Fondue

Fondue always gets painted as a fad. I’m not sure why though, because there’s nothing transient about bread and cheese. I love fondue, and its something my family did with some frequency growing up, and Michelle and I continue to enjoy it.

There’s the cheese kind, which is my favorite. I especially like Rhinelander’s cheese of all the pre-made. Its made locally (I believe). My mom used to try and make the cheese from scratch, and it never turned out quite as well.

We’ve also experimented with the hot oil type of fondue, where you dip pieces of raw meat in boiling oil to cook it, then dip it in the sauce of your choice. We’ve only done that once, and once was enough. Open flame in your living room is one thing; boiling oil is another.

And to placate the non-cheese lovers, there’s always chocolate. Its decent, but I’ve usually spent my effort and stomach room on cheese and bread. I just don’t get as excited about the chocolate. Some people get too excited:

Sarah - Fondufus

Barley’s 6 month Checkup

This morning was Barley’s last checkup with Dr. Munjar. His knee looks great, and there’s been no additional arthritic development over the last year. His left hip looks great, and he’s got a strong thigh on that side, but he’s still limping on his right, due to his thigh. The bad news is that he’ll probably need a total-hip replacement surgery someday, but that someday could be quite some time from now. He’s getting enough exercise, and isn’t limited by it, so we’re pleased with that news. We’ll be back for a checkup next year, but in the meantime, we don’t have to do another surgery this year.

If your dog needs orthopedic surgery, we highly recommend Dr. Munjar. He’s very generous with his time, and helped keep Barley “On the road.”

Sierra Club – No more huddled masses

The Sierra Club is caught in a quagmire again. Do they take an official stance against immigration, or avoid the issue. This isn’t a new topic of debate, but some odd circumstances have created cause for alarm. Some white supremacist groups have urged their members to join the Sierra Club to vote on the issue.

Why can’t the club couldn’t just have a stance against people in general? Immigrants are no more damaging than most of the members. The real threat of population includes everyone, not just the “mass immigration of people with pre-industrial birth rates.”

The article suggests that it is likely that the issue will be resolved soon. I doubt it will. I think its very difficult to compartmentalize and separate one’s beliefs. And that seems to be what this issue is doing for most members.

Personally, I think its an unimportant issue at this time. Look what has happened in the last 4 years. Shouldn’t we concern ourselves with something else?

Mushroom Cultivation

An instructor left a message for me to call him back about a problem. I did, and left a message. His phone message said I could also leave a message for a local mushroom cultivar. I was curious, so I googled the grower and couldn’t find a site. I did find a cool abstract on cultivating and marketing mushrooms. Almost tempting to try, though I can’t imagine where I’d keep a shitake covered oak log.

Void

Last night we caught Touching the Void at Cinema 21 with Michelle’s co-worker and her her fiance. The movie was spectacular. Although a lot of the climbing seemed to be filmed in the alps, both the cinematography both of the climbing and of the mountains was stunning.

There were some incredible shots of the clouds blowing up and over the peaks, folding and separating around the various precipices, and combining again after the curl. And who could ever get tired of looking at granite? Really, its beautiful.

Oh, the movie is about a climbing trip that went horribly wrong, and the story about surviving it. Its not for weak stomachs. Each person was horribly sunburnt and injured.

Freedlance Photo, Beta 1

My sister’s christmas present is now available for beta testing. I’ve completed with the pages, styles, and even uploaded a few images to make sure things are working correctly. Its built using XHTML and CSS using absolutely no tables! Its also been tested and found to be compliant with both W3C’s XHTML and CSS. Its also using Moveable Type, so she can upload to and manage the site from anywhere.

Have a look and see if things look and act alright. Once she starts uploading images, we’ll see how it really works.

 Freedlance Photography