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United States, North Carolina, Carrboro, English, Paul, Male, 56-60, All Music, All Food.

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Thursday, November 13, 2003

Good Salsa   It took only three tablespoons of last evening’s demented concoction to put the fear of The Lord into an ordinary mixture of tomatoes, tomatillos, onion, and ripe jalapenos (just three, capped and cored) simmering on the stove. It brought the earth, and just a hint of the underworld into it. When it cools, a little cilantro, a few cloves of garlic, and the mandatory lime juice will bring it to life. It lives! It lives! 8:12:53 PM    comment []

Two headlines from the UK…   This one from the BBC highlights the US troop pullout in Iraq:   Bush to speed up Iraqi handover President George W Bush has said the US is taking steps to speed up the transfer of power in Iraq.   And this one from The Guardian says the opposite for the UK:   UK 'ready to send more troops to Iraq'   The foreign secretary, Jack Straw, has suggested that more British troops will be sent to Iraq if they are needed to cope with the country's deteriorating security situation.   The mixed message becomes clear when you realize that US elections are in November, 2004, while the Brits can wait as long as until June, 2005. That's plenty of time for the winds of war to blow up some waves across the shores of political expediency - on both sides of the great puddle!   Say, do you reckon the Queen will cave in and let a Black Hawk hover over Buckingham for the photo-op after next week’s pow-wow of the warlords? Maybe it could carry a big banner like those Pep Boys planes do over NFL stadiums. Or should that be “stadia?” Maybe he should ask her, she owns the language! 7:48:30 PM    comment []

From a photographer friend who recently visited San Francisco.   4:42:12 PM    comment []

Bad Salsa   I have more than my fair share of failed recipes because I’m always experimenting. Lately, I’ve become fond of Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce, made by La Costena. They really made the lamb shanks special that I made a few weeks ago, so they really ought to make some great salsa.   Let’s see, what else can I put in it? How about a handful of dried chiles? Great! A can of Hunt’s Diced Tomatoes – they are really good tomatoes. Hmmm…maybe some drained pineapple chunks to add the acid, with the thought of dressing it with a little tequila after it cools. Yeah, it will have to cool, because I’m gonna simmer it until it gets thick. Whew! Is that ever hot!   Okay, it’s simmered long enough. Let’s put in some onion and garlic as it cools, some ground cumin. Bedtime, so put it in the fridge.   I got up and smelled it. This stuff reeks of smoked pepper. It is very bad salsa and I should probably throw it out, but I’m not going to. Maybe I can salvage it as a spicy addition to the next experiment, a few tablespoons, added one at a time, until you can barely taste it. I’ve had enough failures that I’ve learned (1) to never deliver them to an “audience” and (2) that good intentions that turn into bad things can find new life when moderated or mixed in, so there is no need to discard them. If it ain’t burned you can always dilute it. 4:55:47 AM    comment []