Terry and Peggy go to Egypt and Jordan

My fellow dealer and friend and mentor Terry DeWald and his lovely wife Peggy are on a trip to the middle east. 

I know that they are visiting the Nile region of Egypt and Petra. 

He sent me some fabulous shots today.

The world's pre-eminent native basket dealer is having what looks like a trip of a lifetime. 

Terry of Arabia. Soon to be a book and major motion picture.

Looks like an amazing trip. I am really jealous!

The Egyptian light looks really beautiful. 

I was in Egypt in the 1970s but only on a limited trip to Nueba on the Red Sea.  

I have done a fair amount of traveling and it is still the most picturesque place I have ever been.

Stay safe and healthy and have a wonderful time on the balance of your trip, my friends.

If you visit the underworld, make sure that you have a round trip ticket.

In'shallah

The Shangri-las

No kidding

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says an Oklahoma hospital did not violate federal law when doctors told a woman with a nonviable pregnancy to wait in the parking lot until her condition worsened enough to qualify for an abortion under the state’s strict ban.

Jaci Statton, 26, was among several women last year who challenged abortion restrictions that went into effect in Republican-led states after the Supreme Court revoked the nationwide right to abortion in 2022.

For the good times

So what is your pick here for the Kristofferson standard? Price is probably my favorite but all are wonderful. Dean had just lost his son Dino in the accident and I believe that his wife Jeanne had just left him. His raw emotion and delivery here, while slow, is unmatched by practically anything I have ever heard.

Dean and Elvis are probably my two favorite singers but Ray is no slouch. You rarely hear an artist sing with real emotion anymore.

Friday Yum

I bought some really high quality lamb chops at Grocery Outlet today, both loin and shoulder. 

Found a great deal.

It was a good day and I wanted to celebrate a minor victory. 

I know that many people don't like lamb. 

We love it. But we don't eat it very often.

These chops were grass fed and very clean. 

I made a ginger garlic lemon olive oil marinade and let them sit for a long while in the mixing bowl. 

Added a lot of herbs.

I seared them in the Le Creuset grill pan two minutes a side and then transferred them to a rack with the already baked potatoes in the oven for a four minute convection cook at 375 degrees. 

Man, did they come out perfect!

Served with marinated long stemmed artichoke hearts and garlic from Italy.

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I learned something crazy about my wife and my family today. Neither of our fathers had middle names. Neither my father Amos Sommers or her dad, Marvin Gellman. Very unusual I think. Most people have middle names.

Elvis Presley - Kentucky Rain

Redneck Brawl

In researching my Kentucky post I came upon a phenomenon that was new to me. Apparently there is enmity between West Virginia and Kentucky and the people get together from time to time to have a big ol' redneck brawl. Where have I been?

Check out this YouTube short.

And it's not just the men. The wimmen' folk throw down too.

Yee Haw!

Actually upon further research, this is not reserved for just these two states. The white trash fight network extends into 'bama and Ohio too, as well as several other hick municipalities. Looks like Kentucky done won.

Tennessee Stud - Jimmie Driftwood

Kissing Cousins

Hillbillies in Kentucky can breathe a sigh of relief. A new bill removes sex with first cousins from the new incest definitions.

Nick Wilson (R. Williamsburg ) filed HB 269 yesterday. 

The purpose of the bill is to add “sexual contact” to the incest statute. Currently, incest only applies in cases of intercourse. So sexual touching/groping by uncles, stepdads or anyone with a familial relationship is not included in incest. His bill makes that kind of sexual contact a Class D Felony, unless the victim is under the age of 12, then it increases the penalty to a Class C Felony.

Wilson's bill strips the provision of not allowing one to marry or have sexual relations with their first cousin from the law. Which is probably a good thing, because perhaps thirty percent of the existing marriages in the bluegrass state would be suddenly illegal. That would be unfair and wreak havoc on a lot of good families.

You still can't marry your sister or your ma. Yet.

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Postscript - After pressure, he is backtracking. Says the change was inadvertent. Right... Quit it Pa, you're crushing my smokes.

The Coasters - Shoppin' For Clothes

Winner, winner...

It is a funny thing learning to cook in my sixties. 

The things that most of you have done for many decades that are second nature to you are all new to me. 

There is so much that I do not know.

Leslie was working late at the office and I asked her if I could cook dinner? 

She bought some organic chicken drumsticks last night at Sprouts at a great deal. 

She readily assented.

My last chicken experience didn't do so well, I was figuring out the new range and I botched the preheat. 

I wanted to redeem myself, I patted the chicken down, laid it on a rack with cut potatoes and gave everything a spritz of duck fat spray. 

I drizzled a bit of olive oil onto the chicken as well with a kitchen pastry brush and then started rubbing in some herbs de provence, salt, pepper, paprika and garlic, along with a secret herb or two. 

I splashed the whole thing with a lemon and stuck it into a 400 degree oven under convection bake.

Now it is funny, my thermometer chose a target internal temp of 185 degrees while my oven book said 165. 

I chose 175 in order to find a happy medium. 

Took about forty minutes, I flipped the legs at 20 and gave it a broil for the last four.

The flip really causes a lot of heat loss. 

It took a while to get back to the right ambient temperature. 

Anyway I thought, just how hot should you cook drumsticks? I decided to consult the internet and found this site.

Interesting. 

I did not know that legs need more time than anything else because there is more connective tissue. 

I coincidentally cooked to their preferred temp and it turned out great. Glad I didn't go to the 185 the thermometer recommended.

But I learned something else. 

Just because there is pink doesn't mean it is undercooked. If it is 165 or over the nasty bacteria is not a problem and you are good. 

There might be other reasons for the pink, such as a surfeit of myoglobin, age of the bird (young bird marrow is purple) and ph levels. But none of them make a bit of difference!

Leslie got home just as the legs were coming hot out of the oven, table set, kitchen clean, everything delicious. She was happy.

Bon appetit!

BBall and the Bronx

Kent and I went down to San Diego last night to see the Aztecs play Nevada in Men's basketball. 

Nevada has a really good team this year, 15 and 2 before the game and it would be a tough match. 

Practically all of the teams in the Mountain West are really good this year, they might get five in the NCAA tourney.

Nevada is very tall and talented. Steve Alford is their coach, a perpetual crybaby. 

The Aztecs have had his number at home for a long time. He is O and 12 at Viejas.

Has to rankle him.

Last night was a special night. 

One of my very favorite all time Aztecs player's jersey was raised at half time, Michael Cage, as well as Judy Phelps and a star from 1941 from Hoover High named Milton (Milky) Phelps who was killed in a training accident in the big war.

Milky in the middle with the schnozz

What a cool nickname, Milky.

It was a tough game, close, but SDSU prevailed. 

We led most of the way but were tied at around fifty if I remember correctly.

LeDee had another big night. 22 and 12. If he is not an all american this year there is something terribly wrong with the voting. Which there probably is. 

So the Aztecs are now also 15 and 3, trailing Utah State in the standings. We have a young team, I have no idea how good they can be. But Dutcher and Fisher teams almost always progress and get better by March. They get another tough one at Boise State this weekend.

I actually had to go to San Diego twice yesterday so I was totally exhausted when I got home a little after midnight. Taking it easy this afternoon.

Before the game we stopped at my favorite pizza joint in Mission Hills for a couple slices. Bronx Pizza on Washington is the best place in San Diego if you are looking for an honest New York slice and it has been for almost thirty years.

It was recently rated #2 in the state, sixth best in the entire country by Yelp and best in the city by the Washington Post. I would like to see #1 frankly. I used to see the mayor at Bronx and the chief of police as well. Consistently rated number one in the county since 1997.

The place is festooned with great boxing and New York memorabilia. Joint is not fancy, pretty spartan honestly. No affectations.

This is just an honest slice, not a nouveau or trendy slice. 

No truffles or caviar here. Or, god forbid, pineapple.

Last night I had the spinach ricotta, a whitestone and a pepperoni meatball.

Delicious, the spinach ricotta probably my very favorite.

The bummer is that I asked the counter man where Seth was?

He looked at me with a pained look and pointed me towards this photo on the wall.

Seth "Smitty" Smith died of esophageal cancer last August.

I had come down a few times but it was on a Monday or Tuesday when they are now closed.

I never knew. I guess it happened fast.

Seth was a co-owner and he loved Leslie, was so kind to me. 

We never paid for a slice on his watch. We tried. He wouldn't let us. Leslie and I used to sell our organic oranges in San Diego and she would always bring him a box.

The tall guy from the Bronx had a heart of gold and we loved him as did many others.

Heartbreaking.

We will miss you, man, it will never be the same.

Godzilla

Best bacon

Best bacon. Supposedly. Have you tried it?

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I had to go to Walmart to buy totes today. I am not sure why but every time I walk into a Walmart I feel like I die a little bit.

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I had a neighbor move in next door about a year ago. I understand that she is a retired prison or police officer from Lompoc. Told somebody that she wanted to do some pot raids while she was down here in her retirement. No biggie. She has horses and some really big freaking dogs, like Tibetan mastiff size or larger, they never shut up.

They bark incessantly, all night long. 

I can't do anything in my own yard without them going off. 

To each his own, I am pretty good at ignoring neighbors but the continuous barking is a pain in the ass. 

But what are you going to do? Some people don't give a shit who they bother. 

I leave people alone, I wish they would let me live in peace too but some people are just too selfish and self absorbed.

My friend Tom was turning off my water meter a couple months ago when one of the huge dogs grabbed his elbow through the fence and wouldn't let go. 

Tom has had altercations with dogs before, he used to read meters for the power company. 

He says that these dogs were different, they would not release and tore his jacket to shreds at the elbow. If they caught you, you might die.

The new neighbor got him unlocked from the dog but never offered to pay for the jacket. Never apologized. Next thing I know, the very next day she put a taller chain link fence between our properties. 

At one time the properties were owned by a brother and his brother and law and we both used the road but when Hayden bought the property things got a little weird. Cut the water to my trees without telling me, things like that.

Anyway it appears it is more of the same with his successor.

 When I went out to turn the water back on after the main line leak the day before yesterday, I noticed that she had put little signs on the fence between the property telling me not to bother her dogs. 

Don't put my hands near the fence, even if I am standing on my own property.

Very weird to see these signs, which were evidently made for me, maybe on advice of counsel. I don't look forward to a long and warm relationship, certainly not until she buys Tom a new coat.

The dogs look very dangerous, I hope that their tenure in the valley is very brief. Here's hoping anyway.

Moon over Red Mountain

 

The Felicity - hurtin

Don Henley's second band after R.P.M., The Felicity.  Single released in 1967.

Which is it?

A majority of senators voted to convict Trump — 57 to 43, including seven Republicans. But two-thirds, or 67 votes, was needed to convict. Republican dissenters said that he should be tried criminally after office, not impeached.

Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky and the minority leader, embodied the tortured balancing act, denouncing Mr. Trump on Saturday, minutes after voting to acquit him, for a “disgraceful dereliction of duty.” In blistering remarks from the Senate floor, Mr. McConnell, who had openly considered voting to convict Mr. Trump, effectively argued that he was guilty as charged, while arguing that there was nothing the Senate could do about it.

“There is no question — none — that President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day,” Mr. McConnell said. “The leader of the free world cannot spend weeks thundering that shadowy forces are stealing our country and then feign surprise when people believe him and do reckless things.”

But Mr. McConnell, who refused to call the Senate back into session to hold the trial while Mr. Trump was still in office, argued that he could not be convicted once he no longer was. Mr. McConnell said the only way to punish him now was through the criminal justice system. Mr. Trump, he said, “didn’t get away with anything yet.”

Flash forward to today. Now Trump defenders say that a President is immune from prosecution for illegal acts committed during and apparently after his time in office and can not be convicted. They say he can only be impeached. Heads I win, tails I win...

Sounds like a classic double game.

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I will miss Chris Christie. One of the few republicans that would speak the truth about Trump. I disagree with him on many  matters of policy, including abortion rights, but think he would have been a tolerable President. I can't say the same about any of the other current GOP candidates for office.

Unfortunately he had zero traction with the MAGA crowd.

From the New Yorker

 

Fats Domino - I'm Gonna Be A Wheel Someday

Tex Ass

A woman and two children drowned in the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass on Friday night as they were attempting to cross the U.S. southern border.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection told TPR that Border Patrol was prevented from deploying lifesaving efforts by agents with Operation Lone Star, the controversial Texas border security initiative.

Under the direction of Gov. Greg Abbott, Operation Lone Star this week seized control of Eagle Pass' Shelby Park, which faces the Rio Grande and has denied access to the Border Patrol.

The bodies of the migrant woman and two children were eventually recovered by Mexican authorities.

The Texas Military Department acknowledged in a statement to TPR that it was contacted by Border Patrol about a "migrant distress situation" at 9pm on Friday night and did not deny that it blocked access.

Train Leaves Here This Morning

Written by Gene Clark and Bernie Leadon.

Scone of the day

 

I made an early batch this morning, before my wife woke up.

I made a nectarine walnut scone. 

I left the ginger out this time. 

I did a couple things differently with this effort; I substituted sour cream for half the half and half and I dropped the white sugar to a third of a cup from a half and added some molasses sugar. 

I used a bit more cinnamon than usual and gave them a slightly longer convection bake, about 20 minutes.

Finally I added water to my powdered sugar instead of cream this time and added a whole bunch of lemon zest for a lemon icing that tasted wonderful.

I'm dialing it in better every day. Good scone.

Dirty Work

Steely Eagles

I had extraordinarily good fortune yesterday. I received a phone call from my friend Chip in the morning, did I want to go see the Eagles/Steely Dan at the forum in Inglewood last night? His treat?

Well, heck yes I did. I asked him where the tickets were and he said that it was a surprise. Okay, no problem. Coincidentally my friends Mick and RoxAnn were also going, Peter saw the show last week.

This was cool because honestly somehow, I have never before seen either band and while I like the Eagles, I love Steely Dan.

We arranged to meet at the Park n' Ride in Oceanside and headed up, stopping at a hipster joint near the airport for ramen and dumplings first. Nice.

We drove over to the show and I was blown away when we were seated.

Third row center. I was tempted to leave right then and there. 

What, I'm not good enough for the first row?

Chip

Seriously, the seats were outrageously good. 

I am a talker and quickly made friends with those friends around me in the rarefied section, wanted to suss them out.

Lady behind me saw three other Eagles shows this week, making it to everyone of them. 

Next she is flying to Phoenix and Austin. 

Another father and son flew in from Utah. 

A guy from Rancho Santa Fe said this was his fiftieth Eagles show. 

I know that nobody in this section paid less than four figures for their seat and some of them considerably higher. 

These people are in love with the Eagles and beyond seriously devoted.

Sort of like deadheads without the psychedelics. 

Very committed. 

Even the ushers were gushing about the performances this week.

Steely Dan came on and delivered an incredible set. 

Their musicianship is stunning, their background singers spot on. 

A greatest hits package but what a library of hits! 

Felt so good to see them live. Great drummer, great guitars, great horn section.

My favorites? Maybe Kid Charlemagne and Dirty work? Was hoping for a Royal Scam or With a gun, maybe something from Pretzel Logic.

Honestly I could have left after their set, I was so elated. 

The Eagles came on and delivered their own greatest hits package.  Really played well. According to the regulars near me, it was identical to every other night, the patter, the jokes, the music. Except for Life in the fast lane, the same as the other nights, note for note. Here is the setlist.

Now the vocals were perfect and the musicianship exemplary, but like the last band we saw at the Forum, Fleetwood Mac, the performance was so tightly scripted it had barely room to breathe. No improvisation whatsoever.

I could easily have just bought the record. And that is what Henley intended and it obviously doesn't make a bit of difference to his legions. Fine, they are not a jam band. They sing like canaries, that is enough.

It was pretty and the tunes both catchy and certainly a part of the great American songbook; the mnemonic nature of the affair didn't make the slightest bit of difference to the person who would subject his or her self to identical inputs over and over again.

Or should I say fifty times in a row.

The exception? Joe Walsh. Joe acted like a human out there and brought the energy, in fact he kicked it into another gear. 

Good thing he was there frankly, as hard rode and put away wet as he looked. 

I never exactly understood his fit in the Eagles, now I do.

There were six guitars on stage at one time or maybe seven if you count guest J.D. Souther.

And as good as Vince Gill is and that is very good, at least last night the second best guitar player out there was longtime but relatively unknown accompanying guitar player Steuart Smith.

One ridiculous thing about their performance was that there was an incessant guitar change with every song. 

Six guitars and they couldn't play them for more than one song?

Seriously? Is that really necessary?

Smith plays, amng other guitars inclding a tele and an SG, a 335 with a thumbpick, everything he did was perfect. Wonder if he draws full Eagle pay? He should.

My favorite song of the night? 

Meissner's I can't tell you why, delivered by Timothy B. Schmit. 

Was hoping for a train leaves here this morning or a duelin dalton but no longer in the playbook.

Schmit comes to my shows in Santa Fe but never stops at my booth. 

Actually a hard working bass player and very good singer of the high parts.

I would say the night went off without a hitch. 

The only time I was taken aback was when, Henley, standing about twelve feet from me, announced that tonight's show was sponsored by paxlovid. I had heard a rumor that he had covid and I really hope that it is over or at least, no longer contagious.

I actually like Henley's writing, always has a healthy dose of cynicism, which I always appreciate. just don't want to share the disease.

We wanted to get back on the road, both tired and we left after Hotel California, skipping the encore. Eagled out. But really happy, great night. Got back at one in the morning. Thank you Chip!

Visual narratives

Koi and swan 

I am honored to have been asked to show my photography in this upcoming exhibit at the Fallbrook Art Center:

VISUAL NARRATIVES - Photography
February 2, 2024 - March 3, 2024
Opening night: February 1st 4:30-6:60pm
'Visual Narratives: The Art of Observation' will present images that explore the concept of abstractions and reality.

Anu

Moon over Fallbrook

I hadn't really planned on doing the show so I am doing some last minute choosing and picking but think it will be interesting and appreciate the opportunity to share and perhaps sell my work.

Here's an odd couple for you.

1966, Bloomfield, Goldberg and Zappa. Barry is an old friend but I must say, not their finest effort. And another strange track featuring Frank.

Bobby Jameson — vocals Frank Zappa — lead guitar Louis Morell — guitar Robert West — guitar, bass Carol Kaye — guitar Larry Knechtel — piano Gene Estes — drums, timpani John Guerin — drums

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New Sly Stone memoir

The Great Negotiator

 

Jimmy Altieri Gets Whacked

This is the Sopranos scene where Jimmy gets taken out. They found out he was a rat. One of my favorite scenes, if only for the Paco Rabanne line. I always think about it when a guy near me is wearing too much cologne. Not everybody knows that the guy who plays Junior, Dominic Chianese, was also Johnny Ola in the Godfather. Great acting in this series.

Always the Sun

Do not look with scorn or askance at my scones, lest ye be scuppered and scuttled with the other scallywags and scoundrels.

I delivered a painting to a museum in Orange County today. On the way home I stopped at Sprouts to look for organic berries. Leslie is a stickler for organic.

She asked me if I could make her a scone batch with pistachios. We have been mostly using walnuts and pecans lately. I looked at a few recipes and had a general idea what I wanted to do.

I couldn't get organic blueberries but I did find strawberries, raspberries and blackberries and went with the latter. I had seen a roasted strawberry recipe and will try it another day.

I ended up making blackberry lemon pistachio scones with vanilla icing.

I added a lot of lemon zest, Leslie picked fresh lemons from our tree.

This recipe called for a little baking soda to go with the powder, what the hell, why not?

Ended up a bit more cakey, less rustic. I had used the soda once before on the ginger cardamon scone.

I made what I thought might be a fatal mistake, accidentally hitting convection roast instead of convection bake but corrected in a few minutes and they were no worse for wear.

The main problem is that the blackberries weren't sweet enough.

You can't really tell at the store.

The icing saved the day. I put it on too early but came over the top with a drizzle later and all was good.

I gave it my best shot.

Quite tasty. Not as good as my peach walnut ginger but honestly, not much is.

Voodoo Child

 

Weather Report Suite

I heard the other day that we were coming up on the fiftieth anniversary of this concert, March 23, 1974. This was a monumental show for me, my first dead show in California. My mother, brother and I had moved back from Manhattan a few months earlier, to Oxnard of all places.

She was chasing her ex husband, trying to make one more ill fated go at the thing. We were along for the ride, not like we had any other choice. I was still in high school.

By the time of this show, she had a new boyfriend, Ed, a UCSD student not much older than me. We all piled into an old beater, an incredibly long continental convertible with electric door locks and all the bells and whistles, and drove to San Francisco.

I had never spent much time in the city. There was a heavy fog and it was really cold. I remember tripping down Lombard, a very spacey night.

We picked up two dead head friends of mine from New York at the airport, Gabe and Hank, and went to the show.

This turned out to be a monumental concert in Grateful Dead lore, it was the introduction of the finished Wall of Sound, the greatest sound system ever created. An early try had melted down at Stanford. It was ultimately too expensive and burdensome to maintain and was discarded for something less difficult to setup and haul around a year or two later. But listening too it was pure sonic perfection, never eclipsed to this day. Was lucky enough to catch it on several occasions.

The Wall of Sound is the name some people gave to a super powerful, extremely accurate PA system that I designed and supervised the building of in 1973 for the Grateful Dead. It was a massive wall of speaker arrays set behind the musicians, which they themselves controlled without a front of house mixer. It did not need any delay towers to reach a distance of half a mile [800 m] from the stage without degradation. Owsley Stanley

The system consisted of 586 JBL speakers and 54 Electro-Voice tweeters, powered by 48 600-watt McIntosh MC-2300 amplifiers generating a total of 28,800 watts of continuous (RMS) power). It towered behind the band.

Jerry was on the left back then, had not yet made the switch stage right...

The Wall of Sound combined six independent sound systems using eleven separate channels. Vocals, lead guitar, rhythm guitar, and piano each had their own channel and set of speakers. Phil Lesh's bass was piped through a quadraphonic encoder that sent signals from each of the four strings to a separate channel and set of speakers for each string. Another channel amplified the bass drum, and two more channels carried the snares, tom-toms, and cymbals. Because each speaker carried just one instrument or vocalist, the sound was exceptionally clear and free of intermodulation distortion.

The California dead scene was so different than the New York one I was used to. Farmer deadheads, surf deadheads, mystic deadheads, everything much more laid back. It was a good show, they jammed in and out of Playing in the band into Uncle Johns and Morning Dew and played this beautiful Weather Report Suite, always a favorite. [Ed: My wife said it sounds like a dirge, slower than typically played. Maybe you need an altered state, I don't know? In my opinion, Weir's prettiest opus.]

This was the first dead show that I attended with my mom and younger brother John. The next week, if I remember correctly, my then girlfriend Abby flew out from New York with her friend Debbie. We bought a pound of crappy Mexican weed and tried to smoke the whole thing in a single week.

I must say that we were successful but also very stoned. I remember walking on the beach looking for car keys for an hour that might have actually been in someone's hand the whole time! We searched so long and we were so high we forgot what we were searching for! Almost a parable...

Ah, those were the days!

God bless you Grateful Dead, soundtrack of my life.

RTFM

Western Bluebird

My friend Pat in England wrote this morning, says he hasn't checked in on the blog in a long time and wondered what was up?

And I look back at the last few months of the blog as if I was Rip Van Winkle awaking from a long sleep and think, what have I been putting out here?

Hmmm.  Birds and flowers and music and food. What else? Whining, poverty, tsoris, the jew thing.

What have I not been putting out so much? 

Well, with the exception of the abortion issue, which unnerves me to no end, I have largely steered clear of politics.

Why, you might ask?

Because it is unnecessarily divisive. 

Battle lines have been long drawn and nobody is changing their minds so why cheerlead for one side or the other?

It is pointless, we are living in the most traumatic and polarized of times. The country is a tinderbox.

I can not stand former President Trump, it is true. But I am amazed at his hold over a large cross section of my fellow citizens.

Some believe that he is a messenger of god and grant him near messiah status.

I watched the Rachel Powell interview, the 42 year old grandmother who is about to start a five year prison sentence for her participation in the January 6 riot.

The interviewer was excellent and her candor was both appreciated and thought provoking.

She shows little if any contrition, she prefers to see herself as a victim here. She doesn't know who put the ice axe in her hand that she used to break the Capitol window. Wants to be back home baking cookies. I can relate.

And typical of the Trump cultist, she can not let go of the totally unsubstantiated and thoroughly debunked lies that Trump won the election. It is a core belief and letting go of it would somehow cause her to question an essential tenet of her own being that she can not and will not deal with. Way too traumatizing.

I get it. People feel powerless and they are scared. So if they can figure out a way to invent a big conspiracy to make sense of it all, they will. And there are news networks that will cater to them, no matter how outlandish and bogus the precept. Ask Fox how that Smartmatic thing went.

Arguing with people about Trump is like arguing over religion, it apparently is way too deeply ingrained and a no win. So I will write about scones and pot roasts, it keeps my blood pressure down.

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I forgot to wish my old friend Ricardo a happy birthday over there in Thailand.

A septuagenarian now? Wow.

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A lot of Europeans are rabidly anti Israel and anti semitic lately, like many progressives here at home. I am glad that Pat is still speaking to me.

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Been an interesting couple weeks. New garbage disposal and faucets, new toilet in the shop and new stove. Not to mention a new computer and broke to boot...

Not rolling in dough but it was all necessary, the last plumber never stuck a flange bolt in and I never had a proper seal. Plus the old unit looked like it should have been condemned long ago. I pour the old coffee in there, I know you thought it was something else...

Tom had to chisel the concrete and stick a bolt in. Now I riding high on the new throne. Yeehaw.

*

The new stove has been interesting. The first night I made chicken thighs and potatoes. I have never used convection before and there is a lot to learn about this newfangled thing. The manual was not written for a dumb old luddite like me.

Seriously, I live in a 54 year old farmhouse with no modern amenities. We didn't have heat or air until 2007 when I had open heart surgery and couldn't recuperate in the extreme heat of August. We didn't even have television for twenty years.

My wife and I are iconoclasts who follow our own directional navigation path. Part hippie, part amish, but without all the livestock.

Anyway I screwed up on the chicken, she said it was unevenly cooked and maybe not cooked enough. 

Why? I used convection bake but thought that the quick preheat function was enough.

Wrong.

Who knew?

Will never make that mistake again.

I ate mine anyway, pretty delicious, potatoes fabulous.

If I die from some food borne bacterial illness, this can be my going away letter, it has been great.

Sometimes you have to dial the new technology in a little bit. Also helps to read the manual.

Last night I made scones when I got home.

I decided to make a slight alteration to my recipe, a nectarine, pecan ginger scone instead of a peach walnut. 

Used cinnamon too.

I used the convection bake setting. 

I cut the temperature and the time by about 35%.

They were amazing but I think I still like the walnut better.

But the convection bake is the way to go, the bottoms were just perfect.

Hot out of the oven with good European butter. 

Heaven.

Best scone I have ever made, cooking wise. 

I am sold on the convection bake option!

I used the hot tumbler this time for the cutout, a little prettier too.

On to the main course, I bought a really nice prime top loin roast at Major for under ten bucks.

I let it get to room temp, dried it, salted it and then repeated the process in an hour.

I rubbed it with olive oil and pasted a mix of salt, pepper, thyme, oregano, garlic powder and basil in.

Then I added minced garlic to the rub and gave it a hot sear on the new cooktop.

I added the probe and stuck it in the oven under convection roast. Took about 28 minutes to get to an internal temperature of 120°.

Oh man. 

What a roast. What a crust.

I didn't tent it, just let it rest for fifteen minutes or so.

It was the tastiest roast I have ever made by far. 

Incredible flavor, the edges a bit medium, the center rare perfection.

I love our new oven.