One of the special Christmas treats when I was growing up were cookies my gran used to make called Basler Läckerli (also spelled Leckerli). These are named after the Swiss town of Basel, and I guess my gran was exposed to them as she grew up in Alsace, France.
They are quite unusual , containing no eggs or butter. Instead, the dough is made from honey, sugar, candied citrus peel, almonds and spices. They last forever (in an airtight container), but if they do start to get a bit dry you can soften them by putting a few slices of apple in the container with them.
I had great success making some myself this past Christmas, and have shared out my gran's recipe on Google docs here: http://docs.google.com/View?id=dgt27mxq_5fnz9rfxn
If you're not up to making them, and are feeling flush, you can also order some from a shop in Switzerland: Läckerli Huus
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Friday, December 18, 2009
Aged Eggnog
I noticed an article in the current Seattle Magazine that mentioned ageing eggnog. I'd never heard of this before, being a somewhat recent transplant to the Northern reaches of the world. For some reason, in South Africa, we never really got into eggnog, what with the 36+ degree C summer weather over Christmas!
The basic idea presented in the article was to put the eggnog (with alcohol) in a cool location - the author used her unheated garage. Now, my garage seems to stay around 45 degrees F in winter (at the coolest), so this seems like a dangerous thing to do. Surely the eggs will grow some funky bacteria?
Not so, according to this article on Chow.com: Old but not lethal
They do recommend using the fridge, not the garage, though!
The basic idea presented in the article was to put the eggnog (with alcohol) in a cool location - the author used her unheated garage. Now, my garage seems to stay around 45 degrees F in winter (at the coolest), so this seems like a dangerous thing to do. Surely the eggs will grow some funky bacteria?
Not so, according to this article on Chow.com: Old but not lethal
They do recommend using the fridge, not the garage, though!
Tuesday, December 01, 2009
Doing what Heifer.org says they do...
(Originally posted 1/18/2007)
I spotted this story on Metafilter, the video here is worth checking out.
It turns out Heifer.org (recent darlings of the media for some reason) have fine print on this page on their website that says the money donated to them is "symbolic" and will not actually go to buying a water buffalo for a needy family. Some of it will, but the way the website is worded you'd think all (or amlost all) would go towards the buffalo, and that you might get some feedback (a picture or info of the recipient family):
It looks like the small print may have been changed since this post . It now reads:
What does Chariy Navigator say about Heifer? They give them a 3-star rating, and only 75% of the funds they raise go towards the program costs. The president's salary of $183,000 doesn't help much...
Update: 04/24/2008:
This post still gets a lot of views... To clarify a bit - I have not volunteered with or donated to Heifer.org. (Some readers seem to think I have).
Checking the Charity Navigator page a little of a year after I originally posted this, it's interesting to see the increase in the president's salary. From $183,000 to $213,490. That's a 16% increase!
Update: 12/01/2009:
I am amazed to see that this post still gets a lot of hits and generates a lot of comments - I had no idea it would be such a lightning rod when I posted it! Kimberline recently commented and I think it's worth responding to some of the points raised.
Firstly, the title of the blog post is in reference to the short film by Robert Thompson titled "4 Generations" (linked to at the top of the blog post). This is the person that "is doing what Heifer.org says they do".
I should be clear that I don't hate Heifer.org. Originally I was motivated to post something because I enjoyed the short film, found it opened my eyes, and provided some food for thought. Before seeing the film and reading the story, the only information I had seen about Heifer.org was what they showed in their advertising - turns out that was a bit misleading. (Shocking!)
At the time I posted this blog, Heifer.org had what I think was misleading advertising, which they since corrected to make it clear the donations they receive may not result in actual animals being purchased for the poor. So, while the title of the blog post is a little outdated nowadays, I presume folks can read beyond the title of the blog post and form their own opinion of how applicable (or not) it is today.
Kimberline says that he/she doesn't see any mention of donations to charity on my blog, and therefore I am not qualified to criticize a charitable organization. I've never felt the need to blog about my donations to charity, but I will say that I do give each year and have volunteered my time as well.
Kimberline makes it sound like we should be happy with any charity that gives money to the needy, and not worry too much about the efficiency. I disagree - while 75% may seem like a good ratio, it is not that great. If you want to make a difference, you should want to make the biggest difference you can per dollar, so efficiency is vital.
If you are really interested in addressing world hunger as efficiently as possible, I would recommend looking at the Friends of the World Food Program. They spend 94.5% of their income on program expenses and have a four-star rating on Charity Navigator (see here). The CEO does earn a large salary ($300,000 in 2007), which some may take issue with, but given that so little money is "wasted" by this organisation, the CEO must be worth the money! :)
In closing, I don't expect people to read my blog post and make a decision based solely on the information here. Hopefully people take the time to do a bit more research and reading, go to Charity Navigator or even ask the charities they like for more information on their overhead.
I'm not going to pull this post down simple because some people think Heifer.org should not have a spotlight shone on them.
* Photo from CharlesFred (Flickr)

It turns out Heifer.org (recent darlings of the media for some reason) have fine print on this page on their website that says the money donated to them is "symbolic" and will not actually go to buying a water buffalo for a needy family. Some of it will, but the way the website is worded you'd think all (or amlost all) would go towards the buffalo, and that you might get some feedback (a picture or info of the recipient family):
Nothing's more satisfying than finding exactly the right solution to a problem. That's the good feeling you get when you give an Asian subsistence farmer a water buffalo.
It looks like the small print may have been changed since this post . It now reads:
The prices in this catalog represent the complete livestock gift of a quality animal, technical assistance and training. Each purchase is symbolic and represents a contribution to the entire mission of Heifer International. Donations will be used where needed most to help struggling people.
What does Chariy Navigator say about Heifer? They give them a 3-star rating, and only 75% of the funds they raise go towards the program costs. The president's salary of $183,000 doesn't help much...
Update: 04/24/2008:
This post still gets a lot of views... To clarify a bit - I have not volunteered with or donated to Heifer.org. (Some readers seem to think I have).
Checking the Charity Navigator page a little of a year after I originally posted this, it's interesting to see the increase in the president's salary. From $183,000 to $213,490. That's a 16% increase!
Update: 12/01/2009:
I am amazed to see that this post still gets a lot of hits and generates a lot of comments - I had no idea it would be such a lightning rod when I posted it! Kimberline recently commented and I think it's worth responding to some of the points raised.
Firstly, the title of the blog post is in reference to the short film by Robert Thompson titled "4 Generations" (linked to at the top of the blog post). This is the person that "is doing what Heifer.org says they do".
I should be clear that I don't hate Heifer.org. Originally I was motivated to post something because I enjoyed the short film, found it opened my eyes, and provided some food for thought. Before seeing the film and reading the story, the only information I had seen about Heifer.org was what they showed in their advertising - turns out that was a bit misleading. (Shocking!)
At the time I posted this blog, Heifer.org had what I think was misleading advertising, which they since corrected to make it clear the donations they receive may not result in actual animals being purchased for the poor. So, while the title of the blog post is a little outdated nowadays, I presume folks can read beyond the title of the blog post and form their own opinion of how applicable (or not) it is today.
Kimberline says that he/she doesn't see any mention of donations to charity on my blog, and therefore I am not qualified to criticize a charitable organization. I've never felt the need to blog about my donations to charity, but I will say that I do give each year and have volunteered my time as well.
Kimberline makes it sound like we should be happy with any charity that gives money to the needy, and not worry too much about the efficiency. I disagree - while 75% may seem like a good ratio, it is not that great. If you want to make a difference, you should want to make the biggest difference you can per dollar, so efficiency is vital.
If you are really interested in addressing world hunger as efficiently as possible, I would recommend looking at the Friends of the World Food Program. They spend 94.5% of their income on program expenses and have a four-star rating on Charity Navigator (see here). The CEO does earn a large salary ($300,000 in 2007), which some may take issue with, but given that so little money is "wasted" by this organisation, the CEO must be worth the money! :)
In closing, I don't expect people to read my blog post and make a decision based solely on the information here. Hopefully people take the time to do a bit more research and reading, go to Charity Navigator or even ask the charities they like for more information on their overhead.
I'm not going to pull this post down simple because some people think Heifer.org should not have a spotlight shone on them.
* Photo from CharlesFred (Flickr)
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Can tap beer make you sick?
The Seattle Weekly had an interesting column a few weeks ago, talking about beer on tap, and how it's really important for the beer lines to be changed regularly.
See http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/voracious/2008/10/ask_the_bartender_can_tap_beer.php
This is not something I've thought about much before, but it makes perfect sense. Perhaps it's worth finding out how often your favourite pub or restaurant change their lines? Or if you get some "off" beer, this may be the reason why... (Previously I used to think it was all to do with the age of the keg...)
See http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/voracious/2008/10/ask_the_bartender_can_tap_beer.php
This is not something I've thought about much before, but it makes perfect sense. Perhaps it's worth finding out how often your favourite pub or restaurant change their lines? Or if you get some "off" beer, this may be the reason why... (Previously I used to think it was all to do with the age of the keg...)
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Syrah versus Shiraz
The Splendid Table (a food and wine show on NPR) had an interesting segment featuring Randall Graham (of Bonny Doon Vineyards). He talks about Syrah versus Shiraz, and the difference in style between French (or Old World) syrah and Australian (or New World) Shiraz.
He certainly has some valid points. I did find that I got bored with the very ripe, over-extract, Australian Shiraz that I was buying a few years ago, and tend to prefer the more complex stuff now. However, I think there is a place for both Old World and New World wine, and I have had some truly memorable Shiraz from Aussie (2002 Larrikin, 2004 Losy Highway Stella's Garden, 2005 Mitolo G.A.M. for example). South Africa also makes some great Shiraz wines, somewhat in-between old and new world in style...
So, for me, it's less about the country the wine comes from, or whether it says Syrah or Shiraz on the label - it's about what is inside the bottle.
You can listen to the audio segment here and find more info on the show's webpage here.
You can also read an excerpt from Randall Graham's book.
He certainly has some valid points. I did find that I got bored with the very ripe, over-extract, Australian Shiraz that I was buying a few years ago, and tend to prefer the more complex stuff now. However, I think there is a place for both Old World and New World wine, and I have had some truly memorable Shiraz from Aussie (2002 Larrikin, 2004 Losy Highway Stella's Garden, 2005 Mitolo G.A.M. for example). South Africa also makes some great Shiraz wines, somewhat in-between old and new world in style...
So, for me, it's less about the country the wine comes from, or whether it says Syrah or Shiraz on the label - it's about what is inside the bottle.
You can listen to the audio segment here and find more info on the show's webpage here.
You can also read an excerpt from Randall Graham's book.
Thursday, November 05, 2009
A fix for the Win7 / ReadyNAS Duo problem
A while back I posted about an error I was hitting when copying files from Windows 7 to my new ReadyNAS Duo (see here).
Thanks to commenter Bill Kirchhoff I found a way to get things working:
Under the settings for Streaming Services/ReadyDLNA, uncheck the "Automatically Update" option:

The downside to this is you need to manually rescan your media files.
Thanks to commenter Bill Kirchhoff I found a way to get things working:
Under the settings for Streaming Services/ReadyDLNA, uncheck the "Automatically Update" option:

The downside to this is you need to manually rescan your media files.
Wednesday, November 04, 2009
Invictus
In September I blogged the 1995 Rugby World Cup match and the book "Playing The Enemy" (see here). I missed that they are making a film based on the book - "Invictus" directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela and Matt Damon as Francois Pienaar.
It looks like it will released in the USA around December 11. Looking forward to it!
It looks like it will released in the USA around December 11. Looking forward to it!
Friday, October 23, 2009
Thursday, October 22, 2009
R.E.M. Live at the Olympic
R.E.M. are one of my all-time favourite bands, and their concert in Seattle a few years ago was one of the best concerts I've ever seen.
So, I'm really happy to see they have a new live album coming out. You can read about it and listen to the whole 2-disc album on NPR's website here!
So, I'm really happy to see they have a new live album coming out. You can read about it and listen to the whole 2-disc album on NPR's website here!
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Netgear ReadyNAS Duo + Win7 = Fail
I recently bought a ReadyNAS Duo for use at home, and am also running Windows 7.
Unfortunately, the two don't seem to be very happy with each other. Copying files from my Windows 7 machine, over the wireless LAN, to the ReadyNAS Duo throws up this error:

These errors happen randomly, often after a few files have been copied. Looking at a network capture, it looked like the ReadyNAS was sending an error in response to one of the SMB commands that Windows 7 sent...
I tried switching to Robocopy, but the same thing happens (at least Robocopy can be made to automatically retry...) One problem with using Robocopy is that the timestamps on the ReadyNAS seem to be FAT-based, so Robocopy will always think the files on the Windows 7 machine are newer than those on the ReadyNAS.
To get the timestamps to work as ecpected (and have Robocopy skip files that already exist on the ReadyNAS), you need to use the /FFT option. This is odd, since the ReadyNAS seems to be reporting it supports the NTFS filesysten, looking at the SMB responses it sends to Windows:
I hope there is an update to support Windows 7 properly... Time to try Netgear's tech support (steeling myself...)
Unfortunately, the two don't seem to be very happy with each other. Copying files from my Windows 7 machine, over the wireless LAN, to the ReadyNAS Duo throws up this error:

These errors happen randomly, often after a few files have been copied. Looking at a network capture, it looked like the ReadyNAS was sending an error in response to one of the SMB commands that Windows 7 sent...
SMB SMB:C; Transact2, Query FS Info, Query FS Size Info (NT)
SMB SMB:R; Transact2, Query FS Info, Query FS Size Info (NT)
SMB SMB:C; Transact2, Query File Info, Query File Standard Info, FID = 0x2B31
SMB SMB:R; Transact2, Query File Info, FID = 0x2B31 - NT Status: System - Error, Code = (8) STATUS_INVALID_HANDLE
I tried switching to Robocopy, but the same thing happens (at least Robocopy can be made to automatically retry...) One problem with using Robocopy is that the timestamps on the ReadyNAS seem to be FAT-based, so Robocopy will always think the files on the Windows 7 machine are newer than those on the ReadyNAS.
To get the timestamps to work as ecpected (and have Robocopy skip files that already exist on the ReadyNAS), you need to use the /FFT option. This is odd, since the ReadyNAS seems to be reporting it supports the NTFS filesysten, looking at the SMB responses it sends to Windows:
SMB SMB:C; Transact2, Query FS Info, Query FS Attribute Info (NT)
SMB SMB:R; Transact2, Query FS Info, Query FS Attribute Info (NT), FS = NTFS
I hope there is an update to support Windows 7 properly... Time to try Netgear's tech support (steeling myself...)
Friday, October 16, 2009
Fair treatment under the law
NPR recently aired a story on Hispanic farmers' fight against the USDA, and it really made an impact on me. I was shocked and dismayed to hear that they are being denied the same treatment that African American farmers received:
It looks to me as if Hispanics are still being treated as second-class citizens, despite this being 2009 and the civil rights movement having triumphed to a large extent in the area of discrimiation against non-whites in the USA.
You can read more and listen to the story here.
Soon after President Reagan took office in the early 1980s, the USDA's civil rights division was quietly dismantled. Nevertheless, the agency continued to
tell farmers that if they felt they weren't getting loans because of their color
or gender, they should file a complaint.
But for the next 14 years, those complaints were put into an empty government office and never investigated. By the 1990s, black farmers filed a lawsuit — Pigford v. Glickman. Because the USDA failed to investigate years of discrimination complaints, U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman certified the black farmers' case as a class action. And with that ruling, rather than risk a trial, the federal government Settled with 15,000 black farmers for $1 billion.
It looks to me as if Hispanics are still being treated as second-class citizens, despite this being 2009 and the civil rights movement having triumphed to a large extent in the area of discrimiation against non-whites in the USA.
You can read more and listen to the story here.
Is This Your Brain on God?
I've been interested in meditation, mysticism and Eastern religion/philosophy for a while. It's exciting to see how modern science is beginning to have the tools to see what happens inside the brain as people dream, medititate and have "spiritual" experiences. Is "god" really just chemistry or a side effect of how our brains are wired?
This article from NPR offers a fun way to dig into the various NPR segments, books, etc. that touch on this topic.
This article from NPR offers a fun way to dig into the various NPR segments, books, etc. that touch on this topic.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Peter Cook and Dudley Moore again
A while back I posted a link to a classic comedy sketch from Peter Cook and Dudley Moore. Well, it's time for another one! Here is the classic "facts of life" sketch on Youtube.
Watch out for warm chairs!
Watch out for warm chairs!
Monday, October 12, 2009
What people think about your Seattle school
The Stranger (a free weekly newspaper in Seattle), recently had a special "back to school" issue.
For my foreign readers, I should clarify that in the USA "school" is a synonym for college and university, so the issue focused on the issues 18+ year-olds face when going to college/uni.
The funniest section was the guide to "what people think about your school" - perhaps useful information for people like my brother-in-law that are trying to pick good teaching jobs :) I've had a few conversations recently with family, trying to clear up the difference between Seattle Pacific University and Seattle University... So here is an extract from the article that makes it clear:
For my foreign readers, I should clarify that in the USA "school" is a synonym for college and university, so the issue focused on the issues 18+ year-olds face when going to college/uni.
The funniest section was the guide to "what people think about your school" - perhaps useful information for people like my brother-in-law that are trying to pick good teaching jobs :) I've had a few conversations recently with family, trying to clear up the difference between Seattle Pacific University and Seattle University... So here is an extract from the article that makes it clear:
If you're attending Seattle Pacific University, people will assume you're either celibate or a closet case or both. If you're attending Seattle University, people will think you're relatively intelligent and maybe Catholic but nothing special.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Jamie Oliver in the USA
The New York Times Magazine has an interesting article about British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver. He has a new project/TV show focusing on obesity in the USA and trying to get people to cook healthy, home-made food. (He did a similar show in the UK which I've not yet seen, and before that did a project to improve school lunches in the UK).
The article is worth reading - and there's this timeline of his career to check out too.
The article is worth reading - and there's this timeline of his career to check out too.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Seattle Homebrew Competition
Next Saturday, October 17th, is the Seattle Homebrew Competition awards show at Brouwers in Fremont. See more info here.
Berlin Reunion
To quote Boston.com's write-up:
"Earlier this week, 1.5 million people filled the streets of Berlin, Germany to watch a several-day performance by France's Royal de Luxe street theatre company titled "The Berlin Reunion". Part of the celebrations of the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Reunion show featured two massive marionettes, the Big Giant, a deep-sea diver, and his niece, the Little Giantess. The storyline of the performance has the two separated by a wall, thrown up by "land and sea monsters". The Big Giant has just returned from a long and difficult - but successful - expedition to destroy the wall, and now the two are walking the streets of Berlin, seeking each other after many years apart."
See the pictures here, and a video on Youtube here. Trust me, it's worth a look! :)
"Earlier this week, 1.5 million people filled the streets of Berlin, Germany to watch a several-day performance by France's Royal de Luxe street theatre company titled "The Berlin Reunion". Part of the celebrations of the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Reunion show featured two massive marionettes, the Big Giant, a deep-sea diver, and his niece, the Little Giantess. The storyline of the performance has the two separated by a wall, thrown up by "land and sea monsters". The Big Giant has just returned from a long and difficult - but successful - expedition to destroy the wall, and now the two are walking the streets of Berlin, seeking each other after many years apart."
See the pictures here, and a video on Youtube here. Trust me, it's worth a look! :)
Friday, October 09, 2009
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