Month: October 2009

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out of the google net for now

"My goo-goo-googly eyes!"
"My goo-goo-googly eyes!"

How long I have been fighting Google?  I won’t go into all the details, but let’s just say that anything I blogged about  Cal Poly San Luis Obispo never made it into their search engine and I checked regularly… plus I have an automated search to do those sorts of things.

Anyway, today is quite a day as one of my less than complementary blogs about Cal Poly appeared on Google. I am not ready to break out the ‘good stuff’… but it might justify some stuffed Greek grape leaf rolls smothered with Greek yogurt and a shot of Ouzo… it is lunch after all.

One does look for reasons why things like this happen? I had thought maybe I got swept up with the sea of ‘conservative bloggers’ being banned… and maybe it was my recipe for bread pudding... a favorite of conservatives world wide that was the real give away?

I look to being banned again, because I am making a good down home southern favorite of the family… Turgoosen! What can be more controversial? Turgoosen is one of those layered bird meals consisting of a chicken, duck (2) and   goose meats bound within the frame of a deboned turkey… and each with it’s own stuffing! It looks like a turkey but slices like a meat roll with rings of stuffing! Just in time for Christmas.

Since all of this trouble with Google, I have become reliant on  BING... the search is better and they don’t hassle me.

Roger Freberg

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making great oatmeal easily

00MCCANNS

Laura and I were up in silicon valley staying at a nice hotel. We came down to breakfast and ordered the love of my childhood existence…. cooked oatmeal with fruit, brown sugar and other good stuff! Laura looked at me after her first bite and said, ‘this is good!’ At first, Laura thought that something had changed in her that suddenly and inexplicably changed her attitude towards oatmeal from dread to anticipation? It was the quality oatmeal, it’s preparation and it’s presentation.

Anyway, when we returned I pulled out   my favorite Oatmeal and threw it into a rice cooker… and it turned out perfectly! A note of caution, if you use a  rice cooker, take the lid off and keep an eye on it until you find a routine that works for you.

By the way, after 37 years of marriage, it’s nice that we can still surprise each other.

Roger Freberg

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behind cal poly’s green door?

behidthegreendoor

We may never know what goes on behind Cal Poly’s very secretive ‘green door.’

I was saddened to learn that our Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed a California Bill that would close the secrecy loop hole that our public educational institutions have in hiding many of the things they do. Although business in places like the Cal Poly foundation are done , not in Arnold’s smoke filled rooms, but with folks sucking down mineral water and munching crispy creams… it’s all done without the public’s knowledge. The cat has been left in charge of the canary.

In addition, the  Cal Poly foundation — being private — does not have to abide by many of those archaic fairness rules that public institutions must follow. The foundation has a virtual monopoly in campus food service and virtually every other economic activity on the Cal Poly campus. Don’t try to have a charitable tamale fundraiser on campus… they won’t allow the ‘competition.’  By the way, there are no ‘bargains’ on campus… the foundations pricing policies are greedy from a pricey used textbook at the book store ( which they buy back for virtually nothing) to buying a cup of coffee anywhere on campus. They even operate a store in town, so much for not competing with the private sector.

BTW, having been involved in retail pricing and marketing on college campuses, let’s just say that the foundation has a sweet deal with no competition! And in my humble opinion, somebody is making a lot of money…. a lot of money on the backs of students and employees.

So… how is this money being made and where is that money going? Well, thanks to Arnold, we may never know.

Roger Freberg

By the way, for some reason Google likes Cal Poly and this post will not be found there… however, it will be searchable on Twitter,Yahoo and Bing

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rolling grape leaves for Greek dolmades

00GrapeRoll

I’ve been blogging a while on a few of the items I have been making that have a Greek accent. I have enjoyed rolling grape leaves with a favorite stuffing of rice, onions, garlic, various seasonings and beef or lamb. Delicious!

However, one blogger told me that he didn’t know how to roll grape leaves and asked for help, and he wasn’t alone. Here’s how to do it:

1) Lay out your grape leaves as shown above starting from left to right with each leaf overlapping the one slightly vertically… and horizontally.

2) place your filling as shown… it doesn’t take very much as you will see

3) lift the far left edges of the leaves and roll firmly

4) when you reach the far right… tuck both the top edge and bottom edge under.

There is a process for treating the leaves if you use fresh that isn’t too difficult and you should be able to find it on-line. The real challenge for many is if you buy the kind that comes in a jar. The interesting thing is that typically, each jar has two rolls and each can be removed if you take out the last roll placed in the jar…first. Look carefully and you will clearly see that one was placed in last. Gently separate the leaves and place in a large bowl and pour boiling water over them ( to reduce the saltiness) and rinse careful a couple of times.

Hope this helps. Greek Dolmades Recipe

Roger

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whatever

00whatever

I was reading somewhere today that the word ‘WHATEVER’ was considered to be the worst and most annoyingly used word in the English language, or at least that spoken here in America.

‘WHATEVER’ is the  ‘Yì Jīng’ (I Ching) and — as Tom Hanks might say — the ‘answer’ to any question!

question: Would you like stale meatloaf or mystery stew for dinner?  answer: WHATEVER!

question: Would you like to discuss universal health, tea parties, pimps or Acorn? answer: WHATEVER

the complete answer to any boring question on earth: WHATEVER!

Some people say that if you answer a sincerely felt question with the word ‘whatever’, you are in fact being dismissive, putting them down and refusing to discuss the meaning of life with them? WHATEVER!

WHATEVER is a word one can use a lot … with the right people and and on the right occasions…

WHATEVER

Roger Freberg