Hallelujah, everybody say cheese

~ Patrick O'Grady ~ 19 Comments
Merry Christmas from the family.
Merry Christmas from the family.

Herself wished to take a family portrait on Christmas Eve, and as you know, her every wish is my command.

It took some doing — the specter of blood loss kept rearing its ugly head, personified by Turkish, who loathes the paparazzi — but we finally managed to get one shot in which the primates looked vaguely human, at the expense of the menagerie.

The cooperation, as per usual, was at U.N. Security Council levels. The Turk was wondering whether giving me a quick right cross would be worth the consequences (no lap time come evening); Mia was egging him on (“C’mon, do it, y’big pussy!”); and The Boo turned a blind eye (ho ho ho) to the entire endeavor.

Herself, whose idea this was, remained serene as always. Someone has to be the rock around here, and while I have certain millstone-ish properties, these are rarely helpful in moments of crisis like this.

I did manage to trip the shutter, though. So I got that going for me, which is nice.

Merry Christmas from the family.

 

Say it ain’t so, Joe

~ Patrick O'Grady ~ 13 Comments
Out near El Malpais National Monument on a shoot for the Adventure Cycling Association.
Out near El Malpais National Monument, “working” as a model during a photo shoot for the Adventure Cycling Association.

I was somewhere near Grants, New Mexico, riding a touring bike for fun and profit, when the word came that Joe Cocker had passed on.

It’s a wonder Joe made it to 70, given the way he lived his early years. John Belushi, who mocked him so well, didn’t last half as long.

And man: “A Little Help From My Friends.” “She Came In Through the Bathroom Window.” Dude out-Beatled the Beatles, is what. “The Letter.” “Delta Lady.” Hoo-lawd, he left it all out there on the stage.

“You Are So Beautiful.” “You Can Leave Your Hat On.” And “Feelin’ Alright.”

“I’m not feeling too good myself,” Joe sang, and he wasn’t kidding. But he had too much to do before he died, and thank whatever gods there are that we got to watch, and listen.

As Pat noted in comments, give our best to Frank, Joe.

The Posole Variations

~ Patrick O'Grady ~ 6 Comments
The Posole Variations. This one uses chicken thighs, red and yellow bell peppers, tomatillos and other good things. No hot rats were harmed in the making of this stew.
The Posole Variations. This one uses chicken thighs, red and yellow bell peppers, tomatillos and other good things. No hot rats were harmed in the making of this stew.

I make a lot of posole, and over the years have settled on one simple version and one slightly more elaborate (from The Santa Fe School of Cooking Cookbook).

But the other day I was searching the Innertubes for a chicken version I made once and stumbled across an entirely new recipe that looked good.

So I gave it a whirl and whaddaya know? I have a third favorite.

Thus today’s Zappadan 2014 musical selection, “The Gumbo Variations,” from “Hot Rats.”

I don’t need your sweet devotion

~ Patrick O'Grady ~ 10 Comments

The prez gave the press his dirty love and Charles P. Pierce practically swooned:

“Yeah, I wish he’d had more days like this since he was inaugurated. I have my own disappointments in the guy, and always have had them, from the first time I ever heard him speak. (And I wish he hadn’t had that Hallmark moment at the end about how we’re all great people here, because we’re pretty plainly not, since 53 percent of us think torture was OK.) But that’s his gig. It’s what got him elected in the first place. But this was Shakespeare the way it was meant to be done, and the next year is going to be a lot of great fun, I’m thinking. Lame duck, my bollocks.”

We’re ticking along nicely toward Solstice and Zero Day, which marks the end of Zappadan 2014.