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

Bumper stick spotted by Elektra today:

'Republicans for Voldemort' (We suspect the car's owner is a Democrat.)

Christiane:

Happy virtual Thanksgiving to you. We will think of you on Thursday as we try to make gluten-free cornbread dressing.

Dmitri

"Although corn, like wheat, rye and barley, does have a protein content it does not cause harmful effects to someone with celiac disease. Therefore it is considered safe for celiacs to eat"
http://www.the-gluten-free-chef.com/contain-gluten.html

The catch, of course, is that cornmeal could be processed in a facility that also processes wheat, and might absorb a bit of the wheat's gluten.

There are two problems: Cornbread mixes, which invariably contain wheat flour (as do most cornbread recipes), and baking powder, which has something in it I'm not supposed to eat, not sure what.

We've gotten around it, though, I think. And we have some gluten-free cornbread mix, although I greatly fear it will be sweet.

I loather sweet cornbread.

Sorry, I'm not familiar with cornbread mixes, as I don't use them. I sympathize with your aversion to sweet cornbread. Most commercial baked cornbreads are too sweet for me.

oh, all right then:

i was visiting corfu/kerkyra with a girlfriend (who later became my wife and now is a dear friend of mine and - of course - still is the mother of our three lovely children) when we learned that the body of saint spyridon was going to be carried around the main city of kerkyra while we were in town

this was in 1979 - as far as i remember - and i managed to get access through the posh door so i was right up there when bishops and ministers and what have you kissed the foot of the saint which - like the rest of him - had the colour of an apple that was - well, you wouldn't have bought it, given a chance... let's just put it this way

you should of course also know that saint spyridon is kept in a casket of glass which is kept upright when they walk him through the city

still, i picked up enough appetite to go into the baker's shop when all the ladies of the neighbourhood showed up with their food and asked the baker to bake/cook it for them

that's all, folks - but in spite of all this it was actually a very nice experience

As long as you didn't actually kiss his foot...

You have *got* to read that book. You've actually *seen* this ceremony.

Is Saint Spirydon a Saint in the Orthodox faith or the Roman Catholic one? Or does it matter?

Orthodox, for sure. I'm not sure if the Catholics claim him. He's a Nicene Father, though.

His foot has had a very long time in which to decompose. I feel sorry that he has to suffer such indignity as to have his remains paraded through the streets repeatedly.

That's why they give saints the big bucks.

He got to be a saint by NOT having his body decompose. Back in the day, that was considered proof positive that you were holy.

Not, for instance, that there was something weird in the soil over at the cemetery...

I'm pretty sure that he has never appeared in my dreams.

Yet.

I have a dream filter that can filter him out. Trouble is, it backfires, which explains all the anxiety dreams about taking exams or being told that I'm going on for Papageno even though I can't remember any of the words.

Don't most of his lines consist of squawking like a bird?

s to get out DVD of 'Magic Flute'...

My problem with "The Magic Flute is that the production that I was in was with English lyrics. The version in my dream is with German lyrics, which I don't know. Sure, I could have gone out on stage in the dream and sung

"I am a man of widespread fame,
And Papageno is my name.
To tell my tale in simle words,
I make my living catching birds...."

But the audience, expecting German, would have thrown tomatoes at me.

Being Germans, they would probably have thrown turnips.

My getaway car is an Audi that runs on turnips, so no problem. <ok.

I think Philip K Dick had one that ran on chicken manure...

Actually, didn't someone invent one that ran on cooking oil? Said the only problem was that the car smelled like a chippie?

yep, those cars - well, mostly serve us well