week leading up to the death. I think it helped her say goodbye, but nothing really eases the pain except time. As others have said, just letting your friend know that you are just a phone call away and that you are thinking of him can be a comfort.

Corn that is less that 24 hours old is ready to eat after being boiled for 10 minutes.

Corn that is more than 24 hours old should be used to feed the cattle.

Very glad you're home, 'Mudge. :-)

Everyone, I have a beef with TNR trying to have it both ways with Beauchamp. Either he's "just" a blogger who isn't bound by jouranlistic rules, or he's a contributor subject to fact-checking (as has been suggested by TNR). The incidents he referenced are so beyond the pale of even a battlefield that it's reasonable to think people would have reported them in a verifiable way. And they very neatly fall into the "too good to be true" category that should ALWAYS be confirmed, in my opinion.

*stepping off soapbox to go fax 'Mudge another IV-based ciprihana*

:-)

Home grown corn, like peas, tomatoes and asparagus, rarely make it out of the garden alive - are consumed on the spot and are more delicious than the cooked variety. When cooked, corn on the cob is a matter of taste, like eggs, and the 3 minute variety was our household standard, but then only when freshly picked from the garden and raced to a pot of boiling water for instant immersion. Only old corn needs long boiling.

SCC -Grrr - that would be 'my daughter'

SCC: journalistic rules, of course.

> rarely make it out of the garden alive

Beware The Forage Master little ears!

Oh the vegemanity....

Bad Sneakers - I agree that microwave corn is almost as good as boiled. I used to grow corn in my back yard. My favorite was this variety called "Kandy Corn" with distinctive purple tassles. To get maximum benefit you had to start the water boiling first, and then run quickly from the field husking as you went.

Shiloh - ha! I see we think alike.

I would be scared if I were you.

Oh goodness! Boiled corn, please, no don't.

Bring half of a large pot of water to a boil. Add the corn. Cover and bring to a boil. Turn off heat. Pour off water. Let stand about five minutes. Steamed corn. It should bring tears to your eyes, it is so good.

Thanks Bad Sneakers. I know, it's a huge loss to lose a pet and to deal with having to put them down is tough as it is. Doing it after the death of a human family member is even more devastating.

My friend has decided to try a round of chemo which may or may not help. I told him that if the vet thought it would be worth a try (which he did, 90% chance it would buy the dog another year without much suffering), I thought it would be a good idea. I just don't want my friend to be alone right now. He's in so much emotional pain and losing both his family members in such a short period of time would just destroy him.

Oh sorry, I promised more upbeat posts, didn't I.

nellie- I'm intrigued by your steamed corn technique. Next time we get some decent corn I will suggest we try it.

Not saying we will, since my suggestions are not universally followed.

Aloha - Hey, I don't think any any of us mind "downer posts" so long as we feel it helps the person posting. At least I don't.

We, too, have occasionally microwaved corn, but only when we freeze some for the winter, and then get it out in, say February. If it isn't freezer-burned, that is. Of course, it's never as good as fresh-picked, but hey, ya gotta do what ya gotta do in February.

I'm still playing a lot of Boodle catch-up, but I assume you've all read that excdellent Eugene Robinson column on Torqueberto this morning.

Mudge - I liked the Arlen Specter quote. "I do not find your testimony credible, candidly."

Thanks RD, I appreciate the sentiment and, yes, it's helps me a lot to hear what you all have to say.

Question on Torqueberto - is he that slippery that no one can nail him on anything? Seems he's dirtier than a hog in a mud puddle. Why can't we just find a way to throw him in jail or, at the very least, sack him!

RDP, man, I hate it when that happens! I had a large Golden who tore his ACL at age 12.5, and my current Berner/collie mix just tore his about 2 months ago (but he's only about 75#). Happens to all the great athletes.

Both responded well to medication (either shots or pills), rest and a wait-and-see of a month. The Golden never limped after that time and fully used the leg. Cutter isn't doing quite that well, but it doesn't appear to be bothering him. He's on Rimadyl, cosequin and hyaluronic acid.

For a 3 yo Cairn, I'd go see a specialist if I didn't trust my vet. In any case, you'd want someone who does lots of these if you go for a surgical option. University Vet school nearby?

I did read the TPLO is relatively new, so they may not know what will happen 10 years down the road to the patient (although initial results are great). EC-R can cause osteoarthritis in a few years, but again, my experience with older dogs is that's been fairly easy (if expensive) to manage. When you're deciding, ask about and factor in those prescription costs. Again, my guys are/were old, so decreased lifespan from the arthritis drugs doesn't factor into my decision as long as it makes them comfortable while they are around. . .

Not what you wanted to hear, I'm sorry. I would talk to that specialist to get all the options. There are things regular vets don't always do well.

Braces are also available:
http://www.woundwear.com/product3.cfm#Description

Just see a vet you trust. :-)

Yoki, you've had very different results than I have. Are you around?

Aloha, a year would a blessing. Don't worry about bringing us down.

Given the great gardeners here, I've been inspired to start preparing a number of raised beds this fall, for next Spring. I can never get everything done at once, so if they're ready, they will get planted when it's time. If I have to get them ready then too, not so much. I plan to return to my Ohio days of grazing for dinner, fresh blackberries, tomatoes and maybe some corn. Mmmmm.

Thanks dbG! We have her on Rimadyl now and it certainly seems to help. We are, indeed, going to talk to a specialist. I am hopeful that the damage won't require surgery, but if it does, it does. But I certainly want to tap into the collective wisdom of the boodle before I write out that $3000 check.

http://movies2.nytimes.com/movie/375398/In-the-Valley-of-Elah/trailers

Movie trailer link for the upcoming film "In the Valley of Elah" (the site name from the Bible, the location where David and Goliath fought). Last night on the web via my ISP, I caught the story of the movie along with the trailer, the film tentatively slated for release on Sept. 14.

I see now that my ISP simply repackaged the NYT feature story, link below, about the spate of Iraq war movies coming out (before the war is actually over, unlike WWII movies and movies about Nam), including one from the Weinsteins.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/26/movies/26movi.html?

"Elah" is written by Paul Haggis, who also penned the scripts for "Crash," "Million Dollar Baby," and "Letters from Iwo Jima" A haggard-looking Tommy Lee Jones of San Antonio stars as the father, Susan Saradon the mother, and a very brunette Charlize Theron as an investigator.

This film catches my attention unlike the Simpson movie and "No Reservations" opening this weekend, as well as the other summer fare offered up.

The article also mentions that British director Paul Greengrass will adapt for film Washington Post reporter Rajiv Chandrasekaran's book about life in the Green Zone.

I don't know quite how to express this, RD, I am conflicted. A friend had her Golden Retriever put down last week. He was as much a friend as she is and the pain of his loss weighs heavy on me. The end has been coming for several years and she had spent close to $10k in cost to keep the boy alive and pain free. When NMTBD (Nothing more to be done) happens, it becomes a test of what is right for you and what is right for the dog. She did the right thing for him, I think, but there is no anodyne for the pain of a lost loved one. The only solace is that the dog is free of pain. Remembering helps.

Shiloh - fortunately this isn't a case where the life of the dog is in danger. And putting a 3 year old Cairn Terrier down when we have the resources to deal with it simply isn't going to happen. This dog is my daughters best (dare I say only) friend. Yet an informed consumer is the best consumer. Before I subject this little dog to surgery, I want to make sure it is the smartest thing to do.

You'll have to excuse me for the next 2 1/2 hours while I swoon: "Shakespeare in Love" is coming on one of the Indie channels.

RD - given the age of the dog, your resources, and the importance to your daughter it makes sense to use the best practices of vet medicine to achieve a salubrious outcome. Do it.

Mudge:

Which channel?

Never mind. I looked this up and found that I don't get this channel. Of course, there's always Netflix.

Mudge - I never realized you were such a fan of Joseph Fiennes.

Favorite Shakespeare in Love Quote:

Philip Henslowe: The show must... you know...
William Shakespeare: [prompting him] Go on!

Boodle dipping whilst I can during the oncall week from h e l l.

I go with the 10 minute (or less) corn rule. I was at a get-together where I was helping a bit with the meal (mainly carrying food to the table), and I kept asking about the corn - they must have boiled it for half an hour. I thought it might be a Southern thing - the person in charge was from Florida. The corn was way overdone.

Last night I was at the Mariners game, for Stitch and Pitch. Lots of people knitting and crocheting. Fun but weird! (And I got 2 calls from work while I was there.)

"The play's the thing."

mostlylurking - My sister-in-law was at that stitch and pitch game!

'tis a small world indeed.

I got 11 of 12 on the food quiz, so you can all go back and read my recipe for corn.

I remember the first time corn cooked as I described was served at my grandmother's. Grandma came from Nebraska, where you boiled all vegetables until all that remained was the color.

"Green. Must be beans."

One of the aunts cooked corn this quick way and everyone was amazed. And happy.

RD, we could have worn Theron bows! Next year, let me know if she's going (I'll promise not to say "boodle" or divulge bunny reading room secrets). That's wild. Is she going to see the Yarn Harlot when she's in town in September?

Whew, just finished making lemon squares to bring to my cousins' annual family cookout tomorrow. Turning the oven on when it's already 80 degrees in the kitchen is not recommended. Did some cleaning and laundry so I can spend tomorrow having fun without thinking about chores waiting for me on Sunday. We're bringing the granddaughters with us as my daughter has to work. I forgot to mention that two days after my other daughter put down her Great Dane, one of daughter #1's cats disappeared. We assume a coyote got it. She tries to make sure the cats are inside at night but they are always trying to go out. It's a shame, he was a nice cat, she got him before the girls were born. They were upset but at least still have the other cat, who is more child-friendly. My daughter didn't mention the coyote theory to the girls, just said that the cat was probably sick and went off to be alone. This was not a good month for the Sneaker family animals.

THS, what a nice memory. You emerging, spending quality time with your dad and a scrumptious meal complete with a good friend. Mouth is watering!

Bad Sneakers, Lemon bars...yummy. Sorry about your family animals. Cats don't always get their nine lives. But they try that's for sure.

Aloha..Given the scenario, I think you run into the same problem taking AG down that you run into with taking Dub/Cheney/Rove/et al. down...the case has got to be so air-tight and so all-encompassing that you take the whole lot of them down all at once, otherwise you'll (more than likely) end up with someone worse, at least for a while (and goodness knows what they can do in no time flat). Sometimes, the smart move is not to move, just keep your eye on the the light at the end of the tunnel, and hope Congress keeps a foot held strategically over the brake pedal.

(Considering the scenario, it's the Congressional oversight part of the equation that needs work. Yes, they're making moves in that direction, but this isn't exactly familiar territory for most of them, and there are bound to be mis-steps. They walk before they run. Toss in the over-hyped over-extended over-financed over-crowded presidential campaign, and it's just a big ole twisted mess.)

Sorry, I was out of the loop just as I had something to say to RD and my dear dbG.

Yeoman tore his ACL when he was 3; we did the TPLO for him. It was expensive, and the recovery was hell. Nonetheless, because he was relatively young and *so far as we know* TPLO does not cause osteoarthritis later, we opted for that. But note, because he was born displastic in both hips and elbows, and arthritic in those self-same joints by the age of 1 year, his knees were pretty much the only joint holding him up. Preserving them was of paramount concern.

Ms. Libby tore her right ACL just two weeks ago. She is now 5 years old (average lifespan for BMDs is 7.5) and has no other joint disease. We did the 'old' surgery for her. Much less expensive, and her recovery has been remarkable (once we got her off the junk). She is doing just fine. She won't be able to go for a walk for at least eight weeks, but she submits to the physio very willingly, and is putting a wee bit of weight on that foot (more every day) as she should.

This is not a euthanizable injury. It is very very common in dogs both big and small (terriers and CKCS are the small breeds in which it most commonly occurs, and all big dogs are susceptible). It can be treated very effectively. If surgery is for some reason not an option, pain control and rest can have remarkable outcomes. I say, RD (sorry if I sound judgmental, I don't feel that), that there is absolutely no reason not to try every treatment, from least to most invasive, to find out what works. Especially for a young dog (-5 years) there is a good chance of a good quality of life with whatever regime ultimately works for them, which is what we promise them when we bring them into our families.

Here the explication ends.

Just to finish the Shakespeare in Love thread:

It's a mystery!

Should have said, RD, that the TPLO for Yeoman was about $3000, and the EC-R for Libby about 1800. I would imagine the Rimadyl/rest regime would run about $60 a month.

I will add this, though it is not an option that I have considered seriously for any of my dogs; amputation above the knee is preferable to euthanization, as a last resort, and most small dogs do very well on three legs. The bigs, not so much.

Watched the first half of one of my favorite films with the kids tonight: Where Eagles Dare. Odd but successful combination of Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood. Getting late and decided to save the massacre of many Nazis for tomorrow. Spoiler: Burton and Eastwood have gotten into the castle and are about to inflict much carnage on them darn Nazis.

Kids go to bed and I am flipping channels and found myself stuck on The Dirty Dozen. Geez, how long before I'm one of those old guys shushing my wife because there's a great Military Channel program on?

If you need a second opinion, get it from another vet. Dogs most commonly hurt their knees when doing stairs. It is a decidedly common injury for dogs.

Because Wilbrodog has rather straight knees, I investigated how to minimize injury issues, such as slowing him down when going down stairs and never running him on hard surfaces if I can avoid it. (I trot him on my bike-- that also gives me opportunity to slow down for traffic.).

Weight control is extremely crucial for good joints-- and there I feel bad; I've allowed him to gain some weight and he is hovering on borderline chubby now (you can see where his ribs end, but they're harder to feel and the bumps of the last 2 ribs are no longer visible).

http://www.iditarod.com/learn/vet-01.html

Since cairn terriers are less than 20 lbs, your dog MIGHT not need surgery; however given that your dog could live 10 years or more, I say shop around for a few opinions on stablizing the knee before proceeding with surgery.

And, think if you want to restrict your dog from stairs, jumping on beds, etc.-- anything that could wreck the knee further. If your dog has a lot of energy and is active, simple rest may not work and would impair his quality of life as your girl's best pet.

My Ace high flush got beat by a 2s and 3s full house. Who goes all in with 2, 3? Madness.
Then a guy caught a straight on the river to beat my Aces. I changed strategy by going to another website and getting trounced by a 15 yo boy in Ireland playing "Empire Earth." He sacrificed a large force of cavalry attacking my home island, wiping out my labour force. I resigned and I remembered a Gahan Wilson cartoon depicting two sweet kids playing a board game while explaining to a comically horrified adult, "... then you round up the villagers and send in the interrogation teams."
I haven't been able to find a copy of the cartoon on the internets. Funny really, I found "One small step for a Gnargh, a giant leap for Gnarghkind."

My parent's Cairn, Geordie, livied 17 years. He would have made short work of Error's ground hogs. The same for their dachsy, Tammy. We had only had him a few weeks when he went after a rabid fox that drifted through our croquet game. We couldn't tell if he made contact with the fox so he had to quarinteened for 90 days. The vet only charged a dollar a day, which makes me feel very old.
When Tammy was brought out after his incarceration he took an overlong look at the family then scampered around, yelping.
I think I mentioned the cairn.

SCC We had only had.... Trying to have it both ways again.

>two sweet kids playing a board game

"Sign ze papers old man..."

*weekend Grover waves*

:-)

Good morning all.

When I was growing up, we planted cash crops when re-planted our rubber trees. Rubber trees take 5-6 years to mature so for about 3 years we would plant tomatoes, chillies, sweet potatoes, groundnuts, papayas, pumpkins and maize (you call them corn). I don't know what variety of maize we planted but they were hard as rock. They were orange in colour. We boiled them with salt - 1 hr! We treated groundnuts the same way.

Morning all, vacation officially starts today, next two days are busy with a family wedding, my kids are in the Bridal party so it will be hectic but wonderful.

Looks like we should have great weather, hot and humid for the week.

RD hope all goes well, I can understand how important a dogs life is to a young girl.

Hopefully I will be able to borrow the oldest laptop occasionally to keep caught up, but if not have a great week everyone.

I don't quite know what to make of this story, but its in the New England Journal of Medicine so I guess it's not an urban legend... (The Miami Herald printed it this morning)

A hospice cat with ESP?

http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/357/4/328

Thanks to Yoki, dbG, and Wilbrod for all the great info! I do hope it goes without saying that euthanization was never an option! But now I feel a bit better prepared to discuss the options with the specialist this week.

Wilbrod - our dog is small and lean, but very high energy. Thanks for the insight on stairs.

Thanks, Yoki! I knew you knew the other side.

When I took Cutter in, his vet looked at me and said, "In school, we used to joke that every dog/cat had 3 legs and a spare. It's amazing how well they can get along on 3. But we're not there yet with him!"

You're welcome, RD. Best wishes, and ask about Hyaluronic acid too. It's amazing stuff. I take it for arthritis in my hands too, but was truly sold when I saw Lucie running up and down the stairs again after she'd taken it for 3 days.

Good doggie info. Filing for future reference. Oh, the boodle-wisdom.

Off to farmer's market where I hope to find sour cherries. Am listening to a discount compilation of Dave Brubeck. CeePeeBoy has discovered jazz. May be hot outside, but 'tis cool in the house with Dave in the background. Am thinking about wiping the mildow off a very old album: Chase the Clouds Away by Chuck "Magic"gione. First LP I ever purchased; had three forty-fives before that, including Angie by the Rolling Stones, and two John Denver spin-ables. I cannot tell you which ones. Suddenly, the age of casette and, briefly, 8-track tapes...and mix tapes for traveling and as audible love letters.

I am old. I am old. I shall wear my petal pushers rolled.....yet,I do dare to eat peaches!