Is too much Internet bad??

T is always telling me that I spend too much time on the Internet. I have Wi-Fi through the house and a 4G hot spot that I carry around when we travel.

I can send and receive email from anywhere, and quickly post fascinating snippets to Twitter, Facebook, this blog and (soon) Google+.

I can also look up interesting facts anytime. For example, at dinner one evening T wondered what bugs were eating her squash plants. I had the answer (Squash Beetles) within a minute. I'm that good! Vain and self-obsessed? Naaah!

But T still agrees with the "experts" who say the Internet can be as addictive as alcohol or tobacco. So, in the interest of being "fair and balanced", I will start researching the other side of the issue. I don't want to be accused of embracing only information that supports my preconceptions, while filtering out dis-confirming information.

Later, when I get some spare time, I will read this article: Facebook and Twitter creating vain generation of self-obsessed people | Mail Online. But first I have to finish this blog entry, get my email, monitor my Twitter feed (and post a few Tweets), update my Facebook profile, set up a few more groups, experiment with Google+, and catch up on Mashable.com.

Then, for sure.

Sieg Heil!

Are you afraid of your cat? You would be if it looked like Adolf Hitler! Here's an example, cribbed from  catsthatlooklikehitler.com.

Looks like it's about ready to invade Poland!

I stumbled onto the site last night & thought it was hilarious. It brought to mind an old song we used to sing 'way back when I was in the Hitler Youth boy scouts:

"Don't be stupid,

Be a smarty!

Come and join the Nazi Party"

-- from Springtime for Hitler, by Mel Brooks

T was not amused.

Crown Molding For Erin...

Stephen means "crown" in Greek. So when T decided that our new nursery needed crown molding, I was the natural choice. Plus I have a miter saw.

The nursery, lest you jump to the wrong conclusion, is for granddaughter Erin. Child psychologists, if asked, would probably say that a young lady's development is enhanced if, when at Gram's House, she can stare up at a ceiling framed with crown molding.

I spent my formative years looking at plain right-angles where the ceiling and walls met. We don't want little Erin to suffer my fate.

So, I am installing crown molding in the nursery. For Erin.

My own namesake Stephen, in case you don't already know, was Christianity's very first martyr. So you can begin to imagine how I felt as I gathered my carpentry tools and trudged upstairs to begin work.

Erin, when you get a little older, please check out the nursery at Gram's house. The crown molding around the top is for you!

Here is where the persecution began...

This is what would have happened if the crown molding turned out to be ugly...

Listen: Billy Pilgrim Has Come Unstuck In Time

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slaughterhouse-Five



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Stuck in Philly this time

Oh well, it happens sometimes.



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State Bank of Illinois

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Oh the humanity!

T went into the grocery store, leaving me alone in the Jeep. She took the keys.

It's getting hot.

Somebody please help me!!

Oh wait, here she comes...

...it's Ok, it looks like she has chicken...

Michele Bachman - What's Not To Like?

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This was what summer used to be like...

...before the speed limit sign went up:

I used to sleep outside when the evenings were coolI'm sure that's all over now.

 I can remember the smell of pork chops on the grill, and the sound of the sizzle. A dim memory, I'm afraid, now that the Nazis are patrolling the streets.

We used to be able to decorate for holidays, too. Now they'll probably take our flags.

Obviously displays like this will not be tolerated.

Look out, butterflies! They'll be coming for you next!

Big Government intrudes at Carroll Ranch

It happened. The bucolic tranquility of our mountain home has been shattered.

One more freedom has fallen under the hobnailed boot of Big Government.

They put a speed limit sign in front of our house.

I blame Obama

I'm ready to flee the weirdness that is Facebook

I'll be switching to Google+ as soon as they let me in. Much more becoming a man of my advanced age and varied proclivities.

I like the "circles" idea. I think I'll have lots of them.

Facebook's "friends" and "not friends" is a little too binary.

Here's my working list of circles:

Friends from work
Friends from school (a long time ago!)
My liberal family
My conservative family
T's family
Radical Conservatives
Fiscal conservatives
Social conservatives
Heathen liberals, including publicans, sinners, Democrats... (I dine out frequently)

With enough circles I can be completely candid and never risk offending anyone! What's not to like?!



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Location:BBQ Patio

The Musical Fruit

For some years now I've been wanting to find a good recipe for baked beans. I'm not sure why it took me this long. Maybe subconscious anxiety caused by the campfire scene in Blazing Saddles.

Anyway, this week I threw caution to the winds (sorry!) and found a dutch oven baked bean recipe that looked promising and not too difficult. I grilled some chicken for the main course and the result was tasty, healthy and musical:

Bacon, onions, garlic.

Add pre-soaked navy beans and chicken broth.

When the beans are soft add other stuff. Tomato paste, vinegar, mustard, etc.

Cook some more.

Now add the dutch oven lid and bake for a couple of hours.

The dutch oven is in the left background, by the classy outdoor fireplace.

Chicken is just about done. Note the baby dutch full of BBQ sauce.

Ready to eat. Keith and Karen brought crabs and salad.

Here are some random links, in celebration of all things legume:

I don't know why anyone would want to do this, but to learn how to take the "wind" out of beans, click here.

To enjoy the aforementioned scene from Blazing Saddles, click here.

There is even a Facebook page devoted to beans, which includes some poetry.

Beans on Facebook. Right.

Garry Owen Irish Pub

126 Chambersburg Street
Gettysburg, PA

Cheesy Chicken

I only worked until 3:00 pm yesterday, so for dinner I made some cheesy chicken. Here's the play-by-play:

First, fry some bacon. Remove the bacon and cook some chicken chunks.

Layer onions, chicken, tomatoes, peppers and mushrooms.

Next layer: bacon and secret sauce. Cook for a while.

Top it off with a bunch of cheese. Cheddar, mozzarella, Parmesan. 

Put the lid back on and wait.

Time to eat!