It's so bloody hot outside and I know exactly how I'm going to feel by the time I've staggered home from work.

I wish I enjoyed white wine more than I do. Times like this, a large glass with a couple ice cubes tossed in can be very refreshing after the commute from hell. Problem is, white wine gives me a very particular kind of headache, even if I only have a little bit.

On the other hand, you can't really toss ice cubes into a glass of red. Not one worth drinking, anyway. Unless you're putting together a pitcher of sangria.

Now there's an idea......

Any suggestions on what makes a good sangria base?

Posted by: Robert at 02:17 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
Post contains 127 words, total size 1 kb.

Okay, because of one thing and another, I've now seen The Forty Year Old Virgin twice in the course of about two weeks.

Granted, it has its moments. And overall, it's moderately entertaining. But why do so many people seem to go bananas over it? What am I missing here? And am I the only one who thinks the whole thing could have been done in a lot less time?

Oh, by the way. Don't leave the case lying around:

Eight Year Old: "The forty year old....virjib.. virgim...virgin. Daddy, what's a virgin?"

Self: "Ermmmmm......well, you're a bit young to understand. I'll tell you some other time."

Posted by: Robert at 10:03 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 112 words, total size 1 kb.

What is it I'm not getting about Hell's Kitchen?

I finally saw a few minutes (just a few) last evening.

I mean, which is worse, the nasty, foul-mouthed martinent of a boss or the herd of "contestants" who allow themselves to suffer his abuses?

Pretty pathetic all round, if you ask me.

Posted by: Robert at 03:48 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
Post contains 58 words, total size 1 kb.

1 Oh, dear. How to explain Gordon Ramsey? Well, first let's point out that he's a former footballer who came up from the absolute bottom (potwasher)in French kitchens to have three Michelin stars. He's received as much as he's given over the years. Second, it should be said that he hams it up a wee bit for production values on HK. But...that said, he is considered to be a God in foodie circles. If he dishes it, you take it, and you thank him for it because it'll make your career to have worked with him. Reportedly, a few years back, he was working at one restaurant in London, had issues with the management and walked out. All the staff, front and back of the house, walked out with him. Over forty people. When he's right, he's right. If you're interested in why he's considered to be as good as he is, watch "Ramsey's Kitchen Nightmares" on BBC America. I think they just finished their run for this season, but maybe it'll repeat. He goes into a failing restaurant and sets the staff on the right track. It's amazing what he's been able to do with some of these restaurants. One day they were dives you wouldn't want to eat in, with huge waits for food or service, and then the next he's sorted them entirely and they're making money again. It's entirely amazing and you get a better, non-Hollywood-ized idea of his personality.

Posted by: Kathy at July 26, 2006 09:37 PM (FmPYZ)

2 So...what she said. I'm kinda new to Hell's Kitchen (this being the first season I've partaken) but I've known of Gordon Ramsay longer being a tad of a foodie wanna-be. That said, I watch most of it on skim, stopping for the cooking bits.

Posted by: beth at July 27, 2006 03:27 PM (zg2RT)

3 As reality junkie - that is one that really turnned me off. No more for this camper.

Posted by: Greta (Hooah Wife) at July 27, 2006 04:24 PM (R2h9W)

4 As a reality junkie, I simply don't watch television.

Posted by: triticale at July 28, 2006 05:48 AM (Fa6bR)

Hide Comments | Add Comment

Know what I hate? Those automatic air-fresheners in restrooms that use sensors to determine when it's time for them to give a puff of scent.

They're such liars!

Posted by: Robert at 09:39 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 34 words, total size 1 kb.

Let's review:

One uses "amount" when speaking of the total quantity of some one thing, e.g. "a large amount of water" or "a small amount of money."

One uses "number" when speaking of units of something, e.g. "a large number of gallons" or "a small number of pennies."

Following on this, one does not say "a large amount of people." It's "a large number of people." Yet I've seen the former expression more and more recently, even in the writing of some authors one would expect to know better. I'm not talking about bloggers writing on the fly, either. I mean professional writers backed up (presumably) by legions of editors.

What is this world coming to?

I may need a large number of wine in order to cope.

UPDATE: I see I'm not the only one bewailing the death of the gentle art of editing.

Posted by: Robert at 09:00 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
Post contains 151 words, total size 1 kb.

Here's another than always makes me smile:

"Ha! You got that? Ha! Ha!"

Can you guess the movie? (Be warned, it's a trick question.)

UPDATE: Well, the results have been overwhelming. We had to cut off the email account late last night just to keep the whole system from being swamped.

As for your guesses, well, they were pretty varied. I suppose I could see John Wayne saying this. But Julie Andrews? Daffy Duck was a pretty popular suggestion and while wrong, would be distinctly plausible.

Of course, most of you thought it was Marlon Brando's Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire. A completely logical choice. But I told you it was a trick question. And here's the trick:

See, what I always think of isn't Brando's Kowalski. Instead, it's Diane Keaton mimicking Brando's Kowalski in the Woody Allen movie Sleeper.

So no winners today. However, because nobody succeeded in guessing correctly, that simply means that the prize of a full day's supply of Rice-a-Roni, the San Francisco Treat will be doubled next time.

See you then!

Posted by: Robert at 12:46 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 186 words, total size 1 kb.

I just spent five minutes in a Word document I'm working on wondering why typing in "blockquote" wasn't causing a paragraph to indent on both sides.

Sheesh.

Perhaps it's just the heat.

Perhaps not.

(Off topic but btw: Thanks, Kathy, for your email. The Tasty Bits (TM) Mail Sack is acting up again, so I couldn't respond directly, but I do appreciate it.)

Posted by: Robert at 11:16 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 75 words, total size 1 kb.

1 It's all good. Not the blockquote thing---I'd say that's lame but I keep doing the same thing with italics, so it's not like I've got room, ya dig?---but the other. If you take my meaning.

Posted by: Kathy at July 18, 2006 08:45 PM (MuVfF)

Hide Comments | Add Comment

Assuming we don't get rained out, I'll be joining my office's softball team down the National Mall this evening. It'll be the first time I've played since I started my new job two years ago. I only hope I remember which end of the bat to hold.

I've played on various firm teams around here for better than twelve years. There's just something right about playing softball just down the hill from the White House or across the way from the Washington Monument. Sort of All-American and yet right at the Center of Things.

Plus, and here I confess to the completely unworthy sin of pride, it do make the tourons gawp at you. Because if you're playing ball on the Mall, you just might be one of the Important People, d'ye see.

Let 'em wonder.

UPDATE: A pleasant evening was had by all. The other team forfeited for lack of players, so we all just played an impromptu hit around. Since I'm way out of shape, I took it pretty easy but still got a couple of respectable hits. Also, I made no (obvious) fielding errors and caught one long, high ball.

It rained on us off and on and between that and the fact that we were all drenched in sweat from the heat & humidity, I was perfectly disgusting by the time I got on the Metro.

Posted by: Robert at 02:04 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 236 words, total size 1 kb.

A new site, Cambrian House, has finally gone and made the dreams of all the speculators in the open source community into a real business.

It's like Open Source, but with money!
Cambrian House's mission is to discover and commercialize
software ideas through the wisdom and participation of crowds.
Contributors earn royalties, sharing in the success of the products.

I think it is a great application of the ideas to monetize open source software that have been floating around for a long time. In fact, I've put up some ideas myself. Click on the icons below to see just how silly some of them can be (and VOTE for them if you like them).

Internet TV Portal

Computers for Everyone

Real Estate Agent Rankings

Beyond Blogging to Reporting

Online Music Storage, Manipulation & Sharing.

The only thing I have to complain about so far is the 1000 character restriction for posting ideas. In understand the need to keep the initial submissions concise, but some of the ideas I come up with are more fully fleshed out.

Posted by: MRN aka "The Husband" at 09:41 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
Post contains 224 words, total size 3 kb.

One of my favorites, which always puts a smile on my face:

Bill: You ditched Napoleon?

Ted: Deacon! Do you realize you've stranded one of Europe's greatest leaders?

Deacon: He was a dick!

Heh. Snappy and true.

Posted by: Robert at 01:13 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 45 words, total size 1 kb.

I don't know what the experience of you devoted Cake Eater fans is with subways out there in the rest of the world, but here in Dee Cee, at least, they always come to a stop at the stations at regulated points. This means that every time they stop, the doors always open up in the same place relative to the platform.

Yet even with this predictability, I notice very few people tactically lining themselves up to be first through the doors when the train stops, the better to get a seat (especially at rush hour).

I can understand the tourons not getting it, but you'd think more regulars would pick up on this trick.

Me? I've got it down to specific tiles on the platform.

Posted by: Robert at 02:45 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 132 words, total size 1 kb.

(part one of a completely pointless series of sports inspired taunts directed toward Blogistan's favorite camelids)

"HEY LLAMA LLAMA LLAMA LLAMA LLAMA SWING LLAMA LLAMA LLAMA!

LLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMA LLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMA

Posted by: Russ from Winterset at 11:57 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 38 words, total size 1 kb.

My holiday celebration? I cooked myself a couple cheeseburgers and spent the evening watching "Cops" reruns on Court-TV.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I hereby claim the Crown o' Lameness. Bow down before me!

Posted by: Robert at 07:07 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
Post contains 38 words, total size 1 kb.

Y'know, nothing makes my day brighter than sitting in my office and listening to the woman next door having a vicious fight on the phone with her ex over how he's treating the children.

Yes, indeedy.

Posted by: Robert at 02:16 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 48 words, total size 1 kb.