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- 39 Posts. Joined 6/2006
- Location: Utah
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Marzipan vs. fondant
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- 39 Posts. Joined 6/2006
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- 2,667 Posts. Joined 8/2010
- Location: Looking for my cake recipe?...
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I use Toba Garrett's recipe out of the Well Decorated Cake and it does not have egg whites, but maybe that is what makes some marzipan have more stretch like royal icing? In her book she covers a whole cake but actually cuts a circle for the top and cuts a strip for the sides instead of covering it like you would fondant. Anyway, on the rare occasion I only use it for cutouts since I have yet to have anyone request a whole cake. Bummer!
Egg question: in short, no, you have no worries about your recipe having egg whites and leaving it out. You literally have a .005% chance of getting sick from an egg white, or once every 84 years!
Too bad you didn't get the chance to try something new though, that's always fun, especially when someone wants to pay you for it!
- 487 Posts. Joined 12/2006
- Location: Birmingham UK
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Almond paste (ie store bought marzipan) is much closer to fondant in texture than marzipan but is denser. I find it easier to work with but I guess thats because I dont have much practice with fondant. When I used it to cover a cake (the house cake in my photos) I used jam to stick it to the cake, as FromScratch says apricot jam is traditional. In that case I couldn't use buttercream anyway because one of the people the cake was for is lactose intollerent although I guess you could. I have never seen it used with whipped cream but it sounds yummy!
The marzipan my Mum makes sounds like FromScratch's - sticky and not very smooth and my Mum at least doesn't roll it out very thin. I would expect it would be very difficult (if not impossible) to roll it thinly but recipies probably vary.
You could colour either but would need to take into account that it starts off with a yellow tinge so would need to adjust the colouring to allow for that.
- 612 Posts. Joined 7/2010
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Kisrash, can't get the link to work.
Hi Gerle, I just tried the link and like with you it didn't work so I copied and pasted it and that worked. If you try that to see if it works for you.
- 165 Posts. Joined 9/2010
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- 7 Posts. Joined 4/2013
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Hi, this is the recipe i'm using its so stretchy and it tastes great,,you can use Wilton powder which is the raw egg alternative..
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/8 tsp cream of tartar
- 4 cups ground almonds (or almond meal)
- 2 egg whites
- Powdered sugar for dusting
1. Prepare a workspace by sprinkling powdered sugar over a marble slab, wooden cutting board, or large baking sheet. Fill your sink or a large bowl with cold water.
2. Place the sugar and 2/3 cup water in a large heavy saucepan and heat gently, stirring, until the sugar dissolves.
3. Add the cream of tartar and turn up the heat. Bring to a boil and cover, boiling, for 3 minutes.
4. Uncover and boil until the temperature reaches soft-ball stage, 240 degrees on a candy thermometer.
5. Place the bottom of the saucepan in the cold water you've prepared, stirring the sugar mixture constantly until it becomes thick and creamy.
6. Stir in the ground almonds and the egg whites, the place back over low heat and stir for 2 minutes more until the mixture is thick.
7. Spoon the marzipan onto your prepared work surface, and turn it with a metal spatula until it cools down enough to touch.
8. Coat your hands in powdered sugar and begin to knead the marzipan, working it until it is smooth and pliant.
9. Your marzipan can now be used immediately or stored by wrapping it in plastic wrap and keeping
- 116 Posts. Joined 2/2013
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I always cover my cakes in marzipan, and have a thin layer of buttercream under it. The most important thing I have learned is that it's quite hard to color. Since it has a yellow-ish color to begin with you can't get very bright colors. So you need to keep that in mind when designing cakes/figurines. My latest cake was covered in marzipan and as you can see the colors are a little muted (but since that's what I wanted, it didn't really matter).
- 1 Post. Joined 6/2013
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Would it be possible to use marzipan in a mold, and then fill it with a cake? I have been thinking it would be like covering a cake with marzipan, but I'm concerned about getting the cake to fit into the shape of the mold (it's odd-shaped and rather small, and I would not be very good at cutting a cake down to the shape and covering with marzipan as I would do with fondant on a simpler shape). Perhaps a traditional pudding or bread pudding spooned in to the inside of a molded marzipan brushed with jam, then covered with a layer of marzipan and turned out? Would you recommend molding the marzipan and letting it dry first, or adding the cake/pudding into it while it's being molded?
- 196 Posts. Joined 3/2009
- Location: Copenhagen, Denmark
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Hi, my experience is, that you can use (real) marzipan over buttercream, but not over ganache because the cream makes the marzipan react and it starts to "sweat". Marzipan is more fragile to roll out and move than fondant, and also harder to colour.
You can, however, knead marzipan and fondant together 50/50 and it will have marzipan taste and fondant texture. I use the Danish brand Odense Marzipan (which by the way tastes fantastic! )
Take care of the Earth, it's the only one we've got.
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Don't be too concerned if you've been procrastinating about refinancing your mortgage. Interest rates are still near record lows, and analysts figure it will stay that way through 2013.
Low interest rates are good news for home buyers and borrowers, but not for others. Those trying to make a few dollars on their savings will continue to struggle. They can expect another 12 months of most federally-insured bank accounts not even coming close to keeping up with inflation, experts warn.


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"You're strong," he said. "It won't happen again."
"No," I said. I could hear my voice cracking as I struggled to sit up. "It will happen again. I'm going to be like Anna. I'm going to get worse and worse. This time it was bloodlust and hate. I wanted to destroy them. I needed to destroy them. Next time? I don't know. Maybe it'll just be craziness, like Ms. Karp. Maybe I'm already crazy, and that's why I'm seeing Mason. Maybe it'll be depression like Lissa used to get. I'll keep falling and falling into that pit, and then I'll be like Anna and kill—"
"No," Dimitri interrupted gently. He moved his face toward mine, our foreheads nearly touching. "It won't happen to you. You're too strong. You'll fight it, just like you did this time."
"I only did because you were here." He wrapped his arms around me, and I buried my face in his chest. "I can't do it by myself," I whispered.
"You can," he said. There was a tremulous note in his voice. "You're strong—you're so, so strong. It's why I love you."
I squeezed my eyes shut. "You shouldn't. I'm going to become something terrible. I might already be something terrible." I thought back to past behaviors, the way I'd been snapping at everyone. The way I'd tried to scare Ryan and Camille.
Dimitri pulled away so that he could look me in the eyes. He cupped my face in his hands. "You aren't. You won't," he said. "I won't let you. No matter what, I won't let you." Emotion filled my body again, but now it wasn't hate or rage or anything like that. It was warm and wonderful and made my heart ache—in a good way. I wrapped my arms around his neck, and our lips met. The kiss was pure love, sweet and blissful, with no despair or darkness. Steadily, though, the intensity of our kissing increased. It was still filled with love but became much more—something hungry and powerful. The electricity that had crackled between us when I'd fought and held him down earlier returned, wrapping around us now.
It reminded me of the night we'd been under Victor's lust spell, both of us driven by inner forces we couldn't control. It was like we were starving or drowning, and only the other person could save us. I clung to him, one arm around his neck while my other hand gripped his back so hard that my nails practically dug in. He laid me back down on the bed. His hands wrapped around my waist, and then one of them slid down the back of my thigh and pulled it up so that it nearly wrapped around him.
At the same time, we both pulled back briefly, still oh so close. Everything in the world rested on that moment.
"We can't…" he told me.
"I know," I agreed.
Then his mouth was on mine again, and this time, I knew there would be no turning back. There were no walls this time. Our bodies wrapped together as he tried to get my coat off, then his shirt, then my shirt. … It really was a lot like when we'd fought out on the quad earlier—that same passion and heat. I think at the end of the day, the instincts that power fighting and sex aren't so different. They all come from an animal side of us.
—Shadow Kiss, Chapter 24


text:
Tentatively peeping in to see what others have been up to.
Thank God for creative outlets is all I can say. Splat, scribble, bash. Don't care what it looks like right now, it helps get the bad emotions and demon thoughts out my system. It could be throwing a tantrum... but it's also a valid form of experimenting too but without the thinking brain on, without caring and being fussy about the result. No one else will ever see it so who cares?
Technique and all the different styles for me comes only when I've calmed down to be able to concentrate enough to learn. That's when my thinking brain gets switched on again.
Cartoonguy is right Susanne85... find your own style. The way to do it is to try everything though and it will come. Am always jealous of beginners with all the delights still uncovered. Jewels and gems of every description lie before you. All too easily can we end up only ever looking at the rubies. If I have a resolution for 2011 is not to do that.
Here's to a highly exciting and productively creative New Year!
Hugs xxx
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Posts Tagged 'Third Person Game'
Sleeping Dogs Review (PS3)
In my mind, one of the greatest travesties of this generation of open world games is that we inevitably end up comparing any one that comes out to Grand Theft Auto in some way of form (just like I'm sure I'll do here). That's ...
Darksiders 2 Review (PS3)
When the original Darksiders was released, it received pretty much positive reviews all around. I know it was one of my favorite games of early 2010 because it incorporated elements from some of my favorite series - a little D...


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Jack Cafferty: Almost Half Of America Thinks The US Is In A Recession
By John Amato October 19, 2007 12:03 pm -
Jack Cafferty looks at a new CNN poll that tells us what we already know. A lot of people believe that we're in a recession. [media id=2902] [media
We welcome relevant, respectful comments. Please refer to our Terms of Service for information on our posting policy.
Mike's Blog Round Up
Limbaugh At It Again - Mocks Voice Of 12 Year Old Graeme Frost


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Thinking Right's weekend free-for-all. Pick a topic:
● Tiger Woods is right, but then he's a mere celebrity public figure and not one who holds a position of public trust. Said Woods: "No matter how intense curiosity about public figures can be, there is an important and deep principle at stake which is the right to some simple, human measure of privacy. … Personal sins should not require press releases and problems within a family shouldn't have to mean public confessions." To that, I would add one's sexual preferences. We don't need to know who's doing what unless the public business is involved.
● The apparently unsuccessful Atlanta mayoral candidate Mary Norwood has life's priorities straight. On a "too close to call" election night, she announced that the results wouldn't be known for hours — so she climbed in her car and went home, presumably to get some sleep. Why keep supporters hanging around until the wee hours when Wednesday's a work day? Three pollsters got this one right.
● China sought to temper public anger about the sale of contaminated baby formula by executing a dairy farmer and a milk salesman. The Wall Street capitalists scapegoated by the American Left should take heed. Here they lose their companies; there they lose their lives.
● When a blue-chip company like the Sea Island Co. hands over the deed to a 3,000-acre planned community to lender Wells Fargo & Co. , it's evidence that even the rich are reeling, too. The Frederica project was intended by designers to be "Pebble Beach of the East." Frederica lots fetched more than $2 million each three or four years ago. When this Congress finds out that "the rich" don't have the resources to support their spending, the IRS will come for the "wealth" of the middle class.
● It's a silly law that would require Wal-Mart to register with the Georgia Secretary of State to sell funeral merchandise — caskets specifically — online in Georgia. Republicans should rid this state of laws enacted on behalf of the various industries, trades and professions that are intended primarily to stifle competent competitors by controlling entry.
● The problem with having "free" money lying around — a dime in federal money that's "free" if you'll spend a dollar of yours — is that some clever soul will find a way to spend the dime and obligate the dollar. That's what Georgia's Department of Transportation board chairman, Bill Kuhlke, is attempting when he proposes to spend $87 million earmarked for the Atlanta-Lovejoy commuter rail line on a downtown Atlanta bus/rail station.
● Barack Obama is a text-message president. His speeches have no particular foundation in anything that precedes or follows. In his West Point address, for example, he accused the former administration of denying or ignoring requests for more troops. "Commanders in Afghanistan repeatedly asked for support to deal with the re-emergence of the Taliban, but these reinforcements did not arrive," he speechified. Responded former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld: "Such a bald misstatement, at least as it pertains to the period I served as secretary of defense, deserves a response. I am not aware of a single request of that nature between 2001 and 2006."
● It is tacky and disrespectful of the Office of the President for the Commander-in-Chief to assemble his troops, as Obama did at West Point, and use the occasion to trash their former Commander-in-Chief. This is the action of a small-bore leader.
● Hmmm. Troops are to arrive and exit Afghanistan almost simultaneously. What could prompt such a bizarre use of force? Ah, yes, the troops are programmed to start their exit just in time for the next presidential campaign. That's a shameful way to commit the lives of those in uniform.
We couldn't salvage the old East Lake Meadows public housing project in a single year. This is not a policy to win a war; it's a policy to win an election. With Obama — on health care and national security, for example —the glory's now, the disaster is for some future president to deal with.
December 3rd, 2009
9:19 pm
1st loser
December 3rd, 2009
11:20 pm
I agree that nothing is beneath Obama. His using West Point as window dressing for his lame and lackluster speechifying backfired on him as those cadets looked like they slept through most of it, and I am sure all of them were thinking they would like to take a crack at Obama. Obama is a disaster, and I am beginning to think he might even know it himself. While he manages to keep his chin up, I think he has had the wind knocked out of his sails.
December 3rd, 2009
11:31 pm
Jim Wooten,
You have many good points here. Tiger Woods brings to mind one question for me: Why can't celebrities behave?? And why do we have to hear about them??
As to Obama, he does make an endearing speech. If only we could believe and not know that he first considers politics.. He seems to open a poltical Pandora box of debt and duplicity, a mishmash of nebulous promises not to be kept.. He's sending troops in.. He's bringing troops out. This is the deadline. The deadline is open to change, On and on.
I hope our troops know that Americans support them always. They are our sons and daughters fighting for us. They are our heroes. .
December 4th, 2009
12:03 am
What a litany of fascist propaganda! Krusty the klown, Joan the maggot and Axeltoad. There's an audience. sure you want to be on the same side as these miscreants?
December 4th, 2009
12:33 am
Where in Atlanta can I pick up my Obama money ? LOL
December 4th, 2009
5:06 am
One BIG ASS Mistake America! = Obummer
HOW do we get him OUT of the District of Criminals before its too late?
December 4th, 2009
5:08 am
I got stories to tell…
December 4th, 2009
5:39 am
Tell it to Presbo da Clown…he is saving us all…
December 4th, 2009
5:39 am
You must have gone to journalism school at UGA!! You quote Donald Rumsfeld but you do not bother to mention that his quotes havve no credibility. Jim, you know, we really do not miss you!! Why don't you get on with the rest of your life!!
December 4th, 2009
5:40 am
BTW, Tiger is an IDIOT….I guess shes frigid or something LOL
December 4th, 2009
6:10 am
Yea – 8 more years of W and Rummy would have solved all out problems. Ha! They left a huge mess – Obama is trying to pick up the pieces. I'm guessing that any general publicly requesting more troops for Afghanistan under W would have had a pink slip before the day was done.
December 4th, 2009
7:22 am
It still amazes that we have so many jack azzes on the AJC blogs that comment against the previous administration as though Obuma is still campaigning for office. He's in office, however, he's still campaigning to cover up failures that belong to him. The 20 percent far-left still think this idiot is performing, while most Americans now including many moderate Democrat's are seeing this presidents incompetence in startling detail.
December 4th, 2009
7:29 am
"It is tacky and disrespectful of the Office of the President for the Commander-in-Chief to assemble his troops, as Obama did at West Point, and use the occasion to trash their former Commander-in-Chief. This is the action of a small-bore leader."
Unlike his predecessor; who flew out to a aircraft carrier in a navy jet wearing a navy flight uniform and when he landed assembled the crew on the flight deck under a banner proclaiming "Mission Accomplished" brag about a freat victory in Irag…
Is that how it's done?
December 4th, 2009
7:38 am
"China sought to temper public anger about the sale of contaminated baby formula by executing a dairy farmer and a milk salesman."
China's cows have started a "Drink more soymilk" campaign. You don't think they had anything to do with this, do you? Nah. Do you? Nah. Maybe. Nah. If they had access to Chick Filet's website…..Nah.
Justice aint blind in China, you gotta give them that. Now we know how the Kurds got their name, eh? Wait'll Fox News spins this. Oh, the Hume-Hannity!
December 4th, 2009
7:51 am
Obama is a lightweight, inexperienced, misguided president. We must find a way to round-off the sharp edges of his policies until we can vote him out in 2012. Otherwise, our country and our way of life as we know it will both be harmed irreversibly.
December 4th, 2009
8:13 am
I see you decided to skip over the Glen Richardson issue. At least you didn't coddle him like Ethics Committee Chairman Wilkinson, who excused possibly criminal behavior by Richardson toward his ex-wife AND who called the now ex-speaker's affair with a lobbyist a personal matter, though it's actually a matter for Wilkinson's won dadgum committee. The GOP leadership in this state is corrupt and the good members of the party need to take it away from them.
December 4th, 2009
8:20 am
By hook or by crook, powerful and well connected enemies foreign and domestic are encouraging executives throughout the United States to subvert the economy, and pilfer the wealth of the citizens thereof via Ponzi Schemes etc. After all, should white collar criminals succeed in stealing billions of 'free money' from citizens, the worst punishment expected is to be tried, convicted, imprisoned, and released at a later date. Eventually, they expect to be blessed by confidants associated with the scheme and the offshore accounts.
China doesn't permit that form of organized sacrificial evil to exist. In China, the Bernie Madoffs of the world and accomplices would be tried, convicted, and executed for the high crimes committed against citizens. And others remotely involved would be tried, convicted, and imprisoned for life. The government of China wouldn't relent until the stolen money is recovered and returned to the rightful owners.
Don't get it twisted. This is by no means a wholehearted endorsement of the criminal justice system in China. It's an indictment of 'white collar' executives and the politicians they influence in the United States.
December 4th, 2009
8:21 am
Voice of Reason, I agree 100% and I just hope that someone in office has the guts to stand up and make the needed changes or blocks to accomplish this. I am very afraid for not only my way of life, but what life is going to look like for my daughter when she grows up. Will she even have the chance at a good life or will it just be a socialist state?
Rome was once the greatest government in the world and they ended up destroying themselves. It could happen again I fear.
December 4th, 2009
8:25 am
Obama is a texter. Clinton is a sexter. Bush is a vexer. Palin is a hexer.
Can you imagine Palin performing occult rituals and stirring a bubbling cauldron in her basement? Sticking pins into effigies of McCain and Katie Couric? Her book titled, instead, "Voodoo Economics"?
Me neither. Until I read her book. OMG! We need a woman scorned as our president. Fellow Liberals: we need to stop tweaking her nose. There's no telling what she'll do if she gets half a chance.
I've got a bad feeling after reading her fix things right in her own mind. The whole book is an orange alert. A Clockwork Orange alert.
How did the Mayans know that a country that didn't exist would have an election in 2012?
Luckovich hit a homerun today. "Desperate House-Jives"
December 4th, 2009
8:27 am
The Geico Gecko has cancelled Tiger Wood's auto insurancy policy. The money he could be saving saw the whole thing.
December 4th, 2009
8:29 am
Charles the Original:
Sad but true statements. Madoff along with the SEC examiners who "missed" that one should be executed as they are in China.
Can we add Barney Frank and Chris Dodd to that list as well?
A step in the right direct might be to limit the campaign for political office period to 10 weeks with a strict budget. It certainly would make things more interesting. As to the influence of lobbyists…..that is graft? Isn't it?
December 4th, 2009
8:39 am
There was free money in Iraq for the right people: From today's WSJ: "A former Army major was sentenced to a 17½-year prison term on corruption charges in Wednesday in San Antonio, signaling the beginning of the end of a far-reaching Iraq War corruption probe.
As part of the probe, a growing cadre of career soldiers has confessed to siphoning millions of dollars from defense contracts in Iraq and Kuwait. The investigation into their spree already has led to the indictments of five U.S. military officers, with another dozen expected to follow."
All 18 officers are BLACK: I quote the wsj again: "Almost every suspect comes from the same background: African-Americans who rose from childhood poverty to successful military careers."
There is just something about money and authority these people cannot handle and should not be trusted with, imho. Note the ajc has not covered this story, and most likely will not. Cindy Lou would be too upset at the overt racism of it all.
December 4th, 2009
8:41 am
This is the action of a small-bore leader.
Succint, to-the-point prose. Obama's a .22 caliber leader in a .357 magnum world. Even when he hits the right policy (like Afghanistan) he diminishes the act by also specifying when the troops are leaving. Small bore. Short round.
I'm extrememly thankful that I purchased my house in 1992. The mortgage is almost paid and the value remains comfortably above where I bought it. I'm am sympathetic to those who bought during the previous 3-4 years like the Frederica Island development.
It's a nightmare for so many people and it's principal cause can be traced to EXCESSIVE government intervention in the residential mortgage markets. If the American people and the 55% percent who pay federal income taxes should ever take note of the capacity of politicians to create problems, then I submit the residential housing market as exhibit A. How many of those existing owners of lots in the Frederica project are now underwater on their mortgages? I would suggest that MANY of them are even if they have the ability to continue making payments.
THE LESSON. Look for hedge funds which specialize is taking advantage of government-created inefficiencies in the market. Particularly those that will revert to a more efficient structure in the future. I don't know where I can find such a fund but maybe I should start one. Hmmmm, free-market solves problem again!!
Unlike some of my blog compatriots, many of us miss your political insight and heft, Jim, but I have to say that Kyle's coming along nicely. With some additional time at the helm he should make a fine conservative commentator for the AJC.
December 4th, 2009
9:03 am
"…Obama is a small bore leader who trashed the former commander in chief…"
Wooten is….RIGHT! Shame on Obama for trashing Cheney.
Seriously, small bore Obama shouldn't have trashed dumb-dumb. (W)
December 4th, 2009
9:14 am
Wrong Jim…..The way the legislators are taking Gifts at the Capitol downtown Atlanta with Republican's leading the way there certainly IS FREE MONEY !
December 4th, 2009
9:14 am
Chris, your comments were, likewise, small bore.
The 'Geico' schtick was mildly amusing at first, but now it's migrating toward tedious.
Let's move on, shall we?
December 4th, 2009
9:16 am
WRONG Jim……. the way Cheney has been trashing this administration….All is fair Play….Cry baby !
December 4th, 2009
9:17 am
Ahhh, always nice to know that I can come to JW's page and enjoy a well deserved ReTHUGlican break. I agree with him, (I can't believe I said that), on Tiger. It's his and his family's personal business. The media are the one's making it a mountain. As for his comments of the President, ho-hum. It's funny that ANYTHING he does gets a negative reaction from the dwnidling bloggers on this page. Kinda like the GOP, splintering and fracturing into oblivion. As for trashing Dubya and Cheeeney, President Obama stated factual occurences. As typical, the GOP and its affiliates wish to rewrite history through loud denial as if a child refusing to take their medicine.
Man up. Your doctrine is dated and no longer applies to the reality that we are in as a result of it. Those that wish to continue this madness, wish then for the continued failure of this country. They could care less about American lives. They can longer drape themselves in the flag and scream Patriot, while they count their money from backs of Americans. Enough.
Y'all can go back to hating now.
December 4th, 2009
9:18 am
Time to change the name of this Blog to….. "Thinking Small " ….. The Republican way…….but hey lots of lobbyist Gifts for Votes, and contracts !
December 4th, 2009
9:18 am
And Richardson gets off without one word from Wooten! Wow!
December 4th, 2009
9:22 am
Mixed feelings on the Tiger stuff. Until the beatings spilled over into the public throughfare privacy was warranted. Once the domestic abuse hit the highway and then a tree or whatever it became a public issue. I do believe people in the public eye (e.g., Glenn Richardson) have a role-model obligation, regardless of whatever wisdom leave Charles Barkley's lips. Tiger fell short. I do not favor Chinese-style execution for the failing; I suspect Mrs. Woods may take care of that.
"When this Congress finds out that "the rich" don't have the resources to support their spending, the IRS will come for the "wealth" of the middle class." I'm no longer so pessimistic. All but the stupidest leftists are beginning to fear the wrath of the rabble, i.e., all except Madame Speaker.
Heck, I would allow Walmart to sell non-medical marijuana without a state license.
I thought the West Point speech was dreadful in practically every respect. Our genteel host uses the "text message" simile, whereas I would say he phoned it in. As to "small bore," I will surely not be the first here to assert Big Bore. Nevertheless, I am comfortable that the president lied when he suggested troops would be removed beginning in 2011. Odd that I take comfort from the lie.
December 4th, 2009
9:30 am
If you had taken Oblablama's teleprompter away, I don't believe he could have enunciated his position on Afghanistan…other than a string of ooohs and aahhhas.
We all need to flatly admit Oblablama is a puppet of the ruling elite hell bent on flushing out every dime of hard-earned assets from the middle class.
The very people that think Oblablama is the Messiah, are the ones most hurt by his insane fiscal policies.
There is no remedy for being stupid.
December 4th, 2009
9:35 am
Yes there is no remedy for Being Stupid……….George Bush prime example !
December 4th, 2009
9:45 am
"Rome was once the greatest government in the world and they ended up destroying themselves. It could happen again I fear."
Explain exactly how (1) Rome was once the greatest goverment in the world, and (2) your bases for asserting that Rome destroyed itself. And then think about what characteristics of America most reflect Rome's downfall.
My position is that Rome only destroyed itself by stretching itself too thinly and trying to police and control too much territory. Then it was torn apart by non-Romans (who ironically learned a lot from Rome before shredding it) while it was stretched too thin. Now look into which party has behaved more in that manner in regard the America.
December 4th, 2009
9:49 am
Hey Whip, I'd say Rome fell because they used lead-laden vessels to drink their wine. The party of parties would be the best American analogy, those who tear themselves apart via substance abuse.
Notably that was not a political issue of Rome – more like a behavior standard. We see the same here, today.
December 4th, 2009
9:52 am
Reminder to all, the "sacking" of rome was not a destruction. Rather the Germanic tribes that "conquered" simply moved in, and out numbered the debilitated and decadent locals. We could suffer worse than seeing industrious, religious, family-oriented Mexicans reshape America.
December 4th, 2009
9:55 am
You fail to see the difference. Bush didn't blane Clinton for anything on the aircraft carrier, Obama did blame Bush at West Point. Very clear difference.
December 4th, 2009
10:17 am
You must be drinking from lead-laden vessels, because that is a common misconception about Rome. Lead had very little to do with the fall of Rome.
And the "debilitated and decadent locals" amounted to a lesser fraction of the population than current "debilitated and decadent locals."
Go read a real history book.
December 4th, 2009
10:28 am
Rome was destroyed by cartographers. At what point did Persians start being and then stop being "Romans"? When the map makers changed the name back to Persia.
Rome was merely the evolution of political expedience in the minds of an expanding pool of deluded entitlement recipients who were living off of the ever-diluting allegience of illusory military conquests.
Just like today.
December 4th, 2009
10:31 am
Ragnar Danneskjöld – R U talking about the industrious Mexican Drug gangs murdering whole families in Northern Mexico and into the USA? Yes, they are very family oriented, but not in a good way.
December 4th, 2009
10:39 am
We bee wating n lin two get us sum monies out of Obama's stash.
December 4th, 2009
11:00 am
I don't see much change in the policies of Bush or Obama. Wooten is just spewing republican propaganda, but the policies have mostly stayed the same. Only in Wooten's eye, it was ok when republicans were in power. He seems to forget anyone that disagreed with Bush/Cheney was labeled a traitor or not a patriot. Obama never referenced Bush by name, although Cheney went on a 90 minute rant speaking negatively about the Prez. In Wooten's eyes, speaking bad about Bush at West Point is worse than outing a CIA agent.
What nothing to say about Richardson, Wooten?
December 4th, 2009
11:06 am
What does your Navy son think about our current military positions?
I, too, think legal industriious, religious, family oriented Mexican/Hispanics are a fortunate addition to the "American family" (such as my most gracious and ethical son-in-law.) But the drug cartels are something else. Then again,..they too would have no business if nobody bought the drugs here. I believe the Mexican president brought out that point one time.
PETER, have you noticed that no one here has mentioned Cheney but you. What's with your seeningly brainwashed viewpoints? .And have you noticed that Obama has now decided (but gave no credit) that many of Bush's policies had merit and should be continued? Maybe it is time for you to "see the light".
CHRIS BROE, how far back do you want to go in this "ever-diluting allegience of illusory military conquests"? I believe Germany and Japan are free countries. Did I miss something?
December 4th, 2009
11:09 am
Your mind LEFT you long ago…..
December 4th, 2009
11:14 am
Dusty have you noticed Cheney has been on TV bashing Obama ?
Have you been paying attention to his rabble rousing baloney about US security ?
Jim never notices, as he is gone to pasture !
What is the light Dusty …..all the gifts the Republican's have been getting at the Capitol via Lobbyists ?
December 4th, 2009
11:38 am
No, I haven't seen Cheney bashing Obama on TV. I don't watch much TV except in the evenings. But I did see President Obama "bashing" President Bush.
Obama is not campaigning now. He is in charge. He needs to explain his own reasons for his policies, He does not need to wat months for decisions and then blame President Bush on what he decides. That is the cowardly approach of a weak personality..
Did all the Democratic lobbyists die off in Washington, Peter? They must have. You don't seem to see their presence there.
That must be a mighty green pasture you've designed for Jim Wooten. He surely does know how to kick up his heels. Goooo, Jim!!!
December 4th, 2009
11:40 am
And so it continues. Republicans, with all their ill dealings, and Democrats incapable of tying their shoes. Richardson and a host of the Republicans that run the State legislature are in bed with those that could care less about Georgia(ns), but want the dollars. Driving people out of work, out of home, and out of their minds. JW lauds their effort. He attacks a President that is sitting, to defend a President and Vice President that held this country hostage for Big Business for years. Truth hurts, huh?
Can't wait to see what happens next.
December 4th, 2009
12:39 pm
Dusty………"Peter, No, I haven't seen Cheney bashing Obama on TV. I don't watch much TV except in the evenings. But I did see President Obama "bashing" President Bush."
Well Dusty you have not been paying attention at all then or reading the news.
I fact Cheney has been very vocal and has been bashing Obama constantly in the news since Obama took office.
The Capitol I am talking about is Downtown Atlanta where the Republican's are in charge.
December 4th, 2009
1:32 pm
Time to retire, move to Del Boca Vista, and start complaining about the HOA budget and the hippies.
please go back to posting your hackneyed, corn-ball platitudes on The Vent.
December 4th, 2009
1:33 pm
Hey Jim…..What about this………
Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, for instance, has received gifts valued at $12,870 since 2005, records show. But Jaillene Hunter, Cagle's spokeswoman, said, "It absolutely does not influence the lieutenant governor's decision-making process."
Burkhalter (R-Johns Creek), the speaker pro tem, has received even more — $52,076.
Senate leaders got less: Eric Johnson (R-Savannah), who was president pro tem, accepted $18,688 in entertainment and other gifts, while his replacement, Tommie Williams (R-Lyons), took $23,560.
Keen (R-St. Simons Island), the third-ranking House leader, received $49,103 since 2005, much of it from the same sources.
By contrast, the House minority leader, Rep. DuBose Porter (D-Dublin), accepted $5,945 during the past five years. His Senate counterpart, Robert Brown (D-Macon), took $2,243.
HA HA HA Jim…There seems to be plenty of FREE MONEY going around…..For Both sides of the Isle !


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Catherine Deneuve is in charming, disarming form in François Ozon's lightweight latest as trophy wife Suzanne, who finds herself in control of her family's umbrella factory after her controlling hubby is turfed out by rebellious employees. It's classic screwball, but there are enough moments of comic delight – not least Deneuve and Gérard Depardieu's much-trailed disco dance – to counter Potiche's more flimsy, familiar elements. Ozon wisely makes no attempt to conceal the staginess of the script, allowing his stars to savour each sly beat of their drawingroom dialogue.
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CodingTeam is a free and easy to use forge designed for you. Your projects need simplicity and intuitivity!
In order to install CodingTeam on your own server, you need to install some required softwares.
CodingTeam can also use a Jabber server. See this list. All Jabber features are tested and work good with ejabberd2.
Currently, MySQL (>= 5) is the only database layer supported. A very experimental support of PostgreSQL exists.
The README and the INSTALL files are distributed in each packages of CodingTeam so you just have to follow these steps-by-steps documents, this is easy. In the future, we plan to make the installation simplier with a script or something like that, stay tuned!
You may need help when you will discover your new software forge. Feel free to ask, we can help you!


text:
between old frames, on high shelves .. there is a moment full of memories.
there are me and you. these shelves have seen all of love, sad, … etc.
they have seen our emotions, they have our diaries/memories.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
I'm a resto Shaman and I've been comfortably sitting at second place in the healing numbers between a druid and Paladin. The pally is always at the top of the list when it comes to heals. However, I've always felt that straight out heals isn't as important as where those heals are going. I'm consistently at the bottom rung of Overhealing with a difference of almost 30-40% between my and the other healers. It's not a matter of how much healing I can dump into the raid, it becomes a matter of how USEFUL those heals are. Am I just burning mana and not doing anything? Or is that mana being converted into real, useful health?
Granted... I've been designated as a tank healer since we got to Shannox and have followed my Paladin tank around like I was attached to him by a rope, but that doesn't mean what I'm doing is any less accurate of a philosophy.
Pyromelter said...
I believe the WoL numbers that Allie used up there are effective heals. Recount also does this natively, when you look at the healing meters, they produce effective heals, not total heals (which would include overhealing).
I hear what you are saying though. Another difference in healing is raid healing versus tank healing. Generally speaking, raid healers are going to have higher HPS than tank healers. I would gander that the pallies topping those meters are getting a lot of use out of Light of Dawn and Holy Radiance. Let me go check those logs a sec...
And indeed, virtually all of the paladins that I sampled on those top 10 leaderboards had Holy Radiance as their top healing spell. So there you go. If shaman are being used as tank healers more than raid healers, you aren't going to see them on those top 10s as much. In fact I see healing rain as the top spell for virtually all the shaman on that healing list too.
Anyway that would explain it. I don't know which classes make the best tank healers (I don't heal, ever), but I do know a bit about the mechanics of throughput and HPS, and AOE healing, similar to AOE dps, is always going to be higher than single-target, generally speaking.
For most of the fights right now my Healing Rain is on constant cooldown. Yes, and I think my highest healing spell is chain heal because we're on 10 man 2/8 Working towards downing Zon'ozz. Firelands I spent a lot of time being a tank heals, but in Dragon Soul I spend most of my time trying desperately to keep everyone alive, not just the tanks. So much AOE damage...
Overhealing doesn't matter if you have pretty close to an infinite mana supply. Shaman care, Paladins don't.
Shaman have to play conservative, still. Paladins, even with the judgement nerf, are still able to use enough mana CDs to not care. Shaman are still stuck with HORRIBLE mana return mechanics. Water Shield drops when you can't afford to put it back up, or if you do you lose a GCD. Mana Tide helps that Holydin too. And the Holydin can autoattack if they are low on mana, the shaman has to cast LB during lapse moments. That Holydin in those same moments is hitting Divine Plea and getting their blue bar up near the top.
I think the defacto 'Holy Radiance + Light of Dawn, Lol top meters' is a bit unfair.
When you consider all the fights in DS, think about it logically.
Morchok - Tank damage can be equal to melee damage, AoE hitting Melee + tank viable to tank heal
Zanozz - Group up phase all healers AoE heal.
Yorshaj - Many times where AoE healing when everyone is packed can keep tank up as well.
Hagara - Tank healer basically gets most of the healable damage, and if the tank is good he can assist even with raid damage
Ultraxion - Constant AoE, even the 'tank healer' can become an AoE machine. Later half of the fight, so much AoE healing is present tank-healing paladin can just AoE heal. (Hence pallies scream bloody murder if they don't get blue)
Blackhorn - Lot of times you stack up to heal, tank damage only picks up at end of fight.
Spine and Madness - Definately more raid-heal heavy.
As you can see, these days, just saying 'I'm a tank healer' isn't what it used to be in wrath. In wrath, you healed the tank and yourself and didn't stop. Now, you are expected to pitch in for AoE. That's why a lot of guilds are 2-healing most of DS, is because so many classes can actually succeed at both. The world of cut and dry tank/raid healing has been gone for a while now. Many fights leading up to now were the same, It's just that now paladins were given AoE tools to handle them bringing them up to that level.
Personally, I believe some of the gap between healers is still skill based. Paladin healers have always had to force themselves to be very mana aware ('infinite' is a generalization. That blue bar does move, and somtimes like a see-saw where missing one swing and you're done. It's a rhythm). They also are generally the largest subscriber to the ABC's of healing. (Always Be Casting) Alternately, shaman has been changed every patch or so, priests have two healing specs. It's no wonder that the two classes that have had the least impacting changes, therefore most practice at what they do, are towards the top.
tl:dr Holy Paladins have an easier time at the top because of few changes and a spell they can treat exactly like divine light, making life easy since they have not changed tons.
EverythingRuned said...
Trust me.
As an ex-holy paladin, if I am being relied upon to heal the tank, my numbers will be lower. The healing meters are pretty much useless to me right now, and might as well be renamed the "how many times was I able to cast holy radiance" bars.
I agree that paladin aoe was kinda gimped before this, but I don't like this solution very much. It makes me feel like there's no real strategy involved :(


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Darwin's Idea: Competition Drives Evolution. Education, It's Your Turn.
Part 1 of a three-part essay on technology and higher education…
By now, you may know of my fascination with the power of the Internet and digital technologies to change the opportunities students will have to learn, and to unleash competition and innovation into the world of education, particularly higher education. It's a world long buffered—even isolated—from significant competition. Well, the same forces that have washed like a tidal wave over business, governments, and social interaction over the past couple of decades—the forces of change driven by fast, inexpensive digital communications—are now impacting the world of higher education. The future began some time ago.
All that said, it's tempting to be so beguiled by the MOOCs (massive open online courses) on the screen that you slip into believing learning is just another form of downloading. It's not. Being in the presence of information is not the same as learning. If it were, then just sitting in the library would be a great way to prepare for an exam. Listening to Horowitz recordings won't make you into a great pianist either.
Learning and Carnegie Hall have a lot in common. Success at both takes practice. Having access to a great MOOC about history won't make you into an historian. To really learn, you must do, and active doing—which generally means investigating, thinking, writing, and "working out the math"—tends to be hard work, particularly at the start. Success takes discipline, motivation, and determination. I've yet to see a website where they are on offer.
Though there is much to explore in the new fascinating world of education on screen and online, the fundamentals will remain the same, since people have a stubborn tendency to remain the same. Learning is not downloading. Learning takes doing. Doing takes discipline. So, show up for class with your assignment done—wherever class may be. There's no shortcut.
New Technology, New Competition
Colleges and universities have long competed on the basis of faculty quality, brand-name recognition, price, and programs. But there has been almost no competitive market based on the methods of teaching and learning. For centuries, higher education has been rooted in secure notions of how faculty should teach and students should learn. Professors have been the holders and transmitters of knowledge. Students have been required to visit professors and attend lectures or seminars or recitations or laboratories at set times. Virtually all colleges and universities, the old and venerable and those established just yesterday, will teach the same way this fall because it's the way they taught last fall.
Now the climate is ripe for innovation: costs are high enough to drive it, and new tools make it possible. We have the technological ability to provide learning environments anywhere and anytime. Unconstrained by bricks and mortar, new competitors can enter the worldwide educational marketplace, and established institutions can compete with each other in new ways. The driving forces, as in the rest of the economy, are income and competitive edge.
Of course, just because income beckons and innovation is technically possible doesn't mean that new methods will be accepted enthusiastically, will be adopted quickly, or will be implemented well. What is inevitable is a great deal of experimentation. Innovation is coming to higher education, and it is gaining speed at a pace that most faculty curriculum committees find dizzying.
Stanford has done much to accelerate the pace of innovation. While many colleges and universities have been offering online programs for the past decade or so, Stanford has made it "socially acceptable" among the truly elite. Stanford has raised the bar and sent a message to its peers, in polite academese of course, that simply doing things the same way year after year is not the future Stanford has chosen. Pay attention, peers. Change and innovation are coming.
The Virtual Football Team?
Will residential higher education be replaced by websites? I certainly hope not. The residential undergraduate experience is a marvelous invention, a relatively safe halfway house between home and independence. Living away from home, students grow up, learn to work with others, find out about the world from their faculty and peers, are exposed to intellectual, cultural, and human diversity, are challenged to explore beyond their familiar and comfortable worlds, and yes, even attend classes and earn degrees. They seek out peers, professors, and staff to talk, debate, and work through what at times seem like (and may be) life crises. In most cases, they bloom, both intellectually and socially. Their parents marvel at them, and they come to marvel at their parents. In short, the process works, and it works very well indeed. It's not the only way to bridge home and career, but it's a very good way. It's also expensive.
To be continued…Part 2: Enriching the Traditional Residential Curriculum.


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Charlie Morris
Charlie is a user experience developer working for North Carolina State University Libraries in Raleigh, NC. Wearer of many hats, he works at the intersection of content, development and design.
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- Migrating From 960 Grid System to ZURB FoundationWhile not always elegant or glamorous, retrofitting an existing site can be the most efficient way to update or redesign. In this tutorial, I'll walk you through taking your site from a fixed 960 Grid System framework to a new responsive ZURB Foundation 5 theme.Read More…


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A New Level of Crazy: Macaron Madness – Asymmetry
So yeah, I've been slack with the posting. Short attention span and all that :)
One of the first things you may notice about these macarons is that they're not smooth and even. There's a reason for that :) Mostly it's because I'd been cooking macarons for something like ten hours and my care factor had slipped a little (Sorry, Thoraiya!) But I kinda figured that with a title like Assymetry I could get a pass on them being smooth, shiny, perfect little bites of sweet delight.
Which isn't to say that they're not delicious little morsels, because these were amazing! The colour was easy to choose. I didn't. They are macarons a la naturel. No colouring, just the natural colour of the almond meal macaron. The flavour though like Thoraiya's writing is a twist on the everyday – Vanilla and Elderflower. And the consensus was that it was absolutely delicious!
Previously in Macaron Mayhem:
Love and Romanpunk by Tansy Rayner Roberts
Add a comment June 3, 2014
Tags: 12th planet, macaron mojo
A New Level of Crazy: Macaron Madness – Cracklescape
Photo by Cat Sparks
Of the nine Twelfth Planet books, Cracklescape was the easiest flavour to choose. I always knew it would be the same flavour as the cupcakes I did. Salted Lime Caramel! Because it's hard to go wrong with salted caramel. And when I make them again, as larger versions, which I will, I'll be folding crushed toffee shards through the frosting for extra crackle, as well as putting a dollop of goopy pure caramel in the centre of the frosting.
The shells had lime zest grated into the mixture for a hint of citrusy goodness to match the cover, and there was a good squeeze of juice in the caramel itself as well, and it really worked. I think these are quite possibly my favourite. (Favourite enough that I have made a batch of them this week – in full size.)
Previously in Macaron Mayhem:
Love and Romanpunk by Tansy Rayner Roberts
Add a comment May 9, 2014
Tags: 12th planet, macaron mojo
A New Level of Crazy: Macaron Mayhem – Love and Romanpunk
Love and Romanpunk by Tansy Rayner Roberts
Photo by Cat Sparks
I LOVE how strong the colour turned out with this one. Actually, the colours for this one, BAD POWER, and THROUGH SPLINTERED WALLS all came out gorgeous, and I think that was mostly because I let them mature overnight. Alisa and I had been cooking all day and into the night and had only completed six batches, so about 8:30 I decided to make the mix for the remaining three, but cook them the next day. And it paid off. The colours matured beautifully!
I had come across a flavour combination of Fig and Port Wine, which seemed to be perfect for LARP, but I did encounter a couple of issues with it.
Problem number one is figs aren't in season, so I got hold of some semi dried figs and marinated them for a day or so. Problem number two occurred when I first attempted to make the filling dairy free. I thought the flavour would go well with a chocolate base, and I had a recipe where you cream an avocado and mix it with cocoa to make a rich chocolate frosting.
Perfect! or so I thought. The base frosting tasted beautiful, and I will be using it again, but remember those marinating figs? When they were mulched up and mixed in, a) I needed A LOT of them to override the cocoa which left me with an overwhelming fig flavour, and b) the look and texture was not something you want to put on anything you are intending to eat. Brown. Lumpy. Sticky.
Yeah. No.
So, I pushed it to the side and decided to try a different variant. Fortunately, when I'd purchased the semi-dried figs, I'd also gotten some of "Maggie Beer's Fig & Fennel Paste." The taste was quite mild and was complemented well when I added in a splash of port. The question then was what frosting base I should add it to, bearing in mind I was trying to stay dairy free. I ended up going with the cashew frosting – soak natural cashews in warm water for several hours, then blitz with a bit of oil. A nice subtle flavored frosting that didn't conflict with the fig and port. Very nice!
Previously in Macaron Mayhem:
Add a comment May 5, 2014
Tags: 12th planet, macaron mojo
A New Level of Crazy: Macaron Mayhem – Nightsiders
The cover is yellow, but the flavour of the book is far from bright, nor is it sweet. So no traditional yellow flavour (eg: lemon or banana) would suffice for me. Instead I needed a dark, gritty flavour, and I decided on Vegemite. Don't laugh! And don't knock it 'til you've tried it. The King of Macarons, Adriano Zumbo introduced the world to Vegemite Macarons and the world accepted this offering of ambrosia. And technically is wasn't Vegemite, coz I needed to use Ozemite in order for all the macs to stay gluten free.
The Vegemite was mixed into a white chocolate ganache and a handful of gluten free breadcrumbs for texture. And the salty tang of Vegemite (Ozemite) balances beautifully with the sweet of the white chocolate ganache and the macaron shell.
At the launch this was the flavour that garnished the most attention, and not everyone was convinced enough to try it, but for the most part, those that did thought it worked.
Add a comment May 1, 2014
Tags: 12th planet, macaron mojo
A New Level of Crazy: Macaron Mayhem Edition
As you may have noticed, two of my passions are baking and fandom. And the most fun I can have is when I combine the two. And I had an opportunity to do this recently, because Swancon was on, and Twelfth Planet Press had a special announcement to make. The question was, how to do it in style? Remember last time, when I decorated 300 cupcakes in a hotel room? Yeah, I didn't learn.
And, since this time around I would be in my own kitchen, I couldn't just live with that, could I? Noooo, I had to up the difficulty level. Because that seems to be how I define fun. :)
The Challenge: A macaron for each of the nine released book of the Twelve Planets series. Colour and flavour matched. And for an added twist of difficulty I decided to make over half of the fillings dairy free.
Now, NO ONE should eat nine macarons in a short period, not unless they want to go into sugar shock, so by opting for mini macs we figured we'd lower the sugar intake for those
determined adventurous enough to try all flavours. What Alisa and I discovered with a full day spent cooking, is minis are way harder to get right than traditional sized ones, which means I have A LOT of leftovers (aka way less than perfect) at home that we are working our way though.
FYI they look a lot like this.
However, we did end up with around 450 complete mini macarons for the night.
A night which seemed to be a success.
Last few… they were gone moments later.
And Alisa selling ALL the books!
Oh, and the Twelfth Planet Special Announcement? News about a Thirteenth Planet by Isobel Carmody!
In the next few days I will attempt to post the story of each macaron. I'm not going to give a specific macaron recipe, because there are a million out on the net, and what works for one person doesn't always work for someone else. However, I will talk generically about the shells, and give an idea of what I used for the fillings.
Photo by Cat Sparks
Add a comment April 28, 2014
Tags: 12th planet, macaron mojo
Excuses, Excuses, Excuses
A few months ago there was a huge internet storm after Maria Kang, self described "FitMom", posted a photo of herself and her children with the words "What's Your Excuse?" plastered over it.
Now I know she wasn't the first person to use that phrase, and she certainly hasn't been the last. And hats off to her that she can exercise and eat well and raise her kids, and keep her household running and run her business. That's great.
However, something has bugged me since the furor erupted, and it took me a bit to realise what it was.
I have to say I HATE the phrase "What's your excuse?" Particularly the use of the word excuse. The term excuse immediately acts to invalidate a genuine reason. And yes, while the phrase may be technically correct, the tone it is offered in is always one of self righteousness – "If I can do it, then you should be able to." It shows no empathy for others. No understanding or compassion.
I've heard colleagues say it: I can do X job and Y job, and all the filing, mopping, broadcasting and rocket building – what's your excuse?
I've heard writers say it: I can work full time, raise a family, run a marathon, cook a gourmet meal and knock out a novel by lunchtime – what's your excuse?
Because if they can do it then obviously anyone can.
It's a selfish, arrogant and dismissive thing to say! No one truly knows another persons circumstances. No two people have the exact same circumstances, so what works for one person may be totally ineffective or unsustainable or unobtainable for another. And branding a persons reasons as an "excuse", belittles those circumstances.
Personally, I think it's the equivalent of telling a depressed person to "get over it" or "cheer up". It's not helpful, it's harmful. It's like saying "I broke up with my partner and I'm fine, so what are you moping about?"
ETA: All of the above is addressing the fact that you might actually be striving for the same thing as the person commenting. As Alisa says, "…the other thing that bugged me about it was implication that we want what she/they have." And THAT is a whole other issue.
Add a comment January 28, 2014
Tags: excuses
Gluten Free Fluffy Pancakes
Last night we had had some awesome gluten free pancakes. I mean GF Pancakes can be pretty blah normally, but these…will become a staple. However, these weren't awesome just because they were GF, but pretty amazing pancakes anyway! They were light and fluffy, not rubbery or crumbly, and tasted like real pancakes.
2-3 egg whites
2 cups gluten free self raising flour
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar (we used maple syrup for flavour and taste)
2 eggs
Beat the egg whites until stiff and meringue like
Beat all other ingredients in a separate bowl until thoroughly mixed
Fold in beaten egg whites
Drop spoonfuls into a hot buttered pan.
Cook as per normal. However these are thick enough that they tend to start to burn on the outside without being cooked through, so keep an eye on the temperature.
Add a comment May 27, 2013
Tags: cooking, Gluten free, recipe
Buying a smile
When I was a baby I had an accident. Well, actually, I had multiple accidents as an infant, but the specific incident I am referring to in this post happened when I was just ten months old.
It was mid afternoon, and I had been put down to sleep on a bed, with a bottle. Wriggly child that I was I managed to roll off of the bed, and I knocked my mouth on the collar of the bottle, dislodging one of my baby teeth, root and all. At the time, while I imagine there was a bit of blood and more than a few tears on my part, and panic and distress on my mum's, I don't think it was considered a serious accident. After all, it was only a baby tooth, surely the adult one would grow in eventually.
But time went by, and nothing happened. My baby teeth fell out, the adult teeth grew in, but not the one that I had been missing forever. And it wasn't like I could hide it, after all it was front and centre.
Now missing front teeth might be considered cute on a kindy kid,
but as you get older it starts to attract looks, and by eight or nine you start to get Questions.
So, when I was ten I received My First Denture. (Now, there's a title you don't see often in the My First range.) It took a bit of getting used to, and it was a definite learning experience…the first thing I learned is that it didn't mix well with bubble gum, rather it seemed to get tied in knots and end up in all kinds of weird mess in my mouth. This led directly to me learning the hard way not to put it in the back pocket of my shorts when I needed to take it out, because a week or so after getting my first denture, I had to get my second one, when I sat down and managed to break it into multiple pieces.
I was on double dentist visits at school…I had the usual six monthly checks, and on the alternate six months I would have my plate assessed.
And then I left school. And due to affordability, and procrastination, and apprehension I have had only a handful of visits since. And it is a testament to the workmanship of the school dentists that a denture that is supposed to last five years or so has lasted me five times longer.
You know, I've never been overly comfortable with my smile, and at times I've been very self conscious of it, but I've never quite taken the step to do something about it, after all, there's always more important things to pay for.
And then my parents decided to buy me a new smile.
I had several options open to me, and I explored each one. I always thought if I ever did anything I would have an implant done…it costs Outrageou$ $tupid Dollar$ to get it done, but it's as close to the real thing as you can get. Then I found out what was involved and quickly reconsidered. It was trips to Perth, probably surgery under general anesthetic, lots of healing time and a process that would take about six months. On the other hand, the next option only cost $tupid Dollar$ in comparison, could be done at my local dentist, and would only take two weeks.
I'll take option B thanks, Eddie.
So that's what I've been doing…on Monday there was needles and moulds and drilling and grinding. (And possibly tears, coz, you know, needles, and dentist!) And I walked out with a temporary measure to get me through the next two weeks. Except it didn't survive my first meal. i bit into a soft, fresh bread roll and the temporary measure broke. Obviously this eating gig needs some readjustment. So yesterday I was back at the dentists. They were jam packed all day and could only squeeze me in at the very end of the day, so I stayed hidden away like the Hunchback of Notre Dame all day, until I could rush to the surgery for my emergency fix.
Apparently breakages are very common, so I figure I'm going to exist on soft foods for the next two weeks. Don't want to risk that again. At least it's soup weather atm. Soup and ice cream! :)
It's so weird though. For the first time in over thirty years (30??!!!) I don't have a plate in. I can feel texture and temperature with my whole mouth now, and I almost have a lisp as my tongue tries to adjust to these few extra millimeters of play room suddenly granted. It's a strange feeling indeed.
1 comment May 8, 2013
Tags: anecdotes, Dentist, health, smile
"Just 'Coz" day
I have the most awesome friends and today they declared it was "Just 'Coz" day.
I don't celebrate birthdays. Or Christmas. Or Easter. Or Mother's Day, Valentines Day etc, etc…..And my friends and family that do celebrate, and know I don't, respect me enough to neither give me presents or expect presents from me.
What I do believe in and celebrate though, is "Just 'Coz" day. I love "Just 'Coz" day – it says "I saw this and thought of you!" I think it's personal, and meaningful. It also sneaks up on you in wonderful ways, and surprises you when you least expect it.
Today, Alisa and Tehani surprised me with the most gorgeous napery set, covered in colorful macarons. (From one of my favourite brands, no less.)
And, as an added bonus, it's trimmed in Twelfth Planet Press pink.
Add a comment May 6, 2013
Tags: friends, justcoz, prezzies
Well, Conflux has been and gone and it was great fun! I had never been to Canberra, so that was an adventure in itself. And if eating a salad in the airport counts, I have visited Adelaide as well. So now I have been to every capital city in Australia. I am so well travelled. Next stop, get myself a passport.
Mostly for me the weekend was about supporting Alisa and Twelfth Planet Press, and getting to catch up with friends! And late nights…oh the late nights. #Iamold
By far the greatest majority of my time was spent in the Dealers Room, but I quite like that, because nearly everyone wanders through at some stage or another, so I get to see everyone.
I don't tend to do panels, so my one contribute was organising the awards ceremony. I wanted something fun and engaging and the awesome Deb Biancotti provided all that. She did an amazing job.
Congratulations to all the winners! It was wonderful to see some of my favourite fandom people being honoured.
And the trophies themselves this year were stunning! Lewis Morley did a beautiful job on them. Most years I am a bit meh about the trophies, (although squeaky octopii were definitely cool) and I have never been particularly sad that I don't do award worthy things….but oh, I badly coveted this year's edition. And then some people actually got TWO of them! So not fair! (It is really…Tansy, Kaaron and Kathleen all deserved to win their categories!)
I thought I had people convinced about me being all sweetness and light, but Sean the Blogonaut saw through me when it came to the Ditmars…because I utilised my underworld contacts to procure myself a Blackmarket edition.
It's so, so pretty sitting in my cabinet.
Add a comment May 4, 2013
Tags: Conflux, Ditmars, Natcon, travel


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Tommy Haas got off to a quick start against Mikhail Youzhny in the French Open fourth round, and it was Youzhny's racquet that paid the price.
By: BasicChannel | Comments: 11 | Views: 1178 | Votes: 0 | Shared: 0
Location: Paris, Île-de-France, France | Leaked: Jun-3-2013 in Sports
Russian tennis player bleeding after hitting himself with tennis racquet 3 times at ATP Masters
An incredible match Monday night between Spain's Nicolas Almagro and Russia's Mikhail Youzhny (called "The Colonel" because of his post-match salute) led to one of the best points in years, and some b
By: beck64 | Comments: 26 | Views: 28175 | Votes: 2 | Shared: 17
Location: Miami, Florida, United States | Leaked: Apr-2-2008 in News, Arts and Entertainment
Radwanska loses her racquet... LOL!
. She is left holding a ____ ? .
By: stirgy | Comments: 12 | Views: 2666 | Votes: 0 | Shared: 0
Location: United States | Leaked: Aug-25-2012 in WTF, Sports
Tennis Player Serena Williams Goes Nuts: Destroys Her Racquet After Tight Battle With Sloane Stephens
Such bad sportsmanship.. Must be all that testosterone!
By: Dolla Sines | Comments: 973 | Views: 71298 | Votes: 8 | Shared: 602
Location: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia | Leaked: Jan-23-2013 in Sports
Roger Federer smash shot leaves opponents baffled at Brisbane Invitational
The old dog still has a few new tricks. Former world No1 Roger Federer left his opponents -- and his partner Nicolas Mahut -- bemused during a doubles match at the Brisbane Invitational in Australia.
By: vinay408 | Comments: 28 | Views: 3708 | Votes: 1 | Shared: 0
Location: Manhattan, New York, United States | Leaked: Jan-4-2014 in Sports
Fire Engulfs Apartment Complex in Pennsylvania
MIDDLETOWN TOWNSHIP, Pa. — A fire at a Bucks County apartment complex Friday night destroyed much of the complex, displaced dozens of residents and sent two people to the hospital. Firefight
By: mrepicallyfailed | Comments: 10 | Views: 899 | Votes: 0 | Shared: 0
Location: Pennsylvania, United States | Leaked: Jul-27-2013 in Regional News
Disabled war veteran pilot wins Paralympics gold
Israeli tennis player Noam Gershoni won the gold medal in the London Paralympics Games Saturday, after he beat the world's No. 1 wheelchair tennis player, American David Wagner This was Israel's fir
By: aydeo | Comments: 12 | Views: 2016 | Votes: 1 | Shared: 0
Leaked: Sep-11-2012 in Other Middle East, Sports
Big Brother Olympics
. Oppressive rules that ban Olympic ticketholders from bringing a range of items from long-lens cameras to Che Guevara t-shirts and 'excessive food' to venues have been revealed by organizers. The li
By: stirgy | Comments: 48 | Views: 1440 | Votes: 0 | Shared: 0
Location: London, England, United Kingdom (UK/GB) | Leaked: Jul-12-2012 in World News
Australian OpenTennis: Djokovic Enjoys His Laugh!
Australian Open Tennis : Djokovic Enjoys His Laugh! -DR. ABDUL RUFF --------- A tennis tournament of nerves. Indeed it was for hours! Serb Novak Djokovic and Spaniard R
By: abdulruff | Comments: 1 | Views: 2336 | Votes: 0 | Shared: 0
Location: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia | Leaked: Jan-31-2012 in Other
Wimp Tennis Player
A tennis player at the Australian Open was struck with a ball and later refused to shake his opponents hand. Here's the link: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/tennis-busted-racquet/berdych-refuses-shak
By: tag261 | Comments: 22 | Views: 4666 | Votes: 1 | Shared: 0
Leaked: Jan-23-2012 in Sports
Amazing Athlete
Mansour Bahrami couldn't afford a tennis racquet growing up, so he used frying pans and broom handles to imitate the players he saw while working as a ball boy at sports complex in Tehran. When a fr
By: dcmfox | Comments: 4 | Views: 2990 | Votes: 3 | Shared: 0
Leaked: May-20-2011 in Other Entertainment
Neighborhood fight in Sweden, Malmö -1995
Kids had been driving around with mopeds in the neighborhood for weeks. The local alkoholics(lady and the man in the red shirt) did not like this so they went out every night to complain and try to pi
By: kentastoffe | Comments: 26 | Views: 18478 | Votes: 3 | Shared: 0
Leaked: Oct-28-2009 in Other
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Julio Jones Shows Us "How it Ends" for Under Armour
Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones appears in this ad for Under Armour titled "How it Ends." Shot with a high speed camera, Jones' success on the field is captured from finish to start. By all means an advertising spot, but the concept and Jones' final mid-air execution of it is nothing short of amazing.
Date: Jun 4, 2013 / Views: 5491 / Author: Nate Bodansky


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MOUNT AIRY, N.C. (AP) — Republican leaders in a northwest North Carolina Senate district have chosen an outgoing House member as the party's nominee after the incumbent died last month.
The Mount Airy News reported (http://bit.ly/VvJhnP ) that GOP leaders voted Sunday to make Rep. Shirley Randleman of Wilkes County the nominee for a Senate seat covering Wilkes, Surry and Stokes counties.
The late Sen. Don East died two weeks ago and is on Tuesday's ballot. Randleman will succeed East if East receives more votes that Democrat Ric Marshall, who lost to East two years ago.
Randleman is a two-term House member who decided not to seek re-election to that chamber this year.
Six candidates sought the Senate nomination. It took five votes by the local GOP executive committee to choose a winner.


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Columbus-area car dealership Dennis Mitsubishi (shown) has drawn the ire of many for producing a radio spot that declares "a jihad on the automotive market". Oh how we wish it ended with just that. The spot also proclaims that salespeople wearing burqas, the traditional head-to-toe garb of Islamic women, will sell vehicles that can "comfortably seat 12 jihadists in the back." More of the ad's controversial rhetoric can be found at the link.
The dealership's president, Keith Dennis, says that the idea was to produce an ad using some of the buzzwords in the media that could be a tension reliever. Mission not accomplished, sir. He also claimed it was fair game to poke "a little fun at radical extremists."
We seriously doubt people are turned off by the ad because it hurts the feelings of radical extremists and no one would want to threaten the dealership's right to free speech, but there's something about being incendiary for the sake of sales that rubs some the wrong way. We long for the day when we can just buy a new car from a vending machine and be done with it.
We'd like to hear your thoughts, as long as everyone keeps the discussion intelligent and civil in the comments.
Thanks for the tip, Ryan!
[Source: ABC News]


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links: http://www.flickr.come/people/calwri http://www.last.fm/user/calwri
* by varjagg on Flickr.
Tagged: bergen norway june 2011 leica m4 summicron 35mm f/2 v4 preasph kodak 5222 double-x EI320 t-max developer couple male female mirror self portrait
Posted on March 19, 2013 with 2 notes
Borisov by varjagg on Flickr.
Tagged: borisov belarus july 3 2011 leica m4 summicron 35mm f/2 v4 preasph kodak double-x 5222 EI320 microphen political kid boy child holding bow shooting president lukashenko authoritarian dictator беларусь снайпер
Posted on March 14, 2013 with 1 note
Pre-Start Parade Classic Grand Prix by Toprope on Flickr.
Tagged: Schleizer Dreieck Classic Grand Prix 2011 AMC Schleiz Oldtimer racer racers racecar racecars race track racetrack grip grit grid girl umbrella girls chica babe Hostessmodel hostess women chic hot sexy
Posted on February 18, 2012


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Shema Yisrael necklaceSend this page to a friend
Artist : Danon
Price : US$ 45
Code : 1070-4851-MG1
This fashionable Shema Yisrael necklace by Danon has a modern look that will stand out whenever worn. The oval shaped pendant has the two Hebrew words Shema Yisrael inscribed in the middle of the silver plated plaque framed and suspended from a gold plated chain. Three Swarovski crystals are set into the pendant enhancing the beauty of this Judaic piece of jewelry The Shema Yisrael credo: Hear O Yisrael, are the first two words of the most important prayer in Judaism, and is recited twice-daily. The prayer requires from every Jewish person to love the one and only G-d with all one's heart, soul and might. Length of the elegant Shema Yisrael necklace is 17''.
Sub category :
Illustrated Shema
Judaic Jewelry
Israeli Necklaces


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(WMC) - Another thunderstorm has left damage in some Mid-South areas.
Marked Tree Police Department reported trees and limbs down along Highway 149.
In Cross County, the Cherry Valley area had a round of heavy thunderstorms that brought damaging winds through the area.
"It could have been way worse, of course. Way worse," said resident Janet Polston. "I'm not sure if it was straight-line winds or a tornado that just didn't touch down. I don't know."
The winds snapped many poles in two, and brought power lines down on Highway 1 from Wynne to Cherry Valley.
Polston and her daughter were inside their home during the storm.
"It just came up all at once. I was watching it through my back glass and I heard it above my head."
Power crews from Entergy and several crews of contractors from across the state were on hand helping to get lines off the ground.
After a stormy two weeks, Polston said this minimal damage is more of a blessing.
"I'm thankful, because I know there are a lot of people who haven't been this lucky," said Polston.
Emergency crews say there were more power lines and outages in the county, but no report of injuries.
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Emperor is a Norwegian black metal band formed in 1991, regarded as highly influential by critics and emerging black metal bands. They dissolved in 2001, but reunited from 2005 to 2007 for a few festival dates and brief US tours, and will once again be reuniting in 2014. The group was founded by Ihsahn (guitar/vocals) and Samoth (then, drums).
Norwegian black metal band
This entry is from Wikipedia, the user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors and is licensed under an Attribution-ShareAlike Creative Commons License. If you find the biography content factually incorrect, defamatory or highly offensive you can edit this article at Wikipedia. Find out more about our use of this data.
Links & Information
- Official homepage at emperorhorde.com
- MySpace at https://myspace.com/emperorhorde
- Wikipedia article on Emperor (band)
- Last.fm page on Emperor
- Discogs at discogs.com/artist/130366
- MusicBrainz entry on Emperor
Links & information come from MusicBrainz. You can add or edit information about Emperor at musicbrainz.org. Find out more about our use of this data. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.


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Filed under: Truck, Videos, Hatchback, Subaru, Humor, Off-Road, Ram
Well this should make a Ram fan or two blush. A Ram four-door pulling a trailer was saved from the clutches of a muddy rut by none other than a second-generation Subaru WRX. That's the power of all-wheel drive for ya!
It's unclear where the video was taken, but amidst many other trucks (all appear to be pulling camper trailers as well), it was the humble Subie that came to the rescue. Using your standard canvas tow strap, the Fuji Heavy hardware barely appears to struggle, though the Ram does its part, too.
We don't get much of a reaction from the driver of the compact hatchback, but we can infer: "AWD, FTW!" One can argue the merits of the Subaru's footing in contrast to that of the mighty full-size pickup, but there's no denying the video evidence below.
As Autoblog scribe Zach Bowman sagely remarked upon watching the footage, "That video is why I hate buying used cars." Touché.Continue reading Watch this Subaru lug a Ram pickup and a trailer out of the mud
Watch this Subaru lug a Ram pickup and a trailer out of the mud originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 14:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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By: Bees69
Video Details
Views: 3901
Runtime: 3:10
Date: 5 years ago
pocket pussy 2
fucking the pocket pussy my wife sent me while in Iraq. I welcome all comments and if you have any requets for videos let me know and i will try and shoot it for you.
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Decorations add elegance and excitement to your party so if you're having a gold theme add some gold and white...
Decorations add elegance and excitement to your party so if you're having a gold theme add some gold and white decorations and make it complete.
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The medium tin buckets are bright, cheery, efficient, and practical. So we wrote a song about them.
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Gold and White Pom Poms - Set of 5 by Martha Stewart
Bring the white gold elegance of European palaces and castles to your candy bar buffet.
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World News
Monarch butterflies on the decline
The number of Monarch butterflies wintering in Mexico plunged this year to its lowest level since studies began in 1993, leading experts to announce Wednesday that the insects' annual migration from the United States and Canada is in danger of disappearing.
A report released by the World Wildlife Fund, Mexico's Environment Department and the Natural Protected Areas Commission blames the displacement of the milkweed the species feeds on by genetically modified crops and urban sprawl in the United States, as well as the dramatic reduction of the butterflies' habitat in Mexico due to illegal logging of the trees they depend on for shelter.
After steep and steady declines in the previous three years, the black-and-orange butterflies now cover only 1.65 acres (0.67 hectares) in the pine and fir forests west of Mexico City, compared to 2.93 acres (1.19 hectares) last year. They covered more than 44.5 acres (18 hectares) at their recorded peak in 1995.
Because the butterflies clump together by the thousands in trees, they are counted by the area they cover.
The decline in the Monarch population now marks a statistical long-term trend and can no longer be seen as a combination of yearly or seasonal events, experts say.
The announcement followed on the heels of the 20th anniversary of the North American Free Trade Agreement, which saw the United States, Mexico and Canada signing environmental accords to protect migratory species such as the Monarch. At the time, the butterfly was adopted as the symbol of trilateral co-operation.
"Twenty years after the signing of NAFTA, the Monarch migration, the symbol of the three countries' co-operation, is at serious risk of disappearing," said Omar Vidal, Omar Vidal, the World Wildlife Fund director in Mexico.
Lincoln Brower, a leading entomologist at Sweet Briar College in Virginia, wrote that "the migration is definitely proving to be an endangered biological phenomenon."
Butterfly guide Emilio Velazquez Moreno, 39, and other farmers in the village of Macheros, located inside the reserve, have been planting small plots of milkweed in a bid to provide food for the Monarchs if they decide to stay in Mexico year-round, which he said some do.
Sitting beside a mountainside patch of firs where the butterflies were clumping on the branches, Velazquez Moreno, a second-generation guide who has been visiting the butterflies since he was a boy, said "we have to protect this. This comes first, this is our heritage."
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The justification for a crossing facility is assessed by reference to a Department for Transport Assessment Framework (Local Transport Note 1/95) which includes such factors as average waiting times for pedestrians to cross, estimated vehicle delay if a crossing is installed, accident history, vehicle and pedestrian volumes and composition, site characteristics and installation/maintenance costs. The pre- 1995 criteria of a PV squared formula (no.of pedestrians x no.of vehicles squared to exceed a value of 100 million) is still useful in terms of prioritising locations for consideration, but does not form part of the assessment framework.
There are situations, such as few gaps in traffic and long pedestrian waiting times or speeds, that would indicate the location is unsuitable for a zebra crossing and a signal controlled crossing would be more appropriate. At the other end of the scale, a site with low traffic flows and little pedestrian delay might not require a formal crossing at all, and a pedestrian refuge might be more appropriate, if one can be accommodated.
There is already considerable flexibility in interpreting the results of the Assessment Framework but the primary determinant is still likely to be the availability of funds and relation to other priorities. For instance, if a facility forms part of a larger pedestrian route, then it may be possible to seek funding from a relevant associated budget (e.g. school travel plans). Equally, if the proposal is likely to reduce casualties at a location then it may qualify as a Local Safety Scheme.


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28th Annual Asparagus Festival
It's asparagus time again. The time we celebrate the delicious green spear grown locally in the San Joaquin Delta. This year the three-day festival will be held April 26, 27 and 28 at Stockton's own downtown waterfront.
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