I don’t know what this means because Mack could keep coaching for forever, but…

“Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp has been designated head coach-in-waiting by the university, expected to take over the Longhorns when coach Mack Brown retires.”[via]

I think this guy is a hell of a defensive coach.  I wonder what this means for my horns in the near future.  Hopefully Greg Davis peaces out with Mack, for the love of god.

thanks to tylerjameslee.com for pointing out this tidbit of information.

Just in time for the holidays, here is a really simple DIY gift that everyone can enjoy. Homemade Kahlua.  It’s pretty much one of the most simple things you can do, and if you start now it will be good and ready to drink come christmas/hannukah/new years time.

I have some sitting in my pantry right now from last year, somehow we didn’t drink it, and its pretty delicious after a year of aging.

Ingredients:

2 Cups dry instant coffee
7 Cups white granulated sugar
1 Quart water
1 Quart 80 proof vodka
1 Whole vanilla bean

Steps.

1. Bring the water to a full boil. Remove from heat and add the instant coffee and the sugar.
2. Stir until the sugar and coffee are completely dissolved. Allow to cool. Add vodka and stir.
3. Pour into sealable glass containers, how ever many it takes.
4. Drop one half of the vanilla bean into each container. Seal tightly. (I used some glass bottles with a cork)
5. Age your fresh kahlua by putting it in a cool, dark place and don’t touch it for at least 30 days; and obviously, the longer it sits around, the better.

You can put this on some ice cream, drink it in your coffee, make a white russian, or just get drunk.

So I’m sitting here, hungover, and I cannot stop thinking about food.  Thanksgiving is 2 weeks away and I’m pretty psyched about it, mostly because I get off work and get to eat some tasty deliciousness all day.

My family fries our turkey for the past few years, and I hated turkey until we did.  Some people may call it nontraditional, but I will tell you sir, it is tasty.

In my scouring of teh interwebs I have found a few nontraditional recipes that sound pretty awesome, and potentially heart attack inducing.  Because of my love for you, I will share them.

Disclaimer: I haven’t tried making these yet, so consume at your own risk.

Number 1. Homemade Biscuits

This one is from one of my favorite sites, Serious Eats. You can find the post for it here.  I would post the recipe but the freakin’ thing is like a book for something that looks like it will take about 10-15 minutes.  I made english muffins last year and those were good and easy. Moving on to biscuits.

Number 2. Deep Fried Mash Potato Balls

This is something straight out of my crazy brain, but then I googled it and found a recipe. This one also looks pretty damn easy, and I don’t see how fried fluffy balls of goodness couldn’t be delicious.

Make mashed potatoes into golf-ball or small balls, add cheese(s), as per taste. Freeze for 2 hours, or more.

Make batter from flour, milk, egg and salt. Gently dip mashed potato balls in batter, being careful that all exposed potato is coated with batter.

Deep fry in hot oil/fat until golden-brown. Consume.

Number 3. BACON.

Yeah. I ran out of ideas due to hunger.  Enjoy your weekend and eat heartily.

I have a few requests that I would like you to consider in the coming months, before and after the new president is inaugurated. I will list it in a simple bullet format so you will understand, and although you probably will not listen, I hope you will at least consider these points.

• Please do not bail out the American automakers.  We are already up to our waist in debt as a country, not including the 700 billion+ bailout we’ve already committed to.  There is a reason GM and other automakers are doing poorly: they SUCK at making fuel efficient, high quality cars with good customer service. Yes they employ a lot of people, yes their pension obligations are huge.  But we as an economy do not rely on the automakers. Purge the weak.
• Raise taxes. You say what?! I say that we are running an unsustainable course.  If you want to live in a country that still exists, sometimes you have to suck it up and be logical and fiscally responsible, which we have not done.  If America were a corporation, it would have filed chapter 11 a long time ago.
• Get out of everyone else’s business for a while.  I understand that our role traditionally has been that of protecting the weak, but never has it been so unilateral.  We cannot afford to let our own people lose jobs, starve, and go into more and more debt because we are using billions of tax dollars to finance the multiple military engagements we are in.
• Don’t over-regulate.  This one is going to be especially hard.  We have been under an administration of unprecedented deregulation, and as such the Dems are going to attempt to correct this.  Don’t go too far. Yes, we need to protect people from a-holes making millions by screwing their companies, but don’t go too far.

Thank you for listening to a few of my most immediate concerns Mr. Government.  And for the love of god, now is not a time to be partisan. Now is a time to make smart decisions, influenced by logic rather than emotional appeals.

The End.

I’m not going to give you a whole lot of my opinion on this article, one, because its obvious, and two, people should think for themselves.

Entitled “For South, a Waning Hold on National Politics” in the NY Times. It is a discussion on why people didn’t vote for Obama.  Anyway, read it before I influence you too much.

“I am concerned,” Gail McDaniel, who owns a cosmetics business, said in the parking lot of the Shop and Save. “The abortion thing bothers me. Same-sex marriage.”

“I think there are going to be outbreaks from blacks,” she added. “From where I’m from, this is going to give them the right to be more aggressive.”

I for one could not be more happy that the South is losing influence in the realm of national politics. Good riddance.

I’m feeling a little more up to speed following my lunch, therefore I actually do have some knowledge to bestoy upon you today. There are quite a few things going on in the marketplace this week and last that are going to have a lasting affect on our economy and many corporations’ futures.  With all of the hoopla surrounding President-Elect Obama (I had never heard this term so much before this election), the media outside CNBC is largely ignoring the current economic crisis to the best of its ability.

So here is the short and dirty of what is going to fuck us in the coming days.

• The government decided that $70bn wasn’t enough for AIG - how does $150bn sound? Oh and how about a $40bn stake in the nation’s largest insurer? No big deal right?
• Not really big news, but sort of funny, mostly because I’ve always hated them: Circuit City is filing for Chapter 11, aka they suck at making money. They’ll be allowed to keep operating while they develop a restructuring plan.
• DHL is cutting 9,500 jobs and is closing its US service centers. As in you won’t be able to send something domestically via DHL anymore. At all. Only service from the US to other countries. Good news for UPS and FedEx though!
• Google hit a 3-year low. Enough said.
• And Oil is back up, whoo. China’s stimulus plan will help to increase demand, even though OPEC is cutting production, oil has fallen from approx $150 a barrel to around $60 today.  Good news for us, seeing as comparatively, oil is still way too expensive.
• The iPhone has also been the best selling phone, even in the downturn. I really hope that RIM goes out of business so my freakin’ company will support iPhones with email and stuff. Expensing my phone would be nice.

Well, fall is offically in full swing.  We’re getting down to the nitty gritty of college football season, its cold (sort of) here in Dallas, some freshly dead deer is at the processor, and it gets dark approximately an hour after lunch.  The good thing is Thanksgiving is on its way, quickly followed by Christmas and New Years and taking all your vacation before they tell you it doesn’t roll over.

I’m really struggling to provide you with something meaningful today, so here is the trailer for my favorite series of movies of all time, Bond. The new movie comes out Friday and apparently is already a hit in China, according to Variety, “James Bond’s latest outing “Quantum of Solace” has shaken and stirred Chinese audiences, netting 11.4 million yuan ($1.67 million) on its opening day, the biggest opening day for a foreign picture this year.”

I’ve been craving some Mediterranean/Middle Eastern food lately, so I thought I would share one of my favorite (and most simple) recipes, Labaneh/Labneh (Leb-NEE).  Labaneh is the middle eastern version of strained yogurt, similar to Greek Yogurt. It is typically made from full fat yogurt that has been strained, usually overnight or longer.  It is usually eaten on a pita with olive oil, and a middle eastern spice called za’atar which is basically oregano and a bunch of random other spices.

So make sure you follow along closely. This is real difficult.

Ingredients:
1 tub of full fat yogurt
1 tablespoon of salt(if desired)
a coffee filter or a cheesecloth
a mesh strainer, sieve or colander
a large bowl

1. Add salt (not much) to yogurt if desired
2. Pour yogurt into cheese cloth (apparently you can use a coffee filter and place in strainer, I haven’t). Place on bowl.
3. Let sit in fridge for 12- 24 hours. After 12 hours it acquires a thick consistency . If you want it thicker, leave to drain for another 12 hours.
4. Drain liquid.

You’re done. Good Job.

The best way to eat this, in my opinion, is to put some olive oil on it and then dip a piece of pita bread in it. Try it out. Delicious. You can also use it like a tart cream cheese.

I know we’ve been pretty heavy on the serious stuff lately, but it is timely and necessary.  It’s official - Obama spanked McCain last night and will be the 44th President of the United States.

In an attempt to stay unbiased (I’m really not) and out of the touchy issues of this campaign, I give you a really interesting statistical site: FiveThirtyEight.com.  This guy has a pretty interesting story, Nate Silver used to be a baseball statistician and is now pretty much the up and coming name in political statistics reporting. Anybody that developed the most accurate polling data in polling history in his spare time is pretty impressive to me. His projection: 348.6 Obama, 189 McCain. Real life: 349 Obama, 159 McCain - with about 30 more coming his way.

He uses his baseball experience to balance out the polls using demographic data and using historical data of each poll to determine outcomes of political races. His site simulates elections a staggering 10,000 times a day in order to give a continuous up to date probability of the outcome. Oh, and if you didn’t know, 538 is the number of electors in the electoral college.

Look forward to some hope and optimism injected into our country, predicted by Nate Silver. Maybe he can give me stats on lotto numbers next. Or maybe wants to go to Vegas.

We’re one day away from a historical presidential election. Regardless of who wins, history will be made. Either the first African-American President or the first female Vice-President, both of which are outstanding (and long overdue) achievements by our country, regardless of my agreement with either’s political ideology.

Through record early voting turnout and a long fought campaign by both sides, I for one, am ready for this long series of shenanagins to be over. Major polls show Obama in the lead, some as much as double digits. Here in Texas, my vote is pretty irrelevant (partial electoral voting is for another day) because Texas is going for McCain, pretty much for sure.  Regardless of this and the voting procedures in your state, take time and go participate in the political process, it is what makes our country great and will continue to do so in the future.

GO VOTE!

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