Time for a Change I am going to change this blog into a mostly gardening and cooking blog. There probably won't be much progress until gardening season slows down for the winter. Here's a couple of pictures of the garden earlier this season:

And here's some more recent, late summer pictures:

Megan McArdle's Class Skirmish

It's not often I read or contemplate Megan McArdle. She is one of the reasons I stopped subscribing to the Atlantic - I can read James Fallows online - but is such a low-hanging piece of fruit that parsing her word salad is just too easy to be fun. In the spirit of Thanksgiving, though, I followed TBogg's link to her WSJ review of two books, Shiny Objects by James K. Roberts and Against Thrift by James Livingston. I haven't read the books, so I am commenting on her review of them. If I misunderstand the authors' points, it's because I'm relying on McArdle's reporting of them. You could parse her review sentence-by-sentence, but life is too short, so I'll just make a few points.

McArdle tells us For decades, Americans have wallowed in credit, shunned savings and delighted in debt. In 1982, the personal savings rate was 10.9% of disposable income, by 2005 it had fallen to just 1.5%. It has since rebounded, but remains a measly 5%. What she doesn't tell us is that wages for most Americans have stagnated over that time period. Collectively, we have dipped into the equity in our houses - the only asset most of us possess - to maintain our consumerist lifestyle. For some, assuredly this fueled some foolish choices on spending for vacations or higher-end clothes and gadgets, but for many home equity has been the only source of funds for home maintenance, necessary automobiles, and education.

[Roberts] still exudes that particular sanctimonious anti-materialism so often found among modestly remunerated professors and journalists. Ooh, Megan does snark. For Megan, money is the measure of worth, and those "modestly remunerated" must just be jealous of her toys.

One of the running themes of the economist Robin Hanson's excellent blog is that arguments like the ones found in these books are actually an elite-status proxy war. Class warfare! Which, as we all know by now, is only a bad thing if the peasants are attacking the nobles.

Mr. Livingston . . . claims that the "Bush tax cuts" caused the housing bubble by leaving those over-saving rich with too much money to play with even though three-quarters of the lost tax revenues stayed in the hands of people making less than $250,000 a year—the de facto threshold for "rich" established by the Obama administration. According to the Census Bureau, 2.6% of families earned $250K or more, in 2009 dollars (http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2012/tables/12s0696.pdf), and there are 111,806,000 households (publication 2-9.xls at census.gov). Let's say the Bush tax cuts returned $1 million in total (I'm using round numbers so it's easy for Megan to follow.) 2.6% of households shared $250,000, and 97.4% shared %750,000. The rest of my work is shown below:

111,806,000 X .026 = 2,906,956.
250,000 / 2,906,956 = .09, or 9 cents each

111,806,000 X .974 = 108,899,044
750,000 / 108,899,044 = .01, or 1 cent each

Multiply those pennies by the number of millions the Bush tax cuts returned, and it's obvious who got enough money to play with, and who got enough to pay a few bills. I'd look up the actual number, but I've already spent more time on this than McArdle deserves.

Do read TBogg's post and the excellent comments! They focus on McArdle's framing device for her review - her purchase of a $1500 food processor - and properly eviscerate the pretentious twit. Anyone who needs a $1500 food processor to make bechamel is not a cook, and anyone who can't use a calculator is not fit to be an economics and business editor.

Thanksgiving Rant

This time of year, the subject on the cooking pages is turkey. Nearly every article on how to cook a big bird starts out by declaring turkey to be dry and tasteless, but if you must have one on the Thanksgiving table for whatever benighted reason, the author's method (which is more involved than a NASA moon launch) is the only one that will yield a moist, flavorful bird. The two main parts of the author's argument will be (1) don't stuff the bird! you will die of food poisoning! and (2) the legs and breast cannot possibly both be properly cooked at the same time.

Hooey.

I've eaten and/or cooked 50-some turkeys by now, and with few exceptions*, they have been moist and flavorful. Here's how to cook a delicious turkey:

1. Stuff the damn bird. Stuffing adds flavor and moisture (duh). If you prefer dressing cooked in a separate pan, fill the bird's cavity with chunks of onion, carrot, celery, garlic, and if it sounds appealing, an apple or lemon or two. The pan drippings, and thus your gravy, will be all the better.

2. Baste the bejesus out of it. Smear butter all over it to start, and add some stock or wine to the bottom of the pan if you like the idea. Once the cooking gets going, use the juices in the pan.

3. The bird is done when the thigh joint is loose. Use a meat thermometer if you're not confident about judging when the bird is done. Don't rely on the pop-up timer if the bird has one. It's probably calibrated to cook the bird to operating-room levels of sterility. Remember the bird continues to cook for a while after it's out of the oven, so allow for resting time.

And that's it. If you're taking timing directions from a recipe and the bird comes out dry, the directions are wrong. Since I cook a smallish bird if I cook one, I like the directions in Joy of Cooking: start with the oven heated to 450, then turn it down to 350 for 20-25 minutes per pound. And baste the bejesus out of it.

*One exception was a bird produced by an indifferent cook who didn't stuff it, and then followed the timing directions to the minute rather than relying on testing the bird. She used Stove Top pre-made dressing, too, which shows she was not a real cook. A couple of others have been off-years from otherwise good cooks. It happens to the best of us.

These people are playing with the fate of the country, and do not care about the consequences. There have been many changes in America since the 50s - civil rights, women's rights, environmental protection - and all of these were accomplished by working to achieve majority support. None of them were accomplished by taking the country hostage, determined to wreck things completely if they aren't allowed to wreck selectively.

What's Happening in the Garden

My first harvest of the season was overwintered kale and cabbage sprouts, made into a couple of delicious spring-tonic soups. Last week, I harvested the first asparagus, with more on the way. My mind is reeling from the wealth! So far, I've made (a) salad from the tenderest tips, raw with a little vinaigrette; (b) an omelet with mushrooms, asparagus, and a little parmesan; (c) simply steamed. Oh, yes, and the stems went into the cabbage-sprout soup, along with parsley that also overwintered.

What I've Been Reading on the Intertubes

I just caught the Taibbi-McArdle smackdown at Tbogg’s place, and my mind is further boggled by McArdle’s career ascent. She is woefully unprofessional: a serious lack of preparation, a shifty-eyed demeanor, and a distractingly unattractive hairstyle.

She doesn’t do research, so she is left with only the most threadbare of arguments. Of course, Goldman Sachs ripped off their clients – every seller does! She accepts a second-hand report that GS perfomed proper disclosure; Taibbi, who actually read the pertinent documents, says no they didn’t. Who should the audience believe? She finally falls back on her classic assertion that everything is very complicated, so no one can really understand it.

Anyone in the public eye knows that you need to look at the camera, not off to the side as if at a shiny object, and not have your hair hanging limply in your face. I’m not elevating style over substance; it’s called engaging the audience. This is basic advice she should have gotten in any class where she had to make a presentation, but then I’m assuming she paid attention in school.

Random Rant

I wonder how many if any Intelligent Design believers are menopausal women?

I've now been through the whole female sexual/reproductive experience. If this is intelligently designed, I'd have really hated the stupid version.

Sounds crazy, but . . .

The House's reading of the Constitution was a gimmick, of course, a show for the rubes. But after considering it a bit, I started to think that it is not a bad idea for Congress to start with a ceremony. Ceremonies put us in a frame of mind - joy at a wedding, solemnity at a funeral - that reinforces the importance of the occasion. It can hardly be bad for legislators to start a session with something that turns their minds to serious consideration of the matters before them.

A ceremonial reading of the Constitution would also be made-for-TV (and the internet). Watching the reading, we would review our history, remembering past battles and compromises. Of course, the whole chronological document would have to be read, not an expurgated version. Perhaps this would remind both politicians and voters to think seriously before taking rash stands.

The ceremony itself could be dressed up a little for the cameras without taking away the basic seriousness. Can you hear Rep. Barnswallow announcing "the valedictorian from Possum Junction High School in my district will now read the Bill of Rights"? Pure gold in ratings and votes! And maybe get Americans to think about the whole Constitution, not just the bits of it that are used in campaign ads.

OMG

Yes, we expect models to be thin, but Ms. Bluedress is a heart attack waiting to happen no less than someone who eats Noodles Alfredo every day. I hope someone is talking to her about the difference between fashionably thin and concentration camp thin.

It's the Teachers' Fault Schools Are Bad

This NY Times article is about Brockton (Mass.) High School, where featherbedding, change-resistant union teachers have brought the school from failing to outperforming 90% of Massachusetts schools in the past 10 years.

An Easy Keeper

Easy keeper, from Wikipedia


Wow, I just found out that I'm an easy keeper!

According to Wikipedia, an easy keeper is a critter that can do well with relatively poor feed. They generally come from stock that has been bred to survive in harsh climates; on a too-rich, modern diet, an easy keeper is prone to obesity and related ills. Ponies, which are basically small horses, are usually easy keepers. Well, I'm pony-sized compared to the average person, bred in a harsh climate (F3 Buffalo via Poland), and prone to obesity and related ills.

Wiki further tells us that easy keepers need to pay attention to diet, and to get plenty of exercise, especially aerobic exercise. I should take heed.

Obama Declares Victory, Calls Troops Home

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/01/world/01military.html?_r=1&hp

Except, of course, for about 50,000 who are still there. He did give GW Bush a little stroking. To his credit, it was not quite a handjob to orgasm.

OMG, I must be reading too many leftward blogs; I can't keep my snark under control. I support President Obama, but I don't agree with everything he does.

An Essay on the Alliums porrum, sativum, and cepa L. var. aggregatum

A friend asked for information on growing leeks, garlic, and shallots. As she has often said, when I start talking about plants, you can't shut me up, so here is pretty much what I sent her as an answer:

Leek seed (A. porrum) - any good vegetable seed supplier like Pinetree (https://www.superseeds.com), Johnny's Selected Seeds, Stokes, etc., will have a couple of varieties. I like Pinetree because they sell small packets. Leek seeds don't keep their viability well so it's best to start with a fresh packet every year, and with a small packet, you only pay for what you'll use.

'Large American Flag' or 'Giant Musselburgh' are good, thick, over-wintering types. 'King Richard' is a more slender type for late summer and fall harvest. I haven't tried any of the new hybrid varieties. I'm not sure what the advantage of a hybrid leek might be - once they get going they are very tough - even if water is scarce, the main effect will be that they are smaller than they should be, and they are not bothered by insects - so it hasn't been worth it to me to pay more for hybrid seed.

Garlic and shallots - plant in late September or October! Yes, you can plant in spring "as soon as the ground can be worked," as the garden books say, but if you plant in the fall, they will be already rooted and growing by then.

I used to buy them at Territorial, but they now only sell one-pound lots that have gotten pretty expensive. I haven't bought garlic or shallots in a few years, since I save some from my harvest for planting, so I was pretty surprised to see the current prices. Try buying some at a farmers market - you'll know it's a variety that grows well in our climate. I'll do some looking online for other sources. Shallots from the grocery store will do, but I find they only make one or two large cloves instead of a nice cluster of 4-8 medium ones.

Planting is easy for both garlic and shallots. Have the soil enriched with compost, manure, and/or a sprinkle of chemical plant food. Plant cloves in a 6" x 6" grid, about 2" deep. Mulch well with salt marsh hay or use landscape fabric - a big help in keeping weeds down. If you use the landscape fabric, pin the fabric on the prepared soil, and punch each planting hole with the tip of a trowel as you go. In the spring you will have to gently guide the little shoots to the opening, because no matter what how careful you are in planting, they will come up an inch to the side. At least, that's what they do for me.

I usually grow about 36 plants each of garlic and shallots (that's figuring an average of 6 cloves per head for 6 heads), and even at my rate of garlic usage, I find that's enough to last until the following spring. One of my fellow community gardeners says medium-sized cloves, rather than the largest ones, yield the best plants. I may do a more rigorous study this year by planting different sizes of cloves and noting how they do.

Don't forget to cut the scapes (flowering stalks) of garlic as soon as you see them. They have a mild flavor and are terrific in stir fries or miso soup. If you miss some until they are old and tough, which you will be because they are sneaky, they're still good to flavor soup stock. Or even to put in a vase where they will twist around and create a je ne sais quoi, tres moderne effect.

Major rant

Yelling at the news on the radio today -

Why are 1 out of 8 Americans on food stamps? Why are people on years-long waiting lists for subsidized rentals? Why can't average working people afford health care?

The wages of middle- and working-class Americans have stagnated over the past 30 years, while the incomes of the top 1% or 2% have skyrocketed. Maybe that has something to do with it? I'm not an economist, so how can I know?

Unions are demonized - teachers' unions fighting for decent salaries and working conditions, auto workers' union fighting to hang on to previously agreed to pension and health benefits - while the Wall Streeters get to keep obscene bonuses based on contracts signed before they drove the economy into the swamp. Contracts are legally binding, except when they're contracts with working stiffs. Full disclosure: I worked for the Commonwealth for a couple of years; the union contract was meaningless because the legislature simply declined to fund it.

Wall Streeters, banksters, and the other fraud artists at the top of the economic heap don't need unions. Political contributions do their talking for them.

Class warfare, anyone? Eat the rich.

Hong Kong Market

I have often shopped at the Hong Kong Market (formerly Super 88) in Allston, with mixed results. The produce seems to stay on the shelf until it's either bought or gone frankly bad. As for seafood, if it's whole fish, you can tell if it's fresh. Unfortunately, with some items, you can't.

I was burned today buying scallops. They were not labeled as having been treated with chemicals (in fairness, they were not labeled as not treated, either). When I rinsed them, they produced a little sudsiness. Oops, I thought, but dried them on paper towels and sauteed them in some olive oil. Just a couple of bites proved them to be bitter and nasty tasting. I tossed them out.

Lesson learned.

Update: I should explain that the Allston Hong Kong Market is still the go-to market in my area for packaged, frozen, and dried Asian foodstuffs, and the food court can't be beat. The fresh produce is hit-or-miss, but they reliably have things like lemongrass as well as Asian fruits and vegetables you never see in Stop and Shop - you just have to pick out the fresh stuff. The meat section regularly stocks animal parts you don't see in American markets at pretty low prices.

Sweating the Small Stuff

This post gave me a laugh, as I have been having a horrifying frizz experience of my own. My graying hair no longer goes into pleasantly frizzy, non-beauty-compliant curliness of its own accord, and now wants to be simply frizzy. I have begun to use "product" to smooth out the frizz, and spend far too much emotional energy worrying about succumbing to patriarchal ideas of acceptable appearance.

"I've never done my hair!" I argue.

"But I look like Grandmama Addams!" I reply.

"And what's wrong with that? She's an old lady and can look however she wants."

"She didn't have to fit in at work."

What's in Bloom

Fritillaria, violet, bleeding heart, and dogtooth violet.

What's in Bloom

Spring is on its way! Once the snowdrops are in bloom, you know winter is on the way out.

Pie Blogging

and a delicious dessert was had by all . . .

a buttery tart crust, smooth baked custard topped with lightly sweetened cooked cherries, and drizzled with good chocolate. Yes, I was proud of this pie!

Mid Fall

It's a contemplative time of year - the shortening days, the beauty of plants even as they fade into senescence, the intensity of the fall colors in the fading light of the early sunset. Trees and other perennials aren't dying. They are sucking their life force, in the form of sugars, into their roots to wait for spring. Annuals are setting seed that will also lie dormant and wait for the earth to spin past the spring equinox.

We are not perennials; we don't come back from dormancy. We are more like annuals; we leave seed that recreates our lives - not our individual lives but copies of our lives, with variation and sometimes error. Evolution is amazing. Genetics is amazing. Life and the universe are far more complex than any religion so far invented has imagined.

So drink or smoke a toast to the world as it says good-bye to another season of growth and enters another season of rest. Merry meet, merry part, and merry meet again. (Starhawk)