ATYPICAL :opposite of typical: 2005

Friday, December 30, 2005

Chicago Style?

My wife just posted her very very good pizza dough recipe. (see my last post)

I love her pizza. I'm not at all complaining, but last year I was introduced (thanks to my bud Peter Pallock) to Chicago style pizza.

Right here in San Antonio - native Chicagoan Peter found a better than average (in fact he thought it was pretty good) Chicago Style pizzeria. Now being the frugal father of seven that I am I asked my wife to go on a search for a similar crust that we could make at home.

She has with reasonable success replicated the TASTE but not the consistency.

Does anyone out there have a good Chicago Style crust recipe? It needs to be thin but strong. Not crunchy not doughy...Almost like a cracker.

Pizza Night !!!!!

Life in a shoe: the methods and madness of one mother of 7: Friday Night Pizza

My wife just posted her better-than-pizza hut recipe for pizza crust.

I love my mom AND her cooking but (don't anyone tell my mom I said this). I like Kim's crust better!

It's cheap easy and we've been enjoying friday night pizza fellowships for years.

Now if I can just get her to make a deep dish too!

Tuesday, December 27, 2005

my first audio blog post

this is my first audioblogger.com post

sweet technology! take a look and give it a try

proof of life on mars?

Saturday, December 24, 2005

Merry Christmas!

Remember the coming of Christ.

Remember that God in His great mercy sent his son to us!

Wednesday, December 21, 2005

If we are His, we are at war, and that affects everything.

The Three Gs, which all - boys and girls, men and women - need to know and study for all our lives, must be understood in their biblical context. They need to be learned in the context of the antithesis. What is antithesis? Such a fancy term has a pretty basic meaning. It's us versus the world. We remember that after Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit, God pronounced a curse on each. But He also cursed the serpent, saying, "Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life. I wil put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel" (Gen. 3:14-15). Here God declares solemn war against the serpent, and not only promises to destroy the serpent through one born of a woman, but also promises to change the hearts of His elect, such that they would hate the serpent. This great battle is the setting of history, and therefore the setting of our lives. If we are His, we are at war, and that affects everything.

R.C. Sproul Jr.
From the book: When you rise up

Thursday, December 15, 2005

Scrooge rocks!

“Are there no prisons?” asked Scrooge.
“Plenty of prisons,” said the gentleman, laying down the pen again.
“And the Union workhouses?” demanded Scrooge. “Are they still in operation?”
“They are. Still,” returned the gentleman, “I wish I could say they were not.”
“The Treadmill and the Poor Law are in full vigour, then?” said Scrooge.
“Both very busy, sir.”
“Oh! I was afraid, from what you said at first, that something had occurred to stop them in their useful course,” said Scrooge. “I’m very glad to hear it.”
“Under the impression that they scarcely furnish Christian cheer of mind or body to the multitude,” returned the gentleman, “a few of us are endeavouring to raise a fund to buy the Poor some meat and drink, and means of warmth. We choose this time, because it is a time, of all others, when Want is keenly felt, and Abundance rejoices. What shall I put you down for?”
“Nothing!” Scrooge replied.
“You wish to be anonymous?”
“I wish to be left alone,” said Scrooge. “Since you ask me what I wish, gentlemen, that is my answer. I don’t make merry myself at Christmas and I can’t afford to make idle people merry. I help to support the establishments I have mentioned—they cost enough; and those who are badly off must go there.”

I love Christmas ....

Props to Shannon who gave me the link to A Christmas Carol over at the Gutenburg Project.

and now for my FAVORITE quote of the whole novel....

It's Scrooge of course. The unrepentant old sinner right at the beginning wears his hate of Christmas and it's joy right out in the open like a big placard on his chest'

"What else can I be,when I live in such a world of fools as this? Merry Christmas! Out upon merry Christmas! What's Christmas time to you but a time for paying bills without money; a time for finding yourself a year older, but not an hour richer; a time for balancing your books and having every item in 'em through a round dozen of months presented dead against you? If I could work my will,every idiot who goes about with 'Merry Christmas' on his lips, should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart. He should!"

The line ALWAYS makes me think of George C. Scott as Scrooge. I saw that version at the age of 13 and I still think it's my favorite.

Ok one more of my favorite Scrooge scenes!

"
Scrooge seized the ruler with such energy of action, that the singer fled in terror, leaving the keyhole to the fog and even more congenial frost.
At length the hour of shutting up the counting-house arrived. With an ill-will Scrooge dismounted from his stool, and tacitly admitted the fact to the expectant clerk in the Tank, who instantly snuffed his candle out, and put on his hat.
“You’ll want all day to-morrow, I suppose?” said Scrooge.
“If quite convenient, sir.”
“It’s not convenient,” said Scrooge, “and it’s not fair. If I was to stop half-a-crown for it, you’d think yourself ill-used, I’ll be bound?”
The clerk smiled faintly.
“And yet,” said Scrooge, “you don’t think me ill-used, when I pay a day’s wages for no work.”
The clerk observed that it was only once a year.
“A poor excuse for picking a man’s pocket every twenty-fifth of December!” said Scrooge, buttoning his great-coat to the chin. “But I suppose you must have the whole day. Be here all the earlier next morning.”

I'm a sucker for a good deal

Spoofee.com has a link to $6.00 mens dress shirts on amazon.com

Wednesday, December 14, 2005

oldest known mayan painting was discovered recently

you can see it here

the Mayan's are an interesting mix of science and paganism.

proof that God loves us

Spotted outside Vision Forum around 5:30 this evening! God's mercies are new every day.

an interesting take on advent

Marley's Ghost Notwithstanding

Rudolf suspected in Santa beating

Seriously ... Santa got roughed up in Germany.

The best line from the article..."I should have known better but come on, who beats up Santa Claus?"

Christmas shoppers beat up Santa
A department store Santa on his way home for the night was beaten up by stressed-out Christmas shoppers in Germany.
Stefan Stettler, 31, from Wiesbaden, was still in character and chatting to other passengers while waiting for his train home.
Police say two men, allegedly stressed after a full day's Christmas shopping, lost their patience when asked to "tell Santa what they want for Christmas".
The men took Stettler's sack of presents and beat him over the head with it, breaking his fingers as he tried to protect himself.
Stettler said: "Around this time of year shoppers seem to get this glint in their eyes and you can just see they are going to go off any minute.
"I should have known better but come on, who beats up Santa Claus?"
Police are still searching for the men but have no clue as to their identities.

Saturday, December 10, 2005

Interesting thoughts on homeschooling

Matt Chancey quotes Scott Brown who quotes Douglas Gresham from an "Old School House" interview.

Gresham has some interestng thoughts on education. It's worth a read.

Wednesday, November 30, 2005

a person or thing or 2 I'm thankful for

Mi Bella

The most beautiful girl in the world. She took a walk down the aisle with a crazy man (who thinks he can build houses while he lives in them) and I have been walking as in a dream ever since.

She was made for me as surley as any woman was ever made for a man and I thank our Lord every day for letting me spend my life with her.