Dr. Mom's Office

Audible removes in app purchases from IOS devices

2011-10-10T06:00:00.000-07:00

Dear XXXXX,

We'd like to update you on a change to the Audible application that affects the way that you access the Audible mobile store. In order to comply with recent policy changes by Apple, we've removed the "Shop" link from within the app that opened your web browser and took you to the Audible mobile store.

You can still shop the mobile store, and we've created a "Shop Audible" icon that you can add to your home screen so it's always one click away. To do this, launch your web browser on your iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch, go to mobile.audible.com, and follow the instructions to "Add to Home Screen". You can watch a quick video to walk you through the steps, or call us at (888) 283-5051 if you have any other questions.

That's it. The link is gone, but everything else is the same. You can still shop the store, and all your books will still be available in the app.

Thank you,
The Audible Team

Additional questions or concerns?
We're available at:
1-888-283-5051 (US & Canada)
1-973-820-0400 (International)
Monday-Friday 9AM-10PM EST
Saturday 10AM-7PM EST

My suggestions for useful power devices to survive a prolonged blackout.

2011-09-01T04:40:00.000-07:00

Now that things have settled down I'm compiling a list of necessary items for surviving a multiday power outage. N.B. Everything listed here are items I used during me 90 hour blackout
As opposed to my "Beer, salsa & chips" list this one is trying to be serious, anyone who has any suggestions/additions please add them in the comment.

1) a 16,000 mAmp i.Sound portable power pack, at 16,000 mAmps you will get at least 10 recharges of a phone/ipod (& maybe 5 of an iPad) before you need to recharge it.

2) A Wagan 400 Watt PowerDome. This Lead/Acid battery pack supplies 2 standard outlets & 2 12 volts (cigarette lighter type) outlets as well as enough juice to jump start if the car battery fails. You can run a very small TV off it for a few hours as well recharging lanterns, see below for my recommendations for those.

3) Coleman LED Rechargeable Lantern. This lantern has multiple brightness settings from dim to full. The dim supplies enough light to navigate familiar places while the full setting will provide enough lighting for multiple people to set around it & read etc. It recharges via a 'wall wart' or a 12 volt adapter so the Wagan PowerDome can recharge this. I chose a rechargeable over a propane lantern due to fire risks (if you start a fire during a blackout there may be NO help coming & I know that you need flashlights & batteries but IMO this supplies better lighting for meals & just 'sitting around in the dark' than multiple flashlights

4) Vizio 7" portable digital LED TV. The screen is small but is big enough to watch news & storm updates. It has an internal rechargeable battery which is good for about 3 hours & then you'd need to recharge it with the PowerDome. I got this one for 2 reasons 1) it has an incorporated antenna which can be flipped up & rotated to improve reception. 2) it was on sale at CostCo. If you're going to get another model make sure that it has multiple charging options (i.e. wall wart & 12 volt) and a good capacity internal battery. I'd love to find one which operates on AA's (like a very old LCD hand held analog TV I've had for about 15 years) but I haven't seen one yet.

5) iPod nano or classic or another MP3 player. There are battery powered CD players but how many of us still have a large CD collection. In this case I'd go for the nano since it also includes an FM radio (in the greater NY area there are FM all news stations). I know that the iPod touch is much more popular & has a higher capacity but the nano &/or classic will run for longer using much less power due to the 'lack' of an large LED screen. My nano ran for 20 hours before I needed to recharge it which was 3 days of listening to audiobooks. (You don't need a link to find this one). If you have a iPod touch I'd strongly suggest a Morphie JuicePack as an 'additional battery' to prolong the power supply.

Other non-powered but useful items include a cooler & blue ice packs to keep foods cold without opening the refrigerator/freezer as well as a fireplace/bbq lighter to light your stove if you're lucky enough, like we were, to have a gas range & the gas is still on,

Hopefully I can now pack most of these items away & won't need them (except for the iPod nano which I wear as a wrist watch) for years.

My take on the latest turn in Mr. S. Jobs' medical condition

2011-08-25T09:15:00.000-07:00

Now that Mr. Jobs has stepped down (in effect admitting the seriousness of his condition) I feel free to discuss further my feelings about what's going on with Mr. Jobs. Again I'm not directly involved in his treatment but this is based on personal observations and publicly posted information
1) The Carcinoid had recurred and had recurred in the transplanted liver.
2) He had been undergoing a palliative treatment called 'chemoembolization' which involved essentially injecting chemotheraphy directly into the main artery of the liver.
3) (This is based on my observations) This treatment has not had the desired effect on slowing/halting the progression of the disease to any significant effect. I am saying that based mainly on his progressive muscle wasting which is apparent on any recent pictures of him and his final decision to 'step down' as the CEO of Apple. The pictures I refer to are not the photoshopped ones but those from publically broadcasted events.

OK, now some more technical background.
What is chemoembolization?
The liver has the relatively unique property of having a dual blood supply. First the hepatic artery and secondly the portal vein. Unlike any other organ the liver derives the vast majority of it oxygen and nutrient supply from the portal vein instead of the artery. Conversely, and to most patient's benefit, tumors in the liver derive those vital elements from the hepatic artery. This gives us the option to infuse chemotherapy directly into the hepatic artery directing the chemo to the tumor and sparing the healthy liver. In patients with metastatic tumors this is not commonly curative but can provide excellent palliation (alleviation of symptoms & slowing or halting the progression of the disease) & extending the potential survival for years. The issue for Mr. Jobs is that there is little data as to the effect of this treatment on a transplanted liver which may have alterations in the 'normal' blood flow. This has most likely limited the amount of treatment that they are willing to infuse into Mr. Jobs liver and may be part of the reason that his condition has progressed.

His future options/prognosis
1) A new liver transplant is 'potentially' possible if there is no recurrent tumor anywhere else but I would put the possibility into the less than 'single digits'. His first transplant was done at one of the only centers in the US willing to transplant for metastatic carcinoid (there's no good evidence that transplant is better than primary chemoembolization) & I would be very surprised if they were willing to retransplant in the face of recurrent tumor. The reason for this is that recurrence after removal of the affected organ (his liver) indicates micro implants of the tumor elsewhere which have not been controlled and the likelihood of a second recurrence is extremely high.
2) More chemo. That can always be done & may be preceding but in view of the apparent failure of his current treatment he would need to be entered into an 'experimental' study to find something different.
3) Under the best circumstances, if no further treatment is possible Mr. Jobs will suffer from progressive liver failure slip off into a painless coma and not 'wake up'. That was the condition he was approaching when the first transplantation was done. Depending on the amount of liver function that he has left this time can be estimated from weeks to months although without some new treatment, and based solely on statistical data, I would be surprised but not amazed to find that he made it to the end of the year. It all really depends on how rapid the tumors in his liver, & elsewhere grow and impair his functioning. What I have been waiting for, fearfully, was that he would suffer a catastrophic complication of his treatment, i.e. rapid liver failure due to ischemia of the liver, overwhelming infection as a result of the immunosuppression needed to prevent rejection of his transplanted liver and would die unexpectedly in a spectacular fashion (Sorry if that sounds callous but that's what we usually call rapid, catastrophic death when you're surrounded by all the high tech medical equipment doing everything possible to try and save you).

My personal hope is that he goes easily surrounded by family & friends and that he gets the most quality time possible.

I've attached links to a technical article (above the level of 'lay public' but not too esoteric) which further explain chemoembolization and the only article I've found on the treatment of metastatic carcinoid by that method. I have been able to find NO REFERENCES to chemoembolization into a transplanted liver & talking to my radiology colleagues it is a rarely done & is an essential experimental procedure.

References:
1) Chemoembolization of liver tumors (for the lay public but a good review) http://www.rad.washington.edu/clinical/radiology-clinics/interventional-radiology-clinic/chemoembolization-of-liver-tumors

2) Hepatic artery embolization and chemoembolization for treatment of patients with metastatic carcinoid tumors: the M.D. Anderson experience. (The best article I've found, you'll get what you need reading the abstract) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12967136

My Review of the Sonos Play:3 speakers

2011-07-24T06:31:00.000-07:00

Now that I've had the Play:3 up and running for 48 hours here's my take on the newest entry into the Sonos System.
The Play:3 appears to be Sonos' foray into a speaker system for the smaller room/area. In my case it's in our master bedroom which is a 10x12 space.
The setup was painless, as usual, and the speaker was up and running within minutes.
Sound: I ran my usual 'test mix' of music ranging from rock through classical (I've never found anything better than Dvorak's New World Symphony, the Von Karajan version, to test speaker ranges) and a radio station to check voice reproduction. As expected for a unit of this size the bass was a little lacking and faded out the further you got from the unit but the rest of the range was bright and clear. All parts of the sound improved when I put the speaker on a table in the corner of the room and allowed the sound to bounce off the walls (I faced it out but it still helped).
More interesting, and problematic, to me were the choices Sonos made on what to add and leave out of this unit.
1) There is the addition of a mounting hole on the back (check the photo below) for attaching to a bracket (Not included & currently Sonos does not offer).

At 10 pounds the speaker will require firm attachment to remain secure but the depth of the hole seems to be deep enough to provide for this.
The problem is the placement of the mounting hole. Although the unit can be placed vertically and the speakers adapt (confirmed by my testing) this only works with the right side down, not the left. For some reason Sonos placed the screw hole to the side of the unit instead of squarely in the back. This means that any mounting bracket will have to supply a 'shelf' as part of it's structure or clamp around the sides of the unit to prevent levering and potential damage to either the unit or wall since if simply screwed into a stud the weight will be carried at the lower part of the unit (if mounted vertically) or off to the side (if horizontal). Perhaps this choice was dictated by the interior design (I didn't open the unit to check) but it was, IMO, a poor choice a center place mounting hole would have been better.
Also the power socket and Ethernet port jack are close to the mounting hole. This means either running the wiring through the wall or having to mount at least 2 inches away from the wall for adequate clearance for the power cords (this may have been intentional since they recommend a minimum of 1" of clearance around the unit for ventilation and that will place even further leverage on a single screw mount).
2) What was left out as opposed to the S5/Play:5 unit:
A) There is no Ethernet out jack on the back so you have to use a separate port from your router to connect this if it's the first component.
B) There is no line in jack. In my case it's an issue since I was going to add a second Bluetooth receiver and continue to stream audiobooks from my phone to the player as I do with the S5 in the kitchen. I know that I can add a wireless bridge for iPhones but I have an Android phone and that's not possible since the wireless bridge is iPhone/iPod only. The lack of an line in jack means leaving my phone in the kitchen to stream the book in the bedroom, a nonstarter if I need to use the phone. Also, I was considering giving a Play:3 to my son for his college apartment & using Bluetooth to stream from his iPhone. The price differential of $30 for a Bluetooth adapter vs $120 for the dock is a nonstarter as far as I'm concerned.
C) There is no headphone jack on the back meaning that, unlike the S5/Play:5 you can't listen privately through the system

Conclusions:
The Play:3 is an interesting option for the smaller room if you already own a Sonos system with more than adequate sound quality for speakers of it's size but it's lack of input/output ports on the back make it 'iffy' if you're going to use it as your only speaker for the system.

Unacceptable voting machines being used in Nassau County, NY

2010-11-02T08:12:00.001-07:00

The voter machines in NY State used in Great Neck are unacceptable, in my opinion. After filling out the scantron sheet you put in through the scanner. The screen does NOT display your vote nor give you any chance to correct a misread but simply says "Your vote has been recorded". In my case I left a surrogate judge election vote blank & it did not do anything to ask me "do you wish to confirm the 'no vote'" but simply said "Thank you for your vote, this system is more open to mistakes and/or voter fraud than the older voting machines.

I voiced my concerns to the poll workers and they told me "Why would the machines be inaccurate, don't you trust then?" I have no way to assure that the vote was accurately recorded but was just told to "Call the Governor if you don't like it"

Posted via email from Dr. Mom's Posterous

Can someone translate this please?

2010-10-12T08:09:00.001-07:00

In a true piece of regulatory gobbledegook, I just received this e-mail from the credentialing authority at my institution (Name withheld to protect me from a libel suit). It's hard to believe that this was written by someone with at least a high school education.

Someone needs to go back to grammar school to learn how to structure a paragraph.

Quote:

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4

On behalf of the medical staff office, joint commission and myself as the credentialing coordinator for the XXXX department of XXXXX, I am advising you of the following new requirements when requesting appointments/reappointments/privileges at other institutions or within any of the health system's facilities.

All applications must have a dated CV indicating month/day/year format when accessible, month/year format will also be accepted and current photo ID (drivers license or up to date passport).

Your cooperation in this matter will be appreciated.

End Quote:

1) Since when is a date on a printed or electronic document not accessible?

2) Are they asking me to include a government issued identity document? What am I supposed to do if I don't have a driver's license or passport?

Posted via email from Dr. Mom's Posterous

iTunes 10 Breaks Outlook, Apple's response, disconnect syncing between Outlook & your iPhone

2010-09-10T07:32:00.001-07:00

As of yesterday pm Apple FINALLY admitted that there is an issue with iTunes 10  & Outlook. People have been reporting since its release that 10 is interfering  with Outlook, mostly 2000 but there are reports for all versions. It seems that  the outlookchangenotifier.dll, required for iTunes to sync an iPhone/iPad/iPod  to Outlook, is preventing Outlook from functioning. Apple has just posted an  official work around which is to delete/rename the dll so it stops interfering  with Outlook. The downside? You can no longer sync your iPhone/iPod with  Outlook. Way to go Apple! Let's break something & then fix it by breaking  something else just as important.  Reference Apple support doc. TS3500 support.apple.com/kb/TS3500

A Happy New Year Message, Thanks to everyone for all the warnings!

2010-09-07T07:39:00.001-07:00

As we get approach the Jewish High Holidays, I want to thank all of you for your educational e-mails over the past year. I am totally screwed up now and have little chance of recovery.

I no longer open a bathroom door without using a paper towel, or have the waitress put lemon slices in my ice water without worrying about the bacteria on the lemon peel.

I can't use the remote in a hotel room because I don't know what the last person was doing while flipping through the adult movie channels.

I can't sit down on the hotel bedspread because I can only imagine what has happened on it since it was last washed.

I have trouble shaking hands with someone who has been driving because the number one pastime while driving alone is picking one's nose.

Eating a little snack sends me on a guilt trip because I can only imagine how many gallons of trans fats I have consumed over the years.

I can't touch any woman's purse for fear she has placed it on the floor of a public bathroom.

I MUST SEND MY SPECIAL THANKS to whoever sent me the one about rat poop in the glue on envelopes because I now have to use a wet sponge with every envelope that needs sealing.

ALSO, now I have to scrub the top of every can I open for the same reason.

I no longer have any savings because I gave it to a sick girl (Penny Brown) who is about to die for the 1,387,258th time.

I no longer have any money, but that will change once I receive the $15,000 that Bill Gates/Microsoft and AOL are sending me for participating in their special e-mail program.

I no longer worry about my soul because I have 363,214 angels looking out for me, and St. Theresa's Novena has granted my every wish.

I can't have a drink in a bar because I'll wake up in a bathtub full of ice with my kidneys gone.

I can't eat at KFC because their chickens are actually horrible mutant freaks with no eyes, feet or feathers.

I can't use cancer-causing deodorants even though I smell like a water buffalo on a hot day.

THANKS TO YOU I have learned that my prayers only get answered if I forward an e-mail to seven of my friends and make a wish within five minutes.

BECAUSE OF YOUR CONCERN, I no longer drink Coca Cola because it can remove toilet stains.

I no longer buy gas without taking someone along to watch the car so a serial killer doesn't crawl in my back seat when I'm filling up.

I no longer use Cling Wrap in the microwave because it causes seven different types of cancer.

AND THANKS FOR LETTING ME KNOW I can't boil a cup of water in the microwave anymore because it will blow up in my face...disfiguring me for life.

I no longer go to shopping malls because someone will drug me with a perfume sample and rob me.

I no longer receive packages from UPS or Fed Ex since they are actually Al Qaeda agents in disguise.

And I no longer answer the phone because someone will ask me to dial a number for which I will get a phone bill with calls to Jamaica, Uganda, Singapore, and Uzbekistan .

I no longer buy cookies from Neiman-Marcus since I now have their recipe.

THANKS TO YOU I can't use anyone's toilet but mine because a big black snake could be lurking under the seat and cause me instant death when it bites my butt.

AND THANKS TO YOUR GREAT ADVICE I can't even pick up a coin dropped in the parking lot because it probably was placed there by a sex molester waiting to grab me as I bend over.

I no longer drive my car because buying gas from some companies supports Al Qaeda, and buying gas from all the others supports South American dictators.

I can't do any gardening because I'm afraid I'll get bitten by the Violin Spider and my hand will fall off.

If you don't send this e-mail to at least 144,000 people in the next 70 minutes, a large dove with diarrhea will land on your head at 5:00 p.m. tomorrow afternoon, and the fleas from 120 camels will infest your back, causing you to grow a hairy hump. I know this will occur because it actually happened to a friend of my next door neighbor's
ex-mother-in-law's second husband's cousin's best friend's beautician
.

Oh, by the way.....

A German scientist from Argentina , after a lengthy study, has discovered that people with insufficient brain activity read their e-mail with their hand on the mouse.

Don't bother taking it off now, it's too late.

P.S.: I now keep my toothbrush in the living room, because I was told by e-mail that water splashes over 6 ft. out of the toilet

Posted via email from Dr. Mom's Posterous

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Italian Sausages with Broccoli Rabe

2010-04-23T03:31:00.001-07:00

If you can't find the preseasoned polenta just add some minced basil and garlic (about 2 tsps each) to the polenta roll as you mash it.

Italian Sausages with Broccoli Rabe and Polenta

See Italian Sausages with Broccoli Rabe and Polenta on Key Ingredient.

Posted via web from Dr. Mom's Posterous

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Garlicky Clam Paella

2010-04-22T05:23:00.001-07:00

If you LOVE garlic and clams this dish is for you.

Don't try and substitute canned chopped clams since you really need those large clams to make the broth for the paells

Garlicky Clam Paella

See Garlicky Clam Paella on Key Ingredient.

Posted via web from Dr. Mom's Posterous

EHRs improve patient contact, distract docs: study from Health IT Strategist

2010-04-07T12:55:00.001-07:00

Electronic health-record systems can be a boon and a bane to physician-patient communications, according to a new report by the Center for Studying Health System Change, Washington, with support from the Commonwealth Fund, New York.

On the positive side, the study found that an EHR helps improve physician-patient interaction because it provides quicker access to patient information, affording physicians time to spend with patients that they might otherwise lose hunting for information through paper records that are less organized.

On the other hand, for some physicians, simply using an EHR can pose a distraction. It may also lead physicians to rely on EHRs for information gathering "at the expense of real-time communication with patients and other clinicians," according to a news release.

"Electronic medical records are a double-edged sword when it comes to communication with patients and other clinicians," said study co-author Ann O'Malley, a physician and researcher with the center, in the release.

According to O'Malley, vendors also need to keep refining their systems to make them less distracting to physicians.

In a shout out to the folks running the multibillion-dollar federal EHR subsidy program, O'Malley suggests policymakers "should consider incorporating communication-skills training for medical trainees
and clinicians" using EHRs.

The study, "Electronic Medical Records and Communication with Patients and Other Clinicians: Are We Talking Less?" is based on 60 interviews with physicians and staffers at 26 small and medium-sized physician practices with commercial ambulatory EHRs in place for at least two years.

Posted via web from Dr. Mom's Posterous

A DC airport ticket agent offers some examples of 'why' our country is in trouble!

2010-04-07T11:24:00.001-07:00

1. I had a New Hampshire Congresswoman (Carol Shea-Porter) ask for an aisle seat so that her hair wouldn't get messed up by being near the window. (On an airplane!)

2. I got a call from a Kansas Congressman's (Moore) staffer (Howard Bauleke), who wanted to go to Capetown.

I started to explain the length of the flight and the passport information, and then he interrupted me with, ''I'm not trying to make you look stupid, but Capetown is in Massachusetts .''

Without trying to make him look stupid, I calmly explained, ''Cape Cod is in Massachusetts , Capetown is in Africa ''

His response -- click.

3. A senior Vermont Congressman (Bernie Sanders) called, furious about a Florida package we did.

I asked what was wrong with the vacation in Orlando .

He said he was expecting an ocean-view room.

I tried to explain that's not possible, since Orlando is in the middle of the state.

He replied, 'don't lie to me, I looked on the map and Florida is a very thin state!'' (OMG)

4. I got a call from a lawmaker's wife (Landra Reid) who asked, ''Is it possible to see England from Canada ?''

I said, ''No.''

She said, ''But they look so close on the map.'' (OMG, again!)

5. An aide for a cabinet member(Janet Napolitano) once called and asked if he could rent a car in Dallas .

I pulled up the reservation and noticed he had only a 1-hour layover in Dallas .

When I asked him why he wanted to rent a car, he said, ''I heard Dallas was a big airport, and we will need a car to drive between gates to save time.'' (Aghhhh)

6. An Illinois Congresswoman (Jan Schakowsky) called last week. She needed to know how it was possible that her flight from Detroit left at 8:30 a.m., and got to Chicago at 8:33 a.m.

I explained that Michigan was an hour ahead of Illinois, but she couldn't understand the concept of time zones.

Finally, I told her the plane went fast, and she bought that.

7. A New York lawmaker, (Jerrold Nadler) called and asked, ''Do airlines put your physical description on your bag so they know whose luggage belongs to whom?

'' I said, 'No, why do you ask?'

He replied, ''Well, when I checked in with the airline, they put a tag on my luggage that said (FAT), and I'm overweight. I think that's very rude!''

After putting him on hold for a minute, while I looked into it. (I was dying laughing). I came back and explained the city code for Fresno, Ca. Is (FAT - Fresno Air Terminal), and the airline was just putting a destination tag on his luggage..

8. A Senator John Kerry aide (Lindsay Ross) called to inquire about a trip package to Hawaii .

After going over all the cost info, she asked, ''Would it be cheaper to fly to California and then take the train to Hawaii ?''

9. I just got off the phone with a freshman Congressman, Bobby Bright (D) from Ala who asked, ''How do I know which plane to get on?''

I asked him what exactly he meant, to which he replied, ''I was told my flight number is 823, but none of these planes have numbers on them.''

10. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D) Called and said, ''I need to fly to Pepsi-Cola, Florida. Do I have to get on one of those little computer planes?''

I asked if she meant fly to Pensacola, FL on a commuter plane.

She said, ''Yeah, whatever, smarty!''

11. Mary Landrieu (D) La. Senator called and had a question about the documents she needed in order to fly to China .

After a lengthy discussion about passports, I reminded her that she needed a visa.

'Oh, no I don't. I've been to China many times and never had to have one of those.''

I double checked and sure enough, her stay required a visa.

When I told her this she said, ''Look, I've been to China four times and every time they have accepted my American Express!''

12. A New Jersey Congressman (John Adler) called to make reservations, ''I want to go from Chicago to Rhino, New York .''

I was at a loss for words. Finally, I said, ''Are you sure that's the name of the town?''

'Yes, what flights do you have?'' replied the man.

After some searching, I came back with, ''I'm sorry, sir, I've looked up every airport code in the country and can't find a rhino anywhere."

''The man retorted, ''Oh, don't be silly! Everyone knows where it is. Check your map!''

So I scoured a map of the state of New York and finally offered, ''You don't mean Buffalo, do you?''

The reply? ''Whatever! I knew it was a big animal.''

Now you know why the Government is in the shape that it's in! Could people be this DUMB?

YES, THEY WALK AMONG US, ARE IN POLITICS, AND THEY CONTINUE TO BREED.

I don't write it, I just offer it for your consideration.

Like manure, you just gotta spread it around.

Posted via web from Dr. Mom's Posterous

Does Apple Need to Pull the iTunes 9.1 Upgrade for Windows?

2010-04-05T04:45:00.001-07:00

Amid all the fanfare of the successful release of the Apple iPad a new problem for Windows users of iTunes software has arisen.

In preparation for the launch Apple released version 9.1 of their software for both Mac & Windows (32 & 64 bit), besides the usual security tweeks the software package included some major changes including:

The drivers for the iPad
Changes to iTunes to allow for syncing iBooks and other iPad specific content
An updated version of Bonjour

While the update seems to have gone smoothly for Snow Leopard/Leopard users it has been anything but for Windows users. A quick look at the Apple support forums, the " Installing & Upgrading iTunes for Windows" will show the myriad of problems which have occurred to Windows users. While I'm always amazed that, considering the wide variations in the configurations of Windows computers, software updates on PC go as smoothly as they do it's apparent that this one is much worse than usual. Within hours of it's release the issues started to arise, they included:

Bonjour 2.0 not being installed correctly in Vista & Win7 machines
Apple Mobile Device Manage not being installed properly
Problems with the update to the library format including
- Videos being reformatted (probably being optimized for the iPad) and no longer displaying correctly on smaller iPods
- Podcast being relabeled as music
- Library format being updated (that's the usual event but in this case it means that if you roll back 9.0.x won't be able to read your library

Uninstalling and rolling back to 9.0.x may or may not solve the problem depending on whether or not you're able to delete the new version of Bonjour from your system.

Not for one moment to I believe that Apple failed to do some quality testing on their software but it is rapidly becoming apparent that there are too many problems with this version of iTunes for it to be out in general distribution (I haven't seen such error reports since the 7.7 "Spinning beach ball of death" issues).
Although Apple obviously wants to push out this version of iTunes so that PC users can enjoy their iPads I believe that it is time for Apple to admit that there are problems with the update and pull it from distribution. Possibly they could offer iPad customers a chance to activate their devices at the Apple store so that they can be used. While this will not allow users to add their personal content to the device at least they can start download apps from the iPad store and use it to browse on-line content.

Posted via web from Dr. Mom's Posterous

Why the iPad makes it clear it's time for Apple to move it's iTunes storage to the clouds

2010-04-01T05:58:00.001-07:00

This isn't a review of the actual iPad device since, like 99.9% of people, I don't have one yet. Whether or not I get one now, later (after gen 2 appear) or never is yet to be seen. The review by people who's opinions I trust and respect is impressive and I do believe that some form of multitasking is in the offing with a later OS upgrade, remember how long it took for 'cut and paste' to appear?

What seems to be really obvious is that the iPad has been aimed less as a MacBook or even netbook replacement, but rather as an all-in-one content consumption device and that where the rub lies.

For me, at least, to be truely useful a content consumption device needs to be able to download content when I'm away from my 'mother ship', i.e. my home PC. That the iPad will do that is unquestionable, however, what happens when I need to delete content to load more (I agree with most that the 16 gig model seems to be the 'sweet spot') ? I'm referring to downloading movies/books to the unit for trips (I'm a road warrior and have spent weeks away from home in the recent months in hotel rooms etc.). If, while getting ready to board the plane, I realize that I forgot to reload a book I wanted to read again what happens? On a Kindle or Nook the content is a few button pushes away since the companies who provide the content keep a record of my purchases and let me redown load them at will, on the iPad it seems I'm out of luck. Likewise if I load up on 3 or 4 movies while on the road and then decide to remove them to make room for more unless I wait until I get back I've lost the content forever (this is based on past experience with my iPod touch, audio books downloaded and then deleted from the device before syncing cannot be reloaded later unless I repurchase them or go crying to Apple that I deleted the content by mistake). For Apple to maintain a user database of purchases via the device is something they've proved that they can do easily since an app bought on a Touch or iPhone can be deleted and then redownloaded without being charged again. For them to extend this to to their music/audiobook/e-book/movie library would not seem to be too far of a stretch especially in these days of wifi enabled devices. This is especially true for people who are not 'tech savvy', right now the iPad seems to be a great device for people who don't want a pc/iMac but rather just a simple device to do e-mail, browse the web and consume content. If the iPad needs to be synced to a PC/iMac to save the content the advantage for them is lost. This came home to me with my mother, I'd given her a Kindle and she called me one day in a panic saying that she'd accidentally deleted a book, I told her don't worry, talked her thru the content manager and got her book back with all the bookmarks intact. On an iPad, at least for right now, I'd have to tell her she's out of luck and would need to repurchase the content if she hadn't synce to a local computer.

Please be clear, I'm not asking Apple to store content I've purchased elsewhere (Audible, recordedbooks.com etc.) nieither Amazon nor Barnes & Noble do that either, but rather allow for the iPad to become a device that, with the exception of OS updates, might NEVER need to be synced to a computer. This, in my opinion would make the device an ideal content consumption unit.

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Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Classic Chicken Soup

2010-03-27T07:37:00.001-07:00

This is the real thing, don't skimp on any of the steps and don't try to rush it. It really does take several days to bring to perfection.

When serving add matzo balls, cooked whole baby carrots & may a sprig of dill.

Classic Chicken Soup

This is the real thing and usually takes several days ...

See Classic Chicken Soup on Key Ingredient.

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Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Braised Lamb with Horseradish

2010-03-26T04:57:00.001-07:00

A nice 'horseradishy' lamb stew which is much higher seasoned than most.

Braised Lamb with Horseradish and Parsley

Very 'horseradishy' which is a nice change from most lamb ...

See Braised Lamb with Horseradish and Parsley on Key Ingredient.

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Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Chopped Chicken Liver

2010-03-21T13:29:00.000-07:00

Here's a classic, old country style chopped liver. For the best flavor, save the chicken fat for the entire year & then render it yourself.

Old Country Chopped Liver

Gehockte Leber

This forspeis is so simple and straightforward that ...

See Old Country Chopped Liver on Key Ingredient.

The E-book publisher war between Amazon and the publishers rachets up again

2010-03-18T09:47:00.001-07:00

With the impending release of the iPad and it's e-book store as well as the release of the iPhone/iPod touch app for the B&N e-book store, Amazon is again threatening publishers with pulling of their content unless they make concessions to multiple year contracts with Amazon, not to maintain exclusive content but to keep the prices down.

A good, consumer move or e-book suicide?

A link to the article in today's NY Times is below.

Amazon Threatens Publishers as Apple Looms

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Disney/CableVision hit an impasse, ABC7 is gone

2010-03-07T03:16:00.001-08:00

The weeks long 'pissing match' between Disney/ABC & CableVision has finally reached a true impasse. At midnight last night ABC7 posted a self serving "Cablevision has betrayed all of you" message and then went blank. Their website SaveABC7.com has copies of all their statements as well as the video clips that they've been playing between and, more aggrevating to me, crawling on the bottom of their shows. The site also give you instructions as to how to switch your provider to one which is paying Disney/ABC to rebroadcast the over the air signal. CableVision responed by a continual video feed of "We don't want to pull ABC, it's all their fault but please stay with us while we figure out what to do" like a sulky child who has been told that they can't have what they want. You can see their side of the story here at CableVision.com their response page on their website. Their reply to customers, for now, is "Please support us, get a digital signal converter or watch the content on Hulu.com or ABC.com"

I'll tell you who, IMHO, loses, THE CUSTOMER. This was timed to coincide with the Oscars broadcast which, by contractual agreement, will not be shown on any other venue including ABC.com. Like most of the Long Island customers, I live outside of the range of digital, over the air, signals so a converter box and new antenna won't work. Even if I wanted to change providers it couldn't be done for a week or more meaning that I miss the Oscars broadcast anyway. One way or another it will be the customer who pays for this either by losing a popular channel or paying higher fees. In my opinion, the FCC needs to step in and establish clear rules as to whether or not cable providers are entitled to rebroadcast over the air signals without paying the providers while garnering revenue from customers and whether or not the providers are allowed to charge for content that the broadcast over the air on a free license they get from the government.

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My 23 minutes of internet interview fame with Jackie & Leo Laporte of the TWiT network

2010-03-06T04:28:00.001-08:00

On Thursday we discussed such vital topics of interest as Hamentaschen, how to make your matzo balls float and, more importantly, touched on internet safety for our children.

Click Here to go to ODTV.me and watch the video, I don't show up for about the first 5 minutes of the film.

I wish to thank the ODTV team for creating this video clip and for so generously sharing it under the creative commons license.

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Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Sauerkraut and Sausages

2010-03-05T03:58:00.000-08:00

My family likes garlicky knockwurst and bratwursts so that's what we use but you could use kielbasa, whitewurst or any other cooked sausage you'd like.

Sauerkraut with Polish Sausage

See Sauerkraut with Polish Sausage on Key Ingredient.

First a Noose & now a KKK Hood, when is enough enough at UCSD?

2010-03-03T17:13:00.001-08:00

After the noose incident of last week now a hood with racist symbols was draped over the statue of Theodore Geisel at the UCSD campus.

The following is a clip from the local news station describing the event

Channel 6 San Diego

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Disney-ABC may pull over the air channel from Cablevision

2010-03-02T08:52:00.001-08:00

We are now entering a situation where Disney is demanding that a cable company (Cablevision) pay for the rights to broadcast their 'over the air' channel, ABC, on the cable. The blackout date is Sunday and is time to coincide with the Oscars presentation. Although some have said that 'You can always watch the Oscars via the over the air broadcast" many of us, including myself, do not have digital antennas on our roofs/balconies/etc. that would allow our digital television to pick up the broadcast. In my we are on the ragged edge of the digital signal and are unlikely to be able to pick up ABC via any type of antenna. Content providers have the absolute right to sell their 'cable/satellite' only content to distributors at whatever price that they feel they can get/deserve/are entitiled to, however it is ridiculous for them to try and charge for content which is distributed freely over the air.

More information can be found at the Wall Street Journal

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My take on the Outlook Social Connector Beta and LinkedIn

2010-02-27T06:33:00.001-08:00

Since I use LinkedIn for managing business contctsextensively the potential for automatic updates has potential. I tried it on a Win7 64 bit PC with 32 bit Outlook 2003 & had to remove it after 72 hours. A previously well behaved Outlook installation started continually hanging up as it was apparently trying to contact LinkedIn to update my scores of contacts. There is no setting to say how often the connector should check for updates or any other configurations options at this time that I could find. I did notice that if I added a new contact via the LinkedIn website no new contact appeared in the LinkedIn folder and very often when I tried to link a new LinkedIn contact with a contact already in my contacts folder there was a connection error even if I put a copy of the contact into the LinkedIn folder. I contacted LinkedIn about this but have had no response. I'm not sure if the problem is with LinkedIn or the connector itself but until this comes out of beta and is more stable I'll stay away from it.

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Noose found hanging in Geisel Library on 7th floor. This has to stop

2010-02-26T03:12:00.001-08:00

Hatred and idiocy again shows it's face on the UCSD campus after the shameful Compton Cookout incident. A noose was found hanging from a light fixture in the UCSD library yesterday. If this is a joke, it is NOT FUNNY. If it is racism then it must be stopped. My daughter attends that school, her dorm mates are a wonderful, racially diverse groups of girls, just the kind of 'melting pot' environment that I want her in. Obviously, there are all horrified as to what has happened. There is a student rally against such hatred planned for outside the library this morning at 8 am PST. Please give all the enouragement and support that you can to the students and faculty there to help stop such events from occurrng again.

More details of the incident and other links can be found at the UC Regent Live Blog

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Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Chicken Pot Pie with Bacon & Marjoram

2010-02-23T06:56:00.001-08:00

This can also be made in one 9" deep dish pie pan instead of 4 small pans.

Chicken Pot Pies with Bacon and Marjoram

See Chicken Pot Pies with Bacon and Marjoram on Key Ingredient.

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One of the funniest The Tech Guy Calls in of all time

2010-02-20T14:27:00.001-08:00

The title says it all. It's heard to believe that this was for real.

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Report from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Chicken Piccata with Capers and Pine Nuts

2010-02-20T08:58:00.001-08:00

I know that the recipe below calls for veal scallops but this works equally well with chicken scallops (this slices of chicken breast)

Veal Piccata with Capers and Pine Nuts

See Veal Piccata with Capers and Pine Nuts on Key Ingredient.

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The Kosher Computer

2010-02-18T13:39:00.001-08:00

The Kosher Computer

I don't know if you know this, but you can now purchase Kosher computers! They are made in Israel by a company called DELL-SHALOM. The price is so low, even with the shipping from Israel ! However, before you purchase a kosher computer of your own, you should know that there are some important

changes from the typical non-kosher computer you are used to, such as:

The "Start" button has been replaced with a "Let's go! I'm not getting any younger!" button.
You hear "Hava Nagila" during startup.
The cursor moves from right to left.When Spell-checker finds an error it prompts, "Is this the best you can do?
"When you look at erotic images, your computer says, "If your mother knew you did this, she would die."
It comes with a "monitor cleaning solution" from Manischewitz that gets rid of all the "schmutz und drek."
When running "Scan Disk" it prompts you with a "You want I should fix this?" message.
After 20 minutes of no activity, your PC goes "Schloffen."
The PC shuts down automatically at sundown on Friday evenings.
It comes with two hard drives -- one for fleyshedik (business software) and one for milchedik (games).
Instead of getting a "General Protection Fault" error, your PC now gets "Ferklempt."
The multimedia player has been renamed to "Nu, so play my music already!"
When your PC is working too hard, you occasionally hear a loud "Oy Gevalt!"
Computer viruses can now be cured with matzo ball soup.
When disconnecting external devices from the PC, you are instructed to "Remove the cable from the PC's tuchus."
After your computer dies, you have to dispose of it within 24 hours.
But best of all, if you have a kosher computer, you can't get SPAM.

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If Air Travel Worked Like HealthCare

2010-02-18T09:12:00.001-08:00

If you think this is frustrating for you, it works the same way for the providers. We have to hire entire teams of people to deal with this nonsense on a daily basis.

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Report from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Chicken and Shrimp Jambalaya

2010-02-16T05:09:00.001-08:00

In honor of Mardi Gras make yourself a pot of jambalaya. Taste the sausage first after cooking it. If it's very spicy I'd cut the pepper down.

Chicken and Shrimp Jambalaya

Because andouille varies in spiciness, we suggest tasting a piece ...

See Chicken and Shrimp Jambalaya on Key Ingredient.

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Who are more dangerous, Doctors or Guns?

2010-02-15T18:14:00.001-08:00

Think about this:

a. The number of physicians in the US is 700,000.
b. Accidental deaths caused by Physicians per year is 120,000.
c. Accidental deaths per physician is 0.171. (US Dept. of Health & Human Services)

Then think about this:

a. The number of gun owners in the US is 80,000,000.
b. The number of accidental gun deaths per year (all age groups) is 1,500.
c. The number of accidental deaths per gun owner is .0000188.

Statistically, doctors are approximately 9,000 times more dangerous than gun owners.

FACT: NOT EVERYONE HAS A GUN, BUT ALMOST EVERYONE HAS AT LEAST ONE DOCTOR.

Please alert your friends to this alarming threat. We must ban doctors before this gets out of hand. As a public health measure I have withheld the statistics on lawyers for fear that the shock could cause people to seek medical attention.

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Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Layered Tostada Casserole

2010-02-04T05:48:00.001-08:00

A down and dirty, quick recipe that can easily be made ahead and reheated later.

Layered Tostada Casserole

A quick and easy Mexican style casserole that can be ...

See Layered Tostada Casserole on Key Ingredient.

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Jobs, "All E-books wll cost the same across platform, no price wars"

2010-02-01T06:01:00.001-08:00

An interesting interview clip with Jobs where he says "All e-books will cost the same, no undercutting", Hmm.

Click on the title in the frame to see a video clip where he says this, decide for yourself

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MacMillan trying to impose an "Apple Tax" on other E-Book readers?

2010-01-31T09:58:00.001-08:00

It appears that another shot has been fired in the latest E-book reader wars. On at 5:30 pm EST, January 30 John Sargent published a letter via Publishers Marketplace, explaining that they were, at least temporarily, terminating their sales arrangements with Amazon. http://www.publishersmarketplace.com/lunch/macmillan_30jan10.html

In the letter Mr. Sargent explaned their position which appears to be "We wish to raise the price of your e-books to the same price we will be getting from Apple. Since you'll be getting more money that way we don't see what the issue is." Apparently Mr. Bezos and the rest of the Amazon staff replied with a resounding "No" and proceded to say "Ok, we don't want to raise prices to our customers. If this means we can't sell you books, so be it" Amazon then proceeded to remove all MacMillan books, in any format except audio, from their website. In fact you can still order MacMillan books thru Amazon since they are honoring their comittments to third party sellers who supply MacMillan books.

Why did this happen? In my opinion this is an attempt by Macmillan, and possibly Apple, to impose the "Apple Tax" on electronic books and remove a competitive advantage from Amazon and the Kindle. From the beginning I was a bit amazed that Apple planned to charge up to fifty percent more that other e-book sellers. Considering the initial price of the iPad will be higher than the majority of e-book readers it would have made more sense for Apple to price e-book content more competitvely. Since they apparently won't do that the plan seems to be raise the prices to all the other retailers. I do not know if this is a decision made soley by MacMillan or was 'forced' on them by the content agreement with Apple. The whole event feels like it will turn in to a similar event as the Google Voice debacle where AT&T said it was Apple's decision and Apple said it was AT&T's request. I wonder what the documents will show if this case comes to litigation?

Personally I applaud Jeff Bezos and the rest of Amazon for having the courage to take a potential huge revenue loss in order to honor their committment to their customers and keep the prices as promised (i.e. $9.99 for NY Times best sellers). I believe that this decision on MacMillan's part is shortsighted and will backfire on them. Right now they have lost a MAJOR retailer for their content and it will be at least 2 months or longer before they can hope for any significant revenue from Apple iBook sales.

I hope that this is resolved soon but also hope that other e-book distributors such as Barnes and Noble take the same road as Amazon and refuse to allow MacMillan to raise the price of content to readers.

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Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Beer Braised Beef and Onions

2010-01-31T08:53:00.001-08:00

Plan to make this at least one day ahead of time. It's definitely much better if it sits overnight before reheating and serving.

Beer-Braised Beef and Onions

Long, slow cooking turns a supermarket chuck roast into something ...

See Beer-Braised Beef and Onions on Key Ingredient.

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What is required for any successful textbook e-book reader including the iPad

2010-01-30T05:59:00.001-08:00

Much has been made of the potential for e-book readers such as the iPad or Kindle to replace traditional textbooks.The e-book has many potential advantages over traditional books these include:

E-books can be produced less expensively
E-books can be updated more frequently and corrections issued making it less likely for a text to become 'out of date'
Multimedia options can be added to the text enhancing the learning experience.

With those advantages in mind it is now time to consider what needs to be done to make a successful e-textbook.

The first thing to remember is that most textbooks at the high school level and beyond, with the exception of some literature, and sociology books, were never meant to be 'read' but rather to be studied and used as references. If you need an example of what I mean all you need to do is pick up a high school math or science text and try to read it. In even the best written textbooks any attempt to read them in a linear fashion is doomed to fail. It is a format which requires continual 'flipping back and forth" between pages to review examples, look up formulas, charts and tables as well as the need to make annotations and highlight important passages. You also need the abilty to skim textbooks to pick out points and issues you wish to review. As an author and co-author of medical textbook chapters (my latest published one was as the co-author of a chapter on quality management issues in the The A.S.P.E.N. Nutrition Support Core Curriculum: A Case-Based Approach - The Adult Patient) and a reviewer of articles for peer reviewed medical journals I have become acquainted with the requirement of what makes a good book chapter or article.

I have had a Kindle since soon after it's release and, besides using it as my primary fiction and non-fictional reader, used it's 'download' function to put on textbook chapters and articles I was reviewing for publication. Very rapidly I realized that the format was not acceptable for technical textbooks. Although it does have the ability to 'highlight' and annotate it fails in the ability to 'put your thumb in' at a reference you need to continually refer back to to understand the content presented. Skimming is also an issue due to the slight delay between 'page turns' which tends to break your concentration. I have looked at the specs of other readers including the Nook and so far none of them include these necessary funtions.

When I head about the iPad and it's proposed ability to have a e-book store I started to think what would required to make it a successful e-textbook reader. In my opinion these include:

The ability to highlight and annotate (not shown on the demo but I can't believe that Apple would leave that basic functionality out)
The ability to bookmark pages and to rapidly retrieve them this would be greatly benefited by the creation of a 'bookmark' sidebar similar to the sidebar available on the Adobe Reader so that you could quickly 'flip' back and forth to review references, charts, etc. To date this functionality does not exist in any e-book reader
The ability to have a pop-up calculator for technical purposes (N.B. the iPhone/Touch does not have this ability, to use the calculator you have to close the current app. I would presume that would work in the same fashion on the iPad which, at present uses the iPhone 3.x firmware)

Items which would be 'nice to have' would include

The ability to 'tear out' charts, tables etc, and park them on the screen so that they would be rapidly available (this would, of course, require a larger screen or a smaller book area)
The ability to link to a webpage in a pop-up/out to review on-line content (in the case of the iPad this would most likely mandate flash support for the viewing of on-line media an option which we have already been told does not exist)
The abiity to view imbedded multimedia

I would hope that the designers of the i-Book reader on the iPad have taken in mind these considerations in mind. If the textbooks presented on the iPad are just 'electronic copies' of print books I believe it will be difficult for public school systems, based on their current several year cycle for textbook acquision (books are not replaced yearly but only where there is a change sufficient to require the new expense) to justify the purchase of hundreds of iPads and e-textbooks. It is true that over time this would likely occur but does the iPad have sufficient other functionality to survive for the 3 - 4 year time period required for the schools to require new books and to justify it's purchase. For college students who are responsible, in the large part, for purchasing their own textbooks the time cycle does not apply but the expense does. Remember that many college students already have 'smart phones' and MP3 players and are 'required' to have laptops so that they do not need the iPad to replace those functionalities. Particularlity since the iPad will not replace a laptop in it's current configuration. The e-books will have to be priced competitively with used texts otherwise cost considerations would mandate the purchase of the 'dead tree' book.

I believe that the iPad has potential for a textbook replacement but not in it's current configuration and with the limitations imposed on it by the use of the iPhone OS.

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What Apple needs to do to make the iPad a truely functional medical device

2010-01-28T09:04:00.001-08:00

Disclaimer: This post is based on the publically released specs of the new iPad. I have not personally seen the device nor used it. I have, however used, and continue to use an iPod Touch and have experience with the iPhone, MacBook Pro and iMac.

Like many others I watched the Apple annoucement with interest. I had heard many reports about potential medical uses for the new device and was eager to see what was being released. Unfortunately, I was underwhelmed by what was released.

On the positive side the size and shape of the device is right to be easily carried from room to room and will easily fit into a messenger sized bag. The screen is the right size to examine X-rays and other radiographic studies and the listed resolution is more than adequate to produce easily interpretable pictures. In addition the docking port opens up a wide range of possibilities for monitoring devices to download patient information.

With that being said here is a list of the issues that I believe need to be resolved

OS 3.x is not adequate for such as device. I have, over the years, written multiple patient databases for use in calcuations and tracking and have come to the conclusion that there is no way, at present, to write an all encompasing patient case application which will cover all needs.
This is important to realize because in the case of OS 3 multitasking is not fully possible (push notifications & some background processes will run). Health care practitioners will need to simultaneously run several applications to do data acquision, calculations and then using 'cut and paste' enter the data into the medical record. Under OS 3, in it's current configuration, each application closes when switching to the next one making this extremely difficult to perform the switching back and forth needed to easily encorporate data into the master record.
To date I have been unsuccessful in getting either an iPhone or iPod Touch to be able to log into our institutions VPN which uses a Juniper Network, Citrix server configuration. No such issues exist for any netbook/notebook/desktop using Linux/OS X.x/Windows. This issue will need to be corrected in the software before the device will be usable as a remote access portal.
A touch screen raises issues of infection. When a health care provider makes physical contact with patients proper infection control mandate that adequate barrier precautions be taken. These can range from simple hand washing before and after contact any provider who makes contact with patients will have to continually clean their hands or change gloves to use a touch screen. A stylus with a disposable cover would solve this issue but based on Apple's history such accessories will need to be supplies by a third party.

I would need to try out the virtural keyboard before making any comments but a keyboard will be essential for the entering of patient data into records and the keyboard dock does not meet the need.

With the above comments in mind and before trying one in the local Apple store at present I have no plans to purchase the device for use as a medical tool until the above issues are addressed.

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Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Mac and Cheese with Mix Ins

2010-01-26T03:03:00.000-08:00

Go wild with what you mix in. My family favorites are broccoli, cauliflower & shrimp or shredded cooked chicken.

Mac & Cheese with crunchy topping & mix ins

See Mac & Cheese with crunchy topping & mix ins on Key Ingredient.

Report from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Risotto with Spicy Sausage

2010-01-21T05:06:00.001-08:00

This cooks up quicker than most risottos do with a lot less work. Great comfort food.

Risotto with Spicy Sausage

See Risotto with Spicy Sausage on Key Ingredient.

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Teacher arrested in NY at airport - Warning Spew Alert

2010-01-19T08:30:00.001-08:00

A public school teacher was arrested today at John F. Kennedy International Airport as he attempted to board a flight while in possession of a ruler, a protractor, a compass, a slide-rule and a calculator.

At a morning press conference, the Attorney General Eric Holder said he believes the man is a member of the notorious Al-Gebra movement. He did not identify the man, who has been charged by the FBI with carrying weapons of math instruction.

"Al-Gebra is a problem for us," the Attorney General said. "'They derive solutions by means and extremes, and sometimes go off on tangents in search of absolute values.'They use secret code names like 'X' and 'Y' and refer to themselves as unknowns, but we have determined that they belong to a common denominator of the axis of medieval with coordinates in every country."

As the Greek philanderer Isosceles used to say, "There are 3 sides to every triangle." When asked to comment on the arrest, President Obama said, 'If God had wanted us to have better weapons of math instruction, he would have given us more fingers and toes.'

White House aides told reporters they could not recall a more intelligent or profound statement by the President. It is believed that the Nobel Prize for Physics will follow…

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Report from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Crusty Mustard Dill Meat Loaf

2010-01-19T03:22:00.001-08:00

This recipe makes 2 smaller meatloafs so you've got one for tonight and one for tomorrow. Serve with some potatoes or rice & a salad.

See Crusty Mustard-Dill Meat Loaf on Key Ingredient.

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Untitled

2010-01-19T03:21:00.001-08:00

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Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Beef Gulasch

2010-01-11T07:09:00.000-08:00

This takes several hours to cook but only about 30 minutes of real prep work. A great recipe for a cold night
Beef Gulash

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Veal Piccata with Capers and Pine Nuts

2010-01-08T05:45:00.000-08:00

I know it says veal but the recipe works great with chicken scallops (thin breast slices also)

Veal Piccata with Capers and Pine Nuts | Key Ingredient

Chinese Broccoli with Sausage and Polenta | Key Ingredient

2010-01-05T03:34:00.000-08:00

Chinese Broccoli with Sausage and Polenta | Key Ingredient

Comparison of Dell Zino HD vs Apple MacMini as a Media Center Computer

2009-11-27T06:03:00.000-08:00

Here's a chart to explain why I finally decided on a Dell Zino over a MacMini. I know it's a bit hard to read from the main page but if you click on the chart a larger, clearer version will appear.

Since this is to primarily surf the web and manage media on my home networks I didn't add productivity software.

After all was said and done I just came to the conclusion that $350+ in additional costs wasn't justified for the proposed use of the computer

My New Dream Win7 Machine!

2009-10-18T05:01:00.000-07:00

After months of waiting, nursing my old, dying WinXP machine, I can finally order my new Win7 PC.
Here are the specs for the new machine, let me know what you think and anything I should add or remove. BTW, I went with Win7 Ultimate so that I could get the XP virtual machine compatibility mode. Take a look and see if you have any suggestions for things to add, change and/or remove.

Specs:

Studio XPS 9000 Studio XPS 9000

Operating System Genuine Windows® 7 Ultimate, 64bit, English

Studio XPS 9000 Intel® Core™ i7-950 Processor(8MB L3 Cache, 3.06GHz)

Memory 9GB DDR3 SDRAM at 1066MHz - 6 DIMMs

Keyboard Logitech Illuminated Keyboard

Monitor Dell 23 inch SP2309W Widescreen Flat Panel with Webcam

Video Card nVidia GeForce GTS 240 1024MB

Hard Drives 1.5TB Data Security RAID 1(2x1.5TB SATA 7200 RPM HDDs)

Media reader 17-in-1 Media Card Reader

Rear ports IEEE 1394a

RJ45 10/100/1000 Network port

Line-in connector

Front L/R line-out connector

Back L/R surround connector

Side L/R surround connector

Center/subwoofer connector

Microphone connector

USB 2.0 (4)

eSATA

S/PDIF connector

HDMI ports

Front ports USB 2.0 (4)

15-in-1 Card Reader

Headphone port

Microphone / Line-in port

Mouse Logitech Performance Mouse MX - Dell only

Modem No Modem Option

Adobe Software Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 9.0 Multi-Language

Optical Drives Dual Drives: Blu-ray Disc (BD) Burner (Writes to DVD/CD/BD) and DVD+/-RW

Sound Card Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio

Speaker Dell AX510PA 10W Attached Speaker for Dell Flat Panel Monitors

Network Dell 1505 WLAN PCIe card with11n mini-Card & external antenna

Office Productivity

Software (Pre-Installed) Microsoft® Office Small Business 2007

Security Software Norton Internet Security™ 2009 Edition 15-months

Entertainment and Editing

Software Adobe® Acrobat® STANDARD 9.0

Entertainment and Editing

Software Adobe® Photoshop® Elements + Adobe® Premiere® Elements

The Microsoft/Danger Server Support Team

2009-10-11T21:27:00.000-07:00

We've all talked about this guy...At Last....A Picture of Him.
Mujibar was trying to get a job in India .

The Personnel Manager said,
'Mujibar,you have passed all the tests, except one.
Unless you pass it , you cannot qualify for this job.'

Mujibar said, 'I am ready.'

The manager said,
'Make a sentence using the words Yellow, Pink, and Green .'

Mujibar thought for a few minutes and said,
'Mister manager, I am ready.'

The manager said, 'Go ahead.'

Mujibar said,
'The telephone goes green, green, and I pink it up, and say, Yellow, this is Mujibar.'

Mujibar now works at a call center.

No doubt you have spoken about him.
I know I have.

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Shellfish Paella Risotto

2009-10-11T06:23:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 pound hot or sweet Italian sausages, casings removed
1.5 pound clams
4 8-ounce bottles clam juice
1 teaspoon saffron threads
2 cups arborio rice or medium-grain rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 pound uncooked medium shrimp, peeled, deveined
1 10-ounce package frozen peas, thawed
2 large plum tomatoes, seeded, chopped

Preparation:

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add chopped onion and cook until almost tender, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Add sausage meat. Cook until sausage is no longer pink, breaking up with fork, about 5 minutes. Add clams and mussels. Increase heat to medium-high, cover and cook until shells open, about 5 minutes. Transfer clams and mussels to medium bowl, discarding any that do not open. Cover shellfish and keep warm.

Meanwhile, combine clam juice and saffron threads in small saucepan; bring mixture to simmer. Reduce heat to low; keep warm.

Add rice to same saucepan that clams and mussels were cooked in and stir 2 minutes over medium heat. Add dry white wine and cook until wine is evaporated, stirring constantly, about 3 minutes. Add warm clam juice mixture and simmer until rice is just tender and liquid is creamy, stirring frequently, about 20 minutes.

Mix shrimp, peas and chopped tomatoes into risotto and cook until shrimp are just cooked through, stirring frequently, about 3 minutes. Season risotto to taste with salt and pepper. Top risotto with clams and mussels and serve immediately.

On my way back

2009-09-19T09:18:00.001-07:00

Heading out to the airport to go back to NY Two days home and then back on the road to Arizona

Out of town

2009-09-19T09:15:00.000-07:00

No recent posts since I'm traveling all over right now (see my speaking schedule in the Google Calendar side bar on the home page) and today I'm in LA getting ready to drop my daughter off at college.
Dr. Sister insisted on a new recipe so here we go:
Mother's Frosted Animals Cookies
Ingredients:
You really don't want to know
Preparation:
Go to grocery store
Navigate to the cookie aisle
Pick out pink and white striped bag
Pay for the cookie
Open bag while in car and munch
Drive to gym and work out on treadmill 30 minutes for every cookie eaten.

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Chicken Parmesan Heros

2009-09-19T09:14:00.000-07:00

For best results start these early in the day so that the crust has time to set up properly before cooking. Also if you're in a rush later on just use a good quality jarred marinara sauce instead of making your own.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
2garlic cloves, chopped
2 (28-ounce) cans whole tomatoes in purée, puréed in a blender until smooth
2 teaspoons <
¾ teaspoon black pepper, fresh ground
6 skinless boneless, skinless chicken thighs(2 lb total)
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 ½s (from firm white sandwich bread), lightly toasted
1 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (3 ounces)
5 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups vegetable oil
4 (12-inch-long) loaves halved lengthwise I use Panera's rolls
1 lb fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced, this is much easier to do if you freeze the cheese first

Preparation:

Make tomato sauce:
Heat olive oil in a 4— to 5-quart heavy saucepan over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then sauté onion, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and sauté, stirring, 1 minute. Add tomato purée, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, about 30 minutes.

Prepare chicken:
Gently pound chicken to ⅓-inch thickness between 2 sheets of plastic wrap using a flat meat pounder or a rolling pin. Season with salt and pepper.

Stir together flour, remaining ½ teaspoon salt, and remaining ½ teaspoon pepper in a shallow bowl, then stir together bread crumbs and Parmigiano-Reggiano in another shallow bowl.

Dredge chicken slices in flour, shaking off excess, then dip in egg, letting excess drip off, and dredge in bread crumbs until evenly coated. Transfer chicken to sheets of wax paper, arranging slices in 1 layer.

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Heat vegetable oil in a deep 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then Fry chicken 3 pieces at a time, turning over once, until golden brown and just cooked through, about 6 minutes per batch. Transfer with tongs to paper towels to drain.

Arrange bottom halves of bread loaves on a large baking sheet and tops on another large baking sheet, all with cut sides up. Spread ¼ cup tomato sauce on each top and bottom. Divide chicken between bottom halves. Top each (open-faced) sandwich with ¼ cup tomato sauce and one fourth of mozzarella.

Bake open-faced sandwiches in lower third of oven until cheese melts, about 3 minutes. When cheese begins to melt, put tops of loaves in upper third of oven and bake until edges are golden, 3 to 4 minutes (watch tops closely; they burn easily). Put tops on bottoms to make sandwiches, then slice into serving pieces.

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Clams and Chorizo with Tomato and Garlic

2009-07-07T05:14:00.000-07:00

This one expands well to serve more people. Just be sure to have lots of crusty bread to soak up the juices

Ingredients:

2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 lb sweet or hot Spanish chorizo (spicy cured pork sausage), cut into 1/4-inch dice (3/4 cup)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 (14-oz) cans stewed tomatoes
4 lb littleneck clams (2 inches in diameter), scrubbed
1 lb E-Z Peel shrimp with the shells still on - optional

Preparation:

Cook garlic and chorizo in oil in a 4- to 6-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until garlic is golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and bring to a simmer, breaking up any large pieces. Simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until sauce is thickened, about 15 minutes.
Stir in clams and cook, covered, over moderately high heat, stirring once, until clams open, 9 to 12 minutes. (Discard any that have not opened after 12 minutes.) If you're using the shrimp add when there's about 5 minutes to go. Serve immediately.

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Frogmore Stew

2009-07-03T04:27:00.000-07:00

Frogmore stew is a popular dish in the south that is very casual and often served poured out onto newspapers so that everyone can sit around the table and help themselves. If you have a large enough pot the recipe is expandable indefinitely so what I've listed below is the proportions for one person. Just expand as necessary.
N.B. Classic Frogmore Stew contains new potatoes so I've put that into the recipe but I don't like boiled potatoes so I normally leave them out.

Ingredients:

Crab boil (I use Zatarains) enough to season enough water to cover everything you'll throw into the pot
Corn on the cob - 1.5 ears, broken into pieces
Potatoes - 2 new, cut into quarters
Clams - 4 littleneck or other steamer sized clam
Shrimp - 4 to 5 medium sized, Easy clean but leave the shells on
Sausage - Spicy precooked cut into 2 inch pieces (I use andouille but you can use any hot sausage you'd like, it just need to be precooked)
Crab claws - 2 in the shell, if you like crab and want to add them, just don't use lump crab meat or surimi (faux crabmeat)

Preparation:

Bring seasoned water to a rolling boil, add the potatoes & corn & boil until potatoes are tender & corn is almost done. Add sausage and clams and continue boiling until the clams open, discard any that don't open after 10 minutes. Add the rest of the seafood and boil just until the shrimp and, crab (if using) are done. Drain the stew, the broth really isn't edible. Pour the drained food out onto the table in front of everyone and enjoy.

El computador...

2009-06-29T17:05:00.000-07:00

A SPANISH Teacher was explaining to her class that in Spanish, unlike

English, nouns are designated as either masculine or feminine.
'House' for instance, is feminine: 'la casa..'
'Pencil,' however, is masculine: 'el lapiz.'

A student asked, 'What gender is 'computer'?'

Instead of giving the answer, the teacher split the class into two groups, male and female, and asked them to decide for themselves whether computer'
should be a masculine or a feminine noun. Each group was asked to give four reasons for its recommendation.

The men's group decided that 'computer' should definitely be of the feminine gender ('la computadora'), because:

No one but their creator understands their internal logic;
The native language they use to communicate with other computers is incomprehensible to everyone else;
Even the smallest mistakes are stored in long term memory for possible later retrieval; and
As soon as you make a commitment to one, you find yourself spending half your paycheck on accessories for it.

(THIS GETS BETTER!)

The woman's group, however, concluded that computers should be Masculine ('el computador'), because:

In order to do anything with them, you have to turn them on;
They have a lot of data but still can't think for themselves;
They are supposed to help you solve problems, but half the time they ARE the problem; and
As soon as you commit to one, you realize that if you had waited a little longer, you could have gotten a better model.

The women won.

Steve Jobs' Reported Liver Transplantation

2009-06-20T03:53:00.000-07:00

N.B. The post is based on publicly available sources. I have not ever personally treated Mr. Jobs and have no access to his private medical records.
Several hours ago the Wall Street Journal reported that Mr. Jobs underwent a liver transplantation approximately two months ago. This is somewhat consistent with my earlier posts about his condition, i.e. that the tumor had recurred and spread to his liver. At the time of my earlier posts I had come to understand that Mr. Jobs was not a candidate for transplantation for unspecified reasons. If the report is true, then this situation has obviously changed.
The reason for liver transplantation would be that the carcinoid tumor had spread SOLELY to his liver and that in the opinion of his physicians removal of the entire liver would be more likely to produce a cure, long term survival or improvement of overall medical condition than conventional medical treatment.
Liver transplantation becomes an option when the tumor is of a size or in a position where partial removal of the liver (the tumor containing portion) or treatment which is aimed at removing the tumor nodules only (freezing [cryoablation], heating [radio frequency ablation], hepatic artery embolization, hepatic artery chemotherapy) is failing or is not able to be performed. Contraindications (reasons against) to the transplantation would be that the tumor has spread outside the liver. The reason for this is that the treatment necessary to prevent liver rejection, immunosuppressive treatment, interferes with the body's natural ability to prevent tumor growth and therefore can cause other tumor metastases to grow. Transplantation is an accepted, but uncommon treatment for metastatic carcinod. The reason is that there is no, in the language of medical literature, prospective randomized trials (a study to compare the efficacy of transplantation vs. 'conventional' treatment where your treatment is determined by random choice) to demonstrate that this is an effective treatment. In reality due to the rarity of the condition it is unlikely that such a trial could ever be done.
That being said, if the reports are true and the transplantation is successful Mr. Jobs is highly likely to be able to return to a fully functional life style as long a he continues to comply with his physician's orders as to his treatment.

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Sauteed Polenta with Sweet Italian Sausage and Broccoli Rabe

2009-06-16T02:54:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:
For 1 recipe basic polenta, kept warm or cheat & use precooked polenta in a roll

4 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup cornmeal or instant polenta

2 tablespoons olive oil plus additional if necessary
1 pound sweet Italian sausage links
1/4 cup water
1 bunch broccoli rabe (about 1 pound), chopped coarse and tough stems discarded
1 garlic clove, chopped and mashed to a paste with 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup chicken broth
a 28- to 32-ounce can whole tomatoes, drained, seeded, and chopped
1/4 cup dried currants
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Accompaniment: freshly grated Parmesan

Preparation

On a lightly oiled baking sheet spread warm polenta about 3/4 thick and cool to room temperature. Polenta may be made 2 days ahead and chilled, covered.

In a large non-stick skillet heat 1 tablespoon oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and brown sausage. Add water and cook sausage, covered, turning occasionally, until cooked through, about 10 minutes. Remove lid and cook mixture until any remaining water is evaporated. Transfer sausage with tongs to a bowl and reserve fat remaining in skillet. Cool sausage slightly and slice diagonally.

Cut polenta into 1 1/2-inch diamond shapes or squares. In skillet sauté polenta in 2 batches in reserved fat over moderately high heat, turning occasionally, adding additional oil to skillet if necessary, until golden on both sides. Transfer polenta as cooked with a slotted spoon to bowl with sausage and cover.

In skillet heat remaining tablespoon oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and sauté broccoli rabe with salt to taste, stirring, until just wilted. Add garlic paste and sauté, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in remaining ingredients and simmer, stirring, until tomato paste is incorporated and sauce is slightly thickened. Add sausage and polenta and cook until heated through.

Serve polenta sprinkled with Parmesan.

To make basic polenta:
In a heavy saucepan bring water and salt to a boil and gradually whisk in cornmeal in a thin stream. Cook polenta over moderately low heat (it should be barely boiling), stirring constantly, until very thick and pulls away from side of pan, about 40 minutes for cornmeal and about 15 minutes for instant polenta. Remove pan from heat and cover to keep warm. Stir polenta just before using. Polenta will keep warm, covered, about 20 minutes. Makes about 3 cups.

Note: In the traditional method of cooking polenta, forty minutes of constant stirring is required to achieve a lumpless texture and fragrant flavor. However, Italian-food expert Marcella Hazan has developed a method that involves very little stirring during this time. We believe it produces a very good polenta, one nearly as flavorful and smooth as the traditional procedure. To make satisfactory polenta in a real hurry, an imported instant polenta (precooked cornmeal) is available. This cooks in a mere fifteen minutes.

My latest jewelry finish

2009-06-07T10:20:00.001-07:00

Many of you don't know but as a hobby I make chain maille jewelry out of sterling server.
This bracelet was made during the time I listened to Leo Laporte's Tech Guy broadcasts.

The design is called Celtic Strap and is made with two sizes of silver rings. None of the rings are welded but all are closed simply using 2 pairs of pliers in a technique called "butt maille" since the ends are just butted together.

This picture is actually a thumbnail, if you click on it it will open up full sized into a larger window.

Report from the TWit Army Mess Hall - Roasted Red Pepper Cole Slaw

2009-04-29T03:39:00.000-07:00

Make this up at least 2 hours ahead of time to allow the flavors in the dressing to blend.

Ingredients:

1 head green cabbage, shredded
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 whole red pepper thinly sliced
1 whole red pepper, roasted and peeled (doing it yourself is better since the meat of the pepper will stay firmer than jarred roasted peppers)
6 dill gherkins, thinly sliced (not the sweet ones) don't drain, save some of the juice
1/3 c. mayonnaise
2 tbs. red wine vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preparation:

Mix all the vegetables together in a refrigerator safe bowl making sure to add the juice from the sliced gherkins to the bowl. Whisk together the last 3 ingredients, add more vinegar if you like a thinner dressing, and add to the vegetables. You probably won't need to add salt since the gherkins will make the dish salty enough.

Let let for at least 2 hours to allow the flavors to blend. Server slightly chilled

Serves 6 as a side dish, also good as topping for hamburgers.

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Thai Chicken and Shrimp Noodle Salad

2009-04-28T06:32:00.000-07:00

This is a great cold salad for warm summer evenings and can be made ahead and just assembled at the last minute

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons fish sauce* (such as nam pla or nuoc nam)
2 tablespoons Asian sweet chili sauce*
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon sugar
9 ounces (250 grams) bean thread noodles**
12 cherry tomatoes, halved
12 cooked peeled deveined medium shrimp
1 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 1/2 cups bean sprouts (about 3 1/2 ounces), rinsed
1/2 English hothouse cucumber, very thinly sliced (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup lightly packed fresh mint leaves
1/2 cup lightly packed fresh basil leaves, torn if large
1/2 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves
1/3 cup thinly sliced shallots
1 red jalapeño chile with seeds, sliced into thin rings
2 tablespoons chopped toasted peanuts
1 lime, cut into 6 wedges

*Available in the Asian foods section of most supermarkets and at Asian markets.
**Clear dried noodles (also known as cellophane or transparent noodles); available in the Asian foods section of some supermarkets and at Asian markets.

Preparation:

Whisk first 5 ingredients in large bowl to blend. DO AHEAD Dressing can be prepared 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.

Place noodles in another large bowl. Cover with boiling water. Let stand until softened, about 4 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water to cool; drain well. Insert scissors into noodles; cut several times. Transfer to bowl with dressing.

Add tomatoes and all remaining ingredients, except peanuts and lime wedges, to noodles; toss to coat.

Divide among 6 plates. Sprinkle with peanuts; garnish with lime wedges.

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Moroccan Chicken with Green Olives and Lemons

2009-04-24T03:55:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:

2 Meyer lemons or regular lemons if you can't find the Meyers
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, halved, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1 tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
2 cups low-salt chicken broth
1 4 1/2-pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces, skin removed or 4 pounds of bone-in skin off chicken pieces such as breasts and thighs
1/2 cup green olives

Preparation:

Cut 1 lemon into 8 wedges. Squeeze enough juice from second lemon to measure 2 tablespoons; set wedges and juice aside. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and sprinkle with salt and pepper; sauté until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Add next 5 ingredients; stir 1 minute. Add broth; bring to boil. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper; add to skillet. Add lemon wedges. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until chicken is cooked through, turning occasionally, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer chicken to platter. Add olives and 2 tablespoons lemon juice to skillet. Increase heat to high; boil uncovered to thicken slightly, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Pour over chicken.

A Barrel Chain Necklace

2009-04-18T11:51:00.000-07:00

This is my latest piece of chainmaille jewelry I make.
The pattern is called Barrel Chain and is made with 16 gauge silver & copper rings.

A nice chain for necklaces but it does have a slight tendency to spiral.

Dontations to the Great Neck South Robotic team for the FIRST Robotics Competition

2009-04-06T03:17:00.000-07:00

If anyone is interested in making a donation to support the Great Neck South Robotics Team (AKA Rebellion) in their trip to the FIRST finals in Atlanta (the second time they're going in two years!). Anyone interested in learning more about the competition can go to USFirst.org.

Please send the donation to the follow address:

Mr. John Motchkavitz (He's the head of the technology dept. and mentor of the team)
C/O Great Neck South High School
341 Lakeville Road
Great Neck, New York 11020
516.773.1602

Please mark the contribution as for the support of the team.

All contributions will be posted on the robotics team website (gnsrobotics.com) and corporate sponsors have the opportunity to have their logo placed directly on the robot where it can be seen. N.B. the finals will be webcast by NASA TV so any posted logos have the opportunity to be seen nation wide.

I am supporting this effort since my daughter is a member of this team and is, in fact, the safety captain. In the regionals she won the Safety Captain award and we are very proud of her and the rest of her team's accomplishments. The team is trying hard to raise the rest of the funds required for the trip but, unfortunately, the 3 weeks time period between finding out that they were going to the nationals and the date they need to leave does not give much time for the usually cookie sale/car wash fund raising.

Thank you in advance for your reading of this post.

The Violet Show's computer's capacity, or more correctly incapacity

2009-04-03T08:28:00.000-07:00

My Goodness, this is a GENUINE Win98 machine with a REAL Pentium Pro processor and a total RAM of 198 MB.

Isn't it nice to know that it's been optimized for performance.

Finally, the genuine "Plug and Pray" BIOS without any USB support.

HELP!! My iPod touch has more capacity than this

And now to the best part, It's BSOD'd twice already and on rebooting I get a bad partition error in one of the SEVEN partitions of this 15 Gig hard drive. AWK!!!! Someone pass me the sledge hammer please.

My state of the art computer center

2009-04-03T07:59:00.000-07:00

I'm about to start the entries for the Long Island AVS yearly show. Note the Win98 machine with the "tiny" tower. If you hear an implosion around Rockville Centre it may be this old dinosaur giving up the ghost.

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Classic Chicken Soup

2009-04-01T03:00:00.000-07:00

Here's another recipe from my Passover Dinner (Seder) coming up next Thursday night.

Ingredients:

5 - 6 lbs of bone-in, skin-on meaty chicken parts such as thighs
4 qts of cold water, the quality matters here, bottled may be better than fresh if your water is very hard
Kosher salt to taste
2 large onions, one peeled and quartered, one trimmed and quartered but left unpeeled (the peel is part of what colors the soup golden)
½ lb parsnips, skinned and cut into chunks
Celery root about the size of a lemon cut into chunks, if you can't find celery root use 3 stalks of celery
1 lb carrots, skinned and cut into chunks
3 garlic cloves, peeled
6 sprigs of fresh parsley
1 parsley root, scraped and cut into chunks
1 parsnip root scraped and cut into chunks
2 large leeks, washed well and white parts cut into pieces, save the green leaves for later
10 peppercorns
1 bay leaf

Preparation:

Day 1:
Roast the chicken parts in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes, save all the pan juices. Put the chicken, pan juices and water into a large kettle along with ½ tbl. of salt. Bring heat to medium and start simmering the soup. Here's where the work starts. You really need to spend a lot of time now skimming the soup until the broth is complete clear (Important, DO NOT LET THE SOUP BOIL or it will be cloudy forever). Add all the rest of the ingredients except for the leek leaves and continue to skim until there is absolutely no more scum. Now cover with the leek leaves (if you don't have enough use some romaine leaves also). Cover with the pot and let simmer for at least 6 hours but overnight is better. Use a crock pot at this point if you're not comfortable leaving an open flame all night.

Now you can taste the soup and add salt as needed. Remove the chicken and save the meat for other uses such as chicken salad. Remove as much of the vegetables as possible and then strain the soup through cheesecloth. Squeeze the cheesecloth to get as much of the soup out as possible.
Refrigerate the soup overnight and then skim any congealed fat.

Reheat the soup before serving.

N.B. You can make this up to 3 to 4 days before using, just keep it refrigerated until ready to heat and eat

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Roast Chicken with Dried Fruits and Almonds

2009-03-31T03:14:00.000-07:00

Here's another recipe which can be used for Passover. Most can be done the day before and the just the actual roasting done on the day it's served. Serves 8, can be easily doubled.

Ingredients:

7 tablespoons olive oil, divided
3 pounds onions, thinly sliced
1 pound pitted prunes, halved
12 ounces pitted dates, halved
10 ounces dried apricot halves (about 2 cups)
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 (4- to 4 1/2-pound) chickens, rinsed, patted dry
1 teaspoon turmeric, divided
1 1/2 cups (or more) water
1/2 cup blanched slivered almonds, toasted

Preparation:

Heat 6 tablespoons olive oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and sauté until deep golden brown, about 30 minutes; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Transfer onions to large bowl; mix in prunes, dates, apricots, sugar, and cinnamon. Do ahead Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread fruit mixture over bottom of large roasting pan. Tuck chicken wing tips under. Rub each chicken with 1/2 tablespoon remaining olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon turmeric. Sprinkle each with salt and pepper; place chickens, side by side, atop fruit mixture. Pour 11/2 cups water around chickens. Roast chickens 1 hour. Turn pan around; add more water to fruit mixture by 1/4 cupfuls if beginning to dry. Continue to roast chickens until brown and juices run clear when thigh is pierced, about 45 minutes.

Transfer chickens to carving board; let stand 10 minutes. Spoon fruit onto platter; top with chickens and any accumulated juices. Sprinkle with almonds and serve.

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Cauliflower-Leek Kugel with Almond-Herb Crust

2009-03-29T05:21:00.000-07:00

Here's another recipe which can be used for a Passover Seder besides being good you can do most of the prep early in the morning and then just do the final baking at the last minute.

Ingredients:

8 cups cauliflower florets (from 2 medium heads of cauliflower)
6 tablespoons olive oil, divided
4 cups coarsely chopped leeks (white and pale green parts; from 3 large)
6 tablespoons unsalted matzo meal
3 large eggs
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley, divided
1/2 cup chopped fresh dill, divided
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1/3 cup almonds, toasted, chopped

Preparation:

Cook cauliflower in large pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain; transfer to large bowl and mash coarsely with potato masher.

Heat 3 tablespoons oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add leeks and sauté until tender and just beginning to color, about 5 minutes. Add leek mixture to cauliflower. Mix in matzo meal. Beat eggs, 1 tablespoon parsley, 1 tablespoon dill, salt, and pepper in small bowl to blend; stir into cauliflower mixture.

Brush 11x7-inch baking dish with 1 tablespoon oil. Spread cauliflower mixture evenly in prepared dish. Mix almonds, remaining 7 tablespoons parsley, 7 tablespoons dill, and 2 tablespoons oil in medium bowl to blend. Sprinkle evenly over kugel. (Can be made 8 hours ahead. Cover and chill.)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake kugel uncovered until set in center and beginning to brown on top, about 35 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes.

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Brussels Sprouts with Shallots and Mustard Seeds

2009-03-22T07:35:00.000-07:00

Here's a good Brussels Sprout dish to take advantage of this early season vegi. The parboiling before sauteing help to remove the 'boiled cabbage' taste these can sometimes have. You can also do most of the prep the day before and the final cooking only takes about 20 minutes which makes this a good dish for Easter or Passover meals (N.B. in some Passover traditions, mustard is not allowed so check before you bring this as a dish to a Seder)

Ingredients:

4 teaspoons mustard seeds either light or dark, your choice
2 1/2 pounds small Brussels sprouts, trimmed
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, use olive oil if you're bringing this to a Seder where meat will be served. That will make the dish Parve (neither Meat nor Dairy)
6 large shallots, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

Preparation:

Stir mustard seeds in small dry skillet over medium-low heat until seeds are lightly toasted and begin to pop, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Cool.

Cook Brussels sprouts in large pot of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Drain. Place in bowl of ice water to cool. Drain and cut in half. (Mustard seeds and Brussels sprouts can be made 1 day ahead. Store mustard seeds at room temperature. Wrap Brussels sprouts in paper towels; cover and chill.)

Melt butter in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallots and sauté until tender and golden, about 4 minutes. Add Brussels sprouts and sauté until just tender and heated through, about 8 minutes. Add lemon juice, mustard, and mustard seeds; toss to blend. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Kasha Pilaf

2009-03-21T08:12:00.001-07:00

Here's another recipe for the holidays (but only if you're Sephardic since Askanazi won't eat any type of grain over Passover)

Ingredients:

* 1 cup Kasha, coarse granulation or whole grain
* 1 egg, beaten
* 2 cups chicken or beef broth or water, I usually match the liquid to what I'm cooking
* 2 tbl of oil
* 2 cups of mixed chopped vegis, I use onions, celery, and peppers but you can use whatever you want as long as they can stand up to sauteing without turning into mush. Mushrooms, green beans etc also work

Preparation:

Heat the oil in a saucepan which you have a close fitting lid for. Mix the kasha with the egg and cook in the oil until the egg is completely dry and the grains have separated, you don' t want to start this with a kasha & egg pancake. If you want to saute the vegis do it in a separate pan with a little oil or you can just add them raw at this point.

Add the liquid salt & pepper to taste. How much salt you'll use depends on how salty the liquid is. Bring to a boil, cover the pot and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes and check to see if all the liquid is absorbed, if not continue cooking covered until the kasha is moist but there is no free liquid. Remove from the heat, uncover and fluff with a fork before serving. Serve relatively soon, if it sits around uncovered it will dry out. This also doesn't reheat really well but you can use leftovers the next day for a 'fried rice' type of dish in the same way you can use leftover rice.

Serves 4

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - How to make fluffy matzo balls

2009-03-19T05:07:00.000-07:00

Matzo balls are considered by many to be an integral part of the passover holiday. Depending on your preferences and family history (how your mother & grandmother made their matzo balls) you may like 'floaters' (light fluffy balls) or 'sinkers' (dense, heavy balls).
My preference has always been floaters & over the years I've tried many, many methods to produce them. Some of the techniques have included adding club soda to the dough or, the most sure fire, using shallow soup plates.

All of the techniques seem to rely on one common ingredient, make sure that there is air incorporated into the matzo ball dough. This makes sense and explains how the club soda works. Personally, I think that club soda or seltzer adds too much salt to the dough so I don't use that. That said here's how I make my 'floaters'.

I just use a standard Passover style matzo ball mix (regular matzo ball mix may have leaven in it so you can't use it for Passover). I prepare the mix according to package directions but there here's where I vary.

1) I ALWAYS make the dough the day before & let it rest in the refrigerator overnight, this allows for the maximum hydration of the matzo meal & make the dough very cold which is important for the next step

2) I use a cookie scoop, medium size to scoop out dough balls & once scooped handle them the minimum amount possible. This keeps the dough cold & prevents squeezing out any air bubbles present in the dough. Don't make the balls any bigger than a small walnut, if they are much bigger the outer part of the dumpling with get soggy before the inner part is completely cooked.

3) Cook the matzo balls in boiling hot soup or extra broth. Keep the soup boiling & don't add so many dough balls that it will cool off. This, IMHO is the most important step, the high heat of the soup serves to heat the air bubbles trapped in the dough expand and makes the matzo balls fluffy.

4) Get the dumplings out of the soup when cooked and put aside in a covered bowl until ready to reheat for dinner. If you leave them soaking in the soup, like a sponge they will get sodden with soup an sink.

Enjoy

Korean BBQ

2009-03-16T16:29:00.000-07:00

This is what Korean BBQ looks like before we put it on the table to wrap up in lettuce leaves.

Hysterical Happy Dance Continues

2009-03-15T04:54:00.001-07:00

Bragging rights here. Our daughter has now been accepted into 4 colleges! Right now she's in:

UC San Diego - Revelle College
USC
Rensselaer Polytechnic
University of Colorado - Boulder Campus

We're still waiting on UCLA, Berkeley, and a few others but this has been great news!

Latest update:
As of 6 pm EDT today, UC Santa Barbara is also a YES!!!!!

W00t! She's now a Sun Goddess being chased by a buffalo ridden by a Trojan, hitting a hockey puck (Renssalaer's mascot is Mr. Puck Man) at a Gaucho!

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Sauted Scallops with Cherry Tomatoes, Green Onions, and Parsley

2009-03-15T04:41:00.000-07:00

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds large sea scallops, side muscles removed, I use frozen but be sure that they are completely thawed
Fleur de sel or coarse kosher salt, not regular table salt you need the large grains for this dish to work
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
4 large green onions, chopped, white and green parts separated
1 12-ounce container cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes
4 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh Italian parsley, divided
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon mild Spanish paprika (pimentn dulce)* or Hungarian sweet paprika

Preparation

Rinse and drain scallops; pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle with fleur de sel and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add scallops; sauté until browned outside and just opaque in center, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer scallops to plate; cover. Add 1 tablespoon oil to same skillet; add white parts of green onions and sauté until almost tender, about 1 minute. Add tomatoes and green parts of onions and sauté until tomatoes begin to burst and release juices, about 5 minutes. Stir in 3 tablespoons parsley, lemon juice, and paprika. Return scallops and any accumulated juices to skillet and stir just until heated through, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer scallop mixture to platter. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley.

This is good to serve with rice or a pasta like orzo to soak up the juices.

Serves 4

Recipe from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Baked ziti with three cheeses

2009-03-13T03:25:00.000-07:00

This is a variation on lasagna which uses ziti noodles instead.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1/3 cup tomato paste
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1 cup water
1 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled
1/2 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
1 15-ounce container ricotta cheese
1 egg
1/4 Italian parsley, coarsely chopped
8 ounces mozzarella cheese, grated
12 ounces freshly cooked ziti or other tubular pasta
Optional - 1 lb of Italian sausage casings removed & crumbled

Preparation

Heat oil in heavy large saucepan over medium-low heat. If you're using the sausage, add it at this point and cook until done. Add onion, garlic and fennel seeds (omit the fennel if you've added sausage) and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Mix in tomato paste and cook 1 minute. Add tomato sauce, water, oregano and sage. Simmer until mixture thickens slightly, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Stir in 1/4 cup Romano. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Preheat oven to 450°F. Grease a 9x13-inch glass baking dish. In medium bowl combine ricotta cheese and egg. Reserve 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese for topping. Add remaining mozzarella to ricotta cheese mixture and blend. Season with salt and pepper.

Spread 1/4 of tomato sauce over bottom of prepared dish. Layer 1/3 of pasta over. Drop half of ricotta cheese mixture over by spoonfuls. Spread 1/4 of sauce over. Repeat layering with another 1/3 of pasta, remaining cheese mixture, 1/4 of sauce and remaining pasta. Spread remaining sauce over and sprinkle with reserved mozzarella and remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

Cover casserole and bake until heated through, about 40 minutes.

Recipes from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Spicy Chicken Paella

2009-03-05T03:13:00.000-08:00

Here's a good way to use up leftover chicken or turkey. If you don't have enough leftovers you can 'nuke' some dark meat poultry (it has more flavor than white meat) to make up the difference. It's not a 'real' paella in the sense that it's made up in a classic paella pan over an on a stove top but it's still very good

Ingredients:

12 ounces spicy smoked sausage (such as linguiça, andouille, or hot links), cut into 1/2-inch slices
1/4 cup garlic-flavored olive oil, you can 'fake' this by adding a chopped garlic clove to the pan when you heat the oil (that's what I do sometimes)
2 large yellow onions, chopped
1 large red bell pepper, chopped
2 cups long-grain white rice
1/4 teaspoon saffron
4 cups low-salt chicken broth
4 large plum tomatoes, quartered
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 1/2 cups cooked leftover turkey, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup frozen peas

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°F. Brown sausage in large skillet over medium-high heat, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

Heat olive oil in 6 1/2-quart pot over medium-high heat. This is a big pot and will look to large at the start but you need the space for the rice to expand and to create a 'dutch oven' effect. Add onions and cook until golden, stirring often, about 12 minutes. Add bell pepper; cook 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in rice and saffron, then next 5 ingredients. IMPORTANT, do not stir the dish after this point. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium; cover and cook 15 minutes. Add sausage, turkey, and peas to rice mixture. Bake paella 10 minutes and serve.

Recipes from the TWiT Army Mess Hall - Garlicky Black-Pepper Shrimp and Black-Eyed Peas

2009-02-26T02:04:00.000-08:00

Ingredients
For black-eyed peas:

4 bacon slices
4 scallions, chopped
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
1 celery rib, finely chopped
1/2 medium green bell pepper, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 Turkish bay leaves or 1 California
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/8 teaspoon hot red-pepper flakes
2 (15-ounces) cans black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
1 3/4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth

For shrimp:

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
3 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine

Preparation

Black-eyed peas:
Cook bacon in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat until browned but not crisp. Transfer bacon to a plate, then tear into small pieces.

Cook scallions, carrot, celery, bell pepper, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, red-pepper flakes, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in fat in skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are pale golden, about 10 minutes. Add black-eyed peas and broth and simmer 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.

Make shrimp:
Heat oil in skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Season shrimp with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper. Cook shrimp with garlic, stirring occasionally, until just opaque (shrimp will not be fully cooked), about 3 minutes. Add wine and bring to a boil, then briskly simmer 2 minutes. Add bacon and black-eyed-pea mixture and simmer until just heated through (mixture will be juicy). Discard bay leaves.

Recipes from the Twit Army Mess Hall - Chicken Pie, Moroccan Style

2009-02-22T04:37:00.000-08:00

Filling:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/8 teaspoon crumbled saffron threads
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
2 cups low-salt chicken broth
1 1/2 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs
1/4 cup chopped golden raisins
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley

Phyllo Crust:

1/2 cup slivered almonds
3 tablespoons powdered (confectioner's) sugar, you can't substitute regular sugar for this
1/2 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
10 sheets (about 17x12 inches) fresh phyllo pastry or frozen, thawed you can find this in most well stocked groceries
1/2 cup (about) unsalted butter, melted (for brushing)

Preparation

For filling:
Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until tender, about 10 minutes. Mix in cinnamon, ginger, turmeric, and saffron; stir 1 minute. Sprinkle flour over; stir 1 minute. Add broth; bring to simmer. Sprinkle chicken with salt; add to broth mixture. Gently simmer chicken uncovered until cooked through, reducing heat if necessary to prevent boiling, about 20 minutes. Stir in raisins. Set skillet aside until chicken is cool enough to handle.

Transfer chicken to plate. Shred chicken coarsely or you can just cut it into 1 inch chunks, and return to skillet. If sauce is thin, simmer over medium heat until sauce coats chicken thickly. Stir in cilantro and parsley. Season filling with salt and pepper. Cool filling completely. DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover; chill.

For phyllo:
Finely grind almonds, powdered sugar, 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt, and cinnamon in mini processor.

Stack 10 phyllo sheets on work surface. Invert 9-inch glass pie dish onto stack. Cut around dish through phyllo, making ten 10-inch rounds. Remove dish. Cover rounds with plastic wrap and damp kitchen towel.

Brush same pie dish with melted butter. Place 1 phyllo round on work surface; brush with butter and sprinkle with scant 1 tablespoon almonds. Top with another phyllo round, brush with butter and sprinkle with scant 1 tablespoon almonds. Repeat stacking with 3 more phyllo rounds, butter, and almonds. Fit phyllo stack into prepared pie dish. Brush with butter. Spoon filling evenly over. Place 1 phyllo round on work surface. Brush with butter and sprinkle with scant 1 tablespoon almonds. Top with another phyllo round, brush with butter and sprinkle with scant 1 tablespoon almonds. Repeat with 2 phyllo rounds, butter, and almonds. Place stack atop filling; top with remaining phyllo round. Tuck in edges. Drizzle more butter over top. Cut 4 slits through top phyllo stack to allow steam to escape. DO AHEAD: Can be made 6 hours ahead. Cover and chill.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Place pie on rimmed baking sheet. Bake uncovered until phyllo is golden and filling is heated through, about 40 minutes. Cool 15 minutes. Cut into wedges.

Recipes from the Twit Army Mess Hall - Fish & Pesto Packets

2009-02-20T03:15:00.001-08:00

Here's a simple, low calorie, low carb, low fat meal that tasty & effortless to repair

Ingredients:

1 lb firm fish fillets like cod
1 green or yellow zucchini sliced into 1/4 inch rounds
1 c. cherry tomatoes, try not to use the sweet ones
8 asparagus spears
1/2 c. kalamata olives, pitted & halved
4 tbls (about a 1/4 cup). of your favorite pesto, I use a garlic based one

Preparation:

Prepare 4 foil sheets by tearing them into 12" squares. Spray with a non-stick cooking spray & set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Cut the fish into 4 even pieces & place in the center of the foil squares. Spread the fish with a tbl of the pesto and the evenly distribute the vegetables & olives on top of the 4 fish pieces. Fold the foil packets to cover everything and roll the top tightly to seal. Don't miss this step or the juices will leak out the packs & the fish will dry out.

Bake in oven for 20 to 30 minutes, depending on how thick the fish fillets are.

Place the packs on everyone's plate & let them open them at the table. Just be careful when you open them, there may be a puff of steam when they are opened.

Serves 4

Recipes from the Twit Army Mess Hall - Chicken Kiev

2009-02-18T16:11:00.001-08:00

Ingredients

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 tablespoon chopped tarragon
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus extra for seasoning chicken
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus extra for seasoning chicken
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2 large whole eggs, beaten with 1 teaspoon water
2 cups Japanese bread crumbs (panko), plus 1/4 cup for filling
Vegetable oil, for frying

Directions

Combine butter, parsley, tarragon, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, you'll probably need a hand mixer to make sure this is blended well. Place mixture on plastic wrap or waxed paper and roll into small log; place in freezer. Do not skip this step, this butter must be firm or this will never work. N.B. This seasoned butter is also good for steak & if wrapped air tight will keep for several months so it may be worth your while to make a large amount and freeze it for further use.

Place chicken breasts, 1 at a time, between 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Squirt chicken lightly with water and squirt the top of the plastic wrap as well. Pound to no less than 1/8-inch thickness. Don't try and skip this step, you need the thin pieces for this to work. Also, don't use the thin chicken scallops which are available they aren't large enough to work. Season each piece of chicken with salt and pepper.

Lay 1 chicken breast on a new piece of plastic wrap and place 1/4 of the compound butter and 1 tablespoon bread crumbs in the center of each breast. Using the plastic wrap to assist, fold in ends of breast and roll breast into a log, completely enclosing the butter; roll very tightly. Repeat with each breast. Place chicken in refrigerator for 2 hours, or up to overnight.

Place egg and water mixture in 1 pie pan and 2 cups of panko on a piece of foil with the edges turned up to form a shallow pan.

Heat 1/2-inch of vegetable oil in a 12-inch saute pan over medium-high heat until oil reaches 375 degrees F. That's shimmering but not smoking.

Dip each breast in the egg mixture and then roll in the bread crumbs. Gently place each breast in oil, sealed-side down, and cook until golden brown, approximately 4 to 5 minutes on each side, until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F. Remove to a cooling rack set in sheet pan and allow to drain for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Woz's picture the CU Boulder

2009-02-17T12:03:00.000-08:00

Here's a shot of the Woz's plaque in the CU Boulder hall of fame

Recipes from the Twit Army Mess Hall - Blackout Cake

2009-02-16T02:41:00.000-08:00

Cake: (ingredients listed are per layer) so for 2 layers double this, for 3 triple etc.

1 cup buttermilk
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened Dutch process cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
Pinch salt
1 egg, graded "large", beaten to mix
1 tsp. vanilla

Frosting: This will cover a 2 layer cake with some to spare

6 ounces good-quality semisweet chocolate, chopped
3 ounces good-quality unsweetened chocolate, chopped
14 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into chunks
5 eggs
1 cup plus 3 Tbsp. granulated sugar
Pinch salt
1/3 cup pulp-free orange juice, preferably fresh-squeezed
3 Tbsp. water

For Cake: You'll need at least three layers, or three times the recipe given since 1 layer will be crumbled for covering the frosting of the cake. If you have only two 9 inch layer pans that are 2 inches deep, you may want to make two layers the night before you assemble the cake. Adjust rack to center of oven; preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease pans, then line bottoms with cooking parchment paper cut to fit or silicone sheets, grease liner, and dust the entire inside lightly with flour, knocking out any excess. Set aside.

In small, heavy-bottomed, nonreactive pot, combine buttermilk and butter. Place over low heat, stirring often, until butter is melted. Set aside to cool to lukewarm.

Meanwhile, sift flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into medium bowl. When buttermilk mixture is lukewarm, add it to the beaten egg and vanilla; with fork, beat to mix well. All at once, add liquid to sifted dry ingredients. With whisk, stir until dry ingredients are moistened, then beat until well-mixed and smooth (a few small lumps are OK). Batter will be thin. Pour into prepared pan. Holding pan with both hands, tilt slightly so that batter runs up sides of pan a bit. From a height of about 3 inches above a flat surface, drop filled pan three times (this helps to distribute air bubbles evenly--don't hold the pan too high above the flat surface!). If you're too scared to do this then you can run a fork through the batter several times but it doesn't work as well.

Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center emerges with a few moist crumbs still clinging to it. Do not overbake, if you do this cake will be dry as sawdust. Cool in pan 10 to 15 minutes. Gently loosen cake from edges of pan; invert onto cooling rack. Gently peel wax paper from bottom of layer, then re-invert to cool right side up. Cool completely before frosting or storing.

For Frosting: In large, heatproof bowl, combine chopped chocolates and butter. Set over simmering water on low heat (water should not touch bottom of bowl). Stir frequently until melted and smooth. Remove from heat and hot water; set aside near stovetop. You can also use the top bowl of a double boiler (if you have one) for this step.

In one quart heavy-bottomed, nonreactive saucepan, i.e. not aluminum, combine eggs, sugar, and salt. By hand, beat thoroughly to combine well. Add orange juice, then water, beating to mix after each addition. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture registers 170 degrees F on a candy thermometer. Immediately remove from heat.You have to use a candy thermometer for this since your actually making a fondant type of icing & if not cooked to a high enough temperature this will just be a runny mess. Contrawise if you cook it too high you'll end up with scrambled eggs.

Quickly strain about one-quarter of hot egg mixture into melted chocolate mixture and whisk well to combine. Gradually strain remaining hot egg mixture into chocolate mixture, whisking to mix after each addition. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl periodically with rubber spatula to ensure thorough blending. Cool slightly, then chill. Whisk occasionally until frosting begins to thicken, then scrape bowl sides and bottom with rubber spatula and whisk frequently until frosting is of spreading consistency. (Alternatively, place bowl of frosting into larger, shallower pan half full of ice and cold water. Whisk frequently; scrape bottom and sides of bowl often. This method is much quicker, but the frosting must be watched carefully, as it can harden before you know it.) When ready, frosting will have thickened considerably, and it will hold soft peaks (just like a meringue or whipped cream) when the whisk is lifted from it.

Important note: while frosting chills (beforehand, if you're using the quick-chilling ice-and- water method), prepare the cake layers, as they should be ready for assembly when the frosting is. If necessary, trim tops of layers so they are flat. Using a large, sharp, serrated knife, carefully halve each layer horizontally (this will give you six thin layers). Use one thin layer, the top half of one of the original three you baked, to make the crumbs for the outside of the cake. To do this, pull the thin layer into very small pieces with a fork and/or your fingers (because the cake is so dense and moist, the resulting small pieces will look better than they would if you tried to actually crumble the cake). Place these very small pieces into a bowl, and cover airtight. Cover the remaining thin layers so they won't dry out. Get a serving plate ready; you'll need a plate with a flat portion in the center at least 9-1/2 inches in diameter.

When the frosting is ready, place a dab of it in the center of the serving plate. Place what was originally the top half of one of the three layers you baked, cut side up, onto the serving plate, on top of the dab of frosting. Spread about 1/2 cup of the frosting onto the cut surface, spreading it just to the edges. Place the bottom half of this original layer, cut side down, on top of the frosting, and spread it with another 1/2 cup of frosting, just to the edges. Repeat. At this point, you'll have one thin layer of cake left, the bottom half of one of the original three you baked. Place this, cut side down, on top of the cake. Press gently, and straighten the sides if necessary. Frost sides and top with remaining frosting.

With your fingers, pick up some of the cake "crumbs" you made earlier. Flatten your hand so it's just slightly cupped, and pat crumbs onto the side of the cake. Some crumbs will fall onto the serving plate--that's OK, just pick them up and re-apply them. Put the crumbs on randomly, but spread them out as evenly as possible; the entire cake surface won't be covered with them. Save some crumbs to pat onto the top of the cake. Chill cake about 30 minutes. If necessary, use your hands to gently re-shape the sides. Chill until cold before covering tightly. Chill at least 2 hours before serving.

To cut, you'll need a large, sharp knife. Cut thin slices, as this is quite rich. Store in refrigerator, tightly wrapped, for up to three days, or freeze.

At least 12 servings

Valentine's Day Dinner

2009-02-14T17:20:00.000-08:00

Went out for dinner tonight, cheese fondue with all the fixings and for dessert, flaming chocolate fondue! It comes with bits of fruit & cake to dip along with 2 marshmallows to toast while the fondue is still flaming.

Recipes from the Twit Army Mess Hall - Spicy Suffed Cabbage

2009-02-08T04:49:00.000-08:00

By substituting shredded cabbage for the traditional rice in stuffed cabbage rolls the carb load on these rolls goes down significantly. If you want to lower it further (at some loss of flavor) replace the last cup of tomato sauce with one cup of low sodium chicken or beef broth.
The recipe comes from the Prudhomme Family Cookbook, an Amazon link to the book is at the end of the recipe.

Ingredients:

2.5 tsp of salt
2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper

3 lbs of cabbage (you'll need to have at least 6 to 8 'perfect' leaves for the rolls), shred the rest until you have at least 2 cups of finely shredded cabbage, you can use more if you want & really like cabbage
4 tbls of sweet butter (you can substitute olive oil but the taste will suffer)
2 c. chopped onions
3/4 to 1 lb of ground beef
1 c. beef or chicken stock
2 8 oz cans of tomato sauce (I HATE it that now the larger cans are 15 oz instead of 16 ozs.)
1 c. chopped green peppers
1/2 c. chopped green onions, the green part
1/4 c. chopped celery
2 tbl chopped parsley, fresh
1/2 tsp finely chopped garlic

Preparation:

Mix seasonings & put aside.
Take those 6 - 8 perfect leaves, trim off the tough stems & steam or parboil until tender enough to roll up (will take about 5 - 10 minutes or so). Drain them & put aside.

In a large saucepan, melt 2 tbls & 1 tsp of butter, add the onions & saute until very well browned, this will take about 10 minutes. Remove the onions, add the beef & cook until done. Remove the beef and mix with the onions. Pour the fat (butter & drippings) from the pan & only put back 2 tbls (this is what the extra butter is for, if the beef is very lean you may need to add some extra butter to get up to 2 tbls). Add the cabbage and cook until it wilts. you'll need to keep stirring or the bottom layer will burn before the top wilts. Add everything except for 1 cup of the tomato sauce (you'll add 1 cup at this time) to the cabbage and cook until almost all the liquid evaporates. The mixture shouldn't have much liquid left in the pot but if you let it go completely dry things will start to burn. This will take about 10 to 15 minutes. Take the pot from the heat. You can stop now for about 3 hours if you want to do this prep earlier & make the rolls later.

Now for the fun & messy part, take each cabbage leaf & fill it with about 1/2 c. of the mixture. Fold, roll or somehow cover the filling with the cabbage leaf & place seam side down in a baking pan, the pan has to be tight enough to hold the rolls with no room between them or they will come apart during the final baking,(a 9 x 9 foil pan works well) if you're really worried about having 'perfect' rolls then you can secure them with toothpicks or kitchen twine, just remove them before serving. Pour on the last cup of tomato sauce (here's where you can sub the broth but don't omit some liquid or the rolls will burn). Cover with foil, making sure that foil stays clear of the rolls & bake in a 425 degree oven until extremely tender, about 1.5 hours.

Enjoy

Serves 4 figuring 1.5 rolls per person

Here comes dessert!

2009-02-07T17:11:00.000-08:00

If you can believe it after that sandwich he's plowing through that entire piece of cheesecake.

A Simple Sandwich @ the Carnegie Deli

2009-02-07T17:07:00.000-08:00

This is a typical sandwich served at the Carnegie Deli. My 15 year old son ate one & still wants dessert!!

Recipes from the Twit Army Mess Hall - Crawfish Etouffee

2009-02-06T08:28:00.000-08:00

This is Paul Prudhomme's classic recipe a link to the book on Amazon is at the end of the recipe

Ingredients:
Seasoning Mix:
2 tsp salt
2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp white pepper
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/4 c. chopped onions
1/4 c. chopped celery
1/4 c. chopped green peppers
7 tbl vegetable oil
3/4 c. flour, unsifted
3 c. shrimp stock (if unavailable use chicken stock)
2 sticks of sweet butter
2 lbs of crawfish (you can substitute shrimp if you can't get crawfish)
1 c. finely chopped green onions
Rice

Mix seasoning together & put aside.
Put vegis in a bowl and set aside

Heat the oil in a heavy skillet and cook the flour into a roux, cook until a very dark red brown but don't let it burn.

Removed from heat, stir in vegis & 1 tbl of the seasoning mix. Stir until cool & then set aside.

Bring 2 c. of the stock to a boil. Slowly add the cooled roux and stir until completely dissolved. Reduce heat to low and cook for 2 more minutes. Remove from the heat & set aside to cool.

1 a large saucepan melt one stick of butter & saute the seafood & green onions for 1 minute. Add the rest of the butter, stock/roux mixture and the rest of the stock. Stir on medium heat until the rest of the butter is melted, add the rest of the seasoning.

Serve over the rice.

Getting my caloric needs measured

2009-02-03T08:08:00.000-08:00

This strange device is an indirect calorimeter made by CosMed Pulmonary Function Equipment which measures oxygen uptake and carbon dioxide production. It's used to measure the caloric needs of people to assure that they are getting adequate nutrition while ill and also to help guide people in healthy weight loss. It's not as uncomfortable as it looks but does take some getting used to. According to the machine I need about 2100 kcals/day which isn't too bad.

I don't care what this says I really, really needed those bignets at Cafe du Monde this morning even if they did constitute 150% of my daily caloric needs

Math Logic

2009-01-28T07:54:00.000-08:00

Here is a little something someone sent me that is indisputable mathematical logic. (It also made me Laugh Out Loud.) This comes from 2 math teachers with a combined total of 70 yrs. experience.
This is a strictly mathematical viewpoint...it goes like this:

What makes 100%? What does it mean to give MORE than 100%? Ever wonder about those people who say they are giving more than 100%? We have all been to those meetings where someone wants you to give over 100%.. How about achieving 103%? What makes up 100% in life?

Here's a little mathematical formula that might help you answer these
questions:

If:
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

is represented as:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26.

Then:
H-A- R-D-W-O-R-K
8+1+18+4+23+15+18+11 = 98%

and
K-N-O-W- L-E-D-G-E
11+14+15+23+12+5+4+7+5 = 96%

But,
A-T-T-I-T-U-D-E
1+20+20+9+20+21+4+5 = 100%

And,
B-U-L-L-S-H-I-T
2+21+12+12+19+8+9+20 = 103%

AND, look how far ass kissing will take you.
A-S-S-K-I-S-S-I-N-G
1+19+19+11+9+19+19+9+14+7 = 118%

So, one can conclude with mathematical certainty, that while Hard work and
Knowledge will get you close, and Attitude will get you there, it's the
Bullshit and Ass Kissing that will put you over the top.

REMEMBER SOME PEOPLE ARE ALIVE SIMPLY BECAUSE IT IS ILLEGAL TO SHOOT THEM

Recipes from the Twit Army Mess Hall - Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies

2009-01-27T13:56:00.000-08:00

This is just a modification of the classic, Ruth Wakefield (original owner of the Toll House where these cookies were supposed to have originated) recipe. Since I make them for bake sales, where some of the people may have nut allergies I've omitted the walnuts and added dried cherries instead.
Ideally the dough should be made the day before and allowed to rest in the refrigerator overnight but if you're in a rush you can skip that step.

Ingredients:

2 sticks of sweet, not salted butter, at room temperature
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 c. brown sugar (your preference of light or dark) packed
3/4 c. sugar
2 eggs
2 1/4 c. UNSIFTED flour
1 tsp baking soda, dissolved in 1 tsp hot water
2 c. chocolate chips
2 c. dried fruits, I use dried cherries or sometimes I'll mix cherries and craisins (dried cranberries but you can use whatever you want. However if the fruit is sugar coated I'd rinse off the extra sugar.
Optional 2 c. broken walnut pieces instead of the fruit. If you want both you'll need to cut both fruit & nuts back to 1 c. each or you won't have enough dough.

1 hour before baking, preheat the oven to 375 degrees, arranging the racks to divide the oven up into thirds. If you only have one cookie sheet use the upper rack.

In a stand mixer cream the butter, (if desperate you can use a hand mixer or spoon but you'd better have very strong arms). Add the salt, vanilla and sugars, again beat well. Beat in the eggs. Now add 1/2 of the flour beating only until incorporated, add the baking soda and water, then the rest of the flour. This will be a relatively stiff dough. Now add the chips and dried fruit, you may need to let the dough warm up a bit to be soft enough to mix in the goodies.

Now refrigerate the dough overnight, skip this step if you're in a rush. When you're ready to bake take the dough out of the refrigerator, wet your hands and roll the dough into balls about the size of large walnuts. Drop them only cookies sheets lined with foil or parchment paper and bake in 375 degree oven for about 12 minutes until they are brown and crispy. This recipe is NOT supposed to make chewy cookies but crisp ones. Remove from the oven, allow to cool for about a minute until they firm and move to a cooling rack until completly cool.

Enjoy!

Recipes from the Twit Army Mess Hall - Mussels, Clams and Shrimp with Saffron Risotto and Green Olive Relish

2009-01-27T13:43:00.000-08:00

Don't skip on the olive relish you really need the taste from the lemon peel, parsley & olives to complete this dish.

Finished Risotto

Ingredients:
Olive Relish

1/2 cup coarsely chopped pitted brine-cured green olives
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 1/2teaspoons grated lemon peel

Risotto

2 cups chicken stock or canned low-salt chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup chopped shallots
1 cup arborio (sometimes labeled risotto) rice or medium-grain white rice
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cup bottled clam juice
20 mussels, scrubbed, debearded
12 little neck clams, scrubbed
12 uncooked large shrimp, peeled, deveined, tails left intact, if you peel them your self save the shells
3/4 cup chopped tomatoes, I use roma but you can use any type you like as long as they aren't the 'sweet' type
1/4 cup sliced green onions

Preparation:

Olive Relish
Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside for at least 2 hours for the flavors to blend.

Risotto:

Bring stock and saffron to simmer in medium saucepan, if you kept the shrimp shells add them to the stock & simmer until the shells turn pink (This step adds some extra oomph to the stock). Remove from heat, remove the shells, if used, and cover to keep warm.

Heat olive oil in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add shallots; saute until tender, about 2 minutes. Add rice and garlic; stir 1 minute. Add white wine and stir until absorbed, about 2 minutes. Add 1/2 cup saffron stock and simmer until absorbed, stirring frequently. Add remaining stock 1/2 cup at a time, allowing stock to be absorbed before adding more and stirring frequently until rice is cooked halfway, about 10 minutes. Do not try and short on this step, if you add all the stock at once it won't absorb properly and you'll have a soupy mess instead of risotto. Add clam juice, mussels, little neck clams, shrimp and chopped tomatoes. Cover and simmer until rice is tender, mussels and clams open, shrimp are cooked through and liquid is absorbed, about 10 minutes (discard any mussels and clams that do not open). Divide seafood and saffron risotto equally among 4 bowls. Sprinkle with sliced green onions. Garnish with lemon wedges. Serve, passing Green Olive Relish separately.

Steve Jobs ? Surgery ? Liver Transplantation

2009-01-26T14:14:00.000-08:00

Just got the news about Mr. Jobs, I wouldn't presume to call people at Stanford to get a medical update so I still have no personal knowledge, but they do perform liver transplantation which is one of the surgeries being bandied about. That being said, with my previous disclaimer still in effect here is what I believe is going on.

Mr. Jobs had checked into Stanford hospital over the weekend and is reported to be undergoing an unspecified surgery, liver transplantation being the one most bandied about.
Here's the catch though, liver transplantation is a semi-emergent procedure and, unless you're at death's door from liver failure, you don't check in ahead of time which Mr. Jobs is reported to have done. Patients normally carry cell phones, pagers, etc. and are ready to come into the hospital on a moment's notice once a liver becomes available. Usually this is less than 24 hours since the clock start running when the donor is declared 'brain dead' and a tissue type is obtained. The patient will get to the transplant hospital while the donor liver is being typed and harvested and essentially as soon as the liver arrives at the hospital everything starts moving. You only hang out at the hospital if you are too sick to remain at home since you can wait weeks for a liver to become available and you're actually safer from infection at home.
The one exception to this is if Mr. Jobs is getting a 'living related' donor liver. That is, a relative, friend, or, in rare cases a stranger, who happens to be a 'match' for the patient is willing to undergo surgery to donate a part of their liver to the patient. Not as bad as it sounds since, unlike other organs the liver will regenerate itself (the Greeks has this right with the Prometheus story) and a year after surgery ofter the donor's liver looks almost completely normal. This is the only case where you'd check in a day or so ahead of scheduled liver transplant surgery. Any other surgeries you normally check in either the morning of surgery or a day or so ahead of time.
Once more details, if any, are made public I'll update this post with further information.

Recipes from the Twit Army Mess Hall - Sausage & Cheese Stuffed Manicotti

2009-01-24T16:21:00.000-08:00

For some reason Qik didn't want to download tonight's prep movie so here it is:

Ingredients:

12 ounces Italian sweet sausages with fennel seeds (about 4 sausages)
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 28-ounce can Italian plum tomatoes with basil
1/8 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
8 large fresh basil leaves, slivered
2 cups fresh whole-milk ricotta cheese or one 15-ounce container whole-milk ricotta cheese
1 cup 1/4-inch cubes sharp domestic provolone cheese
2 tablespoons plus 3/4 cup freshly grated Romano cheese
1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1 pound manicotti (large tubular pasta)
1 tablespoon olive oil

Preparation:

For ragù and filling:

Pierce each sausage several times with tip of knife. Place sausages in heavy large saucepan; add onion. Cover; cook over medium-low heat 5 minutes. Turn sausages over; stir onion. Cover and continue to cook until sausages release some fat and onion begins to color, about 5 minutes. Uncover; increase heat to medium. Add wine and simmer until wine evaporates and onion is golden, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

Fit food mill directly onto pan. Add tomatoes with juices and puree through mill into pan, leaving only seeds behind and scraping all tomato pulp from underside of food mill into pan; or puree tomatoes with juices in processor, then strain out seeds and add puree to pan. Add crushed red pepper. Simmer very gently over low heat until sauce thickens and reduces to scant 2 cups, stirring sauce and turning sausages occasionally, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Add slivered basil and simmer sauce 5 minutes longer. Using tongs, transfer sausages to plate and cool. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper.

Place ricotta in medium bowl. Mix in provolone cubes, 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan, and black pepper. Cut sausages into 1/4-inch cubes; stir into cheese mixture. Season filling to taste with salt. (Sauce and filling can be made 1 day ahead. Cover separately and chill.)

For assembly:
Cook manicotti in large pot of boiling salted water until still somewhat firm to bite and about 3/4 cooked, about 7 minutes. Using tongs, carefully transfer manicotti from pot to foil-lined baking sheet and cool.

Brush olive oil over bottom of 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish; spread 3 tablespoons sauce over. Using teaspoon, fill the manicotti with the cheese-sausage mixture. Arrange stuffed pasta in single layer in prepared dish and spoon remaining sauce over. (Can be made 2 hours ahead. Cover with plastic wrap; let stand at room temperature.)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Sprinkle remaining 3/4 cup Romano atop sauce. Bake manicotti uncovered until heated through and sauce is bubbling on bottom of dish, about 20 minutes. Let manicotti stand 5 minutes and serve.

My impressions of the medical condition of Mr. Steven Jobs

2009-01-23T15:35:00.000-08:00

Introduction and Disclaimer: Before I start a few introductory comments,

I have not been, nor am I actively involve in the treatment of Mr. Jobs
All my comments about his condition are based on publicly released information. my personal observations and experience

My medical qualifications are as follows: I am trained as a surgeon, have passed the 'boards' in surgery (an examination given to surgeons at the beginning of their practice and repeated every 10 years thereafter) I also have special qualifications in nutritional support having passed the certification examination in nutritional support given by the National Board of Nutritional Support Certification. I have been involved in the past, and continue to be, involved in the care of patients with pancreatic carcinoma with particular attention to the nutritional complications of their disease.

Pancreatic carcinoma
In reality the pancreas is two glands merged into one. The first and larger portion of the gland is involved in the production of digestive enzymes. These enzymes are secreted directly into the digestive tract in response food. The second part of the pancreas consists of neuroendocrine cells (also called islet cells) which produce various hormones. These hormone are secreted directly into the blood stream and include such commonly known ones as insulin, other hormones include glugacon (a type of 'anti-insulin' responsible for raising blood sugar) and gastrin, a hormone which causes the stomach to produce acid.

Cancer can arise in either the two cell types, the more common form of pancreatic carcinoma arises in the cells which produce digestive enzymes (to be specific, in the cells which line the ducts of the pancerase). This the the type of cancer which is usually though of when pancreatic carcinoma is mentioned and, unfortunatly, has a very high death rate. This is due in part to the fact that the tumor may not produce any symptoms until it has become to large to remove and, if it does recur or spread, does not respond well to either chemotherapy or radiation treatment. The second, and less common, cancer arises in the endocrine cells. The cure rate for these tumor is much higher since the tumors are slower growing and are much less likely to spread. Also these tumors tend to produce symptoms related to the hormones they produce and are therefore found at a very early stage making removal easy. Depending on the tumor type the cure rate for such tumors can be as high as 80% to 90% and even if not cured are consistent with a life span of years after discovery before the tumor recurs and causes problems.

In 1984 it was revealed that Mr. Jobs had developed a neuroendocrine pancreatic carcinoma although the exact type of tumor has never been publicly released. At that time he underwent surgical removal of the head of the pancreas (the area where the tumor was) in an operation called the Whipple procedure. In this operation the head of the pancreas, the main bile duct and the duodenum (the part of the intestine the stomach empties into) are removed and the stomach is reattached to the small intestine. The bile duct and remainder of the pancreas are also reattached to the small bowel to allow for drainage of bile and digestive enzymes.

Although considered major surgery there is nothing done in the Whipple procedure which precludes the patient from living a relatively normal life until, and if, the tumor recurs. Nutritional complications can occur after the Whipple procedure unless the patient is careful to follow an appropriate dietary program. The majority of these complication are related to the 'rearrangement' of the digestive tract.
The most common of these is 'dumping syndrome'. This is related to the rapid passage of food from the stomach into the jejunum, especially foods high in simple sugars such as juices. After eating such foods a person can develop severe abdominal pain, drop in blood pressure and sweating. The symptoms can be so severe that the patient will refrain from eating to prevent further attacks. Fortunately this is usually relatively easily treated by alteration of the patient's eating habits and only rarely become a chronic problem. A more worrisome condition arises when the remaining pancreas is unable to produce sufficient digestive enzymes to allow for normal food digestion. The most common food which is not digested under these circumstances is fat and the symptoms produces are related to the presence of undigested fat in the intestines (diarrhea, crampy pain and inability to absorb fat related vitamins such as A and D). This is treated by dietary alterations (limiting the amount of fat in the diet) as well as the taking of digestive enzyme, not hormone, capsules with every meal. The final type of malnutrition related to a whipple procedure is the possible development of diabetes. The type of diabetes developed is the 'juvenile' type related to a lack of insulin as opposed to the adult type where the body has enough insulin but no longer responds properly to the hormone. For this to occur the a normal adult needs to lose about 75% or more of his pancreas, much more that is removed during a normal Whipple.
One other type of chronic complication which can develop is related to scarring in the pancreas. If sufficient scar tissue develops to prevent the release of digestive enzymes into the intestines chronic pancreatitis occurs. This is an incredibly painful disease and can require surgery to releave the scarring, hoping that further scars do not develop, and may lead to a life time of chronic pain killer useage. The pain of this condition can lead to loss of appetitie and weight loss.

With all the above as background here is what I believe is going on with Mr. Jobs.
Reviewing pictures of him over the past few years it is obvious that he has undergone a significant weight loss since the surgery. This weight loss has accelerated in the past year and as of last year's Developers' Conference, where the iPhone 3G was announced, it was apparent that he has developed cachexia, a severe, pathological, weight loss. It was not just that he is extremely thin but that he showed evidence of loss of muscle mass. Observation of his face shows that the temporal muscles (the sheets of muscle on either side of the face) have severely wasted and that there is also significant loss of muscles in his hands. Hair loss is also a part of this condition but with Mr. Jobs' short hair and male pattern baldness it is difficult to assess. At that time Apple released a statement that Mr. Jobs' weight loss was due to an 'infection', while this is possible it is almost certainly only a single part of his overall condition.
Weight loss like this due to severe malnutrition either from the patient failing to take in and absorb sufficient nutrients or from the body failing to properly utilize them.

Now on to the statements Mr. Jobs has released. His first statment addressing his condition was that his weight loss was due to "A condition causing him to lose protein which would be treated by hormones". Mr. Jobs in a very intelligent person who is unlikely confuse digestive enzymes with hormones and make such as misstatement. Therefore I take him at his word that he needed 'hormone therapy". This implies one of two things, either he has developed severe, out of control diabetes which will need insulin therapy or he has cancer cachexia (a condition where the patient can absorb nutrients normally but the body can't use them) . The hormone treatment for cancer cachexia is the use of anabolic steroids to rebuild muscle mass and that may be what he was referring to. Anabolic steroids have such a bad reputation that it would not be surprizing to me that would not wish to mention the type of hormones he would be using.

Two further treatment options have been mentioned by other, credible, physicians interviewed about Mr. Jobs. First a further pancreatectomy has been mention, the reasons for that would be the development of chronic pancreatitis, as mentioned above, or recurrence of the tumor in the remaining pancreas. If he undergoes a further pancreatectomy it almost certain that he will develop diabetes and malabsorption due the the complete loss of insulin and digestive enzyme production. These will further complicate his current malnutrition.
The second treatment mentioned is a liver transplant. Liver transplantation is done for several reasons. In the United States one of the most common is the development of cirrhosis or liver cancer from chronic hepatitis which has never been mentions about Mr. Jobs. Liver damage from chronic obesity or overfeeding can also lead to liver transplant but this is also extremely unlikely in his case. If a transplant is being considered the most likely reason is recurrent of his tumor and its spread to the liver. Although not commonly done for metastatic neuroendocrine tumors it is not unheard of if there is no evidence of tumor spread to anywhere but the liver.

All of the above statements and observations lead me to believe that, unfortunately, Mr. Jobs has a recurrence of his original tumor and that this may be spreading. What does this mean for his long term prognosis? Under usual circumstances a person with a neuroendocrine tumor of the pancreas has a 50/50 chance of surviving 5 years. These percentages have actually improved since the usual cause of death used to be related to the symptoms caused by the hormones produced by the tumors (insulin producing tumors causing hypoglycemia, gastrin tumors causing severe bleeding ulcers, etc.). Since these can now be better controlled the life expectance of these patients have improved even if the tumor cannot be cured. Once cancer cachexia has occured, however, the prognosis is grim. If this condition cannot be reversed the mortality can be increased by as much as 30%. In Mr. Jobs case, by his own admission, this has progressed to the point where he feels that he can no longer continue to run Apple Inc. If the condition can be reversed by hormone treatment, and/or further surgery it is likely that Mr. Jobs will need several months to a year to fully recover. During this time it is likely that his mental faculties will continue to be unimpaired and it is not impossible that he would be able to provide input into Apple Computers even if he cannot run the company on a day to day basis.

Recipes from the Twit Army Mess Hall - Baked Chicken in Salsa

2009-01-23T04:19:00.000-08:00

This is a 'down & dirty' quick recipe for when you want a hot meal & there is no time to cook.

Ingredients:

1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken (I keep a sack of breast tenders in the freezer just for this but you can use anything)
2 c. of salsa (again, any type you want but don't use a fresh, or 'raw' salsa. If your salsa is extremely smooth I'd suggest adding some corn or chopped tomatoes to it to add some texture) I use Whole Foods 'Roasted Corn Poblano' salsa
1 c. shredded, mexican style cheese, optional
sliced black olives, again optional

Preparation:

Put the chicken in a pan large enough to hold it in a single layer, pour over the salsa & then the cheese & olives, if using. Bake in a 350 degree oven until done. About 25 minutes for breast pieces & 30 - 35 for thigh meat.

Serve.

Easy isn't it.

Recipes from the Twit Army Mess Hall - Cajun Meatloaf

2009-01-21T13:36:00.001-08:00

This is my take on Paul Prudhomme's recipe from his Louisianna Kitchen cookbook, I've posted a link to it on Amazon. com below.

Ingredients:
Seasoning Mix:
2 whole bay leaves
1 tbl salt
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. white pepper
1/2 tsp cumin, ground
1/2 tsp nutmeg
(0r if you're lazy like me you can use 5 tsps of cajun style meat seasoning, I use Paul Prudhomme's "Meat Magic")

4 tbls (1/2 stick) sweet butter
3/4 c. finely chopped onions
1/2 c. finely chopped green peppers
1/2 c. finely chopped celery
1/4 c. finely chopped green onions, both the white and green parts
2 tbl. minced garlic

1/2 c. evaporated milk (not sweetened condensed)
1/2 c. ketchup (what ever kind you like)
1 tbl. Louisianna style hot sauce
1 tbl. Worscestershire sauce

2 lbs of chopped meat, I use 1.5 lbs of beef & .5 lb ground pork
2 eggs, lightly mixed
1 c. fine, dry bread crumbs.

Melt the butter in a saucepan, add vegetables, seasonings, hot and Worscestershire sauce. Cook over moderately high heat for about 6 minutes until most of the juices have evaporated and everything starts sticking to the bottom of the pot.

Cooking vegis

Add the ketchup & milk and cook for 2 more minutes to blend.

Remove from the heat & add the bread crumbs (I do this now so that the crumbs have a chance to soak up some of the sauce, it prevent them from being like little dry crumbs in the meatloaf).

Sauce with crumbs mixed in

Allow to cool to room temperature (very important or the eggs will start to cook as soon as they hit the sauce)

Mix together the meats, eggs, & sauce & crumb mixture, form into a loaf & bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 minute. Raise the temperature of the oven to 400 degrees and bake for another 35 minutes until done.

Finshed meatloaf

This is great hot or cold and slices well for sandwiches.

Updates to the blog recipes

2009-01-16T19:14:00.000-08:00

Since I've started to repeat myself on recipes what I'll be doing is updating some of the older one with pictures of the prep & finished dishes as well as sometimes making Qik videos which will be posted on the sidebar.

Report from the Twit Army Mess Hall - Braised Chicken with Celery Root & Garlic

2009-01-11T09:34:00.000-08:00

Ingredients:
3 lbs bone in, skin on chicken pieces, even if you remove the skin later you need it for flavor in the dish when cooking
1.25 lbs of celery root (check at your local asian or Whole Foods type market), cut into 3/4 inch cubes. N.B. you can't substitute celery for this, you need to find the real celery root
1 whole head of garlic, cloves separated but left unpeeled
1.5 c. chicken broth
1 tbl. olive oil
1 tbl. unsalted butter
2 sprigs of thyme

Preparation:

Heat the oil in the pan & brown the chicken pieces. Put aside in a dish or bowl (if you want to skin them, now is the time after the flavor from the skin has gotten into the pan drippings.

Browning the chicken pieces

Pour out all but 1 tbl of the drippings from the pan and melt the butter. Saute the celery root & garlic until browned, about 5 minutes.

Browning the celery root & garlic

Add the broth & thyme to the pan, bring to a boil & deglaze the pan (i.e. scrape up all the browned bits from the bottom of the pan so that they mix with the sauce). Add the chicken, cover & cook until done, about 25 minutes depending on the thickness of the chicken pieces.

Remove the chicken & vegetables, cook down the sauce to the desired consistency (I usually boil it until it reaches the consistency of heavy cream, about 2 minutes).

Serve with crusty bread.

Finished dish ready to serve

Layered Bean Dip Casserole - Preparation Pix

2009-01-08T18:23:00.000-08:00

Here's what the preparation steps look like for the Bean Dip Casserole

The bottom layer of beans and cheese

The Chili simmering

Right before going into the oven

Dinner is served.