h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I know za'atar, Wilma! I got a jar from you through Hypatia! I toss it just about everything. I only have about a quarter of it left though...

Tod, you are right about losing Victorian light roses,etc from ceilings with a suspended ceiling and irronically I was thinking about that the other day. What I would do if that was ever to happen where I lived is I would build the suspended ceiling so that only say soft rockwool touched original ceiling roses, etc and a frame was built around them so they were in tact if noisey neighbours moved out so suspened ceiling could be taken down. I would put reproduction Victorian fittings on the suspended ceilling.
It sounds a lot of work but I suspect a suspened ceiling would actually be less work than taking up carpets and floor boards with atssociated wiring, etc in way.
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I have now decided that whatever the expense I am going to put as much insulation under my lounge floorboards as I can while they are up. This for two reasons, The first is it is such a big job to take flooring and carpets up in whole flat and also it is 6.45am in my lounge with kid saying daddy, daddy, daddy loudly and Mr Loud Voice speaking and some sort of kids DVD on TV.
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I tell you what though the woman who lives there must be getting sick of it, it is another womans kid and she is getting all the noise, stress and lack of sleep by being woken up in early hours by it. To be honest if it was me the bloke and kid would be finding somewhere else to live pronto!

Mornin All

In the Swedish papers today:

Swedish Rosso is the world's best German shepherd!

I haven't been able to find a link in English yet, it's fresh 'off the printer' but here is the official page:
http://wusv2007.kynologia.com/index.php?module=results

Out of a maximum points of 100 he got 100, 97 and 97 in (I think) obedience, tracking and guarding.

Rosso himself:
http://www.imzedrift.com/HANAR/RossoPICT0055.JPG

There was also an article about 'ugliest gadgets' and among them was Zune player from Microsoft - so ugly that it has actually been used to camouflage the far more attractive iPod (hideapod dot com)

[p]

Zaatar is seriously good stuff. I've put Lebanon on my possible places to retire list just to get the zaatar. FG, have you used it in olive oil as a dip for flatbread? I put a little in a pasta salad I made the other day for a potluck. Everyone raved about it. But my favorite thing to do with it is use it in dry rubs for chicken. I used it on a pork loin one time. That worked, too. And you can stir it into yogurt and scrambled eggs.

[GDZ]

Strangely, I think you're doing the right thing to put as much insulation down as you can. I don't envy you the mess. You'll have to keep reminding yourself that it is all in a good cause - maintaining your sanity.

Tonight is the annual Chamber of Commerce banquet. the library generally decorates a table for it. Every year they send out the4 notices for people who want to decorate a table to sign up. I never do.Because I don't want to do one. I think it is an innapropriate use of tax dollars, so I generally pay for it myself. It gets expensive. Centerpiece that goes to one person at the table plus favors for 8 people. Then they run short and call me at he last minute frantically wanting me to do one. This will make my 8th year, I think. Ot maybe 9th. I've lost track.

This year's theme is "Celebrating 90" since it is the Chamber's 90th year. I decided to do "Celebrating 90 Years of the Pulitzer Prize". I found some nice wooden letter holders shaped like books at Hobby Lobby for half off. I can put two back to back for the centerpiece and put bookmarks, flyers, pencils, etc in them for people to take. And a list of winners of the Pulitzer. For the favors I bought a blank book and a smaller Hallmark book(found them at the Dollar Store) with quotes from poets, novelists, etc - many of whom are Pulitzer winners - for each seat. I tied them together with satin ribbon and used a silk rose as the bow. They look pretty. Then I'll scatter candy around the table. That has become sort of traditional. I brought it all in for under $100. I think this is the least I've ever spent on it.

I have to work tonight so am not attending. These things are profoundly boring. Really a wasted evening. I'm relieved to have a legitimate excuse not to go. The best part of it is looking at the table decorations, and I can do that this afternoon when I decorate mine.

Amazing you are so full of ideas always, Hyp.

Half my head is numb from an injection at the dentist and the other is just a chaotic mess .

I'll just write lists and research, think and interview tomorrow.

()

Last night I dreamed of presidential candidates. I was running away from them.

for Tartaronne. Hope you feel unnumbed soon

Zaatar is a pretty special thing. This summer we were in Deir el Qamar in the Chouf mountains and we saw the village women coming up from the valley with men in tow laden with baskets and boxes of sumac bark and wild thyme twigs. We waited for them then sat and watched as they began sorting beating and pounding them into two mounds of dark green and red powder. We bought a bag ful of each then drove to the nearest roastery to get us some freshly roasted sesame seeds - went home, mixed a batch and sat down the next morning to a traditional breakfast of zaatar, eggs fried in a clay pan, labneh (strained yogurt) and olives

I wouldn't like to try my chances at getting that homemade moonshine through US Customs though but anytime you guys want more, just whistle, I'll post you some legal shopbought jars again, ok?

As a very sad postscript, Deir el Qamar has just lost its forests so I feel very privileged to have witnessed that cameo in August.

http://www.eliedh.com/2007/10/02/deir-al-qamar-surrounded-by-fires/

*inserts an errant 'l' and a for Lil so the US persecutional candidates can no longer see her*

I've put za'atar in my olive oil for dipping, in my yogurt cheese, in my hummus, on my eggs, damn...practically every place except chocolate cake. It's wonderful stuff.

I'm thinking that being chased by U.S. presidential candidates is quite a frightening dream. Although quite frankly I'm pretty sure I could outrun Fred Thompson.

Ah, but can you outrun a golf cart?

Possibly, if that golf cart is driven by Fred Thompson.

Hyp, I am surrounded by my floor, sadly slightly damaged during lifting as it was never meant to be again, although it can be repaired. My belongs are piled around me too. I fully expected the daddy, daddy , daddy child in tears as I had kept it awake with noise, would't that be novel, however not a tear.
It was to be honest a lot harder work taking it up than I thought it would be and not looking forward to doing rest of flat.
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There is one added benefit in that if I sell my flat and people come to see it they will more than likely hear noise if I don't do something about it.

I can get zaatar down here, at the persian grocery story. Right next to the straight sumac, which I put on everything. I like zaatar, but I like sumac better.

Might I recommend it in chicken or tuna salad? It's to die for.

And just as mysteriously as my head cold showed up, it's gone. A little residual stuffiness, but essentially, I woke up with no more cold. Bizarre.

>>Possibly, if that golf cart is driven by Fred Thompson.

didn't someone recently get arrested for driving drunk on a golf cart? was it bill murray?