Boardwalk Lebowski

Play this at my wake.

Rowing Machine, getting started

Indoor rowing is a great aerobic exercise that can add variety to your training routine while engaging more than just the legs.

First learn to setup the equipment for proper use.



Good video instruction. I recommend you watch is a couple of times before jumping into a machine.


Now your ready to row, learn how to do it.


I started including the rowing machine  while reading the first Tess Monaghan mystery, Baltimore Blues.


Phase 1–Drive (strong and quick)

Phase 2–Recovery (smooth and relaxed)

So after you've done a few minutes you will want to get some coaching about good form (what not to do). I found this video helpful and clear plus there are driller to help you improve.



For the experienced, none beginner, rower you'll want to do some sprints. This video from the same folks above lays it all out for you. I like to do a 10 pull sprint every 2 minutes but you should research this because I don't know what I'm done :)

Snowbird

Here is one of the commercials that Channel 4 WSMV in Nashville is currently airing. They recorded me playing the Snowbird song while sitting on the porch of the Musical Heritage Center of Middle Tennessee at sunset. Sharon and I were there for the monthly celtic session last October.

When the videographer arrived everybody at the session learned the tune and we played it about a dozen times, each time through it was a little different. Great bunch of musicians, everyone listening and adapting to what the others were doing with the tune.

7 Bodhrán Rhythms

  Michelle Stewart posted a useful series of video blogs to help us get unstuck from our comfortable session ruts. 7 Rhythms in 7 Days.

Bodhran solo showing left hand

Cormac Byrne bodhran solo where the photographer captures the left hand magic. Most excellent top end player.

Starlings of Otmoor

Otmoor RSPB reserve in Otmoor England.

Local rules seen in mass.

I was turned on to this place by Richard Dawlins' book The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution. I hated the introduction because it was preachy and a personal attack on the people who choose to pretend science doesn't exist, history-deniers, while they assert (without evidence) that God does; I suggest you skip to the actual presentation of the science.

The audio book is read by the author and Lalla Ward (four minutes in the above clip); trading off for asides and sections keeps it fresh, coherent and non-drowsy.

Upma

Two years ago I blogged about the Loughhaven restaurant. Well here is information on upma/uppammaa/upama (a spicy Indian dish using curry, vegetables and Cream of Wheat). Cream of Wheat, semolina and sooji; the names are many but the truth is one. Upma is good, make it the way you like it.

We tried toasting the sooji in a dry dutch oven and set it aside. Later used only two cups of water for a fluffier constancy. Sharon thought the wheat was a bit under cooked so next time we will use 2 ½ cups of water to a cup of sooji.

Below are a couple of videos that I referenced in developing the above recipe.

We tried the mold trick in this next video without using Pam, the upma came right out, no problem. (Maybe a non-fluffy version of the dish (more water) will cause it to stick to the cup.) Molding it certainly makes for a nice presentation, I put the yogurt on top and the pickle on the side.

If you know what you are doing this video is nice. She uses 3 cups of water to 1 cup of sooji.

Zills/Sagat Training

Sharon bought me two pairs of zills (Turkish for the Arabic sagat) for my Halloween costume this year. Now in addition to the doumbek I need to learn to play the finger cymbals. Below are the YouTube videos I found that seem most instructive.

Ring, Clap, Tick.

And now for some real music. Aslahan's series seems like a good way to learn to play the zills. Aslahan recommends that you learn and practice a lesson before moving onto the next video in the series. I'd start here if you are serious about playing the zills. I particularly like what she uses the doumbek drum nomenclature to describe the patterns. Another great thing is that she doesn't use the terms "right" "left" but instead "lead" "off" so that instruction in ambidextrous. The 7th/last video I found is something I intend to use to practice the doumbek patterns.

An Education in Software Testing

There is no better or insightful instruction on software testing then this black box system testing course. Skip the course introduction and start at 6:30 minutes into the video were the lecture gets going.

The second part of the lecture is a great introduction to software testing. If you are not particularly interested the the course mechanics, skip forward to 2:24 minutes into the video.

Dario's Tango Guide

Dario's Tango Guide is a video blog that I have found to be very helpful. He describes and shows a move then shows the leader alone followed by the follower alone. Finally, the move is seen "in action" as the couple moves around the floor dancing (not demonstrating steps, actually connected in dance.)

I recommend using the lesson index from Dario's website to access the YouTube videos.

You will need more than this blog to learn Argentine Tango but these videos will remind you how to do the various moves you have learned and/or seen on the dance floor.

Title Fight

Title Fight by Matt "Mad Dog" Wallace and Scott "The FDO" Sigler is one exciting ride. Mixed martial arts / gladiator / boxing / honorable warrior / Samaria audio novella.

I strongly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys "guy's night out", grip you crouch in sympathy, want to look away pussy-boy fiction.

[Click to view poster.]

The book is much better than this video promo. Set in the Sigler universe timeline between the "The Rookie" and "The Starter" one does not need to have ready any other Sigler story to understand this fight genre tough guy story.

Download it from PodioBooks.com today.

Changing Education Paradigms

You will want to watch this lecture/animation in HD in full screen mode.

Many people see this and say "When is someone going fix this?" I say do it yourself, change yourself, be the change you wish the see in the world.

How? If you need to ask or want some help my friend James Bach has a great book that you can use as a catalyst. I blogged about this subject after James published The Secrets of a Buccaneer-Scholar (website/videos). Read excerpts on Google Books. Here's a quote from Chapter 2.

A buccaneer-scholar is anyone whose love of learning is not muzzled, yoked, or shackled by any institution or authority; whose mind is driven to wander and find its own voice and place in the world.

Greek Shrimp with Feta

This easy weeknight Greek dish defies the old saw that seafood and cheese don't work together—if, that is, you get every element just right. From the Cooks Illustrated magazine for September & October 2010.

I made this recipe when I first got this month's Cooks Illustrated magazine and we really really liked it. They wanted to simplify and improve on the classic Greek dish, shrimp saganaki. Since I didn't have ouzo I did the vodka anise substitute and it worked (remember, I do NOT like licorice so I was pleasantly surprised that it complimented the dish and didn't ruin it.) I didn't know we had fresh parsley & dill in the garden so I substituted fresh basil. ATK recommends feta made with sheep or goat milk but Safeway only had American cows milk varieties.

The next week I made it but skipped the ouzo marinade and used Paul Newman's Own pasta sauce for a quick low hassle version. It was good food but not the spectacular complex flavor of the Cooks Illustrated recipe. What follows it mostly from the magazine, page 13.

Greek-Style Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta Serves 6 with crusty bread, steamed white rice or my favorite egg noodles.

301 calories per serving of shrimp, 221 calories per cup of egg noodles.

• 1 1/2 pounds shrimp (thawed, peeled and deveined)
• 4 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons ouzo
• 5 medium garlic cloves (minces or pressed, about 5 teaspoons)
• 1 teaspoon grated zest from 1 lemon
• Table salt and fresh ground black pepper
• 1 small onion, diced medium (about 1/2 cup)
• 1/2 medium green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and diced medium (about 1/2 cup)
• 1/2 medium red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and diced medium (about 1/2 cup)
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 28 oz Hunt's diced tomatoes drained, 1/3 cup juices reserved
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh parsley leaves
• 6 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

1. Toss shrimp, 1 tablespoon oil, tablespoon ouzo, 1 teaspoon garlic, lemon zest, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper in a small bowl until well combined. Set aside while preparing sauce.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in 12-inch skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion, red and green bell pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and stir to combine. Cover skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables release their moisture, 3 to 5 minutes. Uncover and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until moisture cooks off and vegetables have softened, about 5 minutes longer.
3. Add remaining 4 teaspoons garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add tomatoes and reserved juice, wine and remaining 2 tablespoons ouzo, increase heat to medium-high and bring to simmer.
4. Reduce heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until flavors have melded and sauce is slightly thickened (sauce should not be completely dry), 5 to 8 minutes.
5. Stir in parsley and season to taste with salt and black pepper.
6. Reduce heat to medium-low and add shrimp along with any accumulated liquid to pan; stir to coat and distribute evenly. [Also branch to step 8, start cooking pasta.] Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until shrimp are opaque throughout, 6 to 9 minutes for extra-large shrimp (21 to 25 count) or 7 to 11 minutes for jumbo (16 to 20 count), adjusting heat as needed to maintain bare simmer.
7. Remove pan from heat and sprinkle evenly with feta. Drizzle remaining tablespoon oil evenly over top and sprinkle with dill.
8. Serve immediately over extra wide egg noodles made with Durum wheat, 12 oz package. Dump the pasta into the boiling salt water about the time the shrimp are added to the dish (step 6).

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Here is a video I found in researching this recipe. I learned a few things (you can light the ouzo on fire the way he does it.) But I think the Cooks Illustrated recipe looks better.

Question Authority Not U No

A Software Tester's Life

This 3:33 video illustrates what I do for a living.

Thanks to James for making it.

Books that stop bullets

Can a W. E. B. Griffin novel stop a bullet? Is it thick enough?

Dense Book And Hollow Bullets attempts to answer this and other literary questions (see video below).

I'll going to start reading W. E. B. Griffin's The Presidential Agent Series soon.

Dr. Horrible

Found a treasure in the Netflix Steam, Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, 2008, 43 minutes.

It's a one off opera (technically a musical because there is some dialog and monologues). I really enjoyed the love story and romance. The music and lyrics are clever and easy to follow. I'll watch this story again.

Here's a quote from the movie. Dr. Horrible has a secret crush on Penny, a strong advocate for helping the homeless. She is talking with him and suspects that he in not very interested in her cause.

Penny: You're not really interested in the homeless, are you?

Dr. Horrible: No, [pause] I am, but... it's a symptom. You're treating a symptom while the disease rages on, consumes the human race. The fish rots from the head, so they say. So I'm thinking, why not cut off the head?

Penny: [pause] Of the human race?

Dr. Horrible: It's not a... perfect metaphor.

There is a website with the lyrics and such, www.drhorrible.com. There is a darling duet that Sharon and I are considering, My Eyes, here is a YouTube clip of the duet incorrectly titled On The Rise.

Sol LeWitt, quilting ideas

We visited the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in D.C. this year. Seeing so many of the works one after the other inspired me to start quilting again. I took pictures of the pieces that interested me to save in my "Quilting Ideas" photo folder.

Pictured above: Sol LeWitt, Wall Drawing #356 BB Isometric figure within which are 3" wide black lines in three directions. (Cube without a cube), 2003.

Across the room from #356 is a study in color that had me fascinated, #1113 (above). Appeals to my Ikebana and quilting sensibility. See it through this videographer below.

Check out Variations Of Incomplete Open Cubes.
How many lines does it take to suggest/represent a cube?

Portuguese Sardine Production

Learn how sardines are caught, cooked and canned. Learn about "steam grilling". Learn that not everyone is fascinated with manufacturing films.

Check out this recipe for Sicilian Sardine and Broccoli Rabe Pasta from the good folks at Vital Choice Wild Seafood & Organics and let me know how it tastes. I found out about Vital Choice from the Nutrition Diva (Jaya recommends her podcast). Use the discount code DIVAPROMO and save 15% on your orders before April 2010.

Chester Nimitz Oriental Gardens

Upon first hearing this song years ago on KFJC I knew that some day I would sip tea across from these gardens.

The Chester Nimitz Oriental Garden in the song is now known as the Japanese Garden of Peace, Fredricksburg Texas.