Tag: food

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Rev. Joe’s Random Thought #2,943

yeah I know you did not ask!

Everyone has heard of the “five second rule”, if a piece of food falls to the floor you have 5 seconds to pick it up before the germs attack it.

This morning I thought we need to modify this formula a wee bit.  The length of time that is available to pick up the food item is directly proportional to the the perceived goodness of the food.  To illustrate, a lima bean would be trash while it is still a foot from the floor.  A chocolate chip cookie would still be good after resting 20 or 30 seconds on the same floor.

I suppose if will really wanted to be scientific about this we would need to add a couple variables to the equation. One takes into account the cleanliness of the floor.  A kitchen floor immediately after mopping with ammonia water would be close to zero.  A well trafficked floor in a third world bus station would be pushing 1.  We would need another variable for the stickiness of the food.  Our chocolate chip cookie would again be close to zero and a limp, damp, overcooked piece of asparagus would be pushing 1.

If you are OCD  and really want to know what studies have been done on this, here is an article from WebMD:     ‘5-Second Rule’ Rules, Sometimes

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Pass the Black Flag Please

blackflagMy grandmother, my mother’s mother, was known and addressed by all as Mama Carr.  She had a hardscrabble life.  She was born in the Ozark Mountains in 1897.  She later moved with her family to Indian Territory around Tom Joad country near what is now Sallisaw, Oklahoma. Later she would share crop with my grandfather near Warner, Oklahoma in an area lovingly known as Ignorant Ridge.

Along the way she had 11 children, 9 of whom made it to adulthood.  Her only son died in WWII becoming a well publicized war hero with his final actions.  All her daughters went on to live respectable lives.  Mama Carr was charitable, almost to a fault, but she did not tolerate slackards or drunkards.  She was a Pentecostal who for some reason never went to church, but she was a very religious woman.  She was kind in any number of ways, but she also had a temper and a bit of a mean streak. Continue reading “Pass the Black Flag Please”

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Minimum Wage Over Time

Comparing the value of labor over time is apparently not that straight forward. I was wondering about minimum wage. When I graduated high school in 1970 kennedy-half-dollar(gasp… yes) the minimum wage was $1.60. I dropped out of college after a year, and I went to work in a factory for somewhat more than the minimum wage. After a few months I had raises that put me up to $2.60 an hour which was nearly 60% higher than minimum wage. Even at that astronomical wage, even without a car to support, even with living in basically a slum apartment, I was having a hard time making ends meet. I had to be careful with every penny. I had a crisis back then that wiped out very quickly what little savings I had. I had absolutely no benefits. A medical emergency would have been a financial disaster.

Using data as calculated on the website, Measuring Worth , I came up with the following data:

Current data is only available till 2012. In 2012, the relative worth of $1.60 from 1970 is: Continue reading “Minimum Wage Over Time”

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Ted Nugent is some scary sh**!

ted-nugent2Ted Nugent’s response to the Zimmerman case: http://rare.us/story/nugent-zimmerman-verdict-vindicates-citizen-patrols-self-defense/

This is some scary sh**! Ted Nugent is some scary sh**! Anyway you look at the Zimmerman/Martin encounter, it was a huge tragedy.

I really do not know anything about Travan Martin, but looking at his face he appears to be a really nice young man. I think of myself as pretty much non-violent and I do not recall ever starting a fight. A few times when I have been backed into a corner I have fought, and I was pretty much nuts and was determined to do great damage. That is probably where Travan was at, backed into a corner. It is a real shame there was a gun in the mix, otherwise it would have probably ended with two guys with a lot of bruises and scraps.  I really wonder if George Zimmerman would have had the “courage” to stalk this young man if he had not been carrying a concealed weapon.  I am guessing, no.

The thought of so many folks running around with concealed weapons chills my bones. I don’t own a gun, and I really cannot think of a reason why I should unless I suddenly get the need to hunt for food.

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Jonathan Swift on Money

From Gulliver’s Travelers

Amazing how little things have changed in the 300 years.

…neither could he comprehend what I meant in saying, they did it for hire. Whereupon I was at much pains to describe to him the use of money, the materials it was made of, and the value of the metals; “that when a YAHOO had got a great store of this precious substance, he was able to purchase whatever he had a mind to; the finest clothing, the noblest houses, great tracts of land, the most costly meats and drinks, and have his choice of the most beautiful females. Therefore since money alone was able to perform all these feats, our YAHOOS thought they could never have enough of it to spend, or to save, as they found themselves inclined, from their natural bent either to profusion or avarice; that the rich man enjoyed the fruit of the poor man’s labour, and the latter were a thousand to one in proportion to the former; that the bulk of our people were forced to live miserably, by labouring every day for small wages, to make a few live plentifully.” Continue reading “Jonathan Swift on Money”

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Size Does Matter

How Germany got it right on the economy by Harold Meyerson in The Washington Post

The above link is an article on a different form capitalism, one that values social democratic ideals.  This is not the capitalism found in the good ole USA, but it is found in Germany.  Despite the bad economic times, and the raising economic power of Asia, their economy is still doing very well.

I have had some of the same thoughts as the author of this article, only mine were about farming.  I have occasionally had the same thoughts about small retail shops as Wal-Mart and other big box stores kill downtowns and mom and pop operations. I have just never made the logical progression to our manufacturing base. Continue reading “Size Does Matter”

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Step Away from the Counter

When I was in college I clerked in a liquor store for a while.  It was a great job for a student. On weekends we worked hard, but during the week the store was not busy and I was able to study hard.

I had a legal responsibility to not sell alcohol to people that were intoxicated.  Not only did I face criminal action, but as it was explained to me I could also face civil liabilities.  It is not always easy to tell if someone was over the limit.  It is almost always an argument when you refuse to sell to them, but I did do so a few times.  Continue reading “Step Away from the Counter”

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Stephen Colbert Testifies before Congress

God Bless Stephen, he never got out of character and still made his point.

It would be interesting to see what would happen if Americans had to pay a fair cost for their food. If the food was not harvested by exploited illegal immigrants, if our meat supply was done in an ethical manner, if our food supply was truly food and not laboratory products…

Click the link below to watch.

Stephen Colbert’s Testimony before Congress

Here is a link to an article where folks were upset with his testimony.

Steny Hoyer: Stephen Colbert’s Testimony To Congress Was ‘An Embarrassment For Mr. Colbert’

My personal take was it was wonderful.  If you invite a cat in the house and sharpens its claws on the furniture whose fault is it?  He was funny, yet made a lot of good points.  The one at the end was probably one Congress did not want to hear, but is very true.  Stephen was asked to leave the meeting room after his “performance”.   Those sleaze balls in Congress take themselves much, much too seriously.

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Rod, Rod…Don’t Leave Me Here

IHOP I went a hoppingI had medical procedure this morning.  My girlfriend drove me there, waited and then drove me home as it would be better for me not to drive post procedure.  Ella es una grande joya.

On the way back she offered to treat me to breakfast as I had not eaten for the 24 hours prior.  I mentioned something about Waffle House.  The pecan waffles there are just killer and you just gotta love that ambiance.  If it was good enough for Roy ‘Tin Cup’ McAvoy, it ought to be good enough for me.

But that is not what we did.  She saw an IHOP on the way there so in we went.  I’ve only eaten at IHOP 2 or 3 times before, and the last time was at least 10 years ago, maybe more. Continue reading “Rod, Rod…Don’t Leave Me Here”