02/05/2011 archive

from firefly-dreaming 5.2.11

Regular Daily Features:

Essays Featured Saturday, February 5th:

Alma takes a look back at some of the Brilliant essays we’ve had in our first year in the tooobz in Firefly Memories 1.0. Featured Today: Dreams of Living Off the Grid

come firefly-dreaming with me….

Random Japan

HERE & THERE

The Sanyo Hotel in Yamaguchi, which was a favorite of “Japanese royals and high-ranking government officials,” is being torn down. Among the foreign luminaries to have stayed at the century-old inn were Babe Ruth and Helen Keller.

It was reported that a salon in Nagoya is offering a vitamin-rich intravenous drip to salarymen “as a quick way to get rid of work-induced fatigue.”

A company in Kobe has perfected a method of transforming old clothes into a wood-like substance it calls Rifmo. According to the company president, “You can saw and hammer a nail into it just like ordinary wood.”

Sony and Victor announced that they had developed the world’s first “full high-definition digital video cameras capable of taking 3-D moving images.”

XLV: Steelers v. Packers

You will know how to root

The Green Bay Packers: Cheese Heads of the People

Rachel reports how the history and financing of the Green Bay Packers makes it a unique team.

The Steelers Have Already Lost

by Howard Fineman, The Huffington Post

Posted: February 4, 2011 06:06 PM

WASHINGTON — As a Pittsburgh native it pains me to say this but here goes: Even if the Steelers win the Super Bowl, they’ve already lost.

Fate, fashion and their own faults combine to put the Steelers in a no-win situation in Sunday’s matchup with the Green Bay Packers.

The Steelers are the bad guys. There is nothing they can do about it. If they win, it’s because they are rotten and brutal, or so it will be said. If they lose, they will have deserved it, because they are rotten and brutal, or so it will be said.

Why? Well, let’s start where we must, with Big Ben. His actions last year in that Georgia college town — even though they didn’t result in criminal charges — are too awful for most of the country, and (still) for many people in Pittsburgh, to stomach. Where diehard Steelers fans see a brave quarterback, millions of others see a cowardly, spoiled kid who used his posse to assist his sexual predations.

Puppy Bowl VII

With Bissell Kitty Halftime Show.

And now your Pedigree Starting Line Up-

It’s time for that annual tradition we look forward to every year (umm, that’s what makes it annual), Puppy Bowl VII.  Animal Planet will be running it in a continuous loop until 3 am, so if you miss any of the exciting action you’ll be able to catch up and you won’t look like a doofus tomorrow at the water cooler where I can almost assure you this will be a hot topic of conversation.

Among the things I notice from just that short clip is that they have fewer toys on the field which should make it a lot easier to follow and score.  I had a problem with last year’s choice of MVP (Most Valuable Puppy) which I contend should have gone to the beagle that scored no less than 3 times and not Jake the Chihuahua/Pug no matter how fast he runs.

My favorite part is the Bissell Kitty Halftime Show.

This year they’re introducing a ‘Kiss Cam’ and the Bunny Cheerleaders have been replaced by Chickens.  We’ll see how that works out.

So grab your nachos and beer and put your feet up in your Barcalounger and enjoy the thrill of this clash of bantams.

XLV: Steelers v. Packers

A work in progress.

You will know how to root.

Puppy Bowl VII

A work in progress.

With Bissell Kitty Halftime Show.

Not Watching The Hype

Alternative Super Bowl programming.

Welcome to Super Bowl Sunday.

As far as disrupting TV programming is concerned this is almost as big a holiday as Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Year’s.  Much bigger than the 4th of July though St. Patrick’s Day, Memorial Day, and Veteran’s Day are bigger than the 4th too.

The hype on Faux starts at 2 pm so you have 4 hours of pre-game if you can stand it.  If you’re interested in something else you can check my listings below.  I’ll remind you that we’ll be live blogging Puppy Bowl VII at 2:45 pm and starting our XLV live blog at 5:45 pm.

Expect updates.  This edition good until 1 pm.  Now 7 pm.  Now 9 pm.  6 am, have a good night!

New Tools.  Previous entries.  Instant gratification-

Zap2it TV Listings, Yahoo TV Listings

Not Watching

A work in progress.

Alternative Super Bowl programming.

Health and Fitness News

Welcome to the Stars Hollow Health and Fitness weekly diary. It will publish on Saturday afternoon and be open for discussion about health related issues including diet, exercise, health and health care issues, as well as, tips on what you can do when there is a medical emergency. Also an opportunity to share and exchange your favorite healthy recipes.

Questions are encouraged and I will answer to the best of my ability. If I can’t, I will try to steer you in the right direction. Naturally, I cannot give individual medical advice for personal health issues. I can give you information about medical conditions and the current treatments available.

You can now find past Health and Fitness News diaries here and on the right hand side of the Front Page.

Vegetable Casseroles for Frigid Nights

Photobucket

This week’s gratins are made with a couple of pounds of a cooked vegetable, seasoned and bound with eggs, milk and a small amount of cheese. (In Provence, rice is also used to help bind the mixture.) Gratins are a great way to use both fresh and leftover cooked vegetables. . . .

Casseroles need not contain eggs or dairy products. And baked beans, exceptionally creamy after their long simmer in the oven, can be made into perfect vegan fare. Add vegetables of your choice and you’ll have a perfect one-dish meal.

Mushroom and Greens Gratin

Cabbage and Red Pepper Gratin

Slow-Baked Beans With Kale

Beets, Spiced Quinoa and Yogurt

Potato and Chard Stalk Gratin

Today in the Wild: WWL FP News

Headlines from The Wild Wild Left…the last Island on the “LEFT” in a Sea of Wildly Wrong Rightness…a Harbour of Sanity for Liberals, Progressives and Radical Leftists – Get Wild, Get Left – JOIN IN!

If you read nothing else today, be sure to read John Kozy’s Demented Democracy.

He is kind enough to provide me his work via email, free of charge. I cannot stress how crucial to changing our thinking his views on logic/philosophy/ideology is to making people break out of this Demented state….

Speaking of Demented? davidseth’s Making the Independent Judiciary a Joke chronicles just how tainted we have allowed the SCOTUS to become. Good read!

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