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

I observe my name on your friend's list, Analiese, so i return the compliment, holding out a hand of friendship.
Btw, one of our village women, who is incidentally godmother to my sister, goes by the name of Anneliese.

Thanks for the friendship. I should note that I usually add people to that list because their stuff interests me and I want to keep track of what they're doing in their journals or whatever. But I'm not adverse to real friendship. Glad you noticed.

not averse, eh, hummm...? on the other hand: really, no fair!?! sorry to jump in uninvited, just couldn't help interject. you know, prodigal and all ....

allyaall are so damn circumspect ... so let's all be truthful, now, okay?!

I've been looking at your writings also, as i find it interesting, and that is how i noticed being on your list. Yes i did wonder if i was being tracked but that's a compliment as well. Sorry i haven't done much in my journal lately, being up to the ears in a longstanding project.
Good to talk to you.

When you've walked a few miles in my moccassins, Kyaa, then you can be more credible when complaining about circumspection. Until then, just enjoy, okay?

Well, now you know the truth of the tracking, Delicia. I hope I wasn't being too impertinent. Do you have something posted at RCO by any chance?

whatever do you mean, rusty? are we really going to start that argument again, rusty? please say it ain't so! you really have no idea how many mocs i've worn and patched and worn. wait till you see some of dc's old posts! ohh, fireworks. never mind, i do truly believe we are good peoples who do not harbor ill will. i do readily admit to the 'sin' of wanting to challange patterns of thought and broaden our minds!

Of course it wasn't impertinent, all to the contrary, i thought it was rather fine of you.
I posted at the old RCO quite a lot, but i haven't anything at the new RCO, except the sword & sorcery gallery, which somebody dragged over there when the great exodus from CZ began, i couldn't think what they wanted with it, oh yes, Pedro Cortez muttered something about illustrating white atavism or some such.
I do look in sometimes, if you see Just Curious in the log, that's me.

White atavism? Oh that's something ain't it? Well, maybe so. I don't know how HE would know though.

Sort of reminds me of that white, longhaired brunette masquerading as indian girl wearing furs and eagle bone choker accompanied by tame wolf, or maybe Malamute, art that was popular a few years ago and still is in a lot of curio shops. Sort of nostalgia for the never was. Which should be convenient for somebody. Not sure who yet.

Just Curious? I was wondering who that was. Thanks for telling me. Now that's one more loose end I can tie up that probably doesn't make any difference in the larger scheme of things but was bugging me nevertheless.

Oh, alright, Kyaa, if you say so. And I just want you to know you're doing one heck of job broadening my mind. In fact, if you broaden it any more it'll look like a factory made wheat flour tortilla and probably just as gummy.

Now, what's this about dc and fireworks? Is that an inside the beltway insider joke?

Well you can't accuse me of having had that sort of romanticised, mushy picture in my gallery, i never liked them, they're false. But they're a good indication of what to expect of people, bit like rattlers, see them and i know i better take evasive action or be in for a lot of earnest back-to-nature toss.

Just Curious is derived from Delicia Curious, the name i went by at old RCO. That's why paulie and kyaa refer to me as DC sometimes.

Well, guess I haven't been paying close enough attention. For a minute I thought Kyaa was talking about Washington, DC or something, but of course we can't mention that here can we?

Back to nature? Well, that's interesting isn't it? Depends on whose back to nature we're talking about I guess or more correctly whose forward to nature.

Because I suppose there's a lot of people who've decided having 14 bathrooms really doesn't give you eternal bliss. So maybe they figure the plumbing bills would get cheaper if they could just leave their dumps out on the prairie somewheres? Which is of course what's happening already. They just don't have to do it themselves and don't have to look at the dumps everyday. At least the wind changes direction once in awhile.

So what was my point? Hmm, I don't guess I recall now really. Just forget I brought it up.

Did you ever notice that people who drive Ford Explorers can't drive? I noticed that after tailing a lady in a white one today on my way back from getting a Wendy's bacon cheeseburger. They're old fashioned, you know? The burgers, I mean. That's back to something probably.

rusty, you eat that stuff? bacon cheeseburgers from Wendy's? and you're telling me about mushy white factory made wheat tortillas? okay, fine, if you want to start tossing stuff about don't deny yourself; and i know you'll just have to keep coming back to make sure no one got away with nothing or nothing! haiyah yaaah! off we go!!

by the way rusty have you ever seperated the wheat from the chaff, ground the wheat with two stones by hand, collected the fresh flour, added water to it in a large earthen bowl, kneaded the dough and made a ball and clapped it out - unleavened whole wheat bread (of any name) - with your own hands, on an black cast iron impliment and eaten it fresh off the fire lighted by you out of fresh coal or charcoal, in a small hearth or a mobile 'stove'?

nahhh??? thought so!

Nah, I use Blue Bird flour and I don't think for a minute you've done all that stuff yourself either. Nah nee nah!!!

okay here's what i have done.

did not seperate from the chaff but got the fresh hard red wheat right after by the bag full.

my aunt, may she be at peace, let me grind the wheat in those big round sandstone blocks, a long long time ago. my grandmother, may she be at peace, let me knead the flour once she had put in the ingredients she wanted. i was allowed to form the balls and roll these out, flat and round.

i never was allowed to light the coals, too dangerous they said.

i was allowed to put it on the hot black iron 'griddle.'
the manipulation, no.

of course we get to eat them fresh and fluffy, watch the steam!

Sounds great kyaa. I must say though that the baking mixtures of the big bakeries are so good that one could hardly do it better at home, or even as well, including the small bakeries get them, and it's wonderful bread, particularly the rye bread, which i think besides the north of Germany, Poland and Russia isn't eaten anywhere much.
That's the only thing that can get me down when staying abroad for longer. Once i and some collegues had to make do with white bread for about a year, sounds like nothing much, but we were becoming increasingly desperate. Luckily just then we met a SIL with Russian soldiers and begged for rye bread. The dear boys gave us all they had.

I love cast iron. It's so durable and stuff. And the heft!! You sure can intimidate guys who come around but shouldn't and should know better. One of the few things that really gets their attention when you brandish it.

under the moniker of bread there is such a variety of edibles. there is one that starts out as a ball of unleavened flour, just wheat flour, water, a bit of salt and some butter. You roll out the dough ball and introduce a thin layer of butter. then you fold it over and roll it out round again and introduce another layer, you repeat the process many times and then you throw it onto that iron pan/griddle/bowl. the product is quite delicious. i also like such bread made with other grains. i like the product, naan, made in the super hot oven called the tandoor; you can't make that at home. i love the fresh baguettes in the early morning with a bowl of coffee; you can't make that at home either. and, i'll never have enough of those.

then there's rice; there are so many varieties and flavors and textures and scents and dishes based on it. shoot, this could become a cookbook! pinenut, long as a digit on a long finger; shelling requires such patience but once enough are done what a treat. the same goes for pistachios. and, who's ever had enough cashews? but, all at the right time and the right season, not anytime and anywhere, okay?!

yeah, you're right about cast iron rusty. it commands attention but anything cooked in it is just that much more flavorful, agreed?!

I love iron, absolutely fascinating metal. So many things one can do with it, not least the many different ways of brandishing it in the direction of trouble.