Yellow Blog Journalism

My Heros

I never thought that I would cheer on speeches given within the context of the British and EU Parliaments. But I'm cheering these men on. The key difference here is that BHO lives and works in an Ivory tower away from any senator or congressman, should one exist, who would dress him down in this fashion. Its a long way from capitol hill to a sound stage in Burbank. When all is said and done, BHO will hopefully be called to task for far more than a stupid remark about the special olympics.

Until then, I hear that he is polishing his monologue for Saturday Night Live.

My First Aniversary and My 500th Post

We're off to go hiking and later, more peep smores! 

My Literary Aspirations

Lately I've been trying to come up with a follow up to my impending childrens literary success "God, please don't smite my puppy", a meditation on prayer for preschoolers. The other night Jenn and I were looking at a few "worst of" lists. The most notable was a worst 80's hair.

Topping the list was Patty LaBelle. She beat out Bono and his amazing mullet as well as Prince, Rod Stewart and Don King. Honestly, I was inspired. I started work almost immediately on a short picture book called "What the Hell, Patty LaBelle?!?" Its a morality tale involving bad hair and sequined dresses.

Their Wills, Final Words From Better Men Than I.

John Paul II
Watch, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming (cf. Matt 24:42) -- these words remind me of the last call which will occur at the moment the Lord wills it. I want to follow Him, and I want all that forms part of my earthly life to prepare me for this moment. I do not know when it will occur, but like everything, I also place this moment in the hands of the Mother of my Master: Totus Tuus. I leave everything in the same maternal hands and all those who have been connected to my life and my vocation.  Above all I leave the Church in these hands and also my nation and the whole of humanity.  I thank all. I ask all for forgiveness. I also ask for prayer so that God's mercy will show itself greater than my weakness and unworthiness.

John XXIII
On the point of presenting myself before the One and Triune Lord who created me, redeemed me, chose me to be his priest and bishop, and covered me with unending graces, I entrust my poor soul to His mercy; I humbly ask pardon for my sins and deficiencies. I offer Him the little good, although petty and imperfect, that with His aid I have succeeded in doing, for His glory, for the service of Holy Church, for the edification of my brethren, begging Him finally to receive me, like a good and kind father, with His Saints into eternal happiness.

Don Ignacio Roybal
Let it be known to all who see this instrument that I, Don Ignacio Roybal, resident of this Villa de Santa Fe, Kingdom of New Mexico, native of the Kingdoms of Castilla in that of Galicia in the Archbishopric of Santiago, legitimate son of Don Pedro Roybal and Doña Elena de Santa Cruz, being as I am blind and sick in bed, but in my full judgment, memory, and understanding, as such God having served to grant me this, I confess that I believe faithfully and universally in the mystery of the Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, three distinct persons and only one True God, and in all that the Holy Mother Apostolic Roman Church believes and confesses, under her faith and belief I swear to live and die as a faithful Catholic and hoping with firm hope for the Divine Kindness that without keeping in mind my sins to have my soul saved by the infinite merits of Our Lord, Jesus Christ

Louis XVI
To-day, the 25th day of December, 1792, I, Louis XVI King of France, being for more than four months imprisoned with my family in the tower of the Temple at Paris, by those who were my subjects, and deprived of all communication whatsoever, even with my family, since the eleventh instant; moreover, involved in a trial the end of which it is impossible to foresee, on account of the passions of men, and for which one can find neither pretext nor means in any existing law, and having no other witnesses, for my thoughts than God to whom I can address myself, I hereby declare, in His presence, my last wishes and feelings.

Paul VI
I fix my gaze on the mystery of death, and on what follows it, in the light of Christ which alone can brighten it, and for this reason with simple and serene trust. I recognize the truth, which for me has always reflected on present life regarding this mystery, and I bless the victor over death for having escaped its shadows and unveiled the light. Thus before death, in total and definitive separation from the present life, I feel the duty to celebrate the gift, the good fortune, the beauty, the destiny of this very fleeting existence. Lord, I thank you that you have called me to life, and still more that, by making me a Christian, you have regenerated and destined me for the fullness of life.



These would make for an interesting book...

My Favorite Cookies #4

Homemade Tagalongs Cookies (a.k.a. Peanut Butter Patties)
(from Baking Bites)

1 cup butter, soft
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp milk

Preheat oven to 350F.
In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Mix in flour, baking powder and salt at a low speed, followed by the vanilla and milk. The dough should come together into a soft ball.
Take a tablespoon full of dough and flatten it into a disc about 1/4-inch thick. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough. Cookies will not spread too much, so you can squeeze them in more than you would for chocolate chip cookies. (Alternatively, you can use a cookie cutter, as described in the post above).
Bake cookies for 11-13 minutes, until bottoms and the edges are lightly browned and cookies are set.
Immediately after removing cookies from the oven, use your thumb or a small spoon to make a depression in the center of each cookie
Cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Filling
1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter (natural or regular)
3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar*
generous pinch salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
about 8-oz semisweet chocolate

In a small bowl, whisk together peanut butter, confectioners’ sugar, salt and vanilla. When the mixture has come together, heat it in the microwave (again in short intervals, stirring frequently), until it is very, very soft. Working carefully with the hot filling, transfer it to a pastry bag (or plastic bag with the tip cut off) and pipe a generous dome of the filling into each cookie’s “thumbprint”.
Chill cookies with filling for 20-30 minutes, or until the peanut butter is firm.
Melt the chocolate in a small, heat-resistant bowl. This can be done in a microwave (with frequent stirring) or on a double boiler, but the bowl of melted chocolate should ultimately be placed above a pan of hot, but not boiling, water to keep it fluid while you work.
Dip chilled cookies into chocolate, let excess drip off, and place on a sheet of parchment paper to let the cookies set up. The setting process can be accelerated by putting the cookies into the refrigerator once they have been coated.

Makes about 3-dozen

*You might need slightly less sugar if you’re using the conventional peanut butter, as it tends to be a bit sweeter. Taste the filling before using to make sure you like the sweet/savory balance.

My Final Will and Testement

I started work on my will today, something that I've been thinking about for a little while. The program I'm using has plenty of options, even appointing legal guardianship for my pets, and several things that I never considered; trust fund for Jack and once again, guardianship for my pets.

The whole process is pretty morbid, but important. I don't want something to happen to me or, God help us, both Jenn and me, and watch from the great beyond as some long lost cousin walks out of a South Georgia swamp to claim Jack as his heir. If I have my druthers, there will be no banjo plucking in my son's future.

I'm also going to work on a living will as well. The idea of being incapacitated in a hospital or (somebody shoot me first) a nursing home scares the life out of me. SO, until I have the legal forms in place, I want you to consider this video as a guide to caring for Tim should the worst happen.
Kill Titus - Click here for another funny movie.

Our Rut

My Favorite Cookies #5 Samoas

24 -30 cookies (depending on size of cookies) (change servings and units)

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Ingredients

• 24-30 shortbread cookies (I used Lauryn Clark's copycat recipe for the Girl Scout shortbread cookies, just cut them out so tha)
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup light corn syrup
• 1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 4 cups toasted coconut
• 1 cup chocolate chips

Directions

1. Place each shortbread cookie in cup of a greased muffin tin.
2. In 2-quart saucepan over medium-low heat, combine butter, sugar and corn syrup.
3. Heat to a full boil, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon.
4. Boil 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
5. Slowly pour in sweetened condensed milk, stirring constantly.
6. Continue cooking over low heat until candy thermometer reaches 220-228 degrees.
7. Remove from heat.
8. Stir in vanilla.
9. Beat until creamy.
10. Immediately stir in toasted coconut and mix well.
11. Spoon mixture by teaspoonfuls over shortbread cookies.
12. Cool completely.
13. Remove cooled cookies from muffin tin onto waxed paper.
14. Melt chocolate chips and drizzle thinly in stripes over cookies and let chocolate harden at room temperature.
15. Store in airtight container.

My Upcoming Anniversary

Jenn and I are coming up on our first wedding anniversary later this month. The big 0-1. We've been trying to figure out what to get for each other for a little while now, and we are running into the same problems that we do at valentines day, except that our anniversary is a real holiday. Valentine's day is just kind of this greeting card holiday that is just shoved into the calender. Its a decent excuse for a date with my wife, and to be honest any excuse will do (or none at all).  But buying gifts is usually problematic. Flowers, candy and underwear don't stand alone well. They seem a bit too cliché to really be "IT" for a gift. Those things aren't my problem, My problem is the other half of the gift.

Jenn and I have had this talk before. WIFI makes a terrible romantic gift. My problem is that I am too practical with my gift giving, and with my gift asking.

"What would you like for Valentines day?"

"I could use a dremel set."

"Tim, I'm not getting you a drill."

I'm not at all against the jewelry route or the romantic trips to Estonia or Italy, but I'm a full time student with a nine month old on top of the full time job. I'm lucky not to be eating Ramen noodles most days. My days of buying the tennis bracelet for my wife and giving it to her on our way to the airport are coming, but they are going to take a bit of work to get to so that they don't come with massive (irresponsible) debt attached that will sink us. You have to do it right.

If our lease allowed it, I would consider getting us a puppy, but even there I have to be careful. Keeping it a secret is a problem. I'd have to be sure to get all of its shots taken care of, and then most importantly, I'd need to remember to cut holes in the top of the box. Puppies are the very definition of the word perishable.

I can't afford the therapy that screwing that one up would require.

I'm not the easiest person to shop for. I like weird things, like books. I read alot of them, and usually read 3 or 4 at once. I like gifts for my hobbies. Camping, I asked for a lot of camping things for Christmas. My Father in law... FIL ... updated my kit substantially. He's big into camping too, though he is the grand master at it, and I am just some guy who wanders off into the woods. He builds cabins with his bare hands, and I'm the guy who is just waiting for his search and rescue. He's a rock star and I need to be following him around taking notes.

I'm trying to get into some new hobbies. Wood working, home brewed root beer ... because we know how well home brewed beer worked for me. Now I'm picking up blue chips once a year. Scuba diving is one of my hobbies that I would like to do more of. But these aren't fodder for romantic gifts. Well, maybe this is kind of romantic, but once again, price range. There is a reason that the first anniverary is the paper anniversary. We should do a bit better than some really nice card stock, but right now we've got some pretty tight limits.

I'm going to have to keep working on this one.

My Snow Day

Its been a while since the snow fell like this in my home town. Atlanta doesn't boast many show shovels and only a few more window scrapers. I myself have a window scraper that would survive a Michigan winter if need be, but thankfully, it need not. Its the kind that has a brush on the other end, and it sits in the front seat of my car, unused, waiting.

The snowfall outside is steady and heavy, and I have a front row seat for it from the couch in my living room. I am watching it, and our bird feeder through a picture window that I love. Our couch doesn't face the TV. Neither does the chair. The room is set up for conversation, for time together, and on occasion, we watch videos too. The couch faces out to the window, with our bird feeder hanging in the center. We have birds that have grown fat on this feeder, a Cardinal that visits regularly, a few thrashers and some birds with mohawks  feed there as well.

For the next hour, Jenn and Jack nap. I'm going to sit here with the snow, and the silence and watch it accumulate, and very quickly cleanse my mind of the troubling thoughts that pull at my attention and chip away at my strength.