Monthly Archives: February 2007

Listening

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sportclips

Bought some new headphones today for use with my iPod Mini; this is now the third set of ‘phones I’ve used, and I hope it’s the last pair I have to buy in a long time.

The pair that came with the Mini are the standard iPod “speakerbud” type. I was never crazy about the sound quality, didn’t like how they kind of balanced uneasily in my ears and more often than not fell out, and they broke after only a couple of months’ use. One day, I noticed that one of the wires had kinked, and then it frayed.

The second pair (aside from some old ones that were just kicking around the house) were the iPod “earbud” ones. They come in a little white case with extra rubber earbulbs and of course they have the clean, white iPod design cachet. And they’re crap, because the sound quality isn’t that good unless you jam them in your ears. I ran across a web discussion explaining to new owners how to hack their own ear canals so they could get these sound buboes to “fit” and give a reasonably good, sound-cancelling listening
experience. It did sound great, for a few seconds, but the shape of my left ear canal just would not allow for any kind of stable fit; the left earbulb would audibly work its way out no matter how I jammed and screwed it in, whether I reached around the back of my head and pulled on my ear to “straighten” the ear canal out or what (this was the aforementioned “hack”).

Also: it’s a little distracting if you have them jammed in tight, because you can hear your every breath. They sound best if you don’t breathe at all, but this is not optimal for continued use after about a minute or so. Unconsciousness and death are not an option just so you can hear every nuanced syllable Enya sings, don’t you know.

That second pair still works, but I tried to wear them while working out a couple of weeks ago, and they drove me absolutely nuts because of these issues.

So today, David and I were running around spending a little money on travel books (more on that later), rice bowls, and geek tech, and I decided to check out new headphones.

After looking my choices over, I went with the Koss “sidefiring” type that loop over each ear. The loops are rubber coated metal that bend and mold to the ear, and I have to say that they’re both very comfortable (I can barely feel them) and have great sound. As it turns out, they’re called the “Sportclips,” and are specifically designed for use during physical activity. Well, heck yeah, I somehow stumbled onto the right product without knowing a damn thing. I just thought there was less chance of my hair getting
caught or messed up by an over-the-head or behind-the-head design.

I own an iPod Mini (silver – none of that foo-foo candy-colored shit for me) and have been really happy with it, but the comfort and sound issue with the earbuds prevented me from being one of those people who carry their music with them constantly (although I also have a rig in the car so I can listen to it via the FM stereo). Now with the improved earphones, maybe I’ll be one of those obnoxious head-bobbing Podder people.

ipod-mini-silverJeff Buckley: Hallelujah (Live): Live at Sin-é (Legacy Edition) [9:15]

Guess what we did today?

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And yes, I’m sore and tired. We were only out for about 60-90 minutes. I could have kept going, but was starting a blister on my heel.

Via: Flickr Title: A couple of not very quick tips By: GinnyRED57
Originally uploaded: 17 Feb ’07, 1.26pm CST PST

I’ve had these skis for at least 10 years, and this is the first time in several seasons that we’ve had the right amount of snow on a weekend day for an outing.

daily episcopalian: The NY Times nails it…

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daily episcopalian: The NY Times nails it, and other news

"By Friday, conservative Anglicans said they were starting to despair that the meeting here would produce neither of their goals: a condemnation and marginalizing of the Episcopal Church, or a new church structure for American conservatives who want to leave the Episcopal Church but remain within the Anglican Communion.

'Conservatives are very disappointed,' said Timothy Shah, senior fellow at the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, in Washington. 'They have the feeling that the policy of the archbishop of Canterbury and the leadership of the Episcopal Church is one of indefinite delay in the hopes that aging conservative primates will retire and eventually be replaced by people who are more open to a negotiated settlement.'

Liberal Episcopalians, on the other hand, were encouraged that the number of primates — the term for the leaders of Anglican provinces — who refused to take Communion at this meeting was only seven, about half the number who refused two years ago." – NYT: Anglican Primates Snub Head of US Church over Gay Issues

Several Episcoblogs yesterday noted that not only did the 7 (only 7, and at least half of those are remorae) snub our good Presiding Bishop ++Katherine, they snubbed the ++Archbishop of Canterbury and all the other archbishops too. They certainly didn't get what they dreamed of: ++Katherine and the Archibishop of York, ++John Sentamu, getting kicked out on their asses with their pointy hats and all. ++Sentamu is seen as a moderating influence on the other African primates, as he is a British subject who immigrated from Africa, and is acting as ABC ++Rowan's right-hand man. At one point, ++Rowan was hoping ++Sentamu might run the meetings so that ++Rowan could do the real work in the aisles and corridors.

Boy, that's a lot of plus-marks and pointy hats. Have another look at Dave Walker's cartoon synopsis for a break.

So: the well-oiled publicity machine that's been endlessly cranking out story after story about the "widening rift" in the Episcopal Church is revealed as not so ruthlessly efficient as the ultra-conservative wing would like everyone in the Anglican world to believe. Considering how well financed the ultracon movement is (by people with names like Scaife and Mellon; see the article Following the Money if interested), it's surprising how the conservatives in the Primates' Meeting aren't running the show quite as much to their liking in Dar es Salaam. 

It seems everyone is most interested in making up a really big batch of Anglican fudge, putting off any real pronouncements until Lambeth (a conference that takes place infrequently) in 2008, and probably for some time to come after that.

As my fellow blogger ***Dave notes in response to a Mean Jean Torkelson article that mentions his parish:

Regardless, it’s actually … not a bad article. It’s somewhat informative, though in a somewhat shallow way, depending as much on tugging on the heartstrings, and spinning the current conflict in certain directions as on informing someone of what’s going on. To the casual reader outside the Episcopal Church, what does it say? It sounds like We’re In A Lot Of Trouble, whereas, in point of fact, most Episcopalians are really tired of this particular debate, which seems to stir the blood of muckrakers, demogogues, and theologians more than the average guy-in-the-pew, who’s more interested in, oh, I don’t know, how we do what Jesus talked about us doing — feeding the poor, clothing the naked, giving comfort, spreading the Good News, all that unsexy jazz. – Dave Does the Blog: Why Yes, That Is My Church

See, it's all that unsexy jazz that's what gets the juices flowing for progressive, or moderate, or even conservative Episcopalians. I even think it's possible to be conservative, or tradtional in view, without going all biblical-inerrancy ultramontane about it. The press keeps talking about the widening rift this, and the impending schism that, but they never mention just what a small minority the secessionist faction is. Or that the great majority of Episcopal dioceses and parishes are doing just fine, thank you very much.

Like others, I also think that a lot of this current unpleasantness is clergy-driven; it takes advantage of the well-known tendency of many "nice" Episcopalians to avoid things like unpleasantness and conflict.

Here's how to take over a parish: make it unpleasant, and all the nice people will leave, leaving all the diehards with a grudge over old issues like the "new" Prayer Book, the "new" Hymnal, and the ordination of women. Add homophobia, turn up heat, and stir. Congratulations! your Anglican Pot-Boiler Schism Stew is nearly done!

All humor aside, that's probably how it's worked. If your rector is too conservative, you leave and go somewhere else, leaving a clot of like-minded hard-nosed conservatives behind you. If your rector is too liberal, you agitate to try and have him or her removed, cause a lot of grief and conflict, and if in the minority, leave in high dudgeon, loudly vowing to attend church where the rector is more to your liking. If in the majority, wait until all the moderates and liberals all leave, and Bob Duncan's your uncle.  

Davis Mac-Iyalla In Tanzania

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This won’t make sense unless you’re an Episcopalian and aware of what we call “the current unpleasantness.” The Primates’ Meeting of the worldwide Anglican Communion is taking place in Tanzania, and the big issue is as always the American Episcopal Church’s progressive and inclusive attitude towards gays and gay clergy.

Davis Mac-Iyalla is a gay activist from Nigeria, home of the ultra-conservative Archbishop Peter Akinola. Nigeria is looking to pass some laws that would make it a crime for gays to meet in public, even for socializing. The ultra-conservatives use gay issues to turn up the heat under a constantly simmering pot of old resentments.

The reporters keep saying it came to a head in 2003, when V. Gene Robinson was elected Bishop of New Hampshire (and sustained by a majority of bishops and dioceses). But there were disaffected conservative parishes and dioceses for decades before that – gays are just the latest wrinkle. Before that, it was the new prayer book. Before that, it was female clergy. Before THAT, it was the Civil Rights movement (the conservatives were against that sort of thing).

Personall, I think they haven’t been completely happy since before the Civil War.

Really, it’s about power and property, but they say it’s about Biblical inerrancy and literalism (a concept foreign to classical Anglicanism, which requires faith and Scripture to be considered in the light of reason).

Mr Mac-Iyalla has suffered for his activism in his native country, enduring slanderous attacks in the country’s press and trumped-up legal problems. Here, he looks happy, confident, and comfortable with himself. The photo was taken by Scott Gunn, who is blogging from the sidelines of the conference, attending daily news conferences on behalf of an Episcopal gay-rights group he represents called InclusiveChurch.net.

Via: Flickr Title: Mac-Iyalla with a newspaper and a story about him By: scottgunn
Originally uploaded: 15 Feb ’07, 2.41pm CST PST

Davis Mac-Iyalla of Nigeria holds today’s The Citizen of Dar es Salaam. The paper features a front page story about the struggle for gay rights, and it includes several quotes from Davis.

Bourdain Sticks The Food Network Between The Ribs

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ruhlman.com: Guest Blogging: A Bourdain Throwdown

This guest-blog rant by Anthony Bourdain of "No Reservations" is so good, I had to quote the whole thing.  

Via Simply Recipes 

I actually WATCH Food Network now and again, more often than not drawn in by the progressive horrors on screen. I find myself riveted by its awfulness, like watching a multi-car accident in slow motion. Mesmerized at the ascent of the Ready-Made bobblehead personalities, and the not-so-subtle shunting aside of the Old School chefs, I find myself de-constructing the not-terrible shows, imagining behind the scenes struggles and frustrations, and obsessing unhealthily on the Truly Awful ones. Screaming out loud at Sandra Lee in disbelief as she massacres another dish, then sits grinning, her face stretched into a terrifying rictus of faux cheer for the final triumphant presentation. I mourn for Mario..and Alton…Bobby and yes–even Emeril, nobly holding the fort while the TV empire he helped build crumbles like undercooked Bundt cake into a goo of Cheez Wiz around him.

Some thoughts on the Newer, Younger, More Male-Oriented, More Dumb-Ass Food Network:

ALTON BROWN: How did Alton slip inside the wire–and stay there all these years? He must have something on them. He’s smart. You actually learn something from his commentary. And I’ll admit it: I watch and enjoy Iron Chef America-in all its cheesy glory. Absolutely SHOCKED and thrilled when guys like Homaru Cantu show up as contestants–and delighted when Mario wins–again and again, forestalling his secretly long-planned execution. His commentary is mostly good. And that collar-bone snapping fall off the motorcycle on Feasting On Asphalt? Good television!

EMERIL: I’m actually grateful when I channel surf across his show. He’s STILL there–the original Behemoth. And I STILL find him unwatchable. As much mileage as I’ve gotten over the years, making fun of Emeril; he deserves a lot more respect than I’ve given him. He does run a very successful and very decent restaurant group. He is–in fact–a really nice guy. And-as much as I hate the show– compared to the current crop of culinary non-entities, he looks like Escoffier. He will probably be the last of the Real Chefs. I’m sure they’re growing future replacement options in petrie dishes somewhere, conducting Top Secret focus groups at suburban malls with their latest Bright Young Hopeful. I’m just glad he’s still there–a rebuke to the geniuses who brought us such Great Ideas as Dweezil and Lisa.

BOBBY FLAY: They seem to have noticed Bobby’s strong “negatives” among some viewer responses during focus groups–and decided to respond by subjecting poor Bobby to THROWDOWN; the object of which is to allow every web-fingered geek with a backyard grill–or half-mad muffin maker to proclaim, “I beat Bobby Flay at makin’ barbeque!” at the heart-warming end of show–before returning to tend their meth labs.. I watched poor Bobby battle to a draw recently in some bogus Southwestern “Chili Face-Off.” Now…does ANYONE actually believe that Bobby Flay can’t make a better chili than a supermarket ground beef bearing amateur? I don’t. It’s a cruel exercise in humiliation. A variation on “Dunk Bozo” or “Shoot The Geek,” at the carnival. And whatever I might have thought of Flay’s previous TV efforts, I find the network’s misuse of one of their founding chefs to be nauseatingly cynical. The conspiratorial-minded might be tempted to suspect this as yet another part of the Secret Plan to rid themselves of the annoyingly big ticket chefs–by driving Bobby to quit–or insane with misery. He may not be Mr. Cuddlesworth, but he’s a successful businessman and a good chef–and he doesn’t, after all, need this shit.

MARIO!
Oh, Mario! Oh great one! They shut down Molto Mario–only the smartest and best of the stand-up cooking shows. Is there any more egregiously under-used, criminally mishandled, dismissively treated chef on television? Relegated to the circus of Iron Chef America, where–like a great, toothless lion, fouling his cage, he hangs on–and on–a major draw (and often the only reason to watch the show). How I would like to see him unchained, free to make the television shows he’s capable of, the Real Mario–in all his Rabelasian brilliance. How I would love to hear the snapping bones of his cruel FN ringmasters, crunching between his mighty jaws! Let us see the cloven hooves beneath those cheery clogs! Let Mario be Mario!

THAT ACE OF CAKES GUY: Hey…He’s got talent! And..he seems to be a trained chef! And he’s really making food–and selling it in a real business! I think…I like it! If I have one reservation, it’s that I have no idea if the stuff actually TASTES good. It LOOKS really creative and quirky–and I’m interested but…I mean…it’s like construction going on over there from what we’re told and shown. One suspects that the producers don’t want to waste valuable time talking about anything so technical as food–on “Food” Network. I mean…what’s in those cakes, beneath the icing and marzipan and fondant? That said, it’s the only “kicky, new, cutting edge, in-your-face” hopeful they’ve managed to trot out of any quality in memory. Hope it lasts. Wait till they try and put the poor bastard on a pony–or do a “Tailgate Special” with the usual suspects. Or a “Thanksgiving Special” where he has to sit down with the bobbleheads and pretend to like it. On balance, it’s still probably the best new project they’ve come up with in a long, long time.

GIADA: What’s going on here!? Giada can actually cook! She was robbed in her bout versus Rachael Ray on ICA. ROBBED! And Food Net seems more interested in her enormous head (big head equals big ratings. Really!) and her cleavage–than the fact that she’s likeable, knows what she’s doing in an Italian kitchen–and makes food you’d actually want to eat. The new high concept Weekend Getaway show is a horrible, tired re-cap of the cheap-ass “Best Of” and “40 Dollar a Day” formula. Send host to empty restaurant. Watch them make crappy food for her. Have her take a few lonely, awkward stabs at the plate, then feign enjoyment with appropriately orgasmic eye-closing and moaning..Before spitting it out and rushing to the trailer. Send her to Italy and let her cook. She’s good at it.

RACHAEL: Complain all you want. It’s like railing against the pounding surf. She only grows stronger and more powerful. Her ear-shattering tones louder and louder. We KNOW she can’t cook. She shrewdly tells us so. So…what is she selling us? Really? She’s selling us satisfaction, the smug reassurance that mediocrity is quite enough. She’s a friendly, familiar face who appears regularly on our screens to tell us that “Even your dumb, lazy ass can cook this!” Wallowing in your own crapulence on your Cheeto-littered couch you watch her and think, “Hell…I could do that. I ain’t gonna…but I could–if I wanted! Now where’s my damn jug a Diet Pepsi?” Where the saintly Julia Child sought to raise expectations, to enlighten us, make us better–teach us–and in fact, did, Rachael uses her strange and terrible powers to narcotize her public with her hypnotic mantra of Yummo and Evoo and Sammys. “You’re doing just fine. You don’t even have to chop an onion–you can buy it already chopped. Aspire to nothing…Just sit there. Have another Triscuit…Sleep….sleep….”

PAULA DEEN: I’m reluctant to bash what seems to be a nice old lady. Even if her supporting cast is beginning to look like the Hills Have Eyes–and her food a True Buffet of Horrors. A recent Hawaii show was indistinguishable from an early John Waters film. And the food on a par with the last scene of Pink Flamingos. But I’d like to see her mad. Like her look-alike, Divine in the classic, “Female Trouble.“ Paula Deen on a Baltimore Killing Spree would be something to see. Let her get Rachael in a headlock–and it’s all over.

SANDRA LEE: Pure evil. This frightening Hell Spawn of Kathie Lee and Betty Crocker seems on a mission to kill her fans, one meal at a time. She Must Be Stopped. Her death-dealing can-opening ways will cut a swath of destruction through the world if not contained. I would likely be arrested if I suggested on television that any children watching should promptly go to a wooded area with a gun and harm themselves. What’s the difference between that and Sandra suggesting we fill our mouths with Ritz Crackers, jam a can of Cheez Wiz in after and press hard? None that I can see. This is simply irresponsible programming. Its only possible use might be as a psychological warfare strategy against the resurgent Taliban–or dangerous insurgent groups. A large-racked blonde repeatedly urging Afghans and angry Iraqis to stuff themseles with fatty, processed American foods might be just the weapon we need to win the war on terror.

AND FINALLY: Some IRON CHEF AMERICA match-ups I’d REALLY like to see:

  • Mario Batali (with one arm tied behind his back–and drunk) vs. Regina Schrambling
  • Michael Ruhlman, swacked on Ripple, vs. John Mariani– in a Charcuterie Challenge
  • Grant Achatz vs. That Guy In Australia Who Ripped off his recipes as his own
  • Marco Pierre White vs. Gordon Ramsay
  • Charlie Trotter vs. Martin Picard (Chicken Livers vs. Foie Gras)
  • Chris Cosentino, Fergus Henderson, Martin Picard vs. Alain Passard, Roxanne Klein and Charlie Trotter (Cooked vs. Raw Challenge)
  • Martha Stewart vs. Rachael Ray (bare knuckle cage match)
  • Ducasse vs. Robuchon
  • “Mikey” from Top Chef vs. Sandra Lee

Video Gold!

 

Ah, Tony. That was a rant worth savoring. If only I weren't allergic to smoke, I'd be lighting two cigarettes and passing one over.

Now that we've got that out of the way, I'd actually pay good money to see Martha and Rachel Ray in a cage fight, tied together with a teatowel and desperately trying to reach the single, Emeril-autographed boning knife stuck in the sands so soon to be stained red with the juices of what passes for their lifes' blood.

I confess that I used to watch RR's shows at first because I suck as a cook (and not in a good way) and some of her time-saving methods seemed reasonable for someone like me that has no time to screw around planning menus, shopping anywhere other than the local megamart, and needs to throw something together fast. But then I got really, really tired of the litany of things fetched from the fridge and pantry: "My mayonnaise, my canned tomato sauce, my garbage bowl."

It was the garbage bowl that finally did it for me.

As for this Sandra Lee who seems to be Evil In Con Carnate, never heard of her, but she's way more creative than you give her credit for. I had a look around her site, crossed myself, and backed away slowly.

She doesn't just open up a can of something and dump it into her carefully designed tablescapes – sometimes, she opens up a box. Of Kraft's Macaroni and Cheese!! MMMMMmmm!

 

Oz PM John Howard: Open Mouth, Jump Right In

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BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | Australia head slams US candidate

Australian PM John Howard has criticised US presidential hopeful Barack Obama for saying US troops should withdraw from Iraq next year. His comments came soon after Mr Obama officially announced he would seek the Democratic Presidential nomination.

Mr Howard said al-Qaeda should be "praying as many times as possible" for an Obama victory in the 2008 elections.

But Mr Obama reacted by saying Australia should increase its troops in Iraq, if Mr Howard was so concerned.

That crack about al-Qaeda praying for an Obama victory: pure asshattedness, with the side brim flipped up all Oz-like. However, it seems that Sen. Obama can give better than he gets.