- It might be sexy that she has tight girl part muscles, but the image of something dangling like that is not sexy.
Saturday, December 31, 2016
KLEM FM
Overheard at Lem's:
It wasn't a great look for Mick Fleetwood either.
Homebuyer find mummified body in the garage
The discovery, police say, happened around 1 p.m. when a potential home buyer was inspecting the garage of a home in the 19900 block of Spencer. The body was in the backseat of a 1990 or 1991 Plymouth Acclaim, authorities said.
Lloyd Jackson, a spokesman for Wayne County Medical Examiner’s office, said officials estimate that the body had been there for “years” and was beyond the decomposition stage when “the body is brown.”
Jackson said medical examiners just “inspected” the body and will await the arrival next week of an anthropologist from the University of Michigan, which partners with the county, who can conduct special tests, such as examining hip bones to determine gender.
“At this point, they don’t know if it’s male or female, or cause or manner of death or anything like that,” Jackson said. “That’s when the anthropologist comes in and checks it out. They didn’t do an autopsy, they just did an inspection because that’s usually what they do when they get these bodies that have been really badly decomposed or mummified.”
Detroit Police spokesman Dan Donakowski said officers were called to the location after the body was discovered. The home, he said, was being rented to a family and did not use the garage.
The potential homeowner “opened up the car door and observed this decomposed body inside,” Donakowski said. “We talked to the current tenants of that location and they were told that the actual homeowners had said basically don’t go in the garage, don’t put anything in the garage.”
Lloyd Jackson, a spokesman for Wayne County Medical Examiner’s office, said officials estimate that the body had been there for “years” and was beyond the decomposition stage when “the body is brown.”
Jackson said medical examiners just “inspected” the body and will await the arrival next week of an anthropologist from the University of Michigan, which partners with the county, who can conduct special tests, such as examining hip bones to determine gender.
“At this point, they don’t know if it’s male or female, or cause or manner of death or anything like that,” Jackson said. “That’s when the anthropologist comes in and checks it out. They didn’t do an autopsy, they just did an inspection because that’s usually what they do when they get these bodies that have been really badly decomposed or mummified.”
Detroit Police spokesman Dan Donakowski said officers were called to the location after the body was discovered. The home, he said, was being rented to a family and did not use the garage.
The potential homeowner “opened up the car door and observed this decomposed body inside,” Donakowski said. “We talked to the current tenants of that location and they were told that the actual homeowners had said basically don’t go in the garage, don’t put anything in the garage.”
Via Drudge: Link to the rest of the story
"Husband has gone 20 YEARS without speaking to his wife since she upset him"
Most couples have experienced a long and awkward period of silence after a row it is unlikely to compare to a husband and wife who have not spoken for two decades - but continue to live with each other.
Otou Katayama, from Nara, southern Japan, continues to live with his three children and wife, Yumi, who perseveres in making conversation with him but has only ever received a nod or a grunt in response for 20 years.
The Japanese couple's silence was revealed by their 18-year-old son Yoshiki, who wrote into a TV show asking them to fix the situation as he had never heard them have a conversation.
And sure enough, a meeting was arranged between them in the park where they had their first date, as their emotional children watched on.
'Somehow it's been a while since we talked.
Otou Katayama, from Nara, southern Japan, continues to live with his three children and wife, Yumi, who perseveres in making conversation with him but has only ever received a nod or a grunt in response for 20 years.
The Japanese couple's silence was revealed by their 18-year-old son Yoshiki, who wrote into a TV show asking them to fix the situation as he had never heard them have a conversation.
And sure enough, a meeting was arranged between them in the park where they had their first date, as their emotional children watched on.
'Somehow it's been a while since we talked.
Via Twitter: for more go to this link
Tucker Carlson and Glenn Greenwald together at last
Holy crap it's New Year's eve already.
This is where I'd be putting the finishing touches on decorations and preparing hors d'oeuvres for aprox. 100 guests coming and going. Four hot and four cold. The bar stocked to the maximum capacity, sufficient to last through the whole year actually. The whole place cleaned up. Until one final time a guest said upon leaving "See you next year!" having not seen them at all during the year, and I thought in that moment, "This is bogus" and dropped the whole effort.
That's all it took. The same deal with political party affiliation. In both cases there came a time when there existed no further point to loyalty or tradition.
There's also no point in arguing with strangers but somehow I still do. That's fading too.
For example this Denver Post article by their editorial board, Now is not the time to "move on" and excuse those who seek to harm us.
It's fake news presented as political opinion and comments to it are extraordinarily dopey, worse than the article itself, written by people who actually use Denver Post to formulate their opinions. Now, what would be the point in arguing with them? The single reason is to present my own version of truth, and honestly, at a place like Denver Post, to an audience of their commenters, that amounts to trolling.
Here's Tucker Carlson and Glenn Greenwald.
This is where I'd be putting the finishing touches on decorations and preparing hors d'oeuvres for aprox. 100 guests coming and going. Four hot and four cold. The bar stocked to the maximum capacity, sufficient to last through the whole year actually. The whole place cleaned up. Until one final time a guest said upon leaving "See you next year!" having not seen them at all during the year, and I thought in that moment, "This is bogus" and dropped the whole effort.
That's all it took. The same deal with political party affiliation. In both cases there came a time when there existed no further point to loyalty or tradition.
There's also no point in arguing with strangers but somehow I still do. That's fading too.
For example this Denver Post article by their editorial board, Now is not the time to "move on" and excuse those who seek to harm us.
It's fake news presented as political opinion and comments to it are extraordinarily dopey, worse than the article itself, written by people who actually use Denver Post to formulate their opinions. Now, what would be the point in arguing with them? The single reason is to present my own version of truth, and honestly, at a place like Denver Post, to an audience of their commenters, that amounts to trolling.
Here's Tucker Carlson and Glenn Greenwald.
There are fourteen uploads of this video on YouTube presently. I have tremendous respect for both of these guys. I didn't care for Greenwald at first, I think reflexively, but I've come to regard him as a straight shooter. I saw him in a debate with an American general one time and I must say Greenwald completely outclassed him. And I appreciate his work with Edward Snowden. That is a critical point in modern American history. As such he is nothing less than an historical figure. Plus he likes dogs.
Releated.
Jon Gabriel writing for Ricochet put out a nice succinct essay recapping the salient points of the mainstream media's new trope of Russia hacking our election, an effort designed to deflect attention off the content of Podesta's emails onto a familiar foreign bugbear by way of making excuses for failing in their massively corrupted efforts to foist Hillary Clinton upon us. It works on partisan Democrat dopes but not on anyone else.
The essay boils down to Russia might have hacked Podesta, so far that is unproven, but they did not hack our elections. No matter how many times mainstream media says that they did. No matter how hard they push that as their axiom.
Speaking of axioms, I've read "[absurd] as WMD in Iraq" at least twenty-five times the last couple days. Suddenly a flood of references to that. Just thrown out mid sentence as unquestionable internalized truth. Yet a simple internet search by any of various search parameters shows that chemical weapons were found, and repeatedly, and long after the counter truth of WMD non existence had already been accepted. As axiom. They stopped listening. They stopped learning. In each case I stopped short and dropped what I was reading or viewing and regarded the writer too seriously mal-informed to continue any further, as I did with one of the Tucker Carlson / Glenn Greenwald uploads, annotated by the uploader who I was in agreement until that minor side point. It ruined the whole thing even though everything else comports to reality. The aversion has developed to the point now where I'm beginning to consider nearly all political discussion not worth the effort, not worth the time given it, not worth the effort of contesting, not worth so much as simply enjoying Crazy Russian Hacker videos, or talent videos, how-to-make-caramel videos, even ancient Egyptian malarky videos delivered through agonizingly distorted British accents.
Man, this new year sure is going to be new.
Friday, December 30, 2016
KLEM FM
I think that is AprilApple's old boyfriend in the upper right side of that photo. He owed his later fame to Eddie Van Halen's mechanic.
They have already started worshiping the God Emperor of the Cherry Blossom Throne as a God......
The Chinese New Year is almost upon us. It is the year of the Rooster and the Chinese already know how they want to fashion their pagan idols. It is in the guise of the God Emperor of the Cherry Blossom Throne as a Rooster!
Per the New York Post : "A massive rooster inspired by the cocky president-elect was erected this week in a Chinese shopping center.
The 23-foot-tall bird depicts Donald Trump in a fowl mood, as he gesticulates wildly in a square in the northern city of Taiyuan.
The sculpture’s designer told the South China Morning Post that he was inspired by Trump’s familiar ‘do and jerky hand movements.
The egg-shaped body and golden coif deliver the message of “getting rich,” according to Phototimes, a social media news outlet run by Tencent. The egg is a symbol of fertility and prosperity in China.
Breaking the Glass Ceiling....errrr....or something.
By Hannah Ferrett, The Sun December 30, 2016
These stunning pictures look like works of art … but take a closer look and you’ll see they’re hiding something pretty unusual.
They are all of weightlifter Kim Anami, who is also an intimacy coach and has shared them all online.
As well as showing many of the stunning places Anami has traveled to, they feature items including vases and kettles, all of which the strength expert has hoisted into the air using her vagina.
Anami shared them all on her Instagram page, where she has over 55,000 followers.
Her bio explains she’s a “holistic sex and relationship expert, vaginal weight lifter and surfer.”
Chamberlin: I could never sing for Hitler
The Mormon Tabernacle Choir's acceptance of the invitation to sing at Donald Trump's inauguration has spawned widespread debate among the faithful and thousands of signatures on a petition demanding the decision's reversal.
Now the choir's participation has even more fallout: the resignation of a female singer.
"Since 'the announcement,' I have spent several sleepless nights and days in turmoil and agony. I have reflected carefully on both sides of the issue, prayed a lot, talked with family and friends, and searched my soul," Jan Chamberlin wrote in a resignation letter to the choir president and choir members. "I've tried to tell myself that by not going to the inauguration, that I would be able to stay in choir for all the other good reasons. I've tried to tell myself that it will be all right and that I can continue in good conscience before God and man."
But she could not do it, Chamberlin said in the letter, she later posted on Facebook. "I could never look myself in the mirror again with self-respect."
The choir's participation in the inauguration would "severely damagye" its "image and networking," she said, adding that many "good people throughout this land and throughout the world already do and will continue to feel betrayed. ... I know that I too feel betrayed."
For the singer, it is a moral issue, she wrote. "I only know I could never 'throw roses to Hitler.' And I certainly could never sing for him."
Chamberlin, who said she has been with the choir for five years, did not respond to interview requests and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints declined to comment on her status in the famed group or on how many others might have dropped out or complained.
"Participation in the choir, including the performance at the Inauguration, is voluntary," church spokesman Eric Hawkins reiterated in a statement Thursday. "Only a limited number of choir members are participating (the number is limited by the inaugural committee), and none are required to participate."
LDS leaders announced the decision to perform last week. Not all 360 singers will make the trip, but church officials have said about 215 are expected to volunteer.
The choir previously sang at swearing-in ceremonies for George H. W. Bush (1989), Richard Nixon (1969) and Lyndon Johnson (1965). It performed in inaugural parades for George W. Bush (2001), George H. W. Bush (1989) and Ronald Reagan (1981).
Now the choir's participation has even more fallout: the resignation of a female singer.
"Since 'the announcement,' I have spent several sleepless nights and days in turmoil and agony. I have reflected carefully on both sides of the issue, prayed a lot, talked with family and friends, and searched my soul," Jan Chamberlin wrote in a resignation letter to the choir president and choir members. "I've tried to tell myself that by not going to the inauguration, that I would be able to stay in choir for all the other good reasons. I've tried to tell myself that it will be all right and that I can continue in good conscience before God and man."
But she could not do it, Chamberlin said in the letter, she later posted on Facebook. "I could never look myself in the mirror again with self-respect."
The choir's participation in the inauguration would "severely damagye" its "image and networking," she said, adding that many "good people throughout this land and throughout the world already do and will continue to feel betrayed. ... I know that I too feel betrayed."
For the singer, it is a moral issue, she wrote. "I only know I could never 'throw roses to Hitler.' And I certainly could never sing for him."
Chamberlin, who said she has been with the choir for five years, did not respond to interview requests and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints declined to comment on her status in the famed group or on how many others might have dropped out or complained.
"Participation in the choir, including the performance at the Inauguration, is voluntary," church spokesman Eric Hawkins reiterated in a statement Thursday. "Only a limited number of choir members are participating (the number is limited by the inaugural committee), and none are required to participate."
LDS leaders announced the decision to perform last week. Not all 360 singers will make the trip, but church officials have said about 215 are expected to volunteer.
The choir previously sang at swearing-in ceremonies for George H. W. Bush (1989), Richard Nixon (1969) and Lyndon Johnson (1965). It performed in inaugural parades for George W. Bush (2001), George H. W. Bush (1989) and Ronald Reagan (1981).
Via Drudge: link
KLEM AM
Those dirty rings!
Speaking of the annular -- we're approaching another year, so it's time to reflect a bit on January. Everyone pretends to know that January was named after Janus, the two-faced worthless Roman god. But did you know that that may be false?
January (in Latin, Ianuarius) is named after the Latin word for door (ianua), since January is the door to the year. The month is conventionally thought of as being named after Janus, the god of beginnings and transitions in Roman mythology, but according to ancient Roman farmers' almanacs Juno was the tutelary deity of the month.[1]Interestingly, the Romans only had 10 months and each one was longer. How else to fill a full year with months? Surely I thought, the month is defined by how many times the moon orbits the earth [moon, month, get it?]. Wrong! The moon goes around the earth 13 times in a year, not 12 as people might think. My faith in the power of words and etymology is shaken. It's a mixed-up, muddled-up, shook-up world:
n.b., that is the original "Coca-Cola" version of the song -- the one banned in the UK.
Anthony Bourdain on Political Correctness
Bisley: What concerns you about Trump?
Bourdain: What I am not concerned about with Trump? Wherever one lives in the world right now I wouldn't feel too comfortable about the rise of authoritarianism. I think it's a global trend, and one that should be of concern to everyone.
Bisley: You're a liberal. What should liberals be critiquing their own side for?
Bourdain: There's just so much. I hate the term political correctness, the way in which speech that is found to be unpleasant or offensive is often banned from universities. Which is exactly where speech that is potentially hurtful and offensive should be heard.
The way we demonize comedians for use of language or terminology is unspeakable. Because that's exactly what comedians should be doing, offending and upsetting people, and being offensive. Comedy is there, like art, to make people uncomfortable, and challenge their views, and hopefully have a spirited yet civil argument. If you're a comedian whose bread and butter seems to be language, situations, and jokes that I find racist and offensive, I won't buy tickets to your show or watch you on TV. I will not support you. If people ask me what I think, I will say you suck, and that I think you are racist and offensive. But I'm not going to try to put you out of work. I'm not going to start a boycott, or a hashtag, looking to get you driven out of the business.
The utter contempt with which privileged Eastern liberals such as myself discuss red-state, gun-country, working-class America as ridiculous and morons and rubes is largely responsible for the upswell of rage and contempt and desire to pull down the temple that we're seeing now.
I've spent a lot of time in gun-country, God-fearing America. There are a hell of a lot of nice people out there, who are doing what everyone else in this world is trying to do: the best they can to get by, and take care of themselves and the people they love. When we deny them their basic humanity and legitimacy of their views, however different they may be than ours, when we mock them at every turn, and treat them with contempt, we do no one any good. Nothing nauseates me more than preaching to the converted. The self-congratulatory tone of the privileged left—just repeating and repeating and repeating the outrages of the opposition—this does not win hearts and minds. It doesn't change anyone's opinions. It only solidifies them, and makes things worse for all of us. We should be breaking bread with each other, and finding common ground whenever possible. I fear that is not at all what we've done.
Bourdain: What I am not concerned about with Trump? Wherever one lives in the world right now I wouldn't feel too comfortable about the rise of authoritarianism. I think it's a global trend, and one that should be of concern to everyone.
Bisley: You're a liberal. What should liberals be critiquing their own side for?
Bourdain: There's just so much. I hate the term political correctness, the way in which speech that is found to be unpleasant or offensive is often banned from universities. Which is exactly where speech that is potentially hurtful and offensive should be heard.
The way we demonize comedians for use of language or terminology is unspeakable. Because that's exactly what comedians should be doing, offending and upsetting people, and being offensive. Comedy is there, like art, to make people uncomfortable, and challenge their views, and hopefully have a spirited yet civil argument. If you're a comedian whose bread and butter seems to be language, situations, and jokes that I find racist and offensive, I won't buy tickets to your show or watch you on TV. I will not support you. If people ask me what I think, I will say you suck, and that I think you are racist and offensive. But I'm not going to try to put you out of work. I'm not going to start a boycott, or a hashtag, looking to get you driven out of the business.
The utter contempt with which privileged Eastern liberals such as myself discuss red-state, gun-country, working-class America as ridiculous and morons and rubes is largely responsible for the upswell of rage and contempt and desire to pull down the temple that we're seeing now.
I've spent a lot of time in gun-country, God-fearing America. There are a hell of a lot of nice people out there, who are doing what everyone else in this world is trying to do: the best they can to get by, and take care of themselves and the people they love. When we deny them their basic humanity and legitimacy of their views, however different they may be than ours, when we mock them at every turn, and treat them with contempt, we do no one any good. Nothing nauseates me more than preaching to the converted. The self-congratulatory tone of the privileged left—just repeating and repeating and repeating the outrages of the opposition—this does not win hearts and minds. It doesn't change anyone's opinions. It only solidifies them, and makes things worse for all of us. We should be breaking bread with each other, and finding common ground whenever possible. I fear that is not at all what we've done.
Via Instapundit: Link
Dammit, Jim, I'm a doctor, not a tricorder!
"A single breath into a newfangled breathalyzer is all doctors need to diagnose 17 different diseases, including lung cancer, irritable bowel syndrome and multiple sclerosis, a new study found.
Researchers invited about 1,400 people from five different countries to breathe into the device, which is still in its testing phases. The breathalyzer could identify each person's disease with 86 percent accuracy, the researchers said.
The technology works because "each disease has its own unique breathprint," the researchers wrote in the study.
...There are hundreds of known VOCs in exhaled breath, but the researchers needed only 13 to distinguish among the 17 different diseases. For instance, the VOC nonanal is linked to several disorders, including ovarian cancer, inflammatory bowel disease and breast cancer, whereas the VOC isoprene is associated with chronic liver disease, kidney disease and diabetes, the researchers said."
Thursday, December 29, 2016
WKRLEM: RIP Red Solo Cup
Just wait a few minutes and some asshole will come to express his contempt for the working mans red solo cup.
The elite only appreciate crystal you see.
"The death of the dinner date"
In recent years, somewhere between endless Tinder swipes and countless OkCupid matches, the dinner date has fallen by the wayside.
As online dating surges in popularity, few millennials have the time, money, or desire to sit with a stranger over a long meal. Only 7 in 10,000 messages in a recent OkCupid IAC survey suggested “grabbing some dinner” and a somewhat less scientific survey this reporter conducted of several dozen actively dating 20-somethings found that dinner has become a highly taboo first date. Last month, Moody’s Investors Service slashed its operating-profit growth forecast for the restaurant sector. (This appears to complement another trend noted by market researcher NPD Group that suggests 57% of meals In the U.S. are eaten alone.)
There’s good reason why people don’t want to sit through a meal with a stranger for an hour or, often times, longer. One singleton this reporter spoke to called it her “worst nightmare” and another said the idea of sitting through an unspecified number of hours of food, drinks or dessert makes her anxious. A recent article in Cosmopolitan detailed, “Why First-Date Dinners Suck,” listing similar reasons: the date category is antiquated, the time frame of the event is too long if there is no chemistry, and eating is too “intimate.”
Dating online can be more miss than hit, even when you see the photo beforehand, so there is a risk that the dinner will feel even longer. “In theory, I like the dinner date, but nearly every time I’ve gone on one as a first date I feel like I’m trapped with somebody who got stale after the first 15 minutes,” said Christine Victoria Waller, a 35-year-old childhood educator who lives outside of New York City. “For beginning dates, I prefer a cocktail someplace nice, with the option of it turning into dinner if we are feeling it.”
As online dating surges in popularity, few millennials have the time, money, or desire to sit with a stranger over a long meal. Only 7 in 10,000 messages in a recent OkCupid IAC survey suggested “grabbing some dinner” and a somewhat less scientific survey this reporter conducted of several dozen actively dating 20-somethings found that dinner has become a highly taboo first date. Last month, Moody’s Investors Service slashed its operating-profit growth forecast for the restaurant sector. (This appears to complement another trend noted by market researcher NPD Group that suggests 57% of meals In the U.S. are eaten alone.)
There’s good reason why people don’t want to sit through a meal with a stranger for an hour or, often times, longer. One singleton this reporter spoke to called it her “worst nightmare” and another said the idea of sitting through an unspecified number of hours of food, drinks or dessert makes her anxious. A recent article in Cosmopolitan detailed, “Why First-Date Dinners Suck,” listing similar reasons: the date category is antiquated, the time frame of the event is too long if there is no chemistry, and eating is too “intimate.”
Dating online can be more miss than hit, even when you see the photo beforehand, so there is a risk that the dinner will feel even longer. “In theory, I like the dinner date, but nearly every time I’ve gone on one as a first date I feel like I’m trapped with somebody who got stale after the first 15 minutes,” said Christine Victoria Waller, a 35-year-old childhood educator who lives outside of New York City. “For beginning dates, I prefer a cocktail someplace nice, with the option of it turning into dinner if we are feeling it.”
Via Drudge: for more click link
"Obama orders Russia expulsions, sanctions for interference in 2016 election"
President Barack Obama on Thursday ordered the expulsion of 35 Russian diplomats and sanctioned Russian intelligence officials who Washington believes were involved in hacking U.S. political groups in the 2016 presidential election.
The measures, taken during the last days of Obama's presidency, mark a new low in U.S.-Russian relations which have deteriorated over serious differences on Ukraine and Syria.
"These actions follow repeated private and public warnings that we have issued to the Russian government, and are a necessary and appropriate response to efforts to harm U.S. interests in violation of established international norms of behavior," Obama said in a statement from vacation in Hawaii.
It was not immediately clear whether President-elect Donald Trump, who has repeatedly praised Russian President Vladimir Putin and nominated people seen as friendly toward Moscow to senior administration posts, would seek to roll back the measures once he takes office on Jan. 20.
The measures, taken during the last days of Obama's presidency, mark a new low in U.S.-Russian relations which have deteriorated over serious differences on Ukraine and Syria.
"These actions follow repeated private and public warnings that we have issued to the Russian government, and are a necessary and appropriate response to efforts to harm U.S. interests in violation of established international norms of behavior," Obama said in a statement from vacation in Hawaii.
It was not immediately clear whether President-elect Donald Trump, who has repeatedly praised Russian President Vladimir Putin and nominated people seen as friendly toward Moscow to senior administration posts, would seek to roll back the measures once he takes office on Jan. 20.
Via Drudge: link to the rest of the story
"Court rules dogs can be shot if they bark when police enter home"
Three Michigan police officers, who shot two dogs for lunging and barking at them during a drug raid, were once again justified in their actions — this time by a federal appeals court.
Mark and Cheryl Brown of Battle Creek, Mich., filed suits over unreasonable seizure of their property and a violation of their constitutional rights for the deaths of their pets.
According to the Battle Creek Enquirer, officers shot and killed the Browns' pit bull terriers during an April 2013 operation, with Emergency Response Team members claiming one lunged at them and that the other barked as they executed a search warrant for drugs.
Mark and Cheryl Brown of Battle Creek, Mich., filed suits over unreasonable seizure of their property and a violation of their constitutional rights for the deaths of their pets.
According to the Battle Creek Enquirer, officers shot and killed the Browns' pit bull terriers during an April 2013 operation, with Emergency Response Team members claiming one lunged at them and that the other barked as they executed a search warrant for drugs.
Via Drudge: Link
Obama left out of Syrian ceasefire deal
ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan had a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart on Thursday to discuss the ceasefire in Syria due to come into effect at midnight, Erdogan's spokesman said in a statement.
The leaders also discussed upcoming talks about Syria due to take place in the Kazakh capital Astana, spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said in the statement.
The leaders also discussed upcoming talks about Syria due to take place in the Kazakh capital Astana, spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said in the statement.
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a ceasefire between Syrian opposition groups and the Syrian government starting at midnight on Thursday. The Kremlin statement came after Moscow, Iran and Turkey said they were ready to broker a peace deal in the nearly six-year-old Syrian war.
Via Drudge: link
Via Drudge: link
British star with cancer receiving gene therapy based on Chinese ancestry
"“In short, I had originally been told, that the only option available to me was 6 rounds of palliative chemotherapy,” [Leah Bracknell] continued. “We asked about trials, and was told NO, that it was unlikely I’d be eligible. We asked about targeted therapy and were told compatibility rates are low, less than 10% and usually it is female, non-smokers who are Asian.
“But thanks to my extremely Chinese mother, I hoped that perhaps this could give me a break, a chance, a lifeline, a glimmer of hope.
“I recently received the news that we had all been praying for: the biopsy revealed a match for the EGFR mutation, and I was able to start on targeted biological therapy, here in the UK on the NHS a couple of weeks ago. You take it daily as a tablet, it works by targeting the cancer cells directly, so the rest of the body and immune system is less compromised, and side effects are considerably eased in the majority of cases.”"
KLEM FM
Back during George Michael's alleged reign over things that went pop, there were other bands happening. If you first liked Nirvana in 1992, you missed a decade of prior art which included: Pere Ubu; The Minutemen; X (and anyone else who appeared in Penelope Spheeris' The Decline Of Western Civilization (1981)); the Meat Puppets (a Cobain favorite), The Replacements, Husker Du, etc., etc.
The RHCP were another 80's band who became a better 90's band. That song in particular launched riots.
The RHCP were another 80's band who became a better 90's band. That song in particular launched riots.
Wednesday, December 28, 2016
2016 is not done killing
DEBBIE REYNOLDS
DEAD AT 84
Debbie Reynolds -- who rose to stardom in "Singin' in the Rain" and quickly became a staple among Hollywood royalty -- died Wednesday as a result of a stroke, TMZ has learned ... just one day after her daughter Carrie Fisher passed away ... this according to her son Todd.
Debbie was rushed to a hospital shortly after 1 PM when someone at the Beverly Hills home of her son, Todd, called 911 to report a possible stroke. We're told Debbie and Todd were making funeral plans for Carrie, who died Tuesday of cardiac arrest.
Debbie famously divorced Eddie Fisher in 1959 after his affair with Elizabeth Taylor. Debbie married 2 more times in 1960 and 1984.
She played iconic roles in "Tammy and the Bachelor" and "The Unsinkable Molly Brown" ... for which she earned an Oscar nomination.
Carrie's relationship with Debbie was the focus of Carrie's semi-autobiographical book, "Postcards from the Edge," which was later adapted for the big screen, starring Meryl Streep and Shirley MacLaine.
Debbie's survived by her son Todd, who tells us, "She's with Carrie."
DEAD AT 84
Debbie Reynolds -- who rose to stardom in "Singin' in the Rain" and quickly became a staple among Hollywood royalty -- died Wednesday as a result of a stroke, TMZ has learned ... just one day after her daughter Carrie Fisher passed away ... this according to her son Todd.
Debbie was rushed to a hospital shortly after 1 PM when someone at the Beverly Hills home of her son, Todd, called 911 to report a possible stroke. We're told Debbie and Todd were making funeral plans for Carrie, who died Tuesday of cardiac arrest.
Debbie famously divorced Eddie Fisher in 1959 after his affair with Elizabeth Taylor. Debbie married 2 more times in 1960 and 1984.
She played iconic roles in "Tammy and the Bachelor" and "The Unsinkable Molly Brown" ... for which she earned an Oscar nomination.
Carrie's relationship with Debbie was the focus of Carrie's semi-autobiographical book, "Postcards from the Edge," which was later adapted for the big screen, starring Meryl Streep and Shirley MacLaine.
Debbie's survived by her son Todd, who tells us, "She's with Carrie."
Think again there buddy
So I walk into the bank down the block yesterday to make some checks. There are these two sharped dressed dudes waiting for the manager. I am immersed in my own affairs and don't pay too much attention. Just enough the way you always do in the city. You want to be sure they aren't going to start shooting.
These mooks were there to promote Brooklyn Nets Basketball. I guess they picked Chase because every single employee is black. I don't know how that happened. Well I do know how that happened but waddayagonna do? The had a token Italian guy for a while to talk to the old timers who still had money in the bank but that ended three years ago.
Anyway these guys were peddling tickets to the Nets. They were trying to sell season packages and as a come on were offering floor seats for $50. I thought nothing of it and finished my transactions (after the usual endless difficulties).
Mall extreme measures
Jessica Andryushchenko, 15, was heading into Arden Fair mall with a friend Monday evening when a security officer stopped them and asked if they were with a parent or guardian. They weren’t, and they were surprised to find out their status as unaccompanied minors meant they were barred from entering.
“I thought it was really weird,” said Andryushchenko, who ended up going to see a movie instead. “We weren’t upset. We were just confused.”
“We, in the past, have had several issues with safety at the mall the day after Christmas,” Arden Fair spokeswoman Jamie Donely said. “Several issues with fights and other unsafe activity, and so this was our way to make the mall safe on a day when the mall typically has some bad history.”
Donely said mall officials tried to prevent violence last year by bringing in more police officers, but brawls still broke out. So this year, they tried this new strategy, and it looks to have been effective, she said. There were two minor altercations Monday, one inside the mall and one outside, but nothing on the scale of previous years.
Via Drudge: link
Via Drudge: link
A possible explanation for why people find it hard to maintain eye contact when talking
A pair of researchers with Kyoto University has found a possible explanation for why people sometimes have trouble maintaining eye contact when talking with someone face-to-face. In their paper published in the journal Cognition, Shogo Kajimura and Michio Nomura describe experiments they carried out with volunteers to learn more about how the phenomenon works and then discuss their findings.
Most everyone knows that maintaining eye contact with another person while speaking can sometimes be difficult—at times, the urge to look away becomes overwhelming. In some instances, it is clear that such breaks just seem natural to keep things from becoming awkward, or it signals that someone has grown bored with the conversation—but at other times, the researchers suggest, it is because we are trying to keep our brains from overloading.
To better understand what is going on in the brain during conversation, the researchers enlisted the assistance of 26 volunteers who were asked to participate in a common word-association game in which a person was shown a word (a noun) and was then asked to offer an immediate response (a verb), e.g. when given the word "ball," a reply might be the word "throw." In the lab, the volunteers interacted with a face on a computer (that sometimes looked away) as they played the game with different types of words that the researchers had preselected—some were easy while others were more difficult—coming up with a verb for "sky," for example, can be difficult for some because of the lack of choices, while coming up with a response to a word like "leaf" may be difficult because it has so many options to choose from.
Via Reddit: go to this link for more
Most everyone knows that maintaining eye contact with another person while speaking can sometimes be difficult—at times, the urge to look away becomes overwhelming. In some instances, it is clear that such breaks just seem natural to keep things from becoming awkward, or it signals that someone has grown bored with the conversation—but at other times, the researchers suggest, it is because we are trying to keep our brains from overloading.
To better understand what is going on in the brain during conversation, the researchers enlisted the assistance of 26 volunteers who were asked to participate in a common word-association game in which a person was shown a word (a noun) and was then asked to offer an immediate response (a verb), e.g. when given the word "ball," a reply might be the word "throw." In the lab, the volunteers interacted with a face on a computer (that sometimes looked away) as they played the game with different types of words that the researchers had preselected—some were easy while others were more difficult—coming up with a verb for "sky," for example, can be difficult for some because of the lack of choices, while coming up with a response to a word like "leaf" may be difficult because it has so many options to choose from.
Via Reddit: go to this link for more
Chief Liz looking toward 2020?
"Sen. Elizabeth Warren is set to bolster her Senate resume next year, sparking early talk about a 2020 presidential bid.
The Massachusetts Democrat will join the Armed Services Committee in 2017, branching out beyond the tough-on-Wall Street message that made her a liberal favorite.
Warren has tied the decision to her family – her three brothers served in the military – and Massachusetts ranks in the top 10 states on military spending, according to a Pentagon report.
But the announcement spawned a wave of a media speculation that Warren is filling portfolio gaps to position herself for a 2020 presidential run.
MSNBC’s Lawrence O'Donnell called the step a “very important move that could be a first step in a presidential campaign.”"
WKRLEM-TV. Israel Oh Israel
Obama sent them back in time.......to make sure the Jews would lose.
He hates them that much.
James Corden's first Carpool Karaoke for Comic Relief
I love these things. And few people in comments I notice give James Gorden his due. He has a very good singing voice, a genuine love for music, and an attractive sense of comedy. He's fun.
Tuesday, December 27, 2016
"Man launches GoFundMe page to ‘protect Betty White from 2016’"
Demetrios Hrysikos set up the account on Tuesday.
“Help 2016 catch these hands if it goes anywhere near Betty White! If she's okay with it I will fly to where ever Betty White is and keep her safe till Jan. 1, 2017,” Hrysikos wrote on the GoFundMe page.
Should White not want his protection, Hrysikos says he will donate any money raised to the Spartanburg Little Theater, a local youth theater company.
Hrysikos’ goal is to raise $2,000.
Fans of White have taken to Twitter in recent days, expressing concern for the 94-year-old’s well-being.
“Help 2016 catch these hands if it goes anywhere near Betty White! If she's okay with it I will fly to where ever Betty White is and keep her safe till Jan. 1, 2017,” Hrysikos wrote on the GoFundMe page.
Should White not want his protection, Hrysikos says he will donate any money raised to the Spartanburg Little Theater, a local youth theater company.
Hrysikos’ goal is to raise $2,000.
Fans of White have taken to Twitter in recent days, expressing concern for the 94-year-old’s well-being.
Via Reddit: link
"'We remain unfazed' by the vote"
Israel says it will continue building settlements in defiance of UN resolution
Israel's government said Monday that it planned to approve the construction of nearly 6,000 new homes in the predominantly Palestinian eastern Jerusalem, with 600 settlements due to be approved Wednesday.
Deputy Mayor Meir Turgeman, the committee chairman responsible for planning the expansion, told the newspaper Israel Hayom that the settlement expansion would continue, in defiance of a UN Security Council resolution passed Friday calling on Israel to immediately halt the construction of new homes on Palestinian land.
"We remain unfazed by the UN vote, or by any other entity that tries to dictate what we do in Jerusalem," Turgeman said. "I hope the Israeli government and the new US administration will support us, so we can make up for the lack [of support] during the eight years of the Obama administration."
Israel's government said Monday that it planned to approve the construction of nearly 6,000 new homes in the predominantly Palestinian eastern Jerusalem, with 600 settlements due to be approved Wednesday.
Deputy Mayor Meir Turgeman, the committee chairman responsible for planning the expansion, told the newspaper Israel Hayom that the settlement expansion would continue, in defiance of a UN Security Council resolution passed Friday calling on Israel to immediately halt the construction of new homes on Palestinian land.
"We remain unfazed by the UN vote, or by any other entity that tries to dictate what we do in Jerusalem," Turgeman said. "I hope the Israeli government and the new US administration will support us, so we can make up for the lack [of support] during the eight years of the Obama administration."
Via Reddit... for more click link
Tales of Amy's Garden
Black Rabbit: Hazel? You know me, don't you?
Hazel: I don't.
[the visitor reveals himself as The Black Rabbit]
Hazel: Oh, yes, my Lord... I know you.
Black Rabbit: I've come to ask if you would like to join my Owsla. We shall be glad to have you, and I know you'd like it. You've been feeling tired, haven't you? If you're ready, we might go along now.
[Hazel pauses to look back at his rabbits]
Hazel: I feel like I can't leave them. So many are gone now. Bigwig. Fiver. Strawberry. Even that nice old man who wrote about us. Fiver left him a manuscript scraped out on a lettuce leaf and he was able to interpret it and share it with everyone. He even wrote a book. We became famous. For five minutes. Until people forgot us and started watching cooking shows. But he spoke in our voice. So people would know how it is to be a rabbit.
Black Rabbit: Yes even the nice old man has passed. You have done so well since you have moved to the new warren. It is so much safer and cleaner. You left all the bad ju ju behind you.
Hazel:Wait a minute. They were Jews? I know you are the Black Rabbit and all of you people hate the Jews but I don't think they were Jewish. Anyway I don't care about those people anymore. i only worry about my friends. The other rabbits I led here. Will they be safe without me?
Black Rabbit: You needn't worry about them. They'll be alright, and thousands like them. If you'll come along, I'll show you what I mean.
[Hazel lies down and dies]
Rap God
I've been watching a lot of America's Got Talent, Britain's Got Talent, Ukraine's Got Talent, This and That's Got Talent, X-Factor This and That All Over The Place videos and I've been sitting on this for a few days because I'm fairly certain it cannot be appreciated here all that much. But I found it interesting.
The Judges do not know what's going on and neither do commenters to this video. They're being played from the start. The whole thing is part of the act.
Here is the scene in the movie. It too starts out hesitantly then busts out the rap.
The talent shows mentioned have at least a dozen entries of this. It appeals especially to girls. You can see for yourself by querying [talent rap god], [x-factor rap god] You get all kinds of results, girls performing this for school shows, little boys doing this song, the song sped up by half, a guy doing the move in 40 musical styles, on and on, several versions in sign. One of them is what I'd like to talk about briefly.
The Judges do not know what's going on and neither do commenters to this video. They're being played from the start. The whole thing is part of the act.
The singer was not having difficulty. He did not choke. And he's no rap god either. That is Eminem's title, not the YouTube uploader's title. This is what happened in the movie. Rap God is the name of the rap contest in the film 8 Mile. The singer above is acting out his interpretation of the scene in the movie before busting out the rap. It's rather clever if a bit drawn out.
Here is the scene in the movie. It too starts out hesitantly then busts out the rap.
The talent shows mentioned have at least a dozen entries of this. It appeals especially to girls. You can see for yourself by querying [talent rap god], [x-factor rap god] You get all kinds of results, girls performing this for school shows, little boys doing this song, the song sped up by half, a guy doing the move in 40 musical styles, on and on, several versions in sign. One of them is what I'd like to talk about briefly.
Thomas Sowell farewell column
Even the best things come to an end. After enjoying a quarter of a century of writing this column for Creators Syndicate, I have decided to stop. Age 86 is well past the usual retirement age, so the question is not why I am quitting, but why I kept at it so long.
It was very fulfilling to be able to share my thoughts on the events unfolding around us, and to receive feedback from readers across the country – even if it was impossible to answer them all.
Being old-fashioned, I liked to know what the facts were before writing. That required not only a lot of research, it also required keeping up with what was being said in the media.
Read more at http://mobile.wnd.com/2016/12/my-farewell-column/#meVsyHUGpCrXhdcr.99
It was very fulfilling to be able to share my thoughts on the events unfolding around us, and to receive feedback from readers across the country – even if it was impossible to answer them all.
Being old-fashioned, I liked to know what the facts were before writing. That required not only a lot of research, it also required keeping up with what was being said in the media.
Read more at http://mobile.wnd.com/2016/12/my-farewell-column/#meVsyHUGpCrXhdcr.99
Obama clears runway for Trump-Putin ME relations
"WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S.-Russian talks on their separate fights against the Islamic State group are improving and becoming more frequent, American officials said, with each side trading information in real time and even outlining some of their strategic objectives in the months ahead. The progress dispels the notion that ties between the former Cold War foes are "frozen."
In the discussions, Russia has made clear its counterterrorism priority in Syria is retaking the ancient city of Palmyra, officials said. The U.S. is determined to pressure IS' headquarters in Raqqa.
The closer contacts have developed despite the former Cold War foes' bitter accusations against one another over the devastation in Aleppo and Moscow's claim that relations are now "frozen on all practical levels."
The confidential military discussions aren't focusing on the two countries' opposing positions in Syria's civil war, where Russia is fighting alongside the government and the United States has backed rebel groups, officials said.
But U.S. officials with knowledge of the ongoing conversations are crediting both sides with putting aside much of the public animosity, which has included Washington's accusations of Russian war crimes in Aleppo and Moscow's charges of American support for terrorist groups such as al-Qaida.
Much of the talk has concerned the two nations' immediate operations.
Since Dec. 15, the U.S.-led coalition has conducted airstrikes on about two dozen locations around Palmyra, destroying air defense weapons, tanks, aircraft shelters, storage bunkers and other vehicles and equipment. At the same time, U.S. and Russian officials having been ensuring that the two militaries' don't cross paths in the airspace above the city that IS militants seized for the second time earlier this month, and that American strikes don't mistakenly hit Russian or Syrian forces.
But the talks have gone beyond the granular and even touched on broader U.S. and Russian plans, according to several U.S. officials, who weren't authorized to speak publicly on the confidential discussions and demanded anonymity.
...According to officials, the U.S. and Russian military have been communicating regularly, often in real time as strikes have been about to launch to make sure innocent troops aren't at risk. The new concentration of U.S. strikes around Palmyra in the past week has made the effort especially important for Russia, one senior U.S. official said.
The scope of the discussions suggests the two sides are pulling back from some of the extreme rhetoric in recent months, mainly colored by Russia's support for the successful Syrian military effort to retake all of Aleppo. While Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed hopes that Donald Trump will improve U.S.-Russian cooperation, it appears some of the groundwork already is being done."
Monday, December 26, 2016
"Messing with genes could WIPE OUT geniuses from the earth"
New technology which allows medics to ensure children do not inherit diseases could also mean the likes of Thomas Edison, who invented the lightbulb, might never be seen again, according to Dr Jim Kozubek.
His claim comes as the US and China prepare to stage mass trials to edit the genes of cancer patients to ensure it is not passed down in their DNA.
However, Dr Kozubek, author of Modern Prometheus: Editing the Human Genome with Crispr-Cas9, said the breakthrough is not necessarily a good thing and could see future generations of geniuses wiped out.
Dr Kozubek said a world without depression, autism, schizophrenia or Asperger’s might also mean one without the likes of playwright Tennessee Williams, as figures show that writers are ten times more like to suffer from bipolar than the general population and poets are 40 times more likely to be diagnosed with it.
Dr Kozubek said: “Thomas Edison was ‘addled’ and kicked out of school. Tennessee Williams, as a teenager on the boulevards of Paris felt afraid of ‘the process of thought’ and came within ‘a hairsbreadth of going quite mad’.
“Scientists tend to think of variations in life as problems to be solved, deviations and abnormalities outside of a normal curve.
Via Drudge. For more go here: http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/747382/SCIENCE-WARNING-Messing-genes-WIPE-OUT-geniuses-earth
Berlin plans ‘center of defense against fake news’
The German government is seeking to create a center of defense against disinformation ahead of next year’s elections, in the wake of ongoing “fake news” and "Russian hackers" hysteria generated during the election cycle in the United States.
The Federal Press Office in the Chancellery, which has a staff of over 500 professionals, will take the leading role in establishing the fake news defense center, Der Spiegel reported quoting a note from an anonymous Interior Ministry staff member.
According to the Interior Ministry plan, the center will focus on offering “intensification of political education work” with groups susceptible to “fake news” – namely “Russian-Germans” as well as “Turkish-speaking people.”
Via Drudge: for more go here: https://www.rt.com/news/371552-germany-fake-news-defense-center/
According to the Interior Ministry plan, the center will focus on offering “intensification of political education work” with groups susceptible to “fake news” – namely “Russian-Germans” as well as “Turkish-speaking people.”
Via Drudge: for more go here: https://www.rt.com/news/371552-germany-fake-news-defense-center/
Sunday, December 25, 2016
King Soopers
This story eventually gets to the best hamburger in Denver.
I did it again. Waited until the last moment then pushed beyond that. I ran out of everything essential, everything needed to try my ideas, depleted of basics; milk, eggs, sugar, butter, flour, honey, vegetable oil, olive oil, lettuce, tomato, all fresh vegetables, everything. And I cannot explain why I put it off, I don't understand why myself because I it's no problem at all and people are always nice, always helpful and always engaging but I still put it off. But last night, Christmas Eve things were very different. All that was intensified.
My chief aim was to buy each type of regular sugar, refined, brown, and confectioner's. The second main aim was to buy the largest bag of popcorn available and to buy the lye treated version to experiment. That's called posole around here. I've been using popcorn to grind into powder for polenta. A previous experiment was with heirloom kernels from Anson Mills, rather expensive, but I honestly could not tell a difference from regular popcorn. And I'm tired of running out. Plus I like popping popcorn and experimenting with that. I needed sugar to continue. The posole ground to powder is grits. That's the difference between Southern grits and polenta. Grits are made with corn treated with lye. A process devised by Central American indians they call nixtamalization. See the word tamale in there? It has nutritional advantage over straight milled kernels. I wanted to see if grinding posole would result in masa harina used for corn tortillas. And I suppose it does. I haven't tried that yet.
So all that was the motivation. And now I'm going into a place where people are working on Christmas Eve.
I started out looking for posole. In the second aisle I was blocked by two women loading up cans into a cart. A King Soopers worker was loading the cart of a customer with large tins until she had eight of them. She cleared them all out. "Hey! That's what I'm looking for. Except I need the dry version." The King Soopers worker, a slight young attractive black woman smiled broadly and said, "Wait here" then sped off. The Mexican woman adjusted her pile of cans. "Are you making a big batch of stew?"
"Yes. Menudo, actually."
The King Soopers woman returned with a sack of posole, "Here!" Such alacrity, so much high energy, such helpfulness and good cheer. "Where did you get these?"
"Over there. Next aisle."
I told her my intention and she was all ears. Except for being all teeth too. She smiled throughout, apparently genuinely interested. I broke it off. She chirped loudly, "Merry Christmas!"
I would have found them eventually. She needn't have dashed off. But she did.
I rolled my cart over to the fresh meat deli to replenish my pile of applewood bacon. The man there couldn't hear very well. "How much do you want? "
"About half that pile in the front" It turned out to be 3/4 lb. and that didn't sound like enough. "Go ahead and make it a full lb." He removed more leaving a small pile behind. "Oh go ahead and give me all of it." The man grabbed all the bacon, now a pound and a half and said,
"I'll charge you for just one pound. We're closing the cases soon anyway."
They never do that. They've never given away anything.
I scanned their sausages hoping for something Polish, or else spicy. I wanted something sturdy. I bought four of them with the intention of braising them with cabbage and potatoes. The man said, "I'll add two more but not charge you."
"All right! Thank you, thank you, thank you."
They never do that.
But then he said, "Here. Try this apple sausage." It's apple and chicken. I had passed on that. "When you come back tell me what you think about it. My name is Stacy. You can tell me how you liked it." I thought, "odd name for Mexican guy, but whatever." The incongruity of his name with his face and his accent will serve me to recall it.
They never do that.
I got eight in house made sausages for the price of four. Four dollars total. Fifty cents each. What luck that I went food shopping on Christmas Eve.
Tight in the aisle a sort of momentary traffic jam of shoppers I came face to face with tall thin scraggly ugly old black man passing the opposite direction as myself and walking with a cane and holding a large sack of potatoes under his non-cane holding arm. I had eye contact and I nodded acknowledging his presence. He stopped. I thought, "Here's where he asks me for money." He did have the appearance of a bum. But I don't care. I talk to bums. He leaned in closer to me and whispered as if revealing an astonishing secret, "They're selling these ten pound bags of potatoes for ninety-nine cents."
"What? I love potatoes. I could eat potatoes every day."
"You should get you a bag."
"Thanks for the lead."
I rolled my cart over to the regular deli. The man working answered my aged cheddar questions curtly. While slicing the cheese in silence I asked him, "Do you have any children?
"Yup."
"Are they too young to snoop all over the house looking for presents?"
"Chuh. Pffft. Sneer. No. They're snooping all over the place."
"Where'd you hide them?"
"In the car."
"They'll never look there. That's number one place on the list to hide presents. I just now read that on the internet."
"Ha!" He opened up about his snooping little kids. He was pleased with the psych game. It brings out the kid in himself while being a providing father. He described his family. He's actually an engaging person and he's there on Christmas Eve for them. He glowed speaking of this. He didn't mind working.
I'm at the niche where peanut butter and jams are stacked on shelves. I'm surprised to notice two brands of powdered peanut butter. I look around. A young hipster type couple, millennials, well dressed, well groomed, an attractive couple is nearby, turns out they are engaging and well spoken too but that was not obvious at first. They have the appearance of being aloof.
"Hey! Look at this. Powdered peanut butter. Gawl!"
The woman responded.
"I Know. Weird, huh? I saw that before. I think people use it for their protein shakes."
The tall dark thin man wearing peacoat, shined black shoes and woven cap said,
"They remove the oil. Like she said, for protein shakes."
"I'm against non-fat things. I am pro full-fat."
The woman said,
"I'm am pro-fat too."
"I am against all these antilipoidites."
"Ha ha ha." The man laughed.
"Everything is powdered nowadays. It's the new thing. Get used to it because it's going to be everything powder for now on."
I said, "Yeah. I just now bought powder potatoes."
"Yes. See? Everything powder."
"For bread."
The woman goes, "What?"
"I asked the internet, 'how can I make my cinnamon rolls soft' and the answer was potatoes."
"Really? How does that work?" I explained how using a regular potato works. But it does add quite a lot of water in the potatoes and that's why I'm trying powered potatoes. I'm tired of boiling a potato just for that. "It works for hamburger buns too. And now, because of this potato bread discovery, finally at this late point I've got my hamburger act down !"
The man laughed. He had a constant smirk. He had that odd effect of a person behind the person presented. It's hard to describe, but a bit like the person presented is persona, a puppet for the person behind it. A sort of remoteness but now the puppeteer stepped forward into the puppet. But so am I in a way and my acting out, my emphatic exaggerated explosion for emphasis of having my act down and my insistence that now I can make the best burger available had him amused. I was interesting somehow to him. "That along with excessive butter inside the hamburger, those two things, a hamburger dripping in butter and potato buns made as sliders, with a bread and butter pickle is the best combination on Earth. Yes. I've got my act down. Finally."
"The best hamburger in Denver that we've found is at Tag."
"I live next to Burger-Fi."
"Tag's hamburger is, oh, I'd say, on a scale, two point higher than Burger-Fi."
"Where is it?
"Hmmm. Um. Don't know the address or cross streets. Near Congress Park."
"Thanks!"
Tag Burger Bar: 1222 Madison St. So there you go.
Merry Christmas. Happy Hanukkah. Seasons greetings, what have you
I did it again. Waited until the last moment then pushed beyond that. I ran out of everything essential, everything needed to try my ideas, depleted of basics; milk, eggs, sugar, butter, flour, honey, vegetable oil, olive oil, lettuce, tomato, all fresh vegetables, everything. And I cannot explain why I put it off, I don't understand why myself because I it's no problem at all and people are always nice, always helpful and always engaging but I still put it off. But last night, Christmas Eve things were very different. All that was intensified.
My chief aim was to buy each type of regular sugar, refined, brown, and confectioner's. The second main aim was to buy the largest bag of popcorn available and to buy the lye treated version to experiment. That's called posole around here. I've been using popcorn to grind into powder for polenta. A previous experiment was with heirloom kernels from Anson Mills, rather expensive, but I honestly could not tell a difference from regular popcorn. And I'm tired of running out. Plus I like popping popcorn and experimenting with that. I needed sugar to continue. The posole ground to powder is grits. That's the difference between Southern grits and polenta. Grits are made with corn treated with lye. A process devised by Central American indians they call nixtamalization. See the word tamale in there? It has nutritional advantage over straight milled kernels. I wanted to see if grinding posole would result in masa harina used for corn tortillas. And I suppose it does. I haven't tried that yet.
So all that was the motivation. And now I'm going into a place where people are working on Christmas Eve.
I started out looking for posole. In the second aisle I was blocked by two women loading up cans into a cart. A King Soopers worker was loading the cart of a customer with large tins until she had eight of them. She cleared them all out. "Hey! That's what I'm looking for. Except I need the dry version." The King Soopers worker, a slight young attractive black woman smiled broadly and said, "Wait here" then sped off. The Mexican woman adjusted her pile of cans. "Are you making a big batch of stew?"
"Yes. Menudo, actually."
The King Soopers woman returned with a sack of posole, "Here!" Such alacrity, so much high energy, such helpfulness and good cheer. "Where did you get these?"
"Over there. Next aisle."
I told her my intention and she was all ears. Except for being all teeth too. She smiled throughout, apparently genuinely interested. I broke it off. She chirped loudly, "Merry Christmas!"
I would have found them eventually. She needn't have dashed off. But she did.
I rolled my cart over to the fresh meat deli to replenish my pile of applewood bacon. The man there couldn't hear very well. "How much do you want? "
"About half that pile in the front" It turned out to be 3/4 lb. and that didn't sound like enough. "Go ahead and make it a full lb." He removed more leaving a small pile behind. "Oh go ahead and give me all of it." The man grabbed all the bacon, now a pound and a half and said,
"I'll charge you for just one pound. We're closing the cases soon anyway."
They never do that. They've never given away anything.
I scanned their sausages hoping for something Polish, or else spicy. I wanted something sturdy. I bought four of them with the intention of braising them with cabbage and potatoes. The man said, "I'll add two more but not charge you."
"All right! Thank you, thank you, thank you."
They never do that.
But then he said, "Here. Try this apple sausage." It's apple and chicken. I had passed on that. "When you come back tell me what you think about it. My name is Stacy. You can tell me how you liked it." I thought, "odd name for Mexican guy, but whatever." The incongruity of his name with his face and his accent will serve me to recall it.
They never do that.
I got eight in house made sausages for the price of four. Four dollars total. Fifty cents each. What luck that I went food shopping on Christmas Eve.
Tight in the aisle a sort of momentary traffic jam of shoppers I came face to face with tall thin scraggly ugly old black man passing the opposite direction as myself and walking with a cane and holding a large sack of potatoes under his non-cane holding arm. I had eye contact and I nodded acknowledging his presence. He stopped. I thought, "Here's where he asks me for money." He did have the appearance of a bum. But I don't care. I talk to bums. He leaned in closer to me and whispered as if revealing an astonishing secret, "They're selling these ten pound bags of potatoes for ninety-nine cents."
"What? I love potatoes. I could eat potatoes every day."
"You should get you a bag."
"Thanks for the lead."
I rolled my cart over to the regular deli. The man working answered my aged cheddar questions curtly. While slicing the cheese in silence I asked him, "Do you have any children?
"Yup."
"Are they too young to snoop all over the house looking for presents?"
"Chuh. Pffft. Sneer. No. They're snooping all over the place."
"Where'd you hide them?"
"In the car."
"They'll never look there. That's number one place on the list to hide presents. I just now read that on the internet."
"Ha!" He opened up about his snooping little kids. He was pleased with the psych game. It brings out the kid in himself while being a providing father. He described his family. He's actually an engaging person and he's there on Christmas Eve for them. He glowed speaking of this. He didn't mind working.
I'm at the niche where peanut butter and jams are stacked on shelves. I'm surprised to notice two brands of powdered peanut butter. I look around. A young hipster type couple, millennials, well dressed, well groomed, an attractive couple is nearby, turns out they are engaging and well spoken too but that was not obvious at first. They have the appearance of being aloof.
"Hey! Look at this. Powdered peanut butter. Gawl!"
The woman responded.
"I Know. Weird, huh? I saw that before. I think people use it for their protein shakes."
The tall dark thin man wearing peacoat, shined black shoes and woven cap said,
"They remove the oil. Like she said, for protein shakes."
"I'm against non-fat things. I am pro full-fat."
The woman said,
"I'm am pro-fat too."
"I am against all these antilipoidites."
"Ha ha ha." The man laughed.
"Everything is powdered nowadays. It's the new thing. Get used to it because it's going to be everything powder for now on."
I said, "Yeah. I just now bought powder potatoes."
"Yes. See? Everything powder."
"For bread."
The woman goes, "What?"
"I asked the internet, 'how can I make my cinnamon rolls soft' and the answer was potatoes."
"Really? How does that work?" I explained how using a regular potato works. But it does add quite a lot of water in the potatoes and that's why I'm trying powered potatoes. I'm tired of boiling a potato just for that. "It works for hamburger buns too. And now, because of this potato bread discovery, finally at this late point I've got my hamburger act down !"
The man laughed. He had a constant smirk. He had that odd effect of a person behind the person presented. It's hard to describe, but a bit like the person presented is persona, a puppet for the person behind it. A sort of remoteness but now the puppeteer stepped forward into the puppet. But so am I in a way and my acting out, my emphatic exaggerated explosion for emphasis of having my act down and my insistence that now I can make the best burger available had him amused. I was interesting somehow to him. "That along with excessive butter inside the hamburger, those two things, a hamburger dripping in butter and potato buns made as sliders, with a bread and butter pickle is the best combination on Earth. Yes. I've got my act down. Finally."
"The best hamburger in Denver that we've found is at Tag."
"I live next to Burger-Fi."
"Tag's hamburger is, oh, I'd say, on a scale, two point higher than Burger-Fi."
"Where is it?
"Hmmm. Um. Don't know the address or cross streets. Near Congress Park."
"Thanks!"
Tag Burger Bar: 1222 Madison St. So there you go.
Merry Christmas. Happy Hanukkah. Seasons greetings, what have you
"Rhythm of breathing affects memory and fear"
In the study, individuals were able to identify a fearful face more quickly if they encountered the face when breathing in compared to breathing out. Individuals also were more likely to remember an object if they encountered it on the inhaled breath than the exhaled one. The effect disappeared if breathing was through the mouth.
“One of the major findings in this study is that there is a dramatic difference in brain activity in the amygdala and hippocampus during inhalation compared with exhalation,” said lead author Christina Zelano, assistant professor of neurology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “When you breathe in, we discovered you are stimulating neurons in the olfactory cortex, amygdala and hippocampus, all across the limbic system.”
The study was published Dec. 6 in the Journal of Neuroscience.
The senior author is Jay Gottfried, professor of neurology at Feinberg.
“One of the major findings in this study is that there is a dramatic difference in brain activity in the amygdala and hippocampus during inhalation compared with exhalation,” said lead author Christina Zelano, assistant professor of neurology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “When you breathe in, we discovered you are stimulating neurons in the olfactory cortex, amygdala and hippocampus, all across the limbic system.”
The study was published Dec. 6 in the Journal of Neuroscience.
The senior author is Jay Gottfried, professor of neurology at Feinberg.
Via Reddit: read the whole thing here: https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2016/12/rhythm-of-breathing-affects-memory-and-fear/
KLEM AM
Getting a Handel on Christmas...
That one came highly recommended by Sixty Grit and MamaM -- two of the straightest shooters at Lem's.
Here's the thing: Handel is gorgeous but above all -- baroque. I crave simplicity. Musically, I actually liked three-man power trios better than The Beach Boys and The Beatles. Maybe that's why I like small molecule chemistry better that molecular biology. Simplicity. Less is more.
Consider the following video that I found, researching a post a few nights ago:
What daunting challenges that musician faces! Four keyboards and more foot pedals than a centipede could master -- and yet somehow he does. Why was that instrument perfected for a soloist? Why didn't organists have footmen, much like a locomotive engineer had a fireman? Because they could?
I suppose that next you'll tell me that the pipe organ soloist evolved specifically to play baroque music.
Merry Christmas, All!
That one came highly recommended by Sixty Grit and MamaM -- two of the straightest shooters at Lem's.
Here's the thing: Handel is gorgeous but above all -- baroque. I crave simplicity. Musically, I actually liked three-man power trios better than The Beach Boys and The Beatles. Maybe that's why I like small molecule chemistry better that molecular biology. Simplicity. Less is more.
Consider the following video that I found, researching a post a few nights ago:
What daunting challenges that musician faces! Four keyboards and more foot pedals than a centipede could master -- and yet somehow he does. Why was that instrument perfected for a soloist? Why didn't organists have footmen, much like a locomotive engineer had a fireman? Because they could?
I suppose that next you'll tell me that the pipe organ soloist evolved specifically to play baroque music.
Merry Christmas, All!
Saturday, December 24, 2016
Adoration Of The Shepherds
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| Caravaggio, "Adorazione dei Pastori"(1609) |
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