Shoe Storage/Totes

Shoe and boots bring home plenty of street grit. Fortunately, empty 7kg Purina Max-Scoop pails are the perfect size for storing or carrying each pair of footware while capturing the dirt that falls from them. Here is an example:- Shoe Storage-Totes

Reuse is better than recycling.

Rice Cooker: The All-Purpose Pot

Roger Ebert loves to cook everything in a Rice Cooker and loves to tell stories about it. His blog has a following of enthusiastic fans. There is even a book.. The Pot and How to Use It.

He calls The Pot the only one you will ever need. Well, I have to disagree a little because there is the problem of overflow or spatter.. at least for the many people who buy a Rice Cooker and don't read the instructions on every bag of rice. Unprocessed rice has a starchy residue which remains when the grains are separated from the plant. The rice must be washed away before cooking otherwise the starch floating atop the water will form bubbles which then spatter around the lid and out the steam hole. You can minimize this problem by putting rice and water in an old pot, then pouring away most of the water. Finally, dump the wet rice in a sieve before putting it in the cooker. So you need an old pot and a sieve in addition to the cooker.

There are too many Rice Cookers to choose from. Fortunately, you can create a short list by visiting Cooker Guide. Rice Cooker fans tend to favour the Zojirushi models. I found a Rival model with a steel steaming tray just like the Zojirushi 30 percent discounted at my neighborhood Kitchen Stuff. Although you can find small Cookers starting at $10, a larger unit with steaming tray is worth the extra dollars for multi-use operation.

My first cook-up had one measure of rice in the bowl plus the steamer tray had small red potatoes, carrots, frozen broccoli, and mushrooms. I discarded the poorly cooked rice but the steaming tray items were delicious. The potatoes and carrots were perfect but the other items were overcooked. Obviously, the non-root vegetables need to be added last.

Next times I was careful to prewash and added more rice to cover the bottom of the cooker. Basmatic rice has a subtle aroma when cooking that reminds me of popcorn. Brown rice has a chewy texture and interesting flavor. Both are delightful when a dab of faux-butter is mixed in while the rice is still warm from The Pot. Do not add butter and oils during rice cooking. The Pot is very hot and may damage the oils.

Some folks create recipies with exact measurements for all the items. Others just throw food in the pot and see what happens. Enjoy The Pot.

I write like
David Foster Wallace

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

Buffy The Cat, LOL Again!

Cats are susceptible to bladder stones and Buffy, who is lucky 13, has them. They show up on Xray and there is blood in the urine probably caused by these stones. Buffy terrorized the staff at the animal hospital and the Vet called for permission to sedate. She was too stubborn to pee and had to stay overnight for a complete test. Oh, my.

Buffy did not eat for a few days but she now is feeling good again and eating her special diet to reduce the size of the stones which hopefully will pass. Twice daily I pounce on her with a towel and give her a squirt of Clavamox from the Vet to reduce infection. All's well so far.

Cola Steak

Coke or similiar similiar soft drinks makes a good marinade for steak. This is an unusual idea and the simple recipe is not too much trouble for the lazy man. Here is an example:-

• 3 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 teaspoons Mrs Dash Grilling Blends
• 2 cans coke
• Options:- garlic salt, lime

Add marinade and meat to a glass dish. Cover tightly with plastic wrap. Prepare in the morning, leave in the fridge, grill in the evening.

HDTV UHF Antenna (DIY)

HDTV Digital Television from antenna provides a superior picture compared to the same channels on cable. And the price is right... free, no monthly fees. The DIY people will be happy to know they can easily make a small and simple indoor antenna for less than $20 that performs as well, or even better than store-boughts. See Fractal HDTV Antenna

SanDisk Sansa MP3 Player Repair

The Sandisk Sansa e260 MP3 Player is a sturdy device with a “liquid metal” exterior frame and an inner aluminum frame for the lithium-ion battery. However, mine did not work after falling on the floor. You may suffer the same mishap since the unit is rectangular and slippery with no protrusions to maintain a grip. Fortunately, this unit can be repaired by anyone handy with a small screwdriver. This project page describes the procedure.

Amazing Shepherd's Pie

The lazy man likes to scan the meals found in charming cook books but considers the planning and effort required to be too scientific. The instinctive way of preparing meals is much more appealing.

Consider, for example, Shepherd's Pie which is traditionally a convenient and tasty dish made from leftover meat and potatoes. There are many different recipies to be found on the WWW. Since there is so much variation, perhaps a recipe is not needed.

I tried a President's Choice frozen entree. It was a salty combination of potato powder and ground beef with a pseudo-sweet taste which I suppose was high-fructose corn syrup (HFC) . I could not eat this factory food.

Karina's Kitchen has Sweet Potato Shepherd's Pie which might be more tasty than the typical frugal recipe. However, it is too complicated for the lazy guy so I gathered these ingredients instead.

• minced turkey
• sweet potatoes (yams)
• red onions
• red and green peppers
• Lipton Spring Vegetable Cup-a-Soup
• black pepper
• mild curry powder
• paprika (left over from a deviled egg experiment)

Method: Brown the turkey in an oven casserole dish. Boil the yams. The yams cook faster than potatoes.. they need no butter or milk for mashing. Make a base of turkey and chopped vegetables. Make cup-a-soup with pepper and curry, pour it evenly over the base. Finally, add the mashed yams. Cook in the oven.

This dish is tasty and nutritious while being relatively low in salt and fat. The sweet potatoes add more color and flavour than bland white potatoes.

Quantum of Entertainment

The latest Bond flick, Quantum of Solace, is entertaining as an action film but affirms my impression that each new Bond is duller than the previous. Daniel Craig seems to be channeling Jackie Chan with overlong and frantic action sequences leaving him too tired for acting.

Sean Connery played this role with the right mix of charisma, action, and humour. He is the one true Bond.

Goa'uld LostAndFound Department

An annoying disruption of workflow occurs when important items disappear from your desk or work area at the office. Usually a colleague has "borrowed" the item and not bothered to return it or leave a note. A typical employee would issue a polite email with a plea for the return of the item. Perhaps a more dramatic message would discourage such disrespect of your property.

The Goa'uld are the haughty overlords and self-proclaimed gods of the Stargate SG1 universe. The Goa'uld does not say please, he/she gives orders. The Goa'uld is never pleased. Do not "borrow" anything from the the Goa'uld workspace.

In this Sound file, someone has borrowed the Goa'uld pencil and he is not amused. He orders his minions to find the foolish culprit..

The original Stargate series with Richard Dean Anderson was the best. How is the Goa'uld voice created? Actress Jacqueline Samuda explains the audio technique of "flanging". I created the Goa'uld message using Audacity and SoX