Quote of the Day: 31 December 2017

“Even as we must live with the marriage laws and other traditions of a declining world, those who strive for exaltation must make personal choices in family life according to the Lord’s way whenever that differs from the world’s way.” -Dallin H. Oaks

Quote of the Day: 30 December 2017

“Some of my favorite bacons are cured but not smoked, but they are the exception, not the rule.” -Alton Brown

[Happy Bacon Day.]

My first attempt at barbecue

I have been a fan of barbecue for a long time. While living in the Salt Lake area, there were a few places I could go to get good barbecue. However, when I moved to the Portland area I was not able to find any good places for barbecue. So, I have wanted to make my own for a few years. This year for Father's Day my wife got me a Weber kettle grill. In fact, it was this Weber Original Kettle Premium grill in copper. I knew that a lot of third party accessories are made for these grills, and I began to look around for one that would allow me to make barbecue. For Christmas, my wife got me the Slow 'N Sear from Adrenaline Barbecue Company. I was excited to say the least. In addition my parents had gotten me a dual probe digital thermometer for Christmas. I was not willing to attempt barbecue without a thermometer, but this one allows me to monitor the temperature of the meat and the pit from inside the house.

Ultimately, I'm looking to make brisket, and pulled pork. But I thought something a little less ambitious for my first outing made sense. So, two days ago I picked up a rack of St. Louis ribs from the grocery store, intending to make them yesterday. When I spent that night sick with a fever, those plans got pushed out. There was no way I would be doing much of anything yesterday. This morning I was feeling well enough, so I decided to make the ribs tonight.

So, removing the membrane and applying salt, spicy brown mustard, and essentially the rub from this recipe, I prepared the ribs for the cook.

 There was not a lot of preparation that went into this. Something I can definitely handle doing again.

I then got the grill going. This took a bit more effort because I didn't have any of the handy paraffin charcoal starter tabs. I ended up using brown paper with a bit of vegetable oil on it. Once the charcoal was started, I loaded up the rest of the compartment with charcoal and a few hickory chips, added water to the reservoir, put the ribs on the grill, and placed the thermometer probe. I then watched as the temperature slowly climbed in the grill to 150°F. This was the trigger to close down the vents to keep the fire low. Then I let the temperature get up to 225°F. It kept going up, and I realized I had not adjusted the bottom vent. I caught it before the temperature went above 239°. Once I got the temperature under control, I just let things be. I would occasionally adjust a vent as the temperature climbed or dropped more than I liked for it to, but it was mostly letting it be.

About five hours later, I performed the bend test on the ribs and I saw what I believed to be cracks indicating the appropriate doneness. So I took them off.

After an appropriate resting period, I sliced them up. They sure looked pretty inside.

My wife and I sat down to eat with three ribs apiece. I had gotten out some prepared barbecue sauces because I know she likes them. I intended to eat mine naked, as long as the taste was good. As it turns out, I needn't have worried. They tasted great. My wife even said, "now I know how people can say good barbecue doesn't need sauce." And she barely used any. Even after going back for seconds.

I can say that I wouldn't  have been able to do this without the grill, the Slow 'N Sear, and the thermometer. But with them I have produced some of the best barbecue I have eaten. I said I'd have to do this again, and my wife agreed. I look forward to making pulled pork, and brisket as well. Maybe some beef ribs, and sausages if I can find them. For now, I'll just enjoy the memory of a good cook.

Quote of the Day: 29 December 2017

“Plato’s cave is okay. It’s safe, dry and comfortable. But I want to turn around and see the world.” -Sarah Hoyt

Quote of the Day: 28 December 2017

“I’ve been dying as long as you’ve known me, but everyone is. Life is a terminal condition.” -Michael Logan (attributed)

Quote of the Day: 27 December 2017

“If you wear a dress and have an animal sidekick you’re a princess.” -Maui

[Yup. That's Disney.]

Quote of the Day: 26 December 2017

“I agree that the measure of success is not merchandise but character.” -Calvin Coolidge

Quote of the Day: 25 December 2017

“This is the Month, and this the happy morn

Wherein the Son of Heav'ns eternal King,

Of wedded Maid, and Virgin Mother born,

Our great redemption from above did bring;

For so the holy sages once did sing,

That he our deadly forfeit should release,

And with his Father work us a perpetual peace.” -John Milton

[Merry Christmas!]

Quote of the Day: 24 December 2017

“We honor His birth. But without His death that birth would have been but one more birth. It was the redemption which He worked out in the Garden of Gethsemane and upon the cross of Calvary which made His gift immortal, universal, and everlasting.” -Gordon B. Hinckley

Thoughts after viewing the most recent Star Wars movie

I went to see The Last Jedi with my wife this afternoon while a friend watched The Pup. The report we got afterward was that he was very good. Apparently he filled a diaper to the extent that he astonished the sitter, and she wondered where it had all been.

The first sign that this was going to be a rough movie was when, after the opening crawl, my wife turned to me and said "that was kind of cheesy." It should be noted that to this point she had been a big fan of Star Wars. I'm mostly ambivalent about it. There are parts I like, and others I don't. But she had purchased the movies and watched them multiple times. She even enjoyed the prequels.

Anyway, we get going and it is apparent that the efforts of the resistance in The Force Awakens were useless. How could the First Wave have sufficient resources to lose the Star Killer, or whatever it was called, and still be able to prosecute a war to the point of putting the resistance on the verge of failure? Then, the battle scene starts. There was a cool character moment for Poe, being a lone light fighter pilot going up against a dreadnaught. But when the bombers come out, and the squad leader orders them to keep a tight formation. I lost suspension of disbelief in that moment. And the less said about the destruction of the resistance bombers and how the last bomber delivered its payload the better.

We do get back to Rey handing the lightsaber to Luke eventually. And his reaction to it could have led to something cool. Instead we get a lot of wasted screen time showing that Luke isn't doing anything worthwhile on the island on wherever he is. And he asks something like "Why do you think I came to the least findable planet in existence?" I couldn't help but think back to the previous movie in which he had literally left a map to his location.

Moving on, there was a moment when Luke realizes the potential strength Rey has with the Force, and reacts in a cool way, but delivers so poorly on that. He has to be convinced by R2 to do anything. And what he does is promise three lessons, of which he gives two. Those two are 1) this is what the Force is, and it doesn't belong to the Jedi, and 2) the Jedi were failures at everything they tried. No mention is ever made of the third lesson ever again.

Somewhere in all of this there's the Leia in space scene. I forget where, and I don't particularly care. It sucked. The Force has never worked this way before, and I suspect that it won't ever work this way again. At this point, I literally removed my glasses, held my head in my hands and said "Please do something that isn't stupid." Up to this point in the movie I had yet to see even one moment of competent storytelling.

Finn's storyline was pointless. Instead of succeeding against long odds. They fail. Almost at every turn. Then there's Rose, who is a part of this storyline. Why was she introduced as a character? She doesn't do anything. They could have at least let her start work on deactivating the tracking. Let her actually demonstrate competence at something. This whole plot line is pointless though. And it was prompted by poor leadership by the resistance.

Speaking of which, Poe's storyline. The whole conflict here could have been resolved if the resistance leadership had said "We're going to fake our own destruction, and evacuate almost everyone on transports to an old rebel base on a nearby planet." Instead they keep that a secret, give platitude filled speeches, and cause Poe and Finn to engage in stupid plans because they think there's no other option.

Finally, Luke facing Kylo was awesome. Until they revealed Luke was a Force projection from that stupid Jedi island planet. That undercut the whole thing, and made it suck instead.

At some point, I went to make some snide comment to my wife, but instead bit my tongue and remained quiet the rest of the movie. I wanted to give her a chance to decide if she enjoyed the movie or not. At the end, she was the first to say it wasn't any good. We spent the drive to pick up The Pup talking about some of the problems we had with the movie. I was surprised at the fervor of her distaste for the movie. I ultimately concluded that I was upset at the people who decided this was a good story to make. There is no where for the story to go. At least no where interesting.

And if you want to read what someone who was a Star Wars fan had to say about it, go read Ben Shapiro's review at The Daily Wire.

Quote of the Day: 23 December 2017

“[L]asting positive change takes time. Things don't happen overnight.” -Michael Doyle & David Straus

[So, you'll likely feel discouraged at some point. Take heart. Persevere and see your change through to the end.]

Quote of the Day: 22 December 2017

“If you say you receive a paycheck for doing your job, it sounds mundane and kind of depressing. If you tweak your perspective and say that you’re being bribed to perform certain services, suddenly it sounds much more exciting, doesn’t it?” -Scott Meyer

Forest Grove Police Log excerpt, 21 December 2017

Here is the excerpt from the log of local police activity for the week.

Dec. 14 - A landlord reported that a tenant who had been evicted had rigged the oven to start a fire. Officers determined the oven to simply be in need of a good scrub. - A woman reported that her mail had been sent to an old address and the former roommate was refusing to return it. After a little investigation, officers learned that the woman had not actually taken any steps to retrieve the mail, but wanted the roommate to deliver it. Officers advised her to pick up the mail.

A landlord who cannot distinguish a dirty oven from a boobytrapped oven? I don't know how poor of an opinion you have to have of your former renters to assume malice when it could just be that they are slovenly. Also a tale of a lazy woman who expects to receive everything simply for existing. How entitled can you be?

Quote of the Day: 21 December 2017

“Neither the criminal nor the demagogue makes any distinction between the haves who acquired their property honestly and those who obtained it by chance or fraud. It is sufficient that they have it and can be made to disgorge it.” -H. L. Mencken

[When this quote was selected the debate about the tax cut bill was still ongoing, but the quote would be apropos regardless of the way the vote fell.]

Quote of the Day: 20 December 2017

“I think this is the biggest disconnect between ‘the Elites’ and normal Americans. For many people, it’s not just a matter of ‘legal vs. illegal’ but ‘honest vs. skeezy.’ Most Americans will still avoid something that may be legal but distasteful.” -J. Kb

[And for some reason, "the Elites" cannot seem to comprehend this. Their morality is defined by legality.]

Quote of the Day: 19 December 2017

“By distributing from rich to poor, you end up paying poorer people to be less productive, while punishing more productive people. The distribution that would flow from people making more goods and services available to all is lost by degree, making everyone worse off. If taxation and redistribution for the sake of equal outcomes makes us all worse off than we would otherwise have been, how is this social justice?” -Max Borders

[How, indeed?]

Quote of the Day: 18 December 2017

“The principle of our interrogation consists further in depriving the accused of even a knowledge of the law.” -Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

[This is the effect of the multiplicity of laws and regulations that we seem intent on filling our lives with. It is difficult in the extreme to know how to act if you do not know what is legal and what is not.]

Quote of the Day: 17 December 2017

“Far from being an accidental, happy occurrence, worship is essential and central to our spiritual life. It is something we should yearn for, seek out, and strive to experience.” -Dean M. Davies

Quote of the Day: 16 December 2017

“The more men have to lose, the less willing are they to venture.” -Thomas Paine

[This is true of some (likely most) but not of all. Otherwise there are many things we would not have that we do because someone was willing to venture that which he already had.]

Quote of the Day: 15 December 2017

“Evil corporations? Oil company profit on a gallon of gas is roughly three cents. Taxes (state and federal, in my area) are 48 cents. Production, purification, delivery for three cents... regulation and control for 48. Which is the fleecing?” -Rory Miller

[Which indeed.]

Forest Grove Police Log excerpt, 14 December 2017

Here's the (late) excerpt from the log of local police activity for this week.

December 5* Officers contacted a man seen making a scene and pushing shopping carts into a busy intersection. The man stated he was simply having a bad day and wanted to leave Forest Grove. Officers provided him with a bus pass.

I so wish I had heard of this prior to reading about it here, or perhaps had even witnessed it. I'm also glad that our city is so accommodating of  people desiring to leave.

Quote of the Day: 14 December 2017

“Genuine security is a matter of self-responsibility, based on the right to the fruits of one's own labor and the freedom to trade.” -Leonard E. Read

Quote of the Day: 13 December 2017

“Cilantro is satan's parsley.” -Robb Allen

[I know several people who hold similar sentiments, including my father in law who calls it "the weed". Myself, I just don't care for it in large pieces.]

The Pup tells his first joke

The Pup told his first joke yesterday. He didn't know that's what was going on, but it happened nonetheless. It was a knock-knock joke, and it made as much sense as a kid trying to tell a knock-knock joke usually does.

Anyway, here it is.

The Pup: Nah, Nah
Me:         Who's there?
The Pup: Da'n.
Me:         Da'n who?
The Pup: (Very confused) Uh oh.

And so we see that my son is a typical child style knock-knock joke prodigy.

Quote of the Day: 12 December 2017

“[E]motional appeals do big business in politics.” -Ben Shapiro

[Largely because we allow them to by giving too much power to government in the first place.]

Quote of the Day: 11 December 2017

“What goes around, comes around. If not examined too closely, it passes for justice.” -Terry Pratchett

[There are a lot of things that if not examined too closely will pass for something else. In this case, it's probably sufficient to accept it and move on.]

Quote of the Day: 10 December 2017

“God will always bless us for our steadfast obedience to His gospel and loyalty to His Church, but He rarely shows us His timetable for doing so in advance. He doesn’t show us the whole picture from the outset. That is where faith, hope, and trusting in the Lord come in.” -L. Whitney Clayton

Quote of the Day: 9 December 2017

“While I would prefer the choice between cake and death, because it’s easy, that is not how life works.” -Sarah Hoyt

[Oh how I also would prefer such easy choices, and how often I am disappointed by the proffered choices.]

Quote of the Day: 8 December 2017

“My favorite way to have a brownie? Warm and underneath some vanilla ice cream and whipped cream. It’s a very simple brownie sundae but my favorite.” -Julie Deily

[Happy brownie day!]

Quote of the Day: 7 December 2017

“Today we stop to remember the soldiers, sailors, and Marines who fought during those morning hours [76] years ago. We mourn those who fell defending that island paradise, and we honor both their memories and those who survived. May we live up to the sacrifices they made.” -Daddybear71

[Amen.]

Forest Grove Police log excerpt, 6 December 2017

Here is the excerpt from the local log of police activity for the week.

November 26* Police received multiple reports of a man acting belligerently and aggressively at various locations along Pacific Avenue, including reports of threats, intimidation and indecent exposure. Officers were able to locate the man in a local business and ultimately arrested him for offensive littering after the officers witnessed him throw garbage on the ground and not pick it up.

 It's good to know that if I go on a belligerent, aggressive tirade through downtown Forest Grove, all I have to do to avoid an arrest is to not engage in "offensive littering".

I encourage you to read the whole thing to find the gem about the stolen banana, and the top hat wearing knife wielder. I live in a strange place.

Quote of the Day: 6 December 2017

“We live under a republican form of government. We need forever to remember that representative government does represent. A careless, indifferent representative is the result of a careless, indifferent electorate. The people who start to elect a man to get what he can for his district will probably find they have elected a man who will get what he can for himself.” -Calvin Coolidge

[We truly do get the government we (collectively) deserve.]

Quote of the Day: 5 December 2017

“In the long run it will most likely turn out that planning economies is as hopeless as planning the weather.” -H. L. Mencken

[Unfortunately more frequently engaged in, though.]

Quote of the Day: 4 December 2017

“The tenure by which the judges are to hold their places, is, as it unquestionably ought to be, that of good behavior.” -James Madison, The Federalist No. 39

[I feel we have been far too reluctant to employ the tools of the constitution to remove judges who have not been acting in good behavior. Most especially those of the 9 circuit.]

Quote of the Day: 3 December 2017

“[W]orthiness is achieved through obedience. If we sin, we are less worthy, but we are never worth less!” -Joy D. Jones

Quote of the Day: 2 December 2017

“Envy is at the root of so many of the sins of our age.” -@thecoffeemonkey

Quote of the Day: 1 December 2017

“This is maybe the most delicious dessert I’ve ever made in my life. It’s like caramel pie.” -Andrew Rea

[Happy Pie Day. Like, actual pie, rather than pi.]