Fire Safety In The Kitchen - video included.

Please read first, then watch the video.
Preventing catastrophic
fires in the home:

Preventing catastrophic fires in the home Following is an excellent prevention film well worth watching! It could save your home...and perhaps your life. Please read this first, and then watch the short clip. I never realized that a wet dishcloth can be a one-size-fits-all-lid to cover a fire in a pan. This is a dramatic 30-second film on how to deal with a common kitchen fire....oil in a frying pan. At the Fire-Fighting Training School, they demonstrate this with a deep fat fryer outdoors in a field. An instructor dons a firesuit and -- using an 8-oz cup of water at the end of a 10-foot pole -- he tips the water onto the grease fire. The results are startling. The water, being heavier than oil, sinks to the bottom, where it instantly becomes superheated. The explosive force of the steam blows the burning oil up and out. In the open field, it becomes a 30-foot- high fireball. Inside the confines of a kitchen, such a fireball will hit the ceiling and fill the entire room. Also, DO NOT throw sugar or flour on a grease fire. One cup of either creates the explosive force of two sticks of dynamite. Watch the video and don't forget what you see.

This is a message sent from a friend of mine, and it's good info. For all of you cooks, especially those with the young kind, this can help even your 10 year old chefs who may encounter this problem. I hope this can help someone.

And here is Mt. Rushmore, from the Canadian side... No wonder other countries don't like us?



Your Recipe for the day (From Bobby Flay's Barbecue Nation Cookbook):
Grilled Smoked Chicken with root beer barbecue sauce -
1 Tbs kosher salt. 1 TBS sweet Hungarian paprika. 1 tsp firmly packed dark brown sugar. 2 tsp freshly ground pepper. 1/4 tsp celery seeds. Two 3.5-3.75# chickens, backbone cut out & cut in half through the back. 1 cup water. 3/4 cup distilled white vinegar. 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce.

2 cups hickory wood chips, soaked 1 hour in water to cover and drained.

1) Mix dry ingredients. Reserve 4 tsp for mop mixture. Rub the remaining spice mix all over the chicken halves. Refrigerate for an hour.
2) Combine remaining spice mix with wet ingredients for the mop.
3) combine bbq ingredients except salt & pepper, bringing it to a boil. Simmer until reduced to 1.5 cups, about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add salt & pepper. Set aside to cool.
4) Set up grill for indirect grilling. Oil grill surface for cooking. Add 1 cup wood chips, fill aluminum foil drip pan half with water.
5) Arrange chicken, skin side up, n grill above the drip pan & cover. Use top & bottom vents to maintain temp approximately 300F (give or take). Keep other vents closed. Grill until almost cooked, brushing with mop every 15 minutes for an hour & 25 minutes.
6)Begin brushing chickens w/ bbq sauce and keep grilling til an insteant read thrmometer inserted in the thigh away from bone registers 180F, about 10 minutes longer. Move chicken directly over fire, using tongs. Grill until sauce sizzles and browns, about 2 minutes. Remove to a platter, cut into quarters, and serve. Pass remaining sauce separately.


Root Beer BBQ Sauce:
1 cup root beer. 1 cup ketchup. 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice. 1/4 cup orange juice. 3 TBS Worcestershire sauce. 1.5 firmly packed dark brown sugar. 1 Tbs mild (light) mo0lasses. 1 tsp liquid smoke. 1/2 tsp lemon zest. 1/2 tsp ground ginger. 1/2 tsp garlic powder. 1/2 tsp onion powder. Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Enjoy! Hope everyone is having a great summer so far. Stay cool, stay safe, and have lots of good fun! Off to my son's ball game. I'm not so shabby of a coach. It's been a fairly good season so far. Until next time, peace out.

Childhood Leukemia, please pray.

The Showstopper Parody

This blog is intended to be a LULZ blog. You are not obligated to listen, like it or what not. If you are not into this type of thing, I won't be insulted if you decide to exit, not kudo, etc. For those listening, it's intended for humor. Laugh, or I'll bite your butt. The best way to get the full effect, turn up your speakers and plug your ears. Or just take a step back...

I present to you, the Miss Show-Stopper Parody:

..

I would like to give Savior Self a sincere thank you for showing us this software. It was fun to do this.

No recipes today, just a couple of jokes.


Many years ago in
Scotland
, a new game was invented. It was ruled 'Gentlemen
Only...Ladies
Forbidden'.. .and thus, the word GOLF entered
into the English
language.

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The first couple to
be shown in bed
together on prime time TV was

Fred and Wilma Flintstone.

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Every day more money
is printed for Monopoly than the U.S.
Treasury.

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--
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Men can read smaller-print than women can;

women can hear better.

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Coca-Cola was originally green.

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It is impossible to lick your elbow.

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The State with the
highest percentage
of people who walk to work:

Alaska

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The percentage of
Africa that is wilderness: 28% (now get
this...)

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The percentage of
North America that
is wilderness: 38%

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The cost of raising
a medium-size dog
to the age of eleven:

$ 16,400

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--------- --------- ---------
--------- --------- ---------
------

The
average number
of people airborne over the U.S. in any given hour:

61,000
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--------- --------- --------- ---------
--------- ---------
------


Intelligent people
have more zinc and
copper in their hair..


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------

The
first novel ever written on a typewriter,

Tom Sawyer.


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--
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--------- -

The
San Francisco Cable Cars

are the only mobile National Monuments..


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------

Each
king in a deck
of playing cards represents a great king from
history:

Spades - King David
Hearts - Charlemagne
Clubs
-Alexander the Great
Diamonds - Julius Caesar

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--------- ---------
--------- --------- --------- ---------

111,111,111 x 111,111,111 =

12,345,678,987, 654,321

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If a statue in the park of a person on a
horse has both front legs in the air,

the person died in battle.

If the horse has one front leg in the air, the person died
because of

wounds received in battle.

If the horse has all four legs on the ground,

the person died of natural causes

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--------- ---------
--------- --------- --------- ---------

Only two people
signed the Declaration of Independence on
July 4, John Hancock
and Charles Thomson. Most of the rest signed on
August 2, but
the last signature wasn't added until 5 years later.


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------


Q. Half of all
North Americans live within 50 miles of
what?


A. Their birthplace

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Q. Most boat owners
name their boats. What is the most
popular boat name
requested?


A.
Obsession

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------


Q.. If you were to
spell out numbers, how far would you
have to go until you
would find the letter 'A'?


A. One thousand

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------


Q. What do
bulletproof vests, fire escapes, windshield
wipers and laser
printers have in common?



A. All were invented by women.

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------

Q.
What is the only food that doesn't spoil?


A. Honey

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Q. Which day are-there more collect calls than any other day of
the year?

A. Father's Day

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---


In Shakespeare's time, mattresses were secured on bed frames by
ropes.
When you pulled on the ropes, the mattress tightened,
making
the bed firmer to sleep on.

Hence the phrase...'Goodnight , sleep tight'

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--------- --------- --------- ---------
------

It
was the accepted practice in Babylon 4,000 years ago that for a month
after the wedding, the bride's father would supply his son-in-law with
all
the mead he could drink.

Mead is a honey beer and because their calendar was lunar based,
this period was called the honey month, which we know today as

the honeymoon.




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------

In
English pubs, ale is ordered by pints and quarts... So in old England ,
when customers got unruly, the bartender would yell at them

'Mind your pints and quarts, and settle down.'

It's where we get the phrase 'mind your P's and Q's'


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------

Many
years ago in England , pub frequenters had a whistle baked into the
rim, or handle, of their ceramic cups.

When they needed a refill, they used the whistle to get some
service.

'Wet your whistle'
is the phrase inspired by this practice.

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At
least 75% of people who read this will try to lick their elbow!

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------

Don't
delete this just because it looks weird.

Believe it or not, you can read it.



I cdnuolt blveieetaht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was
rdanieg.

The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid: acocdrnig to rscheearch
at
Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the
ltteers
in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the
first and last
ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a
taotl mses and you
can still raed it wouthit a porbelm. This
is bcuseae the huamn mnid
deos not raed ervey lteter by
istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.
Amzanig huh?

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YOU KNOW YOU ARE LIVING IN 2010 when...


1. You accidentally enter your PIN on the microwave.


2. You haven't played solitaire with real cards in years.

3. You have a list of 15 phone numbers to reach your family of
three.

4. You e-mail
the person who works at the desk next to you.

5. Your reason
for not staying in touch with friends and family is that they don't have
email addresses.

6. You pull up in
your own driveway and use your cell phone to see if anyone is home to
help you carry in the groceries.

7. Every
commercial on television has a web site at the bottom of the screen

8. Leaving the house
without your cell phone,

which you didn't even have the first 20 or 30 (or 80) years of
your life,

is now a cause for panic and you turn around to go and get it.

10. You get up
in the morning and go on line before getting your coffee

11. You start
tilting your head sideways to smile. : )

12 You're
reading this and nodding and laughing.



13.
Even worse,

you know exactly to whom you are going to forward this message.

14. You are too busy
to notice there was no #9 on this list.


15. You actually scrolled back up

to check that there wasn't a #9 on this list


~~~~~~~~~~~AND FINALLY~~~~~ ~~~~~~~

NOW
U R LAUGHING at yourself.


Go on, forward this to your friends. You
know you want to!

Go lick your elbow.

All drugs have two
names, a trade name and generic
name.

Example, the
trade name is Tylenol and it's generic name
is Acetaminophen.. Aleve
is also called Naproxen.


Amoxil is also called
Amoxicillin and Advil is also
called Ibuprofen.

The FDA has
been looking for a generic name for Viagra.

After careful
consideration by a team of government
experts, it recently announced
that it has settled on the generic name of Mycoxafloppin.

Also considered were Mycoxafailin, Mydixadrupin,
Mydixarizin,
Dixafix, and of course, Ibepokin.




Pfizer Corp. announced today
that Viagra will
soon be available in liquid form, and will be marketed by Pepsi Cola
as
a power beverage suitable for use as a mixer..

It will now be
possible for a man to literally pour
himself a stiff one.


Obviously we can no longer call this a
soft drink, and it
gives new meaning to the names of 'cocktails',
'highballs' and just a good old-fashioned 'stiff drink'.


Pepsi will market the new concoction by the
name of:
MOUNT & DO.


Thought for the day: There is more money
being spent on
breast implants and Viagra today than on Alzheimer's
research.

This means that by
2020, there should be a large
elderly population with perky boobs and
huge erections and absolutely no recollection of what
to do with them.

To Surf or Learn, THAT is the virtual question.

My son doesn't go to the traditional "brick & mortar" school, otherwise known as a school house or what have you. He gets to go to school in his pajamas, eat home cooked lunches, take as long (or short) as he needs, and as long as the work is done at the end of the day, and he understands, it's all good.

We go through the virtual school system, and it's a regular public school. The same library fees you pay your regular school gets applied to tech support, and the monies the district gets for your child goes to the virtual school system to pay for the teachers, supplies, etc. Of course as parent "teaching coach", it's a labor of love. We get nothing, except the progress we see in our children.

It doesn't matter why we decided to get out of the regular school, it only matters that they weren't educating him, and now he's above his level in reading, science and social studies, and right about at grade level in writing, and now only slightly behind in math.

We first started with Wisconsin Virtual Academy or WIVA, which started in Ozaukee County, WI, but went to McFarland. Since we were already registered with Ozaukee, we stayed, and our application stayed there while the curriculum went to Wisconsin Virtual Learning or WVL. I really like the programs.

The virtual learning is growing so fast, that there is now another option here in Wisconsin, called Wisconsin Virtual School. I'm sure there are others, and it's just the beginning. There is much more out there, as listed here. And it's approved by the Department of Public Instruction (DPI).

What is neat is that you get the regular k12 program that is offered to the regular schools. Yet the curriculum, including the computer for your child gets sent to your doorstep. With regular school with a group of 25 kids, 1 lesson = 1 day. Your child doesn't learn, they fall behind, especially in those subjects where other lessons are built upon the old ones. With the virtual k12 program, you can spend extra time on each topic, and if you need 2 days for the math concept, this one, but turn around and do 2 reading lessons and get ahead there.

If your child has a different type of learning style, and struggles to learn with the regular program, but is capable of achieving, the Calvert program using the Verticy system is very good, because it uses a language based system, and encourages reading. There are also enrichment programs also, such as DOMA/DORA which is Diagnostic Online Math/Reading Assessment. It interacts with your child, and in this technological days, it's actually fun, and your child learns. My son went from 1st grade to mid 3rd grade level math in just this one year. He also went from a mid 3rd grade reading level to a mid 5th grade reading level. Writing still needs work, but that's greatly improved as well, and is actually writing more, and learning technology.

Virtual learning is not for those who are severely handicapped, as much of what needs to be done is something that the child has to be able to understand as well as do on their own. The plus side is that there is a teacher at the other end that you're assigned to, so if you get stuck, you call or email your teacher. That teacher will also offer enrichment classes online, in a virtual classroom with multiple kids. Homeroom time is also available to drop in for extra help. On the down side, it IS a commitment from the parents, so there is something to have to give up, whether it's spare/free time, or extra hours, etc...

While a student who has minor obstacles that greatly hinders a child in regular school, can be overcome in virtual school as they do offer a special teacher to come in to assess and do an Individualized Education Plans IEP with you. As for P.E., library and what not, you're on the honor system, but what's nice is that a walk through the park can count as your P.E. session, or your child's favorite sport can be included via going through the Y.

You DO need DSL or higher speed on your computer, and so if you're low income, you can still apply for a grant to help pay for that, and often, since you don't get subsidized for the school lunches, you DO get help paying for your online services instead, to make it worth the cost.

Virtual schools did have higher retention rates in over all returning students, vs. kids dropping out of school. The graduation rate is there, solid. In a recent audit and LaCrosse Newspaper, it states that the reading test scores are higher in virtual schools than in regular schools. Parents and guardians are generally satisfied, also. In this PDF file provided by the U.S. Dept. of Education, evidenced that since kids have fun going to school online, they learn better, faster, retain information, and are motivated to stay in school. Of course the quality of a college education is that you should try to go to a regular university vs. online. But, most of it is up to how motivated each person is.

This last school year, Mike, or you may know him as Euro, has been the primary teacher for my son Chad. They both did great. I was only needed about 4 times to start the school day, and then just a handful of times for discipline issues. My son is smart, and give you a good run for your money. It was almost as if teaching is more difficult than learning. Here is the proof:

If you're worried about socialization, not to worry. Your child goes to school to learn, not talk animatedly during a science experiment, right? So, there are various field trips that happen with the kids in the area, and there are parent groups to join. You can always hook up with a near by virtual school family to take that trip to the park with. There's faith orientated groups, horse/animal lessons, swimming lessons or other sport, or volunteering. Many opportunities to ensure that your child gets to be near other children and people. And at times, your child may become more mature than their peers, because of the various learning that happens.

All of you parents, grandparents, friends, or interested people that have questions about this, feel free to ask me any questions. I don't mind helping in any way possible. It's a great program.

Your recipes for the day:
Chicken Soup w/ White Wine:
Boneless skinless chicken, lightly seasoned with garlic salt, pepper & paprika. Brown.
Add large chopped onion, large chopped bell pepper, 4 garlic cloves crushed/minced, (optional stalk of celery) and about 3.5 cups of fresh diced tomatoes (may use a large can of diced or stewed tomatoes, but fresh is healthier).
Add a cup of low sodium chicken broth and a cup of dry white wine.
Simmer about an hour. Serve in large bowls with a nice hearty bread, like 12 grain.

Round-steak soup/stew:
About 4 or maybe 5 pieces of round-steak (I'm having a difficult time finding the whole round, so I just use the cut up rounds).
Lightly season with garlic salt & seasoned pepper. Dredge in flour. Brown well with a little oil in a heavy kettle.
Slice 2-3 celery stalks & large onion. Brown a little bit with the meat. Add about 1.5 - 2 cups freshly diced tomatoes (or 1 regular can of diced or stewed tomatoes).
Add 1/4 cup red wine. Add dash of Worcestershire sauce for a deeper color, a tsp sugar, & a bay leaf. Simmer about an hour or so. Serve with Mashed potatoes.

Zesty Mashed Potatoes:
About 6 or so potatoes, peeled and cut. 1 medium onion, cut julienne style. 2 garlic cloves. Boil til fork tender. Drain. Return to pot, mash. Add a dash of milk, margarine, sour cream & pepper to taste. Good alone or with other foods.