Coffee Klatch

Which Norse God Are You? created with QuizFarm.com

You scored as Odin. You are Odin. You are the leader of the Norse Gods. You are the wisest and always fight evil. You sacrificed your eye for knowledge, as well as hanging for 9 days with a spear in your side. You are the God of Philosophy and Poetry. You will lead the Gods into Ragnorak (the end of the world) Odin 60% Tyr 53% Thor 50% Baldr 50% Freyja 45% Loki 28%

Firefox 3 is coming out in “early June!” I can’t wait! And I just read on Topher’s blog that they’re hoping to set a new Guinness World Record for the most software downloads in one 24-hour period.

You can get more info on the Mozilla Blog post that discusses the event and points you to the Download Day Headquarters. This is also the site where they’ll be officially announcing the release date. And they’re even taking pledges now for people who plan to download Firefox 3. Go there and sign up now and you’ll even get an email reminder from them as the date approaches.

Want to have still more fun? Find a party near you (or host your own) where the guest of honor is Firefox 3.

Go Mozilla! Go Firefox! Oh, Martha May! Oh, Christmas! (oh, wait a second…)

If you’re not familiar with Google Maps Street View, you really need to be. It fills in the gap left by maps and photos taken from satellites. Sure you can plan your route and even see what the areas look like when you zoom in, but that’s only from up above. What about the FRONT of a building? Enter the Street View, another map view setting that actually allows you to see what the buildings look like from the street. You can even zoom in and out and move up and down the streets. Now THAT’S helpful!

What Google did was had cameras mounted on vehicles which drove up and down each street taking pictures. Then they’re all assembled in Google Maps. This is quite cool and I’ve already found it very helpful in planning trips to places I’ve never been before. When you can see what the buildings actually will look like as you drive up to them, you’re more confident.

Here’s where it gets REALLY interesting. An entire subculture has grown up around these Street View pictures. It’s only logical that with so many millions of pictures you’re bound to get a few that are unusual, rather than simple pretty shots of nice buildings on sunny days. For the most part, it’s probably people with too much time on their hands, but what has developed is a community of “online sleuths” who look for and collect these bizarre pictures. Some of those mentioned the most are a car on fire, a man running down the street in a scuba outfit, and a boy falling off his bike in his driveway (one picture shows him on it, the next shows him on the ground).

The Google Street View Gallery has quite a few really interesting or entertaining shots taken by the Google cameras. News.com.au also has a gallery of some favorite images. And it’s not like you have to go someplace special to see them–THEY’RE RIGHT THERE IN GOOGLE MAPS!

If you find some of your own, go to http://streetviewgallery.corank.com/ and set up a free account. Then you can add your own finds and comment on others’.

Current music: Adventures in Early Music - Documented by DHM

I‘m sad to say that I am continuing to lose respect for Indianapolis law enforcement. They seem to do a great job showing up when a crime is reported and even making their presence known in various places around the city. Their philosophy about crime prevention, though, appears to be limited to that.

Call me old school, but it’s my opinion that the role of police officers should be more than showing up when a crime is committed. I still believe (or hope anyway) that police officers should be respected and should be role models for the community, both for children and adults. I know a lot goes on where I don’t see them, but if you don’t live where crimes are committed too frequently, the only times you see them is when they’re driving around town, which is probably the case for most people. And that’s where the role model falls apart.

We have a rather large problem in Indianapolis with people’s general driving habits. If police officers actually enforced traffic laws, this would be a safer and less stressful place to drive. From what I’ve seen over the last three years living in Indianapolis, though, our police officers actually discourage obeying traffic laws. First by NOT enforcing them and, second, by not following the laws themselves. If there’s no enforcement and the example set by the police also ignores the traffic laws, what will the general community do?

I must admit as an aside that I actually have seen some police officers with radar guns pulling people over, both on city streets and on highways, but that is by far the exception and is usually a one-time speed trap, which then is never seen again.

Here is a breakdown of the primary offenses I’ve observed:

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Speeding
Whether on city streets or highways, everyone (including police officers) drives 10-15 mph over the posted speed limits. The typical highway custom for our police cars is to go as fast as they want in the left lane of the highways. Of course no emergency lights or anything; just driving fast without them. I’ve seen police cars actually be “in pursuit,” and that has a different feel to the speed. On the highways, the speed limit is 55 mph around most of Indianapolis. Police cars tend to drive over 70 mph in that left lane and people really make an effort to get out of their way when they see them coming up behind. Which leads to the next topic.

Tailgating
When someone doesn’t get out of the way quick enough, police cars usually ride right up behind the person, figuratively screaming at them to get out of the way. It’s quite a common occurrence. Just this morning I followed a police car most of the way to work and watched them do it to car after car. And that was in one of the right lanes. Eventually they worked their way over to the left lane, but for a while it was busy, so they just rode the bumpers of the cars in front of them until they got out of the way. (I mean, wouldn’t YOU? Imagine looking in your rear view mirror and seeing a police car right on your tail!) Standard traffic guidelines suggest leaving enough room between you and the car in front of you for TWO SECONDS to pass before you arrive where they were. Around here, that’s just an invitation to have people cut in front of you and make you slow down more. Our police officers certainly aren’t a role model in this area.

Running Red Lights
People run red lights around here all the time. It’s not unusual to see two or even three cars go through after the light turns red. Police cars do it too. What really burns me up is when I see a police car stopped at an intersection and doing nothing when people run the red light right in front of them.

Red lights are one of the few times that I’ve actually seen the flashing lights used. Last week, for example, I watched a police car that was in the left turn lane. Right before the light turned, they put on their flashing lights, did a U-turn into the opposite lanes, turned off the lights as soon as they were through the intersection, and then they drove half a block and turned into a fast food drive-thru. The “emergency lights” seem to be used more for their convenience than for actual emergencies or making people pull over.

Changing Lanes Without a Turn Signal
Not a very major thing, but it’s the role model idea. When there’s a lot of traffic, it’s just (un)common courtesy to put your turn signal on before you change lanes in front of someone. Probably half the cars I see changing lanes don’t use their turn signals, and that’s also true for police cars.

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Don’t get me wrong. As I said earlier, I believe our police officers should be respected and obeyed. But I also believe they should be examples to us in areas such as obeying traffic laws and showing courtesy to others. That respect has to be earned. I would PREFER that we (all) be expected to obey the traffic laws; if you’re going to make a rule you should ENFORCE it. Either that or change it. That’s part of what made me be an R.A. in college for three years. But when even the “law enforcement” officers don’t enforce or abide by the laws, they discourage the general populace from obeying the law as well.

I‘m on Mars!

The Phoenix Mars Lander has successfully landed on Mars at the North Pole. Its mission is to analyze ice samples found a couple of inches below the surface, examining them to see if the water samples could have supported microbial life.

Also on the Phoenix is the first library on Mars. It is a collection of literature and art related to Mars and is on a micro-DVD along with the names of over 250,000 people who support it. My name is on the list, so I’m a part of that interplanetary library! Woo-hoo!!

For more info about the journey to Mars and the landing of the Phoenix, visit Space.com.

Here are a couple of jokes about Americans and languages. They are stereotypical, yes, but unfortunately all too common. I guess that’s where “stereotypes” come from.

Language Riddles

What do you call someone who speaks two languages? Bilingual.

What do you call someone who speaks three languages? Trilingual.

What do you call someone who speaks just one language? American.

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Why Bother?A Swiss guy, looking for directions, pulls up at a bus stop where two Americans are waiting.

“Entschuldigen Sie bitte, koennen Sie Deutsch sprechen?” he says.

The two Americans just stare at him.

“Excusez-moi, parlez vous Francais?”

The two continue to stare.

“Parlare Italiano?” No response.

“Hablan ustedes Espanol?” Still nothing.

The Swiss guy drives off, extremely disgusted and frustrated.

The first American turns to the second and says, “Y’know, maybe we should learn a foreign language….”

“Why?” says the other, “That dude knew four languages, and that didn’t do him any good!”

Here are some titles of love songs suggested by children. Of course, I don’t know if they’re authentic, but they’re still funny.

TITLES OF THE LOVE BALLADS YOU CAN SING TO YOUR BELOVED

“How Do I Love Thee When You’re Always Picking Your Nose?”
Arnold, 10

“You Are My Darling Even Though You Also Know My Sister”
Larry, 8

“I Love Hamburgers, I Like You!”
Eddie, 6

“I Am in Love with You Most of the Time, but Don’t Bother Me When I’m with My Friends.”
Bob, 9

“Hey, Baby, I Don’t like Girls but I’m Willing to Forget You Are One!”
Will, 7

“Honey, I Got Your Curly Hair and Your Nintendo on My Mind.”
Sharon, 9

A newly-married wife, trying to impress her husband, woke up early to make him breakfast. She made bacon and eggs, toast, and juice, and brought him breakfast in bed.

He was very appreciative and enjoyed it, and said, “This is really good, but it’s not like Mom used to make.”

The next day, she arose earlier, made an omelet with his favorite ingredients, cut the crusts off the toast and served it with marmalade, and squeezed some fresh orange juice, and brought it to him in bed.

He was surprised and ate every bit, but said, “This is great, but it’s not like Mom used to make.”

Frustrated, the young bride got up even earlier the next day, cooked eggs benedict, baked scones, and made sure to strain all the pulp out of the freshly-squeezed orange juice.

“Wow! This is terrific, but it’s not like Mom used to make.”

Now she was angry. The next day she burned the toast, left the scrambled eggs runny, and left seeds in the orange juice, thinking, “This will fix him!”

He got the meal, took one bite, and said, “Now THIS is like Mom used to make!”

Last night I had “snacks” for our handbell rehearsal. We take turns bringing something to eat/drink for our break time since the rehearsal is three hours long. For the big part of my treat I made tiramisu. It’s my own recipe.

A few years ago I traveled to Italy and was able to have tiramisu in Rome and in Perugia. When I came back to the U.S., I noticed that the tiramisu you get in restaurants here like Olive Garden or Fazoli’s was different. It’s definitely “cakier” and has a different taste. The tiramisu that I had in Italy was more like a custard rather than a cake.

I searched the internet, combined several recipes and added my own elements to make a recipe that produces a tiramisu that’s VERY much like what I had overseas. I share it here for anyone who’d like to try it. If you do, please leave a comment with your, um, comments. Also, please share any tiramisu stories you have. Thanks!

Scott’s Tiramisu

Ingredients

6 egg yolks
1 cup white sugar, divided
1 pound mascarpone cheese (usually 2 containers)
6 egg whites, stiffly beaten
1/4 cup heavy cream
1-2 tsp rum extract (or 1-2 tablespoons rum) - optional
1-1/4 cups espresso or double-strength brewed coffee, cold
25 ladyfingers, split open, preferably soft (often 2 packages = 24, which works)
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (dark or semi-sweet will also work)
1/8 cup mini semisweet or dark chocolate chips - optional

Directions

1. In a medium bowl beat together the egg yolks and 1/3 cup of sugar. Using a wooden spoon, gently stir in mascarpone cheese, beaten egg whites, cream and 1 tsp. rum extract; stir until smooth. Set aside.

2. Dissolve remaining 2/3 cup sugar in coffee. Add 1 tsp. rum extract. Quickly, to avoid complete saturation, dip ends of ladyfingers in coffee mixture. Place half the ladyfingers in a single layer in a 9 x 13 inch baking pan. Spread a layer of half the cheese mixture over the ladyfingers; sprinkle with 1 tbsp. cocoa powder. Sprinkle chocolate chips evenly over surface (optional). Repeat layers, omitting chips on top.

3. Cover and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.

(Note: Some people prefer less rum flavor, in which case, you can eliminate the rum extract from the coffee or from both parts.)

There are many variations of tiramisu, even in Italy. Some cook it, some don’t. Some use ricotta cheese (I’ve heard), but I haven’t tried that. Some use soft ladyfingers and some use harder ones, which I think result in the firmer texture in the end.

Some people prefer to omit the rum, while others (such as I) like it. If you use real rum, be careful not to overdo it–the taste can quickly get strong and overpower the other flavors.

The mini chocolate chips in the center are unusual. I had some tiramisu in Perugia, Italy, that had little chocolate bits like that in the center. I thought it made a wonderful little surprise during eating. Again, don’t overdo the amount. The tiramisu should have a consistency that is like pudding or custard and each bite should not be loaded with crunchy chocolate chunks.

It helps to let the flavors blend for at least a few hours. Making it one day ahead seems to work just fine.

So there you go. My own personal tiramisu recipe. I hope you enjoy it and if you try it, please do come back here and leave me some feedback. Thanks!

One of my favorite poems is “The Jabberwocky,” written by Lewis Carroll in Through the Looking-Glass, which was a sequel to Alice in Wonderland. Carroll invented many of the words in the poem, which is a masterpiece of the nonsense poem genre.

For definitions of the words, as explained by Humpty Dumpty in the story or later by Carroll himself, visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jabberwocky#Glossary (and be sure to look up the definitions for “outgrabe” and “toves”).

‘Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

“Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!”

He took his vorpal sword in hand:
Long time the manxome foe he sought –
So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
And stood awhile in thought

And as in uffish thought he stood,
The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came!

One, two! One, two! and through and through
The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with its head
He went galumphing back.

“And has thou slain the Jabberwock?
Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!”
He chortled in his joy.

‘Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.