"People who know little are usually great talkers, 
while men who know much say little." 
--- Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Making A Liar Out of Me

A while back, in the street sign entry I wrote that there hasn't been any vandalism on them in quite a while. That kids are more busy today, more lazy, and (I hoped) more civic-minded.

Today, I was informed that one of them on the main road around the lake was lying into the street. It was one that we dug a new hole for and re-set in fresh concrete back in October. The concrete mass was the end in the road... so even with 50+ m.p.h. wind gusts today, I would say it likely had help getting in such a position. There wasn't any damage besides a few scuff marks in the new paint where it must have hit the ground. A mound of fresh dirt was visible. Not much to do other than dig out the hole a little deeper, make sure the street names are aligned properly, fill it in and hope that someone's wild oats have been sown enough. So that's what I did.

Don't quite get it, though. Tearing out your own street sign is a lot like kicking yourself in the balls.

27 November 2009

Had an interesting Turkey Day yesterday. Preparation was a little discombobulated, as we didn't find out for sure what the arrangements were until Tuesday evening. Took a 9-lb. turkey breast out of the chest freezer then and it was still a little solid near the giblet bag ~ noon yesterday. The freezer does its job well. Otherwise, I made some pumpkin pie, stuffing, butternut squash and mashed potatoes. It was a quiet Thanksgiving for the first time in several years.
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Today was a farmer's holiday, with some wind gusts added to the rain. Got a bit of a head start on the Christmas decorations. Fixed the front door wreath and the attic door pull with some knit/fabric ornaments. Also brought down an old 3' plastic Santa. We'll see if that stays or goes back into storage.
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Lit the wood stove for the first time this past week, so it is warm and toasty in the basement. Bit of a late start with the stove this year. Not like we need to conserve the woodpile... it's stacked with about 5 1/2 cords; plus, six large kindling bags for starting fuel. Having the woodlot across town has saved a lot of money over the years --- it just requires some time and effort. Got a nice blend of red oak, white oak and maple in the stack this year, all of which burn very well. As my UConn botany professor, Dr. Lewis said, wood stoves are a relatively inexpensive and environmentally conscious choice for heating, in the absence of solar or geothermal systems that are still not in wide use due to cost. Wood burns clean CO2, doesn't create pollution/degradation to get it, is a renewable resource, and you can use the (cooled) ashes as compost fill.

21 November 2009

Buffalo Bills coach Dick Jauron was fired on Tuesday this week. It's the first step of a long road toward turning the franchise back toward respectability. There's a lot that needs to be fixed in the hierarchy of the front office. The multiple-VP 'consensus' system that was initiated a couple of years ago is not what's required in the NFL. So far, the rumor-mill has generated the name of former Denver Broncos coach Mike Shanahan, who would ostensibly be brought in either late this season in an advisory role (similar to Bill Parcells' post with the Miami Dolphins) and perhaps be named as the head coach and/or GM after the season concludes. The issue of how much control a new hire would have is something that will have to be worked out. Ralph Wilson, the Bills' owner, is rightly making generic statements, but hinted that established big-name coaches are on the radar. For an owner who has run his team on the cheap for the last ten years (and who has meddled with his toy to the team's detriment since the start) I'll believe in change when I see it.
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Started building a new tailgate for the trailer this week, in addition to re-jiggering the tail light wiring. It will soon be street legal again. The tailgate is a pattern of three horizontal pressure-treated 1" x 6" boards with a 6" gap between them, and bolted together with four shorter vertical sections. Will have to post a picture when it's complete. This is, I hope, ahead of doing some more extensive repairs on the trailer itself in the spring. The plywood sides have certainly seen better days and the frame could use a fresh coat of paint.
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Built a replacement birdhouse this afternoon, essentially making a copy of the design of the old one whose wood was weathering away. The entry hole had been hacked away to about 4" in diameter, and it's been awhile since I noticed any birds in residence. Building it better, painting it 'Colonial Red' and also making a roof covering out of a pair of old Connecticut license plates that were from our '86 Bronco (which had quite the same color scheme as the new CT plates). That was something I'd seen in a magazine some time back, and it seemed like a interesting idea. This, too, I'll have to share a picture of when it's done.
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The UConn football team beat Notre Dame this afternoon in double OT. Undoubtedly the biggest win in the program's young history... and surely an emotional victory for the team with all that's happened in the past month.
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I recently rejoined Facebook. After the family reunion "pumpkin carving party" just before Hallowe'en, it made me rethink the decision. Made a few changes, edited the 'Friend' list a bit and it seems a little more palatable now. Not on it all day (not that I ever was)... just now and then. We'll see how it goes.

The Leonids

The annual Leonid meteor shower this year is expected to be above-average viewing.

Some quality links:
◦ Strong Leonid Meteor Shower Peaks Early Tuesday Morning

◦ November's Best: The Legendary Leonids

Drag yourself out of bed after midnight tonight (peak is reportedly 1 a.m. - 4 a.m.), grab a blanket and sit by the window to watch falling space debris. The forecast is for clear skies, and we are moonless (officially called a "new moon"), so it doesn't get much better, weather-wise.

We have not had a very good viewing year here in the Northeast since 2001. I remember that I had been up that night writing a paper (not last-minute... I just did a lot of my best writing in college in the pre-dawn hours) and intermittently got up and sat at the French doors in the living room that overlook the lake. That show was quite good, and especially at that time, it served as a reminder --- for me at least --- to maintain perspective. There are constants even in our ever-changing world.

According to The [New London] Day link above, there should be about 500 meteors an hour. Enjoy the show!

(Image © Juraj Toth, Modra Observatory, 1998)

"When I finished it, I thought, 

'Well, I guess this will change the world.' It didn't. ... 

I thought I would win the Nobel Prize. ... Nothing happened." 

--- William Gaddis, about his book "The Recognitions" (1955)

Banking Some Green

Got in some kale the other night. They're the last plants left in the garden (well, besides the unused swiss chard that's going to get tilled in). Like many in the brassica genus, kale keeps growing after the frosts hit --- actually, many people comment that it tastes better after the first frost. I don't know why that is, but it's probably due to not drawing up a certain nutrient(s) from the ground in cold weather.

Kale is a great plant to grow in the garden. Dark, leafy greens are good for the brain, and high on the desirable list in the new food pyramid released by the USDA a couple of years back. My grandparents in WNY used to have this in their garden every year, and it can probably be attributed to my their mental acuity even as their bodies were failing from old age. Kale and garlic were staples there. I have usually used it in making soups and stews --- one recipe is basically chicken broth, diced potatoes, a significant amount of kale and kielbasa. That recipe card gets a decent amount of action in the winter months. I've also been using it in pea soups. Takes a while to cook down, and it seems like it tastes best when it cooks slowly versus just cooking some on the stove-top.

Anyway, I put in four kale plants this year and they did very well. Harvesting, as I have always done it, consists of doing a preliminary wash with the garden hose while still on the plant, snapping the leaves and bringing them inside. Then, tearing the greens off of the stems, washing, doing a couple of turns in the salad spinner and packing them tightly in Ziploc quart-size freezer bags (and squeezing out excess air). I put them in the freezer and take them out as I need them over the winter.